"Yuna-san, I feel a connection with knights." (Noa)
Noah said while looking at the stairs. I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Then, the owner of the footsteps appeared in the room. Just as Noa had said, a knight appeared.
"I thought a mouse had gotten in, but it turned out to be a bear?" (Knight)
This man... somehow his voice sounded familiar.
"Seros (セロス). Why are you here? You went outside the city to kill monsters." (Rhone)
"Rhone-sama was here too. So, what were you doing here?" (Knight)
"If you say that, why are you here? That man must have told you not to come in here." (Rhone)
"There was an intruder in this mansion, so I was looking for him." (Knight)
Were you looking for an intruder? What about us?
"Then, the lock on the door, which is supposed to be always closed, had been broken, so I just came to check." (Knight)
"Well, you've confirmed it, so get back." (Rhone)
"That's not true. There are two strange girls and a bear in this room, and as a knight who serves this mansion, I can't just leave without saying anything. Above all, I've even seen another fairy." (Knight)
The man Rhone called Seros looked at Prim.
Prim hid behind me, but it was too late.
Making everyone able to see her backfired.
"Yuna..." (Prim)
Prim said my name anxiously.
"It's okay." (Yuna)
I called out to Prim to reassure her and turned to the knight.
"More than anything, I'm interested in that bear girl." (Knight)
"To me?" (Yuna)
"She fought 10 knights outside the mansion." (Knight)
Was I being watched?
However, that place was quite far from the mansion.
"I knew someone was coming to the mansion, so I was waiting." (Knight)
"I don't think there was anyone nearby." (Yuna)
"There are many ways to see at that distance." (Knight)
Telescope, magic, there were certainly ways to see.
But we could do it because he knew we were coming.
From what the man said earlier.
"Did you know we were coming?" (Yuna)
"Information cannot be hidden. You must keep everyone who knows the information shut. But I only need one person to speak." (Knight)
When the number of colleagues with important secrets increased to 100, 1000, or 10,000 people, all of them had to protect the secret. However, from the point of view of the person who wanted to know the secret, all they had to do was get one person to speak.
In other words, did this mean someone sold the information?
Or threats or violence.
"Then, do lord and other knights know as well." (Yuna)
If that happened, it would be bad.
"As I said earlier, the more people know, the more likely the information will be leaked. If I tell the others and you know that we know about this incident, if they find out, they will cancel this operation." (Yuna)
That was right.
If it was known that the lord had found out, the operation would have been cancelled.
But from this guy's point of view, maybe there were only disadvantages.
"So the fact that we're here means you're the only one who knows?" (Yuna)
"As expected, I'm not that stupid. I told one of my subordinates who went to subjugate the monster to come back with everyone, so he might be back soon. If he returns to the city... You'll notice the smoke." (Knight)
If that happened, guild master and the others would have to fight against the returning knights.
I couldn't do anything right now. I was glad I captured the knight that came out of the mansion. If those knights were to join us, it would have been a big deal.
Guild master and the others had already figured out that a knight would come out of the mansion. If you thought about it that way, it was plus minus or zero.
"But it seems like I didn't know who was going to break into this mansion, so I was looking forward to it, but the only people that showed up were two children and two bears. And is that fairy?" (Knight)
The man looked at us.
"It was so unexpected that I was troubled when I saw it. However, when I saw your fight, I immediately changed my mind." (Knight)
The man looked at me.
"The power given to me by Rhone is amazing. However, the knights are not as strong as me, and I cannot go to other countries to test my power. The nearby monsters are weak. I've always wanted to use this power to my heart's content." (Knight)
The knight I was talking to in the hallway said the same thing.
His power was temporary. It was not permanent. He couldn't become strong unless he received strength from Rhone.
"That's why, when I saw the battle between the young lady and the knights, I wanted to fight. It seems like she uses some mysterious magic. Her movements are also good. She defeats them. Don't you think it's funny?" (Knight)
The man gave a creepy smile. Noa and Prim's faces twitched at that expression. I appeared before Noa and Prim.
"There's nothing to worry about it. Even the power you gained through unfair means is meaningless if you can't handle it." (Yuna)
The knights who fought were not able to demonstrate the power they had acquired from Rhone.
If I were a normal girl with no experience in games, I wouldn't have been able to wield a weapon. I also didn't have the adaptability to use magic.
Even though it was a game, I had experience fighting in real life, so I could use the bear equipment given to me by God.
Even if Fina and Noa, who had never fought before, used bear equipment, they would not be able to use all of its abilities.
When attacked, they might close their eyes. The sword might become dull. They might be unable to move due to fear.
"I'm glad to hear you say that. Everyone who fought against me said I was a coward. In order to obtain this power, I threw away my pride and swore an oath to my lord." (Knight)
Well, it was true that it was cowardly to fight with the power you received from someone else.
I was also fighting with the bear equipment that God gave me.
However, one thing was different.
I didn't use that power for bad things. That was all I could say with confidence. I didn't use unreasonable violence (although I did hit people who annoy me), and I didn't intend to use force to control the country (controlling the world would be troublesome). I didn't create a harem (I didn't want to be popular with the opposite sex).
Also, I had no intention of using my powers to become a hero or a brave (this was the most troublesome thing).
I used the power of bears to relax and enjoy this world.
However, using that power required a big price.
I looked at my appearance again.
To compensate for that, I had to dress up as a bear.
I said that this person sacrificed his pride to gain power, but I wondered if he also dressed up as a bear.
I would like to ask questions about that.
Even I, after many struggles, accepted the bear.
This man was dressed as a bear...
"Hehe" (Yuna)
I laughed when I thought about it.
"What's that laughter?" (Knight)
"I just thought it wasn't a big deal of pride. If you're going to let go of your pride, you'll have to do something like me." (Yuna)
Swallowing your pride meant dressing like a bear like I did.
"I don't understand, but let's go to battle now. Let me show you how strong I was in fighting the knights." (Knight)
He licked the tongue.
Apparently, this man was a battle fanatic.
"Seros, are you saying you're going to fight these kids? I didn't give you the power to do that!" (Rhone)
"Rhone-sama, I hope you understand my position." (Knight)
"What is your position? Is it your position to give you power?" (Rhone)
"Having a knight to protect you" (Knight)
"I didn't ask for that." (Rhone)
"And how hard are the knights working to protect that man?" (Knight)
"That's..." Rone was defeated and closed her mouth.
"If you're not careful, the magic stone gathering is probably because you stole the jobs of adventurers. That's because you stole the magic from the residents. Do you not embarrassed of Rhone to corner you and say it like it's for her?" (Yuna)
"That's right. The lord's job is to protect the lives of the residents. Of course, he can't keep an eye on everything, but the lord himself must not make the residents unhappy." (Noa)
Noa, who had been silent, spoke up.
Even though Noa was still a child, she understood her position as a lord.
"A person who makes the residents unhappy for his own benefit is not worthy of being a lord. And a knight who follows such a lord is not a knight either. A knight protects the weak." (Noa)
"Hehe, that's a child's fantasy. Knights don't protect the weak. They follow their master's orders. If their master orders them to fight monsters, they will fight with their lives. If they order them to kill people, they will kill them. That is the knight I am." (Knight)
"Is that even wrong?" (Noa)
"A knight makes an oath to his lord. Whether it's a good lord or a bad lord, if you make an oath, you will keep it. Let's stop talking now. Either way, I will fight that young lady. I’m looking forward to it." (Knight)
A man drew his sword.
"Are you planning on fighting here? Wouldn't it be difficult if this room were destroyed?" (Yuna)
"Is it for me or for you?" (Knight)
Of course, for both of us.
However, depending on how much the man knew, he might be less important than me.
From my point of view, I didn't want this room to be destroyed right now.
"You don't seem to have any sense of chivalry." ()
"I'm honored to receive your compliment." ()
Sarcasm didn't seem to get through.
"And those bears coming out of the ground are a nuisance." ()
I guessed he decided to fight here because he knew he was being watched.
This man didn't like fighting. He just liked to tease.
Author's Note
As I think many people expected, a knight appears.
It's a battle between Fairy Cheat and Bear Cheat.
It's hard to predict who will win...
Or is it?
* Thank you to everyone who reports typos.
Please note that some kanji have been revised to match the book, so some may not have been revised.