Chapter 154: A Group Specializing in Knights

Ryu’s cooking was exquisite.

It went without saying that the ingredients themselves were of the highest quality, but beyond that, the seasonings were perfectly balanced, and Ryu’s technique in handling them bordered on flawless. His knife work was swift and precise, his control of heat exact, his plating almost artistic without ever being pretentious. Every dish that left his hands carried warmth—not just temperature, but intention.

The escort knights of the count’s household were, at least formally, invited into the carriage to dine together. However, as knights sworn to service, they insisted that such shameless familiarity would be improper. And so, maintaining their discipline, they remained outside—yet even there, seated beneath the open sky, they found themselves savoring Ryu’s cooking with undisguised delight.

And then, night fell.

“Kyaa!! Axel is so cute!!”

Having drunk the same potion as Homura, Axel now possessed the ability to freely alter the size of his body. At present, he had reduced himself to the size of a small puppy.

The result?

He was instantly captured by Lena and was now being cradled against her chest like a plush toy.

“Let’s sleep together tonight, okay~?”

“Brrr…”

Judging by the situation, Axel would be spending the night in Lena’s bedroom whether he objected or not.

Stingray, who had just witnessed this unbelievable scene, let out a low murmur of awe.

“As expected… Esther-sama’s skill with potions is astonishing…”

“It’s easy to forget because she’s always stuffing her face with sweets and acting like a mischievous little pervert elf, but this tiny gremlin can mass-produce elixirs like they’re candy. Something like this is child’s play for her.”

“…Did you just call me a perverted elf?”

“I absolutely did not.”

“As expected of Esther-sama~!”

“Indeed. As expected of Esther. Sasute—”

“You will not finish that sentence!!”

Meanwhile, Alice remained firmly attached to Ryoma’s side.

“I sometimes think… the members of Arden are rather strange, aren’t they?”

“Indeed. They are a lively bunch.”

“Well… perhaps they seem normal from your perspective, Ryoma-sama.”

As the strongest swordsman in recorded history, whose name thundered across the continent, Ryoma stood a head above nearly everyone. To Alice, Ryu’s fortune in befriending such a legend must seem nothing short of miraculous.

“Normal from my perspective…? That is a grave misunderstanding.”

“Is it?”

(There he goes being modest again. As if there could be anyone more incredible than you.)

Alice’s expression made it clear she did not believe him. Ryoma exhaled softly, as though resigned.

“Alice. I am grateful that you think of me as special. Truly. But you must learn to properly measure the worth of those before your eyes. Otherwise, one day, you may lose sight of something truly precious.”

“…?”

She tilted her head, unable to grasp the deeper meaning.

(Perhaps it is not my place to lecture a fourteen-year-old girl. And truth be told, she is far more composed than I was at fourteen. There is no need for concern.)

Just then—

“Oii, you two. It’s about time for bed.”

Ryu’s voice called out from across the room.

“Understood.”
“Very well.”

“Ehehehe~”

Lena, smiling brightly, entered her bedroom while hugging Axel tightly to her chest.

“Must be nice. I’d like to use Ryoma-sama as a body pillow. I’d probably sleep so well.”

She muttered it softly, casting him a sideways glance.

“R-Right. I, too, shall prepare for tomorrow by sleeping soundly… alone.”

“I thought it was a brilliant idea…”

Defeated, Alice reluctantly headed to her own room.

“Looks like you’ve got it rough from day one, Ryoma.”

“…Thanks to you.”

Ryoma sighed quietly. His expression seemed to age several years in that single breath.

“Well, you know. Do your best.”

“That is exceedingly unhelpful.”

“By the time we reach the Gran Federation, Alice’s attitude might calm down a bit.”

“I would be grateful if that were so…”

“For now, just sleep. We’re up early again tomorrow.”

“Very well.”

Ryoma shuffled toward his room, shoulders slightly slumped. There was a faint air of melancholy trailing behind him.

(Drained of vitality by youth, perhaps? To think I get to witness such a pathetic Ryoma—this is fantastic.)

As Ryu turned to return to his own room, the door to Stingray’s chamber creaked open slightly.

“Ryu-sama. Would you like to sleep together tonight? It’s been a while.”

“That would be inappropriate… I already have two wives.”

“Just a little while ago you happily slept beside me!”

“Stop phrasing it in ways that invite misunderstanding.”

“Ryu-sama, you’re so stingy!”

“Yes, yes. You should sleep too. Good work driving today.”

Thinking back, during the early journey to the capital for the elixir and along the western front, Stingray had always accompanied Ryu when he slept—for protection. Her wording was questionable, but she had simply been performing her duty.

Though, admittedly, she had started acting a little strange even back then…

“Well then. I should sleep too. I need to prepare for Esther’s inevitable night raid.”

Ryu straightened his back and briskly returned to his room.

From the adjacent chamber came a low, ominous chuckle.

“Ku ku ku… Now then… which potion shall I make him drink tonight…?”

◇◇◇

While Ryu was being force-fed dubious substances by Esther, two knights stood watch outside the carriage. The others had already pitched tents and gone to sleep.

“To think it truly turns invisible…”

“It’s remarkable. Just as the Viscount said—it’s become incorporeal. We can’t even touch it.”

“So that’s part of why he said the escort would only get in the way.”

“Exactly. After all, it defeats the purpose of hiding the carriage if knights are standing around it.”

“We should apologize properly tomorrow. It seemed like they even slowed the carriage during the day for our sake.”

“Yes… as things stand, we’re only holding them back.”

An hour later—

Just as the watchmen’s concentration began to falter—

An arrow shot out from the forest.

By sheer luck, it struck a knight’s armor and deflected.

“—!?”

“Oi! Everyone, up! Enemy attack!”

The knights sprang to their feet, forming ranks in an instant.

They were camped at a designated roadside carriage stop. Magic tools to repel monsters were embedded in the ground.

Which meant—

The enemy was not a monster that used arrows.

“Damn it! Missed!”

“Doesn’t matter. One more or less won’t change anything.”

“Let’s finish them off before the knights fully wake up.”

Bandits.

There were twenty of them.

The knights were fewer than half that number.

“Scoundrels…! Do you dare commit such insolence knowing we serve a noble house?!”

The knights’ shout was met with snickering laughter.

“What’s so amusing?!”

“Whether we know you’re knights or not doesn’t matter. We specialize in hunting knights.”

“…Hunting knights?”

“Since you’re about to die, I’ll tell you. Equipment like your armor fetches high prices among collectors. Especially armor belonging to imperial noble houses. And from the looks of it, you’re from the Blanc Count’s family, right? Frontier upper-noble armor is rare. We couldn’t possibly pass up this opportunity… heh heh heh.”

Noble armor was a symbol of martial honor and authority. Upon retirement, knights were expected to return it to their lord. It rarely fell into other hands.

Thus, those obsessed with such relics acquired them through black-market auctions—for staggering sums.

The bandits before them had clearly set their sights on that.

Every one of them wore a greedy smile.

“Say… where’s your lord’s carriage?”

“………………”

(They must not discover it’s hidden here.)

“Eh, whatever. After we kill you, we’ll take our time searching.”

These were not ordinary criminals.

They were professionals.

Even count-house knights could not afford complacency.

“You wretched criminals…”

“Heh heh heh…”

Across the road, the two sides inched forward, tension tightening like a drawn bowstring.

—Then.

“So the noise outside was bandits.”

(…Tch. It was getting good.)

At some point, Ryu had stepped out of the carriage.

The carriage possessed soundproofing enchantments, yet apparently that meant nothing to his ears.

“V-Viscount-sama?!”

“Huh? A viscount? Oi, boys! Looks like a big fish swam right to us!”

“Ah—damn it!”

(What a catastrophic mistake…!)

“Capture the viscount and sell him to slavers, or bundle his corpse with the armor and raise the price. Either way, we’re rich.”

“Bundle the corpse…? Ah. So that’s your type of operation. You had the nerve to target a count’s knights.”

“We’ve hunted knights from the Mondo Duke’s house before. A mere count is nothing.”

“…The Mondo Duke’s house.”

(It was probably an ambush on a lone knight. A coward’s tactic. Still…)

Irritation flared.

Ryu owed much to the Mondo household. Recently, he had even been forced to assassinate the son of Olivia-sama, the duke’s sister—a tragedy that weighed heavily.

To hear these fools boast of killing Mondo knights—

He could not overlook it.

“Alright then. Time to die!”

The instant the bandits stepped forward—

Ryu’s eyes changed.

From human to dragon.

He fixed his gaze upon them, infused it with magic—

And released it.

Overwhelming presence.

Before the bandits’ eyes, they hallucinated a colossal silver dragon, towering higher than sacred peaks, glaring down at them.

Or so it seemed.

In truth, Ryu had merely released a refined, compressed mass of magic—carefully directed so as not to touch the knights.

Small.

Contained.

Yet it burned with the gravity of a star.

A crushing, boundless force, as if cast alone into the void of space.

“…Huh?”

All twenty bandits managed only that pitiful syllable.

Then they collapsed, foam bubbling at their mouths.

“““““?????”””””

The knights had no idea what had just occurred.

One moment the enemy stood.

The next—they were down.

Ryu turned on his heel.

“Take care of the rest.”

“Y-Yes…”

The knights cautiously approached.

“…They’re all dead…?”

They had not fainted.

Their souls had fled their bodies under the gaze of a dragon god.

“What… did the Viscount do…?”

A chill ran through the knights’ spines, as though they had glimpsed something they were never meant to witness.

◇◇◇

“Ryu. Are you unharmed?”

“Yeah. Just some bandits who didn’t know their place. I glared at them and they died.”

“Ka ka ka! How pathetic!”

“Well then. I suppose I’ll sleep now…”

“Wait wait wait. Not yet.”

“What?”

“The night is still young. Behold—this potion!!!”

“…What is that?”

Inside the vial Esther raised high, a tiny storm raged.

“My specially crafted Night Potion—Ultra Super Deluxe!!! Now open your mouth!!!”

“W-Wait—”

Rumor had it that the next morning, dark circles hung beneath Ryu’s eyes.

And for some reason, Esther’s skin was glowing.