Filia was standing there with her tiny body, defending me.
　Everyone in the room looked at Filia.

　I, too, gasped in amazement at Filia's behavior.

　And even Iris seemed to be pressured by Filia's swordsmanship.

'Get out of my way, Filia. How could I possibly kill you, a member of the royal family at least?

'Then will Mr. Iris stop killing Solon?

　It's true that no matter how much Iris is the emperor's agent, we can't kill the same princess.
　This is not the same as killing me, a commoner.

　So if Filia says to kill herself first, my death penalty will not be realized.
　I admire Filia's courage.
　And I was convinced that Filia was the one worthy of being called a true princess.
　I'm happy to be Filia's master, I thought again.

　However, Iris looked frightened at first, but eventually chuckled.
　What was wrong with her?

　Iris pointed the tip of her sword at Filia.

''Although I cannot kill you as a member of the royal family, but if you have challenged me as the acting emperor, your crime is not light. You may be forgiven for throwing Filia into prison and torturing her. It's just that there's no way I could have secured you without killing you.

　As he said this, Iris looked back at the officials behind her with amusement.
　They were all nervously waiting for Iris' orders.
　Iris ordered them in a high pitched voice.

'Come on, hurt Princess Filia and kill Soron the Magician!

　It's not good.
　We have to fight a bunch of soldiers while protecting Filia and getting out of this situation.

　We have no allies.
　At this point, would it be better to take Iris hostage in front of him and escape?

　But if I did that, I'd really be committing the crime of high treason.
　And if that happens, Sophia and Clarice in my mansion, as well as Perse, might not be safe.

　In short, we would have no choice but to fight as normal.
　Moreover, in order not to become a rebel, I can't just kill Iris and the rest of the enemy.

　I've thought about it.
　The fact that Iris was the emperor's agent was a temporary thing, and if I got away from here, the threat wouldn't be as direct as it could be.
　I'll have to do something about it.

　Filia looked back at me with a face that looked like she was about to cry.

I'm sorry ... Solon. I wasn't able to do anything for Solon.

'It's fine. Master Filia is my disciple, so I should be the one to protect her, not the other way around.

But I'm the Lord of Solon and yet...

'I was very happy that Lady Filia was trying to help me. So now it's my turn to protect Filia-sama.

　I gently grabbed Filia's arm and pulled her towards me, lightly stroking her head.
　A teary-eyed Filia stared at me with a surprised look on her face, then twisted around to tickle me.

　I knew I shouldn't show the government people that I was too friendly with Filia, but that didn't matter anymore when it came to this,
　I said.

'Come on, let's make sure we go home and continue our lessons. Filia-sama has a lot for you to remember. Like how to handle attack magic efficiently, the biology of the demon race in the ruins, and which treasures can be sold for what price.

It looks like a big deal...

We're going to the ruins together.

　When I said that, Filia smiled happily.
　And I smiled back at Filia too.

''We need to get back to the mansion as soon as possible.

Yes. So give me the victory, Solon!

I will certainly protect Lady Filia from such unreasonableness.

　I readied my treasure sword, the Tetracord.

　One of the men, who looked like a follower of Iris, drew his sword and stepped toward me.
　When I flashed my sword, the man's sword was easily flicked away and he sat back.

　He's only a nobleman's squire, chosen for his rank and appearance alone.
　Not very strong.

　The other squire tried to attack Filia, but far faster than his sword could reach Filia, the treasure sword tetracord caught the man's torso.

　The man collapsed in agony.
　It was a peak strike, but he wouldn't be able to get up for a while.

　The second group of the enemy were about six military officers, but they were clearly unwilling to do so.
　No matter how I looked at it, they didn't seem to be convinced to fight.

　I swung my treasure sword to the side and deployed a magic circle around me and Filia.

'Formlessly flowing truth, power to me.

　I chanted briefly, and what looked like a mass of water floated up from the magic circle.
　The officers who stepped into the magic circle were caught off guard by them.

　Well, it's not strong enough magic to defeat the enemy with just this, but it can be used to stop the action for a bit.
　I swing my sword against the soldiers who have slowed down.

　Gufu, one of the officers groan and fall down.
　Of course, it's a peaked strike.

　Five of the six could be defeated.
　The last one left was a woman. Looking at her rank insignia, she appeared to be an Ensign.

　Her gray hair was arranged short and her eyes were clean and clear.
　She seemed to be the youngest of the military men and still looked like a girl.

　Maybe she had just graduated from the military academy.

　I smiled.

'You've managed to avoid my magic. Big deal.

'I'm honoured to be praised by that famous mage Solon.

　The girl sneered.
　I ask back.

'Are you convinced of His Highness Iris's orders?　If I had to listen to these orders, I don't think I'd be called a paycheck thief.

'You're a soldier, you do what you're told. It's a cheap paycheck, so give me a break.

　The girl hailed and pointed her slender sword at me.
　I also held the treasure sword tetracord straight at her.

　At the same time as I stepped forward, the girl also ran towards me, swinging her sword at me.
　Their swords clashed with each other and flashed fire violently.

　The girl swung her sword in the air to deliver the next blow.
　But it was too late.

　I flashed my treasured sword.
　The girl's thin sword couldn't withstand my blow and fell from her hand.

　When I thrust the sword against the girl's neck, she raised her hands and said without changing her expression.

''I'm here, shall I say?　Lord Solon?

That's a lot of leeway.

Because you're not going to kill us, are you, Master Solon?

　I nodded.
　In total, eight people were knocked down by me in a matter of seconds.

　The other soldiers and bureaucrats stared at me as if they were afraid.
　They were almost completely demoralized by the war.

　They probably think that Iris's orders were unreasonable to begin with.
　On top of that, seeing those who fought me were easily defeated, it's only natural that they would lose their motivation.

　Iris backed away with a frightened look on her face.



　No one answered those words.
　Silence reigns over the place.

　Everyone was unwilling to listen to Iris' orders.

　The rest of us just need to get out of here and it's over.
　I was relieved.

　Then a man in black appeared in front of me.
　It was Father Gapon.

"So much for this unseemly folly, Your Highness Iris," he said.

　Gapon was supposed to be just a priest, a mere agent of the third part of the emperor's office.
　But Gapon looked as if he had bitten down on a bitter worm, and then, as if he was rightfully entitled to do so, he chided the Imperial Princess Iris.