Sound Of A Bell
“His Majesty shall meet you”
“Got it. We’ll head over right away”
It’s right around an hour since I removed Kana and Mari-chan’s bangle; as one would expect, there’s no way I can just convey that I want to meet His Majesty and meet him right away, so I asked a soldier of the Empire and had them relay the message”
And then, the soldier finally returned, and we’re able to meet him. The ones heading over are Alexia, Kana, Mari-chan, and me. I’ve conveyed to His Majesty, that we’ll go and meet him with these members.
Following behind the soldier who showed up at the room, we leave the room as well. Kana and Mari-chan are making an anxious expression.
“Kana, Mari-chan”
“……what is the matter, Nii-san?”
“I’ll protect you two no matter what happens, alright?”
When I turn around and smile at them, I can tell that their tension is easing off. They’ll end up becoming unable to move when push comes to shove if they tense up too much, so it’s probably better right about how it is now. And then
“……not going to say it to me huh”
a grouchy voice is audible from the side. I look to the voice, and over there was, of course, Alexia, who’s turning away and sulking. She’s pursing her lips……how adorablee. I grab Alexia’s hand
“It’s because I believe that Alexia will be fine. You’re my reliable fiancee after all”
When I say that while smiling, Alexia blushes and ends up turning away again. Good grief, getting all embarrassed. When I poke her cheeks, Alexia goes ‘ugaaー‘ in anger. That figure is adorable as well.
While playing around with Alexia, we arrived at the hall we had the audience yesterday. When we enter, led by the soldier, it’s fewer than yesterday, but there are civil officials and soldiers standing on both sides.
Of course, the Hero group and the Crown Prince are also standing there. Gargante as well. When we enter and go to the designated spot, we kneel down. Immediately after, I can tell His Majesty is coming in from the door at the back. And then immediately after there’s the sound of him sitting
“Lift your heads”
, a voice was audible. When we finally lift our heads, the one sitting on the throne is, His Majesty, who’s frail like yesterday. He’s emaciated from the looks of it. I wonder if he’s afflicted with a disease, as I thought.
“My apologies for yesterday. My health just hasn’t been doing well recently”
“No, it is alright. Your Majesty, please do place your recovery as the number one priority”
“Haha, it makes me thankful as well to hear you say that. So you were saying that you have something you want to talk to me about; what are you going to talk about?”
The introductions finish, and it goes into the main subject. Alexia looks at me in the corner of her eyes and nods, so I take a step forward.
“Well then, do allow me to talk about it. First, I wanted you to take a look at a certain something and brought it along. Please have a look at this”
I take out the bangles I removed from Kana and Mari-chan’s hands from the Item Ring and pass it to the civil official who serves right by His Majesty’s side. The civil official brings it to His Majesty as it is, and His Majesty looks at that. Immediately after
“Thi, this is!?”
His Majesty ended up standing up from the throne from being overly surprised. It’s a natural reaction huh. When the Prime Minister, who was beside him, sees that as well, he looks over at us, with a surprised expression.
I glance at the surroundings, and I suppose the ones who look like they had a clue were, pretty much just Gargante and the General. Gargante knows too huh.
“Why are these here!”
“Those are the bangles that were worn on the Heroes, Kana-san and Mari-san’s arms”
“I know something like that! These are bangles to amplify Magic Power for Heroes’ sake, you know. Why did you remove it”
“That’s right. It’s something His Majesty gave us for our sake. What are you doing removing it!”
Haa〜. I’m about to sigh. His Majesty and I are talking now, and yet why is Hero-kun interrupting. How annoyin’.
“Well then, Hero-kun is aware of the effect of this bangle?”
“Like I said, it’s to increase Magic Power, right!”
“What if that was a lie?”
“What?”
“The true effect of this bangle is……”
Karaーn, karaーn, karaーn, karaーn
As I’m about to talk about the true effect of the bangle, a bell suddenly starts ringing. What’s the bell for? As I’m thinking of that, the audience hall’s door opens, and a soldier enters frantically.
“What is going on! You are before His Majesty, you know!”
“There, there is trouble! Dragon species are flying towards the Imperial Capital from the Demon Country’s side of the border!”
“Something like that, if you just send the soldiers and go on alert……”
“The numbers are above 100 at the very least! It appears they are all High-Rank Dragons!”
The audience hall goes quiet at the soldier’s words. Even the General, who was yelling angrily until just now, is turning pale and gapping his mouth at the staggering number. And then, the nobles are making noise. All that’s audible are the voices talking about where they should escape to.
“Silence!”
However, over there enters His Majesty’s single powerful roar. The nobles who were making a ruckus until just now go silent with that single word.
“Oh, General Maesir. Put up a barrier to protect the Imperial Capital right away. And then order all the soldiers in the Imperial Capital to commence attack”
“Hah!”
The General who was ordered leaves the audience hall. His Majesty gives his orders one after another after that. All that despite being afflicted with a disease; it sure is impressive.
“So what will you people do? There is no time to fight over the earlier bangle’s matter, you know?”
“Eeh, of course. I shall participate as well. I cannot watch quietly as people die after all”
“Is that so. Heroes as well, it’s a crisis of that involves the Imperial Capital’s survival. I’m counting on you”
“Understood, Your Majesty”
Hero-kun takes a step forward and lowers his head. And as he’s about to leave the audience hall, he stops and looks in our direction for some reason. As I’m thinking, ‘What?’
“What’s wrong, Kana, Mari. We’re going”
Hero-kun calls Kana and Mari-chan. ‘You’re part of the Hero group so come’, huh. I stand, shielding them. Hero-kun, who saw that, grimaces.
“They don’t really have to fight just because they’re summoned as Heroes, right?”
“In that case, there’s no point to being summoned as Heroes, right! For what sake do you think we were given power!”
This fellow again with something troublesome. It feels like such thinking of his won’t change huh. He really is troublesomee. I turn around and look at Kana and Mari-chan.
“You don’t have to push yourselves. What’s going to start from here on out is a life and death battle that’s incomparable to that war”
“Eh? What do you mean?”
Dragons flying over from the Demon Country’s side means, the Black Dragon Ruler that I’d previously heard from Levine-san woke up. It’s an opponent that even Levine-san was saying is on par with him. It ought to turn into quite a tough battle.
“Alexia. I’m leaving them in your hands. Luciana!”
“Ye, yess!”
I call Luciana, who was watching us from afar. She’s publicly my fiancee after all. I suppose it’s no good if I don’t do this much. I hug Luciana, who came close to my side.
“Hyaaa!”
“Sorry, Luciana. It’s for public appearances. Bear with it”
“I, I got it”
I whisper by her ear, and I guess Lucia understood it as well, she hugs me back. It may be for a brief moment, but she became one of my fiancees as well. I don’t want her to meet with any danger either.
“Luciana will stay by Alexia and the others’ side as well”
“Bu, but……”
“That is fine, right, Your Majesty”
I ask His Majesty, and His Majesty nods. There are two thousand soldiers under General Melia. It’ll probably be slightly safer if she goes under her.
“Now then, let’s go, shall we”
At the very least, I have to let the girls escape.
