Chapter 18

"Hmm, this will do."

Returning to the mansion, I stood in the living room, unbuttoning my shirt, and tended to my own wounds.

I removed the bandage the maid had applied and used the ring linked to Leviathan to create armor that would adhere closely to the wound.

The material, which felt like metal but wasn't, pressed firmly around the wound, stopping the bleeding.

After that, I turned my attention to the girl I had brought back.

The girl was huddled up small.

She looked like a child who had been scolded by her parents—no, more like a child who was afraid of something worse.

"First, tell me your name."

"Ah... I'm sorry."

The girl hurriedly prostrated herself and then gave her name.

"My name is Shirley Granz."

"Shirley, huh. That armor looks quite impressive. Is it yours?"

"This has been passed down through generations of my family... um..."

"Hmm, what is it?"

"My fate... what will it be..."

"Fate?"

"About the crime of accidentally injuring the prince..."

Shirley, on her hands and knees, raised her face. She looked incredibly frightened.

I had already told her not to worry about it.

"That crime doesn't exist."

"Eh? But according to the imperial law..."

"That's not what I mean. I'm saying that the crime of accidentally injuring someone doesn't exist."

"What do you mean...?"

Shirley tilted her head in confusion.

"Stand up, Shirley."

"Yes, sir!"

"Show me that thrust again."

"Eh? But..."

"Knights follow orders."

"---! I'm sorry."

Shirley stood up, drew her longsword, and took a stance. Her expression changed; the fear was almost gone, and she looked resolute.

She lunged with a powerful cry.

The thrust was as good as the one during the selection.

I stopped it.

Leviathan's shield stopped it.

"This much... eh?"

Shirley immediately noticed the "difference." She realized that the shield, which she had pierced during the selection, didn't budge at all, and was surprised.

"It won't budge, right?"

"Yes, pushing or pulling...! This is... amazing."

The tip of her sword was stuck to the shield as if it were being sucked in, and it wouldn't move no matter how she pushed or pulled. Shirley was astonished.

"If I had really tried to defend, your attack wouldn't have gotten through. So, it wasn't an accident. I made it happen."

"Why...?"

Shirley was even more confused.

"Knights are supposed to follow orders. If you can't follow orders, you're just a slave. There were various plans, but at that moment, I didn't need someone who was just looking at my face and not attacking seriously."

"Yes, sir!"

"If I wanted slaves, I'd get them in a different way. This time, I'm choosing knights. That's the point."

"Even at the risk of your own safety?"

"I wanted to see how people would react after injuring me. You came at me seriously the second time because I ordered you to. You pass."

"...Yes, sir."

Shirley nodded, her eyes wide and her mouth open in surprise. Then she looked at me with a moved expression.

"So, you passed. Just to confirm, did you take the selection with the intention of becoming my knight?"

"Yes, sir!"

Shirley hurriedly straightened up, knelt on one knee, and bowed her head. It was a mimicry of etiquette—no, it was something from a play.

The formal etiquette of the nobility is unknown to commoners; the more showy forms from plays and dramas are more familiar.

Shirley performed the kind of knightly salute you see in plays.

"Shirley Granz, I swear eternal loyalty to the prince."

It wasn't the formal wording, but the sentiment was clear.

Most importantly...

---

Name: Noah Ararat

Wise Prince

Gender: Male

Level: 1/∞

HP: F+F Fire: F

MP: F Water: E+S

Strength: F+E Wind: F

Stamina: F+F Earth: F

Intelligence: F+F Light: F

Spirit: F+F Dark: F

Speed: F+F

Dexterity: F+F

Luck: F+F

---

My abilities increased as I gained a subordinate. This increase was much more important and clear than whether her etiquette was correct.

Come to think of it, Shirley might have improved the most among individuals.

"I'm counting on you, Shirley."

"---! Yes, sir!"

After finishing the conversation with Shirley, as if waiting for it to end, the maid brought in a doctor.

A middle-aged man, round and fat, with a round face and a mouse-like mustache. I recognized him. He was the court physician, the royal doctor.

His name was Good Clay. His real name was Bad, but it was too ominous for a doctor, so the king bestowed him the name Good.

He was trusted by the king for his medical skills.

"You're here, quite the fuss."

"Hmm. Let me see the wound immediately."

"Sure."

There was no need to refuse since he was here. After all, what I had done was just emergency first aid to stop the bleeding.

I ordered Leviathan to remove the armor that was adhering to my skin like an undershirt. Instantly, blood spurted out.

"---!"

"...Please bear with it for a moment."

Shirley gasped, but Good, being a doctor, saw the mere external injury without a change in expression.

"I must say, fortunately, the bone and tendons are not affected. It should be fine if we stitch it up."

"Alright, do it."

"Shall I give you an anesthetic—"

"No need, I'm still in the middle of a conversation. Do it quickly."

"Y-Yes... then."

Good nodded at me, who was sitting calmly, and took out the needle and thread for stitching. He wiped the blood, cleaned the area, and began to stitch the skin together.

When he finished the front, Good looked up at me.

"What is it? Is there something on my face?"

"No, it's just that I've never seen someone who doesn't even flinch or change their expression during such a procedure."

"Is that so?"

"You are truly remarkable."

Saying that, Good moved behind me and started stitching there.

With Good out of sight, I could see Shirley, who had been hidden behind him, watching the procedure with great interest.

"What is it, Shirley?"

"Ah, um... doctors are amazing."

"Really?"

"Seeing a cut being treated like this... I've never seen it before."

"Have you never seen a doctor?"

"There is no doctor in our village."

"Really?"

I frowned.

"No doctor in the village?"

"Yes. Um... is that a problem?"

"Then what do you do when someone is injured or sick?"

"Grandma prays and drives away the cause of the illness."

"Common in poor villages."

Good interjected from behind, his sigh indicating his frustration as a doctor.

"Good."

"Yes, sir?"

"How does one become a doctor?"

"Generally, one apprentices with an already practicing doctor."

"Do you take apprentices?"

"Yes, a few."

"Shirley."

"Yes, sir!"

"This is your first order. Bring back smart and hardworking children from your village."

"Um...?"

"Good, I'll entrust you with a few apprentices."

"...Understood."

After a moment's pause, Good nodded quietly behind me.

"Um... Your Highness? What exactly...?"

Shirley still seemed to be struggling to understand the situation and cautiously asked me.

"I'll cover the tuition and living expenses. Bring someone who wants to become a doctor and treat the villagers."

"...Thank you so much!"

Shirley hurriedly knelt and bowed her head to me, almost prostrating herself. Knights don't do this, so I'll have to teach her.

Shirley, raising her face, looked at me with even more admiration.