The Capital’s Suspicion
"Would you believe it, the human who beat the chief?"
"He doesn't look all that impressive."
"Don't let his face fool you. He's strong, that one."
The news of the duel had spread quickly, and the goblins were sizing Shrakhim up from every angle.
The goblin hunter who had become the leader of the newly gathered band, Goblin Hunter #001, approached Shrakhim and spread both palms open, a gesture meant to show he meant no harm.
"Your master kept his promise. Now we'll keep ours."
After confirming the pile of troll corpses that Meyril had ordered them to stack aside, the goblins had followed the scent of more blood to this place.
"So? Are you the one who'll finish it?"
At Goblin Hunter #001's question, while pointing at the troll, Shrakhim shook his head.
"No. From the look of it, you lot have old grudges against that troll as well. Better that you finish it. If it turns dangerous, I will lend a hand."
"So? That's… thank you."
As Shrakhim stepped aside, five goblins closed in around the troll.
"Tr… troll!"
The troll, unable to accept the sudden turn of events, staggered back, and then a storm of tusks and claws came down on him.
"Sir Shrakhim! What in the world is this?"
The guards who came running over in the meantime looked stunned. It was only natural. They had just seen goblins and Shrakhim join forces.
Shrakhim gave them a brief explanation of Ho-yeong's ability and the story behind his dealings with the goblins.
"Those goblins won't go out of their way to harm humans. There is no need to hunt them down on purpose."
"It's hard to believe, but we saw it with our own eyes... Understood. I'll report it to the troop captain as well."
After finishing off the troll, the goblin chief spoke to Shrakhim in a friendly voice.
"So, are there more trolls we should put down?"
"No need. The trolls that attacked here have all been dealt with. We'll pile their corpses here later, so take them with you. Thank you for helping us this time."
"What of it? We're the ones grateful."
Just as they were about to part on warm terms, the goblin delivered important information.
"Come to think of it, we saw some elf taking human children away earlier."
"What, what did you say?! Where?"
At that same time, a royal court meeting was underway at the palace.
Escort requests were flooding in from neighboring kingdoms because monsters had begun appearing all over the place.
The message behind most of them was plain enough: if safe transport could not be guaranteed, trade would have to stop.
It was less a request than a threat.
"How outrageous! Are they banding together to defy our kingdom?"
The queen was in a foul mood.
"Your Majesty! A beacon has been lit at 013 Station. It is an emergency signal!"
The messenger's report only made her more irritable.
"We also received simultaneous communication scrolls. A troll horde has stirred, but fortunately the Border Count has arrived there...."
"The Border Count?"
Daisy crumpled the parchment in her hand.
"He set out from Rainpa after catching the fog boar just the day before yesterday, and now you're telling me he's already there? That's absurd. It sounds like he rode in on a bird or took a carriage pulled by centaurs."
She had only tossed the remark out in exasperation, but the point was that every word lined up with reality.
"Summon the captain of the Holy Knights. No, he has already gone out on a purge, has he not? Then I shall lead the sortie myself."
Frustrated to the point of no longer being able to sit still, Daisy decided to act on her own.
"Please restrain yourself, Your Majesty. The vice-commander remains here, so it would be best to call him."
"How can I summon someone who returned from the battlefield only yesterday?"
"Your Majesty's consideration shines as warmly as sunlight itself. But if Your Highness personally moves to handle a matter of this scale before the royal audience...."
"Very well. Bring him."
The queen let out a soft breath at her secretary's words.
"Your Majesty, even if we dispatch the Holy Knights, the distance is considerable. I believe the wisest course would be to have the finest mages use spatial transfer spells."
Royal Mage Guzel offered his opinion.
"We have no usable spatial transfer scrolls at the moment, so that is our only option. When you say the finest mages, whom do you mean?"
"The Iolid Marquisate."
The Marquis of Iolid and his two sons, singled out so suddenly, all flinched.
"There are three reasons the Iolid Marquisate should take part," Guzel said smoothly, turning to the three mages.
"First, the Iolid Marquisate is one of the continent's leading magical houses. Second, the marquis previously proposed a plan to summon them using the Border Count's brooch and failed. Therefore, he should be given a chance to redeem that mistake."
The Marquis of Iolid bit down on the few teeth he had left in humiliation. That elf bastard had the nerve!
He wanted nothing more than to storm forward and swing his staff, but he barely held himself in check. This was the royal court. He could not make a scene.
What grievance do you have against me, you pointy-eared bastard?
And just as Guzel was about to explain the third reason,
"Wait. If you send out the knight order, you'll need to move at least several dozen. Teleporting that many soldiers at once is beyond us. Unless we can rely on the help of the Founding Queen's statue...."
Kristian, eldest son and heir of the Iolid family, stepped forward.
"But that method can't be used right now. The marquis's father used up the statue's precious mana. It will take time to recharge."
"W-what? Are you insulting our house?"
"I am only stating the facts and their consequence."
As the three father-and-sons grew red in the face together,
"Enough!"
Daisy raised a hand and silenced the mages.
"Guzel, it is clear enough that the Marquis of Iolid erred. But that does not mean you may heap insults upon him. Mind your words."
"I shall bear it in mind. If my words have offended the marquis and your two sons, I apologize."
The marquisate was grinding its teeth in silence, but there was nothing to be done but swallow its anger.
"Continue."
"Yes, Your Majesty. I have heard the marquisate possesses an heirloom artifact. A ring that can transport people across a wide area all at once. It is the object hanging from the staff you currently hold, Marquis."
"Oh? Is that so, Marquis?"
The Marquis of Iolid nodded, his head trembling.
How did that bastard know about our family heirloom?
"If that artifact is used, round-trip movement would be possible."
"Then once the troll purge is finished, we can bring the Border Count back with us. That solves the problem."
"Indeed. Of course, moving that many people will require a fair amount of mana stones, but how could a loyal subject like the marquis spare coin when the kingdom needs him?"
The marquis clenched his jaw around the teeth he had left.
How can he speak so casually about spending what isn't even his? Say it like that, and I'm forced to cough up precious mana stones. Damn that elf...!
"Marquis, would that be all right?"
"Y-Your Majesty. As the royal mage has said, how could I, a servant of the crown, be stingy with supplies when the kingdom faces a crisis? Though if I use this ring, I will be transported along with them as well... I fear this old body may only become a hindrance."
He was saying he did not want to drag his aging bones onto the battlefield.
Daisy, who detested cowards, frowned.
"What concern is that, when your two sons will accompany you?"
Guzel, blandly dragging the marquis's sons into it, made Kristian and his younger brother Keiji flinch.
"I have heard that the marquis's two sons also possess considerable magical talent, but have remained in the shadow of their great father and never truly shone. If they take this chance to help the people, will not both their magic and their virtue be praised?"
He drove the knife in by invoking the people. After saying it like that, how could they possibly refuse in front of the king?
He made a silent vow to kill that pointy-eared bastard one day, the one who rode on the royal family's favor and strutted about relying only on his holy light.
"Th-that is so, Your Majesty. My brother and I will support our father and exterminate the monsters! Please grant us permission to depart!"
"I will pour out even my meager mana for the sake of the kingdom!"
With no other choice, Kristian and Keiji knelt and begged for permission to join the sortie.
"Good. The junior marquis and the third young master have admirable spirit. If a magical house of such renown across the continent joins the battle, the soldiers' morale will rise as well. The people will take great comfort from it."
Though she was being forced into it, Daisy nodded with apparent satisfaction.
Guzel and the marquis's sons are all putting on a play for me. Still, if the audience can learn something from it, I don't mind playing the clown.
Then the secretary entered the great hall with the final actor.
"Your Majesty! The vice-commander of the Holy Knights has arrived."
"Bring him in."
Demis Ezef knelt before the throne with steps harder and more iron-willed than a steel golem's.
"I came in answer to Your Majesty's summons."
"I am sorry. You must still be weary from battle...."
"How could this servant rest idly when crises keep striking the kingdom? Please, command me to do whatever is needed!"
The Holy Knight's discipline was sharp enough to cut, or rather, he was discipline itself.
"Do you remember 013 Station, where the trolls appeared not long ago?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. I remember it clearly."
"Another troll horde has appeared there. Quite a large one, too. Joren Tamer has happened to arrive there in time and is leading the battle, but unlike when he took the Red Flag Company with him, he has no troops now. So I would like you to aid him and protect the station and the nearby villagers. The loyal Marquis of Iolid and his sons will transfer the knight order with magic."
"As you command! I shall prepare for departure at once."
Demis Ezef answered without the slightest objection.
"But why is it that wherever that man goes, monsters seem to gather? It is a fine thing that he drives them off somehow, but...."
With monsters swarming the entire kingdom already, Daisy could not help being uneasy.
"Your Majesty, may I presume to offer a word?"
"Speak."
Guzel folded politely at the waist and offered his counsel.
"In my humble view, Your Majesty's last remark may have reversed cause and effect."
"Reversed cause and effect? Then you mean it is not that monsters gather wherever Joren Tamer goes, but that he deliberately goes where monsters are gathering."
That, too, fit the evidence to some degree.
But Guzel lowered his voice and continued.
"What if it is neither that monsters gather where Joren Tamer goes, nor that he goes where monsters gather?"
"What are you saying?"
"Perhaps he himself is the source that calls the monsters forth."
Daisy's face went white.
"What if he is the one summoning the monsters? Even if not, what if someone is summoning monsters around him? Wouldn't that make far more sense?"
The ministers murmured in shock. Now that they heard it, it did sound plausible.
"...Go on."
"If my suspicion is true, then this is a crisis that could determine the kingdom's very survival."
"What? Our survival is at stake?"
"The Border Count Joren Tamer is on his way to the capital under Your Majesty's orders. What would happen if monsters were summoned in Kainea? At first goblins, and then hoggrifons and mino-centaurs, and eventually even fog boars. Who knows what outrageous monster might appear next?"
The unease spread through the hall like rolling waves.
Even Daisy, who normally would have barked for everyone to be quiet, had unsteady eyes.
"Therefore, Your Majesty...."
"Your Majesty! Please calm yourself."
Demis cut off Guzel and spoke up. While everyone else looked rattled, he alone kept his face set in stone.
"The Border Count I have seen was Your Majesty's loyal vassal and a magistrate who knew how to care for the people. As a knight, he was also a man of spirit and courage. Please, trust him first."
Having seen Ho-yeong's struggle before, he offered his counsel in a grave voice.
"Yes. I trust you more firmly than anyone, Sir. If you trust the Border Count, then I shall trust him too."
"Should Joren Tamer harbor any evil intent, or should some vile faction be targeting him, I will keep watch. If either is true, I shall cut them down at once."
The Iolid marquis's sons also moved to calm Daisy.
"Your Majesty, nothing has yet been proven. So long as you are here, Kainea will stand firm."
"Please do not worry so much. If Joren Tamer is plotting something, my father and I will move with him to the far end of the continent to stop it, if that is what it takes."
It was partly a show of loyalty, but more than that, it was a means to check the royal mage who had insulted them.
"The royal mage's words are nothing more than speculation. If the stronger and stronger monsters he warns of are truly appearing, then after the fog boar, a wyvern ought to have shown up. And yet this time it was trolls and goblins. Are you not making far too many assumptions, Royal Mage?"
Kristian pointed out the logical flaw, and Guzel's face soured.
So the hound's son can act like a hunting dog after all, even if he's not a proper one.
"Your sons do have a point, Your Majesty. If the Border Count truly is summoning monsters, then I, as a mage, should be able to sense it. Since I am already taking the lead this time, I will investigate the truth behind the rumors of that dimensional rift in detail."
The father rose to back up the son.
"Good. I am reassured to hear you say so. In any case, the urgent matter is saving the people from the trolls. Leave at once."
Daisy steadied herself and issued the order to depart.
"Ministers, hear me. From this point on, do not spout idle speculation about matters not yet confirmed. Those who stir public confusion should fear the royal sword. Do you understand?!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"That will conclude this audience."
After the retainers withdrew, Daisy walked over to the royal mage.
"Guzel. Do your words truly come from concern for the kingdom?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. How could this servant harbor any other intent?"
Guzel met the queen's gaze calmly and bowed his head.
"Elves do not lie. So your words must be true. You may withdraw."
Standing before the throne, Daisy stared vacantly at the empty space beyond it.
Father, what am I supposed to do?
Her late father used to tell old stories to the young prince and princess right here, in this very place.
Ten years earlier, on a certain day.
"Prince Kalstein admired knights and preferred a field tent to the royal bedchamber. So King Harot asked him, 'Do you mean to become a knight in the years ahead?'"
That day, Daisy had been puzzled when her father called her aside alone. If it was a story from history, wouldn't her younger brother have found it more interesting than she did?
"What did the prince answer?"
The former king looked at Daisy for a while, then continued the story.
"The people are afraid because monsters tear through the night and appear everywhere. I will become a knight, slaughter the monsters, and drive them off. I will make a world where monsters hide when night falls, and people can look up at the moonlight."
The king sighed and asked again.
"What is the duty of a knight?"
"To stand at the front."
The prince's words and bearing never wavered, but the king's eyes as he looked at his son did.
"That is correct. But you are a future king, and you must never step forward lightly."
"Then are you saying I should place my retainers and subjects at the front? Is that the duty of a ruler?"
Even after such a bold reply, the king only shook his head and did not rebuke his son.
"A king who only pushes others to the front is a tyrant. A king who leads people to step forward of their own will is a wise ruler. The heart that rises even without being ordered is the truest form of loyal devotion."
"And what should be done when no one will step forward? If no one moves even when ordered, and no one moves of their own will?"
"That is when the king must stand at the front himself. And that is the duty of a ruler."
This had been the last conversation Daisy ever had with her father.
At eighteen, Daisy had asked why he had told her that story, and why only to her.
But before she could receive an answer, a messenger blackened by fire from head to toe arrived with urgent news. Since there were no knights bold enough to step forward, her father had gone to the front himself, just as he had taught.
And he never returned.
Is this... the moment when I must stand at the front?
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