Chapter 4 First contact
“Good thing I made it.”
Hayate and I had quickly run in the direction of the scream. We found that a 5 meito ogre was about to swing his axe down on some people.
By the way, a meito is this worlds equivalent to a meter.
Incidentally, ‘milimeter’ is ‘mimeito’, ‘centimeter’ is ‘kuameito’, ‘kilometer’ is ‘kiameito’, ‘gram’ is ‘guoa’, ‘kilogram’ is ‘kiaguoa’, ‘ton’ is ‘giga’, ‘liter’ is ‘Suo’ and ‘mililiter’ is ‘misou’.
There are also a bunch more, but these are the most commonly used.
It’s really convenient to know what they are called here.
Okay, let’s get back to the story.
I looked at the scene where the ogre was about to swing the axe down. I quickly asked Hayate to stop him and it seemed like he understood me. Magic started concentrating on his horn and from within the forest, he shot it like a bullet. It tore a big hole through ogre’s chest..
And now, back to the present.
My voice is changed to a low, man’s voice thanks to the helmet’s magic crystal.
Even so, this scene is quite surprising.
Looking around, I could see pieces of the wrecked carriage and the bodies of guards lying around.
Well, they don’t seem to be dead.
In comparison, four ogres have died, if we add the one that Hayate defeated.
I could see their internal organs spilling over and their blood flowing out. It really made me feel like puking.
Next, I could see a few people who seemed to be n.o.bles and some servants huddled together in one place.
There are six horses near them.
They’re the people I saved a while ago.
Lastly, a bit farther away, I saw a guy who was toppled over by an ogre, on the ground with a confused look on his face.
Looking at him from head to toe, he looked like a knight.
“I’m sorry, the person over there. Are you okay?”
I asked the knight-like person as I stepped down from Hayate and walked closer to him and the ogre.
“E?… a…”
Nn, it seems like he’s still confused.
Well, I think that reaction is expected if you suddenly see a person wearing black armor, riding the legendary black unicorn.
In fact, even the people that have cowered together and those who have fallen can’t keep up with the situation.
“Hayate, could you start treating those strange people? I’ll do something about the other one.”
“Bururu~!”
Hayate neighed once before he started healing one of them.
“Now then. Oi, Big guy!”
The ogre increased its guard as it glared at me with hostility.
As expected of a greater monster.
Unlike what its appearance suggests, it has high intelligence and won’t attack recklessly.
There are always some guys like that.
“Why the h.e.l.l are the five of you guys fighting against these humans~? What’s more, three of you were defeated before I even arrived.”
“Guru!?”
I knew it.
Their reasoning goes away once I provoke them a little bit.
“Wait! What the h.e.l.l are you doing!?”
Ah, Knight-san said something.
I’m gonna ignore it and continue on.
“If I’m correct, normally, you would need 20 humans to defeat one ogre, right? What’s up with this pathetic situation?”
“Gurururururu!”
Let’s pause a bit.
“You ugly monster!”
“Gugugugagagagagaga!”
The ogre came rushing to me with his axe, causing the ground to shake.
Provocation, successful!
“Oi! What’re you doing!? Run away!”
Knight-san desperately screamed at me. Ignore him!
I touched Sakuya with my right hand.
The ogre kept getting closer to me, before swinging its axe with a lot of momentum.
I quickly unsheathed Sakuya and parried the axe, gripping Sakuya with only my right hand.
“Guruga!?”
Of course the ogre would be confused about what had happened.
Everyone around us opened their mouths wide.
“Yotto!”
I push back the ogre’s axe.
The ogre had to take a few steps backwards because of the force I put into it.
I hit his waist with my left hand while slashing at his shoulder, provoking him even more.
Naturally, his blood started going to his head.
“Guruaaaa!”
The ogre roared as he wielded the axe.
He swung his axe a few times.
However, the swings were easily stopped by Sakuya.
And then.
“Haa!”
Gathering my strength, I shattered the axe.
“Gururu….”
Struck by the residual force, the ogre fell on his b.u.t.t.
Finally, the ogre noticed.
That I was stronger than him.
Well, it’s thanks to the body that Amaterasu-sama made, that I became this strong. Honestly speaking, I wasn’t this strong originally.
Well, let’s set that aside for now.
The ogre now looked at me with a fearful expression.
He was going to use all of his remaining strength to escape from me. However his waist gave in.
I started talking to the ogre.
“No matter what from angle you look at it, they were the ones who were attacked. The evidence is everywhere. Pieces of broken cups and the debris of the chairs, tables and their carriage. You could see that they were attacked by you guys while they were on a break.”
I continued talking to the ogre as I walked towards him.
“As such, I can only take one action.”
Gripping Sakuya, I jumped higher than the ogre was tall.
“Because you’re the ones that attacked, I won’t accept any complaints.”
I beheaded the ogre.
Walking away from the ogre, I walked towards the fallen knight. I swung Sakuya once to remove the blood and then returned it to its scabbard.
The moment I locked Sakuya to its sheath, the ogre split into two starting from the head down.
Well, that was good for my first battle.
To get used to killing creatures, you first need to start with killing a fish you just caught, was what I thought.
Above all, I can’t stand the smell around here.
It’s also troubling if some monsters are attracted to the smell of blood.
Apart from me, who’ll be fine on my own, they’ll be in danger as a result.
I need them to start moving and leave this place quickly.
“That is?”
I suddenly noticed something.
Come to think of it, there were three bodies of killed ogres.
Like I said earlier, you normally need 20 people to defeat one ogre.
However the people who fought against them were that knight in front of me and ten other people.
While they were protecting lots of people.
What’s even more surprising is that they’re only injured and not one has died.
Lastly, that silver armored, blue cloaked knight.
He had short hair that was dyed brown, on his left side there was a scar extending from his forehead down to his cheek and a typical, manly face.
He really looked stunning with his reddish-brown eyes.
He seemed to be around his 20s.
He was sitting, but I could tell that he’s really tall.
Come to think of it, unlike the others, he’s the only one with a cloak.
That means that he should be a great person among the guards.
“N?”
I stared at the b.a.s.t.a.r.d sword near him.
From the blood on it, I could tell that it was used to pierce something.
When piercing, you need to be quite strong enough in order to do it properly.
Piercing…
I then look at the ogre that lay behind him.
For it to fall down like that without any visible fatal wounds at all.
That means that it was pierced in the center of his head…
Then, this man defeated the ogre alone?
I’ll need to think of an explanation.
First, he, with the support of others, fought against two ogres. The other people then became exhausted after defeating those two.
As the last one standing, he fought against the three and I defeated the one ogre that attacked the frozen people over there.
Now that I understood what happened, I stopped in front of Knight-san.
I held my right hand in front of him.
“Are you alright?”
“A…. ah.”
He grabbed my right hand and gripped it strongly.
Using a bit of my right arm’s strength, I helped him stand up.
I was right. He really was very tall.
Right now, my eyes were at the level of his neck. I would be at his chest level if I removed my armor.
What I thought when I raised my head to look at him was.
‘Is this man really human?’
‘What the h.e.l.l just happened?’
A black knight, riding a black unicorn, suddenly appeared and defeated one ogre. Next, he started provoking another ogre and rendered his attacks useless. Lastly, he used a black sword, that I’ve never seen before, to cut the ogre in two.
‘Am I seeing a dream?’
I can also defeat an ogre alone, but doing it with brute strength like that is impossible for me.
And his reaction speed.
He didn’t move a single step and his attacks his opponents by quickly swinging his sword while only using one hand.
More importantly, is that black unicorn the real thing?
It’s confusing me even more!
And then.
“Are you alright?”
I heard the low voice of a man.
Before I knew it, the Black Knight was in front of me, reaching his right hand out.
It seems like he didn’t notice that I was confused when he came here.
“A…Ah.”
Puzzled, I grabbed his hand and stood up.
Standing up, I looked at him again.
His entire body was covered with black plate mail and I could see a red stone embedded on his helmet.
His height was also a little low for a man.
“That was a disaster.”
“Eh?”
“Look, the ogre.”
“A… ah”
I just now noticed what he said.
“Its best if we leave here as soon as possible, while its still bright and before the smell of blood attracts more monsters.”
“You’re right, it’s best if we leave here quickly.”
I agree with the Black Knight’s warning.
He was right, staying here was dangerous
The Black Knight is too, even though he helped us, I shouldn’t let my guard down.
“Ah, That’s right. Excuse me, can I ask you something?”
“N?”
“Um, which way is the city?”
“Ha?”
What is this guy saying?
“Why are you asking such a thing?”
“Ah, um… well.”
It looks like he’s having a hard time answering.
He’s suspicious.
“No way, are you a spy for the demons?”
“Eh? Nope, you’re wrong.”
He clearly said no.
It doesn’t seem like he’s lying.
“Why are you so wary even though I’m just asking for directions?”
He tilted his head when he heard me.
Well, he’s certainly right.
“Sorry, we’re in the middle of an escort mission. We need to be suspicious of anyone.”
“Ah, is that so.”
The Black Knight seemed to have been convinced.
“So, why are you going to the capital?”
“I want to get a job.”
“A job.”
Of all the places, it had to be the capital?
“I’m not sure if you know this, but it’s already known by most people that the capital’s security is deteriorating.”
“Eh?”
All of us froze.
My subordinates who were healed by the Black Unicorn started gathering around His Majesty.
Good, everyone’s safe.
Then I said this to the Black Knight.
“Eh? If I’m not wrong. When we went to the Holy Country a few weeks ago the stories about the capital were a really hot topic among the people.”
By the way, the reason why I’m able to speak this brazenly in front of His Majesty is because he also knows the current situation it was in.
“…….. That’s completely different from what I heard.”
Oi, oi.
Who the heck did he ask?
“What to do….”
The Black Knight looked like he didn’t know what to do.
It looks like he really was serious, when he said that he was searching for a job.
“Now that I think about it, why did you come out of the forest? Why didn’t you go through the forest on the road?”
I told him what had been bothering me.
“Ahh~…….”
Again, he’s having a hard time answering it.
Earlier, he asked me where to go. Something’s not quite right here.
……….
No way.
“You…. were you lost just now?”
When I said so, everyone, including His Majesty, stared at the Black Knight.
“……..Yes.”
The Black Knight replied in a small voice.
I was right huh.
He, got lost…….
“Pfft.”
――――Ahahahaahahahah!
When I said that, I, the royal family, my subordinates and even the servants started laughing.
“Ah….. ahahaha…”
The Black Knight hung his head and laughed shyly.
It seems like this Black Knight isn’t a bad guy after all.
“Sorry, sorry….”
“It’s fine….”
After being laughed at, hard, for being lost, I was now talking to a man who seemed to be a n.o.ble on his way to the capital.
By the way, the men and women are riding the brown horses while girls and boys were riding white horses.
The blue mantled knight from earlier was riding a brown horse right next to a man with green hair, who seemed to be in his 20s.
I decided to walk besides them instead of riding Hayate, because I looked intimidating when I did that.
Hayate seemed to want being ridden, though.
But still, what did he mean by the capital’s security getting worse?
It’s completely different from what Amaterasu-sama told me.
“I would have never thought that I’d get to see the Legendary Black Unicorn with my own eyes.”
“Yeah, I also thought that I must’ve been dreaming when he appeared in the forest.”
The men expressed their agreement to mantled-Knight-san’s words.
The people around me were staring at Hayate.
Indeed, if a real legendary creature was in front of them, why wouldn’t they want to stare at it.
“Come to think of it, I still haven’t heard your name.”
“Now that you say it, you’re right.”
“(Biku!)”
Oh no…….
What should I do? How can I hide it from them?
While I was thinking, the n.o.bleman told me.
“I am the Empire’s Emperor, James Guratosu.”
My thinking stopped when he said that.
Just now, what did he say?
“Mu? Is something wrong, Black Knight?”
The n.o.bleman…. no, the Emperor curiously asked me.
“Your Majesty, that was a bit sudden…..”
Mantled-Knight-san said with an amazed face.
“It’s okay, is it not? If not for Black Knight saving us, I, no we wouldn’t be walking on this road.”
There was a woman, who seemed to be in her 20s, with blonde hair that was bundled into dumplings wearing a dress with gold embroideries.
It was his wife.
She seems quite young….
“I’m sorry for being late, I am James Guratosu’s wife. Claire Guratosu is my name.”
“By the way, she’s four years older than me.”
“Eh!?”
I hope they’ll forgive me for my sudden outburst.
Wait, really!?
“It’s alright. Everyone else also thought what you’re thinking right now.”
Mantled-Knight-san placed a hand on my left shoulder.
Everyone around me nodded in unison.
It seems like everyone else also thought that it was funny.
“Thanks. Umm~”
“Conrad. Conrad Aiden.”
Is what Mantled-Knight-san…. Conrad-san said .
“My name is Chris Guratosu.”
Next was a boy with blond hair, wearing a blue uniform who was riding on a white horse.
Is he younger than me?
“I’m Elene Guratosu.”
Last was a girl who was wearing a pink dress.
She looked and felt like a tomboy.
Out of nowhere, Elene suddenly said:
“Ne! What’s your name? Where’d you come from? Why are you still wearing your helmet? How did you make the black unicorn accept you? Ne~ Tell me.”
“Umm~…”
She suddenly started asking me a lot of questions with great enthusiasm.
Everyone face’s had the same expression.
Well, its common for children to do this.
“Now, now. Elene, can’t you see that the Black Knight is troubled.”
“That’s right. You’re 13 years old now. You need to be more behaved now.”
“You’re so noisy, Niisama.”
“Now, you…”
“Now, now. Chris, Elene. The two of you need to calm down.”
……….
‘What the?’
‘The way they talk to each other is just like regular families?’
But I think this is good.
I’d want to protect a country that’s run by these kinds of people.
“How should we call you?”
It was now my turn to introduce myself.
“……”
“? What’s wrong?”
Everyone stared at me because I have gone silent.
I think that it’s best if I tell them who I really am.
However, they are the Emperor, his soldiers and his servants….
“A… umm…”
“…… Is there a reason that you can’t?”
“…. Yes.”
I decided to be honest to them.
“Actually, I was told that I can’t reveal my ident.i.ty in light of certain circ.u.mstances.”
“Told not to? By whom?”
“I… can’t say. I can a.s.sure you though that we are not your enemies. As proof I will reveal my real ident.i.ty to you.”
“Is it okay?”
The Emperor intently listened to me.
I judged that these people are trustworthy.
I’m not trying to boast, but I’m pretty good at judging people with my eyes.
Also, having those in power as my allies has its merits.
Especially the one with the highest authority in the country.
“You deserve my trust. However, there’s a possibility that we are being watched by someone.”
“Watched?”
Conrad listened to what I had to say.
Well, it was just a hypothesis.
“I’m suspecting this because of the ogres. Normally, ogres prefer to be alone. However, five of them that appeared together, today.”
“No way!”
Conrad noticed something.
“No way. You’re saying that what happened today was planned by somebody?”
Everyone’s eyes widen as Conrad says this.
Maybe because everyone was so busy, n.o.body had time to think about it.
“Yes. It may just be a hypothesis, but I think the possibility is quite high.”
Because of what I said, the faces of the Queen, the Princess and the servants turned blue.
The men on the other hand, sharpened their eyes and increased their guard.
“But who…?”
The Emperor asked.
‘I don’t really know who it is, but I may be able to single him out.’
‘He should’ve set up a fake ident.i.ty as a guard in the capital.’
“It’s probably a collaboration between the demons and those who are in power.”
“What!? A collaboration!?”
Everyone stood, surprised by my conclusion.
Apparently n.o.body thought that they could be ‘Collaborating’.
If you thought about it normally, it’d be impossible for a human to make a deal with the demons.
“It’s not impossible. They could’ve cooperated because their interests aligned with each other.”
Because high ranking people always want more profit.
Even if they’re enemies, as long as they can get something in return, everything is fine.
“There’s also another reason for these ‘two’. It’s because we’re close to the capital.
“And that’s because?”
The Crown Prince, Chris, asked a question.
“Because it’s a good opportunity. It’d take a few days for you to reach this place from the Holy country. Of course it’d take the same number of days from the castle to here. So it’s a good time for a raid to occur. This is the hint.”
Everyone tilted their heads.
Is it that difficult?
Why is the Princess rolling her eyes?
It’s cute, but that’s the behavior of a man, not that of a child.
It isn’t as good as Yuusuke’s though.
“Then please answer my questions. Conrad-san, did you encounter any greater monsters on the way back?”
“No, we didn’t even encounter any minor monsters like goblins.”
Everyone nodded to Conrad’s words.
“Thank you very much. At this point I understood the reason completely.”
“Is that true!?”
The queen was really surprised by what I said.
“Perhaps, the person in the capital, the n.o.bles of the Holy Kingdom and the demons are in contact in some way. Since the demons are the only ones who can manipulate monsters. Maybe the person in the capital had some information which the demons wanted and in exchange for that, he asked them to kill the royal family. And this place is the best spot for killing you. A place where trees are high enough to hide their shadows. Perfect for beings like ogres. The road is also wide enough for five of ogres to wreak havoc. The ones that could’ve investigated this place are likely humans who are close to the capital. There are some people who find royalty to be a problem. They are only doing these things because of their own interests. Therefore, I can conclude: The person in the capital worked with the demons so that he can say that this was the work of the demons.”
I explained my conclusion to them.
Dismay was visible on everyone’s faces.
Well, after fighting those ogres earlier, once we think that it’s over, more problems will probably occur.
If we don’t look for the traitor now, there’s a high chance that he’ll do it again.
I thought of that as I watched their expressions.
There!
“Wow~ You’re really awesome!”
Everyone had a look of astonishment.
Ah, I was right.
While I was calmly overlooking everyone, I noticed somebody under the branches on the left side of a big tree.
I couldn’t see him very well.
“……. Who are you?”
“Hoh? You’re not like the other humans… Why do you look so calm?”
Surprisingly, he asked me a question.
“In times like this, the first one to become restless, loses.”
“Haha! You just said something interesting~ Black Knight-san”
While saying so, the opponent emerged from the shadows.
The one that stood there had silver hair with a wolf face. He had the body of a human with the tail of a wolf. He was a werewolf that wore long black boots with brown pants and red scale armor.
He had twin daggers equipped on both hips.
“You’re wrong there. I want to make a deal with you.”
“Why did you say that I’m wrong?”
“You can’t make a deal?”
From the way he talks and the way he looks, I could tell that he’s quite young.
“If I wanted to make a deal, I would first find someone whose att.i.tude is the complete opposite to yours.”
I don’t understand, is that really how I appear to others?
“Ah~… You’re right.”
“Well, it was you who provoked the ogres into attacking.”
“Bingo!”
He really has a lighthearted personality.
“I’m Gardo.”
“What!? The [Fire Fang] Gardo!?”
Conrad raised his voice in surprise.
Before I knew it, everyone was already holding a weapon.
It seemed like that werewolf was famous.
“Otto, I’m only gonna retreat this time.”
“Why?”
“The small fries aside, you seem quite dangerous. I need to make plans against you. See ya”
The werewolf who named himself as Gardo disappeared.
Well then, it seems like he fixed his eyes on me.
What should I do now….
I pondered for a while as I stared at the branch where Gardo had been.