IPDT 27

“Master, this turned out for the best. Let’s just leave that human, who doesn’t even know the grace of being raised and ignored you, to fend for himself! Let’s go back to the lair!”

“Don’t call Yul ‘that human.’ And I’m not going back.”

I grabbed the scruff of Fleabag’s neck with my fingers and lifted him. Fleabag struggled to stay on my knee, but I snorted and placed him on the bed. Fleabag raised his two front paws and looked up at me pleadingly.

“Another human has already taken the attendant position. There is no reason for you to remain in the human world, Master.”

“I can just get the attendant position back.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Fleabag jumped.

“The hero’s expedition is tomorrow. By what method are you planning to get it back!”

By what method will I get it back, he asks. I scoffed.

“Of course, I’ll get it back through persuasion and appeasement.”

First, I’ll show him how strong I am, and then if I ask for a talk, it’ll be a sure thing.

“You just watch.”

Should I go now that I’ve mentioned it? I had already used magic to find out which room the attendant chosen by Yul was using. I shot up from my seat.

It was the day of the hero’s expedition, but the imperial castle was quiet. This was because neither a banquet to celebrate the expedition nor a departure ceremony was held.

That was not the emperor’s will. The emperor feared the hero, but he was a human who valued the authority of his country. If things had truly gone the emperor’s way, he would have held a grand banquet to avoid being told that ‘the empire neglected the hero.’

However, the hero’s will was so firm that the emperor could not hold any events. He merely respected the hero’s wishes by providing a carriage in front of the imperial castle.

“The hero is coming out.”

As someone spoke, the heavily armored guards raised their weapons to the sky and saluted. From inside the huge imperial castle gate, a man dressed entirely in black walked out.

No, he wasn’t just wearing black clothes. The wind blew, and the man’s black hair swayed softly. Beneath it, cool black eyes were revealed, and the pitch-black body of the sword at his waist exuded a gloomy aura, as if it were absorbing the sunlight.

The hero finally came out of the imperial castle, but the guards could not even steal a glance at the hero’s back. This was because an undeniable aura emanated from the hero, despite his light attire of only a shirt and pants.

As if it were determined by their species, the humans felt an immense pressure from the hero. A weak-willed human might even feel a fear that went beyond pressure.

The guards held their breath and watched the hero get into the carriage. An attendant with a deep navy blue hood pulled down was sitting in the driver’s seat. It was said that because the hero had refused even the company of a driver, an attendant who knew how to drive a horse had been forcibly conscripted.

Poor thing. One of the guards thought so and looked away from the driver’s seat.

He never would have dreamed that the one sitting in that driver’s seat was none other than the world’s greatest balancer, the dragon Ilyas.

「To make Master sit in the driver’s seat. How dare that, that human bastard…!」

「I get it, I get it, so be quiet!」

I shot a glare at Fleabag, who was hiding in my hood, and then held my head up stiffly. It would be a huge problem if I was caught for doing anything conspicuous. That was because I was sitting in this seat instead of the attendant Yul had chosen.

“You don’t want to be the hero’s attendant, do you?”

“Wh-what!”

“Say you don’t want to when I’m being nice!”

Last night, I had snuck into the attendant’s room and had a rational conversation. I didn’t forget to cast a little magic so that the attendant could answer honestly.

“I, I don’t want to, but… I’ll be in big trouble if the head attendant finds out.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve already spoken to the head attendant.”

I hadn’t spoken to him yet, but since he would end up giving his permission anyway, I said so. The attendant’s face lit up.

“Th-then, are you really going to do it for me?”

“Yep, yep. Of course. I’m a great intelligent being who doesn’t lie.”

In any case, the only ones who saw the attendant selection were the head attendant, this attendant, and Yul. Among them, I had already won over the head attendant and the attendant, so I just had to deceive Yul’s eyes for a moment.

Sitting in the driver’s seat, I glanced back. Yul wore no expression, but I could feel a sharp, pointed aura from him. He was like a sharp weapon that would be fired if touched.

In the time it took for just one season to change, a moment that was like the blink of an eye to me, had something really happened to Yul? Out of pity, it seemed my gaze kept turning toward him without my knowledge.

“…!”

I was about to make eye contact with Yul, so I whipped my head around without thinking. If our eyes had met, Yul would have immediately noticed that the attendant had been switched. My eye color was green, and the attendant’s was brown.

My heart pounded loudly. Fortunately, Yul didn’t seem to have much interest in the attendant and got into the carriage without a word.

Click.

Only after hearing the sound of the door closing did the trembling of my heart subside. I wasn’t caught this time, but I’ll have to be careful for a while. Once we’re far from the imperial castle, there will be no way to turn back even if he finds out the attendant has been switched, so I planned to be careful only until then.

Huuu, I let out a short sigh and cast a suggestion on myself. I am an attendant, I am an attendant. After repeating it a few times, I shook the reins. The horses snorted and shook their bodies, then began to pull the carriage.

Yul and my first destination was the territory owned by the Margrave of Havier.

The Margrave of Havier. In my memory, the margrave had a different family name 1,500 years ago. It seemed that in the meantime, the family had fallen into ruin or something and had been replaced.

Anyway, it was a relief that although the family had changed, the location had not. I had to show Yul my perfect side as an attendant, and there would be no greater embarrassment than not knowing the way.

I passed through the city surrounding the imperial castle and entered a dense, wooded forest. Clip-clop, clip-clop. The sound of horse hooves hitting the ground echoed rhythmically. The refreshing scent flowing from the forest tickled the tip of my nose. It was a peaceful scene.

If it weren’t for the voice I was hearing in my head, that is.

「Pull with strength in your left hand.」

As soon as Fleabag’s words ended, I pulled the reins with my left hand. The horses snorted and changed direction, beginning to walk.

「This time, you must use your right hand!」

「You just said left!」

「You don’t know how to drive a carriage, Master! Just pull for now!」

Let’s be honest. I didn’t know how to drive a carriage. Would I, the great balancer, have ever driven something like a carriage?

I pushed out my lips sullenly and pulled the reins in my right hand. Just you see if this isn’t right, I thought, but this time too, Fleabag was correct. The horse, which had been walking at a slight diagonal, began to walk looking straight ahead.

I quickly discarded the thought of scolding Fleabag and leaned my back against the backrest. Then I stealthily tilted my ear toward the carriage. It was in the hope that Yul, who was in the carriage, would make some kind of sound.

However, no matter how carefully I listened, there was no sound coming from the carriage. Well, Yul wasn’t a talkative person even when he was with me. It’s not like he would be chattering away when he’s alone in a carriage… I understood it in my head, but I was disappointed. I wanted to hear Yul’s voice more.

I let out a deep sigh and let my hands holding the reins hang limp. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something had gone wrong. I had claimed to be Yul’s perfect attendant, but playing the role of a real attendant like this was not something I had expected. I just wanted to get along well with Yul again by his side…

Ruuuumble!

“Huh?”

At that moment, a tremendous roar was heard from the sky. No, it wasn’t the sky. Huge boulders were falling from the cliffs that stood on either side of the forest. Boulders of immense size. If those were to hit the carriage, it was clear that not only the carriage but also the person inside would be reduced to a pulp.

That can’t happen.

Without a second thought, I cast a spell on the falling rocks. I could see a mana barrier instantly forming around the rocks. I puffed out my chest majestically. After all, it’s because I’m Yul’s attendant that I can prevent such dangers, isn’t it?

I was smiling contentedly when, in that moment, the mana that had gathered around the rocks began to tear like a thin net. Snap, snap. The huge boulders, breaking through the dispelled magic, began to descend rapidly again.

Uh, huh. I looked at my hand in a fluster and then realized. I was so worried that Yul might get hurt that my heart was racing, and I had used the magic incorrectly again. You idiot! I reached out my hand to cast the magic again, but the boulders were just about to collide with the ground. No, they were already colliding.

Damn it, if I use magic incorrectly again, I’m not a dragon, I’m a lizard! I placed my hand on the carriage and quickly drew upon my mana. Instantly, a protective spell was cast over the carriage.

Craaash!

The boulders were crushed with a loud noise. Not only was the front of the carriage blocked, but a huge cloud of dust covered the area.

There was no time to frown at the stuffy smoke and rock fragments. I quickly checked the carriage. The carriage is safe, right? Fortunately, not a single scratch was left on the carriage. A sigh of relief rose from the depths of my being.

Heeigh!

But the relief was short-lived. The two startled horses let out a frightened cry, then turned around and started running. It happened before I could even control them. The carriage sped off at a crazy speed.

“Ugh!”

A gust of wind blew due to the incredible speed. On top of that, it seemed that rock fragments were flying up every time the horses ran, and something sharp grazed my cheek. I covered my face with my arm and looked back. Fortunately, the protective spell on the carriage had not yet been released.

「Master, you must jump off first!」

“I know! But Yul is still in the carriage. I can’t go alone!”

What kind of magic should I use to stop the horses? Should I just separate the carriage from the horses? Ah, right. It would be easier to separate the carriage than to calm the horses. I quickly gathered my mana. Then, as I was about to cast the spell, the horses let out an ominous scream.

“…!”

The horses, which had been running like mad, were falling over with their legs broken. At the same time, I also saw a rope tied to a tree and pulled taut. The rope, set at the height of the horses’ ankles, was clearly an obstacle set up with the purpose of breaking the horses’ ankles.

Having confirmed that, I quickly cast the spell. The connection between the carriage and the horses broke as if it had rotted. However, the speed of the carriage did not decrease easily. At this rate, it seemed the carriage would also get caught on the rope and fall over.

As expected, it was a good thing I stepped up to play the role of Yul’s attendant. I focused again on gathering mana. I intended to stop the carriage.

Boom! At that moment, a loud noise erupted from the carriage. Yul is in the carriage…! I hurriedly turned around. Crumble, the fragments of the carriage scattered with the dust.

“Ah.”

The one who had destroyed the carriage was Yul. Hummm, Yul, who had let the resonating black body of his sword hang loosely, glanced at me. In that moment, our eyes met.

Which meant, in other words, that my hood had fallen off. Yul, who had confirmed my face, twisted his expression.

I hurriedly pulled the hood over my head, but Yul’s expression showed no sign of un-creasing. Looking at that face, I didn’t feel so good either. It was because it was a face that blatantly disliked me.

On top of that, a subtle dull pain was felt in a part of my heart. My brow furrowed in response. Now that Yul disliked me, it seemed even my heart was stinging. I placed my hand over my left chest. Thump-thump. My heart, beating at a steady pace, was the same as usual.

…Huh?

The dull pain in my heart was not mine. Then whose is this? I snapped my head up and looked at Yul. Yul’s expression was contorted, but his gaze did not leave me. I blinked a couple of times. Does he not dislike me? Then why is he making that face?

“It seems we’ve caught a big one.”

Crunch! As I was staring blankly up at Yul, I heard the voice of an intruder. I turned my head in the direction of the sound, and the sight of someone plunging a sword into the neck of a fallen horse came into view. Bright red blood soaked the bushes. The dead horse seemed to have no chance of survival. I raised my eyes to identify the one who had killed the horse.

“Who are you people?”

The owner of the sword was a hairy man wearing decent-looking armor. And around that hairy man, humans with smirks on their faces were gathering.