Avalon's Dungeon

　Under the guidance of a soldier from the fort, Alexis and the others rushed to the forest along the Sagrado border, where there was a report of a sighting.

　There they found a fallen female knight, all alone and with wounds all over her body.

「...Valencia!?」

　It was the worst reunion ever.

　Alexis and the others immediately rushed to her, but a soldier came after them.

「Do you know her?」

「Yes, I know her. Her breath—」

　He crouched down and flipped her onto her back, and quickly inspected Valencia's body. Her eyes are closed and she is unconscious. Her body is covered with armor and covered with scars from the battle.

　For a moment, the worst possible situation crosses his mind, but he breathes a sigh of relief.

「...She seems to be alive. But this girl still has a lot of bad luck, doesn't she?」

　As was the case when she remained in the dungeon by herself, she must have toughness despite being a crybaby.

「Let's have the medical officer at the fortress take care of her right away.」

　The soldier said and Alexis nodded his head in agreement.

　He picked her up and stood up.

「I'm sorry, but please take care of her. We're going after the reported monster. Probably the ones she missed. Though, I don't know how many of them there were originally...」

　Still, should he say that she is lucky that she missed two of them, or should he scold her for being a fool to challenge them alone, even though she is the leader of the group? Anyway, he can think about that when she regains consciousness.

　"Let's go, Maria, Eden," He looks back at the two he has brought with him.

　Maria and Eden are now equipped as Conjurer and Guardian, respectively, as is Alexis, who is wearing the armor of the Avalon conquest.

「Of course, we'd better hurry!」

　Maria nodded, wearing a robe and holding a staff.

　Eden, in full armor, also nodded under her helmet, "...hmm."

　Now, leaving Valencia's body in the care of the soldiers, Alexis and the others go on to the next level.

　But then, what should he say to her when she wakes up? Alexis wondered.

* * *

　It was almost dark by the time they went to the fort after finding and defeating the two monsters according to the information.

「Oh, you've finally arrived!」

　A man who looked like the captain of this fortress, who was waiting for them at the door, comes running toward them.

　When he stopped in front of them, he saluted with a neat salute.

「I've heard about you, Conqueror-dono. So, what happened to the monsters?」

「We killed them all.」

　When Alexis answered, the soldiers in the room were excited.

「How could you three manage to kill such a horrifying creature? It's just as people say!」

「You've conquered the dungeon, indeed!」

　There's no time to waste in dealing with their fussing. So, Alexis interrupts them.

「But more importantly, where are the others whom I've entrusted to you?」

　The captain nodded his head in a good mood.

「Yes, she's quite impressive for such a young woman. The medical officer said it would be three days before she woke up, but she is already awake.」

「Thank you. Will you show us the way?」

「Yes, of course. This way.」

　Alexis and the others were guided by the captain and allowed to enter the fort.

　In the corner of the first floor, there was a row of simple rooms for the guests, and Valencia seemed to be receiving treatment in one of them.

　When he opened the door and entered the room, they found a female medical officer wearing a white robe in front of a narrow and simple bed.

　Valencia was lying on the bed. She seems to have been made to wear a simple, loose-fitting cotton dress instead of armor.

　She was sitting with the cushion on the headboard of the bed as a backrest, and her eyes widened when she saw the group.

　One moment she seemed to be happy to see them again, but the next moment she turned pale and looked like she was going to cry.

「I-I'm sorry! I violated your order...」

　Her large blue eyes, still wide open, are filled with tears.

「Oh, I see, I'm glad you were aware of that」

　Leaving Maria and Eden waiting for him just inside the entrance, Alexis himself stepped closer to Valencia.

「I believe I told you not to be in the front line since you became the leader of the group?」

　He asked her smilingly, and she shivered.

「Yes. But I, I couldn't stand to just watch...」

「That's not your first time, is it? How long have you been doing this?」

「Well... U-Uhh... I've been doing this for about a week since I was appointed, but I've been patient, haven't I?」

　Valencia turns downward and glances at Alexis.

　Alexis probably did not expect such a thing to happen to a female knight who is so brave and daring as to challenge demons by herself and who even owns the Commander's Medal. But then he noticed that even the medical officer standing beside him was bloodless and trembling.

「...Hey, don't be too scared. Aren't you beginning to think I'm some kind of a scary tyrant?」

　Suddenly realizing what's happening, he exclaims.

「Hey, you. You're not afraid of me at all, are you?」

　Seeing this, Maria smiles, and Eden nods her head.

「Eh?」

　Meanwhile, the medical officer shrugged, as if feeling silently pressured into saying something.

「Ugh, my word, that's counterproductive...!」

　It made Alexis want to hold his head with his hands.

「Anyway, I need to talk to Valencia. Can I ask you to leave the room? And don't be afraid of me, okay?」

「O-O-Of course, Conqueror-sama!」

　The medical office replied in a reverse voice.

　Looking at the medical officer who left the room, Alexis felt very uneasy.

　He wonders if this country is safe...

　As he was thinking so, Maria spoke to him with a wry smile.

「Prince-sama. If you want, I can clear up the misunderstanding beforehand.」

「That would be great, but are you okay with a man?」

「Don't get me wrong. No one said anything about talking to men!」

　After she answered clearly, Alexis asks, "In other words, it would be better if you talk to the man before he says something to you, right?" She answered, "Yes, that's right."

　Still, the medical officer was a woman. Maria's communication skills should not be a problem when she is talking to a woman.

　Eden, who had been silent next to her, opened her mouth.

「Do you want me to do it?」

「No...I'll leave it to Maria. You can stand at the door if you want.」

「Mm-hmm.」

　She nodded her head in agreement without saying much, and it made Alexis realize that she was right.

　He knew he couldn't ask Eden to do that.

　Thus, Eden remained like an ornament by the door.

　On the other hand, Maria says "I'm off" and leaves the room.

　After seeing her aide off, Alexis looks back at the healed knight.

　Her hands and feet, except for her outfit, are tightly bandaged. Looking at her, a sigh naturally escapes his lips.

「Still, oh gosh... you are such a...」

　When he turned his eyes to her in exasperation, she trembled.

「I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Alexis-sama!」

　She bows her head with a face like she is about to cry.

　But then, Alexis touches her golden hair.

「I'm disappointed that you violated the order, but you've managed to get down to the last two. I commend you for getting that far on your own, and for being honest with me like this.」

　He patted her on the head, and she looked up.

「Ah—」

　She looked at him with tear-stained eyes.

　She must have been expecting him to be angrier.

「Well, we got rid of the rest of the monsters, so there's no damage. You did good, Valencia.」

　Her expression relaxes, and when he gives her a pat, her face blossoms into a flower.

「Alexis-sama. I-I'm. I'm glad to be alive. I thought I'd never see you again. Alexis-sama!」

　Her body is soft and thin and feminine for a knight.

　But Alexis gently hugs her body and wipe the tears from her cheeks.

「Really...」

　He's stunned, but he's not angry at her, thinking that she just wanted to be useful.

「...By the way, how many monsters did you fight in the end?」

「Yes, Alexis-sama. There were eight!」

　Valencia's cheeks twisted up as she answered cheerfully.

「Ah, ouchhhh! It hurts, Alexis-samaaaa!?」

「You idiot! Oh gosh! Who would challenge them alone knowing there are 8 of them? You're so stupid!」

　Alexis couldn't help but yell at her. But at this, Valencia said, "I thought you'd forgiven me!" and started to cry. Seeing this, he could only sigh.