Kidnapping
Having discerned the nature of the betrothal gift and its meaning, and imagining the price and future cooperation to come, the King of Lumin looked calmly at the Elf King and asked,
“Elf King. I’m sorry, but for now, I don’t think I can accept this gift.”
“…Oh.”
The Elf King seemed taken aback, as if he hadn’t expected to be refused.
“May I ask your reason?”
“It’s simple. The house hasn’t been properly put in order yet.”
It was a way of saying he hadn’t yet weeded out the Nobles in charge of domestic affairs.
“One can’t just bring a wife into a house that’s not even been properly cleaned, can one?”
Unless all the pests sullying the house were caught and killed, opening exchange with the Elves was out of the question.
The Elf King asked, his gaze turning sharp,
“Have you discovered why the house keeps getting dirtier?”
Deaurus’s gaze flickered to me for a moment.
“The cleaning tools are ready, so now it’s time to find the cause.”
“……Hahaha.”
At that, the Elf King seemed to find the dynamic between myself and the King of Lumin amusing, and laughed.
“Ha, maybe it’s because it’s been a while since I’ve left the forest, but all I see are unexpected situations that make me laugh a lot.”
“They say fortune comes to those who laugh. It’s a good sign.”
At my words, the Elf King laughed even louder.
But after taking a deep breath and setting a solemn expression, the Elf King pushed the betrothal gift toward the King of Lumin again.
“If we help with this cleaning, would you be willing to accept this ‘sincerity’?”
At the sudden, drastic proposal, the King of Lumin frowned.
“…The Elf Kingdom has no such obligation, does it?”
“Why wouldn’t we?”
The Elf King shook his head as he replied.
“The reason your house is dirty is, in the end, the same reason the world is dirty. It’s not just your problem.”
“…Hmm.”
“So as the king who must guide the Elves rightly, I believe that cooperating with you to cure this cancer of the world would lead to a far better outcome. What do you think?”
Those who share a common enemy must unite.
“Haa, if you put it that way, I can’t refuse.”
With the path of diplomacy, cut off for years, reopening, the King of Lumin had no grounds for refusal.
Deaurus received the gift from the Elf King and, with a complex yet grateful look, said,
“I’ll be sure to repay this debt later.”
“That doesn’t sound like something a king should say.”
“I know, but debts must be paid. It would be shameless to just let this pass.”
“…Haha. So this is what it means to be king of the Nation of Knights.”
As the conversation drew to a close, I raised my hand.
All eyes turned to me as I spoke.
“I found a facility similar to the Chimera Research Facility in Marquis Houston’s Domain. What do you think we should do?”
The King Deaurus’s lifeless, fish-like eyes turned to me.
“Did you really have to bring that up here?”
“Since the conversation’s mostly settled, we should get to work right away. I hate dragging things out. Besides, when it comes to cleaning up anything related to the Demon Army, the sooner the better. Wouldn’t you agree?”
The Elf King smiled.
“I agree with that. Do you need any cleaning tools? Since we’ve already promised support, I can send a few people you need right away.”
“That sounds good.”
I never turn down help once it’s been offered.
Anyway, Deaurus was surely aware that the Special Task Force was the best way to utilize the Elves’ cooperation, so it wouldn’t matter if I did as I pleased.
Still, for formality’s sake, I had to move under royal command, so I glanced subtly at Deaurus.
“Haa.”
Noticing my look, Deaurus spoke.
“From this moment, the Special Task Force is authorized to use any and all available support to find and deal with Nobles cooperating with or related to the Demon Army.”
“Orders received.”
Truly, it was like bowing to receive a reward.
This might not be the usual time for such a phrase, but anyway, that’s how it was.
I turned to the Elf King at once.
“Rather than people who would help me directly, I’d prefer friends who can provide indirect assistance.”
“Indirect?”
“If you poke around the Capital Slums, you’ll find a king who leads the gangs there. His name is Toruman, a former Hero. He’s been gathering information in secret, so just tell him you came to help on my behalf.”
At my words, Deaurus shrugged lightly.
“Come to think of it, I heard he intercepted even the diplomatic correspondence from the Elf Kingdom.”
“If I hadn’t opened up to him, I never would have known.”
“……”
At that, Deaurus let out a quiet groan.
Seeing his face mixed with various emotions, I tossed out a remark.
“You should count yourself lucky. No matter how much the Kingdom of Lumin is at the forefront against the Demon Army, there’s no reason a retired Hero should risk everything to protect it. If you ignore that loyalty after receiving it, you’re not human. Don’t you think?”
“…I’ll keep that in mind.”
Toruman Wibeller, officially a retired Hero, was nonetheless a thorn in the side of the Nobles of the Kingdom of Lumin.
He wasn’t formally wanted, but they were always waiting for a chance to catch him if anything went awry.
The odd friction between Toruman and the Nobles of Lumin was still ongoing.
I haven’t seen it myself, but it’s strange to think what could’ve happened during his Hero days to make things so bad between him and the Nobles.
“I think that’s enough talk for now, so I’ll get to work. By the way, Your Majesty, when will you discuss matters with the dragon diplomat again?”
“If it’s about the deal just made, I’ll have to summon the experienced knights or trusted Nobles, so at least tomorrow.”
“Alright. Laila, come with me for a bit.”
“Understood. I’ll meet you outside.”
With that, Laila, who’d been occupying about a quarter of the audience chamber, was wrapped in light and vanished.
So that’s how someone that size managed to get in—she must be able to use space-warping magic.
Leaving the palace, we returned to the building in front of the Special Task Force, and suddenly a great shadow swooped over me.
With a beating of wings, Laila landed at my side.
Thud! Laila touched down and bent her neck toward me.
“What should I do?”
“First, can you send Telepathy Magic to the Lord?”
“It’s possible.”
“Then connect right away.”
Laila closed her eyes and focused, and soon the Mana waves radiating from her sent a storm toward the Heavenly Palace.
When casting Telepathy Magic over long distances, it consumes a lot more Mana, causing such phenomena.
“W-what, what, what was that just now?!”
The gust rattled the Special Task Force building, and Murfin came rushing out, startled.
Seeing the dragon before him, he dropped his jaw.
“…A dragon?”
I gestured for Murfin to keep quiet by putting a finger to my lips.
At my sign, Murfin stiffened and fell silent.
Soon, Laila opened her eyes.
“Connection established.”
“From now on, deliver my words to the Lord exactly as I say them.”
“Yes.”
I took a short breath, then spoke.
“If you were going to move the Heavenly Palace here, couldn’t you have at least told me in advance? What if something happened?”
“…Excuse me?”
Laila looked at me in surprise.
I frowned and said,
“Laila. Your role is to relay the Lord’s words to me exactly as they are.”
“Ah, ah, yes, understood.”
Again, Laila closed her eyes.
After a moment, sweat the size of chicken eggs broke out on her forehead as she spoke.
“The Lord says, ‘Since you left me and went on your own, think of this as a small revenge.'”
“…Wow.”
That old geezer just won’t let it go.
Still, I couldn’t exactly stop him from following.
After all, I was the one who’d asked to open diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Lumin first.
‘Still, I can’t just sit and take it.’
Thinking through the situation in my head, I spoke.
“In that case, I’ll keep Laila Stroper with me for now. We need to keep connecting with the royal family anyway, and since Telepathy is possible, there’s no need for her to return. Right?”
Laila, who’d sent the Telepathy, soon opened her eyes, pupils quivering.
“T-the Lord says, ‘Originally, I planned to rotate people to build up diplomatic experience, but experience in exceptional situations is needed, too.'”
“…I see.”
You can’t take the Lord’s words at face value.
What he means is, ‘I planned for her to get face-to-face reporting experience for diplomacy, but since you blocked that, give her even more experience instead.’
“Alright. I’ll make sure she gets plenty of experience.”
I accepted the Lord’s request.
Experience is meant to be hard.
But giving someone a crash course for the sake of experience is not so difficult.
Physically or mentally, it’s because I’m the superior.
While I was pondering how to put this female dragon to work, Murfin approached.
“Just what is going on? I’d like an explanation.”
“She’s the Special Task Force’s Guest.”
At that, both Murfin and Laila looked at me.
“Excuse me?”
“Yes?”
I curled my lips up at Laila’s puzzled look and replied,
“Being a Guest doesn’t just mean freeloading. It means you have to work hard at what I tell you to do in exchange for eating meals.”
“Ah, yes.”
Laila’s pupils trembled anxiously.
I turned to Murfin.
“Murfin, did you introduce Thrall to the Special Task Force?”
“…More or less. But there’s not much to introduce, right? Ever since it was formed, we’ve just been filling the roster, with no real activities.”
“That’s good enough. It’s time to get to work.”
Growl.
At that moment, my stomach roared for food.
Now that I think of it, I’d arrived long after mealtime and hadn’t eaten a thing yet.
I recalled the promise I’d once made with Thrall.
“Murfin.”
“Yes.”
“Gather the whole Special Task Force. Tell Thrall to come, too. And let the Slums King know we want a recommendation for a good place to eat.”
“…Are you calling Mr. Toruman as well?”
“Yeah. Call everyone.”
I grinned broadly.
“We’ll be seeing each other often, so it’s best to get familiar faces early.”
“Understood.”
As Murfin went inside, I asked Laila casually,
“By the way, can you not use Polymorph yet? If you’re going to walk around town, you’ll stand out too much in that form.”
I’d asked last time, but just to be sure, I asked again.
Laila shook her head.
“Unfortunately, Polymorph is an 8th-tier spell, so it’s still a bit much for me.”
It wasn’t that she hadn’t learned it—it was that she couldn’t learn it yet.
“Then how does Thrall maintain a human form?”
If the other young dragons can’t do it, Thrall shouldn’t be able to, either.
So how is Thrall able to stay in human form?
“Maybe the Lord cast it directly? At least, I can’t imagine anyone but him using magic on that one.”
“Is it possible to control like that?”
“If Thrall decides to return to dragon form, it’ll be released immediately. Of course, once it’s undone, she won’t be able to return to human form until the Lord recasts the spell.”
“Hmm.”
She could break the spell at will.
Then, does that mean Thrall doesn’t want to return to her dragon form?
Perhaps so.
Maybe she doesn’t have any pride as a dragon, since she couldn’t fit into dragon society—or maybe there’s another reason.
‘I shouldn’t pry carelessly into that.’
I had a strong feeling it was a landmine.
Earning trust from a dragon requires far more caution than dealing with people.
Unlike humans, dragons’ mental growth is extremely slow, so if you mess up, you could trigger a far more extreme reaction.
Between those who live for eternity and those who live for an instant, there is always an unbridgeable gap.
“We’re ready.”
After a while, Murfin appeared, leading Beatrice and Thrall.
“And Toruman?”
“I just contacted him with communication magic. He said if we come to the center of the Slums, he’ll find us.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
With the members of the Special Task Force, I headed for the center of the Slums.
“It seems Elena has been kidnapped.”
And so, the King of the Slums, who was supposed to tell us about the best restaurant, dropped a bombshell.
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