Wickhart's Oath

"Wickhart-sama is being dismissed!?"

"Not dismissed. He resigned."

The soldiers of the Tenth Knight Order gathered in the mess hall listened to Rays-sama's explanation, then voiced their astonishment one after another.

Commander Wickhart has resigned from the Sixth Knight Order. Skudelia-san and the other principal figures behind the reckless surprise attack were all demoted.

As for the new commander, the king will appoint someone from outside the Sixth Knight Order. Their postings after the new commander is chosen have yet to be decided.

"That's harsher than I expected..." someone muttered. I thought so too. As a compromise, I had expected something like a pay cut, a suspension, or an assignment to duties that other knight orders were unwilling to take.

After all, whatever the details, they had won in the end. If the commander of the Sixth Knight Order were dismissed after a victory, people would wonder what had happened.

"As I said, this is not a punishment; he resigned of his own volition. Don't get the wrong idea," Rays-sama cautioned.

Sure, making it look like he had quit of his own accord would reduce the impact, but still...

An awkward atmosphere settled over the mess hall...