Chapter 185 : All the Stars in the World……

The moment he turned around unwittingly, the appearance of the two people came into view.

Lauel with black hair, and Karina with blonde hair supporting her.

Simple black leather armor and extravagant armor like a red dress.

Muno was momentarily captivated by the beauty that contrasted clearly yet felt strangely similar.

And as soon as he realized that, a bitter smile came out.

‘What am I thinking as soon as the fight ended…….’

While reflecting inwardly, he immediately bowed his head and greeted them.

“Ahem. Ahem. We survived thanks to you. Thank you for your help, everyone.”

“My help was especially big, wasn’t it?”

Seeing the Dragon Sword Duke bragging, a chuckle came out.

“Yes. It would have been better if you came just a little faster though.”

“This guy? I clearly told you to blow the horn within the kingdom!? Even Castaria was unsure! No matter that it’s an artifact made from her own milk tooth, if it’s this far, it can’t be grasped properly!”

……Was it really because of that.

– Kyaoooo!

As if responding to the Duke’s words, a roar burst out from the large shadow circling above the night sky.

Among the group turning their gazes to the sky at that, Hansen, who let out a hollow laugh, took out the horn from his bosom.

“Is the artifact made from a wyvern’s milk tooth…… Perhaps this?”

And as soon as he did, he received a scary glare from the Duke.

“Why do you, slick bastard, have that?”

Muno answered on behalf of Hansen who flinched at that.

“Do you know how many hours I was being chased?! In a situation where my life was hanging by a thread, I didn’t have time to take care of a horn that doesn’t even make a sound.”

“What did you do well to……!”

Kwang.

The Duke’s fist struck his head.

But at that moment, because of Muno wearing a helmet, that fist only hit the top of the helmet.

“……Oho?”

The moment the Duke’s eyes narrowed.

Muno hurriedly changed the subject.

“By the way, how on earth did Sir Hansen and Sir Karina come here?”

“It was His Majesty’s order. Originally, he told us to follow secretly, but when we came to Drasen, we heard you already entered the mountain range and hadn’t come out. So while chasing after you, we met that young lady…….”

“Saying she must save Sir Muno, she was running south almost half out of her mind. You have a good comrade, Young Master Muno.”

At Karina’s words, Lauel slightly averted her gaze as if shy.

In that warm atmosphere, the grumpy old man intervened.

“Just absolutely, the whole country is busy pampering you alone.”

“What is pampering, what is it?”

“Then, isn’t it? Just me alone is overflowing, but attaching two Red Iron Knights, there is no overprotection like this. Well, you benefited from it this time though.”

The Duke’s words made him recall the enemy he faced last again.

“……You said, the Empire’s Magic Tower Master?”

“Right. Well, do you think Seven-Stars are common even in the Empire? They call it Seven Magic Towers, but one of them doesn’t even have a Seven-Star. Originally there were six, but since one died today, only five remain. Very good, very. Ah, of course you know it’s a secret, right?”

Awkward smiles appeared on everyone’s faces at the Dragon Sword Duke’s eloquence naturally going back and forth between curses and feigned ignorance.

However, there was something that needed to be confirmed clearly.

“Should we consider that the Empire’s Magic Tower Masters, or the Imperial Family, are connected to the Demon Cult?”

“We should consider them as a relationship that exchanges news somehow.”

At those words, Muno’s heart became heavy again.

‘Maybe behind the Demon Cult…….’

As his expression naturally darkened, a rough hand dug into the helmet again and pulled his cheek.

“Straighten your face, you brat!”

“Ueoeo!?”

“There is no reason for the Empire to officially protect a group that committed terror in their own country. Just monsters who sold their souls to demons and became demons themselves probably have a link with each other.”

“……Do you mean the Seven-Star?”

“Right.”

“Auuuu.”

Only then did the Duke, releasing his hand, chuckle looking at Muno rubbing his cheek.

“Worrying excessively is the share of old people like me. Young guys like you just need to try and challenge.”

……Why is he saying words like a real adult for once?

When Muno laughed awkwardly looking at the smiling Duke.

The Duke threw a bomb again.

“Now. By the way, which one among those ladies is your partner?”

“Yeeeek!?”

Muno was startled unwittingly.

When Hansen started to look at Lauel and Karina alternately with an ‘Oh?’ expression.

“I, I am a subordinate who decided to serve Sir Muno. I’m not a p, partner or anything like that!”

Lauel shouted, but her flushed face made Karina’s face stiffen.

“……I also, have made a promise to talk about the future after we finish what we have to do, but that’s all. Partner…… is an excessive word.”

At the cool remark that followed, Muno’s heart sank with a thud.

Wasn’t the most important word in the middle too small?

‘It wasn’t such an insignificant promise, was it……?’

The moment he became slightly dazed.

“Hm? Both say no? You guy are totally hopeless.”

The Dragon Sword Duke, shining with mischievous eyes, made him snap out of it.

‘This old geezer…….’

His hands were trembling, but he couldn’t dare to oppose.

There was a sense of crisis that if he said one word wrong here, it would be hell, but.

He felt the necessity to organize his own confused mind as well.

“……Yes. Both are not.”

“What?”

Not to play along with this old man’s prank anymore.

“Sir Karina is…… I just unilaterally expressed my affection, and Lauel is just a comrade who helped me by chance. Of course, she is a charming comrade. But wouldn’t Lauel’s future be troubled if strange rumors arise because of that and she gets entangled with me?”

Drawing a line.

He doesn’t know if this is the right choice.

He still doesn’t know what Karina’s face brightening slightly and Lauel’s expression stiffening a little in contrast mean either.

‘But, this is right in principle.’

Anyway, what’s important now is dealing with the Demon Cult, and there is no promise when that will end.

Even the fact that it has become much more dangerous than he first thought is true.

In this situation, the words he can say for Karina or Lauel are the best…….

“Are you saying you don’t want these ladies to get entangled because you are in danger now?”

“Yes, exact……. Ek!?”

He was surprised belatedly while trying to answer reflexively to the Duke’s words.

He felt the gazes and expressions of the two people changing strangely as well, but.

Rather than that.

“This guy, quite a greedy fellow! Puhahaha.”

……He didn’t know why, but he felt more anxious as if the Duke caught another weakness.

The maintenance after the battle was simple.

No, strictly speaking, the only thing to do was the recovery of the exhausted ones.

“You should leave the corpses as they are so other guys won’t approach. Rest here for a while for now. Since everyone seems to have overexerted themselves.”

“Yes.”

“And I should report this matter to His Majesty quickly, so I will go first. Surely there is no one who will fall behind here, right?”

When the Dragon Sword Duke, who teased Muno for a round, disappeared riding the wyvern as he was.

Muno inwardly wanted to ride that wyvern together.

‘He said the wyvern likes me…….’

Of course, he only thought so briefly because of the hot gazes felt from the surroundings; he wasn’t shameless enough to abandon the party in the depths of the northern mountain range and run away alone.

“Now, then let’s really rest. Everyone is in bad condition, right?”

At Hansen’s words, when Lauel, who was most exhausted, lay down on the spot.

Muno couldn’t sleep at all, so he tried to stand guard outside the barrier of iron chains he made.

In the end, even that didn’t go as he wished though.

“We, it’s been half a year, right?”

Flinch.

His body trembled naturally at the familiar voice that approached before he knew it.

“……Yes.”

Chwareuk.

Looking back, Karina smiled brightly, parted the iron chains, came out, and sat down right next to him.

Seeing the armor like a red dress spreading smoothly without much noise, thinking ‘That is also a very special metal’, when he forcibly turned his gaze away.

“Didn’t you miss me?”

He almost jumped up in the sitting posture at the fastball stabbing deep into his chest.

“……I missed you. A lot.”

He barely managed the fluctuating emotions and answered, but.

The second remark had a bigger impact.

“Even after Ms. Lauel joined?”

He couldn’t understand at all what meaning she said that with.

But the answer came quickly.

“From then on, we only fought frantically. Continuously.”

Because it was terribly busy and dangerous.

“Is that all……?”

“Still, I thought of you. Occasionally.”

“……That’s a relief at least. I thought of you often though.”

The feeling of his heart sinking with a thud and the feeling of warmth intersect.

When he was confused about what this emotion was.

Karina continued with a bitter smile.

“Ms. Lauel will continue to be with Sir Muno, but I won’t be able to do that.”

“…….”

“I don’t know how long this order to protect Sir Muno will last. Since there was that incident too.”

“…….”

“I wish it would last a bit long. If possible, towards doing close protection.”

What should he say.

While soothing his pounding heart and choosing an answer.

“I, seem to really like Sir Muno.”

Looking into his eyes with a bright smile, he felt his heart sink with a thud.

“The man who called me pretty for the first time in my life. The man who keeps saying so no matter what others say. The man who sincerely supports my path……. It was all a first.”

“I, I also…….”

“Ms. Lauel likes Sir Muno. You know, right?”

His heart sinking with a thud once again.

He didn’t do anything wrong, but for some reason, he couldn’t look straight into her eyes.

“Only the skin color is different, she resembles me a lot. If she looks exactly like what Sir Muno likes, is it my delusion?”

Her bright smile didn’t seem like a smile.

“Because of that last single blow, Ms. Lauel probably overexerted herself tremendously. That’s why she collapsed like that even with that body. You know, right?”

“……Yes.”

“A woman of the style the man she has in her heart likes, is staying by his side continuously and even risking her life for him.”

“No, we aren’t in such a relationship…….”

“This is too disadvantageous. For me.”

Karina, with her head bowed deeply, seemed to have no intention of listening to his words anymore.

‘Did my escaping with the excuse that the situation is dangerous…… become like this?’

Not knowing how to react, he just felt helpless.

“Still, I won’t give up. You know me, right?”

Karina raised her head again and smiled brightly.

When he tried hard to look at those slightly moist eyes.

“I clearly remember you running to me as soon as I was in danger earlier. I have a certainty that what we lack is only the time spent together.”

“…….”

“Even if we part again, there will definitely be a point where the paths we want to go intersect, right?”

“Of cour…….”

“At that time, even if Ms. Lauel is by your side together, I have the intention to accept it.”

Keuheuk.

Those piercingly blue eyes, piercingly digging into his chest, naturally blocked his speech.

Still, he felt he must say one word.

“I, never forgot you. Whenever. Really.”

“……I know.”

Saying those words, Karina smiled brightly under the stars of the night sky.

The feeling that all the stars in the world were smiling with her.

Meeting again after a long time today, it was a smile he saw for the first time.

The conversation that day ended with that.

Muno had no choice but to stay up all night with a complicated mind.

‘Northern mountain range…….’

The exceptionally cold and beautiful night of the mountain range.

It was a day when he suddenly missed the baby dragon who had once warmed his bosom, probably located deeper in the north.

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