Chapter 16

VOL . 2 CHAPTER 16: OF COACH AND BANDITS

After staying for a week in the royal capital, we were on our way back to the Dolknes territory . My favorite means of transportation is Ryuu, I really hate riding the coach .

I wanted to stop the carriage, get my feet on the ground and take a look along the road . Some good views could be seen when one travels by road from the capital to Dolknes territory .

Unfortunately, there was no coach available which Ryuu could ride so I told him that he could return whenever he wanted .

Aa, my body feels cramped

Right now were stopping for a break, as I hopped down from the coach and stretched my body, I could hear the sounds of my bone cracking . Hearing how loud the sound was, the coachman looked at me in surprise . No, no, everyone does this all the time .

Patrick followed me as he hopped down and stretched himself, but no bone-cracking sounds were heard . Eh?

The maid sisters, Rita and Sara, also stepped out of the coach .

If I didnt bring the elder one back home with us, it was likely that she would commit suicide . Compared to Rita, Sara wasnt so weird, plus I wanted her within earshot before her sisters bad influence affected her .

Patrick helped them to step out of the coach .

Huh? Why didnt I get the same wonderful event? I wondered for a moment but on second thought, wasnt I the one who rushed out of the coach first?

Besides, Im not that weak to ask for help like that . But next time, Ill wait until Patrick gets out first . If he offers me his hand, Im willing to take it .

As I repeat the bending and stretching motion, Patrick comes closer .

You still hate riding the coach?

I really hate it, running is a faster way of travelling .

That only works for you .

No, no, Patrick, you can also run fast, right?

The other day when we measured his level, its already past Level 80 . Even the Knight Commander, who was considered the strongest in the kingdom was Level 60, so you could understand how strong his current strength is . If you look at the past, people who reached Level 80 are like urban legends .

Well, I think its faster to run, too . But

You did realize that youre not normal anymore, right?

I cant accept that Yumiela is admonishing me .

This is one of the reasons for our inspection . I dont necessarily need to ride a coach, but a lot of people use it . Its important to realize hes no longer normal and have to see things from a normal peoples perspective .

The population of Dolknes territory consists of normal people, there are few strong people like Patrick and me .

Despite my insightful thoughts, Patrick is reluctant to admit the truth .

Im not like you, my magic power is normal, you know? We arent in the same league .

Patricks magic has wind and earth attributes, he uses them skillfully by using the wind to deliver his voice over a distance and using earth attributes to create an instant defense .

He doesnt use his strength the same way I do but Im sure he could if he wanted to .

Im trying to suppress my magic, okay? And its been ingrained in you to conserve your magic, if you want to go all out, go for it, youll do great .

Sure, recently I havent been able to use all my magic without restrain .

Lets do it together this time and give each other our all .

No way .

My suggestion was immediately rejected . Hes no fun but

Feeling dejected, I looked at the couch and I started to get bored . It leads me to think of modern knowledge I could use to improve the coach when the horse catches my attention .

The couch that we were using right now is a two-horse coach, both of the horses are very pretty with chestnut-colored hair . During our break, the two of them were gulping down water .

Aah, look how cute theyre . Moreover the horses are intelligent . Theyre not like cats and dogs that bark at the sight of me and end up running away . The era of those pets is over, now its time for the horses to shine .

Thank you for pulling the coach, can I touch them a little?

I moved to the side and aimed to touch at one side . Their big, round black eyes looked gentle . Is this one a girl?

I reached out, before I could touch the horses neck it suddenly lashed out and neighs were heard .

Oh no, did I touch a forbidden place? Just like dogs that hate having their tails touched, maybe horses also have places that dont want to be touched .

This is entirely my fault . The coachman oji-san rushed up to me and said,

Excuse me . The horses are scared, could you please step away?

He then calmed the horse down by petting it . By touching it in the same place I was going to touch . Eh?

It seems like its not just dogs and cats have a tendency to be afraid of me but horses as well . Maybe it applies to animals in general . Oh, but humans tend to be afraid of me, too . Its okay, I still have Ryuu anyway .

Inside the traveling coach, it seems that the road surface is poor or the swaying has increased . I wish they would at least maintain the streets properly .

Hey, where are we going right now? Arent the road is too bad?

We just entered the Dolknes territory a while ago .

My question was answered plainly by Patrick . Is that the reason why Rita cast down her eyes the moment I asked that?

Then she lifted her downcast eyes .

Its better than before . It was worse before Yumiela-sama entered the academy .

Now that she mentions it, I remembered the coach heading to the academy was shakier . It felt less shaky during the journey but it wasnt because I got used to it .

If I dont, Ill be in trouble . Since I became the Lord, Ive been allocating money for road maintenance . What the hell happened to it?

Hmm, maybe it was .

And this is an awful place to meet bandits . As long as you pass safely, youd arrive at peaceful Dolknes territory .

Rita-san, isnt the bar too low? Nowadays, there is no such thing as bandits . If the bandits frequently appear in a territory, then the Lord must be ridiculously incompetent .

Ive never heard about bandits, but its actually eh? Why did we stop?

I was about to ask if the rumors about the bandits were real in this world when the coach suddenly stopped . The coachmans panicked voice could be heard from outside .

Bandits! Weve been surrounded!

I learned a few things . One, bandits are real . Two, nobles like the Dolknes are incompetent as a Lord .

Then, as a lord with zero aptitude Ill make a difference as guard .

Patrick jumped out of the coach first . Bandits surrounded us as I leaned out of the coach and looked around . There were about thirty men of varying ages, a few of them were armed with proper weapons and the rest were armed with farming tools .

Patrick then guided the coachman oji-san in front of the door .

Yumiela, come out quickly . Let him hide inside .

Eh? What kind of event will lend me a hand to step down?

If I say something like that, its obvious that Im going to get angry . I jumped off from the coach lightly to warn Rita and the others .

You guys stay inside the coach .

Good luck .

Saying good luck when surrounded by thirty or so people is an exaggeration . Judging from the bandits appearance they arent used to fighting, so there is no danger here .

Patrick draws the sword on his waist . When I was about to do the same I remembered that I left my sword at home . I stand in line next to him in a natural stance .

While keeping an eye on the bandits, he said .

Yumiela, protect the coach, Ill take care of the bandits!

Alright!

Maybe its better to reverse the plan . But nothing can stop Patrick when hes motivated . I stand in front of the coach and watch him fight against the bandits .

As you can imagine, the odds for the bandits to win werent good .

Patrick struck with his sword, knocked them down with his feet then blew them away with wind magic and overwhelmed the bandits .

While watching the one-sided fight, I sense something approaching me from behind . He had a sword in his hand and seemed to have his sights on me, unlike the bandits who had surrounded Patrick and tried to defeat him . Hes pretty reckless .

I pretend not to notice his movement in the background . But I still wanted to avoid being slashed from behind with minimal movement . If I do, I will look cool like a master . I can feel his stare at the back of my head .

He reached behind me without making any noises and swung his sword down but it never came . Instead, his hand circled from behind and held his sword on my throat .

Dont move! Drop your sword! Or she will get it!

He said that loudly .

What does that mean? I exchanged looks with Patrick but he hasnt grasped the situation yet .

We both freeze and looking puzzled when he flaunted some even more and said,

Drop your weapon if you are worried about this girl! Give me your valuables or I will kill her!

I still dont understand what hes talking about . But Patrick seems to have figured it out and asks quizzically .

Is this a situation where you became a hostage?

No shit! Look, Ill ruin your girlfriends beautiful face!

He brought the blunt-looking blade close to my face . Ive been involved in a lot of dangerous situations before but this is the first time being held as a hostage .

Since were already caught in this situation, lets do something even more hostage-like . Its a once-in-a-lifetime experience .

Time to ask for help using all my acting skills .

P-please save m

That sounds really dry .

Patrick looked weak and unmotivated . Hey, your fiancee is in danger . Can you take it more seriously?

I continued my acting as a hostage .

Dont mind me! Attack me! Im going to drag this guy to hell!

Huh

My intention was to make it like an unlucky girl battling someone like rival characters in the manga . The bandits trembled at my resolve .

However its unlikely for Patrick who had a troubled look on his face to move . It seems like Im not the only one who feels heartless . The bandits that surrounded us unanimously said,

Just drop your sword and I wont take her life, okay?

Your girlfriend is saying all these things but you have no heart!

Dont listen to him, Patrick! Im alright!

He finally made up his mind and has a clue about what Im doing . After letting out a deep sigh, he dropped the sword in his right hand to the ground .

As he raised both of his hands, Patrick gave the bandits a sharp look .

Taking hostage is for cowards! Release her!

Oh, Patrick is on board with my idea .

He was so intense it frightened the bandits and made them back away . I was blown away by his impressive acting .

Fufu, Patrick is so cool . How could you be so good at acting?

You are the one who started it . Look, the charade is over .

He looked away in embarrassment as he picked up the sword he dropped .

Being a hostage is no fun . Now would be the time to grab the sword that is being held at my throat .

The sword blade easily broke when I grabbed it, theres no way such a poor quality sword could withstand my grip . Looking at the broken sword, the guy behind me froze .

I never thought a day where I would be a hostage would come . Thank you for the opportunity!

Eh?

Well, can you all gather in one place?

Whoaa, what is this strength?!

I grabbed his arm and tossed him towards Patrick . He flew into the air and collided with another bandit .

Meanwhile, on Patricks side of things, it looks like he also seemed to have settled the matter . The thirty or so bandits were either down or no longer had the will to fight .

I slowly walked towards Patrick and said,

Good job, its not that hard isnt it?

Yeah, they didnt look like they were used to fighting . Their weapons are too shabby, they look like farmers

What if theyre coming from my territory? There must be a reason why they become bandits, maybe Im the root of the problem .

Im the Lord of Dolknes territory, where are you guys come from?

They began whispering to each other when I asked them in a less domineering manner .

Lord of Dolknes? The one who said to defeated the Demon King?

This is bad, we hit the most dangerous target .

Hey, stop talking as if you are being tortured . Remember your familys faces!

Seeing them panicked makes me feel bad . It feels like the standard that Ive to expect .

Patrick stepped forward and motioned me to step back .

Tell me, do you have a place to stay or are you working away from home? And why are you targeting this place?

They remain silent under Patricks interrogation . See? The way you asked is too pushy . Interrogation requires a carrot and stick approach, a certain amount of mercy is needed .

When he tried to give them an alternate choice, he gave the choices in a well-timed manner .

If you keep silent, Ill change place and let her do the rest .

No, Ill tell you everything!

Can you stop using me as the stick?

Later he found out the bandits were coming from a village in our neighboring territory .

When I asked him to elaborate, he said that their village suffered from poverty and if they didnt do this, they would starve to death . Thats why the men were planning to rob a coach that was likely loaded with money as bandits .

It seems that the big mountains in the south were the cause of poverty . There are times when the sun would disappear, causing low crop yields, he added .

As I listen to his story from a distance, I asked,

But whats changed? What made you start robbing people? Youve been doing this for a while, right?

Um .

I dont know!

Yep, just like the usual . They get scared .

Patrick gestures to me to take a further step back and I listen .

Whats going on in your territory lately?

Its the monsters . There arent any around our village but they raided our crops .

Monsters rarely appear near human settlements . Or rather, people settled in a place where there are no monsters around .

Its concerning for them to show up in their village . I couldnt help but ask .

Was everyone okay?

Uwaaa .

Patrick .

Its about time for them to start getting used to it . Just What kind of personal information about me is circulating in the villages around here?

The villagers in my territory did not react that way when they saw me . I mean I kinda expected this already .

With a sigh, Patrick asked on my behalf .

Was there any damage done?

No one is injured . But the fields are ruined, we might as well be dead . Our Lord wont even help us .

The village was already in poor condition from the start, but it became even more devastating after the monsters appeared . And no help from the Lord as well . Hearing about their grievances, an idea suddenly came to my mind .

The territorial reform that I proposed the other day was rejected due to the lack of residents .

Hey .

Uwaah .

Am I that scary? Oh! If the neighboring territory sucks, then why dont you migrate to mine?