Chapter 29: The Husband of the Knight Commander
"You must be Kakeru-kun. I am Lord Alfred, the ruler of this Primera. Your achievement in defeating the orcs was splendid. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to you as well. Actually, I've been wanting to meet you for some time."
Hmm, he's incredibly handsome. And ridiculously strong, to top it off. No wonder he holds the cool title of the Four Holy Swords. Anyway, first impressions are important, so I have to greet him properly.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lord Alfred. I'm Kakeru, an adventurer. I've only just arrived, but I already love this town and its people. I will be establishing my base here, so please take care of me."
"Indeed, Kakeru-kun, you say pleasing things. In fact, I'd like to make a request to you. I've heard about you from Carlos. As for the base, I will provide full cooperation, so look forward to it."
It seems Carlos had talked to him in advance. I really owe him a lot.
And then, there's the other knight commander with platinum blonde hair. I've seen her once before. She was the one Ronaldo reported the goblin incident to. She was a really nice person, but I never thought she'd be a knight commander.
"Um, nice to meet you. I-I'm Celestina. P-please take care of me... husband."
The knight commander stammers while introducing herself, her face turning bright red. Huh? What is she saying?
".......Huh? Husband?"
Everyone turns to look at me all at once. Well, I don't know either. Today is the first time we're talking.
"My lord... when did you start getting involved with Celestina?"
Chloe's glare is painful.
"Kakeru-sama, what kind of relationship do you have with Celestina? Come to think of it, he seemed strange yesterday."
"You truly are extraordinary, my lord. You've already conquered the famous Platinum Destroyer."
Silphy, what's with that scary nickname...
"My lord, isn't your pace a bit too fast? There's no room left to join anymore."
Sarah, I'll say it again, but I'm not a means of transportation!
"I don't mind if you have multiple women. After all, I'm fond of heroes."
N-No, this is bad. The women don't seem to be listening. Even the men are looking at me with those eyes!
T-That's right! Lord Alfred, please help me, Lord Alfred!
"Kakeru-kun, let me make it clear. As a man, I've lost to you... a complete defeat. It's frustrating, but well..."
Lord Alfred falls to his knees, crumbling to the ground. Huh... why!? Aren't you one of the Four Holy Swords? Why are you losing on your own accord? I don't understand...!?
"Darling, should I quit the Knight Order? And, please let me pay for the new house. I have plenty of savings, you know."
Blushing, she seemed to be acting a bit recklessly.
"Lord Knight Commander? No way... she's lost her mind. Is it okay for her to be like this? Oh, wait, even the Guild Master has a distant look in his eyes. What were we doing again...?"
***
"Ahem, I apologize, my dear. I got a little carried away."
Apologizing with a remorseful expression, Celestina, the Knight Commander, was dignified and cool. But you, my dear, continue speaking. It seems she's still a bit flushed, but I'm glad she's back to her senses.
"So, regarding the plan to move it forward, I'm thinking of starting the investigation of the eastern countries from Fort Esperanza as our base."
It seems Alfred-sama has also made a comeback. That's good to hear.
According to the explanation, they had been planning the investigation east of Fort Esperanza for some time now, but with the current gathering of forces, they saw it as an opportunity to execute the plan. If there were any surviving cities, it would be the last chance to consider supplies and such.
"I thought the situation in the eastern countries was hopeless, but Your Highness Silphy, you managed to come through the eastern territory, didn't you?"
"Yes, Garland Kingdom had some of its villages destroyed by orcs, but it's still holding on. Alfred-sama."
"In that case... I think it's best to secure a route to Garland Kingdom first, don't you think?"
"Yes, if we do that, we can potentially coordinate joint operations between the two countries, and the investigation will progress more smoothly."
As a result of further discussions, it was decided that they would embark on an expedition from Fort Esperanza to Garland, the country where Silphy and the others hailed from. If successful, there would be a significant possibility of making great strides in the investigation of the eastern countries.
"I apologize, but in order to proceed with the preparations as quickly as possible, I would like to ask Kakeru and Usaneko to take care of eliminating the goblins in the western forest."
A new request from the guild master, in the western forest this time. By the way, it seems I get along well with Usaneko. They should just change their party name.
"My dear, we would like the Knight Order to handle the enemy's stronghold to some extent. We would appreciate it if you could guide us."
In truth, the attack on the goblin stronghold was supposed to be primarily led by the Knight Order, but they decided it would be better to concentrate the Knight Order's efforts on the expedition to the east.
"Kakeru-kun, we're together again. Nice to meet you~"
"Kakeru, treat me to some delicious sausages again, will you?"
Even if there were A-rank monster Goblin Kings, I'd feel relieved as long as Katarina-san, Cecilia-san, and the rest of the Usaneko party were with me.
"What should we do about Silphy? It's fine if she waits in town..."
"Of course, I'll accompany her."
"I'll also do my best to be of help."
"I'll go too. We're partners, so it's only natural we stick together."
There was no need to ask. With this team, it feels like we have an excessive amount of power.
"Everyone is participating. Then, please gather in this room tomorrow morning. I'll inform the receptionist. I apologize for today, as I can see you're all tired."
The Guildmaster announced the disbandment.
"Husband, may I have a moment of your time?"
During our parting, Celestina called out to me. She seemed to be burdened with something, and I hadn't had a proper conversation with her yet. There was no reason to refuse.
I asked everyone to wait in the dining area on the first floor and remained alone with Celestina. Seeing her again, she was an unbelievably beautiful girl. I couldn't help but feel my heart race at the faint sweet fragrance.
According to what I heard, the neighboring country Astrea has a history of prospering by having the royal family marry people from another world since its founding. Celestina, as a princess, had dreamed of becoming the wife of a black-eyed, black-haired hero since she was young.
Marriage with someone from another world, who could appear at any time, seemed like a predetermined event for her. She had rejected all marriage proposals. Coming to study at Alcalyze was also partly to escape persistent marriage proposals. In the end, she survived thanks to that.
I asked her what she would have done if someone from another world hadn't appeared. She replied that she would have remained single for life. It's kind of manly and cool, but it also makes me feel sorry for myself.
I have no intention or right to stop Celestina's actions. I happily accept her kindness, and I believe things will work out as they should. Maybe I'll be exasperated by it eventually.
"Husband, I'm truly grateful. Thanks to you, we can finally start investigating the Eastern Territories."
Celestina bows with a beautiful angle. She's more like a samurai than a knight.
"I learned the etiquette of another world, but is it not strange?"
She asks anxiously. I see... She went out of her way to consider that.
"It's not strange at all. It was a perfect bow."
"I-I see. In that case, I'm glad."
Celestina-san smiles with relief. She really is a beautiful person.
"By the way, I don't need any thanks or gestures from me. I receive proper compensation."
"That's not true. Everything started moving because you came to Primeria. I heard that great warriors gather around the hero with black eyes and black hair. It turned out to be true, and I was convinced."
Ugh, it's definitely an undeniable situation.
"...To be honest, I had almost given up. I was doing my best just to defend the fortress, let alone investigate. Of course, I haven't given up hope, but time is passing desperately..."
Celestina trembled and tears streamed down her porcelain-like white cheeks.
"Celestina-san..."
"S-Sorry. I showed you an unseemly side."
"It's not unseemly at all. I thought it was very cool."
This person is the same. They have the same face as Chloe and Claudia. It might be meddling, but I can't help but want to do something for them.
"Celestina-san, no, Celestina. It's okay. Since I came to this world, you don't have to worry about anything. We'll save everything together."
"M-My lord..."
"For now, let's clean up the western forest tomorrow and eliminate any lingering worries. Also, you don't have to hold back in front of me."
Celestina cried like a child in my arms for a while and then left.
No matter how strong she is, she's still a 17-year-old girl. Losing her country and showing weakness in a foreign land, she probably didn't have the time or anyone to be weak with.
I'm hopeless. I want to help everyone. I want to have everyone. I'm truly an indiscriminate greedy bastard. I don't intend to change, but I'll struggle with all my might.
(Mikoto-san... I want to see you. This different world is seriously something else.)
***
"Hmm, Kakeru is thinking about me right now."
"Wow, Mikoto-san is like a real god."
Mikoto's murmurs surprised Mikoto.
"Hehehe, because I can see everything about Kakeru... through Ilize."
- Heaven, a certain place -
"Geez, why do I have to keep an eye on Kakeru-kun? What's so sad about it! Ah, another woman showed up! Ugh, I'm quite busy, you know?"
While expressing her dissatisfaction, the creation goddess Ilize diligently fulfilled her duty.