"This is the Regal Kingdom!"
"Oh!"
"It's lively."
"Woof!"
"Fugo~."
"Hmm, it's noisy."
A week later, I met up with Lexia-san and the others who had come to pick me up again at the entrance of the Great Devil's Nest, and we now arrived at the Regal Kingdom, which was in a festive mood for its 100th anniversary.
In this trip, the distance was not as short as the one to the royal capital of the Alceria Kingdom, which could be reached in a day. We had to camp and pass through several villages along the way… That alone was a rare experience and was very refreshing.
Of course, I could get home with teleport magic instead of camping out, but it's very dangerous for anyone aside from Lexia-san and Luna to find out about my teleportation magic, so I camped out like everyone else and made it safely into the Regal Kingdom.
The city was still as lively as the Alceria Kingdom, but the atmosphere was very different. The biggest difference would be the large number of people in robes – there was a large number of people doing business using magic.
For example, there were people who used magic for street performances… such as manipulating many fireballs at once, or people who were shopping and their purchases were floating in the air carried by some kind of membrane of wind. I got the impression that magic was used a lot in daily life.
When I asked Lexia-san, she explained to me that magic research was overwhelmingly active in the Regal Kingdom compared to other countries, which was apparent from the city. That makes sense.
By the way, when I toured the Alceria Kingdom with Lexia-san and the others before, she was dressed inconspicuously to hide from the public, but now she was properly dressed in luxurious clothes fitting of a princess. The people in town looked at her from a distance, but they didn't call out to her, nor did they give her an unnecessarily welcoming mood. Perhaps, they don't realize that she was the princess of the Alceria Kingdom.
I don't know for sure, but unless you go out officially, is this how people in town react? I'm grateful for that now.
"So many people."
"Woof."
"Fugo."
"Hmm… noisy."
As I looked around unconsciously at my surroundings, Lexia-san asked me in wonder.
"Speaking of which, where is your master, Yuuya-sama?"
"Eh? Oh, that reminds me…"
"He said he was going to see the Sword Saint."
Ouma-san said this while staring depressingly at the crowd. Then, seeing the situation, Lexia-san and Luna twitched their cheeks.
"T-thinking about it again, it's hard to believe that… this little dragon is the legendary dragon…"
"Items that allow you to change the size of your body are extremely rare on their own, but using it on a legendary dragon is even more so…"
When they came to tell me about today's match in the Regal Kingdom, Lexia-san and the others did not meet Ouma-san, so just before we headed for this country, they met him for the first time. When they looked at the small Ouma-san, it seemed that they couldn't believe that he was the legendary dragon, so there was a bit of an argument right before we left, which ended with Ouma-san getting annoyed and tried to enlarge himself.
Anyway, according to Ouma-san's story, Master Usagi seems to have left to meet the Sword Saint first… but is it possible to meet the Sword Saint without being guided by anyone? Or perhaps, since they are both Holy, they can recognize each other when they are nearby?
As I was thinking about that, Lexia-san suddenly held me by the arm.
"Le-Lexia-san!?"
"More importantly, since we've come all this way, let's take a look around the royal capital!"
"I-it's okay, but your… chest is…"
"I hit it!"
"You hit it!?"
I didn't think it would be said so openly by such a dignified person, so I just retort on it.
Then, Luna rebuked Lexia-san for that.
"Hey, Lexia. You're a princess, aren't you? Don't be so loose──."
"Ara, I'm a woman before I'm a princess, you know? Or maybe, Luna, are you jealous of me?"
"Ugh!"
Luna groaned, her face reddening at Lexia-san's words.
"T-there's no way that could be!"
"Then you should just be quiet. I'm going to have a great time touring the festival with Yuuya-sama! You should just escort us from behind."
"Gugugugu…!"
"Uhm, Lexia-san? And Luna too…"
"Yuuya!"
"Y-yes?"
When Luna suddenly called out, I straightened my back and replied, and Luna quickly took my arm on the opposite side of Lexia-san's!
"Lu-Luna-san?"
"I-I'll go around the festival with Yuuya too!"
"What? What about the escort?"
"Lexia. I'm a woman too before I'm a guard, you know?"
"Ugh…!"
For some reason, Luna had a triumphant expression on her face. In contrast, Lexia-san showed a frustrated expression.
Um… my thoughts were completely stopped by the unbelievable situation of having both of my arms grabbed by the girls.
Lexia-san was the one who asked me to marry her, and Luna was the one who gave me… um… a kiss. It would be impossible not to be concerned about it.
"First of all, there are not only Yuuya here, but also the legendary dragon, Yuti, Night and Akatsuki. What safer place could there be?"
"T-that's…"
It was true that there's no safer place than here with Ouma-san and the others present. I don't know if Ouma-san would be willing to protect us though. This is probably why Owen-san and the other soldiers were escorting from a little distance away.
"Now, Yuuya. Let's take a look around here."
"Ah, wait! Yuuya-sama, let's go over here!"
"Whoaa!"
I was pulled by both arms and led around by Lexia-san and Luna.
Looking at me like that, Ouma-san muttered in a dumbfounded manner.
"…Unexpectedly, his greatest enemy may not be the Evil, but women."
"? Question. Then how could he beat me?"
"Hmm. It's not about biological things like that… Even the sage was not good with this kind of situation. He also had a hard time with women. When I think about it, he and Yuuya are looking more and more alike…"
I had no way of knowing that such a conversation was taking place behind me.
＊＊＊
"A match in front of a king, huh…"
In a distinguished guest room in the Regal Kingdom, the Sword Saint Iris was resting with a sigh. The work of thinning out the monsters in the Orz Forest was over, and now the king, Orghis, had requested for her to take a rest in preparation for the match.
"Why should I participate in the match… But maybe I can meet a man who is stronger than me?"
As a condition of her marriage, Iris was looking for a man who was stronger than her. Her eyes lit up but soon a gloomy expression returned.
"…No, it's a vain hope. I've been looking all over for a man, and I've never met one, it's not going to be this easy to find one. Sigh…"
(──Hmm. It's rare to see the Sword Saint sighing.)
"! Usagi?"
When Iris was suddenly called to, she turned her gaze in that direction and saw a rabbit standing quietly on the balcony of the guest room.
(It's been a while, Iris.)
"Yes, it's been a while. It's unusual for you to come to a place where there are so many people. Is there something wrong?"
(Well, yes. I had some business to attend to in this country. First of all, I came to your place to exchange information as well as to give you a brief update.)
"I see… Okay, come on in. I will prepare a cup of tea for you now."
The rabbit was invited in and looked around the guest room curiously.
(Is there no servant for such a luxurious room?)
"I turned that down. I can take care of myself, and more than anything, they distract me."
(I see. More importantly, was it okay to invite me in without permission?)
"Just come in now… It's okay. Above all, you are also an existence that bears the name Holy, so I think you are rather welcomed, don't you?"
(Hmm. Human nature is really simple to understand.)
"Oh, if you put it that way, I'm also human."
(An existence that bears the name Holy is no longer an ordinary human being.)
"That's terrible; it sounds like I'm a monster…"
After preparing tea for the two of them, Iris sat down in front of the rabbit and asked again.
"So? You came all the way to see me, and I wonder if something happened?"
(──The Fist Saint has fallen to the Evil.)
"! …I see."
Iris quietly opened her mouth and took a sip of tea.
"…I was able to predict it because of the information I received to some extent."
(Yeah. Everyone knew that he was the most uncontrollable of all the Holy. That's why it wasn't too surprising that he fell into Evil. But he used his power to start hunting other Holy ones.)
"…I see. So that's why we lost contact with many of them."
For a moment, a sad expression appeared on her face, but she soon said this in a calm tone.
"But even if the Fist Saint has fallen into the Evil, there are still some Holy who could stop the Fist Saint from going out of control, right? For example, the Bow Saint is…"
(…She was killed by humans.)
"What?"
Iris was taken aback by the rabbit's words.
Holy is an existence that protects human beings from Evil. Yet, she was killed by humans, the object of her protection. It was difficult not to be surprised.
"W-what do you mean? That girl who loved humans the most was killed by humans…"
(…Yeah. But it was the Evil who made it work that way. The humans instigated by the Evil killed the Bow Saint.)
"Is that so? …That's why I thought I'd seen a lot of Evil Beasts lately…"
(Are there a lot of them?)
"Yes. I had a vague idea about the Evil Beasts from the information of the Fist Saint and the situation of the other Holy, but the fact that the Evil Beasts have sprung up means that they are starting to move in full scale."
(…I guess. The fact that Evil Beasts are popping up everywhere is proof of how much negative power is pouring out. It's only a matter of time before we have to move.)
"So, do you know how many Holy are left?"
When Iris asked him that, Usagi made a pained expression.
(I'm not sure. It seems that Magic Saint is still alive… but the others were either hunted by the Fist Saint or fell into the Evil as well.)
"As I thought, there are other Holy who have fallen to the Evil…"
Iris, who knew the information but did not want to believe it, let out a sigh of regret. After talking that much, Iris realized something.
"Come to think of it… you said you had business in this country, but were you also invited by the King of Regal? I thought you were a Holy who was not good at interacting with humans…"
(Oh, is that what you think?)
The rabbits smiled at Iris's words.
(You're going to have a match today, aren't you?)
"Eh? But how do you know that? What? No way, that opponent is you?"
(No. Unfortunately not.)
"So… if it's not you, then who's it going to be? I haven't heard any details about the opponent yet… but if I may say so, I don't think there is anyone who can compete with me properly."
(Don't worry. You're dealing with an extraordinary talent.)
"Wait a minute. Why are you talking like you know about my opponent?"
(That's because your opponent is my disciple.)
"!"
The rabbit's words caused Iris to widen her eyes.
"Your disciple, you say…? Did you take a disciple? It seems to me that you're the most unlikely person to take a disciple, along with the Fist Saint."
With Iris's honest impression, the rabbit averts its gaze grimly.
(Hmm. You thought of me as the same as the Fist Saint, huh? But… Well, I can understand how you feel about that. I'm training him because I think he'd be an excellent disciple for me.)
"You praise him so much… This disciple of yours seems to be quite strong, doesn't he?"
(Hmm… Well, you can look forward to it. If you're not careful, you could be tripped up.)
"…I see. I'll keep that in mind."
After exchanging information that way, Iris, curious about the rabbit's disciple, moved to the arena to watch the fighting competition before her match.