Chapter 96
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ED: LonelyMatter
Chapter 96 – Helpers and Sugar UC (Uncommon)
“By the way, Ain-sama. As I’m sure you know, Ain-sama will be staying behind next time.”
“Eh?”
Two days have pa.s.sed since they made the connection between Mouton and the August Trading Company.
The plan for the second investigation into the former demon king’s territory had been gradually progressing. Finally, a final decision had been made.
As for Ain, he also thought that he would be careful next time. …As for the reason to be careful, it was because of the living armor Marco had advised him.
And this time, he would not let everyone worry about him. These preparations were made, but the words that came out of Lloyd’s mouth were lines that didn’t require them at all.
“I’m staying behind… Why?”
Ain and his group had rented a large room from the inn to use as a conference room.
After meeting with the researchers and the royal guards who had gathered there, Ain ended the meeting. Only Lloyd and Dill stayed in the room and told Ain.
“It’s enough to get it started… After all, they were on their way to that continent from the port city of Magna. Now that we know that, I think our research on the red fox has yielded some results.”
By the way, Krone was not here. She was away at the time because she had some business to attend to, including correspondence with the Guild.
“I agree with you. But it’s not over yet…”
What were the red foxes thinking? They didn’t know yet.
The traces of the red foxes found in the Euro. Now that it was proven why they were there, it was not a bad result to say that it was just the best they could get.
“The result of our discussions with the Royal Guards. We have to admit that this could be a trap.”
“A trap?”
“Yes. Dill, you explain it to Ain-sama.”
“Yes, Father.”
Dill, who had been silent until then, opened his mouth at Lloyd’s command. The reason for this was to explain to Ain what the meeting was about.
“To be honest, it’s too much of a pipe dream to target Ain-sama and do something about it… But as you heard from Marco-dono, Ain-sama will be influenced in some way to become like the Demon King Arche. If that is a possibility, then we must avoid it.”
Ain listened to Dill’s words in silence.
If it was said that he was overprotective, then there was an aspect to it. But after all, Ain was the crown prince and had special powers. Ain understood that he should look at the big picture and not at Ain’s individual success.
“So, just in case. If the red fox trap is still there, there is no way for us to avoid or prevent it. Would you please understand?”
The pleasure-seeking red foxes. They left the trap as a kind of game. After thinking about it, Ain could not deny it.
“M-M-Mmm.”
“Please let us take care of it.”
Dill’s expression became apologetic as he bowed his head. As for Ain, he didn’t want to embarra.s.s Dill.
“I understand, Dill. It’s not that I don’t understand why; I’m just a little disappointed.”
In the end, Ain broke the ice, and Dill looked relieved. Lloyd, standing next to him, also looked relieved.
“But who will be my escort?”
As expected, there would be no one to escort him.
But if Lloyd and Dill were going to the territory of the former demon king, there was no telling who Ain’s escort would be.
“In that case, there is no problem. We have called some of the best from the royal capital. So don’t worry.”
Dill said with a slight smile, but it was only natural that Ain wanted to know the names of the escorts.
“Dill? Who is this some of the best, you mean…?”
“The escorts will arrive tomorrow morning. So if you could just look forward to their arrival.”
“…Something is going on these days. Isn’t everyone getting into mischief?”
Krone had been like this from the beginning, but lately, Dill seemed to be in such a knot as well. Ain wondered if he should have a little more dignity.
He was curious to see who would show up. But still, when it comes to the people who can be entrusted with escorting the crown prince, the ability is surely confirmed.
——The mystery only deepened.
＊＊＊
In the end, the mystery of the new escorts was never solved.
Despite trying to think about it for about an hour less than usual, no progress was made.
Meanwhile, dawn broke, and another morning in the Baltic began.
The sky was clear. Although it occasionally snows, Ain, who was used to the Baltic climate, did not feel that it was a problem.
“Ain-sama… You could have waited for us at the inn.”
“I’m just curious, that’s all. Tell you what, I’ll follow you even if you stop me!”
Dill was on his way to the train station at daybreak to pick up the new escort.
When Dill was caught picking up the escorts, Ain decided to go with him. Unable to ignore Ain, they finally had to leave together.
“Hah… Should I have just told you honestly?”
“I’ve had enough of this. It was fun to think about what it was all about, and I don’t mind walking around Baltic with Dill like this.”
There was a bit of a bond between the two because of their constant activities together.
It’s not bad to walk around town like that once in a while.
“I’m honored to hear you say that. But it’s slippery, so please be careful.”
“Okay, okay!”
After humming a reply, Ain walked lightly on the snow-covered road.
The snowy roads were not the kind of roads he would walk in the capital, so just walking along them was a pleasure for him.
“By the way, I wanted to ask you something.”
“Yes. What can I do for you?”
“The escorts are not some knight of the castle by any chance?”
“You are indeed very astute, Ain-sama.”
“I have a vague idea. If they were knights, I would know them.”
And if they were knights from the castle, Dill and the others would have told Ain honestly from the beginning.
In that case, it’s possible that they were not a knight. …It was something he had just noticed.
“If you’ve noticed that much, I’d say you already know…”
“What is it? Does that mean I’m close to the answer?”
“Then I’ll give you another clue. The people we call are someone we can trust. In addition, they are someone Ain-sama has met before.”
“Hmm… Who is it?”
It was only natural that the escorts had to be trustworthy. After all, this was someone who could be placed at the side of the crown prince.
And another person he had already met… Ain began to think in his head about who that might be.
“I hope I get it right when we get to the station.”
It was somewhat frustrating not to know the answer to this question, even though he had been given clues up to this point.
The Baltic station was getting closer and closer. There was no punishment for not getting the right answer, but Ain was still getting impatient.
“Ohh geez… who is it…?”
Dill’s giggling annoys Ain. He tried to look dissatisfied, but he had come all this way. It was a frustrating dilemma to get the answer.
“My goodness, you’re in a lot of trouble, aren’t you, Ain-sama?”
“It’s something like that. I’m getting to a good point, but I can’t think of a name for it…”
Trustworthy people. And skilled. Also… there are many people he has met, but their names don’t come up, as if he has forgotten them.
“Hmm… something like that. If there is something that is crucial…”
“Hahaha. Then how about another hint, Ain-sama?”
“Y-yes, yes! Tell me!”
It’s complicated to be told the answer, but he’s in a delicate state of mind to allow a hint.
It made no difference, but it was just a matter of mood.
“Now, one last thing. These are people I have also met… Oops. I’m sorry, Ain-sama, but it looks like we’re running out of time.”
After listening to Dill’s hint, Ain tried his best to find the answer again. ——But they came flying in.
The train must have arrived early. Instead of waiting at the station, they quickly left and were on their way to Ain.
“Hah, it is cold, cold, cold. Why is it always so cold here?”
“Ara, you’ve been complaining too much since we left, aren’t you? Have you lost your mind? I don’t want to be with a person like that.”
“I don’t want to be talked to by someone like you with such a monstrous mind.”
“Ara? What’s wrong with you, you jack-of-all-trades b.a.s.t.a.r.d!”
Was it Mouton and Ememe? They were so full of character that Ain thought they might be more than just masters and disciples.
The two approached Ain. It seems that they had not noticed Ain and Dill and were deep in conversation.
“I guess it already shows.”
“Oh, really, talking to you tires me out. Besides, let’s stop talking about such useless things and go to His Highness quickly… Ara? It’s been a long time, Your Highness.”
“Oh, it’s Ain and Dill. We just arrived; what a bad welcome.”
These were the two people who had been a.s.signed to escort him due to the emergency. These were two people that Ain knew very well, and he immediately understood that he could trust them.
“I-Instructor Kaizer! And Majolica-san, too!”
“I’m sorry, you two… I didn’t expect you to arrive so soon…”
The two of them, Kaizer, who was supposed to be at the academy, and Majolica, who was supposed to be at the magic stone shop, were a.s.signed to escort Ain. The two people a.s.signed to escort Ain were the two people who were supposed to be in the royal capital.
“Don’t worry, Dill. You’re a student who has been promoted to a higher position, so stand tall.”
“Ara, you. You look like a bear catching fish in the river, but you’re so considerate.”
“C-Calm down. Calm down, me… If I take on this monster, I will lose.”
Kaizer somehow manages to control himself despite the incomprehensible a.n.a.logy.
Ain, who had never seen Majolica like this before, watched their exchange with a fresh feeling.
“W-w-w-why are you two together?”
“I was asked by His Majesty. And then I asked Majolica to join me, and we both agreed.”
“This is what happened, Your Highness. Even this Kaizer, who looks like a dying racc.o.o.n, can be useful. Don’t worry, I’ll support you as well.”
Ain had no idea about the dying racc.o.o.n, but he could understand that Majolica was playing with Kaizer.
——And for some reason, the two of them were comforting. That’s how Ain felt.
＊＊＊
Naturally, the two men who were asked to escort him were given a modest reward.
And, of course, the accommodation prepared for them is the same place where Ain was staying, so if anything should happen, they could rush there immediately.
“But coming to think of it, I wasn’t planning on going out and didn’t need an escort…”
The two came to Baltic, and Ain led them to the inn and showed them the room that had been prepared for them.
Dill also seemed to have something to talk to Lloyd about, and he and Ain parted ways once.
After returning to his room, Ain suddenly thought about it.
Was an escort really necessary?
“Hey, Ain, I’ll ask. You’re talking to me, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. Sorry to bother you while you’re working.”
Ain asked lightly, looking at Krone, who was still in the middle of her work.
“If you know that, then be a good boy, okay? I guess, but oh well. I am your a.s.sistant, after all.”
“Thanks for all your help, really.”
“Fufu… Right? I take care of you to the best of my ability.”
Despite the initial eye roll, Krone was in a surprisingly good mood.
Inwardly, she was planning to take a break soon, so it was a good thing that Ain approached her.
“But don’t you think so? If I had just stayed at the inn, there would have been no need to call the two of them as escorts…”
Krone, hearing Ain’s words, exhaled and looked at Ain.
“If you’re not interested in what I’m about to say, I wouldn’t mind if the two of them returned to the royal capital.”
With that, she sat up and began to pour a pot of tea.
“Here you go.”
“Thanks… so what’s the rest of the story?”
“Don’t be in such a hurry. We actually found something good nearby.”
“Here you go,” Krone said, taking a piece of paper and handing it to Ain.
“Hmm? What is this?”
“Read it. The stay-at-home crew did a surprisingly good job, didn’t they?”
Hearing her happy voice, Ain also looked at the paper to see what it was about.
“The red fox couple…?”
“Yes, that’s right. A couple of red foxes were found dead decades ago. They had been dead for a long time, so there was no flesh or anything else left. But it’s interesting, isn’t it?”
“How did you find all this out? It looks like everyone did their best.”
“That’s right. I did my best too, didn’t I?”
Ain smiled at Krone, who looked a little proud of herself. ——He unconsciously reached out and patted her on the head.
“…A-Ain…?”
“Ah… S-sorry. You seemed to want some kind of praise.”
It was a spontaneous apology, but surprisingly, it fit.
In fact, Krone didn’t seem to mind being patted on the head.
“Is it a reward?”
“A reward… Sure.”
The sight of her with her hands folded between her legs, pressing them tightly together.
Ain can see the blush on her neck and can tell that she’s slowly becoming shy.
It’s so slow that a second feels like a much longer time.
Ain doesn’t know how long he’s been doing this, but finally, he moves his body with determination.
“Y-yes, it’s done!”
Her hair was so soft that it felt like silk.
He could hear her breathing, too, and it was almost mentally dangerous, so he let go of his hand a little too forcefully.
Krone looked surprised for a moment, but the next moment she looked sullen.
“Um, Krone…? You seem to be unhappy about something…”
Hearing this, Krone’s gaze became even more pointed as she looked at Ain.
“Yes, I am dissatisfied.”
Even though she said it, Ain couldn’t understand why she was dissatisfied.
Perhaps she was startled by the sudden removal of his hand from hers. Thinking this, Ain felt sorry.
“I’m sorry. I surprised you by suddenly pulling my hand away, didn’t I?”
“…..”
Unfortunately, it looks out of place. Seeing that she’s still as unfaithful as before, it’s clear that it wasn’t the right decision.
“Reward, right?”
Seeing that Ain was still lost, she decided to help him. It was not her intention to continue to annoy him too much, so she decided to give him an honest lesson for His Highness the Crown Prince, who didn’t know anything about women’s hearts.
“R-right, it’s a reward…! A reward, but…”
Even Ain didn’t know what to say next. He was not sure what was expected of him from this point on.
“If it’s a reward, then… It’s not enough.
“…Not enough?”
Did she want him to do something else? Ain tried to antic.i.p.ate that, but today, his antic.i.p.ation was off at every turn. This was an opportunity for him to realize that he should learn these subtleties as well.
Seeing that Ain was still thinking, Krone offered her help again.
“I’ve done a lot of hard work, too. So why don’t you do more…”
Seeing her sad face, Ain finally came to an understanding.
What she wanted was not difficult. She just wanted him to pat her head more often.
Ain did not have the ego to believe that such a thing would really be a reward, and so he finally could not come up with the answer on his own.
“O-okay, I get it. I’ll continue if that’s all you want. So, get in a better mood…”
Ain’s hand reached out to her as she said this.
Krone gently closed the distance a bit to make it easier for Ain to pat her.
It was a short distance of only a few centimeters. But even so, the distance felt like more than that to both of them.
“You said you would reward me yourself, but you ran away right away. Don’t you think that’s unfair?”
“As you say… yes.”
He withdrew his hand and lost himself in the atmosphere. This, as Krone had mentioned, was indeed a flight.
Ain breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her, thinking her mood had improved a bit.
“I don’t want you to stop on your own before I say yes, okay?”
“Do what you want, Princess.”
She giggled “Fufu” for a moment, which must have put her in a good mood again.
Even Ain, he has the desire to do… as much as he can for this kind of thing. Once more, he decided to enjoy the touch of her hair.
“Well then, Your Highness? Let me continue our conversation.”
What they had just been talking about was the subject of the red fox couple.
They had been distracted for a while, but now they finally returned to the topic.
“It seems to be a place where a mid-level adventurer can go alone. There are no dangerous monsters, and it seems like a place where you can get there quickly. If you are interested, you can bring Majolica-san and the others with you.”
“Really?”
“We have permission from Lloyd-san and the others. You can go if you want, but of course, you have to be careful.”
“Are there any concerns about safety or danger or… any other problems?”
These words were filled with a lot of emotion.
But as the Crown Prince, everything had to be done with a certain level of security in mind.
This had been a part of his life until now.
“Today, Warren-sama’s staff has been expanded. So that’s part of the reason why they gave us permission.”
In other words, the number of secret personnel around the perimeter has increased. Sometimes he thought, “Why don’t they just increase the number of knights?”
Besides, the place seemed to have been free of any obvious danger originally, which was probably why it was not a problem.
“I see… In other words, if I take these two guys with me, I can go see the place. That’s what you’re saying!”
He was so excited that he leaned forward and put his hand on Krone’s thigh.
He hastened to move it away, but he could not as she laid her hand on top of his with a smile on her face.
The warmth of her body, gently transferred to him, makes him a little nervous.
“I’ve told you many times. Don’t do anything dangerous, okay? Promise me?”
If Katima saw this, she would throw a sugar cube at him. But there was something about this atmosphere that is quite appropriate.
Her eyes stare at him. Ain stared back at her and answered.
“Yes, I promise.”
The Elder Lich was said to be a monster who has gained great wisdom.
Would she, who lay dormant within him, give Ain a lesson on the female mind? This thought just popped into his head.