episode_0076

Ogre. There is no need to explain the strength of its existence in words.

It is hard to find a comparable opponent among monsters that live on the ground, with a large body, unimaginable physical abilities to match that large body, thick skin that even swords cannot penetrate, and the intelligence to use tools.

It is an absolute powerhouse at the top of the food chain with no natural enemies.

In order to cut down such an ogre, the use of mana is essential. If you can’t handle mana properly, it’s impossible for an ordinary human to cut down an ogre.

In other words, it is right to praise the growth and efforts of the two people who can be called my disciples, who clearly cut off both legs of the ogre.

When I saw him looking so disgraced and unconscious, I couldn’t even praise him in empty words.

Aila and Mathias were covered in blood all over their bodies. The thin clothes they were wearing were already torn in places and hardly functioned as clothing, and before Yugram treated them, they were in a pretty horrible state due to the small rocks embedded in their bodies.

If Yugram and I had been even a little bit later, we would have died for sure. Even if the ogre hadn’t attacked with all its might, it would have died from excessive bleeding.

“Sigh..”

The long sigh I let out echoed hollowly through the mountains. Was it my choice to leave them alone in the mountains? But apologizing for this wouldn’t make the life-threatening crisis they experienced go away, and they wouldn’t accept the apology either.

I tried to shake off my complicated feelings. When the two of them woke up, let’s just congratulate them on killing the ogre. That was enough. I walked slowly and picked up Ayla. It looked a little ridiculous since I was much smaller, but I couldn’t help it.

If I were to lift her up in the usual way that people call a princess hug, Ayla’s underwear, which was already wearing something that was hard to call clothes, would be completely exposed, so this was the best option. After watching Yugram lift Mathias onto his shoulders, I went down to the village.

I tried to calm my mind somehow and slowly made my way back to the village entrance. The adult males of the village were walking around in dusty leather armor that was obviously usually kept in the warehouse. I saw the face of the old man who had greeted Ayla and approached him.

“The situation is over, so you don’t have to do that.”

The old man suddenly approached me and made a strange face as he saw me making strange noises, but then he flinched when he saw Ayla being carried behind me. I continued talking.

“There should be an ogre’s corpse on the mountainside over there, and that’s why this whole thing happened. Don’t worry, Ayla killed the ogre. That’s all for now.”

After finishing what I had to say, I walked straight towards Ayla’s house. I could hear Ayla talking loudly behind me, but it was none of my concern.

Cosette and Agnes were standing in front of Ayla’s shop. They also saw Ayla on my back and their faces hardened in surprise. I nodded as if it was okay.

“The treatment is over, I just fainted, so I’m okay. Let’s go up first.”

We slowly climbed the stairs and laid Ayla and Mathias in the same room so that they could be easily cared for. Of course, it was a bit awkward to put them in the same bed, so Cosette and I brought a bed from an empty room and put them in. Seeing the two of them lying in bed with peaceful faces and breathing, I finally felt a little relieved.

“Yugram, when will you wake up?”

“There is no problem with my body, but I have used too much magic and energy, so I will probably stay in bed until tomorrow. Then I will wake up appropriately.”

Judging from the calm tone of Yugram’s voice and the content, there seemed to be no need to worry. Agnes and Cosette, who had been listening anxiously, breathed a sigh of relief.

Cosette signaled with her hand that we should go out, and we went straight to Agnes’s room. Cosette spoke as if she had been waiting for us.

“I know you’re just so exhausted you’re practically passed out, but what the hell happened?”

“Do you remember that monster or demon that was rushing towards the village earlier?”

“There’s no way I’d forget that already.”

“That’s because the monsters were running away to survive from a predator that suddenly appeared. And the only thing that would show off such power in the mountains… is an ogre.”

As soon as I put the word ogre in my mouth, Agnes and Cosette both looked at me in surprise. They had never fought one themselves or seen one, but the power of the name ogre was so strong that they were shocked when they heard it. Cosette’s face became even more serious.

“So there’s an ogre around here? No… No way, those two?”

“Yes. I confirmed that those two engaged the ogre and drove it to the brink of death. I ended its life, but… the village says Ayla caught it.”

“..That’s amazing..”

Cosette stuck out her tongue. Even a single ogre could easily take on a knight if it wasn’t properly equipped. Of course, if there was a strong man who could freely use magic, it wouldn’t be too difficult to deal with, but there were many knights who couldn’t use it properly.

Even if there were someone who could use magic power, the doctrine of the Knights of the Kingdom was to use something like a siege crossbow from a distance to weaken their power beforehand, and then attack slowly afterwards. The giant crossbow, which could exert power that humans could not, had the power to pierce even the tough hide of an ogre, and it was important to fight safely to avoid unnecessary exhaustion.

Anyway, it’s a huge deal that just the two of them, who are only third-year students, took on an ogre. And on top of that, they even cut off the ogre’s body…

But even such honor has to be alive to be meaningful. If I had arrived a little later, or if Yugram had not been there, the two would never have survived. Even if I had taken them to a different healer on time, instead of Yugram, they would have been unable to hold a sword.

“..Agnès and Cosette, you two must be tired today because you had a lot to do. I’ll take care of you, so you two can rest.”

“Okay, princess. Okay.”

Cosette answered, and Agnes slowly nodded. I went back into the room where Ayla and Mathias were lying. Silence fell over the room where only the two were lying on the bed, and Yugram and I were. I slid down and sat on the floor with my back against the bed where Ayla was lying.

No matter how hard I tried not to think about it, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking that this situation was my fault. I laughed at myself, even though my mind was spinning. When dozens of mercenaries and knights who had nothing to do with me were dying, I didn’t really care, but why am I so distressed because my friend almost died?

The Carsten royal family was said to be weak-hearted.

As a member of the royal family, where tens, hundreds, and thousands of lives are at stake with just one or two orders, he had to learn from a young age how to tie the knot and break the knot. It was important to learn how to kill people at a young age and become accustomed to murder, how not to give affection to others unnecessarily, and how to observe the situation without losing his composure at any time.

All, all. Isn’t it so that you don’t think like this?

When I was young, I didn’t really think much about it. When I first killed someone, when I felt her life being cut off by my sword? I didn’t think about anything. When the knights moved according to my orders? If I gave the wrong orders, I knew that not only would there be financial losses, but there would also be casualties among the knights. But I wasn’t afraid.

It wasn’t that I thought I was superior, nor did I look down on others. I just accepted it. I was the one giving orders, and those who followed the orders simply had to follow them.

Even if I were a member of the Knights, this thought would not change. I thought I just had to follow the orders of my superiors. I lived my life looking at everything as if it was someone else’s business, but now I’m in this state.

Now I feel like I finally understand what it means to be weak-hearted. I don’t care if people who have nothing to do with me die, but… if I give them even a little bit of my heart, I end up worrying like this.

Rationally, I thought it wasn’t my fault at all and that I should be applauding them for realizing their magical powers, but… I felt so ashamed of myself for saying that it was my words that put these two in danger, and for the ridiculous reason that it was just to have some alone time.

This will probably continue to happen. Even if you are next to me, or even if you are far away from me.. Judging by the movements of the Shinigami Cult that have somehow started to become active again, it won’t be long before the entire continent is engulfed in war.

Yugram and I, as royals, will often have to move to stop the Shinigami cult, and Mathias and Aila, who have started following me, will also often get caught up in it and fight. There will also be many cases like this where we will face a life-threatening situation. I can’t protect you in every situation.

But if you ask me if I should suffer like this every time, of course not. It was right to shake it off and get up, and make sure that these two could protect themselves without me. That was a rational decision.

But even though I already knew this obvious fact, my body didn’t move well. I could only sigh. It was a simple matter, something I could just do as I usually do.

For some reason, my chest felt more painful than the inside of the mask.