“…… (Shaking and trembling)”

“Mii!”

Ivy patted my shoulder in an attempt to reassure me.

But at this moment, I was too nervous to respond with my usual smile.

Yes, I was nervous.

Or rather… I was overwhelmed.

By the dazzling and majestic royal castle.

Standing before me was a castle of pristine white.

On either side of the massive doors—each towering as high as three large men—stood guards who looked incredibly strong.

As I bowed repeatedly to the lined-up guards, I forced my trembling body to move forward, scolding myself to keep walking.

I had thought that Marquis Endlord’s mansion was large, but this place was beyond comparison.

“Open the gates!”

As we approached, what seemed to be the leader of the guards shouted something, and in response, the sound of a bell rang from above the gate.

With a deep rumbling noise—gogogogogo—the massive gates began to open.

Slowly, beyond the opening, a beautiful garden came into view.

“Please follow me, Lord Bruno, Lady Ivy.”

“Y-yes!”

A soldier led the way.

Clad in heavy armor, he clanked with each step, and I followed nervously behind him.

“W-w-w-what do we do, Ivy? We’re actually inside the royal castle!”

“Mii mii.”

We whispered to each other, careful not to let the soldier overhear, as we continued forward.

Neither beside me nor behind me were any of my usual companions.

Even Sanshita, who was always with us, had to stay behind in the stable of an inn in the royal capital.

Katya, who had traveled to the capital with us, was likely waiting in a separate room within the castle.

—Yes, the reason we had come to the massive royal castle, which stood imposingly at the center of the kingdom’s capital, was that we had been summoned by the king.

The journey from the remote town of Akoup to here had been long and arduous…

For some unknown reason, the king’s letter had specifically summoned only Ivy and me to the castle.

The others were free to come or not, but…

“Huh? Me? Sounds like a hassle, so I’ll pass.”

“As a hero, I’ve been summoned by the king multiple times, and honestly, I don’t have the best memories of it. I’ll sit this one out.”

“I am very serious about making honey. So, no thank you.”

“I’ve had enough of politics, so I’ll decline.”

“If Her Highness isn’t going, then I won’t either.”

And just like that, all of the saviors had quickly declared their refusal.

In the end, the only ones who had left Akoup with us were Katya, who had offered to come along, and—

“I don’t really get it, but I’ll tag along anyway!”

Sanshita, who didn’t quite understand human affairs but had followed us for some reason.

Everyone was so cruel.

Ditching all the troublesome matters onto me like this.

Well, to be fair, the saviors had only formed a temporary party to put me on the front lines when needed, so I couldn’t really complain…

The journey from Akoup to the royal capital had been relatively comfortable.

Marquis Endlord had arranged a luxurious six-horse carriage, and most importantly, I carried an official invitation from King Vento II himself.

There were no bandit attacks along the way, and at several towns, we were warmly received.

Thanks to that, we safely arrived in the royal capital.

“Well, don’t worry. Most likely, you’ll just have a brief discussion with a palace scribe, receive your reward, and that’ll be it.”

Hearing Katya say that, I had felt relieved.

But before I knew it, we had been taken straight to the royal castle—

“I am Vento II. Bruno, and Ivy, raise your heads.”

And suddenly, we found ourselves in the audience chamber, facing the king himself.

—Wait, weren’t we just supposed to talk to a representative!?

This isn’t what you said, Katya!