“What’s up with that mermaid, Crab?”
“She says she’s here to become a knight, Crab.”
A confrontation under the watchful eyes of countless crabs.
The Crab Knights were watching the two races in the arena with a mix of skepticism and curiosity.
One was Crabpf, the elite knight of the great Claw Knight Order.
The other was a white creature draped in blue seaweed, something that might be a mermaid, who knows?
Whoever the opponent was, compared to the majestic shell and sharp claws of Crabpf, they looked extremely weak.
“The outcome is obvious, Crab.”
“Of course, Crab. Crabpf is a member of the great Claw Knight Order. He will never lose—”
—Kiiiii!!!
“…!”
“What, Crab?”
In less than 3 seconds after the duel started.
Crabpf’s claw flew away.
■
The commander’s signal rang out in the arena, and the match began.
Confidently, Crabpf slammed both claws down! and quickly moved sideways.
For a sideways movement, that was surprisingly fast.
Shiiiiiing!
The large claw reflecting sunlight shot up dramatically.
“It’s over, Crab!”
“…Hmm.”
That claw looks pretty sturdy.
Cutting through it isn’t going to be as easy as dealing with that lotus toad I met before.
I infused a tiny bit of mana into my strike aimed at the descending claw.
Claw and spear collided…
“Oh.”
“Kiiiii!!! Crab!!!”
The claw flew off.
[Ah]
[Hahahahahahaha]
[It had an arm]
[Can’t we make a lobster out of that arm?]
[Oh haha, now that it’s cut off, it’s mine]
[Crab lol]
[Ha ha ha]
“Th-this! Crab!”
For a moment, as the claw flew away…
Crab regained its composure and leaped high to cling to my body with its remaining claw and legs.
For a very brief moment, Crab was defenseless.
“…gulp.”
[?]
[Lol]
[?]
[Lily hungry? Haha]
[Oh haha, wanting king crab grilled]
The spear moved.
Once up, and then six times down.
In that short moment, I knocked off all remaining limbs and flipped the body of Crab, now without legs, with a kick.
The Crab fell headfirst into the ground, defeated.
The crab crashes onto the ground.
KWA-AAAAAANG!!!
The sand of the battlefield scatters.
[Whoa]
[Is this Lily? LOL]
[Looks like a leg has been completely cut off, hahaha]
[Look at that, crab getting prepped for cooking]
[HAHAHAHAHAHA]
[Not dead?]
[Isn’t it dead at this point?]
[Seeing it flipped over makes me crave soy sauce crab]
[Lily is doing great with those kicks]
“I won.”
“Kii… Crab.”
Swinging the spear around to retrieve it, I looked down at Crab.
Despite losing its signature claws and legs and looking ridiculous flipped over, it was still alive.
Aside from the pain, it didn’t seem serious at all.
‘Looks like it’s still intact with just losing a leg.’
To really finish it off, I’d have to aim for the torso, but…
[Currently, there are a total of 13 available routes.]
Somehow, I feel like killing it would drastically reduce the routes available.
“How about it? Is the proof enough?”
“Kii! I haven’t lost yet, Crab…!”
“Enough. Crab.”
The Commander of Knights stepped forward.
Definitely much larger than the collapsed Crab beside me.
“We don’t need to see more, Crab. From today, you are a member of the Claw Knight Order, Crab.”
Swish. The claw extends outwards.
A shell?
Looking closely at the silver-colored shell, a claw pattern was engraved on it.
It looked somewhat artisanal.
“With that, you will receive the treatment of a knight wherever you go in the territory of Lord Crabnius, Crab.”
[Oh]
[It’s a knight, it’s a knight]
[Just don’t kill it]
[Make sure to take the legs]
[Seriously, the legs should be taken as loot]
[Crab LOL]
“Thank you.”
“Alright. For now, a servant will guide you to your room, Crab. I will summon you when the time comes, Crab.”
“Can I take some legs with me?”
“……”
■
“Awesome.”
“I’ll carry it, Crab.”
“It’s fine.”
I was a bit shocked to hear that I could attach the fallen legs back on, but under the pretense of collecting loot, I ripped off… no, I recovered a claw.
What should I eat with this?
[Why do you look so excited, Lily? LOL]
[You seem the happiest I’ve ever seen lately]
[Ah, LOL, she’s grinning at the thought of having grilled crab, hahaha]
[It’s going to be sweet]
[Since you got all those legs, why not ask for all of them?]
[I agree]
[Still, getting one is better than none]
“This way, Sir Crab.”
“Thank you.”
The knight’s room arrived according to the servant’s guidance.
It still looked like a cookie house, but the decor with various crafts including shells made it quite pretty.
“Knight… Ah, I didn’t ask for your name, Crab. What is your name, Crab?”
The tiny Crab, much smaller than the knight, asked.
If the knight is a large dog, then this servant Crab is somewhere between a small to medium dog.
I fiddled with the large pearl on the table and replied.
“It’s Lily.”
“Lily Knight. First of all, congratulations on becoming a knight, and later, we will hold an official knight appointment ceremony under the guidance of Crabnius.”
“…I was hoping to meet Crabnius, so this works out well.”
“Crabnius is a compassionate person, fit for the crown prince… However, recently… Ah, never mind. Forget what I said, Crab.”
The servant quickly covered up his words.
I nodded, knowing what he was about to say.
By the way, if a mere servant knows of the current conflict between the crown prince and the second prince, it means the situation has escalated significantly.
It’s a sign that the crown prince lacks the power to stop bad rumors about himself.
The balance of power must have already tipped to an uncontrollable extent.
‘The reason the second prince hasn’t toppled the crown prince… must be due to justification.’
The emperor still occupies the throne, and the second prince’s power has grown due to the empress’s illness.
There’s no justification for a succession war while the empress is still alive.
“What kind of person is the emperor? I came from that distant sea and don’t know much about the internal affairs of the Crab Empire.”
“The emperor is a great person, Crab. He has subdued numerous sea races in the Crab Strait and expanded this great empire to its 16th generation, Crab. If our Crab race weren’t short-lived, we would have enjoyed an eternal golden age under the emperor’s grace, Crab.”
The emperor is aging, huh.
If that’s the case, the second prince might act sooner than expected.
In addition, the servant kept praising the emperor’s greatness non-stop, like a fish in water.
After I adequately responded, I was left alone in the room following the servant’s insistence to rest.
“What do you think?”
Should I root for the crown prince or the second prince?
[Lily, why are you so good at this?]
[This is insane, lol]
[Extracting information like a pro]
[Looks like the crown prince is the losing star, let’s support the second prince, go go]
[Seriously sounds like someone from the medieval era, lol]
[Crown prince is like a rotten lifeline]
[Wouldn’t it be nice if I just beheaded him and handed it to the second prince?]
[Abandon the Crown Prince?]
[Ah, haha, I don’t know if it’s Crabnius or crab soup]
[So when are we having grilled claws?]
“Hmm… First, I need to meet the Crown Prince.”
I have to find out what kind of person… no, crab he is and then decide.
I rose from my seat.
Thud. A claw falls from the bed.
“Ah.”
Grilled crab is on the menu.
■
“What? Mermaid race? Crab?”
“That’s right. Your Highness, Crab.”
The palace of Crown Prince Crabnius pales in comparison to the massive palace.
The 2nd Prince Crabcrows, who is the owner and closest heir to the throne, received some rather absurd news from his confidant.
‘A mermaid race has come in as knights.’
According to a spy planted in the palace of his half-brother Crabnius, it was said that they swiftly took out eight members of the Claw Knight Order with something commonly referred to as a ‘spear.’
The Claw Knight Order is Crabnius’s pride and last bastion.
Although the forces of Crown Prince Crabnius have weakened considerably, their strength remains unmatched.
‘…But a knight that couldn’t even use a claw got defeated?’
“Is this information reliable, Crab?”
“That’s right, Crab.”
“Ahem… Crab.”
While plans to seize the succession right are proceeding, a sudden variable has appeared.
Of course, since his own forces have grown so large, it isn’t a significant threat, but leaving such an abnormal variable unchecked could lead to a great disaster.
“…But didn’t Father toss all the mermaids deep into the sea, Crab? So why is something like that crawling out?”
“Well… there seems to be differing opinions among the knights, Crab. Some say it’s a mermaid, while others say it’s some other creature not of the mermaid race, Crab.”
“Whatever it is, it’s sure that the guy is strong, Crab.”
“Yes. Crab.”
“……This is troublesome, Crab.”
What should I do?
The plan has already progressed to a certain extent, but it feels a bit awkward to take action this early.
“…Approach that mermaid and try to win her over, Crab.”
“Understood, Crab.”
“And if persuasion fails… Crab.”
Ta-gak.
“Kill her, Crab.”
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