From Yuki's point of view...



　I'm glad I got there in time.
　I can't let Mr. Rosso-Burns die on the way to Iris' border visit.
　That would be too bad for the aftertaste.

　As soon as I sent Mr. Lozo-san off in the village, I summoned the Black King (Lord-of-) Cavalry (Noir) from "Storage Magic".
　After that, I had Iris gather the attention of the soldiers and villagers, and then I flew in while they were there.

　On the way, we met up with Dick the bat.
　Dick told me, "Master Lozo said there was nothing to worry about," he said.
　But I was worried about the big goblins and the orcs.
　I came to check on them, but...

I didn't expect to see that "Lord" guy wandering around.

　In front of me is a knight in golden armor.
　It's a full plate that covers his entire body. Even the horse he's riding is in armor.
　When I look at him, I can see the words inside the helmet of the Black King's Horseman.

"..... . Lord No.06 Lord of Paladin? ?

　But after a few seconds, the display changes.

"Error.
Not as Lord.
"Illegal Copy-Lord

　Somehow, I can tell.
　The golden knight in front of me seems to be a replica of one of the 'Lord's Horsemen', the 'Lord of Paladins'.
　So the 'Black King's Horseman' considers it to be a copy of the 'Holy King's Horseman'?



This is a copy of the Black King's Horseman.

　The golden knight rushes in with an assault spear (lance) in his hand.
　I spread the wings of my "Black King's Horseman" and jump up into the air.

　Dick and the rest of the bat army can't be used against this guy.
　If we use them, Rosso and the others will find out who we are.
　I was going to keep my distance and see what happens.

...and bring back the parts. Destroy threat level S and bring back the component!


　Dang!


　The horse wearing armor kicked the ground and the knight jumped up into the air.
　And he's fast.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this.



　Gagiiiiin!



The claws of the Black King's Horseman caught the two assaulting spears.
　I'm wearing the Black King's Armor with jet-black wings and huge arms with claws.
　They are more powerful in aerial combat and close combat.

...Change enemy threat level to S+.

　Behind the golden helmet, a voice called out.

'Anomalies. Your weapon can't penetrate. It's offensive to encounter something like this on a mission!
Shut up, we're the ones who are uncomfortable!

　I'm not going to be able to get a hold of the lance, and I'm going to strain my hand to grab the assault spear.

"Don't cause a scene in the vicinity of my child's work!　What if someone gets hurt and traumatized!　You're supposed to think about it for a minute.
"The great 'Lord of Horses' has no enemies. Recheck this one's armament.
Didn't they teach you to listen to people?

　I'm not going to be able to get it right.

The Black King's horseman's claws dug into the assault lance - and squeezed it.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find a great deal more to say about this.
　I'm not going to be able to get a good idea of what I'm talking about.

It's not a good idea to have a good time.　Danger!　This enemy is dangerous!

　The golden knight shouted.

''No way, this enemy is the original 'King's Rider (Lord)'!　No!　The original could only exist in our organization...
You finally spoke in human language.

　What I heard was a high-pitched voice.
　It was a child, a woman, something like that.

　f*ck.
　You don't know if the mastermind is the Empire or the Sanctuary Church, don't use children.
　That's why they're so picky.

Abort mission. We choose to flee!

　The golden knight lets go of his weapon. He flips his entire horse around and lands on the ground.
　The horse's legs bend to their limits. It absorbs the impact.

　As it is, the golden knight turns his back on the "Black King's Horseman" and runs away.
　Straight towards the border, where his fellow cavalrymen are.

"Call for assistance!　Help me escape!

　Zap.

　In response to his voice, the silver cavalrymen, who were waiting near the border, start running towards us.
　The golden knight doesn't look at me anymore.
　They literally run towards their comrades without looking aside.

　It's so annoying. Really.


　I fly the 'Black King Rider' at full speed. I'm chasing after him.
　I also remove the armor on my right hand and draw a crest on it - and then I activate my magic.

"Flame-Goddess Impact!


　Do do do do do do!


Give them permission to engage in point-blank combat. Give me a clear path to escape!

　A fireball fired from my hand grazed the replica lord.
　He's running away, zigzagging through the meadow.
　Only a few rounds hit him. But he was only somewhat wobbly.
　Because it's a replica "King's Horse", its magic resistance is weaker than the original. Large-scale offensive magic seems to work.

　But it's movement speed is strangely fast.
　It's difficult to catch him from the air with pinpoint accuracy.

But we can't let him get away with it, can we?

　He's trying to slip away with the rest of the cavalry. We can't let him join us.
　The Imperial border is just beyond. We can't follow it up there.
　I'm sure they have border patrols too, you know.

Yes, they do. Let's take that thing Rodería gave us.

　I deployed my "storage magic".
　I take out a metal bottle from the space. A total of 8 bottles.

　This is a new weapon that I had asked Roderea of the Grail Trading Company to use in the past.
　The material is made of cheap metal.
　The reason why the lid and bottom are flat is so that the emblem of "Ancient Magic" can be drawn on them.
　Of course, there's my Myster Blood in the bottle.

　You'll have to draw the emblem on the lid of the bottle for now.
The Black King's Horse's arm is designed to fly, so let him hold the bottle.
　You just need to get in front of him at top speed...

It's called... the Floating Magic Bullet.

　I scattered the eight bottles in front of the Golden Knight.
The arms of the "Black King's Horseman" flew off and over a wide area.

　The bottles that fell are floating around the ground, in the grass field.

"- Attack confirmed. Evade!

　The golden knight starts zig-zagging again.
　But he's already within the range of the attack.

''Simultaneous activation──'Red Lotus Star Bullet (Burning Meteor)!

　In the next moment, eight 『Fuyumajutsu Dan』 burst out.


　Surrounding the golden knight, eight huge fireballs were generated.


The floating magic bullets have the same structure as the staff I use.
　It contains 'magic blood' inside, so as part of me, it has the ability to float easily.
　It's also possible to remotely activate "ancient magic" by drawing a crest on the lid.

　However, since it's made of cheap metal, it will break the moment you activate the magic.
　That's why it's cheaper and lighter, so the advantage is that you can smash it in large numbers.

　So...


This widespread sorcery attack... evade... evade... impossible!　What is this...?


　The Golden Knight continues to zig-zag.
　However, there is no escape.

　The fireball created by the floating magic bullets that were scattered in his path completely blocked his path.
The fireballs from the Red Lotus Star shells are about the size of a carriage.
　There are eight of them, drawing a semicircle around him.
　The front, diagonally in front and to the side are the attack course of the "Red Lotus Bullet".

Sacrifice speed.........and evade is the priority!

　He slapped his horse and changed his course right beside him.
　That slowed him down.

　But even though it was a replica, this speed?
　I wonder how fast it is with the original 'Holy King (Lord-Of-)Rider (Paladin)'.

"Well, okay. Activate 'Earth God's Dance [Force of Earth]'

　Thud.

　A pillar of rock is born in front of the golden knight.
　He reflexively leaps to avoid it.
　Waiting above my head, I grab his arm.

"Got you.
What...?

　I use the claws of the Black King's Horseman to scratch the golden knight's armor.
　I poured "magic blood" into it and "hacking".


　The first bulwark──break through.
　The second protective wall──break through. It's surprisingly weak security.
　Just by breaking through the second firewall, I was able to enter the internal magic realm.

　For now, take away the usage rights.
　After that, I just set the course to run straight through.
　If we stop, I want another mechanism to be activated.

'Yes, sir. 'Release.'

　I lowered the golden knight to the ground.

''-Huh?　Ah, ah, ah!

　The next moment, the knight starts running as fast as he can.
　In the opposite direction from where this guy's friends are. Towards the direction of the fort.

'I don't understand - out of control!　Ahhhhhh!

　There's no use shouting and ranting about it. I took control of the horses.

I've hacked away at it. His horse is a magical golem.
　You're going to have to make sure that you have the right tools to do this.

　So I took control with 'Erosion' and made the horse only run in a straight line.
　The speed is a normal gallop.
　But they can't turn right or left. Of course, jumping is also forbidden.


"-Wow, our leader?
What are you going to do?　We're not allowed to trespass any further into the enemy's country, but...
I couldn't get close enough to get it back without that black armor.


　The silver horsemen stopped moving.
　They were riding ordinary horses.
　They don't look like 'replica lords' but really just regular horsemen.

Do you want to capture another person? For information.

　I flew towards the silver cavalry.

"They're here...!　All of you, spread out!
We must flee in pieces!
The rendezvous point is at the example location. One of you will survive and tell them the mission is a success or failure!


　I'm not going to kill it.
　I accelerate the 'Black King Rider'.

　I grab the nearest cavalryman's shoulder and continue to rise.
　I turn around and return to Rosso-Burns-san's place.
　I drop the silver cavalry (disarmed) in the middle of their unit, and then...

"You need to know what you're doing. "We'll give you a prisoner.

　I told Mr. Rosso-Burns in a made-up voice.
　It's a low, mature voice that resembles that of my previous life. The tone of voice also resembles that of the previous life.

''........You are the one who defeated the 'Lord of Beasts' in the Torrius territory......?''

　What. So, Mr. Lozzo knew about this?
　Well, you'd think he'd know about it.

　But what should I do?
"I happened to pass by here" doesn't sound very convincing.
I'd like to create a setting in which it's not surprising that the Black King's Horseman is here, but....

"─ I am an opponent of the 'Sanctuary Church'.

　At any rate, I said it in a heavy tone.
　I'm not lying. I hate those people, because I hate them.

I detest those who use ancient technology for evil and disrupt the world. I have only lived long enough to know that knowledge and skill are for the benefit of others. Therefore, the Sanctuary Church, which has waged warfare to disturb the world, is my enemy.
You're not...

　Mr. Rosso-Burns' eyes widen.

　Eh, no way.
　You don't think this is going to give away your identity, do you?　Huh?

"We live from the time of the 'Ancient Magical Civilization' - the guardians of 'Ancient Artifacts' and 'Ancient Magic'...?

　So that's how it is.
　Well, I'll be d*mned.

　Well, the less I know, the better. I'll play along.
　But it's not like I can say "I am the Guardian".

"...I've lived a long life and seen people fight each other.

　I blurted it out as I saw fit.
　Of course, I didn't lie.

Even in this age, there is a kind of 'sanctuary church' in the dark. It is sad.
...Oh.
'I hope those in the kingdom will use their ancient skills to keep people alive.'

　With that said, I left Mr. Lozo-Burns.
I fluttered the wings of the "Black King's Rider" and soared up and towards the fort.

　The golden knight was lying in front of the wall that surrounded the fort.
　There are traces of something hard hitting the wall. It seems he crashed into the wall of the fort like that.
　The armor the knight was wearing came off and is scattered around the wall.
　When we 'eroded' earlier, I made sure that the armor would come off when the horses stopped.

　Inside the armor was a - a tall girl with dark hair. She was lying on the ground, unconscious.
　The soldiers of the fort approach the fallen knight with a sense of fear - and trepidation.

　The golden 'Replica Lord' was incapacitated.
　As a prisoner of war, he also handed over one cavalryman.
　I'll leave the rest to Mr. Rosso-Burns and the others.

　I raised the Black King's Horseman's altitude and looked towards the border.
　The cavalrymen who had escaped were no longer in sight.
　Instead, I saw a fort built on the border between the kingdom and the empire.
　It was surrounded by a long wall, with a number of towers attached to it.
　Beyond that is the 'Gaiul Empire'.

　The remnants of the 'Sanctuary Church' and the First Priest who gained immortality are probably located there.
　I wonder what's going on. In that country.

　If the news of this incident gets out, the royal family should strengthen their border defense.
　Maybe the "Magic Guild" will also be assigned to guard the border.
　Let's go back and talk to Iris.




''Goshujin!

　As we moved away from the fort, I met up with Dick the bat.
　If Dick and the others were nearby, they'd know it was me using the 'Black King's Horseman'.
　We had no choice but to split up this time.

It's a good day. It's good to hear that you're safe.
Thank you. How's Iris doing?
'You are safe. I told you about the situation with your husband, and you gave me your opinion.
Let's hear it.

　Iris - Alice has a strange way of thinking.
　Maybe she thought of something about this case, too.

''Yes. I'll tell you.

I heard from Dick-san that there's a battle between a huge monster and the soldiers of the fort.
　If it's the work of the Empire, why is it a demon?
　Sending a demon to take over the fort isn't going to help you capture it, is it?　Even if you could, you'd get it right back, right?　It would take a lot of infantry and supplies to take the fort, right? Why did we do this?
　What do you think of My Lord?

　sir.

You're letting me be the judge as hard as I can...

　Indeed, they couldn't take over the fort even if they released the demons.
　There were golden knights and fellow soldiers, but they couldn't take down the fort alone.
　They didn't have any soldiers to fill the rear.

　If that's the case, is that a 'replica lord' operating experiment using giant monsters?
　No, that would be a weak reason to involve the soldiers in the fort.
　Could it be that there is another purpose?

　

"Dick. I'm going back to Iris. I need you to check the perimeter. See if anyone's looking suspicious.
"This is the place!

　I left the investigation to the bats and others, and I used the Black King's Horseman at full speed.
　I went straight back to the village where Iris was.




''Your Highness Iris!''
Oh, yes.

　In conclusion, Iris was safe.
　Or rather, she was practicing her 'Ancient Magic' with May, the slime, attached to her arm.
　Together with Neil the bat.
　Although it looks like they're dancing a weird dance routine──.

"...It's nothing, right? Iris.
Yes. Of course.
Any enemies or intruders?
Not at all. Neil and the other bats protected me.
I see.

　That's good.
　He wasn't planning to cause a ruckus at the fort and then go after Iris in the meantime - that's not the plan.

　I guess I was just too worried.
　It was decided a few days ago that Iris would come around here. And she changed her schedule in the middle of the trip. Can't exactly pinpoint it.

What's... what's going on?
We've got a 'replica lord' at the fort.

　I explained the situation to Iris.
　Iris nodded.

'Well that's why My Lord was so concerned about you.
Yeah. But I guess they weren't after Iris.
Heh-heh-heh.
Why are you laughing?
I'm just glad My Lord cared.
No, don't let me worry you, it'll shorten your life.
You're immortal, right?
'I shrink in mood. In a previous life, Alice did a lot of strange things and worried me a lot.
'What?　Not so much?
When we were in the village of Fira, when you were 10 years old. I'll never forget how you snuck into the old castle with the false information that 'Alice is helping in the fields'.
'Wasn't that just an attempt to show My Lord the new clothes that Remilia's mother made for you?
Oh. You're not gonna get away with it.
What's wrong with that?
'You. Imagine how I felt when I went back to the old castle and opened the closet and suddenly Alice jumped out of it, in thirty words.
'Alice is so cute in her new clothes. Let's make her a bride now.'
That's not imagination, that's delusional.
'Because you taught me, My Lord,' he said. He said, 'When you're going after your prey, you should first draw your attention elsewhere. When you're going after your prey, you must first draw its attention elsewhere, while you're still close enough to accomplish your objective. I just practiced that.
Don't prey on the one you teach.
"Alice is the hunter of love.
"...was my upbringing in a previous life wrong?
'No, I think My Lord is educating everyone in the village, including Alice, correctly. There's no doubt about it, because he's the one who taught them!

　I'm not so sure.
　When it comes to my students from my past life, they used the holy sword to reincarnate, infiltrated the "Sanctuary Church" and destroyed it from the inside, and created a business association that lasted 200 years.

"...anyway, let's have a cup of tea.
Yes.

　Iris stands to make a cup of tea.
　Speaking of which Iris said earlier.
When you are aiming at your prey, first draw your attention elsewhere. You have to approach it while it's still there to accomplish its purpose. It's part of my education in a past life.
　It's also a common hunt and tactic.
　If you look at the fort incident from that perspective, it's still possible that they were trying to draw attention to the location so that a detachment of troops could take advantage of the gap and do something.
　If it wasn't Iris that they were after, then....

I'm back!
Thanks for your help. So, did you find anyone suspicious around the fort or on the street?
I haven't found it.
I see.

　If it's nothing, it's a good thing.
　But ... I'm curious. There's Martha and Remy and Odette in King's Landing.

'Sorry. Would you and Dick and a couple of others be willing to fly to King's Landing?　I want you to tell Martha and Odette what happened here. Also, I want them to be careful, just in case.
"'It's here...
'Get some rest and replenish my 'magic blood' before you go.

　Then me and Iris took a break with the bat army.
　After that, we sent Dick and a few bats off to King's Landing.