Duke Pendragon

"Correct. We were faced with a consecutive series of failures after the return of Your Majesty Pendragon. Crucially, It became impossible to invade the Lloyd territory after your declaration in the imperial castle, since the imperial army would have reacted immediately."

"But even so, you didn't abandon your ambition. Neither Roxan nor the Shadow Brotherhood would have had any intentions to abandon their plans. Eventually, you were also forced to revise your plan. Isn't that so?"

Raven asked with a sharp gaze. Otto appeared rather calm, as if he had already come to terms.

"Yes, I changed my plan."

"Hmm. And by that, did you plan to kidnap another figure from the Pendragon castle?"

"H, how did you…"

Raven spoke nonchalantly, and Otto responded with a shocked expression.

"It's all within expectations. The strongest beings of Pendragon are Elkin and I. But since the two of us were traveling together to Mirin, the Pendragon Castle becomes relatively vulnerable. Isn't that what you and Jamie Roxan thought?"

"T, that's correct…"

Otto was taken aback.

How could the man be acting so calm if he knew the truth?

Even though other members of the Pendragon royal family could be kidnapped at any moment?

Moreover, the leaders of the Shadow Brotherhood, Number 1, were on a different level from the other assassins. At least, that was the case with the masked figure that Otto met with.

"I will tell you what you overlooked. Why do you think I revealed my identity in Edenfield, then went on to create a huge ruckus on my way to the imperial castle?"

"W, well, that's…"

Otto contemplated with a frown. He soon raised his head.

"D, don't tell me…"

"That's right. Both you and Jamie Roxan mistakenly thought that Elkin was the strongest among Pendragon's knights except me. Well, I guess you weren't technically wrong. That is, among the human knights…"

Otto's eyes filled with disbelief, and Elkin silently nodded with agreement from the side.

"Pendragon has Karuta, the head of the Ancona Orcs. I had to inform him of my return as soon as possible, just in case something like this happened."

"Ogre Slayer…!"

He had forgotten.

Karuta had been away from the Pendragon Castle for a long time, and it was commonly known that the orc wandered around the South fighting with other orcs after Alan Pendragon's death. As such, Otto had completely excluded the orc from the equation.

However, Karuta would immediately return to the Pendragon Kingdom after discovering that Alan Pendragon had returned.

"Karuta will be in the Pendragon Kingdom by now. And although he can be simple and a little radical at times, Karuta is quick-witted. I trust he would have already noticed where he needs to be and what needs to be done. Well, it doesn't matter if he's become even more ignorant during my absence. There is a raccoon in my kingdom who can never be outsmarted, whether it's Number 1 or Roxan. He would have immediately dispatched Karuta to the most vulnerable place."

"…..!"

Otto was the lord of a land located far, far away from the Pendragon Kingdom. However, he still knew who Raven was referring to.

Regent Vincent Ron, who was known as the Raccoon Mask of Pendragon.

"Phew…"

Otto could not help but sigh when he saw Alan Pendragon's confident eyes.

He had been all too ignorant of Pendragon.

***

"Captain! I see someone coming!"

"Hmm? What kind of a lunatic would travel in this weather…?"

The guard captain narrowed his eyes as he gazed out into pure white.

"Huh?"

Two people could be seen walking toward the gate on the field of snow, which had piled knee-deep the night before. However, the guard captain wasn't only surprised that the two figures were easily wading through the snowfield. Rather, it was because one of the two figures was huge. Even though they were quite a long distance away, the figure's unusual size could be recognized at a glance.

"Who are they…?"

Mercenaries and merchants, as well as local residents, would not cross the border in such harsh conditions unless there were urgent matters. It was impossible to travel with horses and carriages because of the heavy snow, so they would usually wait for the whites to melt in a nearby village.

"This is suspicious. Especially during times like these…"

"Hmm."

The guard captain nodded with a nervous expression.

It was definitely strange to see travellers in such harsh conditions. However, his nervousness was also due in part to the declaration of their returned king in the imperial castle. The entire kingdom was disturbed by the incident.

It was a tremendous, horrifying incident in which the founding king's sister, as well as his only son and successor, were almost kidnapped. Although both of them were now safe and being protected by the emperor, the entire kingdom was riled up.

With the exception of the kingdom's knights and soldiers, those carrying weapons had to be very wary of their surroundings. They would be recipients of suspicious gazes anywhere they went.

The large figure was approaching the kingdom's border at such a time. Moreover, they were carrying what looked to be an enormous blunt weapon wrapped in cloth on their shoulder…

"Everyone, prepare yourselves."

"Yes!"

At the words of the captain, the soldiers tightened their grip on their spears and glared at the two approaching with sharp eyes. The crossbowmen also pointed their weapons toward the figures from the holes in the wall and readied their fingers on the triggers.

"Humongous…"

A soldier muttered unconsciously while looking at the two figures as they finally reached the gate. The guard captain appeared to be in shock as well.

Among the figures he knew, the only one who was as humongous was…

"Hey! You scarecrows doing your job properly!?"

The large figure raised his hood and waved his large hands toward the top of the wall.

"Heuk!"

All the soldiers were astonished to see his face. All of the guards were aware of the figure's identity.

"L, lord Karuta!"

The name of the strongest orc warrior resonated loudly in the cold, winter night. Everyone agreed that the orc warrior was the strongest after their king, and he had finally returned to the land of Pendragon for the first time in three years.

***

"Kuhmm. So I should head to York Town right away?"

"Yes. The same instructions were given not only to us, but to all gates located at the kingdom's borders. This is an order issued by the Regent himself 15 days ago."

The guard captain held out a letter with the seal of the Pendragon family.

"Kuhmm, escorting the mommy Pendragon and the baby Pendragon… Don't they have that old fistman with them?"

Karuta grumbled as if he found the order unappetizing.

"Ah! I guess Lord Karuta doesn't know about it. Well, I guess it already has been three years since you left the kingdom…"

The guard captain continued with a darker expression.

"Not long after you left, Lord Karuta, Lord Argos' condition worsened due to his old age. Although he insisted on staying, Her Majesty the Queen ordered him to take a special vacation."

"Kuhuh? Is that so?"

Even Argos, the Black Tiger of the Tiramis Temple, was unable to escape the passage of time. He was already close to fifty when he first met Raven, and his physical condition had deteriorated rapidly as he aged further.

"Well, I guess it was impressive for an old scarecrow like him to endure so long. So what's he up to now? Is he still sick as a dog?"

"Ah, his condition has improved considerably. He is teaching martial arts to the children of the nobility I the royal castle. However, he could not leave with Her Majesty because it would have been difficult for him to take a long trip."

"I see. Kuhmm! By the way, the raccoon gave orders already knowing that I would come…?"

Karuta was a trifecta consisting of simpleness, ignorance, and radicalism, but he wasn't tactless. Rather, he was quite smart at times. Moreover, he was quite uncomfortable with Vincent. The regent had a good head, and he was good with the sword as well.

Karuta could act comfortably around Killian, or truthfully, could treat the burly knight however he wanted, but he had a hunch that he would come to regret it if he treated Vincent the same way.

Just thinking of Vincent's strange, sly smile caused his hair to stand on edge.

"Something unusual must be happening for the regent to give direct orders."

"Kuhmm! I guess so. Good, let's take a short break and head to York Town."

Karuta nodded in response to Eltuan's words.

"Phew! I understand. I will send a report back to the castle right away."

The guard captain sighed with relief before speaking. He was thankful that the most unpredictable figure of the Pendragon Kingdom had unexpectedly accepted the orders right away.

The guard captain suddenly remembered something and called out as Karuta started to walk away.

"Oh! And one more thing!"

"Kehnng?"

"The regent told me to say that you will find yourself a very fun, interesting opponent in York Town."

"A fun opponent?"

Karuta's eyes sparkled with instinctive curiosity. The guard captain nodded.

"Yes. An opponent unlike any other you would have experienced before…"

"Kuooooh! Eltuna, we depart right away!"

The orc immediately changed directions and took large strides.

"Phew…"

Eltuna followed along while shaking her head. The orc warrior was really crazy about fighting.

***

"Then please have a comfortable journey, Your Majesty."

"Yes. Thank you for your hospitality, Mayor Mandy."

"I am humbled. I apologize for not being able to serve you properly."

Iriya bowed politely after hearing Elena's praise. However, she flinched involuntarily as Elena continued in a playful voice.

"I will make sure to talk with the King and His Majesty Isla about Mayor Mandy when they return. You can look forward to it."

"Y, your Majesty…"

Elena chuckled lightly after seeing Iriya become flustered.

"Now, you should say your goodbyes to the mayor. Elsia?"

"Yes! Thank you for taking good care of me, mayor! I really like this present as well! Thank you!"

Elsia beamed while tightly hugging a rabbit and a fox doll. Her presents had been carefully produced by a famous southern craftsman. Iriya barely endured the desire to give Elsia a hug and a bite, and smiled calmly instead.

"I am glad to hear that you like it, Your Highness. If you come again in the future, I will make further preparations so you can have a better time."

"Yes. Ah, but! Couldn't you just come to the castle instead, mayor?"

Elsia spoke while tilting her head to the side. Iriya felt dizzied by the overload of cuteness, but she responded while maintaining her dignity.

"As a mayor, my responsibilities…"

"I will even call Mister Elkin for you, since you like him!"

"Heuk!"

Iriya gasped loudly at Elsia's unexpected words. She quickly realized her mistake and bowed her head as her face turned beet-red.

"Hohoho! It seems my granddaughter will be preparing a gift for you. So, what's your answer?"

"Ah, w, well…"

Iriya fumbled with embarrassment. Elena smiled warmly before replying.

"I am only joking. But you must have a vacation sometime, so stop by once the weather gets a little warmer. Now that the king is back, you should come give your greetings."

"Yes, Your Majesty…"

Iriya held back a sigh while bowing. She had already given up(?) on everything.

"Now, let's go."

"Yes!"

Elena turned around while holding her granddaughter's hand. Killian and the rest of the escorting knights moved in hand.

'Nothing has happened so far. But…'

Killian's eyes glimmered as he escorted the two ladies to the carriage. The intuition of an experienced knight was telling him that something would definitely happen on their way back.