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Chapter 101
Troubled Home
Kuwung!
With a sound that shook Hestia Village, the situation came to an end.
Those who had gathered to eliminate the remaining monsters formed a circle around Valdrova.
All their gazes looked down on her.
"Just what on earth is this......."
Еnum а̊ .ìd̀
"Uuep......."
Those with weak stomachs dry-heaved at the sight.
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There were also those who knew that form.
'Berserker.'
Those seized by rage who smash everything.
That rage cannot be controlled; unless there is a mage who can use Calm Magic, they are merely treated as a small Ogre.
E ṅu ḿ а̇. і̆d
The residents could guess why she, who wielded absurd superhuman strength, was here.
That guess wasn't certain either, but fear spread in an instant.
Everyone feared Valdrova.
Valdrova did not take any action.
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She merely lifted her head slightly, scanned her surroundings, then sat quietly in place.
Everyone glanced at each other and hesitated.
Е n u̇m̊а. ї d̃
No one had the courage to step into that pit where the ground had caved in with a single blow.
"Are you alright, Sir Knight?"
A man wearing the epaulets of the Security Captain.
The man who had faced off against the monsters more bravely than anyone approached and asked.
Valdrova could not answer.
"Can you stand? Shall I help you?"
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William held out his hand, but Valdrova didn't even look at that hand.
She just remained there as if dead.
What awakened her spirit was a single voice.
"Sir William."
It was Ferda.
She raised her head and looked up at Ferda.
Еn̈ü m ӑ.і d
"Yes, Regent-nim."
"I heard a tremendous explosion just now. This seems to be the epicenter......."
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Ferda looks at her.
Those cold eyes.
They were not the gaze that had looked at her affectionately.
"You are......."
Ě ń u m_а̇.і̂ ḋ
Ferda cannot continue his words.
Valdrova knows the reason.
'I am.......'
A monster.
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Ferda walked toward Valdrova.
Unable to bear seeing his expression, she lowered her head.
Е̌nu m a
With her vision blocked, the footsteps sounded even clearer.
Ferda, who had drawn close, opened his mouth.
"Come to the castle. I have something to tell you."
The usual tenderness directed at her was nowhere to be found.
* * *
I had seen this space several times before, but it was very different from back then.
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Back then I surveyed it as the master; now I have come as a guest.
It was a laughable story.
The master of the castle coming as a guest.
Ferda does not know that fact.
He personally prepared and poured the tea in the reception room.
"Originally the maids do this, but they're busy cleaning up the situation outside so I have to do it. Please understand if the taste isn't good."
W е bn o̊ v̈ е̌ l Е̄ ň ǔm̈.а̂
"......."
"Still, consider it fortunate. Since I made a rule that all knights must wash up before entering, it would have just wasted time."
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Ferda held out the teacup to Valdrova.
It didn't matter whether the taste was good or not.
'Tea that Ferda-ssi brewed.......'
Just that alone seemed extraordinarily special.
Ēnû m а . і d́_
I want to drink it.
But if I take off my helmet, my face will be revealed.
Ferda will be shocked.
If that happens, I'll have to explain what I've been doing all this time, and it'll get complicated.
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He will feel disillusionment.
She didn't want to face that tragedy.
Е̂ n̆umа̄
'Let's just stay still.'
Valdrova silently set down the teacup.
Ferda, who had been watching that action quietly, started a different conversation.
"I hear you took a Vow of Silence."
Nod nod.
"It's a good excuse. If you say you took a Vow of Silence, you only have to answer what's asked, and you don't have to say unnecessary things. Isn't that right?"
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Ferda's cold gaze seemed to pierce through her.
"I don't know about the ignorant masses, but I grew up in a knight family. The Vow of Silence is usually something only Paladins do. And if you trust someone, it would show on your body."
"......."
"But you serve no one. All you possess is strength and fighting skill that surpass knights. Then why did you tell such a lie?"
He said cynically.
"It's an obvious story. That you hid your identity to escape your past."
Enùm̀а̇. i d̊
Valdrova clenched her fist.
Even if Ferda was off on some details, the essence was correct.
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Valdrova hated herself.
More than the demons who had driven many to death, she hated herself for having to make someone tremble.
"Try telling me."
Ferda asked, lifting his teacup.
Ẅеb̂ n̂ оv̇ê l̈ Е́ n̂ um а_
"Have you ever killed someone while seized by that rage?"
Nod.
"So you ran away and came here?"
Nod.
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"I see."
A brief silence.
W еb̊n о v̌ё l Е ň ū m̊ӓ
Ferda, thinking of something, asked her.
"Do you regret that day?"
Regret.
How could she not regret it?
For decades she had sunk in grief, loathed herself, and suffered from nightmares.
She prayed for God's mercy and salvation, but no one listened.
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Instead of moving forward, she stood still and loathed herself.
Whenever she thought of those sacrificed in the Dragon-Demon War, this thought always came to mind:
If only those people she had killed could live again, she wouldn't mind becoming an Evil Dragon who made the whole world her enemy.
Valdrova nodded her head.
"I see."
That calm affirmation seemed to create a calm before the storm.
Ě ṅ ûṁā
It felt like abuse would fly at any moment.
That a monster like you isn't needed in this city.
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To get lost right now.
"You."
But there was no storm.
"Do you like this village?"
Ẁӗ_b̃ n̊о v̈ еĺ Еnum а́
It was an extremely easy question.
Valdrova nodded her head.
"Do you also have the intention to protect this village?"
Nod nod.
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"Then...... do you also have the intention to accept the knighthood I propose?"
Nod—.
Е̃ ṅ u̇ m а
Valdrova lifted her head.
'A knight.......'
A position that protects the people and guards the king.
What country boys dream of is Knight Romance.
Valdrova, too, liked the word 'protection' enough to be interested in that position.
'But, why?'
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She couldn't understand.
People saw her as a monster.
Those girls trembled in fear.
I am an Evil Dragon, no, an Evil Person.
Such a person must not become a knight.
"Do you think you lack the qualifications?"
Е̄n u m̄ а̄
Nod.
"You're thinking trivial thoughts."
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Unrestrained harsh words.
The soft-hearted Valdrova was hurt.
"Do you know how many adventurers participated in Hestia Village?"
Shake shake (head shake).
Ŵ.еb̃ňо_vе l Ёńŭm̄ å
"23 teams came. In numbers, that's 73 people. Each one of them is a force, a person of wisdom."
"......."
"But when the defensive battle unfolded, only 4 teams participated. Do you know what that means? It means 19 teams didn't care if people died or the village was destroyed."
Ferda leaned his body forward and spoke.
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"But you didn't. You could have hidden among those idiots, but you moved to protect this village."
"......."
Ѐ n ú m ӓ
"That's because you know that the people right before your eyes are more precious than the past."
At those words, something disappeared from inside Valdrova's chest.
I thought he'd be looking at a cold-blooded monster, but that wasn't it.
That had been Valdrova's delusion from the start.
Though not affectionate, respect was contained in those eyes.
"If you have the heart to protect this place, your past means nothing to me."
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You are not at fault.
And you just have to keep moving forward.
'What is this.......'
A strange emotion was felt.
I've had this kind of conversation several times when receiving Ferda's mana.
Back then, Ferda was always affectionate.
Ŵ е́b̀_ňо̊ v еl Еn u m̈а̃
'But it wasn't comfortable.'
When Ferda dealt with her, he treated her like a flower that might break at any moment.
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Those delicate, soft hands merely grazed her skin and passed by.
Valdrova couldn't believe those words, and so that comfort remained only as a fleeting emotion.
'It's different from back then.'
Tone and gaze that aren't affectionate.
W̆ e ḃ no̊ v̇el Е̂ n ú_m̂ а̃
An attitude of treating her like a stranger in every way.
'Feels like meeting for the first time.'
No hesitation in touching, drawing out deep empathy from within.
All of it seemed like seeing another side of Ferda.
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Her heart pounded.
Deeper than when she first saw him, this was unmistakably the emotion of yearning.
Е̄ ń ú m̄а́. і d
"Do I seem like an understanding person?"
At his question, Valdrova nodded.
"Unfortunately, I am not such a person. The fact that I'm pretending to be this understanding is only because I've seen a person like that once before."
Who on earth could that be?
As she wondered internally, he spoke.
"That person is truly beautiful."
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Beautiful.
Ferda, saying those words, smiled.
At that sight, Valdrova's chest felt tight.
'Ruri said Ferda-ssi never smiled at anyone but me.......'
That his affection was for Valdrova, his smiles for Valdrova.
Just who is that person, to make him like that?
E̊n̈ ûmа̀. і̌ d
"I only saw the face once, but even that can't be said to have been seen properly."
'Just seeing the face once, how could they be such a good person?'
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"Moreover, the first time I saw that face, it was wet with tears."
'Is a crying appearance that beautiful.......'
"Every time I want to see that person's face, but I can't bring myself to speak."
'What a bad guy. Not even showing their face once.......'
Е̃ nüm̂ ӓ
"Still, thinking that person is resting without worry beneath this castle, I take comfort in just that."
'Beneath this castle.......'
Wait a minute.
That person.......
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'Nanga?'
Valdrova realizes belatedly.
W̃ е̃ b̆ n̆о́v ě ľ Е̌ nǔḿа
Retracing what he said, wasn't the situation exactly the same as hers?
'Ah.......'
Valdrova's face turned bright red.
Once she realized it, she wanted to run out of here right this instant.
And go back to her lair, roll around on the floor like usual, and make nasal sounds.
But she poured her heart and soul into calming this trembling and acted like a stranger.
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'I really must not be found out now.'
Whether for Ferda's sake or mine!
"The idle talk was long. So, can you think once more about receiving the knighthood?"
Ferda returned to the main topic.
Valdrova also decided to think again.
'If I become a knight...... would I become the person who protects Ferda-ssi?'
Ё ñu m а
Valdrova's heart pounded.
As a dragon, as Valdrova, to hear words she could never have dared to hear, just listening made it impossible to hide her fluttering heart.
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'I want to protect the village.'
But even greater than that,
'I want to protect Ferda-ssi.'
And even greater than that,
E n̄ um а
'I want to hear more about how he thinks of me!'
A woman who lacked the courage to ask to his face, and a man who couldn't say it to her face.
In such a relationship, it was a perfectly flawless moment to directly hear true feelings.
That reason was almost everything.
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Just as Valdrova was about to give her answer to that.
"Ferda-nim."
E̊ n um̄ ă. і̀d̈
Ruri came inside.
"How is the village situation?"
"Cleanup is proceeding smoothly."
"Any bad news?"
"Nothing in particular. Casualties are minimal, and while there are many seriously injured, emergency treatment was finished quickly so there's no danger to their lives."
"That's a relief."
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"I will attend to you."
She skillfully and quickly took her place and served the tea.
Ruri's gaze briefly glanced at the armor.
"Hm?"
She, who was indifferent to humans, for some reason was staring at that armor.
Ruri stared intently at the armor.
Еn ú m̃а
A face that looked like she might realize something, yet also like she might not—a vague, uncertain expression.
After a moment,
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"......Hah?"
Ruri's expression rapidly soured.
Valdrova knows that expression.
'She figured it out!'
Eṅū ṁ ǎ
Inside the armor, her complexion turned pale.
Ruri looked at her with a dumbfounded gaze, and following the Vow of Silence, kept her mouth shut.
Ferda, who hadn't noticed at all, just found Ruri's behavior strange.
"Why are you like that?"
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"......It's nothing. I just suddenly thought of the filth left in the village."
Ruri finished attending as if nothing was wrong and went behind Ferda.
Ŵ е̊_b̄n̈ о́vе̃l _Еn u m̀ а
"Then let's continue the story—."
"Excuse me."
Ruri cut in, interrupting.
"May I ask what story is in progress?"
"......That's the first time you've asked that."
She was always faithful to her role.
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Standing like a folding screen, never meddling.
"It seemed like quite an important story. I felt I might need to know it too."
Ferda answered willingly.
"I asked if you could swear fealty to me as a knight."
"Knight...... fealty......?"
A dumbfounded face.
W е bn о̄ v еl _Ė n u mа̌
"So did you accept?"
"I was about to hear the answer."
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"Hoh......."
Ruri narrowed her eyes and glanced at the knight.
"Is that so?"
Valdrova's body shrank involuntarily.
Е̇ ń u̇m̌а . і̀ d
Is she planning to expose her identity?
Strongly denying it in her heart, she sent a telepathic message to her.
Please pretend you don't know!
Ruri had no such intention either.
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Instead, she responded more cruelly than Valdrova had imagined.
"Ferda-nim. What do you think of this?"
W̄ е b́n ӧv̂е̇ l Е n̂u_m̂ а
"What thing?"
"A situation where a high-ranking knight swears fealty to a commoner."
Ferda answered.
"One cannot swear fealty to a commoner, but swearing fealty to one's own convictions is possible. If one says they will protect the people according to their convictions, it can look like swearing fealty to commoners. That is a noble thing."
That was why Ferda made William the Security Captain.
If the village grew larger, he even planned to appoint him as a knight.
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"That's just an example. Then let me put it a bit differently. For instance......."
She pretended to choose her words, then answered.
"What if Valdrova-nim swore fealty to Ferda-nim?"
Ferda frowned and answered.
He glared at Ruri as if asking if she was in her right mind.
"That's nonsense. That can't happen. The one swearing fealty is me, and you must give trust; saying you'll swear fealty to me is no different from insulting me, is it not?"
E̊ ǹ ũ m а . í d
"That's exactly what I mean."
"If you knew, don't say such things carelessly. Even as an example, I can't tolerate it."
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"I apologize. I just asked out of curiosity."
Ruri crossed her arms and glared at Valdrova.
An expression asking if she understands how absurd this situation is.
"So what will your answer be?"
Е nům̆ а
Ferda asked.
Her answer was already decided.
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