Chapter 132: The Royal Standard, Once More
“Give me the name and rank of the commander leading the forces assembled in Doreans. And if possible, I’d like authorization to command the army. Also… I’ll need the royal standard.”
“If I add my signature, the identification we entrusted to you will become the highest authority on-site. But why do you need the royal standard?”
“If I suddenly show up waving my ID, I doubt anyone will believe me. But if I approach while flying the royal standard, they won’t attack, and I should be able to meet the commander directly. At the same time, scouts on the Braden side will see it, and realize their disadvantage.”
“Understood. I’ll have it prepared immediately.”
“And one more thing—please prepare three Rank 2 Magic Pouches. Fill one with fist-sized stones, the second with stones about the size of a child’s head, and the third with stones as large as what a man can carry in his arms.”
Chancellor Corbens grinned.
“I’ll have it arranged right away.”
If this doesn’t make them retreat… then maybe I should go to Braden’s royal capital myself and make a flashy example at their castle.
“And I’ll also need a map showing the Braden Kingdom’s capital, Carcas—the location of its royal castle—and the residence of Holtland’s appointed ambassador.”
“You intend to go there?”
“Since the generals behind this don’t believe the ambassador’s reports, stopping the army won’t be enough. It’s best to smack the ones who issued the invasion orders across the face so they understand.”
Felix nodded, while the royal guards along the wall grimaced.
“In that case,” Felix said, “we’ll prepare one more large stone as well.”
I couldn’t help bursting out laughing.
They asked me to wait two days while the stones were prepared, so I decided to stock up on food and enjoy some street-side cooking in the capital. Before leaving, I asked for a small favor.
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Just outside the city, I watched adventurers returning from their day’s work toward the adventurers’ entry gate.
Among them, I spotted a familiar face and called out.
“Kevin, how’s today’s haul?”
“Leon-san? You’re still in the capital?”
“Yeah, had some business. But I’ve got two free days, so I came to see how things were.”
“Did you need something?”
“Well, sort of. Once you get inside the gate, take off your hat, raise it, and wave it high. I’ll pay everyone silver coins.”
“Huh? Are you planning something?”
“Leon-san… this isn’t going to get us in trouble, right?”
“I’m putting an end to the guards extorting money from adventurers. Today’s the last day.”
“That’s impossible.”
“You really don’t understand how the world works, Leon-san.”
“Say stuff like that and someone will snitch on you. You’ll get dragged off.”
“Just go inside, wave your hat, and answer questions if people ask. Two silver coins each.”
“…We won’t get blamed, right?”
“Not at all. I’ll handle everything.”
“Hey! Quit chatting and move along!”
The guy behind them glared. Kevin and the others hurried to show their guild cards—another day of losing a copper coin. No wonder the guy behind them was irritated.
I approached with my guild card.
“Hey! What’s with that calm face? Let me see your guild card properly!”
“Something suspicious about it?”
“You brat—why would some kid like you have a B-rank gold card? Looks fake.”
Behind me, Kevin and his group were waving their hats as instructed.
“Listen, last time you stopped me and demanded several silver coins. Once, I could ignore—but this is getting old.”
“What’d you say!? You little punk! Come with me to the guardroom!”
“What’s going on?”
“This brat claims I extorted silver from him!”
“You can take me, but you’ll regret it.”
A few men approached Kevin’s group to hear their story, and then knights—actual kingdom knights—marched toward us.
“Hey! What’s all this noise?”
“Who the hell are you!?”
“We are the Kingdom Knight Order. You must be Leon-dono.”
“Yes. This man extorted silver from me the other day. He thinks stealing from adventurers is part of his job. Please investigate thoroughly.”
“Understood. You lot—come with us!”
The guards were grabbed by the collar and dragged to the guard station. The guards who had taken copper from Kevin earlier were also summoned, looking pale.
“You there! Switch posts with them! We know you’ve been lining your pockets! Enough of your nonsense—do your work properly!”
The shouted-at guards stiffened and reluctantly took up the post.
“Hey, did they just say that guy’s a B-rank?”
“And the guards look terrified…”
“I yelled at him earlier… I hope I don’t end up in jail.”
Before things escalated, I waved to the knights and slipped through, heading toward Kevin and his friends.
“Sorry for the wait. Let’s go get something good in the market.”
“Leon-san… what are you?”
“Those were real kingdom knights…”
“And I’ve never seen the guards so scared…”
“I told you—they’re done extorting people after today. I told someone higher up about it, and they were furious.”
“They even asked me how much I’d been paying.”
“I said I lose a copper every morning and evening.”
“I told them too. Getting shaken down daily was really stressing me out.”
“You—two coppers each!?”
“No, no—we’d flee the capital if that were true. One copper per party morning and night. Solo adventurers like you had it much worse.”
“And newbies or anyone who looked wealthy got robbed blind.”
“Will they investigate the officials too?”
“Judging from the reaction, they probably will.”
“The market ladies will be thrilled.”
“Those vendors pay more than we do.”
“Merchants have it rough.”
“What’re you talking about—we’ve got it worse!”
“Anyway, eat your fill today.”
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Two days later, I landed in the castle courtyard. Chancellor Corbens greeted me and handed me five magic pouches.
“One extra?”
“Three contain stones of the requested sizes. The one with four cords is a Rank 5 pouch containing a very large stone. The last pouch is Rank 3, containing the royal standard and the sealed letter. Deliver the letter to Earl Sterling, the on-site commander. He will request your identification—once he sees it, he will obey your commands. Keep the royal flag until you return.”
Hopefully, I won’t need to use any of these. I just hope the commander isn’t an idiot.
From Frangre to Doreans is sixteen towns—eight days by carriage. I could fly there overnight, but staying up late is bad for my skin, so I decided to sleep outside the capital first.
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At dawn, I took off from the Frangre plains, flying full speed along the Doreans road, arriving before sunset.
Around the town, tents were lined up, each surrounded by barricades. Many soldiers occupied the town itself.
I reached into the pouch to pull out the royal banner—only to find not just a mounted banner, but also a massive bundle decorated in royal patterns.
When I opened it, it was a royal standard measuring five meters by five meters, with sandbags tied to the ropes so it could be hung beneath me while flying.
Flying in with something so huge would startle both friend and foe… Felix really likes theatrics.
I lowered the banner beneath my balloon and descended toward Doreans, circling so the whole army could see.
Near what looked like the magistrate’s residence, many knights were gathered. One man was waving energetically. I replaced the large banner with the mounted one and descended toward him.
“You look like an adventurer. Why do you carry the royal standard?”
“I was sent by His Majesty King Felix, bearing a letter addressed to Count Sterling.”
“Understood. I’ll take you to him—but hand over the standard.”
“No. The reason will be clear once the Count reads the letter.”
Looks like he recognized me as the man who tore apart Frangre’s castle. Even carrying the royal standard, he wouldn’t fully trust me. If I came empty-handed, I’d probably have been attacked… or would have run away.
The Sutherland royal standard idea worked even better than expected.
As for whether Earl Sterling will trust me… well, if he refuses, he’ll be the one forced into battle, so he’ll have to believe me.
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“What?! You’re telling me the royal standard came flying through the sky!?”
“Yes, sir. A man holding Holtland’s royal flag descended into Doreans…”
“Idiot! Were you dreaming!? Get out!”
“We need someone more competent scouting. Adventurers won’t do.”
“Message! The watchmen on the border report the same thing—a man carrying Holtland’s royal flag descended into Doreans!”
“Again!? What are they teaching these fools!?”
“Please wait. It may be true.”
“Don’t tell me you believe the rumors? A man flying freely through the sky? Sounds like a fairy tale for children!”
“Then how do you explain Holtland’s castle being destroyed? The report clearly stated a single adventurer routed them without resistance. His Majesty ordered this invasion because of that.”
“Well, but still… for him to come this far…”
“Let me remind you—the report says an adventurer who can fly in the sky. And both the scouts and border watchmen say a man flying with Holtland’s royal flag was seen. This cannot be dismissed.”