Chapter 98

After finishing the recording of the message for Father, I beckoned Taka to the corner of the cafeteria with a hand gesture.

"Is there something you need?"

Are you thinking that I'm going to make you do something again? Your expression, which clearly says it's a hassle, really gets on my nerves. Maybe I should just stop passing on Shelia's message.

"It's not that I need something, Taka. Isn't there only one reason I would call you?"

"Is it about Shelia? What's up? When can you bring her here?"

"Haa... I just told you, didn't I? It's not that easy. Do you have the memory of a chicken?"

"Ugh, I'm sorry..."

In fact, I have been in touch with Shelia, but her mother doesn't even know where she is.

"I met with Shelia this morning and talked to her."

"Really? Is she doing well? What did she say about me...?"

"Wait, wait, don't get so worked up! I'm about to tell you!"

"I'm sorry..."

"Hey, haven't you been acting a bit stupid since you came here? Are you okay? Can you even be the head of a family like this?"

"Ah, I'm sorry... So, what did Shelia say?"

To be honest, I have no intention of being your messenger, and I have a mountain of other things to do.

"Did you go to the wall construction site again today, like you did yesterday?"

"Yeah, I'm not very skilled, so I can't think of any other job I can do right now."

"That's fine, I guess. Just do what you can... and set an example for the others."

"Are you trying to use me as a negative example?"

"You know me too well. By the way, you've been pardoned, but you haven't been forgiven by the cobbler Marcel yet."

"I know. I plan to work hard on the wall construction for a while to earn his forgiveness."

"Alright, do that. I'll let you know if there's any progress on my end."

"I appreciate it. I'm sorry to keep relying on you, Kuni, but I really need your help."

"I'll do what I can to get Shelia released as soon as possible."

Since the video camera and other recording equipment will be stored by Mr. Furukan, I decided to pick them up later and headed to Lastock.

'This morning, I left my boarding house, went to the guild, then moved to Lastock, visited the Japanese investigation headquarters, stopped by the summoning point, watched the sunset from the tower of the royal capital Aldaros, returned to Volzard, and moved to Lastock again... Lord Kent, aren't you working too hard?'

'Yeah... I thought so too. But this is the last job I have planned for today, so I'll do my best.'

I'm going to Lastock to hear about the situation of the nobles from Camilla. I could go tomorrow, but if I delay, I might end up with more work, so I'll get it done as soon as possible. Besides, I have an important matter to attend to on the day of rest tomorrow.

At the Lastock garrison, Camilla was working alone again tonight.

I suppose it's partly because I instructed her to compile the relationships of the nobles today, but seeing her work overtime alone every day makes me wonder if she's not good at delegating tasks. Watching her from the shadows, I can see her head nodding forward occasionally as she writes documents. She looks overworked, but I doubt her subordinates can advise her to take a break.

As before, I emerged from the shadows while Camilla was focused on her documents and sat down on the sofa. I also called Malt and the others to keep them around and enjoy their fluffiness. After moving around all day since morning, sitting on a comfortable sofa makes my eyelids feel heavy. I'm a bit worried if I can even focus on the talk about the nobles, but then a pleasant aroma of tea wafted over. Camilla and I made eye contact as we both noticed the scent.

"Lord... Devil, when did you arrive?"

"Hmm... just a moment ago, but ah, Fred, thank you..."

The scent of tea came from Fred, who had prepared it thoughtfully. Fred placed cups in front of me and across from me, and encouraged Camilla to sit down. Camilla took a bundle of papers from a drawer and sat down across from me.

"Regarding the relationships of the nobles of Reisenburg..."

"Wait, let's drink the tea before it gets cold."

Otherwise, I might start dozing off in the middle of the conversation, just like I used to in Japan.

"Lord Devil, you look tired..."

"Huh? Who do you think is to blame for that?"

"I apologize. It is all due to my lack of virtue. I am truly sorry..."

"Yeah, enough! Just let me drink the tea in peace."

"I apologize."

The tea leaves Fred prepared were probably for Camilla. They taste different from the tea Donovan makes, but they have a fragrant and refreshing aftertaste that clears my mind. In Japan, drinks were mostly soft drinks, but savoring a properly brewed cup of tea makes me feel more grown-up.

"By the way, how is the preparation for the large-scale goblin outbreak going?"

"Ah, thank you for providing so many materials. Thanks to you, the material shortage has been resolved, but the lack of manpower is a serious issue, and we have only made about 30% progress."

"Let me see your plan."

"But, Lord Devil, you said we should defend ourselves with our own strength..."

"In the evening, I was watching the sunset from the tower of the royal castle, and there was a strong west wind."

"The tower of the royal castle, really? Is that true?"

"It's not the location that matters, but the wind direction. At this rate, will the preparations be completed in time?"

"That... I don't know. However, no reinforcements have arrived from the royal capital, and we have limited manpower..."

Indeed, in a situation where reinforcements from the royal capital are not expected, they are doing their best. However, there is still an unknown fact that Camilla needs to know.

"Volzard was able to repel the large-scale goblin outbreak thanks to the work of my subordinates."

"But wasn't it because of the wall?"

"Of course, the wall was effective, but the goblin corpses piled up, and they were about to climb over. It was only because Reinhardt and Bastian cleared the corpses that Volzard was able to survive the outbreak."

I told Camilla the behind-the-scenes story of how Volzard survived the outbreak, which was not revealed to the envoy from Reisenburg. Camilla looked skeptical.

"What's wrong? Don't you believe it?"

"No, are Reinhardt and Bastian the skeletons you command?"

"Yes, but what about it?"

"Could they be the powerful Reinhardt and the fiery Bastian who protected the wise king Arthur with their lives?"

Indeed, I remember hearing that Reinhardt and Bastian were called by those names, but they were wandering aimlessly in the forest of evil, unable to rest in peace.

"Reinhardt, is that true?"

'Indeed, we served Lord Arthur...'

"But didn't you say you couldn't protect Lord Arthur?"

'At that time, we were ambushed by an army and stayed behind to hold off the enemy, sacrificing our lives. However, we do not know what happened to Lord Arthur afterward.'

I can feel the strong desire from Reinhardt to know the fate of his master.

"Reinhardt and Bastian were indeed the knights known as the powerful, fiery, and swift."

"Lord Devil, you command all three of the loyal retainers of Reisenburg?"

"The three loyal retainers of Reisenburg?"

According to Camilla, the first prince of Reisenburg, Arthur, was saved from a life-threatening situation by the efforts of Reinhardt and the others, and he ascended the throne with overwhelming support from the people. He ruled wisely, promoted the development of new farmland, and is revered as the founder of the Reisenburg Kingdom. The three main retainers who protected Arthur, Reinhardt, Bastian, and Fred, are known as the three loyal retainers of Reisenburg and are celebrated among the royal family.

'Lord Arthur... so it was true. Our efforts were not in vain.'

'Commander... I can't find the words...'

Reinhardt and Bastian, who had wandered aimlessly in the forest of evil without knowing the fate of their master, have indeed found their purpose, and their efforts have become the foundation of the current Reisenburg. Although they are now bones and cannot shed tears, there was a definite light in their eyes. The strong emotions from them made me unable to hold back my tears.

"That's great... Reinhardt, that's really great. Fred, tell Bastian too."

'Understood... I'll go...'

Fred left with a light step, disappearing into the shadows.

'At that time, Lord Arthur was just an adult, about the same age as Lord Kent. He was intelligent, modest, tolerant, and cared for the people, showing the qualities of a future great king. That's why we were willing to risk our lives for him. However, we were left with the regret of not being able to confirm his safety.'

"So, you no longer have any regrets?"

'No, that's not true. We have a new mission to watch over Lord Kent. If it's Lord Kent, he will surely restore the declining Reisenburg.'

"Wait... I'm not going to be the king of Reisenburg."

'No, even if you don't ascend the throne, a new legend of the devil will be born in Reisenburg.'

"But isn't that more dependent on the efforts of Reinhardt and the others rather than my own?"

'Of course, we are not afraid to put in the effort. We will fulfill Lord Kent's wishes.'

I was a little worried that they might move on to the afterlife without any regrets, but it turned out to be a groundless concern. Bastian, who received the news from Fred, flew from the royal capital and embraced Reinhardt warmly.

'Commander... Commander...'

'Oh, we did it. We protected him.'

'Lord Arthur became a great king, didn't he?'

'Yes, our judgment was not wrong.'

'Yes, I am deeply moved.'

The sight of the skeletons hugging each other, making their bones rattle, was a surreal scene, but to me, it was a beautiful one. I felt tears welling up again, but Camilla said something that hit me.

"Lord Devil, you shed tears too?"

"Hey... if I hadn't been summoned, I would have been a normal child. Isn't it the responsibility of the people who summoned me to make a child a devil? If someone is called from a world without magic and suddenly given great power, and is praised by everyone, they will naturally become arrogant."

"That's why I used the subordinate bracelet..."

"Are you stupid? Why can't you think of anything other than extreme measures... Being deceived and treated like a slave, and being treated badly... How can you feel good about cooperating? In fact, I have a lot of resentment from my classmates."

"That's... something I was prepared for. Everything is for Reisenburg..."

"It's not. Not only you, Camilla, but the Reisenburg Kingdom as a whole has been hated by two hundred people... No, if you include the victims and their families from my country, Japan, it's even more. Is that good for Reisenburg?"

"That... is not certain."

Camilla was confident in her plan and had made preparations for the worst, but from our perspective, her thinking was