“Stop... stop chasing me! I'm really a good guy!”
“If you didn't... didn't run, we wouldn't... wouldn't be chasing you!”
The soldier chasing Ichikawa looked up at the sky, which was gradually fading into dusk.
It was hard to imagine that this blonde guy in front of them was as slippery as an eel.
If they hadn't just spotted a familiar shop, they would have wondered if this guy had already led them right out of the Duke of Enridel's domain.
“I... I can't do this anymore.”
Ichikawa finally felt his physical strength give out, his legs beginning to tremble uncontrollably.
In his mind, he could practically see his past self mocking Lin Ling.
“N-Never studying... then immediately... taking the exam... Ugh—”
His legs suddenly went soft, and Ichikawa collapsed flat on the ground.
“Awesome... The t-target has stopped resisting!”
Seeing Ichikawa down on the ground, the stern face of the patrol's soldier captain finally showed a hint of joy.
Thud—
Just as he was about to signal for the arrest, a series of clattering metal sounds echoed from behind him.
“B-Boss, we can't... we can't go on.”
Weighed down by their heavy armor and already exhausted from their patrol duties, they had been dragged all over the place by this blonde guy.
Even with the stamina built from long-term training, the soldiers finally reached their limits.
“Useless bunch... When we get... get back, you're doing extra training!”
The captain shook his head at the soldiers behind him.
In the end, it still comes down to me. This is the difference between a captain and his squad.
Thud—
Just as the captain was about to take a step forward, his knees suddenly buckled, and he went down on both knees, bowing directly toward Ichikawa.
“...”
At this moment, not a single soul was left standing.
“I-Ichikawa! I've come to save you!”
Hearing the familiar voice, Ichikawa looked up.
Lin Ling and Ivelia were currently standing back-to-back, both wearing sunglasses identical to Bishop Karl's.
Against the backdrop of the setting sun, the two of them practically seemed to be glowing.
“Thank goodness! I knew it, I knew it!”
Though he had been running for nearly the entire afternoon, they had finally arrived. They were finally here!
Ichikawa felt an overwhelming urge to cry, though he didn't know why.
“Th-There are accomplices too!”
The captain watched as two magic arms emerged from Lin Ling to hoist Ichikawa up. His own knees were still trembling violently.
But he couldn't let this suspicious individual escape into the city.
“W-We must protect the Duke of Enridel's domain!”
Muttering under his breath, the captain, despite being completely drained of strength, miraculously forced himself back onto his feet.
“Uncle Brandon, that's enough.”
An out-of-breath voice called out from behind them.
Ichikawa looked up and saw Lillian, whom he had met once before.
Her face was currently somewhat pale from the intense running.
Lillian took a deep breath not far from them, then started running toward Ichikawa once again.
As she passed by, she nodded in Lin Ling's direction.
“Roger that!”
Though Ichikawa had no idea how Lin Ling had understood her meaning, in the next moment, he saw the magic arms holding him stretch out toward Lillian.
“Wait, hold on a second.”
Seeing himself get closer and closer to Lillian, he wondered how Lin Ling had suddenly gotten to know her, but more importantly, why was she moving him toward Lillian?
But Lin Ling acted as if she hadn't heard his shout at all, willfully bringing Ichikawa to a steady halt right in front of Lillian.
“U-Um, long time no see?”
Brought so close, Ichikawa could only smell a fragrance that seemed to match the cherry color of the girl's hair.
Though he hung out with Lin Ling on a daily basis, she was basically like one of the guys.
She couldn't possibly compare to the genuine highborn lady standing before him now.
Especially when he saw Lillian, her face slightly flushed, reaching her hands out toward him.
Wait, what?!
Why was she reaching for him?!
Before Ichikawa could even recover from her scent, he felt a pair of fair, delicate hands patting down his body.
“Damn Hero... Idiot! Idiot! Where on earth did you put it?”
“The storage bag...”
Lillian kept muttering under her breath, as if trying to distract herself from the embarrassment.
“Um, the storage bag is on the right side of the armor.”
Although speaking up was as good as telling her he could hear her muttering, it was still better to just tell her directly rather than let this awkward, intimate situation continue.
After all, the captain, who had just forced himself up, had already collapsed back onto his knees.
This time, he even looked completely burnt out, practically turning black and white.
And Lin Ling, poking people with your magic arms like that is incredibly rude!
“Huh—Huh?”
Upon hearing Ichikawa's voice, Lillian's hand, which was currently on his stomach, froze instantly.
In the next instant, Ichikawa only saw a cherry-colored blur flash before his eyes.
The sweet scent on Lillian suddenly receded, and along with it went his storage bag.
“I-I didn't search all this way for you just because I saw you suddenly drop into our territory and get chased by Uncle Brandon, and was worried you'd end up in danger, you idiot Hero!”
“I must have been out of my mind to reach into your pockets for your storage bag just because you looked completely exhausted!”
The blush on Lillian's face right now was even redder than the ruby ring on Lin Ling's ring finger.
“So she's the type of lady who blurts out everything when she gets embarrassed.”
Wearing her sunglasses, Lin Ling looked like a spectator enjoying a live-action drama.
She completely forgot that she was pretty much the same way when she got nervous.
Finally, with trembling hands, Lillian managed to find the item that would clear Ichikawa of suspicion.
“Uncle Brandon, look at this.”
Tossing a medal-like object toward Brandon, who was still kneeling on the ground, Lillian blushed and stuffed the storage bag back into Ichikawa's hands.
“Why... does it feel like... such a huge difference...”
Brandon couldn't help but feel that their family's young lady was about to be snatched away.
Nonetheless, he looked down at the medal that had been thrown in front of him.
“This is...?”
The medal in front of him was engraved with the sacred sword of the Original Hero.
“Is this... the Hero Medal?”
This item had always been kept in the custody of the Holy See. For it to appear here, and on the very guy he had been chasing all this time...
That meant this guy currently being suspended in the air was actually a Hero?
Brandon looked at Ichikawa with utter disbelief.
Sensing Brandon's scrutinizing gaze, Lillian stepped in front of Ichikawa.
The blush on her face had yet to fade.
“Yes! This idiot is the Hero! The idiot Hero! The big idiot Hero!”
“Ivelia, why does she have to put 'idiot' in front of 'Hero'?”
“...”
“I don't know.”
Lin Ling's whispered question seemed to underestimate Lillian's hearing.
Lillian's face was now practically red to the ears.
Seeing this, Lin Ling immediately shifted her gaze to the soldiers lying flat on the ground.
“Um, this should prove we aren't bad guys, right?”
“If I help you up, you can't chase us like you chased Ichikawa, okay?”
She used a magic arm to poke Brandon—the only one who hadn't completely collapsed—while a multitude of magic arms emerged from behind her and reached toward the other soldiers.
After resting for a moment, the soldiers at least regained enough strength to stand.
Brandon glanced at Lillian's slightly torn clothing, then at Lin Ling, who was supporting the soldiers with her magic arms, but he pointedly ignored the Hero he had spent the whole day chasing.
He bowed slightly in Lin Ling's direction. “Welcome to our domain. Please forgive our offense today.”
“Hey! Shouldn't you be apologizing to me?!”
But Brandon acted as if he hadn't heard a thing, already leading Lillian and the others forward.
“Hey! Listen to me!”
Seeing Lin Ling and the others follow, Ichikawa, left behind, had no choice but to drag his heavy legs and catch up.
Rate on N.U.
