CH 68

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Suddenly, a loud destructive sound is heard and a shock is felt that shakes the entire Royal Castle.

“?”

I quickly cover the princess’ head and prepare for the next shock. After that, that loud sound echoed intermittently.

“What the…? What’s happening…?”

Zzzn… zzzn, zzzn! And the loudness of the sound changed little by little. I put my ear to the ground while guarding the princess firmly.

What is it? Is it heading somewhere? A moment ago, the sound was getting louder and louder and seemed to be getting closer. But now it seems to be moving away little by little… that, in this direction…

“No way!”

In the direction where the sound is moving away from us is…

“Princess! Hold on tight!”

“What… Kyaaa?

I held the spear horizontally, and then I carried the princess in my arms and rushed out of the room.

“Gustav-sama! Where are you suddenly going?

“The throne room! This sound seems to be heading for the throne room!”

“Oh, no, Father… ”

I run. I have no idea what the hell is going on. But the fact is that something has already happened. I can’t fall back any further.

I didn’t really want to take the princess with me because I didn’t know what was waiting for me, but… but I couldn’t leave her side either. It’s not that I’m overconfident, but the safest zone in this castle right now is within my reach.

Along the way, the walls of the corridor leading to the throne room were crumbling in places. And then there are the fallen Royal Castle Guards. Their level must have averaged 20, but there was no sign that any of them had been able to resist, as if they had been killed instantly.

I rushed to the throne room. I set the princess down and opened the double doors.

“Your Majesty!”

Then, from that room, a powerful gust of wind blew out. The wind blows out of the room with great force. Me and the princess involuntarily covered our faces.

“What is…?”

We managed to step into the throne room, where mysterious figures with dressing gowns flapping in the wind were standing. One of them was holding a sword in his hand in front of the throne room, and he was holding it against Morgan-San, who was kneeling on the ground. Behind him, the king stood motionless.

“…hmm? New soldiers?”

Those three mysterious men turned to us all at once.

” I….”

I gulp involuntarily. The faces of these three men – they looked like they were Japanese themselves.

“Hmm, let’s get rid of them for now.”

One of the three, a man with glasses standing near the entrance, waved a staff in his hand at me, and I came to my senses. There was no chanting or anything, but intuitively, I picked up the princess and ran to the side. Then a ball of light landed on the spot where we were just before.

No chanting? Who the hell are these people…??

I kicked the ground hard and jumped to the front of the throne. Then I fired my skill of ‘Thunder Rage’ at the feet of the man – a young Japanese man with black hair, who seemed to still be a student – who was holding his sword towards Mr. Morgan.

“Oops!”

The black-haired young man immediately jumped backwards. I set the princess down and stepped forward to hide her, Morgan-san and the king behind me.

“Are you all right, Your Majesty, Morgan-san?”

“Uh-uh. Morgan protected me, so I’m fine. But…”

A heavy thud echoes behind me.

“Morgan!”

“Morgan! Stay with me!”

Apparently, Morgan-san had fallen. I stifled the urge to turn around. My instincts were telling me that it was dangerous to look away when dealing with these three mysterious people.

“He’s fine, I just hit him a little too hard. It’s probably just a concussion.”

The young man with the sword says so, and turns to face me with a harmless-looking smile on his face.

“…Are you [Gustav]-san by any chance?”

I almost reacted unintentionally, but I held my spear tighter and braced myself.

I don’t know who these guys are, but there is no doubt that they are the enemy. Then there is no need for me to give them information first.

I thrust my spear at the young man who was about to walk towards me.

“Stop… who the hell are you people?”

“We’re the ones asking the questions, aren’t we? This is Gustav, the captain of Princess Leia’s SS, a person of note in this kingdom. I hear he’s the best spearman in the kingdom. Oh, come to think of it, you also seem to be carrying some kind of unusual spear.”

“What is your purpose here?”

“…Ha, you don’t listen, do you…?”

“…”

“…”

After a moment of silence, the young man with the sword ” Huh”. He laughed slightly, as if he was mocking us, and then opened his mouth, “Let’s stop this already.”

“Don’t you think this kind of quarrelling is a waste of time?”

“Then reveal yourselves already.”

“Why us first? We asked you first.”

“Because this is our royal castle, I’m a guard working here, and you are our uninvited guests.”

“…”

“…Or, if I follow your manners, is it polite to let the people of the house identify themselves to you after you go up to someone else’s house with your feet in the ground?”

“…huh. I understand. It’s true, if you say so, I can’t say anything back. It’s fine, well, we were going to reveal ourselves and discuss it from the start anyway.”

The young man deliberately shrugs his shoulders and gives an ostentatious bow that seems to upset us.

“Hello, hello, we are the {Seven Warriors}, sent by the {Empire}. I am Lent Nanjou, the one who leads the Seven Warriors as the Sword Warrior.”

Lent Nanjou. Lent Nanjo? All the more reason to be suspicious of the Japanese, isn’t it?

“Today we have come to inform His Majesty the King that we have released the hero Ark Wilhelm Mirage, who is currently imprisoned in the basement of this castle, and that we would like him to be placed in the care of the Empire.”

“…The Empire? And you’re releasing a hero…?”

To my question, however, there are no further words from the young man. His gaze seems to be directed behind me, towards the king.

“……..Nanjou-dono, you say…”

The king opens his mouth gravely.

“Yes, Your Majesty the King. Lent, you may call me Lent.”

“I shall call you Nanjo-dono.”

The king continues his speech after a coughing fit.

“First of all, the demands of Nanjou-dono and the others are not acceptable. Why should we respond to an offer from an infidel who uses force, rather than courtesy, to visit another country? Besides, you said earlier that you were sent by the Empire, but you have not even given us proof of this.”

“Ah, my apologies. In that case, come this way.”

Lento says, and behind him, from a man with glasses and a staff, a sealed letter is about to be carried to the king, as if by the wind. But I intercept it with my spear and grab it.

“Hey, guards? That’s for you to give to the king.”

“It could be dangerous.”

I check with the king and open the seal. It looked like a letter. There seemed to be no problem, so I handed it to the king. I don’t know what it said, but the king gave one nod and said

“…It seems that you are indeed messengers of the Empire. Later on, this National Seal National Seal will examine it closely, but from what I have seen, it does not seem to be different from a genuine document.”

“I am glad you believe me.”

Lento kept his expression as calm as he could.

“So, once again, I would like you to release the hero, Lord Ark.”

“That is impossible. The hero committed a crime in the kingdom, and that is why he is in prison. Why should I be told to release him, much less by the messenger of the Empire?”

“Because it is unjust.”

“Unjust?”

Lent’s smile, which had been strained, was quickly retracted, and his eyes narrowed.

“Isn’t the hero Arc-dono being falsely accused of an unjust crime and detained after defeating the Demon King? Let’s have him released immediately, right here and now.”

“Nonsense. Who would do such a thing?”

“…Who, you say? You know, of course it’s from {Agranis}, the court magician of our country!”

Me and the king both gulped. Agranis, it’s been a long time since I heard that name. It’s been since I shared the information I got from Agranis to the king after the defeat of the Demon King.

“Agranis… so he is from the Empire after all.”

“…What a whitewash.”

The edges of Lent’s words were trembling. His tone was as if the emotions he had been suppressing until now were leaking out.

“I hear you, King. I have heard that you and your men have used the most dastardly and treacherous methods.”

“What?”

“Agranis-san joined the heroes’ party to aid the kingdom and made a great effort… but I heard that you people, in your desire to spare no reward, detained the heroes after defeating the Demon King and even tried to kill Agranis-san…! How ruthless you are, yet you still have human blood in your veins!”

Lento’s face was bright red, and his blood seemed to be rushing to his head to the extent that he no longer even remembered to speak respectfully. And speaking of us… huh? I’m like…?

Really, what is this guy talking about, it’s 100% lies and doesn’t contain a single percent of truth? Agranis helping the kingdom? Holding back the heroes after defeating the Demon King in order to spare them a reward? What the hell parallel universe is that in?

“Let’s see, Nanjo Lent-kun…? That’s all a lie”

“Lies? It can’t be. For the past month, I’ve been there for the heartbroken Agranis. Do you know how much it hurt her to be betrayed by a kingdom she trusted?”

“No, that’s why it’s not true…”

“No, that’s not true, that’s not true. She acted tough, but she only showed her true colours to me… she cried next to me every night. She would lean on me, and she would cry so hard.”

“Agranis? Crying…?”

I try to imagine Agranis crying… no, I can’t, can I? I’d only met her a few times in person, but even then I knew that she was a witchy person with one or two quirks.

Would such a woman show herself crying in public, even if it was just the two of you?

“No, no. It’s impossible. It’s definitely a fake cry…”

I thought I was whispering, but Lent in front of me was deafening.

“Lying and crying, huh…?”

I could see more than the hostility in his eyes.

“Princess Leia SS Captain, Gustav… you are a coward second only to the king. You are a sinful man who has taken credit for the defeat of the Demon King by the hero Ark-dono, and has acquired both position and honour in a despicable way and living leisurely….!”

I haven’t yet told him my name, but it seems he’s recognized me as a complete Gustav. You are a man with a lot of assumptions… No, I’m Gustav, and he’s not wrong.

Lent points his sword at me.

“Okay, I’ve made up my mind. First of all, I’m going to beat you to a pulp here.”

“What? Why?”

“To show the king that [evil will not prosper] by showing him how pathetic you are. Negotiations for the release of the hero will then be renewed… huh!”

The wind rushes back from Lent’s feet.

Is there no choice but to do it? He doesn’t seem to listen to me at all, so I have no choice but to do it…

“Your Majesty, Princess… take Morgan-San and move further back.”

“Mm-hmm. Sorry, Gustav.”

“Please be careful, Gustav-Sama…”

When I was sure the three of them were far enough away, I also raised my spear.

“Nanjo Lent-kun, if you lose this, I’ll have you listen to our side of the story like an adult, okay?”

“…It won’t come to that, Gustav. You’re going to lose to me here. Alright enough talking!”

As soon as Lent said this, he charged at him, sword drawn.