Chương 20: Kind or Cruel

Noa twirled Rose's sword between his fingers, lifting it toward the pale daylight with curiosity. The blade was noticeably thinner than a standard knight's sword—forged for agility rather than brute force, its balance favoring raw speed over sheer devastation.

"Mmm… I applied [Aura Blade] to it, and it's holding on. Seems better than the weapon I got from the church. Let's see…" [Echo Reclamation] The moment the residual purple aura ceased, a dense, volatile purple energy began to warp around the steel. But before the energy could fully stabilize— Crack! A faint fracture splintered clean across the pristine surface, the blade trembling under the pressure. Seeing the sudden damage, Noa instantly froze.

"Shit!" He immediately withdrew the energy from the weapon, the purple glow snapping back into his body. With a wave of exaggerated nonchalance, he slid the sword back into its sheath, adjusting the hilt just enough so that the cracked portion of the steel faced inward.

"Heheh! This will do." He nodded to himself in satisfaction, internally praising his own elite crisis management skills. The three remaining knights approached at a brisk pace, their metal boots striking the stone road in an uneven rhythm. Before stopping a few paces in front of Noa, they raised their shaking swords toward him.

"Hey! Who are you?"

"Are you planning to do something to our captain?" Their eyes had easily caught sight of the dark energy that had briefly wrapped around Rose's blade, not to mention the corrupted sensation that radiated from it.

"Oh, I was just looking at him, don't worry," Noa said, smiling as he lifted his arms in the air and took a step away from Kaelen to reassure them. The knights quickly exchanged glances, nodding firmly to one another as if communicating a silent consensus. If this guy were actually hostile toward us, we would have been dead a long time ago, a knight reasoned internally. So, whether he's a good person or not, we need to speak to him carefully for now.

"May I ask for your name, sir?" one of them asked, his tone cautious, but devoid of aggression.

"Noa Ravel."

"Noa Ravel? I've never heard of that name before." Noa stepped closer with a smile, casually tapping the soldier's armored shoulder as though greeting a childhood friend, his eyes closed in a relaxed manner.

"Don't worry, you will very soon." It was a statement delivered with the certainty one uses when announcing a sunrise.

"…Anyways, are you guys Blackmoor's knights?" Confusion flickered across the knight's face as Noa casually draped an elbow over his shoulder, leaning in closely as if they were sharing a state secret. What is wrong with this guy?

"Yes, we are knights of Duke Valric Blackmoor," the knight answered after a brief pause. Noa's smile widened, looking like a cat discovering an unlocked pantry.

"Great! Then please take us along with you to meet your lord.""'Us'?" the knight blinked, looking around and seeing only one person present.

"My maid is still making her way over here." Noa pointed lazily down the street, gesturing toward the approaching silhouette of Rose. He has a personal maid serving him? Is he a foreign noble? The knight carefully examined Noa's exterior. And… he wants to come with us? Before their frantic speculation could mature any further, Rose finally arrived, looking slightly out of breath from the sprint.

"Huff—huff—you… you could have just teleported me along with you!" she shouted, pointing an accusatory finger directly at Noa's face.

"Hey, you're back either way," Noa greeted her cheerfully, handing the weapon back instantly while remaining careful not to draw a shred of attention to the crack near the hilt.

"Here's your sword back! I didn't do a single thing to it!" Heheheh! If she notices the damage later, I'll just say it must have been broken by her. Noa clamped his hands together, rubbing his palms.

"Hey Rose, these guys are Blackmoor's knights. Let's tag along with them." Rose blinked blankly at the soldiers.

"Go… along with them?"

"Yes!" Noa smiled brightly. Don't you have your own carriage, you moron?! Rose snapped furiously inside her mind. And why on earth would I, the head royal maid, just follow a squad of local knights?! The knight who had first spoken straightened his posture.

"Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Kenar, a knight of Blackmoor. Thank you for assisting us on the battlefield earlier."

"I'm Rose," she replied, burying her chaotic internal thoughts beneath a professional composure.

"We are here with permission to speak with Duke Blackmoor, granted by Her Majesty, Princess Vionette." Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. She retrieved a letter from her uniform pocket, presenting the parchment. Kenar's eyes sharpened the second he saw the royal seal gleaming against the paper like a silent declaration of authority. The official royal seal? His gaze flicked right back toward Noa. If they possess the royal seal…

then who the hell is this guy?

"Rose!" Noa suddenly shouted, stretching both of his arms wide toward the sky as if mourning the tragic loss of a golden era.

"Yes, my lord?" she turned around, confused by the sudden outburst.

"My Batman role-play… you ruined it!" he cried, shedding dramatic tears as his knees gave out, causing him to fall to the ground. Rose tilted her head to the side, watching his dramatic collapse with a flat expression.

"…I'm sorry, but what?" Her face remained stoic, but somewhere within her soul, her remaining patience sighed heavily, packed its bags, and left. Noa brushed his hair back dramatically, accepting the tragic collapse of his mysterious persona as he stood back up.

"Forget it. Let's just go." He turned his gaze to Kenar.

"So? Can we?" I already know the way to the mansion. We don't have to follow them! Rose thought irritably, though she kept the complaint to herself.

"Yes," Kenar replied after a measured pause.

"Please follow us to the mansion." While the other two knights lifted Kaelen's unconscious body and rushed him toward the medical sector, Kenar accompanied Noa and Rose through the city.

Inside the jewelry store, Lucien lay face-first on the wooden floorboards, his cheek pressed against the cold wood. Slowly, his consciousness began to return, his head spinning violently.

"Uhhh…" He pushed himself up with arms that trembled from a mix of weakness and humiliation. His blurred gaze drifted across the room, before stopping. The four knights he brought were still lying unmoving on the floor, shattering his hope that the entire event had been a bad dream.

"That damn bastard… I'll get you next time." His fist clenched tightly, his knuckles turning a stark white.

"How dare you… how dare you lay a hand on a noble?" His wounded pride bled far more fiercely than any physical injury. Then, unexpectedly, the wooden front door creaked open. Along with the sound, an elegant yet playful voice echoed through the quiet shop:"Oh my. What happened in here? Are you doing okay, man?"

The duke's mansion rose grandly from the earth like a stone monument dedicated to disciplined ambition. Its massive outer walls were carved with refined details, while tall windows framed in iron and glass reflected the daylight like a row of watchful eyes. Knock-knock-knock. After the knight knocked firmly, the grand front doors opened, revealing a mansion maid who bowed politely before them. Inside, a wide marble staircase led to the second floor beneath an arched balcony. …

They were led up the stairs toward the duke's office, while Kaelen was escorted elsewhere—taken toward the healers and quiet rooms where pain could be negotiated. Kenar walked slightly ahead of the group, carefully observing Noa from the corner of his eye. At a first glance, aside from those unusual eyes, he appears ordinary. His clothes are high quality, yet they don't follow standard noble fashion. He then looked closely at Noa's face and expression.

And even while looking at the sheer grandeur of this mansion, he isn't surprised at all. The only other building to surpass Blackmoor's mansion in the entirety of Crimvane is…

"Have you been to the royal castle before?" Kenar asked casually, offering a light smile to test the waters.

"Yeah… though, only one time," Noa replied, which was technically the truth.

"And I didn't stay there for too long." Only once and not for long? Kenar calculated the information silently. Then he isn't royalty or a high-ranking noble. Perhaps he's a highly skilled warrior on a mission, hired by the royal family? …

"Please wait here patiently," Kenar said, opening the door to an elegant receiving room.

"His Lordship is currently in the middle of a meeting. He will allow you to enter shortly." The room they were led into was refined yet intimate—featuring two plush sofas facing one another, separated by a low wooden table adorned with delicate snacks and fresh fruits. Noa sat down immediately, lazily extending his arms along the back of the sofa to the sides, while Rose remained standing beside him.

"I thought you would get annoyed and just forcefully barge straight into the duke's office," she murmured quietly to Noa. Noa lifted his chin up, looking at her.

"Do I really look like the type?"

"…Definitely." Noa chuckled softly, closing his eyes with a smirk. Then, opening them back up, his tone shifted into something cooler.

"I just do whatever feels best to me. If I happened to be in a bad mood today, I would have done that." His purple eyes gleamed faintly under the light.

"As for Duke Valric… I'll make my decision after we meet."

"I honestly can't tell if you're kind or cruel." Rose stared at him with curiosity.

"What does 'do whatever pops into my head' even mean? Which side are you actually on?"

"Which side am I on? I don't know. My mother taught me to not give a shit about what side I'm on. But I can give you an example or something." He raised a single finger with a speculative look.

"Let's see… if I'm in a really fantastic mood and someone asks me for help, I'll help them… probably. And if I happen to be in a terrible mood, I might just kill them on the spot. Something like that." Rose blinked, a sneer forming on her face.

"…You would kill someone who is asking you for help?"

"I mean, does it fucking matter?" Noa said carefreely, picking up a red apple from the silver plate and taking a casual bite. Isn't that just evil, you jerk?! Why on earth did the princess even choose this guy to be her partner? she thought to herself, unaware that her princess resembled his chaotic mindset more than she realized. Knock-knock. Finally, the door clicked open as a mansion maid entered the room.

"His Lordship permits you to enter now."

Duke Valric sat in his leather chair, waiting for the maid to escort the unannounced guests into his office. I didn't actually have a meeting. I only labeled it as such so I could gather information regarding this 'Noa Ravel' from Kenar, he thought, leaning forward over his desk with his fingers interlaced. He either seems to be a foreign noble, or a high-status warrior. Rose opened the door with one hand, stepping aside respectfully as Noa walked straight inside.

Valric looked up immediately, his gaze landing squarely on Rose first. The moment he recognized her distinct features, his eyes widened.

"?!!" … Rose, the head royal maid?! This is… it looks like she is accompanying him, rather than the other way around. It seems our guesses were entirely wrong. A cold sweat formed on the duke's cheeks as his gaze locked onto Noa. The head maid who has served the royal lineage for almost a hundred years cannot be ordered around, or even remotely insulted, by even us dukes. Her authority is equal to ours, if not superior… which means this man is definitely royalty.

He slowly unraveled the threads of the maze in his mind as he watched Noa casually sit down on the chair directly across from his desk, with Rose standing next to him. It's only normal that Kenar and the maids wouldn't recognize Rose's face. And yet, I haven't even heard of a royal family line named Ravel before.

"Hello~ I'm Noa Ravel."

"It would be my pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Valric Blackmoor," the duke replied smoothly, standing up from his seat.

"Please, take the main seat, Your Majesty."

"No. Don't worry about it, and just sit down," Noa said, pushing his palm downward in a dismissive motion. Valric stood in silence for a few quiet seconds, scanning the young man's mood. Seeing that Noa wasn't offended, the duke sat back down in his leather chair.

"Then, may I know what business our highly honored guest has here in Blackmoor?" he asked, his sharp eyes narrowing slightly behind his glasses. Noa leaned forward, resting his jaw comfortably against his interlocked fingers. He raised an eyebrow, his dark purple eyes pulsing with a faint interest as a slow smirk formed on his face.

"I want that guy named Kaelen."