While Merl and the Dragonias were fighting on Earth, Lexia, Mai Kagurazaka, and the others who had remained in the Regal Kingdom since the recent attack by Avis were enjoying themselves.
"Mai! Let's go quickly!"
"P-please wait, Lexia-sama!"
As Mai tried to calm Lexia, who was about to pull Mai's hand and rush out right now, Luna sighed and followed as her escort.
"Mai, give up. If Lexia is like that, there's nothing we can do."
"Eeh?"
"Hey, Luna! Don't talk about me like I'm a wild animal!"
"Isn't that the truth?"
"That's not true!"
Mai was disconcerted by the sudden comical exchange. From Mai's perspective, Lexia is a princess, and she should not be in a position to walk around the city with her like this.
"Lu-Luna-san. It's all right."
"Mmm, really? If Mai says so, then…"
"Even so, Mai! What's with that tone?"
"Eeh? I-is there something wrong…?"
Mai's face turned pale as she wondered if she had done something wrong when her tone was suddenly pointed out.
But…
"There's only one problem! We're friends now, aren't we? If that's the case, please don't use such formal language; just treat me normally!"
"Eh? N-no, but…!"
"I said it's okay, so it's okay! Do you understand? Answer me!"
"Eh, well, um…"
Even though it was Lexia's request, she could not break her formal speech so easily. She was dealing with royalty, after all. But Lexia continued to stare at Mai's face as if she was planning to remain there until Mai changed her tone.
Luna quietly put her hand on Mai's shoulder as Mai was confused.
"Mai, give up. As I said before, once Lexia has made a decision, she will go through with it. Geez… What a selfish princess."
"What are you talking about? Luna, I'm a princess, remember? You should be more careful with me!"
"Is that so? Well then, is this what you want, Lexia-sama?"
"…Don't be so mean to me. I prefer the usual Luna."
In response to Luna's condescending attitude, Lexia sharpened her tongue. Seeing Lexia's appearance, Luna smiled bitterly and turned her gaze to Mai once again.
"She's such a princess. Of course, in public, you will be required to use language and attitude appropriate to the occasion… but at least in other places, you can treat her just like an ordinary person."
"Y-yes…"
"Of course, not just to Lexia, but to me as well. Don't hesitate to call me Luna."
Not only was Luna urging her to do so, but Lexia was also looking at her expectantly, and Mai finally surrendered.
"Understood… No, I get it. Is this okay?"
"Yes! That's perfect!"
With a big smile on her face, Lexia pulled Mai's hand again and started to move.
"Better yet, let's get going!"
"W-wait a minute! When you say to go quickly… I want you to tell me where we are going!"
"Ara? Didn't I tell you?"
"No, you didn't…"
"…This is just the same old Lexia."
"I-it's not that I'm always like this, you know! I just happened to forget it!"
Lexia hurriedly clears her throat and tells her again.
"Since Mai has a special power as a saint, I thought it would be good for you to register as an adventurer."
"An adventurer?"
"Yes. Doesn't it exist in your world? It's a job that involves exterminating monsters, guarding people, gathering herbs and other things…"
"Y-yeah. I've heard of adventurers, but I've never heard of them doing anything with monsters and such. But can I really become one?"
"Of course! Besides, you have special powers, don't you? It'll be a piece of cake!"
"W-what do you mean by "a piece of cake…?"
Mai's cheek twitched at Lexia's overly optimistic words.
"Well, despite what Lexia said, I agree that Mai should become an adventurer. There are many Evil Beasts in the world, not to mention Evil. In order to defeat them, an identity like being an adventurer would be useful. And above all, experience with fighting monsters will be useful in the battle against Evil that will eventually come."
"…Right."
"It's just, is it okay? You've been summoned as a saint, but are you allowed to work as an adventurer in this Regal Kingdom?"
"That's, this country… No, I think it's because of the circumstances of this world that I was summoned here, and I was allowed to go about doing things quite freely, so it should be fine. Of course, if I were to go out alone, I might have been stopped, but with Luna and the others present… I was allowed to move freely for the time being."
"I see. You've been summoned for their own selfish reason, so it's only natural that you are allowed to be free…"
Luna nodded at Mai's words.
──At this time, Lexia and the others didn't know that Avis, the ultimate perfection of Evil, had already been defeated by Yuuya and the others. That's why Lexia and the others were still steadily making preparations for the upcoming battle against Evil.
But that battle would never come.
"There it is! That's the Adventurer's Guild!"
"This is…"
"Fumu, the atmosphere is no different from the Adventurer's Guild in the Alceria Kingdom."
When the three of them reached their destination, the Adventurer's Guild, they each looked up at the building. However, there is no point in standing around forever, as Lexia quickly entered the building.
"Hey, Lexia! Is that okay? A princess can't be so defenseless!"
"She won't listen to us, you know. Besides, she is dressed like a commoner, and as long as it is not the Evil or the Holy that are attacking her, I can protect her from here."
"Lu-Luna is amazing…"
"Not really. Come on; we should go in too."
When Luna and Mai entered the guild, they found it packed with adventurers and was very lively.
"Heh… there's a lot of people here."
"Yeah. But it's rare to see so many people in a place like this… Is this a phenomenon unique to this country?"
As Luna twisted her head and looked around curiously, a drunken man with a reddish face approached her.
"Hey, girl. Is this your first time here?"
"Yeah. Is this normal for this place to be packed with people like this?"
"No? Not at all. It's just busy right now; there's a mountain not far from here called [Sky Mountain] where a precious herb that can only be gathered once every three years is being collected, and everyone is getting excited about it."
"Herb?"
"Haven't you ever heard of it? It's called [Hala Grass]…"
"──[Hala Grass]?"
"Whoa! What did you say?"
When the drunk man was explaining to Luna, Lexia interrupted with shining eyes. Seeing Lexia's reaction, Luna tilted her head even further.
"Hmm? I've never heard of it… Do you know about it, Lexia?"
"Of course I know about it! More importantly, Luna, how come you don't know about it?"
"W-well."
Lexia's enthusiasm was so great that Luna was taken aback. However, Lexia did not care about such a situation and continued.
"You know what? It is one of the materials needed to make the perfect love potion that everyone is chasing, without any side effects! It's a fantastic herb that can only be collected once every three years and rarely grows in clusters!"
"L-love potion?"
"I didn't even know there was such a thing…"
Luna rolled her eyes at the unexpected item, and Mai realized once again that she was in a different world.
"I can't let this slide! I never thought that this season would be the time to collect [Hala Grass]…! Luna, Mai! Are you ready? We're going to get some right now! That's why you should go and register as an adventurer!"
"Eeh?"
"Hey, Lexia. It's easy for you to say, but…"
"We have to collect as much as possible so that we can make the love potion without fail… And when I give it to Yuuya-sama… Kyaa! It's so embarrassing to be a loving couple!"
"…You're not listening to me…"
When Luna tried to pull Lexia back from her own world, the stunned drunk man laughed unpleasantly.
"Hey, hey, girls. You're not going to challenge it alone, are you? It's a dangerous place, and it's designated as a dangerous area. You girls can't go there alone, you know. But hey, it's okay. It's fate that we met here. I'll take care of it──."
"Shut up! We don't need you, so go away!"
"Eeeehhh?"
The drunken man was surprised at the sudden dismissal, but he was overwhelmed by Lexia's fierce determination and withdrew in a hurry.
"Geez… Who the heck is that guy? He interrupted our conversation…"
"N-no, we were talking, and you barged in…"
"That's not important! We're going to get the [Hala Grass], no matter what! Okay?"
"W-wait! You heard what that guy said, right? The place that the [Hala Grass] is located is said to be a dangerous area. It's a place like that──."
"Isn't it much better than the Great Devil's Nest?"
"…..Right!"
Luna shouted in desperation. However, Mai, who had never heard of the Great Devil's Nest, hurriedly stopped them.
"W-wait a minute! Why would I risk myself going to a place that was said to be dangerous? I want to gain some experience in combat, but my powers only work against Evil, and I've never fought a monster before, so even if I went to a place like that, I'd be useless!"
"Don't worry, Mai. I'll take care of the monsters. And compared to the environment of the Great Devil's Nest, everywhere is like heaven."
"What kind of place are you comparing this to?"
"Well, that's not important! Whatever the case may be, I need the [Hala Grass], so I will definitely be going there! I have to get it no matter what in order to become a hot married couple with Yuuya-sama!"
"…That guy is in trouble too, huh?"
Mai couldn't help but take a distant look when she heard Lexia's words.
"Now, hurry up and register as an adventurer! If we don't hurry, the [Hala Grass] will be completely collected!"
"Eh? W-wait!"
Mai was forcibly dragged to the reception desk. After that, Mai was able to register as an adventurer.