Chapter 63

The voices of the men who had heard me speaking turned towards me, their glares sharp and piercing.

“Who are you?”

“Are you acquainted with this girl?”

“Not really, but…”

“Hah! Then stay out of it and scram.”

“What? Weak as you look, your face isn’t half bad, boss. Are you even a real man?”

They burst into laughter among themselves after their loudmouthed banter.

How could this be…

Their lines were so cliché, it felt like all my energy was draining away.

I forced the most benevolent smile I could muster. ‘Just let it slide, it’s too much of a hassle,’ I thought.

“Warning. If you want to avoid trouble, now would be the perfect time to back off quietly.”

“What? Hah!”

One of the men stepped closer to me.

“What’s this? A guy pretending to have authority when he doesn’t. This is all on you now, got it?”

With that…

The two lackeys behind him drew their swords.

“So…you’re pulling out swords?”

“Yeah. 100% steel blades. You gave us a warning? Now it’s payback time. Want to call the guards? I wonder whose side they’ll take?”

“Haa…”

I prayed for their souls.

Because from the moment they drew their weapons…they had no chance against us.

“Hey.”

And then came the one who made sure they’d have no chance at all—

Iren slowly drew her sword and approached.

“Come at us all at once. I’m getting annoyed.”

“Huh? What’s this? A pretty girl holding a sword? Must be some nobleman’s bodyguard, huh?”

“Looks like a fake noble playing dress-up. How many years has the empire been gone? What good is lineage?! Around here, might makes right!”

Ignoring the man’s rant, I spoke to Iren.

“Iren-sama. Let’s wrap this up quickly. It’s starting to bother me.”

“Understood.”

“What? Bothered? You piece of trash…looking down on us commoners, huh!!”

“Kill that guy!”

Without any proper judgment, they charged at me in a fit of rage.

And…

*

Of course…

They stood no chance against Iren. Absolutely none.

“…P-please spare us…!”

“Milord, please, please forgive us just this once…!”

The man who was shouting about commoners moments ago was now kneeling on the ground, forehead pressed against the floor as he begged for mercy.

Such pitiful sight made me sigh as I looked to Iren.

“What should we do?”

“These ruffians should be handed over to the constables. Our lord would approve. Looks like the guards are coming anyway.”

Sure enough, the commotion had attracted the attention of nearby guards rushing our way.

“Lord…?”

“N-no way…!”

Upon hearing the word “lord,” their faces paled completely.

From their perspective, they had just messed with someone connected to the state authorities. For citizens under our jurisdiction, this fear was understandable.

“S-spare us…!”

Before the man trying to flee could get far, Iren tripped him up.

“Nowhere to run. You’d better realize in prison who exactly you’ve offended.”

“K-kkhh…!!”

We handed the ruffians over to the guards who had arrived in a hurry.

Without my intervention, Iren had handled everything with great skill.

Thinking about it, this was practically patrol duty maintaining public order. Given her combat prowess, it made sense she’d be proficient in such tasks even without explicit orders. Though I did wonder if uncommissioned acts of service counted toward merit…

While lost in these thoughts, I suddenly remembered something I’d forgotten and turned to approach the trembling woman.

“It’s safe now. You can calm down. Everything’s fine.”

“U…Aaahh…u…”

She slowly raised her head.

At the same moment, her veiled face entered my line of vision for the first time.

‘…Huh?’

Pink hair and slightly lighter pale pink eyes…

In this game, there was only one woman with pink hair.

‘…Reika?’

Reika.

To any player who had delved deep into this game, [Garland Eternity Saga], she was an unforgettable character on par with the main lords.

The reason was simple:

Reika was both the continent’s first mage and its strongest.

She was the character who strongly implanted the concept of “overpowered” in old gaming communities.

I desperately recalled the dot graphics stored in my memory. Comparing them, she definitely resembled the original.

Though naturally, this Reika was much more beautiful than the pixel art version. That said, most of the female characters I’d encountered so far shared this trait.

‘But why is Reika here?’

According to my knowledge, she wouldn’t start making waves until later. She was supposed to be wandering around as an orphan at this point.

However…

Judging by her attire, she seemed to come from a family of means rather than being an orphan.

“Um…excuse me.”

“Ah.”

Only then did I realize I had been staring blankly at her.

“My apologies. Are you alright?”

“Y-yes…um…a, ah…er…”

She nodded in a small voice. Apparently, she was quite shy.

These personal details were things one couldn’t learn from the game, where commanders only recited their pre-programmed lines.

This time, it was Iren standing beside me who spoke.

“Are you alright?”

“A…Yes, yes! T-thank you very much…!”

Her eyes darted around restlessly. Come to think of it, the veil and other signs suggested she was doing something she didn’t want discovered. Was there some situation involved?

That moment, my mind began racing.

‘…If this woman really is Reika, it would be wise to establish a connection now.’

The continent’s first and most powerful mage.

She would undoubtedly become a major asset to the Lunarien Army.

Regardless of why she was here, meeting her was fortunate. Currently unknown, she presented an opportunity. With careful persuasion, she could potentially join me.

Making that decision, I bowed respectfully and asked casually—

“We mean no disrespect…ma’am.”

“…I am Reika Nightharte…”

‘Hmm?’

The name Reika was good, but Reika Nightharte?

That was odd.

The Reika I knew had no surname. She was an orphan.

Moreover, the Nightharte name…

It sounded familiar, though I couldn’t quite place it.

Still…

Having learned her name, I was confident now.

This woman was Reika, the future greatest mage of the continent.

Knowing that, the next steps were clear.

“Yes, Miss Reika. We are part of the Aishias Army conducting street patrols to maintain order. To prevent you from encountering further trouble, we would like to escort you quietly back to your residence without drawing attention.”

“…”

‘Response to the “quiet escort.” Time to dangle the bait a bit more.’

“You don’t need to feel burdened. Maintaining the safety of citizens is essentially our purpose.”

“That’s right. There’s no need to be overly cautious.”

Fortunately, Iren was supporting my words.

As always, her ability to sync with me during crucial moments was incredibly reliable.

“Is…that so…?”

Reika slowly glanced at me, then seemed to consider something before nodding.

“Then…I-I humbly request your assistance.”

‘She seems easily embarrassed.’

When controlling Reika in the game, I only knew her as someone who cast powerful spells. Learning about her actual personality like this felt refreshingly new.

As we escorted her forward…

She kept looking around cautiously the whole time.

Was there some situation involved?

I wanted to ask, but pressing too much on our first meeting could ruin things.

‘Let’s keep the first impression natural.’

There was no need to rush.

I would remain with the Aishias Army for now, and if she resided within the castle grounds, we would naturally meet again many times.

After following her for not long—

We arrived at a large mansion with an expansive courtyard.

“This…is here.”

‘Wow, she lives in quite a nice place?’

I had suspected as much from her expensive-looking clothing.

Apparently, this world’s Reika wasn’t an orphan.

Had she been adopted into a wealthy family?

I briefly greeted her.

“We will strengthen our patrols to ensure you don’t experience such incidents again. Please take care of yourself.”

“Y-yes! T-t-t-the both of you are extremely kind. Then…!”

After Reika entered the mansion,

Iren finally asked me.

“Swoen. Do you know her?”

“No. First time meeting.”

I technically wasn’t lying since this was the first time seeing her face-to-face.

“Hmm. Just felt like you were treating her like someone you knew.”

…You’re sharper than expected, Iren-sama.

“Still, Swoen, you’ve impressed me anew.”

“Huh?”

“Normally people would just ignore such street incidents. But you didn’t, did you?”

Iren said this, then continued with renewed enthusiasm.

“Good. As I thought, I must always stay by your side.”

“Why does it always end up like that?”

“Well, without me, you might have gotten hurt.”

“…”

Honestly…

If it had come down to brute force against those thugs…

I probably would have lost.

Part of my confidence came from knowing I was a commander of the Aishias Army, but…

Another part came from trusting that Iren would protect me.

“Being able to help you brings me joy. Hehe.”

Iren kept smiling happily.

Did helping me make her this happy?

“Shall we return?”

“Yeah. How about a cup of tea today?”

“Sounds good to me.”

Thus, I returned home with Iren.

*

“Miss Reika. Since you went out secretly, I’ll keep it quiet, but please ensure nothing like this happens again. If Master finds out, there will be serious consequences. Understand?”

“…”

Back home, Reika apologized multiple times to the Head Maid scolding her before returning to her room, lying on her bed hugging her pillow in deep thought.

Sneaking out without her adoptive father’s knowledge was fine, but she never expected to encounter those ruffians.

Though she could have dealt with those ruffians using her reputation, doing so would have exposed her secret outing.

Trapped in this situation where neither option was viable—she met that person.

‘He was quite handsome…that gentleman.’

The white-haired man who saved her.

Additionally, the red-haired woman beside him also deeply impressed Reika.

Seeing her effortlessly defeat the ruffians was incredibly cool.

Both of them matched the ideal image of men and women she had envisioned in her mind.

If both of them belonged to the Aishias Army, could she meet them again by asking her adoptive father?

However, upon thinking this, a feeling of powerlessness washed over her.

There was no way her adoptive father would grant her such a purely personal request unrelated to official duties.

Of course, she knew her current worry-free life was thanks to her adoptive father…

But being confined to this gilded cage day after day became unbearably stifling.

She didn’t want to return to her previous life of near starvation filled with perilous situations…

Yet recently, even those thoughts began wavering.

Because those days spent wandering the streets freely were incredibly liberating.

“Focus on mastering mana manipulation for now without external distractions. When the time comes, I’ll lift the outdoor restriction. Understood?”

She mulled over her adoptive father’s words.

She understood the importance of reading and freely controlling “mana.”

If she could bring peace to the continent with this power, she would gladly do so.

But…

It was lonely and tedious working alone.

Spending all her time detecting floating particles in the air grew increasingly tiresome and difficult.

‘If only I could meet them again…’

With that wish unlikely to come true, she merely continued hoping while unable to fill the emptiness in her heart.

* * *

Time flowed on, three weeks later.

“Are you ready?”

“Yeah.”

I and Iren woke early in the morning to prepare for heading to the palace.

Our first meeting as members of the Aishias Army.

Essentially, our debut match.

“Let’s walk side-by-side, Lady Iren. Boldly, for everyone to see.”

Understanding my meaning, Iren smiled and replied.

“Yeah, Swoen.”

Thus, making it obvious to anyone watching that we were companions—

We set our footsteps toward Falahart Royal Palace.