Chapter 55
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 055
Chapter Title: The Burly Trio and Oath of Loyalty (3)
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The chapel nestled within the castle walls.
The burly trio had to perform an all-night vigil here.
And I decided to join them.
After all, someone needed to keep an eye on these three—who were about to undergo their knighting ceremony—to see if they were actually praying or just going through the motions.
But the real reason I was tagging along with them was something else entirely.
'I'm too scared to sleep alone.'
Earl Chester had said that important figures—mages, nobles, priests, and the like—had been assassinated outside the castle walls.
No one had been killed inside the castle itself.
But that didn't mean I could let my guard down.
I might end up being the first.
That's why I stuck with the burly trio.
In this city, no place was safer than by their side.
"Make yourselves comfortable, everyone."
I said that to the burly trio.
In truth, an all-night vigil didn't mean staying awake the whole time.
You just pretended for a bit, then slept.
Of course, the truly devout might pray straight through the night, but no one here tonight fit that description.
"What if we pray to the Sky God and our combat tattoos vanish? I don't want to go through something that horrific."
"Just pretend to pray. Besides, Werjo's the generous type—famous for his big heart. He'd laugh this off."
"Phew."
I was consoling Bear, who was fretting over his combat tattoo disappearing, when Conall called out to me.
His face was deadly serious.
"Lord Heros."
"Yes?"
I looked at him and replied, and he continued.
"Why are you doing all this for me?"
"Doing what?"
"You asked Earl Chester for weapons and armor, and Baron Birch for a knighting ceremony. Why give up your own share to look after me?"
"Ah."
My honest thought was that I'd hoped for a grimoire as a reward, but since there weren't any available, I'd decided to win over Sir Bear and Sir Conall instead.
But I couldn't say that outright.
Too blatant.
It needed a little polish.
So I organized my thoughts and spoke.
"You've both done so much, Sir Conall and Sir Bear, yet received so little in return. That bothered me."
It was the truth.
Conall wasn't a knight sworn to Baron Birch, and Bear was treated as being under my command.
So despite their great achievements, their rewards had been meager by comparison.
The baron hadn't looked after them properly.
They might not show it, but plenty of resentment must have built up.
I'd scratched that itch for them.
"It's true our rewards were lacking, but that's not something for you to worry about, Lord Heros."
Conall spoke as if he couldn't comprehend it.
He still hadn't figured out why I was going out of my way for him.
That meant I could reveal a bit more of my intentions.
"Come on, how could I not worry? We're comrades-in-arms."
A furrow formed between Conall's brows.
Not anger, given the context.
Probably a positive reaction.
Seeing that sparked some ambition in me.
'Hmm... Maybe I could recruit him right here?'
The mood was better than I'd expected.
Why not seize the moment and push for Conall's recruitment?
I was feeling uneasy anyway.
Even after entering the castle today, we'd already picked up the nickname "burly trio."
Earl Chester knew about it too.
Rumors spread faster than I'd imagined in these enclosed spaces.
Which meant most nobles already knew about Bear and Conall.
Better to make my move before they did.
"Truth be told, I've been concerned about your equipment for a while now, Sir Bear and Sir Conall. Neither of you has proper armament. You're not able to show your full potential. Am I right?"
Conall squeezed his eyes shut and bowed his head.
As if conceding the point.
Confirming his reaction, I glanced over at Bear.
He was just as crucial.
'I wonder how Bear's taking this.'
Bear's lips were pressed tight.
His eyes were a little red-rimmed, so my words had hit home.
It struck me anew, but both he and Conall were soft-hearted.
"Be honest with me. What do you want from me? What's the real reason you're going this far? Not the surface excuse—I want to know your true intentions."
Conall suddenly pressed me.
So I answered frankly, just as he asked.
I didn't want to hide my feelings anyway.
"I want to recruit you, Sir Conall."
And with that, I laid bare my true thoughts.
"In this chaotic world, finding people you can truly trust is incredibly hard. Way harder than slaying a troll. But by some stroke of luck, I met you and Sir Bear, and you've both proven your reliability through actions, not words. I'm not letting you go."
Two highly skilled, dependable knights.
I couldn't pass up the chance to recruit them.
This world was full of dangers, even setting aside Eremus and the Silent Compliance Society.
With them by my side, I could protect my own life amid it all.
"To be frank, the weapons and armor from Earl Chester, and the knighting ceremony promised by Baron Birch—they were all means to win your loyalty, Sir Bear and Sir Conall. So I didn't give up my share. I gained something far greater."
In this era, livestock like warhorses or items like weapons and armor were valued far more than people.
My words thus carried even greater weight.
Sure enough, I felt intense gazes from both sides.
Bear's and Conall's.
"I've said everything I wanted to. Finally, let me sum up my feelings in one clean sentence."
I paused there, closing my mouth for a moment.
Then I looked back and forth between Bear and Conall, meeting their eyes.
And I said it.
"I want to keep going forward with the two of you."
This was my trump card.
Bear had always been loyal as my guard, but he'd never outright pledged fealty to me.
Conall seemed to see me only as a comrade.
So this was my chance to solidify our relationship.
'Please...!'
As soon as I finished speaking, a suffocating silence fell.
Had the recruitment failed?
Anxiety welled up.
That's when it happened.
"I pledge my full loyalty!"
Bear strode forward.
He dropped to one knee on the hard stone floor and shouted.
But I was more worried than joyful.
He'd moved so forcefully that his knee hit the ground with a thud!.
'Now just Conall's left.'
As I thought that and looked his way, I saw him walking over to Bear's side.
Moments later, Conall reached his spot.
He slowly knelt and spoke.
"I pledge my full loyalty."
He seemed calmer than Bear.
But he couldn't fully hide his emotions.
His voice was trembling faintly.
'Yes...!'
The two knights kneeling and swearing their oaths.
The sight made my chest swell with grandeur.
But Gilbert, standing alone, stood out awkwardly.
'You too—get over here and kneel. Don't just stand there like that.'
So I had Gilbert kneel alongside them.
Now the picture was complete.
The castle walls enclosing this fortress.
This was a far sturdier bulwark.
Caught up in the moment, I'd successfully received their oaths of loyalty.
But the aftermath was no joke.
'I want to keep going forward with the two of you.'
Thinking back now, it was mortifyingly embarrassing.
Felt like I'd created a new dark chapter in my history.
That scene kept replaying in my head.
'Argh! Get out of my head!'
I suffered inwardly, but surprisingly, Bear and Conall seemed to look back fondly on my words and actions.
"After pledging my loyalty, that constant emptiness in my heart vanished. It's truly miraculous."
Bear said that.
"You too? Same here. Must mean we've become true knights. I'll never forget today."
Conall nodded emphatically in agreement.
'It's a nice sight and all...'
Bear and Conall.
Both their faces were flushed.
They seemed thrilled.
But there was one problem.
Their conversation topic was the "oath of loyalty."
I had to sit there listening as they relived my dark history in real time.
No way.
I decided to change the subject.
"Sir Conall, who officiated your knighting ceremony? It just occurred to me."
Having received his oath, I was effectively his superior now.
So it was fine to speak casually like this.
And naturally, Conall accepted it as such.
"Sir Fergus. I was his squire."
Just as I'd guessed!
Conall had been a squire, which explained his exceptional martial skills.
As I thought that, he began sharing his story.
"Truth is, I became a knight because of the peasant revolt. Otherwise, I'd still be a squire."
Surprisingly, Conall was in his twenties, like Bear.
Without the gear needed for knighting—like weapons and armor—it wouldn't be odd for him to still be a squire at that age.
"Sir Fergus was a wandering knight. He traveled the lands, entering local tournaments. That's what he was doing when the revolt broke out in the east."
This was the first revolt of its scale.
Even if Sir Fergus or Conall had sensed omens, they'd have dismissed them and not fled the east immediately.
They must have gotten caught up in it.
That's what I figured as I listened intently.
"In the midst of the chaos, we stayed overnight in a village. Then... we were ambushed at night. The villagers charged with farming tools as weapons, and Sir Fergus took a mortal wound fending them off."
Even ambushed, it was strange for a knight to suffer a fatal injury from villagers.
Plus, Conall had been there too.
Two knight-level fighters, and one gets gravely wounded?
It didn't add up.
As if reading my confusion, Conall added more details.
"We'd bought food from the villagers since we had none left. They must have drugged it. Drowsiness hit right after we ate."
They drugged them first, then ambushed.
Now Sir Fergus's injury made sense.
Anyway, Conall's tale continued.
Sir Fergus and Conall—despite not being in top shape—fought off dozens and wiped them out.
And then.
"Sir Fergus, leaning against a tree stump, dubbed me a knight. He handed over his weapons and armor. I still remember it vividly."
Now I understood why Conall wore that short chainmail.
It had been his knight master's gear.
"Lord Heros."
Having revealed his past, Conall called to me.
And continued in a resolute voice.
"I lost the man I served in vain. The misery was indescribable—a nightmare I never want to relive. So this time, I'll stake my life to protect you, Lord Heros. No repeating that mistake."
Conall's vow.
The weight of it made it hard to respond lightly.
Then he spoke again.
"This isn't mere emotion. It's an oath. Barbarians never break their oaths, even on pain of death."
Conall's unwavering eyes.
Looking into them, I replied.
"I trust you."
No other words came to mind.
As we exchanged that trust.
"Me too! I'll stake my life to protect Lord Heros. This is also an oath. Vikings never break their oaths, even on pain of death."
Bear jumped into the conversation.
He'd borrowed Conall's words verbatim, but the sincerity matched.
"Of course I trust you too, Sir Bear."
So I gave him the same firm assurance.
That I trusted him.
'What a magical day.'
I could say with certainty that no spell I ever learned would bring greater joy than what I'd felt today.
Because I'd lived through something more magical than magic itself.