How a Wizard Survives (22)
How a Wizard Survives (22)
I'd been saddled with an uninvited guest, but the festival itself was genuinely enjoyable.
First impression aside, Angelica was a striking beauty.
She was the kind of beauty whose future promise outshone her present charms.
And as an Einhold, she was easy enough to talk to.
Once we reached the tea house Katrina had mentioned, I sat down with our refreshments and asked cautiously, "So, what exactly are the Eight Swords of Einhold? Is that an actual position within the family?"
"It's not a formal title... just something people call them."
Angelica was oddly polite with me, too.
I slurped my tea and nodded appreciatively.
"Ah. So it's a sort of epithet. I assume Sir Hector is included among the Eight Swords?"
"Of course. My father is one of the finest swordsmen in the Einhold family."
Angelica answered with a hint of pride, but...
She didn't go so far as to claim Hector was the best of the Eight Swords.
Still, he had to be in the upper half.
I swallowed a sigh and turned the thought inward.
The Einhold family had seven more swordsmen at that level.
Even if I hadn't seen him fight firsthand, Hector Einhold had faced the Destruction Mage Lucas and the Death Mage Dresden simultaneously.
Both were mages listed on the Wall of Shame.
There was no way a man like that was weak.
Hadn't he even captured Dresden alive, a designated Permanent Sealing Target?
A family mentioned in the same breath as Wizardvein was no easy opponent.
Katrina offered a rare, cold-edged taunt.
"The Eight Swords of Einhold... With only eight, I suppose nicknames come easily. Thirty Swords of Wizardvein would sound a little strange."
"I doubt there are even thirty of you."
"It's a figure of speech."
A battle of family pride waged with words.
As I nibbled on the refreshments and watched with interest, two noblemen approached our table.
They were on the younger side, which immediately set my instincts tingling.
Sure enough, they wasted no time making their move.
"Aren't you Lady Katrina of the Wizardvein family? I almost didn't recognize you without your usual uniform."
"Did you? Pity you recognized me at all."
Katrina answered with a blank expression, her words cutting like a knife. She was clearly well versed in this sort of situation.
Beside her, Angelica looked supremely annoyed, too.
Unlike Katrina, she normally enjoyed attention to a degree...
But being written off as someone easy seemed to grate on her.
"To think I'd run into Lady Angelica of Einhold here... Allow me to introduce myself. I am Viscount Cuchon."
"Ah, a viscount. Yes... a pleasure."
Angelica sounded as though she had barely stopped herself from adding, without a territory.
To someone with royal blood, how laughable must that be?
Everyone knows a landed baron is far above a capital count.
But today, both women had uncharacteristically sharp edges.
I realized the reason a beat late.
It was because of me.
The very fact that these men approached while I was present was absurd.
If a man like Reinhardt or Hector, someone visibly a high-ranking noble, had been with them, they wouldn't have dared.
But I was different.
No matter how neatly I dressed, I couldn't erase the scent of a commoner.
Even sitting at the same table, I wasn't seen as company. I was a servant.
And I was, in fact, Katrina's squire, so the judgment wasn't entirely wrong.
The two men's expressions turned brittle, as if they'd stepped on caltrops, but...
They couldn't back down now.
If they made an impression on Katrina or Angelica, it would be a huge win.
Mage families drew their share of scrutiny, but Einhold and Wizardvein were the true powers that ruled the kingdom.
There was no surer path to advancement than marrying a woman from one of those houses.
"If you'd allow us, we could show you around the capital..."
"I can find my own way. I'll decline."
"Surely our escort would be preferable to a companion who doesn't even know the etiquette of enjoying tea?"
Had they been scrutinizing my every move earlier?
Now I was starting to get angry.
Katrina's eyes trembled faintly, and Angelica, unexpectedly, spoke up in my defense.
"It's always the mediocre ones who obsess over decorum."
"Th-that's..."
Well, etiquette existed to impress others.
Once you reach the level of Wizardvein or Einhold, where you're the one doing the judging, there's no need to cling to it.
While the nobleman stammered, struck on a sore point, Katrina pressed harder.
"Jaeger, you don't have to humor these rude creatures. Why not challenge one of them to a duel?"
"A duel, that's..."
A random noble had almost no chance against a trained Holy Knight.
I smirked and played along.
"That won't be necessary. I've already memorized their faces."
"Is that so. Jaeger is good at burning discourteous heretics to death. He says hanging them is too easy."
"W-we beg your pardon. Excuse us..."
Katrina stopped them as they tried to flee, made them apologize to me, and only then let them go.
I was grateful for her consideration, but I also felt a bit conflicted.
I'd probably given Katrina and Angelica an unpleasant experience.
Thanks to those bastards, we had to leave earlier than planned.
Angelica quickly finished the rest of her tea and scolded us.
"That was one convincing threat. Do you people not understand why inquisitors are so disliked?"
"Nonsense. Everyone loves us."
"All the people who didn't are dead."
We chattered proudly in front of Angelica for a while, then took a leisurely look around the streets before heading to the painter just before sunset.
The painter's motivation visibly surged when he saw Katrina in her dress.
I cheered him on, hoping he'd produce the masterpiece of his career.
"A portrait! The model is perfect, but I only wish you'd come a little earlier..."
"But you can still work quickly and do a fine job, yes?"
"Pardon? The sun is already setting... A proper portrait normally takes a full day."
"Ah, and I'd like you to include the Inquisition's emblem in the corner. The Wizardvein family one. Yes."
The painter's face went sheet-white, and he began working his charcoal in desperate silence.
As I stood behind him, monitoring, Katrina motioned to me.
"Jaeger, stand beside me."
"Lady Katrina..."
"You were told you'd be in it too."
Angelica watched us for a moment, then said her goodbyes and left.
Fair enough. The rest was going to be tedious.
"Do you think she's angry?"
"I doubt it. We'll see her at the royal palace soon enough..."
The portrait was not finished in time.
Still, the painter frantically managed the underdrawing.
We'd paid him in advance, so he'd deliver the completed piece in a few days.
The day with Katrina ended far too quickly.
I clicked my tongue with regret, but she chided me.
Her stern tone sounded like she was admonishing herself as much as me.
"We have an important mission the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow, you will rest—even if you have to force it."
"Understood."
"Still, we enjoyed the festival enough. I'm glad I went with you. I hope we have another chance like this."
Her unusually long reply filled me with absurd happiness.
After seeing her off, I returned straight to the smithy.
Unfortunately, my teacher hadn't come back yet.
I greeted Ash, then slept soundly.
I rested as much as possible on the first day of the festival. On the second day, I donned my armor and reported early in the morning.
The Heretic Inquisitors of Reshutal entered the royal palace with grim faces.
The palace entrance was wide open. Noble visitors, merchants bearing wine and food, musicians, even jesters streamed in and out without pause.
"They didn't listen to a word I said."
Reinhardt scowled with displeasure as he deployed additional personnel at the main gate.
Then, from deeper inside the palace, the Einhold Family Head appeared.
He exchanged warm greetings with Reinhardt and got straight to the point.
"Fortunately, the palace was closed to the public yesterday. And the procession scheduled for today has been canceled."
"You managed to persuade them after all. Thank you."
"I should be thanking you. I'd like this to end without incident, but..."
The Einhold Family Head let out a wry laugh as more white uniforms appeared at the main gate.
A face I'd seen before.
A female inquisitor with a foxlike air approached Reinhardt directly.
Katrina's cousin. She'd visited Reshutal once to transport the Death Mage Dresden.
"Uncle! I barely made it in time."
"Welcome. The item?"
"Honestly, you could act a little happier to see me."
Katrina's cousin, Charlotte Wizardvein, handed over a sword wrapped in fine cloth.
Reinhardt drew it right there in the palace courtyard and nodded with satisfaction.
It was the adamantite longsword he'd ordered.
"Around sixty percent purity. Well done. And the gift for the king?"
"Of course I brought it. Here."
"Good. You'll join Katrina's unit and assist with guarding the female members of the royal family."
Reinhardt disappeared deeper into the palace, having casually put his own relative to work without a second thought.
Still looking a little dumbfounded, Charlotte finally turned to Katrina.
Her greeting was thoroughly unpleasant.
"It's been a while. Still dragging down the other inquisitors?"
"What did you just say to Lady Katrina—"
"Enough, Jaeger. Let's begin the mission."
Katrina waved me off when I bristled beside her.
She turned away quickly and instructed me, "Don't react to Charlotte's spite. It's true that I refused the family head's favor."
"Even so, to embarrass you in front of others like that..."
"... As long as you're here supporting me, the rest doesn't matter."
Her words caught in my throat.
Manipulating people like that was playing dirty.
But Charlotte didn't stop chattering even during the short walk to the garden.
She decided to target me instead, the one who looked easier and softer.
"A squire, in this day and age? So you ended up... huh?"
Charlotte, having belatedly noticed the nature of my longsword, was lost for words.
I normally kept it hidden under my cloak, but today's escort duty meant I wore it openly, ready to draw.
For a long moment after that, Charlotte moved like a broken doll.
"Uh... uhhh? Wait, that sword is..."
"You're crossing a line."
Smack!
I swatted away the hand she'd reached out as if without thinking.
The nearby inquisitors were shocked, but none of them could bring themselves to blame me.
No matter who she was, reaching for a combatant's weapon during an active mission was inexcusable.
Even as a member of Wizardvein, it was behavior worthy of condemnation.
Charlotte, too, seemed to realize what she'd done and rubbed her wrist.
"So it wasn't lost after all... I see. Then capturing two mages from the Wall of Shame was also..."
Apparently delighted by something, Charlotte suddenly grinned.
Katrina paid her no attention and arrived at the palace garden.
In the garden, the royal women and noble guests were making conversation.
"Your Highness. I am Katrina Wizardvein, charged with your protection for the duration of the festival. My subordinates and I will serve you as safely and unobtrusively as possible."
"Thank you, Lady Katrina. Oh my, and Lady Charlotte is here as well. I'd hoped to welcome you both as guests rather than guards... but the armor suits you wonderfully."
Unlike the king, the queen carried herself with far greater dignity.
Honestly, her appearance was wasted on being a mere queen.
Angelica, already seated at the tea table, gave a small wave.
The woman seated beside her was the spitting image of the queen.
Not inheriting her father's looks was an unmistakable stroke of fortune.
So this was the princess.
I quickly committed her face to memory and wrenched my gaze away.
Katrina turned her head toward me, shot me a brief glare, and positioned me as far from the table as possible.