The Invincible Aloof Yandere Princess Falls in Love with Her Younger Court Mage's Fatherly Warmth! ~She Clung to Him So Much That the King Fired Him. When He Made Marriage His Official Reason for Resigning Under Royal Order, the Light Vanished from the Princess's Eyes~ - Volume 2 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Expedition Outside the Capital

The carriage rattled and clattered along.

A single carriage advanced straight down the road stretching from the capital of the Atlas Kingdom, swaying as it went. For an ordinary carriage, its design was quite luxurious, and the ride was surprisingly smooth.

The most distinctive feature of this carriage was something you couldn’t see from inside: the griffon emblem decorated on the outer walls.

In other words, everyone riding in this carriage except me was…

“…Haa… Why do we court mages have to go to some remote countryside village, even if it’s a mission? Is it really necessary? And on top of that… with a captain who’s obviously favored.”

The one who muttered that under his breath was a man wearing the same robe as me, one of the members of the court mage squad I led.

Still, this guy made sure I could hear him clearly. He even glanced over at me, and in the confined space of the carriage, it was hardly a whisper.

Well, my current positions—senior court mage and Regent’s Adjutant—both came from the princess, after all.

“I can’t exactly deny being favored…”

It was such an undeniable fact that I could only give a wry smile.

“…W-What the hell is this guy smiling about?”

Oh no. That just made things worse. There were four members of the Call squad riding in the carriage, and the other two were giving subtle reactions too.

As the squad leader, I need to build good relationships with my subordinates.

After all, today was my first expedition outside the capital in a while—as a court mage.

We rocked along in the somewhat heavy atmosphere of the carriage for a time.

There were no troubles like battles with monsters along the way, and a little after the sun passed its zenith, we finally arrived at the destination village.

I stepped out and bowed politely to the coachman.

“Thank you for driving so long without any breaks. Thanks to you, we got here much faster.”

“…Huh? Ah, no, not at all! Please, don’t bow to me, Court Mage sir!”

“No, it’s only natural since you took care of us.”

He seemed awfully flustered.

Maybe the others, who got off quickly with straight faces, were more normal to him. Everyone except me is nobility, so that might be it.

But I’m a commoner.

“More importantly, how were the wind-blocking and tailwind spells? It felt like we arrived a lot faster, but how was the ride for you, and how were the horses…?”

“…Oh, that was a huge help! Winter’s coming soon, you know, so usually I’d be freezing stiff, but today I was fine. The horses saved their strength too, and with the tailwind, we got here twice as fast as usual!”

“Twice as fast? Then this method seems even more effective than I thought. We can reduce breaks without wearing out the horses.”

“Yeah, it’s more than just helpful. For someone so young, you’re really something, Court Mage sir…”

I had tried it out on the way just in case, but I’ll make sure to use it whenever I ride a carriage from now on.

My subordinates, who had apparently overheard our conversation, were whispering to each other…

“…Hey, did that guy use any magic inside the carriage? I didn’t sense any mana.”

“I didn’t notice anything either. Isn’t he lying? He’s even spreading that lie about one-sidedly defeating the former commander’s beautiful magic…”

It was the conversation between the two men among the three subordinates. They seemed to doubt me. I thought they might have noticed the horses going a bit faster.

Hmm, maybe I should teach them the trick to sensing mana next time. I’m their superior, after all.

…Speaking of which, where’s the last one…?

“Whoa, right behind me. …What’s up? You’re not with the other two?”

Unlike the two whispering off to the side, the remaining one stood perfectly straight right behind me. When I turned to look, she looked extremely tense… and started sweating coldly profusely…

“Are you okay? It’s pretty chilly, are you feeling sick? Want to rest?”

“…! No, nothing like that! Please don’t worry about me…!”

“Is that so? If it gets bad, tell me anytime, okay?”

She said that, but her face really looked pale.

I can’t use healing magic strong enough to fully cure others yet, so I’ll keep an eye on her during the mission…

“…Hah, hah… I must not make him angry, or cause trouble… For someone so terrifying…!”

Her breathing was rough, wasn’t it? She was muttering something like delirium. Maybe she really should rest… I thought.

Just as I was about to say something.

“…Everyone, you arrived so early! We’ve been waiting. You must be Senior Court Mage Call, right?”

“And you are…?”

A man came from deeper in the village. He wore armor, with a lion emblem engraved on his chest.

Yes, no mistake. He was the client for this request—a knight from the Great Lion Knights’ “Shield of the Mane.”

“Come this way! We’ve prepared a welcome with the villagers. …This time, we knights made an unreasonable request by specifically naming individuals.”

“Oh, you didn’t have to. Sorry, thank—”

“…Heh, a welcome, huh. Yeah, we came all this way to a place like this. We deserve some perks.”

“Hmm, food preparations, I suppose. Will there be any dishes that satisfy my palate?”

Ah. These two somehow came over to listen…

More importantly, that attitude without any thanks to the host was a bit much.

“You two. It’s fine to accept the welcome they’ve prepared, but you need to thank them properly. …Sorry, as the squad representative, let me express our thanks.”

“I-I also express my gratitude…!”

Oh, the other one was very polite. She bowed at ninety degrees… though she seemed oddly desperate, almost tragic.

“No, no, not at all! Court mages are far more valuable forces than us knights, and we’re the ones grateful to have four of you dispatched!”

I wished the other two would follow her example. They just nodded like it was obvious.

…Is my sense off? No way, right?

They’re both nobles, so maybe they’ve lived thinking this treatment is natural. But preparing a feast in a farming village like this is quite a burden.

Now, how to warn them so it sinks in.

While I was thinking about that.

“Come on, this way quickly. …The division commander is waiting eagerly too…!”

Ah, he went ahead. Those two went on without me too. …Oh well.

I followed behind a bit late with the subordinate who stayed back.

…Still, he mentioned the division commander earlier.

—Could it be that the division commander of the “Shield of the Mane” is here for this mission?

—

The second chapter begins.

Now, just which tall woman is this division commander referring to?