In the teahouse, two young men and a teenager were sitting around the round table. In the past few days, the three of them have set off from the imperial capital and experienced a lot of travel here, and they can't help but look a little sluggish at this time.

"Okay, I've been with you silently for so many days, it's time for you to explain, right?"

At this time, the young man with golden hedgehog hair and a long cloak all over his body put on a look of "finally can't bear it anymore" and asked the man on the other side of the round table.

"Explanation? Of course, to rush back to Celia as soon as possible, is there anything else to explain?"

But the young man dressed as an aristocrat on the other side asked back with a blank look.

"That's, that'...... I think Senior Stan probably wanted to ask, why don't we take the official road, but deliberately change to the mountain road?"

So, the short-haired, poor-haired teenager spoke out appropriately and added to the blond-haired youth.

"That's right for Luca, that's it!Lutega, although you are worried about your own territory, I don't understand it. But anyway, the opponent is a legendary catastrophe-level monster, we should meet with Chris and them first, and then think about countermeasures together! Even if it is the three of us, it will be unbearable to continue like this, right?"

The young Stan with the golden hedgehog head, and the young Luca with a weak temperament. The two of them are members of the Legendary Blade, the most notorious and powerful order of knights in the Terrence Empire.

The reason why the two knights set foot out of the imperial capital and passed through this city called [Aitania] was for different reasons.

Among them, the blonde young man Stan is motivated by his friend's morality and follows him to conquer the magic dragon that appears on the border, while the silver-haired young Luca is ordered by the eldest princess LaBelle to protect the safety of the noble youth along the way.

But as the two said, at this time they were deviating from the official coastal road to Silya, and took some remote mountain and forest paths, and the route was decided by the aristocratic youth.

Although in terms of straight-line distance, the route chosen now is indeed much shorter than the official road, and it can even reach the destination [Celerian] City earlier than the expedition group of the Adventurers' Guild that set out from the imperial capital one step ahead.

However, this also means that the dangers of the road increase exponentially. Not to mention the steepness of the mountain and forest terrain, the countless demonic beasts wandering on the road alone were enough to cause a violent ordeal to the three of them.

In this way, even if they can reach Celestia in advance, they do not have the state and physical strength to be able to crusade against the demon dragon.

So, if you think about it rationally, you should first meet up with the Adventurers' Guild and Chris, who is also the 'Legendary Blade' and serves as the chief knight.

You know, it is very beneficial to march in the field with the adventurers, who have the experience and means in this area that the regular army of the Empire cannot match.

Not only will they alternately send advance teams and reconnaissance teams to clean up the monsters on the road first, but they will also take care of the camping facilities along the way to provide effective support to the large troops in the rear, so that even if the whole team maintains a high-speed march, it still retains enough physical strength.

So no matter how you think about it, the choices of the aristocratic young people are not very rational now, and it can be said that they are in a hurry.

"Hmm...... I understand. Okay, so let me explain the current situation. ”

However, in the face of a friend's question, the young man dressed as an aristocratic man, Rutega Crusnier, gave a calm response.

By the way, Lutga was once a knight of the 'Legendary Blade', who quit the group and left the imperial capital a hundred years ago, but now he is only the lord of the imperial border farming town of Silia, and he still has three lovely daughters at home.

"Stan, how long does it take to get from Border Silia to the Imperial Capital Zesertoria?"

"If you take the official road, take a horse-drawn carriage all the way, which is about 40 days. ”

"That's right. I received a summons from His Majesty the Emperor and set off the next day, and luckily there was no delay on the way, and it took me forty days to reach the imperial capital. That night, I had a look at the post house in the imperial capital, and entered the palace the next morning to meet him. ”

"Well, that's usually the case. ”

"However, on the day of the summons, I was arrested on charges of 'disobeying the emperor's orders...... What do you want me to return to the knight's seat?Regarding my 'physical condition', His Majesty the Emperor and Chris, they should be cleared more than anyone else, and now that I am back to the 'Legendary Blade', it is simply a joke. If it weren't for the Duke of Celtic to preemptively control the scene, I'm afraid I would still be imprisoned in the dungeons of the Imperial City on trumped-up charges. ”

"Hmm...... Yes, your body...... You know...... Hehe......"

At the mention of this, Stan raised his hand uncomfortably and scratched his messy hair, revealing a wry smile that was a little embarrassed and a little guilty.

"That, the body of Lutga's predecessor, is there any disease? I know some medical skills, and now I am also the group doctor of the 'Legendary Blade' Knights, if you don't dislike it, you can let me ......"

The sudden cooling of the atmosphere made the young knight Lukka couldn't help but look worried, and cautiously recommended himself.

"Your name is Luca...... Right?"

"Yes, yes!

"Hehe, don't be so nervous. I don't have to worry too much about my business, my body is fine, as long as I don't use the 'Holy Spirit Blessing', I will be fine. ”

"Is it the reason for the 'blessing of the Holy Spirit'? But if you put on the armor of the Holy Spirit, you won't ...... it."

Although he is still young, as a knight of the Legendary Blade, Lukka certainly understands that the "Holy Spirit Blessing" can also cause additional burden on his body while giving him superhuman powers, and he also knows that the "Holy Spirit Armor" can protect him.

"Luca, you only joined after this guy quit the group, so I don't know how to clear the situation. The 'Holy Throne Elf' that blessed this guy is not the regular six attributes, but a rather special kind. Even if you put on the 'Holy Spirit Armor', it ......"

"...... the 'Holy Throne Elves' with special attributes?"

"Ahh......h But for now, it doesn't matter. ”

At this point, Rutga interrupted the sensitive topic somewhat forcefully.

"All in all, it wasn't His Majesty the Emperor who summoned me back to the Imperial Capital. His Majesty's view is that this is just a farce of turning the tiger out of the mountain...... Saying 'tiger' is probably lifting himself, and a half-hung knight like me is just a 'cat' at best?"

He smiled self-deprecatingly again.

"Haha, how can there be such a vicious cat as you in the world? Chris, that guy has said, even if he pulls out the holy sword, he is not sure that he will be able to win you. Well, I still don't understand. Wasn't the place of Celia the same as the wasteland eight years ago, and even if you were transferred away, it wouldn't do you any good to take control of the whole city?"

"That's why I'm in a hurry, brother...... Someone must have wanted to beat my daughter while I wasn't there!!"

When he said this, Rutega's expression became extremely anxious.

“......”

“......”

And this conclusion instantly made the scene cold. Both Stan and Lukka were speechless with their mouths half-open.

"What's wrong with you? petrified?"

"No, wait, wait, wait, Lutga...... How the hell did you come to such a conclusion?"

"Hmm...... That, Lutega-senpai, I think you're too worried. I heard that your daughter is only eight years old this year, right?"

The two of them carefully chose their words, but they both had an expression of "what are you talking about, stupid daddy".

"No, you don't understand. There are very deep reasons for this. ”

"Woo ......"

"Listen up. ”

"My daughter has royal blood in her veins. ”

"Yes, your wife Flora, although she is a little rude, is a princess anyway. ”

"Well, I've heard rumors about Flora-senpai, a powerful and beautiful princess knight, and it is said that if she were still alive, the chief knight wouldn't be Chris-senpai...... Ah, I'm sorry, Lutga-senpai, lost ......"

It is no secret that Lutga's marriage partner, the deceased 'Princess Knight' Flora, is not a secret, not to mention Stein at the same time, even the young Luca has heard of it.

"No, don't take it personally. What I'm trying to say is, my daughters, they're—"

"They?"

"...... they?"

"They're so cute!!"

““......””

- It's hopeless, it's completely out of medicine, who's going to find a way to save him......

"Because of their cuteness, I can't help but want to do whatever I want to them, and I don't hesitate to fake the holy decree...... What a hateful pervert! Isn't it!? It must be like this, trying to do something to my lovely babes while I'm away! Unforgivable! I can't control myself just by imagining it!"

As he spoke, Lutga got up and down, his emotions completely out of control, and the other guests in the teahouse looked at him with fear.

"Rutga, calm down, calm down!"

"Jane, to put it simply...... It's Lutega's senior, and he's worried about his daughter at home, so he doesn't hesitate to take a dangerous shortcut, right......?"

Lukka broke out in a cold sweat as he summed up the central idea.

"No, there are other reasons to cut corners. ”

Rutega went crazy fast, and he calmed down just as quickly.

"The demon dragon is coming, what else is there to hide in this matter, you must know that this situation is too sudden, and it is too logical...... The Franco-Lipabis Mountains are a few dozen kilometers from my territory, and although they are not too far, they are at least half a day's journey on a normal journey, and the road to the mountains from Silia is the opposite of the road to the imperial capital. ”

"Uh-huh...... Hmmm......"

Stan nodded, his expression blank, as if he hadn't grasped anything important.

"I see...... That's right. But in this case...... Isn't it!"

Luka's reaction was quite different, he had already seen something in Lutega's description, and his expression became flustered.

"That's right, that's what I'm worried about!"

Rout nodded heavily, agreeing with Luka.

"Ahhhh

Only Stein, still confused. But it's no wonder, after all, he belongs to the type that can't think at all, and all the nutrients in the brain are sucked away by the hair, so the hair grows like a lush weed.

"That...... What Rutga's predecessor meant was that the intelligence was flowing in too quickly, and the strategy for dealing with it was too timely. When Lutga's predecessor left Celestia, the dragon had not yet appeared, and only a day after he reached the imperial capital, the Adventurers' Guild had already formed an alliance with our Knights...... The arrival of the demon dragon may have been at the right time for Lutega's predecessor to leave Celeria, and the deliberately arranged ...... 'Legendary Blade' responded with an unusual speed, as if the situation was known beforehand, even before the Adventurers' Guild. But if that's ......"

"Wheels...... So?"

Stan swallowed and asked impatiently.

"My enemy, the 'black hand' behind the scenes, may be in the Knights-!"

"How is that possible!?"

"Honestly, Mira...... Chris...... Both of them are the most suspicious. ”

"Wait, Rutega, they're all our comrades-in-arms!

"That...... Excuse me, excuse me, are you called Lutga, are you Lutga Crusnell, a nobleman, a lord, and a daughter named Alice, right?"

Just as the two were arguing, a strange man dressed as an adventurer at the next table suddenly accosted Lutega.

"Ah...... Rutega Kurusnir, that's me. Alice is indeed the daughter's name...... Excuse me, who are you?"

It is no coincidence that an unfamiliar face, at least in the past eight years, has not seen the man in front of him, and he knows his name, and more importantly, he actually knows the name of his own daughter.

This couldn't help but make Lutga's eyes narrow, and he quickly raised his vigilance. Stein and Luca, who were beside them, also immediately reached for the hilt of the sword hidden under the cloak.

"Don't get me wrong, don't get me wrong! I don't know you or your daughter...... Just wanted to ask, do you know a young lady named 'Laqi'?"