Ossan Saikyō Chapter 12 Part 15
I am currently facing His Majesty the King in the Meeting Room together with Freynil.
Beside him is Chancellor Julios, while Princess Margalotte is on the opposite side. Of course, the guards, Sir Hershville and Lady Meldorza, are also standing behind His Majesty.
“Let us hear the details first.”
His Majesty spoke those words in a rather heavy atmosphere.
“Yes. First, I would like to ask permission to take the《Elixir》out of my【Item Box】.”
“Very well. You have my permission.”
The two guards prepared themselves. Opening an【Item Box】without permission in the presence of a person of high rank was strictly prohibited for security reasons.
I slowly put my hand into the black hole and slowly pulled it back out.
I quietly placed the elaborately decorated medicine bottle on the table and pushed it forward.
“Lady Meldorza, appraise it.”
“Yes.”
Lady Meldorza stepped forward and stared intently at the bottle, her narrow eyes widening slightly.
“…It is an《Elixir》. There is no mistake.”
“An《Elixir》…”
The atmosphere in the room shifted noticeably. The Princess, in particular, looked back and forth between Freynil and me with wide eyes.
“So, Soushi-dono, are you saying that you intend to present this to the Royal Family?”
“Yes. I heard a rumor that Her Majesty the Queen was in poor health, so I had already decided last night that I would present it to the Royal Family.”
“And where did you hear that rumor?”
“Please allow me to say only that it came from a certain merchant.”
“Hmm… It is something an observant merchant might have noticed. What do you think, Julios?”
“I believe it was unavoidable. Her Majesty the Queen has not shown herself at public charity events for some time.”
“Indeed, that is true. Then what do you seek in exchange for presenting this《Elixir》?”
His Majesty's gaze became noticeably sterner.
This would surely be the Royal Family's greatest concern. If we were merely ordinary adventurers, that would be one thing, but we were a troublesome party with several members carrying various complications.
Our leader was an unknown upstart『Hero』, after all.
“As Your Majesty knows, many members of our party have various circumstances surrounding them. Therefore, I was hoping to receive at least a little of Your Majesty's protection and thereby avoid some of those complications.”
“For example, are you referring to the Ducal family?”
“That as well as the Aashram Church. And there are undoubtedly complications concerning the elves and beastkin that I am not aware of.”
“You wish to have the Royal Family's backing should something happen?”
“In simple terms, yes. Of course, I have no intention of abusing it. I merely wish to have some assurance that we can rely on in an emergency.”
“Hmm…”
His Majesty exchanged a glance with Chancellor Julios. Julios seemed to be thinking carefully as he looked at me, but honestly, there probably was not much information available to him on which to base a judgment about us.
A brief silence followed, but it was Princess Margalotte who broke it.
“Father, do we really have time to deliberate? Even as we speak, Mother is…”
“I know. Julios, what do you think?”
Pressed for an answer, the Chancellor slowly shook his head.
“I cannot make a decision immediately either. However, I believe Her Majesty the Queen should take priority here.”
At that answer, His Majesty closed his eyes. After a moment, he looked directly at me.
“Very well. We shall accept the presentation of the《Elixir》. We shall discuss the details formally later, so wait here for the time being.”
With that, His Majesty personally took the《Elixir》and left the Meeting Room, leaving Sir Hershville behind.
“I hope it reaches her in time…”
Once the door closed, Freynil looked up at me.
“She should be fine. Still, I should have presented it before entering the dungeon. I never expected things to become this urgent.”
“Yes. I was surprised when you suddenly brought up the matter yesterday, Soushi-sama, but I never imagined you had anticipated things to this extent.”
“No, this situation was completely coincidental. I had no idea Her Majesty's condition was that serious.”
As we were talking, Raylott arrived and called Freynil away. Apparently, the Queen, having regained consciousness, wanted to see Freynil's face.
“If possible, why don't you use «Absolution» on her?”
“Yes. I will ask her.”
And with that, I saw Freynil off.
That left me alone with Sir Hershville, and the silence was beginning to feel a little awkward, so I tried starting a conversation.
“Sir Hershville, how long have you served the Royal Family?”
“Me? It has been three years. I originally came from a noble family that was fairly close to the lower ranks, so that was also a factor.”
“I see. Like Freynil, are there quite a lot of adventurers who were originally nobles?”
“No, I don't believe there are that many in proportion. However, people from noble families often receive support from their families when they become Awakened, so…”
The way he trailed off seemed to mean that adventurers from noble families had an easier time surviving because they had their family's support.
Thinking about it, people with backing from their families certainly had an advantage over someone like me. The fact that even adventurers cannot escape such disparities makes one feel the sorrow of human society.
“However, after entering the dungeon with you today, Soushi-dono, I realized just how inexperienced I still am. I was also able to understand the significance of defeating a member of the Twilight Kin single-handedly.”
“My party members often tell me the same thing, that I need to understand my own strength. If I can hold my own in an A-Rank dungeon, I feel that even I have no choice but to acknowledge it.”
“That is far beyond merely being able to hold your own.”
Sir Hershville gave a wry smile, but even the strength he had displayed in the dungeon was probably only a fraction of his true ability. Come to think of it, perhaps I should have asked him to show me a little more of what an A-Rank adventurer was capable of.
As I was thinking about this, the group that had gone to see the Queen returned.
The Princess and Freynil had tears in their eyes, so I thought they would be better off going to another room for a while, but everyone simply took their seats.
His Majesty leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh before turning toward me. His expression seemed somewhat more relaxed.
“Thanks to you, Soushi-dono, my wife has been able to escape death. First, allow me to express my gratitude.”
“I am very glad to hear that. I am relieved as well.”
“However, I never imagined that you possessed an《Elixir》. I suppose it can only be called fate, but this time, I cannot help but feel the presence of the Gods close at hand.”
I replied, “Indeed”, but knowing that it was actually the work of Mr.【Bad Luck】rather than the Gods made me feel a little guilty.
“Now, regarding what you asked for earlier, both my daughter and I naturally feel indebted to you. Therefore, should you, the members of〈Saul's Guidance〉, encounter some kind of trouble, I promise that the Royal Family will put in a good word on your behalf.
…
However, even the Royal Family has its limits depending on the circumstances. I ask that you understand this.”
“Understood. If we can receive Your Majesty's support, that will be more than enough for us as adventurers.”
“Indeed. I also asked Freynil, but are you not interested in being granted a noble title? You defeated a member of the Twilight Kin, presented an《Elixir》to the Royal Family and saved the Queen's life.
…
I have also heard from the Count that there are other qualities of yours worth noting. We could easily grant you a Baron's title, or even a Viscount's.”
“I try not to desire things beyond what I am capable of carrying. I am still a work in progress as an adventurer, so for now, I wish to first determine what I am truly capable of as one.”
That was my answer, but I felt that I had been carried away by the atmosphere and tried a little too hard to sound cool.
I felt like I had just created another embarrassing memory for myself. Freynil, who had been crying only moments ago, was looking at me with shining eyes.
“So you intend to aim for the pinnacle as an adventurer. That is admirable in its own way. As for this matter concerning the《Elixir》, we shall prepare a suitable reward separately from the Royal Family's backing.
…
And, separately, I ask that you fulfill the request I made of you the other day.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. I will make certain that Lady Shizuna reaches Orz safely.”
And so, it seemed that I had managed to handle the presentation of the《Elixir》reasonably well.
For a troublesome adventurer party like ours, gaining the Royal Family's backing should be worth more than money could buy.
I could not deny that I had also increased the number of complications surrounding us myself, but I suppose that was simply something I had to accept if I intended to live in human society.
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E/N:
The conversation still feels cold, I guess it needs time to become chummy buddies.
Stay tuned!
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