Hearing Old Man Rom's words, Felt took a deep breath and shouted:
"I've decided—I'm not going!"
Reinhard's smile froze. "Felt-sama, this country needs you!"
The little loli just clicked her tongue in disgust.
"This country doesn't love me, and I don't love this country! No matter what you say I am, the fact is I'm just some brat who grew up in the slums. How am I supposed to be a king?"
"Let someone like me sit on the throne and you don't think that's a joke? And I'm not stupid either. You're so famous and so strong. If I go with you and you lock me up and turn me into a puppet, what am I supposed to do then?"
"Compared to some fancy status and a totally different life, I'd rather earn my own money with my own hands and live the life I want! Freedom is what's really precious!"
Felt's words made Aqua's eyes light up. "Exactly! Didn't think you had it in you, kid. I support you!"
Yes, yes, these are exactly the kind of "stubbornly be yourself" kids my Axis Church needs!
Reinhard's smile vanished.
His expression turned serious as he said, "No. The royal selection must be held. If not, this country has no future. The longer it's delayed, the greater the disaster for the people."
"Felt-sama, please come with me. I'll prove my character with my actions. Please believe in me!"
"No way!" Felt ducked behind Hayashi Maki again.
"How am I supposed to know if you're telling the truth or not? And I really don't have any grand ambitions. I'm totally not cut out to be king!"
Reinhard sighed and looked at Hayashi Maki, who was standing there backing Felt up.
Hayashi Maki's eyes lit up. "Oh? We fighting or what?"
"No… I'll let it go," Reinhard said instead. "I've already overstepped. Since Felt-sama doesn't wish it, I won't force her. I only ask that you look after her, Hayashi Maki."
"Emilia-sama, you and Count Roswaal will probably be summoned to the capital soon. I'll take my leave for now."
With that, Reinhard turned and walked away.
Hayashi Maki stared, dumbfounded.
"Hey, redhead! Why aren't we fighting?"
"Aren't you the Sword Saint? What's with bailing at the last second?"
Reinhard glanced back with a wry little smile and waved.
"There's no need. I don't sense any malice from you. I trust you'll protect Felt-sama. If possible, please bring her with you to the capital when the time comes."
Hayashi Maki: "…"
He was honestly speechless.
The Sword Saint actually refused to fight.
What the hell?
With that kind of power, shouldn't he at least have a proper bout with someone this strong? Not lifting a finger at all felt so wrong.
Reinhard wasn't exactly thrilled either, but the Dragon Sword was still shaking in its sheath, whispering danger in his mind.
With the royal selection about to begin, the most urgent task was to prepare to save the kingdom. For Lugnica's sake, he couldn't waste time on a meaningless duel.
There was another problem: as a member of House Astrea, if he personally went to Roswaal's domain—where Emilia was staying—it would only invite unnecessary political trouble.
As for Felt, he'd have to look for another chance to persuade her.
Maybe, he thought, from Emilia's side.
Because if Felt refused to participate, the Council of Elders would only keep stalling, waiting endlessly for a fifth Dragon Priestess to appear. The kingdom didn't have that kind of time.
If Emilia wanted to be chosen as queen, she'd have to get Felt to enter the selection too.
And Count Roswaal wouldn't want the entire royal selection deadlocked either.
…
Since there was no fight, Hayashi Maki didn't dwell on it.
He wasn't some battle-crazed meathead who only thought with his fists.
Given the choice between fighting men and wrestling cute girls in bed, he would pick the latter every time.
Once the Sword Saint left, Hayashi Maki turned back to tease the little blonde behind him.
"So, Felt, if you won't be a princess, that only leaves becoming my maid."
"Pfft. I never agreed to be your maid! I might be poor, but I'm not the kind of girl who sells her body," she snapped, flashing her little fang as she glared at him.
"Oh? You don't want to be my maid, but what if that red-haired Sword Saint comes back to drag you off?"
"That…" Felt's face twisted with conflict.
Aqua promptly swept the girl into a hug, rubbing her small head while glaring at Hayashi Maki.
"Stop scaring the kid! From now on she's one of ours—a member of the Axis Church. As our great bishop, you'd better take good care of her!"
"Um… what exactly is the Axis Church?" Emilia asked nervously, while Old Man Rom looked equally worried.
In this world, the only famous "church" was the Witch Cult, and that was more like a doomsday cult. For most people, "religion" did not exactly scream "good news".
As soon as "Axis Church" was mentioned, Aqua perked up and launched into an enthusiastic infodump.
"We, the Axis Church, believe in the great water goddess Aqua…"
She went on and on and on, until both Felt and Emilia were staring at her with very strange expressions.
Felt sidled over to Hayashi Maki and whispered, "Hey, is her head… okay? She seriously just called herself a goddess."
Hayashi Maki just waved it off. "You'll get used to it."
He turned to Emilia, who was still full of question marks, and explained:
"Just think of Aqua as the embodiment of the water goddess Aqua. I'm the great bishop of the Axis Church, and also a traveling merchant at the moment."
"It's getting late, and I doubt we can stay here any longer. Emilia-sama, would it be possible to rest at your place for a while?"
Emilia nodded quickly. "Of course."
"You and Aqua-san saved my life; you're my benefactors. Please come stay at the mansion for now. And if you don't mind, Felt and Rom-san, you as well. I don't think Sir Reinhard is the type to give up easily, and he wasn't entirely wrong."
"The royal selection will happen. Felt, you should rest for a bit and think about your future."
With that, Emilia led the group out.
At a nearby coach station, they waited for a moment until a blue-haired girl in a maid uniform drove a dragon-drawn carriage up to them.
She climbed down, gave Emilia a respectful curtsey, then asked with a puzzled look:
"Good day, Emilia-sama. These are…?"
"Rem, they're my benefactors—they helped me a lot. And this girl and this gentleman are my friends. They'll be staying at the mansion for a while. I'll explain everything to Lord Roswaal when we get back. For now, let's return first."
"Yes, Emilia-sama."
The cute maid named Rem nodded, then ushered everyone aboard, took up the reins, and steered the dragon carriage toward Roswaal's domain.