“Aria… has been found?”
“Yes, it is a joyous occasion… Princess Elena-sama.”
In the western great power, the Calfaan Empire, at the guest house within the imperial palace grounds, a report arrived via long-range magical communication device. It stated that the girl who was Princess Elena’s close aide and had protected her at the risk of her own life had been discovered by the search party dispatched by the Empire. She was heading towards the Calfaan Empire together with the Adventurer, “Rainbow Sword.”
“Aria…”
She had believed that Aria was alive. Believing only in that, she had appealed to the Empire, using her intellect to move them, and had sent out Aria’s companion, Rainbow Sword.
Even so, there was anxiety. Elena trusted Aria more than her own mother or her father, the King. But even so, Elena could not help but worry about the girl who was the only one in this world to call her “friend.”
“This is truly wonderful, Princess Elena-denka.”
The young man who had brought the news himself, rather than entrusting it to a civil official, gently offered his handkerchief to her, who was teary-eyed.
“Thank you… Prince Lawrence-denka.”
Prince Lawrence Calfaan III. He went by the name Ron and had escaped the desert with Elena and the others. He was originally the first child of the current Emperor and should have been the Crown Prince.
Due to the domestic situation and political reasons, the Emperor had adopted two younger half-brothers and granted them high rights of succession.
Lawrence’s relationship with his two brothers was not bad. They were not particularly close, but neither of them were ambitious, and Lawrence even thought that even if he did not become Emperor, they could govern without problems.
However, there were still voices within the country who wanted Lawrence, the son of the current Emperor and Empress, to be the next Emperor, and senior nobles who were relatives of his brothers, taking this seriously, began to threaten the life of the still young Lawrence.
He could not rely on his father, the Emperor, in this matter. The Emperor, who had relied on the relatives of his half-brothers to settle the domestic situation, could only protect Lawrence by making one of his half-brothers the Crown Prince.
He did not think it was pathetic. He now understood that standing above others and becoming a king required the resolve to discard even emotions.
It was the girl in front of him who had taught him that.
Although she was younger than him, at thirteen years old, she possessed the qualities of a “king.”
Lawrence had only been running away and seeking easy achievements to become a backer for survival, but he began to think that he, as a member of the Imperial Family, could use his life for someone else, rather than just living to survive.
Elena could have jumped off the airship at that time and stayed with that girl.
If she had, that girl would not have had to face the Evil Race Army alone. She would have saved Elena who jumped, and even if it took time, they could have crossed the desert together.
But Elena remained for the sake of Lawrence and the others, who would surely have died if she had.
And she chose to return quickly for the sake of the country’s peace, and abandoned her “friend.”
That was the “two’s” Desire. Even if they decided and chose to do so, Lawrence wanted to do something for Elena, who still thought of her friend.
(…That’s a deception.)
No… Lawrence muttered in his heart.
He wanted to do something just for her, precisely because it was Elena.
“Prince Lawrence-denka, I heard that you are sending troops to that desert town.”
“…That is the plan.”
Lawrence, who had almost reached out to touch her slender shoulder, trembled for a moment.
Considering the possibility of encountering the Evil Race Army and the travel time, the search party had dispatched a hundred elite soldiers familiar with the desert. However, when Rainbow Sword and the search party arrived at Cutlass, there were no Evil Race Army soldiers left.
The search party, after examining the town, found that the town was severely damaged by the Evil Race Army’s attack, and most of the residents were injured or impoverished, so they decided to maintain the peace in the area.
Upon receiving this report, the Empire decided to take this opportunity to make that town a territory of the Empire, and was sending a battalion and food as a second force.
But how did she get that information? Lawrence felt a chill from the maid named Sera, who was smiling gently behind the Princess, nodded to Elena, and then quietly put his hand behind his back.
Lawrence, who had been blindly seeking achievements, had inadvertently gained favor with the great power of Claydale by siding with Elena. As a result, by obtaining Cutlass, which would become a fortress against the Evil Race Nation, the number of people who sided with Lawrence had also increased.
He could vaguely guess what Elena was thinking when she brought up the topic, but now he could fulfill most Desires, unless it was something extraordinary.
Elena, thinking so, spoke her Desire to Lawrence.
“I have a request. I want you to—”
In Cutlass, there were nearly a hundred knights and mercenaries, and thirty supply soldiers.
The unit was composed of skilled individuals who had taken into account the battle with the Evil Race Army, but they were currently busy maintaining the peace in the devastated Cutlass.
As I headed with Dolton and Jesha to the large tent built on the outskirts of the town to meet the commander of the unit, the soldiers and mercenaries in the area pulled back as if to clear the way.
At first, I thought that the fame of “Rainbow Sword” was working here as well, but I felt something like fear in their expressions.
“Aren’t they afraid of you?”
“…………”
I involuntarily tightened my lips at Jesha’s mutter. Having reached Rank 5, my combat power exceeds Dolton’s. No one seemed to care about it until now, so I didn’t pay much attention to it either, but to ordinary people who can appraise, I must look quite strange.
If a person with a high 【Detection】 Skill can tell my strength to some extent even if I hide my appearance with a cloak, I should think about a way to deceive appraisal when I return to Claydale.
There are many skilled people. In other words, those who are good at surviving have a higher probability of remembering 【Appraisal】. The young soldier guarding the entrance of the tent looked at me, his face slightly twitching, and called out inside. A low male voice was heard.
“Let them in.”
Welcoming us inside was a middle-aged Cruz man who felt like he had the strength of Rank 4. He gave Dolton a noble-like greeting, looked at me with his one eye, which bore the scars of a veteran warrior, and relaxed his cheeks slightly.
“I am Baron Slayman. You must be the ‘Ash-Covered Princess’ I’ve heard rumors about. I had only heard half the rumors, but you are far more beautiful than Her Highness told me, Miss Leighton.”
“…I am Aria Leighton.”
Hearing the word “rumors,” I glared lightly at Dolton while greeting him, but Dolton shook his head and shrugged his shoulders slightly.
Just as the beastmen of the Munza Society had heard “rumors” from traveling merchants, my fame seemed to be spreading in strange places. I certainly aimed to be feared, but I had a feeling that it would only increase the amount of trouble.
The “Highness” who had told him about me was Ron. According to what Camille had told me, Ron was the Third Prince of the Calfaan Empire, and judging from Baron Slayman’s way of speaking, he was a supporter of the Third Prince, and the Baron, an Imperial soldier, had led a unit to search for me at Ron’s request.
Jesha, the former Guild Master of the Adventurer’s Guild, was better suited to explain the situation than I was, who was poor at explaining.
It was a somewhat rough explanation with not much honorifics, but with Dolton’s assistance, Baron Slayman understood the general situation, not only sharing the food that was also running out here, but also saying that he would allocate personnel to guide us to the Empire.
Two knighted nobles, who were Baron’s aides, and a unit of the mercenary guild, fifteen people, volunteered to guide us to the Empire to explain the situation and connect us with people.
They had prepared skilled mercenaries from the mercenary guild, taking combat into consideration, but mercenaries are often as rough as Adventurers, so they are not suitable for maintaining peace. It costs money just to hire them, so they were going to send half of them back, but those mercenaries volunteered to accompany us as guides.
Mercenaries and Adventurers sometimes fall into banditry when they have trouble eating.
I’m not saying that’s the case with them, but the reason why they, who should value money and life, volunteered to participate in this mission was revealed during the camping two days after departing for the Calfaan Empire.
“Can you teach me about the strength of Adventurers?”
Adventurers and mercenaries are not particularly at odds. The Adventurer’s Guild is an organization derived from the Mercenary Guild, and their roles themselves may be different, but Adventurers are sometimes invited to the Mercenary Guild, and some of the disbanded mercenary units become Adventurers.
The one who spoke to me was the leader of that unit, a man in his thirties.
His name was Sanje, I believe. Combat strength of 450. A Cruz warrior, high-ranking at Rank 3, who uses a long spear. Certainly, from his perspective, wanting to test his skills against a Rank 5 party, even one of the best in the Kingdom of Claydale, is understandable.
He probably also dislikes how adventurers from other countries are favored by the nation and act so high and mighty.
But what I can’t understand at all is that he directed his gaze not at Dolton, the heavy warrior, nor at Feld, the human warrior…
“You’re the ‘Ash-Covered Princess’!”
“…………”
Again, me…?
Wondering how far the rumors have spread, I sighed and stored the parchment I was reading into my 【Shadow Storage】.
This parchment contained level 5 【Dark Magic】 and 【Light Magic】 spells that my master had written down during our journey.
Light Magic 【Area Heal (All Heal)】. This is a healing magic that expands only the healing effect of level 3 【High Heal】 to the surrounding area. The Mana consumption is several times that of 【High Heal】, but it can heal everyone within range.
Light Magic 【Regenerate (Regene)】. This is an enhanced version of the 【Cure】 effect found in level 3 【High Heal】, capable of regenerating a missing finger in a quarter of an hour.
Dark Magic 【Corrosion (Corrosion)】. This is a rare dark attack magic, and also an area attack. It inflicts damage by reducing the HP of those affected by the dark area by 1 per second for several tens of seconds. The slow activation speed is a drawback, but in return, it cannot be resisted.
Dark Magic 【Levitate (Levitate)】. This allows the caster to float for several minutes, depending on their skill. You can’t fly around freely, but you can move somewhat freely by using Wind Magic in combination or by kicking off walls.
…Probably, Carla was occasionally floating in the air using this magic.
Master’s task for me was to master one of these spells before returning to the Kingdom of Claydale, and honestly, I don’t have time to deal with a test of skill, but I guess I have no choice… I sighed again.
“…Are you really going to do this?”
“Oh, I’ll show you I’m serious, so be prepared!”
Looking at Sanje, who took a stance with his spear, I realized that he was a well-trained, orthodox spear user, despite being only Rank 3, and I stopped underestimating him.
“Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
The tip of the spear attacks my shoulder. I slip sideways with footwork to evade it, and Sanje’s spear immediately sweeps at my feet.
“What!?”
I was standing on the sweeping spearhead. Before Sanje could realize my weight, I ran along the shaft of the spear and unleashed a kick, which landed squarely on his momentarily stiffened chin, easily knocking him unconscious.
…What was that?
Just when I thought it was over too easily, Sanje woke up, and for some reason, Feld and he were lecturing me about how a young lady shouldn’t kick with her skirt, and other such nagging.
“…Like my dad.”
“”!?””
For some reason, the two of them were speechless at my muttered words. From that day on, the mercenaries started taking care of me proactively, which I didn’t understand, but apparently, they had all joined this exploration party to meet the rumored “Ash-Covered Princess.”
…Why?
It was quite a forced march, but thanks to the use of military carriages, we arrived in the territory of the Calfaan Empire in about ten days, much earlier than planned.
It’s almost here… I’ll be able to see Elena soon. My feet, which had been on alert outside the carriage, naturally quickened with impatience. In the midst of this, Viro, who was guarding the front, raised his voice about something.
“I see something!”
“Hmm… the Empire’s army?”
In response to Viro’s cautious voice, Mira, who had the 【Farsight】 Skill and was surveying the surroundings from the top of the carriage, narrowed her eyes and revealed its identity.
“An army… Sir Knight, have you heard anything?”
“I believe a battalion is stationed to govern Cutlass, but I haven’t heard that they would be coming from this route.”
One of the knights borrowed from Baron Slayman, who had come out of the carriage, tilted his head as he said this in response to Dolton’s question.
This route allows for a relatively quick arrival, but there are narrow sections and it is vulnerable to attacks from Monsters. It’s not a problem for us, but there’s no reason to choose it as a route for a large battalion of nearly a thousand people, though I wouldn’t say it’s impossible.
“Be on guard, just in case.”
At Dolton’s instruction, Rainbow Sword and the mercenaries, including Sanje, who looked momentarily perplexed, began to move, preparing for battle in a way that didn’t seem unnatural.
Ron… the Third Prince has enemies who are after his life. It seems that Ron’s position has stabilized with Elena’s presence, but there was a possibility that they would target “me” to undermine him.
It’s an exaggeration to use a battalion-scale force for that, but if the commander is a high-ranking noble, they could change the route, fabricate espionage suspicions, and deceive us with a surprise attack.
“…………”
As we gradually approached and the entire battalion came into view, several mounted soldiers rode out from the other side and shouted in front of us.
“Are you Dolton of the Rainbow Sword and his companions?”
“That’s right, who are you?”
“We are the support battalion stationed in Cutlass. Viscount Tarar, the commander, has ordered us to invite Sir Dolton and the young lady who was found with him!”
“…Understood. Tell him we’ll be there soon.”
“Yes, sir!”
As the messenger returned to the battalion, the knight who had received Dolton’s gaze replied, “He’s a neutral noble.” Not enough information to make a decision. But from the aura I feel from them, I don’t sense the kind of tension that comes from trying to deceive us with a surprise attack.
“Let’s go and see what’s up, for now.”
“Well, I guess so.”
Dolton nodded lightly at my words. There’s almost no one who can easily kill Dolton, who is fortified with Mithril, and me in my current state. At worst, while Dolton is holding back the soldiers, I can kill the commanders in order from the top, so we took a step forward.
When we arrived at the battalion where we had stopped, curious gazes were directed at us from the soldiers who had cleared the way. The occasional suppressed small scream was probably from someone who had appraised us.
Along the way, the knight from earlier returned and guided us on foot, and the door of a luxurious carriage, unsuitable for the military, opened… That’s Ron? Ron, with the dirt I remembered washed away and wearing a luxurious outfit, noticed me and smiled slightly, then took the hand of the next person to appear and quietly helped “her” out of the carriage.
The sight of the girl in a luxurious dress no less extravagant than Ron’s caused the surrounding soldiers and knights to let out inaudible sighs of admiration.
In the midst of that slight commotion, I involuntarily stopped, and she, noticing this, filled her blue eyes with tears and jumped into my chest as if shaking off Ron’s hand.
“Welcome back… Aria.”
“I’m home… Elena.”
We were finally able to reunite.
I was writing while thinking that having level 5 magic would make the dragon battle easier!
Next time, the Calfaan Empire
The first volume of the book was released yesterday, and some of you may be reading it from today, but please don’t overdo it.