Chapter 4

The next morning, after changing clothes, I went out into the yard.

In the corner of the yard, Louise was curled up, sleeping in the morning sun.

“Louise”

“...”

Louise remained silent, only opening one eye to look at me while still curled up.

“Going to look for a job, what about you, Louise?”

“... Sleeping”

“Got it. I might need you to work in the afternoon, so you can sleep until then.”

“... Mm”

I left Louise at home and set out.

I know this because she understands language and can have such exchanges. Louise is still a bit wary of me.

Just now, I could sense from her tone that she was testing whether I really meant it when I said she could sleep.

Well, I intend to let her do as she pleases in this regard. She'll understand eventually.

I took the usual route to the center of town. I arrived at the municipal building, which is slightly outside the center, and went to the bulletin board in the first-floor lobby.

Well, what kind of requests are there today? It would be nice if there were some transportation jobs since Louise is here.

As I was looking for such a request,

“Ah, there you are. Hey, you.”

“Huh?”

I turned around when I heard someone call me from behind. There was an auntie standing there.

“Um... Ms. Rose, right?”

The auntie—Ms. Rose—grinned.

She is an official at this building and handles the requests posted on the bulletin board for the dragon knights. I've taken on a couple of jobs here before, and she always handled them for me.

Her personality matches her appearance—she's a “auntie” type. She's bold, doesn't worry about small things, and is friendly, quickly getting to the heart of the matter.

“I’ve been looking for you.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, you did the job for Miss Catherine the other day, right?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“Thought so. I have a job I want you to do. Are you interested?”

“... Sure.”

I grinned.

I took on that job with the future in mind, but it came sooner than expected?

I followed Ms. Rose.

She led me to a room behind the window where you accept bulletin board requests.

It was a room like a reception area, and I was seated there.

“Why me?”

I asked first.

“Miss Catherine praised you. Not many freelancers can satisfy her.”

“Is that so?”

I nodded.

By the way, “freelancer” refers to a dragon knight who isn’t part of a guild, like me. There are other terms, but “freelancer” is the most common.

“So, I thought I’d give you a job.”

“Understood. What kind of job?”

“Finding someone.”

“Finding someone?”

I tilted my head.

Finding someone isn’t usually a job given to dragon knights...

“Of course, it’s not just any person.”

Ms. Rose’s expression changed.

“Confidentially.”

“That sounds... not peaceful.”

“Actually, a princess has gone missing.”

“A princess?”

I tilted my head and looked back at her, asking what kind of princess.

There are princesses in a figurative sense.

For example, Catherine is sometimes called a “princess” because of her type.

Of course, there’s also the possibility of a real princess, from a “country.”

In that case—

“It’s also confidential.”

“... Understood.”

So, it’s a real princess. If it were a figurative princess, there wouldn’t be a need to hide her identity like this.

It seems to be a job to find a real princess—a princess in the position of a royal.

“Can you give me the details?”

“Do you know the Himyar mountain?”

“Himyar... the mountain a bit north of here?”

“Yeah, the princess’s convoy disappeared there.”

“Disappeared”

“It happened last night. First, we need to know the situation.”

I hesitated for a moment, but—

“Understood. I’ll take it.”

I decided to take the job.

☆

I went home, picked up Louise, who had slept well, and headed north to Himyar mountain.

On the way, I rode Louise.

Even though she’s a small breed, her steady gait made the journey quite comfortable.

But I couldn’t just enjoy the ride.

I furrowed my brow, deep in thought.

The moment of hesitation was because I considered the possibility that the princess might already be “dead.”

The situation is unknown, but the possibility that she’s dead isn’t low.

If that’s the case, it would be a troublesome situation.

But if the princess is alive and I can find and save her, it would be a significant achievement, far surpassing the Catherine job.

After that brief hesitation, I decided to take the job.

Before long, we reached the foot of the mountain.

“Here?”

“What are we doing here?”

“Looking for someone. Can you track a scent?”

“I’m not great at it, but I’m better than humans.”

“Then I’ll count on you—here.”

I said this and took out an envelope from my pocket.

It contained a letter written by the princess, which I borrowed from Ms. Rose.

I held it in front of Louise’s nose, and she sniffed it.

“Can you do it?”

“Yes.”

Louise answered immediately.

“Already?”

“She seems to use a strong fragrance.”

“Ah, perfume? That makes sense.”

“The scent is strong. I heard from a human that it takes dozens of flowers to produce one drop.”

“That’s true.”

I don’t know much about it, but I’ve heard about it in passing.

“She uses it, so I could tell immediately.”

“Got it. Can you help me with that?”

“Sure.”

Louise said this and started up the mountain path with me on her back.

The path was steep and would leave you exhausted by the time you reached the top, but Louise climbed it smoothly.

“You’re amazing.”

“What about it?”

“I’ve heard that dragons have a good sense of smell, but you’re incredible.”

“Hehe, it’s no big deal.”

Louise was in high spirits.

She’s a good kid who’s happy when praised.

“Hey, this is a job, right?”

“Yeah.”

“If it goes well, can I have a reward?”

“A reward? Sure. Do you want something?”

“Hay for sleeping.”

“Hay for sleeping?”

“Properly dried, soft hay.”

“Sure, I can get you as much hay as you want—”

“Really!?”

“Whoa!”

Louise seemed very happy and “jumped” a bit.

I almost fell off and quickly clung to her.

“Hey, be more careful. It’s dangerous to go so fast.”

“Really? You’ll get me hay?”

“I will.”

“Great! I’ll find it quickly!”

Louise’s enthusiasm skyrocketed.

Ignoring my protests, she raced up the mountain path.

I chuckled despite the danger.

—People who get emotionally attached to tools are unnecessary.

“...”

I suddenly remembered those unpleasant words and felt my face stiffen.

This must seem impossible to the guild.

But I’ve decided to do it.

I don’t care about the “norms” of the guilds. I’ll do things my way, on my terms, and build a relationship with my dragon.

“Whoa!”

I finally got used to the speed, but then she hit the brakes hard.

I almost fell off.

“What’s the matter now?”

“It’s below us.”

“Huh?”

“The scent’s owner is below.”

“Below...”

I leaned out to look down.

It was a cliff.

“Really here—oh!”

Leaning out, I saw a half-destroyed carriage about ten meters below.

Around the carriage were several soldiers, some of whom looked like they had fallen to their deaths.

“Is she in there?”

“Yeah.”

“I see. How do we get down—”

“Just go down?”

“Can you do it?”

“Easy.”

Louise said this and jumped without hesitation.

She used the protrusions on the cliff to descend smoothly and landed next to the carriage in a few seconds.

I dismounted and stood in front of the carriage.

I took out the envelope.

The same emblem was engraved on both the carriage and the envelope.

This is definitely the princess’s carriage.

I looked around.

The soldiers were scattered on the ground, most of them beyond help.

Then, the princess?

I swallowed hard and reached out to check inside the carriage.

As soon as I touched the curtain—snap!

Sparks flew, and my hand was repelled.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a barrier.”

“A barrier?”

“Should I remove it?”

“... Yeah, please.”

“Sure.”

Louise opened her mouth, and a spear of light shot out, hitting the carriage.

The moment the spear hit, something shattered, and it looked like glass exploding.

“I removed it.”

“Thanks, that’s amazing.”

“Hehe.”

Louise looked pleased.

I reached out to the curtain again.

This time, my hand wasn’t repelled.

And... I looked inside.

Inside was a woman in a dress, clearly a princess.

She seemed to be unconscious.

I put my finger to her nose—she was breathing.

I quickly checked her body—no major injuries.

“You’re lucky.”

“She must have been protected by the barrier.”

“... I see.”

I still don’t fully understand, but that’s probably what happened.

I gently tapped the princess’s cheek.

I also shook her shoulder.

Then, it seemed to work.

“U...n”

The princess slowly opened her eyes.

“Who...! Ah!”

The moment she saw me, she screamed.

“Who are you! That’s impolite!”

“Calm down, I’m not a threat. I came to find you.”

“Find me? ... Oh!”

The princess quickly calmed down as she looked around.

She seemed to calm down upon seeing the dead soldiers.

This princess is quite something.

“I remember...”

“You seem to understand the situation.”

“Did anyone else survive?”

“No... it doesn’t seem so.”

I looked around.

“You were saved by the carriage. The others weren’t so lucky.”

“I see...”

“Let’s get you to safety first.”

“Wait, what about these people—”

“I remember the way. I’ll come back for them later.”

“... Understood.”

The princess resigned herself and accepted.

I helped her out of the carriage and brought her to Louise.

“A dragon?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to ride this. It’s not as comfortable as a carriage.”

“No, I’m grateful.”

The princess obediently mounted Louise.

“Can you carry two people?”

“Hay for sleeping.”

“Of course.”

“Leave it to me.”

Louise responded with high enthusiasm.

I mounted, and we started walking.

The stability of the Baraul breed made the ride smooth.

Even with the princess on board, the ride was comfortable.

The princess was looking at me.

“Is something wrong?”

“You’re a dragon knight, right?”

“Yeah, a freelancer.”

“A freelancer...”

The princess, who had been looking at me, had a troubled expression.

“Is something wrong?”

“What does ‘freelancer’ mean?”

“It means I’m not part of a guild.”

“You’re not in a guild... why?”

“Huh?”

Why am I being praised so much?

We just met, so why?

Not understanding, I decided to ask directly.

“I’m not that special. Why do you think so?”

“This one.”

The princess gently touched Louise’s back.

“This one’s eyes show that she truly admires you.”

“... Hmm?”

“Even though it’s my first time with a dragon, it’s