After excusing myself from Malta-san at the merchant shipyard of the Marida Company, I received a luggage bag filled with non-attribute magic stones, and immediately returned to the Zephanel family mansion. The tea party with Malta-san caused me to nearly forget about the time. Before I knew it, the time to transfer to the Royal Capital was drawing near.
“Have the Princes already been moved?”
“No, it shouldn’t be yet. However, I heard that they will transfer out soon.”
When I called out to the guards at the Zephanel mansion, I was able to confirm only the necessary changes in the situation. I sneaked through the main gate and looked into the stables before entering the mansion. I saw only the unmanned AEC armored command vehicle Dorchester inside, but Ymir was nowhere to be seen.
“Ymi――this one who was supposed to be in the stable is missing. Do you know where they went?”
I looked around and called out to the stable staff who was wiping the body of the horse that came into view.
“Are you talking about the heir that the head of the family brought with her earlier?”
“Yes――that heir.”
“I heard that the heir will be having lunch with your guests.”
“Lunch? In the dining room then? ….Thank you.”
So far, I have only given Ymir magic stones. There’s no doubt that it’s the staple food, but I didn’t want it to learn any other tastes, especially the taste of meat. I have talked to Ashley about the food to feed Ymir, but not everyone who gathers in the cafeteria knows my thoughts, and there is a high possibility that Ymir will be more interested in other people’s meals.
I quickly left the stable and entered the mansion, then immediately called out to the waiter and headed to the dining room.
“Oh, Schwartz. You’re late. Lunchtime is over already.”
“Chancellor, I heard that Ymir is coming here…?”
The only person left in the dining room was Chancellor Zephanel. She was sitting alone at the head of a large table, holding a certain high-class ice cream in one hand that was probably the dessert after the meal, a silver spoon in her mouth, and a big smile on her face.
“If you are looking for the heir of the dragon, it’s underground. I asked for its cooperation in collecting biometric information in order for it to be able to use the transfer circle.”
“I heard that Ymir also had lunch, but what did she eat?”
“It’s a magic stone――as per what you said to Ashley last night, right?”
“Y, yes…”
I talked about Ymir’s training policy, but it’s during what people would call a bedside story. The expression on Chancellor Zephanel’s face as she looked at me while kneading the remaining ice cream in the cup with a spoon was strangely annoying. She was looking at me with a smile that had some other meaning behind it.
“Schwartz, I can understand why you are worried about the heir’s movements… However, this one believe that there must be something you need to report.”
Those words stopped me in my tracks as I walked to leave the cafeteria.
“Eh….?”
Chancellor Zephanel removed the silver spoon she was holding from her mouth, pointed the tip at me, and waved it as she announced her pursuit.
“This one is Yuki Zephanell, the head of the Zephanel family. The position of family head may have been handed over to Ashley, but if anything happens in the mansion, people still need to report to me. For example… What happened at the salon last night?”
This is completely obvious… no, I wasn’t hiding it at all in the first place…
“Nn~? What happened~?”
As if urging me to explain myself, Chancellor Zephanel continued to twirl the silver spoon and waited for me to say something.
“Eh~…. what to say, I had a nice meal?”
What should I say about this? I didn’t know the answer, so a very direct expression came out of my mouth.
However, Chancellor Zephanel seemed to be very pleased with that answer.
“Kukuku, ahaha! You don’t even know what to say but ‘“I had a nice meal!”
Chancellor Zephanel was banging on the table with her hand holding a silver spoon while laughing out loud.
“Here I thought you’d say “Please give A-chan” to this one before taking action!”
“No, well… I’m sorry.”
“There’s no need to apologize, just make sure to tell the boy about what happened last night.”
When I finally reached the table and pulled out a chair, my whole body suddenly felt heavy and I sat down. There is only one person that Chancellor Zephanel calls “boy”. The current King of the Kingdom of Kurtmerga――His Majesty King Asca Goto Kurtmerga.
By reporting to the current King, it means that my relationship with Ashley will be completely recognized by the Kingdom. I never thought that the current King would not recognize me. From the few conversations that I had with the current King, it was clear that he wanted me to have a natural relationship with Ashley as a way to keep me connected to the country.
However, there is no one to force it. That is the legacy left behind by the founding King. Don’t limit the Trespasser – that very simple and clear precept has been applied to a wide range of areas.
The higher up the ruling class of the Kurtmerga Kingdom, the more aware they were of how to deal with Trespasser.
However, it is difficult to trace out a Trespasser that this only happens once every few decades, and it’s hard to decide how much consideration should be given to such a rare existence―― Although it was the founding King’s last order, it was natural for it to be forgotten.
A person who has the power to subjugate a labyrinth on his own, and who has a means of movement and transportation far superior to horses and carriages. His attitude of not flattering those in power, but rather showing himself to protect the people and leading the way, is exactly the behavior of an aristocrat.
If this were a normal adventurer or explorer, the current King and Dukes wouldn’t have left me alone. They would have decorated this person as a Knight or welcomed him as a noble.
In fact, there were apparently very loud calls for me to be welcomed into the ranks of the Knights and the nobility. The person sitting in front of me was Chancellor Zephanel, who rejected all of that and secured my freedom from the nobles and knights who had forgotten their last lessons.
“Well… thank you very much.”
I couldn’t help but express my gratitude, but Chancellor Zephanel laughed it off and stuck her spoon into the ice cream cup.
“No need to thank me. For me, the greatest joy is to obey that great man’s command. This one is grateful to you for this opportunity.”
Without even bringing the ice cream to her mouth, she kneaded it with a spoon, pierced it with the tip, and enjoyed watching it slowly melt and release the sweet vanilla flavor. She relaxed her cheeks and hummed a little song that could barely be picked up by the sound sensor. It’s the opening song for some game, like I heard it somewhere a long time ago.
She was smiling, as if she was nostalgic for something, but also a little sad, when her gaze turned towards me again as she played with the ice cream.
“So――do you think you’ll return?”
There’s no need to say from where――because that’s obvious.
“Honestly, I don’t know. At best, we killed each other, at worst, I died in vain… In that sense, I can say that there is no way I can win.”
“Then, you are saying that you won’t be able to come back!”
Chancellor Zephanel may have been expecting a strong reply, like, “I’ll definitely come back”. Her eyes widened and she slammed her fist, which was holding the spoon, extremely hard on the table.
However, I didn’t have the confidence or proof to say otherwise.
“The Labyrinth Dragon is just that powerful. Elkeynes…the dragon that flew to Labyrinth Island was too much for me to handle. In order to absorb it and destroy the labyrinth that has begun to move, I must… a suitable price will be required.”
I buried my back into the chair, closed my eyes almost unconsciously, and looked up at the ceiling.
“――but I’ll be back, no matter what form I will take.”
“For sure! If you cannot do it, then just turn back right away! I have had the Head Chef recreate the ice cream, but he is still far from achieving something like this! This one will never be able to eat this ice cream again!”
Those words seemed to shake my resolve, and I couldn’t help but relax.
“I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“…It would be a shame to lose you. I don’t want to make A-chan sad. I don’t want to hurt this country that that person loved… Schwarz, if I grant you this one’s “Promised Blessing”, will that help?”
Promised Blessing ――That was one of the things that the Second Prince Kilik was aiming for, going so far as to cause a rebellion. It is a special skill that only Chancellor Zephanel can use, and it is a Pedigree Skill that can bring back only the person to whom it has been granted from the dead.
If she were to grant me that, my life may be guaranteed just once. but–-.
“It’s not necessary… No, even if you grant it, the battlefield will be in the southern seas. Even if I can be revived, I’ll just die again in the middle of the sea. Besides, when will the evil blade of the Viceburn Empire strike again? I don’t know if they will attack His Majesty. The chaos that will be caused by the Labyrinth Dragon’s attack is the perfect opportunity for that. We cannot weaken His Majesty’s protection.”
I am grateful for the thoughtfulness of Chancellor Zephanel, who puffed out her cheeks and remained silent in response to my reply. I had no plan of heading out to subdue the Labyrinth Dragon with the intention of never returning to begin with. Although it is low, there is a possibility that I will come back. It is ironic, but precisely because I believe in the power of the mad Goddess who bestowed this power VMB on me, I am a demon who harms the natural world as her spearhead――which at the same time allows me to subjugate monsters and labyrinths.
I’m not in despair about the outcome, and I have no intention of making Ashley sad.
I stood up from my chair and at the same time turned my gaze to the direction of the dot entering the dining room.
“Family Head, all preparations for departure are complete.”
Lester-san, the old butler, bowed in front of the door and came to let me know that his time had come.
“Very well… Schwartz, I’ll be waiting for you.”
After saying those words, Chancellor Zephanel jumped off of her chair and left the dining room with her beautiful, shining silver hair fluttering.
“Schwartz-sama, please go to the basement, the head of the family is waiting for you.”
As I looked at the figure of Chancellor Zephanel leaving the room, Lester-san looked up and called out to me as well.
“Yes, I’ll be there.”
Here, the port city of Amar becomes the front line of the anti-Labyrinth Dragon. It is not a place suitable for a country’s Chancellor or Crown Prince to stay. Preparations are being made to welcome a large fleet separated from the city of Big Ship, and this mansion will also be used as a place for guests to take care of when Sharle-san is away.
Until the situation was resolved, Ashley and all the other members of the royal family living here were to evacuate to a villa in Torint.
I’m not going there. Here, I’ll see off Ashley and the others’ transfer, and finally prepare to subjugate the Labyrinth Dragon.
Burning Feathers 