"Here they come."
A knight wearing a helmet and armor tensed sharply as he watched the approaching procession.
The emblem of the Wyvern Knights was engraved on his breastplate. He was none other than Marta, Heinrich's eldest
brother.
The Tezeros court was paying particular attention to the Duke Knights' escort. If, by any chance, anything untoward happened to a member of the Duke
Knights, it could easily escalate into a diplomatic problem.
For that reason, an entire knight order had been dispatched to control the citizens, and the Wyvern
Knights had been chosen. Their role was to mingle among the citizens and keep watch so that suspicious elements could not act suspiciously.
And Marta had been included among them. Gripping the hilt of his sword tightly, Marta stared at the procession and kept muttering to himself.
"It can't possibly be true. How could that coward Heinrich possibly become a full-fledged knight of the Duke Knights?
No matter how I think about it, it makes no sense."
A low voice answered him from behind.
"That's right, brother. The Aura Blade he showed us yesterday must have been some kind of trick."
It was the voice of his younger brother, Peter. Beside him, Malachi was watching the procession with his eyes wide open.
They had come out now to confirm whether Heinrich truly was a Duke Knight. They had seen the insignia,
but they simply could not believe it. So, using Marta's escort duty as an excuse,
they had not even reported to their own knight order and had come out into the street instead.
"Heinrich must have lied. A fellow who couldn't even attend the knight faculty,
how in the world could he..."
"The insignia must have been forged."
Marta quietly shook his head to calm his younger brothers.
"If we wait a little, everything will become clear. If Heinrich isn't in that procession,
you two are to go to Father at once and report this fact."
"Of course. Father was definitely taken in by him completely."
As they murmured among themselves, the procession of the Duke Knights drew closer. Marta
and his two brothers grew tense as they examined the faces of the Duke Knights. But before long,
they had no choice but to cry out in shock.
"It... it was true."
Marta let out a deflated voice. It was because he had spotted Heinrich's face
in the middle of the procession. Since his visor was raised, Marta could see his younger brother's face
clearly. Heinrich, fully equipped in armor and helmet, was marching proudly together with the Duke Knights.
Peter and Malachi, seeing that sight, looked as if their souls had left them.
"How can such a thing be..."
As they stared blankly, Heinrich's gaze happened to turn in their direction. Upon seeing his elder brothers,
Heinrich smiled faintly and gave them a nod. His face was filled with pride. But no one knew
that this would cause trouble.
When the gaze of one of the Duke Knights turned outward, a squad leader of the Capital Knights standing beside him
turned his head as well. By coincidence, he was able to see Marta.
What the squad leader saw was the unsightly sight of a Wyvern Knight, assigned to guard the perimeter, standing there stupidly with his mouth agape.
Since the man wore the insignia of a low-ranking ordinary knight, the squad leader's anger surged to the top of his head.
'What an idiot. To dare show such a disgraceful sight in front of the Duke Knights...'
The squad leader vowed that he would not overlook this matter. Since the commander of the Wyvern Knights
was his classmate, giving one ordinary knight who had neglected his duty a lesson would be no difficult matter.
Krovitz, who had been guided to the king of Tezeros, offered a courteous salute.
"I greet Your Majesty."
The king of Tezeros welcomed him with an awkward smile.
"Welcome. I truly apologize for yesterday. I suddenly fell ill..."
Because he had postponed the talks out of petty pride, the king of Tezeros had been anxious all night.
The Duke Knights were a powerful military force equal to the Tezeros Royal Guard Knights.
Although they were evaluated as being one step below the Crossen Knights, the master of the Duke Knights
was Duke Ferstein, who possessed the greatest power on the continent. In that respect, he had needed to be even more careful than with the commander of the Crossen Knights,
yet he had ended up ruining matters because of petty pride.
'Did I do something unnecessary?'
Because of what had happened yesterday, the king of Tezeros had been unable to sleep all night. If, by any chance,
this matter incurred Duke Ferstein's wrath, it would truly be a grave problem. For that reason,
the king of Tezeros greeted Krovitz with exceptional warmth.
"Let us go in at once. All preparations for the talks have been completed."
Krovitz put on a worried expression.
"Your complexion is very poor, Your Majesty. Overworking yourself is harmful to your health..."
The king of Tezeros's face brightened at once. He thought it was truly fortunate
that his face looked haggard because he had been unable to sleep.
"It is all right. The commander of the Duke Knights has come in person; what does it matter if I am feeling unwell?"
"You must not say such a thing, Your Majesty."
Krovitz followed behind the king toward the conference hall.
"So, I heard that you intend to conquer Truvenia. Duke Ferstein
has taken the position of commander-in-chief, has he not?"
"That is correct. He said that now that the dragons' ambitions have been made known to all under heaven,
we must gather Arcadia's strength as one in order to prevent humanity's destruction."
The king of Tezeros nodded as if in agreement.
"Of course we must. Our Tezeros naturally intends to dispatch troops as well. However, there is
one problem."
"Please speak."
"Sending troops itself is not a major issue, but Terbia gives me some concern. As you know,
Rosimus I is an ambitious man. And Terbia is located close to our Tezeros.
Therefore, I think we must leave behind some troops so that Rosimus I will not harbor ill intentions."
Krovitz smiled faintly. That much was a problem they had already anticipated.
"Please do not worry, Your Majesty. Duke Ferstein
has also taken that issue into consideration. It was precisely to resolve that problem that he sent
the commander of the Crossen Knights to Terbia."
"Oh. Is that so?"
"Good news arrived yesterday through magical communication. Marquis Williams received the support of no fewer than
three hundred thousand troops from Terbia. Terbia now has no remaining capacity
to invade another nation."
The king of Tezeros's face lit up.
"That is truly welcome news."
"And as a precaution, the Empire intends to leave behind one hundred fifty thousand elite troops.
Any monarch who attempts to expand his territory while the expedition is underway
will surely receive stern judgment."
"If that is the case, I can trust it. Very well. I will support you with every soldier I can mobilize."
The king of Tezeros nodded without hesitation. If the Crossen Empire had prepared measures to that extent,
they were fully trustworthy.
If another kingdom were to leave behind as many as one hundred fifty thousand troops, there would be no choice but to worry,
but if that kingdom was the Crossen Empire, it was different. Was it not the suzerain state of all kingdoms existing in Arcadia,
and was not the emperor a descendant of Great Emperor Crossen, the hero who saved the nation? The king of Tezeros
promised military support without the slightest suspicion.
"The elite troops of my nation number two hundred twenty thousand in total. Of those, I can support you with two hundred thousand."
Satisfaction spread across Krovitz's face. It was because this matched the scale of deployment
Duke Ferstein had expected. With that, their target could be considered achieved, but there was still more to obtain.
"I hardly know how to thank Your Majesty for your kindness. However, Your Majesty.
We will also require supplies sufficient to maintain those troops for one year."
The king of Tezeros gently furrowed his brow.
"That may be somewhat difficult. Our nation's economic circumstances have not been very good lately..."
"But this is a matter upon which the fate of Arcadia depends."
"Hoo! If that is so, then it cannot be helped. Very well. I shall find a way to prepare them by any means necessary."
When the king consented, a smile spread across Krovitz's lips.
"Your grace is immeasurable. His Imperial Majesty and Duke Ferstein will never
forget Your Majesty's aid."
"It is only natural that Tezeros should do this. In any case..."
Turning his head, the king of Tezeros looked one by one at the Duke Knights lined up below the platform.
"So those are the Duke Knights I have only heard about. I hear their training volume is tremendous.
Ah, I also heard that Duke Ferstein's son belongs to the Duke Knights?"
"You are speaking of Crancia, a squad leader. That is true. However, in the Duke Knights,
everything is determined by ability. If one lacks ability, then even Duke Ferstein's own son
could not have become a Duke Knight."
"Remarkable."
As the king of Tezeros shook his head, a sudden gleam appeared in his eyes. His gaze
was fixed on the right side of where the Duke Knights were lined up, where two knights of particularly slight build
were standing. Because the other knights' physiques were so imposing, they seemed to stand out clearly.
"Are they Duke Knights as well?"
"That is correct, Your Majesty."
The king of Tezeros's gaze was nailed to one knight with a slightly stooped posture. All
of the Duke Knights wore their scabbards on their left side, but he alone wore his on the opposite side.
A look of interest spread across the king's face.
"Surely he is not left-handed?"
"He is indeed left-handed. Your Majesty's insight is truly astonishing."
At Krovitz's answer, the king of Tezeros raised his eyes in puzzlement.
"A left-handed knight? How remarkable. I have never heard until now of a knight in an order
who uses his left hand..."
Krovitz answered without hesitation.
"The Duke Knights prove everything through ability. If one has ability,
we do not discriminate between right hand or left."
"But would there not inevitably be limits to swordsmanship using the left hand?"
A smile appeared at Krovitz's lips. The king of Tezeros was showing an extremely conventional way of thinking.
Because of that, Gerald's value could shine all the more. Krovitz, who had crossed swords with Gerald,
knew very well just how difficult his swordsmanship was to deal with.
If there were a knight who looked down on him and attacked simply because he was left-handed,
Krovitz could easily imagine what would happen to him.
"Your Majesty. He is one of the hidden experts of our Duke Knights.
He has not yet reached the realm of Master, but his swordsmanship alone is comparable to a Master's.
A Master belonging to the Duke Knights has already been defeated at his hands."
"Is... is that true?"
The king of Tezeros was shocked. He had never once heard that a Master could be defeated
with left-handed swordsmanship. Because it was something that could not happen according to common sense,
he could hardly believe it. But since the commander of the Duke Knights himself acknowledged it,
he could not doubt it.
"That is correct. I also acknowledge his skill in swordsmanship."
"I would like to see it."
The king of Tezeros felt an intense curiosity. He was dying to know
what sort of swordsmanship this left-handed technique that had defeated a Master could be.
He was a king who placed extreme importance on swordsmanship.
For a long time, he had pursued a policy of favoring knights with excellent swordsmanship,
and he had also summoned knights of outstanding ability to hold sword duels.
That hobby of the king's was now on the verge of being stirred. Noticing the sign, Krovitz gave a bitter smile.
'It seems I will have to let Gerald display his ability once.'
Krovitz was already certain. With Gerald's ability, he would not lose no matter whom he fought.
Even if the opponent were a Sword Master, as long as it was their first time fighting him,
they would have difficulty handling Gerald's unorthodox left-handed sword technique. Of course,
that was limited to a friendly match in which Aura Blade was not used.
If Gerald won, the status of the Duke Knights to which he belonged would rise,
so Krovitz quietly cast out bait.
"Would Your Majesty like to see his swordsmanship?"
After hesitating, the king of Tezeros honestly revealed his feelings.
"To be frank, yes. I am dying of curiosity."
"In that case, how would it be to hold a friendly match? If Your Majesty selects an opponent,
I shall arrange for that knight to prove his ability."
"Hmm."
The king of Tezeros remained silent. Though he wanted it desperately, if by any chance they were defeated,
the prestige of the Tezeros Knights would inevitably suffer.