Strange Grief Wants to Retire ~ The Weakest Hunter Dreams of a Hero ~

Chapter163，Part2: 2 - White Sword Gathering ③

Chapter 163 White Sword Gathering ③

Part 2

And that’s when I opened my eyes.

“…… This place is not that bad. I get it, I get it, greetings are important.” (Hunter)

Just then, a Hunter who had entered earlier went out of his way to greet the servants.

It was a brown-skinned man wearing a tightly fitted suit. He is probably a fighter who uses his bare hands to fight.

If you look closely, you can see that everyone, even the nobles, was greeting the servants and giving their thanks. Some of them were even chatting and laughing.

I see, the nobles from the Empire also chat with their servants, noted.

You would think that many of them would be arrogant, but it turns out that when you get this high up in the rank, they all seem to be ladies and gentlemen. It seemed that the Hunters were all people of character. When you think a little about it, the Hunters who are invited here (Except for me) are all of the same rank as Ark, so I guess that is normal.

That was dangerous, I was almost the only one who walked in without saying hello. My bad upbringing is showing up. After all, I guess it was a good idea to take a wait-and-see approach.

“Cry-san.” (Eva)

“Yeah, I know.” (Cry)

There is no one better than me when it comes to following other people’s lead. This is especially true among high-level Hunters.

With a smirk on my face, I *kossokosso* sneakily sneaked behind the nobleman who was moving in front of me and waited for my turn to give a? greeting.

If you look closely, you will see that all the servants are beautiful. I am currently wearing the suit that Eva prepared for me, so I’m not inferior to them in terms of clothing, but I’m clearly losing in the look. As expected of Zebrudia, which is at the height of its prosperity, everything is top-notch.

On top of that, some of the servants are clearly younger than me.

The girl with light-blue hair was particularly striking. She looked younger than Tino, but like the other servants, she wore her apron dress well and was smiling perfectly.

Even this young girl was working so hard, while I was like this ―― I straightened my back and smiled.

There was no need to be so nervous. Eva’s expression was unusually tense, but…… Calm down. It is not like I will be dealing with noblemen or Hunters.

The other party also must know that we are not people who have learned manners. Eva told me that Hunters don’t need to worry so much about etiquette, yup.

The servants had calm expressions on their faces, but only their eyes were not smiling. I greeted her while being slightly taken aback.

“Uuuuum…… Thank you for inviting me on this special occasion?” (Cry)

“Cry-san, it is the Emperor who has invited us.” (Eva)

Said Eva in a whisper. And I frowned.

So what should I say when I greet her?

“………… Yeah, you are absolutely right. This was so shameful of me. My apologies, this is all due to me being uneducated…… Good evening. It is an honor to meet you.” (Cry)

Shocked eyes were looking at me. It was a look that said, “What kind of country bumpkin are you?”.

I had expected to be called a country bumpkin by the noblemen, but I hadn’t expected to be looked at like that by the servants as well.

I cleared my throat and *pachin* snapped my fingers.

Let’s get rid of my souvenirs here. It is my chance to appear humble.

“I know! Let’s give a souvenir to this “young lady (Ojou-san)” who has been working so hard.” (Cry)

“Ah……” (Light-blue haired maid)

I handed over my box of Onsen Dragon Eggs to the light-blue-haired maid girl.

Her eyes widened and she sounded taken aback, but rest assured, their taste is guaranteed.

Eva froze. The other servants were also stunned as if they were surprised by my extreme humbleness.

Yes, yes. I am uneducated, but I am harmless to any humans and animals. And, full of friendliness, I said this.

“What, it is nothing much, really. Those are just Onsen Dragon Eggs. It is delicious, so you should eat it with your ――” (Cry)

“Dragon’s Egg!?” (Light-blue haired girl)

―― Friends. Just as I was about to say that, the girl let out an astonished scream.

The next thing I knew, I was surrounded by the knights guarding the venue.

They were so fast that I would think that they were monitoring me. Swords were thrust at me from all sides, and I froze up with a smile on my face.

The box of Onsen Dragon Eggs was passed from the maid to one of the knights. When he lifted it up fearfully, he put his ear next to it.

No, this isn’t a dangerous good. And it is also not Dragon’s Eggs. Onsen Dragon Egg is just a brand name, and what’s inside are just chicken eggs.

The eyes of the attendees were drawn towards me. And Eva was turning pale.

Among the knights who rushed in, a large man who was wearing a magnificent armor shouted at me.

“You bastard………… What do you think you are doing!? Do you have any idea who this person is?” (Knight)

“…………” (Cry)

…… Who?

I didn’t understand what was going on, and people around me looked at me as if they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

Eva’s face became deep blue. The man said out loud in front of me, who was still smiling.

“This person is Her Imperial Highness, Princess Murina Atrum Zebrudia, daughter of His Majesty the Emperor Radrick Atrum Zebrudia, current Emperor of Zebrudia.” (Knight)

“…………………… Un, un, you are right.” (Cry)

I see…… So it had come to this.

It was bad. Her position was three ranks higher than what I had imagined when all those swords were pointed at me.

I desperately turned the gear on my head while showing a gentle smile.

Indeed she was particularly young among the servants, and I did think that she stood out.

I knew that there was an Imperial Princess here in Zebrudia, but I didn’t even know her face. However, for the people here…… They all probably knew her face. No wonder that even the Hunters were so polite.

Her Imperial Highness looked at me in astonishment without saying a word.

I wish you would have told me first, but… Maybe it was just common sense.

An Imperial Princess is a very important person, no? You wouldn’t expect to find her in the corner mixed with the servants, no?

A tradition? Is this a tradition too? My stomach hurts.

“Moreover…… you said that they were…… Dragon’s Egg!? To hand over…… Such a dangerous item to her Highness…… No matter what kind of guest you are, there are limits you shouldn’t cross!” (Knight)

“Y-you don’t need to panic, everything is fine. It isn’t a big deal and it isn’t dangerous.” (Cry)

And by the way, it is also not Dragon’s Eggs. I said that it was Onsen Dragon Eggs, alright. What is special about the eggs isn’t because they came from a Dragon but from an Onsen.

I raised my hand a little bit while *nikoniko* smiling. My stomach hurts.

“Sorry, can I go to the bathroom?” (Cry)

“………… Cry-san, aren’t you afraid of anything?” (Eva)

A sword is being held at my neck. I can’t even move a centimeter.

Fortunately, it seems that he won’t be cutting me down immediately, but I made the worst impression. It wouldn’t have been strange if they threw me out.

Well, if I were to be thrown out, I would be more than welcome, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I were to be imprisoned for insulting the Imperial Princess or something (Although I don’t know if there was such a thing). And I will be forever hunted as a great sinner who has lost his status of Treasure Hunter in this Imperial Capital.

As I started to run away from reality, rescue came to my side. It was the sharp voice of a woman.

“W-wait…………” (Woman)

The tip of the sword shook, and the knights surrounding the area broke apart.

The owner of the voice was éclair Gladys, someone whom I had a quarrel with about a month ago. Today, unlike the last time I met her, she was not wearing a sword belt but was wearing a frilly evening dress.

Her sharp voice had a dignity that was not appropriate for her age. However, her eyes were swimming left and right.

“T-that man here, is one of the people who saved the Imperial Capital from the 『Tower of Akasha』. I do understand your duties, gentlemen, but the Hunters are the main actors in the 『White Sword Gathering』, so if he is just handing souvenirs, you…… Don’t need to be so upset.” (éclair)

“H-However…… éclair-jou.” (Knight)

“Also…… Dragon eggs are very valuable items. Those are far more expensive than most jewelry and are definitely worthy of a gift from a Hunter. Well, handing it directly to Her Imperial Highness was an unbelievably rude thing to do…… But that man also said that it was not dangerous. It would be alright if you check it out once it is in custody. …… Aaaah, are you trying to ruin this traditional meeting that has been going on for generations, which His Majesty Radrick is also looking forward to before it even begins? You do know that it has already been postponed once, right?” (éclair)

The knights, who had been so stout with me, were faltering at the hands of a girl of ten years old or so.

Maybe éclair-jou is a celebrity, but even the nobles, who had been watching quietly on the side until just a moment ago, voiced their support.

They lowered their sword. I am saved. However, I wonder why she helped me…… Maybe she wanted me to return the 『Over Greed (Evolving Devil Mask)』?

…… Oh, sure, sure. If you really want me to give it back to you, I will ―― Show my good faith…… And consider it.

When I looked at éclair-jou with the intention of thanking her, her shoulders shook with horror.

TL notes:

Thanks for reading!

Cry, you really don’t disappoint me! The first person you hand your souvenir to is the Princess!

And they think that there are Dragon Egg inside XDDDD

Well of course they will think that! Who would think that a Level8 Hunter would troll you and give you an Onsen Egg called Onsen Dragon Egg!

And it looks like éclair is really traumatized by Cry, haha.

Tchao à plus!

Footnotes

éclair-jou: Jou is a suffix to say Lady.

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