I'm a court magician. Recently, I’ve been worrying about the princess staring at me. - Chapter 22
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- I'm a court magician. Recently, I’ve been worrying about the princess staring at me.
- Chapter 22 - Our Department
While holding Her Highness in a side hug, I glared at the knight who wanted to take Her Highness away just now.
“It’s pathetic that the knights who protect the royal family are easily subdued.”
”……”
The knight said nothing to intimidate me. Maybe they were only ordered to communicate with the princess exclusively.
The pale hand that reached for Her Royal Highness’s wrist was kicked off from the middle of its owner’s arm, and the tip that flew away was rolling on the cobblestone. The bleeding is… strangely low. Besides, the man didn’t seem to be in pain at all. Maybe that’s probably what it is.
“Your Highness, are you hurt? It looked like you hit your knee a while ago…”
“… Your Highness?”
“… Huh, yes. It’s nothing, it just got scraped a little.”
I was relieved to hear that. It would be a disaster if she broke her knee from the impact of the fall. It bothers me that Her Highness is a little confused, but perhaps it’s because she’s still afraid. She’s an ordinary girl with no experience in combat after all.
I took my eyes off Her Highness and looked around at the knights surrounding us. They directed an eerie look that was devoid of life toward us… no, to be exact, at the princess in my arms while stalking forward.
I think it’s time to get out of here.
“Your Highness, I don’t have time, so I’ll give you a brief explanation.”
“Okay.”
“Your uneasiness isn’t ungrounded. They are insane… no, they are already lifeless, zombie soldiers who act according to the magic of mind control engraved by the operator.”
“Huh, you mean…”
“Yes, it’s the truth behind the disappearance of the royal guards, which has been a hot topic for several days. It’s a guess, but someone sneaked into the guard’s dormitory and attacked them. They created zombie soldiers by engraving the magic of controlling the mind on their bodies. Probably, they lost most of the blood when they were killed which explains the low rate of bleeding. Although, it exceeds the number of people I’ve heard before… I guess they put spare uniforms on zombies that had nothing to do with it.”
Her Highness bit her lower lip, balling her little fists with displeasure. I can understand that feeling very well. I can’t believe they did such a terrible thing to an honorable knight who protects their country and people… I feel nauseous.
But we can’t help them anymore. The least we can do is to make them die again so that they can go to the other world.
But there’s one more problem.
“I’d like to knock them down here… but I think I’ll lose.”
“What?”
Her Highness showed a clueless expression. It’s very cute, but now is not the time to admire it, so I won’t react.
“Actually, I’m very bad at close range fighting… and we are currently surrounded by strong people that became royal guards after being recognized for their ability even though they are dead. If I fight head-on, I’ll probably lose.”
“So, what are you going to do then?”
As soon as the princess shouted, one of the knights came at me with a sword in his hand.
A sophisticated movement that screamed years of practice. It seems their combat ability remained ingrained in their muscle memory.
I looked at the approaching sword and laughed.
At that moment… a dragon of fire burned down all the knights who were approaching us.
“Didn’t I tell you? From now on, we will protect you.”
Footsteps echoed from behind me.
There are two people.
“What are you daydreaming about? If I hadn’t stopped him, you would have died.”
“He has no sense of crisis.”
A relaxed voice without tension.
I turned around and smiled bitterly.
“Thank you for your hard work. Have you recovered from your hangover?”
“Oh, I’m all better now, aren’t I?”
“That oriental medicine was amazing. I’ll tell you which store sells it later.”
“Yes, yes, after cleaning up?”
As we chatted, I stepped back while the two continued advancing, getting ready to confront the dead knights.
Short-range battles are their best field. I’ll leave this to them.
“Then, thank you and I’ll leave the rest to you. I’ll take Her Highness to safety. Please don’t lose…”
When I told it to provoke them, Elto-san made the dragon of fire manifest in the sky, and Arina-san produced a plant tiger that grew through the stone pavement.
And glanced at me with a hostile smile.
“Losing? Against zombies like this…”
“I don’t even need five minutes.”
“… As expected.”
They’re reliable. Minus this morning’s sloppy hangover looks. If they were this cool on a daily basis, I would have a little more respect…
Anyway, if they buy me time, it’s good. I don’t have to worry about anything.
I ran out with Her Highness in my arms and invoked the magic of body strengthening on myself. I jumped over, and using the walls of the private house as my stepping stones, swiftly reached the roof. Once again, I stepped on the tiles under the moon with high footsteps and ran.
“Please bear with me for a moment, will you? I’ll send you to a safe place at once.”
“Uh, yes… well, even if you take a while, I don’t mind…”
“What?”
”No, nothing!” The princess said, holding her hands in front of her chest, and fell silent. Maybe being hugged by a man made her nervous.
Well, she’s the first one I’ve ever hugged like this, too(laughs).
When I looked down, I saw a knight wearing a royal guard uniform in the alley. His expression was empty and he seemed to be searching for something. Well, I know what you’re searching for, but… I won’t let you have your way.
”… Death-Needle Thunder.”
Just like the previous time, a little thunder struck the knight’s heart and he fell to the ground. Further detection was made, but no zombie soldiers were found. Maybe they’re still in town. If so, it will be very troublesome.
But, we’re not the only ones defending the royal family.
I took out the communication stone and let the magic flow to my ears.
”… Yes, this is Milena-san.”
“It’s Raize. Elto-san and Arina-san were able to safely join me and rescue the princess.”
“Okay, I understand. And I need to tell you something.”
“What is it?”
“It’s the magical stone of a demon animal that you and Arina-chan collected before. It seems that a strange magic formula was drawn inside.” Milena-san sounds very serious.
“A magic formula?”
”Yes, and it was engraved in the heart of the man who attacked you the other day. The lab kid just told me the results of the analysis.”
“… just sounds like more trouble, but can I leave them there for now? After all, the safety of Her Highness comes first.”
”Okay, and you don’t have to worry about the zombie royal guards. For the Knights will cooperate.”
“All right. I’ll see you later.”
I removed the communication stone and placed it in my robes.
Immediately after confirming that the four-legged creature is dead, I contacted Milena-san and decided what to do next. Arina-san and Elto-san readily helped me because they kept in touch in advance. After all, effective communication is important.
“Oh, you know, Raize-sama…”
“Yes?”
Her Highness looked at me nervously.
“The people you mentioned earlier are from the department that Raize-sama belongs to, right?”
“? Yes, that’s right.”
What’s this all of a sudden? They’re definitely my seniors. That’s why we can have such a friendly conversation. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t be able to talk to those monsters.
“… Proficient in both overwhelming magic and precise manipulation. Have the ability and spirit to overcome the disadvantages of limited personnel… But…”
“Your Highness?”
“Raize-sama.”
Down from my arms, Her Highness looked me squarely in the eye, without worrying over how disorderly her clothes looked.
There seemed to be some fear in her eyes. I have no idea what frightened her…
“Your department… no, isn’t that the Royal Annihilation Force earlier?”
The moment I heard the remark from her mouth, I choked while my eyes opened wide…