「スノウお嬢様......ご無事で何よりです......。あの化け物が襲撃してきたときには、もうお終いかと思いました......」
イザベラがスノウの許へと駆け寄って涙ぐむ。
「前衛で戦っていたのは、イザベラとあの方々ではありませんか。本当に......無事でよかったです、イザベラ」
「勿体ないお言葉です、お嬢様!」
スノウが俺達の方を向く。
「御二方も、本当にありがとうございました。貴方方は命の恩人です。深く感謝しております。また日を改めて、謝礼の場を設けさせてください」
スノウは俺達の前へと出て、丁寧に頭を下げる。
「お互い様だ。俺とルーチェだけだったら、あの厄介なポタルゲは倒しきれなかった」
〉は、私達を狙い引き起こされたもの。貴方方はそこに巻き込まれただけ......」
「スノウ様、ちゃんと話せたんですね。てっきりアタシ、あがり症なのかと思っちゃってました」
スノウの言葉に、ルーチェが口を挟む。
「あ......ごめんなさい、遮ってしまって。どうぞ、スノウ様」
ルーチェがあわあわと手を振る。
「わ、私、えっと......私......じゃなくて。そ、そう、貴方方は巻き込まれただけで......えっと......」
スノウが顔を赤くして、パクパクと口を開閉する。
「お、お嬢様が喋っていただろうが! なぜ遮った小娘! せ、せっかく、止まらずに話せていたのに!」
イザベラが顔を青くしてスノウの前に出る。
「ごめんなさい、ごめんなさい! ア、アタシ、つい気になってしまって......!」
スノウがそっとイザベラの鎧籠手を掴み、彼女の背後に隠れる。
「お嬢様、大丈夫ですか? ここから立て直せますか?」
イザベラは背を屈めてスノウと顔を合わせ、彼女の肩を手で掴む。
スノウは少し呼吸を整えた後、ちらりと俺達の方へと目をやり、顔をまた赤くして顔を伏せた。
「ごめんなさい、イザベラ......」
ルーチェは気まずげな顔でスノウとイザベラのやり取りを見ていた。
まさか軽々しく口を挟んだがばかりに、こんな結果を招くとは思っていなかったのだろう。
「......しかし、お前達、〈夢の主〉の討伐に慣れているようだったが......何度目だ?」
イザベラがちらりと俺の方を向いて、そう尋ねてきた。
「これで四度目だな」
特に隠す必要はない。
〈天使の玩具箱〉のエンブリオ、〈百足坑道〉のデスアームド、〈嘆きの墓所〉のスカルロード、そして今回の〈幻獣の塔〉のポタルゲで四度目だ。
「よ、四度目だと!? 慣れているとは思っていたが、ここまでか......」
イザベラが頭に手を当てて、息を吐く。
「四度もこのような戦いを......凄い......」
スノウも口を開けて、呆気にとられたように俺とルーチェを見つめていた。
「ま、まぁ、ウチのお嬢様も三度目だがな! ......内の二回はその、二十人近く侯爵家の兵が付いていたが」
「イザベラ......恥ずかしいからやめて」
スノウが小声でイザベラをそう止める。
スノウはハウルロッド侯爵家の次期当主候補筆頭の地位を盤石にするべく、実績作りに奔走している、という話であった。
どうやらその一環らしい。
た、逞しい......。
まぁ、きっとそのくらいの気概でいなければ、ハウルロッド侯爵家の次期当主候補の身としてはやっていけないのかもしれないが。
「あっ......! エルマさん、今回もありましたよぅっ!」
ルーチェがパッと表情を輝かせて、ポタルゲの遺骸へと駆けていく。
ポタルゲの遺骸はマナが分散し、肉体が既にスカスカになっていた。
その中に、一本の大きな金属の大槍が落ちている。
銀色を基調とした槍に、緑で鳥の模様が入っている。
ルーチェが大槍を掲げて俺達の許へと戻って来た。
「これっ! なんだか強そうですよ! ......残念ながらまぁ、槍なんで、アタシもエルマさんも使えないんですけれど」
こんなときでも、きっちりボスドロップを逃さない。
「ドロップアイテム......? 〈夢の主〉からドロップするとは、ラッキーではないか」
俺もルーチェの持ってきた大槍を確認する。
――――――――――――――――――――
【市場価値:四千万ゴルド】
強い風の力を帯びた大槍。
いい武器だが、確かに俺達には扱えない。
不慣れな武器は事故の元だ。
武器スキルが面白いので持っておくのはアリだが、わざわざこの武器と使い分けるような状況はちょっと想像が付かない。
売却用に資産として持っておく、という扱いになるだろう。
しかし、四千万ゴルドは大きい。
「......そういえば、イザベラ。あの〈死神の凶手〉......いくらだったんだ?」
俺は恐る恐ると、イザベラへと尋ねた。
ピーキーでこの世界ではあまり評価されていない、〈燻り狂う牙〉の〈
それに、市場価値で取引してくれるかどうかも、スノウ達次第なのだ。
「物は相談だが、エルマ。この槍を我々に譲り、それでチャラ......というのはどうだ?」
イザベラがそう提案してきた。
「い、いいのか......? あれ、一億ゴルドくらい、下手したらしたんじゃないのか?」
俺の言葉に、ルーチェが顔を真っ青にする。
「ごめんなさい! その......アタシ、吐き出しますから!」
ルーチェが自身の首許を押さえる。
「いや、吐き出せるものではないんだが......」
「不本意ではあるが......お前達は、命の恩人だ。それに我々としても......〈幻獣の塔〉の〈夢の主〉を討伐した、わかりやすい証が欲しいのだ。〈鳥王の槍〉はそれにぴったりだ」
なるほど、アピールに使いたい......ということか。
「そういうことなら......それでいいか、ルーチェ?」
「は、はい! 一億の負債とかになったら、とんでもないですし......!」
......まぁ、物資で補っていいなら、一億ゴルドならどうにかなるんだがな。
この〈幻獣の塔〉で乱獲したグリムリーパーからドロップした、〈
これだけで六千万ゴルド分である。
「......イザベラ、〈鳥王の槍〉は受け取らないことにしましょう」
スノウが口を挟んだ。
「お、お嬢様!? 何故ですか! この槍があれば......!」
「彼らは命の恩人......それに、侯爵家の争いに巻き込んで迷惑を掛けたのです。そこで使ったアイテムの金銭を盾にするわけにはいきませんよ。それに......私達は実績作りに拘泥して、本質を見失っていたかもしれません。まずは、私はもっと......次期当主候補として、実力を磨かなければ」
「し、しかし、次期当主の座を狙い、汚い手を使って来る者達もいます! 今回の騒動も、恐らくはその手のもの......! 綺麗ごとだけではハウルロッド侯爵家は守れませんよ!」
「イザベラ......私、冒険者の真似事や、戦いは、あまり好きではありませんでした。父様の期待に応え、母様の立場を守る......単にその手段としてしか捉えていなかった。でも......後衛として見させていただいた、エルマさんとルーチェさんのお姿......とても格好よかったです。私と同じ年頃で、あそこまで勇敢に戦える人達がいるとは思いませんでした」
「スノウお嬢様......」
「天才だのと持て囃され、実力は充分なのだろうと自惚れていました。一から自分を見直して、鍛え直したいんです。それに......汚い手口を使って来る者程度、実力で跳ね除けられないと、ハウルロッド侯爵家の次期当主は務まらないと思うんです。綺麗言だけでは政治は上手くいかないとはわかっています。でも、私は、実力で認められて次期当主になりたい。その道が決して楽でなくても」
「お嬢様のお覚悟、しかと承りました。確かに恩人から、預けたアイテムの対価を要求しようなど......お嬢様の代弁者として、私の考えが卑屈でした。お嬢様が成長なされたこと、イザベラは嬉しく思います」
イザベラはスノウへと頭を下げた後、俺達の方へと向き直った。
「......ということでだ、エルマ! その大槍、口止め料込みで我々に四千万ゴルドで売ってもらえは......痛い痛い痛いお嬢様!」
スノウがむすっとした表情で、イザベラの鎧の隙間を抓っていた。
"Snow-ojousama....it's good to see you unharmed.... I thought it was the end when that monster attacked us...."
Izabella had tears in her eyes as she rushed to Snow's side.
"It was you, Izabella, and this lady and gentleman that were fighting in the front line. I'm really glad that you are alright, Izabella...."
"I'm unworthy of those words, ojou-sama!"
Snow turned towards us.
"I'm also very thankful for your efforts. You two saved our lives. We deeply appreciate what you did for us. Let us decide on a reward for you another day."
Snow stood in front of us and bowed politely.
"That goes for us too. With only Luce and I, we wouldn't have been able to take down that tricky Podarge just the two of us either."
"That Wandering Lord was aimed at us to begin with. You two simply got caught up in it...."
"Snow-sama, so you can speak properly. I almost thought that you had some kind of social anxiety."
Luce interrupted the speaking Snow.
"Ah....I'm sorry I've cut in like that. Please, continue, Snow-sama."
Luce gestured in consternation.
"I...uhm, I'm...not that. Y-yes, you two only got caught up in....uhmm...."
Snow turned crimson and kept opening and closing her mouth without any sound coming out.
"O-ojou-sama was speaking so smoothly! Why did you cut in like that, little girl! It was going so well too!"
Izabella turned pale and stood in front of Snow.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I-I was just curious....!"
Snow gripped the gauntlet of Izabella's armor, then hid behind her.
"Ojou-sama, are you alright? Will you be fine like this?"
Izabella hunched down to be face-to-face with Snow and put a hand on her shoulder.
After Snow calmed down a bit she took a quick glance at us, but then she blushed heavily and hid her face again.
"I'm sorry, Izabella...."
Luce watched the interaction between Snow and Izabella, feeling awkward.
Who would've thought that just because she cut her off without thinking, it would turn out like this.
"....even so, you two seem to be quite used to fighting Dream Lords.... How many times does this make that you've fought one?"
Izabella asked while glancing our way.
"This is our fourth time."
There is no particular need to hide this.
The Embryo from the Angel's Toybox, the Death Armed from the Centipede Pit, the Skull Lord from the Graveyard of Sorrows, and the Podarge from the Phantasmal Beast Tower here makes four.
"T-the fourth time!? It really looked like you had some experience with it, but that many times...."
Izabella held a hand to her forehead and let out a quick breath.
"Fighting a battle like this four times.... amazing...."
Snow stared at us in open mouthed astonishment.
"W-well, it was my ojou-sama's third time as well! ....although, the other two times there were nearly twenty soldiers of the marquis family present as well."
"Izabella....please stop, it's embarrassing."
Snow tried to stop Izabella in a quiet voice.
The rumor had it that Snow was trying to accumulate some achievements to shore up her position as the number one candidate for the next head of the Howlod Family.
This was apparently part of that.
H-how dependable....
Well, without at least that much determination, it would be hard to keep her position as an heir candidate for the Howlod Family.
"Ah.....! Elma-san, we got one this time as well!"
Luce suddenly changed her expression to a sunny one, then raced to the remains of the Podarge.
The mana making up the remains of the Podarge already dispersed somewhat, making the corpse partially see-through.
Within that, a single large metal spear was lying on the ground.
The spear had a silver color as a base, with a green bird styled pattern as decoration.
Luce held up the large spear as she hurried back to us.
"This here! It looks quite strong! ....sadly it's a spear, so neither Elma-san nor me will be able to use it."
It doesn't miss a boss drop, even in a situation like this.
"A drop item.....? It's quite lucky to have something drop from a Dream Lord."
I also took a look at the status of the spear in Luce's hands.
----------------------------------------
[(Market Value: 40 million gold)] 
A large spear with a strong power of wind imbued in it.
It's a good weapon, but indeed we can't use it.
Using an unfamiliar weapon only leads to accidents.
It may be fine to just keep it because of that interesting weapon Skill, but I can't really imagine a situation where it would be especially useful to have instead.
It will most likely end up as a tradeable asset for the future.
Even so, 40 million gold is a large amount of money.
"....ah, that's right, Izabella. How much was that [Reaper Assassin]....?"
I asked Izabella, dreading the answer.
Even the Skillbook of the [Smoldering Fang of Madness], which was pretty unpopular in this world thanks to its uneven performance, had a 30 million Market Value.
It also depends on the two of them whether they want to trade it at its Market Value.
"That depends, Elma. How about you let us have this spear.....and call it even with that?"
Izabella proposed.
"A-are you okay with that....? That may have been able to get you a 100 million gold, you know?"
Hearing what I said, Luce went chalk white.
"I'm sorry! I....I will throw it back up right away!"
Luce was clenching her own throat.
"That's, not something you can just throw up....."
"Although it wasn't intentional....you two saved our lives. Also....it would be helpful for us to have a straightforward proof that we managed to take down the Dream Lord of the Phantasmal Beast Tower. The Spear of the Bird King would be perfect for that."
I see...So they want to use it to boost their acclaim.
"If that's the case, then....are you fine with that, Luce?"
"Y-yes! It would be terrible to fall into a 100 million gold debt otherwise....!"
....well, if they would accept other items as well, then we could cover that 100 million gold somehow.
We still have the four Soul Reaper Scythe that dropped instead of what we wanted from farming Grim Reapers in this Phantasmal Beast Tower.
Those by themselves are worth 60 million gold.
".....Izabella, let's not accept that Spear of the Bird King."
Snow interjected.
"O-ojou-sama!? Why! If we had this spear, then....!"
"They saved our lives.... even though we got them mixed up in our succession matters. We can't hold the value of an item they used to do that over their head like this. Also....we might've focused too much on pursuing fame and forgot what's truly important. First, I need to....be more prepared as an heir candidate."
"B-but there are others that would use underhanded means to become the next Lord! This incident must've been perpetrated by one of them as well....! We can't protect the Howlod Family with just naive words!"
"Izabella....I did not like acting and fighting like an adventurer. I simply thought that I couldn't do anything else to gain father's approval and ensure mother's position. However....the sight of Elma-san and Luce-san fighting I saw from the back line....it was very awe-inspiring. I wouldn't have thought that people the same age as me would be able to bravely fight like that."
"Snow-ojousama....."
"I was praised as a prodigy, so I was vain enough to think of myself as strong enough. I want to rethink my life and re-train myself from the ground up. Also, if I can't fend off the underhanded methods of others with sheer strength, then I won't be able to serve as the next head of the Howlod Family in my opinion. I know that I can't get by with only some naive words. Even so, I want to become the next head of the family by getting my prowess recognized. Even if it won't be easy by any means."
"I witnessed ojou-sama's resolve. Indeed, as a representative of ojou-sama, trying to hold the value of the item we provided over the head of our saviors like that....it was too ignoble of me. I'm very happy to see your growth, ojou-sama."
After Izabella bowed to Snow, she turned to our direction.
"....so this is how it is, Elma! You should sell us that spear for 40 million gold, hush money included- ouch ouch ouch, that hurts ojou-sama!"
Snow kept pinching Izabella through a gap in her armor with a sullen expression.
The Reincarnated Heavy Knight Who Was Exiled After A Supposed Big Miss Is Unparalleled With His Game Knowledge
大ハズレだと追放された転生重騎士はゲーム知識で無双する
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/the-reincarnated-heavy-knight-who-was-exiled-after-a-supposed-big-miss-is-unparalleled-with-his-game-knowledge/
Action Adventure Fantasy Romance Shounen
Abandoned Children Adapted to Manga Adventurers Alchemy Arrogant Characters Artifacts Blacksmith Calm Protagonist Clever Protagonist Determined Protagonist Dungeons Fallen Nobility Fantasy World Game Elements Guilds Hot-blooded Protagonist Level System Love Interest Falls in Love First Lucky Protagonist Male Protagonist Mystery Solving Naive Protagonist Nobles Poor to Rich Previous Life Talent Reincarnated in a Game World Romantic Subplot Skill Books Strategic Battles Strong Love Interests Strong to Stronger Sword Wielder Underestimated Protagonist Weak to Strong
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n8465gx/
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