Another Villainess.
The King’s younger brother, Amor Claydale.
I’m not very familiar with the royal family, but the current king has about ten siblings. Most of the male royals were married off into established ducal families or other countries. However, for a certain reason, the youngest brother, whose fiancée was undecided, was left in the royal family.
So that’s him… Considering what Sera told me about the current state of the royal family, it seems he was left as a “reserve” due to the current king taking a woman of low status as his queen.
Originally, the position of “King’s younger brother” is equivalent to a grand duke who assists the king in political matters.
But, if things are as I imagine, he hasn’t even been granted the power equivalent to a duke, and I presume he’s in a situation akin to being “kept alive,” merely as a member of the royal family.
Considering that, the Crown Prince, who is the son of the current king and queen, shouldn’t be a favorable existence for him. That’s why I think he feels a twisted desire to protect Elena, who is in a similar situation to himself.
“Say something!”
Amor, seemingly impatient with my silent presence, pointed his dagger at me. Sera, looking tired, gently tried to dissuade him.
“Please stop, Your Highness. This person is one of the collaborators from the ‘Rainbow Sword.’ Their leader, Dolton, is a noble who has earned a baronetcy for his achievements.”
“A commoner noble for one generation. A dwarven noble and adventurer is no different from a ruffian.”
He seems to be a bit rigid. I exchanged glances with Elena, who was behind Amor, and she nodded slightly.
We’re not in a “weak” relationship where we lick each other’s wounds. We confirmed that it’s enough for us to be alive, and I turned my back on Amor, who was arguing with Sera.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“The enemies in this area have been defeated. Sera and the knights are enough for protection, so you can do as you please. I’ll explore the surroundings just in case and rejoin my companions. If you have any further complaints, tell our ’employer.'”
“What?”
Amor was speechless at my words. Normally, it would be disrespectful to royalty, but Sera and the knights didn’t move, and Elena turned away, covering her mouth with her hand.
I heard that the employer of the Rainbow Sword is the prime minister of this country. Even if the direct employer is the prime minister, they are hired as royal guards, so it must have been His Majesty the King who approved it.
Agreeing with Amor’s opinion would be defying a royal order, and I understand why Sera and the knights, who understand this, didn’t move. But the fact that they didn’t move even against my disrespect means that the Rainbow Sword is trusted that much by the knights.
After separating from them and returning to the original location, Feld had already finished the extermination, and the knights were capturing the few surviving attackers.
When I appeared, Feld noticed and raised one hand.
“Aria, are you alright? How did it go on your end?”
“No problem. I confirmed the safety of the target.”
Even if I’m scolded by Viro and Sera, I’m not used to just being worried about, so I feel a little itchy.
I returned to the carriage with Feld, who wasn’t injured or even tired, and after reporting the series of events, Viro left the carriage as if to replace me.
Sera, who is related to the employer, was there, so he probably went to greet her. I think Viro probably had a quarrel with Amor too, but Viro, who came back with a grimace, must have had something happen, as he silently flicked my forehead with his finger.
Our carriage joined Elena’s group as it was, and we headed to the port town together. However, even though we were together, we were going ahead to clear the way, so we didn’t particularly meet.
In the first place, Amor probably doesn’t want to meet me, let alone Elena.
According to what Viro heard from Sera, Amor wasn’t originally involved in this dungeon raid, but he forced his participation.
I don’t think he, as a “reserve,” would be allowed to enter a dangerous dungeon, but conversely, it means that the royal family’s power is declining to the point where they have no choice but to allow it.
What is it that the royal family seeks from the dungeon to such an extent…?
Several days passed, and we and Elena’s group arrived at the port town of the Fuder Dukedom without any problems.
I thought Elena, who was physically weak, would rest for a few days, but the rest of the group had already arrived. They handed over the survivors of the attack to the viscount who manages the port town and headed straight for the ship.
According to Viro’s report, the attackers were from a baronial family that was a dependent of a marquis from the “Aristocratic Faction.” The baron will probably be abandoned as a scapegoat, but it seems they consider it a sufficient achievement to have grasped the weakness of the marquis, who is his patron.
We left the butler and the carriage at a mid-level inn in the port town and headed to the large ship we were planning to board, and it was decided that the departure would be in two days.
The large ship is a military sailing ship owned by the Duke of Fuder, and it is said that it can carry up to a thousand soldiers, but this time there are only 150 people on board, including dozens of dungeon raiders, knights of the dukedom, and sailors.
That day, Dolton and Viro only greeted the people involved, and the face-to-face meeting of everyone was held at the dinner the next day.
When I met Elena and the boy introduced as the Crown Prince standing between Amor in the party hall on the ship, he looked a little surprised when he saw me.
While I was wondering about this, Feld, who was next to me, secretly told me.
“Do you remember when we first met? At that time, the boy called El, whom Mira and I were guarding, is him. He seemed to remember Aria too.”
“…………”
I remember when I “first” met Feld.
I see, Elvan, so that’s why “El.” I finally remembered when Feld told me, but I wonder how a person who is supposed to be the Crown Prince was allowed to go to town so often.
But I was more interested in “her” standing next to Elena than Elvan, who is the Crown Prince.
One is a girl called Clara, the daughter of the Margrave of Dandole. Several years have passed since then, and she has grown to about 14 years old in appearance and has become a beautiful lady. But the moment she saw me, her face twisted greatly.
And another person… When “she” caught sight of me, she distorted her face, which had a morbid dark circles under her eyes, and smiled sweetly.
I thought it might be… but the Crown Prince’s fiancée is, as expected, Carla.
[Carla Leicester] [Race: Human Female]
[Mana Capacity: 440/450] 55Up [HP: 29/51] 4Up
[Overall Combat Strength: 749] 426Up
…She’s terrifyingly strong.
Only her HP hasn’t increased like a curse, but her Mana Capacity alone has increased to the same level as Samantha or my master, or even more.
How harsh of training has she been doing? She’s probably been diving into dungeons alone.
If I ever have to fight her, it will definitely be a “deathmatch” where one of us dies.
The face-to-face dinner became a buffet-style party with alcohol served, and the children, whose external appearance had grown to near adulthood but whose actual age was under 12 before entering the academy where they could go to social gatherings, were sent back to their rooms early.
I’m an adventurer, so that area is ambiguous, but Viro becomes a bad adult when alcohol is involved, so I also retreat early.
Monsters also appear on the sea. It’s still in the harbor, and the ship itself burns incense to ward off monsters, so it’s not dangerous to go out on deck, but even so, Elena and the others with guards don’t come out on the deck at night.
Even so, the reason I came out on the deck at night was because of the vigilance against human attackers and because I had a certain “premonition.”
“I knew you’d be here, Aria.”
“No one would care if you went outside alone, Carla.”
Both her appearance and inner self were more morbid than before, but her way of life was even beautiful.
Carla, who approached slowly without hiding her vast Mana, smiled and reached out to me, drawing a line-like wound on my cheek with her pointed black nails.
At that moment, I also grabbed Carla’s slender neck with one hand and put a little force into that hand.
“Are we going to kill each other here, Carla?”
“I’ll pass. This isn’t a ‘stage’ suitable for us.”
When I released Carla’s throat, Carla wiped the blood flowing on my cheek with a handkerchief, used [Cure] to erase the wound, and hugged the soiled handkerchief to her chest.
“Aria shedding blood is beautiful… Someday, I want to defile you with the blood overflowing from my heart.”
“Just die on your own.”
We walked to the edge of the deck and leaned against the railing as if we were side by side.
“What is Carla’s purpose for diving into dungeons?”
“I’ll teach Aria anything she wants to know. The reason we’re diving into the Dungeon is to receive a ‘Divine Protection’ from the Dungeon Spirit.”
“…Do you know the ‘meaning’ of that?”
There’s a “trap” in the [Divine Protection] you get from a Dungeon Spirit.
It’s said that the Spirit gives “Divine Protection” as a reward for reaching the lowest level of the Dungeon, but the power given by a Spirit, who is not mortal, becomes “poison” to mortals.
“Of course. The cheerfully cute El-sama and Dandole’s ‘little lady’ might not know, but I wonder if the ‘Princess,’ who researched it herself, will refuse the Divine Protection?”
I stare at Carla, who laughs at the older Clara, calling her “little lady,” and ask what lies beyond that.
“Then, what do you desire, Carla?”
“It would be wonderful to get Divine Protection… I’m sure I’ll be able to live more like ‘myself.'”
“To heal that ‘body’?”
When I ask Carla, who is gazing dreamily at the moonlit sky, she turns to me slightly and gives a faint smile.
“That moon is like Aria. That’s why we who live in the night reach out to you.”
“If Carla is going to heal her body, I don’t mind cooperating.”
As I step away from the railing and start walking, Carla calls out to me gleefully.
“Are you sure you’re okay with me becoming like that? I might try to kill you, you know?”
“How is that different from what we are now?”
When I turn back slightly and reply, Carla bursts into laughter, further reducing her already low HP.
And then the night dawned, and the ship carrying us set off for the remote island managed by Duke Foodale. Aiming for the “Large-Scale Dungeon” where the Spirit is said to be.
It’s a bleak and subtly complex relationship.
Next time, we’ll finally enter the Dungeon.
Three Villainesses and two Capture Targets. And what will be the fate of Aria, who was supposed to have abandoned being the Heroine?
The next update is scheduled for Wednesday.