Things were escalating pretty fast. By the ti I arrived in the village with Night, Motoyasu was already there with Mine, proudly announcing that, apparently, he was now the owner of this place.
But seriously... how stupid could you be? That idiot didn't even grasp that a 50 silver tax for entering and leaving the village would basically ruin it. The villagers simply didn't have the money to co and go as they pleased with that tax hanging over them. Sooner or later, they'd get the bright idea that they should just stay outside the village for as long as possible and earn as much as they could.
But beyond the village walls... the dangers multiplied. The death rate would skyrocket. Not to ntion, so folks just wouldn't be able to leave at all. Which basically spells economic and food collapse.
I wouldn't even be surprised if Motoyasu never actually saw any of that money, leaving it all in the hands of that damn princess.
While the self-important princess was making her grand speech, Motoyasu, glancing around, suddenly spotted a familiar face in the crowd.
"Huh? Naofumi? What are you doing here?" the spear guy asked in surprise.
And oh man, the look on Naofumi's face when he got spotted... Yeah. Pure talent.
"It's... kinda my base," the Shield Guy replied with little enthusiasm.
"Your base? Still? Wow..."
"I figured the Shield was lagging behind, but... I didn't think it was this bad..." Mine covered her mouth with her hand in mock surprise.
Right. Now that was so damn good acting... or maybe my perception had just improved enough to spot how fake she was.
Honestly, I should really start thinking about how to quietly remove such a wildcard from the story without getting my hands dirty. Mine was dangerous. No, worse—she could stir up a whole mountain of trouble out of nothing.
For so ssed up reason, people just had this nasty habit of believing her. And her princess status only amplified the effect.
Several scenarios for dealing with her flickered through my mind. All I needed was the right mont.
And the fact that I was casually planning soone's murder... yeah, it didn't make feel anything at all. It didn't feel wrong or scary. I felt absolutely nothing about it.
But who knows... Maybe when the mont cos, my hand will betray and hesitate. You can never be sure until it's ti.
While all that was running through my head, events kept rolling fast. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the villagers grumbling in protest — and Mine's smug little predatory smile in response. Then ca her loud proclamation about defying the king's decree and ordering her knights to "deal" with the troubleso villagers.
The brave little soldiers were just about to act when suddenly, a figure dressed entirely in black appeared behind Mine — looking every bit like a stereotypical ninja.
"I'm sure you know who we are, so I'll skip the introductions," the newcor spoke flatly. "We've got a ssage for you."
As she read the letter, Mine's face contorted and turned pale by the second. Beautiful.
"A race!" she suddenly screeched. "The Shield Guy must race for the right to control this village! Against our dragon! Otherwise, I'm not handing it over!"
"Hrk..."
Soone in the crowd snorted. Loudly. Yeah... that was .
I an, seriously? A race? That's the best they could co up with? A bloody race on mounts? Dear gods...
"Nott? You're here too?" Motoyasu's eyes snapped to now. His surprise quickly twisted into hostility... and a hint of fear. "Didn't expect you to waltz around villages so casually after your vile deeds."
"Uh?" I honestly didn't follow. Still hadn't quite recovered from my snort fit. "Vile deeds?"
Sure, I got a little wild in that duel. So what?
"Don't play dumb!" Motoyasu jabbed a finger at . "You attacked the knights who ca to help the villagers! And those rumors... the villages you've hard! How could you?!"
...You've got to be kidding . Seriously?
"Pardon for the obvious question but... did you personally witness all that?"
"Huh?" Now it was his turn to look dumbfounded.
"You're accusing of all these 'cris' based on firsthand evidence, right? You saw the aftermath of my so-called vile deeds yourself, didn't you? You wouldn't just spout baseless crap without checking, right?" Even I could hear the hopeful note in my voice. I really, really wanted him to say yes.
"Uh..." Motoyasu made an impressively dumb face that, unfortunately, left with zero hope. "My trusted companions told all about it! Why wouldn't I believe them?"
"I see... Sorry, Motoyasu. Shouldn't have doubted you. It never made sense from the start."
Yeah... Deep down, I still clung to the hope that we could build so sort of rapport. Even if it took ti... even if it took a dozen lectures...
The Spear Hero was hopeless.
He officially earned a big red X in my book.
"Naofumi... Mind wrapping this circus up? They're waiting for you." I turned from Motoyasu to the Shield Guy.
"Why should I even bother with this? I don't see the reas..."
"Please, Hero, hear out." The village elder suddenly cut in. "The winner gets a generous reward and control of the village. There's no punishnt for losing. So... could you help us?"
"Uh..." Naofumi hesitated.
"Co on. Don't you wanna see Motoyasu's face when he loses? Especially when his dragon gets smoked by a bird."
That lit him right up. Clearly, the idea of humiliating Motoyasu appealed to him way more than any prize.
"Fine. I'll do it. But hey, why don't you do it yourself? Your filolial's older than mine."
"Uhh... Yeah... About that..." I shot a quick glance to my left, where I'd subtly shoved Night out of sight so Motoyasu wouldn't spot her. Last thing I needed was his creepy angel-fetish nonsense causing drama.
The girl stood exactly where I'd left her, looking utterly unbothered, lazily glancing between the people around us. Man, I wish I had her level of chill.
"Hm?" Naofumi raised an eyebrow but shrugged. "Not my problem."
I just smiled faintly as I watched him proudly striding off to participate in a race... between a bird and a dragon. Pfft...
"Wait, what?" Motoyasu's eyes landed on Filo, Naofumi's filolial. And when Naofumi mounted her... "Bahahaha! You're gonna race on that thing?!"
"Uh, yeah? Why?"
"It's a bird, Naofumi! I've got a dragon! That thing's pathetic!"
Yeah... I an, to be fair, compared to a dragon, filolials weren't exactly intimidating. Though to be honest, the local dragons didn't look all that impressive either.
Naofumi missed the joke entirely, simply sighing and preparing for the race with a deadpan face. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Mine whispering to so knights. Yeah, not happening.
A sly grin tugged at my lips.
"Three laps around the village," the elder announced. "Begin!"
Both racers bolted. And within seconds, it was glaringly obvious Naofumi had the advantage.
"No way! How's that bird so damn fast?!" the villagers exclaid.
"By the source of power, I command..." My ears caught the hushed chant from Motoyasu's entourage. One of the knights had slipped behind a wagon, muttering a spell. "...decipher the laws of the world and... huh?"
Too late. He felt my back press against his, cold steel kissing his throat.
"Not the best ti to open your mouth, sweetheart," I whispered in his ear. "One clumsy move, and who knows how sharp this blade really is? But hey, feel free to test it."
My scythe hovered against his neck, my back pressed to his. I could see the other two knights staring in panic.
"You boys might wanna stay still too. I've been kinda jumpy lately... wouldn't want my hand to slip."
The knight gulped audibly. Then ca a small hiss of pain as I slled fresh blood. The scythe wasn't exactly gentle.
"See? I warned you. Now let's just enjoy the show."
I straightened, turning to face the sa way as him. His face was ghostly pale, a thin trickle of blood running down his neck. Perfect timing too — the race was wrapping up.
"Look at that — he pulled it off. Persistent, isn't he?" I quipped, glancing back at the two knights.
"The winner — the Shield Hero!" the elder declared.
"Tch." Mine hissed like an angry cat. "Useless trash! What the hell have you been doing?!"
She stord toward the now completely white-faced knight, who couldn't even speak.
Ti to vanish.
With her level of perception, Mine had no chance of noticing slip away in the opposite direction.
The soldiers' fate? Not my problem.
"Congrats. You did good." I greeted Naofumi as he dismounted Filo.
"Thanks..." he accepted awkwardly. "Though it's weird how smoothly that went..."
"Well..." I rolled my eyes. "Maybe you've got a fairy godmother with a scythe."
"...I refuse to comnt on that."
Heh, his psychological defenses were getting sturdier by the day. His adaptability was impressive. At this rate, I'd have to keep my distance or things would get boring.
"Still don't get why you didn't do it yourself. I figured shoving Motoyasu's face in the dirt was your thing..." Naofumi's voice was laced with doubt. His expression practically scread "regret for speaking" by the end.
"Naofumi-sama!" Raftalia suddenly joined the conversation, frowning. "That was very rude."
"Yeah, Naofumi. Don't get wrong, but... Riding a bird around for everyone to see? Definitely not my style." I barely held in my snort.
I couldn't take this whole absurd scene seriously.
More importantly, I noticed the black-clad figures whispering to Mine again. No way I'd miss a chance for so mischief.
"Hm? Nott-dono, isn't it?" one of the "shadows" spotted . "We're aware of you. Apologies for the earlier incident." She spoke politely while Mine glared daggers at .
"No worries. But..." In a blink, I was inches from her, whispering low. "Your boss better hurry up. Everything in this world has limits. Including my patience."
Smiling at the stunned girl — and yep, definitely a girl — I casually strolled back to my spot.
Heroes never look back at explosions.
"What'd you say to her?" Naofumi asked suspiciously.
"Nothing serious. Just business. Hopefully it works."
"More of your sches..." His voice held frustration. "Anyway... who's the girl, Nott?"
I glanced down at Night, who had erged from the crowd and was clinging to my side. With Motoyasu gone, the coast was clear.
"Oh. You saw her recently, but... formal introductions, I guess. Ahem." I cleared my throat. "Naofumi, this is Night, my bird. Night, this is Naofumi, the Shield Guy, and my fellow sufferer. And this is Raftalia." I gestured to Naofumi's companion. "Hope you all get along." And a smile.
"?.." Night blinked between us, her face the picture of bored confusion. Then, her eyes widened like she rembered sothing. "Nice to et you..." She imdiately lost interest, tugging on my cloak cutely. "Master, I'm hungry..." she added with a tiny flap of the wings under her cloak, instantly catching my companions' attention.
"..."
"..."
The stunned, wide-eyed Raftalia and totally spaced-out Naofumi were priceless.
Yeah... monts like these made life worth living.
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