Chapter 35

From beneath the field bed covered with a cloth, the face I had expected suddenly popped out. Cain looked at me and Balhail, who were staring at him with wide eyes, as if their gazes were nothing to him, and yawned widely before naturally crawling out from under the bed.

“What, what, what...!”

Balhail, who had just regained his senses, pointed at Cain with a red and blue face. So shocked he couldn't even speak properly, he could only open and close his mouth. Cain yawned again and grabbed Balhail's shoulder with one hand, throwing him to the ground.

“Ugh!”

Balhail, who hadn't budged when I resisted, rolled lightly on the floor. Feeling a sense of satisfaction, I clenched my fist and looked at Cain, who was looking down at Balhail with a cold expression I had never seen before.

“Why did you do such an absurd thing, Mr. Balhail?”

‘Wow...’

‘This is the sharpness of a knight!’ I thought, forgetting the situation and bursting into admiration. If I could control my still trembling body, I might have clapped, saying how cool Cain was.

“Why, why, why are you there!”

“It looked cozy and just right for a rest.”

“Who, who, who rests in such a place!”

“Strangely, I like it under the bed. It’s quite a dilemma for me too, you know.”

Cain replied to Balhail's words with a sly smile and stretched widely. Thinking he was about to attack, Balhail shuddered and flinched, and Cain smirked. Balhail's face quickly turned bright red with embarrassment.

“How, how rude! You should have moved when you saw the nobles coming, how dare a mere knight...”

Balhail raised his voice, perhaps trying to shake off his embarrassment. The more he did, the colder Cain's eyes became.

“Nobles? Who are you talking about? Surely not you?”

“Me! I am the heir to the Eilsworth Viscount!”

“So what? You don't have a title. You're just a nobody who relies on the Viscount's favor to enjoy a reputation. You're overstepping your bounds.”

“Titles are everything, you think? Do you know what kind of influence I have in society...”

Cain waved his hand as if he was tired of listening and stepped on Balhail's shoulder.

“I don't know anything about the social scene. I just want to beat you up.”

“What...? Ugh!”

Cain grinned and started kicking. The cold anger in his smiling face made my shoulders tremble. Balhail struggled to get away, but it seemed difficult to stop the movements of an experienced knight.

“S, stop! Ow! I'm sorry! Ow!”

Balhail screamed and apologized, showing a pitiful attitude that was far from his usual arrogant self.

‘This is going to end badly!’

Punishing a bad person is certainly necessary, but solving things this way made me feel heavy-hearted.

“S, stop it!”

I managed to move my stiff legs and stopped Cain. Balhail, who had been begging for mercy, seemed to have no intention of stopping, but he stopped kicking at my words. Balhail, sprawled on the floor, sighed in relief and crawled towards the tent entrance. Of course, his attempt to escape was easily thwarted by Cain, who pressed his back with his foot.

“You haven't properly paid for it yet, madam. This guy hasn't apologized to you either.”

Balhail, receiving Cain's sharp gaze, hesitated and moved his lips.

‘This apology is unnecessary.’

I ignored Balhail and gently tugged on Cain's sleeve.

“An apology that isn't earned by one's own strength is meaningless.”

Cain, who seemed to think it was a natural statement, slightly widened his eyes.

‘Did I say something strange?’

But isn't it cheap to stand behind someone and get an apology?

“Besides... forcing someone to submit this way...”

I shuddered, looking at Balhail, who was beaten up and in a mess. It's hard to see anyone, no matter who they are, end up like this. Not knowing how to express this feeling, I glanced at Cain, who, as if he had some thought, smiled kindly as usual.

“Being a knight serving a diligent madam, I am lucky.”

“Diligent... I'm not...”

“And commanding a knight is also a power that the madam possesses. It doesn't have to be done with your own fists to be considered cheap.”

“Th...”

I hadn't said that this method felt cheap, but Cain seemed to have read my mind.

“Well, if that's not the madam's preference, it's also the knight's duty to adjust.”

Embarrassed, I moved my lips, and he laughed out loud, looking at the tent entrance.

“It's time to go...”

As Cain muttered, the tent entrance opened as if waiting for something, and a group of people entered. The oppressive presence of the group in black uniforms was overwhelming.

“H, help...”

Balhail, who had been about to ask for help with a delighted look, shut his mouth when he realized something was wrong. He instinctively understood that they were not allies, as they looked at him with cold eyes. As they muttered about the sprawled Balhail, Altair appeared. He frowned slightly at me, who was holding Cain's sleeve, and approached me without hesitation.

In the process, he stepped on Balhail's hand, causing him to scream and thrash, but no one paid attention to his voice.

“What happened?”

Altair asked Cain in a low voice, scanning me with his eyes.

“Just as you said, I was waiting in the tent, but Balhail tried to...”

Cain whispered, glancing at the group in black uniforms. Although nothing happened as the attempt was unsuccessful, the mere fact that it almost happened could cause a scandal. From Cain's hesitant demeanor and my slightly disheveled appearance, Altair seemed to infer many facts, grinding his teeth as he glared at Balhail. Balhail flinched under the gaze that seemed ready to devour him.

“Don't be like that. The madam doesn't like it.”

“What?”

Altair frowned, as if he couldn't believe what Cain was saying to stop him and make excuses for me.

“She told me that. She said she doesn't like punishing people with brute force.”

“No, no, I didn't say it was brute force...”

Hastily waving my hands to avoid any misunderstanding, Cain shrugged and smiled playfully.

“Well, that's what she meant.”

“It's completely different!”

Cain's smile deepened as I stomped my feet in embarrassment. Altair, caught in the middle, looked at us in disbelief.

“Anyway, now that outsiders are here, let's act reasonably. We have plenty of opportunities to handle things our way.”

“...”

Altair didn't say much, but he seemed to agree with Cain. Just then, a man who seemed to be the leader of the group in black uniforms stepped forward and spoke to Altair.

“We will take him into custody first.”

“Do that. Have you already secured the evidence?”

“The people you mentioned quickly talked. The evidence has been secured through their testimonies. Thank you for the information.”

“It was my duty as a viscount loyal to the royal family.”

Altair bowed slightly, a rare show of respect. The man seemed to be of considerable status.

‘Who could he be?’

The black uniform suggested he belonged to a group, but there were no emblems or symbols to identify them, making it hard to guess.

‘...Wait a moment.’

As I pondered, a fact came to mind.

‘People who can wear black uniforms without emblems or symbols...’

The Black Dragon Knights! They were a special unit directly under the emperor, moving only on his orders. Loyal to the stability and prosperity of the royal family, they had considerable authority, making it difficult for even nobles to act rashly. If they targeted you, you could be labeled a traitor and fall into ruin in an instant.

“Balhail Eilsworth. In the name of the Black Dragon Knights, representing the imperial command, I arrest you.”

“B, Black Dragon Knights?”

Balhail seemed to have just realized the identity of the group in black.

“W, why are the Black Dragon Knights arresting me? I, I have never threatened the royal family!”

“All objections will be heard in Valssted.”

“V, V, Valssted?”

Valssted was a notorious prison near the capital. Once detained, you could become disabled or mentally ill before proving your innocence, and it was a place that housed only the worst criminals of the empire, including traitors.

“I am innocent!”

“All objections will be heard in Valssted.”

“No, really, I...!”

The man in the black uniform repeated the same words mechanically and raised his hand. The group waiting behind him rushed forward and dragged Balhail away.

“Ugh! Let go! No! I can't go! I am innocent!”

“Tsk.”

The man in the black uniform clicked his tongue in disdain at the screaming Balhail and nodded slightly to Altair. Altair nodded in return, and the man in the black uniform left the tent. The sudden commotion left my head empty. Blinking in a daze, I looked at Altair, who sighed and began to explain.

“I knew the third prince would be at this meeting today.”

“Yes, it was decided long ago.”

“I also knew that Balhail would try to harm you or me.”

“Y, you did?”

“Yes. Eilsworth is a well-defended place and my home ground, so I thought he would wait for me to go outside.”

Altair explained the situation kindly, but I still couldn't understand how the third prince's visit and Balhail's plot were connected.

“Our lord is not good at explaining.”

Cain, who had been listening quietly, also thought the explanation was lacking and stepped forward, sighing.

“There was definitely a plot to kill someone. If the target was manipulated appropriately, it could make the plotter's situation difficult. If the manipulated target was the third prince, the crime would go beyond just a murder plot...”

“...It would be treason.”

I said the answer as if in a trance, looking at Altair.