Chapter 397
397 – A Certain Girl and the Royal Banquet 1 (side Miria)
“But we can finally see the goal, Miria. I thought you might get invited since you’re close in age, but I never thought my skills would be found promising like that!”
We’re in a room of the 『Staff and Oven』, an inn of the royal capital Alban. The person who is my adventuring teacher, Meltia-san, is talking to me.
Previously, Meltia-san was invited to my village at Mariella-san’s request to investigate the ghost sightings commotion. She’s now accompanying me in my search for a dragon.
The black dragon that rampaged and left my village, Irushia-san… I can’t believe Irushia-san wanted to kill Gregory-san. No matter how I think about it, the claw that was swung at me that day intentionally missed. Wanting more than anything to confirm that, I left my village and became an adventurer like Meltia-san. As Meltia-san has said, today is a new chapter in our journey.
Sitting on my bed, I hug a pillow while thinking, then turn to look at Meltia-san.
“…We’re still just lowly adventurers. It might all end in disappointment.”
“That’s where my sword skills and your conversation skills come in. While I attract interest with my strength, you’ll somehow cozy up to the princess.”
She practices swinging a wooden sword around as she speaks, stabbing the end towards me… Doing that inside is dangerous, so I wish she’d stop.
“…We might not be confident, but we’ve still got to try.”
It’s commonly theorised among adventurers that every country secretly investigates and exchanges information about monsters of B rank and above. The presence of monsters of powerful monsters, even if they’re at the edge of a vast territory, reduces the circulation of goods and lowers the value of land.
Properly speaking, the royal family is obliged to respond to sightings near towns or villages, but unless it’s a major city or a strategic site, they’re usually left alone. Any attempt at subjugation monsters that powerful definitely result in casualties, after all. Leading a force of soldiers into probable death is difficult, as even if it might prevent a tragedy down the line, there’s the problem of funding and of the soldiers’ morale… If that was all, it would be fine, but there are also rumoured to be times when dangerous monsters are left alone for political reasons.
That is why it’s said that the royal family secretly investigates the territories of powerful monsters so that they can subjugate them when convenient, and keep them under watch so that they can react in case of a rampage. In the end it’s nothing more than a theory, but it’s hard to imagine that a country as influential as Ardesia isn’t at least aware of the presence of calamity-class monsters.
I looked it up on my travels, and apparently the last form I saw Irushia-san in was a plague dragon. Plague dragons are classified as a B- rank, but as a winged dragon their mobility. In addition, according to an ancient stone carving, the plague dragon is two steps below the jabberwock, the species that Demon Lord of two millennia ago was. There’s plenty of reason to monitor one.
“But Miria, are you okay? I heard you collapsed in the street yesterday…”
“N-no, I just got a little dizzy. I ended up causing a lot of worry.”
“I know today’s an important day for you, but if you’re feeling unwell you shouldn’t force yourself. Being unable to move for a few hours after a bout of dizziness is definitely strange. There’s nothing you’re not telling me, is there…?”
…I can’t tell her that I collapsed after one of Princess Chris-sama’s Three Knights accosted me. Thermal of the Three Knights was originally a wandering adventurer, and has all sorts of bad rumours about him in the royal capital. It didn’t look like the former apothecarist who helped me had a very good impression of the Three Knights either. I…have a slightly bad feeling about this. But if I were to say that to Meltia-san, she definitely wouldn’t let me go with her.
“…But won’t it be hard to get Princess Chris-sama’s attention through swordsmanship? Apparently, a dragon hunter who is rumoured to be the strongest swordsman on the continent and a living legend is coming.”
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I laugh sardonically in an attempt to distract her.
“I-I didn’t know that! But I’m still a trained swordswoman! I’ll do my best to win, but even if I can’t, I’ll do my best to put on a good show!”
“If it’s not all an exaggeration, he’s apparently the only person on the continent to hunt high-rank monsters head-on by himself. He could probably easily split a large tree with the wooden sword he’ll be using. Isn’t that right, Kuro-chan?”
I call out to the venom queen lecherta, Kuro-chan, who’s cleaning herself under my bed. She glances at Meltia-san, then looks out of the window in disinterest.
For some reason, Kuro-chan saved me from pinches time after time, and so I eventually registered her with the adventurer’s guild as my familiar. But even though she always saves me, I feel a slight sense of animosity from her as well. She’s still a bit aloof, but lately I feel she’s warming up to me a bit.
“U-unh…”
Frustrated, Meltia-san says nothing. It seems I was able to change the subject.
The legendary Master Fencer, Howgrey, was also said to have fought high-ranking monsters by himself, but it’s also said that he was killed over ten years ago after he refused to enter government service and fell for the trap of a nobleman. Now, there’s nobody else.
“Now then, let’s get ready to go.”
I nod in reply, then call out to Kuro-chan.
“Please stay here, okay?”
Kuro-chan looks up at me for a moment, then turns away uncaringly… For some reason, her body shudders. Then, all of a sudden, she leaps up at me and pins me down.
“Stop… K-kyaaa!”
“Miria!?”
Unable to draw her sword, Meltia-san panics in front of us. Since becoming a familiar, Kuro-chan has not only saved my life countless times, but also Meltia-san’s too. Besides, it was thoroughly drilled into us that in order to maintain the relationship of trust between familiar and master, you must never point your sword at your familiar.
“Kur-chain, sto-… Eh?”
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Kuro-chan presses her face against my body and sniffs me. She then jumps away and pulls down the clothes that I hung up to dry yesterday, sticking her nose into them.
“…Kuro…chan?”
I tilt my head to the side. Meltia-san also looks at Kuro-chan’s back in wonder. It’s unusual for the usually cool Kuro-chan to be making this much of a fuss.