Early in the morning, I was on my way to Prince Light's place.

　For some reason, twenty soldiers, including the captain, were accompanying me.

　It's a good thing that we've become friends as a result of drinking until late last night, and we've become so close to each other that we call each other "Seven", "Captain" and "you guys".


Seven, are you going back to Teito?

　On the way, the captain asks me something like that.

'I don't know,'
I don't know what it means.
That depends on the lights.
...... I see, so His Highness has his eye on you, huh?

　The captain mumbles in agreement with something.

　Do they have their eyes on you?　Oh, I get it. That guy just keeps on coming at me.


"What about the Nantucket Platoon?
Fifth Platoon, First Combat Regiment Infantry. Remember, I've been saying that a lot since last night.
Okay. So what are you going to do?
Well, ...... I'll go back to the imperial capital and report back. The rest will depend on the good mood of your superiors and the Prime Minister.
So I guess this is goodbye for now.
Oh. Oh, yeah. Seven, if anything happens in the Imperial City, you can count on us right away. We're always ready for anything. There aren't many wars these days, so we have to work out every day.
"Will you let me do my job?
'Wahahaha!　That's different!

　The captain opens his big mouth and laughs loudly.


　They were joking around like that, and in no time at all, they arrived at Prince Light's place.

　Is Prince Light already in the carriage? I can't see him at the moment.


''Nah......!

　The first person to speak up was the man from the Konoe Guard who was fired. He seemed somewhat surprised to see my face.

''I've accomplished my mission just like you asked me to,''
...... Ugh, enough with the lies. But I see you've learned how to be a knight of the Kingsguard.
Yeah, well, thanks for the help.

　For some reason, the Konoe knight looked as if he was going to say "thank you".

　Something was bothering him, the captain said, "What do you mean? He asked me to explain what was going on. He said that he was instructed by a senior member of the Kingsguard to complete the mission of the Grease Dungeon by tomorrow morning.

''Ho~''

　Then, for some reason, the captain began to grin.

　Then he took a step forward and broke the silence.


'Too bad we couldn't crush that annoying Seven.
...... .......

　At the captain's words, the knight of the Kingsguard looks embarrassed. I don't understand the situation.

''Crush?''
The only thing that's important to me is that I'm not going to be able to do anything about it. One of these knights of the Kingsguard joining our platoon doesn't mean we can capture the grease dungeon in a day.
...... uh...
Got it?　This guy was trying to frame Seven.

　I get it. So you're a rookie bully.

"I don't know what kind of horse's bones you're talking about, but you're a grunt. I'm a Kingsguard.
Sorry about this guy. But, yes, how do you explain the unreasonable demand for Seven?
...... I just figured out that this guy would be good enough for one day.
'Wow!　Which horse's bones were the ones that went on a rant about lying to Seven earlier, huh~?
You ...... are ready for it, aren't you ......?
'Oh, scary!　Knight of the Kingsguard is furious at being talked down to!　I'm sure he was a very good student at knight's school, but if there's a course called "Vessel", he'll definitely fail it!

　Captain, you're a good agitator. If the vessel was taken out, the one who drew his sword would lose. The man of the Kingsguard, who was about to draw his sword, was forced to take his hand away from it.

''Heh, you've been holed up in the imperial capital and all you do is grow a big head, so you're misguided. You are good at studying, you should learn from Seven and gain experience in the field as well as practice among your own people.

　You're so agitated, captain. How much do you hate the Konoe Knight? I mean, how much has the Konoe Guard Knight done to make you hate him as a Konoe Guard Knight?

''...... Our kinsman-guard knights with the prince have to escort the prince. Therefore, we must inevitably refine our skills with a focus on interpersonal combat. We are in a different field from you guys.

　The man of the Kingsguard, the man of the Kingsguard, managed to endure the captain's agitation and countered with a reasonable-looking face.

　No, but that logic is strange.

''Even though you're in the wrong field, you sent me to the dungeon and you're blabbing about how you know how to be a knight of the Kingsguard?
............~!

　When I pointed it out, the man of the Kingsguard finally turned red and shut up.

　I thought he was going to pile on some excuse, like he wanted me to know firsthand that our fields are different, but it seems he doesn't have the energy to argue with me anymore. Well, there are too many rags to mend.


"Hey, rookie, from what I've heard, you don't have a very good way of talking to your seniors, do you?

　Then, unable to see that guy who was silent, another knight of the Kingsguard said such a thing.

　Yeah, that's right too.

''I'm sorry. But it seems that the senior was trying to set me up.
'Well, you have a point. Then make sure you use a good respectful word for us in the future.

　That's what happened.

　...... and I thought.

'You've got to be kidding me!'　You're acting like a bigot against Seven!
That one, that one, and that one, and that one, and that one, and that one, with that guy over there, grinned at me, trying to get Seven to come over!
Yeah, I saw that too!　We were discussing it at the bar!　Same charge!

　The guys from the 5th Platoon testified one by one.

You guys were so bitter the day before yesterday. ......

　And then one of the Konoe Guard knights uttered a mutter that was close to a confession, with a blue streak on his forehead.

　I don't know, Konoe Knight ...... at the moment, there is not a single good thing about it.


''-- Shut up!　It's been a morning of pecha-pecha!

　Oops, here comes Prince Light from the carriage.

　But this guy is always crunchy.

Hmm, finally, you rude bastard. It's brave of you to make me, the prince, wait for you.

　Wright stares at me with challenging eyes and says something like that.

　Just like the captain said, I still seem to have my eyes on me.

'Hmm?　What's up with these dirty looking men? Why are you here?　Do you know the rude man?
'It's everyone from the Nantka platoon that came to see me off. We conquered the grease dungeon together yesterday as part of the Prime Minister's mission or something.
"...... Prime Minister's duties?　You're in a grease dungeon?　Rude?
Yeah.

　Apparently I'm suspicious. Light is giving me a jittery look.


'Your Highness, it is a lie by these men!　Keep your cool, there's no way these people can capture a grease dungeon!

　That's where the firing kinsman knight wound up here.

　What he is saying is completely different from what he said earlier, but isn't he embarrassed?


You fired Konoe, huh? Why are you still here?　I told you I was fired.
Yes, it is, but this guy is ......!
'Shut up. I didn't like that annoying and stinky (・・・・) part of you, so I fired you. Now go away.
......!

　Light frowns and chases the man of the Kingsguard away with a frown. At first glance, he acts only selfishly, but.

　The stinky ...... So Wright suspects that this man of the Kingsguard is a spy for Princess Melson Marvel and General Nato Shaman, right?

　Well, you get the point. You made me a knight of the Kingsguard because you're sure I'm not the only one who isn't under the influence of Melson and Nato Shaman.

　I see. It seems that this selfish prince is not just selfish.


''Oh, yeah, I forgot about that. Seven, we'll see if you're useful as a bodyguard. Yes, fight those kinsmen. If you lose, you're fired.

　...... No, I might have been buying it.

　Well, I understand that you need to check, but if you lose, you're fired and you like ...... firing people too much.


'Your Highness!　By all means, give me another chance!

　Then, thinking that this was an opportunity, the man of the Kingsguard came to life.

'What?　You ...... No, I get it. If we beat Seven, I'll think about it.
Thank God for happiness!

　I'll think about it, you know. That's funny.

　A man in the Kingsguard is very motivated. He says, "I'm gonna prove to you that you're not capable of conquering Grease.


A sword?
What else could it be?

　I ask, and the man returns like a fool.

　Then I'll use my sword too, and I've just equipped my mithril longsword, when the captain speaks to me with a worried look on his face.


Seven, be careful! The Kingsguard is very strong. You're specialized in dungeons, your counterpart is specialized in fighting against people...
...... Captain, don't get me wrong.


　This is your chance. You're about to find out.


I'm a fighter myself.


　I just told him so, and I faced the man.

　The captain opened his mouth with a gaping mouth and froze.



''-- Begin.''

　The duel begins at Wright's command.

　Now, what to do? This is always a very exciting moment.

　I've heard that the knights of the Kingsguard are strong in opponents' battles. I'm no longer expecting a single thing, but I'm still tempted to give it a try. Let's do a little research for now.

"?

　The man in the kinsman's guard looked surprised as I put the Mithril Longsword away in my inventory.

　It's obvious that I'm already bad at PvP just from that kind of reaction alone, but ...... Oh well. From now on, let's do what we wanted to do.

　I sprinted away empty-handed and closed the gap at once.

"What ......?

　Then, just before the pause, he would step to the right once, step to the left twice, and turn backwards once, doing this as fast as he could.

　Yes, that's the first move Raz did against Garam in the summer match against Issenza. I had been thinking "I like this" for a while.

　Raz threw a big sword right after this. This is the most calculated step I've ever taken, slowing down in time to confuse the timing, and dodging the opponent's blows while attacking with the big sword.

　It would be a waste if this device was only used to compensate for the slowness of the large sword. That's how I felt.

　That's why I dared to step as fast as possible without slowing down, and the moment I was in the shadows of my opponent, I could prepare the Infantry Sword Technique and take out the Mithril Longsword instead of the Great Sword--

Whoa!

　--Fast, you'll feel it. Very.

　In [Battoujutsu], I had demonstrated a similar technique once. When I visited Azami's dojo.

　The ultimate in speed is ingenuity. The staging of how to make it look fast. This is the skill needed by the world rankers.

　By combining this with Raz's step, it's even harder to duck and easier to duck. He can watch the timing of his moves and adjust his timing as he performs each rotation. Depending on the situation, you can increase or decrease the number of steps, but there's still plenty of room for improvisation. As a bonus, the visuals are nice.

　...... Yeah, not bad. With a little more polish, I think it could be perfected as a plot.


Ki, hi ......

　A voice of fear leaked from deep in the man's throat. A cold sweat drips down on the tip of the sword, which I've been inching on my neck.

　Light wouldn't say 'that much', so it's been like this since a while ago.


''Are you fawning over me, ref?''

　Without moving my gaze from the man, I made a flippant remark, and Wright broke the silence a little too late.


'Enough of ......, too. We're going back to the Imperial City.

　Light turns away from the carriage and gets into the carriage at a brisk pace. Don't tell me you're on to something?

　No, but when I say I'm leaving, how am I supposed to follow? Do I ask Seven Stay O to bring Seven Stay O to Anko?　No, but Anko will be jealous of you. ...... So, I guess I'll have to let someone else ride my horse.


It's a great idea, Seven!　You didn't take that one shot.

　When I turned around, the captains were wowed and praised me with their mouths. It makes me happy to hear them say it so straightforwardly. This simplicity may be their charm.

''Well, I'll see you in the imperial capital again.
'Oh!　I can't wait for the next time I see you!

　I'm not going to be able to get a good look at it, but I'm not going to be able to get a good look at it.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of the newcomer's bullying that was going on before the prince came out.

　The knights of the Kingsguard seem to be keeping their distance from me more than necessary. They don't even make eye contact with me. It's no longer a matter of ignoring them.


"Hey!　How long are you going to keep me waiting, you rude bastard?　Now get on board!

　With a clatter, the carriage door was half-opened and the Prince's angry voice could be heard.

　Eh, you can get in, the carriage. I'm not sure if you're selfish or not, Prince-sama. No, is he selfish in a way?

　Well, it's no wonder you were invited to join us.

　I hurriedly got into the carriage, taking the playing cards out of my inventory.