From two corners of the room, two guards came running at the same time.
　It might be useful to keep the misunderstanding that I can't use magic, so I took out an appropriate stone from the item box and threw it at them.
　The stone hit the right guard cleanly, sinking it with a cracking sound.
　While I was doing this, the left guard came slashing at me, so I dodged and kicked him.
　...... It's kind of weak. I think there are a lot of wizards in Decibatore who can win without using magic. It seems those muscles were just for decoration.
　It's almost a pity to compare him to a swordsman.

So, two E rank adventurers were defeated by ...... in an instant.

　They were E rank?
　I think they were weak even if they were E rank. ...... I wonder if Basis and this country have different standards for rank.
　...... But those adventurers were useful in a way.

I heard a great noise!

The Oval Office!

　The sound of the guards being defeated brought the guards who seemed to be in the house to this room.
　Ten, twenty ...... more to come. It's hard to believe that a mere lord would have them stationed at his mansion.
　Perhaps he had done so much evil that he was afraid of assassination.

　The reason why I am thinking this is because all the guards who gathered seemed to be weak.
　He could always run away, he could always kill his lord.
　In addition, all the guards who gathered seemed to dislike the lord.
　Rather than coming to protect the lord, they seemed to have gathered because they heard a loud noise and were forced to pose as protectors because the lord was being attacked.
　As proof of this, no one came to attack me. Rather, they are cooperating with me.
　They've even taken a cramped posture to open up a firing line for me to cast a spell on the lord.
　Whether or not I'll take advantage of it is still up in the air.
　Since I was in such a situation, I decided to take the means of negotiation.

"The man is not a lord. He's a criminal who embezzled!

　As I said this, I took out the ledger I had retrieved earlier.
　The evidence of embezzlement was clearer than ever.

"So you made up ......!　You're using a false ledger to blame me for what you've stolen!　You thief!

　The lord turns red in the face and refutes me.
　You're the one who tried to blame others for your crimes. You've got a big face.

"Hey. What do you think?

What you're saying is probably true. ......

Should we tie him up?

　When the guards heard what we said, they began to discuss it.
　It seemed that the lord could hear us, and his face began to bleed even more, turning red and then black. My blood vessels are about to break.
　With that expression on his face, the lord angrily shouted at the guards.

Kill that man now!　Do it now!　Anyone who doesn't is a traitor!　If you don't, you're a traitor! I'll make up some charges and have you and your family hanged!

　...... Wouldn't that be confessing to a willful false accusation?
　I'm not sure what to make of this, but I think it's a good idea.
　Before I could even get a word in edgewise, the guards came at me with swords drawn.

"d*mn it!　No hard feelings!

Oh, I have a sister!

　I decide to use my magic armor to defend myself and catch them. Cutting it down with a counterattack seems like something a villain would do.
　Half the reason is that the guards aren't treated as bandits, so if I counterattack poorly, I might be in trouble when I return to Basis.
　Once the attack was stopped, self-defense would be established.
　Incidentally, the lord was trying to escape during this time, so I trapped his legs again with warding magic.
　That was all I intended to do, but there was a warding spell on the ground where he fell, and the lord seemed to have hit his face.

"Buh-beh!

What? Why?　I can't reach him!

Me neither!　Aah!

　After establishing self-defense, I unleashed some light pressure magic around the area and blew the guards away.
　Some of them seemed to be slightly injured, but I wasn't going to take care of them that much.

　So, what should I do now?
　Just as I was thinking this, a new force appeared.
　The window of the office shatters and a man jumps in.

　For a moment, I thought I saw some decent lord turn into a shit lord (I don't know his name. I think I saw it in an appraisal, but I couldn't even remember it), but it was too early for that. At any rate, I'm sure he's not a bandit.
　As I was wondering what to do, the other side gave me an explanation.

"Hey, Rhaegar!

"Hey, Zoey Mars. This is the guy we're going to kill, right?　Are we going to get paid for this?

"Oh, yeah. Yes!　I'll give you 20 million lire in cash, plus an additional reward from his estate! So hurry up and take him down!



　It seems that the newly arrived man, Rhaegar, is a reinforcement for the lord's side. From what I've heard, he's not a subordinate of the lord, but a bounty hunter with money.
　Incidentally, it seems that Zoemers was a reference to the lord. I have acquired very useless knowledge.

"All right, guards. Secure the windows and exits so we don't get away. And information. Anything you can tell me about this guy.

　Right. Sounds like he's getting paid well.
　Unlike the others, he's got a plan. He's at least a dozen times more capable than his lord.
　As usual, they are not treated as bandits, so I'm watching them carefully, ready to crash through the wall and escape at any time.
　They seem to be exchanging information over there.

"My attacks aren't getting through!

Maybe your swords aren't good enough.

It's not like that!　It's like there's an invisible wall. ......

They can't reach us!

　Actually, it's an invisible wall.

Shit. You're not getting the point. ...... Enough of that, give me some other information. Where you're from, your fighting style.

　I don't care what your style is, you're asking me where I'm from.
　I don't know, I've never really looked into it, but there may be some differences in tactics depending on where you're from.
　If it's a city like Decibatore, you can get some idea of its strength just from the name of the place.

"He's from a frontline city!

　The guards didn't seem to be able to answer the question, but the lord answered instead.
　He didn't even remember my name, but he knows where I'm from.
　Well, I'm from Japan, so I can't say it's the right answer.

Frontline cities?　What's that?　...... It's a little tricky. Guards, stay back, you're slowing us down. You're no use to us.

　Rhaegar ordered the guards to fall back and heathed the two swords he carried on his back.
　Then the lord gave additional information.

"No, it's not a front city in this country!　It's the Basisians!

It's a Basist!" "Basist?　...... Frontline City is not Decibatore, is it?

That's right!　It's the Desi something!

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not.
　You'll be able to find a lot more than just a few of them.

"...... Hey, guards.

"...... What is it?

"You'd better save your life. See ya.

　With that, Rhaegar jumped into the incoming window and ran away at once.
　The speed of his decision and the speed of his escape were astonishing. Perhaps that speed of escape is the secret to survival as a bounty hunter.

"Hey! That Rager's running away?

Isn't that bad?

Oh, I don't wanna die yet!

　Seeing that Rhaegar had escaped, the guards seemed to get scared.
　They scrambled out of the broken windows and open doors.
　The only ones left were me, the lord, the men who were helping him embezzle, and the three guards.
　The guards, however, did not appear to be loyal to the lord.
　Rather, their expressions showed their disgust for the lord.
　And yet, if they were to remain here, ......

I don't know. Is it possible that you are really being held hostage?

...... "If I run, they'll kill my daughter.

　I see. So they're holding my daughter hostage. Then it's no wonder you're staying.
　But this guard may be too concerned about his daughter to keep his cool.

"Hey. Who's giving the order to kill the girl?

"The Lord .......

　The guard almost called out the lord, and then added the honorific title with a pained expression.

I see. But who would follow the orders of an arrested criminal?

"...... Oh. I see.

　The guard's expression hardened.
　I'm not sure if you've heard of it or not, but I'm sure you have.
　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're doing.



We've apprehended a criminal. We need backup.

All right.

　...... Oh. What a farce.
　Is this what we've been fighting for?
　I feel like I'm mentally exhausted.
　At any rate, the false accusation has been resolved with minimal damage. With the a**h*le lord gone, the taste of the fallen séouille may return to normal.
　I guess that's the only saving grace.