An Unexpected Summons and Sara’s Request
“Rolando-kun, you have a guest.”
“A guest for me? Who is it?”
The day after I experienced the heart-wrenching farewell with my beloved Dispel Stone, Massana visited my room after breakfast. It seemed that I had a visitor, but I could only think of one person who would seek me out.
Just to be sure, I asked Massana about the appearance of the guest. She described the visitor as a young woman, beautiful in appearance. …This ruled out Sara.
Sara had a charming rather than classically beautiful face. If I were to describe her appearance, it would be as cute. However, Massana’s response indicated a beautiful young woman, so I became more cautious.
“Anyway, I’ll go meet them.”
Regardless, since I didn’t know the purpose of the visitor, I had no choice but to meet her in person.
Heading to the inn’s reception, I found a woman there who matched Massana’s description—a beautiful woman in her prime. She had a slightly sharp gaze, giving her a cool beautiful impression.
What drew attention even more than her beauty was the fact that she was dressed in a maid’s uniform, which suggested that she served someone.
“You have some business with me?”
“You must be Rolando-sama. I am Teria, a maid in service to a certain person. Today, on behalf of our mistress, Sara, I have brought you a letter. Please take this.”
Saying so, the woman who introduced herself as Teria handed me an envelope containing the letter. However, something caught my attention, so I asked her a question as I received the letter.
“How did you know where to find me? I haven’t told anyone, including Sara, about the location of this inn or my plans.”
“Yes. Beforehand, when I was asked to find you, I was only told about a boy named Rolando, so I realized it on the way and returned to the room… Haha.”
“That’s… very Sara-like.”
I said that as a form of reassurance, but I couldn’t help but wonder why she didn’t ask me about it before leaving the room. However, seeing Teria’s wry smile, I concluded that she, too, had a slightly absentminded side, similar to her mistress.
“From there, when Sara-sama mentioned Demon Hunting Guild while discussing something with you, you showed interest. So, I went to the Demon Hunting Guild and inquired using your name. I received answers that you had come that day and registered with the Demon Hunting Guild and that this inn was recommended. That’s why I came here to meet you.”
“I see, it makes sense.”
In another world where there weren’t stringent privacy laws, personal information could easily leak from someone’s mouth unless secrecy was explicitly requested. I needed to be more cautious in the future.
In any case, the fact that Sara sent me a letter meant that she either had something she wanted me to do or believed I might be able to handle a certain situation.
While I thought she could have just come to meet me directly if she needed something from me, my guess was that she held a certain level of authority, possibly being a high-ranking noble’s daughter or even someone belonging to the royal family. If that were the case, revealing her face might not be safe, and she might find it difficult to appear in public.
For now, I decided to read the letter from Sara, which I received from Teria. However, the content seemed straightforward, as if it had been hastily written.
“If you want to know how to remove the Dispel Stone’s barrier, please listen to my request, huh… She must have known about the barrier from the beginning and intentionally didn’t tell me. She’s surprisingly shrewd. (Well, you have to be to survive as a noble or royal.)”
Until I received this letter, there was a possibility that Sara only had the Dispel Stone at the temple, and I didn’t know about the barrier surrounding it. However, the contents of this letter clearly indicated that she knew beforehand that the Dispel Stone was protected by a barrier.
Furthermore, the fact that she chose to inform me of this at this specific moment suggested that she had an urgent matter at hand. I suspected that the situation might be more critical than I had anticipated.
If I were in Sara’s position, I would use the method to dispel the Dispel Stone’s barrier as leverage in negotiations with me and would meet me in person to discuss it. However, this time she was using an indirect method, a letter, to approach me. At this point, it was evident that some troublesome matter was afoot.
“Rolando-sama, please. Could you accompany me to see Sara-sama?”
“Sure, but this won’t be resolved with just me going, okay? What’s this about?”
“T-That’s…”
Teria hesitated in her response, and I became even more convinced that something extraordinary was happening around Sara.
However, I owed much of my progress, from being sent to the Demon World to struggling here, to Sara’s presence. Although I would repay that debt by delivering her to the Demon Lord’s city, I couldn’t feel good about it if misfortune befell her afterward, especially if it were caused by the actions of a third party.
If it turned out that someone else had caused the problems, my frustration with them would be even stronger.
“Well, I do need to meet Sara at least once. Let’s have you show me the way.”
“I-Is that so? Thank you very much. Then, I shall guide you.”
With my promise to meet Sara, Teria displayed a relieved expression. For now, I followed Teria’s guidance to the location where Sara was.
*****
“Hey, this is the royal castle, right?”
“Yes, but is there something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
The place I arrived at following Teria’s guidance was indeed the royal castle. It was the most prominent building constructed in the heart of this city and served as the residence of the royal family of this demon race’s nation.
The problem was why Teria had guided me to such a place, and my sense of caution increased by another notch.
(I expected it, but is she really from such an illustrious race?)
As I thought about this, we entered the royal castle and walked through a needlessly massive maze-like corridor, turning right and left. Eventually, Teria halted at a particular room.
“Could you wait in this room for a while? I will be back shortly.”
“Understood.”
The room I was led to seemed like a reception area. It was adorned with tasteful, not overly extravagant furnishings, comfortable-looking sofas, and a luxurious table.
With nothing else to do, I decided to sit on the sofa and wait quietly. However, it seemed that preparations were taking longer than expected, and no one came for thirty minutes.
Just as I was getting bored just sitting on the sofa, I heard a knock on the door.
“Excuse me.”
“Hmm.”
Upon seeing the person who entered, I couldn’t help but be amazed. It wasn’t a positive feeling of amazement, but rather a mild one that could be described as “She’s capable of that?”
Dressed in an elegant, fluttering dress, she exuded an aura of royalty. Although I had noticed some elegance in her posture and movements when I used to see her before, her being of noble birth was so hard for my brain to accept that it bordered on urban legend.
But now, presented with it right in front of me, I had no choice but to acknowledge it as an undeniable fact. It left me with a somewhat bitter feeling, almost like defeat. In a word, it was an indescribable emotion, something like, “How could Sara, of all people, be so presumptuous?”
In any case, since we had no business with just a standing conversation, I had Sara take a seat on the sofa, and we decided to have a detailed conversation. When she sat down, she began by expressing her gratitude for bringing her to the Demon Lord’s city.
“Firstly, thank you for coming all the way here and for your assistance in bringing me to the Demon Lord’s city. I am truly grateful.”
“It goes both ways. Don’t worry about it. Anyway, let’s hear about your request.”
“You’re quick to understand. It saves me the trouble of persuading you.”
“I deduced it from the contents of the letter and the situation. I figured there was no time to lose. It would be advantageous for both of us if I understood the situation first. So, what’s going on?”
“I see. Very well. Actually…”
Summarizing Sara’s story, she was the third princess of the demon race’s nation, with two elder sisters above her. The second princess, Saniya, aimed to secure power and had harmed both Sara and the first princess, Sanya.
It was a typical tale of a succession dispute among royal family members, and Sara had found herself embroiled in it. Thanks to my assistance, she had escaped unscathed, but the first princess, Sanya, was currently in a coma due to a mysterious illness. If her condition continued for a few more days, it was unlikely that she would ever wake up.
“The moment I heard that, I couldn’t sit still, and I didn’t know what to do. Then, I began to think about someone who could help in this situation…”
“You thought of me, huh? Well, it’s nothing but trouble for me.”
“I apologize. At this point, there’s no one else I can turn to.”
As Sara finished her words, I turned my gaze away from her and began to reevaluate the situation I found myself in. Currently, there was a power struggle among the three princesses. Sara and the eldest sister, Sanya, had been victims of the schemes of the second princess, Saniya.
If I were to accept Sara’s request, it would require dealing with the root cause, which was the second princess. This could mean either rehabilitation or elimination. In return, she would use the removal of the Dispel Stone’s barrier as a bargaining chip. However, for me, it wasn’t a very enticing offer.
Sure, losing the ability to teleport instantaneously was a setback, but it wasn’t life-threatening. There were plenty of other means of fast travel available in this world, such as flying magic or summoning creatures like manticores. Teleportation was simply the quickest method among them, and I didn’t necessarily need that ability.
Therefore, using the removal of the Dispel Stone’s barrier as a negotiation point was a relatively weak proposition for me. Did Sara realize this? She probably didn’t.
However, I couldn’t just abandon her like this. It would be selfish. On the other hand, accepting her request meant getting involved in a troublesome matter.
“Robbing Peter to pay Paul, huh…” TLN: “To rob Peter to pay Paul”, or other versions that have developed over the centuries such as “to borrow from Peter to pay Paul”, and “to unclothe Peter to clothe Paul”, are phrases meaning to take from one person or thing to give to another, especially when it results in the elimination of one debt by incurring another.
“Rolando-san?”
“Well, first of all, why not just… get rid of that second princess?”
“N-No, no! What kind of ruthless thinking is that?!”
Perhaps Sara was taken aback by my response, as the woman who had guided me here, Teria, didn’t say anything either. She seemed to be observing the situation with some amusement.
In the face of Sara’s protests against my rather extreme suggestion, I spoke to her in a more reassuring tone.
“Sara, being royalty sometimes requires making difficult decisions, even if it means harming one’s own family. Even if that means taking the life of a loved one.”
“But, the current situation could be resolved without having to kill Elder Sister Saniya, the second princess, right?”
“…You’ve noticed, huh? Surprisingly astute.”
“Rolando-san… Could it be that you were testing me?”
“Well, let’s put the jokes aside for now. First, let’s see if we can do something about the mysterious illness of the first princess.”
Sara didn’t seem entirely satisfied with my rather abrupt change of topic, but for now, she accepted that I would undertake her request.
If I were to move forward with her request, the first immediate issue to address was the mysterious illness of the first princess.
“For now, please guide me to the first princess.”
“Very well…”
Sara, though still somewhat unconvinced, seemed to prioritize her sister’s well-being. She agreed to lead me to the room where the first princess was located.
While I didn’t know what was causing her sister’s illness, I understood that we needed to start somewhere. So, we made our way to the room where the first princess was staying.
An Unexpected Summons and Sara’s Request
“Rolando-kun, you have a guest.”
“A guest for me? Who is it?”
The day after I experienced the heart-wrenching farewell with my beloved Dispel Stone, Massana visited my room after breakfast. It seemed that I had a visitor, but I could only think of one person who would seek me out.
Just to be sure, I asked Massana about the appearance of the guest. She described the visitor as a young woman, beautiful in appearance. …This ruled out Sara.
Sara had a charming rather than classically beautiful face. If I were to describe her appearance, it would be as cute. However, Massana’s response indicated a beautiful young woman, so I became more cautious.
“Anyway, I’ll go meet them.”
Regardless, since I didn’t know the purpose of the visitor, I had no choice but to meet her in person.
Heading to the inn’s reception, I found a woman there who matched Massana’s description—a beautiful woman in her prime. She had a slightly sharp gaze, giving her a cool beautiful impression.
What drew attention even more than her beauty was the fact that she was dressed in a maid’s uniform, which suggested that she served someone.
“You have some business with me?”
“You must be Rolando-sama. I am Teria, a maid in service to a certain person. Today, on behalf of our mistress, Sara, I have brought you a letter. Please take this.”
Saying so, the woman who introduced herself as Teria handed me an envelope containing the letter. However, something caught my attention, so I asked her a question as I received the letter.
“How did you know where to find me? I haven’t told anyone, including Sara, about the location of this inn or my plans.”
“Yes. Beforehand, when I was asked to find you, I was only told about a boy named Rolando, so I realized it on the way and returned to the room… Haha.”
“That’s… very Sara-like.”
I said that as a form of reassurance, but I couldn’t help but wonder why she didn’t ask me about it before leaving the room. However, seeing Teria’s wry smile, I concluded that she, too, had a slightly absentminded side, similar to her mistress.
“From there, when Sara-sama mentioned Demon Hunting Guild while discussing something with you, you showed interest. So, I went to the Demon Hunting Guild and inquired using your name. I received answers that you had come that day and registered with the Demon Hunting Guild and that this inn was recommended. That’s why I came here to meet you.”
“I see, it makes sense.”
In another world where there weren’t stringent privacy laws, personal information could easily leak from someone’s mouth unless secrecy was explicitly requested. I needed to be more cautious in the future.
In any case, the fact that Sara sent me a letter meant that she either had something she wanted me to do or believed I might be able to handle a certain situation.
While I thought she could have just come to meet me directly if she needed something from me, my guess was that she held a certain level of authority, possibly being a high-ranking noble’s daughter or even someone belonging to the royal family. If that were the case, revealing her face might not be safe, and she might find it difficult to appear in public.
For now, I decided to read the letter from Sara, which I received from Teria. However, the content seemed straightforward, as if it had been hastily written.
“If you want to know how to remove the Dispel Stone’s barrier, please listen to my request, huh… She must have known about the barrier from the beginning and intentionally didn’t tell me. She’s surprisingly shrewd. (Well, you have to be to survive as a noble or royal.)”
Until I received this letter, there was a possibility that Sara only had the Dispel Stone at the temple, and I didn’t know about the barrier surrounding it. However, the contents of this letter clearly indicated that she knew beforehand that the Dispel Stone was protected by a barrier.
Furthermore, the fact that she chose to inform me of this at this specific moment suggested that she had an urgent matter at hand. I suspected that the situation might be more critical than I had anticipated.
If I were in Sara’s position, I would use the method to dispel the Dispel Stone’s barrier as leverage in negotiations with me and would meet me in person to discuss it. However, this time she was using an indirect method, a letter, to approach me. At this point, it was evident that some troublesome matter was afoot.
“Rolando-sama, please. Could you accompany me to see Sara-sama?”
“Sure, but this won’t be resolved with just me going, okay? What’s this about?”
“T-That’s…”
Teria hesitated in her response, and I became even more convinced that something extraordinary was happening around Sara.
However, I owed much of my progress, from being sent to the Demon World to struggling here, to Sara’s presence. Although I would repay that debt by delivering her to the Demon Lord’s city, I couldn’t feel good about it if misfortune befell her afterward, especially if it were caused by the actions of a third party.
If it turned out that someone else had caused the problems, my frustration with them would be even stronger.
“Well, I do need to meet Sara at least once. Let’s have you show me the way.”
“I-Is that so? Thank you very much. Then, I shall guide you.”
With my promise to meet Sara, Teria displayed a relieved expression. For now, I followed Teria’s guidance to the location where Sara was.
*****
“Hey, this is the royal castle, right?”
“Yes, but is there something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
The place I arrived at following Teria’s guidance was indeed the royal castle. It was the most prominent building constructed in the heart of this city and served as the residence of the royal family of this demon race’s nation.
The problem was why Teria had guided me to such a place, and my sense of caution increased by another notch.
(I expected it, but is she really from such an illustrious race?)
As I thought about this, we entered the royal castle and walked through a needlessly massive maze-like corridor, turning right and left. Eventually, Teria halted at a particular room.
“Could you wait in this room for a while? I will be back shortly.”
“Understood.”
The room I was led to seemed like a reception area. It was adorned with tasteful, not overly extravagant furnishings, comfortable-looking sofas, and a luxurious table.
With nothing else to do, I decided to sit on the sofa and wait quietly. However, it seemed that preparations were taking longer than expected, and no one came for thirty minutes.
Just as I was getting bored just sitting on the sofa, I heard a knock on the door.
“Excuse me.”
“Hmm.”
Upon seeing the person who entered, I couldn’t help but be amazed. It wasn’t a positive feeling of amazement, but rather a mild one that could be described as “She’s capable of that?”
Dressed in an elegant, fluttering dress, she exuded an aura of royalty. Although I had noticed some elegance in her posture and movements when I used to see her before, her being of noble birth was so hard for my brain to accept that it bordered on urban legend.
But now, presented with it right in front of me, I had no choice but to acknowledge it as an undeniable fact. It left me with a somewhat bitter feeling, almost like defeat. In a word, it was an indescribable emotion, something like, “How could Sara, of all people, be so presumptuous?”
In any case, since we had no business with just a standing conversation, I had Sara take a seat on the sofa, and we decided to have a detailed conversation. When she sat down, she began by expressing her gratitude for bringing her to the Demon Lord’s city.
“Firstly, thank you for coming all the way here and for your assistance in bringing me to the Demon Lord’s city. I am truly grateful.”
“It goes both ways. Don’t worry about it. Anyway, let’s hear about your request.”
“You’re quick to understand. It saves me the trouble of persuading you.”
“I deduced it from the contents of the letter and the situation. I figured there was no time to lose. It would be advantageous for both of us if I understood the situation first. So, what’s going on?”
“I see. Very well. Actually…”
Summarizing Sara’s story, she was the third princess of the demon race’s nation, with two elder sisters above her. The second princess, Saniya, aimed to secure power and had harmed both Sara and the first princess, Sanya.
It was a typical tale of a succession dispute among royal family members, and Sara had found herself embroiled in it. Thanks to my assistance, she had escaped unscathed, but the first princess, Sanya, was currently in a coma due to a mysterious illness. If her condition continued for a few more days, it was unlikely that she would ever wake up.
“The moment I heard that, I couldn’t sit still, and I didn’t know what to do. Then, I began to think about someone who could help in this situation…”
“You thought of me, huh? Well, it’s nothing but trouble for me.”
“I apologize. At this point, there’s no one else I can turn to.”
As Sara finished her words, I turned my gaze away from her and began to reevaluate the situation I found myself in. Currently, there was a power struggle among the three princesses. Sara and the eldest sister, Sanya, had been victims of the schemes of the second princess, Saniya.
If I were to accept Sara’s request, it would require dealing with the root cause, which was the second princess. This could mean either rehabilitation or elimination. In return, she would use the removal of the Dispel Stone’s barrier as a bargaining chip. However, for me, it wasn’t a very enticing offer.
Sure, losing the ability to teleport instantaneously was a setback, but it wasn’t life-threatening. There were plenty of other means of fast travel available in this world, such as flying magic or summoning creatures like manticores. Teleportation was simply the quickest method among them, and I didn’t necessarily need that ability.
Therefore, using the removal of the Dispel Stone’s barrier as a negotiation point was a relatively weak proposition for me. Did Sara realize this? She probably didn’t.
However, I couldn’t just abandon her like this. It would be selfish. On the other hand, accepting her request meant getting involved in a troublesome matter.
“Robbing Peter to pay Paul, huh…” TLN: “To rob Peter to pay Paul”, or other versions that have developed over the centuries such as “to borrow from Peter to pay Paul”, and “to unclothe Peter to clothe Paul”, are phrases meaning to take from one person or thing to give to another, especially when it results in the elimination of one debt by incurring another.
“Rolando-san?”
“Well, first of all, why not just… get rid of that second princess?”
“N-No, no! What kind of ruthless thinking is that?!”
Perhaps Sara was taken aback by my response, as the woman who had guided me here, Teria, didn’t say anything either. She seemed to be observing the situation with some amusement.
In the face of Sara’s protests against my rather extreme suggestion, I spoke to her in a more reassuring tone.
“Sara, being royalty sometimes requires making difficult decisions, even if it means harming one’s own family. Even if that means taking the life of a loved one.”
“But, the current situation could be resolved without having to kill Elder Sister Saniya, the second princess, right?”
“…You’ve noticed, huh? Surprisingly astute.”
“Rolando-san… Could it be that you were testing me?”
“Well, let’s put the jokes aside for now. First, let’s see if we can do something about the mysterious illness of the first princess.”
Sara didn’t seem entirely satisfied with my rather abrupt change of topic, but for now, she accepted that I would undertake her request.
If I were to move forward with her request, the first immediate issue to address was the mysterious illness of the first princess.
“For now, please guide me to the first princess.”
“Very well…”
Sara, though still somewhat unconvinced, seemed to prioritize her sister’s well-being. She agreed to lead me to the room where the first princess was located.
While I didn’t know what was causing her sister’s illness, I understood that we needed to start somewhere. So, we made our way to the room where the first princess was staying.
