215 – Epilogue-8
“You guys are really… too foolish. I have nothing to say.”
“Did you just realize that?”
The knights, dressed in armor, stood in front of her with an undisturbed attitude.
“I’m not going to say anything… but why the hell did you do this. For me.”
“Because I believed you would come back like this one day.”
The knight who finally got out of the position of ‘temporary leader’ and became vice-captain welcomed Eleanor’s return with a smile.
“Really, fools…”
Eleanor’s wry smile was a mixture of gratitude, sadness, and apology.
However, the people behind her were celebrating the sweet pleasure obtained after a long wait.
Eleanor. A knight among knights, she stood in front of them.
The atmosphere was a bit unhealthy, but compared to the broken and collapsed girl who had just returned to the capital, this was at least a normal change.
There was no hesitation in that sword, and there was a faint smile on his lips that he had never seen before.
“let’s go.”
she drew her sword
Those who remained in the devastated Order of Knights, with no honor or reward left, were fully rewarded with just this one appearance.
“It’s an ordinary gang. Human trafficking, kidnapping, theft, robbery. They’ve done everything, so there’s no need to take matters into their own hands.”
“All right!”
Members who had met her for a long time trembled at the familiar touch.
It was no different from the journey they took every day when Eleanor had just been assigned to the Knights and was establishing security in the city.
At some point, the capital’s criminal organizations dried up and the need for such a sweeping operation disappeared.
If it was natural, it was natural. It was because no criminal organization with any connections could guarantee safety by fighting against the knights that the princess herself participated in.
Unlike her noble background, Eleanor had minimal knowledge of the physiology of the underworld. Her sword could not be avoided with halfway tricks.
When a criminal organization grew in power even a little and began to gain notoriety, the Platinum Knights appeared like ghosts, annihilated them, and disappeared.
After years of repeating it, it was only natural that no criminal organization dared to make a name for itself in the capital.
However, the emperor is dead. Confusion increased, and the princess, who had hit them on the head every time they raised their heads, got lost.
Criminal organizations that lined up with members of the imperial family in various places were devouring each other and fighting for rights, making the streets uneasy.
But, that was also the last day.
“Corsair!”
Members of the gang fled like rats the moment their shiny white armor caught sight of them.
The power gap was too great. In fact, even one Eleanor could have taken them all down.
Even if only the Platinum Knights were committed without her, the result would not have been different.
Fully armed knights were not something that could be damaged by a thief’s cunning blackjack or dagger.
“Hey, where are you coming from here… Kheuk!”
There were criminals who dared to stand in their way, but Eleanor cut them down with a single sword.
“This is the capital. It will soon become the home of His Majesty the new Emperor.”
Eleanor’s blood-splattered smile, not the cold, sober face she always kept, made her enemies fearful.
“We found the captive citizens! Two women, one man and five children!”
“Team 4 leads them to the guards on the main road.”
“All right!”
Eleanor felt a strange sense of incongruity as she slashed the enemies who stood in her way without hesitation.
“…Hey, vice-captain. Did we pass this place?”
“no.”
“Then what is this fuss about?”
Come to think of it, it was a bit strange.
It is the movement of the knights. No matter how abruptly and quickly they attacked, they could not hide the information that armored people were rolling past them.
A proper criminal organization would have tried to stop her by either retreating in an orderly manner, or raking in what was left of them.
But they didn’t show any response, as if they were already in chaos before the Platinum Knights arrived.
“Continue forward. Beware of traps and ambushes.”
However, there was no time to waste on such a sense of incongruity. If you waste your time and lose sight of the ringleader, you will pay a greater price than your carelessness.
Time was of the essence. Eleanor moved forward relentlessly, entering the criminal syndicate’s stronghold.
“…what?”
“Huh? Why are you here…”
And what she saw was an empty lot that had become a mess.
Countless people were falling down and moaning. Seeing her body tremble, it seems that she is not dead, but at least she does not have the strength to rise again.
But what surprised her even more was the all-too-familiar voice of the man at the center of the confusion.
“Ene-“
“Who are you!”
Eleanor felt her heart break. He was pretending to be an assassin in a black suit and a mask, but the person inside was Enerel.
‘…ah.’
Wait, Eleanor felt rejected by him. But come to think of it, if he went out dressed like this, there must have been a reason.
“Yes… is that what you did?”
He was hiding a holy sword, and in his hand was a small rod with flashing electricity.
“…Chit.”
He turned his head for a moment, then turned around and quickly ran away. After assessing the situation, Eleanor gave an order in an instant.
“Every enemy inside must be down! Protect the survivors, take over with the guards and catch the criminals! I’ll go after that man!”
“…please.”
The vice-captain smiled dejectedly and nodded. The other members of the Platinum Knights were also smiling strangely.
“Then let’s go!”
Eleanor followed the mysterious man in black into an alley.
/////
“Why did you chase after it and sit down? What about the rest of the kids?”
I took off my mask and sat on an abandoned chair waiting for Eleanor.
“Didn’t you adjust the speed to follow me?”
“Your pursuit was so bloody that I felt like I was going to crash into it. Even if you did, the house you ran into would collapse.”
It was a bit embarrassing. I didn’t expect to meet Eleanor here.
I’ve had many conversations with the elders, but the criminal gang couldn’t help it.
they are criminals However, they had a connection with the imperial family, and after negotiations were made, it was difficult to ask for their sins hastily.
Besides, the negotiations weren’t going well either. While thinking about it with them, I came up with a very simple and primitive solution.
Finally, the answer is that all you have to do is defeat them.
Even if they were wearing masks, there wouldn’t be a fool who didn’t know that I was the one who defeated them.
However, you can’t openly argue. It was like intimidating the prospective emperor without any clear evidence just because a criminal with whom he had only a little relationship was victimized.
“You seem to have managed to reconcile with the other kids.”
“…I don’t know. I won’t be able to go back to being the Eleanor they wanted anymore.”
“I will.”
As before, the flawless Eleanor is no more.
“I am your sword, not the sword of the Empire. If you want to enjoy fighting alone, I can’t help it, but if you have to do it out of necessity, please use me.”
“I don’t know if I should.”
If the soon-to-be emperor puts on a mask and causes a commotion, it’s just plain funny a scandal, but it’s outrageous for an emperor to do such a thing.
“I may have shortcomings, but I will do my best.”
“In the first place, if there’s a problem that can’t be solved with your own strength, it’s a problem that can’t be solved no matter who you use. Unless it’s the demon king…”
Come to think of it, will the demon king and the hero reappear in a few hundred years?
At that time, I might have to pick up the holy sword again. Or, maybe I should pass this sword on to a new hero.
“That’s true, but what I fear is a little different.”
“What?”
“It wouldn’t be so desirable if a woman who claimed to be your sword was swung in a direction different from your will.”
I met eyes with Eleanor, who was looking at me.
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Just a little bit, her eyes twitched.
Not with anxiety and fear, but with expectation and hope.
“So, I’d like to learn a little bit. What you said to me, what emotions I need to understand my father and mother, what makes me do my duty.”
It was as shocking and sublime as a machine that gets emotions and makes love.
“Don’t say anything strange…”
I handed her the biscuits I had packed in my pocket. It wasn’t that the body was shaken so violently, so the cookie’s original form was intact.
“eat.”
Eleanor silently took the biscuit and munched on it.
“I will remember.”
A person who needed no other adjectives, the innocent Eleanor, was in front of me.
It wasn’t such a bad sight, as people are by nature.