The Knight of Courage walked with quick steps through the Knights Order's headquarter. Every Knight who met her bowed down with respect, but there was still traces of red blush from earlier.
'What is he thinking?'
She couldn't believe the actions of this man, nor could she understand them. When they first met, he was in a bathtub looking like he was about to die. Everything he did afterward was nothing less than absurd.
He kidnapped the princess on his own to negotiate his way out. Then, he went on to beat the Duke of Fire to a pulp. After that incident where he split the sky, it seemed like he became a different person.
'Not only did he cut away Knight of Honesty's hand, but he went on to kidnap a person and fight the Knights Order? Hopefully, he wasn't injured.'
If he was indeed injured, then his Majesty will be disappointed in her. This man was the only one who earned the praise of King Solomon.
She found the room where they kept him. It was the main interrogation room in the center of the headquarters. Without knocking, the Knight stormed in.
"If the Seika was injured, then all of you will be..."
She didn't finish her words because of the scene in front of her. The Captain of the Knights Order, Francis the Iron Will, was pouring tea to the Seika that she was here to rescue.
"Do you like another?" Francis asked the Seika with a respectful expression. The Knight of Courage stopped walking with her mouth agape.
"Mm, no, it's not that good." The Seika shook his head. Captain Francis nodded in agreement with great vigor.
"Of course, of course. I'll punish the cook immediately." The old Knight vowed.
"Are you mad?" The Seika was dumbstruck. "You need to be kinder to your subordinates. If you stay like this, it'll harm your Order in the long run."
The Knight of Courage then noticed that the Seika and his two followers were dining. There was an unconscious man on the ground beside them. She guessed he was the man who the Seika kidnapped.
"What is going on here?" The Knight of Courage muttered, grabbing their attention. Still munching on his roasted chicken, the Seika smiled at her.
"Oh, Courage." He said casually. "You can come over and eat too!"
"No, what? Captain Francis?" She turned to the captain to find his back covered with sweat.
"How about we take this conversation elsewhere? It's best not to disturb our guests." Captain Francis stood up and looked at her pleadingly. The Knight of Courage nodded, and the two left the room.
"What's going on? What happened with the Seika? I thought the report said you fought against him."
"We did, but it was no fight." The captain slumped to a nearby chair with a tired expression. "This man destroyed my unit's shield with a single attack. We couldn't even block the entirety of the attack; he was just merciful."
"Are you saying a full unit of Knights couldn't take him on? Did they have their artifacts on?" Francis's words startled the female Knight greatly.
She knew that he fought against the Duke of Fire, but was he that powerful that a Knights Order of a city couldn't do anything to him?
"Artifacts? They were toys in front of him. It was a single attack, but I knew he was holding back." The old Knight shook his head. "Tell me, Knight of Courage." He looked at her as if she was the culprit. "What kind of monster have you brought into our midst?"
***
Arthur heard the door open again and saw the Knight of Courage return without the captain. She sat in the captain's seat with a dazed expression.
"Are you okay, Courage?" Arthur asked. He still found it weird that none of the knights directly serving Solomon had names, but it was easier to remember this way.
"Yes, yes." The Knight nodded. "How was your sightseeing?" She asked awkwardly.
Looking at the young Knight, Arthur knew that he placed her in a difficult position with his actions. He felt slightly guilty because this Knight was better than the other ones, so he didn't want to cause her trouble.
"Uh, it was okay. I brought back something good. Sorry about the trouble, by the way."
"No, it's alright. No one was injured, and the Knights Order said that you did no damage to the city."
"So, it's okay to kidnap people?" Gala asked after she wiped away the smudge on her lip. "I think they're just scared after they saw My Seika's attack."
"I'm not your Seika," Arthur corrected and turned to the Knight of Courage. "Tell them that I'm sorry. I never meant for it to go that far."
"You did," Dia chimed in as she was playing with her food. However, Arthur ignored her.
He was only curious about the artifacts the knights made, and he was sure that they were genuine artifacts. This result confirmed that Solomon was indeed the inheritor of the Scholar Guardian. However, many problems arise because of this.
"It's alright, but why did you kidnap this guy?" The Knight asked with a frown as she looked at the dwarf. "It seems he's not Freda's native."
"Yes! He's a dwarf. And I didn't kidnap him, Gala made him pass out, and I had to take care of him."
"Then why aren't you waking him up?" The Knight asked, and Arthur's eyes darted left and right. Seeing him unresponsive, the Knight simply sighed. "Whatever you want from him, you can ask him in the duke's house."
"The last time I went into a duke's house, things didn't go well for me." Arthur shrugged but stood up nonetheless. "Hopefully, things will be smooth."
"I doubt." Gala smiled. "After all, the duke of this city is none other than the Trading Lord, Duke of Contracts. I heard that he's the older brother of someone you know."
"Who?" Arthur tilted his head curiously. Gala looked at the Knight of Courage, who sighed and answered Arthur's question.
"He's the Knight of Honesty's older brother."
***
"Get out of my city." The scarred man in front of Arthur said coldly as soon as Arthur arrived.
"Huh?" Arthur blinked. The man in front of him didn't even greet him but simply summoned him here to kick him out.
"You dare hurt my people and attack my knights. The only reason you're still alive is that you're his Majesty's guest." The Duke of Contracts was as headstrong as they portrayed.
"Your Grace, we still need to resupply and secure the road from here to the capital." The Knight of Courage said with sweat beads on her face. "To make the Seika leave this city is..."
"Seika?" The duke rose with a frown. "This man is nothing but a child with a knife. I've heard what you did to my brother back in Shades City." The man's eyes were furious.
"That's a bit harsh. Your brother can reattach his hand. I wouldn't teach him this lesson if I didn't know that."
"Teach him?" The duke spat. "I spent half of my life raising him to be a true man. He's no other than the Knight of Honesty, and you want to teach him?"
"Ah, I see now." Arthur nodded in understanding. "No wonder he's such a fool. the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
"Preposterous!" One of the nobles stood up. "How dare you insult our Lord after the chaos you brought to our city?"
"Your lord gives zero fucks about your city, you idiot." Arthur spat. "The captain from earlier was wiser. As for your lord, he's just a petty, self-centered person."
"Guards!" The duke roared, and the knights hurried to surround Arthur.
"Seika, please!" The Knight of Courage pleaded. "You're just making this more difficult."
"I know," Arthur sighed. "I apologize. However, I'm not leaving anytime soon."
The only reason Arthur was apologizing was that the Knight of Courage always helped him until now. She was the most reasonable of these Knights.
"By His Majesty's orders, I command you to step back." The Knight of Courage too out a royal decree. She then turned toward the duke of contracts. "Whether you like it or not, we'll be staying here. This city isn't yours. You are only his Majesty's vessel."
Arthur smiled at the duke, who looked like he ate a fly. The scarred man glared at Arthur as if he wanted nothing but to rip him apart, but Arthur didn't care. Until he helps the dwarf awaken his affinity, he won't be leaving this place.
After that, no one opposed the Knight of Courage. Arthur and his followers were given a suite in the mansion along with the unconscious dwarf.
"Seika, don't you think you're a little too overbearing regarding this?" Gala tried to warn him. "I understand that these two brothers are morons. I also think they are. However, royal courts need one to be a diplomat."
"I know, but the duke wouldn't have backed down if things didn't escalate that much." Arthur sat on the couch beside the dwarf. "I think he's hiding something."
Slap!
Arthur slapped the young dwarf, who woke up like a startled kitten. He looked around the room in panic and found Arthur's smiling face beside him.
"Hi there! Do you want to live the life of your dreams now?"