Hi, I’m the Hero’s Father ～I’m Sorry For All The Trouble My Foolish Son Has Caused You～ - Chapter 85

Chapter 85   The Three in Question Leaves the Country

“—Hmm?”

“Lord Neptune, is something wrong?”

Neptune seemed to sense something, directing her gaze upward. She focused intently, as if detecting something with great caution. Croix and Wiel also looked upward, but they couldn’t sense anything.

“Your Majesty, is there something going on?”

“…Those three, they’re heading toward the sea. They were detected by our water region surveillance.”

“What?!”

“Well, the kingdom’s army also patrols the waters, so that in itself isn’t unusual… but for them to leave the country right after what happened, that’s suspicious.”

Croix contemplated Neptune’s words. It didn’t make sense for the commander not to impose any punishment in this situation. At the very least, they should have been ordered to stay in their quarters.

Yet those three were outside the country, heading toward the sea—something was definitely off.

“What should we do, dear?”

“…First, report this to the commander. I’ll go. Wiel, keep an eye on those two.”

“Understood.”

Croix, following his sense of detection, quickly made his way to the commander’s location. The destination was the Kingdom’s Military Headquarters. Normally, even approaching it wouldn’t be permitted, but this was an urgent matter.

As he approached the headquarters, one of the knights standing guard at the entrance noticed Croix.

“You’re… the human guest of Her Majesty the Queen, aren’t you? Is something the matter?”

“I need to speak with the commander. It’s an urgent matter, so I request an audience.”

“…Understood. Please wait a moment.”

One of the knights entered the headquarters, and within a few minutes, he came running back.

“He said to let you in right away. This way, please.”

“Understood.”

Led by the knight, Croix walked into the Kingdom’s Military Headquarters. The fishfolk who were training and working inside turned to stare at him with startled expressions. Such was Croix’s overwhelming presence and the aura of battle power radiating from his body. His presence was so commanding that they had only ever felt something similar from their own lord, Neptune. It was, without a doubt, the aura of a king.

After a short while, the knight knocked on the door of a certain room.

“Commander, I’ve brought the guest.”

“Enter.”

“Yes, sir. Excuse me.”

The knight opened the door and stepped inside. It seemed they were in the middle of a meeting, as there were ten knights in the room besides the commander.

The ten of them had a powerful presence that was immediately evident. Not only were they strong, but they also had the aura of warriors who had crossed death’s threshold multiple times. Their very essence, the density of their souls, was different from ordinary soldiers.

If he recalled correctly, the Kingdom’s army was divided into ten units. These were likely the captains of the first through the tenth units.

Even to Croix’s eyes, they all appeared to be highly skilled warriors.

—And these ten skilled warriors widened their eyes in surprise as they saw Croix.

They were the ten strongest individuals in the undersea nation of Dipsea, yet none of them could see any chance of victory, even if they all attacked Croix at once. The difference in their abilities was so great that they could only stand frozen, staring at Croix.

The commander greeted Croix warmly.

“Welcome, Lord Croix.”

“Commander, my apologies for interrupting your meeting.”

“No need to apologize. You are always welcome. I hear this is urgent; is something the matter?”

“Before we proceed, I would like to request that this matter be kept confidential…”

“…Understood. Everyone, let’s take a break for now.”

At the commander’s words, the captains nodded and left the room.

Now, only Croix and the commander remained.

“Thank you. Now, the truth is…”

Croix relayed everything he had heard from Neptune to the commander. The commander listened quietly at first, but midway through, his eyes widened, and his expression became one of deep concern, as if he had swallowed something bitter.

“I’ve just given the three of them a week of house arrest in their rooms… So, they are heading to the sea…”

“We don’t know their objective, but this seems like a serious situation, doesn’t it?”

“Indeed. Normally, fishfolk need permission from the administrative bureau to leave the country. Moreover, knights belonging to the Kingdom’s army also require my approval. I haven’t granted any such permission.”

“In other words…”

“Yes… I don’t want to believe it, but it seems they are attempting to defect.”

Defection. Simply put, it means abandoning one’s homeland and fleeing abroad.

Leaving the country without the commander’s permission and heading towards the sea could indeed be considered defection.

“Tsk. Those guys…!”

“Do you need assistance?”

“No, I don’t want to trouble our guest. However… if the situation becomes dire, I might call for your help.”

“Understood. I will be glad to lend my strength if needed.”

The commander immediately dashed out of the room and assembled the ten fastest members of the Kingdom’s army. He ordered them to capture the three immediately.

However, the three of them were also exceptionally fast and managed to evade capture in the sea… In the end, they either made it to land or completely disappeared, as Neptune’s water detection could not locate them.