I am Cyril Sutherland, the commander of the First Knight Regiment.
Furthermore, since I inherited the dukedom from my father at the age of 17, ten years ago, I am also known as Duke Sutherland.
My father was the younger brother of the previous king, so I have been granted the right to succeed to the throne, ranking second after Chancellor Savis.
Perhaps because of this, I am sometimes referred to along with the commander of the Second Knight Regiment, Desmond, as the "Dragon and Tiger of the Kingdom." When called individually, Desmond is the "Tiger of the Kingdom," and I am the "Dragon of the Kingdom." I find this extremely unpleasant.
After all, the dragon is the emblem of the royal family, and it is sometimes used to refer to the king. No matter how much I have been granted a higher right to succeed to the throne, this is an extreme act of disrespect.
Seeing my anger, Chancellor Savis, without changing his expression, said, "For example, if you were to become the crown prince, being called a dragon would not seem out of place."
There are things in this world that cannot be changed, no matter how much ability one has or how much effort one puts in.
Ten years ago, when the Chancellor lost his right eye and his emotions, I was made acutely aware of this. I was right next to the Chancellor, yet I could do nothing.
Since that day, I have become the Chancellor's right eye.
As the Chancellor's right eye, I have seen what should be seen and eliminated everything that should not be seen. On the battlefield, I always stand on the Chancellor's right side and work as his right eye.
I have dedicated everything to the kingdom. There is nothing I should spare for the next king, this person.
◇◇◇
That day, I went to a nearby forest with the Chancellor in the afternoon. Since it is a forest where monsters appear, we brought 50 guards as a precaution.
The Chancellor regularly wields his sword.
Although he wields his sword daily at the training ground within the castle, he also desires regular combat.
It seems to be a way to release pent-up frustration by moving his body, or perhaps he seeks further strength through repeated combat. Or, when he is troubled or uncertain, he may use the sword to organize his thoughts.
That day, we defeated about 10 monsters in two hours.
All of them were C-rank or lower, and the Chancellor almost single-handedly defeated them, as usual.
I watched as he lightly swung his sword to shake off the monster blood that had adhered to it, hoping that this would help him feel a bit more relieved.
It was then that I heard the sound of a rescue whistle nearby.
This sound is from a specialized whistle used by the knights, and this forest is under the jurisdiction of the Sixth Knight Regiment. The use of a rescue whistle suggests that something unexpected has happened...
I advised the Chancellor, who was about to take the lead, and we followed the sound of the whistle. As expected, we encountered a squad from the Sixth Knight Regiment.
...Well, what is this?
As I grasped the situation on the spot, I stood still for a moment. This is something that should never happen on the battlefield.
There is a Flowerhorn Deer, a B-rank monster that usually resides deep in the forest. It is a rare sight, but that's fine.
However, the fact that a new recruit from the First Knight Regiment is sitting in the center of the scene, directing this battle... What is going on?
When I called out, the new recruit turned around first.
"Commander Cyril! It's a Flowerhorn Deer. It is completely surrounded, so there is no worry of it escaping for now. It has 450 vitality, and its remaining vitality is 85%. In 7 seconds, it will turn its eyes blue, and the flames will disappear!"
"Hmm..."
I was raised with strict discipline from a young age, especially in terms of speech. I was repeatedly taught to speak clearly so that the listener could understand correctly, and I have practiced this.
I think this is the first time since I became aware of myself that I have spoken such a vague and meaningless word...
...Originally, the Flowerhorn Deer is a native species of this forest. Its characteristics are not widely known, so why is Fia so knowledgeable? And why can she quantify the monster's vitality? I have never heard of quantifying a monster's vitality, so I don't even know if it is correct or not. The same goes for the remaining vitality.
Furthermore, the difficult part of fighting this monster is that it is hard to predict when its eyes will change from red to blue. Is my knowledge lacking?
"Fia... I am more concerned about you than the monster."
I said this with a deep sense of fatigue, but the young knight in front of me smiled happily.
"Thank you, Commander! I am also full of thoughts about such a wonderful commander!"
No, you don't understand...
I felt tired but positioned myself on the right side of the Chancellor's planned position, as usual. At the same time, the Chancellor stood in front of the monster.
"Huh? Chancellor?!"
Fia, who finally recognized the Chancellor, exclaimed in surprise.
...Really, how should I interpret this?
She has the highest on-site awareness on the battlefield, but is she as dull as Desmond described in other areas? (It's impossible not to notice such a presence as the Chancellor approaching)
Or, has she seen through the current situation that no one else has noticed, and that's why she didn't recognize the Chancellor? (No, that's too much to believe)
I switched my focus to the monster.
The moment the monster's flames disappeared, the Chancellor swiftly drew his sword, dodged the charging monster, and cut off its head with a single strike from above.
"Wow..."
"Amazing, Chancellor! A monster that 20 of us couldn't weaken much, he took down with one strike!"
The knights were amazed, but for me, this is a familiar sight. The Chancellor is strong.
Well, I will leave the cleanup of the dead Flowerhorn Deer to the Sixth Knight Regiment. I still have work to do, or rather, new work has arisen.
"Fia, come here for a moment."
"Yes, Commander!"
Fabian, who knows what kind of interrogation is coming, is looking at me with a pitying eye, but Fia, who is completely unaware, is approaching with a smile.
"Thank you, Commander! Thanks to you, I was saved."
She thanks me with a full smile.
Noticing her carefree attitude, the Chancellor raised an eyebrow, looking at me.
...Yes, I understand. It's my lack of education.
Thank you for reading.
【Acknowledgment】I was able to become the number one in the monthly ranking for my genre. Thank you all so much!