Chapter 214
Chapter 214
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 214
Chapter Title: Red-Headed Knight
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After my conversation with Lise ended, I immediately left the underground library.
For now, I'd memorized the items that seemed important. I could just pass this list on to Keian later.
The highest priority item was, of course, the Holy Grail.
Its name had been disguised, of course. When it was put up for auction, it had been given the grandiose title of [Bluish Dragon Blood Goblet].
According to Lise.
She said that neither Raizen, who had prepared the item, nor the customers who bid on it probably knew its true value.
It was disguised quite cleverly, and if that was true, then Lise's discernment was indeed on another level.
The notebook Keian had given me only had a low-resolution photo.
It looked like it had been cut out and pasted from the catalog handed out to auction participants. Naturally, the quality wasn't great.
—There are a total of seventy-two Holy Grails in this world. The higher their order, the more powerful their authority.
The method of use was surprisingly simple.
If a being with abundant, high-quality divine power pours wine into the grail, it infuses the cup with holy power.
All you had to do was drink it as is.
Normally, this would be where I'd hit a wall, but not now.
After all, I had Helsta, a bishop-level priest, at my disposal.
So, the only concern was...
Whether I could strengthen my internal energy foundation through conventional means.
I knew full well that the Spirit Mountain Blessing was an extraordinarily heterogeneous blessing.
'What the hell. It's worth a shot.'
I immediately passed the item list to Keian.
The Holy Grail, Randall's cloth, and a few spirit medicines that looked useful—that was all.
The common point was that all the items were small and easy to carry.
"Confirmed. We'll have the items no later than this week."
After Keian left, I passed the time circulating my qi in my room...
And when night had deepened and the sun had set, I stepped out again.
My destination now was the dean's office.
I needed to secure the document with Leona's statue on it.
Since Professor Molland, the acting dean, usually used the dean's office, I had no choice but to go after he left for the day.
Of course, considering Molland's friendly attitude and his relationship with Dean Alderson, I probably could have just asked without sneaking around...
But what if he said no?
"...Turning day and night upside down like this isn't good for the body."
I was already in my growth spurt. I needed regular sleep, a balanced diet, and plenty of sunlight.
I hoped this nocturnal outing would be the last.
With those thoughts, I infiltrated the dean's office, rummaged through the drawers...
And fortunately, found the document I was looking for right away.
"This is it."
I spread the document out fully and scanned it with my eyes.
Didn't she say everything about the puppets was recorded?
Sure enough, it was densely packed with info on current students, graduates, and even those who'd been expelled that the puppets had mimicked.
There were even brief files on the Iron-Blooded Duke—and on me—which surprised me.
This guy was planning to make a puppet of me too, huh.
'No, wait. Timing-wise, it was probably the dean's puppet that did it, not Dean Alderson himself.'
Of course, the puppet and the dean would think similarly.
Lost in trivial thoughts, I finally checked Leona's document...
And right after, my expression stiffened slightly.
The entire document was pitch black, as if it had been burned. Not actually burned, of course—just like someone had dumped a bottle of ink over it.
And on the jet-black page, white letters were engraved.
[See you in Setitus?]
"...Hah."
It wasn't old.
From the ink and handwriting, I could infer that much. There might be a slight margin of error, but at least within the last week.
In other words, Leona had been at the academy until very recently. And she had anticipated I'd come looking here.
"...Cheeky one."
I chuckled dryly and put the document back in the drawer.
It might seem like no gains at a glance, but that wasn't the case.
At the very least, I could now be certain that Leona existed not just in dreams, but in reality too.
Satisfied with the decent results, I returned straight to my lodging.
Once I stopped by the imperial palace, all the annoying academy aftermath would finally be over.
With a much lighter heart, I lay in bed and got a good night's sleep...
And the next day, I woke to Keian's somewhat urgent urging.
"Master, you need to head to the imperial palace right away."
"What's going on?"
"Young Master Hector has been badly injured."
What the hell was that?
* * *
Keian had come at dawn, and right after, I headed straight for the imperial palace—skipping breakfast.
Since I left when the sky was still dim, I arrived in the afternoon.
Unlike the last time with Glenn, today's inspections and entry procedures took a bit longer.
Thinking again how handy it was to have an imperial friend as backing, I headed straight for the guest room where Hector was staying.
It was a different place from the mansion I'd stayed in before.
"Brother?"
"Ah. You came."
Hector, who had been sitting blankly on the bed, looked at me and gave a faint smile.
Charl was sitting beside him, delicately peeling an apple in a demure posture.
Looks like this was the one who came as my substitute.
Rubieta was indeed a great family; just from the caliber, it didn't fall short of Bednicker or Goodspring.
I checked Hector's condition overall.
Keian had made such a fuss I thought he'd be half-crippled or something, but surprisingly, he looked fine.
Aside from his right arm, that is.
"I heard the gist of the situation. You got into it with the imperial palace's Royal Knights, right?"
"It wasn't even a squabble. It was a proper duel, and tempers flared on both sides, so things got rough. Happens all the time."
"Happens all the time, my ass. They call you out saying they'll spar, then break your arm in the fight—what's 'normal' about that?"
Charl nodded vigorously at my words. Hector looked embarrassed.
It wasn't something to grill him about, so I looked around and asked.
"Seren?"
"Next room over. Probably expelling the cold qi. Her face was still pale."
Hard to even see her face.
Thinking her condition might be as serious as Karon's, I plopped down next to Hector.
"There's still Bishop Helsta at the academy."
"I know. I already met her once."
"Then we're on the same page. She's a good person. Understands quickly. She'll probably offer to fix your broken arm herself the moment she sees it."
Hector shook his head.
"She's already overexerting herself plenty. It wasn't from the cult battle, and asking her to heal my personal injury would be shameless."
"......"
He'd countered with uncharacteristically sensible words, leaving me speechless.
I knew the importance of divine power too, so using the bishop's strength for something like this didn't sit right with me either.
Regardless of Helsta's own character.
I looked at Hector's face. He was still smiling faintly, but no matter how I saw it, it was a forced smile.
"You okay?"
"Okay? Of course I am."
Hector chuckled and said.
"Sir Molbius is twenty-seven. That means he's trained at least a few years more than me, so it's natural there's a gap in strength given the years etched into his sword."
"......"
"I expected to lose if we fought. This was actually pretty good on my part. I even nicked his earlobe a bit. It was a fair duel from the start—no hard feelings left on either side—"
"That's not true!"
Charl, sitting beside him, shouted sharply. Then she vented her frustration.
"That knight! A Royal Knight sworn to protect the imperial family—he openly insulted and humiliated us!"
"......"
"He questioned if we really fought the Demon King, said we must've hallucinated in panic, claimed they could've handled it way better if they'd been there! The duel wasn't honorable at all! He was so strong but dragged it out instead of ending it quick, toyed with you, Hector! Insulted our leadership, family, and Family Head! And at the end, he deliberately went for your arm..."
From Hector's expression, it was easy to see Charl was telling the truth.
"......"
A guy with pride in the Bednicker name, who worshipped the Iron-Blooded Duke like a god.
Naturally, he had massive pride too.
I knew it well.
In some ways, better than anyone in the family.
In my past life—as wastrel Ruan.
This bastard tormented me relentlessly, all because of his family pride.
And now, that same guy was covering up the humiliation, staying composed even with his shame exposed.
Was this growth too?
Someone's growth should be a joyful thing, but somehow, I couldn't purely celebrate it now.
My own scalp was starting to tingle.
"Which Royal Knight was it?"
"Ruan, don't do anything foolish."
Hector put on a deliberately stern face and said.
"I'm not. Just tell me. What's his name."
Seeing my face, Hector sighed and said.
"...Sir Molbius."
"What a name."
I chuckled dryly, then looked at Hector and asked again.
"By the way, brother, can you even attend the award ceremony like that?"
"No issue with mobility, but meeting His Majesty all bandaged up would be disrespectful. Good thing you're here—take my spot."
"Hmm......"
"Don't say you're skipping too. His Majesty has to praise you directly—it has to be you."
Hector spoke in a rare forceful tone.
Still bound to the family and Iron-Blooded Duke?
Not quite.
Hector's eyes were clear.
"You shone brightest in that calamity, so it should've been your spot from the start. There was some noise along the way, but in the end, this is right."
"......"
Spouting such earnest nonsense.
My nape itched strangely, so I stood up.
"Got it. Still, plenty of time till the ceremony, right?"
"Ruan, this is the imperial palace."
"I know. Gonna eat first. Skipped breakfast coming here. Let's go, Charl."
"Huh?"
"Show me to the dining hall."
"It's right on the first floor—tell a maid and... Eek!"
I grabbed Charl by the scruff and dragged her out forcibly.
As we stepped outside and closed the door, Charl shook off my hand and said.
"H-How rude! I hadn't finished peeling the apples!"
"You. Don't tell me you've been by brother's side since yesterday?"
"Huh? Of course. With his arm completely broken, someone has to tend to him, right?"
"......"
Commendable spirit, but it felt suspiciously impure.
'Trying to score points in the gap, huh.'
I sighed and said.
"It's overkill to tend to him just for one broken arm. Brother's not a kid—he can handle some discomfort on his own. Just leave him be."
"How can family say something so heartless..."
"Shh."
I made a hush gesture, then nodded toward the door.
At the same time, a muffled voice leaked out.
"...Damn it all."
"......"
The moment the teary voice hit, Charl's mouth snapped shut.
Her hand, outstretched toward the door, fell limply.
"......"
I rubbed my own nape awkwardly.
Even half-brothers are brothers, I guess.
Seeing that bastard sniffling pissed me off for some reason.
What was it...
Like watching your little brother bawling after getting beat by some other kid. A novel sensation for me.
Hiding none of my displeasure, I looked at Charl and asked.
"Where's this Molbius guy?"
* * *
Apparently, there was a dining hall for knights.
Perfect time for a meal, so high chance he'd be there.
'Red hair, red hair.'
I glanced around the dining hall and soon spotted a bright red head.
I strode over and plopped down in front of him.
"......?"
This was the guy.
Relatively young face, red hair, obnoxious mug—definitely Molbius.
—Bednicker genius? Heard you're decent with the sword. Let me teach you a move. Draw.
—Why not? It'll broaden your narrow view, stuck on Bednicker's trash swordsmanship.
Recalled what Charl said.
Sounds like he threw that at Hector out of nowhere, first meeting.
"Who the hell are you."
I said to Molbius, who spoke bluntly in banmal right off the bat.
"Molbius, right?"
"Yeah."
Final confirmation done, I nodded and said.
"Heard you were yapping about broadening horizons, thought you were knight commander level at least. Turns out you're just a greenhorn."
"What?"
"Eat up and grow some more. Too much of a waste of my time to teach you now."