— — — — — —
'I only came here to provide backup and cover their retreat. How did I end up becoming the main force?'
Facing both Ryo and Ophis, the two ultimate bosses on the opposing side, Arthur was panicking inside. Still, he forced himself to stay calm.
"You must be Ryo-sama..." He tried to talk his way out of the situation.
"...We're members of the Golden Dawn Magician Association."
The Golden Dawn was a famous order of magicians, co-founded by MacGregor Mathers.
In this world, Mathers had accepted Sirzechs' invitation before his death and joined his peerage as a Bishop. In other words, what Arthur was really saying was: We're on the same side, boss.
"Oh?" Ryo looked at Arthur with mild surprise. Then he turned to Le Fay and smiled. "And are you a member of the Golden Dawn too?"
"I-I..."
Le Fay's heart had been pounding nonstop ever since she saw Ryo. Compared to Arthur, who could at least force himself to think straight, she was visibly flustered.
"Relax. It's not like I'm going to eat you." Ryo's smile widened.
'Your expression says otherwise!'
Le Fay nearly panicked again.
Fortunately, unlike Arthur, she actually was a member of the Golden Dawn.
Her trip to help Cao Cao had been entirely private, and the organization knew nothing about it. Arthur, meanwhile, had left the Golden Dawn years ago.
After a brief moment of panic, she quickly caught on to what her brother was doing.
"I-I'm a researcher... in Division Four of the Golden Dawn Research Department." She stammered slightly while reciting her credentials.
Arthur immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
That identity could withstand investigation. Even their zashiki-warashi disguises could probably be explained away somehow.
Of course they'd still be suspected. But surely Ryo or Ophis wouldn't personally guard prisoners.
As long as they could avoid these two monsters, there was still a chance to escape later.
"A Golden Dawn researcher?" Ryo asked again.
"Yes."
Now that she'd recovered from the initial shock, Le Fay had regained her ability to lie with a perfectly straight face.
Ryo chuckled. "I don't believe you."
Le Fay froze, "...Why?"
"Because Ophis says there's something suspicious about you." He gently pulled Ophis forward.
The Dragon God looked at them expressionlessly and added, "You smell strange. A familiar strange smell."
"How is that possible?"
Le Fay immediately raised her arm and sniffed under it.
Then she sniffed her sleeve.
She was absolutely certain she didn't smell strange. Clearly Ophis was making things up.
Beside her, however, Arthur's expression changed dramatically.
He remembered now. He had met Ophis once while accompanying Cao Cao back when she still led the Khaos Brigade.
That had been over a year ago.
At the time, Ophis hadn't even looked directly at him.
'You remember someone you saw once over a year ago? Who was it that said Ophis was just the Khaos Brigade's mascot? This is a scam!'
"I remember that smell..."
Ophis spoke slowly and evenly, still sounding slightly unaccustomed to conversation.
Arthur gave a bitter smile and lowered his head. "Being recognized by you is quite an honor. Fine. I'll confess. I'm a member of the Hero Faction, formerly the second-largest faction of the Khaos Brigade."
At that moment, Ophis calmly added, "Um... It's Ddraig's scent. You're a descendant of Ddraig and a human."
Then she tilted her head. "Hero Faction? What is that?"
Ryo watched as Arthur's face transformed from pale white to black, then from black to red.
The change was faster than a stage actor switching masks.
"...You don't recognize me?"
Arthur struggled to preserve a shred of dignity.
Otherwise, he'd basically just exposed himself for no reason.
"Who are you?" Ophis looked genuinely confused.
Earlier, she'd caught the scent of the Red Dragon Emperor Ddraig mixed with a human's.
Since they were both dragon-related beings, she'd been curious enough to bring Ryo over.
Instead, she'd found some descendant of Ddraig asking strange questions... Humans really were confusing.
"..."
Arthur's mouth twitched.
In the end, he could only bow his head in silent misery.
Beside him, Le Fay immediately voiced her dissatisfaction. "Brother, you're so useless. I had them fooled."
Arthur felt as though he'd been stabbed through the heart.
Getting looked down on by Le Fay of all people? That was almost too much to bear.
"You think you fooled us?" Ryo looked at her in surprise.
"Of course!" Le Fay puffed out her chest proudly. "If my brother wasn't so dumb, I definitely would've tricked you."
"Yeah, that's right," Ryo nodded with a serious expression. "If your brother weren't such an idiot, you wouldn't have been dragged into this and ended up a prisoner too. And female prisoners usually… don't have it easy. Not at all."
Le Fay instantly grew nervous, "Prisoners have it that bad?"
"Of course." Ryo looked at her regretfully. "A cute girl like you gets captured, and then a dozen guys take turns forcing themselves on you. They'll even make you have babies."
"Sounds miserable, doesn't it?"
Le Fay's face turned completely white.
She immediately hid behind Arthur.
"A dozen boys?! No! I don't want that! Brother, save me!"
"I..."
Arthur opened his mouth, then saw Ryo and Ophis standing there.
His courage evaporated instantly.
He possessed the fragment of King Arthur's holy sword and carried the bloodline of the legendary king.
But the people standing opposite him were among the strongest beings in the world.
The gap was simply too large.
A wave of despair washed over him.
Still, for Le Fay's sake, he stepped forward and stood protectively in front of her. "Let Le Fay go. I'll obey any arrangement you make."
Ryo looked amused. "Even if it means being tormented day and night by a dozen thirty-year-old female goblins until you're drained dry?"
Arthur's face instantly lost all color.
'Why are you so vicious? Aren't you supposed to be the Leader of the Three Factions?'
Goblin women. Thirty-year-old goblin women. And a dozen of them.
This wasn't punishment. This was desecration. A grave insult to the bloodline of King Arthur.
The moment he imagined a future filled with goblin children carrying Pendragon blood, his first instinct was suicide.
But before he could draw his sword, however, Le Fay suddenly pulled him behind her.
Like a mother hen protecting her chick, she spread her arms and stood in front of him.
"No! You can't do that to my brother!"
Tears welled up in her eyes. "I'll do it instead. I won't resist."
"Le Fay..."
Arthur clenched his teeth.
Remembering the cowardly thought he'd just had, he was overcome with shame.
'So what if it's a dozen goblins? I'll endure it. As long as I can make sure she's safe first, I'll make my move after that.'
"You make this sound so tragic that I'm starting to feel guilty." Ryo rubbed his chin thoughtfully while looking at the tearful girl.
After a moment, he snapped his fingers, "Fine. I'll give you a discount. Instead of a bunch of people bullying you, it'll only be one."
Le Fay continued crying.
Yet she still managed to stammer, "Th-Thank you..."
"Then why are you still crying?" Ryo reached out and wiped away the tears on her face.
Le Fay wanted to dodge, but she was terrified he'd change his mind. So she endured it.
After brushing away the tears from her delicate cheeks, Ryo smiled. "Looking at you cry like this is actually pretty entertaining. In that case, I'll reluctantly volunteer to be the one bullying you myself."
"How can you say that?!" Le Fay looked devastated. "I thought you were a good person!"
"SO should I pick someone else, then?" Ryo asked teasingly. "A goblin, perhaps?"
"..."
Le Fay immediately fell silent.
After a long struggle, she hung her head, "Then... I'd rather be bullied by you."
"Good girl."
Ryo smiled and ruffled her hair.
In the process, he knocked her witch's hat right off and thoroughly ruined the hairstyle she'd spent so much time arranging.
Yet Le Fay didn't dare complain.
What if he really sent her to the goblins?
"Le Fay..."
Arthur looked at his sister. Then he looked at Ryo.
Somehow, he felt like something was very wrong here.
At that moment, Ryo spoke again, "So, brother-in-law. Do you want the goblins instead?"
"What brother-in-law?" Arthur blinked.
Then his face changed dramatically. "No, no, no. I can't handle the goblins."
Ryo pulled Le Fay into his arms and casually rested his free hand on Arthur's shoulder. "In that case, let's have a nice chat. What exactly is the Hero Faction planning? After all, we're practically family now. Communication is important."
'Who the hell is family with a scum like you...'
Arthur was about to object when his gaze landed on Le Fay, who was currently tucked against Ryo's side.
Silence followed.
Finally, he sighed, "...Fine. I'll talk."
Cao Cao, it's not that I don't want to help you. It's just that I've somehow become the Supreme Leader's brother-in-law. And you can't expect me to help attack my own family, can you?.
.
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