--Louise Rastinel, Lord of Rastinel, hurries through the night with her bodyguard.


　The time was early evening. The time was early in the evening, and she had just finished her duties and was thinking of having a glass of wine and relaxing.
　While I was having my steward choose a wine, I received an urgent report from one of my retainers, a small lord.
　When I asked him what was going on at this hour, he told me that Deet and his men had seized the stronghold of those who had been plotting against them.


　...... Recently, there have been many reports of banditry in the territory.
　The bandits not only attacked small villages and travelers.
　They attack not only small villages and travelers, but also armed merchants at random.
　It was already rumored among the merchants who had good ears.


　The bandits appeared everywhere in the territory, and once they hid, they were completely invisible.
　We tried to fight back by controlling the food and other goods necessary for survival and cutting off the flow of provisions and fodder, but the desired effect was not achieved. On the contrary, this has contributed to the reluctance to sell in the territory, and has even led to inexplicable buying and rising prices.
　While we were gritting our teeth at the situation, the bandits had found their fish.
　The bandits accelerated their banditry like a fish out of water.
　They wouldn't even let us grab their tails.


　As we began to think that something big was behind this, this good news came to us.
　The bandit racket was led by Count Polk Nadar, the lord of the neighboring territory.
　The plan was to set up merchants and even bandits to snatch silver from Rastinel and other territories.
　The merchant who showed up this morning to plead his case was one of them.
　Apparently, once the plan was successful, they would operate under a different name in a different territory until the situation cooled down. After gaining a good track record there, they would obtain the approval of the lord of that territory and then take over as the official merchant.


(Come to think of it, that was an introduction from Count Nadar. ......)


　I recall that a merchant named Pirocolo came with a letter of introduction from Count Nadar.
　I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that.


　...... It seems that the place Deet and his men seized was a base for transporting the stolen silver.
　In addition, they were planning to harm the crown prince, who was currently on his way to Nadar territory.
　The Nadar side attacked the Dauphin under the pretense of welcoming him, while the bandits attacked from behind, a pincer attack.
　What would have happened if Deet and his men had not quickly seized the base tonight?
　I can't thank those who were the first to notice and inform us of this plan enough.


　A nobleman's son with silver hair.
　A boy with an appearance so lovely that he could be mistaken for a girl, wearing the clothes that aristocratic men often wear.
　The eldest son of the Raytheft family, Arx Raytheft.
　In a corner of the warehouse district, he was waiting for the arrival of his lord with his attendants while his men were busy.


　Immediately after meeting him, Arx Raytheft looked dumbfounded for a moment.
　Perhaps it was because he did not have the appearance of a lord.
　His crisp red hair.
　An eye patch.
　A huge sword.
　She wore the skin of a beast on top of her costume.
　This was not the attire of a lord, let alone a woman.


　Galanga, who seems to have sensed this, comes up to me, grinning.


"Miss, Miss. You look like a bandit.

"What?　"Haven't you said anything yet?

You don't have to say anything, I can see it on his face. ...... Ow!


　I'm not sure what to say, but I can tell from his face.
　He's the first of the vassals in the Rastinel, so it's not too tight.
　In fact, this tone works so well that the situation is well organized, which makes it worse.
　I hit him again, this time on his miserable belly, and he winced, holding his belly as if he had found a good spot.


　He stopped frolicking with his retainer and called out to the boy who was kneeling down to bow.


"You're Arx Raytheft, aren't you?

Ha!


　Arx Raytheft sensed our presence and his face became tense.
　His face tensed up and his back straightened.


"I'm Louise Rastinel. I'm Louise Rastinel, and I'd like to thank you for being the first to notice and inform me of any wrongdoing in my domain. You're the one from House Raytheft who heard the noise.

I'd like to apologize for any misbehavior I may have caused in your home.

No, there's nothing to apologize for. There's nothing to apologize for. Thanks to you, we'll be able to avoid any trouble.


　With that, Arx Raytheft bowed his head again.
　When he reported the whereabouts of the bandits and asked for Deet's help in capturing them, he was making sense.
　Besides, this is a big deal. He could have kept the credit to himself without reporting it, or used it to get rid of Rustinell.


　The fact that he didn't seems a little too pure for a nobleman.


(No, no, I'm not even old enough to think that far.)


　As I was thinking about such unnecessary things, one of my retainers appeared with a bundle of documents.


"Master Louise. Here are the instructions.


　I took it and read through it, but it was still the same as the report.


...... This is undeniable proof that Nadar has turned to the Empire. But to leave the evidence like this, ...... you couldn't get a very competent one?


　It's a shame that you didn't dispose of the evidence quickly enough and leave it behind.
　How can good people be gathered under those who steal secretly in the first place?


　As I was discussing this with my retainer, I spotted Diet at the entrance of the warehouse.
　Eventually, the other side noticed our presence.


"Ah!　Ka-chan!


　She approaches me with a big wave of her hand.
　He seems to be in good spirits, despite the fact that he has just returned from patrolling the territory and has had a rough time.




Deet!　I told you not to call me that!

Yeah, but my mom's my mom.


　Thump.


　Deet never changes his language.
　He dropped a fist on the top of her head and crouched there with tears in his eyes.


"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!

I'm not sure how my son ...... got to be such a prude.


　I'm not sure what to make of this.
　Why is this always the case when it comes to this kind of topic?
　I looked at Arx Raytheft and saw that he was rubbing his head.
　It seems that this boy often gets his knuckles dropped on the top of his head, but whatever.


Good job, Deet.

"No, it's all thanks to Arx. I only caught him.


　Deet smiled shyly, then turned mysterious.


"Also, it seems that these guys have been kidnapping women.

Is that so?

I took care of one of the young ladies who had just been captured. She was shivering, naked in a crate, as if she had been treated badly.

You've been doing that in someone else's territory? ...... Make sure you bring her home.

I know.


　Not only did he snatch the silver.
　I'm not sure what to make of it.
　And now he wants to harm the crown prince.
　My anger with Poluk Nadar is only growing.


"I will take a look around and report back to His Highness Prince Ceylan immediately with my men. You take care of the field and Arx Raytheft. He's a benefactor of our domain. Make sure they're treated well, okay?　Okay?

"Uh, yeah. I'll take care of it.


　I've already heard from Garanga that Arx Raytheft doesn't want to make too big a deal out of it. I can guess that it has something to do with the reason why he came here, and the point is that he doesn't want people to know about it.
　Treating him as a benefactor or a guest would be a good cover.


　And about that Arx Raytheft...


"If things go well, I'll tell His Highness Seiran about you. You've done a great job.

"Thank you for your concern.

No, I'm the one who should be thanking you. I'll get you a thank you too.


　When he said that, Arx Raytheft thanked him again with awe.
　It's true that there are some poorly written parts, but...
　I'm sure there are a few things that are poorly done, but you've got the right attitude.
　It is as if he is consciously adopting the attitude that a child would adopt if it were a sarcastic attitude.
　It's hard to believe that he's still a child like Deet.
　For now, anyway.


Clayton!

"Clayton! All the soldiers have been roused and are waiting outside the gates.

Good!　Get them organized and ready to go while I make my rounds.

Yes, sir.


　This case is about to come to a head.
　We must break through the border with Nadar and get to the Dauphin before he and his party make contact with the welcoming party from Nadar.
　The spearhead should be small in number and speedy in order to join the Dauphin's group as soon as possible. It would be best to send reinforcements to Nadar as soon as the rest of the army is ready, and escape from Nadar while fortifying the defenses.
　We will have to catch up with the Dauphin before he gets too deep into Nadar territory.
　He would have to report to Nadar that he had been robbed of his silver, but if he could stage a dramatic rescue, he could at least make up for it.
　In order to lessen the scars of this incident, we should blow things out of proportion.


(......That would raise the boy's profile. ............ Hmm?


　...... As I walked with Garanga through the warehouse, plotting my political course, something inexplicable suddenly caught my eye.
　A cracked steel plate and shattered building materials.
　There was one place in the warehouse that was badly damaged.
　The nearby windows were broken and scattered outside.
　Most of the wooden fixtures were in pieces.
　If you look closely, you can see pieces of burnt flesh scattered and sticking to the ground.


"...... Galanga, what's this?

...... Those are the remains of a spell used by Arx Raytheft.

"Huh?　That's the boy's?

Huh. He had a run-in with an enemy mage.


　It's true, it's a devastation that makes sense when you hear of magic.
　But then another question arises.


It seems to me that fire magic ...... has a lot of power, doesn't it?

It's not very powerful, is it?　Most of the mages that were hit were wiped out. I'm sure you're not the only one.

It's...




　It's a hell of a lot more powerful than wiping out people, but...


What kind of magic is that?

Well, my mages have no idea what magic is.

You don't know?

"They all agree it's a fire spell. But the instantaneous destructive power of it is too great for them to be certain.


　For Garanga, who has a refreshing personality and likes to get clear answers, this doesn't quite make sense.
　The first thing that comes to mind when you think of fire offensive magic is the magic of the [Flamrune]. It is an offensive magic that is often used by mages who specialize in fire in the kingdom. It combines the characteristics of both fire and spear, and has the effect of inflaming and destroying the target.
　It is also designated as a tactical spell used by mages in the national army.
　Its power is so powerful that it is feared even by other nations.
　However, since the main effect is to burn things, the destructive part is secondary.
　Although it bursts and catches fire, even if it were used, it would not leave a trace like this.
　This state looks like the result of hitting a boulder with earth-related magic.


　Then what does it mean?


　I looked at Garanga and saw a bead of sweat on his forehead.


I didn't know you were so fearless.

I'm sure you're not the only one who's had a cold sweat.


　I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear that.


"...... My mage told me that. I'm not sure what to make of it. I'm not sure what to make of that. I envy the innocence of the boy who can look at that and be so innocent and excited.


　In other words, Arx Raytheft is also quite skilled in magic.
　But...


I'm sure there are rumors circulating that he was legally disinherited ...... because he was incompetent with only a trivial amount of magic power.

That's what I've heard too.


　So you don't think so?
　The situation is not clear to me.
　In this case, you can say.


...... Galanga. What's your take on this?

"Arx Raytheft is as clever as he is old. Arx Raytheft is smart beyond his years. He's got the imprinting skills and the guts to step into the arena. And he's got magic. I have no idea what kind of a joke that is, but I'm pretty sure he'd be disinherited.

I know.

And both of my squires graduated at the top of their class at the Academy of Magic. Two geniuses that even a great noble wouldn't want to have. I don't know how they can pull in such people.


　One of the national mages, the molten iron mage Cleve Arbent, must have originally been a Raytheft man.
　In the event that you have any questions concerning where and how to use the internet, you can call us at the web site.


"...... So, why did Arx Raytheft come to us?

I'm not sure about that yet. I've never been able to open a letter from His Majesty King Shinru addressed to Miss. As for why I came to Rustinelle, as I told you this evening, I will tell you at the audience tomorrow.

"Hmm. ......


　If it's a letter of intent, it's obvious that it can't be opened.
　In the first place, it is customary to have such a letter delivered by a person of appropriate rank.
　But the person who brought the letter was the son of a disinherited nobleman.
　He was not in a position to be entrusted with the king's letter of intent.
　The fact that he was able to bring it to me like this means that King Shinru is pleased with him.


"............

Miss, what is it?

"Galanga. What's wrong with you?　You're just like her. ......

"Oh, no, I'm just...


　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not.


I'm not sure what to say. You know that recently, the Royal Army's mage troops have been upgraded, right?

"Yeah. Yes, I do. I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but it's a good idea. And the medical department has also seen an increase in the number of highly skilled witch doctors.

"And there's talk of silver being involved.

Silver?　............ Are you saying that Arx Raytheft is involved with silver?

He's bringing us a letter with the royal seal at this time of year. It's not unlikely that he's involved in this, since the first thing he'll want when he comes to us is silver.


　It may seem like a leap of faith to connect Arx Raytheft with the improvement of the mage corps, but in the first place, it is unheard of for someone to visit with a letter of intent.
　It's still just a guess, but it's a possibility.


"Then why did you call me incompetent? ......

"Well... Is it some kind of cover?　Maybe he's too talented and they want him to start a new family?

That's exactly what I'm talking about!　They've been saying he's so incompetent.

Of course not. This is because the daughter of the heir was more suitable to be the head of the family. ......


　I'm sure you're right.




"...... is indeed the kingdom's oldest baronial family. It's a good idea to take a look at a few of the things that are available in the market.


　In the event that you're in the market for a brand-new pair of shoes or boots, you'll be able to choose from a wide range of styles and styles.
　Should we assume that both siblings are capable?


　Anyway, Arx Raytheft.
　Even without talking about the present, he is capable of so much at his age.
　For the future, it might be a good idea to tell Deet to get along with Arx Raytheft.


　............ By the time I returned from my round of the warehouse with Galanga, the first group had finished forming.
　Gathered in the warehouse district was a group with a large number of warhorses.
　They were lined up in an orderly fashion, not even moving.


　I took one look around at the familiar group and called out to them.


You're all here before the fun of the night!　I'm sure some of you had to put off your drinks because of the sudden call!　But that goes for me too!　I'm really regretting the fact that I should have just drunk it and gotten lost in it. ......


　I regret that I should have drunk and lost my mind as soon as possible.


But this time, the crown prince of Rynor is at stake. Depending on what happens, we may have to retreat. If we manage to save him, the reputation of Rastinel will be further enhanced. You guys, go ahead and boost my stock!


　I shouted, to which a pleasant response came back.
　The morale of the soldiers is good.
　This should be enough to withstand a day and night of running.


"Withdrawal battle...... withdrawal battle, huh?


　As I casually rephrased the phrase, a smile suddenly appeared on my face.
　If it doesn't turn into a battle, so much the better.
　But if it does, that's just as funny.
　The guillotine has been handed over to Deet, but now there is a good opportunity to have a new weapon suck his blood.