CH 17

“Anyway, everyone, please head inside. Gartis will also be waiting for us there.”

As the number of onlookers steadily increased, Sansas-san clapped his hands and brought the situation under control. Su, despite still being unhappy, went silent and simply eyed the yellow dragon on the guild’s roof. As for the onlookers, they were being kept out of the office by Ludo-san, who had arrived at some point with the rest of the crowd. The commotion had already spread through the whole town, since nothing like this usually happened around here.

Speaking of things that didn’t usually happen, the drawing room almost never got used, but today, it was full of people.

After everyone had exchanged greetings, Fikar took a seat on the two-seat sofa facing us and I took the cushion to his left, narrowly avoiding being placed on his lap. Behind us, Gartis-san, who ran the guild in Tortea, Mesil-san, and Sansas-san, the manager, stood strong and supportive.

Across the table from us was a young man in a bright blue knight’s uniform, accented with golden embroidery, and a middle-aged man wearing a formal tailcoat that looked to be specially tailored for greater ease of movement. They were Zai-san from the Royal Knights in the capital and Kilka-san from the central guild. To be honest, I’ve met too many people for the first time today, so I’ll probably get their names wrong soon enough. Behind them were the princely adventurer Lawrence-san, the macho Degis-san, and the black-robed Kilris-san.

The atmosphere became quite somber. Everyone else was a part of the same crowd, and I felt very out of place. Tarina-san, who served tea on the low table, was a breath of refreshing air, but she quickly hugged the tray and evacuated near the door. As if on cue, Kilka-san from the central guild opened his mouth.

“First of all, regarding the inquiry we received about a 4-star adventurer possessing a dragon, basically, it’s not permissible according to the rules. A promotion exam and subsequent penalties will be administered as soon as possible, however–”

Ahem, he cleared his throat.

“The other day, we received a report that the person in question submitted the Demon Lord’s magic stone as proof of subjugation to the central guild. First of all, can you confirm this, Fikar-kun?”

Fikar nodded, like this was business as usual. I think it’d be okay to be a little nervous or something… Or at the very least, give a reply out of your mouth? I poked Fikar with my elbow and gestured to my mouth.

“That’s correct.”

“So, does that mean you’ve defeated the Demon Lord?”

“That’s correct.”

“… You, alone, climbed Mouth Thracias, and confronted the Demon Lord?”

“That’s correct.”

That’s correct. That’s all he’s saying. Fikar, I’m sure there’s more to say than just that…

I tried appealing to him with my eyes, but he only tilted his head.

“… Understood. Actually, it’s customary for the guild to only accept Demon Lord subjugation requests from high-ranked members, but strictly speaking, there are no rules regarding the rank of the adventurers involved. After all, when the Demon Lord causes a crisis, the most important thing is to deal with it, so even non-members can apply for the request.”

The line of thought there was probably that when the number of demons is increasing and they’re affecting the environment, it doesn’t matter who you are if you can do something about it. And it’s certainly not the time to put conditions and restrictions on who can do what.

“Therefore, I would like to announce that the adventurer Fikar, ranked 4-star, has received and fulfilled the request to subdue the Demon Lord and will be rewarded for his achievement. He has already been given the monetary reward, so I’m sure there are no objections.”

Guild requests were basically invalid unless you signed the request form and used your card to log it. But since Fikar had met the requirements and already received the money, all that was left was a matter of paperwork.

“As a formality, please sign this.”

Kilka-san presented a request form.

Universal Request | Guild Permit Number | Type 99, No. 99999

Management Region:

Adventurer’s Guild Unified Headquarters

Requester:

Adventurer’s Guild Unified Headquarters (Registration No.: 1000-00000)

Requestee: 

One or more people able to fulfill the request

Request:

Defeat the Demon Lord and put a stop to the abnormal disasters and demons

Conditions:

Bring back the Demon Lord’s magic stone (Regulations Article 7)

Designated Equipment: None

If the request is fulfilled, the cost of any and all equipment can be reimbursed.

Reward:

In accordance with the Adventurer’s Guild Regulations. Depending on the requestee’s performance, the requester might grant them a position of the requestee’s choosing.

Request the above with the permission of the Adventurer’s Guild.

Compared to a normal request form, which contained detailed conditions, this was a very simple form. After Fikar signed it, Kilka-san quickly put it away and handed him a card in its place.

“In light of your successful subjugation of the Demon Lord, the guild offers an unconditional rank promotion. Additionally, taking into account that the possession of the dragon was essential in defeating the Demon Lord, the central guild has come to the conclusion that your violation of protocol will be disregarded.”

“Then… Fikar won’t be penalized?”

“That’s right. Here’s your new guild card.”

What a surprise. Defeating the Demon Lord sure seemed to solve a lot of things. Hm? Wait, if he caught Su in order to defeat the Demon Lord, then it’s all thanks to the Demon Lord… Well, it’s fine.

As I went “yay!~”, Fikar nodded, took his old card out of its case, inserted the new one, and put the case in his pocket, and that was all… Or so it would’ve been if not for Kilka-san’s over-the-top throat-clearing.

“… it, it’s a special measure from the guild to the Hero. Please verify it for yourself.”

Although he was trying to act calm, Kilka-san was giving off an atmosphere that said “Eh? You want to finish up that quickly? Nai wa~”

The guild card was a pale gold, reflecting the light delicately and giving the illusion that it had fine, vertical lines engraved on it. The locations of the name and guild name didn’t change, however, as we were looking at it together, I counted the number of stars engraved on the card, counted them again, and then let out a bewildered voice.

“This, it has 10 stars?!”

“What did you say?”

“What is this?!”

No matter how many times I counted, even using my fingers, there were 10 stars. It was like a celebrity gold card and, looking closer, I saw that there were actually tiny, colorful stones embedded in the form of 10 stars, not merely engravings.

At the sound of my voice, the room buzzed. Well, Fikar was like usual and Kilka-san looked slightly smug, but everyone else.

“It’s not uncommon for Demon Lord subjugations to occur hundreds of years apart, so although the 10-star rank is always and only given to the Hero, it’s not a fact generally known among the populace.”

Lawrence-san, who was probably familiar with these things since he was a noble, and Zai-san, of the royal knights, made somewhat muted expressions, so at least a few people really knew about it. The air buzzed for a moment and Kilka-san’s face went smug again, but when things quieted down this time, Zai-san elegantly took out a letter.

“The king and the Assembly have evaluated your achievement and have decided to appoint you as the First Knight–”

“I refuse.”

…

…

“Eh? Ehhh?”

My reaction blasted through the frozen scene. I was surprised that Zai-san had suddenly said something so amazing, and also by Fikar who refused to accept the offer. His words were also unusually pronounced — firm and clear. He was a person who could say no. Though, it was too straight to the point.

“… j, just now, what was that?” Zai-san, unfrozen from his stupor, shakily asked. Everyone was staring at Fikar.

See, Fikar, you cut off too quickly!

If you’re going to decline, say it in a softer, more roundabout way!

When I looked up at him, Fikar, looking right back at me, nodded like he knew exactly what I was thinking.

“It’s bothersome.”

You didn’t get it! At! All! This is the opposite of speaking heart-to-heart!

“I’m, I’m terribly afraid that this is the king’s…”

“Very much, it’s bothersome.”

“O, oi… Fikar, couldn’t you hold on a minute?”

Even Gartis-san, normally a man bursting with energy, was toning it down in consideration of the other party, yet Fikar didn’t show any signs of losing his diamond-hard stance. He was usually very flexible and wouldn’t mind if I asked for something a little troublesome, so his quick refusal must’ve been a sign that he didn’t like the offer much at all.

“Umm… you see, Fikar’s not really suited to being a knight…”

“That’s right, that’s right, he’s too quiet.”

“He’s always stuck to Sumire, too.”

“He’s not cut out to be a knight with so many rules and the strict etiquette…”

The people of the Tortea branch did their best to support Fikar.

“But it’s our tradition that the title of First Knight is granted to the Hero! You’ll have the honor of personally protecting the king!”

“As an adventurer, it’s an exceptional promotion.”

“Furthermore, you’ll be given important territory and join the ranks of nobility.”

On the other hand, the people from the royal capital sided with Zai-san. As the name would suggest, the First Knight is at the top of the thousands of knights from all over the country, and you couldn’t become First Knight even if you were exceptionally powerful and talented. Additionally, ruling a territory and protecting it from monsters meant becoming an aristocrat, meaning you would receive tax revenue and payments from the Assembly. They lined up the various perks and benefits, but it was completely counterproductive, seeing how Fikar’s face only became more unpleasant with each one.

The battle between the attractiveness of the position and how unfit Fikar was to hold it was quickly subdued by Sansas-san. As expected of Tortea’s walking sack of wisdom.

“In the first place, the Hero is usually given the position he desires, but in Fikar’s case, it looks like he already has what he wants.”

“But…”

“Of course, we know that His Majesty and the Assembly have his bests interests at heart. However, Fikar is not fixated on his position and, at this rate, he might even abandon the 10-star rank.”

Hearing Sansas-san’s attempt at persuasion, Fikar nodded as if to say “good idea” and moved to take out his card, causing Kilka-san to panic.

“That would be a problem!! Rather, that sort of thing, we wouldn’t accept it.”

“Agreed. The Demon Lord was subjugated so early on and, fortunately, there were very few casualties. The various regions will become more stable going forward and the number of current nobles will be enough, so it shouldn’t be so bad for the Hero to retain his original position as an adventurer that can freely move from place to place, right?”

“Uh… umm, for the time being, let’s report to the royal castle and let the Assembly decide.”

Both Zai-san and Kilka-san decided that further discussions would only cause the situation to deteriorate further, so they agreed to report back and left their seats. After seeing Fikar’s actual condition, Zai-san would probably explain that it was better not to force Fikar to become First Knight. And the Adventurer’s Guild, concerned about their only 10-star throwing away the title, would probably have Kilka-san follow up at some point.

We gazed at them as they left, tired with slightly slouched backs, and we let out sighs of relief.

“That was an amazing series of developments, wasn’t it…”

“You guys look way more tired than when you went in.”

Ludo-san, who succeeded in turning most of the onlookers away, comforted us with a pitying look. I was exhausted from the storm of unfolding events.

“But, now that the proceedings are over, hopefully the problem’s settled.”

“Well then, could we ask you to accompany us?”

Putting his hand on my shoulder with a *pon*, Lawrence-san smiled. His muscles pressing down and his magic felt like an aura.

Ah, my cheeks are twitching.