After listening to Asa's account of how the troops he was with had been completely wiped out on the hill, the knight let out a long shushing breath and lowered his head into deep thought. --

  Asa sat in a velvet upholstered chair, his fingers rubbing and squeezing the soft, smooth velvet. It was the kind of thing he had only seen before. The old schoolmaster in the village had a thin layer like that inside the box he used to put his holy books in. When he was three years old he saw an older child just squeeze it with his hand, and then that hand was beaten so badly that he couldn't hold a spoon for three days.

  The fact that such a noble, mysterious and dangerous being was now actually sitting on his ass made him feel a little strange and a little over the top

  Duke Mrak had gone to the Imperial City to attend a military conference, and was met by a young knight who claimed to be the Duke's assistant.

  The knight's piece of armor and matching sword were high-grade goods, and the insignia of the Holy Knights on it was the same one seen on Captain Asata. Young, handsome, mighty, extraordinary, and noble status, as well as the temperament that goes with it seamlessly, as if it were the hero of the story that the bard often heard in the mouth of his childhood.

  It was still a bit of a strange and overpowering feeling to have such a figure actually sitting on one's level with one's self, and to be immersed in contemplation of what one was reporting, the same as the chair, but magnified a number of times.

  "So you were the only one who broke out on your own, and then you were hunted down and fought your pursuers in the lizard swamp" the knight repeated Asa's narrative. The words were clear and slow and organized. It was as if he was afraid that others might not be able to hear or mishear his words.

  Asa nodded, "That's what happened." The journey had made him thirsty and he grabbed the pot on the table and poured himself a cup, realizing that it contained milk tea.

  "Are you sure you're the only one who escaped?" The knight frowned and looked at him very seriously with a very deep and elegant gaze, asking slowly, word by word. As if it was a very important question.

  Though he had been sure of it for a long time, Asa recalled it carefully and then nodded, "Yes. I'm the only one." The milk tea tasted great, but the cup was too small, and Asa kept drinking and pouring and pouring and drinking. In fact, he would have liked to drink from the spout of the pot, but the splendor of the dukedom and the gaze of the knight across the room didn't sit well with him.

  The knight stretched his brow slightly, then frowned hard again and asked seriously, "So have you spoken to anyone about this?"

  "No." This Asa was sure of. He'd been hoofing it ever since he'd come out of the swamp. Even now he had a bandage on his left wrist.

  Thanks to a few healing runes and potions in his traveling bag, they had been able to get out of the river and find a dead tree to float downstream to Bracada. When the magistrate realized that the injured one was Duke Mrak's daughter, he immediately brought in all the priests and doctors in a fifty-mile radius. A few ribs in Asa's chest had already been attached, and there was nothing much to be done with the healing spells, but she was just a bit fragile. The left wrist, on the other hand, was shattered so badly that it took a full day, and a couple of butchers and coroners were called in to look for bone fragments in the mixed meat. It took Asa three times to pass out from the pain, and only then did he manage to put it back together, using a staggering amount of healing spells and medicines, the pain was eliminated, but there was a strong suspicion that he was disabled as well. Now Asa was pinning all his hopes on Duke Mrak's wealth and power and the level of priests in the royal capital.

  "Then why don't you report this matter to the officer to whom your unit belongs?" The knight was still asking very patiently and carefully, wanting to cave in the slightest detail. He was concentrating much like a small child, gazing intently with a touch of caution, as if he were afraid that what was in front of him would suddenly fly away.

  "Because I'm not quite sure who's in charge of my unit. I just Bracada saw the recruitment for temporary soldiers and went to join." Asa was about to ask him who he should have gotten his ten days' pay, a dozen or so coppers, but looked at the cup in his hand, which was silver, and was too embarrassed to say anything. "I asked Miss Yi who I should report this to, and she said that the Lord Duke is the Minister of Imperial **Matters**. I just thought it would be quicker to come directly to report."

  "Oh, so that's how it is. Good, good, great." The knight's brow cleared and relaxed as if relieved, looking pleased. His smile looked as dazzling and infectious as that blonde hair. This is how most girls think of the man of their dreams, isn't it?

  As if it suddenly came to his mind, the knight asked, "Then Little Miss Yi she"

  "It's fine, the mayor of Bracada used a caravan to escort her, there's probably about twenty days or so before she reaches the royal capital." Xiao Yi's cervical vertebrae cracked under the werewolf's tight grip, and the injury worsened during the process of getting out of the swamp because of the movement of her body, the bones were slightly deformed. Bracada's priests didn't dare to do anything about it, so they only had to treat it slightly with healing spells, then immobilize it with a splint, and slowly send it back to the royal capital with a carriage.

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  "En." The knight nodded. "On behalf of His Excellency the Duke, I would like to express my gratitude for your valor in saving Little Miss Yi." After a pause, with his eyes looking straight at Asa, he said in his very slow and clear voice, "Moreover, it was very right of you to report this matter directly to the Duke's residence. I'm sure Lord Duke Mrak would be pleased to know about it as well." His turquoise blue eyes showed an expression of joy. "Your luck is too good to be true." These words were said with particular force, as if they were truly celebrating Asa's luck.

  For some reason, Asa felt some uneasiness from the knight's glowing eyes, as if it wasn't a sign of goodwill, there was a kind of malicious glee flickering inside. Asa asked, "Who the hell are you?"

  "Baron Clovis Ernie, Captain of the Second Division of the Holy Knights and aide-de-camp to Lord Mrak." The knight's gaze retracted, his voice smooth and moist, silky with these noble titles. "Miss Yi's fiancé."

  "Huh?" Asa was a little surprised by the knight's latter identity.

  The knight stood up, his sword brows slightly raised and a blade-like gleam in his eyes. There was not a trace of a smile on his face, even so majestic that it was as if this countenance had never been softened by a smile. In a stern voice, he bellowed, "Men. Take it down."

  More than a dozen heavily armed guards appeared at the door of the hall as if they had emerged from the ground and rushed in to surround Asa.

  Asa hadn't even snapped out of his last surprise and immediately fell into another big one. Standing up he said, "Is there a mistake, I say"

  The knight's hand knife didn't give Asa any time to react, cutting him accurately on the aorta in his neck. Immediately Asa fell softly to the ground like a drained pocket.

  "Take him to the cell and order a good guard, this is an important spy." The knight's voice was more intimidating than his gaze, and the guards were busy setting Asa up. "Prepare the horses. Prepare the tokens. I have urgent military business to see the Lord Duke at the palace."

  It was dangerously good fortune for the Lord Duke. And certainly his own. The knight picked up the cup on the table to take a sip of tea, only to find that he had gotten the cup Asa had just used. Picking up the pot, he realized it was already empty.

  'Dang it' the knight dropped the cup and instructed, pointing to the velvet chair Asa had just sat in, "This cup, the pot, and that chair, throw it all away." Adding as he stepped out the door. "Don't let me see it again when I return."

  The Duke's House was not only efficient with its underlings, but the prepared horses were also fast. After only ten minutes or so, the knight passed through the heavy guards to the military conference hall and met Lord Duke Mrak.

  After listening to the knight's brief whisper, the Duke smiled very gently, and then said in a very gentle tone to the table full of ministers, "Excuse me, please allow me to leave for a moment. It's my daughter's business, she was fooling around outside and got a little hurt."

  In the garden outside the hall, the knight repeated to the Duke in detail every word of what Asa had stated to him.

  The Duke squinted his eyes and listened carefully. His eyes were not big, when he squinted they seemed to smile, and his neatly trimmed eight-pointed beard, lined with his slightly blonde body and round cheeks, made him feel like a very kindly ordinary middle-aged merchant who believed in peace as a precious thing and harmony as a way to make money.

  "Lord Duke, this matter is really dangerous, fortunately this soldier fell into our hands. Do you think this means something is wrong on their side? We should" the knight inquired.

  The smile on the Duke's face did not diminish at all as he asked the knight rhetorically, "I remember you've seen them."

  "Yes."

  "What kind of people do you think they are?"

  The knight took a deep breath, and a look that was highly mismatched to him, defiant but unable to hide his awe, passed slightly, like a stubborn teenager who remembered a beast that had once horrified him. The knight frowned and insisted on his opinion saying, "But this did slip up"

  "No one is immune to blunders and mistakes, no one can grasp everything. As long as one has passed a sensible enough analysis, one should trust one's own feelings and mind, and even if something goes wrong, there is no need for regret or hesitation." The Duke carefully explained to the young knight like a teacher who was giving lessons to his students. "Since we believe that they are better than us at solving such things and far more efficient than us, let's just put our hearts into doing our own side of things. If something goes wrong, maybe there's some uncontrollable factor like luck, then there's nothing we can do about it. At least, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong now. Right?"

  "Yes." The knight listened to the Duke's words very carefully. The big reward of following such a superior was that there were many places to learn.

  A hint of worry flared in the Duke's eyes as he asked, "How is Little Yi's injury?"

  "It's probably nothing. The magistrate sent a caravan to escort the young lady, and it's on its way back."

  The Duke gave the knight a somewhat reproachful look and sighed softly. Then he asked, "What did you do with the soldier?"

  "Remanded in the city's jail, awaiting your disposition."

  The Duke asked, "What do you think I will do with him?"

  "Kill him."

  The Duke asked again, "What do you think is the danger of this soldier?"

  "Giving away to others what he has been through."

  Step by step, the Duke coaxed the knight, "The minute he lives and comes into contact with others, the danger to us increases. And since you know what should be done with him, you should quantitatively minimize the chances of him being alive and in contact with others."

  "I was waiting for you to come to a decision, this is important after all."

  "Don't get too attached to the rules, they were meant to be there to handle things. No matter what the situation is, use your own judgment and rational analysis first." The Duke looked at the knight and said word by word "It is important to have the confidence to trust your own judgment."

  "Yes." The knight lowered his head and answered with great force.

  When Duke Mrak returned to the conference hall with a smile on his face, the ministers all inquired about Miss Duke's injury. After thanking everyone for their concern, the Duke suggested that the meeting continue with the topic that was just discussed, "On the topic of the General's request to increase the financial allocations to his western army for clearing out the various Orc tribes that was just discussed, I am in twelve points of agreement. After all, the security of the country and its people is the first priority, and for that reason it's only right to cut back a bit in other areas."