"We're finally here. I can see the gate over there."
Claudia, who was riding at the front, extended her hand. The now familiar sight of the checkpoint in front of the city gate greeted us.
The line was definitely longer than when I first got here after getting out of prison, a sign that the city was starting to come alive.
'Is the blacksmith shop open again? I think I'll be stopping by soon.'
As expected from the Silver Dawn Knights route, which is the most newbie-friendly route in Blizzard 4, if you progress through the story in a standard manner, you can obtain most of the elements needed for your future journey in this one city.
A blacksmith shop for strengthening armor and weapons or giving them attributes, a shop that handles most mid-level and low-level items, and a magic tower where you can learn mid-level and lower-level magic.
If you place Aurora in the lord's seat and maintain friendly relations with her, it is possible for knights or warriors who use melee weapons to simply resolve all strengthening issues here.
Of course, you can obtain most of the elements, but the highest level magic, items, divine spells, and blessed weapons still have to be obtained elsewhere.
"What are you thinking about?"
Her head suddenly popped in. Blue hair filled the corner of her vision. Lize was looking at me with her characteristically mischievous smile.
My heart thumped as if it was moving in rhythm with the horse's gait. My armor was Arachnaine, so I had thrown it away in the boss room and was only wearing a white sleeveless top.
By the way, armor can be replenished indefinitely. Does the magic in the castle consider armor as an existing item, so if you just bring it out, it will automatically be replenished?
At this point, the lord was wondering what kind of curse he had mistaken that magic for.
According to Aurora's explanation, it was a magic that was only applied to a few of the highest-level magic towers, so I thought it was really amazing that they found it.
In reality, the only one who could use that magic was the greatest magician in the empire and the master of the Great Library. It seemed like he really had his teeth cut out for the Knights of the Silver Dawn.
Actually, in some ways, it was a fortunate thing. Even though he hated the Knights of the Silver Dawn enough to find such magic, he was unable to achieve his goal because he had no justification, and in the end, he was the one who died first.
It must have been quite a headache for him as well. He couldn't possibly execute the knights directly under the Emperor just because he didn't like them.
The best revenge he could take at the moment would have been to tear the Knights of the Silver Dawn apart and force only the four knight commanders to follow him.
'And then it just disappeared.'
"...You're not thinking of that woman's breasts, are you?"
As my thoughts raced and I was delayed in answering, Lize looked at me with suspicion. The distance between us narrowed even further. I quickly answered before he pressed me further.
"No. I just had something to think about."
"Then you want to touch mine too? I can make you forget about that woman's breasts right away."
"...How many times do I have to tell you that won't happen?"
Since the incident with Stella, Lize's behavior has become more and more blatant. Just now, I could clearly see her slightly twisting her body while deliberately emphasizing her chest.
My patience was also rapidly decreasing. If such temptations continued like this, I didn't think I could endure it any longer. At most, I think a month would be the Maginot Line.
"Yeah. I know, I know. Of course I know. I just said it."
Lize looked at me and snickered.
When she suggested that I touch her breasts after we were done, I refused. When Lize heard my refusal, she got upset and asked what was wrong, so I just told her honestly.
He said that once he started, he didn't have the confidence to end it with just touching the chest.
After hearing that, Lize was dumbfounded for a moment, then with her characteristically playful expression, she said that she understood and left obediently. From then on, it was like this.
"Welcome, Commander!"
As we approached the gate, the procession split to the left and right and made their way forward. A guard inspecting a wagon at the checkpoint in front of the gate saw Claudia and saluted with his standard raised.
"I'm glad you returned safely! Was the expedition successful?"
"okay."
Claudia tapped the neck of Arachnainera, who was tied to the saddle. Even though a considerable amount of time had passed, it still looked exactly the same as when its neck had just been cut.
It is said that, although it may not be the case for ordinary monsters, monsters with strong powers like Arachnainera rarely decay unless some special situation occurs.
Even if you just throw it outside, it will take about half a year for it to start to rot. The human slaughterer that melts its entire body and drops a bloody sword as soon as it is defeated seems to be a rather special case.
"Don't think strangely. This is a humanoid monster."
As the guards flinched at the sight of Arachnaine's head, Claudia struck before any strange words could escape their lips.
Even though its neck was cut off, its tongue was stuck out, and its pupils were half-rolled over, its beauty was still intact, so it wouldn't have been strange at first glance to mistake it for a human head.
"Yes! I understand!"
The guards immediately cleared the way. Fortunately, no unnecessary scuffles broke out.
"Are you going to report to the lord right away? It would be a bit awkward for us all to stop by the castle together."
"Yes, I will. I will go to Iris. My sister, Claudia, and Delta, please go to the lord's mansion first."
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Erica turned left at the fork in the road, and we continued to move along the main road. Perhaps because she was aware of what other people were thinking, Lize rode quietly without even trying to cling to me.
We arrived at the mansion shortly. The knight standing at the front gate stopped us. He was a newly selected knight after the previous lord's servants were thoroughly replaced.
Thanks to that, they didn't do things like ignore us like the last time. On the contrary, when they heard that we were the Knights of the Silver Dawn, they even made a fuss, saying that we were the knights who served the Emperor.
"What's going on?"
"I came back from subduing the demons. I'm here to report to the lord about it."
"I see. Okay, I understand. Go in."
The knight exchanged a few formal words and then quickly stepped aside. At the main entrance to the mansion, the usual maid was waiting for us.
She was the maid that Aurora trusted the most, having served her since she was little. The woman, wearing a maid outfit that covered her from neck to toe without a single bit of exposure, bowed her head respectfully.
As we dismounted, a few servants came and took the horses somewhere. As they did so, they saw Arachnaine's head tied to the saddle and flinched for a moment.
"I'll wait here for the other two and then go in. Is that okay?"
"Yes, there is no problem at all. In fact, it is something we would like to recommend. Your Majesty also needs time to 'prepare'."
At Claudia's words, the maid glanced at me and emphasized the word "preparation." Then, out of nowhere, Lize clung to my arm. A murderous look was exchanged between the two.
After some time had passed, Iris and Erica arrived. With their blunt and quiet personalities combined, it was so quiet between them that not a single breath could be heard.
Lize and Claudia shook their heads, saying that it was a sight that took their breath away. To be honest, I agreed a little bit.
"Aurora is waiting inside."
The maid who led us to the reception room opened the door with delicate movements.
As I entered, I saw Aurora sitting in the highest seat, wearing her usual dress that revealed her side chest, armpits, and collarbone, and sipping tea. Aurora's golden eyes were focused directly on me.
"How was the expedition? Did it go well?"
"They all came back alive. I guess it ended well."
"Hmm… I don't think that's it since the armor is completely destroyed."
Erica and Claudia both cleared their throats at the same time, perhaps because those words stung. One of them had been poisoned and was on the verge of death, while the other had been captured by Arachnainera and almost died.
"Even if the Iris Knight Commander didn't participate in the expedition, and Delta, you didn't wear armor in the first place, the other three went there wearing armor, right? If they came back without armor, doesn't that mean they lost it somewhere? If their armor was still intact, they would have come in here wearing it."
"You hit the nail on the head. Well, there were quite a few things going on."
"I really want to hear it, so tell me one by one later. Right now, I have some things to talk about first. Please sit down for now. You can't just stand there and talk, right?"
Aurora made a gesture. We sat down on the sofas surrounding the table, evenly divided. Then the maids came over and placed teacups and small plates in front of each of us, and poured us tea.
"Delta. First of all, there's something you need to hear."
"To me? Oh, that thing you asked me to investigate last time—"
"I've finished investigating that, but that's not what I want to talk about now. If that were the case, I wouldn't have said it was my top priority."
"...?"
"What I'm trying to say is this."
Aurora carefully picked up the parchment that was on the table and handed it to the maid next to her. The maid bent down to accept it with both hands, then walked over to me and held out her arms.
"Take it. It's yours."
"Can I unfold it here?"
"That's what I told you to do, but the other knight commanders can't see it. Delta, you have to check it by yourself first, and only then can we see it if you give us permission to do so."
"...What is this that you are doing?"
"Turn it over."
At Aurora's words, I turned over the rolled up parchment. There was a knotted string, and a golden seal with a pair of dragons stamped on it.
It was a very familiar pattern.
"Oh, this...."
I was speechless. Lize, sitting right next to me, poked her head out to see what was going on, then returned to her seat with a pale face. The other knight commanders who were looking at the parchment did the same.
"That's right. It's the Emperor's seal."
Aurora took a sip of tea.
"His Majesty the Emperor of Caicilia sent you a letter in person."