When it came to the bread made by the Dragon Emperor, it was natural to expect benefits.

Around ten days after the reconstruction of Radea began, the grandma’s bakery was still prosperous.

The grandma said, “I was going to close the store once the war ended, what should I do?”

I want her to continue, although I know grandma is having a hard time…

One of the hired bakers was still young and was seriously aiming to open a bakery. So why not have that person take over?

However, it hadn’t been decided, yet.

Hadith’s input, as the one who established the current situation and even developed the recipe, would be the decisive factor.

What is Hadith doing?

Since he was the emperor, it should be expected that he could no longer come there.

The soldiers, who were once his regulars, still came to buy bread. Had Hadith appeared, the news would surely reach Yuna.

“It seems that the baker has recovered enough to get up.”

The people of the city and the soldiers who fought alongside Hadith still referred to him as, ‘the baker.’ Of course, it was different in public. However, it had become a habit. No one corrected or blamed them.

The first person who obtained that information was Yuna while serving customers at the counter.

“I’m glad. Grandma, aren’t you happy? I was worried.”

“I heard that he’s surrounded by documents. Being an emperor sure is difficult.”

The soldiers laughed with a hint of melancholy. Even if they were to refer to him as ‘the baker’, an invisible wall existed.

How lonely.

The bread recipe written by Hadith, along with his belongings, were still there.

“It’s impossible to tell Hadith…”

“Well, we’re commoners. It’d be best to speak to General South. He’ll surely be able to relay it to His Highness Vissel, and so on.”

Yuna didn’t want to waste his time with trivialities, he was busy with the reconstruction.

It was when she was talking to the grandmother and everyone else—

—two strange men entered side by side.

“Greetings~! We come under the behest of His Majesty the Dragon Emperor~!”

The man who cheerfully greeted her had a wondrously sexy beauty mark. The other one had a good physique and was scanning the place with a difficult expression.

Yuna, who was agape, hurriedly rushed out of the counter.

They were messengers from the Dragon Emperor.

Seeing her, the man with the beauty mark waved his hand.

“It’s alright, there’s no need to rush~ I’m sorry, but you’re working, yes~?”

“Yes, uhm, His Majesty the Dragon Emperor…”

“Regarding that, we’ve come to pick up the belongings of His Majesty the Dragon Emperor~”

“Eh—”

Surprised, Yuna let out a yelp. Hearing her voice, the man with the beauty mark blinked.

There was an awkward pause between them.

The person with the good physique was who then finally spoke.

“We heard that this is the bakery that took good care of His Majesty, but is that correct? I heard that there would be an old lady…”

“I, you’re right, this is the place, I think… The belongings of, Lord Hadith right? I, I’m the cashier…”

“Oh, right~ I’ve also heard about you~ after all, I was told that there’d be an old lady, a cashier, and a baker. Are the two of you doing alright~?”

“That’s correct…”

“Do you still have His Majesty’s belongings~? Oh, don’t worry, even if it’s gone, we won’t blame you~ We just heard that His Majesty left his belongings here.”

“I, it is, but…”

Was it alright to hand it over without grandma?

Isn’t it possible to meet again?

It wasn’t good.

Yuna lifted her face while clenching a fist.

The two were messengers of the Dragon Emperor. She was a mere townsperson. When she considered that, she felt afraid—

—However, she braced herself.

“But, it’s Hadith’s luggage.”

The two were confused.

“I can’t hand it over without his permission. P, pardon me, but grandma isn’t here, either…”

She couldn’t speak well. While she was depressed due to her stuttering, the man with the beauty mark smiled.

“I see~ Indeed, that was unscrupulous of us~”

“What…”

“If I’m being honest with you, that was nothing more than an excuse. His Majesty is on his way here. He wants to give his regards~”

When she lifted her face, the man with the beauty mark gives a humorous laugh.

“But hey, he’s the emperor, you know~? I don’t know when exactly he’ll arrive, as such, I intended to retrieve his belongings, first… Isn’t it scary for the belongings to be here when the owner isn’t~? Regardless, I have to apologize for that wasn’t a very clever move~”

“…Well, yeah, sending your vassals to fetch your belongs without taking care of it yourself is rude.”

The words of the burly man made Yuna to panic.

“I, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to imply that His Majesty is rude…!”

“It’s alright~ Actually, it was too troublesome to explain, so we just declared ourselves as His Majesty’s messengers, but that actually isn’t the case…”

“What?”

Are they frauds?

Towards the astonished Yuna, the man with the beauty mark winked in a playful manner.

“You’re a courageous and good child~ Not everyone around you is a good person~”

Although it was a long way off, there were people in the neighborhood keeping watch of the situation. Everyone was familiar with their faces. Looking around them, the man with the beauty mark laughed.

“I’m sure that’s the reason His Majesty took notice of you.”

“I, I see, but… the story of Hadith?”

“I mean, what we said wasn’t exactly the truth, but also wasn’t a lie~ Truthfully, we’re the vassals of the Dragon Princess— we’re Dragon Knights.”

“Eh…”

She was surprised. Although, she was also relieved that they weren’t imposters.

“Don’t worry~ he’ll greet you personally soon~”

“I, I don’t mean it that way!”

“It’s alright~ the emperor really cares about this place~”

Noticing how casually they spoke of the emperor, Yuna assumed that they were close to Hadith.

She also suspected Hadith didn’t mind how casual the rest of them were towards addressing him either.

“…How’s Hadith? I heard that he’s bedridden.”

When she asked in fear, the man with the beauty mark nodded.

“He’s already up and is buried in a pile of documents as we speak~ It seems that he often has to decide on various things regarding reconstruction and the procedure of the inauguration of the Grand Duke Radea. Considering the current situation, tighten security is necessary. Due to the shortage of manpower, we have to keep patrolling~”

Yuna also heard that there were people who robbed the city while it was in turmoil.

“For the time being, we’re also patrolling. Just tell us if you have any problems.”

Unexpectedly, the man with the stubborn expression said that. Yuna hurriedly shook her head.

“This area wasn’t damaged as much, so it’s alright… I also received some food… I heard that people who’ve lost their homes are being temporarily allowed to live in the castle. I don’t know if the residential districts will be constructed all at once, but grandma was the first to do receive a generous post-war process.”

“Ah, well~ in the territory of the Dragon Princess, the emperor was in direct command, so it’s face-to-face.”

“…I believe everyone is supportive of the idea of Her Highness becoming the next Grand Duke of Radea.”

They should’ve revealed they were the knights of the Dragon Princess from the start.

The two laughed after looking at each other.

“Thank you, I’m glad~”

“Is that so. Well, I think His Majesty will arrive, soon. He’s looking forward to meeting you.”

“He’ll what?!”

Towards the astonished Yuna, the man with the mole laughed.

“You don’t have to worry about it. When the time comes, we’ll take him back. His Majesty is the one who arbitrarily decided to come here, after all.”

“Eh?”

“Back when he first arrived, what did His Majesty tell you?”

“T, that his wife is coming for him. I heard an elopement-like story…”

The person with a stern face grimaced at Yuna’s answer, while the man with the beauty mark laughed while clutching his belly.

“Ahahaha! What’s that~!? Let’s tell Jill-chan~!”

“Stop it, you’ll just re-ignite the captain’s anger.”

“That’s not good, indeed~ Ah, how amusing. Thank you for your valuable information, young lady. Then, if something happens, call out to us. We often patrol around the city.”

“I, I will—uh, that!”

The two who tried to turn on their heels stopped.

She wasn’t sure, but she had to say it—

“—Please tell Hadith to visit this place whenever he can…!”

Otherwise, she didn’t know what would happen to that place.

Yuna, who made the request with a pale face, made the man with the beauty mark laugh once again. The well-built man had a fed-up expression, but gave a firm nod.

---

***T/N: Ah, the image of Carmila in my head is getting clearer and clearerrrrr

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