It was completely unexpected.
I had always thought he was a strange young man, but I had never heard of anything so drastic.
I felt uncomfortable, like I was the hero of a fairy tale.
I was born into a family of knights in this region.
The people around me were hoping that I would become the right hand man of the lord in the future ……
But the lord was no good at all.
“I’ll leave it to you, sir.”
Just like that, he interferes with our work from the side.
He reduces the budget on the cost of security and spends it on his favorite artworks.
He doesn’t care about the basic operation of the Knights Order.
He also cuts the budget for stupid reasons.
“If there’s no danger, there’s no point.”
When I heard this, I was deeply disappointed.
Thanks to this, even the equipment is lacking.
Sometimes, when he feels like it, he comes to observe.
He says observe, but ……
He would interfere with the design of the flags at the camp.
He seemed to think he was an artist.
Morale was at an all-time low, and monsters were left unattended.
That’s not the right word.
“Do something.”
That was the instruction.
But when I asked for the necessary equipment, he was reluctant to provide it.
There’s no way we can fight monsters with our bare hands.
In the end, we couldn’t cope with the situation and the monsters overflowed, causing a lot of damage.
The excuse he gave at that time was terrible.
“The Knights Order didn’t tell me about the crisis. “
In a way, it was true.
The head of the family was an idiot, and he took advantage of it to do whatever he wanted.
He would say what was convenient for the head of the family and make a good impression on his subordinates.
Behind the scenes, he would withhold important reports.
Whenever there was a problem, he would try to protect himself.
“My subordinates were incompetent. They didn’t understand my intentions.”
Such excuses were made.
The foolish family head would believe him and tell everyone around him.
“My family’s knights order is unworthy.”
In a sense, it was a hell on earth.
When my rank was changed after a major failure, I had a toast with my men.
However, it is also true that because of this, I lost a subordinate who did not have to die.
I thought about quitting as a knight, but …….
If I quit, my subordinate would be in the line of fire.
They are very clumsy and earnest people.
I couldn’t just abandon them.
The Della Scala family has been transferred to clean up the mess.
They are a great aristocratic family and have a good knightly order.
But thanks to the previous lord, who spread a lot of bad news ……
The impression of this place was also the worst.
They weren’t believing the bad reputation as it was, but it was natural that there was a distance between us.
With each passing month, the gap grew wider.
During these tedious and unpleasant days, rumors about the development of unclaimed territory became the main topic of conversation.
No one would want to go to such an uncivilized frontier.
It’s none of our business anyway, or so I thought.
◆◇◆◇◆
But one day, I was summoned by Sir Edmund Rustico, the Knight Commander.
I thought I was finally going to be fired, but there was nothing I could do about it.
I’m fine with it, but I don’t feel good about my men being disappointed.
“What can I do for you, sir?”
“I’m sure Sir Rossi is aware of our plans to develop the frontier.”
Apparently, I’m not fired.
“I heard about them even if I don’t want to.”
“Sir Rossi has been nominated as the head of the Knights Order.”
I thought he was joking, but Sir Rustico kept a straight face.
“It seems that you have not …… developed a taste for jokes. Who’s the curious one in charge of it?”
“It’s Lord Alfred”
Ah …… that third son, the freak.
“I’m surprised the young master would appoint someone like me.”
Sir Rustico nodded quietly.
“Yeah. To be precise, “It’s not exactly a mainstream knight, but a knight who has the trust of his men”. Who else would it be but you?”
I snickered.
I’ve never heard of him as a vile person, but he is the son of a great aristocrat.
This kind of person wants to look good as long as they can look good.
He would easily show his true colors if faced with a crisis.
“I wonder if he’s trying to create an alibi by selecting a cold-blooded eater. He’ll have an excuse if we fail, after all.”
I couldn’t help but sound rude.
But if I have to go along with the third son’s hobby, I should be able to say something like that.
I’ll be risking my life, you know.
Sir Rustico, however, was not angry and smiled.
“No …… It seems that he really intends to succeed. Just so you know, if you think he’s just a 16-year-old boy, you’re going to be embarrassed.”
So it would make this hero of war embarrassed, It made me a little curious.
“Ho …… I guess he’s a little more articulate. I’m sure a sixteen-year-old will have a lot of enthusiasm for idealism.”
Sir Rustico’s smile deepened at my sarcasm.
“You’ll see. It’s not the insight of a sixteen-year-old. It is better not to underestimate him as a child. I am ashamed to admit that I underestimated him as well.”
“Hmm …… As long as I don’t think he’s sixteen, I shouldn’t have any problems.”
It seems like Sir Rustico liked the third son quite a lot, and he leaned forward.
“No, that’s not enough. You have more vision than we do, and a greater capacity. You should see him anyway.”
“Yes, sir. All right, let’s meet him and find out.”
Sir Rustico made a mischievous expression that he rarely made.
“Oh, I don’t mean to be rude. He seems like a different creature.”
“I’m looking forward to that.”
◆◇◆◇◆
To be honest, I underestimated him.
I tried provoking him, but he doesn’t care at all.
Every time, my intentions are thwarted.
And I thought I might be fine to expect a little from him.
At least, it’s better than staying like this.
After the meeting, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
That thing definitely looks like another creature.
Speaking of another creature, the apostles.
But that’s just a child innocently wielding a powerful force.
Nothing more, nothing less.
The other creature that had become our master was surprising me to no end.
When it was time to leave, he asked me to admonish him.
There are plenty of people who pretend to be “…… a big boss who likes to be admonished by his subordinates.”
Rather, most of the people who want to listen to your admonition do so.
In fact, they get grumpy when they do.
Such a person will say on his face, “I want you to admonish me. But don’t do it in a way that offends me”, is written on his face.
Most of them are jerks who only pretend to listen to me.
This kid is different.
He is speaking from his heart.
He really seems to be a different creature.
People make fun of him for being 160 years old, but It’s also true that it’s just right when you look at it like that.
◆◇◆◇◆
And this time, he threw the defense to me.
I’m sure he knows that his life is in danger.
And yet, there is no hesitation at all.
I couldn’t understand how he can trust me so far.
For the first time since I became a knight, I felt a rush of emotion.
What is the true standard of evaluation for a knight?
Loyalty? Ability? No, that’s not it.
It’s whether the lord trusts you with his life.
That’s it. No other words are needed.
A thousand rhetorical flourishes, a thousand gold rewards, none of it is worth it.
It’s unusual of me, but it made me heat up.
But if I can’t protect this kid ……
The meaning of my life up to this point will have been nothing at all.
That’s what I thought.
It was completely unexpected.
I had always thought he was a strange young man, but I had never heard of anything so drastic.
I felt uncomfortable, like I was the hero of a fairy tale.
I was born into a family of knights in this region.
The people around me were hoping that I would become the right hand man of the lord in the future ……
But the lord was no good at all.
“I’ll leave it to you, sir.”
Just like that, he interferes with our work from the side.
He reduces the budget on the cost of security and spends it on his favorite artworks.
He doesn’t care about the basic operation of the Knights Order.
He also cuts the budget for stupid reasons.
“If there’s no danger, there’s no point.”
When I heard this, I was deeply disappointed.
Thanks to this, even the equipment is lacking.
Sometimes, when he feels like it, he comes to observe.
He says observe, but ……
He would interfere with the design of the flags at the camp.
He seemed to think he was an artist.
Morale was at an all-time low, and monsters were left unattended.
That’s not the right word.
“Do something.”
That was the instruction.
But when I asked for the necessary equipment, he was reluctant to provide it.
There’s no way we can fight monsters with our bare hands.
In the end, we couldn’t cope with the situation and the monsters overflowed, causing a lot of damage.
The excuse he gave at that time was terrible.
“The Knights Order didn’t tell me about the crisis. “
In a way, it was true.
The head of the family was an idiot, and he took advantage of it to do whatever he wanted.
He would say what was convenient for the head of the family and make a good impression on his subordinates.
Behind the scenes, he would withhold important reports.
Whenever there was a problem, he would try to protect himself.
“My subordinates were incompetent. They didn’t understand my intentions.”
Such excuses were made.
The foolish family head would believe him and tell everyone around him.
“My family’s knights order is unworthy.”
In a sense, it was a hell on earth.
When my rank was changed after a major failure, I had a toast with my men.
However, it is also true that because of this, I lost a subordinate who did not have to die.
I thought about quitting as a knight, but …….
If I quit, my subordinate would be in the line of fire.
They are very clumsy and earnest people.
I couldn’t just abandon them.
The Della Scala family has been transferred to clean up the mess.
They are a great aristocratic family and have a good knightly order.
But thanks to the previous lord, who spread a lot of bad news ……
The impression of this place was also the worst.
They weren’t believing the bad reputation as it was, but it was natural that there was a distance between us.
With each passing month, the gap grew wider.
During these tedious and unpleasant days, rumors about the development of unclaimed territory became the main topic of conversation.
No one would want to go to such an uncivilized frontier.
It’s none of our business anyway, or so I thought.
◆◇◆◇◆
But one day, I was summoned by Sir Edmund Rustico, the Knight Commander.
I thought I was finally going to be fired, but there was nothing I could do about it.
I’m fine with it, but I don’t feel good about my men being disappointed.
“What can I do for you, sir?”
“I’m sure Sir Rossi is aware of our plans to develop the frontier.”
Apparently, I’m not fired.
“I heard about them even if I don’t want to.”
“Sir Rossi has been nominated as the head of the Knights Order.”
I thought he was joking, but Sir Rustico kept a straight face.
“It seems that you have not …… developed a taste for jokes. Who’s the curious one in charge of it?”
“It’s Lord Alfred”
Ah …… that third son, the freak.
“I’m surprised the young master would appoint someone like me.”
Sir Rustico nodded quietly.
“Yeah. To be precise, “It’s not exactly a mainstream knight, but a knight who has the trust of his men”. Who else would it be but you?”
I snickered.
I’ve never heard of him as a vile person, but he is the son of a great aristocrat.
This kind of person wants to look good as long as they can look good.
He would easily show his true colors if faced with a crisis.
“I wonder if he’s trying to create an alibi by selecting a cold-blooded eater. He’ll have an excuse if we fail, after all.”
I couldn’t help but sound rude.
But if I have to go along with the third son’s hobby, I should be able to say something like that.
I’ll be risking my life, you know.
Sir Rustico, however, was not angry and smiled.
“No …… It seems that he really intends to succeed. Just so you know, if you think he’s just a 16-year-old boy, you’re going to be embarrassed.”
So it would make this hero of war embarrassed, It made me a little curious.
“Ho …… I guess he’s a little more articulate. I’m sure a sixteen-year-old will have a lot of enthusiasm for idealism.”
Sir Rustico’s smile deepened at my sarcasm.
“You’ll see. It’s not the insight of a sixteen-year-old. It is better not to underestimate him as a child. I am ashamed to admit that I underestimated him as well.”
“Hmm …… As long as I don’t think he’s sixteen, I shouldn’t have any problems.”
It seems like Sir Rustico liked the third son quite a lot, and he leaned forward.
“No, that’s not enough. You have more vision than we do, and a greater capacity. You should see him anyway.”
“Yes, sir. All right, let’s meet him and find out.”
Sir Rustico made a mischievous expression that he rarely made.
“Oh, I don’t mean to be rude. He seems like a different creature.”
“I’m looking forward to that.”
◆◇◆◇◆
To be honest, I underestimated him.
I tried provoking him, but he doesn’t care at all.
Every time, my intentions are thwarted.
And I thought I might be fine to expect a little from him.
At least, it’s better than staying like this.
After the meeting, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
That thing definitely looks like another creature.
Speaking of another creature, the apostles.
But that’s just a child innocently wielding a powerful force.
Nothing more, nothing less.
The other creature that had become our master was surprising me to no end.
When it was time to leave, he asked me to admonish him.
There are plenty of people who pretend to be “…… a big boss who likes to be admonished by his subordinates.”
Rather, most of the people who want to listen to your admonition do so.
In fact, they get grumpy when they do.
Such a person will say on his face, “I want you to admonish me. But don’t do it in a way that offends me”, is written on his face.
Most of them are jerks who only pretend to listen to me.
This kid is different.
He is speaking from his heart.
He really seems to be a different creature.
People make fun of him for being 160 years old, but It’s also true that it’s just right when you look at it like that.
◆◇◆◇◆
And this time, he threw the defense to me.
I’m sure he knows that his life is in danger.
And yet, there is no hesitation at all.
I couldn’t understand how he can trust me so far.
For the first time since I became a knight, I felt a rush of emotion.
What is the true standard of evaluation for a knight?
Loyalty? Ability? No, that’s not it.
It’s whether the lord trusts you with his life.
That’s it. No other words are needed.
A thousand rhetorical flourishes, a thousand gold rewards, none of it is worth it.
It’s unusual of me, but it made me heat up.
But if I can’t protect this kid ……
The meaning of my life up to this point will have been nothing at all.
That’s what I thought.
