Maintenance (1)

‘Do you think I am an incompetent king?’

The words written in the letter sat heavily on one side of my heart.

Two days after speaking with the king, a new letter arrived.

Unlike before, the content is heavy and serious.

Her distraught feelings were clearly written.

A young girl before she was a king.

The pressure coming from those around you will be difficult to bear.

Wouldn’t it be great if I, too, would be in a state of anxiety right now?

But I couldn’t just treat her with pity.

It was completely different to be on the king’s side rather than on her side.

“Pin. “What do you want to do?”

“Guu…”

The pigeon sitting on my shoulder let out a low cry.

Finn suffers every time he contacts the king.

When I put food in my palm, Finn took it and ate it right away.

“It’s fascinating. “It was my first time seeing a pigeon following a person.”

Tyria, who was watching from the side, was looking at Finn with curiosity.

I held out my palm and gave Tyria the pin.

The moment Tyria’s hand got closer, it flapped its wings and returned to my shoulder.

“I guess I don’t like it that much…”

“I know. “It seems like he only follows me.”

It seems that because I feed and bathe him every day, he only becomes attached to me.

Because of that, some difficult things happened.

Previously, Kayla had offered to feed Finn.

However, it seemed to end in failure because Finn didn’t even pay attention.

I had a hard time stopping Kayla from getting into a fight with Finn.

Because of this, Kayla didn’t seem to like Finn at all.

Of course, the same goes for Erina.

“…”

Every time I stroked Finn, Erina didn’t take her eyes off me.

At any moment, I might break a pin while looking away.

Even though I tried to convince Erina, it was no use.

Gu…

Finn must have recognized the gaze and looked strangely dispirited.

Then it flew into the cage and quietly hid.

I put away the king’s letter and took out new stationery.

‘I don’t know how to reply.’

First of all, even just words can be comforting.

I wrote down a few words of greeting and consolation.

The reason I declined the offer was not because she was incompetent.

It’s just because I don’t want a future with the king.

I ended up with the letter with the hope that the King would understand.

I Finn approached and tied a note to his leg.

“Ruler. “Tell it to the king as usual.”

Gooo!

After stroking it gently, I flew it towards the window and Finn spread his wings vigorously.

It flew away in the direction of the royal palace.

After I finished replying, there was nothing more to do.

Celica was always busy taking care of the children, but not the others.

The training has already been completed and I have had enough rest.

It’s too difficult to stay confined to the mansion, so let’s go out into the streets.

Although I usually received supplies from Julia.

I didn’t know that there might be something I needed before heading to the Demon World.

However, the atmosphere has changed a lot since the war continued and Helen Village was attacked.

There was a need to be more careful about security than before.

That’s why I thought it would be better for just me, Erina, and Kayla to be together.

“Tyria. I’m sorry, but can I stay in the mansion?”

“Uhm… I understand.”

Fortunately, Tyria agreed to what I said, but she didn’t like it.

Before returning to the mansion, should I prepare a gift?

But if you give her a gift, you should give the same gift to your other colleagues.

***

“My lord. “Attention is gathering from all around us.”

Just as Kayla said, unknown eyes were gathering.

Did anyone recognize us even though we covered our faces with robes?

As your reputation increases, the hostile gaze and responsibility only increase.

In the first session, I felt different when I tried the pants I had in mind in advance.

I can’t even walk around the streets carelessly.

I didn’t know if I would have to live like this even after defeating the Demon King.

Previously, I had hoped to live a peaceful life in the capital.

Now I wonder if it is virtually impossible.

If I defeated the Demon King and laid down my sword, there was no reason to live in the capital.

It wasn’t so bad to live in a quiet and secluded village.

However, it will be far from the will and wishes of my colleagues.

‘It’s not a problem to worry about right now.’

First, after defeating the Demon King and revealing the truth to Erina.

It was a problem that had to be thought about only then.

Are there any items needed to head to the demon world right now?

The priority is to walk around the streets and search.

In fact, there was no need to change weapons or armor, so I decided to stop by the general store and look around.

“…Hello.”

The owner of the general store greeted me with a doubtful expression.

As expected, he seems to have recognized me.

The general stores in the capital had a lot of things, but none of them were very useful.

To be exact, the only items were similar or worse than the supplies prepared by Julia.

There was no reason to pay that much money to buy it.

After looking around for a while, I left the store and there were a few people gathered.

They are all spectators who have gathered to see us.

“Erina. “Don’t touch the knife.”

“… “

Erina calmly puts down her hand after listening to me.

I did not want to see murder take place in the capital again.

In her heart, she wants to kick people out right away.

However, there were no sharp numbers.

I wandered around the streets looking for useful items, but there was nothing I liked.

As time passed, I only realized how much Julia supported me.

Then there was a place where I stopped.

‘Magic tool store.’

Shortly after arriving in the capital and meeting Kayla.

I had bought a recognition-impairing robe to hide Kayla’s face.

Are there any items that are needed just like back then?

As I entered the store, I was greeted by an interior with a gloomy atmosphere.

Bizarre taxidermy statues and unidentifiable skins.

It is clearly an ornament made by peeling off the skin of demonic beasts.

It’s covered in dust and there’s even mold here and there.

The further I went inside, the more I started to smell a strange smell.

“My lord. This place is a little…”

“Are you okay. It may be a little strange, but a store is a store.”

A space with a bit of a connection even in the first session.

When I actually saw it, it felt a bit different from what I saw on the monitor.

In any case, if you are looking for interesting and useful items, there is no better place than this place.

Finally, after passing through the long entrance, I was able to meet the store owner.

“Uhm… “Are you a guest?”

A voice that does not seem to welcome customers even though it is doing business.

Even though it’s been a while since I’ve been here, nothing has changed.

“Is there anything that can combat the fog of the Demon World?”

“Fog? Are you planning to head to the Demon World?”

“Okay. And that too in two weeks.”

After hearing what I said, the owner snorted and giggled.

“Don’t talk nonsense. How do you get to the demon world? Go and be killed by the devil’s army… !?”

“Shut up.”

The table cracked with a loud noise.

Only then did the owner seem to have understood the situation and kept his mouth shut.

Only after looking around carefully did we seem to realize who we were.

I said it was a close call earlier, but I ended up having an accident.

Still, it was fortunate that there was no one around to see.

“Damn… I asked who it was.”

“I just came to look around.”

“An item that blocks the fog of the demon world? If such a convenient item existed, he would have become rich by supplying it to the kingdom. Isn’t that right?”

“Uhm…”

I felt regretful at the owner’s words.

In fact, magic tool stores sometimes randomly sell equipment that blocks the fog of the demon world.

Since the probability was quite low and I didn’t see it even in the first round, I decided to give up this time too.

Still, I decided to take a look to see if I could find anything useful.

Of course, Erina and Kayla didn’t even notice the item because they didn’t like it.

There were several items that looked good, at least to my eyes.

And the product the owner recommended to me.

“You’ve probably heard of elixir.”

A healing agent made by gathering all kinds of rare ingredients.

A potion that immediately fills you with stamina and magic the moment you drink it.

It is difficult to obtain even a few items throughout the game.

I don’t know how I got it, but if it was an elixir, it was worth buying.

“How much.”

“Eighty thousand gold. There is no pardon.”

“Buy it for 50,000 gold.”

“No, there is no such thing as pardon.”

“I wonder if anyone would spend 80,000 gold on just one potion.”

“It’s not just a potion, it’s an elixir. Even the dead can be healed…?!”

Erina tried to pull out her sword again, but I managed to stop her.

The owner’s complexion turned pale, perhaps because he was scared, but he did not hand over the elixir.

“No matter how much I think about it, 80,000 gold won’t work.”

“Ha…Then how about this?”

The owner sighed and presented another product along with the elixir.

And the items he brought were unfamiliar to me.

A small gemstone hanging on a necklace.

Unusually, it was glowing subtly with a red light.

“What is this?”

“It’s a necklace that’s been talking about a lot among wizards lately. It is said that if magical power is infused into a necklace, the wearer will forget the pain for a while.”

“…It looks like something dangerous.”

“That’s right. It is said that ten minutes after expelling magical power, several times more pain comes as a reward.”

If you just listen to the owner’s explanation, it seems like a very dangerous item.

I’m not sure if this kind of equipment even existed in the first place.

It seemed like it could be fully utilized in an emergency.

But Kayla blocked my path and shook her head.

“My lord. It’s dangerous.”

“Are you okay. Just tried it once…”

“Please. “It is best not to touch such dangerous items.”

Kayla pleaded, but she couldn’t stop me.

In the end, a compromise was made to purchase it along with the elixir and necklace for 70,000 gold.

As I put the necklace around my neck, Kayla looked at me with anxiety.

“If it’s really dangerous, I won’t use it.”

“…Yes. I understand.”

I guess it should only be used in emergency situations.

If you use it all the time, your colleagues will worry even more.