“As expected of you, Ryo. That was splendid.”

“Oh, it wasn’t that much.”

Abel praised him, and Ryo grew bashful.

The group was slowly returning to the lord’s manor.

The exterminated monsters were being dismantled by the soldiers stationed in the city, and their magic stones were being extracted.

The evacuation order to the sea had also been lifted, and people had begun returning to the city.

“We’ve reclaimed our chance to acquire grilled fish from the stalls.”

“I think you’re the only one who would see it that way, Ryo.”

Ryo looked pleased. Abel shook his head.

“Well, as a diplomatic card, it was perfect.”

“<Icicle Lance Shower: Fan> looks impressive, after all. We saved the residents and demonstrated our power. Now no country will ever defy the Kingdom.”

“I don’t think this chiefdom was planning to defy us in the first place.”

“You never know. They could capture King Abel while he was visiting and use him to threaten the homeland... You cannot say it would absolutely never happen.” 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

“Yes, I think I absolutely can.”

The Premier Duke spoke of his delusional conspiracy theory with a villainous look, and the king rejected it outright.

After returning to the lord’s manor, they were thanked once again by Lord Chukudy of Borne.

“Your Majesty, Your Grace, thank you both most sincerely.”

“Do not worry about it, Lord Chukudy.”

“I merely obeyed a royal command.”

Naturally, Abel said the proper words in such a situation, and in cases like this, even Ryo spoke with due humility.

“We intend to head to the chiefdom’s capital, Hosoina, after this. Perhaps this was just the right gift to bring with us.”

Abel said this and smiled.

“Yes. Of course, I will report this matter to Hosoina. I doubt anyone, beginning with the chief himself, will treat the people of the Knightley Kingdom lightly.”

Chukudy gave a deep nod.

Everything involving a king became a diplomatic card.

Whether it succeeded or failed, every action and every result became one...

And this time, it was an extremely large success.

Even so, Abel did have a question.

“That runaway surge of monsters has a name, stampede, which means it must have happened many times before. Surely you did not abandon the city each time?”

“Of course not, Your Majesty. It happens every few years. That said, in most cases, the monsters number around a hundred. A force exceeding ten thousand, like this one... has not occurred even once in the past century.”

“And yet the signal smoke was decided in advance.”

Yes. This time, red signal smoke had gone up, and Chukudy had murmured that it was “a scale that may require abandoning the city.”

“The chief decided it in the past. Our chief can see the future.”

“What?”

Ryo was startled by Chukudy’s words.

Abel beside him, however, did not seem surprised.

《Abel, you are not surprised?》

《I was taught before that among the leaders of the Dark Continent, there are sometimes people who possess the power of precognition.》

Ryo asked through Soul Echo, and Abel answered.

Apparently, not being surprised was the result of imperial studies.

“We had thought a large-scale stampede would eventually occur. That was why we had also drawn up evacuation plans for the residents... but it seems there were still deficiencies in many places.”

“Things rarely go according to plan.”

Abel gave a wry smile and agreed with Chukudy’s words.

It was an honest impression from men who both knew, in their very skin, the difficulties that came from being involved in administration.

“Do you know what causes that stampede?”

“No, we do not.”

“If it has been happening many times since the past, surely investigations were carried out?”

“Yes. What we know is only that the monsters run wild from the center of the continent outward. Because that happens, cities cannot be built inland beyond the coastal region.”

“I see.”

It seemed there was also a reason most people living on the Dark Continent stayed only along the coast.

“For that reason, even now, no one knows what lies at the center of the Dark Continent.”

“When that runaway surge reaches the coast... what happens?”

“They begin devouring one another.”

“Devouring one another...”

Both Ryo and Abel grimaced.

“When only a few are left in the end, the people who evacuated onto the sea return to land, exterminate them, and begin living there again.”

“...That is an incredible system.”

“However, the city of Borne has grown too populous.”

“So the evacuation cannot keep up. Being unable to simply rejoice in the city’s development is...”

“Yes. It is deeply unfortunate.”

Chukudy also grimaced.

But then he shook his head slightly and continued.

“At this stage, I cannot tell the people to leave the city. I will work toward a smoother method of evacuation and strengthen our defensive power. So that when a stampede of the same scale occurs again... even if Your Majesty and Your Grace are not here, we can avoid sacrificing the people.”

“Yes. I think that is wise.”

Chukudy spoke with resolve on his face, and Abel nodded with a smile.

Governance never stopped.

The Knightley Kingdom party would be moved to a residence prepared by Lord Chukudy of Borne.

That said, it was a mansion adjacent to the lord’s manor grounds, apparently a place meant to receive important figures from other countries like this, and there was also a separate building for guards.

They would stay one night, then depart tomorrow morning for Hosoina aboard Skidbladnir.

“We did it, Abel.”

“What did we do?”

“Without a doubt, tonight’s dinner will feature delicious local specialties.”

“Ah, that does make me happy.”

Ryo and Abel were having that conversation as they moved.

Thump.

“What was that?”

“Abel, did you feel it too?”

“Yes. I do not know what it was, but... I felt a tremendous pressure.”

“Yes. As though the air were trembling... or as though something had seized my heart in its fist... Something dangerous.”

Both Abel and Ryo stopped and looked around.

Naturally, the guards from the Kingdom’s knight orders also came to a stop.

“Your Majesty?”

“Zack, Scotty, neither of you felt that?”

“Huh? Felt what?”

None of the Kingdom knights had felt it.

Only Ryo and Abel?

Thump.

“There it is again.”

“Yes.”

“Your Majesty?”

Again, only Abel and Ryo... None of the Kingdom knights had felt it.

At last—

“I thought ‘Light Blue’ had done it, but I was wrong... Two strong ones. You two defeated the monsters?”

“A voice...”

“Yes, I can hear it.”

Ryo and Abel could hear the voice clearly... but it seemed they were the only ones hearing it.

None of the others, including Zack and Scotty, could hear a thing.

“Interesting. Why don’t the two of you come play where I am?”

“I do not know who you are, but I refuse.”

“Fight me. It will be fun.”

“We have something far more enjoyable waiting for us.”

Ryo refused him plainly.

“Something more enjoyable than fighting? Does such a thing exist?”

“We will go around eating delicious food from every region. It is very enjoyable.”

“...”

Ryo declared it.

Abel was silent. The voice only the two of them could hear was also silent.

“I am glad you seem to understand.”

“...Fine. [N O V E L I G H T] It does not matter. You will end up coming anyway. Until then, eat whatever delicious food you like. The ‘Black Fool’ seems to have come as well, so this is going to be entertaining.”

With that, the pressure vanished.

“It seems some troublesome being has taken an interest in us.”

“So it would seem.”

“And those words contained even more troublesome information.”

“Mm?”

“The existence called ‘Light Blue.’”

“Ah...”

“From the way that was phrased, ‘Light Blue’ can easily defeat over thirty thousand monsters the way I just did, correct?”

“That would follow.”

“And from the name ‘Light Blue,’ there is also the possibility that this being is a water-attribute magician...”

“We cannot rule it out.”

Both Ryo and Abel grimaced.

“And apparently, the ‘Black Fool’ has also come.”

“Yes... I wonder what that means. I have no basis for this at all, but one man’s face is coming to mind...”

“What a coincidence. I also have the face of one male Demon Man coming to mind...”

“His name starts with Gar and ends with win.”

“He may have been wearing black clothes, but I don’t believe anyone ever looked down on him as a fool.”

“How strange.”

“Strange indeed.”

For some reason, when told “Black Fool,” the Demon Man Garwin was the one who came to their minds... How pitiful.

“Even so, Abel, you really do always bring troublesome matters along with you.”

“Me?”

Abel looked dubious.

“It was the same when we fought that Garwin, wasn’t it? Perhaps you are cursed, Abel. A curse that draws troublesome beings to you.”

Ryo said it with a sharp point.

“If anything, Ryo, you’re the one who is cursed.”

“Huh? Me?”

Abel said it with a shrug, and Ryo looked affronted.

“The devils, the Phantomkin, even Demon Man Garwin—in the end, you were the one who fought them, weren’t you?”

“I-I am only protecting myself and the people I know. I am doing something very good. The problem lies with the ones attacking me.”

“Even if that is true. Well, there is no use arguing about it here.”

“That is true.”

The two sighed at the same time.

For the moment, there was nothing either of them could do.

“Nothing for it, then.”

“Yes. Let us distract ourselves by eating something delicious.”

“...I suppose that is best.”

That night, Ryo and Abel, and of course the entire Kingdom party, enjoyed a delicious dinner.