Chapter 11

If asked what formal attire means for an adventurer, I would respond:

It’s the clothes you wear on an adventure.

I know the dress code, and of course, I wear such clothes in those kinds of establishments.

However, if I’m going to a place to be honored as an adventurer, I’ll go dressed as an adventurer.

Adventurers and imperial nobles don’t live in the same world, but they do coexist.

It’s not good to be too humble.

It’s hard to get fellow adventurers to understand this.

The letter I received from the princess had a date written on it, and I arrived at the imperial castle on that date.

My only weapon is the Heavenly Sword, which is also my symbol. Normally, bringing weapons when meeting with royalty is prohibited, but I am allowed. My contributions to the country are different, after all.

I’ve saved the princess’s life several times. It would be foolish to lose the life I saved with my own hands.

I show the letter from the princess to the gatekeeper of the imperial castle and am let through.

The gatekeeper is a knight in full plate armor, slow-moving but much tougher than large monsters.

The armor is mixed with metals that are highly resistant to magic, so it won’t fall even to large-scale magic.

If I were to fight? Even if I’m strong, it’s troublesome, so I’d leave it alone. It’s best not to fight a good tank.

A soldier leads the way to guide me.

He’s a young soldier, but I can tell he’s well-trained. The empire is indeed a strong nation.

It’s important to be in a good country that continues to develop if you want to continue being an adventurer.

The soldier, having seen me on the battlefield, strikes up a conversation in between.

I don’t intend to be rude, so I engage with him.

When we arrive at the reception room, the soldier leaves.

I suppress my slightly impatient feelings and knock on the door of the reception room.

The one who opens the door is a maid with long hair. She must be the princess’s personal maid.

“Please come this way.”

I’m led by the maid into the reception room. Is this my second time here…?

The last time was when I was called the Sky Knight. Those fools went mad and summoned an angel, and the princess got involved, resulting in me having to save her.

It’s been three years since then… I don’t want to remember it. Even I’ve had enough. Those madmen have gone to hell. I calmed the trembling Heavenly Sword by holding its hilt.

The reception room is quite spacious. At the back sits the princess, with a butler standing by. There are several knights guarding the walls.

“Ah, I’m glad you could come, Sky Knight. You did well on the recent dragon subjugation.”

Her voice rings clear as a bell. She has long blue hair and a well-kept appearance. Her gaze is a bit stern, but it suits her well.

She is Sanarie Ariez, the eldest daughter of the current Emperor of the Ariez Empire and second in line for succession.

She’s our, no, my biggest client. Her demands are quite high, though.

“I’m always saved by you. I’m grateful.”

I sit down in the chair as prompted, and the maid pours tea. I drink it down in one gulp. It’s rude, but I didn’t come here to enjoy tea. The maid immediately refills it.

“That’s good to hear, Your Highness. I’ve received a reward that matches it.”

“Originally, another party was supposed to handle it, but they said it would take two years. I thought you guys could do it.”

It would normally take that long. We’re only three people, so we have to do it all at once. There’s no point in telling that to the princess… I’m getting extra for the request fee, after all.

“I wanted to honor everyone, but the other two have retired from adventuring, haven’t they? Didn’t you think about it too? I’m glad you’re continuing, though.”

“They’ve reached their peak. I haven’t yet. That’s all.”

“I see. …It’s a life-risking job. There’s a feeling that only you adventurers understand. I’ll arrange conveniences for those two elsewhere, but for you, who have been useful to me, I will bestow this. Take it.”

The princess has a knight bring over a package from the side of the wall.

When I receive the package from the knight and unwrap it…

What comes out is… a metal plate with the sheen of a rainbow.

“I wasn’t sure what to give you, but you’re a man who has reached the pinnacle as an adventurer. Anything that can be bought with money can be managed somehow. That’s why I chose this. This is something not even royalty can freely obtain.”

What the princess holds is a supreme metal.

Harder than Damascus steel, yet without brittleness.

More efficient in magic power and lighter than orichalcum.

Unobtainium. A metal said to exist only at the center of the world.

It’s difficult even to encounter the specific golems that drop it, or a very small amount is mined from coal mines each year, but this is my first time seeing the real thing.

It’s so rare that countries completely control and keep it secret everywhere.

It has that much value, rarity, and power.

If I mix this metal and make even just a pair of gauntlets, they would never shatter, and most magic would bounce off. There isn’t enough to make a weapon, but I can update my equipment.

“You, as an adventurer of your caliber, should understand the meaning of passing this on. I’m relying on you.”

She’s a troublesome client. But worth dealing with.

By the way, if I sold this metal, I could live in luxury for seven generations. But I’d undoubtedly be caught by the princess in front of me. The charge would probably be for irreverence, I guess.