It all begins with Melrose.
“…Mikhail. Why the long face?”
“It’s nothing, Grandfather.”
On the way from the Royal Castle to the Melrose-owned mansion in the outskirts of the Royal Capital, Margrave Melrose Belt, the Prime Minister, quietly sighed at the somewhat gloomy appearance of his legitimate grandson, Mikhail, who was riding with him.
Belt had an idea as to why Mikhail was acting strangely.
A girl who was the adopted daughter of Baron Leighton, a guard of the Princess, and a Rank 5 Adventurer had suddenly disappeared. Princess Licia, who was close to her, subtly spread the “death theory,” which confused those who knew her. However, after the factions opposing the First Princess and their sources of funding began to be crushed, Belt understood the background.
He had used the Shadow Unit to subtly contact her and support her from the shadows, managing to grasp her movements. However, Belt, feeling as if his heart had stopped, muttered to himself that he wished she had consulted him as well. Oz, the attendant, noticing their demeanor, spoke up.
“Would you like something to drink?”
“No, not now.”
Belt, feeling slightly better at Oz’s consideration, reconsidered the cause of this incident.
It was probably because of that “Saint.” Belt, an old fool, no longer thought of her as a granddaughter, but considering he had once protected her, he couldn’t simply abandon her due to the eyes of other families and branch families.
However, by the time he realized that the girl was “poison,” she had already left Melrose’s control, formed a faction that included the Crown Prince, Prince Amor, and even the Holy Church, and had risen to a position of influence where even assassination was not easily carried out.
Belt thought that even if he tried to nullify the adoption now, the Aristocratic Faction would take her in as an adopted daughter due to her influence. Therefore, he decided to keep her as a “Viscount’s adopted daughter” as a final restraint.
As a result of being politically outmaneuvered, he had let her run wild. Aria, having once left the political shackles of being a Princess, was probably trying to weaken that power.
However, Mikhail, who thought of himself as a “comrade” as a close aide to the Princess, was lamenting not being informed by her—or rather, not being able to understand and act on her intentions as quickly as the Princess. From Belt’s perspective, it was childish sentimentality, but he could understand the feeling.
There was no proof. He himself wouldn’t admit it. But Belt was convinced that Aria was none other than “Alicia,” the keepsake of his deceased youngest daughter.
He wanted her to return to him as his granddaughter. But if she refused, he at least wanted her to live freely.
If she rejected the nobility, he would be content just watching over her. He just wanted her to be alive. But he always had the desire to have her call him Grandfather and introduce her to Belt’s wife.
He himself was similar to Mikhail. That was why he had Mikhail return to the mansion this time to clear his head.
It took half a day to return to the mansion in the outskirts of the Royal Capital, so Belt only returned about twice a week. Mikhail had visited the mansion to some extent even after entering the academy, but after becoming a close aide to the Princess, he only returned about once a month.
Mikhail’s parents were governing the Melrose territory in place of Belt, so they were not in the Royal Capital. However, Belt’s wife was lonely because Mikhail didn’t return, so bringing Mikhail back would be a good way to cheer them both up.
If possible, he wanted to introduce Aria to his wife, but Belt understood that if he forced it, the girl would disappear somewhere.
“Sir, Mikhail-sama.”
Suddenly, Oz’s voice, as if urging caution, made Belt look up, and in response, Mikhail turned his gaze to the outside of the carriage.
“…Grandfather. Doesn’t something seem off?”
“What is it?”
Belt stopped Oz, who was about to say something, with his hand, and deliberately frowned as he questioned his grandson, who began to speak about what he felt with slight hesitation.
“After being involved with Aria and the Shadow Knights, I’ve finally come to sense things.”
“…I see.”
Belt was also made aware of the situation “outside” by their demeanor.
Battlefields and places that would become battlefields had a unique “atmosphere.” The presence of insects and animals. The expressions and voices of people. The traces of someone passing by… These accumulated things became an “atmosphere” that only those who could understand it could sense.
Mikhail had probably been trained considerably under the Princess. Conversely, Belt, who had fewer opportunities to go to the “front lines,” was slower to notice that unique atmosphere than the two who were riding with him.
“Someone—”
“—Sir! A horse from the front!”
Before Belt could take any action, the carriage stopped, and the coachman informed them of it.
“A horse? What’s going on!”
The coachman had noticed, so the Melrose family knight who was accompanying them should already be responding, but Belt, feeling a sense of unease because he didn’t hear any sounds of battle from the attack, glanced at Mikhail and grabbed his sword.
“Sir, I’ll go see.”
“No, we’ll go out too. Mikhail, let’s go.”
“Yes!”
Belt, inwardly impressed that Mikhail had been trained in terms of courage, grabbed his dagger in response and went outside.
If preparing for an attack, it was better for nobles not to leave the carriage. Especially if Oz, a Shadow Knight, was present, it would be wiser to leave it to him.
However, there were no women or children to protect in this place, and Belt and Mikhail, who were somewhat skilled, thought that it might be tactically sound to go outside before being surrounded. In particular, recalling that the people of the Melrose family tended to be active, Oz quietly sighed.
“What’s going on!”
“…Sir!”
When Belt called out, a man who was talking to the knight at the head noticed Belt and raised his voice as if shouting.
“Nils? What happened?”
He knew him. He was one of the attendants at the mansion, not a Shadow Knight, but he remembered him as a relatively calm person. What was the reason for his panic? Why had he come to this place so far from the mansion?
As Belt questioned him about what had happened, Nils dismounted from his horse and approached Belt with stumbling steps, shouting with a desperate expression.
“Sir, it’s terrible! People who appear to be from the Knight Order are heading towards the mansion! A knight who went to question them was killed on the spot!”
“What!”
Belt, hearing that, approached Nils to hear the details—at that moment, he drew his sword from his waist.
“S, Sir!?”
Clang…!
“…It seems we were being led on.”
Oz and the knights took up their weapons and guarded the surroundings as Belt deflected an arrow that had flown in from somewhere.
There were multiple routes from the Royal Capital to the Melrose family mansion, and only Belt himself or an attendant like Oz knew which road to choose that day. That was why Nils, who was trying to report the crisis, had been led on by the “enemy.”
As three more horsemen appeared from the dark night, the man at the head, holding a bow, bowed while still mounted.
“I presume you are Prime Minister Melrose.”
“…You, Kirkland?”
“Indeed. I am Kirkland, Captain of the Second Knight Order. It has been a long time since we spoke face to face.”
“What… what is the meaning of this?”
He was the one who had fired the arrow earlier. He was the second son of Viscount Kirkland, a handsome man in his thirties, and Belt remembered being introduced to him at a soirée as a young but talented knight.
Belt had also received reports from the Shadow Unit that Prince Amor had taken over the Second Knight Order and was gathering weapons in a part of it.
After discussing with Margrave of Dandole, the Commander of the Knight Order, they had agreed to dispatch the Knight Order and the Shadow Unit to guard the Royal Capital and monitor the situation, but that was only two days ago, and no further reports had been received since then.
Even if they gathered troops, there was only so much that could be done with a few hundred people. At least, if they were going to do something, they would need several times that number of troops, or they would encounter the Third Knight Order guarding the Royal Capital. Even if they won, they would be too exhausted to use their troops properly.
Besides, Amor was a Prince, even if he was currently infatuated with a strange woman. Still, as a member of the Royal Family, he wouldn’t act rashly, or so he thought, based on common sense.
Was he going to attack somewhere? What would happen then? Even if he accomplished something, all that would remain would be the disgrace of national treason and the dishonorable result of being defeated and “dead.”
Amor was not that foolish. Belt, who had known Amor since he was a young prince, thought so.
At least, if he was going to start something, he should have been able to sense the signs. But—
“Of course, Your Excellency the Prime Minister. It’s to execute you and the Chief Commander of the Knight Order, and to enthrone His Rightful Highness the Crown Prince.”
“What did you say…?”
Belt’s eyes widened at Kirkland’s statement. Those who try to force their opinions are often not right in the head, but this was beyond the pale.
Was he this foolish? This short-sighted?
“Didn’t you encounter the Third Knight Order?”
“No, of course, we did. It was a patrol squad, but we crushed a few of them. If it were the old us, we would have suffered some damage as well, but the current us has Prince Amor’s Divine Protection.”
“…………”
Prince Amor’s Divine Protection… If you heard it as it is, it might seem like the honor of fighting under Amor’s command, but there were rumors that Amor actually possessed a Divine Protection (Gift).
“Do you think you can win with just three people?”
The four knights guarding Belt are Rank 3, and Oz, a Shadow Knight, is also a Rank 3 elite. Even though he’s retired from the front lines, Belt himself is Rank 3, and Mikhail has the strength of Rank 2 at his age.
Kirkland’s ability is said to be in the upper ranks of Rank 3, though not quite reaching Rank 4, with a combat power of nearly 600. The knight of the Second Knight Order with him seems to be in the upper ranks of Rank 2, but three people alone cannot defeat Belt and the others.
“Fufu… As expected of Melrose House. You have good knights. But!”
Kirkland laughs fearlessly in the face of Belt and his numerically superior forces. The ambitious yet intelligent look he once had is gone from his face, replaced by a certain madness.
“We have been chosen by the Saint, the messenger of God! We have been given the power to guide this country correctly and have become invincible beings! Now, show them that power, you guys!”
“「…Aaaaaaaaaaaah!!”」
At Kirkland’s voice, the knights who had been standing silently let out a shout and charged forward on their horses.
“Protect Lord Belt!!”
Oz shouted back, and in response, the four knights spurred their horses and thrust out their spears.
A cavalry charge using spears gains power directly from the speed of the gallop. However, if there is a difference in skill, it is possible to counter that charge and return it to the opponent.
“—っ!”
The Melrose knight, holding his spear, stretched out his arm as if to thrust back, hitting the tip of his spear against the Second Knight Order knight first. It was a reckless technique that could break his arm if done poorly, but the Melrose knight prioritized neutralizing the enemy.
But–
“Aaaaaaaah!!”
The Second Knight Order knight continued forward even as his shoulder was pierced, and even with one arm torn off, he slammed the spear in his hand into the Melrose knight.
“Gah!”
The Melrose knight spat out blood and fell from his horse. Another knight had also resulted in a suicide-like mutual kill, and Kirkland frowned slightly at the sight.
“Oh dear. They already have no will… But try not to kill them too much, or they’ll start to smell like beasts.”
“You…!”
Kirkland was already engaged in combat, with Oz and one other knight facing him, but neither could land an effective attack.
But what did he mean by “don’t kill them too much”? Kirkland’s actions made it clear.
“…’Stand’!”
At Kirkland’s command, the two Second Knight Order knights who had fallen stood up. Moreover, one of the knights picked up his severed arm and reattached it to the wound.
Undead knights… Feeling a chill at the sight, Belt considered it to be Amor’s Divine Protection (Gift).
He realized that this was the reason Amor had moved so recklessly, and the source of Kirkland’s insane confidence.
“That’s right. With this power, what are the rabble worth? We are God’s warriors!”
“…But, if they die too much, won’t they lose their will?”
Those were the words Kirkland himself had let slip. If they were undead knights, it would certainly lead to excessive confidence, but if they lost their will as a result, wouldn’t that be terrifying?
Belt tried to shake Kirkland’s spirit with cunning words, while thinking about whether there was any way to break through the situation. But even so…
“Hahaha, His Highness said that he would restore their minds once the matter is over. And His Highness never lost his mind, no matter how many times he died! Common soldiers are one thing, but if it’s me, a chosen warrior like His Highness, I shouldn’t lose my mind after only a few deaths!”
Kirkland’s mind was already in a state where he couldn’t hear any other words, due to the elation of being “undead” and “chosen.”
It was probably not just Amor’s influence. Someone was twisting his mind with sweet words.
“Alright, the chatter is over! It’s about time you faced me, Your Excellency!”
As Kirkland shouted and jumped out, the knights under his command responded in kind. The other knight held back those knights, and Mikhail was forced to deal with them as well.
“Grandfather!”
“Don’t let your mind wander, Mikhail!”
While scolding his grandson, Belt also stepped forward. One knight had already fallen to Kirkland’s sword, and Oz’s sword was buried in Kirkland’s neck, but Kirkland brushed Oz aside as if it were nothing and swung his sword at Belt.
“This is the end! Relic of the cunning predecessor! Perish, along with that evil soul!”
“–You will–“
That “voice” suddenly came from the darkness of the night.
Like moonlight spilling from the night sky, a girl with hair the color of burning ash-grey plunged the knife in her hand into Kirkland’s head, and while wrapping particles of light like silver wings around her body, she slashed his body in two.
The battle has begun.
How will Aria fight? How will Carla move?
–Report–
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