Capital Raid Incident (2)
“What a troublesome situation.”
Edward Windsor. A man who had earned the title of Sword Sovereign at the remarkably young age of thirty-seven, and who was already being spoken of as the next knight order captain.
“You seem to particularly dislike me. Have I done something to earn your hatred?”
Sisilia didn't hate him, nor did she like him. She simply saw him as her boss at work. That said, she was well aware that Edward—for some inexplicable reason—harbored a strong dislike for her.
“That's a misunderstanding.”
Edward's eyes narrowed slightly. His displeasure was plain on his face. At a moment when a sigh might have been expected, he instead lifted the corner of his mouth in a smooth smile.
“Is it? Well, that's a relief, then.”
His voice returned to its gentle tone. But there was an edge to it somewhere, sharp and lingering.
“All the demons taken care of?”
“Yes.”
“As expected, so capable. But you know...”
Edward glanced toward the altar where flames blazed fiercely.
“Demons would naturally shy away from that sacred flame. For them to infiltrate all the way here just for it... that's a bit odd, don't you think?”
“Yes. I agree.”
“Just in case the demons did something to it—mind keeping watch over the flame? For, oh, a day or two.”
That's harsh.
The sacred flame was the goddess's blessing. An absolute existence that even the Demon God couldn't touch—there was no way some low-rank demons could do anything to it. This was clearly just her boss's passive-aggressive way of saying, So why don't you crawl back to your post?
Yet Sisilia answered flatly.
“Understood.”
“I'm counting on you. I could assign someone else, but you're the most reliable, after all.”
Edward patted Sisilia's shoulder with a friendly smile and walked away.
“Vice-Captain.”
Edward's footsteps halted. He turned his head slowly.
“What?”
“Why were you headed to the sewers?”
Disgust clouded Edward's face. But Sisilia stared back without the slightest flinch.
“...A guard was dead. I just moved the body somewhere safe. Are your doubts resolved?”
“Yes.”
Sisilia bowed her head politely.
“Sisilia, you're utterly lacking in flexibility. It suits you perfectly in this line of work.”
“Thank you.”
She always viewed situations intuitively and coolly. Not a single gap to exploit. Like her impeccable attire, her very existence was flawless and impeccable. Even now, in this moment, there was no trace of emotional disturbance.
That was Sisilia.
To Edward, she was like a fishbone lodged in his throat. Utterly irritating.
“No more to say? May I go?”
“Yes.”
Sisilia watched Edward's retreating back for a long while. Once he was completely gone, she quietly sat on the wooden bench. Her silver hair swayed faintly in the breeze. And she let a small smile creep onto her lips.
Affinity probably went up, right?
She recalled a story from her knight order days. The legend of a rookie who stood up to the captain justly and ended up praised for it. Pretty sure it was something like this.
Probably.
...Maybe I should've griped that watching the flame was unfair punishment while I was at it?
But pushing that far probably would've made him dislike her for defying orders. This seemed like the best approach...
Sisilia sighed and gazed at the altar. The flames roared steadily. Being told to stare at this all day—for two days straight—was pure punishment duty. After all, this flame hadn't flickered once in five hundred years. She would've bet Chiron's entire yearly salary that it was fine.
As much as that, there was absolutely no way it would suddenly waver now...
“...Eh?”
Sisilia blinked, unable to believe what her eyes were seeing. The flame was wavering.
Chiron's yearly salary... was gone.
Windsor Knights regular meeting. A crucial gathering to discuss the order's future direction.
...Or so it was presented outwardly. In reality, it was just an excuse to say, Let's take a break too, and swap jokes over drinks.
“You're full of shit.”
But today was different. For once, an agenda had come up that actually made it feel like a real meeting.
“Why the hell is it flickering? Why does the sacred flame have to act up in my final years?!”
BAM! Unable to contain his rage, Jerryway slammed his fist on the round table. Sisilia, seated across from him, flinched.
Whoa, scared me.
“Five years till retirement. Just five more years...”
“Jerryway. Quiet down. You're startling Sisilia.”
Leo Ric growled harshly. The young boy beside him scowled.
“Tch, no class. A knight who hates work? How did such a monstrous hybrid even get into Windsor?”
The boy's name was Lude. He looked like that, but he was a solid fifty. He flashed Sisilia a bright smile and patted her head.
“Meanwhile, our little maknae here is so impressive. She spotted the anomaly in the flame right away.”
Sisilia froze, feeling called out. The pat made her head tilt awkwardly.
“Hand.”
“Huh?”
Chiron, who had been silently observing, spoke lowly.
“Remove your hand. Before I cut it off.”
“Ah, yes sir.”
For a split second, death flashed in Lude's eyes.
“Hahaha, good to see everyone's the same as ever. Feels great catching up like this after so long.”
The knight laughing through tears was Hyter. His neatly trimmed beard was his signature look. But in an instant, he erupted in fury.
“But seriously, in a situation like this?!”
“Hyter, calm down.”
“Am I the crazy one? The sacred flame is acting up, and you're cracking jokes?! Are you all sane?!”
“U-urp. Don't yell. It's coming up.”
“You lunatic! Puke outside!”
Sisilia just felt dizzy. The knights were always a quirky bunch, but these seven high knights gathered here were especially unhinged. Of course, excluding herself.
...Just in case, prep some wind to blow it away.
Overkill, maybe. But Sisilia decided to keep a close eye on the knight on the verge of vomiting.
“Silence.”
Then, Chiron's low, commanding voice dominated the room. The noisy space fell instantly quiet.
“The meeting begins.”
The knights' expressions turned serious. They might slack on other things, but they always obeyed the captain.
And they had to. Sword Sovereign Chiron. The knights' knight. A man respected by everyone here.
“You're all aware from prior notice, but this meeting concerns the 'flame instability' Sisilia detected. The Queen will respect the Windsor Knights' decision. In other words, the kingdom moves according to our future policy.”
This'll be fine, right?
Sisilia wasn't entirely confident. Could these guys really be trusted...?
But her doubts proved unfounded; the meeting proceeded surprisingly normally(?).
“First, call back everyone who hasn't returned yet. The front lines are stable anyway, and if the capital falls, we're all done for.”
“Like Lude said, run capital defenses defensively for now. Until we find something.”
“Send mobile knights—like Sisilia—to scout nearby demons, while the rest focus inward.”
A few constructive exchanges followed. After hearing them all, Chiron turned to Edward.
“Vice-Captain's opinion?”
“I largely agree. Nice how you all get serious when it counts, despite the joking.”
Edward smiled amiably, then spoke coolly.
“Have mage Lude investigate the flame's flickering. And as everyone said, bolster capital defenses. We can't slack on precautions now.”
Solid advice. Sisilia thought it was the rational choice too.
But Chiron seemed to disagree.
“Is that really enough?”
“Pardon?”
“Do you truly believe that?”
He's suspicious.
Chiron looked as stoic as ever, but Sisilia, who knew him well, read the 'deep suspicion' beneath his expression.
What was he doubting?
Edward smiled with a hint of exasperation.
“Captain, what exactly are you trying to say to me?”
“...Nothing. Sisilia. Your thoughts?”
Main storyline's probably kicking off.
Sisilia knew official launch wasn't far off. Which meant no major demon activity until then—otherwise, the tutorial world would be overrun before the game could progress.
So.
“It's time to recruit new members.”
“Ho. Go on.”
“Demon activity could expand around the capital. Prolonged troop shortages would be fatal. I suggest advancing next year's 'entry test' as much as possible.”
Surprisingly, Edward backed her.
“I agree. We need to find talented recruits before the demons move.”
Chiron pondered briefly.
“Understood. We'll review it positively.”
Sisilia's face brightened a touch.
“That concludes this regular meeting. Stay vigilant, everyone. This is different from the usual.”
““Yes sir.””
Sisilia's steps home were light. Post-work walks always were, but today especially so.
Finally, finally...
The moment felt fresh all over again. How long had she awaited this?
Newbies incoming!
Ten years in the knights. A high knight now, but her entry batch lagged, so she couldn't comfortably delegate.
True, this was Western culture—no age-based hierarchy—but habits from her Eastern upbringing died hard.
She'd silently shouldered the grunt work. But with rookies, that changed.
A huge workload drop!
More time to focus on launch prep.
And—knight order newbies counted as 'newbies' too, right?
Incredibly encouraging for Sisilia.
“Welcome home, miss.”
“Yeah.”
“Shall I prepare your bath?”
“A bit later today.”
“No can do.”
“Fine.”
She couldn't refuse. Mari was scary when mad.
“Is the Captain back?”
“He's waiting for you.”
“Bath after, then.”
“Yes. I'll prepare it.”
The maid Mari bowed. Sisilia passed her and headed to the study.
Knock knock. At the come-in, she opened the door.
Chiron sat at the perfect center of the symmetrically arranged desk.
“Sorry.”
Sisilia apologized immediately.
“For what?”
“I lost your precious yearly salary.”
Chiron, buried in a mountain of papers, looked up blankly.
“...Did you bet on it?”
“Yes.”
“With whom.”
“Myself.”
Chiron bit his lip.
“Sisilia.”
But he'd learned how to handle her by now.
“That won't get your allowance back.”
Sisilia was deeply shocked.