We Meet Again
The office of Heinkel's Office was silent enough that not even a single breath could be heard.
The only sound echoing through the room was the turning of papers by Heinkel Leinrant.
It had taken a full two days to return from the Wall to the main house.
More than anything, I wanted to rush back to my room and collapse onto my bed.
But this was the house of House Leinrant.
A family of knights utterly distant from the word rest.
"A necromancer religious cult… This is not something we can overlook."
"Indeed. Send official notices to the surrounding territories and instruct them to strengthen surveillance. If it's an organization this large, they're bound to have lackeys in the North as well."
"It shall be done."
After receiving Heinkel's orders, Berkman immediately left the study.
At least their work speed is fast.
The Archimond Cult.
Those vermin using my name while stirring up chaos across the continent.
I absolutely could not tolerate them rampaging through the North—my homeland—so inwardly, I felt relieved.
"I sent you to the Wall to hide yourself, yet even there you managed to accomplish something significant."
"I merely did what needed to be done."
"No. If it hadn't been you, no one could have accomplished it."
I couldn't deny Heinkel's words.
If I hadn't discovered those infiltrating through the tunnel, the Wall would have collapsed.
"At this point, there's no need to spend more time testing you."
As he spoke, Heinkel placed something atop the desk.
"This is…?"
What lay there was a silver badge engraved with the emblem of House Leinrant.
"It is the family's acknowledgment that you possess sufficient qualifications as a knight. It is also one of the requirements for taking the Imperial Knight Examination."
The Imperial Knight Examination.
Among all knight examinations conducted by the various nations, it possessed the greatest authority.
So they intend to officially grant me knighthood recognized across the continent. Which means…
From now on, real deployment missions would be waiting for me.
At last, I'd be able to do work worthy of the name.
"Take the exam soon. There will be much for you to do going forward."
"Understood."
After I answered, Heinkel spent some more time flipping through the report I had submitted.
"And regarding the knight order you'll belong to after the examination…"
Then his words suddenly stopped, and silence filled the room.
No—the problem wasn't the silence.
The real issue was these blatantly obvious stares directed at me!
"Father. And Delline."
"C-Cough!"
"W-What is it?"
The two of them, who had been pretending to look through documents or stare out the window while secretly glancing at me dozens of times, flinched.
Heinkel and Delline Leinrant hurriedly averted their gazes.
"I've been wondering this for a while now, but is there something on my face?"
"Hm? W-What are you talking about?"
"Nothing…"
"Then why do you keep staring at me?"
If something's bothering you, just spit it out already.
Seriously, this is suffocating.
When I confronted them directly, Heinkel extended a finger toward me.
More specifically, toward the cloak draped over my shoulders.
"…Where did you get that cloak?"
"The cloak?"
I lifted the cloak the Great Raven Knights had given me and answered casually.
"They gave it to me. Said the road back would be cold."
I said it lightly, but both Heinkel and Delline reacted as though it were an enormous matter.
"They gave it to you? The Great Ravens?"
"You didn't beat up one of their knights and steal it or something?"
"What am I, some kind of thug? They just gave it to me!"
As I answered without understanding, Heinkel and Delline exchanged looks as though they understood even less.
"Wait… surely not…?"
As though realizing something, Heinkel changed the question.
"Do you know what that cloak means to the Great Raven Knights?"
"What it means…?"
I simply repeated what Corax had told me.
"He said it was just cold-weather gear."
"Kuhk—!"
At my words, Delline nearly choked from coughing beside us.
"…They told you it was winter gear while handing you that cloak?"
When I nodded, Heinkel finally seemed to understand the situation and let out a deep sigh.
"Delline."
"Yes, Father."
"Contact the Wall. Immediately. As fast as possible."
Unlike the sighing Heinkel, Delline had been grinning nonstop ever since hearing my explanation.
"You're trying to poach him before he's even officially knighted?!"
At those words—halfway to a roar—Delline chuckled and left the study.
"Commander Corax… No matter how much he contributed to the Wall, pulling something like this first…!"
As I watched Heinkel muttering to himself, my expression only became more confused.
…No seriously, what is going on?
"What else? The Ravens marked you."
"Marked?"
Even while greeting Arin and Dunkel after so long, even while unpacking and lying on my bed, my curiosity remained unresolved.
I finally learned the answer during dinner.
From Delline, who had come to my room asking if I wanted to eat together.
"The feather cloak is only given to officially recognized knights of the Great Raven Knights."
"That cloak?"
"Yeah. When you left, Commander Corax personally draped it over your shoulders, didn't he?"
Only after hearing that did the Ravens' strange reactions begin resurfacing in my memory.
"Then that was…?"
"The investiture ceremony of the Wall knights. The commander personally places the cloak over them, and the witnessing knights raise their swords as proof."
"And I…"
"You walked all the way back to the main house wearing that cloak over your shoulders."
Clutching my throbbing head, I desperately tried to organize my thoughts.
Alright. Let's think about this.
So the Great Raven Knights just decided they were recruiting me into the order?
Without saying a single word to me?
This is…
This is…
"This is basically an ambush recruitment, you insane bastards?!"
"Puhahahahahaha—!"
Only then did all the scattered puzzle pieces in my head finally click together.
While I leapt to my feet shouting, Delline laughed loudly as though this was the funniest thing in the world.
"No, stop laughing and explain this! Does this mean I have to go back to the Wall?! Absolutely not!"
"Hahaha! Wahahahahaha—!"
After laughing for quite a while longer, Delline Leinrant wiped the tears gathered in his eyes and spoke.
"Don't worry. Nothing like that's going to happen."
Though Delline reassured me like that, the corners of his mouth showed no sign of lowering.
"Still, it really is impressive, Klein."
"What is?"
Seeing me answer with a sullen face while chewing on bread, Delline continued.
"You probably don't realize it, but you're likely the first noble in Imperial history to receive a cloak from the Great Raven Knights."
"…Really?"
I asked suspiciously, but Delline merely nodded.
"Even Father and I never received one."
"So what, instead of accepting me as a superior, they just treated me like one of their buddies?"
"That's several times harder than ruling over them through inherited status."
Even though I answered grumpily, I honestly didn't feel bad.
At least now I knew all the suffering at the Wall hadn't been meaningless.
"A single thank-you would've been enough. Why'd they have to make such a huge spectacle out of it?"
Remembering all those people gathering around just because I was leaving made me laugh without realizing it.
Seriously, knights…
Not a single one of them makes any sense.
One week after returning from the Wall.
My greatest focus while standing in the training ground was the Death Knight before me.
Kururur—
The very first Death Knight I created: Hector.
There didn't seem to be any flaws in the design itself, but the problem lay elsewhere.
"His soul is too weak."
A Death Knight created by extracting the soul of Hector, son of Helian, and binding it through a subordinate contract.
Perhaps due to how relentlessly I'd worked him until now, his mana reserves had noticeably diminished.
At this rate, even if I restore him, he'll only continue deteriorating. Maybe it'd be better to erase him entirely and make a new one…
It was while I was staring at the motionless Death Knight, lost in thought—
"Young Master Klein."
The one who appeared at one side of the training ground was the head butler, Berkman.
Perhaps it was his first time seeing a Death Knight, because his gaze remained fixed on Hector.
"Didn't you say I had no work today?"
As I dismantled Hector's spiritual body and asked that, the one accompanying Berkman—Delline—answered instead.
"Something suddenly came up. And it's something very important."
"Something important?"
At my question, Delline approached me with a sly grin and poked my side.
No seriously, what's with him lately? It's giving me chills.
"To be exact, an important guest came to visit."
"…A guest?"
The one who answered my delayed question this time was Berkman.
"Yes. It appears a guest arrived unexpectedly at the main house, so I came despite the discourtesy."
I always think this, but his etiquette was so precise it almost made me wonder if he were a machine.
If a noble etiquette handbook transformed into a person, wouldn't it look like him?
Thinking that, I slowly processed his words.
A guest.
Meaning someone acquainted with the family had come—a friend or acquaintance from another noble house.
And that only deepened my confusion.
Wait a second. A guest came to see me? Not Delline?
Facing perhaps the most bewildering situation of my life so far, I looked at Berkman.
"Do I even have anyone who'd come visit me?"
"Young Master."
"You know it too. I don't have any friends."
Saying it out loud made me feel depressed, but it was true.
Rumors about me being possessed by the ghost of Archimond Cult were widespread, and I was a prince without any backing.
There was absolutely nothing to gain from getting close to me.
"Then what kind of guest—"
"There is one person."
As he said that, Delline patted my shoulder and snickered.
Just as I was frowning at his strange behavior—
"Young Master Klein!"
A strange voice rang out from behind Berkman.
Apparently caught off guard by the unexpected situation, Berkman glanced behind himself for a moment.
But only briefly.
"My Lady. Forgive my rudeness, but the Young Master also requires time to prepare. It would be better if you waited in the reception room—"
At Berkman's warning, the owner of the voice seemed to shrink back slightly.
"Ah, I'm sorry. I was just so happy to see him…"
It was a clear and beautiful voice I had never once heard within this household.
Judging by the voice, she seemed around my age, which only made things stranger.
With a slightly trembling voice, a small figure slowly emerged from behind Berkman.
"Ah…?"
Eyes black and transparent like obsidian.
Slightly wavy black hair flowing all the way down to her waist.
And in contrast to it, skin as white as snow.
A girl with a delicate face beautiful enough to seem carved from sculpture stood there.
"It's been a long time, Klein…!"
At the gentle smile blooming across her face, even Delline let out a sound of admiration.
And only after seeing that face did I finally remember who she was.
Ciel la Ailasis.
The daughter of one of the Empire's Three Great Dukes, and the owner of the Imperial Magic Tower.
The young lady of the prestigious mage family, House Ailasis Ducal House.
And the political marriage partner I had first met when I was seven years old.