...... Corona.

　Wary of his surroundings, he narrows his eyes to protect her.
　At the end of this alley--the smell of blood.

"Master Futa, what is it?
"Yeah, I know. Stay behind me.
Yeah. ......

　She must have sensed something, because she quietly stepped back behind Futa.

　There's not much reason to go any further.
　If Corona's safety is of utmost importance to you, you should call the guards and get out of here.

　But what if...

　If the kind of assassins that Mion and I were talking about earlier are ahead of us, then the guards will be no match for them.

　If the situation arose, Futa stepped into the alley, considering the possibility of having Corona escape alone.

　It was not an outburst of justice.
　Futa Pomodoro is a selfish man in his own right, and does not have the spirit of service that would make him sacrifice himself for a stranger.

　However, his desire to make sure that the upcoming tournament goes off without a hitch is not based on any sense of justice, but on the wishes of a girl close to him.

　I had no hesitation in helping her do so.

　Then.

　Lilac's face wasn't the only one that came to mind.
　The swordsmen who had crossed swords with him in the capital, and the people he had met while living in this city.

　Perhaps this city was no longer a stranger to Futa.

...... Still...

　You'll be able to find a lot more information on this site.

What's wrong, Master Futa?
No. If it gets really dangerous, call for backup.
All right. ...... Well, I don't think you'll have to worry about that, Futa-sama.
I'm glad you said that.

　I'm sure you're not the only one who has a problem with this.
　Step by step towards the scent, always keeping an eye on the back.

　The alley wasn't that narrow.
　It was a little cramped to walk side by side, but if you walked in a vertical line, your movement would not be impeded.

　At this rate, there would be no problem even if a fight broke out in the aisle.
　He would have to be careful about the angle at which he swung his sword, but that was about it.

　The narrow passage was reasonably long.
　There were several branches, but I chose the scent one without hesitation.
　The smell of blood was getting thicker and thicker, and I wondered if someone had been hurt down there - or if they were long dead.
　I wasn't sure, but at least I could see the danger approaching.

　--That's when it happened.

"Wait.

　The voice was above them.
　At the same time that Futa calmly sensed the presence, a young man in a silk hat landed in front of him.

"This is our future...

　He lifts the hat with the tip of his walking stick.
　Why is it that each one of them irritates Futa so strangely?

I'm not sure what to do.
Let's just ignore this guy.
Wait!

　I'm not sure what to make of it.
　I'm not sure what to do, but I'm sure I'm not the only one.

　The appearance was definitely that of an intruder who had stepped into the royal castle.

If you want to push your way through, that's fine. If you want to push your way through, fine. But I'm going to have to ask you to leave the princess alone.
What are you doing?
What do you think you're doing?

　The young man smiles.
　He says to Futa, who slits his throat before he can say anything profane.

"I'm doing research on your type.
He said he hated silk hats.
He hates silk hats." "Then these hats are garbage.

　He throws away his identity.

"I never said that, maid.

　"Maid, I didn't say that," he said, hastily catching the hat.

"You!
I didn't think you'd believe me.
"You're ...... Fouta, you said. What are you to her?

　--Futa was at a loss for words for a moment.

　If only his question had been a little different, he could have answered immediately.
　For example, if he had asked, "What is she to you?
　I could have said with pride that she was more important to me than life itself.

　But what am I to her?

　That momentary hesitation would have been felt by the girl behind me.
　So...

"To me, you're more important than life.
"d*mn it!

　I put my hat back on and poke the ground with my walking stick.

"More important than life," he says. I don't know the bond between you and her, I don't know the past.

　But," he says, looking at Corona.



My feelings are real. --You haven't introduced yourself. My name is...
Libra Robinson.
Yeah, who the f*ck is Libra Robinson?　Don't you f*cking name yourself after me!
You missed.
You can't expect me to pinpoint a name like that!

　"What kind of logic is that?" I sigh.

"I'm Dolorous. I'm D'Loza Greisinger. I'm the head of a bandit gang for a reason, nice guy!
"...... No, bandits are not nice guys.
I'm a nice guy.
"...... Hoota. Hoota Pomodoro.
Huh. Pomodoro. - Are you sure that's your last name?
Is that bad?
No. ...... Well, there are a lot of countries with vegetables as their surname. ......

　I'm not sure I've been to every country in the world yet,......," said a young man with a faraway look in his eyes.

I don't care what your name is. --What's your name, sunflower boy?
"Well... I'm a little embarrassed to call you that. I'm Corona, your noisy cleaning maid.
Dainty. ......
"...... is kind of out of control.

　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

　Futa remembered. He remembered what Lilac had said, but also Corona's own past.
　She has never been able to express this kind of favor in a straightforward manner.

　Certainly, in her situation, it would be disconcerting to have such feelings from a complete stranger. In fact, the fact that she doesn't think it's creepy shows how kind she is.

I mean, you know. I'd never give Corona to a bandit master.
...... It hurts to be poked in the eye.

　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.
　I'm not going to give it to you," he continued, surprising Huta with how quickly he backed down.

I'm not trying to justify stealing. I'm not trying to justify stealing. ...... It's just, you know, stealing from people you don't like and distributing it to people who are suffering because of it. You don't know what that feels like until you do it. Besides.

　He turned up the corners of his mouth, looking happy.

"Traveling around the world like that makes you feel more alive than staying in one city. What you are doing may not be very commendable according to the ethics of this world, but I can assure you that it is fun and happy.

　I'm sure he means it.
　His words were powerful enough to make me hesitate to deny outright that he was trying to get me to steal.

　However, that doesn't mean that I can forgive him.

"But that doesn't mean I'm going to send you to a dangerous place.
"Maybe for a trial period of six months.
There's no such thing as a trial service.
What do you think, ......, Corona?

　His eyes turned to Corona.
　I'm sure you're not the only one.
　I'm sure it wasn't a sign of emotional turmoil, or that she was positive about D'Souza.

　If anything, he wanted her to do something about it.

　It's not that I want her to denigrate D'Rosa.
　She is a kind woman, and she knows that.

　That's why Huta told him.

Corona is a sweetheart. Please don't embarrass her.
I know it when I see it. It's that beautiful heart of yours that made me fall in love with you.
Oh, yeah.
If you ask for it, you'll get it. Okay, here's the deal.

　"Okay, here's what we're going to do," says Droza, looking straight at Corona.
　I'll do it.

I'll try to make you really want to follow me. For now, let's start with ...... What kind of man do you like?
"Uh, ......?

　I'm sure the question came from the fact that Droza didn't know Corona very well.
　No, that in itself is a good thing. Because you don't know, you try to know. Especially when it's someone you like.
　There are answers you can't get if you don't step in.

　But for this girl in front of me.
　I'm sure there is no definition of a man you like.

　It's not like she had a preference and then found someone who fit it.

　--Because you were there, the maid...



"I don't know what ...... is.

　He laughed at her in that way.
　But Droza, too, saw how her gaze had shifted, and now looked at Futa.

"Hey, Pomodoro.
What is it?
What are you best at?

　The one ahead of her--the one she was best at.
　I suspect that's what drew her here.

"Good at? I don't know. ...... I guess.

　It's not so much that he was troubled.
　I'm not sure I'm good at fighting swords.

　You can find a lot of people who have been in the business for a long time, but you can't say that they are good at sword fighting.
　But still, he's won. He's a champion.
　"He's won. Futa's pride is there, too.

"I make my living ...... fighting swords.
"Oh, ...... sword fighting. I don't know what it's called in this town. There's a Colosseum in town.
Spectacular. ...... I'm a champion there.
Huh.

　The corners of D'Rosa's mouth lifted.
　It was an expression of confidence that both Huta and Corona could see.

"That's nice. A good man should have at least one of those strengths. It's much better than a man with nothing to his name being surrounded by such beauties and Ms. Corona.

　He raises the brim of his hat gently and says, "That's my specialty.

That's what I'm good at. I've only ever lost a fight with a sword once.
"Then this will be the second time.
Keep talking. --Mr. Corona!

　Turn around and say.

When I beat him, you'll listen to me. Hey, Pomodoro, shut up and watch me when I do.
...... is fine.
What? What?

　The Second Annual Combat Games.

　I thought I was going to be left out of it.

　Then I found myself in the middle of something.

"I was in the middle of the ...... commotion, that I was.

　The maid blinked her eyes and muttered to herself.


"Haha, that's settled then. It's still the entry period, isn't it?
"Yes, it is.
"Well, farewell. I'll see you soon, sunflower boy ......, no, Corona!

　With that, he jumped up and down, smiling broadly.
　I'm not sure what to make of that.

"...... Master Futa, what are you going to do?
"What?
...... It'll be really funny if I can't enter this.
Oh.
What's that?

　The maid's fist slammed into my stomach in anger.


No, yeah. That's right, ...... for now.

　Despite the unusual commotion.
　Holding his stomach, Futa faced the alley once more.
　D'Rosa came out on the right.

　In fact, the reason for entering this place has not been resolved yet.

I'm sure I'll be able to get some help from the guards once I've resolved this situation.
I'm worried. ......

　I stepped out into the street to the left with the maid who was whispering.