Demon Noble Girl ~Story of a Careless Demon~ Chapter 148

Volume 8, Chapter 6: Princess-sama's Magnificent Daily Life, Part 3

The journey's going well …… but really, it's a pain.

We were on a forested road that ran between countries. It was a road that was impassable for armies, but it would get our smaller group there earlier.

If I had chosen to fly it would have taken a fraction of the time, but since I'm part of the [Hero Party] right now, I can't just head off without a reason. Besides, even if it were possible, due to the knights of the castle that had gotten along with Daichi and gang, it would be improbable for them to believe that I would do it, even as a joke.

Can't I go off on a leisurely journey by myself? I've been stuck with regulations ever since I've been in this world, so I'd really like to take a pleasure trip around the world.

…… But.

“Yuru-chan, you know, it's a cliché that bandits will appear in regions like this.”

“…… You're saying things like that again, Mizuki.”

You don't have to set the flags so grandly in a place like this.

In short, Mizuki, Touka, and the rest of the children were getting bored. I, too, have gotten tired of playing cards. I get dizzy when we play in the carriage.

Why am I immune to poison, but still get carsick……?

[The bandits appeared~!]

Come on!

Touka, who had been so worried about killing people all this time suddenly lit up. It seems that the children have had entirely too much free time.

Behind Mizuki, who was wearing the same expression as Touka, the Demons were smiling with their fangs out.

Run away, bandits! From the clutches of these Demons.

“……there's no helping it, I guess”

As the carriage stopped because of the bandits, I stood up spryly with a sigh. If I left them alone, it's going to be a pain later.

“……Yuru-chan is going out there?”

“I'll go out, but you guys should stay here, okay?”

““Yes~””

That's good girls. But at first glance, Touka and the rest are about 5 years older than I am, you know? And why hadn't Fannie or Tina replied to me?

As Tina opened the door and I tried to get off the carriage, Daichi and a young knight were hurriedly getting off with me. The young knight that was about the same age as Daichi looked nervous as he tried to help me off the carriage.

“Thank you.”

“I-it's nothing”

As I smiled at him, his face turned bright red and he looked down.

Hmm…… when he shows me such a pure expression, I start to feel a bit embarrassed. After all, most people in Sail didn't dare to look at me directly.

It's not like I have a special ability like Tina's, so I don't get it.

“What's the situation, then…?”

“Understood, I will report it now.”

I bit myself.

As I hear it from him, there were about 30 bandits, but at least they were 'au naturel' bandits, and not disguised soldiers from another country.

In other words, this wild produce was going to taste better than farmed produce.

What's that?

I don't know what you're talking about. I was just rationally explaining why I'm interested in the bandits.

That being said, I headed quickly for the front.

When I arrived…… it was about 10 seconds or so on foot, but I was looking at peasant-like people who were glaring at the knights.

They looked like farmers, but were all holding poorly-maintained military equipment that looked like they'd picked it up somewhere. They were primarily armed with spears, but looking at them more carefully, while most of them were wielding iron spears, some of them just had knives or wooden sticks.

“Kyoji-sama, what's happened?”

“Oh, it's Princess Yurushia. …… It seems that these people used to be villagers from a small holding nearby but were plagued with famine. Though, they would be arrested if we were on Sail soil……”

“Ah.”

I wonder, though, why these bandits are attacking armed knights. Was it because of some bad harvest or something, so they attacked? But even then, I thought that it would have been a better idea to attack merchants, so I wonder what their reason is.

When I exposed myself to them, there was a wave of emotion that swept across them.

…… they seem scared. The maids in the castle told me that it would take the people in the countryside some time to get used to my appearance, and to be honest, it makes me a little depressed.

“Oohh, you are of high status! Taking your aristocratic mistress to go sightseeing! We're lacking a little something for our next meal! So, give us the women and children along with the food!”

Among the bandits, one particularly bear-like man with a huge spear stood out as he shouted at us.

He looks like the head of the bandits. I see…… so you're unhappy with the aristocrats?

It feels like everyone there is unhappy with the aristocratic class, and the rest of the bandits were glaring at us as well. They might have been following the orders of the bear-person, but it seems that they attacked out of their own free will as well.

…… However, they don't look very delicious.

“So, what will you do, Kyoji-sama?”

“Well……”

Because he's a hero, he can't possibly raise his hand against these villagers.  While I was thinking that, Kyoji was looking at them like one would a pebble by the pavement.

“I should execute bandits that I find in any other country on the spot.”

With a *bang*, Kyoji gouged a small hole in the ground as he sped forward.

Maybe he wanted to look like he disappeared to my attendants and I. I wonder if Daichi and Futa were able to catch what he was doing at all? Well, since I'd had them watch my attendants fight from the special front-row seat, if they hadn't grown at least that much, they'd really be in trouble now.

It didn't matter, but Kyoji had pulled out his sword as he turned his blade towards that bearded bear man.

Half a second hadn't even passed yet, but if I continued to sit on the sidelines for another half a second, half of the bandits would be killed by Kyoji.

“[Let there be Light!]”

The holy magic that I cast flew towards Kyoji and the bear-man. And in the meantime, I secretly signaled Fannie with my eyes.

What I'd cast on them was [Citadel of Light], the defensive magic, but unlike the normal [Citadel] it also included a [Barrier] that protected one from magic, making it impossible to move from their spot.

In short, I cast a restraining magic, but the [Citadel of Light] that I'd cast on Kyoji was unnaturally countered.

But thanks to that instant's restraint, and the [Citadel of Light] on the bear, it seems like he's only had his arm slashed.

“……What are you trying to do?”

Asked Kyoji in a low voice, as he stood there between the bandits and I. Even if you're trying to hide it, your killing intent is leaking, you know?

Personally, I don't really care about the bandits given the way they acted, peasant or not, but it's not to the point where I'd immediately kill them…… though that could just be me.

Still, how did Kyoji resist my magic?

…… It's not that it's impossible to resist. I think that if there was a difference in our magic power, it would have been resisted, but I felt like it was because of some other factor.

Hmm…… I don't quite understand the [Heroes' Secret Arts] yet, but maybe it's one of Kyoji's abilities or [Skills].

“Well, well, isn't it better not to be so brutal? Anyway, could you leave this one to me?”

Instead of applying intimidation, I smiled at him while my magic power overflowed from me. Kyoji gave me the tiniest frown that nobody else could possibly tell, but I smiled at him, holding one hand to my chest while I bowed slightly towards him.

“I understand. If that is the will of the “Saint”.”

What a bad-mannered person.

Putting the word [Saint] out there so the bandits and villagers would know.

Now I'll have to approach them as the [Saint] and conduct negotiations. If it were a normal person who had been summoned normally to a different world and made a saint, they might care about appearances, becoming unable to do anything without their common sense getting in the way. And then, knowing that no solution could be reached, he was raising the hurdle.

“S-saint-sama? Do you think we'll go away with just that! This ain't for kids, so go back!”

The bear ignored his injured arm, gripping his weapon with his remaining arm.

He seems somewhat nervous about it, but hasn't quite stopped being hostile. I didn't use my intimidation at all, just my magic power, but it seems like it doesn't affect people like Kyoji, who can't sense magic power.

Looking at the bear, I slowly walked towards him, smiling all the way like a proper [Saint].

“This brat, you won't understand if you don't get hurt…… eh?”

At the instant where the bear reached out, going easy on me, my escort knight Nea had overtaken him.

…… that's good. It's Nea. I wonder what would have happened if this had been Tina, whose fingers were wiggling this whole time? Anyway.

“Come, bandits. Surrender if you want him back.”

Not only the bandits, but the knights that were with us were stunned into silence at this.

“……ku”

“B-big bro!”

“You guys, ignore me! Never surrender!”

While his arms were being twisted to the point of failure by Nea, the bear was glaring at me hatefully even as he called out to his companions.

“What are you doing! The Saint is torturing me!”

Ah, I see…… You're underestimating me.

But…… your opponent is no “saint” or even “noble lady”, but rather a most terrible [Demon]. Fufu.

“I'm going to kill off all of your “hair follicles” now.”

As I made my proclamation, the faces of the men all cramped up slightly.

“W-wait……”

“…[Light!]…”

As I incanted the holy magic, the light lightly touched the [Fur?] and all of the hair on his arms fell out, and his skin became smooth.

“Wha!?”

“…[Light]…”

As I applied more magic to the astonished bear, his rough chest hair all fell off.

“Well, let's make this entire body beautifully clean”

“Wai-wait-waitaminute”

It was fun, and my smile was widening, while the newly baby-like bear and the rest of bandits surrendered immediately.

…… Why does it feel like the distance between the knights and I is getting further?

The bandits' minds were all changed by my sincere persuasion.

Apparently, as Kyoji said, they were men from a nearby village, who had turned to banditry because of poor harvests.

The reason why the bear had attacked was as a form of retaliation against the lord for not reducing the tax despite the bad harvest.

“So, do you know why the harvest has suddenly become bad?”

“U-uhm, Saint-sama……? It seems that the storm winds have caused the soil in the fields to shift…… If it were only that, it would have only been once in a year, but, hmm…… I brought up the soil and mixed it with a mixture of dead leaves I collected from the mountains, according to the [Agriculture from the Otherworld], but that too eroded with the storm……”

We were now on our way back to the village where the bandits were from.

The journey at this point has collapsed somewhat, but even if it's not a soft bed, I personally don't want to sleep on a hard floor. It's true.

“Princess Yurushia, could this be related to the circumstances of other countries?”

So Kyoji reproached me…… well, I say that, but he's been talking to me secretly.

By the way, for the others, they were separated from us as much they (emotionally) distant from us.

I cured his hair roots properly, and also healed the sick in the village, so why is nobody approaching us……?

“Ah, is that no good?

“The country is not wealthy. Such villages are everywhere. Is Saint-sama intending to save them all…?”

In short, he was asking me if I was going to be a sentimental “hypocrite”.

“Fufufu……”

I laughed softly.

“It's just an “experiment”. Don't worry about it.”

“Is that so……”

As I said that, I felt that Kyoji's heart was getting further away from mine. But then.

““““OOHHHHHHHHH””””

The exclamations came from the village.

When I planted things in the fields by sprinkling seeds, potatoes and plump tomatoes grew.

…… The tomatoes and potatoes were slightly greenish, but they should be more nutritious.

“Ooh, Saint-sama, thank you for saving our village.”

As the village chief lowered his head towards me, the near-100 villagers did the same.

“How on earth…… no, that doesn't matter. I'm sorry…… but the bandit act was because I instigated our youth. The blame should be mine alone……”

So said bear-beard, impressed by the field.

Even when it goes to trial, banditry usually results in death. It seems that they didn't kill many people, whether it was robbing merchants or attacking travelers, but had they been reported to the lord, they would have been sentenced to death.

“We are people from another nation. So, we won't interfere further in the affairs of this country.”

Because it's a pain.

“……I'm sorry”

The bear-beard lowered his head in shame again.

……… It became that I was intentionally not reporting the crime, but since this was an “experiment”, it's embarrassing that you're so touched.

“Yurushisama, I got it.”

“Thanks for your hard work.”

Fannie, who had been away, had gone to reap the souls of the lord of this land and the other delicious, syrupy souls.

It can't be helped since the villagers' souls aren't that great. After all, good dietary habits are the most important.

I wonder if it's alright, though……

Please, continue to survive, bandits. That new parasitic see-…… the crops would grow by absorbing magic from the earth, but their favorite food was souls, if the crops grew too much, they would start attacking others.

And so we left. A few weeks later, we arrived at the mountain nation of Cebrill, close to the battle front.

By the way, this is completely unrelated, but a few villages in some country would be attacked by some flock of demons in a few years' time, but the story went that the “crops” attacked the demons and kept the villages safe.

Author's Notes:

Next time, bonding with the Hero of Fire.

Chapter end