Chapter 12

"Let's go pick out some fancy and delicious fruit for Mako. We should choose it together."

"......We ended up going to the market on our own."

"I'm sorry, Mako. We should have been with you."

Ramu, Bagoz, and Uga clenched their fists in regret.

I silently stared at the high-end fruit shop that had been occupied by the thieves.

*Lady, I can't stand it. Let me go.*

Entia suddenly sat up.

*I'll charge in and scatter the thieves this time, and save Mau and Meala.*

"Hey, Entia! You're going to charge in again!?"

"Stop it! If you recklessly rush in and resist, they'll hurt the hostages!"

"Have you forgotten that you tried to help earlier and ended up getting cut by the thieves!?"

Ramu, Bagoz, and Uga, with their eyes sharp and ready to charge, quickly held back the agitated Entia.

The three didn't understand what Entia was saying, but they had a good idea of what she was trying to do.

*Hey! Let go! I am the descendant of the divine wolf!*

"No, Entia. First, calm down."

I pinched the tip of Entia's nose, who was getting excited.

*Mu...*

"You can't get too worked up."

Entia, reprimanded by me, hung her head.

Meanwhile, I looked at the group of knights stationed in front of the high-end fruit shop that had been occupied by the thieves.

As I had heard in the research institute, they were the knights who protected this city—essentially, like the police.

From the way they were talking to Iksa, I could tell they were probably coming up with some kind of plan.

"Ramu, Bagoz, Uga, I'm sorry, but I'm going to talk to those people for a bit."

The three nodded in agreement.

"Entia, please don't cause any trouble."

*...I understand.*

"Right, Entia, be good, okay?"

"Here, I'll pat your belly, pat, pat."

*Hey, stop it! I don't want to be patted by you guys! Only you, Lady, can pat me!*

I glanced at Entia, who was being petted by the three *Beowulfs* and was angry for a different reason, and decided to head towards Iksa and the knights.

* * * * *

"Wait a minute! What did you just say!?"

"Huh?"

A little distance away from the shop occupied by the thieves, a group of knights were gathered and on standby.

Several knights lined up like security guards, forming a barrier to prevent the crowd from getting too close to the shop.

As I reached the front, I heard Iksa's tense voice.

"......"

The knights in armor were gathered like a wall, so I couldn't see what was happening in the center, but I had a bad feeling.

I needed to get to Iksa quickly.

I silently tried to slip through the gap between the knights.

"Huh? Hey, you!"

Naturally, I was spotted right away.

"What are you trying to do? Beyond here is—"

"Sorry! I'm a friend of Prince Iksa!"

I shouted without hesitation.

"Is that so?"

The knight asked another knight next to him.

Ah! This knight is the one who came to the institute to call Iksa.

Got it!

"Right, isn't it? We came from the institute together, didn't we!?"

"Ah, well, yeah..."

The knight himself was probably thinking, "Wait, why was this person there? And why did they come with us?"

But I took advantage of his hesitation and immediately rushed through the knights.

"Hey!"

A voice called out from behind, but it would take time for the densely packed knights to catch up.

In the meantime, I crouched low and slipped through the knights' legs.

Eventually, I reached Iksa, with Suaro standing behind him.

"That's all I have to say."

In front of Iksa stood a man.

Compared to the other knights, he had a slightly different design and an air of authority, looking particularly important.

Under his helmet, his exposed face exuded arrogance.

"......Then I want you to say it again, Captain of the Knights. I hope I heard you wrong."

"We will storm the shop."

The man, called the Captain of the Knights, said in a cold, emotionless voice.

Iksa frowned.

"We have already informed the Weeblue family. The damage to the shop will be compensated by the state."

"That's not the point! In the worst case, the hostages will be in danger... No, you're abandoning them!"

"Please rest assured, Prince. We have the situation under control."

The Captain of the Knights remained unnervingly calm in response to Iksa's raised voice.

"Currently, the hostages inside the shop are a few low-ranking employees and, fortunately, only two young beastmen."

"......There are no royals or nobles... So you're saying it's fine?"

"Prince, we are knights who have sworn loyalty to this country."

The Captain of the Knights said with a polite demeanor.

"Our sole and highest priority is to serve the royal family. Our master is King Grouga. And the king has said, 'The possessions of the royal family must not be taken by anyone.' Magic tools are the property of the king, created by the royal bloodline that has carried magic power since ancient times."

"......"

"Our opponents are thieves, the lowest of the low. We cannot allow them to look down on us."

"......Even if the hostages die in the process—"

"It is an unavoidable sacrifice."

......What can I say.

Knights are supposed to be righteous and devout warriors.

Because they are seen as protectors of the country, I thought they would surely strive to protect the safety of the citizens, like the police.

In other words, I thought they would consider saving Mau and Meala—yes, I had assumed that.

No, I thought that was common sense.

Amateurs shouldn't interfere.

We should leave it to the professionals, I thought.

(......But this is wrong, isn't it, Shoutarou...)

I thought of Hidari Shoutarou, the passionate and principled hero of *Kamen Rider W*.

A warm feeling began to well up inside me.

"I am willing to hand this over to free the hostages."

On the other hand, Iksa showed the bag hanging from his shoulder and said.

I was surprised. Iksa, who was so enthusiastic about magic tools, said that.

However, the Captain of the Knights' eyes were cold.

"Your will does not matter, Prince Iksa. The current king's wishes take precedence over those of the seventh prince."

"......!"

"......I did not call you here to be a negotiator, Prince Iksa. I wanted you to see the reality."

The Captain of the Knights suddenly sneered.

"Stop spouting idealistic nonsense that goes against the current king's philosophy, that 'humans and beastmen should live equally.'"

With that, the Captain of the Knights turned his back on Iksa.

"Wait—"

Iksa stepped forward.

But Suaro held him back from behind.

"Suaro..."

"Prince Iksa, stay calm. Think carefully... We cannot lightly give up the magic tool."

"......"

Iksa gritted his teeth in frustration.

Seeing this, the Captain of the Knights snorted derisively.

"Alright, you—"

He turned to give orders to his subordinates.

I stood in front of him.

"Huh?"

I crouched low, pulling back my right arm to the shoulder.

"Mako..."

The moment Iksa noticed me, I shouted—

"Sei!"

With a powerful voice, my punch shot straight into the Captain of the Knights' face, unprotected by his armor.

It hit the bridge of his nose.

I felt the bone grind against my fist—

"Ugh!"

The Captain of the Knights let out a strange, bird-like cry and rolled on the ground.

I stood with my hands on my hips, snorting.

"......"

Everyone, the knights, Iksa, and Suaro, froze in shock at the scene.

Well, if a woman suddenly appeared and punched a man in armor, it would be a pretty unbelievable sight.

I never thought that working at a home center would lead to something like this...

Home centers sell a lot of heavy items.

Processed foods like bags of rice and cases of bottled drinks.

Furniture, of course, and agricultural supplies like commercial fertilizers, and construction materials like gravel, stones, and steel beams, are mostly heavy.

There are many items weighing around 20 kg on average, which I lift and carry every day.

Loading about 15 kg concrete blocks 100 at a time, or 100 bags of about 25 kg cement onto a truck is common.

Working hours are almost like workout time.

Repeating this every day, my body eventually learned how to move efficiently and with less strain.

Naturally, my body was well-trained, to the point where the doctor at the company's regular health checkup asked me...

*...Do you go to the gym or do martial arts?*

*No, I basically just watch tokusatsu shows at home on weekends. Should I exercise more?*

*Huh?*

*Huh?*

...to that extent.

"Captain!"

Back to the story.

The Captain of the Knights rolled to a stop at the feet of his subordinates.

He got up, holding his nose.

"What are you doing! Who are you!?"

"Prince Iksa."

Ignoring the shouting Captain of the Knights, I spoke to Iksa.

"Mako..."

"Please listen to Prince Iksa's opinion."

Just a moment ago, in the research institute.

Iksa said to me, who was with the beastmen, "Actually, that would be ideal."

I don't know the details. His past, his circumstances—what he has been through in his life, I don't understand.

But he must—especially in terms of what should be done now—share the same values as me.

"Do you agree with the Captain of the Knights' thinking? Or do you want to save the hostages?"

"......If I say I want to save them?"

"Then, please cooperate with me."

I said clearly, looking him in the eye.

"I have an idea—"

"You! Don't ignore me! Do you know who I am, the direct captain of the market city Rosshewood's guard knights—"

"Shut up!"

I punched the Captain of the Knights, who was charging at me, again.

"Ugh!"

The Captain of the Knights flew through the air, following the same trajectory as before.

A tendon, perhaps.

"......I have a plan. A plan to subdue the thieves and rescue the hostages."

"What kind of plan?"

"Prince Iksa. As I said before, I have the power to create magic tools."

Iksa's eyes widened.

Yes, the metal I create through my *Alchemy* has, to varying degrees, magical effects.

It enhances the inherent properties of the item.

And like that sword, when a person with magic power infuses it, it can be used as a weapon.

...So, I have an idea.

"Mau, Meala, I'm coming."

I activated my *Alchemy*.

A glow emanated from my body.

The knights, Iksa, and Suaro were all shocked by the sight of me using magic.

"This is magic. So you really are—"

Then, I created "a certain metal."

This is a common item found in any home center, a staple of home centers.

And if my idea works—hopefully, this could be the ultimate weapon to simply resolve this situation.