Chapter 164
Chapter 164
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 164
Chapter Title: Old Story, Knights and the World Tree (2)
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Ah, I didn’t want to see the Emperor.
But this bell had never been wrong before. I stubbed out my cigar and quickly took my place beside the Chancellor.
The Chancellor was straightening his clothes. He didn’t smooth out his furrowed brow.
He was the only one who could address the Emperor so casually.
Finally, the door opened.
The figure entered the room slowly. He was accompanied by his two children, his guard knight, a mage, a priest, and a maid.
It had been nine months since I last saw the Emperor, but he hadn’t changed much. Of course not. He had immortality in his grasp now.
He was the kind of being who seemed to have held the royal scepter even as an infant in a cradle.
Kisis took after this man in appearance.
Except the Emperor had sky-blue eyes.
“Grand Duke Zack. Busy?”
Beside me, where I saluted according to knightly etiquette, the Chancellor smirked.
“I greet Your Majesty the Emperor.”
“I came to discuss the diamond mines in the north, but…”
The Emperor’s blue eyes, always seeming bored, turned to me.
“You were in the middle of a conversation, I see.”
I didn’t avoid his gaze.
The Emperor wasn’t a tyrant. Kyle still hated him and despaired at not being able to take revenge, but even he admitted the Emperor wasn’t a tyrant.
He was said to be a wise ruler to imperial citizens, though brutally cruel to non-citizens.
Many idolized the Emperor.
I didn’t like him. Not because of Kyle, but because that boredom never left his eyes, even when committing violence. It was unsettling.
He never got excited.
“You look familiar from before… He must have taken a liking to you.”
“He’s decent enough to keep around.”
“In what sense?”
What?
I was flustered, but the Chancellor wasn’t.
He chuckled and stroked his beard.
“It’s quite amusing watching the fledgling flail about. His skills as a guard are passable too.”
“Is that so?”
The Emperor clasped his hands behind his back and glanced at his guard knight.
Sir Castlin, said to be closer to Swordmaster than anyone else at present, smiled faintly.
“Yes, it’s true. Sir Kisis praised him highly.”
I felt my eyes widen.
“With a bit more experience, he’ll reach Swordmaster without issue. He’s a knight I’m keeping an eye on as well.”
“Ah, splendid.”
The Emperor replied in a voice that didn’t sound sincere.
His voice never did.
“Which unit?”
“The western unit.”
“Then you’ll soon walk the path of the sword.”
Throughout the conversation, I kept my mouth shut.
It was the proper attitude, as I hadn’t been given permission to speak. As a knight, at least I didn’t have to lower my eyes. Without the knight’s title, I’d have been dragged to prison just for looking at him.
It was a land where anything the Emperor touched became a holy relic.
One word from him could separate my head from my body.
“Don’t just stand there like an idiot. Sit in any chair.”
Of course, Grand Duke Zack could speak to the Emperor like that.
“Or do you plan to stand the whole time?”
“Why did you cut down the Divine Tree?”
The Emperor asked in a voice as if he’d just woken up.
Of me.
I slowly closed and opened my eyes.
“They say cutting the Divine Tree to make a sword lets you kill creatures protected by magic and holy power, Your Majesty.”
“Was that creature human?”
His blue eyes, filled with boredom, looked at me.
I didn’t avert my gaze.
“Yes.”
The Chancellor snorted.
Castlin didn’t erase his perfect smile. The Emperor’s eldest son and daughter each gave me different looks.
The First Prince scanned me with displeasure. The First Princess’s eyes sparkled as if appraising my value.
The willful Archmage narrowed her eyes at me.
The priest, who had heard my song months ago and judged it as “not exceptionally talented but decently average,” looked at me with pity in his eyes.
Only the Emperor’s expression remained unchanged.
“What was your party composition for the World Tree?”
“I went alone.”
“To gain immortality.”
Suddenly?
“Chancellor, you’ve heard about the mine discovery, I assume.”
“Will you sit down now?”
…End of discussion?
I struggled to adjust to the abrupt change in topic. But as the Emperor’s entourage poured in and shot me glances to leave, I snapped to attention.
They were an impressive group. If I hadn’t caught the Grand Duke’s eye, I’d never have gotten a proper look at any of them in my lifetime.
Anyway, I hoped they’d forget my name and existence.
Wishing that small wish, I turned to go.
It was immediately denied.
“Sir Hildebert.”
It was the Emperor’s voice.
I barely hid my surprise and whipped around.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Is a knight’s salary adequate?”
…Why ask that all of a sudden.
I had no idea how to answer, so I kept my mouth shut.
The Emperor continued, looking at me.
“I won’t reprimand you no matter what you say, so be honest.”
“…Truly honest, I have no particular complaints.”
“Is that sincere?”
“Yes. This month, I even bought a limited edition item I’d been eyeing. Save up a few months, and you can afford those, so I really have no complaints.”
“Limited edition?”
The Emperor leaned lazily back in his chair and asked.
I hesitated a moment before speaking.
I’d planned to keep it secret until giving the gift.
But with the recipient right there asking, what could I do? You can’t lie to the empire’s supreme ruler.
I replied with an awkward smile.
“For the Grand Duke’s sixtieth birthday, I bought cigars made with World Tree branches for 300 lira…”
Suddenly, everyone in the room froze.
Gazes stabbed at me. I blinked at the pairs of wide eyes.
Why were they all looking at me like that?
Did I say something wrong?
Oh.
Maybe cigars with World Tree branches are illegal.
If so, my head’s coming off. I should’ve just said I bought some shoes or something vague instead of blurting out the truth.
I’m screwed.
The moment I thought that, the silence shattered noisily.
Because Grand Duke Zack threw his head back and guffawed.
“Khahaha!”
Why are you cackling?
“Khahaha! Uhahaha! Uhahaha! Uhaha… ha… Yes, little one. Cigars for 300 lira are expensive, aren’t they?”
“…Why are you laughing?”
“Khahaha!”
“You’ve never bought a cigar before?”
The First Princess looked at me with a giggling smile.
I pressed my lips into a straight line and nodded.
As if I could afford them normally.
Seeing my sullen expression, the Princess’s smile deepened.
“So you have no idea about cigar prices?”
“…Yes.”
“How cute.”
Why?
“It’s certainly not a small sum, 300 lira.”
“Considering a knight’s salary, it’s high.”
“…I don’t know what, but I made a mistake. Sorry.”
“Why recommend cigars and give him cheap ones, Grand Duke?”
The First Prince looked incredulous as he examined me and the cigar I’d been smoking.
“Then he gets the absurd idea to buy 300-lira cigars as a sixtieth birthday gift.”
“Isn’t it cute? Khahaha!”
“Cigars in the capital are ridiculously overpriced, right?”
The mage grinned at me too, barely holding back bigger laughter.
“But the most important thing in a gift is the sentiment, isn’t it, Grand Duke? Happily accept it when this young knight brings it for your birthday.”
“Of course.”
The old man met my eyes, grinned wickedly, and replied.
“I’ll treasure it. Put it in a glass case and display it in the drawing room.”
Bastards.
Just because I’m from commoner stock…
I stood there sullenly until they finished laughing, not hiding my grumpy expression as I stared down at the ornate carpet.
In the process, I learned useless life info: noble cigars averaged 500 lira.
And that nobles didn’t touch capital cigars.
And how the Emperor smiled.
A day full of info I truly didn’t want.
Damn rich nobles.
***
Count Lenyur hates me.
Kyle doesn’t hate him, but I do. Reason: He thinks Ray came to the western unit because of me and resents him for getting banged up in a rough unit just following a friend.
Even when Ray vehemently denied it, he wouldn’t listen.
I don’t care if he hates me.
“Hilde!”
I looked up at Kyle’s urgent voice.
“Injured? Grazed?”
“No.”
I slicked back my rain-soaked hair and grinned.
I spat out the sand in my mouth, then reached out and grabbed my friend’s offered arm.
“Thanks to you, I survived. Appreciate it.”
I saw Ray’s face too.
He was paler than Kyle. It seemed even more shocking because it happened while dealing with magical beasts flooding the count’s territory.
I hoped he wouldn’t blame himself. Knights have to handle vicious beast subjugations anyway.
When it comes to his family, he’s too hard on himself.
Grabbing Ray and Kyle’s arms, I climbed out of the pit.
The wrecked territory came into view. The massive magical beast collapsed in front, bodily fluids leaking from it.
“Just killing the ones that keep coming won’t cut it.”
I muttered, looking at yet another beast corpse.
The rain thickened the blood scent.
“They’re pouring out nonstop from that old fortress in the northwest, right?”
“…Yeah, or so I heard. Need to confirm again. Go in and ask the exclusive mage…”
“Anyway, did you see it?”
Beside anxiously muttering Ray, Kyle grinned and waved.
“My crossbow bolt hitting the beast’s claw dead-on? If it missed, you’d have been in trouble, Hilde. It was at least fifty paces away, but it nailed it perfectly.”
“Fifty paces? No way.”
I muttered thoughtlessly while slicking back my dripping hair.
Kyle snapped.
“Why not fifty paces?”
He stood and walked off a distance.
“Come count it then!”
His strides seemed shorter than usual.
Rubbing my heavy, sore arms, I looked at the rain-soaked ground. The battle was over. We’d cleaned up the beasts swarming while stopping by for Ray.
It was happening more often lately. There’d been many anomalies recently.
I stood in the rain for a while, lost in the afterglow of battle.
A fight that would’ve caused massive casualties with amateurs.
“Ray!”
The urgent voice snapped me back to reality.
I turned to see the Count. He was running faster than the knights trailing behind him.
Mud splattered his fine clothes.
Ray shot to his feet.
“You safe? Not hurt?”
“Go inside.”
His friend replied stiffly.
“Why did you come out?”
I’d heard the count couple lived crushed by guilt.
He couldn’t fully forgive them, but couldn’t he forgive his parents at least a little?
I watched Ray bicker with the Count. Even to an outsider like me, the Count’s affection was genuine.
Though he hates me just as much.
I smiled awkwardly and turned to Kyle.
“Let’s go.”
“Sir Hildebert!”
I jolted.
First time hearing the Count call my name.
He never called me Sir Hildebert. It was always “you,” commoner, fledgling knight, annoying knight…
Anything but my name.
So I forgot to reply in shock.
“Come inside.”
“Huh?”
“Into the castle! How long are you going to stand in the rain!”
“No…”
Why this suddenly?
“Sir Kyle, you too! Don’t sit in the mud!”
Kyle eyed the Count uncertainly too.
Ray’s face was beet red. Embarrassed by his father, probably.
He gets extra sensitive about family issues and never fixes it.
For Ray’s sake, I’d better go in.
I nodded at Kyle.
He nodded back, thinking the same, and stepped forward.
We’d seen this noble often over years but never locked eyes. Entering his castle was unthinkable. Yet we walked toward the heavy building standing in the rain, avoiding the melting beast corpses in the mud.
Pondering why vicious beasts were appearing so frequently.
Rain-soaked hair clung damply to my cheek.
***
“Go to the old fortress with Sir Kisis.”
The next morning, the Count declared.