"Have eaten?!"
"Yes. The Orc treat humans as food. They used to come every year, but only on a small scale, like... like harvesting crops. This year, I don't know what happened, they suddenly launched a full-scale attack. The Dragon Kingdom's army simply couldn't stop them."
"Then wouldn't the Dragon Kingdom be...?"
"The odds are against them."
Higashino Makoto's fingers stopped.
He didn't turn his head or get up; he just sat there, listening quietly.
"The Queen of the Dragon Kingdom, the 'Black-Scaled Dragon Lord,' has reportedly deployed the city's guards to the front lines. But it's no use. There are simply too many Orc, and this time there seems to be a particularly powerful leader, something like a 'Beast King.'"
"What about a Steel-class adventurer? Doesn't the Dragon Kingdom have a Steel-class team?"
"The 'Crystal Tear' are led by Serabure, a very strong paladin. But even one man can't fight four. How many Orc can he kill alone? A hundred? A thousand? There are tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of Orc on the other side."
"Does that mean the Dragon Kingdom is doomed?"
"Whether it will perish or not is unknown, but if things continue like this, at least half of the country will be devoured."
"Tsk... this world is really..."
The conversation gradually subsided, drowned out by other noises in the pub.
Higashino Makoto sat in the corner, his dark eyes staring at the table, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.
Kurumi returned after paying the bill and saw his expression, her right eye narrowed slightly.
"Sir, what's wrong?"
"Dragon Kingdom."
Higashino Makoto said.
"The Orc are launching a massive invasion. Three cities have already fallen. The Slane Theocracy cannot send reinforcements."
Kurumi was silent for a moment.
"Does the master want to go?"
Higashino Makoto did not answer immediately.
He lowered his head and looked at the die on the table. The word "Re-Estize Kingdom" gleamed dimly under the lamplight.
He reached out, picked up the dice, and flipped them over.
The "Dragon Kingdom" side faces upwards.
"Grown ups?"
Kurumi's voice carried a hint of confusion.
Higashino Makoto stared at the words "Dragon Kingdom" on the dice and remained silent for a moment.
Then he chuckled softly.
Only the most foolish person would completely believe in fate.
He spoke calmly, but a certain light gleamed in his dark eyes.
Fate has given you an option, but whether you choose it or not is up to you.
He put the dice into his pocket and stood up.
Kurumi.
"Exist."
"I'm not going to the Re-Estize Kingdom anymore. I'm going to the Dragon Kingdom."
Kurumi tilted her head, her right eye curving into a crescent moon.
"My lord, didn't you just say, 'The dice have chosen the Re-Estize Kingdom, so let's go take a look'?"
I've changed my mind.
"Why?"
Because someone needs help.
Kurumi blinked, her smile deepening.
"Sir, do you know what you look like right now?"
"Like what?"
"Like a proud paladin who says he has no obligation to save people, but will rush to help anyone in need at the first sign of trouble."
Higashino Makoto was silent for a moment.
"... Kurumi."
"Exist."
"You'll get beaten up if you do that."
"Hehehe, this is an 'objective description of the superior's actions.' Besides, Higashino would never hit me, except—"
"In bed."
Higashino Makoto glanced at her, forcibly suppressing the urge to slap her plump buttocks in public, and remained silent.
He turned around and walked towards the tavern entrance.
Kurumi lifted her skirt and followed. The black cat "Zafkiel" jumped down from the table and landed lightly on her shoulder, its tail swaying gently.
As he reached the door, Higashino Makoto stopped, turned around, and glanced at the table of businessmen who had just been talking.
They didn't notice him.
They just continued drinking, chatting, and complaining about how hard the world was.
Higashino Makoto withdrew his gaze, pushed open the door, and walked out.
The sunlight shone on him, turning his long, silvery-white hair golden.
Kurumi.
"Exist."
Do you know the location of the Dragon Kingdom?
"I roughly know. Slane Theocracy, separated from the Baharuth Empire by the Katze Plains and a mountain range. It's rather remote, but you can take the land route along the Slane Theocracy's border."
How long will it take to arrive?
"By carriage... it will take about seven days."
"Too slow."
Higashino Makoto thought for a moment.
"Open the portal immediately; we can't let those Orc eat too much."
"Yes, sir."
Kurumi bowed slightly, a sly glint in her right eye.
"My lord, I have a question."
"Explain."
"You just said that only the most foolish people would completely believe in fate. So, when you rolled dice to decide your destination, didn't that count as completely believing in fate?"
Higashino Makoto was silent for a moment.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because I had already blacked out 'Holy Kingdom,' 'Slane Theocracy,' and 'Elf Kingdom' before rolling the dice."
Higashino Makoto's lips curled up slightly.
"Fate can only choose where I want to go. It has no right to choose where I don't want to go."
Kurumi paused for a moment, then laughed.
The laughter was crisp and ethereal, echoing in the morning breeze.
"Sir, you are really--"
"Chuunibyou?"
"No, he's very handsome."
Higashino Makoto glanced at her but didn't reply.
He turned around and walked towards the carriage.
"Let's go, to the Dragon Kingdom."
"Yes, sir."
Kurumi lifted her skirt and followed behind him.
The black cat "Zafkiel" perched on her shoulder, its golden eyes gleaming in the sunlight.
The carriage slowly started moving in the morning light, the sound of its wheels rolling over the gravel road echoing in the air.
Higashino Makoto leaned back in his chair, eyes closed, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.
The words I had overheard in the tavern earlier flashed through my mind—
Three cities have fallen.
"The entire city has been eaten."
The Slane Theocracy cannot send reinforcements.
"A drop in the ocean for a steel-level adventurer."
He opened his eyes, his dark eyes staring at the roof of the car.
"Dragon Kingdom... Draudillon Auriclus... Black-Scaled Dragon Lord... One-eighth of the True Dragon Lords bloodline..."
He read the names and information aloud in a low voice, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Interesting."
Kurumi sat opposite him, holding the book in her hands, but her right eye wasn't looking at the pages; instead, it was fixed on Higashino Makoto.
"Grown ups."
"Um."
What are you laughing at?
I'm thinking--
Higashino Makoto paused.
"Why would a queen with the blood of True Dragon Lords hide in a human country and live like a little girl?"
He didn't know much about the Dragon Kingdom; it was only mentioned briefly in the novels of his previous life.
The only thing I remember is that she was one of the three women hated by the Bloody Emperor.
Kurumi tilted her head.
"Perhaps she has her reasons."
"Maybe."
Higashino Makoto nodded.
"So I'm going to ask her."
He closed his eyes and leaned back in the soft chair.
The carriage continued its journey, heading towards the Dragon Kingdom.
Upon arriving at a deserted area, the portal activated, and the carriage passed through it, heading towards the Dragon Kingdom.
The black cat "Zafkiel" curled up on Kurumi's lap, purring softly.
Sunlight streamed in through the gaps in the curtains, casting golden dappled patterns of light into the carriage.
Dragon Kingdom.
A remote and isolated country, constantly harassed by Orc, and almost forgotten by the world.
A queen with the blood of True Dragon Lords, a shrewd and capable prime minister, and an army fighting to the death.
A country on the verge of collapse, teetering on the brink of extinction.
Higashino Makoto opened his eyes and looked out at the sky through the gap in the curtains.
"Orc..."
He uttered the word in a low voice, his tone calm, but a cold glint flashed in his dark eyes.
"Have they become addicted to cannibalism?"
He paused.
"Then let me show you what indigestion really is."
The carriage continued its journey, heading towards the country that was about to be engulfed by war.
Towards those humans who are being treated as food.
Towards that loli queen who possesses one-eighth the bloodline of the True Dragon Lords.
Towards--
In his next "back Garden," there was a flowerbed that needed pruning due to pests.