Volume 3 Chapter 68 A Knight Among Knights
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Glasses” made a suspicious sound in his mind.
’The mentioned monster, huh?’
Kian narrowed his eyes slowly.
(Oh, maybe something happened.)
”Captain Liam, is there a powerful monster appearing at Izerland fortress?”
Priscilla also seemed to get caught, like “glasses,” and looked at the young guard captain.
Liam gave a confused look and just hesitated, “Well, yeah…”
”Kian, Lady Priscilla, this way. The salon is behind the main building, on the observation deck up the marble stairs.”
”I’ve been here many times, I know the way.”
”Haha, that’s right. ──Please, come along.”
Following Liam’s polite guidance, they passed through the gate.
The 3 of them climbed the wide marble stairs──.
Around the main building, which is the old Oswald residence, moving around from the left side.
Then, from above, many human presences and a faint voice like Maribel’s bell echoed softly.
Under the afternoon yellow sunlight that cast deep shadows, several bonfires burned in front of the steep marble stairs ahead. Again, several guards were stationed here.
Liam spoke to them and encouraged Kian and Priscilla to climb the stairs.
”────”
As they slowly climbed the stairs, they felt Maribel’s voice growing louder.
Kian, and probably Priscilla walking beside him, listened intently to the voices coming from the observation deck’s salon.
* * *
”──Your Excellency, Lord Owl, has stated in his message that he cannot protect enemy soldiers from monsters. Baron Mankovitch shares the same view. If the Bloodsucking Kind runs wild within the territory of the Hairkin Races, our army will have the advantage. We should reject the guild leader’s request and pressure to withdraw all related rescue quests.”
”Baron Mankovitch speaks wisely, I too believe. However, if we cancel the Quest, the villages once part of Ramsey, now absorbed by the Hairkin Races and the mercenary group ‘Storm Herd’, will suffer greatly. The enemy doesn’t rule the land they conquer; they march for plunder and glory. ‘Storm Herd’ cares only for profit──they won’t lift a finger to save the people from monsters. If not for the Adventurer Guild and us, the innocent will keep getting hurt.”
As they climbed the stairs with Priscilla, Maribel’s delicate voice became more distinct.
In Oswald’s hobby──his open-air marble observatory salon──about 30 nobles dressed in fine garments had gathered.
At the center of the circle, on the observatory’s circular terrace, stood Maribel and her assistant, the Head Magician──Lucretia.
Among the crowd around them were Mankovitch, the Bodyguard captain, the witches including Christy, and the red-haired female Knight──Eleonora, her hair coiled into a vertical roll.
Everyone except for Baron Mankovitch, who was speaking, had a difficult expression and remained silent.
The guards protecting the nobles also had stern faces.
Liam pushed through the crowd and walked towards Maribel.
He noticed Maribel’s dark blue eyes flicker briefly towards Kian.
It was just a momentary crossing of glances, but it seemed to Liam that the princess’s gaze held a world of emotions, beyond mere arrogance.
She received Liam’s report with an unchanged expression, her cool voice growing slightly louder.
”I’m not saying to hunt monsters within ‘Storm Herd’s’ territory. We should only ensure that the Adventurer Guild in Izerland can take quests to exterminate the Bloodsucking Kind and Ghouls near the front-line villages!”
”Your Excellency.”
The red-haired female knight, Eleonora, interrupted with her confident voice.
Maribel gave a polite nod, and she started talking fluently.
”It is hard for adventurers taking quests to know exactly where our territory ends and begins, and even if they understand it, they might enter the ‘Storm Herd’ territory for rewards. If they’re not careful, they could be bought by enemies, turned into spies, or even betray us as enemies. Adventurers below intermediate rank are no different from mercenaries──they don’t care about good or evil. We must trust Lord Owl fully. His knights will handle the Bloodsucking Kind and others smoothly.”
”That’s why Ramsey’s Adventurer Guild is asking for help, Eleonora.”
”It’s only been about 2 weeks since Lord Owl took over. We should wait and see a little more──”
Eleonora pressed her point.
Kian had been listening behind the nobles when suddenly a witch next to him tugged at his sleeve.
”Hey, Lord Kian.”
”What is it?”
Priscilla, wearing her pointy black hat, tiptoed and whispered into his ear.
Though she looked like a cute little girl mischievously suggesting a prank, what she whispered made Kian frown in surprise.
”Lord Owl’s soldiers are no longer guarding the perimeter──everyone from before is gone.”
”…Did Lord Owl take them to the front lines?”
”No, some must have been left behind. He said he would leave key soldiers for communication and fortress security.”
”Lord Owl is disliked by Her Excellency. Being kept away from guarding is understandable.”
When Kian whispered back, the white-haired witch looked troubled.
She glanced at her black umbrella──’Parasol of the Night Queen.’
”I can feel the foul smell and corrupted soul from underground. It’s swarming everywhere. Probably, all of Lord Owl’s soldiers are locked up in the basement prison of the Oswald residence.”
”────”
”Maybe something has gone wrong with them. Or maybe, something has happened to Lord Owl himself, who is controlling them.”
He was about to ask what exactly ‘something’ is──Priscilla opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Kian felt a familiar big magic power among the nobles and turned his face to the right.
As expected, there was Serena, a short-haired Beastman with silver hair, standing there──though she seemed out of place.
She had noticed Kian, and as soon as their eyes met, she hurriedly turned her face away.
(Serena…? Why is she here?)
He watched her with suspicion, seeing her step back behind Christy and the other Witches, as if hiding.
Priscilla must have noticed too, whispering cautiously.
”A Wolfman Adventurer, huh? That’s rare. Maybe she’s someone Lord Kian knows?”
”Yeah, well… she’s a party member who was doing something else.”
”Hmm? Looks like she came after sensing Lord Kian’s movement, doesn’t it?”
Priscilla narrowed her sharp eyes and continued.
”Then maybe she was summoned by Princess Maribel. ──Oh, I see. Since it’s said that Hairkin Races are hiring the ‘Storm Herd,’ they might be calling her, who seems involved, and try to buy her out by selling member info.”
”……”
”As the daughter of Godfrey, Princess Maribel is sharp. The ‘Storm Herd’ is a tough enemy, but they’re not just a bunch of mysterious monsters. First, they want to expose their profiles.”
”────”
Depending on how you hear it, it might sound like the party members are traitors, but Kian didn’t argue with Priscilla’s words; instead, he was silent.
When Serena first met them, she would never have sold her friends for money. But now, living the life of an Adventurer and struggling for gold, her soul was darkened. She thought maybe she would consider such a deal now.
Personally, he did not want to see such a Serena.
Just because she was here did not mean she had shared information about her friends, but he could not shake off a bad feeling.
Kian thought for a moment before speaking.
”She is not that heartless. Sometimes she can be overly excited and not see clearly, but deep down, she is a proud Wolfman. At least, that’s what I believe.”
”Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to tarnish your friend’s name. She might be here for another reason or maybe she refused their demands. I shouldn’t say anything since I just got here and don’t know the situation.”
”No…”
He shook his head.
Priscilla gave a vague smile as if to show she was sorry.
”──Everyone, let’s pause the discussion for now! The brave hero who saved me from bandits 2 months ago is here in this salon. Two weeks ago, I couldn’t prepare a proper welcome for him due to my poor health. ~So, today, I want to take this chance to share his glorious deeds with everyone. ──’Knight of Crescent Moon’ Kian of Izerland, please come forward!”
”Kian, come up!”
Liam, who had quietly returned to the side, signaled with a low voice.
Kian nodded, bowed to Priscilla, and then moved through the crowd of nobles to the front of the salon.
”────”
As he stepped out from the crowd, he saw Maribel standing in a dark dress right in front of him.
She looked stronger than 2 weeks ago, her core more steady, and her life force seemed to be more powerful.
In plain words, her appearance of age seemed to jump, giving her a more mature and strong aura.
But her long hair like gold thread and gentle dark blue eyes, delicate details, hadn’t changed at all.
Maribel shyly whispered, “Come on, Kian. Over here.”
She wasn’t familiar with the court etiquette of Franz, so as Azrael’s warrior monk, she bowed in a slightly strange way to the Western nobles.
But no one scolded Kian for his rude behavior that moment.
Instead, a small applause started to spread.
Maribel approached and stood beside Kian.
He could smell a sweet scent like peach on her.
Before, she must have used Christy’s perfume exactly, but did she change to something else?
”Everyone, thanks to Lord Kian’s efforts, there is a court of Izerland today. Without him, the fortress would not be peaceful. He protected our lives, dignity, and property.”
Maribel wrapped her arm around Kian’s waist and continued.
”I hereby bestow upon him the title of a knight among knights ── Master Knight. And if he wishes, I give him the right to develop and rule Dacia, next to Ramsey. But he remains a free adventurer, not one of my subordinates, but my ally. Everyone, let’s give a big round of applause for the birth of the Master Knight after 17 years. Please send your warmest praise to Master Kian.”
Thinking about what Guy, Liam, and Priscilla had said, he was surprised that Dacia’s rights had been guaranteed in front of the nobles without him noticing.
He wanted Dacia, but never imagined it would be recognized in such a way.
A strange floating feeling wrapped around his whole body.
Among the nobles, he saw Christy happily clapping with a big smile.
Kian’s appearance was sudden, but it seemed she had likely heard about him from Maribel or Lucretia.
Kian decided to smile back at her for now.
”Lord Kian, congratulations!”
The ‘glasses’ Witch, Lucretia, approached with an impressive seal and a scroll.
The medium-short leading Witch wore a completely sour face.
Kian leaned in closer and asked.
”When did it get decided that I would govern Dacia?”
”I don’t know. Please ask Your Excellency.”
”Uh…”
”Hehe, as I mentioned before, it’s a right reservation~. If you don’t need it, you can leave undeveloped Dacia alone.”
Maribel whispered low, pushing the seal and scroll onto Kian.
”Master Knight, the title has already been communicated to the lords. If my influence reaches them, everyone will call you Master Kian out of respect. I hope this helps your Adventurer life~.”
”Thank you. By the way, Your Excellency, how is your health?”
”Shh.”
While smiling at the nobles who were clapping, Maribel murmured.
”We can discuss the details later. Please give me a little time before I meet Oswald. For now, just smile modestly at everyone.”
”Ha…”
Maribel made a big flower-like smile, took the glass of wine brought by Mankovitch, and touched her lips to the rim.
She didn’t drink it all but returned the glass to the Baron, raising her voice, “Cheers to Lord Kian!”
The applause gradually quieted down.
Eleonora, who had been seriously arguing with Maribel just a moment ago, approached and said, “Congratulations, Master Kian!”
The atmosphere changed so quickly that Kian felt he might fall behind.
”Kian? If you get bored with Adventurer life, feel free to come serve with me anytime.”
”Your Excellency, you jest.”
Maribel’s deliberate proposal was smoothly brushed aside, prompting the nobles to smirk, and just like that, the abrupt grand knighting ceremony came to an end.
After Liam led her away from the center of the salon, Kian felt like a fox in a trap, watching alongside Priscilla as the salon was cleared out.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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