It would have taken dozens of hours by horse carriage, but Igni and his two companions made the trip in less than a few hours back to the Imperial Capital.
Unlike his spell [Flame Engine] {Accel Boot}, Igni needed no refined skills to just continuously make things explode behind him ー which was quite impressive considering how barbaric his methods were ー and arriving at the Imperial Capital, Igni and his group headed straight for the castle.
As soon as he enters the castle with Alicia, Sebastian immediately greeted them.
Sebastian: “Welcome back, your highness. …….and who might this be?”
Sebastian looked to the 3rd member of the group who was not with them when they left the castle.
Alicia: “She is the [Frozen Winter] Hayem, Sebastian.”
Sebastian: “Truly?!”
Sebastian, who was usually very calm and collected in any situation, stood back astonished. Of course he did. Stories about Dragons turning into humans were only told in fairy tales.
Hayem: “.................”
Hayem remained silent and removed all emotion from her expression. This was exactly how Igni and Alicia instructed her to do on the way here. Igni could not be more grateful as she put on this act for them.
Alicia: “Sebastian, I need to prepare for the Birthday Festival, so please prepare a guest room for Hayem.” Sebastian: “As you command. Lady Hayem, if you have any needs, please let me know.”
Hayem: “........I have none.”
She quietly and uninterestedly responded to Sebastian.
This was exactly how Igni and Alicia asked her to be ー a proud Dragon who had no interest in humans.
Seeing how well this was going, Igni celebrated inside his mind.
Sebastian: “I understand.” Sebastian nodded and turned towards Igni.
Sebastian: “Sir Igni, as for the reward, I will begin the preparations, but it will take some time……”
Igni: “I understand.” The reward referred to one of Igni’s dream of being surrounded by Beast Race girls and enjoying their soft, fluffy fur, and if it is going to take time to arrange, then Igni was willing to wait. A Popular Man needs to have an understanding heart and deep patience.
Sebastian: “Then Lady Hayem, this way please.”
Sebastian took Hayem and headed for the guest room.
Now, she will have to keep the act up herself. Once the summer break is over, Alicia will return to the Rolmod Wizard Academy, so they have told Hayem to hold on until then.
That’s why Igni knew that Hayem would have to part with them until the Birthday Festival was over, but he was still left with some doubts and concerns.
As Igni prayed that Hayem would not cause any trouble, Alicia spoke to him.
Alicia: “Igni, what will you do now?”
Igni: “Hm? I’ll return to the inn once. Yoori and Sara are waiting for me.”
Alicia: “I see. Then, when will I see you again?” Igni: “It’ll be soon. At the latest, during the Birthday Festival.”
Alicia: “Hehe. I’m looking forward to it.”
Alicia smiled, turned on her heel, and disappeared into the castle. As Igni watched her go, he also turned around and headed for the town.
But it was during the middle of the day. Yoori and Sara would probably not be at the inn. To meet up with them, he would have to search through the town. As he thought about these things, he decided to kill some time from a location he knew within the Imperial Capital, and Igni headed for the Adventurer’s Guild.
Entering the building, Igni was shocked to see many more Adventurers than when he came here with Yoori and Sara. But he realized that it was because all the Adventurers who were sent to slay Hayem had returned.
Igni: (And it’s just all men here……..)
Igni observed the room filled with testosterone…….but then felt someone tap him lightly on the shoulder.
“It’s been a while. You’ve been well?” Igni: “Elie! It has been a while.”
And there stood a Beast Race girl with a hood over her head.
Since Igni and Alicia had left to slay Hayem, so Elie was the princess left behind.
Igni: “Why are you here?”
Elie: “I’m a F-Rank Adventurer, you know? Why can’t I be here?” Igni: “........no, that’s not what I meant.”
Elie: “I know, I know. You’re talking about the Birthday Festival, right?” As if to read his mind, Elie smiled mischievously from underneath her hood at Igni.
Igni: “YーYeah, don’t you have……..a lot of preparation to do?” Elie: “Really, all the prep I had to do was for the speech at the beginning. And because of Allie, I had plenty of free time to prepare.”
Elie shrugged as she spoke.
Allie was the nickname she used for Alicia, and while Igni and Alicia were in the Port City, Elie must have finished all her preparations, so with free time on her hand, she snuck out of the castle again.
Elie: “And let me ask you why you’re here, Igni.”
Igni: “We just finished.”
Igni assumed that she would understand what he meant without going into details.
Elie: “(*whistles)...look at you, Igni. As expected of you.”
Igni: “No, it wasn’t me this time.”
Normally, he would have blushed at the compliment, but this time, for Alicia’s sake, he couldn’t accept any credit.
Elie widened her eyes at Igni’s unexpected response.
Elie: “Really?”
Igni: “Yeah, this time, Alicia deserves all the credit.”
Elie: “Hmmm, I see…”
At that moment, Elie’s voice turned ice cold.
It was not a disinterested coldness. It was something akin to not appreciating that Alicia accomplished something, and she snuffed any feelings of resentment very forcefully…….that kind of chill crossed Igni’s mind.
Elie: “I guess she wasn’t just playing around in the Kingdom.” She spat the words disgustingly.
Igni: “So I was looking for Yoori and Sara, but do you happen to know where they might be?” Igni instinctively avoided continuing the conversation and tried to change subjects. He didn’t see any reason to continue touching on a subject that brought so much negative emotions and wanted to end it quickly.
But Elie did not answer Igni’s question.
Elie: “Igni, are you free right now?”
Igni: “........huh? Oh, yeah, I am free but…”
Igni was only thinking about meeting up with Yoori and Sara, but even after meeting up with them, he did not have any particular plans in mind. That’s why when Elie asked if he was free, he answered that he was.
The tips of Elie’s lips curved upwards into a cruel smirk at his answer.
Elie: “Then, why not go on a date with me?” Igni: “............?!”
Igni: (AーA date?!)
Igni had not recovered from his shock as Elie continued.
Going on a date with a cute Beast Race Girl was something Igni would never refuse, and he would have jumped up with joy at the offer, but something inside him hesitated and wondered about Elie’s true intentions.
Elie: “You are free, right?” Igni: “........yeah, I’d love to.”
But being invited on a date, presented with a simple “yes” or “no” option, he nodded his head.
Of course, there was only one answer for him from the beginning.
