Chapter 184: Chapter 184:

Garuel did not join. It would be more accurate to say it was improper. He was still the commander of the Twilight Knight Order and had been dispatched to the other areas of the Empire to inspect the seals.

Thus, in the eyes of the system, Garuel Monzasi was never a knight of Cadel. Cadel won Garuel’s loyalty that night.

‘He said he would take care of his identity and come back, but what on earth…… did he plan to do it?’

Garuel swore that he would become Cadel’s man. He also promised to do things his own way, and to join with a clean body, free of burdens.

Without being told exactly how to do it, Cadel had no idea what to expect, but he decided to trust Garuel.

He had no choice but to believe. The unexpected departure had torn Cadel and Garuel far apart.

“We will spend the night here. Each battalion will select a number of people and take turns standing guard, and we’ll be on the move as soon as the sun rises, so make sure you’re ready in time.”

Area 10, the hilly region of Alithis, where one of the seals in the Empire was located.

There, Cadel discussed tomorrow’s schedule with the commanding officer of the Guardian Knight Order, Sorin Salamo, and battalion captains, Dreyfe Enty and Martin Picker.

The faces of the four men gathered in the barracks were grave. Sorin spread a map of the terrain of Alithis on the table.

“The seal in Area 10 is the largest seal in the Empire, so if something goes wrong, there is a high possibility that a significant number of monsters will be discovered. So, as soon as the sun rises tomorrow, let’s head to the western hill near the seal and send a select group of knights to scout it out.”

“It would be important to move stealthily. If there are monsters lying around, we will be surrounded as soon as we are discovered.”

Dreyfe rubbed his chin as he studied the map carefully. It was important to keep tabs on the status of the sealed area. If you lead the entire army hastily, there was a risk of being ambushed, and you might waste your stamina dealing with monsters that rush in without any information. But as important as it was, it was also dangerous.

Even If the seal was perfect and the surroundings were safe, if they were infested with monsters, the risk of falling into a trap was great. But a small group was essential for a stealthy scout, and the key to this operation was to be clear about who the ‘scouting party’ would consist of.

“This is troublesome. The Shadow Knight Order may have, but we don’t have any stealthy assassins on our side. Maybe it’s best to go after the nimble ones…….”

Martin glanced at Dreyfe, his eyes narrowing. The Fifth Battalion, led by Dreyfe, was currently considered the most mobile battalion in the Order.

When Dreyfe looked at Martin, who was coyly recommending someone else’s subordinates, Martin naturally looked away and raised the corner of his mouth.

“As you know, my crew is largely magicians assigned to activate and repair the seal. They’re not well suited to scouting.”

“We’re not going to die, we’re just scouting. Why not kill two birds with one stone by activating the seal while we’re at it?”

“Because there’s a what if. If we get this far and the magicians get hurt, who’s going to manage the seal?”

“So the dangerous work should be done by us ignorance instead of your precious magicians?”

“Sir Dreyfe, could you please tone down your vulgarity? I know you’re young and eager, but we are an honorable order of knights in the service of His Majesty the Emperor. The least we can do is be civil.…….”

“Why do I have to be polite to the captain of the Eighth Battalion, who is not even one of His Majesty’s?”

The mood grew fierce, but Sorin ignored the bickering with familiarity, studying the map. He seemed intent on waiting until Dreyfe and Martin were done bickering.

But not Cadel, who had been listening to their conversation in silence until now, and who spoke quietly across the heated atmosphere.

“Scouting will be done by the Scarlet Scales Knight Order.”

Dreyfe’s voice, which was about to spit out a curse at the outspokenness, suddenly trailed off. Martin, who was dealing with him, also stopped speaking and looked back at Cadel.

“I understand that there are only three members in your Knight Order right now.”

“Yes. A small, elite group of knights.”

“……Two, if you don’t count Sir Cadel. You’re going to leave scouting to just two knights? Or do you intend to fill in from other battalions?”

“I’m thinking of scouting with three people, including myself.”

Martin’s face crumpled into an odd expression as he spoke.

“Sir Cadel should be helping to restore the magic circle, not scouting. I expected more from a magician recognized by His Majesty the Emperor. Why don’t you decide the place to stick your nose where it rightfully belongs?”

“Well. Didn’t Sir Dreyfe just say that too?”

Cadel continued speaking while lightly nudging Dreyfe.

“Wouldn’t it be like killing two birds with one stone if you activate the seal while you’re at it? I also tend to be fascinated by efficiency. It was a statement that was hard to miss.”

“That’s just Sir Dreyfe being sarcastic……!”

It was Sorin who interrupted Martin as he raised his voice in disbelief. Sorin put a hand on Martin’s chest to stop him, then turned to face Cadel.

“Can you do that?”

“Yes. If I’m surrounded, I can send a call for help immediately, and I’m confident I can hold out until help arrives. Well, if we’re cornered, I can use Lydon’s illusion techniques to create a way out. We’ll go.”

“……Please take care of it. Then I’ll list some cases based on the scouting results.”

Martin looked at Sorin in disbelief at the smooth flow of the conversation, but Sorin didn’t bother to correct him, pushing forward with his plan, only Dreyfe beside him snorting and glancing at Martin.

* * *

At the same time, while Cadel was in the middle of an operation meeting.

An incident of its own also occurred to his subordinates outside.

“It’s not tasty, Van. I can’t believe you’re feeding me this. Are humans collectively crazy?”

Lydon sat near the campfire in front of the barracks, grumbling as he pounded a wooden bowl of warm stew. Across from him, a stern-faced Van stirred the stew simmering in a vat.

“Shut up and eat it.”

“Or that it’s actually tasteless because Van is cooking it?”

“Shut up if you don’t want to be bathed in stew.”

“They say food needs love, Van. Van was so dry of affection that the stew was tasteless!”

Van threw down the ladle he’d been stirring the stew with in the face of a relentlessly irritated Lydon.

“I can’t eat it. My comrade, of all people…….”

He was asked to take care of Lydon while Cadel was in the meeting, so Van even cooked and fed him. But all he could think about was how much he wanted to make a stew with Lydon instead of vegetables.

Van, who had lost his appetite, looked away from Lydon, who was complaining that the stew had splattered. The place he was looking at was the large barracks where Cadel had entered.

‘I hope Commander is eating something good over there.’

To be honest, the stew was tasteless. Van hoped Cadel wouldn’t fill his stomach with the same stew. As he thought about it, slowly letting his anger dissipate, he suddenly felt eyes on him.

‘……Here we go again.’

It was an interest he had felt throughout the journey to Alithis. Partly because they were the newly appointed Imperial Knight Order, but mostly because of Lydon’s race and his own origins.

The knights expressed rude curiosity at the presence of a fairy they’d never seen before, and a dismissive interest in the knight of commoner origin Van Herdos, though to a lesser extent the battalions of Sorin and Dreyfe with whom they’d fought before, but Martin Picker’s newfound battalion didn’t seem to have the will to hide their curiosity.

‘It’s annoying.’

According to his original character, he would have punished them immediately, but he held back because he had a promise to Cadel. In fact, if they didn’t touch Cadel, Van could ignore the attention as long as it was directed at him.

As soon as he thought about it, a group of knights drew near Van and Lydon. They exchanged glances and smiled strangely at Van, who didn’t show the slightest hint of favor.

“There’s something I’d like to ask the Scarlet Scales Knight Order. Could you please answer?”

The word ‘f*ck off’ rose to the top of his throat, but Van held it back with superhuman strength. If he caused a commotion here, Cadel would bear the brunt of the loss. When Van glared at the knight who had asked the question instead of answering it, the knight cleared his throat as if he was embarrassed.

“It’s a rumor about your commander. I hear he’s a descendant of the black magician. Is it true?”

“……What?”

“No, isn’t it? A multi-attribute magician who can use spells of different attributes at the same time without chanting. That is a power that can’t come from the genes of an ordinary human being. So, there are rumors that he is a mutant born through the power of black magic.”

He was stunned, speechless. Van spat out a laugh, not seeing the value in responding, and the knight, energized by the reaction, continued to ramble on.

“Rumor has it that the fairy here was mind-controlled by black magic. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come out of hiding in the forest to the human world. What a shame. Isn’t that right, Sir Lydon?”

The knight chuckled as if making a lighthearted joke. Like Van, Lydon didn’t bother to reply, except that the smile on his usually cheerful face was completely gone.

Lydon set the bowl of tasteless stew on the floor, hummed softly in thought, and slowly rose from his seat.

The knights’ heads slowly tilted upward as they were being stared down by Lydon. Lydon scanned their faces for the faintest hint of tension, then fixed his gaze on the knight who had spoken.

As the jewel-like red eyes turned fully toward him, beautiful and eerie at the same time, the knight felt his body stiffen of its own accord. And then, a moment later. A sharp chill ran up his body.

“W, What……!”

It was Lydon, freezing the knight’s hands and feet without warning. The knight’s comrades panicked and drew their swords. But Lydon was unperturbed by the swords that surrounded him, and Van could only grimace in annoyance.

“Are you crazy? If you thought you could attack a knight of the Guardian Knight Order just because you were a fairy, you would be sorely mistaken! If you don’t want to die, get rid of your damn magic!”

“That’s strange. If I don’t get rid of this damn magic, you’ll be the one who dies. Why are you talking so loud?”

As Lydon spoke harshly, the knight’s expression became grimly distorted.

“Are you trying to kill me or something?”

“Yeah.”

A mischievous grin crossed Lydon’s otherwise expressionless face with the short answer, and he stepped closer to the ice-covered knight, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

“I’m thinking of killing you. Because I’m so annoyed, I’m going to kill all the people behind you. Because it’s a very simple thing to me.”

“This, this crazy bas…….”

“So why are you still alive? I’m the kind of guy who kills when I want to kill, so why is someone as boring and annoying as you still alive and kicking? ……Hmm, yeah. That’s because Cadel told me not to do it. He told me not to kill people here carelessly.”

Lydon released the knight’s shoulders, which he had been controlling, and at the same time lifted the spell that had frozen half of his body. Then he lightly raised one of the sword blades aimed at him and said.

“So let’s not fuss? There is a limit to what I can forgive.”

The knights were dumbfounded by the breezy smile that contradicted his words. Van, who was watching the whole thing, burst out laughing.

“For the first time, you’re doing something I like.”