152: The welcome's polite, I guess.

The clumsy female knight seems excited. ()

New volume out December 28!

Comikized latest volume now on sale!

On the central street of Golden Dune, a fine carriage and a fine armored knight marched in orderly formation, bearing the kingdom’s banner.

From the roadside, from rooftops, townsfolk showered them with petals and cheered.

Today, a delegation from the capital was arriving—accompanied by the king himself.

We’re watching from the castle.

“Arrived much earlier than scheduled, huh.”

“Yeah, Van’s always in a rush.”

I reply, and Kyle gives a small, wry smile.

“Craft-sama. You’re supposed to call him His Majesty today. Calling him Van’s not exactly proper, is it?”

I know, I know… but still…

First time meeting, introduced myself as an adventurer—kinda gives off "Your Majesty" vibes, honestly.

Can’t remember a name that’s too long.

Yeah, I’ll be careful.

Yes

I left all the official interactions to Kyle.

Heh. Leave it to me.

Kyle answers, sounding pleased.

There wasn’t a trace left of the sickly boy Kyle used to be. He moved through each day with the energetic spark of a youth.

Complained he’d barely had time to practice, what with how busy he’d been running the estate, even though he’d said he wanted to keep sharpening his sword skills, the duty of a lord. Really came back to life, that one.

When I say I rely on Kyle, he gets all happy. Guess that’s just because he’s fond of me. Come to think of it, back in the orphanage days, I was always getting attached to the younger ones.

...Still got kids in the orphanage and the academy fond of me, I bet.

I run a hand over Maina’s head, still clinging to my cloak. The room holds only me and Kyle besides Maina, Persia, and Professor Jabir. And a clerk and a butler, waiting in the wings.

Professor Jabir, indifferent to the fuss, sips tea at the table and reads through a paper.

“Maina. Van’s coming soon. You happy about that?”

Maina tilts her head after a pause.

Whatever. Van’s Van.

“Maina. The king himself visiting your lands? That’s a huge honor.”

Kyle tries to explain, but she doesn’t seem to get it.

Yeah, well, neither do I.

While Maina and I are utterly unbothered, Persia’s barely hiding her excitement.

“That’s right! This isn’t some secret visit like before—this is the king’s official arrival! Ah! All of this is thanks to Kyle-sama’s hard work! You really went all out, didn’t you!”

Yeah, no—she’s not just a little excited. She’s completely losing it.

“Hey, Persia. You’re breathing hard even in front of the king. What’s wrong with you?”

“Still as rude as ever, aren’t you? You!”

I rub my head with a dry laugh, peering toward the city’s parade.

No fireworks, no street stalls—nothing like the usual Goldendown festival.

The usual celebration crowds are nowhere to be seen. Instead, residents line both sides of the central road, shoulder to shoulder. But the road itself? Empty.

A wall of soldiers, adventurers, and holy knights blocks it completely.

Right now, Alphard’s probably sweating bullets, trying to keep everything under control.

And down that flower-strewn aisle, the king’s lavish carriage moves slowly forward.

Crowds gather to watch and cheer as guards of honor march on either side, flanking the carriage.

The people of Goldendown are going wild—nearly ecstatic—over the king’s personal visit. It’s an honor like no other.

As the royal party enters the castle, the gates shut behind them, cutting off the view, and the townsfolk quietly go back to cleaning up and returning to their daily lives.

Me and Kyle aren’t greeting the king. (……)

The diplomats are handling the visitors. Simple reason: Van isn’t here. (….)

We wait in the reception room as planned. Just as scheduled, Alphard returns.

“Good work, Alphard.”

“Huh?!”

The crisp salute he returns fits a military chief of this domain perfectly.

"Good work. You okay down below?"

"Yeah. Left the rest to Degard and Tygar."

Two former mercenaries, former adventurers—Degard Bismack and the tiger-beastman Tygar Gaidar. They’re apparently quite capable. I can hand over most of the work to them.

...Damn, wish I had subordinates this reliable.

That’s the thought running through my head, jealous as hell, when the maid arrives and announces the visiting delegation has arrived. Kyle double-checks with her.

"Are the representatives saying they want a break? Or do they want to start talks straight away?"

The maid bows politely.

"They’d like to begin talks immediately."

"Understood. Show them to the audience chamber. Craft and Javir, you go ahead."

"Got it."

Got it.

Even Javir, who’d been staring at the text with a blank expression, slowly lifted his head to reply.

"Being the one with the highest rank means you gotta be the last to enter the room? Nobility’s rules are a pain."

"Yeah, I feel that."

I nod along with the teacher’s tired grumble. Couldn’t we just all pile into the conference room together?

Guess that’s not how nobles roll.

We’re led to the audience chamber, already prepared, and take our places as instructed.

It’s a long, narrow hall. A red carpet runs down the center. The floor rises in steps ahead, and at the top, right in the middle, sits an absurdly tall, ornate chair.

On either side of the room, columns line up. The banner of the Elixir Frontier Baron flares proudly, one after another.

Beneath those columns, the Holy Knights stand motionless, perfectly still.

Same as what everyone pictures when they think of meeting a king. Kyle’s a lord, after all.

Right away, the lead delegation arrives, and following the Holy Knight’s instruction, they kneel on the red carpet, one knee down.

They’re smooth about it—like they already know what’s expected. The rookie Holy Knight’s the one flustered.

Still, calling them Holy Knights? They were just personal guards not long ago.

Once the delegation’s ready, Kyle and Maina step onto the dais, followed by their guards, Alphard and Persia.

Kyle takes his seat—no throne, just the lord’s chair. Maina stands a step back.

Persia confirms everyone’s ready, then raises her voice, crisp and sharp.

“Lord Kyle Goldendown von Elixir Frontier, presenting himself! All! Look up!”

Usually a total mess, but Persia’s pretty damn cool when she’s in her element.

The representatives all lift their faces. Kyle gives them a gentle smile.

“Good to meet you all. I’m Kyle Goldendown von Elixir Frontier. Thank you for the long journey. You must be tired from the road.”

The eldest-looking one, draped in a fine robe and sporting a long white beard, answers.

“Pleasure to meet you. I am Baron Batista von Helmond, honored knight. I hold the title of Head Court Alchemist.”

So this old guy was the top alchemist in the entire kingdom.

I glance at Javir, sitting beside me. He nods. “Know him,” he says.

Yeah, sure. Head Court Alchemist sounds impressive. But he’s still nothing compared to the teacher.

“The journey was wonderfully comfortable, I assure you. The road’s been maintained to an almost frightening degree, after all. Your skill, Master Kyle, is truly impressive. Their Majesties are quite delighted.”

“Thank you.”

The praise from the kingdom’s representative loosened the tension in the audience chamber just a little.

“So then. Since we’re here to welcome Their Majesties, I’d like to set up the teleportation array right away.”

Right—this time, the reason the townsfolk were led to believe the King was riding in a carriage, when he wasn’t, was because he’d arrived here directly via the teleportation array.

Some secret kingdom tech, apparently. But having it installed first thing? That bastard Van’s doing whatever he wants again!

He’s probably just itching to come visit whenever he feels like it.

Honestly, my head’s killing me.