In the mansion's spacious living room, Princess Iris's words, "I want to see this world that makes all of you so special," were still lingering in the air, bringing Kazuma and Aqua's scuffle to a sudden halt.
"But since I'm going to experience commoner life..."
Princess Iris's gaze swept over everyone before finally settling on Kōichi Hayashi and Kazuma, a mischievous little smile on her lips.
"Then I have to hide my identity too. If I still appear as a princess, no one will be able to relax, and I won't truly be able to experience the everyday life of a common Adventurer. So please, call me... Iris. Just an ordinary Adventurer named Iris!"
The moment she said that, Kazuma's neck, which had only just snapped back into place, nearly crooked to the side again.
His original plan had been to let the princess witness Axel's chaos, after which she would obediently return to the palace and, along the way, become tearfully grateful to Kazuma-sama for saving her. But now, the princess actually wanted to go incognito?!
"Your Highness... no, Iris-san."
Kōichi Hayashi struggled to hold back a laugh.
"With your blonde hair and those gorgeous clothes, you don't exactly look like an ordinary Adventurer."
"Yes, I thought of that too."
Princess Iris nodded obediently.
"So I need a set of... well, clothes that will let me blend into an Adventurer town. Ideally, something that makes people think at first glance, 'Ah, now there's a perfectly ordinary, completely unremarkable Adventurer!'"
"An ordinary... completely unremarkable Adventurer..."
Kazuma muttered to himself, picturing the shabby tracksuit he had worn right after being reincarnated.
Then he suddenly realized this might be another opportunity.
The more plain and unfashionable he made the princess look, the more awful she would think the outside world was. And then...
"No problem! Leave it to me!"
Kazuma dashed over to Darkness.
"Darkness! Don't you usually wear that tattered, patch-covered armor? Do you have anything in the princess's size? And find something to cover her blonde hair too... Hmm, maybe a cloak that looks like it was picked out of a garbage heap!"
"Kazuma! That is going too far!"
Darkness stomped her foot, both embarrassed and furious.
"My armor only looks... full of history because it has been stained with monster blood and mud from my valiant battles! Besides, how could Her Highness possibly wear something like that? It would be a desecration of the royal family!"
"What desecration?! It's called an immersive experience! Do you even understand?"
Kazuma refused to back down.
"Kōichi! You judge this! The less noticeable, the better, right?"
Kōichi Hayashi looked at the princess's expectant eyes, then at Kazuma's wicked grin, and decided to give the situation a little push.
"Kazuma has a point. Your Highness, for your safety and to avoid drawing unnecessary attention, plain clothing really is the best choice. That said, we should be able to find something suitable in the mansion. We don't need to go as far as picking through the trash."
In the end, with Darkness on the verge of a breakdown and Aqua adopting the relaxed attitude of "as long as the princess pays, whatever," Kōichi Hayashi and Kazuma rummaged through the mansion's storage room together. They found a dark cloak that looked somewhat old but still clean enough, along with a wide-brimmed hat that could completely hide Iris's blonde hair.
"Wow! This is amazing!"
After changing into her new outfit, Princess Iris turned this way and that in front of the mirror. The cloak was a little loose, but it wrapped her petite body up nicely, and the wide-brimmed hat hid her signature blonde hair. She now looked like an ordinary traveler with a slight air of mystery.
"Now no one will recognize me, right? It feels like... I'm stepping into another world!"
Kazuma looked at the transformed Iris before him, his wicked little soul blazing brightly inside.
Great! Now no one will realize she's a princess! Once she sees just how low Axel can sink, she'll definitely obey every word I say as her guide!
Hehehe...
"Well then, Iris-san." Kōichi Hayashi glanced at the bright sunlight outside the window. "Are you ready? The life of a common Adventurer in Axel is going to be far more... exciting than you imagine."
"Yes!" Princess Iris replied with great energy, her eyes filled with anticipation for the unknown journey ahead.
The mansion's front doors slowly opened, and the noise of Axel's streets instantly came pouring in, a sharp contrast to the warmth that had filled the room just moments earlier.
Princess Iris, now Iris-san, looked around curiously at everything before her. Beneath the cloak, her large eyes shone with pure wonder.
"Come on, Iris-san! We'll start with the Adventurers Guild. It's the liveliest place in Axel, full of all kinds of legends and... accidents!"
Kazuma eagerly stepped forward, nearly bending at the waist as he extended his hand in invitation.
He wore his standard "I'm a good guy" business smile, but Kōichi Hayashi couldn't shake the feeling that there was something indescribably... sleazy hidden in that smile.
Kōichi Hayashi glanced at Kazuma. The look in that guy's eyes was practically that of a starving wolf that had set its sights on a plump lamb.
He claimed he wanted Iris to experience the essence of Axel, but Kōichi Hayashi did not believe for a second that this perverted good-for-nothing simply intended to give the princess a tour.
In that heart of his, hardened by the Fantasy World, he was probably already plotting how to use the princess's innocence for some unspeakable purpose.
"That Kazuma... He isn't seriously a lolicon, is he?"
Kōichi Hayashi silently roasted him in his mind. Almost without thinking, he took half a step forward and moved a little closer to Iris, forming a subtle protective stance.
He did not want this innocent princess to be led astray by that perverted tour guide on the very first stop of her commoner-life experience.
"Kōichi-sama, is something wrong?"
Iris-san noticed Kōichi Hayashi moving closer and asked in confusion.
"Did you spot some danger?"
"No, it's nothing. I was just thinking that Axel's streets are crowded, so Iris-san should be careful not to get separated."
Kōichi Hayashi answered calmly while quietly shooting Kazuma a glare.
Kazuma caught Kōichi Hayashi's death stare, sheepishly pulled back his outstretched hand, and muttered,
"Tch, what a busybody... I was just trying to act like a gentleman."
The group walked through the streets of Axel, where the air was thick with the mixed smells of grilled meat, ale, and earth.
Street vendors shouted loudly as they hawked all kinds of strange monster materials. Adventurers gathered in twos and threes outside the taverns, chatting and laughing. Every so often, they would pass someone dead drunk and sprawled out by the roadside.
"Wow, it's so lively!" Iris-san looked left and right in excitement. She had never seen such a vivid scene before. "So this is an Adventurer town! It's completely different from the Royal Capital!"
"Of course! This is Axel, the freest, liveliest town in the whole world!"
Kazuma puffed out his chest proudly, trying to show off his local authority in front of the princess.
"But Iris-san, this place has all kinds of people, good and bad. So you have to stick close to me and not run off on your own!"
"Okay! I understand!" Iris-san nodded obediently, completely failing to notice the strange motive hidden in Kazuma's "stick close to me."
Kōichi Hayashi watched Kazuma put on his "I'm the most reliable person here" expression, and he had already begun worrying about Princess Iris's future.
He decided that, no matter what, he would protect this innocent princess and keep her from being corrupted by this world's peculiarities.