Ankoku Kishi Monogatari (WN)

「I'm back, Peneroa-san」

Kuro has just returned.

He's the benefactor of my husband, Gallios.

I was truly surprised when he suddenly appeared while carrying my husband whose body is twice as big as his lean body.

According to my little brother, Rember, Kuro might be a magician.

Though I don't know anyone but Nimri-sensei when it comes to a magician, I felt that Kuro is even more mysterious than Nimri-sensei.

Kuro is a quiet and calm youth. It made one feel calm just by being close to him.

「Uhm, I met my acquaintance during my patrol, can I invite that person?」

When I come out to greet him, Kuro said that while looking at me.

At first, I failed to notice that person but then, I saw a hooded woman.

That surprised me.

「My husband has said that Kuro might bring home a woman, but…. It seems that was true」

Kuro didn't seem to be that type, after all.

「Y-You're mistaken! ! She is someone I met before!! And today, I really met her by some sort of coincidence!!」

Kuro is denying it while blushing furiously. It seems he’s a shy one.

When I look at the woman behind him, I can't see her face since it's being covered by hood. However, I could determine that she's quite a beauty from the shape of her lips.

The woman is calm and composed which is in contrast to the flustered Kuro.

It might be one-sided love for Kuro.

「I'm just teasing you, and welcome to the Rox kingdom. Let me welcome you as Kuro’s acquaintance」

Thus, I led those two toward the room that was separate from our house.

Kuro will be using the room that’s separate from our house during his stay in the Rox kingdom.

After that, I call Kuro.

「What's the matter? 」

「I'll bring beverages for you guys later, what's your choice? 」

「Thank you very much, Peneroa-san. Please give me the usual」

「Ah, since you're a misenen*, huh」 [TL : Underage, in katakana ]

「Yeah, since I'm still a miseinen*」 [TL : Minor, in kanji]

「What about your companion? Is she a misenen too? 」

When I asked him so, Kuro replies after pondering for a while.

「…. I'll leave the choice to you. I think she might not be a miseinen」

「I see, I'll bring a good one then」

「Thank you very much, Peneroa-san」

Kuro bows his head toward me. Such a polite child.

After that, I separate ways with the two of them.

Since I just acquired a first-class mead from our neighbour, I'm thinking of sharing a bit of it with the woman brought by Kuro.

Mead is the kind of liquor that’s drunk by newly-wed couples after all.

Thus, I'll give her this liquor so that the Kuro’s love will be a smooth sailing event.

I can't become your knight.

I became shocked when I heard him saying those words.

But it's as he said, someone who easily betrays others isn’t qualified to be a knight.

For this very reason, I want this man.

Moreover, the intention of this man isn't a problem.

Even if he isn't willing to become mine, I'll prove that he's wrong.

Subsequently, I touch the small bottle in my pocket.

I'll not use this love potion on this man.

I was extremely surprised when I met Diehart.

It seems Diehart didn't have any intention to kill me just like the first time we met.

I couldn't feel any malice from Diehart. Though I believe it's natural due to my beauty.

This man doesn't seem to be dazzled by my beauty.

But then, Diehart might be the strongest swordsman of this era. So, it would be for the best if this kind of man becomes my slave.

I didn’t consider turning him into my slave just because of his strength, but Diehart’s appearance is more to my preference than Reiji’s. I'll give him a collar once he become my slave.

A faint smile spreads on my lips just by imagining it.

I imagine the figure of Diehart wearing a collar while prostrating before me. What a good sight to behold.

I'll even let him kiss my feet.

I spout a lie in the moment Diehart asked why I'm in this kingdom.

Though he naturally wouldn't believe such lie.

As long as I can remove Diehart from the game, it's my victory. I can use Diehart to eliminate Modes even without relying on Reiji.

I even allowed Diehart to escort me for this opportunity.

And then, he brought me to the residence of the human, his current base.

I have to do my best to endure this shabby residence of the human.

The room where Diehart’s staying at is an extremely small one, there is only a bed and a table in it.

He then began taking out a chair for me.

It's a shabby chair, but let's endure it for now.

That aside, I'm going to leave the room since I have to do something.

「Where are you going, Rena? 」

Diehart asked that question.

「I'll be back immediately. Moreover, it's not something that you should ask to a lady」

Just like that, I silenced Diehart.

Men are easy creatures after all. I felt that he's even easier to handle than Reiji.

I leave the room and then search for the woman from before. I found her immediately since it's a small house.

I erased my existence and approached that human woman.

That woman prepared two beverages. It seems it was for me and Diehart.

I secretly approach her and take a closer look at the containers of the beverages. One seems to be liquor and another one’s tea.

I know the reason why the beverages are different.

Though Reiji drinks a lot of liquor, the female camp starting from Chiyuki won't touch them.

It seems that it wasn't a good thing for a woman of Reiji’s world to drink liquor.

Since Diehart also came from the same world as Reiji, I believe that the beverages are different for the same reason above.

I added the entire bottle of magic potion of love into the liquor.

Just one drop would be enough for a normal human to swear their endless love.

I wonder if this much is enough to turn Diehart into my slave.

After adding the potion, I go back to Diehart’s room.

No problem, Diehart doesn't even seem to suspect me.

Moreover, I have this. I touch my necklace while thinking so.

It's a necklace to deceive the eyes of a sage.

When the magic of this necklace is invoked, it'll inhibit all kind of detection magic over a fixed distance.

Since the magic potion has a trace of magic, he might be able to detect the presence of the potion with magical power detection. I am wearing this necklace to prevent him from doing so.

I brought this in advance since Chiyuki has powerful magical power detection.

If there's a problem, the user will also be affected by this effect. That's why it's hard to use.

A short time later, the woman brings those beverages.

「Thank you very much, Peneroa-san」

Diehart expressed his gratitude to the woman.

The woman then placed the beverage in front of me and Diehart, one person each.

「Well then, enjoy your time」

After saying so, the woman left. She seems to be enjoying this situation.

But, I don't care about such trivial matters. I take my hood off while secretly invoking the magic of the necklace.

And then, I'm looking at Diehart who’s picking up the cup in front of him.

「Diehart, I heard there's a ‘Kanpai’ custom in Reiji’s world. Shall we do that ‘Kanpai’ too? 」

Though I don't know what is the meaning of this ‘kanpai,’ I know how to do it. It's doing a toast with the beverage in your hand, followed by drinking your own beverage.

「Ha~…. I don't know why are you asking for us doing a ‘kanpai,’ but…. Whatever」

Diehart is offering his own container while saying so.

I'm also doing the same with mine.

「Kanpai」

Diehart and I perform a toast with our own beverage containers and then drink the beverage.

I'm looking at Diehart who currently drank one mouthful of his beverage.

Diehart’s throat is making a gulping sound as he drinks his beverage.

I WON.

So I thought.

We~ll then, look at me. I drink another mouthful of my own beverage. It's quite delicious despite being inferior to the liquor made in Elios. Maybe because this liquor is filled with the sweet taste of victory.

Diehart is looking at me.

With this, you are mine. It somehow made me happy. Though it's being hindered by something, that feeling seems to be magnified by looking at Diehart.

Diehart. No, I'm sure that his real name is Kuroki, isn't it?

Kuroki. My chest feels hot whenever I think of that name.

「Fufufufu」

I unintentionally let out a smile.

Because I know that Kuroki eyes are looking at me with a passionate gaze.

「KUROKI」

Thus, I pulled Kuroki’s face while saying so.

"Oh crap," was what I thought.

I'm completely following my opponent’s pace.

I have no idea at all about Rena’s goal.

The day then became an evening without me being able to discover anything.

But I can't leave Rena to her own devices since she might harm Shirone.

In the first place, I don't even know why Rena, Reiji, and Shirone are in this place.

This woman is definitely up to no good.

But I don't know what that is.

The degree of difficulty is way too high for a person like me who has never had any proper conversation with a woman.

It's an area beyond my comprehension.

I couldn't just let her go, but to my surprise, she agreed easily when I invited her for a dinner.

But the stores that offer dinners are so crowded that it's basically impossible to bring Rena into that place.

So, I reluctantly decided to ask permission from Peneroa-san to use the room.

「Kanpai」

We do a toast with the beverages brought by Peneroa-san.

After that, we drink our own beverage.

Rena’s throat is making a low gulping sound.

She has currently removed her hood. Now, I am able to have a better look at her face. A genuine beauty; she should probably be the most beautiful woman I’ve met so far, right?

I couldn't think anything when I'm alone with this kind of beauty in this kind of atmosphere. I feel more uncomfortable than happy for being so close with this beauty.

The experienced Reiji might be able to do something about it. Oh, I can't help but think of such things.

Rena is letting out an alluring smile while gazing at me.

That smile is simply foul play.

Though there’s charm magic, I think Rena will be able to charm her opponent without even resorting to that kind of magic.

Rena is looking at me with moist eyes.

「KUROKI」

Rena suddenly blurted out my real name.

EH!? I thought, how do you know my real name?

I'm being pulled by her while I’m pondering about that question.

I couldn't believe it, but Rena’s extremely beautiful face is right in front of me.

I feel dizzy.

And then, Rena’s red lips meet mine. The smell of liquor enters my nasal cavity.

I could hear the sound of something being broken in my head.

「What are you doing!! Hyllus!!」

I ended up shouting those words.

I placed my hand on my mouth.

Raising a loud voice was unbecoming in the holiday villa of hero-sama.

「What's the matter, lord Lucullus?」

A girl approached me.

「Ah, Chiyuki-sama」

I bow at her.

To this beauty.

Black-haired sage, Chiyuki.

That is her name.

She seems to be a girl at glance. But, this girl has unrivalled magical power compared to those bunch of magicians in the temple in Holy Republic Lenaria.

Even those magicians from Saria academy may not be be able to match her magical power.

Maybe because that black-haired sage was just out of the bath, her wet hair looks really sexy.

「The truth is, the people who were investigating the city are yet to return」

「Investigating…. Ahh, about the things we asked, right. We ended up causing you trouble, lord Lucullus」

She then bowed to me. I'm bewildered by her action.

「It's nothing, that's the job of temple knights, after all」

I replied to her while straightening my posture.

It seems that the hero-sama is looking for a certain person. So we, the temple knights are helping them search for that person.

Hyllus is on the move, since the person they're looking for can use invisible magic.

While the temple knight Hyllus has his own skill, he is also gifted with ability to gaze through and discover the truth behind invisibility and illusions.

Thought he can't see through the illusion magic of the fairy dancer, he can still see through high level illusion magic.

That's why I left the search to him.

But, maybe that was a mistake on my part.

Though his ability is ranked 1~2 amongst the temple knights, he’s prone to cause a commotion. Though his habit is being overlooked due to his ability, that also has its own limit.

Even if the ability of the subordinates chosen by him is quite high, they have problematic behaviors. It's already way past the time for them to go back.

In the past, they've caused trouble for women during their duty, so the same thing might be happening right now.

Though something might have happened to them right now, they would have blown the whistle to inform us in case there was an emergency situation. If they can't even do that, then they're disqualified as temple knights.

We can't decrease the number of guards anymore than this just to search for them. I become more and more vexed just by thinking about that fact.

What should I do when they return?

「Let's punish them when they return」

「No, it's our selfish request after all. At the least, please be gentle with their punishment」

Chiyuki-sama is speaking for Hyllus.

Though this black-haired girl is feared due to her ability to use powerful magic, I just recently discovered that she’s actually a kindhearted girl.

「That aside, lord Lucullus. Did you happen to know where Reiji’s going to? 」

「The hero-sama? Though I'm sure that he is secluding himself in his room, I don't know where he is right now since no one has entered his room after that. Do you want to enter?」

Chiyuki-sama is nodding at my question.

Properly speaking, the targets of protection also included hero-sama, but we can't do anything if hero-sama can’t do anything.

Chiyuki-sama also won't be blaming us since she knows clearly about this matter.

「Geez, where did he disappear to…」

She heaves a sigh.

◆Princess of the Rox kingdom, Almina

「Reiji-sama」

On top of the bed, I bring my face closer to the chest of my beloved person.

There's an ugly scar running from his right shoulder to his left hip.

There wasn't such scar when we first met before.

I hate that dark knight who inflicted such a scar upon Reiji, the one hailed as the hero of light.

The wound inflicted by that dark knight seems to have left a scar that won't disappear even with the healing power of the saint, Sahoko-sama.

How dare that dark knight do this kind of thing to the beloved man of the goddess-sama. I'm sure that goddess-sama will bring punishment upon that sinful man. [TL: ….]

Suddenly, when I'm thinking of such things.

Is goddess-sama embracing him in this way, too?

Though I’ve never met that goddess, it seems that sometimes she descends at the Holy Republic Lenaria.

She might have come to meet Reiji-sama.

The man loved by that beautiful goddess Rena. Is him. [TL: ….]

Though this might be rude, I feel like I’ve become a goddess when I'm with him.

My beloved person went down from the bed. Exposing his bare body.

It's a beautiful body which makes me want to stare at it even more.

But, this is also the end. Since it's not only limited to goddess Rena, there are several more beautiful girls around him. I can only enjoy a slight amount of time with him.

「Are you going to leave?」

「Yeah, I should be back soon」

I recall about the black-haired sage from Reiji-sama’s words.

Chiyuki-sama is a beauty and an extremely terrifying person. If our relationship were to get discovered, it'll be the end for me.

Well, she could easily demolish that firm rampart with her magical power. I'm definitely no different from a pebble when facing against such terrifying magical power. My fear surfaces just by thinking about that event.

Nevertheless, I want to be together with Reiji-sama.

「I see….」

I said so with a slightly lonely voice. I want to remain in his memory even just a little.

But my wish was also in vain as Reiji-sama is wearing his clothes now.

「Ah, come to think of it, Almina. I'll do something about the matter you're talking about」

Reiji-sama said so while smiling at me.

It was the zombie outbreak matter from last night.

The survivors of Striges might come to exact their revenge on this kingdom.

Since Striges are powerful demons, we decided to borrow Reiji-sama’s power.

This is the request of my fiancee, Rember.

I feel bad for Rember since I have this sort of relationship with Reiji-sama.

Though I don't hate Rember, I can't bring myself to see another man ever since I knew Reiji-sama.

「Striges huh…. To think that they managed to survive. I will definitely eradicate them for you, Almina. You have my word」

I feel relieved upon hearing Reiji-sama’s words.

◆Temple knight

「I'll leave it to you then, Orua-san. We'll go contact the mansion of hero-sama」

「Yeah, leave it to me」

I hear such an exchange from the top of the place I'm lying at.

My body can't move. When I'm trying to look around, the temple knight who is suffering the same fate as me is also being carried in the same manner.

I heard the voice of the men who carried me till this place.

Why did it become like this? It makes me want to cry.

I can only regret the fact that I didn’t blow the whistle fast enough.

Just who the hell was that man we met in the alley?

He seemed like your usual kind person at a glance, but that man’s maneuvers was anything but normal.

I was beaten down without even having any chance to resist.

Though I don't know what kind of move he used at that time, my body and mouth were already paralyzed.

Still, I feel a dull pain running throughout my body.

I felt that everything is captain Hyllus’s fault.

I hate him.

It's all happened because captain Hyllus was unreasonably doing such things.

The man called Hyllus, his ability to court women is unparalleled.

After seeing Sahoko-sama in that kind of attire, we also went to woo women due to captain Hyllus’s invitation.

Then, I recalled Sahoko-sama’s attire. I never thought that a such pure and gentle girl like her would wear such an attire.

I simply can't forget her figure. It's still vivid in my memories even when I close my eyes.

Consequently, I'm jealous of the hero who receives love from Sahoko-sama.

I feel healed just by being at her side.

No one but Sahoko-sama can make one feel healed like that.

Any kind of wound will be healed by her, the white saint.

I wonder if I will have the chance to touch her hand.

If so, then I will say my gratitude to that man who made me feel this pain.

Who is that man anyway?

Could it be that he is Sahoko-sama’s target?

I must tell Sahoko-sama about this.

Maybe she'll praise me for telling her that.

「Kukuku, how's your body?」

The approaching woman is the owner of this house.

After beaten by that man in the alley, we were brought to the nearby doctor immediately, this woman’s house.

I somehow managed to see the figure of the woman from my lying position.

She is a woman in black.

She's wearing black hood and black clothes to hide her pale face and eyes.

Though I don't know how she looks like since I almost unable to see her figure, I think she's quite old based on the way she spoke.

It seems this woman has poor sight. I knew from the story of the men who carried us here that she can't live in an extremely bright place.

That's why the room is gloomy, since she closed all the windows in her house. Only a miniscule amount of light from the setting sun managed to enter the room through the gap between the windows.

As you might expect from a doctor, her house is filled with the smell of medicinal plants.

My head is dizzy just by sniffing that odor.

「You guys are the knights protecting that hero, right?」

Then, I felt a dissonance on hearing her words.

The tone of this woman was filled with killing intent.

「Kukuku…. How lucky I am today, for my prey to deliver themselves to me」

Prey? What the hell is this woman talking about?

There's nothing unusual about this woman.

And then, I was agape when that woman untied the cloth that covered her eyes.

Those aren't the eyes of a human.

Bird…. The eyes of a bird.

The woman’s bird eyes has black pupils surrounded by yellow color where there should be white.

Her eyes shining with fiery rage aren't human eyes.

Thus, I noticed a fact.

She is a demon.

「Uuurgh」

My collagues and I are groaning upon seeing her eyes.

「You guys will become my pawns」

She starts laughing. Suddenly, I spotted long canines from the gap between her lips.

「To destroy the one who killed my cute daughter, the hero and this kingdom. 」

She laughed terrifyingly.

Unfortunately, we couldn't do anything but groan in pain.