episode_0018

Early moning.

I was barely able to open my eyes thanks to the dedication of my maid.

“…. Next time, if he doesn’t wake up when I call him, wake him up a little louder.”

“Yes…”

Dark elves may have a culture of tickling themselves to wake them up, but I didn’t like it when someone touched my body.

The person I hate the most once wanted to lust after my body, so when someone touches my body without permission, dirty memories inevitably come to mind.

Even more so if the person touching my body is not a human being.

“It’s my fault for not explaining it in advance, so don’t cry.”

“Hipp…”

I guess the cause of my tears was that when this child tickled my body, I swore at the foreign body sensation I felt without realizing it.

“… If a situation arises where you inevitably have to touch my body in the future, I will give you permission.”

I could tolerate it if I was a dark elf. Even though they were of a race that I met as an enemy on the battlefield, they had no direct negative relationship with me.

For a dark elf, the discomfort felt was as much as having a snake wrapped around one’s body.

“I’m sorry… I thought we were getting closer… I was just joking around for a while…”

“……”

I like children, but I am also not good at dealing with children. Just like liking dogs and liking raising dogs are two different things.

“… I’ll buy some candy on the way so you can stop crying.”

“Wow~!”

It seemed like my maid was an extremely simple creature.

The other dark elves I know are either cunning or monsters whose thoughts are unknown.

Because this was a new discovery, I felt like my depressed mood had gone away, even if just a little.

“Then let’s go.”

“Oh, Raoul, aren’t you eating?”

“Let’s go out and eat and come back.”

If I do this, the child will handle my share of meals on his own, so it will be a small reward for the change of mood.

As I walked towards the adventurer’s guild, I felt a somewhat chaotic atmosphere.

If I had to point out the cause, I would point out the people whispering with worried faces around the guild building.

I walked up to them and asked quietly.

“Is something happening?”

“Woman, my lord, that’s it…!”

“I don’t like repeating questions.”

“That is… There is a fortress not too far from this village…”

To summarize what this woman said, it was as follows.

There was an imperial fortress not far from this village, and the imperial officer who was appointed in charge of the fortress often flirted with Cecilia.

The problem is that his flirting is not just flirting. The gist of the story was that he couldn’t even respond properly because he was a nobleman.

“… Indeed.”

“From what I heard, he is also related to the Duke of Argos. No matter how much you are a lord…”

There was something strange about it.

There was no way that violent Camilla or her cold-blooded brother would have such a person by their side.

Even Master, who had no qualifications as a human being, distinguished between those who ran rampant with the prestige of the dukedom on their backs.

“I need to check.”

“Lord, it’s dangerous…!”

I went inside the guild building despite the residents’ dissuasion.

As soon as I opened that door, what came into my sight was a rather disgusting sight.

“Lord…!”

Those who appeared to be private soldiers hired by the man were pointing spear knives at the adventurers in the village.

And a fairly young-looking nobleman was glaring at me while holding Cecilia’s cheek.

“… What are you?”

“I am the representative of this village.”

“Are you the kite whose string fell from the center?”

“I don’t care what you call me, but there’s no need to hold on to that woman, right? Because it is against etiquette…”

I adjusted my cane.

“I hate behavior that goes against etiquette”

“Ha!”

He threw Cecilia away as if it was a joke. Nevertheless, instead of getting angry, Cecilia was looking at me as if telling me to run away.

However, I could not back down because this was also related to the honor of my close friend.

“Hey, what are you believing and being so fussy about the kite that fell off its string?”

“… I will ask. Is it the imperial army that is pointing spears and knives at the adventurers in this village? Or is it your private soldier?”

“Hey, I asked the question first!”

He seemed to be a fairly frivolous person.

Considering that he lost control over something like this, it seemed unlikely that he would be able to take on an important position.

“I just ignored it because it didn’t seem like a question I was really looking for an answer to. I ask again. Are those imperial troops?”

“What? There is no way I would bring such weaklings. Those are all the best mercenaries I’ve ever hired. Just the salary paid to them…!”

“Indeed.”

“Don’t interrupt people, you bastard!!!”

Judging from the fact that he gets angry easily, it seemed like he would not be suited to the military.

A commander who reacts emotionally like this and cannot control his anger is bound to have an accident someday.

“If you are a kite that has lost its strings, then be quiet when I respect you as a fellow noble…!”

“Tell me about your business.”

“When people talk, stand up and fuck them!!!”

“Turn your back and go back right now. And I recommend that you never approach that woman again.”

Then he began to frown grotesquely.

The pupil of my right eye became so small that I could barely see the pupil, but my left eye grew so big that it was disgusting.

“You also put spit on it, is that it?”

“We went into the water together, but I don’t remember being exposed to body fluids.”

“What?”

I just told him the simple truth, but he started to distort that bizarre face even more.

“Hey, break this bastard into pieces and throw him into the water.”

“… Are you trying to kill someone for just that reason? ”

“Okay. I should have teased people while watching them. Those who have no power or support should be punished if they displease their superiors.”

Power and support.

That wasn’t the only thing we wanted to protect on the battlefield.

“A rural village chief. We’re doing this because we’re told to, so don’t blame us too much.”

Judging from his size, the mercenary who grabbed me by the collar seemed to be a mix of Orc and human.

“… I warn you. I don’t prefer anyone touching my body.”

“Ha! Then what should you do! At best, it’s a kite that has lost its string…!”

I tapped his wrist with the edge of my hand that resonated.

“Uh…?”

“This is possible.”

” Click ahhh !!!

He started screaming while holding on to the cut off part of his wrist.

I wasn’t the type of person who liked this kind of screaming, but I had no choice but to use the most effective means to subdue him.

“This guy is a magician! They said he was strong from the time he held the wand, but he was a magician!”

“Push through the pages! Magicians have no answer when it comes to page numbers!”

“Kill me without any consideration!”

Unlike Her Majesty the Empress, I was an ordinary person who did not know how to use magic.

And contrary to people’s perception, proper magicians do not carry objects such as wands.

But there was no reason to tell them that.

“… I don’t like fighting.”

However, I also did not hesitate to use violence to protect myself.

“And I hate people touching my people even more.”

I swung my echo-laden staff and exploded one of their hands and feet.

These people also knew that they were in a position to receive orders from someone, so they did not go out of their way to take their lives. Because taking orders from a wicked person was not a sin worthy of death.

However, these people did not feel any shame in their evil deeds. It was a crime worthy of having their hands and feet taken away.

“Ma, that’s ridiculous…! Among the mercenaries I brought from my family, they are the elite of the elite…!!!”

“… He seems a bit lacking in skill to be a mercenary.”

It was only slightly stronger than the average Imperial soldier.

I felt a little sorry for this person who had paid such a high price for just such a mercenary.

“What on earth are you doing…! Do you think you can get away with this…?!!!”

“What a surprise.”

I wiped the blood off my cane and started taking steps toward him.

“I just swung the weapon to protect myself.”

I took another step towards him.

“And I was just stronger than them. If it had been the other way around, I would have been the one lying down there.”

“Mi, you crazy bastard says you’re going to cut people’s hands and feet…!!!’

“You also gave the order to tear my limbs apart. What is the difference between your command and my actions?”

I just asked a question and he started to back away little by little.

” To quote you, shouldn’t a person without power be punished if he offends someone? ”

“Fuck it, don’t come closer!!!”

“It is the same act as you said. Do you enjoy these sights? Or at least do you think this scene is desirable?”

He sat down with his pants wet with his own urine.

“At least I hate the current behavior.”

In the end, he didn’t give me an answer to my question until the end.

He ran away muttering inexplicable swear words, and I didn’t feel the need to chase after him, so I let him go.

“… Lord.”

Cecilia was the first to approach me and began to check my physical condition.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Unfortunately, there were no injuries.”

“That’s what I call fortunate. No, anyway, why did you come forward? How strong is that bastard’s back…!”

“… I can’t just leave you alone. ”

“Yes?”

For a moment, Cecilia’s cheeks seemed to turn red.

“You are the one who accepted the things I had accumulated.”

She was a person who accepted without hesitation the questions and negative residue I had stored inside.

“Even though that day was a bit dangerous, you were not angry with me.”

Because I took her to the river, she encountered a wild animal such as a horned tiger, and this was entirely my responsibility.

“If a problem arises, I will take full responsibility.”

I planned to handle the repercussions of touching that noble young man today on my own.

“Lord, why do you talk like that…!”

I didn’t know why, but the faces of the adventurers watching us also began to turn red.