After catapulting ourselves out with magic,
She was sobbing and trembling violently, even wetting herself.
I understood how she felt.
If some tough-looking guy grabbed my arm and threatened me, I might not wet myself, but my legs would be shaking like crazy.
I *might* not wet myself.
Those two knights were relatively gentlemanly types, but for a five or six-year-old child, it must have been quite intense.
The gap in age is especially pronounced when you're young.
For example, to an elementary or middle schooler, high schoolers look mysteriously adult. And if a bunch of high schoolers are hanging around on the street, even without any intimidating clothes, they're inexplicably scary.
And the opponents were two soldiers.
It must have been terrifying.
I'd like to think it had nothing to do with the fact that she heard both my ankles snap right next to her.
I healed them right away, but man, that hurt.
Without mentioning her little accident, I solemnly washed her underwear.
Our location was the inn.
When we got back, neither
They'd said they were going to gather information, so they probably wouldn't return until night.
Anyway, here I was, having yet another strange experience.
A little while ago, I'd stripped off Aisha's oversized maid uniform, peeled off her thoroughly soaked panties, wiped her undeveloped little girl bits and surrounding area with a makeshift wet wipe, then put one of my regular shirts on her.
Before me lay a wooden washbasin, soap, and a pair of girls' underwear.
If I were my old self, this combination of situation and items would have had me in an excited state.
Just think about it.
Right nearby on the bed, there's a little girl who wet herself and is sobbing, who was stripped completely naked and then dressed in my oversized clothes.
Of course, no panties on.
Any gentleman would get excited finding themselves in such a situation.
I couldn't put Eris's panties on her.
Absolutely no touching Eris's panties.
That was one of the important rules in this "Dead End."
Even in an emergency, going through her belongings to find panties while she wasn't around...
Just thinking about it was terrifying.
If I broke the rules, Ruijerd wouldn't help me out.
And if I used the Demon Eye to escape, Eris would be in a bad mood for about three days.
On the other hand, if I took a hit unprotected, my face would be deformed enough that I wouldn't be able to taste food for about three days.
Well, I could heal with magic, though.
In any case, it was the kind of situation where my inner beast wouldn't have been out of place howling.
And yet, in the midst of all that, my heart was as calm as a still lake.
Forget being excited — there wasn't even a single ripple.
Like a mirror reflecting a windless pool.
How strange.
I felt a "what a handful" kind of emotion toward the sobbing Aisha, but there was absolutely no sexual excitement.
Had I unknowingly become some kind of saint?
Or had I, without realizing it, crossed one of Eris's boundaries and been rendered sexually impotent?
Had I sealed away the memory of that terror to forget it?
No, no way.
It's fine... right, me?
As I was thinking along those lines, the laundry was finished in no time.
Plain hemp panties and a small maid uniform made of fairly nice fabric.
I handed them to Aisha, and she — who had stopped crying at some point — eagerly started changing.
I watched quietly.
Still no excitement.
Was this body simply incapable of being excited around family?
In my previous life, I was indiscriminate regardless of age or gender...
Life was a mystery.
--- "My name is Aisha Greyrat!
Thank you so very much!"
Aisha bowed politely in her baggy maid uniform.
Her ponytail bounced in sync with the movement.
Ponytails really were the best.
Eris wore hers in a ponytail sometimes too, but hers had more of a sporty-girl vibe.
That was fine in its own way, but it had a different feel from Aisha's.
Aisha looked like a little doll, which was incredibly cute.
Her eyes were bloodshot though, making her look like a cursed doll.
She lifted her head and stepped suddenly close.
Too close.
"If Mr. Knight hadn't saved me, I was about to be dragged back!"
Hearing the word "Mr. Knight," I remembered that I'd introduced myself as the Shadow Moon Knight in front of her.
A chill of sweat ran down my back.
I might have gotten a little carried away during that conversation with Eris.
I wouldn't be rolling around scratching at myself at this age, but...
In about ten years, this might come back to haunt me. Someone could use it to blackmail me.
When I thought about that, I felt a twinge of regret.
"Thank you truly."
Aisha bowed deeply once more.
How old was she again? Six?
So young, yet such a well-mannered child.
"On top of being rescued, I have one rather bold request!"
"Oh?"
She knew the word "bold" — pretty advanced vocabulary.
I already knew from
"Could you give me writing supplies for a letter?
And also tell me where the Adventurers' Guild is!
Please and thank you!"
She said this while bowing politely.
When asking someone for something, she had the "please" part down.
Yep, good kid.
But she hadn't really thought this through.
"Is that all you need? Do you have money?"
"...I don't have any money!"
"Weren't you taught by your mother that you need money both to write letters and to have them delivered?"
Teaching the value of money from a young age was important.
I'd have thought Lillia wouldn't neglect that, but over the few years since a child becomes aware of the world, there are things that can be taught and things that can't, things they can understand and things they can't.
"Mama told me that if a little girl like me looked up at someone and said 'I want to send a letter to my papa,' they'd find a way to make it happen without money."
Oh my, Lillia, you little trickster.
What are you teaching your daughter?
How to use a woman's weapons?
Thinking about it that way, Aisha's way of speaking and mannerisms seemed a bit calculated too.
No, seriously, what was she teaching her?
"I've been trying to contact Papa, but the people at the castle won't let me send letters!"
Lillia, I'd heard, was being detained.
Apparently letters weren't allowed either.
Could things be worse than I thought?
This could very well be an unpleasant NTR situation for Paul.
"Is there... anyone else you could rely on besides your father?"
"No one!"
"Like, for instance, a blue-haired older sister... or a brother who should be somewhere around?"
When I casually mentioned this, Aisha's brow furrowed.
She looked displeased.
Why?
"I do have a brother, but..."
"You do, but?"
"He's not someone I can rely on."
What the heck! I just saved you in spectacular fashion!
"M-may I ask the reason?"
"Sure, I'll tell you!
Mama told me all about him in great detail."
"Oh?"
"But it was all unbelievable! Using intermediate magic at age three, becoming a Water Saint-class magician at age five...
And to top it off, becoming the personal tutor for a lord's daughter at age seven?
That's just impossible to believe!
It has to be a lie!"
Impossible to believe.
Right.
Of course.
"But once you actually meet him, he might be a pretty good big brother?"
"Not a chance!"
"Wh-why?"
"At home, Mama has a small box she treasures.
She told me never to touch it or look inside. When I asked why, she said it contained her brother's precious belongings."
...A small box?
Come to think of it, I vaguely remembered Paul mentioning something like that.
"When Mama wasn't around, I snuck a peek.
And guess what was inside!"
"W-what was it?"
"Panties. Women's panties. And fairly small ones, at that.
By my calculations, they belonged to a girl of about fourteen.
There's no way — there was no one of that age in the house.
I considered the possibility that the brother had a sister, but they were too big.
There was only one person who fit the bill.
At the age of four or five, my brother was carefully hoarding a grown woman's panties."
By my calculations...
Wait, isn't this kid way too smart?
She's still only five or six, right?
The gap between her age and this level of intellect was staggering.
"But it could be a misunderstanding, right?"
"Nope. I casually confirmed it with Mother.
Brother had peeped on this Roxy woman bathing, spied on Father and his wife's intimate moments, and basically did whatever he wanted.
Mama tried to hide it, but I'm certain.
My brother is a certified pervert!"
A pervert!
A pervert!
A certified pervert!
And one more for good measure — pervert!
Give me a break,
"I-see, your brother's a pervert...
That's rough, haha..."
Bringing this on myself was one thing, but what the heck...
Of course.
So this was why.
This was why Hitogami told me not to reveal my name.
I understood now, in my heart.
Well played, Mr. Hitogami.
"By the way, Mr. Knight, what's your real name?"
"It's classified. Around here they call me the 'Keeper of the Dead End.'"
I answered with a composed expression.
Probably best to hold off on telling her I'm her brother.
She thinks he's a pervert, after all.
"Heh... Keeper? That's cool!
So you really can use summoning magic?"
"No, I can only command two ferocious beasts."
"Really? That's amazing!"
Aisha looked at me with sparkling eyes.
Like a little puppy.
A deceived little puppy, at that.
Ouch, that stung a little.
But for now, everything was working out.
If I'd revealed myself as her brother right here, Aisha might not have listened to anything I said.
But at this rate, she'd probably be receptive to whatever the Keeper had to say.
Hide my identity, rescue Lillia in style.
Then Aisha would look at the Keeper with admiration.
And when she eventually found out I was her big brother, my reputation would soar.
"Alright. Then I'll go rescue your mother."
"Wh-what?"
When I declared this, Aisha stared at me with a blank expression.
"Bu-but..."
"Leave it to me."
And just like that, I met Aisha.
She had a pretty bad impression of me, but not as bad as Norhn, who witnessed me punch her father right in front of her.
She called me a pervert for having Roxy's panties, but someday she'd understand.
Everyone needs something to hold onto, now and then.
At this age, though, equating panties with pervert was something else.
She was too young to connect sexual desire with underwear — too young to even understand desire itself, really...
Had someone filled her head with this stuff?
I'd need to give whoever was feeding my little sister strange ideas a good talking-to.
"By the way, Mr. Keeper?"
"Yes?"
"How did you know my name!?"
After that, I launched into a desperate string of excuses, which I'll spare you from.
--- We talked for a while after that.
It was about the last two years' worth of stories.
I let Aisha tell me what had happened in that time.
Her speech was childish and explanations were incomplete, but I got the general picture.
Apparently, they had been teleported to this country's royal palace.
They'd naturally been captured as suspicious persons, but after Lillia talked her way through various things, the result was that they were placed under house arrest within the palace.
Aisha didn't seem to understand the chronology of events, but if they couldn't even send letters, there had to be some reason.
It didn't sound like Lillia was being mistreated, either.
It didn't seem like her body was what they were after.
Although, that might just be what Aisha didn't know — there was always the possibility that things happened at night.
Besides, Lillia was getting on in years (supposedly older than Paul — mid-thirties, perhaps?) and wasn't exactly the kind of beauty someone in the palace would go to the trouble of imprisoning for carnal purposes.
She was still a suspicious person, though, so maybe that's why she was being detained...
But still, some things didn't add up.
Two and a half years since the teleportation.
Had they really been unable to clear up the misunderstanding for all that time, left in limbo?
There might be some unknown factor at play.
Come to think of it, Roxy's name hadn't come up.
Hadn't Roxy tried to help Lillia?
...Or maybe it was precisely because she tried to help that things ended up like this.
Either way, for now I was waiting for Roxy's reply.
Once I heard the situation from her, the puzzle pieces would click into place and all the mysteries would be solved.
Incidentally, Aisha had tried to send a letter to Paul asking for help in this very situation.
But she'd gotten lost, and figuring that if she followed people who looked like adventurers she'd find the guild...
And by pure coincidence, those adventurers turned out to be me.
Coincidences were scary.
Well, it was probably all part of Hitogami's plan.
--- Aisha wanted to know about me.
"So Mr. Keeper traveled all the way from the Demon Continent?"
"Yeah. I got caught up in the teleportation incident in the Fittoa region."
"What were you doing before that?"
"I was a tutor. Teaching magic to a noble's daughter."
"Really? Where were you teaching?"
"Roa."
"Heh, then that's the same place as my brother!
Maybe you passed by each other in town without even knowing!"
"P-possibly... the chances are microscopic, but..."
Her way of talking didn't match her age.
She might be deliberately acting mature, though.
Still, Aisha had clearly learned a great deal from Lillia.
General knowledge, etiquette, practical life wisdom, the arts of maid service, and more.
Even I found it hard to believe she could understand all of this at her age, but at the very least, she could explain things to a degree I could follow.
She was smart. Legitimately smart.
From a young age, she had the ability to absorb what she was taught like a sponge.
What would she become in the future?
Would I even be able to maintain my authority as her older brother?
"My employer was a noble's daughter, so she might have had some connection to your brother's employer — did you ever hear anything about that?"
"N-no, I'm afraid I've never heard of such a person..."
"Really? I was hoping to hear your impression of my brother from Mr. Keeper's perspective."
"Well, all I've heard are rumors that the lord's daughter was wild and uncontrollable."
I felt the urge to plant some self-serving information but held back firmly.
It'd come out eventually anyway.
If she found out I'd orchestrated things myself later, my reputation would tank.
After that, she asked me all sorts of questions about the Demon Continent, and I went into detail.
I'd wondered what I could talk about with a child this age, but oddly enough, the conversation never ran dry.
Maybe it was because Aisha's conversational skills were so high.
Thinking that, I simply enjoyed talking with my sister — almost meeting her for the first time.
After a while, Aisha got tired and fell asleep.
Eris and Ruijerd came back after full dark.
They both looked a bit worn, and when I asked what happened, apparently they'd gone to the back alleys to gather information and gotten into various scrapes that led to a fight.
Another fight, naturally.
They looked apologetic.
Well, it was nothing new. I wouldn't press for details.
Everyone made mistakes — I made them too. If something came up, they'd help each other out.
I told them about running into Aisha in town and that Lillia was being held in the castle.
Apparently things were sketchy.
I also mentioned, as an afterthought, that I was keeping my name hidden.
I particularly stressed to them that under no circumstances should Aisha find out I was Rudeus.
"Why go through all that trouble?"
"She seems to have been fed wrong information about her brother, so I thought I'd show her the impressive side and correct her perception."
"Hmm. I think you're cool just as you are, though?"
"Eris..."
Wasn't that sweet. I flashed my "cool guy" smile.
Eris flinched and took a step back.
"Ugh... why do you make that slimy face every time someone compliments you?!"
Apparently my cool-guy face looked slimy.
A bit of a blow to the ego.
Someone, give me a new face.
"If that's the plan, let's raid the castle right now!"
"It's been a while since I did a castle siege..."
Eris said this with full enthusiasm.
Even Ruijerd was picking up his spear.
I hurriedly stopped them both.
"For now, let's wait for Roxy's reply."
When I said that, Eris made a bored face.
As always, she was a fan of causing a ruckus.
It would admittedly be simpler to storm the castle and grab Lillia rather than overthink things, but causing trouble for Roxy was out of the question.
First, I needed to confirm the finer details of the situation.
It was absolutely not because I wanted to see Roxy or anything.
With thoughts like that, the day ended.
--- The next day.
Around midday.
Soldiers came to the inn.
They wore the same uniforms as the ones who had tried to capture Aisha yesterday.
To be safe, I left Aisha in the room and dealt with them in the lobby.
I had Ruijerd and Eris stay in the room as a precaution.
"You must be Rudeus?"
"Yes."
"My name is Ginger York. I serve in the personal guard of the Seventh Prince of Shirone."
"I appreciate the courtesy. I'm Rudeus Greyrat."
The soldier was a woman.
She didn't bat an eye at my appearance and bowed with a knightly salute.
I returned the greeting in noble fashion.
I wasn't sure exactly what gestures to use, but as long as my sincerity came across, it would be fine.
"Roxy-sama requests your presence. Would you accompany me to the palace?"
Despite the fact that I looked like nothing more than a child, her manner was remarkably courteous.
I wasn't wearing a disguise, but apparently my identity hadn't been leaked.
Still — the prince's personal guard?
I couldn't help but wonder why the personal guard specifically, but Roxy was supposedly the prince's personal tutor, so maybe it wasn't that strange.
"..."
I was told to come along and hesitated.
What should I do about Aisha?
If I brought her, the knights would find out about the attack.
Firing that rock cannon had probably been a mistake.
...Right. I'd have Aisha stay behind and watch the room.
I'd ask Roxy to act as a buffer, work things out, and properly apologize.
Once I made that decision, I told Aisha under no circumstances to leave the room, and asked Eris and Ruijerd to guard her.
Then I did a quick grooming check before meeting Roxy.
Hair — no mess. Clothing — my usual robe would do.
Oh right, should I bring a gift basket or something?
In this world, what did you bring when meeting a teacher you hadn't seen in ages?
And there, at the edge of my tool bag, I spotted the least popular Ruijerd doll of all time.
Come to think of it, I'd read in a letter once that a Roxy doll had been delivered to Roxy herself.
Maybe I could show her this doll and say, "Actually, I made that!" — that could be fun.
"You're being really thorough about this."
"It's been a long time since I've seen my teacher."
"...You'll introduce me properly, right?"
"Of course."
While having this exchange with Eris, I finished getting ready.
"You'll be okay alone?"
Ruijerd's voice carried a hint of concern.
I did tend to cause problems when I was on my own, after all.
I understood the worry.
"No problem. If anything comes up, I'll just fly away."
Whoosh.
"Mr. Keeper..."
"It'll be fine. Just leave it to me."
I patted the head of the anxious-looking Aisha, and she pressed her lips together and nodded firmly.
Good. What a good kid.
--- I walked toward the palace alongside the soldier Ginger.
We moved briskly through the corner of a main street where carriages came and went.
The main streets were winding, with some passages so narrow that carriages could barely pass each other.
Probably a defense against enemy invasion.
I'd heard that in pre-war Japan, the towns in the Mino region were similarly labyrinthine.
"..."
Ginger was a taciturn person and volunteered nothing unnecessary.
But if I asked something, she'd open up, and her manner was always courteous.
"Alright, next up is this one! A former knight from the Bosha Kingdom! A combat-ready slave!
A little cheeky, but she's got skills! Starting price: three gold coins!"
I caught a booming voice and glanced over.
There was a slave market on the main street.
Slaves were lined up on a raised platform, like a stage.
Three humans and one beastkin with pointed ears.
Two men, two women.
Both men and women were bare-chested, their skin visibly glistening even from a distance.
Oil was probably applied to make them look better.
Had that beastkin been taken from the Great Forest?
I had neither the means nor the obligation to help, but it still made me frown.
While I frowned at the sight, my lower half had a rather different reaction to the woman's chest.
I'd found it strange that Aisha hadn't provoked anything, so it was reassuring to know I was still in working order.
A merchant standing beside the slaves was explaining various points.
I couldn't make out the specifics, but he was probably rattling off the slaves' backgrounds and abilities — the sales pitch.
After a while, voices started rising from the crowd.
It was an auction format.
Lillia or Aisha could have ended up on that platform, if luck had been worse.
Looking at it that way, the current situation wasn't so bad after all.
...Well, ultimately, I still didn't know what Lillia's actual situation was, so it was hard to say.
I noticed Ginger frowning at the slave market.
She was someone tasked with maintaining order in this country.
Open displays like this probably bothered her.
"I thought the slave market would be further into town," I said.
I figured it was conversation fodder.
In other towns, slave markets had been in more secluded areas.
In this world, slavery itself wasn't considered inherently wrong, but this was the first time I'd seen one operating right on a main street.
"You're right. That kind of auction is usually held further in."
I expected a sharp remark, but Ginger replied in an even tone.
"Is there some special event today?"
"No. Apparently there was a fight between adventurers near the original market location a few days ago.
It rendered the market unusable, so the slave market was temporarily relocated here."
A fight...
A fight, huh.
A fight at a slave market.
The kind of fight Eris and Ruijerd would start.
I had a sinking feeling they were connected.
Nothing good was going to come of this.
As I was thinking that and glancing at the market, Ginger grabbed me by the side and lifted me up to a better vantage point.
"Oh, thanks."
She was quite perceptive.
Her face was plain, not what anyone would call beautiful, but if she was this attentive to details, she'd make a good wife someday.
"Roxy-sama also used to hop up and down like a bunny when there were crowds."
"Really?"
"Yes, but when lifted up like this, she made a complicated face."
I could picture it.
Roxy, muttering "I can't see," while hopping up and down.
A kindly soldier lifting her up to help.
Roxy, looking mortified, demanding to be put down.
"You've lifted Roxy-sensei before?"
"Yes, though she immediately told me to put her down in a huff."
As expected.
"Where did you grab her?"
"What do you mean, 'where'? The same as now."
Right now, I was being held by the sides, around the armpits, and lifted up.
"What was it like?"
"She made a complicated face and told me to put her down immediately."
What I was actually curious about was the tactile sensation under Roxy's arms, but...
Never mind.
"Please put me down."
At a glance, there wasn't much of interest here.
Just slaves who would soon be sold, sitting behind iron bars.
So I had her set me down quickly and headed toward the palace.
Come to think of it, wasn't the typical reception at a palace done by carriage?
Oh well.
"Roxy-sensei — what does she do at the palace?"
Thinking we'd found common ground, I asked Ginger.
"She normally teaches the prince his studies, but in her free time she'd participate in our soldiers' training exercises."
Come to think of it, I vaguely recalled Roxy mentioning something like that in a letter from back when she was in Roa.
"Wasn't it training to handle combat against magicians, if I remember correctly?"
According to the letter, the exercise involved Roxy casting spells during a melee, and the soldiers practicing deflecting them.
If you could deflect spells that came out of nowhere in the heat of battle, you'd have a much better chance of surviving on a real battlefield.
"That's exactly right. We're all mid-level swordsmen in the Water God Style, but thanks to Roxy-sama, we learned to deflect magic on the fly with our blades."
So that was why yesterday's knight had deflected my rock cannon.
It was a bit of a blow that even a no-name knight could pull it off, but if it was the result of Roxy's training, I could accept it.
We continued talking about Roxy for a while.
Stories about how all the soldiers' hearts melted when they saw Roxy turn pale after accidentally scorching a carpet during a magic lesson.
How Roxy had swallowed a piece of bell pepper in a school meal with a completely green face, without chewing.
"I've heard stories about you too, Rudeus-sama."
"Oh? Wh-what did she say?"
"That you were a genius who could cast magic without incantation from a young age."
"Sensei said that?"
"Roxy-sama would boast about it often. She'd say you were someone far beyond her ability to teach."
"Hehe, that's way too generous."
While we chatted like this, we arrived at the castle.
It was quite large, though not as grand as the Lycoris castle in Licaris or the White Palace in Milis.
It was roughly the size of Eris's family estate.
In other words, the
Asura really was something.
"..."
"Good work, ma'am!"
Ginger gave a slight nod to the gate guard, who snapped to attention.
Come to think of it, she'd mentioned being part of the personal guard?
Was she important?
"This way."
Just as we were about to go straight in, Ginger turned to the side.
We circled around the castle and entered through what looked like a side entrance.
"My apologies. The main gate is not open to soldiers."
"I see."
Inside the side entrance, it looked like a barracks.
Two long tables were pushed against the wall, and a few soldiers sat around playing what looked like a card game.
The moment they spotted Ginger, they sprang to their feet and snapped to attention.
"..."
"Good work, ma'am!"
Ginger returned their salute with a nod and headed deeper into the castle.
I followed, glancing at them as we passed.
"Ginger, you're pretty important, aren't you?"
"Twelfth among the soldiers."
Twelfth — hard to say if that was high or low...
This country probably had hundreds of soldiers, so all things considered, it was likely a decently high position.
Probably not low, at least.
"This way."
Ginger pressed steadily deeper into the castle.
Her steps seemed to grow more cautious.
Whenever she encountered someone along the way, she stopped and exchanged knightly salutes.
I followed suit with noble-style greetings.
If Roxy found out I hadn't trained her disciple properly, I'd never hear the end of it.
The nobles I passed returned their nods, stared through me like I didn't exist, or ignored me entirely as they walked by.
Very different from Eris's family home.
There, hallway greetings had basically been nonexistent.
Did Roxy feel suffocated working in a place like this?
Or had she simply gotten used to this kind of formality?
The ground floor had about three staircases.
The structure reminded me of Eris's family home.
Probably designed to prevent a direct assault.
But for everyday living, it must have been inconvenient.
Ginger stopped at the end of the hallway.
Was this Roxy's room?
It was a rather desolate area.
But it was fitting for Roxy.
Ginger stopped.
Then, glancing at my attire, she reached out.
"Allow me to hold your staff and belongings."
"Ah, sure."
She was even playing doorman — how kind.
Ginger took my things, then knocked.
"Ginger here. I've brought Rudeus-sama."
"Enter."
The response was a man's voice.
(Hmm?)
Puzzled, I watched as Ginger opened the door and gestured for me to go inside.
I entered as directed.
"Oh... so this is Rudeus?"
I stumbled.
Inside sat a man, looking imperious.
He was small, like a little barrel.
Flanking him were two maids.
The man sat with an arrogant posture, but he was remarkably short.
Not just short — his limbs were stubby too.
He looked like a dwarf and a coal miner had been combined.
But his face was disproportionately large — the face of a grown human man.
And by first impression alone, that face was ugly.
The kind of face I could relate to, frankly.
I'd designate the one I didn't recognize as Maid A.
She looked to be in her late twenties, average chest, no visible muscle. An ordinary woman.
Maid B bore a striking resemblance to Lillia.
No — it was Lillia.
Five years had aged her slightly, and considering she'd been hitting the physical decline period for her skin while also getting caught up in a teleportation incident, it was only natural.
And she was tied to her chair.
Ropes wound round and round, chair and all, with a gag in her mouth.
Roxy was nowhere to be seen.
"What's going on...?"
I tried to calmly hear them out despite the confusion.
I'd expected to find Roxy here.
Oh right. A trap.
"Drop him."
The moment the man spoke, I activated the Demon Eye.
The future one second ahead had shifted downward.
I was already falling.
--- When I came to, I was inside a magic circle.
The signal had triggered the floor beneath my feet to collapse, and I'd dropped into a pit trap.
It took me a few seconds to process this.
The room was small.
About six tatami mats, maybe.
A magic circle was drawn on the ground, glowing faintly.
But I immediately tried using earth magic.
I attempted to raise myself up like an elevator.
"...Huh?"
The magic wouldn't activate.
I tried again, channeling more mana, attempting to generate a pillar of earth beneath me.
Something was wrong.
My mana was clearly flowing, but no pillar was forming.
No — not wrong, exactly.
The magic circle surrounding me.
That was why.
It was some kind of barrier.
"A barrier...?"
I reached out to the edge of the magic circle and touched something like a wall.
I slammed my fist into it. It didn't budge.
"Gahahahaha! Futile! Futile!
That magic circle is a royal-class barrier I had constructed specifically to capture Roxy!
Someone like you can't do anything about it!"
The rotund man from before descended the staircase.
He stopped in front of me, grinning with a nasty smile, puffing his chest out in triumph.
"And you are?"
"I am Pax. Pax Shirone!"
Pax.
Ah, the seventh prince.
And yet — this man.
He'd captured Roxy in a barrier that neutralized magic. What exactly had he intended to do?
No, the letter had said Roxy resembled me.
I was a gentleman.
So he must have been planning something gentlemanly.
Damn it. What kind of gentlemanly atrocity was this guy planning?
"Heh heh, what a fine expression. Rudeus Greyrat."
Seeing my frustrated face, the man snickered.
I kept my poker face and took a deep breath.
Stay calm.
This was exactly the kind of situation where calm mattered.
"So I've been lured into a trap.
Very well. I'll formally apologize for attacking your soldier yesterday.
But first, please call Roxy.
I'm her former student — have her verify my identity.
Then, bring in a lawyer, and after a proper trial—"
"Roxy is not here."
Roxy was not here.
"Wh... at...?"
Those words hit me with more shock than I would have expected from myself.
Roxy was not here.
That meant the god was absent.
The god was gone?
No, that was absurd.
Hadn't the great mathematician Euler himself affirmed God's existence?
Hadn't he, at the behest of Catherine the Second, proven God's existence magnificently?
God existed.
I too could prove God's existence with my own body.
"No, God is real."
"...What? God?"
Pax made a dumbfounded face.
That's right.
God was real.
Without question.
If you said otherwise, it meant religious war.
I didn't care if it was the Millis Church or whoever — anyone who wanted to die could come at me.
I'd only bother with the ones I could beat.
"Hmph. Praying to God, are you? Wise choice.
In this situation, there's no hope of rescue."
"Indeed."
Well, now that I'd composed myself, time to drop the jokes.
"So, to confirm — you're saying Roxy is not in this country?"
"That's right! You're going to be the bait to lure Roxy here!"
"If I get Roxy's full attention, that would be my dream come true, but..."
I gave a noncommittal reply while thinking.
So that was the gist.
Roxy wasn't in this country.
And this man was trying to capture her.
Why?
Had Roxy fled after something happened?
While I was thinking, Pax dropped his next line.
"I was shocked when I saw the letter! To think Roxy's lover would come to this country!"
"Huh! Roxy has a lover?!"
Seriously!
Since when? There was nothing like that in her letters...
"Hmm? You're not him?"
Ah, so I'd been mistaken for Roxy's lover.
"Absolutely not! That would be presumptuous beyond belief! I'm nothing more than her humble, wayward student!"
I shook my head vigorously.
In truth, I was so thrilled I wanted to writhe around like a happy reindeer.
Writhe like a person inside a metal monster.
But I held it in.
"Hmph. Even if you're not her lover, as her student, Roxy will come."
"Will she?"
"She will. Lillia wasn't much of a lure, but you — the one she praised so highly — Roxy will come!
And when she does, it'll be the end of Roxy as a woman.
I'll keep her as my sex slave for life. I'll have her bear me five heirs."
Sex slave.
He was saying exciting things like it was nothing.
Heirs — buddy, you're the seventh prince. Can you even secure political power?
But.
I had one question.
"Um, may I ask one thing?"
"What? Oh, yes. For the first time, I'll do it right in front of your eyes!
And after I've taken your head, I'll take Roxy a second time while she's covered in despair!"
Quite the imagination.
"I hadn't asked about Lillia at all on my way here...
How exactly would Roxy learn that I've been captured?"
Pax froze.
"Hmph. Someone as capable as Roxy will find out somehow!"
Of course — Roxy was capable.
She might find what I couldn't.
But the odds were low.
"Shouldn't you, at the very least, spread the information or something?"
I didn't actually want Roxy to be assaulted.
But if he did that, maybe Paul could have found out about Lillia sooner.
That was what I was thinking.
"Hmph! I won't fall for that trick!
You're under the protection of Asura's high nobility, aren't you!
If word got out that we captured Lillia and you, that Borales fellow would become an enemy!"
"He'd... become an enemy?"
Hmm?
Something felt off.
Well, if word got that I'd been captured, maybe old man Sauros would come to the rescue...
But why was Lillia involved?
"Lillia tried to send letters multiple times!
There's no way I'd let anyone call for help!"
If you don't let them call for help, how did you expect to lure the target?
Oh, right.
This guy was an idiot.
"If you don't spread any information or let anyone call for help, I don't think anyone's going to show up."
"Hmph! But you showed up, didn't you!"
Fair point!
No wait, that logic was flawed.
"In the first place, you could just give the information to Roxy directly!"
"I gave it to her?"
"I've been searching for two years but can't find her! But I'll find her eventually! That woman stands out too much!"
Standing out didn't guarantee you'd be found, though...
Something was off. Her letters had said I was impressive and talented...
Or wait — was Roxy's opinion of me actually just this low?
If so, that hurt.
"Heh heh. It seems you've given up.
Incantation-free magic or whatever — in the end, you can't defeat my power."
Hmph. I would absolutely never lose to power. Argh!
"Oh, what a fierce look. It gives me chills.
Keep that look until the very end!
Ah, this is going to be fun, so much fun.
Roxy, won't you come quickly..."
Pax said this and climbed the stairs.
Like hell she's coming...
--- "Hey! Who told you to remove Lillia's gag?"
"I'm sorry, sir. I thought she might want to say a few words."
"Stop doing unnecessary things!"
"Please, Your Highness, I'll do anything — just leave Rudeus-sama alone!"
"Silence! I have no use for old women!"
"Ahhh!"
--- From above, a dry slap echoed.
The ceiling was open, so I could hear everything perfectly.
--- "Even so, has Aisha still not been found?!"
"Currently searching, Your Highness!"
"Damn it! What does the kidnapper look like?!"
--- Pax's irritated voice drifted down.
It seemed they were talking about yesterday's events.
Well, this was a problem.
I hadn't hidden my face either, so I'd probably be identified soon.
The inn's address was in the letter too...
Eris and Ruijerd were at the inn.
Ruijerd — if it was Ruijerd, he'd handle it.
And Eris, who had a reputation for offense, was there too.
--- "Reports say the kidnapper calls himself the Shadow Moon Knight — a muscular, broad-shouldered man.
A pervert who laughs maniacally while flying across rooftops."
"Then how can you not catch someone that conspicuous?!
Damn it, you're all useless!"
"Y-yes, my apologies!"
--- Hey!
Soldier, soldier, do your job and report properly!
Actually, though, he might genuinely be acting in good faith.
He might be trying to help Aisha escape out of kindness.
He seemed like a decent guy, after all.
Good job , soldier.
--- "However, the letter has already been torn up and disposed of, per the report."
"She can write another letter!"
"If it's a child's letter, will the high nobility even bother to act on it? They'd just ignore it!"
"Unacceptable! Find her! Do you not care what happens to her family?!"
"...Guh! Dispatching a search party immediately!"
--- The sound of hurried footsteps.
Was Ginger's family being held hostage?
--- "Hmph! Throw Lillia back in where she belongs!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Rudeus-sama! I will come to save you!"
"Silence! As if I'd let you!"
"Ahhh!"
"Hmph! You know Roxy too, don't you.
I'll behead you right in front of that cheeky little mage!"
--- A sharp crack.
Then the sound of something being dragged across the floor.
--- "Hmph! Rudeus! Can you hear me!
I'm absolutely never letting you out!"
--- I looked up toward the voice.
I caught a glimpse of Pax's leering grin.
He gave me a glance, then moved out of view of the hole.
After a while, something was placed over the opening with a thud.
The hole had been sealed.
Only silence remained.
The magic circle cast a dim, ambient glow around me.
"Whew..."
I was kind of stunned.
Lillia was being hit, and I should have been angry, but oddly, no anger welled up.
Was it because the exchange I'd just overheard was too farcical?
Or because Hitogami had already told me Lillia would be saved?
Or maybe because, twisted as he was, he was searching for Roxy?
If I'd been abandoned by Roxy, I might have turned out like him too.
No, not quite.
He reminded me a little of my old self.
That's why instead of anger, it was more a feeling of confusion.
Well, once this was all over, I'd make sure to settle the score properly.
"Right then..."
I had the general picture now.
In essence, Lillia had been captured by Pax.
The pretext for detention could be anything — foreign spy, whatever.
And while observing her, the prince had apparently come to believe she was connected to Roxy, so he devised a plan.
Using Lillia as bait, he'd contact Roxy and lure her out.
Because the name
Well, even if the Asura Kingdom found out, Lillia was "just" Paul's maid — it could be swept under the rug easily enough.
Roxy never turned up, and Lillia ended up detained long-term.
Lillia tried to send letters to Paul for help, but naturally, the prince wouldn't allow it.
In the midst of this, Aisha had escaped the castle to deliver a letter, but failed. The letter was torn up.
The strange part was that afterward, the soldiers had somehow been reporting things in ways that aided her escape.
Was the prince just disliked, or was there another reason...
Ginger seemed to be held hostage, and other soldiers might be in a similar situation.
And into this mess, I'd gone and gotten myself caught in the spider's web.
Hitogami had told me to write a letter to Roxy, and this was how I ended up captured — within the realm of expectations, apparently.
No need to panic.
I was doing as instructed so far.
But the real question was what to do next.
Right this moment, something was probably happening behind the scenes.
In that case, maybe I didn't need to do anything this time either.
If I stayed put, some development would unfold, and I'd just respond to it. Everything would work out.
...No, wait.
Was I actually doing as instructed?
For instance, I'd introduced myself as the Shadow Moon Knight to the soldiers.
Hitogami's advice had been to call myself the Keeper of the Dead End to Aisha.
But wasn't I supposed to have gone by "Keeper" with the soldiers too?
It wasn't just that.
The letter, too — I'd assumed I just "didn't have to use my real name," but wouldn't the whole situation have been avoided if I hadn't written "Rudeus" on the letter?
If I'd simply appeared before the prince as Roxy's acquaintance, couldn't things have gone more smoothly?
No good. I was starting to feel like I'd made a mistake.
No, it was fine. It had to be fine.
This level was within expectations.
Right?
I was worried...
For now, I decided to quietly secure an escape route just in case.