I, Reincarnate as the Leader of the Villainous Knight Order - Chapter 153: Good Things

Chapter 153: Good Things

The subordinates had suffered abnormal status effects. They were gradually being healed now that the mission to defeat the Evil God had been confirmed successful. While they had been moved to a safe location in the middle of the battle, the removal of their status effects had been postponed until later.

“Justiiin!”

As I was sheathing my sword, Jest came running over.

“Jest, are you hurt anywhere? Any pain?”

“I’m fine! Mom isn’t hurt either!”

“I see. You did great. Jeanne, thank you as well—your support magic helped keep casualties among our troops to a minimum.”

I patted Jest’s head and thanked Jeanne, who had walked over after Jest.

“Hehe, it’s only natural for us to help since we’re your familiars. Besides, helping Kuro was also thanks to you, Master.”

“…Come to think of it, Jeanne, you used to be called ‘Aoi’, and Jest’s father is ‘Kuro’, right? Jest didn’t have a name either. Is it unusual for dragons to have names?”

(Note: Aoi means blue and kuro means black in Japnese.)

“Hmm… technically, we don’t have many dragons to begin with, so there’s no need for names. Also, it’s rare to see two dragons with exactly the same scale color.”

I’d never really considered how many dragons existed in this world. Maybe there weren’t even ten of them.

“Jeanne, do you know how many dragons there are?”

“Hmm… if we don’t include subspecies like wyverns, there should be fewer than twenty, even counting the ancient dragons. Dragons don’t lay eggs easily, after all.”

“Ah, I see. It’s probably due to their long lifespans. But we don’t have time for this now. It seems we’ve healed everyone’s status effects and injuries, so let’s head back to the surface. Third Knight Order, line up behind the First Knight Order!”

With my command, the subordinates who had been on alert at the place where the Evil God disappeared started moving all at once. They’d likely managed to catch their breath while I was speaking with Jeanne. The First Knight Order and the Holy Knights were also forming up, so we took our places in the line as well.

“Whoops…”

As I started to walk, I stumbled, realizing that my legs were shaking. It seemed that only now was the tension finally releasing. Normally, a monster extermination wouldn’t faze me. But this time, it was the final boss of a story—a novel, so to speak. I could finally consider that my own “death flag” had been removed.

“Are you okay, Justin?”

Jest was walking beside me. He looked up at me with concern.

“Yeah. The ground’s a bit rough, so be careful, Jest.”

“Got it!”

With a cheerful reply, Jest naturally took my hand and started pulling me along. Whether or not he noticed my condition, his support steadied me. It allowed me to walk normally again. When we emerged onto the surface, the sun was beginning to set, casting a dim light. We decided to camp here for the night.

“Wow, it’s bright here with all the noble guests using light magic!”

“Well, of course! With the Saintess here, it’d be depressing to be surrounded by only men in this dark forest. Having Jeanne around makes it better than if she were the only woman… Oh, where is Jeanne?”

“I haven’t seen her for a while. Speaking of which, where did Jest go?”

As camp preparations finished and the mouth-watering aroma of cooking spread, Arnault and Simon noticed that the dragon parent and child were nowhere to be seen. They’d stepped away earlier to discuss something, so perhaps their talk wasn’t over yet.

“It’s been a while since Jest reunited with his father, so they probably have a lot to catch up on. They’ll be fine as long as they return before we’re ready to move on.”

“Wait… could it be that the Captain is a little lonely thinking Jest and Jeanne might leave… Forget I said anything.”

Simon grinned as he spoke. But when I shot him a glare, he backed away slowly. It was as if he’d encountered a wild animal. And he disappeared from view.

Honestly, with Jest having reunited with his father, it wouldn’t be surprising if Jest and Jeanne decided to end their familiar contract with me.

……Yes, if that happens, I’ll gladly see them off. It’s better if they can be together as a family. Judging by the earlier interaction, that ancient dragon doesn’t seem inclined to form a familiar contract with me. And without such a bond, I can’t very well bring an unbound dragon into the royal capital.

After dinner, when it was time to sleep, Jeanne and Jest finally returned. However, it seemed their conversation wasn’t quite over yet—I could hear Jeanne’s raised voice, as if she were scolding the ancient dragon.

“I’ve compromised as much as I can! Anything more is just your selfishness! You didn’t even show up when your child was born, so you have no right to demand more from me!”

“It was indeed my fault… but it wasn’t that I didn’t go—I couldn’t go! I was captured by those people!”

It seemed they were in the middle of a heated argument. It’s often said that witnessing parents fighting can be bad for a child’s development. But I wondered if Jest was alright. Just as I started to worry, Jest ran over with a bright smile.

“Jest, is the conversation over?”

“Yep! So, my dad said he wanted to stay with me. But I told him I wanted to be with Justin too. Then, Dad told Mom and me something really great!”

“Something great?”

“Hehe, Mom wants it to be a surprise, so she said it’s still a secret from you, Justin.”

A secret, huh… I guess there might be some kind of summoning artifact……? Whatever it is, it doesn’t look like I’ll be able to ask Jeanne about it right now. With more travel ahead of us tomorrow to get back to the royal capital, Jest and I settled in for an early night’s sleep.