Chapter 265: A Chance Encounter with the Strongest A-Rank Knight

We reunited with Iferaski and the others who had been waiting in a corner of the front garden.

"Oh. You waited quietly. Good girl, good girl."

I stroked Iferaski’s head. Iferaski narrowed her eyes happily.

Then the surrounding mob knights started talking behind our backs.

"Hahahaha. As expected of Iria the beastman protector. Her attendants are riding dim-looking horse girls and the like."

"Look. There isn’t a single proper horse among them."

"Truly. Can’t they even buy a warhorse? That one’s armor is rusted, isn’t it?"

Damn it.

They’re looking down on us!

The only one allowed to call Iferaski dim-looking is me, who knows her fellatio face!

Normally she’s just cute, right!

Don’t knights value courtesy?

How can they say such worthless things.

Because they’re three-digit Battle Power small fries, are they so busy training their swords that they haven’t trained their hearts?

"Hey, Iria. Can I punch those guys at a speed invisible to the eye?"

"Don’t worry about it. The fact that we are not riding horses is true."

"Well, that’s certainly true."

Uman-ko, uman-ko, wind magic, capybara horse, capybara horse, after all.

It is a fact that we are a peculiar group.

"But you know. In times like this, since we were insulted, shouldn’t Iria challenge them to a duel for the honor of a knight?"

"Well, that’s true. But there’s no point in fighting people who aren’t worth dueling. The reason they are so mentally immature like that is probably because they have little experience appearing in social settings. In other words, both the military achievements they’ve raised and their family lineage are nothing much."

Saying that, Iria calmly mounted Ranjou and started walking.

As expected of a knight-sama. Her mental age seems higher than mine.

I also decided to mount Iferaski. Lately I’ve gotten used to it, so I no longer need Iferaski to squat. I placed my hands on her shoulders from behind and hopped on with a feeling like failing a vaulting box.

Duran also magnificently and lightly mounted Kaka.

Steisan, unaccustomed to armor, used fox power to float and fuwaaa moved to mount. This was also the reason we had set her skill as "Floating."

Now then, shall we go.

"Hm? Iferaski, what’s wrong?"

She won’t start walking. Is she angry? In a bad mood?

"Come on. Don’t worry about it."

I released the crotch portion of the golden armor, flipped up the long robe, and transmitted body heat by touching her with bare skin, thereby calming Iferaski. I am definitely not sexually harassing her by pressing my cock against the nape of her neck.

Then Iferaski started walking, though it felt reluctant.

This is good.

I’m happy that my cock is warming up, and Iferaski should also be able to feel that she is carrying me rather than the armor.

"Look at those guys’ shields. What’s with that uncool crest."

"And that knight’s helmet and shoulder ornaments. They’re just like fox tails."

"I swear by my beloved, the most peculiar of all is those horse-like rare beasts. What are those two ugly-looking creatures."

Ah.

Those guys mocked the capybara shields, Esty-san’s tails, and Kaka-Pipi.

All of those are Lucia’s favorites.

I’ll move at a speed invisible to the eye, break their armor, and shove stones up their asses.

Just as I thought that and was about to dismount from Iferaski—

"Masaharu, look. Those are the kind of people to whom we should pay respect."

"Eh? Is that okay, that?"

The wall covering the church’s front garden had been a blind spot so we couldn’t see, but once we took one step out into the alley, there were five large dragons right beside us.

They weren’t as massive as Lucia, but they were a size larger than elephants.

When I looked up at the lead dragon, a knight in black armor was riding it. The contrast with the dragons distorted the sense of scale, but wasn’t his height two meters? Is he human?

Ah. The reason Iferaski hadn’t started walking was because she was frightened by the presence of the dragons.

"He is the captain of the Black Dragon Order, Dragnov Advel. An A-rank number one knight, and this country’s strongest knight. To call him, many words are unnecessary. Simply saying ’the strongest’ is enough."

Iria moved Ranjou to the edge of the alley to give way, so I followed. Duran and the others likewise gave way.

"Marquis Dragnov. It has been a long time."

"Hm? Ohh. Iria. I didn’t notice because you’re small."

A loud voice matching his physique. It was enough that I had the illusion my helmet guwan shook. There was no insidious color in his tone; it was refreshing.

Zudan!

Dragnov jumped down from the dragon’s torso. As expected his height exceeded two meters.

He was only a head shorter than Iria sitting on Ranjou’s shoulder.

"When the other party is you, greeting from atop a dragon is discourteous. Ohh, wait wait, you don’t dismount. I won’t blame you for being on a horse girl’s shoulder. If you stood on the ground I would have to look down at you. I’m always looking down at people. My shoulders get stiff."

"I can well imagine how you feel. Then, from atop our mounts."

"Um. That is fine. For a lady is something that should be looked up to."

Both Gish earlier and this Dragnov—first-rate knights pay respect to Iria. I see. Certainly, they are the ones who are ’knights.’

Ah.

Battle Power 9,800. As expected of the country’s strongest knight. So this is the person whose value alone was outstanding. I should have measured while he was riding the dragon. The dragons’ Battle Power is 3,700. If the total value doubled from synergistic effect, that would be 27,000.

"Ah!"

Dragnov kissed Iria’s hand.

Gununu... It might be a greeting of this world, but touching my Iria.

Gunununu. Iria herself held her hand out in a low position, so I’m not in a position to complain, but gunuu. Gunuu!

The two of them only exchanged a few words, so I didn’t need to be any more jealous.

Dragnov lightly leaped onto the dragon’s back. The Battle Power became a value of 30,000.

That greatly exceeds normal Masaharu’s 20,000...

While zushin, zushin shaking the ground, the five dragons and about ten small dragons advanced.

We proceeded along the edge of the alley so as not to be stepped on.

Incidentally, when passing it generally seems to be the value that superiors walk in the center and inferiors walk at the edge, but depending on time and place it reverses.

In medieval European cities where they threw shit out the windows, superiors walked in places without shit and inferiors walked in places with shit.

In medieval Europe, depending on the city they sloped the alleys so that shit would be washed away by rain. Some alley slopes were made to collect shit in the center, and some were made to flow shit to both edges.

Therefore, in alleys that collect shit in the center, the higher-status people walk at the edges of the alley and the lower-status people walk in the center.

The place we are in now is an alley that is low in the center. Therefore, even if we are walking at the edge, there is nothing particular to worry about. Even if it looks like we are sneaking around, we are moving in the positions for high-status people.

Well, it’s simply that the dragons’ massive bodies have no choice but to walk in the center of the alley, so it inevitably became this way.

"How was it. The ’strongest’ seen up close."

"Ah. To be honest, I don’t feel I can win if magic is sealed. Without the golden armor I probably wouldn’t have been able to do a thing..."

It was good that the timing of the encounter was now. If I had only been Wind-Pressure Masturbation Masaharu, I feel I truly wouldn’t have been able to win no matter what I did.

I think I can win if I use magic, but unlike with monsters, I don’t have the guts to kill people.

Because our business was finished we decided to disband for the time being.

Esty-san went to do business, and Dura-san would look after the free members at the bus carriage and take care of Mirai-chan.

Iria and I decided to go greet Ana, who was probably staying inside the city. Gish having said that Ana’s condition was strange is a little concerning.

Fullru, upon learning our purpose, said "I’ll return to everyone" and went back together with Dura-san. I was happy that she said "to everyone" and "return."

Little by little a sense of camaraderie is budding.