Chapter 63
The day after the Black Dragon search, I returned to the First Knight Order.
Apparently, I’d grown attached to the order without realizing it. Even though I’d only been away for a few days, seeing Commander Cyril’s face made me happy.
"Commander Cyril!"
I opened the door to the commander’s office, and when I spotted Commander Cyril, I called out his name and hurried over without thinking. He rose from his desk and came around to meet me.
I stopped in front of him and saluted as a knight.
"Commander Cyril, Fia Ludo has returned!"
"Welcome back, Fia."
I looked up at the gentle voice to see Commander Cyril smiling faintly.
"Hehe... I thought I’d already received your return greeting when I saw you last night. That’s right. Your memory goes blank when you drink, doesn’t it? ...Fia, it sounds as though you had a difficult time, but I’m glad you made it back safely."
At Commander Cyril’s words, I blinked in surprise.
...Huh? I came back early because I thought I needed to report on my work with the Fourth Monster Knights, but does Commander Cyril already know what happened?
Maybe I reported it to him when I saw him at last night’s meat festival?
When I tried to recall last night, I remembered Commander Cyril, Commander Quentin, Commander Zachary, and Commander Desmond attending the meat festival, and me greeting them... and then it all went blank. In other words, I barely remembered anything.
Still, even if I couldn’t remember it, apparently I’d submitted my report to Commander Cyril in the middle of the banquet.
I’m amazing! A model knight!
As I beamed to myself, Commander Cyril let out a small sigh.
"Fia, Zachary and Quentin were the ones who reported on you. As for you last night, you did nothing but eat meat with gusto and drink."
"Huh? Oh, I-I see..."
Seeing me deflate at the reality that differed from what I’d imagined, Commander Cyril chuckled with amusement.
"I’m relieved to see you’re still yourself, Fia. According to Zachary and Quentin, you’ve become an important person, so I was worried you might not bother with the likes of me anymore."
Though he surely didn’t mean it, Commander Cyril pretended to look sad as he said this.
"I-Important person? ...Oh, no, no, I almost misunderstood! For a moment, I thought you were complimenting me, but that can’t be right. I haven’t done anything worthy of praise this time. ...Um, that’s it! It’s an advanced technique called a roundabout insult, isn’t it? I learned about it from Commander Zachary. So, does that mean you’re saying I’m so incompetent that I’m a disgrace?"
Not understanding what the commander really meant, I asked him, and he looked at me in puzzlement.
Since he didn’t seem to understand what I meant, I tried to explain.
"...Um, in other words, I couldn’t quantify my familiars’ vitality at all, as you’d ordered me to. And during yesterday’s Black Dragon search, it was the Black Dragon itself that did the work, so I hardly helped at all... Um, I was wondering if you were criticizing my performance..."
As I said it aloud, I grew more and more dejected.
Then I suddenly remembered something and hurriedly added,
"C-Could Commander Quentin have complained about me?"
Commander Quentin was devoted to Zabiria, the Black Dragon, wasn’t he?
Wouldn’t I have looked awfully lazy, making Zabiria do all the work while I did almost nothing?
"O-Or was it Commander Zachary who complained?"
During the battle, all I’d done was stand beside the Saint.
Even after the battle, I’d barely answered the questions Commander Zachary had asked for work-related reasons, then suddenly collapsed and made him take care of me.
...W-What was I making a busy knight commander do?
On top of that, Commander Zachary’s uniform had been soaked through with my tears, hadn’t it?
Wasn’t that incredibly inconsiderate of me?
...This is bad. The more I think about it, the more I remember how useless I was.
I’ll have to show Commander Quentin and Commander Zachary how hard I can work next time, so I can redeem myself...
"W-Well, I didn’t fulfill the duties I was actually assigned, so I’ll have to accept whatever you say about me..."
As my voice grew quieter, Commander Cyril chuckled softly.
"You really haven’t changed at all. ...That’s right. We’re only beginning to realize what you’re capable of. You yourself haven’t changed in the slightest."
"Huh?"
"It’s nothing. Don’t worry about quantifying your familiars’ vitality. I was the one who called you back early for my own reasons, so if anyone deserves blame, it’s me. And there’s no one who would dare openly criticize me, the senior-most knight commander, so that settles the matter."
"...Huh? I-Is it really that simple?"
I stared at Commander Cyril in bewilderment as he casually dismissed the fact that I’d spent several days attached to another order without doing the one task that mattered. The commander smiled brightly.
"As for the Black Dragon search, it seems your understanding differs from Zachary’s and Quentin’s. They testified that you fulfilled your role and more. Having commanders of other orders praise one of my subordinates is a commander’s greatest joy. Well done, Fia."
"Y-Yes...?"
Commander Cyril congratulated me with a pleased expression, but all I could do was tilt my head.
Commander Zachary and Commander Quentin praised me?
No, no. Even from what I’d just remembered, there was absolutely nothing about me yesterday that deserved praise.
Commander Zachary thanked me for using the power I’d been hiding, but in the end, Commander Quentin’s insight showed that it was Zabiria’s power, not mine.
Right. In that sense, Commander Zachary was thanking me for no reason.
...Why did they praise me?
I didn’t understand at all, but Commander Cyril looked so happy that I didn’t want to spoil the mood. So I nodded as if I understood.
"I’m honored by your praise. I’m sure you’re talking about that thing we discussed. Yes, I worked hard on that."
"Fia, that’s exactly the sort of thing I mean..."
Commander Cyril stared at me pointedly after hearing what I said.
"That side of you lowers your worth. ...Well, I suppose you wouldn’t change even if I told you."
Commander Cyril sighed in resignation, then spoke to me in a brighter voice, as if to change the subject.
"By the way, how are you feeling? I said you did nothing but eat meat and drink with gusto last night, but in truth, you were rather downcast for a while during the banquet."
"Huh? I was feeling down?"
...I don’t remember that at all.
"Yes. You were terribly upset that your dear friend had gone far away."
"Oh..."
...That’s true.
Even this morning, when I woke up and found my stomach so light, I felt down.
I hadn’t realized how lonely it would be to be without the warmth that had always been by my side until I experienced it.
Zabiria had left to become the Dragon King.
Zabiria had been terrifyingly strong when it fought the Blue Dragon, so it probably wouldn’t be defeated easily. But there was no way to know for sure.
After all, Zabiria had been badly injured when I first met it.
Zabiria was bigger now than when we first met, but I didn’t know if it could win if it faced the monster that had badly injured it again.
Ah, being apart is no good.
The less I can see it, the more I worry...
When Commander Cyril saw my sad expression as his words reminded me of Zabiria, he spoke in a gentle voice.
"That’s why you and I became friends yesterday."
"..................Huh?"
I stared blankly at Commander Cyril, not understanding what he meant.
"You said, 'I’m lonely because my close friend is leaving,' and I said, 'Then why don’t you become friends with me instead?' You agreed."
"Th-That’s a lie...!!"
I shot back without thinking.
Even if I couldn’t remember anything because of the alcohol, I knew what I would and wouldn’t do.
There was absolutely no way I’d agree to become friends with Commander Cyril.
To make sure of my own actions, I looked again at Commander Cyril standing before me.
Commander Cyril wore a white uniform, and though slender, he had a well-proportioned build.
The tassels on his epaulets glimmered, and together with his refined features, they gave him an elegant, graceful air.
But I knew that this graceful appearance was only skin-deep, and that Commander Cyril was the finest swordsman in the knight orders.
I’d also experienced firsthand how, at the first meat festival held the night we defeated the Flowerhorn Deer, he’d cornered the knights with a smile and nothing but compliments.
Since I’d been one of the people he cornered, I’d been terrified to my very core by how infuriatingly capable Commander Cyril was.
Then there was the way he’d cornered Vice Commander Gidion with a smile in Commander Quentin’s office, and smashed the low table as a threat.
It was terrifying enough that he’d started out acting as if he knew nothing, then cornered his opponent by presenting evidence one piece at a time once they’d let their guard down. But he’d even smashed a piece of furniture made of material so hard no one else could break it, demonstrating the difference in their strength.
Then, with his victim trembling so badly their teeth chattered, he’d grabbed them by the collar and threatened them.
That was the work of a Demon King.
And I’d only heard rumors, never been told outright, but judging by Commander Cyril’s elegant bearing, he was probably a noble. A high-ranking one, at that.
High-ranking nobles are nothing but trouble.
...Even from the little I’d just thought of, everything I knew about him made him seem like someone I wouldn’t want to get close to.
"No! There’s absolutely no way I would agree to become friends with you, Commander Cyril!!"
"Oh? Do you remember what happened last night?"
I was at a loss for words, but... Commander Cyril’s faint smile looked so suspicious that I couldn’t stand it.
I had no proof, but I was absolutely sure Commander Cyril was lying.
"If you take an oath of friendship and then casually take it back, you can’t claim to be upholding 'sincerity,' one of the Ten Commandments of Knighthood. Fia, a knight must never go back on their word."
"Guh..."
I was absolutely, positively sure that I was in the right.
I really was, but with my head completely blank from the alcohol, I couldn’t argue back.
And the commander knew that, so he cornered me with his suspicious smile.
"Come now, Fia. It hurts to be rejected so firmly, so please go easy on me. I’m sincere, I’m a decent swordsman, and I never betray my comrades. I think I’m quite a good bargain as a friend."
"Ugh..."
As I struggled to answer, Commander Cyril smiled and pressed me. "Isn’t that right?"
"I-I understand. You’re not a replacement for Zabiria, but... you’re my friend, Commander Cyril."
When I answered after making this painful choice, Commander Cyril gave me an amused smile.
"As I thought, whether you’re drunk or sober, your opinion doesn’t change. Yesterday, you stubbornly insisted, 'No one can take the place of a friend who has left. His seat belongs to him.'"
Huh? I thought. Wasn’t I rejecting Commander Cyril’s offer after all? He hurriedly added,
"Of course, after that you said you’d make a new seat for me."
...Grr.
Now that Zabiria was gone and I was feeling down, I could imagine myself accepting a kind offer like that and agreeing to become friends with Commander Cyril.
Under normal circumstances, I’d never choose someone as sharp and powerful as Commander Cyril as a friend. But given the situation, I could believe that I might have said yes.
Or was Commander Cyril such a smooth talker that he was taking me for a ride...?
"Thank you, Fia. I promise to be a good friend to you."
Either way, now that I’d affirmed our friendship while sober, I had no choice but to accept it.
"Th-Thank you. I promise to be sincere toward you as well, Commander, and to be a good friend."
As I answered and placed my right hand over the one he held out, Commander Cyril smiled beautifully.
Seeing his lovely, guileless smile, I thought that he really would be a wonderful friend.
Commander Cyril was kind, considerate, and dependable. Normally, he’d be the very best sort of friend.
The biggest problem was that he was simply far too important a person for someone like me to be his equal...
No matter what I wanted, once the conclusion that Commander Cyril and I would be friends had been reached, I felt myself relax. Then he spoke in a casual voice.
"And now, Fia, I have a favor to ask you as a friend..."
I raised my head and looked at Commander Cyril, realizing I’d fallen into an elaborate trap.
"C-Commander! So all that talk about being friends was just a setup so you could ask me a favor...!!"
...But by the time I realized it, it was already too late.
Commander Cyril continued speaking with his beautiful smile still in place...