by CHIROLU
At some point, a travelogue of her home country was sure to be published stamped with her friend’s name. And honestly, Latina found that thought exhilarating.
“And besides, when it comes to Sylvia... I honestly wouldn’t be all that surprised if she came back from Vassilios with a kid...”
Latina just gave an awkward smile in response to Chloe’s statement.
It really wouldn’t be strange in the last for Sylvia to go and do something that completely subverted their expectations.
“Now then, now it’s your turn next, Latina.”
“...Yeah.”
Latina gave a bit of an embarrassed smile, then glanced over at Dale.
Dale was a step removed and talking to the Quirmizi priests, so as not to interfere with the conversation between the two best friends. He was famous and was considered a high ranking priest even if that wasn’t how he made a living, so it was no surprise that these priests would want to talk to him. And considering his own position, Dale couldn’t exactly turn them away.
After Latina finished checking how Dale was doing, the pair resumed their conversation.
“Unlike me, you’ve got budget to spare, Latina, so... How about ordering the sort of dress that’s popular with nobles nowadays?” Chloe said, now fully exposing her craftswoman side.
Dale’s ample finances were clear to see just from the engagement bracelet Latina always had on her person, and there were also plenty of big-shots waiting in the wings to act as sponsors.
It was no surprise that a craftswoman would be incredibly excited about the opportunity to create an elaborate dress using materials and accessories of the sort that a local tailor would normally have no access to.
“Normally I’d never have a chance to make something like that, so please let me do it. Scrutinizing what sort of design would be best and gathering materials and all that will be fun, too.”
“Wah...?”
Latina was honestly perplexed, seeing her friend get so wrapped up in her work and start rushing ahead. Naturally, that meant she let that familiar sound slip and tilted her head a bit.
“I think... If I’m having a wedding ceremony, it’ll be in Dale’s home village.”
Dale’s home village of Tislow had a unique culture all its own. And Latina knew full well that Dale took great pride in being one of them.
And so, ever since Dale proposed, Latina had assumed it was only obvious that their wedding would be held in Tislow.
“It’s sad that you won’t be there to see it, but I know the traditions of his home village are very important to Dale... Plus the wedding won’t just be for me and Dale, but also for welcoming me into his family.”
Chloe was silent.
“I think a dress would be lovely too, but the wedding outfits in Dale’s home village are passed down from generation to generation... And I think that’s wonderful in its own way.”
Chloe made a complex face at her friend’s response, but Latina didn’t notice.
Latina also wasn’t aware of the fact that her friend had connections with a certain massive nonprofit organization through the Ocelot’s regulars. As Chloe was the one who had created the Fairy Princess banner, she had deep ties with them.
But above all else, Latina was simply unaware of the huge influence that she held.
The wedding ceremony would be held in Tislow.
That news would hit the large group of people in Kreuz who had been looking forward to the once in a lifetime chance to see the Fairy Princess as a bride just as hard as a death sentence.
But with that said, Chloe didn’t realize the information she had obtained was quite that important.
Ultimately, the one to leak that information was her brand new husband, Patrick.
Chloe was aware that since Latina had lost her birth family at a young age, her new family and place in life were incredibly important to her. And so, she didn’t want to deny all that by objecting to her friend’s plan.
Still, she couldn’t help feeling unsatisfied, since at some point she had convinced herself that she would be the one to create Latina’s wedding dress. And as a result, Chloe ended up grumbling about her friend’s decision to Patrick.
In turn, Patrick discussed the matter with a certain coworker who was his age.
That coworker happened to be childhood friends with his new wife and her best friend. It had just been raised as a bit of light teasing gossip, because it was well known amongst the guards that Patrick’s colleague had feelings for the best friend of his new wife.
Rudolph’s reaction when he heard that news differed from what Patrick had expected.
Rather than blushing or getting mad, he went completely pale.
In his head, Rudolph was predicting that this news could lead to ever worse riots in Kreuz than when the Demon Lords of Calamity were on the move.
Having correctly assessed the seriousness of the matter, Rudolph hurriedly reported the information to his superior.
What came next was truly instantaneous.
A certain organization forged in times of war took action with similar haste to if this had been a national emergency.
As a result, a notice was delivered to the Dancing Ocelot stating that Latina had been kidnapped by a group calling itself the Platinum Fairy Princess Protection Committee.
3: Sequel: The Platinum Hero vs. the Fairy Princess’s Bodyguards
It was a short letter, written with great craftiness and excessively fine stationery.
The emotion drained from Dale’s face the moment that he read it.
That was only for an instant though, and Dale turned to Kenneth (who had handed him the paper) with his usual strained smile. Then, he flung that elegantly written letter down atop the counter.
“Those old-timers sure do have free time on their hands... Now they’ve gone and played a prank like this, huh?”
Dale had been acquainted with the shop’s regulars for quite some time now. And having known them for so long, he decided this was just a joke and there was no point in getting angry.
He was also aware that they prized Latina above all else. Just like him, they had watched over her since she was young and valued her happiness more than anything. And so, he could firmly state that no matter what sort of prank this may be, Latina herself wouldn’t be in any danger.
Plus, since he was dealing with those old-timers, Dale didn’t want to be criticized by Latina as being some immature, petty man.
“Well, I’m sure it’s just a practical joke,” Kenneth replied, not seeming the least bit concerned.
Kenneth had received the letter announcing Latina’s kidnapping directly from regulars he was well acquainted with. Once the culprits had announced themselves clearly, it couldn’t be seen as anything but a prank.
On top of that, the regulars who admitted to the crime had also added, “We’ll be sure to escort the little lady back in time for her night shift.” If the kidnappers were politely acknowledging her work schedule, it was hard to feel any sense of urgency about the situation.
“Latina’s aware that they dote on her, too... So even if they came to her with their cards laid on the table, she probably couldn’t turn them down, right?”
“Well, to Latina, those old-timers are almost like relatives...”
Latina had no strong bonds with her blood relatives, so even if they weren’t actually related, those old-timers who spent each day watching over her since her childhood were special to her.
Considering that relationship, Latina must have gone along with their request.
They would talk things over with one another properly... That was the promise that Dale and Latina had made.
He couldn’t imagine that Latina would break that promise lightly. Right now Latina was surely at a complete and utter loss, being stuck between Dale and the regulars.
“Well... It shouldn’t be too hard to search for her, and then I’ll just slug the ringleader once or twice...” Dale said in a joking tone, giving his arm
a warmup spin.
It was precisely then, with such perfect timing that both Dale and Kenneth couldn’t help but question if it had been planned, that a single youth strolled into the Ocelot.
“Pardon me.”
Despite looking a bit hesitant when faced by such glares from Dale and Kenneth, the youth pulled a sealed letter out of his moss green shoulder bag.
“I have a delivery for Sir Dale Reki.”
The insignia of a letter with wings on his shoulder bag denoted that he was a carrier for the largest postal delivery service around.
“Um... I’m Dale Reki.”
“Right, then could I have you sign here?”
The young postal carrier held out a receipt after handing over the letter. The receipt was affixed to a board, and he offered a pen that was uniquely designed so you could carry it around, all so that a delivery could be made anywhere. All of those elements just served as further proof of the young man’s occupation.
Dale signed the receipt, and with that the youth departed with a businesslike smile.
With that, both Dale and Kenneth’s gazes naturally fell upon the sealed letter.
“Where is it from...?”
“Huh? This wax seal is...”
There was a single insignia pressed into the wax sealing the letter. The design looked simple at first glance, but actually incorporated a number of fine details, making it exceedingly difficult to forge. Dale was well aware of that fact.
With that, the person who could use this insignia soon came to mind and Dale’s expression naturally grew stiff.
“That old hag is wrapped up in this, too...?!”
Amongst the people of his home village, only the clan leader was permitted to use that insignia.
And from what Dale knew, that person was exceptionally fond of pranks.
“No, it might just be a coincidence, right?” Kenneth commented uncertainly.
Kenneth had been acquainted with Dale’s grandmother Wendelgard back when he was still an active adventurer. She saw something in him and entrusted him with Dale, and in the process, Kenneth didn’t simply witness her talent and propensity for messing around, he’d had it positively seared into his mind.
With neither of them able to wipe away their doubt and Kenneth’s gaze wandering, Dale went ahead and opened the letter. Despite his sharp tongue, he was actually quite careful when opening the envelope. He took out the contents, gave it a glance over, and then thoroughly furrowed his brows.
“What is it?”
“It says to hurry up and get myself over there... And she hints at the debt I owe them from back then...” Dale muttered, an unpleasant expression on his face.
His family had lent him quite a bit of aid while he was running about the world looking for the demon lords. And because he knew just how important their help had been, Dale could hardly refuse her demands.
Normally, it would take him nearly a month to return home, and he would also need the duke’s permission. And so, it certainly wasn’t something that could just be done on a whim. But Dale had long since become a being unbound by the limits of common sense and could make it back there in a few days, a fact both his grandmother and father were well aware of. He figured that was why she had made the request so lightly.
At the same time, Dale wasn’t able to tell the duke the reason behind him taking such abnormal actions. So in that case, it was simplest to just handle the matter in secret.
“Ugh...”
Above all else, though, Dale was unable to ignore his grandmother’s letter because of the reason she wanted him to return.
“Apparently she wants me to visit for a bit to confirm some things for the wedding.”
“Well, that’s a good thing. Is it alright for Latina not to go?”
“Both the ceremony and the preparations will be at my family home. Latina can just get the details when the time comes, and besides, I can’t exactly have her make a sudden climb over the mountains like that...”
“That doesn’t just go for Latina. Even experienced adventurers wouldn’t want to do that. Heck, I wouldn’t want to do it.”
“Yeah.”
There was a rugged mountain range that stretched between Kreuz and Tislow. There wasn’t even anything that could be called a proper animal trail there, nor anywhere to get a decent bit of rest. That was the sort of intense path he was being asked to tread. No matter how hardy the devil race may have been, there was no chance of him asking Latina to make such a journey.
And on the Tislow side of things, their eldest son had finally found himself a bride, so there was no way they would force her to push herself like that.
They thought nothing of it when it came to Dale, though. That much was quite clear.
“If the wedding ends up getting delayed, then that’s just what happens... And besides, I know she wanted to have it in a season with nice weather...”
There had been a late snowfall when Chrysos was staying in Kreuz, but it was already heading into early spring, the season when lots of folks started traveling to the capital and whatnot. If they continued to delay it, though, the time of year when it was nice out would pass them by in no time. His home village was in a region that got a lot of snow, after all.
“There’s no helping it, so I’ll have to end this farce as soon as possible and then have a word with Latina...”
“How about just going?” Kenneth asked, as a neutral party who could understand the feelings of both sides. He knew what was going through Dale’s head, but he could also see the sentiments of those responsible for this commotion, plain as day.
“I’ll talk things through with Latina. So why don’t you get away from here for a bit and give those fools a chance to cool their heads?”
Dale didn’t say a word in response to Kenneth’s proposal, and the emotion drained from his face once again.
Dale’s glare caused a shiver to run down Kenneth’s spine. His whole body trembled a bit, faced with an instinctive fear surpassing that of any hopeless situation he’d found himself in back when he was an active adventurer.
But at the same time, Kenneth felt truly astounded from the depths of his heart.
“Seriously... Just how dependent on Latina are you...?”
Dale let out a foolish Bpfh! sound, then said, “W-W-Wha... What... What are you saying...?!”
The bloodlust in the air scattered to the four winds.
Apparently Kenneth had hit the nail on the head.
Dale was so shaken that he grew openly embarrassed and started acting strangely, with his face turning beet red for a second. There was no hint of the fiend from a moment ago who had been mercilessly exposing even his friend of many years to such bloodlust.
“I could understand you getting that way when Latina went missing, but... Should you really be getting so serious about a mere prank like this?”
When she had been suddenly stolen away, it wasn’t even certain if she was still alive. It was only natural that Dale would go mad with rage, as he loved the girl more than anyone and anything. But with that said, it would be rather ridiculous to talk about this current incident in the same manner. Doing so would surely prompt the fallen demon lords to turn in their graves.
“That’s... Well, yeah, I guess...” Dale inarticulately agreed, apparently plenty aware of that fact.
“You’re just mad because you’re getting less lovey-dovey time with Latina, aren’t you...?”
“That sure is a blunt way of putting things.”
“But it’s the truth. Sugarcoating it wouldn’t change anything.”
Hearing that, Dale ruffled his own hair. Seeing that gesture of embarrassment from the hero, Kenneth gave a single sigh and loosened the tension that had built up in his shoulders without him noticing.
“You need to cool your head, too. Then you can face this stupid mess head on.”
“You sure are taking their side...”
“Considering who they picked a fight with, doesn’t hurt to give them that
much of a handicap, right?”
As they talked, the edge completely came off of Dale. Kenneth felt relieved, seeing that his “little brother” was finally back to his usual self, and it wasn’t just for show. But it was also true that at the same time, he felt astounded. I mean, there was a limit to how deplorable someone could be.
“A stupid mess, huh... Well, doing something so stupid on such a huge scale is one way to throw a party, I guess...” Dale remarked lightly, apparently having allayed his anger enough that he could even find some amusement in the situation.
It would be a big dumb serious mess, with a whole ton of professionals having at it, including a certain legendary hero. He didn’t seem to be taking into consideration the fact that if they made the town the stage for this, it would result in a chaotic uproar.
“Guess there’s no helping it... Well, for the time being, I guess I’ll go make sure the old hag isn’t mixed up in all this. Let Latina know, alright?”
“Yeah. And if push comes to shove I can always just send Vint after you.”
That pup was seriously way too capable.
With a smile on his face, Dale stood up from the chair and went up to the attic to gather his luggage.
It was likely due to the fact that he had calmed himself down that Dale ultimately decided to head out right away. After all, he was aware that if he saw even a glance of Latina he would take back everything he said, lose control of himself, and stop at nothing to have her back in his arms.
After Dale departed for his home village, Latina really did end up returning before the night shift.
“Huh? Dale did that?” Latina asked upon hearing of Dale’s sudden summons from Kenneth, a sad expression on her face.
Normally, the quoted time estimate of going there and back within a week would be called utterly impossible.
“I wasn’t able to see him off properly... Was he mad?”