Chapter 539: Notice
A silver dragon descends from the sky. Against it are two heroes, blue dragon Maia, me and Tetes. Apple is probably guiding the other villagers right now. I can hear her raising her voice.
“Say……Tetes, how do you see it?”
“I didn’t think they’d be coming for a while yet……but the territory we’re taking a bite out of is less than 10% of the whole and I thought they’d take a little more time to get a grip on the country and the dragons”
“I thought Richard and Herman would be the first to be send”
As Brian said, come to think of it, the hero captains haven’t come.
“Is recovery magic underdeveloped in this country? Richard hasn’t healed from the wounds he got from Ray”
Neia shook her head.
‘That shouldn’t be the case……but ordinary citizens don’t have much opportunity to learn magic, but heroes can have access to that kind of technology in the archives in the royal palace. Besides, there will be silver dragons on the other side”
“Ah, even if Kalwin doesn’t have many users, there’s no reason why the silver dragons wouldn’t know about it……”
Dragons are natural users of magic, even more so than elves. It is not that their culture is inferior. As long as Richard and Beatrice are valuable pawns to Rainer and the Queen, how can they not be cured?
“Then I should think that the hero force that was sent against us was just a check……on the main body of the hero force and that it is being well preserved for the future”
“On top of that, now that the chaos of the king’s assassination is over, we’ve got a cohesive margin……that will allow Rainer to hit us in one breath”
“I was hoping they would be a little more dismissive. I guess they mentally dislike being upstream of a water source”
Tetes sighs.
“Anyway, I suppose we’ll have to leave it to Master at first. Neia-san is also strong, but as you can imagine, if the dragons get reckless, it’s not good for the back”
“……I agree”
The dragons can’t touch me. However, I can’t escape now either. This binds the distance between us. I have to somehow manage the conversation so that the status quo can be maintained. But I don’t think the other party would just come here without any material…….
“I’m sure it’s going to be fine, Master. ……I’m sure we can manage”
“Yes……right”
I can’t help but feel anxious, but now the enemy is right in front of me. Neia and Brian are also listening. It’s not a good idea to show weakness here either.
“I have no choice but to do something”
I’ll buy some time. If Dianne and the others arrive in time, we win. Thinking this, I looked up at the silver dragons in the sky. They were slowly descending into the wilderness overlooking the river.
“It’s been a while”
Queen Stana smiles at Neia and Brian. Even in this wilderness, she remains in her dress. At her feet is a rug, perhaps brought by one of Rainer´s dragons, to keep the hem from getting dirty. To say the least, it is an appalling sight. But she is the one who is in control of the situation.
“I’ll tell you what I want. ……I’m going to ask you to return the craftsmen”
“Do you think we will give them back knowing that they will be crushed?”
“We have no other choice in this country. We have no other option but to use them, Neia. And we don’t want them to be crushed. We’ll suffer the same thing if we lose them. We’ll have them work hard, but we won’t waste their lives”
“…………”
Neia was at a loss for words. That’s logical. However, there was no way I could confidently answer yes.
“I won’t return them”
I declare, controlling Neia. The Queen frowned.
“What is your problem, dragon rider? This is Kalwin´s problem. It’s not your place to say anything about it……”
“Because I don’t like it”
“!”
Repellent.
“Do you have to be reasonable now? I’ve had my fill of unreasonableness. I don’t need to be told to be reasonable now”
“……I thought you might be a little more reasonable than that. Do you understand? What you are doing is interfering with the national interest”
“What’s the matter with that, a usurping dictator?”
“……You. To whom?”
“If you’re going to call yourself a full-fledged head of state, remember that, elf girl”
I puffed out my chest as best I could and stood arrogantly over her.
“Dragon riders are stronger than you. It’s not that scary to make an enemy of this entire small country. Besides, I no longer have any reason to expect you to respect me after you took the throne from your father in such a despicable manner right in front of me. You are no noble princess. To me, you are nothing more than a self-important female elf”
“……!! You commoner, you talk like that!”
At my provocation, Starna’s face turns red, expressing her anger.
“Well, if you are someone who can make a million or so drop with a single wave of your arm, there are many of my female slaves as well. White Clan´s Irina-sama, Cherry Blossom Clan´s Christie-sama, Knight Commander Sharon, Aurora-san…100-man commander Dianne has a different meaning though”
No, I don’t think there were more than 1,000 people in Irina and Christie’s clan. Ah, but the clan chiefs of the northern forest are like the great head of the elves of the northwest plains, so are there more elves who actually bow down……? Either way, there are quite a few, if you ask me, who are as powerful as this Stana.
“I can’t take your demands. Go home. That’s all we have to say”
It was an attitude intended to prevent Neia from being taken advantage of because of her weakness, but it seemed to have worked on Stana more than expected. On second thought, the nobleman does not have much experience in diplomacy, so I guess this is how it goes.
“Rainer! Teach him how to behave himself”
“…………”
Rainer is leaning against Shario’s (dragon body) leg and keeping his eyes down.
“Rainer!”
“……Your Majesty. I have something I was going to tell you soon”
“If it’s unrelated, leave it behind!”
“It is relevant, of course. ……Generally, I’m the same as the man there. How long do you think I’m just another hero?”
“……!?”
Rainer slowly opened his eyes and glanced at Starna, who was shocked. That’s all it takes for Starna to stagger back a few steps, knocking her foot off the rug and landing on her ass.
“The former king understood very well. On top of that, he was waiting for my rebellion. There was a part of me that didn’t like that, but……. You apparently don’t understand it very well. I don’t go along with this nonsense because I care about you. A woman of your caliber can be bought anywhere in the outside world for the right money. Do you understand?”
“R……Rainer……y, you……!!”
“You are the one who knows what’s going on. Even if you are crazy, the great one is Jeddah the First King. You only think you are noble with the knowledge you have heard and read. It is time for you to stop putting on such a big face”
……Pressure. The sign he released is no less than the real Neia……it was even better than Dianne and Lord Bonaparte. The smell of 「Strength」 from the core, which is different from other heroes like Beatrice and Richard, makes the whole place shudder, including us.
“……Rainer-sama”
“Oooh. What is it?”
Leyla, who was waiting in her human form, looked confused and Corti didn’t seem to understand what was going on either. No, aren’t they paying attention? ……With his fighting spirit scorching, Neia gripped the pommel of the flash sword and glared at Rainer from under the brim of her hat.
“Rainer……what is your purpose? Bringing such chaos to the country and even cutting down the queen……what exactly do you want?”
“Desire. Desire? Thats right……”
Rainer folded his arms and closed his eyes for a moment as if thinking. Then, as if he had just remembered, he shoots me that wild look.
“That’s right. Would you like me to send Neia Grans?”
“Haa……?”
“It’s not me. It seems like I can’t forgive you”
“……Wh, What……are you talking about?”
Even the dragons couldn’t gauge Rainer’s true feelings and when words were thrown at him directly like this, he would say words that made no sense.
“How about this? I’ll give you the craftsmen. Take them wherever you want. I won’t even let the dragons chase you. ……In return, send Neia Grans to me, Andy Smithson”
“……What are you going to do with Neia? What do you mean you can’t forgive……what do you want to say!?”
“Whatever you do, it’s none of your business. Or do you want this woman to create a schedule for her life until she dies? Would you be convinced if you saw that?”
“……Die, you say”
“…………”
Rainer smiled darkly and locked eyes with me for a moment.
“Shario. You will retrieve the queen politely. ……I give you some time to think about it. I’ll be back in seven days”
“……Hey!?”
Rainer left the absent-minded Stana behind, kicked Shario in the knee and jumped on her back. Leyla and Corti follow suit and finally, the dragon’s paws grab Stana and the rug together and they soar slowly up into the sky as it were.
“…………”
“What is it……Brian, can you tell me what he was talking about?”
“I, I don’t know what the connection is either”
I could only look up at the flutter of silver wings as I listened to Tetes and Brian’s bewildered words.