The next day, I arrived at Duke Gephis’ villa in the royal capital.
Top-notch noble families had their own mansions in the royal capital.
And as may be expected of a duke’s family, even though it was just a villa, it was still a praiseworthy residence.
The tea party was being held in the vast garden.
Perhaps it was because of the household’s fame in the military, but the garden also served as a training ground. Some people were fighting with wooden swords, and soaked in sweat.
Most of those gathered here were young and talented nobles.
I guess young people who had too much power and craved the limelight too much could never settle for a mere chat over some tea.
I, for one, could understand why they’d want to test their skills with this many fighters gathered here.
[Geez…! Lugh, Tarte, why didn’t you wake me up until the very last minute!? Thanks to you guys, I had to rush my makeup!] (Dia)
Dia, who was wearing a dress, gave me a reproachful look.
[Your sleeping face was so pretty I was too busy admiring it.] (Lugh)
[Um, well… Yesterday… the two of you were having an intimate moment, so I couldn’t bring myself to enter your room.] (Tarte)
I was thankful for her consideration, but if she was going to be mindful of other people’s needs, then I’d appreciate it if she didn’t peek through the keyhole or pressed her ear against the door during the act.
I was aware that Tarte was peeping on us, but if I had warned her about it, Dia would’ve felt so embarrassed it would’ve killed the mood.
There was also the risk that if Tarte knew that I noticed what she was doing while peeping on us, she would’ve felt so ashamed she would’ve turned useless for a while.
That’s why I pretended not to notice anything.
Still, this can’t go on forever, so I should tell her when the time is right. Being seen during the act is not my thing at all.
What Tarte was doing couldn’t be considered a very healthy hobby, so as her educator, I had to stop her.
[Ugh… I can’t get mad at you two if you say that.] (Dia)
Without knowing that Tarte was watching her, Dia was the same as usual.
If she had known that she was being watched, this would’ve played out differently.
[Nevertheless, you look really pretty in your dress, Dia-sama. Like a fairy.] (Tarte)
Dia looked very lovely today.
She was usually too busy thinking about magic to dress up fashionably, but now that she did, she was so beautiful everyone was captivated by her.
She looked great in her modestly revealing light blue dress.
She was attracting the attention of all the youths attending the party. It made me proud as her boyfriend, but I didn’t want any pest to stick to her.
[Thanks. You too would look even prettier if you dressed up, Tarte. Lugh, you get paid handsomely as a Holy Knight, right? Why don’t you buy Tarte a dress?] (Dia)
My allowance as a Holy Knight was quite high. I was paid almost as much as the commander fo the Royal Order.
Well, even if it didn’t pay well enough, my income as the representative of my cosmetics brand, Orna, was dozens of times higher than that anyway.
I had dispersed and pooled the funds in various locations, including overseas, in case something happened.
That way, even if something went wrong and I could no longer live as Lugh Tuatha Dé, I could at least provide for Tarte, Dia, Maha, and my family until I died.
[You’re right. I also want to see Tarte in a dress myself. I’ll order one for her.] (Lugh)
[Y-You don’t have to! I am just a servant. And I wouldn’t look good in a dress anyway.] (Tarte)
[There’s no rule that forbids a servant from wearing a dress. There’s actually quite a lot of aristocrats who have their beautiful servants work in dresses. It’s decided, then. The next time we go to a party, I’ll give you a dress to wear. While I’m at it, I’ll ask Maha to arrange for a top-quality dress designed specifically for you.] (Lugh)
That was also how I arranged for Dia’s dress.
A dress like this was hard to find even at parties held in the royal capital where prestigious nobles gathered.
It wasn’t something that could be obtained simply by piling up cash, but something that required using the appropriate connections and laying the groundwork.
[Um no, please don’t bother, it would be wasted on me.] (Tarte)
[You’re a cute girl, Tarte. Even during the parties held at the royal capital, there weren’t any servants as beautiful as you are. And more than anything, I want to see you in a dress.] (Lugh)
[He’s right, don’t be humble about it. You’re cute, Tarte. Plus you‘ve got a big bust, a huge chest, and a large rack, so an erotic dress would suit you.] (Dia)
[Ahahaha, thank you very much…] (Tarte)
Tarte’s expression stiffened at Dia’s repeated mentions of her breasts.
Dia had a complex about her chest, and whenever she picked a dress, she would always gaze at her favorite, the ones with cleavage, like she didn’t want to part with them.
Meanwhile, we walked to the center of the garden, where Naoise and his merry men were.
[I’m glad you’re here, Lugh.] (Naoise)
[I was curious to see what sort of party you would throw, Naoise.] (Lugh)
My reply wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the truth either.
I wasn’t uninterested, but my main concern wasn’t Naoise, but the bewitching woman behind him, surrounded by young knights and smiling. The snake demon, Meena.
It didn’t look like she had ensnared them yet, but she was using her sexiness to make them fall under her spell.
Even the ones who were fascinated by Dia and had been following her with their eyes from afar had now switched their attention to Meena.
It didn’t mean that she was more beautiful, this was just the power of her pheromones. …That’s why I couldn’t let my guard down.
She smiled and waved at me, so I replied with a slight nod. Dia entwined her arms around mine more tightly, and Tarte pulled hard on my sleeve.
At the same time, Naoise pushed me from behind and led me to an elevated place, unaware that I was paying attention to the people behind him.
[Everyone, let me introduce you to my schoolmate. Meet the demon-slaying Holy Knight, Lugh Tuatha Dé.] (Naoise)
With these words, all of the attendees’ gazes were now fixed on me.
Their eyes were filled with admiration.
They were all young men, and they still had some innocence in them.
There was no concern about politics or self-preservation, just the childish delight of looking at a knight like in a storybook.
I guess they wish for me to play along.
Let’s humor them a little.
…Although, there was one woman in the crowd who was smiling at me suggestively, but I chose to ignore her.
[Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Lugh Tuatha Dé. And I’ve been appointed as a Holy Knight in order to fight the demons.] (Lugh)
The people in this crowd were all nobles of a higher status than me, but I dared to speak leisurely anyway.
The role I was asked to play here was that of an idol. They were expecting me to be proud, and not humble at all. Even though the greeting was short, the audience was getting fired up.
[Everybody, listen up. I invited Lugh Tuatha Dé here to let them know about us. …Order of Auguid, prepare to draw your swords.] (Naoise)
At Naoise’s command, all the young men assembled here lined up in an orderly fashion.
[All members, draw your swords!] (Naoise)
[Kaloa, draw!]
[Krusch, draw!]
[Yatara, draw!]
[Homarita, draw!]
[Kururugi, draw!]
As if doing a wave starting from the edge of the crowd, they all named themselves as they drew their swords, held them up in front of their chests and stopped.
It was a magnificent display. This was made possible thanks to their well-trained bodies and sturdy torsos, and since they had repeated the same sequence thousands of times, there was no wasted movement.
There was no doubt that all the people here were considerably skilled swordsmen, and taught by excellent masters. I was willing to bet that Naoise had a hand in that.
[We of the Order of Auguid will dedicate our sword to the peace of the world!] (Naoise)
Naoise concluded by saying so.
The faces of those young nobles were now filled with self-absorption.
…Aah, I see, so that was the point.
Auguid was the name of the ideal knight from the fairy tales. So I could see what sort of mindset the members of this Order named after him had.
[Lugh, this is my chivalric order, the Order of Auguid. The people here are the sons of prestigious families who were allowed to have their own secondary residences in the royal capital, as well as talented people I found at the academy whose families don’t have a high social standing, but whom I recognized as promising. House Gephis managed and sponsored them, and made the country acknowledge them as a second chivalric order.] (Naoise)
I could roughly understand the situation.
Right now, with the resurgence of the demons, the monsters’ frequency of appearance had significantly increased.
Normally, monsters had to be dealt with by each territory’s own forces, but in reality, this was more than they could handle. The reality was that each territory asked the kingdom for help, and knights had been dispatched all over the country.
However, the resources of the Royal Order were limited, so there weren’t enough of them to go around.
And that was when Naoise made his move.
Basically, some of his men were rich kids who hadn’t succeeded as heads of their families yet, and were even staying in the capital while letting others take care of their territories.
And the others were mages born as commoners who didn’t own a territory, and couldn’t command either because they hadn’t graduated from the academy and weren’t official knights.
Naoise gathered people who had power but no use for it, and gave them a purpose.
Moreover, if the funding came from House Gephis, then there was no reason for the metropolitans to refuse to establish a new chivalric order.
Not to mention, it was the idea of Naoise, a member of the — though imperfect — Hero’s party. So they would definitely approve of them.
[Our order is still small. But all the people here are powerful and passionate knights, and they successfully did their job some days ago. We will continue to rack up achievements. Then one day, our power and prestige will surpass even those of the legitimate Royal Order of this country.] (Naoise)
…And with that power backing him up, Naoise was going to change the country.
In my opinion, unlike the others, Naoise himself was not even a fan of the great fairytale knight, he was just using him as a means to successfully manipulate those powerful and self-important youths.
Justice and admiration were always convenient tools to manipulate the young.
[And so, you want me to join the Order of Auguid too?] (Lugh)
[I wouldn’t say that. But once the demons eventually show up, we’ll be fighting alongside you. That’s why I wanted to introduce you to everyone today. As long as the Hero cannot leave the capital, you’ll be our trump card to protect this world, and our mission will be to assist you.] (Naoise)
The members of the Order of Auguid nodded proudly.
If they earned the achievements of defeating the demons together with the Holy Knight, then the Order’s fame would skyrocket.
And if they played it well, their voices would carry more weight than the original Royal Order.
I understood what Naoise was getting at.
Which is why I chose my words wisely for my friend’s sake.
[I don’t need your help. Don’t poke your noses into our battle against the demons. You’d just get in the way.] (Lugh)
Yes, the most beneficial words for him.
Both the atmosphere and Naoise’s expression were frozen.
I knew this would happen. Still, I had to say it.
If I didn’t refuse, they would lose their lives sooner or later.
Even if they hated me for it, it was still better than them dying.
They didn’t understand that at the end of the day, what they were doing was nothing more than playing knights.
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