"Shibito Gaitland…!?"
Seras said while readying her sword again.
She seemed to know his full name as well.
"And even one of the Five Dragon Warriors…"
That said, only four were present here.
One was missing.
"…"
Shibito held the white spear Hakusou in his hand.
Leather straps were wrapped around the white dragon's body.
Several white spears were stocked along those straps.
Like spare ammunition.
A sword could also be seen at Shibito's waist.
It was sheathed for now.
"I sealed his mouth for you, Oban," Shibito said.
His gaze remained fixed on me.
The blond man on his left scratched his head as he replied.
"Hey, did you really have to kill him?"
The blond man called Oban.
Tanned skin.
Well-proportioned features.
A cunning expression.
A piercing in his ear.
Shibito's lips curved ever so slightly.
"You should keep your side hustles in moderation. Most likely, it was Ortra or someone like him pulling the strings, right?"
Yet his red eyes showed no amusement.
An odd man.
Elusive, one might say.
Oban looked down at Gizun's corpse with a relaxed air.
"He was easy to handle personally because he was so faithful to his desires, you know~"
"That's merely convenient for you. That Gizun was bound to become an obstacle on this stage. So I killed him on a whim."
"Well, Gizun did have a weak spot for temptation, so I did worry he might not be suited for this mission~… Maybe it would've been better not to bring him after all?"
"Besides, Gizun's potential had already plateaued. Still, if he had managed to dodge that spear, I intended to spare him. With full effort."
*Plop*
A single bead of sweat fell from my chin to the ground.
"…"
When the spear pierced him, Gizun had been paralyzed and unable to move.
He had been rendered incapable of evasive action.
Well—he probably couldn't have dodged it anyway.
For the time being, it seemed they still hadn't noticed the existence of [Paralyze].
That appeared to be the case.
I glanced at Seras.
She looked visibly shaken.
"The—the King Ortra… toward me?"
Her bewilderment was plain.
From context, Ortra must be the king of the Neia Holy Kingdom.
The king she had served had ordered her death?
If so, her confusion made sense.
'This Gizun is a little… interested too… I wonder what kind of face that former high elf princess, who once offered her sword to the Holy Kingdom as a knight, will make when she learns the truth—'
Those were the words Gizun had uttered just before dying.
If the one who ordered the killing was the Holy Kingdom's king, it fit perfectly.
But why would the king want Seras dead?
I couldn't guess the reason.
Seras appeared to have no idea either.
"That old man still seems to have quite a hidden fortune stashed away~… He said if we do what he asks, he'll cough up every last bit of it. I've still got all sorts of gems I want from various countries, you know~…"
"If you want the location of the treasure, just torture it out of him with your specialty."
The two dragon knights continued their calm conversation.
Seras's questions were being ignored.
But Shibito's gaze remained locked on me.
His eyes never left me.
Not even for a moment.
"Ortra's got some weird resolve locked in, you see~… Torture doesn't work so well on someone who's already unhinged like that. Unless we kill Seras Ashrain exactly as demanded, he'll never talk."
Shibito laughed without a trace of mirth.
"Obsession and lust are terrifying things."
"Ughhh! Shibito, you even saw through that creepy old man's gross passions!? That's scary!"
At that moment, the dragon knight on the right cut into the conversation.
"Putting Oban's personal matters aside for now—what should we do with Seras Ashrain, Lord Shibito?"
"What does His Majesty say?"
"He said the handling after capture is up to us."
"He understands us well. Though not a strong warrior himself, he is a wise emperor."
"Lord Shibito, what do you think? To boost the knights' morale, how about using her as a reward—passing her around to the subordinates before finishing her off? In the end she'll be disposed of anyway for Oban's 'side income.'"
"That won't do, Schweitz-chan~"
Oban interjected with a complaint.
"Won't do? In what way?"
"The former Holy King said to bring back the corpse in a state where her purity is obvious. He said he'd definitely know if she smelled of another man's thing—super creepy, right…? And the fact that he wants her brought back dead, not alive, already shows he's pretty far gone, don't you think?"
The man called Schweitz gave a short grunt.
"Hm. I see."
He seemed to accept Oban's words calmly.
Schweitz wore a bear-like beard.
His dark-brown hair was slicked back.
His features could be called handsome.
A black eyepatch covered his left eye.
His voice was a composed baritone.
Large build, yet he gave no impression of coarseness.
There was a refined cunning about him.
He came across as aristocratic.
He rode a black dragon roughly the same size as Oban's.
"In that case, it seems difficult to make use of her while keeping her alive. No, no—my own vulgar thinking was inexcusable. My apologies."
"W-What on earth are you people saying!?"
Seras raised her voice.
It carried the ring of condemnation.
"There is no way the gentle King Ortra would ever utter such bizarre words! If you continue spouting such baseless delusions, I will take it as an insult to my king!"
Oban pursed his lips in a wry smile.
"This really is a bit pitiful for our holy knight-chan, huh~? That righteous indignation of hers is going to look downright ridiculous once it collides with the truth. Is that part of the appeal? The fact that she's so loyal and pure makes her all the more tempting? Well, she is definitely beautiful. I like pretty gems too."
Then Oban flashed a bright smile.
"But anyway, it seems the old man can't die in peace as long as you're still alive~?"
"N-Nonsense…! What exactly is your goal!?"
I was thinking.
"…"
No.
She must already have a vague sense of it herself.
Seras has the power of a spirit that can detect lies.
They were probably not lying.
That was precisely why her agitation was swelling.
Seras looked on the verge of tears.
"The—King Ortra… would never…"
She sank weakly to her knees.
Schweitz regarded her impassively.
"What shall we do, Lord Shibito?"
"It's obvious. We grant Seras Ashrain the right to earn her survival."
"I see. The usual arrangement, then."
Schweitz nodded matter-of-factly.
"If Seras defeats you in a duel, we let her go. That works for you too, Lord Oban?"
"As long as holy knight-chan dies beautifully as a woman, I don't care either way♪ The outcome's obvious anyway."
"Is it, though?"
For the first time, the person who had stayed silent spoke up.
The one riding the black dragon at the far left from my perspective.
Bandages were wrapped around the parts of his body exposed by his armor.
From the voice, a man.
Only his left eye was visible through the bandages.
"Former Holy Knights' commander of the Neia Holy Kingdom. Her精式霊装 is quite famous."
Shibito raised a hand to his mouth.
"I've naturally heard of the精式霊装 as well. That's precisely why I came all this way. As long as I can fight that精式霊装, I'm satisfied. The rest—you lot can do as you please."
Shibito stared at me even harder.
"—Or at least, that was what I thought until just a moment ago."
Schweitz furrowed his brow.
"Lord Shibito…?"
"For some reason, right now I'm more interested in that boy than in Seras Ashrain."
Schweitz shifted his gaze to me.
"You've been staring at him the whole time—I did notice that… But what exactly has caught your interest? To me he looks no more than a pack mule Seras Ashrain hired."
"You've grown old, Schweitz. That one is a truly fascinating existence."
He gave a faint smile.
Toward me.
"Boy."
Red eyes brimming with anticipation.
"Just who are you?"
□
I had remained completely still.
Skeleton King.
A monster weaker than I had expected.
I had been overly cautious against the monsters in the Mills ruins.
It seemed I had trouble accurately gauging the strength of weaker opponents.
But strong opponents were different.
Large things and tall things stand out easily.
Just look up, and they usually tower there.
Their enormity is immediately apparent.
No matter where you stand.
Without even needing to adjust your line of sight.
You can tell how massive something is.
That's how I knew.
Right now, it was as if a blade were pressed to my throat.
The instant I took any hostile action, Shibito would kill me with a single strike.
And he knew that I knew it.
The strongest human.
Shibito Gaitland.
Instinct was screaming it.
That title was no mere decoration.
This guy—
Was a far more dangerous opponent than that soul-eater.
Ever since encountering Shibito, the sweat wouldn't stop pouring.
My face was drenched.
Depending on my choice, this could end right here.
Life or death.
Whether I would live or not.
*Plop*
*Plop, plop—*
Sweat cascaded like a waterfall, striking the ground.
Probably,
Everything—
Depends on me—
▽
Even so, why was it?
It had been the same back in the Abandoned Ruins.
Even in a situation this deadly.
"You."
Shibito asked with amusement.
"Why are you smiling?"
Ah, that's right.
Why is it that only at times like this—
"…"
—I start to laugh?
No. This is fine.
I returned a twisted smile to Shibito.
"Hey, Shibito Gaitland—"
Good.
No attack came.
It was getting through.
Whether I harbored intent to attack.
My signal that I wanted to talk.
Raising my arms was probably impossible.
But speaking—they would allow.
That was enough.
"Want to talk with me for a bit?"
Shibito's eyes softened slightly.
I see.
In other words, as long as there wasn't even a hint of preparing to use a skill—
"Very well."
Negotiation with the strongest was possible.