The next day, the Fifth Squadron was standing in front of the main gate of the royal capital. We were there as gatekeepers to intercept any monsters that attacked.
We still hadn’t been able to resolve the issue of the Guard Corps’s shortage of manpower, but the monsters sure didn’t seem to care about our problems, because they kept raiding us nonetheless.
“It’s been nothing but monsters all day today, huh...” I muttered.
It was already past noon, but the only visitors we had received up to that point had been monsters. Naturally, we politely turned them away at the gates.
“I heard there was a massive upspring of monsters on the plains near the capital,” Seira told us. “It’ll be difficult for any outsiders to make their way to the capital until that eases up, supposedly.”
“It’s already dangerous enough to come here without hiring a skilled escort,” Fam said. “Making the trip out here to peddle one’s wares wouldn’t be worth the expense or risk.”
“Even if they did make it safely, the prices they charge would probably skyrocket,” I added.
“Well, everything the merchants bring over is usually for the nobles to buy, anyhow. The common folk’d never be able to get their hands on the stuff either way.”
As we stood there in front of the gate shooting the breeze, Fam suddenly spoke up again.
“Sieg, someone’s approaching the gate,” she murmured from her position atop the city wall. As a top-caliber archer, her eyes could discern any tiny thing out of place even at great distances, and that time seemed to be no exception.
The moment we heard her say that, we immediately readied ourselves for battle.
“Is it a monster attack?”
“No...it’s not. That’s a human,” Fam responded after inspecting the approaching individual.
“It ain’t a merchant?” Spinoza asked.
“Doubtful. They’re wearing a helmet and an overcoat, and approaching us on horseback.”
“All by themselves?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Yes. I don’t see anyone else in their vicinity.”
When we heard Fam’s report, the rest of us in front of the gate turned to look at each other.
Had the person come out to the royal capital completely unaccompanied?
“What do we do?” Spinoza looked to me. “They can’t be up to anything good.”
“We can’t just suddenly come out swinging, though,” I cautioned. “Let’s just try talking to them for now. Don’t let your guard down.”
“Roger that, Sarge!” Seira proclaimed.
Eventually the person in the overcoat, sitting astride a mount, made their way along the main road and arrived at the gate. Since they were wearing a helmet, it wasn’t possible to determine whether they were a man or a woman.
Once they had stopped their horse, the person took off their helmet, revealing the face of an androgynous man beneath it. His chestnut-colored hair swayed in the wind; his features carried such beauty that even I, a fellow man, was rendered speechless.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Who are you? Where’d you come from?”
“Spinoza, we don’t speak to people so harshly. We’re supposed to be gentle with our questions,” Seira softly chided Spinoza for intimidating the new visitor.
“I’ve come from the Alexandre March,” the man responded firmly, not seeming offended whatsoever.
The Alexandre March was a territory located to the south of the royal capital, governed by the noble House of Alexandre and its margrave. It was the southernmost territory in the entire kingdom of Silvesta.
“Do you happen to have anything that can prove your identity?” Seira asked.
If he was a merchant, they would have issued him a travel permit—though judging by his armor, that seemed fairly unlikely. If he couldn’t prove his identity, we wouldn’t be able to let him into the capital.
“Something to prove my identity...” The man put his hand to his chin and thought for a moment, then hoisted up the sheathed sword hanging at his waist. “Will this do?”
We were all startled by what we saw. A crest, in the shape of a shield backed by a pair of crossed swords, was emblazoned into the weapon’s scabbard. A helmet, a pedestal, and various other images were arranged inside the shield.
“A scabbard with a crest—you’re some kinda noble, ain’t ya!” Spinoza bellowed.
It wasn’t just any crest either...
“My name is Leobolt Alexandre.”
Gasps of surprise echoed from around me.
He had introduced himself to us in a respectful manner. Only those connected to the House of Alexandre were allowed to bear its crest—though he wasn’t just connected, he was related by blood.
“The eldest son of the House of Alexandre...?!”
“Huh?! A noble rich kid from way the hell out there...without any escorts?! What the hell were you thinkin’? You some kinda moron?!”
Seira and Spinoza both shouted out with their own brands of astonishment.
“Man, you must be the luckiest guy on earth, huh?” Spinoza went on.
“Why is that?” Leobolt Alexandre asked.
“If you had run into a pack o’ monsters out there all by yourself, you’d probably be pushin’ up daisies right now. Since you’re alive, I guess that means ya didn’t see any.”
“Well, I do consider myself a fairly lucky man. However, the road being as long as it is, it would’ve been quite impossible not to encounter a single monster along the way.”
“Hm? So does that mean...”
As if in response to Spinoza’s question, Leobolt removed his overcoat, and we all gasped upon seeing the armor he wore underneath.
Originally, it had probably been a suit of silver armor that had gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight. However, the sheer amount of blood it had been sprayed with had made it appear quite dull. When we saw the color of the crusted remnants, it felt safe to assume it was monster blood.
“I was attacked by packs of monsters a good number of times en route. The plains closest to the royal capital were particularly dreadful. As you can see, they made a right mess of my lovely armor.” Leobolt gave a bitter chuckle.
Judging from the sheer volume of blood spatter, I figured he had waged battles that defied the imagination—yet despite that, I could see no signs of injury or fatigue in him. His expression was calm and collected, as if nothing had ever happened.
He had gone through countless battles, yet came out unscathed. He hadn’t brought any escorts with him either—he had done it all by himself.
If all that was true, he was astoundingly strong.
“I see... Well, I, for one, am convinced,” Fam said. “If he’s the eldest son of the House of Alexandre, it would certainly be possible for him to make it all the way here by himself.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“The eldest son of the House of Alexandre, Leobolt, is a renowned swordsman,” she explained. “Rumor has it that he alone would be a match for an entire army division.”
“I’ve heard about this as well. It was said that in the Alexandre March in southern Silvesta, there was another master of the blade who people called a ‘Sword Saint,’” Seira said. “One story goes that some time ago, when a monster army attacked the March, he stood at the head of his own army and wiped out the enemy in the blink of an eye.”
“Thanks to his efforts, every last monster in the Alexandre March has been rooted out, making it more peaceful than any other region right now,” Fam added. “Even the demons that had been using me saw him as a threat.”
Apparently, he was a well-known swordsman even among the demons.
“Oh yeah? Fighting monsters on the front lines, huh—that ain’t half bad. I was convinced nobles always get other people to do their fightin’, while they watch from a safe distance.” Spinoza picked at her ear with a finger. “Well? Why’d a noble rich boy like you come way out here to the capital? Sightseein’ or somethin’?” she asked the mounted man rudely.
“I have made haste to the royal capital because I have a mission to fulfill,” Leobolt responded.
“A mission?” Spinoza blinked incredulously.
“Yes,” he said, nodding. “It is said that this is where one can find the Orb of Light, within which the Demon King is sealed. I have come here to defend that sacred treasure, and thus preserve peace for the entire world.”
That part left me with a huge question mark over my head. Why would someone from the House of Alexandre want to do that instead of leaving it to someone who already lived in the capital? There would be no real benefit to them doing such a thing unprompted; it was possible they could make the royal family here feel indebted to them, but even if they managed that, I doubted their own clan would be able to get anything of comparable value in return.
However, the next thing he said was even more bizarre than that.
“To that end, I would like to enroll in the Royal Capital of Astaroth’s Guard Corps.”
The Fifth let out a collective confused “Huh?”