Chapter 125

The next day. We visited the Blue-Winged Knights’ garrison in Gorera City. The Blue-Winged Knights’ garrison was located near the port and was larger than I expected. I was told that since the Blue-winged Knights protect the territorial waters, they have large and small ships dedicated for their use, and there are also facilities for ship maintenance within the premises, which is why it’s so big. 

If it were just me, I’d definitely get lost in such a large place… I’m really glad Gazelle and Felix are with me. In any case, the three of us were able to smoothly enter since we had made an appointment yesterday. 

After the lord’s knights left yesterday, Felix had asked the inn’s staff to deliver a letter detailing the circumstances and expressing our wish to meet and talk with the captain. The letter the staff brought back from the garrison stated that they wanted to meet and hear from us immediately. The difference from the lord’s knights yesterday is like that between clouds and mud. Even before meeting him, the captain of the Blue-winged Knights already has my maximum favorability. As we walked through the garrison, people who seemed to be members of the Blue-winged Knights looked at me with puzzled faces or glanced at me with expressions that couldn’t hide their curiosity. But no one called out to me. Gazelle and Felix seemed unfazed by their gazes, so I also tried not to mind them as I walked. And waiting for us in the reception room we were shown to was-

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Gazelle and Felix! Hey, you both look well, that’s great. I mean, if you were coming to Gorera City, I wish you would’ve let me know in advance~!”

As soon as the door to the reception room was flung open with a bang, a man with a cheerful aura entered with a beaming smile. I was sitting on the edge of the sofa, but the door was opened with such force that I thought it was an enemy attack for a moment. However, Gazelle and Felix, who were also sitting on the sofa, showed no signs of surprise and instead had wry smiles on their faces.

“Hartus… you haven’t changed a bit.”

“Commander Hartus, it’s been a while.”

“Yep yep, I’m glad to see both Gazelle and Felix doing well! But still, it’s rare for you two to come all the way to a place like this… hm? Huh?”

Gazelle and Felix stood up from the sofa and shook hands with the man who had entered the room. I also stood up, following their lead. Apparently, this man seems to be Commander Hartus, who leads the Blue-winged Knights. Somehow… he’s way more energetic than I imagined! He looks to be about the same age as Gazelle. Due to his narrow eyes, I can’t tell the color of his irises. His hair is silver, his skin is well-tanned, and he’s tall. Compared to Gazelle, his physique looks slender, but he doesn’t seem unreliable at all; he gives off a sense of strength and flexibility like steel. 

When Commander Hartus noticed me beside Felix, he gave me a puzzled look. But the next moment, he grinned with a friendly face, rummaged in his pocket, took out a small package, and held it out to me.

“Gazelle, you’ve got quite a little one with you today! Here, have some candy. Oh, or should I bring you some juice or something?”

“Th-thank you very much…”

By the time he said “have some candy,” Commander Hartus had already pressed the candy package into my hand. He’s incredibly swift. But still, I’ve been getting a lot of candy and sweets from people since coming to this city…

“Gazelle, what’s with this cute kid? Is it your or Felix’s little brother-in-law or something?”

Taking the opportunity of Commander Hartus sitting on the sofa, the three of us also sat back down on the sofa. I parted my lips to explain about myself, but before I could, Gazelle answered.

“Not a little brother. My wife.”

“Ah, I see. Your wife… wife!?”

Commander Hartus’s mouth gaped open as if making a popping sound. Seeing that, Felix spoke with a very calm expression.

“Gazelle, the way you answered might cause a misunderstanding.”

“Hm, you think so?”

“Yes. It’s true that Takumi is your partner, but at the same time, he’s also my partner. If you don’t properly explain that part, Commander Hartus might misunderstand…”

Felix, is that what you’re pointing out!? I mean, um, the content of your point isn’t wrong, but!? But, isn’t that not what you should be pointing out right now!? Naturally, or rather, how should I put it, Commander Hartus’s expression grew even more confused at Felix’s words.

“Huh!? What, wait, what in the world is going on!? Are you two serious about this!? If it’s true, it’s a huge crime to do this to such a little kid!”

Gazelle raised his right hand to apologize while holding back laughter at Commander Hartus’s flustered reaction.

“Haha, my bad, my bad. I took the joke a bit too far. Hartus, this one’s name is Takumi. Takumi is currently this young due to the effects of a magic potion, but his actual age is about five or six years older than his current appearance.”

“A youth-restoring magic potion? Why would you have something like that…”

“Originally, I had arranged for a magic potion to change his hair and eye color. I mean, his hair and eyes are a bit eye-catching, right? But there was a mix-up with the potion that arrived, and this happened.”

Hearing Gazelle’s explanation, Commander Hartus gave me a look that seemed to say, “Really?” So when I nodded firmly, Commander Hartus finally looked relieved.

“Oh, so that’s how it is. That’s a relie- no, it’s still strange. What’s with Gazelle calling him ‘wife’ and Felix even saying ‘partner’? Is that a joke too?”

“That part is exactly as we said. Currently, the three of us – Gazelle, Takumi, and I – are living together in the royal capital. Coming to Gorera City is what you would call our honeymoon.”

Felix answered without any hesitation. Commander Hartus once again made a surprised expression. But this time, since both Gazelle and Felix remained serious, he probably understood it was the truth. He gazed intently at our faces in amazement.

“Wow… I’m shocked. I thought both Gazelle and Felix were the type to be popular but far from marriage… To think you two would fall for the same person. You never know what life has in store!”

After saying that, Commander Hartus laughed out loud. However, after laughing for a while, he suddenly withdrew his smile and his expression became very serious.

“I’d love to hear more about how you three got together, but let’s leave that for later. I heard Gazelle and the others are holding a petition from the town of Belcarna?”

Gazelle’s expression also turned serious in an instant, and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a paper tied with string. It was the petition that Rido had likely slipped into my luggage, which I had discovered last night. Commander Hartus took the petition from Gazelle and carefully read the text written on it. As Commander Hartus read through the petition and Gazelle explained the circumstances thus far, his expression visibly darkened. Then, after slowly placing the petition on the table, he let out a big sigh.

“What a strange coincidence. I never thought Gazelle and the others would cross paths with him…”

“What? You know Rido?”

Gazelle’s voice rang out in surprise at Commander Hartus’s words. Felix and I were also shocked. Were the two acquainted? Commander Hartus shook his head as he answered.

“No, I’m not acquainted with that person named Rido. But I know about the current situation in Belcarna. In fact, this matter was originally supposed to be handled by the Blue-winged Knights. One of our members has family ties with the mayor there. It all started when word of Belcarna’s miserable state reached our ears through that member.”

“I see.”

At Commander Hartus’s words, the three of us couldn’t hide our growing surprise. It seemed the Blue-winged Knights had been aware of the circumstances in Belcarna and the petition from the beginning. In contrast to our surprise, Commander Hartus continued his explanation in a matter-of-fact manner.

“Rido, who had set out from Belcarna with the petition, and we, the Blue-winged Knights, were supposed to secretly meet in a farming village on the outskirts of Gorera City. The plan was to receive the petition there, protect Rido, and then deliver the petition to the royal capital, but…”

“Rido didn’t show up at the designated meeting place?”

“That’s right. So for the past few days, my members and I have been frantically searching the surrounding areas… But I never imagined that Rido would enter Gorera City with Gazelle and the others while we were away.”

“Rido was attacked by bandits on the way. So that’s why he couldn’t reach the meeting place.

 “Or… those bandits might have been the lord’s men too.”

At Commander Hartus’s words, I suddenly recalled something. It was the conversation between Rido and the bandits.

“L-Let that child go! You’re after me, aren’t you!”

“Heh, it’s true we came all this way chasing you… But that doesn’t mean we’re going to overlook the prime prey that appeared right in front of us.”

I hadn’t paid any attention to it at the time, but looking back, it was a bit of an odd conversation. Rido had clearly stated, “You’re after me, aren’t you?” If they were ordinary bandits, their goal should have been money and goods. Furthermore, thinking back, Rido had also said this. He had thrown his valuables and escaped while the bandits were distracted by them. But even so, the bandits had persistently continued to chase Rido. Considering the conversation and the bandits’ actions – from the start, the bandits’ objective wasn’t money, but to harm Rido. And Rido had also realized this. That’s probably why he said those things. However, there’s still something that bothers me. 

Watching for a break in the conversation between Commander Hartus and Gazelle, I tried asking Commander Hartus a question.

“Why did you have Rido bring the petition all the way to the farming village?”

“Hm? Well, we’re stationed in Gorera City to ‘protect the territorial waters,’ so it’s a bit problematic for us to meddle in the lord’s jurisdiction. Um… Felix, what do you call this kind of thing?”

“Overstepping authority, perhaps?”

“Yeah, that’s it!”

Commander Hartus nodded in agreement. But I still didn’t fully understand the meaning.

Felix gave me a gentle smile as I looked puzzled.

“Ah, I’m sorry. Takumi is from a ‘foreign country,’ so he’s still unfamiliar with the circumstances around here. Um… you know that the Blue-winged Knights are tasked with protecting the territorial waters of Ritzheim, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Gorera City has its own lord’s knights. Having a lord’s knights basically means that the lord has been granted the obligation and right by His Majesty to ‘have the lord’s knights handle the maintenance of public order within the domain, and by extension, use their military force to maintain the safety of Ritzheim’s territory.'”

“…I see.”

“The town of Belcarna is part of Gorera’s domain. If the Blue-winged Knights were to search the town on their own and intentionally intervene in a dispute… it would mean that the Blue-winged Knights disregarded the rights of Gorera’s lord granted by His Majesty. The mission of the Blue-winged Knights is solely to protect Ritzheim’s territorial waters, and disputes within Gorera’s domain fall under the jurisdiction of the lord’s knights.”

Come to think of it, Gazelle and Felix had difficult expressions on their faces before coming here. And there were times when the two of them talked seriously without me. That must have been because they were concerned about this.

“Then, what happens in a case like this, where a lord who has his own knights commits tyranny in his domain?”

“Of course, under normal circumstances, inspections from the royal capital are conducted every year to prevent that from happening… but in this case, perhaps they somehow evaded the inspectors’ eyes, or they bought off the inspectors…”

“I see… Thank you, Felix.”

Thanks to him, I understood it well. It seems the situation in Gorera City is more complicated than I thought. Looking across, I saw Commander Hartus also had an awkward expression on his face.

“It’s just as Felix says. Apparently, during the last inspection, the lord’s knights skillfully bribed the inspectors… Anyway, we Blue-winged Knights can’t just intervene in what’s happening in Belcarna. If we head to Belcarna on our own, the lord’s knights will confront us head-on under the pretext of ‘maintaining public order within the domain.’ If that happens, Belcarna will quickly turn into a battlefield.”

“So that’s where the petition comes in.”

“That’s right. There’s no problem with the people of Belcarna making a direct appeal, and if we have evidence in the form of a petition, we can ask His Majesty to issue a disarmament order to Gorera’s lord’s knights. If that happens, we can finally go to the rescue of Belcarna, and a re-inspection can be conducted without unnecessary bloodshed. That’s why we had arranged to send a messenger and the petition to the royal capital first, but… the information must have leaked to Gorera’s lord somewhere.”

Commander Hartus gritted his teeth. But then his expression suddenly softened, and he shifted his gaze to the petition placed on the table.

“In other words, that person named Rido hid the petition in Takumi’s luggage before it could be taken by the lord. The reason he didn’t reveal his own circumstances was either to avoid getting you three involved in this matter or to draw the lord’s attention to himself… He’s quite a person.”

Commander Hartus muttered in a heartfelt manner. There was something about his demeanor and what he said that caught my attention, so I timidly spoke up.

“So, right now, Rido is being held captive by the lord. But based on what you said earlier… does that mean the Blue-winged Knights can’t immediately go to rescue him?”

According to Felix’s explanation about overstepping authority, the Blue-winged Knights can’t act freely unless they have permission from the King of Ritzheim. In other words, the Blue-winged Knights can’t go to the lord and save Rido as things stand… This is terrible. Even though we finally found out who abducted Rido, we can’t do anything…! Commander Hartus also nodded with a bitter expression at my question.

“Yeah, I’m sorry, but we can’t do that. If the Blue-winged Knights act on their own, we’ll end up directly confronting the lord’s knights. If that happens, a significant amount of blood will be shed in both Gorera City and Belcarna.”

“…But then, when can we go to rescue Rido?”

“………”

At my question, Commander Hartus’s eyes narrowed.

Oh… now that I look at him, he’s quite a handsome man with Japanese features. The color of his eyes is ultramarine. They’re the color of eyes that seem to have melted the vast ocean visible from Gorera City into them.

“I’m sorry, Takumi… but it’s best to give up on that person named Rido.”

“Wha-!?”

I was admiring Commander Hartus’s face when that bombshell statement flew out of his lips.

“What do you mean, give up?”

My tone unintentionally became strong. Commander Hartus, who was gazing back at me, continued his explanation with a heavy expression.

“Well, there’s no doubt that Rido was abducted on the lord’s orders. Most likely, the lord’s men who snuck into the inn couldn’t find the petition no matter where they searched in the room, so they took Rido himself along with his luggage. That’s why there’s no doubt that Rido is still alive right now. He’s probably in the middle of being interrogated by the lord’s knights to find out where the petition is.”

“Then…!”

“Therefore – the moment the petition falls into our hands, Rido becomes useless to the lord.”

…Ah.

“We have to deliver the petition to the royal capital and get permission before we can act. But… if the petition reaches His Majesty, the lord will immediately find out about it. If that happens, they’ll have no reason to keep Rido alive.”

That’s right – the reason the lord abducted Rido was to prevent him from exposing the miserable state of Belcarna. That’s why their goal was to intercept the petition Rido had. But thanks to Rido’s efforts and dedication, the petition safely made its way into the hands of the Blue-winged Knights. It reached them. Therefore, the lord no longer needs to keep Rido alive- In other words… because I found this petition and handed it over to Commander Hartus… Rido will be killed…?

“Takumi. This is inevitable now. It’s not your fault at all. Rather, it’s because you were there that Rido was able to fulfill his purpose. So-“

Commander Hartus spoke to me with concern as I stood there in shock. However, before he could finish, Gazelle parted his lips.

“Hartus. Then, if we think about it the other way around, can’t we use this petition as leverage to save Rido?”

I looked at Gazelle with a start. Noticing my gaze, Gazelle gave me a reassuring smile before turning back to Commander Hartus.

“What? Gazelle, even you…”

“Giving up and doing nothing isn’t right. Even without help from you Blue-winged Knights, Rido headed to Gorera City alone while escaping pursuers to fulfill his mission. If we let it end like this, it’ll be a disgrace to all of us as knights. We could try to do something more.”

“Ugh… that’s…”

At Gazelle’s words, Commander Hartus furrowed his brow and bit his lip in frustration.

“…Certainly, it’s our fault for letting the other side get a step ahead of us in this matter. But what can we do in this situation? We have to send the petition to the royal capital as soon as possible and get His Majesty’s official permission, otherwise we can’t go to the rescue of Belcarna or conduct any investigations. But if we send the petition to the royal capital, the lord will kill Rido, who has become useless to him. It’s impossible to have it both ways!”

Commander Hartus declared. His words were rough, but the content was certainly reasonable. Then, this time Felix spoke up.

“Then, how about preparing a fake petition? If we propose to the lord to trade Rido’s life for the petition, wouldn’t the lord agree to it?”

“…A fake petition, huh. We could prepare one since we have the real one here… But even so, who’s going to propose the deal? If the Blue-winged Knights propose a deal, it’ll be obvious that it’s a fake. Is there anyone who wouldn’t seem unnatural to propose a trade to the lord in this situation?”

At Commander Hartus’s words, I blurted out an idea that suddenly came to mind.

“Then how about pretending to be his family – like his younger brother – and saying, ‘I actually had the real petition all along. Rido was just a decoy.'”

“Huh?”

Following Commander Hartus, Gazelle and Felix also stared at me in surprise.

“If I pretend to be his younger brother and say, ‘I was planning to hand over the real petition to the Blue-winged Knights, but now that my brother has been captured, I’ve changed my mind. If you can guarantee the safety of my brother and me, I’ll give you the petition,’ wouldn’t the lord agree to the deal? They’ll be suspicious, but they should still agree to the deal itself.”

While recalling a movie from my original world where they did a hostage exchange like this, I spoke what flashed through my mind. However, for some reason, Gazelle and Felix’s expressions turned grim and serious as they listened to my words. Huh? Did I say something weird?

“That’s too dangerous…! We can’t let you take on such a role!”

As I was wondering, Felix suddenly grabbed my shoulders with a desperate look on his face. Huh? A dangerous role…? Wait a minute. Felix, what are you talking about right now?

“That’s right, Takumi. With your current appearance, they definitely won’t think you’re a member of the Black-winged Knights, and the lord will let his guard down thinking you’re just a kid, but…”

When I looked at Gazelle, seeking an explanation, he also shook his head with a stern expression. No, wait a minute? What are you two talking about… Oh! C-Could it be… it sounds like I’ve volunteered for the role of negotiating with the lord, saying, “I actually have the real petition★ I’m Rido’s younger brother!” No, that’s not it! I’m not good with words, and there’s no way I could do that! My suggestion was just that it might be good to have one of the Blue-winged Knights propose a trade like this…!

“Ooh, that might work! Most of our members’ faces are known to the lord’s knights, and since we’re tanned, they’ll immediately know we’re from Gorera City. But Takumi… they would never dream that such a little kid is a member of the knights!”

Commander Hartus looked at me with an impressed gaze, ignoring my flustered state.

“I see, I see… Takumi will rescue Rido from the lord in exchange for the fake petition. Then, we’ll deliver the real petition to the royal capital, right?”

Huh!? Doesn’t it already sound like I’m going to the negotiation!? I mean, the members of the Blue-winged Knights have their faces known! Of course, there’s no way the Blue-winged Knights stationed in Gorera City and the lord’s knights don’t know each other! …Wait. Does that mean… among this group, I’m the most suitable for the negotiation…?

“Yeah, yeah! And the Takumi who belongs to the knights is a proper ‘adult’ Takumi, while the little Takumi here is someone who doesn’t exist anywhere. Moreover, you drank the youth potion by mistake, so there’s no official record of it, right? Then, even if they suspect that Takumi might belong to the knights, we can make up excuses afterwards! Yeah, that sounds good!”

As I was drenched in cold sweat, Commander Hartus grabbed my hand with both of his hands and shook it up and down, looking touched.

“Wow, I’m impressed! Takumi, you have such a cute face, but you’ve got quite a lot of guts! I like you. When your body returns to normal, let’s have a drink together! I’ll treat you to the best liquor I have!”

“Haha…”

I gave a strained smile as Commander Hartus gripped my hand tightly. …It doesn’t feel like I can refuse at this point, does it?

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