Vol 1 Chapter 41 – Reunion with a Friend【Vol 1: The Beastkin Hero Arc】

After the discussion, Helmis carried the battered red dragon—Bloodcliff—on his back and continued walking alone through the snowy mountains.

Despite being severely injured himself, it seemed he wouldn’t abandon his partner.

On the other hand, what about his subordinates?

From near the peak of the snowy mountain, the crashed battleship was visible. The members of the Holy King’s Special Mission Knight Order—the Secret Guard—who were on board had all been taken prisoner by the Beast Kingdom’s national army, the Royal Capital Garrison.

It seemed Beast King Leon had dispatched his subordinates while Allen and the others were fighting.

Surely, the Holy Empire wouldn’t launch any further invasions into the Beast Kingdom after this. If the root cause was severed, things should settle down with post-war negotiations heavily favoring the Beast Kingdom.

After that, Allen mounted Geofried and headed for the Beast King’s castle to show his face.

(…That World Knight otaku is more energetic than I thought.)

“True enough.”

On the balcony of the castle embraced by the Great Tree were Beast King Leon, the First Prince Regul, and Princess Leona.

The Beast King, wearing his swirly glasses, waved his hand wildly at Geofried as the dragon began his descent. The moment they landed, Leon called out to them.

“—Hey, hey, Mr. Allen. Color me surprised, I totally thought you were dead. If you’re alive, at least drop me a line~”

“…My bad.”

Allen replied as he dismounted from Geofried. Then Leon suddenly leaned his face in close.

“But still, Mr. Allen, that full-plate armor form was so incredibly cool! Could you transform into it again right here and now? I want to sketch it and have my craftsmen make a new figure of it later! As the Allen Norsh Beast Kingdom Decisive Battle Ver.—”

Mid-sentence. Leon was body-slammed from the side and sent flying. Carried by the momentum, he flipped right over the castle balcony’s railing and plummeted straight down.

The Beast King’s scream echoed into the distance.

“…Eh? Wait, did Leon… just die?”

Since the castle was built atop the trunk of the massive Great Tree, the drop from the balcony to the ground was quite substantial.

While Allen stood there dumbfounded…

“Allen-sama, is it truly you, Allen-sama…?”

The culprit who had sent the Beast King flying—Princess Leona, a beautiful girl with a golden bob-cut and splendid lion-kin features—patted all over Allen’s body with teary eyes.

A sweet scent wafted from her fluffy hair, making his heart give an involuntary ba-dump.

“…Princess Leona, um, you just pushed Leon off—”

“Never mind that, I’m just so glad you’re alive! Leona is so happy!”

“…Allen-sama, I am also overjoyed. And thank you truly for saving our country for a second time.”

The First Prince Regul bowed respectfully. Regul was a handsome young man characterized by his long, narrow eyes. His lion ears stood straight up, and his tail swayed gently back and forth.

It seemed both of them had decided to completely ignore the topic of Leon.

“…No, I should be thanking you. Thank you for harboring Leonhardt.”

“Not at all. We simply wished to stand by our hero. That is all.”

Beside him, Princess Leona nodded emphatically.

“…I resented my own powerlessness, unable to fight alongside my dear sworn sister. I, too, wanted to be a shield for our people, to be her strength.”

“…I see.”

Allen narrowed his eyes gently, gazing at the two royals.

“By the way, what happened to Helmis Glengaia?”

“…He got away.”

“…I cannot imagine Allen-sama making such a blunder. You likely let him go on purpose, didn’t you? Killing him would escalate this beyond a mere issue with the Holy Empire. It would be politically disastrous to kill the current World Knight of humanity within the borders of the Beast Kingdom. Was that your line of reasoning?”

Regul declared this with a smug, knowing look, but as far as Allen was concerned, he had merely let Helmis go in exchange for Shedim’s location. He really hadn’t thought about it that deeply.

(I figured it was something like that.)

Asmodeus’s exasperated voice echoed in his mind.

(…Well, I didn’t say anything because I figured killing him would inevitably put a dent in your Renown Power anyway.)

Even if there were nasty rumors that the Empire had sided with the Demon King, the common people had no way of knowing the truth. The only fact that would remain would be a massive scandal: the former World Knight murdering the current World Knight.

(Besides, even if you let him go, he can’t pose a threat anymore. I don’t think Helmis will be returning to the Holy King.)

(Eh, why not?)

(Or more accurately, he can’t return.)

Asmodeus also wore a smug look in his mind, but to Regul—who was wagging his tail, waiting to see if his answer was correct—Allen spoke first.

“…Exactly. As expected of the next generation’s wise king.”

“…I am honored, even if it is mere flattery. As for prisoners of war, having the artificial heroes and the Secret Guard should be more than enough.”

“…Yeah. They caused this much damage. The Empire probably won’t attack again. The Beast Kingdom is the victor of this war. I plan to put in a little more work so that the post-war negotiations proceed more favorably for you.”

“…For you, a human, to exert such effort for the sake of us beast-kin. I, Regul, shall never forget this lifelong debt of gratitude.”

As if to hide his teary eyes, Regul bowed his head once more. Making a prince bow his head so many times made Allen feel guilty. He wasn’t as empty-headed as Leon, after all.

“Raise your head, Regul. By the way, are the citizens inside the castle?”

There was absolutely no sign of life in the royal capital. If they had been evacuated inside the castle, that meant the citizens hadn’t witnessed the fierce, spark-flying battle between Allen and Helmis up in the sky.

“…? Yes. They are. Oh, that’s right! If everyone finds out that Allen-sama is alive, the citizens will be overjoyed!”

“Indeed! We must let everyone know immediately—”

“No, no, it’s fine. Seriously, it’s fine. Leona, hold on a second. Let’s talk about that a little bit.”

While the prince and princess of the Beast Kingdom both tilted their heads in confusion, Allen spoke in a flat tone.

First, he wanted them to keep his survival a secret.

Second, the Beast Kingdom was saved by the masked mercenary, Noir. And finally, he began explaining to the two of them the new backstory he’d concocted: that Noir was the disciple of the Obsidian Knight.

With this, there would be no problem showing off Geofried in public.

(Being told to return to being a World Knight just because I’m alive is the absolute last thing I want.)

Why did they think he had stayed behind alone in the Demon King’s Castle, putting on a serious face and telling his comrades things like, “I leave the world in your hands,” or “From here on out, I’m enough on my own”?

Allen had absolutely had it with days filled with constant fighting.