CH 83

“Kieeeek! Such a precious figure is greeting us in such a shabby place!” Mirian said excitedly, correcting her words from before.

“Did His Excellency send him? Hmm? To take Sir Eugene to the castle? Please say yes! Oh, handsome knight, please!” Mirian pleaded while buzzing around Lanslo, even though she knew he could not hear her.

Eugene glared at her and gestured.

“Kiek!” Mirian cried out with shock and quickly recognized Eugene’s hidden instructions, hurriedly making her way into the tent. Naturally, Lanslo wasn’t able to see Mirian’s reaction, and he took his seat in a chair cleaned by Luke.

“Then I will be outside. Please call me if you need anything, master,” Luke said.

“Right,” Eugene answered.

Luke bowed deeply before saluting to Lanslo as well. Then, he left the tent.

“Your aide is quite quick-witted. He possesses a good physique, and judging from the way he walks, he must have been faithful to his training as well,” Lanslo said.

“He’s a slave, not an aide. He was a gift from Viscount Fairchild, Count Winslon’s son-in-law,” Eugene responded.

Lanslo looked surprising after hearing Eugene’s answer.

“You bought your slave a sword, armor, and a horse?” Lanslo asked.

“As you saw, he’s quite competent,” Eugene answered.

“…As I heard, you’re not an ordinary person. You surprised me in many ways, Sir Eugene,” Lanslo commented with a good-natured smile.

Eugene responded calmly, “I could say the same for you. Are you truly a knight of Count Winslon? Why were you pretending to be a guard before?"

“Haha. I wasn’t pretending. Rather, it was my assigned task. I could not disobey the request of the one who presented me with my sword, armor, and horse,” Lanslo answered.

“Count Winslon?” Eugene asked.

“Yes.”

Eugene felt rather confused. Even if Count Winslon was a great noble possessing a knight order, how could he use a knight as a mere guard? No, rather, Eugene had a hard time understanding how could a proud knight willingly obey an order to work as a guard.

‘No, wait a minute. He said it was a request from Count Winslon, right?’

Eugene intuitively sensed that the relationship between Count Winslon and Lanslo was different from the typical relationship between a lord and his knight. However, he decided to keep the information to himself for now.

“By the way, what is your purpose for coming?” Eugene asked.

“Once again, it was a request from the count. He asked me to meet with you, Sir Eugene,” Lanslo answered.

“Hmm.”

“Although those knights who were acting impudently towards you on the drawbridge were free knights, their skills were quite decent. You defeated all three of them, sir,” Lanslo continued.

“So what?” Eugene asked.

“The count became very interested in you, sir. Naturally, he expected you to enter the castle for you to give your greetings, but since you established your residence outside the walls, this happened. Even though he didn’t explicitly say it, I’m certain he was quite disappointed,” Lanslo smiled meaningfully with a shrug.

“Is that all?” Eugene asked.

“As expected, you’re quite extraordinary, Sir Eugene,” Lanslo answered.

Count Winslon was the host of the competition and a great noble. To hear that he was disappointed would come as a great shock for anyone. However, Eugene was far from being shocked. In fact, he didn’t even bat an eyelid.

“The main purpose of this visit is that the count wants Sir Eugene to join me in the mock battle,” Lanslo said.

“Mock battle?” Eugene asked.

Galfredik had spoken to Eugene about the knight competition in great detail. The competition consisted of three major parts – the jousting competition, the swordsmanship competition, and the mock battle. The jousting competition was the most popular among the spectators, but the nobles and the lords regarded the mock battle as most important. Knights were considered indispensable in large-scale battles, and that was why nobles and lords always wanted competent, strong knights under their commands.

“And why should I do that? Wouldn’t you have any complaints about fighting with me, sir?” Eugene asked.

“Complaints? No way. I wonder if there are any knights who would refuse to fight alongside the man who assisted Lord Essandra in ending the chaos in the Carls Baggins Peninsula,” Lanslo answered.

“You know about that?” Eugene said with surprise.

“As I expected. I apologize, I was merely confirming my suspicions,” Lanslo answered with an awkward grin. Eugene felt dumbfounded. He had felt it at the gate as well, but it became clear that Lanslo was no ordinary knight by any means.

“Since there are so many knights that gather from all over to participate in the competition, there are as many accompanying rumors as well. I happened to hear an interesting story regarding the Carls Baggins Peninsula, and after meeting you today, I deduced that you might be the protagonist of the story,” Lanslo explained.

“Hmm. Let’s say that’s true. That still doesn’t answer why I should fight alongside you in the mock battle, sir,” Eugene replied.

“In the upcoming competition, thirty points are awarded for the jousting competition, thirty points for the swordsmanship competition, and forty points for the mock battle. As such, one must win the mock battle and contribute greatly in the fight if they want to become the winner,” Lanslo answered.

“That still doesn’t answer my question,” Eugene said.

“Haha. You are truly sharp, Sir Eugene. Any other knight would have accepted the proposal already, then declared their intention to become the captain of the group,” Lanslo responded with a smile.

“I tend to be cautious. So, why do I have to fight alongside you, sir?” Eugene asked once again.

Lanslo wiped the smile off his face and answered with a serious expression. “You must team up with me if you want to win. I’m a little… or rather, I’m very strong.”

“…” Eugene stared at Lanslo with a dumbfounded expression. Then, he responded in a cold voice, “Stop spouting nonsense and tell me the real reason.”

“Oh, I was being completely honest just now. I really am quite strong and I can fight well,” Lanslo answered.

“I thought you heard the rumors regarding what I accomplished on the Carls Baggins Peninsula,” Eugene said.

“Yes. But the mock battle…” Lanslo started to respond.

“Did you also hear about how I subjugated the Archivold family’s dungeon by myself?” Eugene asked.

“…!”

“I guess that must have slipped your ears. That was why you could spout such nonsense with such confidence,” Eugene said.

Lanslo could not hide his surprise after hearing Eugene’s words. After a moment, he spoke with a sigh. “Phew~ I guess this requires a change of plans. No, rather, I guess the standard had been incorrect in the first place. I was basing your skills off the rumor that Sir Eugene had hunted a wyvern in an evil land. Then, I will be frank with you,” Lanslo spoke in a quieter voice.

“The sudden participation of the holy knights in the competition has caused quite a bit of trouble. Many participants are already hoping to be in the same group as the holy knights, and in order to defeat them, quite a few members of the Golden Moon Knights will need to participate, which would expose the strength of the county. That is what the count is worried about,” Lanslo explained.

“You should have said that from the beginning,” Eugene replied.

Lanslo leaned back on the chair with an awkward smile before responding. “I apologize. However, it’s hard to believe and recognize all of Sir Eugene’s accomplishments and skills from the count’s point of view. In the first place, it would be strange to fully trust a knight from the first meeting even if he did bring a letter of recommendation.”

“Well, that’s true,” Eugene nodded.

Eugene would have done the same if he were Count Winslon.

“Anyways, so Count Winslon would like other participants, instead of the holy knights, to win the mock battle, and he wants me to join. Is that correct?” Eugene asked.

“Exactly. If you accept, we will support…” Lanslo began.

“I accept,” Eugene said curtly.

“…!” Lanslo was truly shocked. He had judged Eugene to be a shrewd, calculating person since he kept on baiting him. But he had never imagined that Eugene would accept the proposal without hesitation as soon as the truth was revealed.

‘He is truly a magnanimous knight.’

Lanslo was overcome with admiration and awe.

“Even though I haven’t met him in person yet, I often heard that Count Winslon is a man who knows true chivalry and honor. Since he is facing a difficult situation, it would be wrong for me to simply watch from the sidelines. I would be ashamed to call myself a knight,” Eugene said.

How long had it been since Lanslo had met such a man? Eugene was a tiger among men, a knight among knights!

‘How shameful! I cannot believe that I was trying to trick a true knight.’

Lanslo repented amidst the admiration he felt.

“Sir Eugene. I swear on my honor. If you lead the troops to victory in the mock battle, I will grant you a request, apart from the prize money and the award from the count,” Lanslo exclaimed.

“Hmm. As you wish,” Eugene responded nonchalantly. Although Eugene was pleasantly surprised, he made sure to hide his true thoughts. There was a simple reason why he accepted Lanslo’s proposal without hesitation.

‘There are supposed to be a lot of casualties in the competition, right? Since the count personally sent a knight to ask for my help, I should be fine even if I kill a few.’

Since one of the deaths was bound to be Jung Dircht, Eugene was inwardly grateful for the sudden stroke of luck. But Lanslo was unaware of Eugene’s thoughts. He simply stared at the brilliant, ‘true knight’ with sparkling eyes.

***

After Lanslo returned to the castle, Eugene left the tent with Luke. He headed to a pub located in Winslon Village.

“Welcome, sir knight. Drinks, food, women. What would you like?” A young boy said politely after greeting Eugene. Even though the pub was quite busy due to the competition, the boy had instantly noticed Eugene’s plate armor.

“Is the owner here?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. Please wait a moment,” the boy responded politely. It was rather common for high-profile knights to ask for the owner, so the boy quickly returned with the owner.

“You were looking for me, sir knight,” the pub owner spoke while groveling.

Eugene stretched out his hand while speaking.

“Can you prepare wine and ale, as well as food for one hundred people? Let me know if this isn’t enough money.”

The owner’s mouth stretched into a huge grin when he saw three gold coins falling into his palm.

“Of course! I can do that! I will get that prepared for you right away!”

“Then bring it to the campground located outside the castle gate as soon as everything is ready. You know where that is, right?” Eugene asked.

“Of course! I will bring it there on a cart!” The owner answered.

***

After a couple of hours, several carts entered the campground. The sun was nearly set.

“What’s going on?”

“Hmm. I smell something delicious.”

The knights residing in the campground began exiting their tents one by one, some of them accompanied by their aides. Most of them were rather young and unaccomplished.

Luke, who had been waiting for the arrival of the carts at the entrance of the campground, raised his voice after accompanying the carts inside.

“My master, Sir Eugene, would like to treat the brave, honorable sirs to food and drinks! I would appreciate it if you could accept his small favor!”

“It’s not much, but I hope everyone can enjoy themselves. I, Jan Eugene, plan to treat everyone here to food and drinks until the competition is over. But I still want to ask for your permission.” Eugene said with a small salute toward the knights, his hand resting on the handle of his shortsword. He was standing next to Luke.

Ohohhhhh…!

The knights’ exclamations spread like a wave.

“Kyah! After hearing that Count Winslon’s knight came to visit personally from the main castle, I thought he would be an arrogant knight, but it seems I was greatly mistaken.”

“Of course! It’s my first time seeing him, but he is a knight of true honor and chivalry!”

“Thank you for the meal, Sir Eugene!”

“Sir! Thank you very much! I am from the Bettirak…”

“I pay respect to your magnanimity. I am from the Pilon family…”

The attitudes of the knights changed completely from when Lanslo had come to visit Eugene. Free knights were always poor, and it cost them a fortune to feed their horses and aides. Knights with sufficient wealth made their residence at the inns inside the village, and as such, those staying in the campground outside the walls were truly the poorest among the knights.

Perhaps it was only natural for the knights to be moved since Eugene declared he would continue to serve them food and alcohol until the end of the competition. But of course, Eugene wasn’t doing this out of the goodness of his heart or because he had spare money lying around.

“Those beggar bastards!  They’re truly… ugh! They are fighting for their lives over a single silver coin! The knight in the tent next to ours was beating the crap out of his aide because he misplaced a single pair of underwear! This is a shithole! A shiteeehole!”

Eugene ordered Mirian to get a grasp of the general atmosphere when Lanslo came. Even though she was rather mischievous and playful, Mirian was competent as well. After getting an accurate grasp of the campground’s general atmosphere, she had reported back to Eugene.

That was when Eugene decided.

‘There are going to be a lot of knights on the side of the holy knights in the mock battle? But more than half of the knights participating in the competition are in the campground.’

He could win over the knights by spending money. In turn, the grateful knights would serve as a powerful sword and shield for Eugene when he destroyed the holy knights and killed Jung Dircht.