Chapter 85
“Are you leaving?”
“My work here is done.”
Verpin bowed deeply, looking at the man who seemed larger than anyone else in the world.
“The Mercenary King’s badge you possess will remain valid until Sir Karl’s death.”
“So I heard.”
“Compared to your grace, Sir, it is insignificant.”
Karl didn’t answer, instead giving a light nod as a substitute for a farewell.
As Karl turned his horse, Verpin’s voice was heard once more from behind him.
“Where are you headed?”
“Wherever my feet take me.”
To the reply most characteristic of Karl, Verpin bowed deeply once again.
And Karl quickly began riding Silver out of Ulstein.
Passing through the gates of Ulstein and galloping north, Karl slowly reduced his horse's speed upon sensing human presence.
“Leaving without even saying goodbye?”
“We’re disappointed, Sir Karl.”
Anne and Sancho, who had been at the inn until recently, appeared before Karl as he headed along the main road.
“Going somewhere again, I see?”
“Marquis Baltimo was ambitious, but he had no connection to the Tarantulas.
Now that it's confirmed, I must go.”
“I see.”
“…Can’t you live a little less dangerously?
There’s no reason to risk your life for others every time.”
“I’m not risking it for others.”
There was no reason to risk danger for others, but there was a reason to risk danger for quests.
However, I couldn't possibly tell them that.
They wouldn't believe it even if I did.
Now, I actually wonder if there's any meaning in reaching 100% progress.
Could I, who had become as accustomed to killing people as breathing, truly adapt if I returned to the 21st century?
What would happen to the current me if I went there?
Would I return to being an ordinary person?
Could I dismiss it all as a dream?
‘Well…’
Karl thought it impossible to return as if nothing had happened.
“If we part now, we probably won’t see each other for a while again, right?”
“Probably.”
“…Take care of yourself.”
Anne looked at Karl with an expression that suggested she had something more to say.
However, she couldn't continue her words.
She knew well that she couldn't have the happiness of bearing and raising children with Karl in a cozy home like ordinary people.
Karl bid farewell and rode away.
Anne watched Karl’s retreating back for a long time.
The loneliness of a stranger always present in Karl's eyes, despite lacking nothing, wouldn't leave her mind.
***
For the first time in a long while, Karl was traveling without a mission.
Due to the series of consecutive incidents, he thought a new event might follow quickly, but contrary to his expectations, the quest window remained quiet for the first time in ages.
[Progress 23%]
It felt like just yesterday when he spent 10 years watching only the tutorial, getting angry, but achieving 23% progress in the past few years was truly remarkable.
His thoughts reached that point.
Clang!
“Kill them!”
“Damn bastards!”
The sound disrupting Karl's calm contemplation reached his ears as he organized his thoughts on horseback.
It had been a while since he encountered bandits.
Karl urged his horse unhurriedly towards the source of the sound.
Judging by the sounds of battle, it wasn't a fight between a few versus many, but many versus many.
Upon arriving, he saw a group that looked like bandits entangled in a fight with a contingent of knights.
The number of knights was around 20, while the bandit group seemed to number well over a hundred.
‘Strangely high level for bandits who quit farming and picked up weapons.
They might be another organization disguised as bandits.’
They didn't seem like ordinary bandits; it looked like they had initiated the fight knowing their opponents were knights from the start.
It meant they were that confident.
The knights, though small in number, were a balanced mix of Expert Lower, Middle, and Upper-grade talents.
The places Karl had been entangled in incidents so far were major powers of the West Continent like the Vatican, the Alcantara Knights, and the Mercenary Guild, which made it seem otherwise, but even an Expert Middle-grade knight could be considered skilled.
Superior was even more so.
“Commander!
It would be best to retreat!”
Two knights lay fallen on the ground, and the remaining members' injuries were steadily increasing.
“…We cannot retreat like this.
Do you not know where their spears and swords will head if we withdraw!”
“But, Commander!
If we continue like this, the damage to our members will be severe.”
“Remember what it means to be a knight!”
The Commander's voice was unwavering.
And Karl’s expression became peculiar watching him.
The number of individuals introducing themselves as knights on the continent had increased dozens of times compared to the past, but few truly knew what a knight was and how they should act.
“Reform the ranks.
We do not retreat.”
“Commander!”
The man standing next to the one called Commander let out a small sigh before raising his sword.
And the remaining bandits began to charge towards them again.
“Come!”
The small knight order, now numbering 18, swung their swords without faltering, not just the commander but all members refusing to back down.
However, unlike their unwavering spirit, their insufficient numbers and depleted stamina pushed them into danger.
Just when they thought this place might be their last stand.
“Kuooock!”
“Kuaaaak!”
Screams erupted continuously from one side, creating an opening among those surrounding the knights.
It was a small gap, but it gave the knights breathing room.
And as a little more time passed, the gap widened, and the bandits began to collapse rapidly.
Slice!
Like a ghost appearing out of nowhere, a man was decapitating those who seemed to be the bandits' leaders.
“Now is the chance!
Seize this opportunity and annihilate them!”
The Commander didn’t miss the chance provided by the benefactor who appeared before them and ordered the knights to charge.
The knights, who had struggled while surrounded, quickly overwhelmed the bandits scattered and unable to form ranks.
The surroundings were swiftly cleared, and except for one or two bandits, the rest were either killed or captured.
“Thank you for your help, benefactor.
I am Definir, Commander of the Yustia Knights.”
“…Call me Basko.”
After the battle ended, the Commander, despite bearing minor injuries here and there, dismounted and bowed deeply to Karl.
Karl gave the name Basko, one of the former members of the Northwind Knights, instead of his real name.
Due to the series of recent incidents here and there, the name Karl had become too famous.
Unlike before, revealing his real name now led to many tiresome situations, so he occasionally used aliases.
“So you are Sir Basko.
Your skill was remarkable.
If it’s not rude, may I ask where you were headed?”
“No particular destination.
Just heading north.”
“Perhaps!
Then could you grant me the opportunity to repay my benefactor?
I would very much like to treat you to at least a warm meal.”
Karl briefly scanned the man named Definir and his knight order, then nodded.
He didn't have any immediate plans anyway, and they didn't seem like bad people, so there was no reason to refuse.
***
“I don’t know if the meal suits your taste?”
“It’s delicious.”
The Yustia Knights, whom he arrived with alongside Definir, were a small-scale knight order.
The city they used as their base, Bilbake, was not a large city like Ulstein or Humming City, but a small-scale domain.
In such a small domain, a knight order with a total of 30 members could by no means be called small.
They made a living by settling in the domain and receiving protection fees or payment for resolving commissioned tasks.
Alternatively, there were rare cases where the lord himself was the master of the knight order, but such cases were uncommon.
This was because if the lord became the master of the knight order, it was difficult to secure operational funds for the order from sources other than the domain's income.
Therefore, unless the lord possessed a wealthy domain with mines, granaries, or special local products, it was hard to maintain a knight order, even a small one.
“Sir Basko, for what reason are you heading north?”
“No reason, just wandering as a Free Knight.”
“I’ve heard many stories recently about Sir Karl, the Knight of the Lighthouse, wandering as a Free Knight.
Being a Free Knight in times like these… isn’t it difficult?”
“…It’s fine.”
Karl, not expecting to hear his own story here, suppressed a groan and gave a noncommittal response.
Thump thump thump!
“Father!
If you do such dangerous work and receive only this much payment… How are we supposed to operate?
Didn't the Maltia Knights just demand double the tribute?”
“Embraga, stop it.
We have a guest.”
“…Who is this again?
Are we in a position to leisurely receive guests right now?”
“You rascal!
There’s a limit to disgracing my name!”
Definir shot up from his seat, strode towards his son, and slapped him across the face.
Slap!
With a rather loud sound, Embraga’s head snapped back.
He glared at his father with eyes full of fury, then kicked the door open and stormed out.
“…You’ve witnessed an unsightly scene.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
The meal resumed after a brief silence.
Karl simply ate the prepared food deliciously.
“May I ask what is going on?”
At Karl’s question, which came in a fleeting moment, Definir hesitated slightly before slowly opening his mouth.
“As Sir Basko might know, the current structure makes it difficult for knight orders to stand alone.
You could say smaller knight orders exist subordinate to larger ones.”
Karl nodded at his words.
“We too pay tribute as the price for affiliation.
The place we pay tribute to is called the Maltia Knights.
They are a subordinate knight order of the Alcantara Knights.
Until now, we have gotten along well.
However, a major incident occurred within the Alcantara Knights not long ago.
I heard many died.
Since then, while the Alcantara Knights were inspecting their internal affairs, control over their subordinate knight orders seems to have weakened.”
A rough picture formed.
After the Alcantara rebellion incident, the number of knights likely decreased significantly, and while they were busy purging traitors internally and stabilizing, management of subordinate knight orders must have weakened considerably.
“Thanks to that, the tribute demanded by the Maltia Knights from us is gradually increasing.
At first, they increased it little by little, but now they brazenly demand double the previous amount.
If that happens, it means we have to raise the protection fees or commission fees we receive to an incomparable level compared to now.
That would ultimately lead to squeezing the lifeblood out of those under our protection.
Therefore, I refused, stating I could not do that.”
Definir was, rarely, a man who could be called a true knight.
He was refusing an unjust demand, fully aware of the potential harm that could come to him.
“My son seems displeased with me for this.
Although the world has changed and the meaning of being a knight has faded significantly, I still believe there are things a knight must protect.
It might be an old-fashioned idea unsuitable for the times, but I want to uphold it, at least for myself.”
“I think you are worthy of respect.”
“…”
His expression changed strangely, then he stared intently at Karl.
“Aren’t there values that must be protected no matter how the world changes?
I too believe that being a knight doesn’t simply refer to someone skilled at killing people.”
At his weighty words, Definir’s expression became choked with emotion.
“I thought this was an occasion where I was treating my benefactor, yet here I am being comforted once again…”
“What does it matter?”
“Indeed.
What does it matter?
If this occasion is good, then that’s enough.”
He raised his glass and clinked it with Karl’s.
***
It was when Karl, having shared drinks with Definir for quite some time, left the dining hall.
“Why are you like that?”
“I don’t know who you are, but don’t speak nonsense to my father.
We must accept the Maltia Knights’ demands.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“I heard what you and Father were saying.
Father’s ideas are just ideals!
They can’t become reality!”
“Are you a knight?”
“What?
What nonsense is that?”
“What your father is trying to protect… The son doesn't seem to understand his father’s intentions at all.”
Karl turned his body.
“What nonsense is that!
You bastard!”
The young man charged at Karl, who had turned his back.
And just as he charged, he was slammed onto the floor.
“Keok!”
“Tsk…”
Thus, the day passed without fail, and a new sun rose.
A small rural domain where new suns and moons rise daily, but new events are rare.
Contrary to people's expectations, a conspicuous cloud of dust rose that morning.
And beyond that sandstorm, a group of knights appeared at the manor of the Yustia Knights.