Three weeks had passed since we left the Imperial Capital.
At present, my companions and I had successfully made our way to the southernmost end of the continent, near Crossroad.
The hardships of those three weeks had taken their toll, leaving all of us, including the knights, soldiers, mercenaries who joined us along the way, and even Elize, looking quite worn out.
I'll skip the detailed recounting of those three weeks, for if I were to record everything, the story would never end...
We had indeed embarked on a grand adventure that was anything but easy. If I were to write a novel about this journey, it might well fill a whole volume...?
After a journey filled with blood, sweat, tears, dreams, hope, friendship, and much more, we had arrived within a day's distance of Crossroad!
"Tomorrow, this journey will come to an end," the knight who had led us thus far said, smiling faintly as he spoke to me.
Having shared life-and-death experiences over three weeks, we had grown quite close. The thought of parting the next day was a bitter one.
"How about settling down in the southern frontlines for good?"
"I must respectfully decline, Your Highness. I have family back in the Imperial Capital."
Ah... family is something we can't argue against...
I discreetly asked the other knights and soldiers, but they all declined as well.
Well, the rural areas like these backwaters probably wouldn't meet the tastes of the people from the Imperial Capital. Or maybe it was because they'd have to fight monsters?
"Anyway, you all worked hard."
As dusk fell, we set up camp in the mountains and gathered around the bonfire.
It was the last day of a long journey, and everyone's faces showed some relaxation. I looked around at everyone and smiled.
"Rest well once we reach Crossroad tomorrow. I'll make sure to treat you generously."
"It's exciting to hear that from the Prince, isn't it?"
"Ha ha ha! I'll feed you all the generous countryside hospitality!"
After all, the food in Crossroad is decent, right? The local lord recommended it.
Just then, the other knights and soldiers who had been scouting the surroundings returned. They carried full water containers in their hands.
"No enemies in sight. There happens to be a clear pond nearby. The water is cool and tastes good."
"That's great. Let's drink and wash up comfortably tonight."
While the rest of the soldiers rushed to the pond to fill their containers, a large pot was hung over the bonfire, and dinner was prepared.
Tonight's cook was Elize.
As I listened to the contents bubbling inside the pot, I asked Elize, "What will you do, Elize? Are you going back to the Imperial Capital too?"
"I am a servant of the Silver Winter Merchant Guild and a slave to Miss Serenade."
Elize answered in her characteristically indifferent voice.
"My place is by her side. Of course, I must return."
"That's a shame."
Over the past three weeks, Elize had saved my life several times, and I had saved hers once or twice, so we had grown quite close.
I had thought about persuading her to stay and fight on the monster frontlines, but her loyalty to her original master was too strong. It seemed like a difficult task.
"You'll rest for a few days though, right? It's too soon to let you go. You've worked hard for three whole weeks; rest at the my residence before leaving."
"..."
Elize briefly glanced at me with her enigmatic violet eyes.
No, it's purely out of consideration, you know? Of course, I do fully intend to ask for help if a defensive battle occurs while you're here, but...
Bubbling...
Then the sound from the pot grew slightly suspicious. Silently cooking, Elize drew anxious glances from me and the other soldiers as we silently broke into a cold sweat.
Elize was incredibly adept at anything related to combat, but everything else in daily life - cooking, laundry, mending clothes - was a complete disaster.
It was unclear why she stubbornly wore the maid's attire.
Why not just wear the undertaker's costume like in the game? That would be brilliant. You have to play to your strengths.
But since she never tried to escape these tasks, she also volunteered for cooking duty.
"Tonight's dinner might be downright terrifying."
Well, it was the last night, so we could laugh it off. But I guess we'd still go to bed hungry tonight.
"Hmm?"
Elize, who had been stirring the pot, suddenly stopped to taste it, and her expression soured.
She then spat out what was in her mouth. I couldn't help but laugh.
"What's wrong? Why does it taste bad this time? Is it salty? Sharp? What's so bad that you had to spit it out?"
"No, this is..."
Elize suddenly looked at the pot. A large water container that was filled from the pond earlier was visible. The same water had been used to cook the food.
"This water, something's wrong with it."
"Huh?"
"It's laced with paralyzing poison...!"
I blinked in disbelief. What was she talking about?
"Ugh?!"
"Grr..."
"I... I'm paralyzed...?!"
At that moment, the soldiers, who were either chatting or preparing camp, suddenly began to convulse and fall one by one.
The knight who first fetched the water looked at the container in despair.
"No, this can't be. I made sure there was no poison in it... cough!"
Soon, he too fell to the ground, groaning.
In an instant, everyone fell. In the entire camp, the only one unaffected was Elize, who hadn't drunk the water.
Me? Of course, I was affected too! I gulped it down with enthusiasm, for heaven's sake! What a world!
'...Well, it doesn't feel like a huge crisis, though.'
Paralyzed and sitting, I let out a chuckle.
There had been too many incidents over the past three weeks... Especially last week's ghost frenzy... that was terrifying... falling paralyzed as a group didn't feel like a big crisis...
But the subsequent emergency was definitely serious.
Rustle!
As the soldiers fell paralyzed, people with swords in hand suddenly appeared all around our camp.
Their sly faces, ragged clothes, malicious eyes, and sharp blades were the typical look of bandits.
- In the northern mountainous region of Crossroad, bandits have lived for quite a while. They've been a problem for a long time.
I was suddenly reminded of a conversation I had with Evangeline.
It was when we recruited Godhand and the Shadow Squad. Bandits had stolen a prisoner transport, only to be bested by the Shadow Squad members.
Those bandits had looked mediocre, but the ones surrounding us now were different.
The way they were slowly tightening their encirclement, well-coordinated and orderly, smelled of good training.
Clank!
Elize quickly grabbed her Sword Coffin and stood in front of me, blocking the way.
Fortunately, my paralysis hadn't taken effect, so I grinned and shouted.
"You must be the grand bandits of the Green Forest! What brings you to us? Hungry? We were preparing dinner; care to join us? Elize's cooking might not be tasty, but still."
While spouting this nonsense, I thoroughly scanned the surroundings.
I wasn't just shouting for fun. The reason I threw this joke was to,
"Ahahaha! It's been a long time since someone invited me to dinner!"
Find their leader.
Someone took my bait and walked slowly toward us.
"Just accept our heartfelt thanks and eat your dinner on your own. You'll have to follow us anyway, since you can't escape the paralysis poison that you can only find here in the Margrave's territory!"
Soon, the bandits' leader revealed himself... a young, muscular brute standing at least 2 meters tall.
His flaming red hair was braided into a ponytail, and on his forehead was a vivid X-shaped scar.
"…!"
My eyes widened in recognition.
'Bandit King Kuilan?! Why are you here?!'
The leader of all the bandits in the southern continent, the Named Enemy NPC Boss—Kuilan.
Commonly known as the Bandit King.
This guy even appeared in the game, mainly as an enemy during subjugation events.
'A randomly roaming NPC in the southern continent, so hard to find! How did he get caught here, of all places?'
An SR-ranked fighter, he's strong himself, and his followers, true to the Bandit King's elite guard(?), are incredibly well-trained for bandits.
During subjugation events, if players weren't careful, they could end up with even greater losses.
I immediately revised my earlier thought that this didn't feel like a big crisis.
This bandit chaos is a bigger crisis than the ghost chaos! People are indeed scarier than ghosts!
"You folks caught in our trap look like you're worth a lot. This is going to be quite the profit."
A ferocious smile spread across Kuilan's face.
"Today's my lucky day!"
"This is bad luck indeed..."
Grumbling, I saw Kuilan gesture at me.
"And you there, if my eyes and instincts don't deceive me, you must be the new lord of Crossroad, right?"
I narrowed my eyes. There was no point in denying it.
"Yes, I am Ash 'Born Hater' Everblack, the lord of Crossroad and the Emperor's third son."
"Oh, indeed! Such an esteemed person!"
"You know that messing with me could be more trouble than it's worth, right? Leave now, and I'll let it slide."
"Ahaha! I can't do that! You're the biggest catch in ages!"
Kuilan laughed heartily.
"If I take you hostage, I can make a good fortune. I can't possibly back down! No, I promise to escort you without a scratch!"
"It's been a long time since someone acknowledged my worth at first sight... How touching."
Grumbling, I whispered to Elize, who was guarding me.
"Elize. Get out of here."
"...Yes?"
With a sharp gaze surveying her surroundings, Elize looked like she might draw her sword from the Sword Coffin at any moment. She turned her flustered eyes to me.
"What do you mean, Your Highness?"
Of course, Elize is strong. Among all the people here, she might be the strongest.
However, our opponents were the Bandit King and his close guards.
Each one of them was strong, their numbers were large, and they had us surrounded.
No matter how much of a monster Elize was, being the top tier in the SSR grade swordsmen, winning the fight alone while protecting all the paralyzed allies was impossible.
Instead, it would be better to,
"Crossroad is only a day away. Go there and ask for reinforcements."
This was the better option.
In the game, Kuilan was a bandit who kidnapped people, then released them after receiving money.
There was a suppression event where you had to raid the bandit hideout to rescue allies who had randomly been captured before they met a terrible fate.
Even if all of us were captured, they wouldn't kill us right away. They'd probably demand a ransom and wait.
"..."
Elize examined me with her flowing navy-blue eyes, then finally nodded.
"I understand."
Having traveled together for the last three weeks, Elize had come to trust my command ability unequivocally. Thus, she decided to follow without question.
"I will organize a rescue team as quickly as possible. Please take care."
"You be careful getting out, too."
I grinned at Elize. Talking big while paralyzed from the neck down felt rather amusing.
- Thump!
Elize suddenly stomped the ground and dashed toward a corner of the encircling net.
The bandits guarding that side were surprised and tried to block her, but in the face of Elize's martial prowess, it was futile.
- Thwack! Thud! Bang-bang...!
In no time, Elize had pierced one side of the encircling net and disappeared from sight.
"Ho? Not bad at all."
But Kuilan simply watched Elize run away, whistling in admiration. I was puzzled.
"Aren't you going to stop her?"
"Somebody needs to go and demand the ransom anyway. No need to stop her."
Kuilan yelled at Elize's retreating figure.
"If you don't want this precious person to get hurt, bring plenty of gold coins! If the price isn't right, we won't release him, so make sure to bring the correct amount~!"
Kuilan's voice echoed, and Elize was quickly out of sight.
Chuckling with a low, sneering laugh, Kuilan gestured to his minions.
The bandits began to tie up and drag away my comrades who lay paralyzed here and there.
"Now... let's us enjoy our time together."
Kuilan came to my side, grabbed the back of my collar, and effortlessly lifted me up.
It was a light movement, as if lifting a baby kitten.
Holding me as carefully as a chunk of gold, paralyzed and unable to move, Kuilan licked his lips.
"Shall we have a fun time, Your Highness the Prince?"
I asked, trembling.
"...What kind of fun time are we going to have?"
Will we play a board game together? What?