by Takehaya
However, Alaia was smiling quite cheerfully. Really, she was smiling at Koutarou who hadn’t yet realized the solution.
After Alaia explained to him how things should happen, Koutarou had a question for Caris.
“Caris, can you stop that thing from moving for just a moment?”
“I’ll give it a try. The rest is up to you, Blue Knight.”
“Yeah.”
Caris’s presence got more distant. Sensing that, Koutarou readied his sword. It was finally time to settle things.
“Layous-sama...”
“Your Highness, I’ll save you right away.”
“I pray for your fortune.”
Koutarou and Alaia made eye contact for a moment, and though it was brief, deep feelings were shared wordlessly between them.
“What’s wrong, Blue Knight? Over already?”
“It’s over for you.”
“Wow, to think you still have the energy to crack jokes... Sounds like you’re a little out of breath though.”
“Why don’t you fight yourself, Dextro?”
“I’ll pass. Breaking a sweat is for underlings.”
Jeez, to think I’d be struggling this much even after bringing out the magic soldier...
Despite his confident tone of voice, Dextro was annoyed that Koutarou hadn’t fallen yet. But even though it wasn’t happening as quickly as he wanted, Koutarou’s movements were clearly becoming slower and more sluggish. Dextro figured that things were nearing their end and victory would be his soon enough.
“I just want to kick back, relax, and enjoy a nice drink... so feel free to die now, Blue Knight.”
“Just try me. You’ll regret not practicing more with your sword.”
“You know, I don’t hate how gutsy you are!”
The giant moved forward as Dextro shouted. It drew closer to Koutarou, putting him in range of its hammer. The giant was always the one to take the first swing since it had superior reach. The hammer roared as it rushed through the air and zeroed in on Koutarou, who then jumped to the side to avoid it.
As the hammer slammed into the ground, Koutarou could feel the earth tremble. And before the rumbling died down, Koutarou moved in to attack.
“The angle’s too shallow?!”
Koutarou’s sword struck the back of the giant’s hand and bounced off. All the attack did was leave a small scratch. But he didn’t have the time to be disappointed. He quickly kicked off the ground and jumped to the side of the giant. The next moment, the giant’s right leg came swinging through right where he had been. If he had still been there, he would have been sent flying.
“How about this?!”
Koutarou slammed the flat of his sword into the giant’s right leg. There was a loud noise, but it didn’t cause any damage to the giant. However, the blow was enough to slightly offset the giant’s balance. Trying to regain its equilibrium, it swung its right arm through the air.
“This time for sure!”
Koutarou swung his sword down at full force. The blade dug into the giant’s fingers, just as planned. After several hits, he finally severed the fingers.
“All right!”
“What?!”
Leaving only the thumb, the other four fingers fell off. The giant also dropped the hammer since it no longer had any way to hold it. The tip of it dug into the earth when it landed. Koutarou stopped his attacks and backed off from the giant some.
“I see, so this was what he was after by only aiming for the fingers!”
Dextro clicked his tongue as he watched Koutarou moving away. As he did, the giant braced itself and regained its balance. The giant then tried to pick up the hammer with its right hand. It paused strangely when it seemed to realize it couldn’t.
Goddess of Dawn, please...
Alaia prayed, unsure if her plea would reach the heavens or not. The next moment, the giant gave up on trying to pick up the hammer with its right hand and instead passed Alaia to its right hand. It only had a thumb left, but it was enough to hold Alaia. The giant had decided that it would use the hammer with its left hand.
“Now! Do it, Caris!”
However, that was just the moment that Koutarou and the others had been waiting for.
“Release incantation delay! Spirits of water and earth, now is the time to show your bond!”
Caris unleashed a spell she had prepared beforehand. It magically created a large marsh at the giant’s feet, and the giant immediately sank into it. It wasn’t deep enough to submerge it entirely, but the giant was unable to get out under the weight of its own body. The giant sank down to its knees and couldn’t move.
“Damn it, a magician?! Where?! N-No, more importantly, hurry up and get out of there!”
Dextro hastily ordered the giant to move. If Dextro hadn’t taken his eyes off Koutarou at that point, he probably would have been able to do something to stop Koutarou if he’d actually tried. But this was the man who said breaking a sweat was for underlings. In the end, his unwillingness to do anything himself was what decided his fate.
“Emergency boosters to max power!” Koutarou roared.
“As you wish, my lord.”
Though he was shouting, Koutarou’s voice was drowned out by the sound of something like an explosion. It was the sound of the emergency boosters in his armor kicking in. They spewed flames and generated an enormous amount of thrust. They were backups for the armor’s flight ability, and they sent Koutarou’s body up into the air.
“What?! What’s that sound?!”
“Layous-sama, y-you’re flying...”
Koutarou only flew for but a few seconds. While Dextro and Alaia were still surprised, the boosters’ flames cut out and Koutarou landed. In order to keep from sliding too far when he hit the ground, he dug his heels into the dirt with all his might. He stopped just in front of the collapsed house.
“...You got here quicker than I thought, Veltlion.”
There, he found Clan waiting alongside Lidith. Since she’d gotten there first, Lidith had woken up the unconscious Clan and explained what was going on. Then the two of them had waited patiently for Koutarou to come.
“Despite how I look, I’m the kind of guy who likes to arrive early.”
“How impudent... Quit your lying. You’re always oversleeping.”
Koutarou pulled a large metallic object out from the rubble. Moving it, let alone lifting it up, was something neither Clan nor Lidith could have done. But Koutarou was wearing powered armor that increased his strength. He could grab the heavy object, lift it, and use it with no trouble. It was Clan’s anti-material beam rifle—the very same one she’d used to blow off the giant’s head.
“Wh-What?! When did he get all the way over there?! And that weapon...!”
That was when Dextro finally realized what Koutarou and the others were planning. They would keep the giant from moving using magic, and then use the weapon that destroyed the giant’s head to attack it. That was why they’d gone to the trouble of getting the giant to move Alaia to its right hand.
“Impossible! I’m going to lose... even with the magic soldier?!”
Koutarou and the others were planning on piercing the magic soldier’s armor and its crystal heart with a single shot. Realizing that, Dextro, half-frenzied, screamed at the giant.
“I told you to get out of there! Just how slow can you be?!”
But Dextro’s yelling wouldn’t help the giant get out of the marsh. Its size and weight—exactly what Dextro had been so proud of—were working against it.
“Clan, I’ll point this at the enemy! You do the aiming!”
“I know!”
Koutarou held the beam rifle up using both of his hands. Since it was Clan’s weapon, he couldn’t control it through his armor. Clan would be the one doing the aiming.
And the target is...
Koutarou focused on his eyes. When he did, he could see white swirling light around the left side of the giant’s chest.
“Your Highness, right here!
”
“I understand, Layous-sama!”
Listening to Koutarou’s directions, Alaia put her hand where he indicated—smack on the left side of the giant’s chest. Her small hand perfectly overlapped with the center of the white swirling light that Koutarou could see.
“Clan, right there! Aim for where Her Highness’s hand is right now!”
“Can you stop ordering me around?!”
Clan adjusted the rifle’s aim using her bracelet. The rifle then transmitted that information to Koutarou’s armor, causing the armor to move by itself and make fine adjustments in the angle and position of the rifle.
“Your Highness, take cover!”
“Okay!”
Alaia pulled her hand away and curled up defensively. The giant was still struggling to get out of the marsh. Now was the perfect chance.
“Now! Fire!”
“I heard you, okay? Jeez!”
Once she confirmed that Alaia had taken cover, Clan entered the firing order into her bracelet. A white flash fired from its large barrel once more. It soared through the air like an arrow of light and pierced the giant’s left side.
Without its power source, the giant stopped moving in the middle of the marsh. Dextro watched on with a blank expression as he fell to his knees. He showed no resistance as Koutarou pointed his sword at him.
“The match has been decided, Copper Knight Dextro.”
“Yeah. It’s my loss...”
Dextro, unexpectedly enough, admitted his defeat.
“To think I’d lose after using the magic soldier... Blue Knight, just who are you?”
Dextro was supremely confident in the giant’s strength. And now that it was destroyed, he was able to honestly admit he’d lost. He had nothing left to defeat Koutarou with. Seeing Dextro submit, Koutarou put Saguratin back in its sheath.
“I’m a traveler. A simple traveler in a complicated situation.”
“A traveler? Damn, my luck must have run out...” Dextro let out a heavy sigh and simply fell over onto his side. “No, it’s the opposite, I guess... Alaia is just blessed...”
“Tell me something, Dextro.”
“Sure.”
“Just now, why didn’t you use Princess Alaia as a shield?”
Koutarou wanted to know why Dextro hadn’t used Alaia as a shield against the beam rifle. He hadn’t had a problem using her as a shield for himself to keep Koutarou and Clan in check earlier, so Koutarou wasn’t sure why he hadn’t done something like that again.
“I’d be in more trouble if the worst possible outcome occurred.”
“The worst possible outcome?”
“Yeah.” Dextro had a self-deprecating smile on his lips. “My orders were to capture and return with Alaia. However, there was a single condition. I could put her through so much pain that she wanted to die. I could let her drink the deadly poison. I could even let her get away. However, I was forbidden from directly killing her no matter what.”
“You can’t kill her...?”
Dextro had infected Alaia with the virus, and he’d certainly threatened to kill her, but now he was saying he wasn’t allowed to kill her outright. Hearing that, Koutarou recalled something.
Is he in the same boat as Caris...?
What Dextro was saying was similar to Caris’s story. She’d been told to observe Alaia, but not to kill her. Both she and Dextro had pursued Alaia, but neither was allowed to put an end to her. Koutarou found that mysterious.
“And the magic soldier doesn’t handle complicated commands well. There was no guarantee it would work. It was a different matter from using her as a shield myself.”
“I see...”
The giant could follow orders, but it wasn’t good with complex tasks. If Dextro had told it to use Alaia as a shield, it might have gone horribly wrong. That was why Dextro hadn’t even bothered giving the order.
“Dextro, you should have tried to grasp victory by fighting yourself.”
“...You’re right there. What a blunder...”
If Dextro hadn’t brought out the giant and had instead tried fighting while using Alaia as a hostage, he might have been able to defeat Koutarou and Clan. Winning on his own strength was the principle he had grown up believing in, after all.
“That’s all I wanted to say. Bye, Dextro.”
Koutarou turned his back on Dextro, who was still lying on the ground.
“Are you sure you don’t want to kill me?”
“Her Highness doesn’t want citizens of Forthorthe to die, no matter who her opponents are.”
Koutarou himself wanted to at least pummel Dextro. He didn’t really care if he died. He’d committed enough evil deeds to deserve it. But that wasn’t what Alaia wanted, so Koutarou let it be.
“Besides, I trust you.”
Koutarou looked back at Dextro as the corners of his lips turned upward.
“You trust me?!”
Dextro sat straight up in shock.
“Yeah. You’re cunning and care about your own profit. So you won’t make the mistake of fighting us directly again.”
“Ha...”
Dextro burst into laughter at what Koutarou said.
“Hahaha, you’re damn right, Blue Knight! That’s absolutely true! Ahahaha!”
It was the bright laughter of a man laughing off his own defeat.
After finishing his discussion with Dextro, Koutarou headed towards Alaia. He had left her to Clan, Lidith, and Caris, so they were already with her.
“Aren’t you feeling high and mighty, leaving a princess behind to go enjoy some chatting, Layous-sama?”
“Well, I was surrounded by some pretty unique people in my hometown...”
“Heehee, you’re even good at knitting, Layous-sama.”
Alaia, saved from the giant’s grasp, welcomed Koutarou with a special smile she never showed anyone else.
“I’m glad you’re safe, Princess Alaia.”
“Well done, Layous-sama.”
Both of them relaxed their shoulders as they spoke. Having been on edge all this time, it was a great relief for each of them to finally see the other safe. However, that was when Alaia lost her balance.
“Ah...”
“Your Highness!”
Koutarou was quick to catch her to keep her from falling.
Oh no, Her Highness is still...
During the tense conflict, Koutarou had temporarily forgotten that Alaia was seriously ill and shouldn’t even be walking.
“Your Highness...”
“Kyah!”
Koutarou picked her up, intent on carrying her back to the inn.
“I’m fine, Layous-sama. I can walk on my own.”
“Princess Alaia, you’ve already done enough. Please take a little more care of yourself.”
Fortunately, thanks to his armor, carrying Alaia was nothing to Koutarou.
“...I understand. Th-Then please do...”
As Alaia said that, she relaxed her body and closed her eyes.
That’s right... The problem still isn’t solved. We’ve only survived the immediate danger...
Perhaps because she had started to let herself go, Alaia’s complexion was bad. The disease was running its course on her. And it wasn’t just Alaia. The entire village was suffering. They had repelled Dextro, but there was still no solution for the disease plaguing the people. The village was still in dire straits.
“Blue Knight, what do we do now?”
Caris was asking him for an answer, but Koutarou just shook his head.
“I don’t know. Dextro didn’t actually have an antidote. If only there were some other way...”
There was no cure for the virus that Dextro had spread on Maxfern’s orders. There was at least medicine in the play, so Koutarou was sure that he’d be able to get some from Dextro. Reality, however, was not that kind to them. Koutarou was at a loss.
Clan, who had been deep in thought all this time, finally spoke up.
“...I guess there’s no helping it.
I’m not really happy about it, but it looks like we have to use our last resort.”
“Last resort?! Clan-san, do you have a treatment method?!”
Lidith, Maxfern’s niece, had been feeling guilty about the entire incident. So when Clan suggested she might have a plan, even if it was a last resort, Lidith was the first to ask.
“Y-Yes...”
Clan simply nodded her head, a little overwhelmed by Lidith’s reaction. Koutarou’s, however, wasn’t much different.
“Is that true, Clan?!”
“Veltlion, I told you before that there was another method to treat people.”
“You did?”
“Yes. It doesn’t have a high chance of success and there’s a serious risk associated with it, but we don’t have a choice anymore.”
After smiling wryly at Koutarou, Clan composed herself. She now looked like a princess who meant business.
Layous Fatra Veltlion
Several days had passed since Koutarou and the others had repelled Dextro and his men. The villagers were about to restart their harvest festival. Because of the disease and all the chaos, it was almost canceled after the first day, but the villagers pulled themselves together and decided to continue it.
“Hey, Blue Knight!”
“What can I do for you, Your Highness?”
“Nothing. Just stay right there.”
“Okay...”
“Don’t go off with just my sister again.”
“I won’t, jeez...”
Koutarou and Charl had promised to walk around the harvest festival together. Charl was holding a grudge over Koutarou going out with just Alaia before.
“Charl-sama, if you don’t hurry up and change, you can’t go out.”
“I know, I know.”
Charl was in the middle of changing her clothes behind a screen. With the maid, Mary, helping her, the two of them had been making a commotion for a while now. Koutarou was sitting in a chair in the room waiting for them to finish up.
“I’m glad you’re energetic again, Charl.”
“That’s true... I wasn’t sure what would happen for a while there...”
Alaia was sitting across the table from Koutarou, with Flair and Fauna on either side of her.
