Ankoku Kishi Monogatari ~Yuusha Wo Taosu Tameni Maou Ni Shoukansaremashita~ Chapter 20.1

TL: Cnine

ED/PF: akshaythedon, Timberlord

Part 1[1-3], Part 2[4-7], Part 3[8-10]

◆Rox kingdom's Knight, Rember

「I'll leave it to you then, lord Rember」

I bowed deeply after hearing the words of the king a while ago.

I'm a knight of the Rox kingdom. Hence, I have to follow the king's order.

By no means, it was a gloomy order.

I walked along the street after leaving the castle. The street is bustling with life despite the dark sky.

Maybe everyone is busy since they're preparing for the festival that will start tomorrow.

But, I don't think that this festival will be a good thing.

After walking for a while, I finally arrive at the store which was my destination.

It's a bar and dining store called 「White Scale Restaurant」. The one I'm looking for is there.

I went into the store. On entering the store, I can see many customers since it's dinner time.

This White Scale restaurant is quite special within the Rox kingdom. If one were to ask the reason, it's because the guests who come to the store are rather abnormal.

Almost all of the guests in this store are armed.

Demons are overflowing outside the city rampart, and many coming from the outside will at least have an edged tool with them, even if they're just normal individuals. In the end, it's just for safety when demons come out. Guests of this store are unlike normal travelers who keep regular weapons; they have their shield or armor which is nothing but the minimum requirement they need.

Still, they have toned muscles that are incomparable to those who live a normal life; they are the people who display their worth in a battle.

Freedom fighters.

That's what people call them.

If knights were the kingdom officials, they're what you call as the private army. The defense of highways that connect the country with neighboring countries is an extremely important matter to all countries. The knights are responsible for exterminating the demons appearing on the highway.

But, the reality is that a knight, whose jurisdiction is limited by the so-called country, can't protect the peace of the highway by himself.

For example, if the diplomatic relationships with other nations became tensed, it'll cause economic problems.

In that case, people cannot be stopped from crossing the national border, and it is a difficult situation for the country to fulfill all demands needed while crossing borders.

That's why the need for freedom fighters arose. They can act with more flexibility compared to the knights. Basically, the knights can't sortie without the order of the king, but freedom fighters don't fall under that category. They hear the requests of the other citizens, and they decide to act as fast as possible if they deem that it's necessary. Knights can't take actions without orders, and they only need to abide by their own country's orders; freedom fighters would protect the other country as long as they determine it to be necessary.

And this White Scale restaurant is the gathering place for those freedom fighters. The people who have a request for the freedom fighters in the Rox kingdom normally come to this store.

Right now, almost all of the freedom fighters gathered in this place are those who have come due to the commission from the Rox kingdom.

the Rox kingdom has been performing a major cleanup operation against the demons in the vicinity of the city since three days ago for the sake of tomorrow's festival. The cleanup work had also ended today. Thanks to them, the people arriving at the Rox kingdom don't need to fear the demons for a while. The freedom fighters have gathered together in this shop after finishing their job.

I look for someone as I walk inside the shop. I could easily find the one I'm looking for.

At any rate, that man is huge with his outer appearance completely resembling a bear. His presence stands out in spite of being seated in the inner part of the store.

His back is facing my direction. So, I approach that man.

His age is just below thirty; he has a sunburnt face along with numerous scars carved on his muscle which definitely distinguish him from normal people.

Maybe because he noticed me approaching him, the man turned around.

「Yo~, isn't it Rember? You're as gloomy as ever, huh」

「And you're as amazing as ever Gallios-senpai! Is your injury from yesterday already alright？ 」

「Yeah, more or less. I can move after being healed by healing magic from Nimri-sensei」

Gallios grinned from ear to ear.

It seems that he couldn't resist it even though he was about to die. Could it be that people who become freedom fighters are actually not afraid of death？

Gallios is a freedom fighter who lives in this the Rox kingdom. He's a former knight and also my senior. He almost died during the demon extermination yesterday.