'It's been a long time, Sir Luke. I'm sure neither of us ever dreamed that we would see each other outside of King's Landing, did we?
"......!　You are ...... the Duke of Kingswell!

　A sense of surprise and intense conviction rushes over me at the same time.

　The old man with a small army smiling in front of me - Duke Kingswell is the nobleman most closely associated with the Ark of the Elements.

　Prior to the change of territory, the territory included the entrance to the first labyrinth, or "The Thousand Year Corridor of the Abyss," which is the main entrance to the Ark of the Elements, and there were people who believed in the Wise Man, another name for Alphasul, as a god among the people of the territory.

　Also, the duke's own brother, Algernon, had indulged in the quest for the secrets hidden in the Thousand-Year Corridor of the Abyss, and had even disappeared during his search for the labyrinth after he abandoned his inheritance of the duke's title to devote himself to his research.

　-- and just recently, it was also discovered that Algernon, who had survived in the dungeon, had been under the control of Agart Ram.

　Considering that the basis of the investigation we are conducting is the research material on Algernon provided by the Duke of Kingswell, I can assure you that there is no nobleman more qualified than him.

However, according to the report we received ...... earlier, the delegation was to be led by another nobleman .......
Yes, but his disease has taken a turn for the worse. But that guy's chronic illness has taken a turn for the worse. When you're old enough to have grandchildren, the seeds of disease lurk in every part of your body: ...... I'm no stranger to this, so I shudder to think about it.

　The Duke of Kingswell was as aloof as ever and easily dismissed my doubts.

　It is hard to imagine that he would have taken his position in the matter of His Majesty's liver, no matter how much, so I'd like to think that he really took advantage of an opening in the development of a chronic illness, or that he was replaced by such an excuse .......

It was a coincidence, but I was grateful for the request for a replacement. After all, I almost missed this opportunity because of the objections of those who doubted my connection to my foolish brother.
Huh. ...... You seem to have a good friend.
That's a really witty man. When it's over, I should thank him for what he's done. I'll even rent out the inn in this town for you to recuperate.

　It seems that there was some kind of skirmish between the nobles in the capital.

　I'd like to tell them to do as they please, but we don't want them to interfere with our activities.

　With that in mind, it's quite convenient that Duke Kingswell was dispatched without the need to explain the situation.

''Now then, I'd like to move on to the meeting right away--can you give me a little time afterwards?










　After the first meeting with the delegation, I decided to remain in the town hall's meeting room as requested by Duke Kingswell.

　The two people in attendance were the Duke of Kingswell and Giles, the guild executive.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world, but I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world.

　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for when you're in the market.

　It's strange, but apparently, while I feel some sort of familiarity with the Duke of Kingswell, it's the man who was once on a cloud in the same industry that makes me feel more distant.

　The guild executive, Master Giles - of course, master is a title, not a name.

　His age is probably about the same as His Majesty Alfred's.
　I'm not sure I'll ever be able to find out what's going on, but I'm sure I'll be able to find out what's going on.

''Well, thank you, Duke of Kingswell. Thank you very much for taking the time to speak with Alfred's favorite.
Don't worry about it. His Majesty has long been extremely gracious to me, and I would be ungrateful if I didn't do something. You'd be ungrateful if you didn't do something like that.

　A double surprise strikes me as a lump of surprise.

　First, that Giles called me His Majesty's favorite.

　And the fact that he referred to His Majesty as 'Alfred'.

...... But, well, the world is a small place. I didn't expect that the person I was meeting at that time, who had been working for me for fifteen years, would rise to the occasion in such a grand way.
That's when ...... no way ......!
Huh, I didn't think so. I used to be in the same party as Alfred, and I was part of the search for the queen. So you and I have seen each other a long time ago.

　Giles smiled nostalgically at the old days.

　Long ago, His Majesty Alfred fell in love with a princess who had joined his party under the cover of her identity, and when he found out that she would be forced to marry the one who had discovered a certain artifact, he decided to become a king himself.

　Just before that, he spent a night in my home village, which is what motivated me to become an adventurer - well, one of the adventurers in that party was Master Giles.

　If that's the case, it's understandable that he was able to call out His Majesty and rise to the high position of guild leader.

''I, however, had cleanly wiped you out of my memory until Alfred told me about you at the drink.
...... It can't be helped. I was nothing more than an insignificant child.
"Well, ...... that's the difference between me and Alfred. I don't think I'd ever be able to live like him.

　As he spoke, Giles moved his gaze from top to bottom, as if he were making an inventory.

'Um, what's going on?'
The silver ice wolf we defeated ...... I heard that you had taken that power for yourself. I thought that perhaps birth was the reason, but that doesn't seem to be the case.
Were you born ......?
The White Wolf Forest. It's the location of the dungeon that Alfred's party, including me, challenged in order to get the princess. I was only speculating that this was a phenomenon because you were born in that neighborhood and so on. Never mind that.

　I wasn't too surprised by that statement.

　I don't think it had ever been affirmed before, but there was material all over the place that gave me a dim feeling that it was probably so.

　The fact that His Majesty had visited the village just before the search, and the fact that the product of that search was Hattie's medallion.

　The legend of Fenrir Wolf, a subordinate that was created by the demonic beast Skol, and a large white wolf that once appeared in the White Wolf Forest.

　I'm not going to be able to get the same thing for you.

　It is obvious that all the elements were pointing to a single possibility, and it was as if they had just received an answer to that question.

''Well--I'd like to sit down and listen to you for a bit, if you don't mind?''
Yes, it's nice to meet you too.