It Turned Into Something Ridiculous, Huh?

Arnold tied up Fracton and his surviving fallen knights. I had already done

my part and they had to do theirs; I had no reason to help them anymore.

With this, I had repaid the kindness Rose and Anna had shown me in the

past. Now, the only thing I had to do was retrieve the battamans.

Where should I go after this? Although it had been pretty much decided

that the reason I had participated in this group was to visit mother-dono in

the royal capital, since I had become free from the responsibility to inherit

my family name, I wanted to go around the world.

I had enough money to go on this trip. Maybe I should take this chance to

also get my hunter qualification. To do that, I have to go to the closest city,

the city of Barse. That city should have a hunter guild since it's close to a

monster den, Sea Forest of Silke. Yup, let's visit that city first.

I was about to leave this place―

「W-WAIT!」

Fracton shouted at me.

「I-I'm the shield and the sword of Prince Gilbert, the next king of the

Amelia kingdom! Come join our side! Even though… though you have a

trash job, your power is useful to prince Gilbert!」

「Bastard, you can still mutter that nonsense after all you did!!」

Arnold spoke with an enraged voice as he grabbed Fracton's collar. It was

natural for him to be so enraged since Fracton's betrayal was the main

reason so many of his knight comrades had gotten injured.

「SHUT UP, PLEBEIAN! I'm a count, a count!! My life's value is far

higher than that of a lowly plebeian like you!」

Good grief! How unsightly! This vulgar bastard is a lost cause, huh! I guess

I should just destroy a country where this kind of worthless trash can throw

their weight around as they please.

「Aren't you the one who scorns me as an incompetent apostate? Since you

hate me so much, why do you want to pull me to your side?」

Yeah, his hatred toward my trash gift alone had made it impossible for him

to recruit me.

「S-Such trivial worries can easily be crushed by my lord! You can have all

the money and women that you want!」

「Is that how you recruited those idiot knights?」

The idiot knights Arnold had tied up trembled like newborn lambs when I

glanced toward them.

Idiot! These trash knights are truly trash beyond help.

「Soon, His Highness GIlbert will take the throne. At that time―」

I approached the trash and grabbed his face before he could finish.

「Can you hear me now? I can guess what kind of sh*t you're up to. And I

don't care whoever takes the throne. Why? Because for me, the result will

be the same since whoever it is will be the same trash like you guys.」

「DON'T GROUP ROSE-SAMA WITH THOSE TRASHES!」

Unable to hold back her anger, Anna shouted at me. It seemed after getting

and wearing her clothes back, she had returned to being an easily irritable

woman. Though, when I saw the expressions of the other knights on Rose's

side, they pretty much agreed with Anna. The only one who didn't show a

reaction was Arnold; he looked like a bystander overlooking an interesting

spectacle.

「Yeah, of course, she's included. Let me explain in a simpler way. All

royalties and nobilities are parasites who sip the blood of their people.」

First, they grant grace for a reason that can't be understood. They persecute

anyone who doesn't have their grace. I mean, they are the ones who raised

this trash called Fracton after all. They are nothing more than harmful

parasites for this kingdom.

「HOW DARE YOU!!」

Along with an enraged Anna, the other knights of Rose's group touched the

hilts of their swords, ready to charge at me any moment.

This was the essence of these people. They used force as soon as they saw

someone who disagreed with their view. They believed that anyone with a

different view than them should just shut up. This was the main reason I

hated them to the bone.

「Hou, are you going to attack me? If you want to do this, come at me! I'm

ready. Let's duke it out and see who going to stand as the final victor.」

I let go of my hand from Fracton's face and spread my arms as I faced

them, Fafnir assumed a stance while letting out a growl. Astaroth heaved a

deep sigh and cracked his knuckles. He glared at the knight with an

expression akin to the one a predator had when glaring at their prey.

Our opponent was the Amelia kingdom, a powerhouse. They also had

legendary heroes with them. However, these people were different from that

greenhorn Sword Emperor and his haughty attendant. The old me would

have hesitated to attack them, but that wasn't the case for the current me. I

absolutely wouldn't back down from this.

No matter how much more powerful the opponent is, if they dare to bear

their fangs toward me, I shall thoroughly destroy them!

「Please stop this foolishness at once!」

Hearing the owner of this bell-like voice, Anna and the knights straightened

themself at once. Even Arnold bowed to her.

「Ho! So the boss has decided to make her appearance, huh! So? What are

you going to do? Are you going to sentence me a death penalty for insulting

you?」

That's what they always did since time immemorial, after all. They

murdered numerous lives for worthless, abstract reasons called lineage.

They were pieces of trash who insulted the weight of a life.

Even the discrimination that happened due to the gifts was created on

purpose. The aim was to make it easier to classify whether someone was

worthless or not. Honestly speaking, the dissatisfied citizens should turn

their dissatisfaction toward the royalty and nobles, instead of the statesman.

This condition wouldn't change as long as the royalty were still in their

position.

「As if I'm gonna do that. I'm just really happy.」

「Hah? Are you sure that there's nothing wrong with your head?」

I mean, what in the hell is this woman talking about?

「This impo―」

Anna glared at me, but just before she could finish her curse,

「I SAID STOP!!」

Anna flinched when she heard the usually soft-spoken Rose shout at her.

「This is the first time.」

「Hah?」

「This is the first time I met someone in this kingdom with the same view

as me.」

「Didn't you hear me!? I said that you people, the royalty and the nobility,

are the poison that's slowly killing this kingdom, you know?」

「That's why I said that we have the same opinion. This kingdom has been

corrupted from the inside. Even though problems such as crime, plague, or

poverty have been running rampant in the many parts of this kingdom, the

government is busy trying to gather more profit for itself instead of thinking

about a solution. If thing stays as they are, it's only matter of time before

this kingdom collapses.」

「Indeed. But, so what? Do you think a good and healthy government alone

is enough to solve the problem? It's nothing more than a stop-gap measure,

you know?」

「Yeah, of course, I know about that. This is still a concept and my own

idea, but we can solve that by allowing commoners to take a post in the

government office one at a time, right?」

How surprising! The governing of people for the people, aka democracy,

should be an alien concept in this world. I mean, even I would've never

arrived at such a concept without the numerous books I read in that

dungeon. Uhm, this little girl has piqued my interest.

「Where did that idea come from?」

「It's written in the book containing tales from another world, which I got

from my uncle who worked as a hunter back then.」

「Tales from another world?」

「Yeah, it's a book that has a different concept from ours called Kagaku.

The book is about a world dominated by rules. In that world, there's no

concept of pedigree. Everyone can make their own decisions and walk the

path they choose.」

The "Kagaku" Rose mentioned most probably referred to 『Science』.

There was no doubt about it! After all, that word often appeared in another

otherworldly book that I found in the labyrinth. Since that was the case, it

was definitely a book from another world. Naturally, since Rose said that

this book's title contained "Tales," it was a completely different book that

the one I read.

「Since they are tales, you should've realized that it's only a pipe dream,

not a realistic concept, right?」

Although, I had become fed up with the atrocious acts committed in that

other world that I read about inside the book. A coin always has two sides.

When I considered that the book Rose read only contained tales, I could

assume that it only contained the pros, forgetting about the cons.

「I've been told that repeatedly. Nevertheless, I want to make that dream

come true in this world.」

Rose closed her eyes and placed her hands on her chest.

This princess is not your run-of-the-mill princess. I mean, no matter how

beautiful those tales are, no normal person would try to realize them in

reality. Moreover, the thing she has to give up in return for realizing that

dream is her own position as royalty. That kind of thought process is

abnormal. No wonder the nobles are trying to kick her out of this kingdom.

「You are a real madman.」

「How dare you―」

Honestly, I was dumbfounded at how simple-minded Anna was.

「Anna.」

As soon as Rose scolded her, Anna shut up.

Then, Rose's face became expressionless, and she turned toward Fracton,

「Fracton and the knights who helped him in this case, I'll report your

betrayal to His Majesty, the king, my father. Especially the worst part that

you colluded with the empire. Don't expect that you can escape from

capital punishment.」

She was sentencing them to ruins.

「IT WON'T HAPPEN! I'm sure that His Highness Gilbe―」

「Do you think my little brother is the kind of person who will risk his

position and life to save someone colluding with the empire?」

Fracton finally realized that he had already gone past the point of no return.

He trembled non-stop as the color drained from his face.

Rose sent a sidelong glance at the trembling figure of that idiot, then…

「On this occasion, I, the first princess of the Amelia kingdom, Rosemary

Loto Amelia, appoint Kai Heineman as my royal guard.」

Rose suddenly declared that in a bold voice.

Royal guard, huh! I knew that being chosen as a royal guard was the best

honor for those who walked on the path of the sword in this Amelia

kingdom. If I was not wrong, it was the title of the best knight, and only

those who had the right to inherit the throne could bestow this title.

Royal guards were those who protected the candidates for the king's

position, the symbol of power and authority. Rose's act of appointing me,

an incompetent despised by everyone, as her royal guard was a crazy act.

Yeah, this person is a madman after all.

「W-W-Wait a minute! He's an incompetent apostate, you know! If you

appoint him as your royal guard, you'll―」

Just as I expected, the one to object first was Anna.

「Be quiet! Let me ask you, Anna, who do you think is more appropriate to

become a royal guard then?」

Rose shut Anna again before the latter could finish her sentence with a

question of her own.

「S-Shouldn't you choose from the royal knights in the royal palace to

adhere to tradition and formality? At least, that's how it has always be done

so far.」

「Fracton, the first on the list of that royal palace authority is the one who

betrayed us in this journey! Allow me to add that the one who almost r*ped

you a while ago was a knight in his employ. In short, they are no different

than the extension of the royal guards of my little brother. That's why

there's no way I can bring myself to entrust my life to them.」

「But still, it doesn't mean that you have to appoint the apostate as your

royal guard…」

Anna muttered while chewing her lips.

「Apostate? What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Didn't you see that

Kai's sword art is far superior to the Sword Emperor's? It has reached a

level that we—who pretend to be loved and gifted with talent—can never

hope to reach in our entire life.」

「That's―」

「This might sound harsh, but if I were a god, I would bless him with far

more overwhelming talent than you. If there's an almighty god, he is surely

blessed by one.」

「!!?」

No one was more blessed than me by god. Maybe, because Rose has

pointed this out, but Anna was finally at a loss for words. For the being

called humans, there is no greater shock than when their sense of value gets

flat-out rejected.