126 – Epilogue: Knight Of Justice, Kim Lulu (Tentative)
“Grandpa, you’re here!!”
“You’re as energetic as ever today, Lulu.”
The boy knight received Lulu’s welcome tackle with ease and spun her around in his arms.
Then, he recalled his old manner of speech from when he was an old man. He had avoided using language that specified his age since regaining his youth, but he would adjust his speech like this in front of Lulu.
Considering the age difference, it was like a grandfather playing with his young granddaughter in his arms, but since they were both visually appealing, it looked like two small children of similar height hugging each other.
Lulu buried her face in the boy knight’s arms and sniffed.
He smelled of herbs and earth. He always smelled like this. She had once asked him why he always smelled like this, and the boy knight had replied, ‘Because I eat herbs whenever I see them.’
It was strange that a man who could go without food for ten days or so would carry around herbs that were not even good for his liver.
Lulu looked at the calendar after a while. The circle that marked the day her grandfather was supposed to come was far in the future.
“You came earlier than I thought?”
“I did.”
The boy knight crossed his arms and clicked his tongue with a dissatisfied expression. He had cleaned up a city, beheaded a corrupt noble, and five black magicians, but it had all been in vain.
“I thought I’d pull out the roots of the wicked, but they ran away too quickly. They must be lizards, the way they cut off their tails with such artistry.”
“Oh, I saw that on TV! When a lizard bites its tail, it comes off like this and runs away! I saw that and thought, if we get caught by the Five Great Warriors, we can just cut off our arms and run away like that…”
“…What is TV? Who is the Five Great Warriors?”
“Ah. TV is, well, it’s like this big thing, and it shows all sorts of pictures! And, the Five Great Warriors are… my friends.”
The boy knight’s eyes widened. Friends?
The poor, pitiful child who had never had anyone to confide in until now had friends.
Lulu was a kind and innocent child, but she was not very good at thinking things through. So, it was possible that this person named Odes was a fly trying to take advantage of her by pretending to be her friend.
Even if he couldn’t improve her environment, he had to protect her from getting involved with a nasty fly. The boy knight sat down on a chair and asked gently.
“Tell me more about it.”
Lulu looked up to the right for a moment at his words and then said hesitantly.
“Well, that…he’s dead.”
“Oh dear.”
She was clearly lying, no matter how you looked at it.
However, it was not a 100% lie, but rather a mixture of truth and falsehood.
Instead of threatening her with dire consequences for daring to lie to him, the boy knight decided to take a softer, more gentle approach.
He would have his subordinates investigate her.
If he was a good guy, he would leave Lulu’s good friend alone, and if he was a bad guy, he would quietly make him disappear. The boy knight was a busy man, but he had enough time to help a child he had grown attached to.
He also had plenty of time to play.
“Well then… would you like to stretch your body a little?”
“You just got back from a business trip, aren’t you tired?”
“Now you’re thinking of others, how wonderful.”
The people around her probably wouldn’t be trying to teach Lulu about social skills at this point, so this change must have been due to her ‘friend’. One point added to his score.
The boy knight drew his sword and let it hang naturally.
He looked as natural as a branch on a tree. The blade made of tempered steel was attached to his hand as if it had grown there.
Lulu clenched her fists.To her, the boy knight looked like a towering mountain range. Before, she had thought, ‘If I hit it hard enough, even a mountain range will eventually crumble,’ but now, it was slightly different.
The imaginary Odes began to nag at Lulu.
‘Use your head, your head! Don’t just blindly charge in, think about where it’s weak and swing your fist!’
Hmm…
“uuum…”
But Grandpa, there’s no part of him that looks weak.
‘There’s no such thing as perfection. The difference in skill is so great that you can’t see it with your own eyes.’
If I can’t see it, where am I supposed to hit?
‘If you can’t figure out your opponent, think about what you can do… If there’s recovery, go for the damage, and if the defense is strong, go for the block.’
I see.
To bring down a mountain range, a tiny hole won’t do. I think I’ll need a big explosion. Something like TNT. I saw it on YouTube Shorts.
Wooooooooooong──!!
Lulu gathered magic power in her fist. She imagined a huge explosion. As her will was applied, the nature of the magic power gradually changed. It was a very primitive method.
Primitive magic that produced results not through elaborate techniques and formulaic transformations, but through desperate wishes. Its efficiency was extremely low.
But it was much better than not using the technique at all.
Clack. Clatter.
The magic power concentrated in Lulu’s right hand solidified, and the magic crystal took on the shape of a gauntlet. And the bestowed nature of the explosion. The magic crystal was tinged with a faint pink color.
“Grandpa, here I come──!!”
“I’m ready.”
And, a straight punch.
“‘Rodeo Impact’──!!”
A fearsome blow with a bit of finesse was swung. The boy knight’s eyes calculated the power contained in the fist, and the damage it would inflict in detail.
If it hit and exploded as it was, half of the headquarters building of the Order of Knights would be blown away by the explosion, and the aftershock would end up destroying three mansions.
Compared to the previous Lulu, it seemed that her power had increased by 50% even by simple calculation.
I have to erase it.
The boy knight’s sword, which had been hanging loosely, moved without sound or form.
“Transcendence, ‘Striking Object’.”
One, two, three.
Lulu couldn’t see the boy knight’s sword strike, but she felt it swing three times. This was because the ‘Rodeo Impact’, which she had hit with all her might, was cut into three pieces and disappeared.
What remained after the near-catastrophic magic power disappeared was only the girl’s graceful punch.
Thud.
The boy knight lightly received Lulu’s fist with his palm.
“You’ve grown a lot. It must not have been easy to put finesse into that much magic power.”
“I’ve been getting a lot of nagging!”
“Did that friend of yours tell you?”
“Yeah. Odes has been nagging me all day.”
The reason Lulu had been simply and ignorantly pouring out magic power was not only because she didn’t have the wisdom to move that much magic power delicately, but also because it was difficult to move such a large amount of magic power itself.
Just as a small stream of water can be redirected with a flick of the hand, changing the course of the ocean requires great force.
Excellent tutoring. One bonus point added.
The boy knight began to like the guy named Odes more and more. Now, he asked the most important part.
“Is this a man?”
“Uh…”
Lulu pondered deeply and then spoke honestly.
“…Both?”
“?”
The boy knight also fell into a moment of thought. Both?
Does both mean both ran, or does it mean neither? No, does knowing that mean you’ve seen it? Or, can you change your appearance⋯⋯.
It was a profound dilemma, whether to give bonus points or take them away.While the boy knight was drawing an image of what an Odess might look like in his imagination, Lulu crossed her arms, puffed out her chest, and spoke confidently.
“Grandpa, I have something I want to do!”
“What you want to do is important. If I can help, I will.”
“I want to be a warrior of justice. It’s so cool!”
“Hmm…”
Justice.
Nine out of ten people who are intoxicated by justice die miserably. This is because it is a value that is difficult to protect with moderate power. So, usually, I would advise against it.
However, Lulu had not moderate power, but immense power. Even if she dreamed of justice, her safety would not be compromised. The boy knight noise.
“But I don’t know how to do it.”
“Then, let’s ask Ronald, the captain of the 3rd team of the Capital Knights. He knows a lot about it.”
“Can’t you tell me, Grandpa?”
“I’m not righteous.”
The boy knight smiled gently and stroked Lulu’s head. Lulu thought it was strange that he said he was not on the side of justice, but she did not say it out loud.
If someone who beats up all sorts of bad guys and brings peace to the empire is not justice, then what is it? Lulu just thought that her grandfather was embarrassed and let it go.
Anyway, the 3rd team of the Capital Knights.
I remember it was the team led by the mustachioed man. However, the image of them that remained in Lulu’s memory was not very strong.
From Noble mtl dot com
“Do they know…? Whenever I visit them, they’re always playing around and not working…”
—- —-
Hidden in the basement of the building, the command center of the 3rd team of the Capital Knights.
As usual, they were having a peaceful and idyllic day, working hard to punish criminals, when they heard the sound of the scream-in-charge knight’s bio-siren.
“Emergency!!!”
“What, what is it! Scream-in-charge!! Report the situation!!”
“The Captain of the Capital Knights is visiting!! The Captain of the Capital Knights is visiting!!”
“Kyaaak!!”
At that terrible news, the 3rd team command center was instantly turned upside down. It was like an elephant suddenly barging into the house.
Basically, elephants are harmless to herbivores, but the moment you provoke them, the house collapses. The same goes for the Captain of the Capital Knights. Moreover, she was a ‘curious elephant’!
Faced with this grave threat, Ronald, the captain of the 3rd team, once again demonstrated his clear leadership.
“Everyone, assume the posture of submission!! We will show the apex predator who is about to appear that we are completely harmless and that we are ready to surrender immediately to any kind of challenge, whether it be a duel, arm wrestling, or dice game!!”
“Yes!”
“Excuse me, Captain…. What is the posture of submission?”
“You’re a newbie, aren’t you?! Okay, watch this. It’s exposing your belly, the most vulnerable part of the human body!!”
Thud.
All the members of the 3rd team lay down on the floor with their stomachs exposed.
Some of the more capable knights even brought out their emergency pillows and blankets and pretended to be sleeping. Beasts are most vulnerable when they are sleeping!
They removed everything that might interest the Captain of the Capital Knights. In the first place, a battle maniac does not give a damn about fighting. That’s the answer.
In fact, this formation was effective against the Captain of the Capital Knights, and while other departments had to undergo unavoidable remodeling work one after another, the 3rd team succeeded in protecting their headquarters.
So this time, they would respond with complete and utter defenselessness.
Creak.
“Excuse me, I’m here to ask you something…”
When Lulu opened the automatic door and entered the 3rd team headquarters, all the knights were rolling around on the floor with their eyes wide open. Some were even lying in bed with their covers pulled up.It had always been like this. Every time she visited, the guys from Team 3 would be goofing off.
Now she knew how to describe these guys in one word.
“Salary Lupin.”
“…”
Justice?
Shouldn’t they learn about professional ethics before justice?
Lulu gasped and sat down on an empty chair. Grandpa was a man of few words. So there must be a reason why he had singled out Team 3.
So she decided to get to the bottom of it. Ronald, the Team 3 leader, was snoring with a blindfold on, but she wasn’t sure if he was even listening.
“You see, I want to be a warrior of justice. I’m not sure how to do it, so I came to you.”
“…”
A flinch.
“When I asked Grandpa, he told me to come here. He said the mustachioed old man from Team 3 would know.”
“…!!”
A double flinch. Ronald’s eyelids fluttered open.
As Lulu kept pressing Ronald’s happiness button, a silent communication raced between the knights underwater.
This is a trap, sir!! It’s strange for the Captain of the Knights of the Capital to suddenly say such a thing! He’s trying to interrupt your sleep so he can duel you!
But that boy knight, the Black Sword of the Empire, praised my Shout!!
Don’t be fooled, sir! Don’t fall for it──!
“I…I don’t know much about justice. I don’t even know what justice is. I just thought it looked cool. Saving people, and most of all, making them laugh. That’s what my friend did.”
“…”
“So, I⋯⋯ I guess I want to stand next to my friend. I don’t want to be a shameful person. If I ever see him again, I want to be able to proudly boast about how many people I’ve saved….”
Ronald could no longer bear the budding of justice. If this was a trap, he had to meet it head-on.
Thud! He kicked off the covers and roared.
“Then you’ve come to the right place, this is the front line of justice!! We are the ironclad enforcers of the law-!!”
“…Huh, weren’t you sleeping?”
“A righteous soul has awakened me! Captain of the Knights of the Capital, I am deeply moved right now… Justice, yes, it is to bring laughter to someone…”
All this time, he had only thought about punishing. He had been stuck. But the essence of the law must be to bring a smile to someone by carrying it out!
Ronald trembled with emotion, his eyes moist. As one goes through life, one can sometimes be enlightened by a passing elephant.
Lulu felt a little uncomfortable.
Anyway, Ronald smiled broadly and put his hand on Lulu’s shoulder.
“I will not say that our justice is the only correct one. But I think this is the best place to learn about justice! Everyone here is struggling with it!”
“Oh, yeah…. I, I see.”
“If the Captain of the Knights of the Capital cooperates, we can carry out many operations that we haven’t been able to do before… But it would be a disservice to give a fledgling only chores! Let’s take things one step at a time and draw a concrete picture of justice!!”
“Oh, yeah… I understand, but could you back off a little when you talk?”
Lulu pushed Ronald away. Bang! Ronald rolled away with the sound. He got up naturally with a back roll and pointed to one side of the whiteboard.
“Recently, an incident occurred that has given us a profound question…!! It’s the vigilantes who appeared in Crown Hall!”
“Vigilantes…?”
“Yes! Those who are not public authorities and who act outside the bounds of the law! They say they have blue hair and flowing skirts and that they inflict private sanctions on the wicked!! Their courage and righteousness are to be commended, but if we think about the nature of the law──”
“Wait a minute.”My heart was pounding a little, no, a lot, just from listening to this.
Lulu gathered magic in her fist. A lot of it. Then, the inside of Team 3 became eagerly quiet.
“That, blue-haired… Tell me everything you know about that person.”
“Reporting officer Erwin, speaking! Eyewitness accounts of the subject began a week ago, and she is known to use a rapier as her primary weapon. Her main area of activity is ‘outside the Circle,’ but it is possible that she has a base ‘inside the Circle’ based on her presumed escape route, so the case has been transferred to the Capital Knights…”
“I’ll solve that… No, wait. Hmph, calm down, Kim Lulu. I want to solve that case. I want to meet that vigilante girl. I’ll be the one to arrest her. Who can tell me what I do you need to do?”
“You’re trying to solve it through dialogue…!! You’ve definitely changed. So, the Captain of the Capital Knights is interested in the irony between law and illegality…?!”
Thump-thump.
Team 3’s Captain Ronald’s heart was pounding at the thought of raising a newbie of justice. Even more so because she was a Transcendent-class powerhouse, and she was trying to use communication instead of force!
Lulu suppressed her wildly beating heart, just in case, just in case. In order to not be disappointed, she kept telling herself that it couldn’t be true, but her expectations wouldn’t die down.
You could call it a dream within a dream.
Lulu, who was known as the Captain of the Capital Knights but was actually a tactical nuke, ended up cooperating with Team 3 of the Capital Knights.