Episode 434
Episode 434
'Oh dear. I seem to have brought up an awkward topic.'
Jean-Cliff was surprisingly quick-witted for a knight.
As an oddball who actively participated in all sorts of social gatherings, he couldn't help but be different from other knights.
Of course, his perceptiveness didn't extend to realizing that others wished he'd keep his mouth shut more often, but he could at least tell that the students were uncomfortable discussing academic matters.
'I should change the subject!'
"Don't take it too seriously. Being good at arithmetic or languages doesn't necessarily make someone outstanding. I'm sure the top students in those lectures are nothing but stubborn bookworms with zero social skills."
"......"
This time, it was Lee Han who looked sullen.
The Empire's vile anti-magic zealot, Park Deok-gul, ground his teeth as he inspected his blade.
"The knights are gathering, I hear."
"Excellent. Absolutely excellent."
Not just Park Deok-gul, but all the anti-magic zealots seated around him flashed venomous glints in their eyes.
"To think our grand scheme would be ruined by those so-called knights who only know how to strut about at parties...!"
One of Park Deok-gul's strengths was his natural dignity.
Even dressed in shabby clothes, his bearing and diction—impossible to conceal—commanded respect wherever he went and aided his infiltration missions.
But now, Park Deok-gul had thrown off all pretense of such dignity, his mask completely discarded.
And for good reason.
Because of those knights, their entire plan had been destroyed.
'I'll never forgive them.'
The Manabane Mushroom.
This fungus, with its mana-dispersing properties, was at the root of everything.
Originally just a reagent black mages used for minor curses, one of the anti-magic zealots had discovered a way to enhance its effects and make it easier to use.
Naturally, the zealots had excitedly gathered as many Manabane Mushrooms as possible.
With enough stockpiled, they'd have the perfect dagger to strike at the mages.
But acquiring large quantities wasn't easy.
Black mages only used it sparingly as a reagent, so there was never much supply to begin with. And openly trying to gather more would only arouse the mages' suspicions.
That's why Park Deok-gul had hired mercenaries to head for the Undead Lands.
To collect enough Manabane Mushrooms.
No one had imagined Park Deok-gul would fail such a simple mission...
Yet astonishingly, he had.
Because of the local knights.
They'd dredged up some obscure regulation no one had anticipated, arrested Park Deok-gul and his mercenaries, and while they were still processing what was happening, called in mages from Einrogard to block any escape.
Before Park Deok-gul could even stutter out a protest, he'd been arrested and hauled off to the capital's prison.
By sheer luck, his identity as an anti-magic zealot wasn't discovered, allowing him to barely escape—though he couldn't bring his mercenaries with him.
And as an added blow, all the Manabane Mushrooms they'd secured were confiscated.
The anti-magic zealots, who'd been counting on Park Deok-gul's shipment, saw their opportunity vanish into thin air, and Park Deok-gul's reputation was left in tatters.
Burning with vengeance, Park Deok-gul set out to investigate how this absurd situation had come about.
And he found the culprits.
Astonishingly, it was the Beech Knights.
Those bastards had arrested the mercenaries under some ridiculous, nitpicky pretext and called in the Einrogard mages—what possible grudge could they have had against mere mercenaries?!
"What in the blazes were those cursed imbeciles thinking?"
"It's obvious. They must've looked down on them for being mercenaries. Saw a bounty opportunity and decided to call in the mages to hand them over."
"They'll pay for this. Those insufferable knight bastards."
The anti-magic zealots gnashed their teeth in the dim log cabin, their gazes fixed out the window.
In the distance, at the foot of a hill shrouded in darkness, brilliant lights flickered—the site of the Beech Knights' gathering.
They'll pay the price today for ruining the anti-magic zealots' grand scheme over such a trivial reason!
"A carriage just passed by again."
"Those knight bastards riding around in carriages..."
"They're completely off guard!"
"Don't underestimate them. They're still knights after all."
Park Deok-gul restrained his subordinates.
While it was true the knights appeared careless, there was no benefit in becoming overconfident.
No matter how much these knights were all show with no real combat experience, a knight was still a knight.
Their basic combat prowess was incomparable to ordinary people.
"The signal will come soon. Wait for it."
Park Deok-gul's eyes burned ominously as he waited for the signal from their infiltrated spy.
"...Uh, isn't this a bit too extravagant?"
Lee Han asked while looking at Giselle.
The carriages visible around them were decked out with all sorts of luxurious decorations like those of noble families, and the temporary encampment set up on the hill was adorned with dazzling banners and pennants...
'Wait. Hold on. Those are merchant carriages.'
There were even numerous merchant carriages alongside the knights' vehicles.
Looking around, porters were sweating profusely while stacking crates like mountains. The clinking sounds of bottles from inside clearly indicated the knights' drinking supplies.
Some porters were even hauling large copper tubs containing live fish.
Though Lee Han came from a prestigious noble family himself, he'd never lived this lavishly, making it all the more astonishing.
"......"
"......"
Giselle and her friends seemed embarrassed, averting their gazes and keeping silent.
"Moradi? Moradi? Didn't you hear me? Isn't this too extravagant?"
"...Shut up!"
"Hey. Why the anger? I was just asking."
The White Tiger Tower students were realizing it too.
That the Beech Knights' gathering was quite different from typical knightly assemblies!
Even the Moradi family, a powerful northern house, would never host such an extravagant event. The same went for Angrago and Batrek.
"Are knight gatherings normally like this?"
"Uh... Wardanaz. Stop provoking Moradi."
Angrago whispered fearfully.
Giselle, who had initially been grinding her teeth, seemed to have passed some threshold and now simply remained coldly silent.
"Angrago. I'm genuinely curious. It's not like I've ever attended a knight gathering before."
"I've only attended family gatherings or events with peers, never a knight order gathering... but uh..."
"The rumors about the Beech Knights having too much money weren't unfounded."
Lee Han looked around with an impressed expression.
The more he saw, the more he liked them.
How much money could he get if he became friends with them?
'Acquiring investments and sponsorships is also part of a mage's abilities, they say.'
Of course, there were some scoun... precedents of mages taking investments and failing to repay, but fundamentally the investment and patronage system was positive.
Mages could pursue research they'd abandoned due to lack of funds, while investors and patrons gained appropriate profits and prestige.
Someone like Lee Han was more interested in business than research.
'Wouldn't a business that looks like research work just fine?'
Jean-Cliff, who had guided their group, had gone ahead to meet the knights.
Having surveyed everything, Lee Han called his friends.
"Shall we head in now?"
"Uh, yeah."
The White Tiger Tower students seemed slightly intimidated by the overwhelmingly luxurious gathering.
Lee Han paid it no mind and stopped before the main gate to dust off his shoes.
A knight nearby who'd been about to enter saw this and quickly followed suit with an "Ah, of course!" expression.
Squeak—
The interior matched the exterior's extravagance. The amount of gold coins poured into this single event was evident from the imported carpets to the furniture—you could practically live here.
When Angrago and Batrek carelessly tried tossing their coats onto a chair, Lee Han stopped them.
"Wait. You can't put them there. This isn't Einrogard."
"Huh... Then where?"
"There should be a reception area. That's where they go."
The two knights sitting in front flinched. They subtly rose from their seats, quickly scanning their surroundings before picking up the coats they'd tossed on the floor and dusting them off with brisk pats.
"...?"
By that point, Lee Han was also starting to feel something was off.
"Wardanaz. Can we just sit anywhere?"
"Just avoid the head seats by the fireplace."
A lavishly dressed knight flinched before hastily rising from his seat.
"Can we remove our gauntlets?"
"No. Keep them on."
A knight adorned with dangling accessories hurriedly put his gloves back on.
"...Um, sirs. My apologies. You may sit comfortably as you please."
"Absolutely not!"
"We were actually about to do so—we were merely taking a brief respite!"
The knights vehemently waved their hands, insisting, 'I'm not normally this ill-mannered—it was just a momentary lapse!'
"It's a knightly gathering. Shouldn't knights act more at ease?"
"Hey. We're knights too..."
The White Tiger Tower friends whispered indignantly.
Why are we the ones being lectured??
"Will you act like this when you attend noble gatherings later? You should learn proper decorum now."
"Ah, no... Well, yes, but..."
Beaten down by undeniable logic, the friends had no rebuttal.
While the White Tiger Tower students were being tormented, the knights hurriedly straightened their attire and began double-checking themselves.
"Do I look presentable? Wait—is this the correct order for my vest buttons?"
"I thought you were well-versed in etiquette!"
"I am, I am! I'm just asking in case!"
Before Lee Han arrived, the Beech Knights had prided themselves on behaving with noble dignity—but now that the real deal was here, their confidence wavered.
"Can I... can I wear my sword like this?"
"W-wait. Was it acceptable to wear this many accessories? I don't think it was..."
"What's all this fuss about? Why the panic?"
"Actually, the Wardanaz boy..."
"Ah! They said he was coming! But why now?"
"I left my coat on the floor earlier."
"Is that not allowed??"
"Of course not! Nobles would ridicule such behavior endlessly!"
"Then why did you throw it on the floor in the first place? I only did it because you said it was fine—"
"Shut up and clean it up already! Stop nitpicking!"
Even the knight who was reputedly the most dignified and etiquette-savvy among them flushed with embarrassment.
Jean-Cliff, returning belatedly, was startled by the unusually tense and formal atmosphere in the hall—so unlike its usual lax disarray.
'What in the world happened?!'
"Ah. So that's what happened."
Jean-Cliff marveled.
No knightly order was as renowned for their etiquette as the Beech Knights.
But just as with swordsmanship, there was always a higher sky above the sky.
"Learning by observing the real deal must've been an invaluable experience. They'll grow another level from this. Haha!"
"...What exactly are they growing in...?"
Giselle, who had been gritting her teeth to hold back, finally blurted out.
If they're knights, shouldn't they focus on swinging swords? What's with this nonsense...
"Shh. Moradi. This is another knightly order's gathering."
"......"
Hearing undeniable logic from Lee Han, Giselle trembled with humiliation.
She had nearly lost control of her emotions and slipped up—but why did it have to be in front of that Wardanaz brat!
"The drinks!"
"Can't we take some of those?!"
Giselle nearly fainted at Angrago and Batrek's utterly shameless exchange.
'I never thought I'd miss Einrogard.'
"Wow. This is really expensive liquor."
"Right? Wardanaz?"
"Let's grab a few bottles to take with us later."
"Hahaha! You're joking... ...You're not joking."
"Yep."
"......"
"Wardanaz... Please... Unlike you, I'm from a knightly family—if rumors spread..."
Angrago pleaded.
Even if they got caught together, Lee Han might be fine, but Angrago would likely be branded a 'liquor thief' among the knights.
"No... I didn't mean stealing. Just asking to take some. They'd give us that much."
"Ah. That's what you meant?"
Angrago's face brightened. Batrek also swallowed hard.
Giselle couldn't bear to watch and squeezed her eyes shut.