Chapter 18

"So? What's the famous eldest son of the Worrian family doing in such a small town with the Lotus family's young lady?"

The man who grabbed the hood of Livio's cloak lifted the corners of his mouth in a sneer. With his sharp eyes, Sophie's shoulders stiffened.

"…Is it a case of mistaken identity?"

As Livio tightened his grip on the hand resting on Sophie's shoulder, the man snorted.

"How could you mistake someone with such a flashy face?"

"…"

Well, yeah.

That's true.

Sophie couldn't think of anyone as beautiful as Livio, except for Adelaide Worrian, his mother. In other words, Livio must be the only man this beautiful, Sophie thought. There couldn't be many such extraordinary beauties around. Indeed, there was no way he could have been mistaken.

Sophie, who almost nodded in agreement, suddenly noticed a gaze fixed on her and shifted her eyes.

A girl with long black hair and a black dress was staring at the hand gripping Livio's hood. With large, monolid eyes and slightly sad, drooping eyebrows, the girl tilted her head.

"Are you trying to extort money?"

"No way!"

With a voice like a ringing bell, the man frowned and let go of Livio's hood. The bearded, rough-looking man, standing next to the girl, exuded a strong criminal aura. Despite stopping Livio and Sophie, he started talking to them without including them.

"Rene, I told you not to use such a big spell without considering the location, right?"

"I cast a defensive spell on everything except the monsters."

"That's not the point. After all, what's the point of taking down the monster unharmed for materials if you're going to do this?"

"Materials?"

"Basic monster hunting, remember it."

"………"

"Speak up if you have something to say."

"Don't give me that sullen look," the man said, grabbing the girl's head, which seemed expressionless to an outsider, while glancing at Livio. Sophie met Livio's eyes, and he nodded.

Yeah, let's do it now.

As they started to move,

"Hey!"

Livio's hood was grabbed again.

"Hey, no need to rush. Let's talk, young man."

Livio's eyebrow twitched.

With a face that openly showed his dissatisfaction, Livio said, "If you have a complaint, speak up," and the man frowned. Livio, in response, shook off the man's hand and smiled beautifully.

A flawless, completely clear, beautiful smile.

However, it was a very intense, intimidating smile.

Having gotten used to Livio's soft, gentle smile, Sophie felt this was the business smile, the intimidating version, and felt somewhat enlightened.

Livio turned to the man, placed his hand on his chest, and bowed.

"Complaint? Not at all, Your Majesty Valois Elsaert Askilos."

"…You're still a nasty guy. You know I don't want to be called that here, right?"

"Is that so?"

He straightened up, tilted his head, and smiled, how beautiful.

His casually swaying black hair and the condescending look he gave to the shorter Valois, despite his words, clearly showed no respect.

The king of the neighboring country, Valois Elsaert Askilos, sighed and ran his hand through his hair, which reached his shoulders.

"My name is Vais, and this is Rene. So, what should we call you?"

"Nice to meet you, I'm Livio and this is Sophie."

The man, who snorted, called the girl "Rene."

"Can you do something about that?"

"That?"

"The completely charred monster. Leaving it in the town like this would be a nuisance. Can you use a spell to get rid of it?"

While casually suggesting a difficult task, Vais, not Valois, pointed to the large roasted bird with his thumb. Rene tilted her head, and her long hair swayed.

"I can… but…"

She can. The girl, who had cast a powerful spell without any incantation, replied casually.

Then, she glanced at the monster and said, "By the way, what kind of monster is that?"

"It's a Kickfitter. I couldn't get any materials while it was showing off its proud kicks."

Vais, like Rene, looked at the monster. Adventurers and mages who had been surrounding it earlier were still there.

"I've never seen one this big… but its feathers can be used for high-quality bedding, and its organs can be used for medicine. Its claws and beak can be used for weapons and armor. Also, its meat is soft and tasty."

At these words, Rene froze.

Though her expression was unchanged, she stiffened as if struck by lightning, which, to be honest, was a bit amusing.

As Sophie watched, Rene began to tremble.

"K-Kickfitter…! Its organs can be used for all kinds of potions!!!"

"That's what I'm saying."

"T-That's a Kickfitter…"

Rene turned and stared at the charred bird, the Kickfitter, with her own hands.

Though her expression didn't change, her small back carried a heavy sadness, as if about to be crushed.

"I could have made that, that, and that… I wanted to try making them…"

"Stop acting on your own, I told you that."

"I came up with a way to drop lightning with minimal cost. Not a spell that drops from above, but a ground magic that attracts the ground. I wanted to try it."

As she spoke, Rene became more and more dejected.

She knew about monsters but not their appearance. To her, it was just a good target to test her ideas, a common type among scholars.

If someone nearby isn't watching, it could lead to a disaster.

In Rene's case, Vais seems to be the one watching over her. Though she tried to act on her own, it seems she had the intention of not affecting the surroundings, and Vais would have stopped her if it got too dangerous. Probably.

"You didn't know what kind of monster it was?"

"In a place like that, you can't see the monster before it's disassembled. The witch who wrote the book probably thought it wasn't necessary…"

As Sophie listened, various real-life issues, such as being exposed and what to do next, and the fact that the king of a neighboring country was here, kept popping into her mind. She felt like collapsing and creating dark matter on the ground, or even fainting, seeing Rene so dejected.

Rene's powerful magic had indeed saved everyone from injury. Sophie, who had never seen such a large spell before, was a bit excited.

But Rene had burned some opportunity with her hands and was now so dejected.

Sophie, who doesn't like the word "pitiful," couldn't think of anything else to describe this back.

A protective desire to do something for her welled up. But Sophie couldn't do anything.

No matter how much she searched her mind, Sophie couldn't come up with a good idea. Her dictionary didn't have words about monsters or what to say to a much more powerful mage. How powerless she felt. Sophie started to feel sad.

Seeing the dejected Rene, Sophie felt dejected too.

As the dejection spread, Livio spoke up.

"Shall I help with the dissection? Would you like to go together to see if there's anything usable?"

"Eh?"

Rene turned around, and her pitch-black eyes seemed to shine a bit.

Seeing the delighted Rene, Vais raised an eyebrow.

"Can you dissect too?"

"Rather, it would be surprising if you couldn't, Vais-sama."

"Usually, you'd ask a professional to do it."

Livio blinked.

Probably, in the Worrian family, it's normal to dissect the monsters you've defeated yourself. For the Worrian men, cooking and monster dissection might be general knowledge. Whether these are on the same level is questionable, but they might be covered in a book titled "Survival in the Forest."

"Anyway, let's go, Lady Rene."

"…Is it okay?"

The smaller Rene looked up at the tall Livio.

Livio nodded with a gentle smile.

"If we don't, Lady Sophie will get dejected too."

"Hau!"

Sophie's heart cried out. Ah, I like it. I like it. That kind of kindness, that kind of line, is really bad for the heart. How cute his smiling face is! Already! As Sophie pressed her chest, Vais laughed next to her.

"Interesting, that."

"…I-I'm embarrassed…"

Seeing that she was being watched, Sophie blushed, and Vais raised an eyebrow.

"What's embarrassing? Isn't it a good thing?"

Hmm. This kind of thing.

Vais's this kind of attitude, somehow, relaxes Sophie's guard.

Probably, Livio felt the same way. When his hood was grabbed, Livio could have escaped if he really wanted to. But he didn't, and he didn't shake off the hand until he was told to "speak up" directly. Probably, for that reason.

"Is that so?"

"Go ahead."

As Vais waved his hand, somewhat awkwardly, Rene's eyes lit up. So cute.

Livio's, so cute, and Sophie's heart was pounding, a different kind of sweet feeling. Something she had never felt in formal settings, and she naturally smiled.

"Then, Vais-sama, please take care of Lady Sophie."

"By the way, do you think I'm planning something bad?"

"Those who do such things don't say that."

Laughing, Livio looked up, then at Vais, and Rene tilted her head.

"Are you planning something bad?"

"Of course not, it's a joke."

"See?"

"………"

The relaxed conversation made Sophie laugh.

Even Vais's frowning face looked cute, which was strange. Having a relaxed mind is important. The first time they met, she thought he was a terrifying king.

Yes, Valois Elsaert Askilos is a terrifying king.

He rebelled against his father, defeated the surrounding countries in war, and ruled everything by force. He is called the "Usurper King" of the neighboring country.

Leading the charge himself, his name is attached to the image of a blood-soaked figure who has beheaded many famous generals.

His strength is so great that even Sophie, who has no combat experience, could tell from the way he easily stood behind Livio.

If some thug tried to point a sword at him, saying, "Hey, what's the king doing here?" he would be sent to the other world in an instant.

That's why he's here, looking so relaxed in light armor, not at all like a king.

Sophie has never heard of this man bowing to anyone.

But.

"If you ever lay a hand on Lady Sophie, I will make you regret it so much that you'll wish you were dead, no matter what it takes, no matter who I have to make my enemy."

Livio smiled.

His crystal-like, beautiful purple eyes glinted, and he smiled viciously and beautifully.

It was like a messenger from the darkness, terrifying yet incredibly beautiful.

The smile made her catch her breath.

As her throat tightened, a large hand patted her back.

"Joking, don't get so worked up."

Looking up, Vais frowned and laughed as if it was nothing. Frowning is his habit.

He patted Sophie's back lightly and then let go.

"I don't want to hear that joke again."

"Sorry."

Vais, who raised his hands in a surrender pose, didn't seem to notice that he had touched Sophie's back. Shrugging, he smiled at Sophie and turned to leave with Rene.

"…Thank you."

Vais, still frowning, watched the two backs with a smile.

He smiled slightly.

"Young."

"…How old are you, Vais-sama?"

"31."

Interesting.

Not that he's old enough to call Livio "young," but he is definitely older than Livio and Sophie. Moreover, as a king, he has a life experience that Livio and Sophie can't match.

In fact, Sophie felt intimidated by Livio's gaze, and he noticed and comforted her before she could get dejected. What a cool guy.

As Sophie looked up at his face, Vais tilted his head.

"Are you coming in? The innkeeper has been watching us."

"Eh?"

That's right.

Sophie and Livio were at the inn. They had come out due to a loud noise.

The entrance of the inn was right behind them, and the innkeeper was looking at them worriedly.

"Oh, you finally noticed. Your husband is strong, isn't he?"

"Da-"

As Sophie blushed, the innkeeper laughed.

"Don't worry, I'm taking care of your luggage. Your friends seem to have something to do, but what do you want to do? Would you like some tea?"

Proposed with a bright smile, Sophie looked at Vais.

She hesitated to answer for him.

Sophie was curious about the monster dissection but didn't have the confidence to watch it up close. She wanted to work on it with Livio someday and say, "Leave it to me!" But for now, she wanted to wait on the blood and organs.

So, she wanted to stay here where she could see Livio and Rene from a distance.

But this man is the king of a neighboring country. She couldn't just let him stand here, and just as she was about to accept the innkeeper's offer,

"No, it's fine. Can I borrow a chair?"

"Sure thing!"

Vais said.

A chair?

Tilting her head, Sophie watched as the innkeeper quickly brought a chair.

"Thanks."

"For the town's hero."

The innkeeper winked and said, "Let me know when you're done," before going back inside.

Vais placed the chair with a thud and looked at Sophie.

"Sit down."

"Eh?"

"You were wobbling, weren't you? But you're also curious about them, right? Let's sit and talk."

His smile was intimidating.

But he was so smooth.

Sophie frowned.

"I can't just sit down."

"Stop being formal. We're just Vais and Sophie now. It's normal for a man to escort a woman, right?"

Well, unfortunately, Sophie didn't know such a normal thing.

After all, she had never been properly escorted by her father or ex-fiancé. Being treated as the prince's fiancée was different, and most people would prioritize the prince.

But.

"Don't compare me to some idiot."

She couldn't say, "What kind of idiot?" to Vais's smile.

Sophie frowned and had no choice but to sit down.