This little gathering trip was scheduled to last two nights and three days. Today would be spent in transit, tomorrow for gathering resources, and the day after that would be packing up and heading home.
My party consisted of the three ogre girls, three harpies for security purposes, Grande, and Aqual.
However…
“It is absurd for a daughter of the royal family to leave without a single attendant. And even more absurd to expect me to stay overnight with a man.”
Aqual resisted to the bitter end. Unable to contain herself, she marched straight to Serafeeta to lodge a complaint. Obviously, I accompanied her.
“So she says, Lady Serafeeta,” I reported.
“I see. Well, you are still going.”
“But, Mother!”
Their back-and-forth was almost comical. In the end, Aqual’s protests earned her one concession: permission to bring along two maids who would serve as both attendants and bodyguards.
And that was how we found ourselves in the castle’s parking lot—the place for boarding carriages—preparing to depart.
“Ah ha ha ha, long time no see.”
“It really has been. I’m glad you’ve been doing well.”
One of Aqual’s attendants turned out to be someone I knew: a large woman whose round, brown, fur-covered ears twitched atop her head.
“A maid…?” I asked, tilting my head. “Really?”
“Y-yeah, technically,” she replied.
The woman in question—Gerda—wore a troubled look on her face as she fidgeted in place. Sure, she was wearing an apron dress with muted colors, but she had a cuirass over her chest and metal-reinforced gauntlets on her arms. I couldn’t see what was under her dress, but judging by the clink of her steps, she must’ve been equipped with metal-enhanced leggings.
But what stood out the most were the specially made steel tower shield on her back and the steel long mace resting beside her. Those were both custom pieces of equipment I’d forged for her in the past. They bore a few familiar dents and scratches, so I recognized them instantly.
If I had to describe her simply, I’d say: A fantasy battle maid. One who prioritized power over all else.
“You don’t look like any maid I’ve ever met.”
“I-I technically belong to the royal guard.”
“I see?”
Did she have a royal guard position assigned to protect the female members of the royal family? And wait, if she was part of the royal guard now, that meant…
“You got promoted?”
“Ah, yes. I was originally just heavy infantry, but I was selected to join the royal guard, so I suppose I did get promoted.”
“Well, hot damn. Congratulations. But how come I haven’t seen you around the castle until now?”
“I was reassigned three days ago. This is actually my first mission.”
“Ha ha, I see, I see.”
As Gerda and I caught up with one another, the other bodyguard strode up behind her and slapped her butt.
Whap!
It was a great sound.
“Eeek!”
“Stop chitchatting and do your job.”
The culprit was a sharp-eyed woman I’d seen around the castle before. She gave Gerda a glare. I didn’t know her name, but it was hard to forget someone with a presence like that.
“I would request that you not pamper the newbie too much, Lord Kousuke,” she reprimanded me.
“Roger that,” I said. “By the way, might I ask your name?”
“Now that you mention it, I’ve yet to introduce myself. My name is Riviera. I serve in the royal guard, primarily attending to and guarding the female members of the royal family. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” she said before politely bowing her head.
She had grayish-blue skin, black bat-like wings, a pointed tail coming from her lower back, and curled sheeplike horns like Melty’s. In other words, she looked like a stereotypical demon. Her eyes especially stood out: black sclera framing vivid red pupils.
Her look was so unique, it was no wonder her image was burned into my mind even though we’d never spoken before.
Still, it was only polite to return the introduction. That’s what the Kojiki says, apparently.
I had no idea if that was actually true, but I digress.
“The pleasure is all mine. My name is—”
“I know who you are, Lord Kousuke.”
“Yeah, I figured.”
“Indeed.”
Lady Riviera nodded.
While her striking appearance made her memorable, she was ultimately one of many people working in the castle. I, on the other hand, was the partner of the nation’s ruler, an openly recognized Fabled Visitor and one of the main figures behind Merinard’s restoration. Add in everything involving Grande and the northern war, and there probably wasn’t a soul working in the castle who didn’t know my name or face.
So of course Lady Riviera knew all about me.
“Um, I apologize for giving you more work, my lady.”
“It’s fine. This is my duty. And you don’t need to be so polite with me. You are Queen Sylphyel’s partner and the king consort. I am merely a member of the royal guard tasked with protecting the royal family.”
“I’m just a small-fry commoner, so I’m not great at acting like some big shot royal guy. So I’d be pleased as punch if you could just overlook that stuff.”
“I suggest you grow accustomed to it soon. If I may speak plainly, such behavior could cause others to look down on Queen Sylphyel.”
“I’ll do my best.”
At my reply, Lady Riviera—er, Riviera—bowed her head deeply toward me, then took Gerda over to where the airboard was waiting. As they spoke, Riviera’s tail would flick, slapping Gerda on the butt. It looked like she could use that tail of hers pretty freely.
“A new rival appears,” one of the ogre girls muttered.
“I doubt it. She’s a member of the royal guard.”
“We’ll see about that! Gerda’s had the hots for you ever since the Liberation Army days, and it’s pretty sus to me that she transferred to the royal guard right after you came here.”
“It’s like she followed you! Now that’s true love.”
“Wait, hold on. You can’t just drop a bombshell like that on me.”
Gerda had the hots for me since all the way back then? Actually, wait, I vaguely remembered someone saying something back when me and the rest of the guys were chatting, but I didn’t know if they were being serious or not so I just ignored it.
“Ever the sinful man.”
“You must be targeting Lady Aqual next, eh? Tryin’ to collect the whole royal family?”
“Maybe Riviera too. I mean, hey, at this rate, you’ll achieve true harmony among all races.”
“I’m not planning on doing any of that. Seriously.”
The ogre girls shot me suspicious looks.
Seriously! I just wanted to stop things from being so awkward between me and Sylphy’s big sister. Besides, Serafeeta asked me to take Aqual along, so this little trip was meant to try to smooth things over between us. The last thing I wanted was to do something as dastardly as conquer the entire royal family. I mean, did the ogre girls already consider Ifriita a done deal?
At this point, nothing had happened between the two of us… Okay, maybe I was stretching the truth a little, but nothing decisive had happened between us yet, so it didn’t count.
“By the way, where’s Grande?”
“Oooh, tryin’ to change the subject, are we?”
“Shut up!”
“Ow!”
I smacked Bela on the rear end, earning a yelp and a grin. Her muscles were firm beneath my palm, making it extremely satisfying to slap. I decided I’d slap it every time she messed up.
“If you’re looking for Grande, she’s already asleep on the airboard.”
“Looks like everything’s loaded too, so it’s about time we head out.”
I looked over toward the airboard. All of Aqual’s luggage was already stowed on board. She had an impressive number of large wooden boxes stacked and secured. Were all of those hers? What was she even bringing?
Still puzzled over what could possibly require that much cargo, I made for the airboard with the others. Space looked tight, but if it came to it, we could just take two. Bela could pilot one, and I’d handle the other.