Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 141
Chapter Title: Foolish Nonsense
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‘In the end, it came to this.’
I glanced back at the knights who would now be following me starting today. Every single one of them had a face full of bewilderment, and to be honest, so did I. This was a situation I hadn’t even remotely anticipated.
The Golden Twilight Knights’ roster consisted of one captain, ten vice-captains, and a hundred knights, so half of that meant exactly fifty-five people coming under my command—a massive group.
I’d probably need to ask Iris or Erika for some advice later. There was no way I knew what a knight order captain was supposed to do.
……
“Thanks, Delta. You saved my life.”
Aurora approached with a pallid face, looking as if she’d aged ten years in that short time. Her expression and movements showed no energy at all, a sign of how intensely strained she’d been.
“It was just what needed to be done. There’s no need for you to thank me, my lord.”
Did anyone seriously think I’d oppose reinstating the Silver Dawn Knights right there? From the moment Cecilia posed the question, my answer was already set.
“Just what needed to be done… Got it. I won’t say any more. So, what are you planning to do now? Got any plans in mind?”
Aurora gave a self-deprecating bitter smile as she alternated her gaze between me and the knights behind me. She wasn’t putting on any pretense. As expected, Aurora was someone I could talk to straight.
“No idea. I haven’t thought about it at all, so I’ll have to start figuring it out now. I couldn’t even imagine His Imperial Majesty issuing such an order.”
“Well, who could have imagined splitting the Golden Twilight Knights in half and handing them to you? The reinstatement of the Silver Dawn Knights was surprising enough, and everything lately has been one shock after another.”
My gaze naturally drifted past Aurora’s shoulder at those words. All four captains were reuniting with their knights after years apart, chatting away.
They kept glancing our way even as they talked with their subordinates, but since Aurora and I were in the middle of a conversation, they couldn’t easily butt in.
Aurora opened her mouth with a slightly bitter smile.
“You’ll be stationed at the palace too, right?”
“Nope.”
“…Huh?”
The bitter smile vanished in an instant. Her golden eyes widened into rounds.
“Have you forgotten what I said to His Imperial Majesty? If I’d planned to stay at the palace, I wouldn’t have given that answer. I wouldn’t have the face to see him anymore.”
“Uh… so you’re saying you’ll stay in my territory for good?”
“What, you think I’m some tyrannical lord chasing out this many people? The castle has plenty of space anyway. Don’t be petty—let us stay.”
Aurora chuckled at my lighthearted jab once she grasped the situation.
“Fine. There’s no shortage of empty rooms, so use them as you like. And now that the original occupants are leaving, we need to fill those spots anyway.”
‘Oh, right. The captains are heading back to the palace. Why did I assume we’d all be living together in the castle?’
No wonder she’d asked if ‘you too’ would be working at the palace. Looked like I’d need to tweak my future plans a bit.
Noticing our eyes on them, the four approached after excusing themselves. Aurora stepped aside. The captains filled the gap she left.
“Guess I should start with thanks. Appreciate it, Delta. Never thought I’d owe you again. I’ll repay this favor someday.”
Claudia was the first to speak. She expressed her gratitude in a fairly serious tone.
“I already told the lord this, but no need for thanks. Did you think I’d say no back there?”
“Hang on, you’re still using formal speech with us?”
“Huh?”
At my puzzled retort, Claudia smirked.
“You’re a full-fledged knight order captain now too. No need to be polite with us anymore—just call me Claudia. Drop the captain part.”
“If that’s what you want, I suppose I could…”
I trailed off, then swept my gaze over Iris, Lize, and Erika in turn before continuing.
“…but I’ve already been casual with the other three for a while.”
“What?”
This time, Claudia’s eyes went wide.
Lize had demanded I drop formalities from the first day she joined the Silver Dawn Knights, saying she liked me right off the bat, and Erika got dragged into it by Lize’s insistence, so it just happened.
I couldn’t quite remember how it started with Iris, but in any case, that left Claudia as the only one I was still formal with.
But Claudia seemed completely oblivious to that blind spot, her face like she’d been smacked hard in the back of the head.
“…Now that you mention it, yeah. Delta, why were you only polite to me this whole time? I thought that was just how it was, but you’ve been casual with the other three forever?”
“No clue. It just started that way from the beginning.”
“Wow, feels like I’m the only one getting the cold shoulder here?”
Iris and Erika shoved the grumbling Claudia aside. She grumbled with her mouth but yielded without protest.
“I appreciate the kindness, Delta.”
“The same to you. Thank you for your kindness, Delta.”
The two who’d pushed aside the pink-haired one greeted me. Iris gave a light nod, while Erika bowed a bit deeper.
“I said no need for thanks. It was just doing what had to be done.”
“We’re just doing what had to be done too. No matter how routine it was, we can’t just brush off receiving help.”
“Erika’s right. The lord helped a great deal, but your assistance was the decisive factor, wasn’t it?”
‘…Was it?’
If I hadn’t been suddenly singled out, Aurora had been working behind the scenes to reinstate the Silver Dawn Knights, so it might have succeeded eventually, even if it took longer.
Of course, that assumed Cecilia didn’t nitpick. Thinking about it that way, the odds seemed pretty low.
“Congrats, Delta. Knight order captain starting today?”
Lize approached me, and Iris and Erika quickly stepped aside. An ambiguous smile played on Lize’s face.
“Yeah, somehow it turned out that way. Not sure if I can handle it well.”
“You will. If it’s you, Delta, you’ll do great.”
“Somehow you sound more convinced than I am.”
“Of course. After all we’ve been through together.”
Lize closed the distance right up to me and pulled me into a tight hug. With our height difference, my face nestled right into her chest. She rubbed her cheek against my upper chest.
I hugged her back. I was aware of the eyes around us, but if something like that stopped me from showing affection, I wouldn’t have accepted it in the first place.
Lize stood on tiptoe. Her head inched up with effort. For a moment, I thought she might kiss me, but her lips angled slightly off, so no.
I caught on and tilted my head down. Her cherry lips pressed close to my ear and whispered softly.
“Won’t see each other for a bit starting tomorrow, so how about we go all out tonight?”
“…”
The lingering emotion from moments ago evaporated at her word choice. I looked down at Lize with a baffled expression.
“Do you have to phrase it like that?”
Lize burst into giggles as she loosened her arms around me.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little sad, but it’s not like we’ll never see each other again—I don’t want to send you off in tears. Gotta stay true to myself till the end.”
Her lightly clenched fist tapped my chest. As her body pulled away, the soft give of her breasts faded too.
That’s Lize, all right. Yeah, it sure was.
Iris and Erika cleared their throats with faintly flushed faces, said they’d see me later, and turned away. Claudia grinned, gave me a couple elbow nudges, and left.
She’d probably meant it as a whisper, but it was useless around the captains. Soon, the entire Silver Dawn Knights vanished down the palace corridor.
Aurora gave me a subtle look for a moment, then left with a comment about handling the next part somewhere without people. She’d picked up on the mood.
All that remained were the Golden Twilight Knights’ captain radiating a murderous aura, the vice-captains and knights at a loss for what to do, and me.
The captain over there was trembling, fists clenched so hard his gauntlets might crumple. He looked ready to explode at the slightest touch.
Even with the helmet on, I could practically see the fury on his face inside.
“What’re you looking at? Got something to say?”
“Plenty. I don’t know how a punk like you ended up in a captain’s seat, but that infinite honor—”
“Watch who you’re calling punk, punk. I’m a captain just like you starting today. I won’t demand formal speech since I’m casual with you too, but you could at least show some manners, right?”
I cut off the golden-armored man mid-sentence. I had no interest in hearing more.
“Shut your trap!”
“I don’t get why you’re mad. Did I do something wrong? It’s all His Imperial Majesty’s orders. Or are you planning to question the Emperor’s decision?”
“You’ve got some nerve…”
“And haven’t you heard yet how the guy you colluded with died?”
He froze. Like he was wondering how I knew that. His connection to Aurora’s father—who he was—had to be the utmost secret.
I stepped closer, placed a hand on his shoulder, and whispered so only we could hear. What I was about to say didn’t need an audience.
“The guy you schemed with to tear apart the Silver Dawn Knights? He got mixed up with demons and died. His Imperial Majesty handled it personally.”
I felt his body stiffen. I pressed on without pause.
“You know imperial law mandates execution just for demon ties, right? Think carefully. If I tell His Imperial Majesty about it, you’re done.”
It was a lie.
The former lord’s demon entanglement and death happened long after their collusion, so there was zero reason to link this guy to demons.
‘But he doesn’t know that.’
He’d start spiraling into paranoia from now on. Wondering if that guy had been worshiping demons even before their partnership, or if he himself had been affected somehow.
If he really had been tainted, the holy sword would’ve reacted and taken his head already, but this guy wouldn’t have that level of knowledge.
It was time to pay back all the grief the Silver Dawn Knights had endured.