A girl with long hair the color of flames was walking down a street.
This was a medieval city, but unlike reality, the carts on the streets were pulled by massive earth dragons the size of several people.
Among the pedestrians there were many beastkin — demi-humans with animal traits — who clearly weren't human at a glance.
Today was a rare day off for the girl, but she couldn't sit still and so she chose to spend her precious free time patrolling the city.
During this time, she would help those in need to the best of her ability, and when larger disputes arose, she would mediate based on the situation.
The girl clearly possessed unimaginable prestige.
No matter how angry someone was, they would always give her face.
This was because, over time, people had come to realize from her actions that she was a knight who embodied the eight virtues of knighthood — like a saint.
As for the rare individuals who refused to listen to reason, they were discouraged by the girl's terrifying strength.
(Help me!)
A cry for help rang out in the girl's mind — a result of one of the divine Divine Protections she possessed.
Divine Protections were powers granted by Old Lagna.
Having even one was considered a decent talent for a normal person, but the girl possessed an overwhelming number of them.
For instance, to avoid disturbing others at work, she always used the [Divine Protection of Decreased Presence].
The one currently sounding in her mind was the [Hero's Divine Protection], which allowed her to sense cries for help within a certain range.
In that instant, the girl vanished from the street.
If anyone had looked up, they might have noticed a distinct white line in the sky — though even if they saw it, they would never guess it was caused by her.
She jumped into the air with force as if stepping on the air itself, soaring high above, and then flew toward the source of the cry at supersonic speed.
In less than two seconds, she arrived at the scene.
A small boy had collapsed in the middle of the road, and a massive dragon cart was about to run him over.
A knight in armor had already rushed into the street.
"Ha ha ha…"
"Ohhhh…"
The knight laughed as he stood up with the boy he had just rescued.
The people on the roadside cheered for the knight's actions.
The girl lowered her right hand with a smile.
While she could have rescued the child more reliably, she had chosen to be the backup.
Deep down, she knew her immature self couldn't save everyone, so she always acted as the final insurance.
If things ended well, she would quietly leave without a word.
However, this time, she didn't leave immediately.
Her blue eyes were drawn to something unusual: a boy with black hair and black eyes wearing unfamiliar clothing and bearing a vicious expression.
Although the boy had features that clearly marked him as a foreigner — possibly from another nation — that alone wouldn't have caught the girl's attention.
What did was the scent of the Witch Cult clinging to him, and the strange item in his hand — a mysterious "meteor."
Black hair and black eyes were typical traits of the southern empire, Vollachia. "Meteors" were mysterious magical tools with unknown effects.
The Witch Cult was a deranged organization, each member possessing the terrifying power to destroy a city on their own.
Coincidentally, the last Archbishop of Pride from the Witch Cult — Stride — had also been a prince of the Vollachia Empire.
He had used a mysterious meteor to kill the head of the Sword Saint family at the time, and had ultimately summoned a three-headed evil dragon, causing massive casualties in this country.
Recalling stories from her elders, the girl made her decision.
She didn't choose to eliminate the threat immediately.
Instead, she decided to follow the boy to confirm his intentions — at the very least, to understand the purpose of the item he carried or why he had come to the royal capital.
And so, the girl witnessed a series of strange events.
First, the boy asked for the price of apples at Mr. Kadomon's fruit stall, then pulled out an unfamiliar currency — not Vollachia's money, nor that of any of the four major nations.
Next, he walked into the women's restroom, came out with a clear slap mark on his face, and finally entered a tavern meant exclusively for beastkin.
While being kicked out, he was accidentally knocked into the river by a passerby entering the bar.
The girl withdrew her outstretched hand, having failed to catch him, and showed a puzzled expression.
The boy's actions resembled those of a penniless, illiterate, and slow-witted fool.
But he was so clumsy that the girl began to suspect he might be pretending — having seen through her Divine Protections and faking stupidity.
"Would a real noble not understand written language? And have no money? Most importantly, that fall into the river — with his physique, he should've been able to maintain balance. Could it be he did it to shake off my pursuit?"
After confirming the boy could swim, the girl continued tailing him.
Now more cautious, she stood on a rooftop, analyzing the situation as she watched the boy from a distance in an alley.
The boy seemed to be grumbling about something, then took out the small meteor and stared at it.
A blonde-haired little girl was also running across a rooftop in the distance.
After seeming to notice something, she changed direction and kept running.
Although that situation was also intriguing, the girl decided that this one was more important.
Three small-time thugs.
Normally, the girl would have warned them — maybe even checked if they had the will to earn an honest living.
If they did, she wouldn't mind helping them take the first step. But this time, she chose to stand by and watch.
"Sorry about this."
Even if she was present, the three would at most suffer minor injuries.
In fact, many ordinary people would probably be happy to see robbers like them die here.
Yet the girl still felt an enormous sense of guilt in her heart. She whispered softly, then jumped down from the rooftop toward the alley, just in case.
Just as the girl predicted, the boy made his move.
He delivered a fierce punch that floored a giant nearly two meters tall, followed by a powerful kick that sent a short thug — probably not even a meter tall — flying.
Then he charged toward the thin, weak-looking thug. In a panic, that thug drew a gleaming knife.
The girl prepared to intervene and rescue the thug, but after she braked suddenly, she crashed into a wall.
At that moment, the [Divine Protection of Silence] activated, completely nullifying the slight impact sound.
The girl looked at the situation in the alley with slight exasperation — the boy was now being beaten up by the three thugs.
A few seconds earlier, upon seeing the knife, the boy had suddenly dropped to his knees in a sliding kowtow, only to be kicked away by the knife-wielding thug.
The other two, who had been knocked down, got back up. All three began punching and kicking the boy.
Things had clearly spiraled beyond what the girl had imagined.
The three thugs were now enraged — their original intent to rob had turned into an intent to kill.
And the boy clearly was just an ordinary person.
"…This is far enough."
So, the girl canceled the [Divine Protection of Silence], walked into the alley, and spoke out to stop them.