As I left the royal castle, I found a new group on the island that didn’t look like Ho family sky knights.
The first order of the royal guard had arrived. They were lined up neatly and looking at me, showing no signs of attacking. Among them, I spotted a familiar face.
“Yuri. Or should I say, Your Excellency?”
It was Galla Godwin—Dolla’s dad.
“Please don’t embarrass me with titles. You don’t serve me, Galla.”
“That’s true. Not yet, at least.”
Not yet...? Oh, maybe he’s right.
“Members of the first order, thank you.”
I hadn’t fully grasped the situation, but if they’d come to us, it meant that they’d gone beyond their promise of not taking action.
“Our highest-ranking officers are all in custody,” Galla explained. “I couldn’t get the entire first order under my control, but there were enough willing soldiers to assemble a unit of a thousand. I fear we’re not much use, but we’re helping where we can.”
I could hear women shouting incessantly somewhere behind these soldiers. I guessed those were the officers who’d been arrested.
“You didn’t face any resistance from the second order?” I asked.
“Not much. There are three hundred of us gathered here, and the other seven hundred are patrolling the island. We’re getting everything in order gradually, and I haven’t heard any reports of tough battles. I ordered them not to fight with Ho knights, but if any clashes did occur, then I apologize in advance.”
“That’s fine. Clashes are unavoidable.”
Even when two armies were on the same side, accidents on the battlefield were inevitable. The soldiers would be in a tense situation as two opposing sides constantly tried to kill each other. If someone appeared before a soldier brandishing a weapon, the soldier might panic and attack before realizing their mistake. That would result in some accidental injuries and perhaps even some deaths. We couldn’t prevent such incidents, and we’d be arguing forever if we treated every case as an act of hostility.
“What about Metina Arkhorse?”
“We got her too. She’s confined to her quarters. We have someone watching to ensure she doesn’t kill herself.”
“All right. That sounds perfect. Thank you.”
Tillet had told me that it was uncertain whether the first order would take action, but that they probably would. It looked like they’d done their fair share of work after all.
“We took an additional twenty prisoners along the way, but our garrison doesn’t have its own dungeon. There’s one nearby that serves all of Royal Castle Island. We’ve got our hands full keeping watch over the prisoners right now, so I was planning to put them in there after talking to you.”
Given that someone would have to watch over the process as they were carefully untied and placed into cells, I personally thought it would be better to leave them bound. Though there was always the risk of them being lynched if they weren’t inside a cell. It was hard to imagine that members of the first order would do anything as barbaric as raping their former commanders, but I couldn’t rule it out.
“All right. Let’s do that. Even if they’re going to be executed, we might need them in the meantime.”
“Right. You should make them stand trial.”
A trial...?
Since our kingdom had a court system based on rule of law, I’d have no influence over the judgments delivered, but it would be worth it. At the very least, I had to follow proper process so that the upcoming transfer of power would be recognized as legitimate.
“Now, I don’t suppose you’ve seen my fool of a son?” Galla said, changing the topic.
“I’m afraid not.”
“He told me he was going to go see you after the assassination. He probably headed for Ho Province. If you two didn’t meet, then you must have missed him somehow.”
Seriously?
“I suspect you’re right. My men might’ve arrested him,” I replied.
“I wanna see Yuri! Where is he?!”
“Who do you think you are?”
“I’m the son of Galla of the royal guard. Now, where’s Yuri?”
“I don’t trust this guy. You’re under arrest!”
I could just picture the scene. The whole idea was way too realistic.
“If they did, I hope you’ll release him,” Galla said. “He doesn’t mean any harm. He just tends to forget himself whenever Princess Carol’s involved.”
“I’ll see to it.”
Looks like I’ll have to pay him a visit, but I’m not looking forward to what he’ll say after all that’s happened. He’ll probably punch me.
Somehow, the thought wasn’t an unhappy one. I was just now realizing that no one had blamed me for anything. Perhaps I actually wanted someone to criticize me.
“Now that things are in order here on Royal Castle Island, I need to check on the main body of my forces. I’m not sure what happened to them,” I said.
I had no worries about them losing.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t leave without talking to a royal sword first. There’d probably be one or two of them near the burning bridge. I needed to ask them to take care of Carla’s body before I went anywhere.
“Your Excellency! I bring news!”
Just as I was about to say goodbye to Galla, I heard someone calling to me. It was a young man with a handsome face and well-groomed hair. He was wearing a messenger’s uniform.
The Ho family had a unique uniform worn by specialized sky knights that we referred to as messengers. Since their job was to deliver information quickly, they had to be easily recognizable so that everyone knew not to get in their way. For example, if people were waiting in line to enter a place, a messenger could cut in front. If a road was blocked with traffic, then even high-ranking officers would stand aside to make way.
The man that had just run up to me didn’t need to stop and salute.
Since a messenger had appeared just as I was in need of information about our situation, Galla used it as an opportunity for flattery. “I see the Ho family has all the finest soldiers.”
Compared to the soldiers of the royal guard, ours might’ve been special. Their experience in actual combat meant they knew when a situation demanded proper discipline. I’d gotten the impression that the second order was particularly lax in that regard.
“Go ahead and speak,” I said.
The man stood perfectly straight before me. “I bring news! The second order of the royal guard has been eliminated! Our forces are victorious!”
I quickly delivered a powerful kick to his knee. The sensation I felt through my foot was unpleasant as his leg buckled.
“Whoa!” Galla cried out in surprise.
“Hah?! Agh... Urgghh!” The kick sent the man falling to the ground.
The suddenness of it all had left Galla and the knights of the first order behind me watching in disbelief.
“Throw this one in the dungeon with the others,” I said. “He’s probably working for the witches.”
We weren’t here to eliminate the second order. They’d surrender long before it came to that.
Though I couldn’t rule out the possibility that a full-scale battle had broken out somehow, resulting in the enemy’s annihilation. Maybe what the man had said was true, but if he was working with the enemy, he’d be an assassin, so I had to strike before he could.
“How can you be sure? Did you already receive word that the second order had surrendered?” Galla asked.
“His hair’s too neat.”
“What...?” Galla didn’t seem to understand. The significance was lost on him since he wasn’t a sky knight.
“His hair wouldn’t be that tidy if he’d flown in on an eagle. He looks like he was sitting at home grooming himself just a few minutes ago. Well, he’s not so polished now.”
His hair had already gotten messed up as he writhed around on the ground.
I had no idea where someone would get the uniform needed for such an underhanded trick. He’d probably put some effort into his appearance thinking it would make him more convincing, but he should’ve thought a little harder about what sky knights do.
“But he could’ve just—”
“A messenger’s job is to deliver information as quickly as possible. They might flatten their hair with their hand, but no real messenger would stop to pull out a comb in the middle of their duties.”
Maybe there really were messengers stupid enough to do just that, and this was all my mistake. But if that were the case, the Ho family would be better off without this guy.
“I have to go. I’m sure he bears a grudge against you too, Galla, so please handle him carefully.”
“R-Right... I’ll do just that.”
After my discussion with Galla, I walked toward White Sunset.
It felt odd to see eagles resting here and there along Royal Castle Island’s familiar road. Some riders must’ve been unable to find anything to tie the reins to, so they’d left them pinned under rocks. Fortunately, none of our birds tried to escape and fly away. Since the eagles around them weren’t taking off, they might’ve felt compelled to remain on the ground with the others. Maybe future animal behavior experts would have a thing or two to say about the social nature of these birds.
With these thoughts going through my mind, I reached the spot where I’d left White Sunset. A royal sword stepped out from the shadows as I approached. It wasn’t Tillet, but Henrique.
“Hey there! It’s your favorite girl, Henrique!”
“What’s wrong with you?” I replied, sounding a little more grumpy than intended. Her choice of greeting had been downright bizarre.
Since when did she act like this? Is she definitely a royal sword?
“Ah, that figures... You’ve already made your first impressions of me, haven’t you?” Henrique suddenly sounded less excited. “Ahem... I’ve been watching the royal castle under Tillet’s command. How did it go?”
She’d transformed back into the Henrique I’d encountered during my previous visit to the castle. It wasn’t as though she’d suddenly gotten depressed. It was more like someone had lowered the tension on the string of an instrument, restoring it to its proper tuning. When we’d first met, she hadn’t been putting on a cheerful act. If I’d never met her before, I would’ve just thought she was cheery by nature. It was odd seeing how rapidly she could switch from one personality to another.
Henrique looked around in all directions in an exaggerated fashion. “I’ve been waiting here for Carla to come falling down,” she said, lowering her voice.
“I decided not to throw her. I laid her down in a room on the sixth floor with a missing doorknob. I need you to change her clothes and somehow make it look like she poisoned herself.”
Henrique narrowed her eyes like she was sizing me up. “What? You took pity on her? You’re softer than I thought.”