We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Guests of the Advance
“As we’ve deepened our friendship, allow me to offer one piece of advice. I’ve sensed an unpleasant aura from the castle. Be cautious.”
Caster’s Earth Dragon spoke to me as I was leaving the plaza.
An unpleasant aura. I recall Mistral and Nimia also felt it. If the Earth Dragon has now sensed it too, then something is definitely amiss.
“My father has said so since we arrived, but the rest of us feel nothing.”
“That could mean the source of the unpleasant aura is skillfully hidden.”
“To hide from us… that’s certainly not for any good reason. Be watchful.”
I thanked the Earth Dragons for their earnest advice and we left the plaza.
The fragments of the saddle that had shattered at my request stung my eyes, but I decided to take Caster’s words to simply ignore it and headed straight for the King’s bedroom.
“Umm, I want to play?”
Priscilla-chan looked back at the Earth Dragons with reluctance.
“Maybe another time. The Earth Dragons are about to have their meal now, so it’s rude to disturb them.”
“Priscilla wants to eat too.”
“No, no, no, you just ate your fill of sweets, didn’t you?”
I had realized from the beginning that Priscilla-chan’s eyes, filled with great expectation, were saying, “Let me play with the Earth Dragons!”
As much as I wanted to grant cute Priscilla-chan’s request, she would just have to be patient this time.
Mistral, perhaps concerned that Priscilla-chan’s frustration was building, held her gently and soothed her.
“Priscilla, please be patient a little longer. Elnea will play with you a lot later.”
“Eh?”
“Yeah, I guess that can’t be helped. Priscilla will endure.”
“Nyan.”
Nimia, don’t you join in while you’re at it.
“Nyaaah.”
Like Priscilla-chan, Nimia is also in a situation where she has to endure many things, so I’ll let her fully unleash later.
While Head Miko Madrine has seen through their true identities, they remain hidden from Grave and Caster. Priscilla-chan and Nimia are still disguising their races with costumes.
Led by Grave, our entourage entered the royal castle.
In the courtyard this morning, people who passed us stared in surprise at Grave, who was escorting us, the center of the commotion.
Next, they recognized Caster and Friel, and whispered amongst themselves.
Finally, when many saw Lyra’s figure, they gasped.
“Ortina-sama…”
Someone murmured as they passed. Grave then shot them a sharp glare, silencing the surroundings.
I could feel Lyra stiffen with tension.
“Lyra, shall we hold hands?”
“Y-yes, Your Highness.”
I spoke to Lyra in a voice deliberately loud enough for others to hear and pulled her closer, taking her hand.
Lyra is Lyra, not Princess Ortina. And she is my precious one. I walked on, emphasizing this to make it clear to those around us.
“Ah, how splendid you’ve become…”
“Ah, ah…”
“You’re safe…”
High-ranking officials and guards tried to maintain a composed demeanor when looking at Lyra. However, many of the servants, upon seeing her, either shed tears or covered their mouths in astonishment.
“Tch.”
Grave let out a small click of his tongue at the scene. However, he didn’t reprimand the servants or treat us with disdain.
Grave still refused to look at Lyra. While everyone, including myself, agreed that Lyra was not Princess Ortina, he couldn’t simply acknowledge her as a guest. I don’t want to understand Grave’s feelings, but I can.
Withstanding the complex gazes of those passing by, we ascended to the upper floors of the royal castle under Grave’s lead.
As we climbed the stairs to the top floor, the marble floor was replaced by a seamless carpet, and we entered a wide corridor patrolled by many Royal Knights.
The Royal Knights, wearing splendid robes over their armor, lined up along the corridor upon confirming the presence of Grave and other royalty.
One of the Royal Knights conveyed something to Grave with his eyes as he led us, but Grave gestured him away, and he retreated in silence.
Is this what the authority of royalty looks like?
Even though he was escorting us, who were the center of the commotion in the courtyard and had even been captured, the Royal Knights did not utter any unnecessary words. They quickly understood Grave’s demeanor of “Do not speak, do not ask,” and acted accordingly.
Grave’s regal bearing and the sophisticated movements and loyalty of the Royal Knights created a solemn atmosphere, unlike anything I had felt within the Armēdo Kingdom’s royal castle.
Grave, with an imposing air as if the Royal Knights’ conduct was only natural, walked across the carpeted corridor. We followed behind him.
Hmm, it’s moving too smoothly, which is unsettling.
It feels like a lie that the commotion right after arriving in the capital city ever happened. Things have been so smooth since escaping the underground prison that it’s actually scary.
With Nimia’s guidance and dragon arts, I easily reunited with Lyra. I also met Ruiseine and Priscilla-chan. And Head Miko was there, and through her mediation, Grave listened to my words. The Twin Princesses and Friel even came to us. By demonstrating that dragon-human relations could be friendly, surprisingly, I even ended up forming a friendly relationship with Caster.
I worry I might have used up all my luck with how smoothly things have been going until now.
And perhaps that worry has come true.
As we proceeded smoothly down the corridor, people came rushing towards us from the front in a panic.
“Brother, what are you doing? This is the floor where His Majesty’s bedroom is. To bring criminals here!”
“Your Highness, what is the meaning of this?”
One of the individuals who appeared was a familiar face. Or rather, I shouldn’t forget him. He was the one who had ordered us to be apprehended with forceful words. The Chancellor. Despite his frail physique, he exuded an aura that belied his appearance, and he pressed Grave. He must be of a considerable age, but he was full of vigor.
The young man standing next to the Chancellor, one of the two who had spoken, was someone I saw for the first time. However, I could somehow tell.
Caster and Grave, with their warrior-like builds, were blessed with physique and indeed looked like brothers. However, Friel, even from my perspective, had a somewhat unreliable build and didn’t resemble them. Seeing the man who appeared, I realized, Ah, I see, Friel takes after him.
“Bariatel, move aside.”
“What are you saying? It is you, brother, and those behind you who should move aside. Do you know where you are right now?”
The man who pressed forward, unfazed by Grave’s intensity, had blond hair and blue eyes. He was a slim man.
“So this is the Second Prince, Bariatel,” I observed him closely.
His eyes, so similar to Friel’s, moved with what seemed like intelligent speed, assessing the situation. Though he appeared slim, his steady, low center of gravity clearly indicated he was no ordinary person.
The royalty of the Yorttenitos Kingdom were also excellent Dragon Knights. Although he was in charge of domestic affairs and appeared slim, he showed no sign of sickly weakness. In fact, his movements seemed more fluid than Grave’s, who was the commander of the Wyvern Knight Order.
Bariatel and the Chancellor, along with the Royal Knights accompanying them, spread out across the corridor, blocking our path.
“Bariatel, you are the one who should step aside. Head Miko and the Princess of Armēdo Kingdom wish to visit His Majesty.”
“Oh, it has been a while.”
Bariatel bowed respectfully to Madrine and the Twin Princesses with a courteous demeanor. However, he directed only a cold gaze towards us.
“Brother, are you sane? While it is true that the three of you have graced us with your presence, visiting His Majesty who is in critical condition is unthinkable. Especially with criminals.”
Bariatel must have recognized Lyra, but he showed no signs of being flustered.
“Bariatel, it’s a misunderstanding. The suspicions against the people here have been cleared.”
He probably couldn’t so easily dismiss me now, having cleared my name before Head Miko and shown the possibility of friendship with the Dragon Race. Grave, grudgingly, acknowledged us.
“May I say something? If His Majesty is in critical condition, then I should be by his side.”
Madrine stepped forward.
“Oh, brother. As princes, don’t we have the right to be by Father’s side?”
“I think so too!”
Next, Caster and Friel stepped forward. However, Bariatel did not yield and continued to block the corridor.
“Head Miko, I apologize. His Majesty is currently undergoing a prayer by a curse user I know. His Majesty has instructed that no one is to enter his bedchamber during the prayer, so even you, Head Miko, cannot be allowed in. My younger brothers, you must also wait for now.”
“You are prioritizing this strange curse user over me, the Head Miko?”
Madrine, treated as less important than the suspicious curse user, raised her eyebrows.
Oh, dear, this Head Miko seems to have a short temper!
Sensing Madrine’s mood, the nearby Royal Knights began to panic. Grave, realizing this was no good, stepped in between them.
“Bariatel, listen. If His Majesty is in critical condition, I will escort Head Miko to the bedchamber immediately. It is Madrine’s duty to witness His Majesty’s passing. She is certainly not a curse user.”
“Brother, that is unnecessary. While His Majesty is in critical condition, his life is not yet in imminent danger.”
“It’s strange to say he’s in critical condition but not in danger. But well, if as you say his life is not in danger, then let the visitors in. The Princess came all this way, we cannot refuse her.”
This feels like a replay of the exchange between Madrine and Grave at the small shrine.
Bariatel, confronted with logic, was momentarily speechless.
“Your Highness, if I may be so bold.”
The Chancellor cut in.
“Even if we grant what Your Highness says. However, we cannot allow those unknown individuals, let alone a spirit, into His Majesty’s bedchamber.”
Now it was our turn to radiate hostility.
“Spirit?”
Mistral, who had no connection to the human social structure or the system of ranks, glared and tried to step forward.
“Mi-Mist, please calm down!”
Ruiseine hurriedly held Mistral back, and Priscilla-chan, who was being held, chimed in, “There, there.”
Priscilla-chan, that’s how you’d calm a horse.
I tightened my grip on Lyra’s hand and pulled her closer, reassuring her that everything was alright.
“Chancellor, with all due respect, I cannot let such remarks about my precious family pass. Would you please retract them?”
“What!?”
The Chancellor glared at me. But unfortunately; it wasn’t as frightening as an Earth Dragon’s sneeze.
“Since many people here seem to be misunderstanding, allow me to clearly state. She is not a spirit! She is Lyra! Princess Ortina? That princess passed away a long time ago, didn’t she?”
“Y-you! On what grounds do you say such a thing? A mere boy who knows nothing of our country’s internal affairs!”
The Chancellor spoke with an air of dignity befitting an elder, but unfortunately, compared to Old Man Sleigsta, it was no different from the bluster of a mayfly.
I responded to the Chancellor’s intimidating words with a smile.
“Yes. I am indeed ignorant of this country’s internal affairs. Perhaps, is the Princess actually still alive? Is it possible that, while publicly declared dead, she is actually under house arrest within the royal castle? And that her disappearance was only now being fervently investigated! Ah, if that were the case, we would spare no effort in searching for that princess.”
This wasn’t a light threat. It was a full-blown blackmail. I decided to make things clear here. Lyra is not Princess Ortina. She is one of my precious family members, and that is our clear stance. However, if the kingdom officially acknowledges Princess Ortina’s survival, we will respond accordingly. Conversely, if they do not acknowledge it, we will not tolerate any interference, no matter how trivial. And we will not tolerate disrespectful words like “spirit”! I let the Chancellor know that we knew what had been happening within this castle, and in turn, I pressed him.
“Hmph! I will not listen to your nonsensical babbling! We will consider the matter of Head Miko and the Princess. However, I will absolutely not let you pass!”
Bariatel stepped forward, pushing the Chancellor aside, whose face had turned pale at my threat.
“We cannot allow suspicious individuals like you, who lack all etiquette, to approach His Majesty.”
“Bariatel, brother, I object to that. Elnea-kun is my dear friend and benefactor. He is also the Twin Princesses’ future husband. Above all, he is the one who pacified our northern Earth Dragon disturbance. I guarantee he is a person worthy of meeting His Majesty.”
“What!? You pacified the northern Earth Dragon disturbance!?”
Bariatel was abnormally surprised at Friel’s words. Had he not heard the report from Miss Media and Miss Tolkinea who came with us? But even so, he was too surprised.
“Bariatel, let them pass. I also approve of these individuals visiting His Majesty.”
Surprisingly, Grave sided with us. Grave had been watching our exchange with a stern gaze, but I never expected him to offer support.
This feels… unsettling.
“Brother, are you sane?”
Bariatel looked at Grave with a scornful smile. It seems Bariatel looks down on his own family. As he handles domestic affairs, he might look down on the warrior-like Grave and Caster, and the poorly-regarded Friel.
“I’m the one who should ask if you’re sane, brother.”
Caster stepped forward, arms crossed. Just by taking one step forward, he exuded an imposing presence. Bariatel took a step back in the face of Caster’s power, who was the greatest warrior present.
“Are you really prioritizing a suspicious curse user over us princes, guests from a neighboring country, and Head Miko? Even if His Majesty has entrusted domestic affairs to you and the Chancellor, this is unacceptable.”
Caster stepped further forward, his imposing presence pushing Bariatel back even more. The defensive barrier they, along with the Royal Knights, had formed was broken. As Bariatel retreated, creating an opening, Caster forcefully entered and moved beyond the wall of Royal Knights down the corridor.
“W-wait, Caster!”
Friel and Madrine passed by Bariatel, who shouted for them to stop, followed by us in a group.
“We will pass.”
Finally, Grave spoke to Bariatel and the Chancellor, leaving them with those words, and everyone proceeded further down the corridor, aiming for the King’s bedroom.
