"Out of the way, out of the way! The True King's Royal Guard coming through! Heads up, you commoners! Want to get burned?!"
It had become a common sight on the streets.
Thugs in garish, deep-blue noble attire strutting around had become the scenery of the times.
"Hey, hey, now there's a nice woman! Come here, girl — consider it an honor to bed me!"
"Please wait, True King's Royal Guard, sir! She is my wife — please, I beg your mercy!"
The unfortunate woman who had caught the eye of one of those blue-clad nobles.
Her husband tried to resist, unwilling to let her be taken away.
"No way! A chest like that's wasted on commoners — we'll take good care of her. Until we get bored, bwahaha!"
"No guarantee she'll come back in one piece, though! Come on, woman, get on all fours right here, and maybe we'll forgive your husband's rudeness!"
Before the brazen Royal Guard, a young adventurer in black-steel light armor stepped forward.
"Oh? What's this, a brat? Got a complaint? Or maybe you want a piece too? Gwahaha! Join the Royal Guard and you can have all you want!"
"Go back to the palace. This is no place for thugs. 'Transport.'"
The moment the young man activated something, the Royal Guards vanished into thin air.
"Huh... Where did the Royal Guard go...?"
"Who knows."
The next instant, the young man had vanished as well.
They were sent to the king's bedchamber.
Since the Royal Guard's appearance, executions for lèse-majesté had also begun to increase.
It wasn't only nobles calling themselves Royal Guards, either — ordinary riffraff who merely dressed up as nobles had jumped on the bandwagon, and public order was deteriorating rapidly.
The capital's guards couldn't take decisive action, fearing that the self-proclaimed Royal Guards might actually be related to the True King.
However, the increasingly numerous self-proclaimed True King's Royal Guards vanishing without a trace had itself become a fixture of the times.
◇◇◇
Are there too many Royal Guards?
Just teleporting the ones I happened to run into to the king's bedroom was enough to wear me out mentally.
Maybe I should vent my complaints to Sharl.
Lord Harold and the others — or rather, the anti-True-King faction — seemed to be trying to do something about the True King, but progress was slow.
I rang the doorbell — clang clang — and entered the run-down café.
The moment I stepped in, [Super Intuition] activated.
"What is it, Alan? Well, you're about the only one who comes around here anyway. Want some coffee?"
"Thanks."
And then out came the freshly brewed coffee.
I was surprised.
It was the same old taste.
Unchanged.
"So, where's Sharl? You fake."
"Oh, sharp instinct. The True King, Lord Julian, takes exceptional individuals under his wing regardless of noble or commoner. I know you disposed of Leticia. The True King was deeply moved."
Before taking a sip, I secretly used [Divine Eye] to check — no poison or anything had been slipped into the coffee.
"My, what an honor. But no, I have no intention of following you."
"Plans have been moved up by over ten years. The True King is being very lenient with you. As proof, Sharl is still alive. Now, come this way."
"My answer hasn't changed. I didn't dispose of her for your sake, so don't get the wrong idea. Building some massive resurrection device that uses a hundred thousand people as sacrifices — you people are out of your minds."
"Wait — you're the one who destroyed the underground of the True King's mausoleum? And now you dare insult the True King? You'd better watch your tone. Don't underestimate the royal special agency, the 'Shadow of the King.'"
"Oh, so there were more of those besides the 'Sword of the King.' I thought it was just idiots like those Royal Guards. Now get lost. Ah, and tell your master that if she reverses all the current policies, I'll forgive her."
"You disposed of Leticia, and now you've destroyed the True King's resurrection device? Even the magnanimous True King won't let that slide. You can't run anymore. Submit or die. The more you struggle, the more painful the end — remember that."
With that, Fake Sharl vanished from the spot.
◇◇◇◇◇◇
Skills: [Reverse] [Divine Eye] [Sword God] [Fist God] [Spear God] [Scorching Heat Magic] [Freezing Ice Magic] [Clear Storm Magic] [Rock Iron Magic] [Holy Magic] [Dark Magic] [Space-Time Magic] [Thunder God Sword] [Gentleman Thief] [Ninja Master] [Seeker of Truth] [Monstrous Strength] [Swift Runner] [Pain Dampening] [Complete Status Abnormality Resistance] [Dark Spirit Protection] [Super Intuition] [Heaven's Gate] [Abyss Contractor] [Magic Hand] [Treasure Search] [Temptation] [Incitement] [Telepathy-Mesmerism] [Eloquence] [Strong Luck] [Growth Speed x10] [Growth Limit Breakthrough]
Rank: Orichalcum