The reactions of his subordinates to this absurd remark were varied, and thanks to this, Cadel was able to confirm ‘the personality types of his subordinates according to their favorability.’

First. Van and Lumen, who were at the top of the list with favorability ratings of 90 and 89, showed significant anger and clinginess.

“Hidden subordinate? Wasn’t I your first comrade? Where did you meet? When did you meet? Why did you meet? You’ve got enough subordinates as it is, and now you have to add another one from the gloomy Dunkelhai? Seriously, Commander, I always support and cheer you on, but I think you’re a little tired today. Why don’t you get some sleep and get up later? I’ll put you to bed.”

Van kept shooting questions without taking a breath. Seeing his artificial smile approaching him step by step, Cadel felt fear of Van for the first time since he was transmigrated.

“So you have an assassin hidden in Dunkelhai. Let’s be realistic, we can’t risk our lives crossing the Scarlet Dragon’s Nest to recruit a single mysterious assassin. It’s not just Leader’s life that’s on the line, it’s the lives of the entire Order. Besides, why do we need another assassin in this group? I can move faster than he can. Not good enough? I’ll switch to Assassin if you want. I have a talent for it. If there’s someone you’d like to end, let me know..”

Lumen blurted out the words, seemingly rational, but strangely out of tune. As he habitually gripped the scabbard of his sword, his unfocused eyes seemed to stare not at Cadel but at someone in his imagination. Cadel was more frightened by his clouded expression and his pretense of objectivity than by the killing intent in his blue eyes.

The second was Lydon, who had a favorability rating of 80 after sobbing at the beach. He showed a complex attitude that was a mixture of unique foolishness and genuine displeasure.

“You’re a flirt, Cadel! What if you keep increasing your concubines while you’re married? What do you want me to do if you keep having more concubines while we’re still married? Of course, I’ll be first in line for any number of concubines, but if you keep bothering me like that, I’ll have to kill them all. You’re supposed to be responsible and love me, right? What happened to all those vows of love you whispered when we shared our rings? I’m so sad, darling. My heart is breaking and I think it’s going to fall out of my chest. I’m going to have to replace it with the human heart of your hidden subordinate, so let’s go find him.”

Pouncing on his back, Lydon held Cadel in a bursting hug and rubbed his cheek against Caddel’s head. With Lydon’s usual coddling and murderous threats of ‘Should I kill him?‘ and ‘I’ll tear him apart’ in his ear, Cadel felt like he was about to lose his mind.

Finally, there was Garuel, the new recruit. When Cadel looked at his stats, his favorability was higher than expected at 66. But it was ‘higher than expected’, not much higher than the other subordinates. And as such, his reaction was the most common sense of all.

“Actually, the Scarlet Dragon’s appearance in the Mountains of Silence is very old, and the sages predict that it has gone into a long sleep. I’m skeptical about crossing the mountains, but I don’t think we have to worry about dying. We’re all extraordinary, and if we don’t die instantly, I can heal us with my demonic energy. Of course, the main reason is that I don’t want to disagree with our cute little Knight Commander. What do you think, Knight Commander? Is that enough to keep me from being outclassed by your hidden subordinate?”

He didn’t approach with his eyes flashing like a madman, didn’t show his murderous intentions towards the unknown person with cloudy eyes, or whispered curse words. He simply added strength to Cadel’s suggestion in his usual sly manner.

Based on the reactions of these quirky subordinates, Cadel drew one conclusion.

‘The higher the favorability rate, the crazier one gets.’

Apparently, likability and loyalty were proportional, a strange phenomenon indeed. Cadel smirked bitterly at the stormy jealousy of the three men keeping tabs on his new subordinateーwho, in all likelihood, would never actually join them.

* * *

In conclusion, the Scarlet Knight Order had crossed the Mountains of Silence. While Cadel was trying to choose the most reasonable words to convince them, Van and Lumen, who had opposed the plan, had changed their minds, saying that they had no choice.

Cadel was puzzled by their sudden change of heart, and would have been even more puzzled if he had been told that the reason was because the distressed Cadel looked so pitiful in their eyes.

“The ocean is definitely prettier in the daytime.”

Lydon was still holding Cadel from behind, staring out at the ocean. Lydon’s superior size and height allowed him to comfortably rest his chin on the top of Cadel’s head and watch the ocean.

“Aren’t you going to jump in this time? The first time you saw it, you dived like a seal.”

“If Cadel offers to dry my hair again, I’ll go in.”

“Don’t bother, I don’t care if people find out now, just do it yourself.”

“So stern, darling.”

Despite his grumbling, Lydon was affectionate as he kissed Cadel’s head. When Cadel squirmed, Lydon hugged him tightly and shook him a few times before letting go.

He looked refreshed. Cadel glazed at the sight of Lydon, who was attached to the railing and captured the ocean with full view. He slipped his gaze along the elegant, unabashed figure, and suddenly remembered.

“I can’t live without Cadel, but Cadel can live without me. You can abandon me, Cadel.”

Lydon’s transparent tears came as a huge shock to Cadel, who realized that what he had been hiding was his true feelings.

He tried his best to deny it, but the moment he witnessed the truth face-to-face, he couldn’t look away anymore.

Cadel decided to stay. He chose this world, which had already come to be more precious to him than anything else. Of course, the story would have to continue. Gaining the ‘Life of Cadel Lytos’ was one of the perks of the system.

There was no fear that he might change his mind as the story progressed. There was something precious in the original world. Unfulfilled dreams, parents to whom he had yet been able to show filial piety, and friends who made him laugh in the midst of his difficult life.

But there were things in this world that made it all worth it. He knew there would be many who would be sad if he did not return. But he cared enough about his members to shake off that melancholy regret. He wanted to take responsibility for dragging them into the maelstrom of fate, for it would be impossible for him to leave them behind in peace.

“Too much sea breeze and you’ll catch a cold, Commander.”

Van, who had approached by now, draped a blanket over Cadel’s shoulders. Ignoring Lydon, who asked where his blanket was, Van locked eyes with Cadel and smiled weakly.

“The chef asked if there was anything in particular you wanted to eat. Is there anything that comes to mind?”

“……Warm.”

“I’ll ask for the stew then, and if you’re really hungry, how about an apple first? There’s a pile of them in the kitchen, I can take one for you.”

Cadel quietly shook his head and looked up at Van. Attentive and kind eyes were examining Cadel’s condition as a habit.

If there was anything more at stake than the ties of his original world, once Cadel chose to stay here, it was Van. The inability to return the real Cadel Lytos to him. That his pure feelings for the real Cadel Lytos would have to be stolen, and deceived to the end.

He had no intention of going back on a decision he had already made. He was just tormented by the greed that bloomed amidst this heavy guilt. Since he couldn’t return the real Cadel Lytos anyway, he wanted to make Van’s loyalty his own. A shameless greed that hoped that Van would fall in love with his current self to the point that Van would forget his first meeting with Cadel Lytos.

“Why are you…… looking at me like that? Did something get on my face?”

Uncomfortable with the thoughtful gaze, Van smiled awkwardly and stroked his cheek. Cadel pulled the blanket tighter around him and turned his head casually.

“Nothing. Just thinking you’re handsome.”

Van couldn’t take the compliment at face value and went off on a tangent about how Cadel was ‘so much more handsome and beautiful than he is’, and when Cadel chuckled, he walked away, unable to overcome his embarrassment.

Only the remaining Lydon was left to praise him, asking why Cadel didn’t told him he was handsome. Why didn’t he do it? If Cadel had said those words out loud, he would have had to say that Lydon was handsome more times than he could breathe.

Pushing away Lydon who clung to him out of habit, Cadel stared out over the calm horizon.

Now he had a new goal. The need to succeed boiled up more intensely than ever. Not just for his own survival, but for the safety of the entire Knight Order. He had to win, no matter what.