Chapter 58. The Black Knight(1)
Lupina Orland.
Known as the granddaughter of "Luger Orland," the owner of the renowned blacksmith, 'Twilight Flame' in the capital, she was recognized as Luger's successor and considered the next possible owner of the smithy due to her reputation and capabilities.
Despite being a woman, she never shied away from hard work and always maintained a smile, earning the unanimous affection of the employees.
"Lupina, as discussed earlier, I'll leave today's closing to you."
"Yes, grandfather. You mentioned going out to buy materials for repairing the Moonstone Sword, right?"
"That's right."
Lupina smiled bashfully while looking at Luger, who was adjusting his hat.
"Don't worry. I can handle the closing by myself now."
"That's reassuring to hear."
With a gruff voice, Luger turned and left the building. As she watched him leave, Lupina began bustling around to finish closing up 'Twilight Flame', now deserted with all the staff gone.
"Everyone tidied up nicely."
While closing up may sound like a big task, it's really just a routine check to ensure that tools are organized, no lights are left on, and miscellaneous items are in order.
Other smithies might leave such chores to junior staff, but at 'Twilight Flame', it was traditional for the manager to personally handle the final closing.
"The magic lamps are off, and everything's ready for tomorrow! Great!"
After thoroughly inspecting the workshop, Lupina let out a satisfied smile.
"Huh?"
She noticed one room with the lights still on. It was Luger's office.
'Didn't I turn this off first?'
Could it be that he returned for something?
Feeling puzzled but unconcerned, she made her way to Luger's office.
Clang──!
Lupina pushed open the door and stepped inside.
"Grandfather, have you already...?"
She stopped mid-sentence and looked around the office in confusion.
"...... Who?"
Four figures stood inside, their faces hidden by hoods.
Though she had no martial training, she instinctively sensed their imposing presence as anything but ordinary.
Dark and menacing.
"...... Strange, only Luger should remain at this hour."
A man with an especially ominous aura spoke with a perplexed voice.
Feeling a cold shiver down her spine, Lupina swallowed hard.
"I-I'm sorry. I should have checked more thoroughly...."
"Never mind that. Is she Luger's granddaughter?"
"She seems to be."
What nonsense were these intruders spouting in her workplace?
Lupina wanted to shout defiantly, but it wasn't the right moment for bravado.
"What should we do?"
"Given the circumstances, we'll have to change the plan."
The man with the strongest aura made eye contact with her.
"Seize her."
The moment she heard those words, Lupina immediately turned and ran.
***
It wasn't particularly difficult to slip into the 'Twilight Flame' under the cover of darkness.
Or rather, after doing this once, I found myself getting accustomed to such acts.
'... I can't believe I'm doing this kind of thing again.'
On the one hand, I felt it was inevitable. Though a bit irked that I had to clean up in the absence of the 'Black Knight'.
'It's like reenacting a scene from the game.'
There was a sense of excitement.
Stopping the secretive activities of the 'Dawn Society', wasn't it akin to what the 'Black Knight' did in the game "Let's Kill the Demon Lord Now"?
'Focus.'
Suppressing the thrill bubbling within my chest, I closed my eyes and began to concentrate.
I intended to use something I'd utilized most frequently during my time here—'mana detection'.
To employ it effectively.
'Five people?'
Using 'mana detection', I could roughly discern how many were inside the 'Twilight Flame'.
'One is Pintel, the other must be Luger.'
Given the late hour, it seemed smithy employees had all left, leaving behind Luger.
'Why are they separated?'
Sensing something off, I spread my internal aura thinly around the building for a more precise reading.
With this enhanced 'mana detection', I could clearly determine where everyone was inside.
'One person upstairs, four with me on the first floor.'
The odd part was the four individuals on the same floor as me. It felt as though three were chasing one individual.
'Is Luger being pursued?'
The four auras detected through 'mana detection' were moving in real time, and at quite a fast pace.
Considering Luger is quite old, fleeing at such a speed seemed unlikely.
'... Where should I go first?'
After a brief moment of deliberation, I decided to head toward the location of the four auras.
Before moving, I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the glass.
'Even looking at it again, I look like crap.'
Clicking my tongue at the appearance of the mask made from 'Sombra', I proceeded further inside the building.
***
She ran towards the back door, perhaps never having sprinted so fast in her life.
"Huff, huff......!"
Her breath was ragged and her heart was pounding loud in her ears.
'What the hell......, what is this?'
Could they be robbers?
Probably not.
Although she hadn't looked closely, she sensed their intent wasn't thievery.
"Aaah!"
As she stumbled, Lupina twisted her body awkwardly with intense pain shooting through her, but she couldn't find strength in her left leg.
In that moment, she sensed the approaching presence in the dark hallway, lit only by magic lamps.
'I... I have to escape.'
Suddenly, the shadows were close enough to see clearly. Ignoring the intense pain, Lupina managed to stand and attempted to run.
But something blocked her path, making her raise her head slowly.
"Gasp!"
What she saw was a man wearing a mask so terrifying that it looked like something out of a nightmare.
The dark corridor, the hideous appearance, the pursuers—all these elements combined into an overwhelming fear that enveloped Lupina's entire being.
"Please... spare me...."
She forced her trembling lips to form the words.
But before she could finish her plea, the masked man walked past her indifferently, ignoring her terror.
"... Who are you?"
A voice echoed in the corridor.
The voice of the intruders who had been pursuing Lupina from the office.
Seeing their hostility towards the masked man, it was clear they were not allies.
"What a hideous mask."
For once, Lupina agreed. The masked man's appearance was far from conventional.
"... Seems you're not an ordinary person."
"No ordinary person would wear such a garbage mask."
Flinch.
"Garbage."
At their words, the masked man's body reacted briefly, a surge of inexplicable anger flaring up.
But it quickly subsided, as the masked man regained composure.
Calm, like a still lake, yet with hidden depths that could engulf anything that peered too closely.
'... Who is this person?'
The three intruders that had chased Lupina lunged toward the masked man at a speed far exceeding what they had shown earlier, leaving Lupina stunned.
During this, the mask-wearing man made a calm gesture, directing Lupina to retreat.
As she took a step back, shadows began to flow from the masked man's body.
'Ma, magic?'
Through the dark night air, the 'shadow' that emanated from him lashed out at the intruders like a whip, subduing one, before the masked man lunged.
His confidence in handling the numerical disadvantage was well-founded.
'Wow......!'
Moving faster than Lupina could follow, the man unsheathed his sword, parrying an incoming strike, and slicing down another opponent.
"Ahhh!"
"Y-you bastard!"
His swordplay was restrained yet elegant and graceful.
A chilling mask paired with beautiful swordsmanship.
The contrast captivated Lupina as if witnessing an artform.
The last standing intruder, filled with fear, launched another desperate attack. But before the blade could reach him, 'shadow' once again seeped from the masked man, clutching the intruder's neck.
"Gurk!"
Though the hood obscured his features, the groans of agony clearly marked his desperation.
Before long, the intruder's hand fell limp, and the shadow withdrew back to the masked man.
'... Amazing.'
The masked man, having subdued the situation, stood silently, inspecting his hand, though Lupina couldn't fathom why.
'Ah.'
A thought suddenly occurred in Lupina's mind.
'It feels as if I'm witnessing an old story my Grandfather told me.'
Long ago.
In a capital full of chaos, fiends preyed upon civilians, draining them lifeless as they basked in their suffering.
Their reign of terror reached such heights that the agony of the citizens was indescribable, and the impotent throne watched passively as the atrocities unfolded.
Yet, a masked noble emerged.
This mysterious figure began eradicating the fiends, and the people's loyalty, once sworn to the throne, shifted toward him.
Alarmed, the throne placed a bounty on the noble's head.
Nevertheless, it was said he continued to slay those demons for the plight of the citizens.
Without any assistance, all on his own.
'No, it can't be.'
Lupina delighted in whimsical tales like these more than any romantic notion of a knight in shining armor.
Though her rational mind knew well that the masked man before her wasn't the fabled protagonist of those old tales.
Yet standing all alone, bathed in the lonely moonlight as if he were the last of his kind, he seemed to become the focal point of that 'story.'
The name of that 'story' was.
"B-Black Knight......?"
With a slight tremor in her voice, Lupina spoke.
The masked man, unmoving until then, slowly raised his head, meeting her gaze.
***
As I marveled at the power of 'Sombra', the lingering sentiment was interrupted by Lupina's absurd statement, making me turn my head.
'What is she talking about?'
Momentarily stunned by Lupina's dazed murmuring, I cast my gaze toward her.
Black Knight?
Who did she think was causing all this trouble for me...?
'Hm?'
Wait a moment! She just mentioned the Black Knight.
Does that mean the Black Knight is actively present, unbeknownst to me?
"Grandfather mentioned it. In the past, there was a noble called the Black Knight in the capital......."
Past? A noble? It seems to have been a misunderstanding.
If the Black Knight truly existed, he wouldn't have let the 'Dawn Society' procure Soul Stones unchecked.
'Anyway.'
I looked over at Lupina's face.
It was indeed her who had been attacked by the 'Dawn Society' members just moments ago.
'Wasn't Luger supposed to be here instead of Lupina?'
Luger, the owner of 'Twilight Flame', is known for his grit. Thus, he would typically stay late at the smithy for such closing duties.
Yet, why was it not Luger, but his granddaughter Lupina, here at this hour?
"It's true, right? You're that 'Black Knight' from the tales."
While immersed in thought, Lupina's question brought my attention back to her.
I wanted to deny her words, but due to my character trait, 「Formal Speech」, I found myself unable to speak.
⇒ New Character Trait, 「Black Knight」 acquired.
At that moment! A UI window popped up unexpectedly.
Reading the text it displayed, I felt my eyes widen in shock.
'... What is this?'
Character Trait: 「Black Knight」
Why are you popping up here?
Clacky's Corner:
It would be mindblowing if in the future chapters, the scene in chapter 1 is repeated, but it is shown that Yulian is the Black Knight all along.
Maybe the Black Knight is the friends we made along the way.