Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: Departure
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Thud!
“Next.”
“Urk!”
The moment I returned to the mansion, I started beating up the Sixth Squad.
“Useless lot. How do you expect to break the Empire’s Spear if you can’t even withstand this?”
“The captain’s too strong!”
“You’re too weak. Next.”
The Sixth Squad came at me in groups of three for sparring, but the instant they stepped into the training grounds, they got pummeled and collapsed.
Still, it wasn’t bad.
Their skills were finally starting to look decent.
‘At this level, they’d be evenly matched with the Golden Lion Knights now.’
The Sixth Squad got a lot of perks simply because I was their captain.
They were assigned light duties and focused on training.
The Church barely interfered with them at all—they were practically my personal guard.
That was partly because the Pope, who trusted me, and Archbishop Albato, newly appointed as Grand Archbishop, had told everyone to leave the Sixth Squad alone.
Hero of the Kingdom.
The Queen’s Knight.
Those titles made things easy for me.
On top of that, thanks to the cultivation methods and training regimens I’d passed on to them, their skills were improving by leaps and bounds.
Vice-Captain Diego and Joseph had already broken through the lower tier and were aiming for the upper.
Of course, I had no intention of handing it over easily.
I’d only give it once I was convinced they were truly my people.
Most of the rest of the Sixth Squad had obtained cultivation methods and were growing stronger, so there wasn’t much more I needed to do for them.
If they kept training like this, they’d get stronger on their own.
The TD Potions were helping a lot too, so in a way, they were lucky.
That said, the noises coming out of their mouths weren’t exactly pleasant.
Thwack! Pow! Smack!
“Argh!”
“S-Spare me!!”
“Waaah! I’m dying! I’m gonna die!!”
I beat them half to death with a faint smile, and soon enough, they were all sprawled out.
“Weaklings. Take a break.”
I left the groaning bunch behind and stepped down from the training grounds. Orphin was waiting with a towel, as if on cue.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“Hm. Any progress?”
A quick glance showed her aura was stable.
Completely different from the anxious vibe she used to give off.
“Yes. I can finally see the path ahead.”
“Good. How’s the work?”
“Brans was surprisingly versatile. He handled all that alone? She’s pretty impressed.”
“Hm…”
Brans had left the mansion.
After Cedric spoke with the Queen, he’d taken her request to fetch the Bar Tribe from Barverium—and I’d asked him to bring Brans along.
Purely at my request.
‘Brans is better suited to fists than swords.’
He had no talent for the blade, so becoming a devotee of the Twin Gods was the better path.
Cedric had agreed to my request and would turn Brans into something useful.
“Now that you mention it, he did a lot.”
From cleaning and cooking the mansion to overseeing everything, managing supplies for the Sixth Squad, even volunteering as my coachman at times, and serving me devotedly.
When the northern knights, Liban, Rini, and even Emily visited, Brans had taken care of them all.
Thinking back, I had no idea how he managed it alone.
‘He was useful.’
You only realize it when they’re gone.
What Brans used to do was now handled by Orphin, Allen, and Aaron.
I handed back the towel and headed to the study, opening the window to take in the view.
In one corner, the Sixth Squad was wailing; in another, Caladi’s children were training.
They were the so-called Jerban trainees.
Left to their own devices, their numbers had swelled, and a system was starting to form.
There was a baseless rumor going around that the top three from the Jerban training grounds got sent to the Royal Academy each year—and now it was solidifying as fact.
I had no plans for that, but it wasn’t a bad idea, so I let it slide.
It wasn’t hard for me anyway.
Pedro was yawning at the front gate, Allen greeting visiting nobles, and Aaron managing the gifts they sent.
Once word spread that I was teaching the Queen swordsmanship, gifts poured in without me lifting a finger.
Money was always good, so I didn’t refuse.
Everything was going smoothly.
“Gregory and Dexter’s group are making good progress, so it’s about time I got ready.”
I’d taught the Queen all the theoretical aspects of swordsmanship. There was nothing more to teach.
She was sharp, but without real combat experience, her growth was slow.
It couldn’t be helped from her position.
So it wasn’t my place to interfere.
‘Esther left to find the holy relic too.’
Her first mission as a paladin.
She’d set off to recover a relic the Church had lost, planning to visit holy sites scattered across the continents.
She’d find it without issue, so I wasn’t too worried.
This pilgrimage would elevate her to master level.
“Bishop Milliman took care of himself too.”
Leader of the radicals.
Milliman’s misdeeds had been exposed by Orkal, landing him in the Church’s underground prison.
Unlike the archbishops, he’d stirred up war with the Empire under the misguided belief he was protecting the Church and kingdom. He avoided execution but would rot in prison for life.
“The rest will sort itself out with time. Now I just need to do my part.”
It was time to go.
* * *
“Are you really leaving?”
Orphin stared at me with endless worry.
The knight who’d come down from the north for me.
But there was no helping it.
“It’s not a path where I can bring anyone along. Not even as your lord.”
I am a pilgrim.
I must set out on pilgrimage.
Until I find my sword.
I must embark on an endless journey, testing myself and enduring the trials of the gods.
“My pilgrimage is itself the trial the gods have given me, the challenge they urge upon me. I can’t take you with me.”
Truth be told, I didn’t have the spare capacity to look after them.
I’d acquired the Light Dragon Sword, but I had no reason to forge a sheath for it.
It didn’t satisfy me, and besides, Light Dragons didn’t need sheaths.
The heart itself served as one.
As one of the more unique phantom blades, it made sense.
And besides.
‘I haven’t decided yet.’
What my sword should be.
Which blade to house in my soul.
A sword without conviction is weak.
A sword is more than a mere tool.
I’d felt that ever since arriving in this world.
“Where’s Emily? At the academy?”
“I contacted her yesterday, so she should arrive soon.”
“Hm.”
That was fine.
I checked my final preparations and headed to the study in the mansion.
Someone was already waiting there, seated on the sofa.
“You’re here.”
“Jenos.”
He was from an eastern house.
Jenos von Gradas.
“What brings you?”
“A gift. And greetings.”
“A gift?”
“Take it.”
He handed me a small box from his pocket.
Inside were cookies.
“?”
“Frine’s cookies. You said you wanted some. Took some doing to get them.”
“Hm… Was it obvious?”
“Very.”
I picked one up and ate it.
Crunch.
Crispy beyond belief for a cookie, melting and crumbling in my mouth.
The thin layer of cream inside coated my tongue with sweetness.
“Delicious.”
Frine’s cookies lived up to the hype.
One could conquer the kingdom with these…
“Hm?”
When I came to, the box was empty.
“...?”
I looked up. Jenos had a cookie in his mouth, chewing away.
His blank face with just his jaws working was so absurd that anger didn’t even register—only bafflement.
“...”
Was it too ridiculous?
I couldn’t even say, *Why the hell are you eating them?*
He slowly turned his head as I stared in stunned silence.
“You’re leaving, huh.”
Changing the subject?
I didn’t even have the energy to press him. Kallias answered listlessly.
“Yeah.”
“Hm.”
Jenos fell silent for a while.
He just scratched at the stigmata mark on the bridge of his nose.
He knew he’d done something embarrassing. Clearing his throat awkwardly, he continued.
“The Golden Lion sends his regards.”
“How’s he doing?”
“Lost to my little brother, so he’s probably reeling. But he’ll overcome it. Lions aren’t weak.”
I’d heard about his loss to Luteon long ago.
Luteon had grown faster than expected.
But it didn’t matter.
Luteon lived, and I’d matched his growth.
Luteon was a genius acknowledged by the Church.
His potential was exceptional.
Given the time I’d had, he’d had time too—so reaching master level was just a matter of when.
“How long will you be gone?”
“Three years.”
“Hm. That’s quite a while.”
“The kingdom will be fine.”
Rumors were already circulating that Gregory and Dexter were producing high-quality Carcass Swords.
No word on spirit swords yet, but I didn’t mind.
Fixing swords was pointless for me anyway.
‘I gave them all the hints.’
The rest was up to them.
“The academy cadets like you. Plenty were looking forward to your lessons. Probably want to emulate the hero’s swordsmanship.”
I nodded along.
Jenos was basically telling me to come back soon.
Return from pilgrimage and teach the academy cadets under some pretext.
I had a rough idea why, but asked anyway.
“Do I smell?”
“Strongly.”
Jenos’s eyes narrowed.
The Gradas nose detects scents.
Even ones that can’t be smelled.
“The scent of death is thick.”
“For a knight, death is a companion. For a pilgrim, even more so.”
“Don’t die. I don’t associate with those who break promises.”
“Same here.”
Clap.
We shook hands. Then came a knock.
“My lord. Lady Emily is…”
Jenos glanced at the door and flinched.
His face turned red.
“?”
Orphin frowned.
Something was up between them.
Damn golden retriever energy kicking in. But none of my business.
“I’ll head out now.”
“Yes.”
Jenos stayed put as Kallias and Orphin closed the door behind them. Then his face flushed again.
“This must be fate.”
He muttered nonsense.
* * *
The mansion’s dining hall.
Emily and Kallias sat at opposite ends of the rectangular table.
Slice, cut.
The father and daughter cutting their steaks looked like mirror images.
Spearing the meat with a fork and savoring it elegantly exuded nobility.
Grace and poise befitting aristocrats.
“Emily.”
“Yeah.”
Kallias set down his knife and fork, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and spoke.
“I’ll be gone for a while.”
A brief silence.
Emily set her utensils down too.
“…I know. You’re a pilgrim, Dad.”
Kallias had been worried.
But seeing her eyes, he knew there was no need.
She wouldn’t follow him like in the north.
This time, she understood what it meant.
“I’ll wait.”
Gulp.
She chewed each word deliberately before replying.
Kallias let out a hollow chuckle.
It was like a child trying hard to understand and accept being apart from her parent.
So mature—yet still just a kid.
“It’ll take a long time.”
“How long…?”
Over three years.
An eternity for a child.
But it was unavoidable.
Kallias needed to grow stronger.
This pilgrimage was different from before.
Incredibly dangerous.
But danger was what would make him stronger.
Crisis would turn to opportunity.
“Where are you going?”
“Secret.”
Emily puffed her cheeks.
But she didn’t press further.
Kallias smiled faintly, finished his meal, and even had tea with her.
The taste of her poorly brewed tea.
He’d miss it quite a bit.
* * *
The damp early dawn.
The sky just before sunrise was perfectly dim, thick with fog.
Kallias brought out a horse and mounted it. With the [Humasis Saddle], his horsemanship was flawless.
He’d said his goodbyes.
Leaving with fanfare wasn’t his style.
So he planned to slip away quietly.
“We’ll be waiting.”
“Pedro. I leave this place to you.”
“Leave it to me.”
Even if it cost his life.
Pedro watched Kallias’s silhouette vanish into the fog on horseback, staring long after.
“What now, my lady?”
Pedro turned to a tree corner. Violet von Jervan stepped out from behind it.
She knew the story.
Raised without a father, finally reunited—only for him to leave again soon after. She’d chased after, and now he was off once more.
Any other girl would be holed up crying.
But not Emily.
“I’m going to get stronger.”
“Pardon?”
“Dad doesn’t need to get any stronger, but he left on pilgrimage anyway.”
She was right.
Kallias had already achieved great feats. Any normal person would rest on their laurels.
But he left.
Which meant he had a reason to grow stronger.
Emily hadn’t overlooked that.
“He never does anything pointless.”
If it’s necessary, he does it without fail.
That was the Kallias she knew. If such a man moved, there was a reason.
“So I’m going to get stronger too.”
With that, Emily gripped her sword and turned away.
Father and daughter, now walking different paths.
Pedro watched them both, a warm smile curving his lips.