Vol. 1 Chapter 12

~I'm going to have an audience with the King at the Royal Castle~

Translated by Raizu
Edited by Mirp

An hour after we left the Scorching Anvil, we were in a carriage.
Escorting us was the first unit of the Knights of the Crossroads, a unit led by Captain Waltz.

[…..]

There was no conversation inside the four-seater carriage.
Marl sat next to me.
Sitting across us was teary eyed mage-chan――Lynette.

[Hii!?]

When I glanced at her, her face turned pale and her body shook violently.
When we returned to Crossroads from the ruins, I entrusted Fram’s care to the First Squad, so I’m sure she had an idea on why Fram ended up like that.
It’s funny to see her reaction, so I’ve been playing with her from time to time.

[Taichi-san?]

[…sorry]

Marl scoffed at my play and lightly pinched my thigh.
It can’t be helped, there’s no other entertainment.
Maybe I should just check my status and skill? It’s been a while after all.

=====

【Skill Points】 25 pts
【Name】Taichi Mitsuba
【Level】18
【Skill】Sword Mastery 4, Martial Arts 3, Polearms Mastery 4, Shooting 1, Mage Arts 2 Fire Magic 3, Water Magic 3, Wind Magic 3, Earth Magic 3, Pure Magic 3, Recovery Magic 3 Barrier Magic 3, Life Magic, Physical Strengthening 1, Magic Strengthening 2, Magic Power Recovery 2, Negotiation 2, Cooking 1 Appraisal Eye, Magic Eye, Poison Resistance 2

=====

I had a lot of skill points.
For the time being, what seems to be useful is acquiring the Detection and Danger Detection skills, then maxing out the Poison Resistance to level 3.
You never know when and where you’ll be attacked by assassins or poisoned.
I was supposed to be able to live freely, so why am I worrying about this… No, no, these skills were quite useful.
I wouldn’t have to worry about poison, I can protect myself from traps and surprise attacks, I’ll be able to search for enemies in the surrounding area, these are so many convenient things!

Yep, correct, no doubt.

So let’s quickly raise Poison Resistance to level 3 with 9 points, then Presence Detection and Danger Detection to level 3 with 12 points.
Poison resistance and danger detection didn’t really make sense, but I could immediately feel the presence of signs.

Somehow, I felt like I had a radar installed in the corner of my head.

It was now possible for me to grasp the number of targets and how far the distance between me and them, with the detection centered on myself.
If the name and face match, I can roughly identify which sign was which.
For example, the knights of the 1st division of the Crossroad Knights guarding this carriage on horseback and the signs of their horses.
I could also feel the presence of the horses pulling this carriage as well as the coachman.

This was convenient.

It can also be turned on and off freely.
I can imagine that only certain types of covert operatives can acquire this sign detection skill and the stealth ability to detect danger.
Now what to do with the remaining 4 points?
Maybe it’s time to settle down with the battle oriented skills and improve my production skills.

Such as making my own weapons with blacksmithing skills.
Or alchemy to produce my own potions.

Right, that sounds like a good idea.
If I can get something as an apology, I’ll get a blacksmith workshop or an alchemy workshop or something like that.
If it doesn’t work, it’s good to have the right to purchase, or in the worst case, a building permit and a guide to a reliable contractor.

[E, excuse me…]

[Ha?]

[Uwee! I, I’m sorry!]

When I was envisioning a happy and perfect future, someone called out to me, so I couldn’t help but give an intimidating reply.
I don’t care, my heart is still rough.
There’s no point in hitting Lynette and yelling at her.
Be a decent adult, yep.

[No, I’m sorry. I’m just still a little irritated. What’s wrong?]

I tried my best to ask Lynette back in a normal voice.
After opening and closing her mouth several times, Lynette finally began to speak.

[I, I mean, actually, I have a letter from Commander Twanning.]

[…Hoo.]

I peeled off the wax seal from the letter Lynette gave me and looked over the contents.
What is written in the letter is how Commander Twaning dispatched the first unit led by Captain Waltz to the ruins.
When he reported the troll subjugation, the military commander ordered him to give me an item with a tracking seal as a reward.
He became suspicious. Even more so when my status check revealed that I was a hero. So he went to report this.
At that time, the higher ups ordered him to wait for a while before approaching me.
When he started investigating since it was strange, he learned that an irregular unit called 『Cleaners』in the military was targeting me.
And when they tried to protect me as soon as possible, they found out that we had already escaped from the Crossroads, thus the first unit was dispatched to find us by using the tracking seal.

[…..something doesn’t make any sense.]

I handed over the letter to Marl, and gave it some thought.

In other words, the Karendil Kingdom――or rather, the 『Karendil Kingdom Army』, marked me before they checked my status.
The timing was when they received the report of the troll subjugation.
I guess they were already moving in the direction of getting rid of me at this stage.

[This letter alone is not enough to make a judgment.]

[Yes. Considering the speed of judgment, it seems likely that the decision was made arbitrarily by the military.]

Yes, that’s the problem.
Considering the time, the movements were too fast.
Let’s assume that they knew that I’m a Hero at the time of the troll subjugation report.
The report itself was carried out with almost no time loss as there was a magic tool for communication.
We were attacked on the sixth day, counting the day the troll subjugation report was made as the first day.
Let’s look back on our actions.
On the first day, I ate, drank and slept. This should be the day report of the troll subjugation arrived to them.
On the second day, I spent the day on a date with Marle. Commander Twanning should have prepared a hunter knife at this time. The letter didn’t say when the order was given, but if it wasn’t prepared at this stage at the latest, it wouldn’t be in time.
On the third day, I went to the Knights headquarter, received a status check, and was determined to be a Hero. Me and Marl made preparations for the escape that day.
Early in the morning on the fourth day, we left Crossroads, and it took almost three days to arrive at the ruins.
On the sixth day, around sunset, we were attacked by assassins.

According to the story, it takes one day to get from the Royal Capital Alfen to Crossroads by horse, and about three days on foot.
The assassins must have traveled on horseback, at least to Crossroads, as they would not be able to make it on foot.
Considering that no horses were found after leaving the forest, I wonder if they walked from Crossroads to the ruins.
Since we should have dealt with the enemies along the way, was their marching speed the same as us or a little faster? Well that’s a possibility.
It’s also possible that they came by a different route than us, but it’s unlikely.

The assassin squad should have entered the Crossroads the day we left, or the next day at the latest.
In other words, by the time I checked my status with the knights, the assassin unit had already left for Crossroads.
Considering the time to prepare the hunter’s knife, the decision to assassinate me should be made within a day of the report.
If it weren’t for the fact that I always had the knife engraved with the secret mark during the pursuit, they would need to be very precise in terms of the time schedule.

[That’s way too fast.]

[That’s right. If it’s not the military’s dogmatic decision, it’s moving too quickly. Anyway, I still have to talk about it.]

There was no point in thinking deeply about this area. And just like Marl said, if you don’t talk about it properly, you don’t know when you’ll be scratched in your sleep.
For the time being, we have no choice but to be cautious of the ‘unfortunate accident’ on the way.

=====

Two days after leaving Crossroads.
The carriage arrived at Alfen, the Royal Capital of the Kingdom of Karendil, without a hitch.

[Whoa, this is amazing.]

[The population of Alfen, the Royal Capital, is 70,000. It is said that the population will exceed 100,000 if short-term adventurers, peddlers, and people living in the slums are included.]

Lynette began to explain to me who was impressed by the townscape.
The Royal Capital Alfen was surrounded by four walls, including those under construction.
Right now, our carriage was running on the outer edge of the Fourth Wall, which was still under construction, through a busy area with various shops and miscellaneous inns.
However, it seems that the plots were properly organized as we approached the under construction castle walls.
The slave market was said to be situated on this outer edge.

[This kind of thing is the same in every country.]

That’s what Marl said.

Many people were involved in the construction of the Fourth Wall.
It seems that not only slaves and criminals do this kind of labor, but also fledgling adventurers did it as day labor.
It looks like it’s going to be good bodybuilding exercise for an adventurer who aspires to be a warrior. It’s killing two birds with one stone. I honestly felt sorry.

After crossing the Fourth Wall, people were actively coming and going.
This is the so-called commoner’s district, where there are better shops, inns, and craftsmen’s workshops than in the outer area.
It’s as if Crossroads had been made bigger and more lively.
There was a regular market here, where various products were bought and sold.
It seems that the Adventurer’s Guild was also located in this area.

The inside of the third castle wall was lined with high-end shops and inns.
In addition, there were public buildings such as government offices, churches, and magic schools.
There were also many houses of wealthy merchants, soldiers who worked for the castle, and Knights who had become commoners here.

[My parents’ house is also in this section. It’s been about a year since I last came back.]

Lynette looked at the townscape with her eyes narrowed as she returned to her hometown after a long absence.
She seemed to be a graduate of a magic school. With her beauty and proportions, she must’ve been very popular.
A magic school was intriguing. But, I don’t think I’d be able to enroll there at my age.

You can say that the inside of the second castle wall was mostly inhabited by Nobles.
All I could see were well-dressed people or guards. I didn’t see many adventurers, probably because they don’t have any business in this area.
And finally, the Royal Castle came into view.

[It’s huge, as expected of the Royal Castle.]

The only castle I could imagine was that one named after a princess in a dreamland.
The castle in front was huge. I could hardly imagine how people would live inside it.
I can’t describe it well, but the king lived there and lived and breathed as the heart of the country.
I could also see some spires. That spire was not just a decoration, it’s made for a purpose, and was actually used.

It’s kind of exciting. It’s like the first time I saw the streets of Crossroads.

As far as I could see from here, the castle seemed to be surrounded by a moat.
There was a drawbridge in front of the gate of the castle wall, and this drawbridge would be raised when defending.
This castle must have experienced many battles. Before it became such a great country, this first wall must have protected people from monsters and wars with other countries.

When I was looking up at the Royal Castle and deep in emotion, Captain Waltz, who seemed to have finished dealing with the guards of the royal castle, called out to me.

[Our escort ends here. Take care, Taichi-dono.]

[Yeah, thanks. And I’m sorry about what happened at the ruins.]

At my words, Captain Waltz shook his head and smiled.

[Don’t worry about it. I think I would have done the same if I was in the same position as you.]

After saying that, Captain Waltz took the members of 1st Squad and left.
The last thing he said in a frank tone was probably his concern.

[We will guide you from here. Please.]

[Yes, go on.]

Marl and I passed through the gate of the first castle wall and stepped into the Royal Castle of the Kalendil Kingdom.

=====

[No matter how I look at it, it’s amazing]

[It really feels like a Royal Palace, doesn’t it?]

We were walking in the Royal Castle with soldiers wearing armor that seemed to be expensive on the front and back, butlers and maids on the left and right.
When I asked him where we were heading, he said he would let me through the living room first.
Even so, as expected of the Royal Palace. THE Royal Palace.
Each pot and painting displayed here and there was overflowing with a sense of luxury.
I wonder if a rookie maid would be punished for breaking the pot. No, in this world, would I be covered in debt and be dropped into slavery if I did that? Let’s try not to touch the furnishings, yep.

[Please relax here. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to ask.]

The butler gave a pleasant bow.
We were guided to a room that looked like a reception room full of expensive-looking furnishings.
It seemed that we would be on standby here until the preparations for the audience are complete.

[Hey Marl, is it bad to have an audience while carrying weapons?]

[Hmーm, of course. They will not let you. But mine is a dagger of chastity, so it is okay.]

Saying that, Marl showed me the red ribbon tied to the handle of the dagger.
Wearing a dagger with a red cloth on the handle is said to be a『Dagger of Chastity』, and it seems that it won’t be rude to bring it even in front of the Royal family.
It’s like saying『Don’t tell me you’ll welcome me into your concubine because I already have a man that I’ve pledged my chastity to』without having to verbally say it.
When I heard that, Marl suddenly fell in love with me and wanted to hug me. Patience, patience, this man-eating machine was relentless sometimes.

[Butler-san, can I leave my weapon with you?]

[Yes, certainly.]

The nice middle aged butler kindly said when I entrusted him with my weapon.
I entrusted to him three items: a mithril sword, a hunter knife, and a battle staff.
I still had the catalyst ring on my finger, and in my inventory I had the poisoned daggers and longswords taken from the assassins.
If it came down to it, I could still fight back.

=====

After a while, we headed to the audience room.
We had to wait for a while, but I didn’t get bored because I had high-quality tea and sweets that I hadn’t even had in my original world.
Right now, I’m kneeling in front of the King in the audience room.

[I am Karendil the 41st, the King of the Karendil Kingdom. Hero, raise your face.]

[This would be our first meeting. My name is Taichi Mitsuba.]

I looked up as I said that.
This person was Karendil the 41st, the King of this country.
He looked like an old man in his forties. He had an elegant kaiser beard, a luxurious attire, and the crown on his head was decorated with jewels of various sizes.
Umu, his appearance truly tells that he is『The King』.

[Umu, you have good eyes. And you, girl, you may also raise your fa…eh!?]

[Your Majesty the King seems to be in a good mood. I am Taichi-sama’s companion, Marl.]

The King’s face turned blue when he saw Marl’s face. Since he’s a member of the Royal family, he’s probably good at maintaining a poker face, but this time he’s found his match.
After all, she’s the first Princess of another country’s Royal family.
If it became public that the assassins were released against the Royal family of another country, there was no doubt that it would be a big problem.
The heavyweights standing next to the King also had deathly pale faces.

[It’s been a long time, Your Majesty. Is it the first time in three years? Thank you for 『inviting me』 this time.]

Marl smiled like a flower. She also didn’t forget to emphasize on being invited here. Good Marl, do more.
When the King whispered something to his aides, most of the people in the audience room, including the Royal guards, left the room.
All that’s left are us, the King, a woman who seems to be the Queen, and a few other people who seem to be close to them.

Marl pulled my hand as she got up.
I also stood back up following her lead.

[P, Princess Mariel, indeed.]

[Your Majesty, I have a proposal.]

Marl interrupted Karendil the 41st’s words and spoke.
The King tried to move his mouth open and closed for a while, but gave up and let out a sigh.

[Very well, pray tell…]

[Yes, thank you very much. Then, Your Majesty, I have a proposal, but would you like to make it something that『never happened』?]

[Never happened?]

[Yes. That Taichi-sama came to this castle today was just to be recognized as a Hero, and 『there was no other reason』.]

In other words, it was a proposal to dismiss the attack by the assassination squad itself.
The benefits that the Karendil Kingdom will gain from this are obvious.
Making this assassination attempt against me 『never happened』 means that the attempted assassination of the first Princess of the Kingdom of Mischronia by the Karendil Kingdom assassination squad also 『never happened』.
For Karendil Kingdom, it would be a great boon if this incident was deemed to 『never happened』, as otherwise it could cause a fatal rift between the two Kingdoms.
And at any rate, the Princess herself was proposing to do so.

If this matter became public, it wouldn’t be strange if a war broke out.
On top of that, if he violated the Hero Protection Treaty, he would definitely be scorned by the international community.

[Fortunately, thanks to Hero-sama, I have not suffered a single wound.]

[U, umu, it was indeed a stroke of luck…so, what do you want?]

[First of all, I would like you to be thorough in not making any mistakes in the future. And about me, it must remain a secret.]

[U, umu, we shall be more thorough. B, but, regarding your whereabouts.]

[If I were to be sent back to my country, I would have to tell my family 『Everything』 openly, Your Majesty.]

[Ve, very well. We shall do as you say.]

Marl-san was vicious. Even the king was left fidgeting.
But would this be okay? If we cornered them too much, they’d come out with hard-line measures to bury us in the deepest darkness.
I wonder if it’s possible to adjust around that. Well, Marl seemed like she’s doing okay.
So far, Marl’s demands were two points: to ensure that no assassination attempts are made in the future, and not to report Marl’s existence to her country.
The latter was not a big disadvantage because it’s just a matter of sticking to ignorance.
For the former, if the hardline aristocrats and the military were rampaging, it was necessary to suppress them. That would be a lot of work, but it can be said that it is the job of the Royal family to suppress them in the first place.
His attitude was overbearing, but isn’t that an unreasonable demand?

[Thank you, Your Majesty. Now, about the support for Taichi-sama.]

[Very well, pray tell…]

[Yes, thank you very much. Then, Taichi-sama.]

Saying that, Marl stepped diagonally behind me.
The tired gaze of the king and the tense gaze of the heavyweights focused on me.
Calm down, Marl had set the stage. I can say my request. In the meantime, it would be nice to compromise a little and buy the other party’s delight.

[If you don’t mind, I would like you to prepare a base for me in the Royal Capital Alfen.]

[Base?]

The King’s eyebrows twitched.

[Yes. Merchants often come and go in Alfen, the Royal Capital governed by His Majesty, and the people are full of smiles. I’m an adventurer. Where people gather, information and jobs also gather.]

[Umu…but are you sure?]

Was him saying『are you sure?』probably his way to remind me that I basically put myself in the lap of a possibly hostile force? That must be it.

[Yes, I would like to trust His Majesty in that regard. As for me, I don’t think I’ll be stingy with my strength in order to dispel the falling sparks. Feel free to contact me in a time of need.]

I smiled after saying that.
In short, if you wanted to weaken the power of the disobedient Nobles and strengthen your sovereignty, then I would spare no effort in cooperating with you.
Being able to use 『Independent force that is at least equal to one corps of Knights』, would be an advantage for the Royalist faction led by the King.
He can just chalk it up as『It’s what Heroes do. We have nothing to do with it』.

[I just want to live a free and carefree life as an adventurer. I’m attracted to money and fame, but I have no interest in power. It’s that simple.]

I didn’t include『woman』among the things I interested in. Because Marl was here, yeah.

[…I see. We shall entrust this matter to Zondark.]

[Yessir!]

The aide who was standing by the king lowered his head.
Yep, this was how negotiations went.
It’s going to be a hassle for a while, but in the end, it should be rewarding if the king is indebted.
If we really get into trouble, we could just run away.

=====

[My name is Zondark von Meister. Well, it would be nice if you could remember me as a close aide to His Majesty, Hero-dono.]

[I’m Taichi Mitsuba. Nice to meet you.]

[I’m Marl. Don’t worry about me.]

After finishing the audience, we returned to the reception room with the King’s close aide, Zondark.
After serving the tea, the maids left the room, leaving only me, Marl, Zondark, and the butler who first guided me to this room.
As for Marl, she’s elegantly smiling while drinking tea next to me.

Zondark looked quite young for being a close aide to the King.
I think he’s probably still in his mid-twenties.
Brown hair that’s almost black, eyes that were impeccable, and a physique that’s about the same as mine. As for his face, he’s not particularly handsome. Because he’s a Noble, there’s an air of nobility around him.

[Let’s talk frankly, don’t worry about the language. I’m tired of maintaining a formal tone.]

Saying that, Zondark took a sip of tea.
He seems like a very easy-to-understand man, I liked that.

[First of all, regarding this incident, it was a runaway between the military and hardline Nobles close to the military. We also had information about Hero-dono via the adventurer’s guild, but they moved before we could decide on a response. I am truly sorry for what happened to Princess Mariel and Hero-dono.]

Saying that, Zondark lowered his head. It’s amazing that he had the sensibility to properly bow his head despite his position.

[Especially, I can’t thank Hero-dono enough. Although it was done by the hardline faction, if Princess Mariel had been assassinated by someone from our country, it would have been very disappointing.]

[…..yeah, I was desperate too.]

I recalled Fram’s frightened face and the assassins that I killed. I felt guilty, but it was necessary. I suppose it’s a good wake up call to disperse my『naivety』.

[Let’s move on to a more concrete topic. First of all, Hero-dono has succeeded in greatly reducing the power of the hardline faction by destroying the Cleaners. In addition, due to the existence of Princess Mariel, it became possible to reduce the power of the other party politically, and it became impossible for the other party to interfere easily.]

[So you don’t need my help?]

[We rarely do. I’m not saying it’s never going to happen, but I think it’s okay to leave most things to us.]

I felt relieved when I heard that.
I said all that jazz about sparing no effort to help, but if possible, I don’t want to get involved in a muddy power struggle between nobles.
I’ll do it only if it’s truly necessary.

[Since our country has discovered a Hero, we must share the information about the Hero-dono with the countries that have joined the treaty. There is a precedent for this, so there is no problem. What do you think about the announcement, Hero-dono?]

[I want to live a free and carefree life as an adventurer. I don’t think an announcement is necessary. What does Marl think?]

[I have the same idea as Taichi-san!]

[Understood, then let’s proceed in that direction. After that, what kind of property did you want specifically?]

I thought a little about Zondark’s words.
Since it’s been a long time, let’s go big here. You should make concessions only if the other party was reluctant to do so.

[First of all, I want a bath of a reasonable size. I also want a workshop that can be used for blacksmithing and alchemy. Do you have any request, Marl?]

[Well, I want a big bed and a comfortable sofa! Also, since we will often be away from home on adventures, I would like to have a reliable janitor and maid.]

It didn’t cross my mind that we’d need a maid or two to manage the estate. As expected of a Princess.

[Okay, I will arrange things to meet your wishes as much as possible. Also, please stay in the castle for a while. I will need time to consolidate the grounds.]

They intended to go on the offensive right now and greatly reduce the power of the military and hardliners.
Until then, I wouldn’t be able to move around.

[Okay. Is Marl good with that too?]

[It can’t be helped. It’s scary if we were to walk in the city and get attacked from behind.]

[There is no way it’ll be that easy with me around.]

Thus, it was decided that we would stay in Alfen, the Royal Capital.