Chapter 64

### Extra Chapter: "A Father's Confusion" - A Follow-up Story

This is a story about Albes when he was 17, a young knight in the kingdom's army.

That day, an unusual atmosphere permeated the palace from early morning. Albes, dressed in the uniform of a kingdom army knight, walked down the palace corridor, tilting his head in confusion. He couldn't quite put his finger on what felt "unusual," but the different air around the palace made him not question when he was summoned to the central building.

Albes had joined the kingdom's army about a year ago. After completing his training as a new recruit, he was now serving as one of the knights in the First Army, responsible for the security of the palace and the capital. He thought he was called to the central building to reinforce the palace's security, but when he stood before his superior officer, he almost tilted his head at the sight of his colleagues lined up.

The gathered knights were all young, around Albes's age or slightly older. They were skilled, but for reinforcing the security, more experienced knights could have been chosen.

Yet, regardless of their units, only young knights were gathered. Moreover, the superior officer who summoned them assigned the security posts with a nonchalant attitude, ending with the rather careless command, "Just walk around as you please." Albes was full of questions.

"...In situations like this, Albes is always called, isn't he?"

While patrolling the corridors of the central building, Barloy sighed deeply. Albes turned to his colleague.

"What do you mean? Do you know something?"

"Yeah. Haven't you noticed the palace's atmosphere has been strange since this morning?"

"I thought we were called to reinforce the security, but something feels off."

"Sure enough, you noticed that too."

Barloy ran his fingers through his hair.

"Didn't you think the gathered members were odd?"

"Yeah. It seems they deliberately chose only the young ones. Is it some kind of test for new recruits?"

"It would have been better if it were. The selection criterion is... their faces."

"...Their faces?"

"They only chose young and good-looking knights. ...Are our military's upper echelons really that stupid?!"

Barloy sighed. Indeed, Barloy is known to be popular among women, not just for his good looks but also for his considerate and reliable nature. However, Albes tilted his head.

"It seems like the selection of palace guards. I haven't heard of any shortage, though."

"In a way, there is a shortage. Because of our prince."

"Does that mean... Fil did something?"

"Our Prince Fil is particularly sparkling and over-the-top today! The women in the palace are all flustered. They must have decided to deploy good-looking knights to calm things down."

Albes thought about this while walking, still maintaining his vigilance. He checked the faces and attire of the busy clerks, ensuring that the nobles' guards were not overly armed. He also noticed that the maids walking down the corridor seemed more flustered than usual and quickly regained their composure when they saw Albes and Barloy.

However, he still couldn't connect this to their deployment. As Albes tilted his head, Barloy grabbed his shoulder and whispered.

"More importantly, do you know why Fil is so unnecessarily sparkling? Several people saw him being dragged away before his vacation."

"I just took him to my hometown."

"......What? You took him to the Raguuren territory?"

"My hometown is uninvolved in the palace's power struggles. He seemed to have a good time."

"Sure, Raguuren is a nice place, but did you really take him there? He's a prince! Did your father faint?!"

"I did send a letter in advance, so he treated it normally. ...He was quite surprised, though."

"Of course, he would be..."

Barloy looked genuinely sympathetic. Albes's father, Viscount Raguuren, is known for his welcoming nature, even when young knights show up unannounced or engage in youthful antics. Barloy likes the calm viscount, which is why he genuinely worried about the viscount's reaction.

But now, the cause of the recent unrest was clear. From the maids' reactions, it seemed the military's upper echelons weren't as stupid as they thought. The solution might be ridiculous, but it was effective.

As Barloy sighed and stopped walking, Albes suddenly quickened his pace.

"Hey, Albes?"

Barloy hurried to catch up. Before he could, Albes was already helping two elderly maids carrying a large basket.

"Let me take it."

"But, sir knight, we can't let you do that...!"

"It's on my patrol route. I'll take the sheets too."

While the maids were still confused, Albes took the bag of sheets from another maid and walked off. The maids looked at each other and hurried to catch up. Barloy watched in amazement, then sighed and covered his face.

"...Albes, that guy, he's at it again..."

He muttered, glancing around. The palace maids were staring with wide eyes, and the maids from the lower ranks were blushing and giggling. Even the female clerks were blushing as they picked up dropped documents. It was the expected scene, and one Barloy had feared.

"Fil is already hard enough to handle, but now Albes is also stirring up the women's hearts... and he's doing it unconsciously!"

Albes is kind to women. It's not just his attitude; he can't ignore a woman in distress. He believes helping is a given and doesn't realize the emotions his kindness evokes. From Barloy's perspective, Albes is worse than Fil, who consciously manipulates women's hearts.

Until now, Albes had only been to the military headquarters and its surroundings, so his indiscriminate kindness was known only to a few. But the military's upper echelons must have targeted this for his assignment to the central building. The strategy was perfect, and the effect was probably even better than expected. Thinking about it gave him a headache.

"...Damn, the higher-ups should take responsibility...!"

Barloy sighed and decided to follow Albes to prevent things from getting worse.

### ◇

The flustered atmosphere among the palace women settled down a few days later. However, the young knights, including Barloy, were dealing with a new situation.

The military headquarters is in the eastern wing of the palace. Recently, women have been frequently appearing around the eastern wing. Some are from noble families, and some are from commoner backgrounds. They all carry large, heavy bags and travel from the central building to this distant location, which is a testament to their determination.

When these women spot a young knight, they wobble under the weight of their bags. When the knight approaches, they look up and mutter, "It's not him," with a disappointed expression. Yuris, who had seen this disappointed face for the third time that day, was holding his head in the mess hall.

"...Man, I can't take it anymore!"

"Yeah, I can't take it either."

Barloy, who was eating with him, nodded with a hollow smile. But Rend laughed brightly.

"What, Yuris and Barloy, you're both so pitiful! This is a great opportunity to meet women!"

"Not really! They're all here for Albes!"

"Even so, if you help them with their bags, you can talk to them. If the conversation goes well, you can talk to them again. Even if you're not special to them, it's fun to join in their chatter, right?"

"...You might think so. But I'd rather sweat during training! Everyone is aimlessly wandering around, and there's no one to train with when I go to the training grounds! Barloy, you must be having a hard time too, right?!"

"I'm starting to not care. They'll get bored eventually."

When Yuris, who was dramatically lamenting, sought agreement, Barloy only sighed and twirled his knife. Rend, watching the two, frowned and crossed his arms.

Indeed, many women were there for Albes. But from the beginning, the women had multiple targets, and as the trend continued, the number of women who wanted to get to know the knights indiscriminately increased.

Barloy, who is always impeccable, has had a strong following for a long time, and Yuris, who effortlessly carries heavy bags, is actually highly regarded by women. Rend, who has heard the inside stories from his cousins, has been secretly considering whether to share them with his dispirited friends.

But Barloy is tired of the military's devious plan, and Yuris is only interested in older women. There's no way they would perk up by hearing these stories.

"—Well, it's fine."

Rend muttered and casually looked out the window. Beyond the window, which is always open except in winter or during storms, he saw an elderly couple with a servant carrying heavy bags. They looked like nobles from a different region, perhaps from the south or west. They seemed to be visiting the palace for the first time, looking around nervously.

Rend's comment made Yuris look out the window. Recognizing the elderly couple, he immediately stood up.

"Hey, didn't someone say an old couple was coming? Their bags look really heavy. I'll go welcome them!"

"But someone is already heading... Hey, that's Albes!"

Startled by Rend's words, Barloy, who had been sipping water sullenly, quickly stood up, his face tense. In front of the knights, Albes effortlessly took the heavy bags from the servant and was about to guide them to the military headquarters in the eastern wing. It was a casual, matter-of-fact action.

It was typical of Albes. But...

"Why did they send him to the princess's place to hide him, and why is he back already?!"

"How should I know! The princess probably had a whim again!"

As the young knights ran out with all their might, they saw Albes walking back to the barracks, chatting casually with the elderly couple and carrying their bags. ...And the women were watching him with sparkling eyes, murmuring, "It's so wonderful that he's kind to the elderly."

### ◇ Extra Chapter: "The Daily Life of Young Knights" - End ◇

Thank you for reading to the end.

### Book Information

From SQEX Novels, "I Was Invited to My Ex-Fiancé's Wedding Even Though Our Engagement Was Broken. I Can't Refuse, So I'll Ask My Brother's Friend to Accompany Me" is available in two volumes.

(Volume 1 is equivalent to the main story of the web serialization, with significant revisions and additions. Volume 2 is a new story.)

### Manga Information

Serializing on Gangan ONLINE, the first volume is on sale, and the second volume is scheduled for release on January 12.

For more details, please check the activity report.