Chapter 16: Sylphi’s Gift and the Silver-Maned Knight

Several days had passed since the attack by Viola, the assassin sent by Elizabeth.

A momentary peace seemed to have returned to the golden territory. However, the “Curse Chains” wrapped around Allen’s neck carried an even more ominous heat than before, pulsating repeatedly.

Ba-dump, ba-dump.

It was proof that the obsession of its master, Elizabeth, had taken root even deeper within him.

On the afternoon of one such day, an incident rained down from the sky.

Suddenly, a bright red magic circle deployed above the log house. Spat out from it was a small “silver box” adorned with a beautiful ribbon.

“…What is this? Another one of Elizabeth-sama’s traps?”

Luna raised her guard, carefully flipping open the lid of the box with the tip of her staff.

Inside was a single letter and an elaborately crafted “Silver Collar” studded with jewels.

“Nii-sama, I found you! Before those bad onee-samas can catch you, Sylphi is giving you a present of this cute collar. Put it on, okay? That way, no matter where Nii-sama is cheating on me, Sylphi can come catch you right away. …I love you so much, Nii-sama.”

Luna’s face instantly twisted as she read the letter aloud.

“That… that little brat…! She is treating Allen entirely like a lost puppy! Throw it away, a filthy cursed item like this!”

“Y-Yeah. I don’t want to wear something like this either.”

Just as Allen tried to push the box back with his short mascot hands —

Click.

Completely ignoring physical contact, the silver collar was drawn to Allen’s neck. The collar resonated with the existing “Curse Chains,” attaching itself perfectly to Allen’s throat as if it had belonged there from the very beginning.

“Eh!? It won’t come off…! Luna, this won’t come off!”

“Kh, it’s the ‘Monopolization Formula’ unique to Sylphi-sama…! It’s designed to tighten around the target’s neck the more they try to remove it. What terrible taste…”

As if to mock Allen and the others in their despair, a terrifying roar echoed from the border of the forest.

Drawn by the homing signal emitted from the silver collar, Sylphi’s pawn — the massive magical beast “Crimson Varg” — revealed its lotus-red frame.

“Allen-sama, get back! This magical beast isn’t a normal monster… Sylphi-sama’s mana is flowing directly into it!”

Misha readied her tail, and Kuu gripped her axe. However, the heatwave radiating from the demonic wolf was filled with such killing intent that it overwhelmed even their golden buffs.

A desperate situation. The very moment the demonic wolf opened its massive jaws wide, intent on swallowing Allen whole —

“— Don’t go doing whatever you please with my prey, you hear me!!”

A silver flash burst forth, mowing down the trees of the forest.

Spiked silver hair and perfectly erect wolf ears. A girl with blue eyes that sparked with lightning — the Thunder Wolf-kin girl, Ferris — delivered a devastating kick straight to the side of the demonic wolf’s face.

Booooooom!!

With an explosive roar, the massive demonic wolf was blown away several dozen meters.

“W-Who are you!?”

At Luna’s question, Ferris smiled fearlessly, thrusting the giant lightning blade she carried on her shoulder into the ground.

“I’m Ferris. A wanderer living as a lone wolf out here in the frontier. …You there, the golden furball, Allen. I could feel your mana tingling through me even from far away. …You’ve got a good look in your eyes. I like you. I’ll protect you!”

Ferris kicked off the ground again, closing in on the demonic wolf. Her movements were too fast for the eye to track. Slashes clad in lightning carved into the lotus-red skin of the demonic wolf.

But the demonic wolf was no pushover either. The monster, feeding on Sylphi’s “possessiveness,” regenerated its flesh as soon as it was cut, spewing heat rays to corner Ferris.

“Tch, it’s stubborn…! My lightning isn’t burning through it fast enough!”

“Ferris! It’s too reckless, fall back!”

“Master… Heh, don’t worry about me. …But, if you’re willing to lend me a hand… I’ll smash it with the hottest strike of all!”

Allen’s intuition spoke to him. With this girl, his curse’s power could truly be wielded as his own “will.” Borrowing Pee’s back, Allen flew up into the sky and dived straight onto Ferris’s back.

“Ferris, I’m connecting my chains to you! Bear with it!”

“Yeah, bring it on, Master!!”

Extending from Allen’s neck, Sylphi’s “Red Chains” intertwined with the lightning crest on the nape of Ferris’s neck.

— [Curse Chain Resonance (Chain Link)].

Ba-dump. Allen’s “pain of being monopolized” blended with Ferris’s “thirst to protect.” The blue lightning radiating from Ferris’s body was instantly transformed into blinding golden thunderbolts.

“— Ghhh, OOOOOOOOOHHH!! What is this, it’s amazing, the power, the Master’s love, it’s flowing right into me…!!”

Ferris’s roar shook the very atmosphere. Clad in golden lightning, she literally became a flash of light as she dived right into the demonic wolf’s chest.

“— [Divine Lightning: Bisecting Strike (Bolt Slash)]!!”

The golden lightning turned the night of the forest into day. Without even being given a chance to regenerate, the demonic wolf’s massive body was reduced to ash in a single instant.

Silence fell.

On Ferris’s back, Allen was panting heavily. The mana supply through the chains was more intense than usual, their body temperatures melting together.

“…U-Um… Master.”

Ferris slowly lowered Allen from her back.

The fierce “solitary warrior” atmosphere she had exuded just moments ago was nowhere to be found.

Her wolf ears were flapping back and forth so violently it looked like they might tear off, and her thick tail was spinning around like a propeller.

“Master… Just now. …The moment I was connected by your chains… somehow, I felt this sensation like you made the very depths of my soul ‘sit’ for you… and… um…”

Ferris’s face was dyed redder than a ripe apple. She collapsed onto her knees in front of Allen and confessed in a trembling voice, head bowed.

“I feel like I’ve lost for the very first time in my life. …No, it’s weird to be happy about losing, right? …But, I want to be by your side. …Make me your exclusive knight…”

Ferris’s eyes were moist as she looked up.

“…U-Um, is it no good? …If you don’t want to, I won’t force you… but, if possible… um. …I-I want you to connect me… with your chains, one more time…”

The last part was spoken in a voice no louder than a mosquito’s whine. The warrior who had so coolly slashed the demonic wolf just moments ago was now trembling with a bright red face, her ears flattened like a loyal dog waiting for its master to return home.

“…Ferris. Of course, I welcome you. …Thank you for saving me.”

With his mascot paw pad, Allen gently stroked Ferris’s silver-haired head.

That instant —

“U-Uweh…!? A-Ahhh, the Master is, petting me…!”

Ferris blushed so furiously steam seemed to rise from her face, and she fell face-first onto the ground right then and there.

Her tail hit the ground, making a drumming sound.

Thump-thump-thump.

“…What is with this innocent stray dog? …In a way, she’s even worse than the calculating ones like Misha.”

Luna muttered with an exasperated expression that went far beyond jealousy.

“…Hehe. …It seems our new rival has a taste for ‘master-servant play.’ …I won’t lose, Silver Wolf. …The nape of Allen-sama’s neck (the gap in his chains) is my special seat, after all.”

Misha picked Allen up with a fearless smile on her face.

Around Allen’s neck, the “Silver Collar” gifted by Sylphi was still shining ominously. However, the existence of Ferris, the new knight summoned by that very collar, also served as a new shield for Allen.

(… A collar, chains, and a crest… There’s no space left on my neck anymore…)

Allen stared at the passionate gazes of the five girls surrounding him — and at the silver wolf Ferris, who continued to wag her tail even while unconscious — and let out a deep sigh.

The runaway prince’s “fluffy nation-building” in the frontier. With the welcoming of a new knight, it was about to accelerate even further.