Cadel crossed the hallway. He planned to return to the annex, have Lydon infuse him with mana, and then visit Van. He wanted to check on his condition and tell him to get ready as Cadel would be leaving the palace soon.

As he rounded the corner, someone jumped out of nowhere and blocked his path. Cadel looked up in surprise, barely stopping himself before he was hit.

“……Sir Garuel?”

“Where are you going in such a hurry?”

Garuel Monzasi. Another knight Cadel would kidnap in a heartbeat if he had the chance. A faint smile flickered across his pale face.

“I was on my way back to my room.”

“Well, if you came from this way…… You’ve met His Majesty the King?”

“Yes, well.”

“He’s a tricky guy to deal with, isn’t he? He likes to play with words, so it’s easy to be swayed by the slightest carelessness.”

It was true. Danila was busy teasing Cadel, who was only looking for a chance to escape, by persistently catching the end of Cadel’s modest responses. Maybe it was because it was regrettable that he couldn’t have Cadel.

Cadel nodded with a bitter smile, and Garuel patted him on the shoulder in understanding.

“So, how did it go?”

“What do you mean?”

“His Majesty has taken quite a liking to Sir Cadel, and while he covets talent, he has none, so when he sees a young man of talent, he wants to keep him close to him at all costs. If the story goes well, perhaps your title of Sir will be much more natural?”

There was no need for Garuel the Knight to address an unknown mercenary with the title ‘Sir’. He did so simply because he recognized Cadel as his equal in skill. The person in question was not particularly impressed though.

Cadel shook his head lightly.

“He made me a great offer, but I turned it down. It wasn’t what I was looking for.”

“Geez, that’s surprising, so from now on…….”

“His Majesty Danila has granted me permission to board a trade ship to the Principality of Mystic, which will depart in a few days, so I must prepare to leave.”

“I see.”

Garuel lowered his eyes slightly at the cool answer, not showing even a hint of regret.

Garuel felt strangely sad. Maybe it was because he heard that the man with a face to his liking was leaving when they hadn’t got a chance to be intimated yet, or because he was disappointed that the string of fate that connected them together was shorter than he thought.

There was no way Cadel knew about such an unpleasant feeling. But, as always from the first time he saw him, he behaved as if he knew his secrets inside and out.

“Maybe next time we’ll meet somewhere other than the White Kingdom.”

“……Who knows. Because I’m surprisingly not a big fan of being out and about.”

“Is that so? But, there is such a thing as feeling. I don’t think it’s going to be goodbye forever. I’m pretty good at it, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to trust me.”

Cadel shrugged his shoulders with a rather impudent expression. The corner of Garuel’s mouth curved gently at the sight of him. Whether it was an empty gesture or not, he hoped his instincts were right about this interesting man.

“When that time comes, we’ll have some alone time, won’t we?”

“You’re pretty persistent, too. ……Well, why not, as long as you don’t start talking weird sh*t, I wouldn’t mind having a drink with you.”

“It’s nice that it’s cool. So let’s survive until then.”

No more crossed gazes, no more avoiding each other, no more silly jokes. Not to make a bad impression, but to make sure he didn’t forget about Cadel for a long time to come. Garuel deeply carved Cadel’s calm face and straight eyes over his dark purple eyes.

* * *

Cadel couldn’t find Lydon that was supposed to be in the room, and he seemed to have wandered off again.

Searching for a single fairy in the vastness of the palace was nearly impossible, so Cadel decided to go to Van next.

He traveled for about two hours in a horse-drawn carriage. He arrived at a shelter for the Baskin villagers. Nestled near a temple, it appeared to be in good shape, contrary to his fears.

As soon as Cadel walked in, he heard a cacophony of loud voices.

“Brother, give me another ride!”

“Oh dear, my arm is weak……. Young man, will you hold this for me?”

“Mr. Van, look at this and smile just once! ……See? See? They stare at you when you do this? You’re handsome!”

The crowded mishmash of villagers filled the shelter, and surprisingly, in the center of it all was Van. He was faithfully fulfilling Cadel’s orders to see to their needs, so faithfully that he seemed to be one of them.

Cadel stepped cautiously into the smoldering interior. Given what he had done ― he’d heard it would take months just to pick out a site because the entire village had been burned to the ground ― he wanted to be as inconspicuous as possible.

But before he could take more than a few steps. Someone grabbed Cadel by the hem of his robe.

“Brother……?”

It was a small boy. Cadel paused and turned, finally recognizing the child’s face.

“Finnett? It’s Finnett! How are you feeling?”

Finnett was the first victim he found in the Baskin Village. He must have been doing well so far, and his body, which had been thin and twisted like a corpse, came back to some extent and gained some flesh.

Finnett nodded shyly. The loss of his parents must have been devastating, but he seemed to be recovering as best he could.

“I’m glad you’re healthy. ……Um, you’re upset that the village is like that, aren’t you? I’m sorry. You’ll miss home.”

“I’m not upset at all! You saved everyone.”

“Huh……? No, no. I worked with other people to get it done. I didn’t do anything.”

“But Brother Van said Brother Cadel beat them all, didn’t he?”

Cadel sighed softly. It seemed that Van had exaggerated and spread the story at will, saying that there was no one involved.

His conscience didn’t allow him to win the pure respect of a child for an untrue story, so he tried immediately to set the record straight, only to realize that the room had gone silent.

He had a bad feeling about this. He turned his head with an uneasy face, revealing the grisly sight of everyone in the shelter watching him.

“That person is Cadel……?”

“Are you sure? Is this the real Cadel?”

What started out as a small murmur grew louder with Van’s subsequent call.

“Commander! What are you doing here?”

That man really killed a demon? He looks so unassuming! That young man is a lifesaver! He’s the one who wiped out the village? Hey, he saved your life so stop talking like that.

An occasional squeal of excitement filled the air. Cadel leaned in close, hiding in front of the approaching Van.

“Hey, what the hell did you describe me as, and why is everyone reacting like that?!”

“What? Of course, I explained that you were the savior of the Baskin Village and the great hero of the White Kingdom.”

“What? Are you crazy?”

“I’m just telling them the truth?”

It must have been crazy. No wonder, the villagers’ glancing gaze was strangely sparkling for a man who burned down their village.

Cadel had to get out of here. If he stayed, he would bite his tongue in shame.

His hopes were dashed, however, by the shouts of a man who appeared out of nowhere.

“What are you all doing standing in the distance? The great hero who saved the White Kingdom is here in person! We need to thank him!”

“That’s right, that’s right! Now now, Sir Hero, there’s nothing we can do for you, but we must show you this overwhelming heart of ours, so come this way!”

The excitement that once started gained momentum without hesitation, and people dragged Cadel away, ignoring Van who interrupted by saying ‘Don’t touch Commander recklessly!’.

And Cadel, stuck in the middle of the crowd, was forced to accept praise for what he did and didn’t do.