episode_0055

Deep within the palace, in the place where the royal family resided, a woman’s voice rang out.

It wasn’t the kind of sad, heart-fluttering voice that would often ring out in the deep night.

As if she had heard something she couldn’t believe, she couldn’t hide her bewilderment and her voice trembled.

“What did you just say? You don’t need it?”

The First Princess, Josefina d’Alcrea, was confronted by someone in the guest room next to her own room. She was sitting on a luxurious single sofa, looking at a man sitting on a similar sofa in front of her.

And when he heard something that he could not believe was a counterargument to his own opinion, he could not help but ask that question.

The other party was a healthy, middle-aged man, but they were not the only two people in the room. As if to prove that this was not a secret meeting, a man wearing a high-class butler’s uniform and a woman wearing a maid’s uniform were standing silently near the door and window, like a folding screen.

They were both witnesses and watchers of this meeting.

“Guildmaster Dolores Rashford. Are you really familiar with the information I just shared? I wonder if you even know what you are saying. Does being a guildmaster make your way of thinking so erratic?”

With a bit of sarcasm, Princess Josefina fired a rapid-fire shot at the man who was smiling leisurely before her eyes.

But the guildmaster, Dolores Rashford, did not break. Her composure did not waver. Still, she maintained her amazing mental strength, maintaining her position with a neat posture, paying respect to the princess, and not losing her smile.

“Thank you for your concern about my way of thinking, Your Highness. But don’t worry. I am definitely not rejecting your support based on groundless reasons. At the heart of this rejection is unquestionable faith and grounds. ”

“Ha, really…”

The princess almost lost her temper at the guild master’s half-assed answer, but she held it back as best she could.

Just a moment ago, the Saint and her knights had a brief meeting as they were leaving the palace. While wishing them success in their future and their journey, Princess Josefina also relayed the news she had received from her informant.

That a certain family was preparing something by releasing people. And that it was highly likely to be a threat to the saint’s image. Lastly, if necessary, he had people he had released himself, and if necessary, he would offer his hand to provide secret support.

The saintess was grateful for the valuable information, but declined to provide any further assistance. The princess recognized this as the modesty typical of those who had been in the Airgrants Church for a long time.

However, the guild master who requested an audience now also expressed his intention to refuse, saying that he was grateful for the information but that he did not need to provide any further support.

The First Princess was a person who sought balance. She believed that in order to ascend to a high position, or to the throne as the world called it, one had to be able to balance the various forces and coordinate opinions, while also being able to properly put one’s own ideals into practice.

So the first virtue she valued the most was information gathering. She sent people out to various places to make connections and worked hard to collect and analyze as much information as possible. In addition, the vast amount of knowledge she learned through the study of imperialism helped her interpret the information, and she was always able to express her opinions or take appropriate actions through wise and excellent political judgment.

And, from her perspective, the saint was a symbolically outstanding figure. She was the head of a religious order without threatening the throne, and she was less dangerous than anyone else in that she would return to being an ordinary person after a year, but she was also symbolically helpful. Even if the saint’s power disappeared, she would still be immensely popular among the people just because of her beauty and personality.

Even within the nobility, there were those who harbored resentment toward her because of her origins, but her incredible achievements and outwardly ridiculous appearance overshadowed them, and there were many noble families on the streets who wanted to become even a little friendly with her.

As the princess was not unaware of this, she had been watching the saint closely when she was involved in the incident with Count Bronkhorst. And since the incident was over and the saint returned, she had been weighing when to approach her.

Then, when the sudden event of the saint’s knight appointment ceremony was scheduled, I was delighted. This was because a precious opportunity to solidify my relationship with the saint had been properly prepared. Carefully sharing the information I had gathered was a bonus.

However, since both the saintess and the guild master were refusing to support her, maintaining an attitude that was completely against her wishes, it was no wonder that the princess was getting angry.

No, the one who is closest to the throne, who promised to bestow selfless(?) grace, is showing this kind of attitude. The saintess originally belonged to the Air Grants Church, so it can be said that this is the case, but what kind of nerve does this author, the guild master, have?

“Guildmaster Rashford, are you underestimating the power of the Bronchost family? Do you really not know that they still have some power and subordinates, even if not as much as they did when they threatened the Airgrants Church? My information gathering has concluded that it is not surprising that armed forces will attack the pilgrims as soon as the journey begins. The saintess and your well-known high-level adventurers and ‘guard knights’ alone will never be able to defeat dozens of armed men. Don’t you think you can figure this out with common sense without me having to tell you?”

Finally, the First Princess added a final word of warning and urged the Guild Master to face reality. However, the Guild Master did not show a sullen expression at those words, nor did he panic because he was taken aback, nor did he squirm because his pride was hurt.

Rather, he expressed his gratitude for the princess’s words while letting out a very faint laugh.

“Thank you so much for your broad insight and concern. Your Highness. There is no error in your opinion, or rather, your noble words. Common sense tells us that the adventurers we have prepared and the two members of the Air Grants Church alone cannot protect the saintess. Common sense tells us that it is impossible for a party of five or six people without even a single weapon to repel dozens of armed men. Common sense tells us that everything Your Highness says is absolutely correct. ”

This kid is good at talking.

The princess clenched her fists, muttering both praise and insults in her mouth, thankful that it was dark. She added several words of praise, but in her ears, it was interpreted as sarcasm, as if saying, ‘Your opinion is not wrong. It is wrong.’

Perhaps, the princess guessed that it was true, judging by the guild master’s relaxed expression.

“But, Your Highness…”

Look at that. When the guild master trailed off with the word ‘but’, the princess’s stern expression almost collapsed. She almost snapped, ‘Are you starting again?’ There was no way the first princess wouldn’t know about the guild master Rashford’s slyness.

Although the number of times I’ve met him since that man appeared is quite a few, the personality of the guild master that I’ve come to understand through the news is not strange compared to that of a masked assassin.

And, as she had predicted, the guild master began to utter words that were like a stabbing knife.

“First of all, let me say that Bronkhorst’s recent activities are quite well known even among the nobles. He is already under legal proceedings on charges of taking some Airgrants hostage and threatening them, not to mention his ugly defeat in a duel with the saint. The Airgrants Church has brought forward witnesses to accuse him of this, so he will have to stand trial even if he denies it. Furthermore, even though he was born a commoner, he was obsessed with the saint, showed an ugly side, was defeated soon after, and paid a large amount of his wealth as compensation to the Airgrants Church, and the reputation of the Bronkhorst family has already fallen to the ground.

“In the past, it was a family that was already kept at a considerable distance from the noble alliances because it was indirectly related to the Arklight Dukes who dared to rebel against His Majesty and were destroyed. As a result, it has been said that the vassals of the Bronkhorst who were subordinate to the Knights Templar frequently transferred to or joined other families. Since their master was on the verge of collapse, the subordinates left to find a way to survive. Of course, there are many who were moved by the miracle that the saint performed at that time and entrusted themselves to the Airgrants Church.”

As expected, Guild Master Rashford, you are a man…

The princess’s expression didn’t break, but instead she clenched her teeth. It seemed that the Kingdom Adventurer’s Guild’s information network was more detailed and in-depth than she had thought.

I never would have guessed that he would find out that much. As expected, he was a former nobleman, and he was definitely a guild master with connections that were wide enough to spread rumors among the nobles.

“That is, when you put all of this together, it means that the Bronchost family has fewer and fewer talented people to threaten the saintess and her party. In the past, when the Bronchost family was prosperous, there were hundreds of talented people. However, in the last duel with the saintess, the Bronchost family gathered a total of 49 vassals, and 51 including Oferspelle herself and Betrog. Of course, the vassals of the Count Bronchost family who converted to the Airgrants Church that we confirmed last time numbered 15. Most of them were knights or knight trainees. Of course, even if we assume that there is some hidden secret, the number of ‘armed professionals’ that they can gather is likely to be around 30, excluding those who have defected to other nobles or carefully left the Bronchost family. Of course, if you hire low-quality mercenaries from other guilds, the number will increase even more. ”

Although there was only one adventurer’s guild in the kingdom, there were quite a few groups that had what could be called ‘mercenaries’, such as the fighter’s guild or the errand boy’s guild. However, there was no such large organization as the adventurer’s guild, nor did they have the quality and quantity of professional adventurers.

These guilds were often comprised of mostly retired or retired soldiers. They were different from the adventurer’s guilds that recruited talented individuals from all over the place.

“You’ve analyzed it really thoroughly. You’re a man who fits the position. You’re unlucky, though.”

In that long explanation, the First Princess commented on it with her own interpretation. The Guild Master bowed and showed his respect. It seemed as if he was accepting it as a compliment.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

“But, since you know each and every detail, don’t you have a better grasp of reality? So I’ll ask again. Guildmaster Rashford.”

The princess did not deviate from the main topic, regardless of Rashford’s restrained attitude. Rashford has not yet revealed his true intentions. In fact, everything he has said so far was nothing more than bait to divert the princess’s attention elsewhere. That was obvious to the first princess who had witnessed, learned, and experienced politics.

“How do you plan to save the Saints from the threat that the Bronchost family can pose? Do you really not need the support of the royal family?”

“…”

Silence. The man finally became silent. Suddenly, the princess wanted to shout out in joy. Oh, was it really a bluff? I had heard that this man had a somewhat silly personality here and there, but could it be that it was showing in this situation?

However, the princess had no choice but to immediately shake off her desire to smile. This was because the guild master’s expression entered her eyes.

It was clearly a smile. However, the princess was sure that to someone with a keen sense, that smile would have felt like the joy of a wild beast. It was a face with a sinister and sinister look.

It felt like I was sitting with a devil with a kind smile who always pulled off terrible tricks. It wasn’t just the princess who felt that way.

“Umm…”

“…”

The butler near the reception room door and the maid near the window also showed signs of discomfort. As they had served and sacrificed themselves for the royal family for a long time, their trained senses were warning them.

This strange and hideous aura that the man called Guild Master exudes.

‘Except for the fact that there is no ‘life’ at all, it seems like it would destroy the world.’

While the princess was making that assessment, the guild master’s mouth slowly opened.

“Your Highness the Princess…”

Little by little, the end of her words trailed off, and she raised her gaze. Far away, the moonlight streaming in through the window behind the princess illuminated the guild master’s face. Ah, the pale blue light is a cold demon. The princess rolled that impression silently on her tongue, and soon she could hear the devil’s whisper in her ear and shudder.

“You… are looking down on our guild’s proud adventurers, aren’t you?”

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“You’re such a funny kid. You make such a drool-worthy face and then just…”

“Sister Esther, please be careful what you say.”

◦ I am sorry that the benign was made.

“Oh, that’s the attitude of a person repenting…”

Where did all the doctrines I had learned go? The Benedictine monk sighed cautiously, but he was not particularly offended. It was a feeling he could somewhat understand.

From the early hours of the morning, in a corner of the Basilica of Marcelino, a sister and an old monk were busy organizing their luggage. Naturally, it was preparation for the grand pilgrimage that was to begin this morning. The two men had gotten up two hours ago and were bringing their luggage, which they had prepared in a disorderly manner, and loading it onto the carriage.

The person who would drive the carriage was decided. There was only one person in the group who had experience handling horses in the past.

“Benedict, that ‘guardian’ or that brat, are you sure he’s with our Mil…Saint right now? How dare that damn beast of a bastard dare to enter our Milicia’s mansion…”

“Oh, Sister Esther. I know how you feel, but…”

“No, no, monk. You should always be on your guard just in case. It’s often the case that the little guys act the most timid. But they approach us like this, pretending to be nice and innocent, and saying things like, “Sister, I feel strange here,” and they approach us with such obvious nonsense that it’s hard to tell what’s really going on, and they hurt our Militia’s white skin…”

“If I say anything more, it will ruin my dignity as a member of the church, so please stop.”

Even while restraining Sister Esther’s not-so-outrageous rampage, the Benedict monk remained calm. This was because he had become accustomed to seeing Esther’s behavior more than once or twice. Sister Esther was a troublemaker. She had a strong personality by nature, but she was even more sensitive and aggressive when it came to her relationships with Milicia.

To the horny noble children who tried to approach the saintess, she would use her past experiences as a noble lady to spit out harsh words and drive them away. In the first place, she would spit out harsh words to Opperspel, who was larger than her. It reminded her of a wild animal of the mustelidae family, a civet, living on some island.

The problem is that while the raccoon is cute, Sister Esther is a grown woman and not cute. She’s a nun and doesn’t really dress herself up.

“Still, I feel safe because there is Butler Douglas in the mansion. His heart to protect the saint is trustworthy.”

“That’s fortunate. I was worried that you would storm the Saintess’ mansion at any moment.”

Of course, if it had been put into action, he would have stopped it even if it meant throwing his body at it. Benedict, who was old but determined to stop the chaos unfolding in a mansion, had made that decision.

Fortunately, Sister Esther was the one who refrained from actually putting into action her harsh words. Back then, when they first met, she had repeatedly glared at him as if she was going to kill him, but at least when Benedict was around, she tended to refrain from both her harsh words and her actions.

“And on the road, if you try to approach the saintess even once…I have to be very careful not to get closer than 5 meters. If she looks even a little sinister…I’ll rip that place and chew it up…”

“Sister Esther!”

“Okay, okay. I’ll pack my bags.”

Benedict sighed in relief after stopping Sister’s rampage, which was about to lead to more extreme and obscene expressions, but he was secretly anxious about the future.

I had a premonition early on that this journey would be full of hardships, but I had no idea if the group would be able to get along smoothly.

‘Oh God, please watch over the journey of your servants.’

Suddenly, the Benedict monk bowed his head, put his hands together, and prayed. While the Benedict monk was relying on his faith to relieve his anxiety, Sister Esther, who was moving her hands busily, suddenly noticed the surroundings that were becoming brighter. Soon, she sensed the sun rising on her right.

“I swear to the sun…even if you harbor a wicked thought, Glenn with red eyes. When you do, I will make you bury your head in the ground and say ‘I’m sorry’ over and over again. Definitely.”

Sister Esther, nicknamed ‘the Dokjong’ by some, made that pledge without any idea of the difference in skill between herself and Glenn.