28: All's well that ends well, right?
That day, every resident of Goldendown Village had gathered in the square.
The dragon’s head had already been stowed away in spatial storage—looked just like usual.
So why were so many people here? Because Kyle was coming to report directly to Lord Bairoroad, the Marquis of the Frontier.
“Raidock. I’m counting on you.”
“Yeah. Leave it to me.”
“Damn glad you’re here.”
“Got plenty of reward money for this.”
Raidock closed one eye and tapped his sword at his hip.
This was a custom blade made by Leifan using dragon claw dust and hardened mithril—payment for guarding the village.
Stronger than a normal hardened mithril sword.
Straight-up national treasure-level weapon.
Funny thing? Though the design’s different, Alphard and Persia received weapons made of the same material too.
The carriage was ready. Kyle and Maina boarded it, followed by the two guards taking turns riding.
My space storage held all the luggage, so the other members started walking.
The group: me, Leifan, Kyle, Maina, Alphard, Persia. And somehow, Jitarou was here too.
“Uuuu… I don’t wanna go back to the village for a while.”
“Ah, got it, got it.”
Jitarou had been rejected by Soral and insisted so hard on joining us, so I ended up agreeing with a dry laugh.
And then there were the guards—another adventuring party.
One of the groups that had done well in the dragon hunt. Their strength was guaranteed.
“Ms. Seira, it’ll be tough for a while, but please keep going.”
“Y-yes! I’ll do my best!”
Seira, the widow and owner of the general store, replied with shaky but firm determination.
She’s the only shop currently selling potions, so she’s swamped.
I handed over everything I had in stock, so it should be fine until he gets back. Probably.
"Lord Kyle! Please, grant permission to sell mithril!"
"I'll discuss that with Father. Just wait a moment."
"When that time comes, trust me with this Akindo. I won’t let you down."
"Hey! Don’t cut in line like that!"
"Lord Kyle! We could offer you more—"
"I get your feelings, but Lord Kyle’s busy! Submit your requests in writing!"
"Oh, Persia… sorry…"
"I know, I know. I just—"
"Ugh. I’ll admit you’re enthusiastic. I’ve never dealt with this kind before, so I wasn’t sure how to handle it."
"Seems fine to me."
"Really?"
When Persia shot them a sharp look, the merchants stepped back. That’s enough.
"Craft-san!"
"Hm?"
You guys made it thanks to me! Please don’t go sticking around the Marquis’s place, okay!?
Hah. No plans for that.
I want to help Kyle.
I want to be the strength behind that stubborn kid who took it all so quietly.
But…
It’s fine. I’ve got a guild contract to keep.
Right! That’s right! Take care of Kyle for me!
Leave it to me.
I answered with full confidence.
No need to tell me.
He’s my cute little brother. I’ll help him, no problem.
If anyone dares pick on him, I’ll beat them senseless!
Alright, everyone, we about done?
Yeah.
Then… we’re off!
“Yesss! Long live Kyle! Long live Craft! Kyle forever!!!”
The villagers chanting three cheers is nice, but I don’t need my name in there.
And so, we set off toward Lord Bairoroad, the Marquis of the Frontier.
—— Chapter One Complete ——
……。
…………。
………………。
Lord Bairoroad, the Marquis of the Frontier, sat in silence, arms crossed before him, a letter in hand.
On the fine oak desk stood a report from his third son.
The documents and letter delivered yesterday through the Adventurer’s Guild detailed an opening history so absurd it defied reason.
“……”
Orthros Gandar von Bairoroad rose and walked to the window.
Beyond the lavish glass, far in the distance, lay the land once declared uncolonizable.
He felt guilt for sending Kyle—his weakest son—into the dangerous territory, despite his sons’ insistence.
The succession dispute had always centered on his eldest, Flatten, and second son, Zaid.
He knew, of course, that making Kyle heir was impossible for a lord.
He understood his sons’ ambitions, too.
Kyle, who had no real authority but still drew the people’s favor—he’d have been banished to the ends of the earth, and if he was lucky, he’d die there.
At least, if he returned after failing at colonization, it’d be enough for his sons.
But…
Knock, knock, knock. The door creaks open.
“Father. May I come in?”
“Hm. Enter.”
Two men entered. One was Flatten, the eldest, who looked like a younger Orthros.
Thirty-three years old, but he looked mid-twenties.
No surprise there—he’d spent his fortune on youth elixirs, Amrita, taking them regularly. The business he ran was profitable enough that no one could complain.
The other was Zaid, the younger son, sharp-eyed. He had his mother’s face—the second wife, now the official wife.
Twenty-nine years old, and he looked it.
But his personality was still just that of a child, no matter how much time passed.
"Father, you said you had something for me?"
"Yeah, it's about Kyle."
"Kyle?"
Flatten raised one eyebrow, puzzled. Zaid, on the other hand, twisted his mouth into a nasty smirk.
"Take a look at this."
Orthros handed the summarized sheet to Flatten.
Flatten, who’d read it first, scowled.
"Is this really true?"
"I didn’t check it."
"Huh? What’s wrong?"
Zaid snatched the paper from Flatten and scanned it. His face twisted uglier with every line he read.
"What the hell is this?! You’re joking, right?! This is absurd!"
Zaid’s anger wasn’t hard to understand.
The paper listed the expansion of the frontier village, rising population, more shops, requests for stalls from every guild.
Even that much was hard to believe. But the text went on.
“D-dragons? You’re saying adventurers and villagers alone are gonna take them down!? That’s insane! Impossible! Unbelievable!”
“I have to admit, I’m skeptical too.”
Not just Zaid—Flatten too raised his doubts.
“Kyle’s serious. He wouldn’t joke about something like this.”
“But—!”
“I know. It’s not the kind of thing you’d just believe outright.”
“Then I’ll go to the site myself—!”
“No. He’s supposed to report back here first.”
Zaid swallowed his words.
“Confident enough to say that?”
“Yeah. Along with the letter, he sent this.”
Orthros pulled out two small bottles.
“What’s that?”
“Said to be the legendary universal cure, the elixir.”
“Huh!?!”
Even Flatten was forced to shout in disbelief. It was too sudden. Too absurd.
“Nonsense! That’s gotta be a fake!”
Zaid was furious.
“Do either of you know anything about the elixir?”
“Only what I’ve read in stories—supposedly cures any illness.”
“Same here.”
“Hmm… Actually, I once heard about the elixir from the late king himself.”
“The king?”
“Yeah. Back then, he said the elixir was a salve. And that it tasted good.”
“Huh?”
“A salve… to eat?”
“And it was sent to us. A salve. Even if he was joking, where the hell did he get that idea from?”
“….”
The two sons were speechless.
Pretty much the expected reaction.
“And apparently, Kyle tried it himself.”
“Himself?”
“That’s right. And the result… he’s supposedly healthy now.”
“Wait—what!?”
“…That’s ridiculous.”
No wonder he was stunned. The marquis had pushed every advantage of his position—tried every doctor, every remedy imaginable—and nothing had worked.
That he claimed to be healed now… well, even without Orthros saying another word, the two of them seemed to understand.
“Also, apparently, there are gifts he can’t write about in the letter.”
“If he really did slay a dragon, those materials would be the obvious choice. But saying he can’t write about them? That’s odd.”
“Hmph! Just puffing himself up, that’s all!”
“Regardless, if this report is true, it’s a major matter. Kyle arrives the day after tomorrow. Clear your schedule. Take one of those medicines each. Examine it, use it—whatever you like.”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
Flatten and Zaid bowed, then left the room.
Orthros returned to the window.
“What the hell do you think you’re bringing, Kyle?”
A muttered question, spoken to no one, melted into the quiet of the room.
◆
Zaid slammed the door behind him and bellowed the moment he stepped inside.
“Summon Jabir! Immediately!”
“Jabir-sama? She’s in the lab… researching…”
“Tell her there’s an elixir! A real one!”
“Huh?”
“The universal panacea from legend! I want it tested! Even that research fool’ll come running!”
“Yes, sir!”
The servant bolted out in a hurry.
After a while, a girl with sharp eyes and a pungent herbal scent wafting off her arrived.
“Late again, Jabir!”
“Hah hah, just in the middle of an experiment, I was!”
“You’re always doing that! Never mind that—look at this!”
“Huh huh, another elixir, huh? Well, probably fake anyway…”
The girl, Jabir, froze the moment she took the container.
Stood there, silent, clutching it.
Zaid watched her, and thought.
When I was helping my brother Flatten with making the rejuvenation elixir Amrita, the experiment went wrong. Completely out of control.
Up until then, the young genius had been this elegant, mature figure—exactly my type. Then suddenly, she turned into a little girl.
She’s still young, sure—but older than me, that’s for damn sure.
Ever since then, Jabir hasn’t aged a day.
Absolute waste of potential.
“Zaid-sama? Where did you get this?”
“Can’t say much! But— is this real?”
“Just a moment… let me check…”
A tiny vial glowing faintly with magic.
Jabir’s hand, holding it, trembled slowly.
“Hey… Jabir?”
“C-can’t believe it… This… This is definitely an elixir. A real one. A genuine elixir!”
“…What the hell…”
“Zaid-sama! Where on earth did you find this?! Where?! In a dungeon?! Or— could it be…?!”
Calm down, Javir! I told you—I can't go into details! But by the day after tomorrow, even that’ll be clear!
Ah...! Ah!
Jabir lifted the small bottle once, then immediately cradled it close. You could see the fierce resolve in his eyes—no way was he letting go.
Zaid let out a dry laugh and gave the order.
"Leave it to you. Go ahead and investigate, but don’t you dare make it unusable."
Yeah! Leave it to me! If I’ve got the real thing, I can definitely make it—!
Damn it! Too damn hot! Anyway! I’m leaving the investigation to you!
Leave it all to me!
Zaid adjusted his collar and let out a sigh.
"Seriously. Still a damn research addict, as always."
Kukuku... I don’t know where this came from, but I’ll make it into something—something *real*! I’ll create the first alchemical elixir ever made by humanity! Just you wait!
She let out a creepy, booming laugh—still unaware at this point.
That it had been forged by Craft, an anomaly beyond all rules...
Part One ends here!
I'd love to hear your thoughts or ratings if you can!
If you spot any typos, please let me know in the comments!
I might take a day or two off to work on the plot.
I’ll be back soon—just hold on a little ( ´▽｀ )