CH 228.1

The royal castle that stands to the north of the central square of the royal capital. Further to the north, is where the knight order of the kingdom headquarters is located.

「…Completion of a series of B-class units, it’s faster than I expected」

A muscular young man leaning his weight on the back of his chair, reading the documents while raising one eyebrow. He is Corneal, the superior of Ponytail, and the man who hold the nickname 『Skewering Whirlwind』 in the willow world.

「Excuse me. May I ask you a few questions?」

Looking at the document she just handed over on the desk, Ponytail spoke up.

Her superior didn’t seem to be busy at the moment. A little conversation should be fine, she thought.

Her prediction was correct as Corneal prompted her to ask.

「Is the Knight of the merchant guild powerful?」

After hearing the stories from the old men who were former adventurers, she couldn’t help but be curious.

『The highway is now safe thanks to the Knight of the merchant guild』

Ponytail had no choice but to acknowledge it because such opinion has spread everywhere on the street. But the way she saw it, the cause was because her predecessor had been too negligent.

(In that respect, if it’s that guy, he would work diligently)

Her former classmate from the pilot school. And the man who had selected her and violated her at the brothel where she worked part-time.

Ponytail furrowed her brows as the face of that man surfaced in her mind.

『A Knight is meant to fight a strong enemy. To attack a weak enemy is unbecoming of a true pilot』

This is the pride of a pilot. But that guy doesn’t care about such things.

He would even chase small demon beasts around with his Knight in high spirits. It was a scene that would make you want to frown if you saw it, but it was also a fact that it helped keep the highway safe.

(Well, it was the Knight of the merchant guild job to keep the highway safe in the first place)

Ponytail convinced herself that it couldn’t be helped.

The weaker and more numerous magical beasts are defeated by the private Knights. And the more powerful demon beasts and Knights from other countries are dealt with by the knight order of the kingdom

Each knight order has its own rank and role. That was how she used to think, but if the former adventurers old men are right, things are going to be different.

(The giant turtle in the eastern lake, that one was still acceptable. But if he also defeated the Heavy Stone Golem…)

This means that he is stronger than the elite Knights of the kingdom knight order.

(That’s impossible)

That’s what she thought, but she couldn’t help but feel uneasy. She swallowed her saliva as she waited for Corneal’s reply.

His answer, however, was very simple.

「What are you talking about?」

Corneal turns his head with a stunned expression and makes a rattling sound.

「Of course he’s strong. The likes of our B-class Knights are no match for him. We won’t even be able to get close to him, he will just shoot us down and it’ll be over for us」

Her eyes widened and Ponytail talked back reflexively.

「It’s an old-fashioned Knight, you know!? He can’t possibly be stronger than the state-of-the-art Knights we have here!」

Corneal furrowed his brow and shook his head from side to side. He then said in a tiresome tone.

「Just because it’s an older version, doesn’t mean it’s weak. It depends on the one who ride it and the way they fight」

Ponytail still looks unconvinced. Seeing that, Corneal sighed.

「Even you couldn’t beat him back when you were in pilot school, could you? Even though the performance of the golem you were controlling was the same」

Ponytail bit her lip and looked down.

(He’s a coward who keeps avoiding close combat and aims to win by decision)

If she were to say such a thing, she would certainly be reprimanded. And she has come to understand the advantages of that fighting style through actual combat.

You can keep your distance and attack one-sidedly. And when your magic power is depleted, you can just abandon the fight and run away.

The Knight is unharmed and it can return to the battlefield as soon as the magic power is restored.

(What a nasty way to fight)

From the perspective of the opponent, he’s not a strong or tough enemy. But a nasty enemy.

It was exactly the same as when they had met in the brothel. It was the same enemy that had been attacking her weak points for hours.

(Kuh!)

Apart from her consciousness, her body reacts. But Ponytail’s consciousness refuses to acknowledge it.

Seeing her depressed, inward-looking figure, Corneal shrugs his shoulders and sighs.

「It can’t be helped if you have likes and dislikes about fighting styles. However, you have to admit that he’s strong. Otherwise, you’ll make a wrong decision」

Just like the previous knight commander and his men. He murmured to himself and continued.

「It’s not just B-class Knights. Depending on the situation, even I won’t be able to win against him. Even if ride Viking」

Ponytail made an expression as if she couldn’t believe it. She then looks back at Corneal as if to say, “You must be joking”.

But the muscular, slightly unattractive young man’s face was serious.

(That can’t be true. The Dual-Wielding King, Viking, is an A-class Knight. And not only that, it was a Knight that originally belonged to the royal family!)

Its previous name was Royal Blue, and the second prince was the one who used to ride it.

「The rest is for you to think by yourself, that is all」

After saying that, Corneal reached for the documents again. Ponytail gazed at him dumbfoundedly.

***

After recovering from her momentary self-doubt, Ponytail arrived at a large room called the pilot’s quarters.

This is where the pilots keep their desks and do their paperwork and the like.

「Where are they?」

Ponytail crosses her arms and tilts her head. She is standing in front of an island that she and her friends have built by gathering their desks together.

No one is there at the moment. There were only four cups of coffee that had been emptied.

(Did we pass each other while I went to the second floor?)

A puzzled expression appeared on her stern face and she decided to take a seat for now. Once she sat down, she began to check the circulars on her desk.

There were a good number of things that had been placed there while she was gone.

(Sweets?)

When she had finished looking through them and placed them in the seats of those who had not yet received the circulars, Ponytail noticed a box of sweets. She opened it and found a row of wheat-colored cookies.

She was a girl in her mid-teens, after a long day of training. It was no wonder she wanted to eat them when she saw them.

(……A little break shouldn’t be a problem, right?)

She got out of her chair and went to the corner of the room to make her own coffee.

(But still, they’re pretty late, aren’t they)

She took a piece of cookie with nuts into her mouth and looked at the clock on the wall. It was already evening, and it would be time to go home in a few minutes.

It shouldn’t be an urgent mission either since they wouldn’t be leaving without her.

The Knights is a humanoid golem that stands eighteen meters tall. There’s no way she wouldn’t have noticed it when they left the hangar.

(The people around also say they don’t know where they went)

She let out a small breath and drank the rest of her coffee.

I guess I’ll use the remaining time to do some paperwork. She thought, and as she put the cup down, an impulse struck her.

(Urk!)

It’s an impulse she has been experiencing a lot lately, but this time it’s bigger than usual. She lay down on her desk and looked up to double-check the time with her eyebrows furrowed.

It’s a little early, but it should be fine to go home. She lives in a dormitory on the premises anyway.

If there’s a call, she can rush over immediately.

(I need to get back to my room and handle this)

With sweat forming on her forehead, she headed for the dormitory.

The pilot’s dormitory was a few minutes’ walk away. The rooms were spacious and the walls were thick, as one would expect from a place where people with the highest pay live.

In the bedroom next to the living room, Ponytail was comforting herself while stifling her voice.

(This is strange)

She can’t seem to get her heart rate high enough. It’s as if there is some sort of restriction placed on her.

(What is going on?)

This has never happened to her before. She frowned and she groaned bitterly as sweats appeared on her forehead.

The sweets Ponytail ate earlier were a souvenir from the Holy City brought by Lightning. It was a blessed product of the god of business.

『It will make you feel aroused and crave for the opposite sex』

Such was the effect of these products, as expected of the temple of the god of business. It has been made with meticulous care so that it can only be healed by the opposite sex.

(It must be that cookie, yes, that must be it. I’ve heard that it was made so that you couldn’t do it yourself)

That observation is correct. Incidentally, what the ponytail ate was a low-grade product.

It was not a jackpot like the one the former adventurer old man, ate. That’s probably why she got away with this much.

(I can’t take it anymore. I’m going crazy if this keeps up)

Ponytail made her resolve. Grabbing her identification and her knight order card instead of her wallet, she leaves the dormitory and heads for the red-light district.

The purpose, of course, was to go buy a man.