The ones who came into the warehouse, were Knights who are wearing armour with a dragon’s crest on the shoulder.
This world’s Dragons1, Dragons, are the ones called Western Dragons in my previous life. They’re Dragon that fundamentally walk on four legs. And then the crest that’s affixed on this Knight’s armour is an Eastern Dragon. A long-bodied dragon like this doesn’t exist so it’s a creature of the imagination.
And then the one who spoke to me, was a man who’s dressed up in an armour that’s extravagant even amongst the Knights. He looks over here with a somewhat neurotic-looking face. How do I put it, it feels like a snake.
“What might your business be. Knight-Captain Serpent?”
As I’m thinking about such things, Caro speaks to the man. This person’s the Knight-Captain huh. My sleeve was pulled when I’m looking at the Knight-Captain or something guy. I thought what’s the matter and looked in the direction that my sleeve was pulled and, Priscillsan had approached my side so as to hide in my shadow. It looks like she’s slightly trembling. Did something happen?
“Oya, isn’t it Caroline-sama. Why are you at a place like this?”
“It doesn’t matter where I may be, does it. More importantly, why have you come here? It shouldn’t be the kind of a case for the Azure Dragon Chivalric Order’s Knight-Captain to come, you know?”
“It’s a coincidence, coincidence. More importantly, may I arrest the criminals?”
“……Okay”
When Caro says that, the Knight-Captain called Serpent gives the instructions and the Knights come in. And then they arrest the men who are down. As I’m looking at such a spectacle, I feel a gaze that sends shivers down my spine.
I look in the direction of the gaze I felt and over there, Knight-Captain Serpent was staring at me. ZokuZoku! I experienced this gaze somewhere before!? Recently nonetheless. I recall the memory I didn’t want to recall……it was yesterday. I feel the same gaze as when I was looked at by that h.o.m.os.e.xual Cardinal…….
And then I don’t know whether I looked too much, or Knight-Captain Serpent was looking over terribly much, but our eyes met. And then at that moment, he grinned at me. ZokuZokuZokuZoku! Oh, oh s.h.i.t! I’m completely being targeted! Is there nothing but male h.o.m.os.e.xuals in the upper echelon of this country!?
I promptly look in the opposite direction even as I’m thinking of such things. Rather, I look to Ferris and Caro. Fuu~, that was close. Who knows what will happen if I carried on making eye contact with him like that. I’m starting to have terrible gooseb.u.mps.
After that, although I was making sure to not make eye contact with him, I kept feeling a gaze so I somehow endure it. Right when I endured for about 5 minutes, one of the Knights gives the report of the completion of the apprehension. H, his eyes are finally off me……
“Well then, excuse me, Caroline-sama”
“Eeh”
And then the Chivalric Order went off. In the end, the Knight-Captain left whilst looking at me. I have to make sure to absolutely not get close to that person as well!
We, who left the warehouse after that, came back to the church where Alexia and the others await. Priscillsan and the others, who were able to reunite with the Sister-san, were embracing the Sister-san while crying. Sister-san also hugs Priscillsan and the others tightly with all her strength while crying.
It warms my heart when I see things like this. The sister and the others who were able to ascertain their safety come to our side.
“Thank you very, very much for saving Priscilla and the others. How could I ever repay you”
“No, it’s fine. We just did as we wanted”
It originally started on my own whim and I just ended up implicating everybody though.
“More importantly, what are you going to do from now on? As you can see, the church that you’d been living until now is……”
Alexia says that while looking at the crumbled church. Indeed, the church they’d been living until now has been burnt down. In order to tidy this up and rebuild, I guess it’ll take a few months even.
“I’ll, think about that from now on. Priscilla and the others are safe, just that alone is plenty for now”
Sister-san who smiles while saying that. Although that’s what she says, it’s probably tough for the children. What I should do. It’ll be great if there’s something we can do though.
“For the time being, let’s go to the Palace. Let’s have the sister and the others come under the pretext of hearing about their circ.u.mstances”
Caro who says and smiles. Although it’s something temporary, we can come up with some kind of plan in the meantime huh. Perhaps the sister had realised that Caro is the Holy Maiden, she nods terribly meekly. The children rollick when they know that they can go to the Palace that’s visible even from here.
I was walking the streets while holding hands with the children. My right hand is May-chan and the children are taking turns holding my left hand. It seems May-chan won’t yield her spot.
And then it’s Priscillsan who’s holding May-chan’s hand on the other side. May-chan says it definitely has to be Priscillsan or it won’t do so it ended up like this.
Alexia and the others look at us with heartwarming eyes. However, May-chan then says something unexpected to us.
“Hey, hey, Onii-chan, Priscilloneechan!”
“Nn, whaat?”
Priscillsan replied and I looked to May-chan and, with a tremendously delighted look,
“We’re somewhat like parents and children when we’re doing this huh!”
May-chan said. Priscillsan freezes at those words and raises her face as it goes, ‘Gigigi’, like when a machine rusted. And then when she saw me, her face turned so red that it made the sound, ‘Bon!’.
Perhaps the children around found it amusing, they encircle us and go, ‘Mama~’, ‘Papa~’. Although I very much want to make them stop, I find it hard to say when I think of how much the orphan children probably yearned for parents.
Sister-san is just watching and laughing, ‘Ufufu’, Alexia and the others are lost in their delusion, going, ‘A child with Lei huhh~’. I, I think it’s probably still too early for me to be a father~.
We arrive at the Palace while thinking of such things and the Palace is somewhat boisterous. I wonder what in the world is going on. Thereupon, Chivalric Order in red armours with bird’s crest on their shoulders and Chivalric Order in white armours and tiger’s crest on their shoulders leave from within while forming files.
“Aren’t those the Vermilion Bird Chivalric Order and White Tiger Chivalric Order. I wonder if something happened for them to be forming files”
Caro also mutters curiously. We have a nearby maid take care of Sister-san and the others and we went to where the Pope is. It’s probably impossible normally if it’s just me, but Caro along with Alexia and Ferris are also here. I guess we’ll probably be able to meet him.
And when we request for an audience with the Pope, the approval was given immediately. However, the a.s.sembly location is the dining hall that we also used this morning. When we enter the dining hall altogether, Dargris and the others, who’d already returned, Christinsama, and Clifford-kun, were sitting inside. And then, the Pope also comes in at a similar timing.
“Caro and Lei-kun and the others came back as well huh. Everybody, sit down”
We were prompted by the Pope so we sit down. He doesn’t have the gentle atmosphere like yesterday but has a tensed feeling instead. And then the Pope starts talking when he confirms that everybody sat down.
“Since there is no time, I will first talk about what occurred; the fortress by the border with the Demon Country Tempest was destroyed. It happened yesterday. I hear that what did it was a Dragon that appears to be an Ancient Dragon. Because that Dragon is heading straight here, I had the Chivalric Orders despatch. That is all”
We froze in astonishment at the contents of what the Pope said.