Kochugunshikan Boukensha ni Naru

Translator: SFBaka

Someone knocked on the other side of our rooms door.

Its Jonas. Weve prepared your lunch.

We went to the dining room and found Tarus-san, Katolle, Cleria, and Elna already seated in front of the table. The three of us were then guided to our respective seats.

Ive heard about it from Jonas, Alan-san. It seems youve made us some wonderful sweets.

It wasnt much, sir. I hope theyll be to your liking. Im a bit nervous about it, to be honest.

It just so happens that Lana and Tara were invited by the other madams in the neighborhood earlier, so they arent here right now. I was thinking of serving them for dinner instead.

I see. We are going to book an inn today, so I guess Ill just have to hear about your impressions on another day.

No, I insist that you all stay with us for tonight as well Alan-san. That goes for Elna-san as well, of course.

Eh? But wouldnt we be troubling you?

Think nothing of it! I owe my life to Alan-san and the rest after all. I wouldnt mind no matter how many days you were to stay at our home.

I understand. Well stay for one more night then. Thank you very much for your hospitality.

Tarus-san really is a good person. It seems Beck and Thor were glad to hear we were staying for another night.

The dishes we had for lunch today were delicious as always. I wonder why the variety of sweets hasnt progressed much even though the level of cooking in this place was of quite a high level already?

Oh yeah. I almost forgot to check out the variety of condiments and seasonings they have available. I definitely want to procure more seasonings apart from salt.

Cleria called out to me just before we finished our meal.

Alan, can you make time for me after this? I need to talk to you about some matters.

Alright, I understand.

It looks like she was ready to talk to me about her circumstances.

Beck and Thor went out for some shopping after we finished our meal.

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It seems they were tasked with purchasing goods necessary for the village, such as salt, after selling off their wares.

In the end, I was the only one who would get to hear Clerias story. Elna was also sitting inside the room.

Im very sorry for hiding things from you all this time, Alan.

Its fine. You have a lot of things to consider, right?

Ive already introduced myself as Cleria Starvine, and I come from the neighboring Starveek Kingdom.

So shes from the Starveek Kingdom, huh. Hm? Doesnt Clerias surname sound a bit like the kingdoms name? From her expression, it seems Cleria was about to divulge something really important, but I still have no idea what it is.

And?

Ah, in other words, Im the Starveek Kingdoms ***. No, I suppose I should say was Starveek Kingdoms ***.

Theres a word I cant understand.

What does *** mean?

Cleria-sama, is this man really alright?

Do not mind. Alan, no, Mister Corinth wasnt even familiar with our language a month ago. Its not surprising that he still has some words he doesnt understand.

This man is a **!?

Theres another word Im not familiar with. I think quite a lot of people we met on our travels described Cleria with that word. And it seems Im also a **? And Im kinda curious why Clerias speech started sounding more formal.

*** means the daughter of a king.

The Kings daughter, you say!? In other words, shes a princess! I earlier deduced that Cleria was of a higher social class in other words, a noble that Ive only heard of in fantasy works but it seems she was even higher up in the social ladder than I thought.

I see. But what was a princess like you doing in that kind of place?

It entails some complicated circumstances.

Cleria began to tell the rest of her story afterward.

She told me about the coup d etat that occurred in her kingdom.

It seems she was dispatched outside the capital to perform a royal inspection when the coup occurred.

She also told me that the rest of her family were all killed during the coup.

She also divulged that she was planning on requesting aid from this country at the behest of one of her close relatives.

She thinks that said close relative has most likely fallen in battle to aid in her escape.

In order to mislead their pursuers, eight carriages along with a number of escorts fled out of the country all at the same time, but in different directions.

I see. So she ended up meeting me in the middle of their escape from the country, huh. It seems Elna was one of the escorts assigned to another carriage.

It seems Cleria couldnt help but remember some things while relating her story and started tearing up.

So thats the case. It must have been really hard for you.

I cant imagine how painful it must feel to have your entire family murdered and your country taken from you. I started patting Clerias head in order to comfort her. Cleria lowered her head and nodded lightly. She started crying in earnest.

Mister Corinth, it would be best if you refrain from touching Cleria-sama in such a familiar manner.

Cleria raised her head and stopped herself from crying when she heard Elna.

Its alright, Elna. Mister Corinth, the ruler of the Belta Kingdom is my relative as well. I was originally planning to request aid from this countrys king. But after meeting Elna, it seems that isnt an option anymore.

I asked for more details. According to Elna, she and the rest of the escorts were discouraged for a time when they found out that Cleria wasnt in the carriage they were guarding. But in order to aid in Clerias escape, they resolved themselves to act their part as decoys to the best of their abilities, and proceeded towards Cecilio Kingdom as planned.

After arriving at Cecilio Kingdom, they registered as adventurers in order to hide the fact that they were knights. They then tried to inquire about Clerias whereabouts, but couldnt find any leads. They did manage to find two other escort groups assigned to other carriages, but they refrained from acting together to avoid standing out.

Elnas group then headed towards Belta Kingdom in search of other potential leads. They managed to find out that Belta Kingdoms ruler was Clerias relative and proceeded to request for aid in their search from this countrys nobles.

Elna was tasked with going around the area on her own just in case Cleria were to appear in the vicinity. The local noble assigned to the territory sent out an urgent message in order to request further orders from the king. But when the messenger returned, the rest of the escort knights apart from Elna ended up being captured and brought somewhere else. Elna surmised that they were probably taken back to the Starveek Kingdom. This all happened just five days ago.

So that means this countrys ruler is actually in league with the rebels. Maybe the rebels have offered something of value to them in return for their cooperation. You have truly suffered much for me, Elna.

No, Your Highness. I do not mind going through any kind of hardship for your sake. If they learn of Cleria-samas safety, the others who were captured would surely be elated as well.

I would like to rescue those knights who have been captured if possible, however

It has been five days after all. And the transport carriage was guarded by more than thirty knight escorts as well. It would be difficult to catch up to them even if we do know where their destination is. And it would be impossible for us to mount a rescue even if we do manage to catch up.

I see

I no longer have a clear idea about what I should do next. What would you suggest, Mr. Corinth? I would appreciate it if you could lend us your wisdom.

I ended up asking something that was bothering me since earlier instead of replying immediately.

Hey, Cleria, just why did you revert to that formal way of speaking? And I thought I told you not to call me Mr. Corinth, but Alan instead, right?

B- But, Im a part of royalty no, former royalty. And isnt Alan a **? So I just thought that

Lets just clear things up here. Im actually not a noble yknow.

Judging from the earlier conversation, I surmised that the ** word actually means noble or aristocrat.

Eh!? But dont you have a surname, Alan?

Yeah. What about it?

I dont understand what shes getting at.

You have a surname but arent a noble?

Yeah. In my country, all citizens have a surname. Its a common thing. And they arent nobles as well. Are the only people who have surnames in this continent nobles?

I actually knew of several human-inhabited planets in the empire where surnames werent a thing as well. But I didnt expect Cleria to think I was a noble just because I had a surname though.

So there was such a thing Yes, the only ones permitted to have surnames in this continent are members of the nobility.

It looks like Cleria was fairly shocked by the fact that I wasnt actually a noble. Elna displayed a I knew this was the case expression though.

Well then, lets get back to the topic of what your next actions should be. I think youll have to focus on information gathering first. You wont be able to plot an appropriate course of action if you lack information about the current situation after all. Specifically, I think asking Tarus-san for info would be a valid option. If possible, youll have to tell him your identity as well, Cleria. I believe Tarus-san would have at least one or two credible sources of information in the area, considering his line of business. I personally think Tarus-san to be a person worthy of trust.

Jonas-san told me during last nights banquet that the most important thing for a merchant was a credible source of information. It seems most merchants spend quite the hefty sums to obtain valuable info in order to gain a competitive edge and exploit movements in the market.

Declare Cleria-samas identity, you say? Its obvious that we cannot do such a thing! What are we going to do if she gets into danger as a result?

Well, if, by any chance, we do get into trouble, Ill just take Cleria and escape from here as fast as I can.

The likes of you alone would guarantee her escape!? Do not spout such crazy nonsense, fool!

No, if Alan were to get serious, even the combined forces of the adventurers and knights in this city will stand no chance. That, I can be absolutely sure of.

That cant be! Do you actually believe such a thing, Cleria-sama?

I have full confidence in the fact. And Elna, I would also like for you to treat Alan with more respect.

Understood. I apologize for my earlier conduct.

I also think Tarus-san should be worthy of trust. Alan, could I trouble you to accompany me to meet with Tarus-san?

Got it.

The three of us went out of the room in order to look for Tarus-san.