It was quite the nice meal we had there at the side of the river.

We stayed there for a couple hours and then went on with our journey.

Nothing important happened in the afternoon besides some talks with the maids.

You would think that I would be bored without internet and my smartphone, but talking with the Maid-Knights was entertaining...

WHO AM I LYING TOO?! I NEED MY GACHA GAME!! PLEASE, NERINNE!!

"Sorry dear~~. No can do. I cannot materialize our stuff in the castle without it turning into divine devices and such since they had been in my divine realm all this time. Also, that level of technology could spell some problems. Please understand, dear~~."

Oi, you just want them for yourself a bit longer, right?

You are enjoying seeing me in this state, right?!

"Fufufu~~~."

Don't 'fufufu' me!!

Give me my smartphone!!!

"The beautiful Goddess you are trying to contact is not available. Please try again later. Beeep."

You're there!

You even said ‘beeep’!!!

"..."

Come on!!!

___________________________________________

"I told you, give me the doorim meat! You are going to waste it with that smoke!"

"No, my gut is telling me that you are going to ruin it with your grill."

"...stop fighting..."

Bertia and Jules are going at it again while Luca is in the middle.

But she is being completely ignored.

"Hah?! Your gut?! That unfillable void is telling you things?! Are you that hungry?!"

"Hmph, you do not understand the coolness of my gut."

"As if! Now give me the meat, Jules!"

"No, I cannot."

"...I am taking...the meat...bye..."

They are so into it that they haven't noticed Luca's absence, nor the meat’s.

"Ah! Look! A flying fat boar!"

"Where?!"

Jules you are drooling! Also, flying fat boar? Do they really exist?

"Hahaha, got you! Now the meat is...!"

"Tch, you...!"

"...!"

"...!"

""WHERE IS THE MEAT?!""

Well, it is being cut into fillets beautifully by Luca and put in a makeshift woodfire oven.

Seriously, where the hell was that thing in the luggage?!

"W-Wait! No! The meat!"

"Why Luca? We hunted it together..."

"You were...fighting too much...took it...fools...go bad...no understanding."

""Eh?""

They both were confused by Luca's irritated words.

"She probably was trying to say that you were fighting too much so she took the meat instead of leaving it with a pair of fools that would leave it to go bad before reaching an understanding. Yes?"

Luca nods at Allegra's interpretation while she preparing more fillets with some leaves she seems to have collected while she hunted.

At least that is what my instinct is telling me.

Its night now by the way.

We set up camp on a prairie on the side of the road.

The Maid-Knights are preparing everything for dinner at this moment too.

Well, except Sophie, she has obligatory nightly training sessions with Kris back in the castle, so the plan has me opening a door to it for her every night and morning.

The face she made when I told her that was a bit funny, but I also felt bad for her.

Maybe it is similar to the sensation a parent has when leaving their children at school for the first time.

She kept looking back at me with pleading eyes until she went through the door.

It’s just a bit of training so I don't get why she would be like that.

I mean, Sylvie is going through a more intense training every day and she seems to be fine.

At least that is what Nerinne tells me.

Oh well, Jules and Bertia are sitting near the firewood oven looking depressed, but also hungry.

I mean, the smell is quite delicious from here, so I understand.

Allegra is cooking the fish she and Sophie caught too.

She is putting a strange powder on them...I really hope it is not poison based seasoning...

I mean, I am resistant to it, but that does not make it ok for me. I think.

"My Lord, is it really fine to not set up an anti-monster barrier?"

Says Erevain who is by my side, preventing me from sneaking away and trying to help.

"Hmph, as if we would need it. The moment I set a foot on this place, I let my killing intent tell all the monsters to leave us in peace or else. Even the strongest ones are ignoring this area."

"Ah, as expected of My Lord. No monster would be able to resist that pressure."

She says so while nodding with her hand on her chin.

"Oh, but I do know of one who did even when I put more force into it."

She widened her eyes for a moment, but she has now realized of whom I’m talking about.

"I am merely too stubborn for my own good."

She lets out a small wry laugh after saying that, even her head leans a bit forward as she does so.

"Yes...some would say that way of being is foolish."

"Indeed, My Lord."

Now it is a heavy smile, huh?

Just let me finish though.

"But I think that it is fine to be a fool in those sorts of occasions. To challenge an obviously overwhelming enemy with no chance of success and still have hope in making one, is the trait of those that can be called...protagonists or more commonly, heroes."

Erevain looks at me with some confusion in her face.

"That...could be true. But..."

"You are no hero?"

"That is right, My Lord."

"I beg to differ, you confronted Brynn in a way not many would have done. You did it so that your people could have a chance of surviving. That is heroic. Even if you did not win, that does not matter, you fought when others tried to escape. You protected while others schemed and betrayed. And you would do it again if given the opportunity, correct?"

"..."

She starts looking upwards towards the starry sky as I continue.

"Just like a fool, but a hero, nonetheless. Yes, just like a kid fighting against a god king."

As I say that, I can feel some emotions gathering within her, but her expression was as calm as the scenery reflected in those eyes.

"Even if I still find it difficult to believe that my own little brother betrayed me and did something to our sister? Even if I refused to see what was literally in front of me, My Lord?"

She indeed seemed to refuse the idea too strongly back then.

To a point it didn't let her sleep.

Probably, because deep down everything fitted so well if her brother was also involved.

And so, she focused her attention on her father and Hilde.

"I ask of you this, why not? Did I not mention that you were a fool? Fools do what fools do, not trusting your siblings should be common sense in a world where nobility schemes against themselves for power. Not doing so is foolish, but...this is not a world where that is supposed to happen. Since you are not rotten like a bunch of those birthed by that sort of world.”

Erevain seems intrigued by my words, but she doesn’t say anything and just lets me continue.

“What you have told me is that this is a world where power comes to those who enact change and keep moving the world forward on the right path with the backing of the Goddess. It is more than likely that petty schemes among royal siblings looking for power amounted to nothing, even to the point they disappeared as they became unnecessary. As such, it was not common sense not trusting them and furthermore, betraying each other was something unthinkable. Certainly, a world of fools.”

As I say that, my lips begin to form a smile. A confident one. A genuine one. One from the bottom of my heart.

“But that is fine. If you still love and hope that your brother is a good person, then do so. The same applies for your childhood friend. And if you want to believe that your sister is fine, then do so too. I shall support you."

Even if your brother sounds like a yandere brother-con, you can count on me!

And my instinct is giving me a good feeling about your sister, but I need more time and precise info to feel comfortable discussing that.

"Haha…I am really a foolish prince, no, princess...but this foolish princess will accept her Lord's offer. Thank you, My Lord Auros..."

Aaah, that smile is a nice one.

Just as those…gorgeous…silver eyes in which I could get lost at any time.

"But there is something that caught my interest, My Lord."

…hmm? What could that be?

"What could that be, Erevain?"

"That world My Lord was talking about...it seemed as if My Lord knew of it well. Was it like that where My Lord came from?"

Umu, she is sharp.

But...

"That is... a story for another day, Erevain."

I say so with a wry smile as I start walking towards an already set table with the food served too.

"Heh, I guess so, My Lord."

She laughs while following closely behind.

Am I cool or what?

___________________________________________

HNNNGH!

THIS DOORIM IS SOO GOOD!!

LUCA YOU DESERVE 2 THUMBS UP!!

"This is...just great...Luca well done."

I say so trying to maintain my character, but my smile is making it quite difficult.

The meat is so tender, juicy and fresh!

There's no bad odor in it too! On the contrary, it gives off this sweet fragrance!

No doubt it being the fault of the leaves Luca used!

"I am...glad that...Master liked it."

Says Luca with a blushed face.

Have I told you that she is cute?

"...it is good..."

"...more please..."

Bertia and Jules seem to be still depressed but at the same time are moved to tears by how good this meat is.

Heh, maybe they'll learn after this defeat not to fight when Luca is with them?

"Please Master, try my fish. I promise that they will be to your liking."

Says Allegra as she approaches me with a full plate.

Hmm, they are covered in a brownish layer...that must be the powder she was using...

Oh well, I can't mistrust her just because she works with poisons, that would be quite prejudiced of me.

"Very well, thanks for the food."

I grab the fork and the knife, letting them do their job when...

*crunch*

I hear something quite familiar...

I quickly cut a piece and bring it to my mouth.

*crunch* *crunch* *crunch*

No way...

This is crispy fried fish!!

But how?!

There's no stove to bring the oil to the temperature to fry the fish and its brownish cover.

I mean there's magic, but I didn't see anyone but Allegra cooking the fish and she was cooking them in the same campfire.

"It is quite good, Allegra. Pardon my asking, but...how? There is the firewood oven but no stove to make the oil's temperature high enough to get this level of crispiness."

Allegra raises both of her eyebrows in surprise and nods before she starts her explanation.

"Yes Master, it is as you said. But I used something different to get the same result. Can Master guess the secret ingredient?"

Her overall calmness is kind of different from Gabrielle's and her smile is really soothing.

She has that something that makes you just relax with her around.

But...

I see where this is going.

I raised a flag earlier, didn't I?

"Something derived from poison is my answer."

She widens her eyes in surprise before her smile grows bigger and nods a bit more strongly.

"Yes, Master. That is the correct answer."

"Haa…Allegra..."

It seems that what Allegra did here is not a rare occurrence, judging by Erevain's sigh and her massaging of her nose’s bridge with her right hand.

Gabrielle is also shaking her head while facepalming.

"My apologies, Leader, but it was the only way to make something tasty for Master."

"Hmph, it is indeed tasty so there is no problem. But I am curious as to what it was."

I mean, there is no way she would use something dangerous or make a mistake since poisons are her specialty.

"Ah, it is just a derivate of the poison that belongs to a certain monster that is said to burn its victims from the inside. The poison actually raises the temperature of its victims to dangerous levels, thus giving such sensation. I just took the part that raises temperature and added it to the oil I had spread on the fish. It boosted the temperature to one similarly obtained with a stove. I call it the 'insta-crisper'!"

She says while making a cute movement with her index finger and a smug smile.

And that name is...well...to the point?

"You know Mika, Allegra's naming sense is kinda cute now that she is a woman..."

"I...surprisingly agree, Lucy. Back then it was just…weird."

I think I just heard something kind of hurtful to Allegra.

"I think it is a good name, self-explanatory and to the point."

I say so with a smile and that only served to make Allegra happier.

"See? Master understands the deep philosophy behind the names I use by just hearing one of them. Hmph."

Ah, she heard them too, but that was quite the cute response she gave...with a bit of chunni which is nice!

I have been blessed with so many cute maids!

___________________________________________

The night went on and everyone kept sharing stories or fond memories.

I kept to only listening or answering when asked until someone mentioned the Demon Lord.

"Hooh~~, to hear of the Demon Lord as a hero is still interesting since many times, they portray him as the villain of the story..."

I says so in a low voice, but it seems Gabrielle has heard me and is now surprised.

"It is, My Master? That cannot be true since the Demon Lord has done quite the number of feats in the name of the Goddess."

That is good. I like more those types of isekais with a good Demon Lord, so I am kind of…lucky?

Well, Dragon Lords aside that is. Haha...

Although I want a bit more of confirmation.

"For curiosity's sake, the demons have never tried to fight against the other races? Maybe in the past?"

"Hmm, I do remember a certain story."

Says Mika while pondering with her hand on her chin.

"Then please Mika, do tell."

"Ah, yes! Of course, I will, Master. It is one I heard from my magic instructor in the academy, he was a demon and he used to tell the class stories about his home country every now and then. There was a time when a faction in the Zenji Kingdom tried to convince the Demon Lord to wage war against the other races given their vast lands, great resources, and overall power. But they were quickly dealt with when the Demon Lord threatened to increase the taxes on alcohol and outright ban it in festivals if they kept up with those thoughts. No one else brought up something similar after that ever again."

No way...I can already see how that scene might have played out...seriously this world...

"Pffft...heh...saved by alcohol. That's...hahahaha...a good one..."

Really, that is just...

"Hahahaha, yes! They really do love their alcohol, Master!"

"If only dealing with the Dragon Lords were that easy...maybe after beating them we’ll take all of their alcohol too. Heh..."

"""Hahahahaha!"""

Crap, I went and said that but it's just...that funny!

Lucy started laughing with me and then everyone else.

"Hahaha...besides...haha...appearance wise Master looks more like a villain anyway...hahaha!"

"Oi."

Lucy, come sit next to me and say it again.

““““"..."””””

I turn my gaze at the others and...they immediately look away!

These maids!!!

JUST WHY?!!! I'M NOT EVEN WEARING MY ARMOR!!

 

 

To be continued...(cue Mika and Lucy's invisible nendo figures announcement!! Pre-order the 2-pack for an exclusive limited-edition invisible poster!!!)

I know I'm late, so have 3D Erevain as way to make it up to you guys!

Think that her special head-maid outfit looks something like this, mainly the upper part. In any case, thank you for reading! If you want to help me commission LARH some Erevain illustrations, please consider donating to my Ko-Fi! 

Special thanks from the bottom of my heart to: EmbraceTheSleeb, Lord-Hollow, YukisoraRin, LordInquisitorSteele, Anon and Anon2!