Chapter 188: Chapter 186 – The Morally Upright’s Stubborn Honesty

The Morally Upright’s Stubborn Honesty

「Ha.zu.ki.sen.pai?」the Blue Knight said blankly.

「Ah, it’s nothing. Please forget about it. Anyway, what’s going on? Looks like serious business, with you bringing temple knights.」

I’m so stupid. Why did I say that? The knight indeed looked very similar to Hazuki. But only with regards to appearance. Hazuki’s hair wasn’t even purple, and the colors of their eyes were completely different.

But she really looks like her. They’re the same age too, Hikaru thought as temple knights surrounded him.

「My name is Conia, a Blue Knight who serves the tower. You are the adventurer Hikaru, correct? The one who delivered the letter from Ponsonia’s princess.」

「Yup, that’s me.」

「You really are just a boy.」Conia’s eyes widened in surprise.

「So what’s going on here? I must say, it’s shameful to surround a mere kid like me with ten temple knights.」

「You brat! How dare you!」

「Please stop. Calm down.」

A knight responded to Hikaru’s cheap provocation, but Conia’s words made him back down.

Ten knights had Hikaru surrounded, with no openings. Under normal circumstances, this would be a huge problem.

I think I can handle this many.

Hikaru didn’t plan to kill them. If they made one wrong move, he would use his revolver to fire a warning shot and while they were distracted by the explosion, he would then activate his Stealth to slip past them. With five points on Power Burst, it wouldn’t even take a second.

Hikaru kept his Mana Detection on, so he could keep tabs on the knights behind him. He placed his right hand over the revolver hanging by his waist.

「You shouldn’t talk to grown-ups like that.」Conia said out of the blue.

「I’m sorry, what?」Her words caught him by surprise.

「Saints say to respect your elders for they are wise, and their wisdom is far more precious than any knowledge.」she continued.

Hikaru didn’t expect to get lectured.

「...Okay. So what do you want?」

「Adventurer Hikaru. You are suspected of assaulting Deacon Gelop’s attendant. We’ll listen to what you have to say in the Tower, so please come with us.」

「Hell no. I’m not going.」

「Ha! Kids will always be kids. He doesn’t understand the situation he’s in.」one knight said, eliciting scornful laughter from the others.

「Adventurer Hikaru. I’m asking for your cooperation. Violence against a Gray Deacon is a serious crime. We need to investigate the matter as soon as possible.」

「So you want to bring me to your Tower which is basically your headquarters. How can I trust you guys?」

「How sad it is to mistrust the Church. Blue Knights have the right to investigate. I can take you away.」

「Did you say a Gray Deacon? No one seemed to be injured when they came to the hotel. Same when they left. I wonder, then. Who could’ve hit the guy? If you ask me, that hot-blooded Gelop is suspicious.」

「Bastard! You dare falsely accuse a Gray Deacon?!」

「Lady Conia! We don’t have to listen to this kid. Let us punish him!」

The knights drew their swords. Hikaru himself gripped his revolver.

「No. Punishing someone without undergoing trial before God is the way of ruffians.」Conia rebuked them.

「Uh...」

「B-But Lady Conia! Your attitude towards him just makes him more arrogant!」

「Yeah!」

Even the knights seemed to regard Conia with contempt.

「We are knights. We follow the protocol taught to us by the Saints, protocols that God Himself created. We cannot violate the Church’s teachings in any way.」

Conia didn’t give in. On one hand, she was morally upright. But on the other, she was also stubbornly honest. Is her head made of steel or something? Hikaru thought.

「Is this gonna take long? Can I go?」

「You damned brat!」

A knight reached his tipping point and took a step towards Hikaru. He didn’t dare swing his sword at an unarmed boy, but he tried to grab Hikaru’s collar with his free left hand.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

「This is legitimate self-defense, by the way.」

Hikaru pounced forward into the knight, grabbed the man’s left hand, and threw him. Letting out a groan, the knight spun in the air and slammed to the ground. A one-armed shoulder throw. Unable to perform the proper technique to land safely, the knight lost consciousness.

I only learned a bit from middle school. But I guess with Power Burst and Strength, I can somehow manage pull it off.

Hikaru was also fortunate that the knight underestimated him just because he was a kid.

「What did you do just now?!」

「Why, you little...!」

The other knights started to move.

「I said stop!」Conia shouted.

The knights froze in place. Even Hikaru jumped.

「I, a Blue Knight, ordered you to stop. You do know what happens to those who disobey, right?」

「W-We didn’t mean to disobey!」

Conia exuded intense aura. The knights sheathed back their swords all at once, except for the one who fainted. The lady knight glared at her men and sighed.

「Adventurer Hikaru. It seems we have committed a grave mistake. We will make sure the offending knight apologizes and receives appropriate punishment.」

「No, it’s fine. How about you let me go in exchange?」

「These are two different matters. Can you come with us to the Tower?」

I just told you I’m not going! Conia seemed to be a stickler to the rules. I don’t think she’ll ever back down. So Hikaru tried change his approach.

「I’m a messenger who delivered the Ponsonian Princess’s letter.」

「I know.」

「Shouldn’t I be treated like a diplomat, then? Yet I’m being surrounded by temple knights who are trying to take me away. Is this the Tower’s way of doing things?」

「Not at all. However, the moment you delivered the letter, you returned to being an adventurer. We cannot treat you like a diplomat afterwards.」

「Yeah, about that. My duty is still not over. The Ponsonia Foreign Minister will have to verify first that I have indeed delivered the letter. Do I not retain my status as a messenger, then?」

「Hmm...」Conia stroked her chin.「It seems we need to look up if there was any similar case like this in the past.」she said.「Very well. I’ll check with the Tower and come back tomorrow.」

Damn, she’s persistent, Hikaru thought.

「One more thing. You are suspected of assault, so you will be monitored.」

「Monitored? Am I not a provisional messenger?」

「Being a diplomat doesn’t prevent them from being monitored if they assaulted someone.」

「.........」

「All right, then. Someone, wake him up.」

Conia left the unconscious knight to her other men and left the training ground. The knights shot glares at Hikaru as they streamed out of the place. Once he was alone, Hikaru heaved a sigh.

「She was a lot more annoying than expected. An observer sounds like a huge pain. I guess I should solve this problem myself.」

Hikaru started walking. As he turned on his Stealth, he slowly vanished, as though becoming one with the air around him.