“Aria… has been found?”
“Yes, that’s wonderful news… Elena-sama.”
In the great western nation, the Calfaan Empire. Within the guest house on the grounds of the royal palace, a report arrived via a long-distance communication magic tool from the search party dispatched by the Empire. It stated that the princess’s close aide, the girl who had risked her life to protect the princess, had been found and was heading to the Calfaan Empire along with the adventurers, the “Rainbow Sword.”
“Aria…”
She had believed Aria was alive. Believing only that, she had appealed to the Empire, used all her wisdom to move the Empire, and sent out Aria’s companions, the Rainbow Sword.
Still, she had been anxious. She trusted Aria more than her mother, more than her father the king. Even so, Elena couldn’t help but worry about the girl who was the only one in this world to call her a “friend.”
“This is truly wonderful news… Your Highness Elena.”
The young man who had brought the news himself, rather than entrusting it to a civil official, gently offered his handkerchief to the tearful Elena.
“Thank you very much… Your Highness Lawrence.”
Lawrence Calfaan, the Third Prince. The man who called himself Ron-san and had escaped the desert with Elena and the others was originally supposed to be the current Emperor’s first child and the Crown Prince.
Due to the internal situation and political reasons within the Empire, the Emperor had adopted his two much younger half-brothers and granted them high rights of succession.
Lawrence’s relationship with his two “brothers” wasn’t bad. They weren’t particularly close either, but neither was an ambitious person, and Lawrence even thought that a stable reign could be achieved even if he didn’t become Emperor.
However, there were still voices within the country wishing for Lawrence, the son of the current Emperor and Empress, to be the next Emperor. The high-ranking nobles, relatives of his “brothers,” who viewed this seriously, began to threaten the life of the still-young Lawrence.
He couldn’t rely on his father, the Emperor, regarding this matter. The Emperor, who had relied on the relatives of his half-brothers to stabilize the country’s internal affairs, could only protect Lawrence by making one of his half-brothers the Crown Prince.
He didn’t think it was pathetic. He now understood that to stand above others and become a king required the resolve to cast aside even emotions.
The one who had taught him that was the girl before him.
Despite being younger than him, at thirteen years old, she possessed the qualities of a “king.”
Until now, Lawrence had merely been fleeing, seeking clear achievements that would serve as backing for his survival. But he had begun to think that, as a member of the royal family, he might be able to use his life for someone else, rather than just living to survive.
At that time, Elena had the option to jump off the hot air balloon and be with that girl.
If she had, that girl wouldn’t have had to face the Evil Race army alone, would have saved Elena who jumped, and the two of them, given enough time, might have even been able to cross the desert.
However, Elena remained for Lawrence and the others, who would have surely lost their lives if she had done so.
And then, choosing to return quickly for the sake of national peace and stability, she had “cast aside” her “friend.”
That was what “those two” had wished for. Even though they had decided on it and chosen to do so, Lawrence wanted to do something for Elena, who still thought of her friend.
(…It’s a deception, isn’t it?)
Chigau… Lawrence muttered so in his heart.
It was precisely because it was Elena that he wanted to do something just for her.
“Your Highness Lawrence, I heard you are sending soldiers to that desert town.”
“…That is the plan.”
Lawrence, who had been about to unconsciously reach out to her slender shoulder, trembled for a moment.
For the search party, considering the possibility of clashing with the Evil Race army and the travel time, an elite company of one hundred men, well-versed in desert warfare, had been dispatched. However, by the time the Rainbow Sword and the search party arrived in Cutlass, no one from the Evil Race army remained.
The search party that investigated the town found that it was severely damaged due to the Evil Race army’s attack, and most of the residents were either injured or impoverished. Consequently, they moved to maintain public order in the area.
Upon receiving this report, the Empire decided to send a battalion and food supplies as a second wave, intending to take this opportunity to bring that town under Imperial control.
But how did she obtain that information? Feeling a slight chill from the handmaiden named Sera-san, who was smiling gently diagonally behind the princess, Lawrence nodded to Elena and then quietly moved his hand behind his back.
Lawrence had been blindly seeking achievements, but by coincidentally siding with Elena, he had ended up indebting the great nation of Claydale. As a result, by acquiring Cutlass, which would serve as a fortress against the Evil Race Nation, the number of people supporting Lawrence had also increased.
He had a vague idea of what Elena was thinking when she brought up the topic, but in his current position, he could probably grant most of her wishes unless it was something truly extraordinary.
Thinking so, Lawrence nodded, and Elena voiced her wish.
“I have a request. Please, take me—”
＊＊＊
In Cutlass, there were nearly a hundred knights and mercenaries, and thirty quartermaster soldiers.
That unit was composed of skilled individuals, selected with combat against the Evil Race army in mind, but they were currently busy maintaining public order in the devastated Cutlass.
To meet the unit’s commander, I headed with Dolton-san and Jesha-san towards a large tent set up on the outskirts of town. As we approached, the soldiers and mercenaries in the area stepped back as if to clear a path.
At first, I thought the force of the “Rainbow Sword” was at work here too, but I sensed something like fear in their expressions.
“Aren’t they scared of you?”
“…”
Jesha-san’s mutter made me instinctively tighten my lips. Having reached Rank 5, my combat power surpassed Dolton-san’s. No one seemed to have paid attention to it before, so I hadn’t worried much either, but to an ordinary person capable of Appraisal, I must look quite strange.
If someone had a high [Detection] Skill, they could discern a certain level of strength even if I hid my appearance with a cloak. Perhaps I should think about a way to deceive Appraisal when I return to Claydale.
There were many skilled individuals. In other words, those adept at survival techniques had a higher probability of having learned [Appraisal]. A young soldier guarding the tent entrance, his face twitching slightly upon seeing me, called inside, and a low male voice responded.
“Let them in.”
The one who greeted us inside was a middle-aged Kruz man who felt like he was around Rank 4 in strength. He gave Dolton-san a noble-like greeting, then looked at me with his one eye, which bore scars befitting a veteran warrior, and his cheeks relaxed slightly.
“I am Baron Slayman. Are you the rumored ‘Ash Covered Princess’? I’d heard the rumors, but you are far more beautiful than His Highness described, Miss Layton.”
“…I am Aria Layton.”
Hearing about rumors, I lightly glared at Dolton-san while greeting the Baron, but Dolton-san just shook his head and shrugged slightly.
Just as the beastmen of the Munza Syndicate had heard “rumors” from traveling merchants, my force seemed to be spreading in strange ways. I had certainly aimed to be feared, but I had a feeling this would lead to more trouble.
The “His Highness” he mentioned was Ron-san. According to what I heard from Camille-san, Ron-san is apparently the Third Prince of the Calfaan Empire. From the way Baron Slayman spoke, he seemed to be an ally of the Third Prince, and it was at Ron-san’s request that the Baron, an Imperial military officer, had led a unit to search for me.
Explaining the circumstances was better suited for Jesha-san, who was one of the parties involved and the former Adventurers Guild master, rather than me, who am not good with words.
His explanation was a bit rough, not using much honorific language, but with Dolton-san’s assistance, Baron Slayman, who understood the general situation, not only shared some of their own dwindling food supplies with us but also said he would assign personnel to guide us to the Empire.
For the role of guides, and to explain the situation to the Empire and establish connections, two knight-ranked individuals who were the Baron’s aides, and a squad of fifteen from the Mercenary Guild, volunteered.
Skilled individuals were also prepared from the Mercenary Guild in consideration of combat, but mercenaries are often as rough as adventurers, if not more so, making them unsuitable for maintaining public order. Since just employing them cost money, half of them were supposed to be sent back, but those mercenaries willingly volunteered to accompany us as guides, reportedly raising their hands.
Mercenaries and adventurers sometimes resort to becoming bandits when they are desperate for food.
I wouldn’t say that was the case for them, but the reason why these men, for whom money and life should be paramount, willingly participated in this mission became clear during our camp two days after departing for the Calfaan Empire.
“Won’t you show us the strength of an adventurer?”
Adventurers and mercenaries don’t particularly clash. The Adventurers Guild is an organization that branched off from the Mercenary Guild, and their roles themselves are sometimes different. However, adventurers are sometimes invited to the Mercenary Guild, and parts of disbanded mercenary units sometimes become adventurers.
The one who spoke to me was a man in his thirties, the captain of that squad.
His name was… Sanje, I think. Combat power, 450. He’s a high Rank 3 Kruz who uses a long spear. From his perspective, I can certainly understand wanting to test his skills against one of the Kingdom of Claydale’s foremost Rank 5 parties.
He might also dislike adventurers from other countries being treated favorably by the state and acting all high and mighty.
But what I absolutely couldn’t understand was that the one he directed his gaze at wasn’t Dolton, the heavy warrior, nor Feld, a fellow human warrior…
“It’s you, ‘Ash Covered Princess’!”
“…”
Me again…?
Just how far had the rumors spread? I sighed and stored the parchment I was reading into my 【Shadow Storage】.
This parchment contained the Level 5 spells for 【Dark Magic】 and 【Light Magic】 that Master had written down for me during our journey.
Light Magic: 【Area Heal (All Heal)】. This is a recovery magic that spreads only the healing effect of the Level 3 【Greater Heal】 to the surrounding area. It consumes several times more magic power than 【Greater Heal】, but it can heal everyone within its range.
Light Magic: 【Regeneration (Regene)】. This further enhances the 【Cure】 effect found in the Level 3 【Greater Heal】, and can regenerate a missing part, like a finger, in about half an hour.
Dark Magic: 【Corrosion】. This is a rare dark offensive magic, and it’s also an area-of-effect attack. It inflicts damage that reduces the HP of those affected within its dark range by 1 point per second for several tens of seconds. Its slow activation speed is a drawback, but in return, it cannot be resisted.
Dark Magic: 【Levitate】. This allows levitation for several minutes, depending on the caster’s ability. You can’t fly around freely, but by using wind magic in conjunction or kicking off walls, you can move around with some degree of freedom.
…Perhaps, this was the magic Karla occasionally used to float in mid-air.
Mastering one of these before returning to the Kingdom of Claydale was the task Master had given me, and frankly, I didn’t have time to get involved in skill-testing, but it seemed I wouldn’t be able to avoid it… I sighed again.
“…Are you really going to do this?”
“Oh, I’ll make you take me seriously, so be prepared!”
Seeing Sanje ready his spear as he said that, I sensed that although he was only Rank 3, his Spearmanship was orthodox and well-honed, so I stopped underestimating him.
“Hyaaaaaaaaah!”
The tip of his spear lunged at my shoulder. As I dodged it sideways with a gliding step, Sanje’s spear immediately swept at my feet.
“Wha-!?”
I was standing on the spearhead he had just swept. Before Sanje could notice my weight, I dashed up the spear shaft and launched a kick, which landed squarely on his momentarily stiffened jaw, knocking him out easily.
…What was that all about?
Just when I thought it ended surprisingly easily, Sanje, after waking up, and Feld for some reason, started lecturing me, saying things like a young lady shouldn’t be throwing kicks in a skirt.
“…You sound like my father.”
“!?”
For some reason, my muttered words left them both speechless. I don’t really understand why, but from that day on, the mercenaries started taking the initiative to look after me. Apparently, they all told me they had joined this expedition team just to meet the rumored “Ash Covered Princess.”
…But why?
It was quite a forced march, but partly because we were able to use a military carriage, we reached the territory of the Calfaan Empire in about ten days, much earlier than planned.
Almost there… I’ll be able to see Elena soon. My feet, which were on guard outside the carriage, naturally quickened as if urged by my impatience. Just then, Viro, who was scouting ahead, shouted something.
“I see something!”
“Hm… The Empire’s army?”
At Viro’s wary voice, Mira, who possessed the 【Farsight】 Skill and was surveying the surroundings from atop the carriage, narrowed her eyes and told us what it was.
“An army, huh… Sir Knight, have you heard anything?”
“I believe a battalion was dispatched to govern Cutlass, but I haven’t heard anything about them coming via this route.”
To Dolton’s question, who had emerged from the carriage, one of the knights borrowed from Baron Slayman tilted his head as he replied.
This route allows for a relatively quick arrival, but parts of it are narrow, making it vulnerable to attacks from Monsters and the like. It wouldn’t be a problem for us, but while I wouldn’t say it’s impossible for a battalion of nearly a thousand men to pass through, there’s no particular reason to choose it.
“Be on alert, just in case.”
At Dolton’s command, the Rainbow Sword, and Sanje and the other mercenaries, though momentarily perplexed, began to move, preparing for battle in a way that wouldn’t seem unnatural.
Ron… the Third Prince has enemies who are after his life. It seems Elena’s presence has stabilized Ron’s position, but there was a possibility they might target me to undermine him.
A battalion-sized force would be overkill for that, but if the commander was a high-ranking noble, they could change routes, fabricate suspicions of espionage, and launch a surprise attack.
“…”
As we gradually drew closer and the entire battalion came into view, several horsemen galloped over from their side and called out in front of us.
“Are you Dolton-dono of the Rainbow Sword and his companions, by any chance?!”
“That’s right! And who are you?”
“We are the support battalion for the Cutlass garrison. Our commander, Viscount Talal, has instructed us to invite Dolton-dono and the discovered young lady!”
“…Understood. Tell him we’ll head over immediately.”
“Yes, sir!”
When the messenger horsemen returned to the battalion, the knight, meeting Dolton’s gaze, replied, “He’s a neutral noble.” Not enough information to judge. However, I didn’t sense any particular tension from them that would suggest they were planning a surprise attack.
“Shall we go and see, for now?”
“Well, yeah.”
Dolton gave a slight nod at my words. There was hardly anyone who could easily kill Dolton, a heavy warrior clad in Mithril, or me as I am now. Worst case, while Dolton held back the soldiers, I could probably manage by killing the commanders from the top down. With that thought, we set off.
When we arrived at the battalion where we had stopped, the soldiers who cleared a path for us stared with curiosity. The occasional small, stifled screams were probably from those who had appraised us.
Partway there, the knight from before returned and guided us on foot. The door of a luxurious carriage, unbefitting of an army, opened… Is that Ron? Ron, now free of the dirt I remembered him with and dressed in lavish attire, noticed me and smiled faintly. He then took the hand of the person who appeared next and gently helped her down from the carriage.
At the sight of the girl, clad in a dress no less luxurious than Ron’s, inaudible gasps of admiration escaped from the surrounding soldiers and knights.
As I involuntarily stopped in my tracks amidst the faint murmurs, she noticed me, her blue eyes reflecting my image welled up with tears, and shaking off Ron’s hand, she threw herself into my arms.
“Welcome back… Aria.”
“I’m home… Elena.”
They were finally reunited.
I was thinking, “If only they had these Level 5 spells during the dragon fight, it would have been so much easier!” while writing this.
Next time, the Calfaan Empire.
The first volume of the book was released yesterday, and some of you may start reading it from today, but please don’t overdo it.