Chapter 77

"Unfair!!"

A few days after the Herian party, who had been dispatched to the Border City, concluded their skirmish with the Azure Knight, Robin, who had been stationed in Lateswood, uttered these words at the temporary command post near the Large Box.

It was a wail that seemed to lament the impermanence of the world.

"...What is it now, Commander? Is it another one of your usual fits?"

Merzal, his deputy, responded with a look of exasperation. Appointed as the deputy leader of the dispatched team, he raised his head from the construction schedule of the Large Box he had been scrutinizing and cast a suspicious glance at his superior.

"What do you mean by 'usual fits'!? I'm the picture of health!"

"Didn't you say that if you didn't hold back your mischief, your limbs would tremble?"

Robin turned away in response to Merzal's half-lidded question, remembering that he had used that excuse before. Merzal shook his head in exasperation and resumed his work on the schedule. As he moved his hand holding the pen, the sound of chains jingled.

"...Hey, isn't this treatment a bit much? I'm the legion commander, you know? The highest-ranking person in the Seventh Legion!"

Robin's complaint was prompted by the sight of the source of the sound. On Robin's right wrist and Merzal's left wrist, dull-glowing bracelets were embedded, connected by a sturdy chain. To anyone who saw it, it was nothing more than a pair of handcuffs meant to restrain Robin.

"A fitting treatment for a incorrigible troublemaker, I'd say."

"Protest against wrongful arrest! Merzal, you must release me immediately!"

Ignoring Robin's complaints, Merzal continued to write. Robin continued to grumble for a while but soon grew bored and started sulking, drawing the character 'の' on the floor. Occasionally, he would glance at Merzal from a diagonal angle below. The meaning behind these glances seemed to stem from the incomprehensible scream he had let out at the beginning.

Giving in to the pleading gaze that seemed to say "Ask, ask," Merzal sighed and asked the question.

"...So, what's unfair?"

"You asked! Thank you, Deputy!"

Do you really want to know? Do you really want to know? Really? Merzal was irritated by the sparkling eyes of his superior but knew that getting angry every time wouldn't do any good. He tried to maintain a calm demeanor and asked to be told.

"It's unfair, it's unfair! It's always the King and Lee who get to do all the fun stuff, and they're always unfair, but this time it's not even that kind of story!"

"...Ah, you mean that incident. I heard they managed to defeat a Mythical Threat alone."

This was a scoop that, while not yet known to the public, had been shared with some of the top brass.

The fact that a Mythical Threat existed at the expedition site was shocking enough, but the fact that it was defeated in an unprepared skirmish, and by a single person, was even more shocking. After all, Mythical Threats were supposed to be tackled with thorough preparation, reliable information, and sufficient forces. Ideally, they should be tackled by multiple legion commanders, and the achievement of the First Legion Commander, who managed to defeat one alone with the King's power, was a great feat that would make even the "Three of the Beginning" nod in approval. When this information is made public, the King and the First Legion Commander will surely be praised for their achievement.

"That's right, that's right! And it was right in front of the King! Saving the King in a crisis and making a big impact! How cool is that? So unfair! I want to cause chaos too!"

Robin raised his voice with each complaint. To Merzal, it was unbearably noisy, but considering Robin's feelings, it was somewhat understandable.

After all, during the battle the day after the inter-world transfer phenomenon, he had not been able to contribute at all. While the other legion commanders fulfilled their duties, he had been left out.

It was Merzal who informed him of the end of the battle while he was waiting in the main square of the homeland. The expression on his superior's face at that time was extremely painful, not to mention extremely despairing. Even now, recalling that face made Merzal's heart constrict.

"---No good. I let my true feelings show."

He tried to hide it but couldn't. It seemed that the additional responsibility of international relations was taking its toll on him.

"What can I do? It's not my main job..."

Originally, he was from a technical field. He had an average level of conversational skills, but that was all.

And yet, he had been appointed as the deputy leader of the first inter-nation exchange mission in this world. When he heard who the overall leader was, he understood. It turned out that his superior had been appointed as the head of the dispatched team.

It was a strategic decision to solve the Fafnir verification and other issues in one go, and to look ahead to the future. Since the overall leader was him, it was only natural that Merzal would be appointed as the deputy leader. There weren't many people who could control this unruly little person.

"...To be honest, I can't control him either."

At best, he could reduce the number of victims. The only people who could truly control him were the "Three of the Beginning": the First, Second, and Third Legion Commanders.

First, the First Legion Commander had the authority of a General Commander and could exercise a certain degree of control over the other legion commanders. In front of her, who was well-versed in non-verbal communication, Robin was nothing more than a powerless lamb without Fafnir. The Second Legion Commander was a principled person who excelled in maintaining discipline among the unruly monsters. In a sense, he was Robin's greatest nemesis. Incidentally, they didn't get along. The Third Legion Commander was a universally recognized saint, and even the momentary Robin had to restrain himself. Apparently, there was an incident in the past where he couldn't restrain himself, and it became a trauma for him. At the very least, he tried to act like a good boy in front of her, indicating that he was uncomfortable with her.

These "Three of the Beginning" were formidable, but it was absolutely impossible to have them take care of his superior. They all had heavy responsibilities and had no spare time to spare in the current state of Alkymaira.

"The Third Legion Commander, for example, is said to be on the verge of overworking to death..."

It was just a rumor, but it was a testament to the harsh and demanding work she was doing. The First and Second Legion Commanders were no different in terms of the weight of their responsibilities.

Thus, by process of elimination, it was Merzal who was left to monitor his troublesome superior.

In any case, since he had been appointed to a responsible position, he had to fulfill his duties. This included overseeing the reconstruction support and the construction management of the Large Box. Merzal returned to his task of scrutinizing the schedule, determined to meet the King's expectations.

"Hmm?"

He was suddenly seized by a strong sense of unease. He realized that the room was unusually quiet. Quiet was a concept that was diametrically opposed to his superior.

With a bad feeling, Merzal looked at the end of the chain extending from his bracelet.

"...I've been had."

At the end of the sturdy chain, only a dull-glowing bracelet remained.

---

Using his unnecessarily high skills, Robin, now free, headed for the small castle. His purpose was to carry out his usual routine.

What he usually did was, in other words, a "promise," and a "promise" was something that should be kept. The King had said something to that effect, so it must be true. In other words, doing this was his duty, not a way to vent his frustration or relieve stress. It was all about keeping the "promise."

"So, Hya-ha!"

Robin ran down the corridor of the small castle, shouting his usual line and engaging in his usual mischief, which was lifting the skirts of the female attendants who worked in the castle.

As expected, the guards were on high alert after his daily mischief, but they were not enough to match Robin's skills. His unparalleled skills among the eight legion commanders were not for nothing. Robin slid under the feet of the attendants with agile movements, flipped up their skirts, and inspected the contents.

"Ah, no, no---!?"

"Be careful, someone's coming---ah!"

"A, a swarm of frogs from the ceiling...!"

"Calm down, it's just a toy! More importantly, be prepared for the attack---ah!"

With the high-pitched screams of the attendants in the background, Robin ran down the corridor. Like the wind of freedom, he left numerous victims behind and quickly fled the scene of the crime. Then, as he turned the corner of the corridor, he caught sight of a figure.

"Hmm."

A pointed ear, half-up white hair, white skin, a white tunic. Although her back was turned and her face was not visible, the all-white figure was familiar.

She was Lirifa Rume Lateswood, the younger sister of the queen who ruled Lateswood, Reifa.

"...Hmm."

Hiding in the shadows, Robin fell into thought.

According to the information he had heard through the mischief alliance, she was a princess of this country. Now that the first princess, Reifa, had become queen, Lirifa, who had the first right of succession to the throne, was the second highest-ranking person in the country.

However, Robin didn't quite understand what he had heard.

He didn't really understand the concept of the right of succession. To a monster who had lived in the world of "Tactics Chronicle," the king was an immortal being, and there was no need for generational succession. A king could be overthrown by rebellion, but there was no such event as passing the throne to the next generation in a kingdom ruled by a king.

"Besides the King, the important people are the legion commanders, but... this is different, right?"

Probably, it was different.

Legion commanders were required to have combat skills to some extent. Even if they were slightly inferior in combat skills, they needed to have abilities that far exceeded that. However, from what he could see while hiding in the shadows, she didn't seem to have any combat skills. She didn't seem to have the excellent technical skills like himself or the superior information processing skills like Camilla. She looked like just a girl as she chatted with the attendants in the corridor.

"Hmm..."

In any case, she was definitely an important person. The respect shown by the attendants was proof of that. And that was why Robin was hesitant. His mind was occupied by the difficult question of weighing the risks and the entertainment value—

"Should I play a prank or not, that is the question."

"Are you kidding me!?"

Merzal, who had caught up to him at full speed, slapped Robin, who was making a philosophical expression. Panting, he shouted in a low voice, his face twisted with anger as he questioned his superior.

"Commander, do you really understand what you're saying? You should at least be able to tell the difference between who you can and can't mess with. This is no joke...!"

"Well, you see..."

"That's not an excuse. ...Come on, you must be done by now. We need to go back. I need you to review the schedule and checklists, and there's also the budget application for Fafnir's sortie preparations, and the inspection of the Large Box, and