Chapter 45

After the grooming, I brushed the horse and took care of its hooves, helped clean the stable, and returned the horse, marking the end of the morning chores.

For lunch, I decided to eat at the guard team's cafeteria, but before that, I went to Lastock to take care of the committee chair.

The committee chair was still pale and continuing her treatment in the examination room.

Perhaps because I started taking care of her, I feel like she is pushing herself even more than before, which worries me.

"Miss Saint, let's end the morning treatment here."

"I understand... I'll rest a bit..."

The committee chair collapsed onto the sofa as if she were falling, let out a deep sigh, and relaxed.

Elna, the caretaker, promptly covered her with a blanket, gave a small bow, and left the examination room.

I asked Fred to keep an eye on Elna and cast a healing spell on the committee chair.

"Ahh... Kenji..."

"You really are pushing yourself too hard, Yui..."

"I'm sorry... Kenji, why didn't you come last night?"

"Sorry, I was discussing the rescue operation with Yagi and the others, so it got late. I didn't want to wake you, so I just cast a healing spell."

"Rescue operation? For the next live combat?"

"No, not that. We're currently considering a method to rescue everyone, so please wait a little longer."

"Really?"

"Shh... Your voice is too loud."

"Ahh... sorry..."

Lowering my voice, I told her about the rescue operation using a sleeping potion, and mentioned that we had started training for the coachmen today, which surprised her.

"Hey, by the way, isn't Camilla's bedwetting...?"

"Ahh, did you hear about it too?"

"Everyone knows, and the knights are starting to clash over it..."

According to the committee chair, the story of Camilla's bedwetting has spread among her classmates, and conflicts are arising over the teasing.

The classmates, who have been suppressed, are now venting their frustrations, and the knights, thinking that the slaves are mocking the royal family, are responding more harshly than before.

"Oh... Is it coming to this? Was it a mistake?"

"No, everyone was secretly laughing and happy, so it wasn't a mistake."

"But the conflicts are a bit worrying."

"I'll tell everyone to be more careful."

"Okay, thank you."

Elna returned, so we ended the conversation and went back to Volzard.

While eating quickly, I reported the situation in Lastock to the five of them.

When I mentioned the conflicts over Camilla's bedwetting, everyone looked worried.

"Of course, if Camilla's bedwetting is a rumor, it's easy to mock her."

"Yagi is right, but if the treatment gets worse, it's a problem. We need to get the carriage moving as soon as possible."

Everyone nodded at Koyama's words, and in the afternoon, we all took the training seriously.

In the afternoon, we practiced riding to learn how to use the reins.

While the basics can be taught verbally, the feel of it must be learned through actual experience.

None of us had ever ridden a horse before, so we started by just walking with the reins.

Yeah, it looks like we have a long way to go.

After continuing the training until evening and parting ways with the five, I went to report to Donovan.

Until now, we had only discussed rescue operations using live combat, so if we suddenly rescue nearly two hundred classmates, we need to inform him in advance.

Donovan is always busy, so I asked for a little time and briefly explained the situation.

"In other words, there's a high possibility that nearly two hundred people will come here?"

"Yes, I apologize for the sudden request, but I don't want to leave them there for too long."

"The dormitory can be managed with temporary accommodations, and the meals can be arranged if we notify them in advance."

"Then, can we start anytime?"

"Yes, anytime, but please give us a heads-up in advance."

"Understood."

With Donovan's approval, all we need to do now is prepare.

After finishing the report, I quickly returned to Lastock to take care of the committee chair in the evening, and then rushed back to Volzard.

Before returning to the boarding house, I considered going to Mueller's master's pharmacy to buy more sleeping potions and then returned to the guild, but I saw Manon waiting at the entrance.

"Kent... Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure, let's talk while we walk."

"Okay..."

Manon, with a troubled expression, nodded and linked her arm with mine.

I tried to look at her face, but Manon was blushing and looking down.

I decided to head towards Manon's house and started walking out of the guild's entrance, but Nazario, with a vein popping on his forehead, blocked our way.

"This guy... Is he hitting on other girls too?"

Nazario and four of his followers, along with two young men with bad looks, were there.

"Let me see your face..."

"Manon is not involved, so let her go..."

"Shut up! Come with me, and bring the girl too!"

Following Nazario's order, the two men with bad looks showed us their knives, visible to me but not to the surrounding people.

"Manon, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to get you involved."

"K-Kent... Who are these people?"

"Yes, I'll explain later, and I promise I won't let them hurt you."

"Okay..."

Yesterday, Nazario's actions seemed almost endearing, but today, it's not funny.

Maybe because I was busy all day, I was feeling stressed and irritable.

We were taken to the same empty lot as yesterday.

One of the men stood behind Nazario, and another grabbed my collar.

"Yesterday, you were cocky, but today, it won't be that easy. These two are C-rank adventurers, so you, a newbie, won't stand a chance. Be prepared."

Yeah, it's a clear case of a fox borrowing the tiger's might.

Well, I don't have much right to criticize, considering I used Donovan to pressure Gilik.

"If you don't promise to stay away from Beatrice, I'll make this girl suffer..."

"Don't be ridiculous!"

I interrupted him with a shout, and Nazario flinched and took a half-step back.

"If you like Beatrice so much, why don't you become a man she can like? Relying on adult adventurers won't make you more attractive; it will only make you less so."

"Y-You..."

"If Beatrice falls for an A-rank adventurer, will you hire an S-rank adventurer to threaten him? What if she falls for an S-rank adventurer?"

"Shut up, shut up! If you defy me, I'll make this girl suffer."

Another adventurer, following Nazario's signal, approached Manon, so I blocked his path with a Dark Shield.

"What the...?"

"That's a Dark Shield, a dark attribute magic."

"Is he a mage... When did he cast it..."

The man, whose path was blocked, was visibly shocked.

"If you touch Manon, I won't forgive you..."

"Forgive me? What can you do against two C-rank adventurers?"

"Have you heard about the Rock Ogres that attacked Volzard the other day?"

Nazario, not understanding what I was talking about, looked at the adventurer next to him.

The adventurer nodded, so maybe he was at the wall.

"So, what about it?"

"Did you know that three skeletons took care of the Rock Ogres?"

"So what...?"

"Did you know that dark attribute mages can use necromancy?"

I tapped the ground with my toes while talking to Nazario.

"Ahh... Ahh..."

"Wow, skeletons...!"

"Ah... Behind us too..."

"Deal with the skeletons!"

"Don't be ridiculous, they can instantly kill Rock Ogres!"

"I wasn't told about this!"

I only intended to call Reinhardt, but the vicious skeletons all showed up.

Reinhardt was behind me, Fred was protecting Manon, and Basten was blocking the alley.

"These three can overwhelm over two hundred Rock Ogres. If you continue to bother me or those around me, be prepared."

Nazario, his followers, and the C-rank adventurers huddled together and nodded nervously at me.

"Basten, let them through."

Basten nodded and disappeared into the shadows, and the seven of them fled without looking back.

In the end, I had to borrow the power of the vicious skeletons, but it's fine.

I can't afford to deal with such trivial matters anymore.

"Reinhardt and Fred, thank you."

*Hahaha, this should keep that rich kid from bothering you.*

"I hope so..."

Manon, clinging to my arm, watched Fred disappear into the shadows with wide eyes.

"Sorry, Manon, I got you involved in this trivial matter."

"No... I heard that you're working hard to save your friends... I was only thinking about myself."

"Beatrice only received treatment, and Mariann was there too..."

"Yes, I heard from Mueller that you've been promoted to B-rank."

"Yes, but the Rock Ogres were thanks to Reinhardt, and the Gigawolf was just a good opportunity."

"Still, it's amazing, Kent... You're amazing... so cool..."

Manon said this and looked down again.

"N-No... I'm just a small guy... and my strength is borrowed..."

"It's the first time... I've never felt like this before, so I don't know what to do..."

"Manon...?"

"Being with Kent makes my heart race... Seeing Kent kiss Beatrice made me feel so sad..."

Manon, hugging my arm tightly, was crying.

What should I do? This is my first time in such a situation... but I can't leave a girl crying.

"Sorry... I keep causing you trouble..."

"Manon... thank you."

I turned to face Manon and pulled her into a hug with my right arm.

"Kent..."

"I've never had a close relationship with a girl before, so I'm really happy that a cute girl like you likes me."

"C-Cute... I'm not..."

"No, Manon is cute. I say you're cute, so you are!"

"Hauu..."

Manon blushed and looked down, but she managed to stop crying.

"Right now, I need to focus on rescuing our classmates, so I can't properly address this, but once we save them... I'll do my best..."

"Okay, I'll wait..."

I gently hugged her, and Manon wrapped her arms around my back and hugged me tightly.

It's a delay, but I need to focus on the rescue operation now.

"I think it's okay, but I'll walk you home."

"Okay..."

Manon held my left hand with her right hand and gripped my shirt sleeve with her left hand.

I was planning to send Manon home and take a break before dinner, but another incident broke out.

*Master Kent... A live combat is about to take place.*

*What? At this time?*

*The conflicts over Camilla's bedwetting have caused significant backlash from the knights.*

*When is the live combat?*

*The day after tomorrow...*

*There will be more participants than last time.*

*Understood, can you continue gathering information?*

*Understood...*

*I'll also investigate the number of participants and their selection.*

After Fred and Basten returned to Lastock, I couldn't help but hold my head.

*Hmm... I wanted to focus on the rescue operation...*

*Master Kent, situations change, and not all changes are bad.*

*But if I have to rescue the live combat team, I won't be able to train as a coachman.*

*That's true, but it's only a few days, and if we train the newly rescued people as coachmen, the preparation for the rescue operation will be faster.*

*Right, the more people involved in preparing the carriages, the better.*

Reinhardt is right; it's like headhunting coachmen.

*Yeah, I see, I feel better now.*

*But Master Kent, there's one problem...*

*What? Is there something wrong?*

*Yes...*

Reinhardt's unusually serious tone made my anxiety grow.

*If the Saint participates in the next live combat, she will come to Volzard, and if she meets Manon...*

*Oh no... The committee chair... Oh, I can't delay this...*

*Hahaha, Master Kent, this is where you show your manliness.*

*Show my manliness? How...?*

*Hahaha, if she complains, just kiss her to shut her up and tell her to follow you quietly.*

*