The Reincarnated Lizardman Wants a Hamburger

One week.

A time that can feel long or short.

For some, it might not be significant, while for others, it could be the most important time of their lives.

Especially if that week is leading up to a meeting with the Emperor that could decide the fate of everything, its importance goes without saying.

Even with the most thorough preparations, unexpected moments and situations can trip you up, like garlic suddenly falling into your vongole pasta.

In this week that might determine the fate of the world, Kurt and his companions, staying at the Count’s mansion, along with the Resistance, were doing their best to thwart the Empire’s schemes.

“Hey… Mari. Why are you avoiding me?”

“Of course, I’d avoid you!”

“Why ‘of course’? Isn’t it natural for parents to want their children and children to want their parents? I can’t understand this.”

…They were clearly doing their best.

Tirving looked sadly at Mari, who was subtly avoiding him.

In the figure of this powerless father, there was no trace of the reckless noble or the de facto leader and strategist of the Resistance.

Despite the meeting with the Emperor being less than a week away—or perhaps because it was only a week away—Tirving wanted to reunite with his daughter, whom he had never seen since her birth.

Of course, for Mari, who had lived believing her father was dead, the sudden appearance of her biological father was quite burdensome.

“Well, the first time we met, you were groping elf maids on both sides and making lewd comments… That’s just gross.”

“Ah, no! That was just a smokescreen to hide my identity as a Resistance member! I swear on my beloved Aisia’s name, I never had any physical or emotional relationship with them beyond being comrades!”

“But last night after dinner, the maids asked me if I’d like to have a new mom.”

“Wh-what what what?!”

“I’m going to tell Mom everything later!”

“Ah! How is Aisia? It must have been hard raising a child alone! How much she must have struggled without me by her side… No. More importantly, don’t tell Aisia!”

“Shouldn’t you be going now? The Resistance has a lot to do. You’re not going to run out of time because you’re fussing over me, are you?”

“Ah! It’s already time… We’ll talk more later. And remember, my relationship with the Resistance comrades is purely professional, so don’t misunderstand!”

“…Sigh.”

Fortunately, Tirving hadn’t forgotten his duties. After checking the clock, he hurriedly left, and Mari let out a small sigh as she watched him go.

The relationship between Tirving and Mari was heartbreaking for him, but it wasn’t as touching or emotional as he had imagined.

Mari, far from being moved by their reunion, was subtly pushing him away.

Tirving seemed inwardly hurt, but from her friends’ perspective, Mari’s pushing away wasn’t because she disliked Tirving but because she was confused about how to deal with the sudden appearance of a father she had never known.

“Haha. Mari, your dad is desperate to win your approval!”

“Just the day before yesterday, that reckless noble was picking fights with us, and now he’s Mari’s father. Even seeing it, it’s hard to believe. Who would have thought even the great Mari would have someone she finds hard to deal with? It’s been a long time since we started adventuring together, and we still see some strange sights.”

“Don’t tease me!”

After Tirving left, Mari, who had quietly sighed in relief, scolded Karina and Serena, who were teasing her.

But at the same time, Mari smiled, feeling a small sense of gratitude toward them.

When Mari first heard she was the daughter of an Imperial noble, she was shocked, but thinking back, she had already heard from Aisia during their visit to the Elf Village that Mari had noble blood.

Even then, Mari was still Mari, and even if the noble’s identity was revealed to be Tirving, Mari would still be Mari.

The fact that the two teased her as usual was their way of saying they would treat her the same as always.

“…But aren’t you two going? Don’t you have things to do?”

“Ah. Originally, our task was to help Daria and Aila make contact with the Resistance, but as you can see, there’s no need to try to contact the Resistance anymore.”

“Thanks to that, our schedule’s wide open. Of course, there’s always work to be found if you look for it…”

Serena trailed off, glancing subtly at Kurt’s room.

Kurt himself thought he was being discreet, but the three who had spent a considerable amount of time with him knew better.

After the battle with the Master, he had been deeply shaken by the defeat.

They had seen Kurt silently pondering something in the garden where he had fought Duke Newgoros all night.

“A week isn’t a long time… But I plan to train as much as possible during that time. Of course, even if I train intensively for a week, I won’t reach Kurt’s level, but at least I won’t hold him back.”

“I’ll train in magic too. Things have been going too smoothly, so I underestimated the Empire’s military power. Seeing Kurt beaten to a pulp yesterday made me realize that. The Empire’s military power isn’t something we can easily handle. Most of our plans rely on the Resistance’s help, so what we need to do now is refine our strength as much as possible. I don’t plan to rely solely on Kurt’s strength either.”

“I’ll… train too. I don’t want to watch Kurt fight helplessly like yesterday!”

With that, the three vowed not to disturb Kurt any longer and headed to the ruined garden with their weapons.

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Kurt, who had returned to his room, spent his time quietly meditating.

He visualized countless movements in his mind, erasing and redrawing them, then finally condensed them into a single motion and slowly recreated it with his spear.

After repeating the motion several times, he would sit back down and start meditating again.

Though not usually an active person outside of cooking, Kurt was even more reclusive than usual, spending all his time in his room meditating.

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The only time Kurt left his room was for meals.

Even then, he left the cooking to the mansion’s elves and mechanically returned to his room to meditate after eating.

For Kurt, who would seize any opportunity to cook, this was truly unusual.

As he finished his meal and was about to return to his room, he suddenly remembered something and spoke to Lakia before entering.

“Ah, right. Lakia.”

“Hmm?”

At Kurt’s words, his childhood friend, who resembled a pink Uparupa, tilted her head.

“Come to think of it, was what happened at the mansion yesterday also in your foresight?”

“Even with foresight, I can’t see everything. I’m a third-rate prophet, so I can’t see visions whenever I want. When I do see something, it’s only a few important scenes, unrelated to my will. But… I did see one thing. That man is Mari’s father. I saw it before you left the village.”

“…I see.”

Kurt had casually asked before returning to his meditation, but her answer was surprisingly shocking.

To think she had foreseen yesterday’s events even before he left on his adventure.

If this is what a third-rate prophet can do, what could a first-rate prophet achieve?

“But I didn’t know you’d fight an old Transcendent. That wasn’t in the vision. If I had known, I wouldn’t have left the mansion.”

“Ha. What could you have done in a battle between Transcendents… And because of that fight, we managed to get the Resistance’s help and find out who Mari’s father is. That’s what matters.”

But in the end, Lakia was still Lakia.

Just like when she used to follow him around as a child, she grabbed the hem of his clothes and spoke in a small voice.

Realizing this, Kurt relaxed and smiled, making a joke.

“So, do you think our plan is going as you saw in your vision? Do you think we’ll succeed?”

“I can’t be sure. I’m just a third-rate prophet who observes the largest fragments of possible futures. Things like family relationships are predetermined outcomes from decades ago, so they don’t change, but future events that haven’t happened yet, even if I’ve seen them in visions, I can’t say for certain.”

“…How can you call such an ability third-rate? You’re the only prophet in this era, so how do you even know if you’re third-rate or first-rate?”

“That’s because you’re not a prophet. If you were, you’d know instinctively.”

“…I see.”

With that, Kurt waved his hand and returned to his room.

To meditate and refine his martial skills.

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Watching Kurt enter his room, Lakia muttered quietly in a voice no one else could hear.

“Actually, whether this vision comes true or not depends on one person.”

It was a secret only she knew, one that could shake the vision if revealed.

“A person of noble blood.”

Extremely speaking, even Kurt wasn’t necessary for the vision to come true.

A Transcendent was undoubtedly an irreplaceable force, but conversely, the power of one Transcendent could be replaced by another.

Even without Kurt, the Holy Kingdom surely had the ability to prepare another Master to take his place.

But the girl with the unknown noble blood couldn’t be replaced by anyone else.

Without her, no one else could move that person.

Lakia had accompanied them to the Empire to ensure she would reach it.

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And so, the week passed at its usual pace, neither fast nor slow.

Kurt and his party.

Not just them, but Lakia and Kirsh also prepared their magical tools and weapons.

Tirving grew more serious each day as he led the Resistance.

Aria and Yuri grew more tense with each passing day as they trained.

Liche also prepared for the meeting with the Emperor alongside Charles, the golem who once guarded the ancient Imperial family.

And around this time, the Emperor made a surprise announcement.

He would reveal something that would change the Empire’s history to its citizens.

The time and place were the same as when he declared he would meet Kurt’s party.

The Emperor planned to unveil the Dimensional Gate to the public.

And finally, the day arrived.

The Emperor sent envoys to invite Kurt’s party as promised.

“It’s time. We will escort you.”

It was none other than Albert, the leader of the Holy Sword Knight Order, and his knights.

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