Within a small hut near the empire’s borders, Grist of the Four Fiends sat across a long table from a gaunt demon with green hair. The two were sharing a meal.
“So? You’d like me to help?” asked the green-haired demon, sneering.
“Yeah, I do. You were once the Demon King’s advisor, said to be his right-hand man! I’m sure I can trust your skills, at least.”
“And nothing else?”
“Of course not. It’s hard to trust a man who betrayed the last Demon King, don’t you think?”
“I suppose so. Well, I can overlook that as long as you have payment to provide,” said the green-haired demon, Mischel, with a creepy smile. “So? What’s on the agenda?”
“We don’t know yet. But from what I can tell, the second princess is about to move. She’s apparently in Ishtar, but that place is on the verge of collapse. They’re not gonna leave her there.”
“Oh, is that right? So we’re simply going to wait until our target makes her way back to the empire?”
“No. I’m almost certain she’ll stop in the royal capital before heading back. We’ll make camp at a nearby village and ambush her.”
The Forress Empire had already begun looking for a traitor, and naturally, the news had made its way to Grist’s ears. He had infiltrated the empire as Reveeve, one of their Five Commanders.
“The emperor already suspects there’s a traitor in his midst, and he’s even beginning to doubt the Five Commanders. Do you really think he’ll have the second princess return given all that?”
“I suppose not.”
“Right? Plus, Ishtar’s not too close to the empire. It’s obvious she could be attacked on the way, so they’re definitely going to keep her in the royal capital until she recovers, where the Heroes of Thunder and Destruction are. At least, that’s what I think. Don’t you?” asked Grist.
There seemed to be a hint of doubt on Mischel’s face. There was no sugarcoating how ignorant and dumb Grist looked given his appearance. In addition to his title as one of the Four Fiends, he was also known as the Warrior King, and his bulky muscles supported that nickname. He stood over two meters tall.
“I was sure you had muscles for brains, but I see your cognitive faculties are surprisingly strong.”
“Not as strong as your apprentice’s. Zifer’s an absolute devil.”
“Zifer, huh? I had heard he joined the Four Fiends. Is he doing well?”
“Yup. The lunatic’s probably locked up in the castle and happily doing something or another that I can’t understand.”
“I see...” Mischel let out a satisfied chuckle before setting down his fork and standing from his seat.
“You good? You haven’t finished your food yet.”
“I am. I’ve heard your request and asked all I wish to ask. Plus, I have my own preparations to make.”
Grist nodded. He was perfectly aware that Mischel was no fool; he was a fearsome demon who didn’t just aid the Demon King, but had served as his right-hand man. His brains and skills exceeded the average demon’s. Thus, Grist concluded there was no need for detailed orders.
“Then until another day. Let us meet again once it’s time to put your plot into action,” said Mischel before suddenly and unnaturally disappearing into a purple miasma.
“Jeez, he’s just like the rumors say,” muttered Grist as he watched the food come into contact with the purple mist and spoil.
✦ ✦ ✦
A few days had passed since our visit with Abel, the local lord of Ishtar. Currently, we were in a nearby forest. But no, this wasn’t a picnic—we were armed and armored.
Once we arrived, Abel approached, waving his hand with a smile. “Hey, there! Did you sleep well?”
“All right, I guess.” Daggers, Silica, and Cross were looking a bit sleep-deprived, and I could tell they were pretty nervous. On the other hand, it was business as usual for Yui and me.
Abel looked at us and smiled. Yup, we had failed to turn down his quest. We had done everything we could, but in the end, our words just didn’t reach him. But really, he had to have been pretty cornered to call on us in the first place. We had never possessed the right to refuse, especially since the Hero had left. Thus, we had reluctantly accepted this mission.
The quest was tough, but simple: Escort the second princess to the royal capital. To be more exact, we couldn’t follow the shortest route and instead had to take detours to defend against a possible ambush. We’d set out from Ishtar, stay in various towns along the way, and slowly make our way to the royal capital.
The mission was rated “Special S,” which was exactly what it sounded like—a special S-rank mission. Typically, I couldn’t participate in S-rank missions, as I was only D-rank, which made me a novice adventurer completely incapable of such difficult quests.
But thanks to Abel pulling some strings behind the scenes, a special exception was made for me. Next to my tag that proved I was a D-rank adventurer were the words, “Considered S-rank when adventuring with parties consisting of four or more S-rank adventurers.”
I couldn’t believe my eyes at first. Typically, an adventurer could only rise in rank by completing quests and proving their skills, and even the strongest of adventurers only set their sights on C-rank at first. But despite these rules, Abel had somehow been able to break them.
I only learned this after the fact, but apparently, Abel was crazy famous, particularly for his strength and selflessness. According to the rumors, he was unmatched in these faculties—not just compared to other nobles, but even the royal family.
“Anyway, are you ready?” Abel asked me.
I nodded.
“Then take good care of Claira, okay?” On that signal, she appeared from behind the trees. She had a black hood pulled far down on her face and clothing that acted to neutralize her mana signature, making her impervious to detection magic. I had been using it myself, but until this very moment, I hadn’t noticed her.
Claira was also moving around like normal, which was likely thanks to a certain potion. While its effects prevented the use of magic, it also greatly enhanced physical abilities. Apparently, both these potions and her clothing had been the work of a certain alchemist. As Abel talked, he kept proudly saying, “My friend made it! Isn’t he great?” Though, oddly enough, he never divulged this alchemist’s name.
“Let me introduce myself once again. I am Claira Rizelst, the second imperial princess. But please just call me Claira,” she said before bowing to us.
Daggers and the others clearly questioned whether it was really okay to call her by first name alone, which had me feeling nervous too.
“Yup! Nice to meet you, Claira!” But Yui broke the ice and grabbed a firm hold of her hand. Really, it was just like her. That was all I could say.
Claira must have known it’d be hard for us to open up to her, and at first, she couldn’t hide her shock at hearing her name without a title.