The dragon carriage had been moving through the desert without any problems... but suddenly, the body of the carriage shook with a loud "thump," and it came to a stop.
I thought that the wheels had been caught in the sand, but I soon realized that it was for another reason. A loud man's voice came from outside.
"Come out! Don't do anything unnecessary!?"
"...Looks like we are in trouble. Let's get out."
Urza and Levienna nod in return.
I kicked open the entrance to the dragon car and stepped out, and immediately the scorching heat of the sun began to shine down on us. I frown at the retina-burning sunlight... but then something else immediately jumps into view.
"Heh heh heh... looks like your fun trip is over. Oh, nobleman."
"Bandits... or should I say 'Sand Bandits'. In this country."
Outside the dragon carriage, a dozen men are waiting. All of them are armed, and they are staring at us with mocking eyes.
Among the sand bandits is a local guide who I had hired as a coachman of the dragon carriage. He does not appear to be captured, but is holding a weapon like the other sand bandits.
"...It looks like we're being set up. It seems that the man was one of the sand bandits."
I sigh deeply.
Probably, that man had been acting as a guide for the dragon carriage, while watching carefully for his prey. For example... a person who is rich and has no escort.
It is said that it's a good thing when a person gave a large tip to the guide, but it turned out to be a bad thing. Apparently, when the guide judged the person to be rich enough, he decided that the person was worth robbing.
Besides, the fact that Urza and Levienna were my only companions was also a factor. Maybe I should have brought a strong-looking escort, even if it was just for show.
And now, the guide who judged that I was 'easy prey' led me to the place where his companions were waiting, and then he revealed himself and attacked me.
"I wonder... why they have a lot of guts, desu~no? To attack Goshujin-sama."
"They have no idea how scary Zenon-bocchama is. After all, he's wearing sunglasses today."
"...Is it only me? Well, I'm certainly covering my eyes today."
I laugh at Urza and Levienna's words and touch the sunglasses on my face.
Since we are traveling in the desert, I have been wearing sunglasses to protect my eyes from the sun.
The sunglasses are a subtle accessory with a defense of '1' and a 5% reduction of light damage, but it is a popular fashion item that changes the appearance of a character.
"If they could see my eyes, they probably wouldn't have thought of fooling me... No one would be a daredevil to pick a fight with me when they see my villainous face..."
"Leader (お頭)! Look at them, they're scared!"
"Gahahahaha! It's only natural that this young master and his girl scared because they are captured by us 'Red Spear Gang'..."
"Hee hee hee... he's got a nice girl with him. I can't wait to hear what she sounds like!"
As we get off the dragon carriage and stand on our feet, the sand bandits, who seem to be the Red Spear Gang, are smiling at us with a sneer.
I don't know what kind of gang they are... but they don't appear in the game, and I, as the head of the bad guys in the neighboring country, have never heard of them. In other words, they are just that kind of people.
"Hyahahaha! Let me have a little taste! This woman's body... I can't stand it!"
One of the sand bandits approached with a shrill voice.
The man has a big smile on his ugly face and tries to reach for Levienna's breasts, which are wrapped in a maid's robe.
"...You dirty bastard. Don't touch my girl."
I immediately took action. A bullet of dark magic shot out from my finger and went straight through the man's brain.
"Pyahhh..."
It took less than a second to kill this man. He probably didn't even know what happened to him as he fell on his back with the bullet through his brain.
"Thank you for saving me, Bocchama."
"I know it's easy for you now that you're a Royal Guard but I can't have other people's hands on my property. If you mess with my girl, you'll be prepared to die."
"Uuuu...!"
The second half of the sentence was directed at the sand bandit... but for some reason Levienna gasped in ecstasy.
Levienna covered her face with her palm, and blood flowed slightly through the gaps between her fingers.
"I can't believe I'm Bocchama's property... I'm so excited."
"...For now, wipe the nosebleed. We're about to go into battle."
"Y-You son of a bitch! What did you do to my men!?"
A large, hairy man as big as a bear yell at me. He carried a spear painted red on his back.
"If you didn't know what I did to him, then you're just that much of an enemy. I have no right to give you a souvenir, and you'll die knowing nothing."
"You brat... I'm the leader of the Red Spear Gang, for crying out loud!? If you think I'm stupid, I'll beat you to death..."
"Okay~, I will beat you, desu~no!"
Before I can finish my threat, the enemy boss is blown backwards.
Urza, who had started to move without waiting for my order, had given him a flying kick.
"Goshujin-sama is flirting with Levienna-san all the time! I'm so pissed off, I'm going to do some exercise to relieve my anger, desu~no!"
"Hey, you! How dare you hit my head... Gyaaaaaaaaaaaa!?"
"Ei~, desu~no!"
Urza's weapon slammed into the bandit's torso. The bandit, whose waist was bent into a 'く' shape, flew away and plunged head first into the mound of sand, forming a parabolic curve.
"I'm going to go on and on, desu~no!"
"Gghaaa!?"
"Gaaaa!"
"Stop this little brat... Guhaaaa!"
One after another, Urza smashed the sand bandits surrounding the dragon carriage. She beat them to a pulp with her Kanabou as if she was playing whack-a-mole with them.
"You... son of a b*tchhhhhh!"
One of the sand bandits runs toward me as if in desperation. I try to intercept my foe with my sword, but this time Levienna makes a move.
"Just the prey I was looking for... let Goshujin-sama see me grow up!"
Levienna stands in front of me and flips up the hem of her maid's uniform.
I wonder how she had stored them, but she pulls out a metal shield and a sword from inside her fluttering skirt.
"Shield bash!"
"Gigyak...!?"
Levienna hits the bandit's face with the shield, and the bandit falls on his back. While this bandit is dazed, Levienna stabs the tip of her sword into the bandit's chest, mercilessly slamming it into his chest.
"Kahak..."
"As long as I am here, Zenon-bocchama will not suffer even a single scratch! This is Levienna, your maid reborn... and she will take care of you!"
Levienna says with a high voice, holding up her sword and shield in both hands.
Levienna's new job—'Royal Guard'—is a girder job with extremely high defensive capabilities.
This job is good at attracting enemies and protecting friends, and has many counter-type skills.
Although the job was behind Urza's job 'Berserker' in power and Nagisa's job 'Samurai Master' in speed, this job made the rear guards such as monks and magicians much easier to move by having it in the party.
"Unfortunately, a party of three vanguard people can't make use of her strength... Hmph."
"Come at me! Your limp d*ck (フニャチン) is only half the size of Goshujin-sama's!"
"""""Ooooooooooo!"""""
Levienna shouts loudly, and the surviving sand bandits rush in. The girder's essential skill, [Provocation], has been used to gain the enemy's hate. Well, the content of the line is very interesting.
Now that Levienna had attracted enough of the enemy, she took a big backstep.
"Zenon-bocchama! Now!"
"Yeah... I know!"
I call out Levienna's intention and immediately activate my magic.
A black carpet-like thing spreads out at the feet of the crowded sand bandits, and in the next instant, countless black spears shoot out from it.
"Dark magic - Blood Carpet!"
"""""Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa""""
The sand bandits are all wiped out by my ranged magic.
It was a brilliant move in which Levienna gained the enemy's hate, drew them to her, and then, I unleashed a ranged spell on them.
"To slaughter such a large number of people with a single blow, as expected of Bocchama. Levienna is impressed."
"I'm more impressed with you... you're a great decoy."
Urza also has the skill of gaining the opponent's hate... but she can't use it like this if she's a madman running around and hitting the enemy as she pleases.
However, Levienna's ability to see the battlefield from a broad perspective and take the appropriate action to take advantage of her fellow fighters' abilities was an admirable talent.
"Urza, Nagisa... our vanguard is full of selfish people. But Levienna is a great maid that shows her spirit of service even during the battle. I'm impressed."
"Hehehe... I'm so happy to be praised by you, Bocchama. Perhaps you can give me a reward."
Levienna whispers to me in a playful manner, and I hug the maid-suited knight.
"Hwahhhhhhh!? You shouldn't do that so suddenly, Bocchama!?"
Levienna screamed in my arms, surprising me, and her undulating body became limp and weak.
I wonder where her defensive power had gone. After all, I never thought I could beat her with just one hug.
"Sheesh! Even Urza worked hard, it's not fair, desu~no! Goshujin-sama's monopoly is forbidden by law, desu~no!"
"Oops!?"
This time, Urza hugged me on my back. She threw down her beloved Kanabou and clung to me tightly with both hands and feet.
With no regard for the situation, the three of us flirt with each other in the middle of the desert.
Around us, the corpses of sand bandits are lying in a heap of corpses.
