○ Adventurer's Guild

(Harris appears from stage right.)

Harris: "So this is the Adventurer's Guild! ... It's quite dirty."

(A knight appears behind Harris.)

Knight: "Your Highness, please wait outside. We will inquire."

Harris: "No, no, I'll go in. It's good to interact with the common folk once in a while."

(Harris approaches the reception desk.)

Receptionist Layla: "Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild! What can I do for you today?"

Harris: "My sister, Princess Sophie, is supposed to be here. Where is she?"

Layla: "Oh, Your Highness! I apologize, but Sophie-sama's party went out on a quest early this morning. They are not here."

Harris: "Quest?"

Layla: "A quest is a request brought to the Adventurer's Guild. Adventurers choose a quest they can handle from the request board and take it on."

Harris: "I see. Let me have a look..."

(Harris approaches the bulletin board with quest notices.)

Harris: "This handwriting is messy... What? Slaying monsters within the dungeon?! Did Sophie take on something so dangerous?!"

(Harris grabs the notice and approaches the reception desk.)

Layla: "N-no, Sophie-sama went out on a relatively safe herb gathering quest today."

Layla (whispering): "Technically, I shouldn't reveal the content of a quest to outsiders, but he's a prince, so it's alright. It's alright."

Knight: "Your Highness, it seems we've missed each other. It would be best to return to the palace and await Sophie-sama's return."

Harris: "Hmph, I suppose that's the only option."

(Lights fade, curtain closes.)

(Curtain rises.)

○ In the Forest

(Marie stands in the center of the stage, arms crossed.)

Marie (monologue): "But...

...What kind of strength did that Ryu have? I still can't believe it. There are truly capable individuals amongst the commoners.

If I had known he was so strong, I wouldn't have challenged him to a duel.

The King's order was to return Sophie-sama to the palace as soon as possible, so I intended to make things difficult for her and force her to stay away. But... I went a little too far. It was a bit of a reckless move.

I didn't even think about how my actions might damage the Princess's reputation. I'm a fool to have acted so carelessly. I have wronged Sophie-sama...

But now I'm in a difficult situation. I promised to give up my noble status.

Ryu said it was fine to break the promise. That it was simply a matter of honor.

That a mere commoner's scorn was nothing. That there was nothing to worry about.

But...

...For a noble, honor is everything!

To bring shame upon myself, let alone the Princess, is something I can never do.

I absolutely...

...To protect my honor, I must give up my noble status as promised.

But Sophie-sama will never forgive me.

However, there might be a way to avoid losing my noble status and my honor.

He said I had to come up with a different kind of compensation.

Any compensation was fine, but I had to think of it myself.

But what kind of compensation could rival giving up my noble status?

If I offer some cheap compensation and settle things, in the end, I'll still be damaging the Princess's reputation. That I can never allow.

Money? But Ryu said he didn't need money.

Ah, what am I to do?!"

Sophie (voice only): "Marie!"

(Marie turns around, Sophie, Betty, and Alice enter from stage left.)

Sophie: "Don't go ahead of us! It's dangerous!"

Betty: "But... (looking around) Sophie-sama, it's strange. Doesn't this forest seem entirely devoid of monsters?"

Sophie (looking back to stage left): "Ryu, are there no monsters in this forest? We were told to never go outside alone without an escort because there were many monsters outside the city."

Ryu (enters from stage left): "Yes, there are very few around here. The dungeon is stable."

Sophie: "So, a stable dungeon means no monsters?"

Alice: "Monsters are born within the dungeon and come out."

Ryu: "That's right. If the dungeon is left unattended and the monsters inside multiply too much, they will seek a new home and come out of the dungeon. But if adventurers regularly reduce the number of monsters inside, they won't come out often. Well, even if things are stable inside, sometimes monsters will come out on a whim."

Sophie: "So even monsters have eccentric individuals?"

Ryu: "Just like Sophie, running off to places like this."

(Marie and Betty glare at Ryu.)

Sophie: "That's true!" (Sophie laughs)

Ryu: "The 'Dragon's Nest' east of Mimul town has been treated to prevent monsters from coming out, so the surrounding area is completely free of monster problems. ... But don't get complacent. There might be some monsters that came out before the treatment and are breeding outside."

Sophie: "It would be nice to encounter a monster since we're here..."

Ryu: "Well, with Sophie's skills, you could handle low-ranking monsters, no problem."

(Everyone exits to stage right.)

(Slight set change.)

○ Deep in the Forest

(Ryu enters from stage right.)

Ryu: "There's a place with a lot of herbs growing ahead. Can you properly identify the herbs as I taught you?"

(Sophie, Marie, and Betty appear behind Ryu.)

Sophie: "No problem, I remember perfectly."

(Sophie squats down and stands up.)

Sophie (showing Ryu the picked herb): "See, this is the herb, right?"

Ryu: "That's a poisonous plant..."

(Sophie hurriedly throws away the poisonous plant and wipes her hand.)

(Ryu suddenly grabs Sophie's hand and pulls her. Sophie stumbles.)

(An arrow flies past the spot where Sophie was standing.)

Marie: "An arrow?! An assassin?!"

(Everyone hides behind a tree and observes the direction the arrow came from.)

(A goblin with a bow appears from stage left. He slowly approaches Ryu and the others.)

(Marie jumps in front of the goblin and draws her sword.)

(The goblin looks startled and runs away.)

Marie: "Wait! ...Damn." (She chases the goblin to the side of the stage but gives up and returns.)

Marie: "It had a bow. A goblin with a bow."

Ryu: "It's a goblin archer."

Betty: "Didn't you say there were no monsters?"

Ryu: "It's unusual... These days, they are almost completely hunted out. Did one of the goblins that came out from the dungeon in the past survive? ...Or maybe it came from somewhere else."

Sophie: "What should we do? Should we chase after it?"

Ryu: "It wouldn't be good to leave it alone if it might harm the townspeople. There's certainly not just one. I'll let it go and see if I can find out if there are any others. This will be a good exercise for Sophie and the others."

(Everyone follows the goblin and exits to stage left.)

(Set changes again.)

○ In the Forest

(Ryu, Sophie, Betty, Marie, and Alice enter from stage right.)

Sophie: "The goblin we were chasing is nowhere to be seen."

Betty: "Are we going the right way?"

Ryu: "Don't worry, I can see it."

(Marie and Betty look far ahead.)

Betty: "I don't see anything!"

Marie (to herself): "It's heading deeper and deeper into the forest... Could it be?!"

Marie (loudly to Ryu): "You wouldn't be trying to take Sophie-sama somewhere to do something indecent, would you?!"

Ryu: "N-no way! What are you talking about?!"

(Ryu turns around to face Marie, startled by her accusations.)

Marie: "You don't need to get angry enough to make your eyes glow..."

Sophie (approaching Ryu and looking at his face): "Hmm, is that a magic eye?"

Ryu: "Well, it's kind of like that. It lets me see the escaped goblin, so we're good."

Sophie: "You have all sorts of convenient abilities, don't you?"

Ryu: "I've got zero magic, though."

Betty: "Don't lie, how can you have a magic eye with no magic?"

Ryu: "Well, because I have no magic, I can see magic well... Is that not a satisfactory explanation?"

Sophie: "I see! That's why you can read your opponent's moves. That's why your sword never gets hit!"

Ryu: "Well, something like that."

Betty: "I can't believe a story like that..."

Ryu (raising his hand and speaking in a low but sharp voice): "There they are!"

(Everyone hides behind a tree and observes.)

Alice: "About a dozen goblins. Regular goblins and a few goblin archers... And a hobgoblin as the pack leader..."

Ryu: "I see. It seems they moved here from another dungeon."

Betty: "How do you know?"

Ryu: "There are no hobgoblins in Mimul's dungeon. So, shall we go? Hobgoblins are dangerous, so I'll take care of it. The rest of you can have this as training. Can you handle it?"

(Everyone nods.)

Ryu: "Then let's go!"

(Everyone draws their swords, but Ryu exits with teleportation magic.)

Sophie: "What?! He disappeared?"

Betty: "Could it be teleportation magic? It's a legendary ancient magic that we've only heard stories about... I can't believe it."

Marie: "Whatever, let's go!"

(Everyone exits.)

(Set change.)

○ The Goblin Camp

(Ryu appears behind the hobgoblin, using teleportation.)

Ryu swings his sword, and the hobgoblin's head falls to the ground. The hobgoblin collapses.

The goblins surrounding them start to panic.

Ryu exits to stage left, and the goblins follow him.

Sophie and the others enter from stage right.

Ryu enters from stage left again, running towards Sophie and the others. The goblins follow him.

Ryu: "The rest is up to you!"

Ryu passes Sophie and the others and moves behind them.

Sophie, Marie, Betty, and Alice face the goblins that chased Ryu.

(Combat starts. Ryu watches from the edge of the stage.)

Sophie, Marie, Betty, and Alice swing their swords, and the goblins fall one after another.

On the opposite side of the stage, a goblin archer tries to attack with an arrow.

Ryu: "Be careful, he's firing arrows!"

Marie casts a spell (special effect).

(The battle ends. All the goblins lay dead.)

Sophie: "Wow! They were weaklings!"

Betty: "Sophie-sama, your body is covered in goblin blood."

Sophie: "This is nothing."

Ryu: "You get money for killing monsters. You have to cut off a piece of proof from the monster and submit it to the guild. Of course, goblins are only worth a small amount of money."

Sophie: "Wasn't the proof piece the ear?"

Sophie approaches the fallen goblins with her sword drawn.

Alice stops her and moves her to the side.

Marie and Betty approach the goblins with their swords drawn.

Marie: "Your bodies are completely covered in goblin blood."

Betty: "They smell awful!"

Ryu: "Goblins are smelly. You'll get used to it... Or maybe not?"

Sophie: "But Ryu, you used teleportation magic earlier, right?"

Ryu: "Yes, I did."

Betty: "Teleportation magic is a lost, mythical magic these days!"

Ryu: "Is it?"

Betty: "It's not 'is it?' Teleportation magic is so rare that if the King found out there was a mage who could use it, he'd lock them up and never let them escape!"

Ryu: "A caged bird, you say? Please, I have no desire to serve in the palace."

Sophie: "Indeed, Father wouldn't keep quiet if he found out..."

Ryu (looking at Sophie): " ...Keep quiet, you say?"

Sophie: "I'll keep quiet, but you owe me one."

(Marie, Betty, and Alice bow their heads slightly.)

Ryu: "Nevermind, I don't intend to get into debt. If you want to talk, talk. I'm getting out of here. I'll never see you again, Sophie."

Sophie: "Don't get mad, it was a joke. I won't tell anyone. (Looking at Marie and the others) You guys don't say anything either."

(Marie, Betty, and Alice nod.)

Ryu: "Well, this herb gathering quest is finally finished. We even took care of some goblins. So this concludes your new adventurer training. The princess's adventurer experience is over. Are you going to return to the palace?"

Sophie: "What are you saying? We haven't been to a dungeon yet."

Ryu: "We just did some monster hunting. Aren't the King and the others worried?"

Sophie: "No, I'm not going back to the capital yet."

(Sophie exits to stage right.)

(Everyone follows her.)

(Set change.)

○ A Room Somewhere

(Harris sits on a chair, and the knight stands.)

Knight: "Your Highness, it seems Sophie-sama is accompanied by adventurers, not just maids."

Harris: "Who are they?"

Knight: "They are said to be an F-ranked adventurer named Ryujiin."

Harris: "F-rank? Isn't that a very low rank?"

Knight: "Yes, it's the lowest rank for adventurers. It's a rank for new adventurers."

Harris: "Why is such a man accompanying Sophie?"

Knight: "He is probably acting as a guide to the forest. He is also supposedly acting as a guard, but he is F-rank, so he's probably not much help."

Harris: "I don't like it. Why is Sophie accompanied by such a man? There must be more capable individuals out there. Besides, what is this, letting a man accompany the princess?"

Knight: "Your Highness is right. I'll let the guild know to complain."

Harris: "Do that."

Harris: "But Sophie walking through the forest... I haven't had such an opportunity myself. I don't like that man..."

Knight: "Yes, Your Highness."

(Set change.)

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(Text: The Prince Harasses Ryu?! Don't miss it!)