If It’s for My Daughter, I’d Even Defeat a Demon Lord: Volume 1

by CHIROLU

  Are we really going to go the whole way without talking? This is so awkward...

  The knight had no confidence that he’d be able to withstand nearly half a day of this silent pressure. Feeling the presence of the man behind him, his throat went bone-dry.

  He reached underneath his own saddle and took something out. As he’d grown accustomed to doing so, he was able to skillfully remove the contents with a single hand and pop one into his mouth. There was no deep meaning to his actions when he kept on going and offered the container to the man behind him. In fact, in his current state, the dragon knight was unable to consider the deep meaning of anything at all.

  “Would you care to try some, sir?”

  “...Candy?”

  Completely petrified, he cried out in a quiet voice, I’m done foooooooor!!

  The greatest taboo when it came to Dale Reki was treating him like a child.

  The dragon knight forced a nervous smile, not realizing that the man behind him couldn’t see his face, and kept on talking, hoping to turn the situation around.

  “These are the talk of the capital nowadays! They all have different flavors based on what color they are. And they come in all sorts of truly vibrant colors! They’re like beautiful jewels, making them popular with everyone from commoners to nobles!”

  With that, the bottle was snatched from his hands.

  It seemed he had managed to grab the adventurer’s interest, at least for the time being. Glimpsing a possible way out, the dragon knight decided to press further.

  “The bottle is a work of art too, isn’t it? The detailed design extends even to the lid. And apparently, it’s become popular with women and children to use the empty bottle to hold small items! Furthermore, since it comes in small, medium, and large sizes, it makes for a great gift that can be tailored to suit your budget and needs. They’re perfect for any type of consumer!” As the dragon knight desperately spouted off lines that made him sound like a candy salesman, he wondered what he would see if he turned around.

  Thinking about it, I’ve actually never bought candy for Latina before. If she put one in her mouth, her little cheeks would puff out, right? And the colors are pretty, which seems like the sort of thing that’d make a girl happy. When I bought Latina hair accessories, she was fixated on the sparkly ones. Even if she’s tiny, she’s still a girl, so I’m sure she’d like them. Oh right, one of Latina’s friends is a girl, too. I’ll need to get some for her as well. Latina would probably be happy if she and her friend got the same thing. And then...

  At the very least, the dragon knight would’ve realized he was far more on-edge than he needed to be in regards to Dale during this trip to the capital.

  There’s no doubt that if Dale was still his old self, what the dragon knight had done would’ve been like stepping right on a landmine. But to Dale now, the offense was slight enough that it wasn’t even worth thinking about. The adventurer just didn’t have enough space in his mind for such things nowadays.

  Though no one would ever know it, Latina had helped save the future of a single young man with great promise.

  †

  When they at last arrived at Laband’s capital, Ausblick, the flying dragon began its descent. After the dragon knight communicated with a soldier on the ground using the light from magical devices, they landed on a dedicated platform. As you could be shot down if you approached the capital carelessly, it was necessary to follow the proper procedures.

  Once he set foot on the ground, Dale approached the carriage that was waiting for him as always, not even bothering to so much as glance back at the dragon or the knight. The driver opened the carriage door for him without needing to ask who he was.

  Though it wasn’t overly flashy, there wasn’t anyone in the capital who wouldn’t recognize the family crest that was affixed to this luxurious coach.

  The Ducal House Eldstedt were descendants of the king who founded the nation, and they had married into the royal family many times in the past, making them a line of foremost pedigree in Laband. They weren’t overly haughty, despite being famous for producing talented heirs one after another, with the present duke serving as the current prime minister.

  It would be no exaggeration to say that they were the second-greatest authority in the nation. It was precisely because the king and the duke were able to focus on governing together rather than pandering to one another that the country was so unwaveringly powerful.

  In a district where noble mansions stood in a row, one castle had a clearly different feel to it and stood out from the rest of the luxurious buildings. While it was beautiful and possessed vast grounds, it was also built to be solid and practical. This was the castle of the Eldstedt family.

  The carriage Dale was taking rolled onto the grounds of that residence and glided to a gentle stop in front of the entrance. As if they knew the precise time he would arrive, the servants who had been awaiting him opened the doors and greeted him.

  As he descended from the carriage, Dale’s expression didn’t change in the least. That calm and collected look told of his skill as a first-rate adventurer and left a deep impression on those who saw it.

  In one room of the residence:

  “Long time no see, Gregor. So, you gonna introduce me to your fiancée?”

  “Hmph, very well, Dale. So you wish me to cut you down, then?”

  With that reprehensible exchange, the elegant atmosphere evaporated.

  Right now, they were in Gregor’s personal chamber. As if reflecting its owner’s personality, the high quality of the first-class furnishings was almost palpable, but the interior design was utterly lacking in splendor.

  Gregor was the third son of the duke and was his youngest child. However, unlike his siblings, he was the son of the duke’s second wife, and because she was a foreigner from a remote Eastern nation, his backing within the country was rather weak. The first son, who was noticeably older than him, had already married and had a child. Considering the circumstances, Gregor’s chances of becoming his father’s successor had quickly evaporated.

  Thanks to the strong influence of his mother’s blood, Gregor was a fearless-looking young man with straight black hair (currently tied up in a ponytail), and he had a strong foreign feel to his appearance. He was half a head taller than Dale, and today his slender body was dressed in high-class clothing befitting a noble, which was unusual for him.

  While Gregor diligently studied his own nation, he also polished his foreign sword techniques, and he had his eye on possibly using his sword skills to become an adventurer in the near future. As he wasn’t particularly attached to his position as a noble, he felt no need to force himself to become part of some other household.

  It was thanks to those circumstances that he had become close to a mere adventurer like Dale. It also helped that they were the same age and recognized one another’s strengths, even if their specialties were different.

  “Rose isn’t even my fiancée to begin with.”

  “So about souvenirs... I want to find something that’d make a little girl happy. You don’t know any young women besides that fiancée of yours, right?”

  “Alright, stand up. I’ll cut you down with a stroke of my blade.”

  The “fiancée” Dale was teasing him about was not someone he was actually engaged to. Gregor and Rose had loved one another since they were both young, but there were a great number of issues that stood in the way of them becoming officially engaged.

  While she was renowned as a beauty without peer, she hadn’t yet been used as a pawn in a political marriage and rarely appeared in high society. Instead, she silently spent her time in the depths of the estate.

  She was most definitely one of the reasons that Gregor couldn’t simply discard his position as a noble.

  “What sort of souvenir do you think would be good?”

  “Souvenirs...? You just arrived, but you’re already plotting to leave?”

  “If it’s okay for me to go, then I’m outta
here.”

  “A little girl, you said? Did the couple running the place you’re renting have a child?”

  “No, she’s mine.”

  Gregor froze, but Dale didn’t realize it in the least. His thoughts were solely on the vision of Latina’s smile.

  “She’s a great kid, and she’s just way, way, waaaaaaay too cute. And she’s super admirable, too. She’s bravely watching the place back home right now. She told me to ‘Take care’ as she waved her tiny little hand. I feel like I’m gonna cry just remembering it. Ugh, I wanna hurry on back to her. Is she lonely right now? What’ll I do if I’ve made her cry? Plus, she’s still growing. She’s learning new things each and every day. Will she learn to do even more things while I’m gone? What should I do? It’s utter torture, missing out on Latina growing up. Yeah, I’m heading back. I’ll leave right now. Hey, Gregor, what’s the job this time around? Let’s head out right away. I can leave if I wipe everything out immediately, yeah?”

  “What the hell’s happened to you?”

  Gregor’s reaction was totally natural, after all. The last time he’d seen Dale, he wasn’t like this. Just what in the world had happened to bring him to such a deplorable state? The cause seemed to be the child who had come up all throughout the current conversation. Just where had she come from?

  When Gregor carelessly asked those questions, he lost any chance he had of stopping his friend from gleefully talking away. He was completely bewildered and hadn’t the slightest idea as to how he should react.

  And just when would he stop bragging about his kid?

  “So... you took in a devil child with one horn?”

  After he’d heard the story of how Dale adopted Latina and all the details of what had happened up until now, Gregor had lost track of just how many times the word “cute” had been used. Although he realized early in the conversation that it was prudent to just take the whole thing in stride, he had a dumbfounded look on his face as he listened to the unexpected tale. But Dale didn’t seem to be paying attention to his listener’s reaction. As he was now, discussing Latina’s cuteness to his heart’s content was a matter of great importance.

  “I’d like to have you meet Latina, too, but... I couldn’t handle it if the royal family found out how cute she is and set their sights on her. Yeah. There’s no way, then. If you want to meet her, then you’ve gotta come to our place. Think about it,” said Dale arrogantly while he completely fawned over the girl.

  Who the hell are you? muttered Gregor mentally, wondering who to blame for his friend’s change.

  “Even though we tried investigating Latina with the Akhdar’s Message Board, we couldn’t find any information about her. Devil villages don’t interact with the outside much, and I guess that’s the sort of place she came from... It’s real likely that she doesn’t have a single relative left to look for her.”

  “Well, not much is known about devil culture, after all.”

  “I couldn’t find anything on her father’s body that’d hint at where they were from, so I can’t go looking for her home village. The ‘crime’ that got her branded with a broken horn must’ve been something out of her control. But that’s no reason for someone from a different race like me to neglect her.”

  Gregor understood that reasoning. What he didn’t understand was Dale’s transformation. Just how strongly had that devil girl tugged at his heartstrings?

  “Even if Latina’s a devil, it’s not like she sees everyone else as enemies. There’s no problem with us living together.”

  “No problem, huh...? In that case, I suppose she doesn’t know that you’ve slaughtered members of her race, yes?” Gregor whispered. Dale sat in silence for a while.

  “...I’ve cut down humans for work, too. It hasn’t just been devils.”

  “Well, that’s true.”

  That’s what it meant to live by the sword. Magical beasts weren’t the only things that hurt people. It certainly wasn’t rare for human nations to clash with other races, and out of all those races, devils had the deepest ties with the demon lords.

  Across the world there were seven demon lords, and they were ranked as “First Demon Lord,” “Second Demon Lord,” and so on. Their abilities and the way they ran things varied, but they all had one thing in common: all demon lords had horns, just like devils.

  Furthermore, all demon lords led a household of “demons.” No one was born a demon. Instead, they became one upon entering a demon lord’s house and gaining power far exceeding what they would naturally possess. And those demons were not necessarily just “people.” They also included mythical beasts—beings that possessed high intelligence despite being considered animals.

  But it was without a doubt the devils that made up the vast majority of the demons, and for that reason, demon lords were also called the “Kings of the Devils.”

  “We’ve confirmed the presence of someone who appears to be a subordinate of the Seventh Demon Lord.”

  “A demon, you mean? Or just a plain old servant?” Their power would vary greatly depending on if they were a demon or not. In fact, the difference in the threat they represented couldn’t even be compared.

  “I still don’t know for certain. That’s why I called for you,” Gregor said, meeting Dale’s gaze.

  “I’ll tag along,” Dale said with a sigh.

  “If you’re there, then I guess it’ll be fine...”

  They were so deeply confident in each other’s skills that they each trusted the other to watch their back.

  Dale stood up. The time for his audience with the duke was drawing near. Going in his usual leather coat would be inappropriate for such an event, so he needed to put on a more proper outfit. That was why he’d stopped here before heading to meet the duke in his office at the palace. It wasn’t just so he could have this chat with his friend.

  “At any rate, be sure to keep yourself together and act a bit more dignified in front of my father.”

  “I know, I know.” Dale waved and headed for the room that had been prepared for him.

  This time, the young man who exited the Eldstedt family carriage was clad all in black. It was clear from the wild feel to him that he was no noble, and despite his age, he had the aura of a warrior who’d lived through many battles. When the palace guards realized who he was, they stood up straight. The glance he gave the soldier who bowed and stepped forward to guide him was incredibly cool and composed as well. This was a first-rate warrior, who without question wielded his magic and blade mercilessly. He was a prospective hero who was even now achieving great things, and might one day become a legend.

  That was the sort of man he was rumored to be, and from the impression that he gave, that was no exaggeration.

  While feeling the somewhat jealous gazes of the soldiers, Gregor felt conflicted—somehow relieved and somehow not—seeing the “usual” Dale next to him.

  This was the man named Dale Reki.

  When someone first met him, they’d say he was charming and calm, but if they were to meet him on the field of battle, they’d find a cool-headed, yet unforgiving warrior.

  It was said that perhaps the young Dale had needed to become that way in order to succeed at such work. The best way to calmly deal with what he saw was to kill off his own emotions. That was how he seemed to the soldier who guided him through the palace with his back still perfectly straight.

  After all, to Dale, this palace was yet another battlefield.

  †

  In Kreuz, several days after Dale left for the capital:

  It was readily apparent that Latina was miserable. Rather than just feeling down, she was full-on wallowing in sorrow. It was like her whole body was screaming out that she was lonely.

  “Latina... are you alright?” No matter how Kenneth looked at it, she clearly wasn’t, but he couldn’t think of anything else to say to her.

  “Latina’s alright... She’s holding down the fort, after all,” Latina responded as she sat quietly next to Kenneth while he
was doing his usual preparations. Her voice sounded like it was about to vanish.

  She was always like that. Even though Latina’s expression and body language told otherwise, her response was that of an anxious honor student.

  Kenneth let out a sigh and looked at her. “Yeah, that’s right. You’re holding down the fort. And Dale will definitely come back, because you’re waiting for him.”

  Latina looked up at Kenneth and tilted her head a little, and Kenneth responded with a smile. If an adult like him looked glum too, then that would only make Latina more uneasy.

  “Before you came, Dale just saw this as a place to leave his things. But now it’s a ‘home’ for him to return to.” Kenneth knew Dale very well. After all, Kenneth was the one who had taught him the basics of being an adventurer back when Dale was still a mere boy who’d only just left his village. Kenneth had brought him into his party and freely taught him everything from traveling basics to how to accept jobs, as well as all sorts of techniques for dealing with magical beasts. As his guide, Kenneth knew how much having a “big bro” to rely on could help give strength to someone setting out on their own, without any friends to support them.

  “Dale always tells you ‘I’m home,’ right, Latina? That’s proof that this is home for him now.”

  “Dale always tells Latina ‘I’m home’?”

  “That’s right. But he never said that before you came. You’re someone very special to him.”

  Dale most likely thought of Kenneth’s place like a bird would think of a tree where it could rest its wings, but that didn’t even come close to how important a “home” was. To Dale, this girl was that important. And so, as his “big bro,” it was up to Kenneth to protect her while he was away.

  “Latina is special to Dale?”

  “Yeah, you are.”

  Latina’s expression was strained, like she was just barely holding back her tears, and she tightly gripped her skirt above her knees.

  “Kenneth...”