I arrived in the Kingdom of Siluone.
The Kingdom of Siluone was a small country, but one with roughly 200 years of history.
In a world where history moved in units of a thousand years, 200 years might not sound particularly old.
But 400 years ago, in the great war, every human nation except the
The southern Central Continent had been a region of intense conflict until the Dragon King Kingdom seized control of the southernmost area 300 years ago.
Even now, conflict zones sprawled across the lands to the north.
The Kingdom of Siluone was a country located not too far from such troubled territory.
How had the Kingdom of Siluone managed to maintain itself for 200 years in such a place?
Honestly, I had no interest, but I did know the answer as general knowledge.
They'd formed an early alliance with the Dragon King Kingdom.
Of course, calling it an "alliance" was generous—the disparity in national power was glaring.
Like the two kingdoms we'd stopped at along the way, the Kingdom of Siluone was essentially a vassal state of the Dragon King Kingdom.
What I was interested in was the fact that
That young—but no, maybe she wasn't that young anymore.
My cute, slightly ditzy master—was she still working as a court magician here?
I'd heard she was having her hands full with the prince, but she was surely managing somehow.
I wanted to see her again after so long.
I wanted to tell her I was safe.
I wanted to tell her about visiting her hometown.
I wanted her to show me some Water
With these thoughts, I headed for the capital.
--- This place was also essentially a vassal state of the Dragon King Kingdom, but unlike the two kingdoms we'd stopped at along the way, it didn't give off a colonial impression.
Maybe it was because of the distance, or maybe it was because it served as a breakwater against the conflict zones.
I wasn't sure which.
Along the highway stretched farmland of inconsistent quality, livestock left to roam free, and plots planted with clover-like pasture grass—perhaps fallow fields.
I had no knowledge of agriculture, but it seemed that the inhabitants of this world didn't just grow crops mindlessly either.
Watching these scenes pass by out the corner of my eye, I arrived at Ratakia, the capital of the Kingdom of Siluone.
I passed through the city walls that surrounded the town.
In this world, most major cities were enclosed by walls.
Roaa and Milshion were no different.
The kingdoms of Kikka and Sanakia also had walls around their larger towns.
They were the reassuring kind—walls that looked like something straight out of a fantasy.
The same held true on the Demon Continent.
If anything, the Demon Continent, where monsters were stronger, was even more thorough about fortifications.
No town had the massive natural barriers of the Town of Licarice, but each settlement used the special abilities of nearby races to construct formidable walls for protection.
Even small communities routinely carried out monster extermination in their surroundings.
By comparison, the walls of the Central Continent felt like they were there merely for show.
--- I arrived at the capital, Ratakia.
Entering the town, I left my carriage at the stables as usual.
This area had a fair number of labyrinths, so there were plenty of sharp-looking adventurers around.
Many adventurers specialized in labyrinth exploration.
Paul had once mentioned that labyrinth explorers tended to include a disproportionate number of exceptional fighters.
There were many labyrinths around Siluone.
If you could be the first to clear even one, you'd have a fortune at your fingertips.
Among the adventurers walking around right now, there were probably plenty of S-rank adventurers gunning for that kind of windfall.
--- I found an inn.
The same kind as always—a D-rank adventurer's place.
Because this town had so many high-ranking adventurers, even the lower-ranked inns were a bit pricey.
That said, even D-rank inns on the Central Continent were better quality than C-rank inns on the Demon Continent.
So I could have dropped the room grade even further, but I had more than enough money not to worry about it.
Conversely, I could have taken a higher-grade room.
In the past, I would have wanted something nicer, but even with money to spare, I didn't feel much urge to splurge.
I might be more of a penny-pincher than I thought.
Though my food expenses had crept up over the past few months.
"All right then—now that we've arrived in the Kingdom of Siluone, let's hold a strategy meeting."
I made the usual announcement to the two of them waiting in the room.
A smattering of halfhearted applause.
We were thoroughly used to this routine.
"So, what should we decide on first..."
"We're going to see
At
I recalled the Human God's words.
*"
If I were to fully trust this...
In other words, I should wander the streets looking for the alley I'd seen in the dream.
Should I bring Eris and
I tended to screw things up whenever I was alone, and this time I hadn't been told to go solo, so maybe the three of us should go?
But then there was the scene from the dream.
The two soldiers who appeared.
Their uniforms—I'd seen the same style several times in town.
They were regular soldiers of this kingdom.
Let me think this through.
As the Human God had said, Lillia and Aisha were likely inside the Royal Palace.
And Aisha—being held in the palace.
She had somehow managed to escape, but was caught by the palace soldiers.
That was when I'd stumble upon the scene.
Helping her outright would mean a direct confrontation with the palace.
That was why he'd told me never to give my name.
I'd use a false identity here.
Maybe I should hide my face too.
While the knights searched for me under a false name, I would send a letter to my acquaintance in the Shiroon Royal Palace—Roxy—and ask for her help.
As a court magician, Roxy must carry some degree of influence.
She'd surely be able to help.
I'd have to trouble her again.
I really couldn't sleep with my feet pointed toward Roxy.
On the other hand, if she pointed her feet toward me, she'd probably tidy everything up neatly while I was sleeping.
Yes, thinking simply, this advice pointed toward that kind of progression.
But this was the Human God we were dealing with.
There was a chance he was scheming something.
After giving this advice, he'd said something like, "It wouldn't be as fun if you knew too many details."
In other words, something entertaining from his perspective was going to happen.
It was probably inevitable.
But then again, he'd also said, "I hope you'll trust me next time."
So even if something rough was in store, I could reasonably expect that I wouldn't suffer any serious injuries or that anyone close to me would die.
At least, that was the assumption if I trusted him.
Maybe he'd only told that lie to fool me this time and wasn't thinking about a next event at all.
But even so, rebelling pointlessly and making things worse would be catastrophic.
I hated the feeling of being toyed with in the palm of his hand, but I had no choice but to go along with it.
Either way: Find Aisha. Hide my name. Send a letter to Roxy.
These three things were a given.
But now, how would I convince the other two?
The letter was fine.
But the reason for searching back alleys and the reason for hiding my name—I'd need to come up with both simultaneously.
Ever since we'd left Milshion, even when I designated a day off, either Eris or Ruijerd would always follow me around.
The incident with Paul, when I'd been so down, had clearly left a deep impression on them.
That meant I'd worried them more than I realized.
I was sorry about that.
But this time, there was a high chance of clashing with knights, and bringing along two people who were terrible at acting felt like it would stir up a snake hiding in the undergrowth.
Snakes could be lurking anywhere.
Well then, what to do?
"Rudeus, what are you worried about?"
After I'd been silent for a while, Eris tilted her head slightly and asked.
Hmm...
Well, worrying won't make the birth any easier, as the saying goes. Might as well just tell them.
"The truth is, I'd like to hide my name while we're in this town."
"Acting again? Why?"
"Well, uh..."
Even if I kept the Human God secret, there was no need to keep those two secret, was there?
"Actually, I received information from a certain source. Apparently, some of my family members are being held captive somewhere in this country."
"Really?"
"Is that so?"
Where, or from whom—neither of them asked.
In fact, intelligence gathering had always been done in partnership with one of these two.
Not being pressed for details suited me fine.
"I see—if you go around saying '
"Exactly."
"So who's there?"
"Lillia and Aisha... the former maid and my sister."
Come to think of it, from my perspective, what should I even call Lillia?
She wasn't exactly my stepmother...
"Rudeus's sister?
She was in Milshion too, right? That bratty-looking one."
"There's another one."
"Hmm..."
Eris pouted, looking bored.
Was
I didn't think so, but from Eris's perspective, maybe that attitude came across as cheeky.
If my sister got punched, whose side would I take...
"If that's the case, I've got no complaints!
You really do think things through, Rudeus."
Eris gave a satisfied "hmph" and tossed her nose.
Though "thinking things through" really just meant I was going along with the Human God's sweet talk.
Ugh. I felt guilty deceiving them.
"So we're hiding our names. Are we using aliases?"
"Better to use common ones, I think."
"Why?"
"I've heard that easy-to-remember aliases aren't ideal."
While I pondered this, the two of them started brainstorming aliases.
"What kinds of names are famous around here?"
"During our travels, I often heard names like Shyna and Raidal."
Shyna the Death Knight appeared in the North God Hero Saga—a female knight, one of the Three North God Swordsmen, and one of the North God's companions.
A seemingly supernatural being who always returned from even the most brutal battlefields.
Of course, that was probably fiction.
But I'd heard that among the people of this region, many named their children Shyna to protect them from accidental death.
Raidal was the Water God.
A counter genius who froze the sea to build footing and defeated the Sea Dragon King—a legendary hero.
The head of the Water God Style, generation after generation, adopted that great person's name: males as Raidal, females as Raida.
That was also a fairly common name.
Though those who took up the Water God Style would often change their name for that purpose.
I'd only mentioned wanting to hide my name, and the two of them were already putting real thought into it.
I was grateful.
But then again, the Human God had told me to identify myself as "the Master of Dead End."
No, wait—that was specifically for addressing Aisha.
Hmm, that should be fine then.
Alright, let me think about this seriously too.
"Rudeus, what will you do?"
"Well, in this case, it might actually be better to make it obvious that we're using aliases."
"Why?"
"Our faces and names aren't known here. If we deliberately pick flashy names, the other side won't know what our purpose is, and they might get confused."
I said something I vaguely remembered from some old anime.
Honestly, any alias would work...
"Then you should pick something cool!"
Something cool, huh.
"Fine then. I'll call myself..."
*The Knight of the Shadow Moon.* "Shadow Moon Knight?!"
Eris's cheeks flushed and her eyes sparkled.
In reality, I looked more like a lunch monitor.
And I'd deliver it with a pretentious haiku.
If Eris saw me in person, she'd probably punch me on the spot.
"I'll take that too! Oh wait, we can't have the same one... um..."
She really was that taken with it.
Fine, then I'd bestow knight names upon them.
"Then Eris, you can be the Shadow Moon's..."
*Swordsman.* "And Ruijerd, the Shadow Moon's..."
*Spearman.* "That way we'll all match."
"Matching—I love it! Let's go with that."
I'd wondered if Ruijerd would find that embarrassing, but he seemed more pleased than not.
Paul had once called "The Arrogant Water Dragon King" cool, too.
This world apparently didn't have an equivalent of adolescent delusions of grandeur.
"But Rudeus doesn't really come across as a knight, does he?"
Just as everything was settled, Eris murmured.
Not a knight, huh.
Then should I call myself a...
*Magician.* Or maybe...
*Commander.* ...Well, I wasn't sure if I'd actually use any of them.
I could read the situation and go with "Master of Dead End" if it seemed necessary.
"Alright, our aliases will be something like that."
"Right. Then what next?"
"For now, I'll send a letter to Roxy in the Royal Palace... and until I hear back, I suppose we gather intelligence."
I declared this.
If I searched around during my free time, I'd surely encounter that fateful scene.
I'd do my best to make things go smoothly.
--- The next day.
I bought stationery and envelopes at the market and wrote the letter.
First, I included seasonal greetings and wrote that I was safe after the Teleportation.
Then I said I was doing well, so there was no need to worry, but since I'd made it to the Siluone capital, I wanted to see her.
I casually mentioned that the people of
That no one had been found during the search, stoking worry and unease.
Then I casually brought up the maid Lillia.
And ended by emphasizing once more that it was important—my family was worried.
At the beginning of each of those paragraphs, I arranged the text so that the first character would spell out a hidden message when read vertically: "Please help me."
If I wrote this much, even Roxy should pick up on it.
I sealed it with wax and stamped it with a seal I'd carved myself in the shape of the pendant's pattern.
I'd debated the sender's name. When I'd been in Roaa, I'd sent letters under Rudeus's name many times.
I'd thought about using a fake name here too, but if she saw it and thought "I don't know who that is" and tossed it aside, I'd be in real trouble.
Roxy's occasional klutziness was her one flaw.
*"From your devoted disciple who wants to watch over your life, Rudeus Greyrat."* Even if I'd written under a false name, Roxy would have recognized my handwriting instantly.
But then again, this was Roxy—the type to drop the ball at the critical moment.
The fate of the letter wouldn't be known until it reached her hands.
It was Schrödinger's Roxy.
The image of Roxy in a box labeled "Please pick me up" flashed through my mind.
Oh God, cardboard boxes are meant to be turned upside down to hide in.
But setting that aside, I couldn't hurt my chances of getting her to actually read it.
"Alright, I'm going to send the letter."
"Go for it."
"Off you go."
Eris and Ruijerd saw me off with beaming smiles.
I'd expected one of them to follow me, so their response caught me off guard.
"Hm? What about you two?"
"We're going to search the town for information about Rudeus's sister."
Ah, right—they'd said they'd gather intelligence.
Well, information was power. No harm in collecting it.
If anything, I was exasperated at my own carelessness for almost setting out without gathering any.
"Got it. Take care.
After I send the letter, I plan to do some reconnaissance myself."
With that, the three of us parted ways.
--- A few minutes after sending the letter from the Adventurers Guild.
I realized I was being tailed.
At first, I thought it might be Ruijerd keeping an eye on me.
I tended to cause problems whenever I was left alone.
So maybe he was standing by in case something went wrong.
But over these past few months, Ruijerd hadn't bothered tailing me—he'd simply accompanied me directly.
Besides, Ruijerd's tracking skills were exceptional.
There was no way I'd notice him.
Whoever was behind me now was terrible at this.
It wasn't Ruijerd.
And probably not Eris either.
Eris was awful at tailing—I'd have sensed her presence the moment we left the inn.
And I couldn't think of a reason for her to follow me from the Adventurers Guild specifically.
So who was it?
Someone in this country who held a grudge against me... I couldn't think of anyone.
I'd only arrived yesterday.
There was a good chance I'd end up in conflict with the kingdom eventually, but for now, I hadn't caused trouble for anyone.
Could it be someone connected to one of the incidents on the Demon Continent?
Had they tracked us all the way from there for revenge?
Ridiculous.
Or maybe a survivor from the smuggling ring in Zantport.
They'd spotted me by chance and decided to take me out now.
Most likely, though, it had nothing to do with me at all.
The fact that I'd spotted them at all was proof their tracking skills were subpar.
At a corner, I glanced back.
A small figure darted behind cover.
It was a child.
Maybe a neighborhood kid who'd decided I looked like a bad person and decided to play follow-the-villain.
I didn't bother asking why.
Some kids did that on a whim.
Should I hide somewhere and jump out to scare them when they came running?
No—this world had short races like the Dwarves.
You couldn't let your guard down.
I'd shake them off.
With that decided, I turned right at two intersections and ducked into a narrower alley.
"...Hm?"
I suddenly felt a twinge of unease.
But I didn't dwell on it and raised an earth wall.
Powered by my mana, a three-meter wall rose abruptly from the ground, turning the alley into a dead end.
From behind the wall, I heard hurried footsteps.
Then a feeble tapping.
There was no sign of magic or swordsmanship being used to break through.
For a moment, I wondered if Eris had followed me, but she could easily vault over a wall this size.
So it really was just a neighborhood kid's prank.
Satisfied with that, I moved on.
Well, I'd gone a bit deep into these alleys while shaking off a child.
Which way was the main road?
I was starting to feel a bit lost.
Oh well, once I found a wider street I'd orient myself quickly.
Thinking that, I navigated through the winding alleys, but I couldn't go the direction I wanted.
This town's main streets wound and twisted too.
Completely unlike the grid layout of Milshion.
Even someone like me, who wasn't particularly prone to getting lost, was on the verge of it now.
If worst came to worst, I could use magic to get to the rooftops.
Come to think of it, the scene the Human God had shown me was also set in an alley like this.
"Oh!"
That's when it hit me—that earlier twinge of unease.
It wasn't unease at all.
It was déjà vu.
I immediately spun on my heel.
I ran through the winding alleys.
At a T-junction I hesitated, glanced behind me, then retraced my steps.
"No, stop it!"
A girl's scream pierced the air.
In my line of sight was the earth wall I'd created.
"Give it back!"
I pressed my hand to the earth wall and channeled my mana.
Using Earth Magic, I cracked the wall from within.
At the same time, I used Wind Magic to generate a shockwave at its center.
With a thunderous boom, the earth wall shattered to pieces.
The scene unfolded before my eyes.
A girl was being roughly grabbed by the arm.
The one holding her was a soldier.
Two soldiers, in fact.
The one not gripping her arm was tearing the papers he'd taken from her into shreds.
"Don't tear up the letter I was sending to my father!"
The two soldiers stared at me with stunned expressions.
"W-who are you...?"
The girl.
She had traces of Lillia in her features, with Paul's brown hair tied back in a ponytail.
She wore an oversized, shapeless little maid's uniform.
The face that would normally project an air of carefree liveliness was crumpled, wet with tears and snot.
Looking down at her was a man with a sleazy expression...
No—the two soldiers didn't actually have sleazy expressions.
If anything, they looked apologetic.
They were just doing their jobs, and maybe this wasn't what they'd wanted either.
"Who are you?! State your name!"
"I am this child's..."
Oh right—I wasn't supposed to use my name.
Um.
"My name is..."
*The Knight of the Shadow Moon.* "What kind of 'knight' are you? You're obviously a magician."
"Guh..."
Called out with pinpoint accuracy.
Damn it.
If there was a next time, I'd introduce myself as a...
*Magician.* Whatever.
"Listen here, kid. Playing hero is all well and good, but we're soldiers of the Royal Palace, you see.
She was lost, so we came to pick her up."
In the end, he gently admonished me with the look one might give a misbehaving child.
There was probably some truth mixed with some lies in that.
The other knight, meanwhile, looked at the sobbing Aisha with a somewhat troubled expression.
They weren't bad people.
Even if something was wrong at the palace and Lillia and Aisha were being detained, it didn't mean every rank-and-file soldier was a villain.
Maybe I shouldn't be making enemies of these soldiers.
Rather than fighting, maybe it would be better to resolve this through dialogue.
"But it looked like you were tearing up the letter she had?"
"Ah... well, that's... look, adults have their reasons."
Right. Adults did have their reasons...
"Oh!"
At that moment, Aisha exploited the brief opening and wrenched her arm free from the soldier's grip.
"Pluh-leath help me!"
She ran straight to me, ducked behind my back, and clung to me desperately—face a mess of tears and snot.
Looking at her desperate face, the question of opposing the kingdom or not became irrelevant.
"Ah—they're the bad guysth, they're gonna take me back, and—"
I couldn't make out what she was saying through the sobs, but her desperation came through loud and clear.
Enough. I was done.
An adult of my age couldn't pull off youthful heroics.
I'd just do things the way I always did.
"...Hmph!"
I abruptly raised my hand and launched a Rock Cannonball with Chantless casting.
"Wha—?!"
The knight deftly deflected the suddenly incoming Rock Cannonball to the side with his hastily drawn sword.
Whoa, nice reflexes!
Water God Style?
This was going to be tough.
But my Rock Cannonball wasn't the only trick up my sleeve.
At this range, I had plenty of room to work with.
Heh, you're only the fourth person to dodge my Rock Cannonball.
"Chantless magic?!"
"Then this man—could he be Lady Roxy's—?!"
"He actually came!"
"Call for backup!"
"Got it—UOOOH!"
I placed a pitfall at the feet of the knight who was about to dash off.
Shut-out.
At the same time, I fired Rock Cannonballs in rapid succession to suppress the other knight while calling out to Aisha.
"I'm going to run! Can you keep up?"
"Ah... *snf*... yes...!"
Aisha, still sobbing, nodded firmly.
Good, good.
All that remained was to knock out the other soldier and make our escape.
That's when it happened.
*Peeeeee——!* A high-pitched sound, reminiscent of a bird's cry, suddenly rang out.
It was coming from the bottom of the pit.
A whistle.
They'd sounded the alarm.
And after a brief delay, more whistle sounds echoed from far away—from nearby alleys, one after another.
*Pee peep-peep-peep-peeee——!!* Each one had a slightly different pitch and rhythm.
They were probably communicating positions through the sound patterns.
Seeing my barrage halt, one of the soldiers spoke.
"All routes in this area have been sealed!
More soldiers will be here any moment.
Stop resisting and let the girl go!
You won't be harmed!"
"..."
This was bad.
They'd called for reinforcements.
Soldiers or knights would probably swarm here any second.
But I still had one move left.
"Aisha, hold on tight to me!"
"Huh?!"
"Don't let go, no matter what!"
Though confused, Aisha wrapped her arms around my waist and gripped tight.
I grabbed her clothes with my left hand and concentrated mana in my right.
Beneath my feet, I generated an Earth Lance with a flattened tip.
With that momentum, I launched us into the air like a human cannonball.
"W-what the—?!"
"KYAAAAAA!"
Hearing the soldiers' panicked shouts and Aisha's scream, I made a dramatic escape.
Hahaha, farewell, you fools!
As it turned out, I'd gotten too carried away and aimed too steep—both my legs snapped clean.
Dangerous magic like this really ought to be practiced regularly.