Chapter 5, part 2

“That was fun.” Lutz sat down in the plush carriage seat. “Well worth the trip, both for the kids and for us.”

“I had the most fun!” Teflyn plopped down across from him.

“I didn't know we were competing to see who could enjoy themselves more.”

“Now you know. But it's too late because I won.”

“Hmph.” Lutz took on a wise expression. “As an adult, I have to temper myself a bit so that children like you can have more fun.”

“What!? I'm not a child! I'm an adult, too!”

“I'll believe that when you act like one.”

“Grrr! I'll show you next time!”

Mia fixed the slight wrinkles in her dress from sitting down. “You didn't seem like much of an adult when competing against Teflyn to be the first out of the carriage.”

Lutz’s wise expression faded. “To think my own actions would come back to bite me…”

“Hahaha!” Teflyn pointed as she laughed. “Got you, got you~”

“Fight your own battles next time, you useless oni.”

“I'm not useless! Especially in battle!” Teflyn looked around. “And I wanna fight! I'm bored!”

“You just got through playing. Didn't you burn off your excess energy already?”

“No!”

Lutz sighed. “This is why kids are…”

“Duel!” Teflyn was looking right at Lutz this time. “Battle! Kishin!”

“You wanna duel me? Well, I don't mind. I could use the exercise, too.”

“When we get back to the castle, we're fighting!”

“Hold on a minute. We've got to talk with Lucian and the others first to see how the meeting with Archmage Vera went.”

“Ehhhh…” Teflyn made a pouting face. “That sounds boring.”

“It's the slow moments in life that make the fun ones stand out even more. And it certainly won't be boring for everyone.” Lutz eyed the young princess.

Mia nodded at the implication. “I'm very interested to hear about it.”

Teflyn leaned back into her seat cushion. “Okaaaaay. But after that!”

The carriage rolled onwards, taking the same route it used when heading toward the orphanage.

As one would expect for a princess who was out in the city, there were many guards protecting her on the trip. Lucian would spare no expense when it came to keeping her safe.

Even if the royal guardsmen weren't enough of a hint as to who was inside, the royal heraldry would certainly fill in the blanks for the more oblivious citizens. That made travel through the city a quick endeavor, as even noble carriages would give way to Mia's.

Although clearly announcing the presence of a royal was convenient in many ways, it also came with a few downsides. Nefarious groups of criminals or spies would be just as aware, allowing them to target the carriage and capture a member of the royal family.

However, even if such a group were to successfully kidnap her and ransom her back to Lucian, such an action would be equivalent to suicide. There was no way any royal family would let such an offense slide, after all.

Since Lucian and Mia had cleaned the city of the most powerful criminal organizations, the chances of any of them being bold enough to target the carriage had dropped dramatically. It was a nice side benefit for their tough on crime policies.

But there was another threat, even more dangerous than a greedy criminal. Some people didn't care about coin, or even their own life.

Some people just wanted revenge.

“Hmm…” Lutz checked the [Minimap] in the corner of his vision.

“What is it?” Mia picked up on his subtle change of demeanor.

“Nothing major. Just a suspicious group gathering on the road ahead, probably getting ready to ambush us.”

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Mia’s eyes widened just a bit, a rare display of emotion for her. “How is that not major?”

“Because even if they outnumber your guards, they're not as well equipped or as experienced in combat. Plus, Lucian sent several white hairs with us, so our combat power is far higher, no matter how you look at it.”

“And me!” Teflyn stood. “The Goddess answered my prayer for battle!”

“And you, of course. But wouldn't it be best to stay and guard Mia instead of rushing off to battle?”

“They can't threaten her if they're dead!”

“Well, you have a point.” Lutz relaxed back into his seat. “Have fun.”

“Yeah!”

“Divine power, grant Teflyn a kishin’s strength.” Mia chanted a spell, which flowed into the oni.

“Thanks, Mia! I'm going to go beat them up now!”

Teflyn dashed out the carriage door even faster than when she and Lutz were competing to be the first out at the orphanage. Battle always excited her, even more so than a chance to play.

Mia watched her go but didn't make any other moves besides sliding over to the far edge of the seat, away from the window.

She knew that Teflyn would inform the guards of the approaching danger, so there wasn't anything for the young princess to do but wait.

“Nervous?” Lutz asked.

“It's not my first time being in danger.”

“True, there was that time soldiers attacked the castle to free your uncle. Though back then, you weren't the target. This time, you are.”

Mia looked to the window. “I'm sure the guards can handle them, especially with Teflyn's help.”

“Agreed. I can judge a person's strength pretty accurately, though the way people in this world acquire power is different, making it a bit harder when using my usual techniques. Still, it's obvious that the criminals don't stand a chance in a frontal assault.”

“Then why are they attacking? Do they have a death wish?”

“I doubt they plan to die a useless death, which is exactly why you should be careful. When the enemy's plan seems illogical, it's usually because there's missing information. In those cases, it's best to have countermeasures.”

Mia turned to the door, as if planning an escape route in case of an emergency. “I'm not trained for battle, so if it comes down to it, all I can do is flee.”

“That's certainly a valid option. The best option, I'd say. Though it'd be nice if you had at least some combat training. There's no guarantee you'll be able to run if you get attacked, so being able to fend off an assailant, even for a few seconds, could be the difference between life and death.”

“Yes…” She looked back to Lutz. “Perhaps I'll speak to Lucian about it when we get back.”

A horn bellowed through the street, followed by the shouting of men and the clashing of steel. The battle with the band of criminals had begun.

But despite the fighting, the inside of the carriage was still rather peaceful. The only signs of distress were Mia's frequent glances to the window. She desired to look outside to see how the battle was going, but she knew it would be useless.

The window faced the buildings on the side of the road, while the fighting was taking place ahead of them. She wouldn't have line of sight.

Plus, exposing her face would be dangerous, as it could draw the attention of any potential threats that may have been lurking nearby.

So, she simply waited. That was all she could do.

“Ah.” Lutz made a small noise.

“What is it?”

“I just had my suspicions confirmed.” He also took a glance at the window. “They weren't random citizens, after all.”

“Who are you talkin–”

Mia's words were interrupted by another round of shouting. But unlike the distant sounds of battle ahead of the carriage, the new yells were closer.

Much closer.

“O-outside the window!?” Mia stood from her seat.

The shrill noise of metal on metal grated on her ears, loud enough to send a wave of fear coursing through her. Guards and criminals both fought, the thin carriage wall being the only thing that separated her from the deadly battle.

But that wall had an obvious weakness.

The shouting and clanking of metal were drowned out by an ear-shattering crash as something big and heavy smashed through the window. Shards of glass sprayed inward, covering the ornate interior with their sharp, glittering edges.

The man who burst through was already injured, his face covered in blood from more than just the glass he broke through.

“You damn king…!” His eyes fell on Lutz.

In a flash, the assassin realized that the young man with brown hair and a neutral expression wasn't the king he expected to find. So, he turned his attention towards the other occupant, Mia.

The glass wasn't the only thing reflecting the light that spilled in from outside. The dagger in the man's hand did so too, with much more dramatic effect.

“I'll kill you, too!” His hand blurred.

“A-ah…!” Mia stood frozen, unable to catch up to the series of sudden events.

The tip of the dagger closed in on Mia, aimed right at her throat.

It struck flesh, as it was designed to do. With the force of the man's leap and the sharpness of the tip, even an enhanced warrior wouldn't be able to shrug off such an attack, much less a young and inexperienced princess.

Yet despite hitting flesh, the dagger couldn't even leave a scratch.

“You forgot to knock.” Lutz kept his arm outstretched, the back of his hand blocking the dagger. “That's rude, you know.”

“W-what is…!”

The man's momentum has been halted. In fact, he wasn't moving at all, despite still being in mid-air from his leap through the window.

“How about going back outside and trying again. And this time, don't forget to knock.”

“Gah!?”

His momentum suddenly began again. But now, it was reversed.

He flew back out the window he came in, disappearing from view once the curtain settled back into place.

Lutz lowered his arm without even checking to see if he was bleeding. Because he knew without a doubt that such a weak attack couldn't even slice a single hair from his body.

“Ah…” Mia finally caught up to what happened, looking at Lutz with a strange gaze.

He shrugged. “People these days just don't have any manners.”

“I … I guess not?”

“Then you guess correctly. But forget about that rude man. You can take a seat again, if you want.”

Mia looked at the carriage seat. Only then did she realize that not a single shard of glass had landed on it, nor on her.

Finally regaining her composure, she sat back down. “I thought you said you couldn't fight our battles.”

“I can't. But if it's just teaching a rude person a lesson, then it's fine.”

“I see.” A hint of a smile reached Mia's lips, despite the sounds of battle still raging outside. “And thank you.”

As expected, the ambush was easily dealt with by Teflyn and the guards.

As for Mia…

He's even stronger than I thought. Just what kind of magic did he use? And he didn't even chant.

I should speak to my brother about getting some basic combat training.

Or maybe…

…Lutz would be willing to teach me.