"Friendly forces are entering the fort! Open the gate!"
The gate opened, and the advance party entered the fort.
A thousand soldiers filed through the gate, carrying weapons and supplies brought from the royal capital, along with the meat of Giant Buffalo they had hunted along the way.
"Brother, it's been a while."
"Carius."
A young knight appeared before the advance party.
Given that he had called Vareiya, the leader of the advance party, "brother," this man must be Carius Cattleya, the commander defending the fort.
(So that's Yuri's second brother... He's a bit different from what I imagined. He doesn't seem like a gorilla.)
Rest watched the brothers' reunion from a short distance away, a rather rude thought crossing his mind.
Carius Cattleya was slender, with an intelligent face.
Although he was tall, he had the air of a civil official or scholar rather than a knight.
His father, Iljas, and his eldest brother, Vareiya, had robust, somewhat ape-like builds, but Carius's appearance was quite different.
"Yo, big bro. I'm here too."
"Toya. You came too. I appreciate it."
Another young man joined the brothers' conversation.
He was robustly built, and although he looked a bit frivolous, his face was rugged, resembling his father's.
This was Toya Cattleya, the third son of House Cattleya.
"You came too? I'm grateful for the reinforcements."
"If only Brad were here, all three brothers would be together."
"No, this is plenty. With the three Cattleya brothers here, there's no way we'll lose. Let's show those foreign tribes what we're made of."
The brothers were exchanging words cheerfully, yet with strength.
As a renowned military family, House Cattleya—having three of its glorious next generation gathered was an incredibly reassuring situation.
(No... there was still one more brother...)
"So, about that fellow..."
"Yeah, him."
But suddenly, the gazes of the three shifted.
The brothers' faces whipped toward Rest with such speed it seemed to make a sound.
"Whoa...!"
Rest instinctively recoiled.
Vareiya, Carius, Toya—the three focused their gazes on Rest.
"Him... he's thinner than I thought."
"Well, he's a magician. They say he's quite skilled."
"He took down the magic beast Sabnock... and other powerful monsters too."
"He's reliable, but isn't he the son-in-law of House Rosemary?"
"My Angel... does that mean Yuri is his concubine? You mean he reached for our treasure while having other women?"
The muttered conversation was hardly favorable, and Rest felt as if he were being glared at with sharp eyes.
"I already greeted him during the march."
"Then I should offer my greetings as well."
"And I won't be satisfied unless I get a word in edgewise too."
"Words... no, should fists do the talking?"
"Since Father has recognized him, needless to say I have no room to object, but..."
"If I talk with my fists instead of my mouth, that should work, shouldn't it?"
The brothers continued their ominous conversation.
I felt a cold sweat run down my spine at the increasingly dangerous atmosphere.
"I think I'll... go check out the area for a bit."
Rest tried to hurry away, but in an instant, his shoulders were grabbed.
"Wait a moment, Count Clover."
"We're about to have a war council, you know. Where are you off to?"
"Gh...!?"
Even though they were at a spot more than ten meters away just a moment ago, Vareiya and Carius had grabbed him by the shoulders with incredible speed.
"We have plenty to talk about, so... let's head inside, little brother-in-law?"
What's more, Toya had circled around to block his path forward.
The brothers displayed a truly flawless combination.
Rest felt that he wouldn't be able to escape even if he used a speed-boosting spell.
"Now then, this way please. I'll show you around the fort."
"…………Yes, sir."
Rest, surrounded by the three brothers, was escorted inside the fort.
"Lord Rest... steady yourself."
"H-hang in there... Rest."
"I don't know... I didn't see anything."
Diebl, Isis, and Lubeth were also nearby, but they kept their distance from Rest, as if to say a god untouched brings no curse.
———————————————— On April 1st, the first volume of the book goes on sale!
At Melonbooks, Gamers, and Animate, each purchase comes with a bonus short story.
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