Chapter 26

"Alright, take them away."

The knights, who had bound the surrendered private soldiers with ropes, proceeded to escort the men away at Gaious' command.

The man in the cloak and the large man who had been slapped had their injuries healed by Cecilia's recovery magic, but they still seemed to be in a daze.

They walked unsteadily at the back of the group.

"Well, that's one problem solved, I guess?"

Shiro looked around and let out a small sigh.

The private soldiers had been cleared out, and in the schoolyard, the parents who had heard the commotion were confirming their children's safety and rejoicing together.

"I'm going too."

The last remaining female beastwoman extended her arms to Gaious.

It was a gesture indicating her willingness to cooperate without resistance.

However, Shiro placed his hand on hers from the side.

"We will need your cooperation, but we don't intend to restrain you. You protected Will, after all."

"But..."

The fact that she had been hired by Cardi and had assisted Gram did not change.

Still, Shiro did not let go of her hand.

"Just leave it to me. There seems to be a reason, and our knight captain is a reasonable man."

Shiro gave Gaious a nod, and Gaious shrugged.

The female beastwoman hesitantly lowered her hands and bowed to Gaious.

"Please take care of me..."

"Of course. If Shiro says so..."

Gaious nodded and instructed the female knight who was standing by to accompany her.

Morgan then came to stand in front of Shiro.

"Shiro. I'm the same. There were reasons, but I took the children as hostages... I can't face those kids and their parents if I just leave things as they are."

Shiro couldn't help but be troubled by this.

He closed his eyes and scratched his head.

Honestly, he didn't want to take Morgan away as a criminal.

"Let's go and apologize together..."

After much deliberation, this was the solution Shiro came up with.

"What do you mean?"

Cecilia, who had been listening curiously, asked, and Shiro explained the situation to her.

Cecilia nodded in understanding.

"I understand. I'll go with you too."

"Thanks..."

Shiro sighed in relief, and Cecilia smiled at him.

Though he didn't want to force a resolution, Shiro knew that Cecilia was reliable in such situations.

"Ren, I'm sorry, but can you take care of Will..."

As Shiro turned to look at Ren, something happened suddenly.

Thud...

Will's golem lost its power and collapsed on the spot.

"Will!"

"Master Will!"

Ren quickly turned her gaze to Will, who was huddled on the ground, unable to move.

The servants rushed over to him.

He was sweating profusely and panting heavily.

"Out of mana...?"

Will, who had been using magic repeatedly, collapsed into Ren's arms, his consciousness fading.

He had been so excited that he hadn't noticed his own exhaustion.

Until just a moment ago, everyone had been unaware of Will's condition, as he had been acting normally.

"Master Will..."

Ren, worried about Will's reckless behavior, looked at him with concern.

Will, noticing her gaze, forced a smile despite his discomfort.

"Hehe... I'm sorry..."

"Master Will... Please don't do such reckless things again."

Ren picked up Will and pressed her cheek against his sweaty face.

Will, who found using magic so enjoyable, might not have realized he was overexerting himself.

(I need to set some boundaries soon...)

It would be too late if something serious happened.

While responding to Will's weak embrace, Ren made a firm resolution.

"Ren, take the children to the mansion first... Ratts, get the carriage ready. Elise, Aika, John, please take care of the children."

"Understood."

John, representing the group, responded and got into the carriage.

"Shiro."

Ren called out, and Shiro turned to her.

"I deliberately let the nobleman who was commanding the private soldiers go. I recognized him, and I thought it would be more convenient this way."

Shiro gave a thumbs up in response to Ren's words.

Ren bowed slightly and got into the carriage with Will.

"I'll come to pick you up later."

"Thank you."

Cecilia responded to Ratts, who was on the driver's seat, and Ratts set the carriage in motion.

"Well..."

After watching the carriage drive off, Shiro and the others started walking towards the parents and children who were celebrating.

▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽

When the sun was setting and the light was starting to turn golden, Orpheus, who had received an early report, was slumped over his study table.

"Regis..."

"What is it, sir?"

Regis, who was standing by the table, asked calmly in response to Orpheus' groan.

"Could you read it again?"

"Of course..."

At Orpheus' weak request, Regis read the report aloud.

"Master Wilber delivered the magic sword to Shiro during the battle. Shiro made a temporary contract with his幻兽, 'A Fragment of Wind,' and rescued Serena, Nina, and others, including Elise and the maids and children, on site. He activated the wind spirit magic, delivered the magic sword to Shiro, and then generated an earth golem. He deployed three layers of barriers to block the thrown knives and bestowed wind attribute auxiliary magic on the earth golem..."

As Orpheus mulled over the content of the report, his expression became increasingly vacant and strange.

A well-dressed old man with white hair, sitting in a chair next to him, was trying hard not to laugh.

"Then, Master Wilber collapsed from mana exhaustion, but his life is not in danger. Among the apprehended in this incident, 37 people were injured by Master Wilber's magic, but their lives are not in danger."

This was the content of the first errand run by a three-year-old.

"Wilber..."

Orpheus groaned weakly, and the old man next to him finally burst out laughing.

"Hahaha!"

Orpheus turned his vacant gaze towards the old man, who was laughing while holding his stomach.

"No, it's not a laughing matter... Brother."

"No, no, it's just that you..."

The old man, who was gasping for breath and had tears in the corners of his eyes, was none other than the former king of Filfar, Wagner Renaldo Filfar.

Wagner had stopped by to see his brother and was accompanying him in his daily routine.

After regaining his composure and wiping away his tears, Wagner spoke with a trembling voice.

"What a delightful situation Wilber has created!"

Remembering this, Wagner started laughing again, and Orpheus, who had sat up, looked at him with a bemused expression.

"This just makes me want to meet him even more."

"Then why don't you go?"

"Well, there are various considerations due to my position."

Wagner shrugged.

Even though he had retired, he was still the former king.

He couldn't just go out whenever he wanted.

However, Wagner had decided to meet Wilber no matter what.

How could he not after hearing this story?

"But... If I go, Al will probably start complaining."

Wagner, who was chuckling, made Orpheus think of the current king and his nephew, Albert.

"Why would the king...?"

"It's hard to say openly..."

Wagner, after some preamble, smiled at Orpheus.

"Albert was secretly delighted that a male child was born into the royal family without the family knowing."

"I see, that makes sense..."

Orpheus understood.

The Filfar royal family had a tendency to produce more females.

While the kingdom of Filfar accepted queens, the only male child born after Albert was Wilber.

"Perhaps he was feeling cramped surrounded by women."

Albert had three children, all of whom were daughters.

Even without any ill intent, the excitement over the birth of a male child might have saddened the queen.

Albert didn't show his joy openly.

However, if only the former king went to meet Wilber, Albert would probably find it unfair.

On the other hand, calling Wilber to the castle for a specific reason was not feasible given his young age.

In the end, Albert had never met Wilber.

"That's a bit unfortunate..."

Orpheus, recalling how he had rejoiced at Albert's birth and often visited him, felt a bit sorry for the king's position.

He stroked his beard and thought.

"Is there any good idea, Orpheus?"

"I don't think Cecilia or Shiro would be interested..."

Orpheus prefaced his suggestion to Wagner.

"What about making his debut in society?"

"Hmm...?"

In the kingdom of Filfar, princes and princesses are encouraged to interact with the children of nobles who will serve the country in the future.

This is to build trust and form reliable friendships, which is a tradition passed down through generations.

For example, the current king's right-hand man, Prime Minister Felix, was originally from a low-ranking noble family but is now recognized for his excellent skills.

"If you go to persuade them, no one will have a reason to stop you."

"But Wilber is only three... To debut in society—Ah, I see!"

Wagner smiled, realizing what his brother was suggesting.

"Serena, the eldest daughter?"

Orpheus smiled and nodded.

By claiming to debut Serena in society, the whole family could be invited to the castle, and Wilber would come along.

Wagner didn't know, but Serena was a well-mannered and popular girl, much like Cecilia, and was well-liked by both the children and teachers at the school.

Orpheus, who was recommending her, could vouch for her reliability.

"Well, I suppose we can leave Wilber's protection to the king and queen?"

"Hehehe... You're quite the clever one, my brother."

Orpheus decided to keep quiet about how his brother's side profile looked like a villain when he smiled maliciously.

Wagner, having decided to go along with Orpheus' plan, stood up.

He would start putting it into action immediately, as befitting a former king.

"Please be gentle, brother?"

"I understand. Don't worry, Orpheus."

Wagner smiled one last time as he left, and Orpheus sighed in relief.