Chapter 255: I Rescued a Princess Who Was Being Attacked by Bandits, But Something Feels Off…

Karan karan.

The sound of a bell reached me from far away. It was probably ringing from the cathedral in the royal capital Lowblec. Even though it was several kilometers away, the clear tone carried.

"Hmm."

I wriggled out of the wool.

A lone capybara head was sticking out of the large wool like a little island, so I stroked its forehead.

"Good morning, Lucia."

"Good morning, Masaharu."

The way the brown head floated alone like a small island inside the pure-white fluffy wool was adorable. Stroke, stroke. I carefully stroked her chin and forehead.

I tried pinching her nostrils shut with my index and middle fingers.

...

Puko.

The capybara opened its mouth a little.

So cute...

After finishing the morning skinship with Lucia, I lightly twisted my body and began stretching.

Then I saw Rafilia-san outside the bus carriage, kneeling with her hands clasped, praying toward the eastern sky.

"Good morning, Rafilia-san."

"Good morning, Masaharu-san. I’ll prepare breakfast right away."

"Thank you. I’ll look for stones that can serve as a stove."

"Thank you."

I was about to activate Wind-Pressure Masturbation to explore the surroundings when I remembered last night.

I jumped down from the bus carriage and went to Rafilia-san’s side.

"Rafilia-san. There’s a human girl on top of the bus carriage. She’s from the same place as me, and her name is Anai Rui."

"Yes."

"She doesn’t know anything about this country. Letree-san also knows about her. I’m sorry to trouble you, but could you look after her?"

"Understood."

I left Rui in Rafilia-san’s care and lightly ran around the wasteland.

I was looking for convenient stones that might have fallen.

As for firewood, we had brought it as luggage. There was a forest right next to us, but it belonged to the king, and the right to gather firewood was probably only granted to Lowblec citizens. If we used it, it would be a crime.

The right to gather firewood is a real right that still exists in some parts of modern Europe, even though internet searches return few hits and it has long since disappeared elsewhere.

Sometimes books related to medieval Europe write that farmers in the past picked up firewood or hunted in nearby forests. That isn’t wrong, but strictly speaking it was only when permission was obtained from the owner—the king or the lord. Or they were secretly stealing the forest’s resources while the king’s eyes were elsewhere. Of course, if caught they would be punished.

Sometimes in fantasy novels there are scenes of farmers suffering under the tyranny of a cruel king or lord who obtain their livelihood from the forest, but that description is contradictory. If they are allowed to use the forest, the king or lord is practicing good governance.

Also, when books written in German about German history are translated and enter Japan, the title is labeled "Medieval Europe," and because the main text never specifically says "in Germany," episodes that should be limited to Germany get their subjects enlarged and spread in Japan.

From the opposite perspective, this is even more of a regional and historical mismatch than if an American used a book about Hokkaido in the Edo period as source material for writing a novel about the Sengoku period.

This is how multiple regions and cultures fused into the Naropa we live in.

I had no idea what was legal or illegal, or even what was culturally correct, so we had no choice but to bring firewood and food ourselves. If I carelessly picked up firewood in the forest and then published my autobiography online, the Firewood Police would come flooding in.

I wanted to believe there were no extremists like the Potato Police or the Kyudo Police, but since I never knew when or where what kind of police might be lurking, I nervously searched for stones to use as a stove.

At the very least, picking up stones should be legal...

Apparently pilgrims sometimes picked up pretty stones they found in distant lands and used them as amulets, so fallen stones shouldn’t belong to anyone. Probably...

"As expected, there aren’t any nice stones lying around that could become a stove."

If I searched from the air I might find some, but if I went a little farther there would be tens of thousands of people, and depending on the position and angle my erect cock might be seen. Before that, flying while completely naked would make me a suspicious person.

It was a good thing my otherworld life started in a sparsely populated place. If I had started in a city and flown around naked, I might have been caught and thrown in prison immediately.

But religious paintings depict naked gods, so there might have been a development where people thought I was a god.

While thinking such things and walking around looking for stones, I saw a cloud of dust ahead.

A group of riders seemed to be galloping in my direction.

Dododododo...

"You there, country bumpkin! Save me!"

"Hyaaa-hahaha! You’re not getting away!"

"We’ll catch you and make you pay ransom!"

"Kukuku. But first we’ll rape you!"

Horses!

Amazing. There are horses in this world.

Not uman-ko—actual horses. The four-legged animals that run, the same ones that exist on Earth.

The horses that exist as a matter of course in most other worlds, whose place in the food-chain pyramid of a world with dragons and monsters is never clear. The horses that have no stables at inns, no small steps for mounting in the city, and in the worst cases the comic adaptations have castle gates lower than a mounted rider so you can’t figure out how they get in and out!

The fantasy horses that knights want to bring at least three of to the battlefield—warhorses for combat, everyday horses for non-combat, and mules for carrying loads—yet in fantasy worlds they carry fully armored knights at full speed without ever running out of stamina and loyally serve even when barely fed!

Because those descriptions are bothersome, horses rarely appear in web-novel fantasies. Maybe they were expelled from the hero’s party before the protagonist. Expelling a protagonist who is hiding his true power is reasonable, but expelling the horses is not good.

A hero is someone who travels slowly on foot in order to defeat the Demon King tormenting the people as soon as possible!

An adventurer is someone who can’t ride a horse and therefore stays close enough to get "serves you right" from the expelled protagonist!

"Hey, country bumpkin! What are you doing! Protect me!"

Perhaps exhausted from the long run, the lead horse slowed suddenly when it reached me and began walking slowly.

Burururu, burururu, the horse exhaled white breath from its nose.

It looked tired and was also giving off steam from sweat on its body.

"Are you listening, country bumpkin! Throw away your life and become a shield for me. I swear by my beautiful golden hair and by Larme: if I am saved, I shall bestow twenty Lowblec gold coins upon your corpse. With that much you will not suffer even in the underworld. If you are lucky enough to survive, I shall grant you the status of a free farmer."

Amazing. No matter how you look at it, it’s a real horse.

Those round eyes are so cute.

I’ve never seen a live horse on Earth, so isn’t this the first time I’m seeing one in another world?

Oh, good boy, it’s bringing its face closer. How friendly.

Whoa. Its tongue is huge. One lick went from my chin all the way to my temple with a beron.

So cute. There, there, good boy. Its brown coat is silky too.

"What’s with this guy? Is he trying to get in our way?"

"Hey you, help us. That one’s a member of this country’s royal family. The idiot let the horse run wild and went off alone."

"Come on, drag her off the horse. Before the ransom, first we’ll rape the royal family’s pussy."

Hmm.

I didn’t really want to get involved with the people of the capital. In the capital they enslave beastmen, and our principles don’t match.

The way the woman asking for help was speaking also felt exactly like that kind of person...

But I couldn’t just ignore it. Being raped would still be pitiful.

Three bandits straight out of a painting.

Their hair and beards were unkempt and many teeth were missing. Faces black with grime. Clothes crudely woven from pig or sheep skin. Nothing on their feet.

So these kinds of thugs appear even near the capital.

Maybe because the Christmas Tournament gathers lots of people, criminals gather too. Were they targeting nobles to capture them for ransom?

"I swear by the Holy King Aras VI, my name is Charlotte du Roi. Country bumpkin, protect me!"

"If you’re of noble status, you shouldn’t give your name..."

Well, her clothes clearly marked her as rich.

Her blue riding outfit was made of fabric that looked expensive at a glance. It looked like it could be sold on modern Earth. The boots with spurs also looked well-made.

They were incomparable to the pig-skin clothes the thugs were wearing.

The hands holding the reins were not tanned, free of scars or stains, and slender and elegant.

That aside, when people of this era and this cultural sphere say "I swear by ***" or "I stake it on ***," those are extremely heavy words. If you swear by a saint or a holy relic you cannot tell a lie, so this girl really was royalty.

"Hey, you guys, you can’t rape a girl unless it’s consensual."

"Don’t screw with us!"

A bandit swung a rusted sword down at my head, so I caught it between two fingers.

Then I took the sword.

"Uwah. Give it back!"

While the first one was still speaking, I took the swords from the remaining two as well.

They were all rusted and shabby, but if I combined them cleverly I could use them in place of stove stones.

"I’ll let you go, so don’t cause trouble. There are lots of strong knights around here, so be careful. You’ll probably be killed without question."

"Kuh. R-Remember this!"

The bandits turned their horses’ heads and left the way they had come.

"Country bumpkin. I praise you. You protected me well. I have watched countless first-rate knights fight, and by my blue eyes I say your movements were truly splendid."

"You’re welcome."

Ah.

I had been avoiding looking at her face because raising a flag felt awkward and I didn’t want to get deeply involved, but when she thanked me I ended up looking.

Around seventeen?

She wore a white hat over her golden hair with a large bird-feather ornament.

Under a broad forehead were clear blue eyes like water, and the corners of her mouth were slightly upturned.

She wore an expensive-looking blue riding outfit and a purple scarf around her neck.

She looked cute, but she was a cheeky girl.

The bandits had called her royalty, so I guess her personality became arrogant.

"Guide me to Lowblec."

"Eeh... (exasperated)"

An order right from the first meeting?

"I promised to grant you the status of a free farmer, did I not? I swear to God I do not lie. Follow me to the church."

"No, that would be far too much. My companions are nearby, so I’ll take my leave here."

"W-Wait. What if those people from earlier come back and attack again! I’ll only give you the gold coins after we reach Lowblec!"

"No, I don’t particularly need the gold coins either."

"Mu. You, that red long robe—I know it. Are you not a member of the Red Iron Order led by the Crimson Flame Princess Ana Lunametié? As a knight serving the kingdom, you have a duty to protect me!"

Ah.

It’s true that the red long robe I’m wearing is the trademark of the Red Iron Order members.

But I’m in a guest position.

"A knight should devote himself to a lady."

If you’re going to say that, then as a princess you should give a kiss as thanks instead of gold coins...

No choice. If it causes trouble for the other members it would be bad, so I’ll take care of this girl.