Volume 3
Arc: Festival of the Three Heroes
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Summary:
Razel declared war on the Phantom Troop, so their leader, Ghost, will use all his power to eliminate him. The Thirteen Night Swords move directly to the capital. But while they are at it, a special tournament is held, and no one imagines what will happen.
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Characters:
Himekami Kurohime (Looks like Musashi from Azur Lane)
A mystical fox who runs the largest casino in the country.
Kirihime Mikoto (Looks like Miyamoto Musashi from Fate/Grand Order)
Kurohime's bodyguard, a descendant of samurai.
Clariana (Looks like Brid from Nikke -Goddess of Victory-)
The casino's star singer, a mermaid known for her unimaginable beauty and hypnotic voice.
Celistia Noah Rosewald (Looks like Helm from Nikke -Goddess of Victory-)
The current commander of the kingdom's knights. She is considered the strongest woman in the country.
Alexei Rapha Barielle (Looks like Günter von Christ from Kyou Kara Maou!)
The heir to a count's house, but due to political turmoil, he managed to become the kingdom's Prime Minister.
Jaeger (Looks like Cang Du from Bleach)
A professional assassin who lost his purpose and now belongs to the Phantom Troop.
Freaks (Looks like Lunarre from Tales of Zestiria)
One of the oldest members of the Phantom Troop, as he was practically born into the organization.
Jackpot (Looks like Zenon Griffey from The Eminence in Shadow)
Former commander of the kingdom's knights and current member of the Phantom Troop. Due to his crimes, he fled and swore revenge against the country.
Figaro Noah Fredman (Looks like Lev Lainur Flauros from TYPE-MOON)
Alexei's political rival for the position of Prime Minister. He lost the elections and seeks to be elected this time.
Cyrus Rapha Baudon (Looks like Jack Nelson from The Eminence in Shadow)
The former Prime Minister who left his post because the current king was his enemy. However, he also hides his secrets.
Dirk Rapha Mermoria (Looks like Humbert Zizek from Sword Art Online)
One of the Three Knights of the Kingdom. He is the Royal Guard assigned to the Robson family.
Alessand Rapha Adder (Looks like Raios Antinous from Sword Art Online)
One of the Three Knights of the Kingdom. He is the Royal Guard assigned to the Rodman family.
Paxton Rapha Bianchi (Looks like Washizu Kippei from Magical Warfare)
One of the Three Knights of the Kingdom. He is the Royal Guard assigned to the Rosenthal family.
Fernand Rapha Beaumont (Looks like Elefas Levi from I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss)
The fifth son of a count's family, who is also a participant in the tournament.
Baron Samuel Gordon (Looks like Wayne Delvin from Overlord)
Baron Olston's right-hand man.
Baron Sergei Belgrado (Looks like Igor Rokerlen from Overlord)
Baron Olston's left-hand man.
Balor (Looks like Fomor from re-monster)
The chief of a race of monsters known as the Kalman.
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I opened my eyes and the first thing that crossed my mind was: another morning in the palace of Britannia.
I came to this country to stop a chaotic event from the game. A pandemic that, if not cut off at the root, will devour the entire empire.
That is all. A simple mission. Enter, investigate, destroy the source, and return home before Eli and the others tear my head off for disappearing for so long.
But time is running out, and I still have not succeeded.
More important than that, however, is this.
Last night Iris confessed to me.
She said she liked me.
I still have not fully processed it.
(Me? The ugly background character? Seriously?)
I was happy, of course. Any man would be. But at the same time my stomach sank.
Because just yesterday she also confessed that she has the "Tears of Iris" disease.
The same incurable crap that, in the original game, wipes out entire kingdoms. There is no known cure. Only slow suffering and an ugly death.
"There has to be a way to save her…" I muttered to myself, rubbing my face.
Then something moved under the sheets.
I froze.
I turned my head slowly, and there she was.
Iris. Half-naked, wearing only an oversized white shirt that was open almost down to her navel, hugging my waist as if I were her personal stuffed animal. Her golden hair was completely messy, and her warm breath brushed against my chest.
(What the hell…? I left her in her room.)
I swear.
(After we talked about the disease I walked her back, told her to rest, and closed the door. How on earth did she end up here?)
Back home, whenever one of my fiancées crawled into my bed, I simply hugged her and went back to sleep. It was normal.
Here it is not. Here I am a foreigner.
An adventurer who appeared out of nowhere, saved the mysterious girl from the villainess's fate, and now sleeps in the royal palace. If anyone sees us like this, the consequences could be… unpleasant.
I started to break out in a cold sweat.
I did not know whether to carefully push her away, shout, or pretend I was still asleep.
The door slammed open.
"Razel-sama! Good morning! We came to wake—"
Princess Alicia stopped halfway through the sentence. Behind her appeared her sister Lillie, who also froze in place.
Both of their eyes dropped to the bed.
Silence.
Then, in unison:
"Iris?!"
They shouted.
Iris stirred, turned her face toward the princesses, opened her sleepy eyes, and smiled as if nothing were strange at all.
"Good morning…"
The two princesses turned red—not from embarrassment, but from pure fury. Alicia clenched her fists, and Lillie already had her brow furrowed to the extreme.
"What are you doing in his bed, you shameless girl?!"
"First you steal my hero and now you crawl into his bed like it's nothing!"
They started shouting at each other right there in the doorway. Iris hid herself further against me. I just wanted the ground to swallow me whole.
In the end the two of them stormed out, slamming the door, still arguing down the hallway.
I stared at the ceiling.
(Another problem… great.)
◇
Half an hour later I was sitting in the royal dining hall with everyone around me.
At the head of the table sat Queen Rosemary, followed by her daughters. Alicia and Lillie were on either side.
Iris sat across from me while Liddy and Sharon stood against the wall. The breakfast smelled delicious, but the atmosphere weighed heavier than the cured ham.
The queen, dressed in a white silk nightgown that barely made an effort to contain her breasts, smiled with that mix of tenderness and mischief I already knew too well.
"Did you enjoy the night, Razel-kun? I heard Iris-chan made a rather interesting confession to you."
I choked on my juice.
"I slept well. And nothing happened. Absolutely nothing."
Alicia, all smiles and bouncing twin-tails, nodded with the air of an expert.
"That is normal. First he must go through the legitimate wife's bed, and only afterward through the mistresses'. Order is important."
Lillie almost spat out her tea.
"Who told you that you are the wife, Alicia?"
"It is obvious that I am!"
Iris lowered her gaze for a second and then spoke in a soft voice:
"Competing with the royal princesses is unfair… but I am content to be a concubine. As long as I can stay by his side, that is enough for me."
Liddy, who was serving the bread, grinned from ear to ear.
"I feel the same way! A happy concubine is also a victory!"
Sharon, with her usual expressionless face, nodded once.
"I agree."
The two princesses looked at each other as if they were about to leap across the table. The queen brought a hand to her face and muttered so quietly I almost missed it:
"Does this boy have some kind of curse or strange power that makes every woman fall in love with him…?"
Before bringing an apple to her mouth, she lifted her gaze and completely changed her tone and expression.
"By the way. The Festival of the Three Heroes is approaching."
I blinked.
"The what?"
Iris straightened up and explained.
"It is a festival held every four years. We honor the three warriors who gave their lives to defeat a terrible monster that nearly destroyed the kingdom. It is one of the most important events in Britannia."
I remembered the solitary tomb in the Redford territory that I had visited not long ago, on the outskirts of the city.
"It must be similar to the tomb of the eight knights…"
"It is not similar," Iris interrupted me. "It is the same event. It simply occurs under different circumstances and at different times depending on the country."
I went cold.
(So the monster attack Brianna spoke about… was not a local incident. It was on a national scale.)
The queen bit into the apple with elegance and smiled.
"That is precisely why I mention it. It is a perfect opportunity to corner the Phantom Troop. They cannot ignore an event of this magnitude. If they move, we catch them."
The princesses tensed at the same time.
"Mother, no! We cannot put Razel-sama in danger!"
"That is right. I am firmly against anything that would cause him trouble."
Not long ago I declared war on the Phantom Troop, and because of that my life is in danger once again.
"I agree with my daughters," the queen said, and for the first time her voice truly sounded concerned. "But we have already declared war on them in the shadows. If we let this opportunity pass, they will be the ones who corner us."
I nodded at her words.
"Her Majesty is right. I have already confirmed the strength of some of them. They are not weak. If the remaining ones are on the same level… it is better to capture them now, while they are still not completely free."
The queen looked at me for a few seconds and then smiled—that dangerous smile she used when she had already decided something.
"Sharon."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Call the commander of the knights. It is time for her to enter the stage."
I turned toward her.
"Who?"
The queen rested her elbows on the table, pushing her breasts a little further forward, and looked me straight in the eyes.
"The only person in this kingdom who can put the Grand Knights in line… and who, by the way, hates the Phantom Troop almost as much as we do."
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This is something I should have included in the previous volume, but I forgot—though I've remembered it now! XD
This serves as the opening theme for this volume; I'm including a piece of music that captures the narrative pacing of the events. Although it technically belongs to the previous volume, it's still fitting here.
https://youtu.be/tLQLa6lM3Us?list=RDHPKE_mGoGHM
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The fanservice in this volume is especially dedicated to Queen Rosemary and a possible future.
https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/148793651