Chapter 1: Report
There were so many things to cover in Christina’s explanation that simply retelling the whole sequence of events took over ten minutes.
“And that’s all from me,” Christina said, wrapping up her summary of everything that took place.
“Hmm... It is a joyous occasion that you both have returned to us safely, but this is an awfully concerning matter. There’s no doubt the Proxia Empire played a part in the entire incident...but there’s a severe lack of definitive proof.” King Francois sighed with a stern frown.
“Yes. The mercenaries that appeared on our airship, in the Paladian village we were teleported to and at the Rubian fortress we visited, were all men with a connection to the Proxia Empire.”
Whenever an unpleasant task had to be done, disposable mercenaries were used to hide the identity of the kingdoms involved. This was a commonly used tactic, but being on the receiving end of it was a source of endless frustration.
Duke Huguenot raised his hand after a beat. “I have one thing to report regarding that.”
“What is it?” Christina asked.
“After Your Highnesses were abducted, your airship arrived at Rodania and caused an uproar. It was during this time that a man resembling Reiss, the ambassador from the Proxia Empire with known ties to Lucius, was spotted inside the central office. Celia was the one who reported this to me.”
Christina’s eyes widened in wonder, then glanced at Rio before asking after her well-being. “Professor Celia did that? Is she okay?”
Rio also seemed surprised and worried, as he had a stern look on his face.
“Yes. He apparently disappeared as soon as she spotted him.”
“I see.”
Christina, Flora, and Rio all sighed in relief.
“There’s the possibility she was mistaken, but if it really was him, he must have snuck into the central office with some kind of goal in mind. Unfortunately, that is the full extent of what I know, but it may be related to all of this,” Duke Huguenot said.
I’ll have to ask her what happened once I return to Rodania. Perhaps Aishia was the one who protected her. Rio imagined the situation and vowed to return as soon as possible.
“At any rate, we currently lack the evidence to accuse the Proxia Empire. The only place we can really pinpoint would be the Rubia Kingdom. Their actions have broken the alliance agreement with not only the Restoration, but our kingdom as well—their movements hereafter will be a source of interest to us,” Francois said with a cold smile, his anger simmering quietly.
The Rubia Kingdom’s actions were an act of rebellion not only towards the Restoration, but towards the Galarc Kingdom as well. It was a much more serious matter than just having their trust besmirched.
“The Restoration intends to officially protest the Rubia Kingdom’s actions,” Christina said.
“Galarc will also make an official objection towards the way our honorary knight and alliance princesses were treated,” Francois confirmed.
“So you’ll declare your concerns. Isn’t that pointless?” Hiroaki interrupted in a cynical tone.
“Yes, most likely so. The alliance is as good as broken already, so there’s a high chance they’ll ignore our objections,” Christina replied in a cool voice.
“Expressing your concerns while knowing that is just incompetence, isn’t it?” Hiroaki grumbled sullenly.
“Indeed, this could have immediately triggered a war under different circumstances. But unfortunately, Rubia is a minor kingdom located far from us. If we mobilized the army, we would have to traverse across the land of other kingdoms, and there isn’t that much to gain from occupying a minor kingdom like Rubia. Invasion would be an extremely inefficient means of retribution, great hero,” Francois said, admonishing Hiroaki with the magnanimity of a king.
“The Restoration as it is now doesn’t have the strength to invade such a distant kingdom either,” Christina added.
“But if you just sit around idly after expressing your concerns, the other side will just look down upon you,” Hiroaki grumbled persistently.
“Of course, we intend on retaliating in some form or another. Spreading word of the Rubia Kingdom’s actions to our neighboring allies is a given, but... Hmm...” Francois brought his hand to his chin and thought for a moment. When his eyes landed on Rio, he suddenly chuckled to himself. “What if we sent Haruto to go on a rampage in the Rubia Castle? No doubt they’d be struck with terror if the man who single-handedly helped the two princesses to escape from their grasp came back for retaliation.”
Rio froze, pressed for a reaction. “Surely you jest...”
“Hey! Don’t involve Haruto in any of your strange ideas, Your Majesty,” Satsuki said, immediately scolding Francois.
“I’m joking, of course. As king, not even I have the authority to mobilize Haruto.”
“Even if you had the authority, don’t do it. It’s way too dangerous.” Satsuki made sure to emphasize her point despite Francois’s chuckles.
“Hah. I don’t know about Proxia, but if you sent that guy to cause a scene in Rubia, they’d be the ones in danger,” Hiroaki scoffed, dampening the conversation.
“That...may not be that far from the truth, but Haruto will still be in danger. He’d be antagonizing himself if he did such a thing,” Satsuki said with a pout.
Christina was in agreement with Satsuki. “The Restoration wouldn’t possibly allow Sir Amakawa to do something so dangerous after being so indebted to him either.”
“Hmph...” Hiroaki snorted, unamused.
Charlotte looked at Rio while adding to the conversation in a humorous tone. “While I would personally love to witness Sir Haruto’s continued success, it’d be a problem if people start fearing him too much.”
“With all due respect, I believe everyone thinks too highly of me...” Rio stated hesitantly.
Just how does everyone see me?
From the sound of the conversation until now, they seemed to think he was capable of storming a royal castle by himself—and dealing severe damage to the other kingdom.
At that, the entire room blinked blankly back at him. It was as though they were all asking what he was getting at.
“Say, Liselotte,” Charlotte suddenly said.
“Yes, Your Highness?” Liselotte replied immediately.
“Sir Haruto’s first public appearance was before the monster attack on Amande, right?”
“If you’re referring to when I first met him, then that would be correct,” Liselotte said, nodding.
“Since then, Sir Haruto’s list of feats have extended beyond imagination. He subjugated a powerful minotaur and repelled the breath of a demi-dragon with his enchanted sword. He defeated the strongest knight of the Beltrum Kingdom and instilled fear into a five-thousand-man army of pursuing troops, forcing them to withdraw. On top of that, he’s now eliminated the infamous veteran mercenary, Lucius. Considering the number of these exploits, can you still claim that we’re overestimating you, Sir Haruto?”
Charlotte listed off Rio’s most prominent exploits, then turned to Rio with an elegant smile.
“It’s an honor to receive such praise, but when it comes to raiding a castle alone... I’m sure the Rubia Kingdom has its own formidable warriors,” Rio replied awkwardly.
If he prepared himself beforehand like when he rescued Celia from her wedding, he could potentially do it regardless of the strength of his opponents. However, that didn’t mean he could make such a public showing during times of peace. Rio wasn’t presumptuous enough to declare he could do it without any basis or knowledge of the opponent’s strength.
“If it’s renowned warriors of the Rubia Kingdom, then the first to come to mind is the Princess Knight, Princess Sylvie. However, from Princess Christina’s testimony, it doesn’t sound like Princess Sylvie could ever best Sir Haruto,” Charlotte pointed out.
“But there was a boy at the Rubian fortress who may be the fifth hero...” Rio reminded her of Kikuchi Renji, the boy he fought with at the fortress. Honestly speaking, not even Rio could grasp the true strength of the heroes.
“But you defeated that hero too, no?” Satsuki asked, cocking her head.
“I wouldn’t say I defeated him. I wanted to avoid getting too deeply involved, so I retreated before we could finish...”
After Rio answered Satsuki’s question, Hiroaki interrupted with a look of suspicion. “Was that guy really a hero?”
“Most likely. He had a halberd that could control ice, so I believe it was his Divine Arm.”
“Tch... A hero shouldn’t be losing so easily in battle. How pathetic.”
“You seem discontented by the hero’s defeat, but were you able to win against Haruto yourself?” Satsuki asked Hiroaki.
“Huh? Tch...” Hiroaki frowned. He opened his mouth to retort but recalled his past defeat against Rio and swallowed his words with a click of his tongue.
“How was the battle between the fifth hero and Sir Haruto in the eyes of you two?” Charlotte turned the conversation to Christina and Flora with a look of intense curiosity in her eyes.
Christina was the first to reply with an awkward glance at Rio’s expression. “Sir Amakawa took him on alongside the skilled mercenaries who were former subordinates of Lucius’s, but it looked to me like Sir Amakawa overwhelmed them from start to finish.”
“Yes, he was wonderful.” Flora nodded furiously, eyes sparkling as she replied.
“I’m sure it was an incredible sight. I wish I had been there to witness it—I’m so envious of you two.” Charlotte puffed up her cheeks and sighed sadly.
“Umm, you’d have to have been kidnapped to be there, Char.” Satsuki calmly pointed out the problem in her words.
“Bah. So envious indeed. Playing the hero more than actual heroes every single time...” Hiroaki grumbled bitterly. Roanna seemed to have overheard him, as she had a stiff expression beside him.
“We seem to have derailed the conversation a bit, but in all honesty, it would be more productive to have Haruto act alone than for me to increase military funding and have our army strike. But as I said before, I have no intention of doing such a thing.” With a wry smile and a hint of his true thoughts, Francois redirected the discussion back on topic.
“Damn right. Who cares about this guy’s great exploits or whatever. We were talking about what we’re gonna do to these Rubian guys for looking down on us, right?” Hiroaki immediately went along with Francois’s lead, not wanting to listen to praise for Rio anymore.
“If the fifth hero really is affiliated with the Rubia Kingdom, things become slightly complicated. For now, we’ll spread word of Rubia’s wrongdoing across other nations while requesting an explanation of the incident and the identity of the fifth hero. After that, we’ll consider imposing realistic and constructive sanctions—this should be the right course of action,” Francois explained.
“I agree with that. The Rubia Kingdom cannot be forgiven for this, but if they really have a hero on their side, we need to go through the correct procedure,” Christina expressed quietly.
“Indeed. That aside... I understand you were pursuing your longstanding enemy, but you did well rescuing Princess Christina and Princess Flora from their debacle, Haruto,” Francois said, looking at Rio in wonder.
Because Christina explained everything that had happened from her point of view, there was a lot of information missing about how Rio found the two of them. Thus, Francois was probably curious about that sequence of events as well.
“I obtained information on my journey suggesting that Lucius was in the Paladia Kingdom. After I made my way to the Paladian capital, I heard that First Prince Duran happened to be holding an event...” Rio explained briefly. Getting into too much detail would only complicate things, so he hid the fact he had snuck into the Proxia Castle and crossed swords with Emperor Nidoll Proxia.
“An event, you say?”
“It was a challenge where whoever could withstand one blow from Prince Duran was entitled to a reward. I decided to participate for the chance to ask about Lucius. I figured a renowned fighter like Prince Duran would have connections to a mercenary like him.”
“I see. And so you easily withstood the blow from Prince Duran,” Charlotte immediately assumed.
“That is correct. He told me where I could find Lucius—and that happened to be the village where the two princesses were.”
“Hmm. I find it questionable that he passed you that information, but...Prince Duran claimed the Paladia Kingdom wasn’t involved in the princesses’ kidnapping, right?” This was something Christina had mentioned earlier.
“How much do you actually believe in his words?” Francois asked.
“He was a rather difficult person to read, so I don’t trust him myself. However, I believe there is credibility to his claim that the Paladia Kingdom was not involved.”
“And why is that?”
“If Paladia had been involved in our abduction, there would be no need to teleport us to a shack in the middle of a deserted forest. They could have easily sent us to the Paladia Castle and confined us there.”
“That’s true. A very likely possibility. And thus, incomprehensible...”
“What do you mean...?” Christina seemed to sense something.
“Even if Paladia is unrelated to the abduction of Princess Christina and Princess Flora, the mercenary group behind everything is related to the Proxia Empire... And yet there is no clear motive here for Proxia.”
“...”
No one present noticed, but for a brief moment, something bitter flashed across Christina’s expression.
“What’s so incomprehensible about that, King Francois? I don’t quite get your point.”
Stop beating around the bush and get to the point—Hiroaki glared at Francois as though to say that. Francois continued without paying him any mind.
“If Lucius abducted the two princesses under the Proxia Empire’s order, he would have teleported them to the imperial castle instead of the Paladian forest. That would be the most secure way of confining them. There is a high risk of exposure when leaving them in a foreign nation—even temporarily—and he approached a foreign royal for help, although on a personal level. If Proxia ordered this, then Lucius was either unable to change the teleport destination from the Paladian forest, or he had some kind of goal in sending them to that forest in particular...” Francois offered his hypothesis under the premise of Lucius moving on the Proxia Empire’s orders. However, the incident this time just so happened to be unrelated—Christina and Flora were abducted purely for personal reasons.
Of course, there was a strong possibility they’d have been handed to the Proxia Empire afterwards, but the main purpose of abducting them had been to use them as hostages against Rio. It just so happened to have been Christina and Flora who were targeted, but Lucius would have been fine with anyone who had a connection to Rio. That line of thinking was giving Francois an odd feeling.
Meanwhile, Christina knew of this possibility already, but the guilt she felt for her former actions towards Rio made her purposefully divert the topic. “If the Proxia Empire hired Lucius’s group of mercenaries, then that would be in order to discard them after they completed the abduction,” she said.
“Indeed. It’s a typical method used to deny one’s involvement in various misdoings. I agree in regards to that point, but...Lucius’s information management seemed a little too poor for that. He sought cooperation from Prince Duran, who ended up revealing his location to Haruto. Haruto then arrived where the two princesses were. It’s almost as though he set things up to happen this way... Perhaps it was a setup?” Francois drew close to the heart of the matter, but he didn’t look entirely convinced about something.
“It is as you say. Lucius may have directed Prince Duran to inform me of his location in order for us to duel. The reason why Proxia’s motive is unclear is probably—no, it’s most certainly because of the existing connection between Lucius and myself,” Rio explained. He had asked Christina to hide this information beforehand, knowing that it could complicate matters. But now that things had come to this, he decided it would be better to bring it out into the open.
Meanwhile, Christina reacted to Rio’s words by pursing her lips in vexation.
“I had the same thought, but that wouldn’t make sense if Lucius didn’t know you were coming to Paladia beforehand, right? Unless Lucius witnessed you participating in Prince Duran’s event and decided to use the two princesses after...” Francois said, analyzing the situation with a doubtful expression.
“Wait, what are you saying? That Lucius bastard kidnapped Christina and Flora to use them as hostages to draw out Haruto? That means... Whoa, isn’t that pretty damn serious?”
Hiroaki had been listening to the discussion with a disinterested look until now, but he suddenly interrupted in a strangely lively voice. His expression had also perked up in interest.
“What’s so serious about it?” Christina asked with a sigh.
“Huh? Isn’t it obvious? It means you two were targeted because of this bastard here. That’s a grave matter,” Hiroaki said, pointing at Rio.
“You’re wrong,” Christina stated flatly.
“What? Why?”
“I believe we would have been abducted even if we didn’t have any connections to Sir Amakawa. In fact, Flora was once kidnapped in Amande before she was acquainted with Sir Amakawa, and I was also targeted by Reiss and Lucius’s subordinates on the way from Cleia to Rodania.”
Unconvinced, Hiroaki argued back. “Hold on. How can you be so sure Flora’s abduction in Amande had nothing to do with Lucius’s beef with Haruto? What if this bastard was the reason she was kidnapped back then as well?”
“I cannot think of any reason why Flora would be used as a hostage against Sir Amakawa.” Christina stood her ground without fearing Hiroaki’s position as hero.
“Hmm? That’s... Lucius had a personal grudge against the Beltrum Kingdom, right? If he kidnapped Flora because of that, he may have tried to use her as a hostage out of a similar grudge towards Haruto as well...” Hiroaki seemed to realize his reasoning was weak as he voiced it out loud, losing confidence and trailing off at the end.
“With all due respect, I believe that would be impossible once you factor in the situation back then,” Liselotte added to the conversation, denying Hiroaki’s thoughts.
Hiroaki paused for a long moment, then quietly turned to Liselotte and grumbled. “How come?” He didn’t like how she had interrupted just to defend Rio—especially when he wanted to avoid talking to her at all.
“It was a coincidence that Sir Haruto encountered Lucius back then,” Liselotte answered in her usual calm voice.
So she calls me “hero,” but this guy by his name.
It wasn’t particularly related to his suspicions towards Haruto, but Hiroaki thought that to himself anyway. The way Liselotte would call Haruto’s name at every opportunity had bothered him before, but now that she had rejected him, it was even more annoying to listen to.
“He could have just been lying about encountering Lucius by coincidence, though.” Hiroaki’s suspicion towards Rio didn’t end there. It was clear to everyone watching that he was being emotional and arguing based on his own conclusion.
“Princess Flora was present at the scene and testified that their conversation sounded like they hadn’t met in a while, so I doubt that...” It was impossible; suspecting that would mean accusing Flora of lying as well. Liselotte didn’t say that out loud, but she implied it with a glance at Flora as she spoke.
Flora immediately spoke up in defense of Liselotte’s explanation. “Yes. It definitely sounded like it was the first time in a while since Sir Haruto encountered the mercenary who tried to kidnap me. The other side wasn’t able to recall Sir Haruto right away, so there’s no mistaking it.”
The heck? Everyone keeps trying to stand up for this bastard... Now that I think about it, Flora keeps calling this guy “Sir Haruto” as well.
Flora had addressed Haruto in this way for a while now, but Hiroaki was more irritated by it now than he had ever been before. He wanted to stop the way they kept protecting him, but he didn’t have any material to argue with.
“Hmph. Fine, I guess. If you all insist.” Hiroaki finally backed down.
Francois, who had been watching quietly for a while, spoke up to give his opinion. “I too find it doubtful that Lucius would kidnap Princess Christina and Princess Flora only for the sake of his grudge against Haruto. It would be more reasonable to presume the Proxia Empire’s motives were included in the abduction.”
That being said, if this were true, the reason why Paladia was chosen as the teleport destination remains unclear... It’d be unproductive to discuss hypotheticals any further, so Francois chose not to state that out loud.
“Lucius held intense resentment for Haruto after the encounter in Amande. Is that correct?” Francois asked.
“He managed to flee after we were interrupted, but he was gravely wounded in Amande. That was most likely the reason,” Rio said.
“In that case, it all makes sense. Both the mercenary and his employer had motives invested in this. That’s why Princess Christina and Princess Flora were used as hostages. That must be it. Lucius already knew the two of them had some form of acquaintance with Haruto.”
“Yes. So without Sir Amakawa, Flora and I wouldn’t be here. We would have been imprisoned in the Proxia Castle right about now,” Christina said in summary of Francois’s understanding.
“Without a doubt.”
“It’s thanks to the connection between Lucius and Sir Hiroaki that Flora and I were spared from further disaster. I can’t express my gratitude towards Sir Amakawa enough. When I already owe him more than I could ever return...” Christina said, a hint of a somber look on her face.
“Curious how he manages to appear at the most convenient moment every single time. It almost makes me wonder if he’s the one behind it all.”
Hiroaki decided to pick fault with the story and cast suspicion on Rio. His comment completely missed the mood of the room, making Roanna sweat nervously beside him.
“Sir Hiroaki,” Christina said with a sigh.
“Wh-What?”
“In order to protect us, Sir Amakawa was cornered in an extremely unfavorable position. I know this because I witnessed it myself, right up close. He was treading the line of life and death, yet he devoted himself to saving us.”
“So what?”
“So please refrain from making such rude remarks about him. I cannot overlook such comments, even if they come from the hero,” Christina stated firmly, fixing a critical stare at Hiroaki.
With no basis for his words, even Hiroaki knew he was being outright rude to Rio right now. He looked like he wanted to argue with Christina, but he ended up averting his gaze with a guilty look. “Fine. My bad. I’m not feeling well, so I’m gonna leave first.”
He swallowed down his protests and shot up to his feet.
“Go with Sir Hiroaki, Roanna,” Christina immediately ordered. Hiroaki was already walking towards the door.
“R-Right away.” Roanna got to her feet in a hurry, bowed, then left after Hiroaki.
“Damn it all.” There was no one around to hear Hiroaki’s muttering as he left by himself first. He had marched out of the door without so much as a glance back.
Roanna followed after him, and the door swung shut.
“I apologize for Sir Hiroaki’s impoliteness, Sir Amakawa,” Christina said with a rather regretful, pained look.
“There’s no reason for you to apologize,” Rio replied with a concerned smile.
“Just before the three of you arrived, the marriage discussion between Hiroaki and Liselotte was called off. That may be the reason for his bad mood,” Francois summarized with a light shrug.
“Sir Hiroaki and Lady Liselotte... I understand. No wonder everyone was gathered here.” Christina pressed a hand to her forehead as though she was holding back the onset of a headache.
“I am sorry,” Liselotte said, bowing her head awkwardly.
“It’s not something for you to apologize for either. In fact, I can imagine Sir Hiroaki was rather unreasonable about it. I’m sorry for all the trouble we’ve caused.” The look of fatigue in Christina’s expression only intensified.
Liselotte shook her head humbly. “Oh no, not at all.”
“At any rate, Princess Christina and Princess Flora have returned. Thanks to that, all of our immediate issues have been resolved. Let’s think of this in a positive way,” Francois said to the two of them.
“Okay.” Christina and Liselotte nodded together.
“The Proxia Empire backing Rubia’s betrayal is troubling, but is there anything else that needs attention?”
“That’s pretty much all the information we have... But if the Proxia Empire has someone who can freely use teleportation, it’d be quite the predicament,” Christina said.
“Hmm. Lost ancient sorcery that allows the manipulation of space. I’ve heard of its existence, but I’ve never witnessed it with my own eyes. I’d like to think it’s not easy to use, but...” Liselotte trailed off.
“We should be prepared for the worst-case scenario. I don’t know how freely they can control the teleport destination, but it’d be dangerous if they set it to their castle.”
“Indeed it would... For example, the banquet where we formally introduced Lady Satsuki to the public. We never ended up deducing the infiltration route the insurgents used, but if the Proxia Empire was involved in that raid, the incident can be explained through the use of teleportation,” Francois said.
“If that’s true, then it’s a terrifying thought.” Liselotte’s father, Cedric Cretia, uttered his sentiments after actively avoiding participation in the conversation until now.
“It is indeed...” Duke Huguenot imagined the use of teleportation in an attack on Rodania and agreed with sympathy in his voice.
Back then, I couldn’t detect any disturbance in magic essence from the use of teleport sorcery, Rio recalled. Any essence-detecting artifact would have picked up on it, and even people who can’t visualize essence can detect the disturbance after teleport is activated, if they have sharp senses. But... With an essence-blocking barrier, it might be possible to suppress the disturbance of ode and mana caused by teleport sorcery.
Amidst everyone else’s uneasiness, he used his familiarity with teleport sorcery to analyze whether teleport had been used.
“It’d also be most worrying if they could teleport directly into the room of someone important. Just the thought of that possibility gives me the chills,” Francois hummed with a grim look. The others must have imagined someone teleporting into their bedrooms as well, as their expressions were rather peaky.
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Rio said to dispel their woes.
“Oh? And why is that?” Francois asked.
“In order to teleport with sorcery, the coordinates of the destination must be set in advance, so you cannot teleport anywhere you haven’t been before. It’s most likely done with a pair of artifacts—one to teleport the target and one to set the destination. If they wanted to teleport into the room of an important figure, they’d need to sneak into that room in advance to set the coordinates. Considering the difficulty of doing that, it’s more likely that they’ll choose an easier location to access.”
Francois’s eyes widened. “You’re oddly knowledgeable about this...” he commented in wonder.
“I heard about it from my benefactor, Lady Celia of Count Claire’s house. She said that it was described like this in ancient literature.”
The residents of the spirit folk village could use teleport, and Rio himself possessed artifacts with teleport sorcery embedded in them, but he naturally couldn’t tell them that here. That’s why he brought up Celia’s name to brush off answering.
Sorry, Celia.
“Celia Claire, the young sorcerer from Beltrum said to be a genius, you say? Then the information must be reliable.” When it came to the field of sorcery, Celia’s name was extremely persuasive. Francois hummed in awe.
“If the Proxia Empire was involved in the raid on the banquet, and if teleport sorcery was used for it, then someone in attendance may have collaborated with them to set the coordinates. If someone was there, it would be easy to set the coordinates to within the castle. For example...”
“Someone from the Rubia Kingdom, you think?” Francois considered the strong possibility of the Proxia Empire’s involvement and immediately suspected the Rubia Kingdom, seeing that they’d just betrayed them.
“Yes,” Rio nodded slowly.
“Indeed, if the Rubia Kingdom betrayed us as early as back then, things would make sense,” Francois said coldly, his anger intensifying. If the Proxia Empire possessed magic artifacts with teleport sorcery, Lucius using the same method made sense.
“If you are concerned that the artifact used to set the destination coordinates is still within the castle grounds, you should do a thorough investigation for any suspicious essence reactions. An artifact being used to set coordinates should emit a certain amount of magic essence.”
Though few in number, sorcerers that could use Zona Revelare—area search magic—could conduct the investigation, as could the similarly few artifacts capable of detecting essence reactions.
“I see. This has been a truly constructive discussion. There are artifacts capable of detecting suspicious essence in certain parts of the castle, but they only cover an extremely limited area. It’s a good chance there are artifacts there. Once we’re done here, I will have a search of the castle conducted and reevaluate the security.” Francois smiled, pleased to know that his fears of sudden invasion could be addressed.
“For reference, the magic artifact that teleported Flora and myself to Paladia was in the form of a crystal. But it’s possible the one set at the destination is in a different form,” Christina offered.
“I understand. Thank you for that information,” Francois said, nodding.
I should conduct a search around Amande as well. Maybe I should send someone back first to arrange that, Liselotte thought to herself. This information alone had been worth her trip here. In fact, at this moment, everyone in the room resolved themselves to thoroughly check their surroundings.
“Now then, I believe all that remains is to consider countermeasures against the forced teleportation that the princesses went through,” Francois said, moving on to the next topic.
“It’s likely that only a very small number of people can be teleported at once. Either the activation spell is chanted before the crystal is thrown at the target, or the caster teleports themselves while within a certain range of the person they want to drag along. If we take into account the time between chanting and spell activation, there should be a way of handling it if you react in time, but it may be quite difficult...” Christina explained, giving an accurate analysis based on when the teleport crystal was used on herself.
“So you either distance yourself from the caster before they finish chanting, or you repel the crystal they throw back at them. It’s better than not knowing anything at all, I suppose. I shall pass that on to the security guards.”
“Yes. I pray that this kind of situation never happens again... The Restoration will also re-examine our security.”
“Indeed. I suppose that’s all there was to address for now... Now that we’ve exchanged all the necessary information, let’s talk about Haruto next,” Francois said, looking at Rio.
“Me?” Rio’s eyes widened at the sudden spotlight, and he tilted his head awkwardly.
“Yes. We need to discuss your reward.”
“I don’t require anything in particular...” Receiving things would only be a problem, so Rio tried declining respectfully. However...
“I will not allow it. Spare me your jests,” Francois said, bluntly shooting him down.
“I’m being serious...”
“What’s troubling is that in your case, you decline because of the bother rather than a lack of wants. Do you intend on retiring as a hermit at such a young age?” Francois lamented, pressing a hand to his forehead in worry.
“I’d prefer to live a quiet and peaceful life, if possible,” Rio admitted with a wry smile.
“As when I appointed you as Honorary Knight, it is my duty as king to properly reward your distinguished services. There will be no future for the kingdom if such meritorious deeds are not given proper recognition. Achievements must be rewarded in order. Failure to do so will only result in the best people leaving for greener pastures.”
“Of course, I am aware of that...”
It was a simple matter. By creating a custom where those who made achievements could expect to be appropriately recognized, the people serving the kingdom would work frantically to achieve greater heights. There weren’t many people who would work themselves to the bone for a nation that didn’t value them. A performance-based doctrine would create antagonism between those competing for recognition, but that could be managed with a properly established system.
A harsh truth for our kingdom, that not only failed to value him appropriately, but even charged him with a false accusation... Christina grimaced with bitter regret.
“So, accept your reward. The safe return of Princess Christina and Princess Flora is of immense benefit to Galarc as well. It’s more than enough cause for a reward. In fact, you are also owed a reward for escorting Princess Christina from Cleia to Rodania. You haven’t visited the castle since the banquet, so the incident is still unsettled.” Francois fixed his gaze on him.
“I am much obliged.”
“And so, I will be using this opportunity to reward you for everything—do be prepared.”
“Understood...” Rio nodded, head drooping.
Charlotte joined the conversation with a giggle. “Hee hee, Sir Haruto is so funny. You’re not meant to react to a reward with disappointment. But as father said, you don’t visit the castle often enough. That is unacceptable,” she protested, puffing up her cheeks at Rio with a sulking look.
“My apologies. I was traveling around from place to place,” Rio replied, shrinking back.
“Yet you had a meal with Lady Satsuki and Liselotte?” Charlotte immediately pointed out, causing Rio to struggle for words.
“That’s...”
“Stop tormenting him, Charlotte. We’re discussing the matter of rewards right now,” Francois said, intervening.
“I understand. We can leave this topic for later, when we can go over it in detail.” Charlotte immediately backed down, shooting a suggestive and bewitching smile at Rio.
“...”
Rio looked at Satsuki for help but was met with a shrug of resignation.
“The Restoration would also like to reward you,” Christina said apologetically, having sensed Rio’s predicament.
“I have already received an estate in Rodania from the Restoration, so I would not feel comfortable accepting anything further...”
Of course, that wasn’t acceptable.
“I’ve witnessed the making of many commendable feats from my position, but none have been as notable as yours, Haruto. Your many achievements have saved the Restoration time and time again. If we do not reward you for it, we risk the spread of negative rumors. Please accept our gratitude as well,” Duke Huguenot said cheerfully on Christina’s behalf, who wasn’t as persuasive.
“I understand...” Rio agreed reluctantly.
“Speaking of which, you have a mansion in Rodania?”
“Yes. I received one the other day.”
“Hmm. It’d be odd for you to have a place in Rodania, but not in Galarc. I shall give you one of the royal family’s mansions within the castle grounds,” Francois declared.
“...”
Christina, Liselotte, Duke Cretia and his wife, and Duke Huguenot—all seasoned members of the noble class and above—all looked clearly shocked, which was a rare expression on them. Only Charlotte was left smiling triumphantly.
“A mansion within the castle grounds? I don’t believe I’ve ever seen any nobles living within the grounds...” Rio said, looking at the others.
“Of course not. The castle and its land belong to the royal family, after all. While guests may stay at the castle, long-term residence of those outside of royalty is not permitted. Not even Cedric—Duke Cretia, the leading noble of this kingdom—has an estate on the castle grounds. Duke Huguenot’s mansion in the Beltrum capital would have been outside of the castle grounds too,” Francois said, looking at Duke Cretia and Duke Huguenot.
Incidentally, many of the influential nobles who served as lords of territories loaned from the kingdom wanted to assume important positions within the royal castle. In fact, it was because they were influential that they wanted to do so. This was because in centralized nations such as Galarc or the Beltrum Kingdom, participation in the kingdom’s governance could only be done from the center—that is, the royal castle.
Thus, it was customary for nobles to have secondary homes in the noble district of the capital, separate from their main residence in their territory. The distance of the mansion to the castle and the extravagance of the estate also became a status symbol for those working in the castle. It was common for the head of a family to leave their territory’s management to an heir and spend most of the year in the capital to work at the castle.
“In that case, I believe it should be impossible for me to possess a mansion within the castle grounds when I’m not even a duke...” Rio said hesitantly, probing for Francois’s true intentions.
“That’s because this is a one-of-a-kind privilege unavailable to the other nobles of the kingdom. I’m sure many would be flabbergasted to hear about this,” Francois said, grinning.
“That’s a little too much... Wouldn’t a mansion outside of the castle suffice? There shouldn’t be any reason for it to be within the castle grounds...”
The king himself was basically declaring his favoritism for Rio over other nobles—an action that would only attract unwanted attention. Thus, Rio wished to decline the offer.
“Oh, I figured it’d be easier for Lady Satsuki to come and go freely if it were within the castle grounds. The procedure to leave the castle can be quite troublesome, so it would remove that hassle completely. Lady Miharu can also stay for as long as she pleases the next time she visits the castle. Isn’t it a wonderful idea?”
“That certainly would be convenient...” Satsuki mumbled.
Francois smiled at that. “There’s no need to worry about the backlash from the nobles either. They’ll have no choice but to hold their tongues once they hear about your list of achievements. If we consider it a reward for both escorting Princess Christina to Rodania and the incident this time, it seems reasonable. Wouldn’t you agree, Cedric?”
“Indeed, they would fall silent... But envious people will also appear. The nobles working in the royal court in particular may feel discontent. Such people would form cliques to spread malicious gossip. Wouldn’t it be better for Haruto to avoid creating enemies in the royal court?” Duke Cretia gave his honest opinion with Rio in mind.
“Those who envy his achievements will appear no matter what, but we may be able to do something to decrease those numbers. It’s the same as the usual power struggle that goes on in the castle—it all boils down to who you ally with.”
“I completely agree...”
“With myself, Cedric, and Lady Satsuki ironclad on Haruto’s side, most people will be silenced in fright. All that’s left is to give it a final push. If I move myself, it’ll be a clear act of pressure... You understand?”
Make sure you pull the strings in your own faction to get a good word in—that was what Francois was implicitly ordering Cedric to do. In other words, he had to increase the number of Haruto’s allies in the royal court—an incredibly vital task.
“As I thought...” Cedric nearly hung his head.
“I’m leaving it to you. Understand?”
Cedric immediately found his resolve and nodded respectfully. “Yes, Your Majesty. I owe Haruto for saving my daughter in Amande, so I shall get on it right away.”
“So there you have it, Haruto.”
“I’m not sure I wanted to learn all that...” Rio’s face twitched faintly at the compacted display of a vertically structured society.
“I grant you a mansion on the royal castle grounds. This is officially decided as of now.”
“I gratefully accept...” Rio bowed his head lightly at Francois’s smiling declaration.
“Even the unused mansions are regularly maintained, so it should be possible to hand it over immediately. You may need permanent servants for the mansion, but... The staff selection must be meticulous, to prevent anyone suspicious from slipping in. If you wish to do this yourself, that can also be arranged,” Christina explained.
“What will you do?” Francois said to Rio.
“I don’t believe there’s any need to hire permanent servants. I can look after myself, and I’m not used to living together with servants anyway.”
“I see... Let me know if you change your mind. We can also prepare temporary staff on our end for your needs,” said Francois.
“I am very thankful for your consideration.”
“That will be all for the reward from our kingdom. What will the Restoration do?” Francois asked Christina.
“The Restoration will require a little more time to decide what to reward Sir Amakawa with. We need to spend more time considering what we can offer that will be worthy of Sir Amakawa’s services.”
“I see. Is that fine with you, Haruto?”
“Of course,” Rio nodded.
“Then let’s call it a day here. There are various things I need to discuss with Cedric. If you wish to continue amongst yourselves, feel welcome to,” Francois said, expressing his intention to leave.
“Lady Satsuki and I can take over entertaining Sir Haruto from here,” Charlotte immediately suggested.
“I would be honored.” Rio nodded readily.
Francois paused just before he left and asked, “Speaking of which, what are your plans now, Haruto?”
“I’d like to visit Lady Celia, so I’m thinking of going back to Rodania with Princess Christina and the others. I also have to return to Miharu and our other housemates...”
If he was receiving a mansion, that would probably have to wait for later. However, Rio personally wanted to leave as soon as possible.
“Flora and I have to show ourselves to the organization to reassure the others of our safety, so we were thinking of leaving as early as tomorrow...” Christina explained.
“Huh? You only just got here and you’re going to leave already?” Charlotte expressed her displeasure with a sullen pout. Then she clapped her hands together, as though she just came up with a brilliant idea. “I know! You can bring everyone to the castle. Since you have your own mansion here now.”
Rio was taken aback by the suggestion, but hummed after hesitating for a moment. “Many of them are unfamiliar with noble society, so bringing them here is a bit...”
Celia and Aishia were living in Rodania, while Miharu, Latifa, Sara, Orphia, and Alma were living in the outskirts. If he invited them all to the castle, the only ones who would accept for sure would be Celia and Miharu.
I haven’t spent much time with everyone in the stone house—especially Latifa—since we came to the Strahl region, so I want to stay with them for a while.
He didn’t like the thought of separating everyone after coming this far either.
“But Lady Satsuki must want to see Lady Miharu again too, and wouldn’t Lady Miharu want to see Lady Satsuki as well?” Charlotte asked.
“Well, I’d love to do that if possible, but...” Satsuki agreed, but she didn’t demand anything out of consideration for Rio’s circumstances.
“If it’s merely a matter of being unfamiliar with noble society, don’t worry. They can just stay within Sir Haruto’s mansion. Father may want to meet them, but I can use my authority to refuse all other meetings with anyone else.”
It seemed that Charlotte was fully prepared to use her authority in order to entice Rio. Rio had a somewhat wry smile at that realization.
I want to let Miharu and Satsuki meet up as well. If we can keep Latifa’s contact with the others in this castle to a bare minimum, then perhaps it may be worth inviting them anyway.
“Fine. I cannot promise I’ll bring them for sure, but I’ll ask everyone what they think.”
“I will eagerly await their reply,” Charlotte said joyfully, her movements full of charm.
“Hmm. If you’re leaving tomorrow, it would be best to hand over the mansion today. Charlotte, you know the empty mansion beside the tower Lady Satsuki is residing in?” Francois asked.
“Yes, father. Is that the mansion you’re granting to Sir Haruto?”
“Indeed. You can show Haruto the way with Lady Satsuki. The key is in my office, so come with me.”
“I understand. I’ll be back soon, so please wait here, Lady Satsuki, Sir Haruto. Liselotte, you stay here too. Come with us to see Sir Haruto’s mansion later.”
“Yup, okay,” Satsuki said.
“If it isn’t a bother, then gladly,” Charlotte added.
“Also, since father has things to discuss with Duke Cretia, would you like to join us on the tour, Lady Julianne?” Charlotte asked, inviting Liselotte’s mother along.
As a duchess, Julianne was of a lower status than the royal Charlotte, but Charlotte spoke to her with respect considering their age difference.
“I would be delighted to, if it’s not a problem for anyone else.”
“You’re more than welcome to come along. Isn’t that right, Sir Haruto?”
“Of course,” Rio replied immediately. He wouldn’t have been able to decline due to his position, but he’d spoken to Julianne when he was last here for the banquet and wanted to thank her once again for that, so he had no reason to refuse.
“Then it’s decided.” Charlotte smiled happily. Thus, it was decided that the Galarc side of the room would head with Rio to see his new mansion.
Meanwhile, having constantly been with Rio for some time now, Flora watched them all with a somewhat lonely, envious look.
Charlotte seemed to notice Flora’s expression. “Would you like to come along, Princess Christina, Princess Flora? I would love to hear more about what happened on your journey with Sir Haruto.”
“We...”
What should they do? Was it okay to go? Out of consideration for Rio, Christina trailed off, leaving a slight pause. She looked at Flora beside her, who had a very eager expression on her face.
“Since you’ve offered, we will go too,” Christina replied humbly.
“In that case, I shall prepare a change of clothes for you two, so please follow me. We can’t have you dressed in that travel attire forever.”
Christina and Flora had been led to this room directly after their journey, so Charlotte made a proposal out of consideration for them.
“Thank you very much,” Christina said first. Flora echoed her words.
“I’ll have Sir Haruto’s clothing brought to the mansion for you to change once we arrive.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
Rio was similarly in his travel clothes. He had a change of clothes in the Time-Space Cache, but Charlotte was unaware of its existence. However, Rio didn’t have many clothes suitable for a noble to wear, so he was grateful for the consideration.
“Such is the plan. We’ll find you later, Duke Huguenot,” Christina said.
“Understood. I will go check on Sir Hiroaki, then.”
Duke Huguenot bowed his head smoothly.
After their discussion, King Francois, Second Princess Charlotte, Duke Cretia, Christina, Flora, and Duke Huguenot exited the room, leaving Rio, Satsuki, Liselotte, and Julianne behind. They were to wait until Christina and Flora finished changing. Charlotte soon returned with the key to Rio’s mansion.
“I haven’t spoken to you since the night of the banquet. Since I haven’t given a proper greeting yet, I’d like to do that now. It’s nice to see you again,” Satsuki said to Julianne. She had exchanged greetings with countless nobles at the banquet, but she clearly remembered Liselotte’s mother.
Julianne smiled at Satsuki. “Yes. It’s an honor to be remembered by the great hero.”
“Why, that’s because you are so beautiful. As expected of Liselotte’s mother... In fact, I first thought you two were sisters with a slight age gap, so I was shocked when I heard you were actually parent and child. That really left an impression.”
“Why, I’m so flattered to hear that the great hero thinks that of me.” Julianne blushed shyly.
“I’m not really accustomed to being referred to as ‘hero.’ Please call me by my name.”
“Then, if you do not mind... Lady Satsuki. Thank you for getting along with my daughter,” Julianne said, tipping her head.
“No no, I should be saying that—Liselotte’s looked after me so much,” Satsuki replied sociably, returning the bow.
“Her work as a governor and head of a trading company has caused her to neglect interaction with her peers, so I am most appreciative of you becoming her friend,” Julianna said, showing a glimpse of her parental affection.
Liselotte had a faint blush on her face. “Isn’t that enough, mother?”
“Hee hee. Don’t worry about that. Liselotte and I have become great friends. She always visits me when she comes to the capital for business. Thank you, Liselotte.” Satsuki giggled, expressing her appreciation.
“Not at all. Talking with you also makes me happy, so I should be the one thanking you.”
Seeing her beloved daughter’s bashful reply, Julianne addressed her gently. “How wonderful, Liselotte.”
“Yes, mother,” Liselotte agreed in an energetic voice.
“Please forgive my delayed greeting. Thank you for your help the last time we met, Lady Julianne. Lady Liselotte as well.” Rio joined the conversation, greeting Julianne and Liselotte. Since they were in front of the king earlier, all their greetings had been abridged.
“The pleasure was mine. It’s been a while, Sir Haruto,” Liselotte replied first.
“It’s a joy to be able to speak to you again properly, Sir Amakawa. Thank you for inviting me to see your mansion along with Lady Satsuki and my daughter,” Julianne responded, smiling in true delight.
“Don’t mention it. My journey has left me with little time to meet with everyone, so I’m glad we’ve been blessed with this opportunity to chat. I wanted to thank you once again.”
“It’d be nice if you showed your face around here more often now that you’ve got a mansion,” Satsuki playfully requested.
“I intend on doing so in the future. You can think of it as your own home and come and go freely while I’m here.”
“You’ve said it now. I’m looking forward to it.” Satsuki beamed, fully intending on taking him up on his word.
“Yes,” Rio said, nodding with a welcoming smile.
“It’s decided! Now I’m even more curious to see what your new mansion will look like. Thanks, Haruto.”
“I’ve done nothing worth thanking me for.”
“That’s not true. Your distinguished service is what prompted this mansion as a reward, so if you hadn’t returned safely with Princess Christina and Princess Flora, I wouldn’t have something to look forward to this much. They’re ordinary words, but it doesn’t feel right not to say them... So, thanks. I’ll take you up on your kind offer and visit you every day you’re here,” Satsuki said, dispelling the gloomy atmosphere with an impish giggle at the end of her words.
“I see,” Rio said, chuckling.
“Do either of you know what kind of mansion he’s going to get?” Satsuki asked the two members of the Cretia family.
“I know which building His Majesty was referring to. It’s a very beautiful mansion, fit for royal inhabitants. It was also constructed recently, so it’s a modern and stylish design. However, its location is normally restricted to royalty, so its interior design is a mystery to me... Would you know, mother?” Liselotte answered first, then turned to Julianne.
“I haven’t been inside either, so I’m brimming with curiosity as well,” Julianne said, exuding delight.
“I feel the same way. Seeing the layout and interior design of other homes is so exciting.”
Thus, their animated conversation continued until Charlotte returned half an hour later with Christina and Flora in their fresh sets of clothes.
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