Justice Does Not Yield (4)
Claus. Closest confidant of the Black Lady and ruler of Beimesher. A schemer who lured the kingdom’s citizens, a monster who had crossed blades with the White Knight.
For all that, he struck Dyke as rather ordinary-looking. But just as that impression began to form, a woman in pure white entered his field of vision.
A beautiful woman. Beautiful enough that the face of his fiancée left behind in the Capital briefly slipped from his mind. The thin fabric barely covering her body only made the impression sharper.
"...Ugh."
Dyke clenched his fist, berating himself. To let his gaze be stolen by a mere woman after entering enemy territory with firm resolve—utterly disgraceful for a knight.
Of course, the one truly flustered was Ru, forced to face a workplace colleague looking like that.
"Eh..."
Dyke. They had fought on the same battlefield before. And the last time they met, he had even knelt and paid his respects, declaring that he acknowledged her.
Why he had appeared here, now, of all times—to her it was nothing short of an unexpected disaster. And of all things, her current attire...
"I really should have changed... shouldn't I?"
"Hmm...?"
"Ah."
Her inner thoughts slipped out, drawing his gaze. The moment Ru met his eyes, she averted them and forced an air of indifference.
"Uh... ahem. Ahem."
"..."
"Hmm..."
...
A strange woman, Dyke thought, watching her suddenly turn coy and twist her head away. To maintain that attitude even locked in a cell—in a way, it was almost impressive.
Yet Claus simply smiled with perfect calm, the woman still locked behind the bars. Perhaps there was no need to chase a fish already caught. The Capital’s knight let out a quiet sound of admiration at those tranquil eyes.
The leader of evil, smiling wickedly with a beauty at his side. It matched the image Dyke had always held of him perfectly.
"A Knight of the Round Table, you say? That means..."
"Don't tell me you came straight from the Capital..."
"But even so, alone..."
"..."
Meanwhile a stir rose among the guards. Defectors who had betrayed the kingdom under the Black Lady’s power. The sudden appearance of a knight filled them with fear beyond measure.
Of course the man before him showed no such agitation. His utterly calm reaction surprised Dyke once more.
"Round Table? What does that mean?"
"...Hah."
So even my renown means nothing here. As expected of the Black Lady’s closest aide—his way of circling around it was exquisite.
By a knight’s honor he should have been furious. But Dyke was one of the Knights of the Round Table who best understood that practicality sometimes outweighed honor.
"I merely stated my affiliation. I have no intention of putting on airs with it, so feel free to ignore it."
"Yes, well. But you said you were looking for me."
"Yes."
"For what reason? No—more than that, when did we become so familiar that you use informal speech..."
"I came to talk about this."
To keep from being overpowered in presence, Dyke cut him off and pulled an item from his coat. All eyes followed, wondering if it was a weapon—and there swayed the helmet ornament of the White Knight.
"Ah, that. I left it in the square to find its owner."
"..."
"Are you the owner?"
Still utterly nonchalant. The woman watching from the cell looked more surprised than he did. Of course Dyke was not one to be fooled by appearances.
He’s subtly probing me. Checking whether the Round Table knows the White Knight’s whereabouts. After a moment’s thought, Dyke decided to answer honestly.
"Of course I am not. You should know that already."
"No. I don’t."
"Enough with the riddles. It would only waste time. And there’s only one thing I wish to ask."
"What is it now."
"Is the owner of this ornament... alive?"
His voice trembled slightly. It was that terrifying and dangerous a question. Depending on the answer, not only Dyke but the fate of the entire kingdom could be shaken.
Whether he knew Dyke’s feelings or not, the man before him did not answer immediately. Only after a silence that felt eternal did a heavy voice crush down on Dyke’s head.
"Well."
"..."
"How would I know? Right?"
As if tossing out a light joke, Claus’s lips twisted cruelly. From eyes curved like crescents seeped a bitter laugh aimed at the kingdom’s knights.
A base sneer mocking a powerless opponent. From that alone the answer seemed clear. It felt as if someone had seized his heart; breath caught in his throat.
But Dyke had not failed to foresee this. As a knight of the kingdom, there was only one course of action.
"I knew it."
"Hmm?"
"The other knights thought it was mere provocation against us, but I already knew it was not. You would never have acted without meaning."
"What..."
"In that case, there is only one thing left for me to do."
All eyes turned to Dyke again. Especially the woman beyond the bars, looking stifled as if she had something to say, but he paid her no mind.
Then he immediately gripped the hilt at his waist. At the same time the sound of swords being drawn rang out around him.
"Y-You...!"
"Halt your actions! At once!"
"Raise your hands again! Or else...!"
"..."
Threatening guards. The woman biting her lip as she watched. But even then Claus remained calm. As if saying try me if you dare, his indifferent expression earned Dyke’s admiration once more.
Having paid his final respects to the enemy, he swiftly drew his sword. At the sharp metallic ring the woman in the cell opened her mouth in great alarm.
"Wait...!"
"...!"
Is there no turning back now? Dyke looked at Claus with the sword in one hand.
Then, gripping the blade in reverse, he opened his mouth in a trembling voice.
"Claus."
"Yes?"
"I wish to join forces with you."
"Huh?"
...
"...Huh?"
The last word came from the woman in the cell. Ignoring her, Dyke drove the drawn sword into the stone floor.
Then he immediately knelt on one knee toward Claus. Head bowed as when receiving a knight’s oath, he opened his mouth to swear a second loyalty.
"This is no false surrender. I have truly come this far, moved by your ideals. If you wish me to prove my sincerity, I will offer even my blood."
"What are you..."
"The other members of the Round Table do not know this. Of course they wouldn’t. They are incompetents who have spent their lives clinging to a single knight whose face they never even saw. Such people must not be responsible for the kingdom. Do you not agree?"
"Uh..."
"A kingdom that relies on the power of only one person has no future. Even if it is mere hypocrisy, I believe you—who seek to bring happiness to the citizens—have the qualities of a leader."
Dyke poured out the thoughts he had kept bottled up. A Round Table in name only. Nobles without conviction. The order of knights swayed by a single person’s will. Under those nauseating people he had always longed for the appearance of a new hero.
And who would have thought it would be the Black Lady’s closest confidant? But he fit Dyke’s image of a lord perfectly. Cunning and bold. Plus that unique charisma that captivated people. The kingdom should be ruled by such a man.
Even if it was not perfect good.
"Active hypocrisy is better than silent justice. It does not matter if your ultimate goal is not absolute good. I simply want the kingdom to become a powerful nation that fears no enemy."
"Hey."
"If you wish, I can recruit other knights of the kingdom as well as helpful nobles. So let us build a new kingdom together. Replace all the incompetent vested interests and irresponsible old men, and gather those with real ability."
"Tha..."
"So please accept me. Lord Claus."
He finally bowed his head with an honorific. Naturally Claus looked bewildered, and the watching guards each expressed their shock at this unprecedented situation.
And the pure white woman watching from beyond was no less astonished, shooting a gaze of equal shock.
"Um, could the guards step outside for a bit? I think the two of us need to talk. Sorry for using the guard facility as I please..."
"Of course, Lord Claus. Shall I go fetch some tea as well?"
"No, that’s fine. Oh, and I should tell Lia I’ll be late."
"I’ll deliver the message. Just that you’ll be late?"
"Yeah... and also ask her if she wants to have dinner together tonight. She tends to just grab something if I’m not around."
"Understood, Lord Claus. I’ll convey it exactly like that."
Sensing the situation was serious, he first sent the people outside. The man who had introduced himself as Dyke remained kneeling without moving an inch.
He looked refined, not like a swindler. After scratching his head for a while, Claus belatedly thought to help him up. Of course he didn’t forget to remove the sword stuck in the floor first.
"Get up for now. Don’t just sit on the floor."
"If that is your wish."
"Man, your speech is so stiff. Are all Capital people like this?"
"If that is your wish, I can change that as well."
"What..."
The excessive loyalty was almost overwhelming. Having thieves act this way toward him was already burdensome enough, but this man’s attitude was on another level.
"Okay, so get up already. So what was it? You want to join our side?"
"Simply put, yes. Of course, I would prefer to express it as comrades for a greater cause..."
"Got it, so please stop. The point is, you want to work in this city, right?"
"Starting that way would not be bad either. But ultimately..."
"Hmm. What to do."
If left alone it would never end, so he cut him off and pretended to think. Of course, having no talent for personnel management, that pretense didn’t last long.
"But no matter how I think about it, there are no open positions."
"As expected. To receive work, one must prove oneself. Even a Knight of the Round Table would be no more than a mere vagrant to you all."
"No, it’s not that extreme."
"Still, I have some confidence in my usefulness. Setting aside connections in the Capital, there is nothing lacking even physically."
"Hmm."
"I am particularly skilled with sword and spear. I can demonstrate if you wish."
"..."
Does he just want to show off that he’s a healthy male? It looked a bit like a young man’s bravado, but there was no denying that a sturdy young man with all limbs intact was useful anywhere.
Once again the thinking time stretched. But this time, too, there was a problem that needed resolving first.
"I should get permission first, shouldn’t I?"
"Permission? From whom?"
"I’m sort of an employee myself, you see. Hard to just bring people in on my own."
"Which means. As I thought."
"I should ask first. Probably Li..."
In that moment he was about to say Lia’s name but swallowed it back. She didn’t like having her name revealed to strangers. No matter how he thought about it, there was more than one thing he needed permission for.
Besides, this wasn’t the place for such a conversation. It was work-related, and more than anything, here there was...
...
"...Wait."
Only then did he remember the someone left in the prison. He turned his head belatedly to apologize to her.
"Ru. Sorry. We got too caught up talking among ourselves..."
"..."
"...Ru?"
But there was no one in the prison. Beyond the empty bars, only a cold wind blew.
All that was visible were the iron bars twisted and ripped out by force. Only then did he grasp the situation and make a horrified face.
"Ah. Don’t tell me."
"Stop. Right now."
At that moment cold metal jabbed into his back. Turning reflexively, he saw Ru holding one of the broken bars.
What is it this time? He was about to ask the reason but soon gave up and sighed. Too much had happened today alone; now he just wanted to go home.
In contrast, the young knight filled with pointless vigor from earlier could not leave the situation alone.
"Wh-What are you doing right now? Put down what you’re holding at once!"
"That’s what I should be saying. Do not even think of raising a weapon."
"What? How dare you say that to a knight of the kingdom... Who the hell are you!"
"Me... you ask."
At his question about her identity, Ru twisted her lips with a meaningful expression. It was the look people usually showed right before revealing their own secrets.
Somehow I already feel tired. But regardless of his feelings, she shouted in a powerful voice.
"My name is Ru Everdeen! A knight of the kingdom and a loyal servant of His Majesty the King!"
"..."
"From this moment, I will not tolerate any action without my permission. If you move..."
"..."
As she shouted vigorously, her thin dress slipped down slightly. She hurriedly covered herself with one arm and then shouted toward them with a flushed face.
"...I will not let it slide."