Chapter 29: Royal Order of Alphatia

Posted on June 5, 2022by Soafp

Translator: Soafp

“…… I see. I was prepared for that since I had lost contact with him, but the devil had defeated him.”

　When I finished telling the story about the battle with the demon in the example and the knights, including the imagined part of the story, Christophe spilled the beans.

　Well, I guess he was prepared for it. If the knights who went to investigate disappeared, it was natural to imagine their deaths.

“We had planned to search for them, but the demons had blocked the road to the city, and we couldn’t bypass the situation. But I never thought they would be turned into undead.”

“Yes,……, but he resisted the devil’s rule to the very end. He was a noble knight indeed.”

“…… Aah, I too have a nose for it.”

Staring at Schrade’s belongings, Christophe utters.

　As a knight, he must have experienced the death of a subordinate.

　However, the sense of shame he feels for those who died beyond his reach will never diminish.

　I, for my part, had no intention of uttering easy words of comfort.

After a short period of silence, Christophe smiled softly and turned his gaze toward me once again.

“So, what did Schrade say in the end?”

“…… to you and his daughter. One word: ‘I’m sorry.'”

“I see, …… that fool.”

　With a small exhale, Christophe sinks deeper into his chair.

　He remained silent for a long time, his eyes closed.

After a minute or so of silent contemplation, he finally stopped. He finally opened his eyes, and there was the same strong light in them as before.

“…… Thank you, Quon. You did well to bring my men here.”

“No, I did what I could as someone who saw them through their final days.

“That concern was worth a thousand dollars. I hope you will accept my thanks, and the rest too”

　Christophe looks around at all of us, and says that.

　The four girls, who had been looking uncomfortable, seemed slightly flustered by his gaze.

　Smiling at their appearance, I again addressed Christophe.

“I would like to talk to his daughter about this, and I wonder if you could tell me …… where she is.”

“I was going to tell her through the Knights, but …… you guys are going to go?”

“I’m the one who received the will. It would be too much of an injustice to throw that job away.”

　No matter how undead he had become, I was the one who avenged him in the end.

　Christophe may have warned me that I would be blamed for it.

　But that is my responsibility as the one who avenged him.

　If I am to be blamed, I will take the abuse in stride. And if he wants to be avenged, I will only strike him down head on.

　Well, I don’t intend to kill him.

“That’s all right. I’ll have a map of the place prepared. It would be an unpleasant task for me to take on.”

“I wanted to do this. It’s not something to worry about.”

“I appreciate it. Schrade’s daughter is in a bit of trouble right now. I’d like you to help her if you can.”

“Fumu?　Well, if that’s what she wants, I’m happy to oblige.”

“That’s fine. I look forward to working with you.”

　I glanced at Kurage, and she too returned my nod.

　Perhaps this was a continuation of a series of events.

　If so, it was only natural that I should participate. I am sure that she and the others are anxious to see the rest of the story.

　At that moment, I heard a mechanical voice in my ear.

[A special limited event, “Forgotten Remembrance and the Shadow of King’s Landing,” is about to begin.]

　Apparently, it was triggered by going to see the girl in question or something.

　I couldn’t help but squint at the difference in temperature between the game-like voice and the human reaction of the Knight Commander.

However, the person in question, who did not hear such a voice, continued his story without changing his tone.

“Then, I will give you a reward. I have prepared 100,000 Z for each of you. It’s not much, but it’ll help your fund.

“Thank you.”

“I’m sorry ……, but I couldn’t get permission for the fairy’s portion. She helped you too, and although it’s a nice thing to do,……”

“Oh, I don’t mind. I’ll end up managing it myself.”

　This is honestly very helpful, as I just recently went on a spending spree to get my equipment in order.

　If I sell the materials from the demons around here as well, I should be able to recoup some money there.

　It’s a pity that Lumina’s share is not here, but it can’t be helped. Giving money to fairies is basically useless.

　While I was doing some calculations in my head, Christophe put an unfamiliar item on the desk for the number of people.

　It is a metal crest with a wooden base. It is probably the coat of arms of the knighthood, which I have seen at the entrance of this building.

“With this, you will be able to enter the noble district, and if the conditions are met, you will also be accepted at the royal castle.”

“Well, that’s very helpful.”

It would certainly make it a lot easier to move around if the Knights of Columbus were willing to vouch for our identities.

　Of course, it would be quite tricky if we misused it, but we have no intention of doing so.

　Well, it wouldn’t be good to use it too much, either. It would also be troublesome to be thought of as a member of the Order.

“All that’s left is a map of King’s Landing. …… Ah, looks like everything’s ready.”

　As soon as Christophe mutters this, the door opens to reveal a woman.

　The woman, dressed in body armor that appeared to be for indoor use, bowed to Christophe and then spread a sheet of paper on the desk.

　The map drawn on it was probably a map of the royal city. In one corner of the map, which looked like a triple circle, was a circle marked in red ink.

“I’m sorry if this is a simplified guide map, but this is the map of the capital, Schrade’s house is at this marked spot. His daughter should be living there with a servant.”

“Only the two of them?”

“Yeah, well, it’s a long story. …… Anyway, I need you to help her, Lilina.”

“Yes, I will help you in any way I can.”

If she didn’t want to do that —- well, let’s say we’ll try to persuade her as much as possible.

　It’s considered a series of events, and I’d like to be as involved in the rest of the details as possible.

　Anyway, that’s all I have to say to the Commander. We should go to the girl or whatever she is as soon as possible.

　Well, before that, I’ll have to get the bodies of the knights stuffed into my inventory out of there.

　Imagining how the next event would unfold, I raised my voice to hand over the bodies.

“Then, I want to return the bodies of the knights. …… Where do I turn them in?”

“What?　Where in the world–no, could the foreigner deal with the secret method of storing things?”

“Secret?　Uhm …… well, something like that.”

　Is that how the inventory is treated by the locals?

　Well, it’s a very useful substitute, and it’s probably just as well to say that it’s a big deal.

　With a wry smile on my face, I stood up and waited for Christophe to speak.

　He, too, stood up from his seat after me and indicated the door with his hand.

“There is the morgue. I want you to take the body there. It won’t be a quick funeral, though.”

“Well, I suppose that’s not an option. Leave it to me to take care of the rest.”

Yeah, I will leave it to you. I appreciate the time and effort you put into this.”

　Chuckling at Christophe, who once again bows to me, I walk out of the conference room as he leads me.

　After finishing the mortuary, the next stop is a girl named Lilina or something like that.

I wonder what kind of problems will arise —– that’s what I’m looking forward to, and I smile a little.

“What, I didn’t understand what was going on so quickly. ……”

“You should at least understand how the story unfolds.”

I tell her this with half-lidded eyes as she walks through King’s Landing with a stunned expression on her face.

She is always so imposing when she is fighting, but it seems that when she enters an area beyond her knowledge, she instantly becomes stuck.

　Well, she is young and it is understandable that she does not know what to do, but as a leader, she should be a little more firm.

　After arriving in King’s Landing, she will have to deal with the power class.

“This map is from a guide map, right? It has a lot of information on it, and I’d like to look around later.”

“Oh, ……, it’s really big.”

“……Hoo hoo”

Reno unfolds the map and checks out various places besides Schrade’s mansion, which is our destination.

　Well, this is such a big city. It’s not surprising that there are so many different types of facilities.

　Rather, players are bound to enter the market in the future, and the situation is bound to become even more chaotic.

　I am sorry to say this to those who are making the maps, but that trend is inevitable.

“Look, we’re almost at our destination, it’s time to brace ourselves.”

“Yes”

“Huh?　Is he taking the leader’s spot?”

I left Kurage with a somewhat complicated look on her face and moved on.

　We have already registered the stone monuments in King’s Landing, so there is no other place we need to go at the moment.

I understand that they are interested in other facilities, but we can’t afford to take forever.

　Schrade’s house is located near the center of the outermost section of the city, the so-called commoner’s quarter.

　The royal capital is divided into a triple circle, with the commoners’ district on the outside, the nobles’ district on the inside, and the royal castle in the center.

　In short, the closer the residence is to the center, the higher the status, and Schrade is treated as a commoner but close to a noble.

“The problem that such a man had, right”

　It seems to me that this is going to be troublesome in any way. Especially when it comes to aristocrats, it will be very troublesome.

　Well, thanks to the emblem of the Order of the Knights, I can at least prove my status, so it’s not like I can’t do something about it.

　In the worst case scenario, things would get bloody…but as I rounded the last corner, thinking about the future, the sight I saw raised my eyebrows.

　I saw several figures posted in front of Schrade’s mansion, my destination.

“They are ……”

“…… something doesn’t look good.”

　Kurage’s gaze quickly narrowed.

　I was a little surprised at the reaction of those who seemed to be used to the shuraba, but I kept walking toward my destination, listening to the voices of those who were there.

　The situation was worrisome, but the atmosphere was not one that could be left unattended.

　As I approached at a quick pace, the voices of those in front of the mansion were able to reach me accurately.

“—–Please leave us.”

“You dare to challenge Count Fayb’s family, you wench!”

“Are you the one who is challenging His Excellency the Knight Commander Christophe?　You know that we are under his protection.”

　I was frowning at the content of the conversation I heard.

　My bad premonition had come true. Apparently, the girl in question had a problem with a nobleman.

　They have five armed men on the other side —- it would be tough for a single maid to deal with them.

　However, she is firmly rejecting the men’s words with a resolute expression on her face. Her attitude to protect the Lord was worthy of a good impression.

　Nevertheless, the situation is not so good. We should quickly send out a rescue ship.

“Excuse me. Is this the residence of Schrade Ramberg?”

“Who the hell are you?!”

“….Yes, that’s right, but… who are you?”

　I give a slight bow to the man who is shouting at me for intimidation, and turn my attention to the maid.

　She seems to be wary of me, though it is natural to say so.

　To reassure her, I take out an item from my inventory —– the emblem of the Order of the Knights I just received.

“I was sent here at the request of the Knight Commander Christoph Stoner. The request is to eliminate the problem of Lilina Ramberg.”

“……!　I see. Well, thank you very much. I’m sorry, but we’re going to need you to work quickly before we can entertain you.”

“Fumu in other words–“

　Laughing inwardly, I narrow my gaze and turn to the five men.

They flinch at the sight of the emblem of the Order and gulp under my gaze.

　If they are being pushed psychologically, it’s a good thing —- they are in the right state of mind to be intimidated.

“—-They are the problem.”

“Y-you….we are the messengers of the Countess Phoebe, how dare you to oppose—-HII?!”

Quickly, I move my feet slightly. I lift my right hand slightly.

Just like that, the men cowered in an interesting manner and took a step back.

　Ki-Attack – a method of effectively striking a deadly blow against an opponent.

　Simply put, it is a technique to instill fear in the opponent by making him believe that his every move is a move that could kill him.

It is not a technique of the Kudo Jintsu-ryu, but it is a very useful technique that is often used as a feint to kill.

“Now, I understand that you are a messenger of some aristocrat, but it is interesting that you are claiming your position in this country against me, a foreigner.”

“F-Foreigner,……!?”

“We are not the people of this country, nor do we have any respect for the aristocratic society of this country. We are immortal even if you try to punish us. What can you possibly do against a group of foreigners, all of whom have an abundance of combat skills ……?”

“What …… HIII?!　S-stop!”

　I tell them so matter-of-factly, intimidating them with a slight movement of my body.

　In fact, the gentile force is beyond threatening and violent.

After all, no matter what they do, we will be revived. The more we fight them, the more we increase our fighting ability, and the more numerous we are.

　If we all unite, it is not impossible for us to take this country.

Of course, it is unlikely that it would be possible to unite to that extent.

“Now, I ask you again–what in the world would the nobleman do to us foreigners, who are here at the request of the Knight Commander?”

“……retread, retread!”

　The moment I took a step forward, the group of five started retreating from the spot as if they were rolling.

　I stared at their backs, and when I heard the sound of their shaking legs, they all fell down at the same time.

　I look over at them as they crawl away, and finally open my mouth.

“Kuku, hahahahaha!　No, they were worth teasing.”

“I-I shouldn’t laugh. ……Pupu”

　I am a mourning mermaid admonishing me, but I still can’t hold back my laughter from spilling out of my mouth.

Those who are all prideful will rebel if you don’t break their hearts thoroughly. …… Well, it won’t make much sense to do anything about the errand boys.

　I silently thought about how to respond,—– and then a voice called out to me from behind.

“Thank you very much, Foreigner.”

“Hmm?　Oh. As I said before, it was a request from Sir Knight Commander. You should thank him.”

“Yes, when I get a chance. So, my question is–“

　I let out a small wry smile at the maid, who looked slightly uneasy.

　If we leave things as they are, we have only scratched the surface and solved nothing.

　I guess she is afraid that I will pull out of the situation as if the problem is solved, but I am not going to be so naive as to judge that this is the end of the matter.

Rest assured, I will not throw you out like this. Can I come in and talk to you for the time being?　I have something to tell you as well, young lady.”

“……Understood. Then, please come in.”

　Nodding to the bewildered maid, we proceeded to the mansion as we were invited in.

　I was a little unsure of what to tell her, but I knew I had to be precise.

　We stepped into the Lamberk mansion, weighing our words.