Chapter 101: Nanga
Booom!
With the thunderous crash that shook the entire village of Hestia, the situation came to an end.
Those who had gathered to eliminate the remaining monsters ended up surrounding Valdrova.
All eyes were on her.
“What the hell is this…?”
“Ugh…”
Those with weak stomachs suppressed their nausea as they looked at the scene.
There were also those who recognized that appearance.
‘A berserker.’
Those consumed by rage who destroy everything in their path.
That fury was impossible to control, and if there was no mage capable of using calming magic, they were nothing more than small ogres.
The villagers were able to imagine why she, capable of wielding such absurd strength, was there.
That deduction was not certain either, but fear spread quickly.
Everyone feared Valdrova.
Valdrova did nothing.
She slightly raised her head to look around and then remained sitting motionless.
Everyone looked at each other warily while hesitating.
No one dared enter the enormous crater in the ground created by a single blow.
“Are you alright, Sir Knight?”
The man wearing the insignia of the Captain of the Guard.
The same man who had faced the monsters more bravely than anyone else approached to ask.
Valdrova could not answer.
“Can you stand up? Do you need help?”
William extended his hand, but Valdrova did not even look at it.
She remained motionless, as if she were dead.
The voice that awakened her mind belonged to a single person.
“Sir William.”
It was Perda.
She raised her head and looked at him.
“Yes, Regent.”
“A moment ago I heard a tremendous explosion. It seems this was the epicenter…”
Perda was looking at her.
Those cold eyes.
They were not the same kind eyes with which he used to look at her.
“You…”
Perda could not continue.
Valdrova knew the reason.
‘I…’
Because I am a monster.
Perda walked toward her.
She could not bear to see his expression and lowered her head.
Once her vision was blocked, Perda’s footsteps became even clearer.
When he got close, he spoke.
“Come to the castle. I have something to tell you.”
There was no trace left of the kindness he had always shown her.
***
She had seen that room many times.
But now it was completely different.
Before, she looked at it as its owner.
Now she had arrived as a guest.
It was ridiculous.
The owner of the castle entering as a guest.
Perda did not know that fact.
He personally prepared the tea in the reception room and served it.
“Normally the maids do this, but they’re busy organizing the situation outside, so I had to do it myself. I hope you’ll forgive me even if it doesn’t taste very good.”
“……”
“Even so, consider yourself lucky. All the knights have to go in and wash up first according to the rules, so we would only have wasted time.”
Perda pushed the teacup toward Valdrova.
It did not matter whether the tea was good or bad.
‘Tea prepared by Lord Perda himself…’
That alone made it special.
She wanted to drink it.
But if she removed her helmet, her face would be exposed.
Perda would be surprised.
Then she would have to explain everything that had happened until now, and the situation would become complicated.
He would feel repulsed.
She did not want to face such a tragedy.
‘Stay still.’
Valdrova placed the teacup back on the table without saying a word.
Perda watched that action silently before starting another conversation.
“I heard that you took a vow of silence.”
Nod.
“It’s a good excuse. If you say you took a vow of silence, you only have to answer when spoken to and don’t need to say anything unnecessary. Isn’t that right?”
Perda’s cold gaze seemed to pierce through her.
“Perhaps that works on ignorant people, but I grew up in a family of knights. Vows of silence are normally only taken by paladins. And if you truly trusted someone, it would have shown in your behavior.”
“……”
“But you served no one. The only things you possessed were strength and combat skills superior to those of any knight. Then why did you tell such a lie?”
He spoke in a mocking tone.
“The answer is obvious. Because you hid your identity in order to escape your past.”
Valdrova clenched her fists.
Although Perda was wrong about some things, he had gotten the essence right.
Valdrova hated herself.
She hated Valdrova herself, capable of making others tremble, more than the demons who had led so many to their deaths.
“Tell me.”
Perda asked as he lifted his teacup.
“Have you ever killed someone while consumed by that rage?”
Nod.
“And is that why you fled all the way here?”
Nod.
“I see.”
There was a brief silence.
Perda seemed to think for a moment before asking again.
“Do you regret that day?”
Regret.
How could she not regret it?
For decades she drowned in sorrow, hated herself, and was tormented by nightmares.
She wished for the mercy and salvation of the gods, but no one answered.
Instead of moving forward, she remained frozen in place, consumed by self-hatred.
Whenever she remembered those who had perished during the Dragon-Demon War, she always thought the same thing.
That if those people she had killed could live again, she would not mind becoming an evil dragon opposed by the entire world.
Valdrova nodded.
“I see.”
That calm response seemed to create the silence before a storm.
She expected insults to come at any moment.
That he would tell her a monster like her was not needed in this city.
That she should leave immediately.
“You…”
But the storm never came.
“Do you like this village?”
It was an incredibly simple question.
Valdrova nodded.
“Do you also wish to protect this village?”
Nod.
“Then would you be willing to accept the title of knight that I intend to offer you?”
“…”
Valdrova raised her head.
‘Knight…?’
A position meant to protect the people and serve the king.
It was the romantic dream of many young people from the provinces.
And since Valdrova had always liked the word “protection,” that position also interested her.
‘But why?’
She could not understand it.
People saw her as a monster.
Those little girls had trembled in fear.
I am an evil dragon.
No, a villain.
Someone like that should not become a knight.
“Do you think you lack the qualifications?”
Nod.
“What an insignificant thought.”
Those blunt words felt like a stab wound.
The sensitive Valdrova felt hurt.
“Do you know how many adventurer groups participated in Hestia?”
Shake of the head.
“Twenty-three groups arrived. Seventy-three people in total. Every one of them possessed strength and experience.”
“……”
“But when the time came to defend the village, only four groups participated. Do you know what that means? That the other nineteen had no interest in whether people died or whether the village was destroyed.”
Perda leaned forward as he spoke.
“But you did not do that. You could have hidden alongside those idiots, but you chose to act in order to protect this village.”
“……”
“That is because the people in front of you are more important to you than the things of the past.”
Upon hearing those words, something disappeared from inside Valdrova.
She believed she was looking at a cold and merciless monster.
But that was not the case.
It had been her mistake from the beginning.
Although Perda was not particularly kind, there was respect in his eyes.
“If you truly wish to protect this place, your past does not matter to me.”
You have done nothing wrong.
And you simply need to move forward.
‘What is this…?’
She felt a strange emotion.
She had conversations similar to this with Perda many times when he gave her his mana.
Back then, Perda was always kind.
‘But I didn’t feel comfortable.’
When dealing with her, Perda acted as though she were a flower that could break at any moment.
His delicate and gentle hands barely brushed her skin before pulling away.
Valdrova never fully believed his words.
That was why that comfort would quickly fade away.
‘It’s different from back then.’
His tone of voice was not kind.
Neither was his gaze.
Everything was like the attitude of someone dealing with a stranger.
‘It feels as if we are meeting for the first time.’
He did not hesitate to touch her.
And he managed to awaken a deep sense of empathy within her.
All of that seemed to show her another side of Perda.
Her heart pounded intensely.
More intensely than when she first saw him.
That was, without a doubt, love.
“Do you think I’m a very understanding person?”
At the question, Valdrova nodded.
“Unfortunately, I’m not. If I seem so understanding, it’s only because you resemble someone I once knew.”
Who could that person be?
As she wondered that, Perda continued.
“That person was truly beautiful.”
Beautiful.
Perda smiled as he said that word.
Seeing that, Valdrova felt a tightness in her chest.
‘They say Lord Perda has never smiled like that at other people…’
That was what Ruri had told her.
That he was kind because it was Valdrova.
That he smiled because it was Valdrova.
Then who was this person capable of provoking that?
“I only saw her face once. And I can’t even say I saw it properly.”
‘He only saw her once and liked her that much?’
“Besides, the first time I saw that face, it was covered in tears.”
‘She was so beautiful even while crying…?’
“I always want to see her face again, but I can’t gather the courage to say it.”
‘What a terrible person. She won’t even let him see her face…’
“Even so, it comforts me to think that person is resting peacefully beneath this castle.”
‘Beneath this castle…?’
Wait.
That person…
‘Is it me?’
Valdrova finally realized it.
As she reviewed everything he had said, the circumstances matched hers exactly.
‘Ah…’
Valdrova’s face turned bright red.
Once she became aware of it, she felt like running away from there that very instant.
And returning to her lair to roll around on the floor as always while making little nasal sounds.
But she gathered all her willpower to calm that trembling and continue acting as if she were a stranger.
‘Now I really can’t let him discover me.’
Whether for Perda’s sake or her own!
“I’ve rambled too much. Then, could you think once more about accepting the title of knight?”
Perda returned to the main topic.
Valdrova decided to think about it again as well.
‘If I become a knight, will I be someone who protects Lord Perda?’
Her heart began to pound.
As a dragon, as Valdrova, she never could have heard something like that.
And now that she was hearing it directly, she could not hide her excitement.
‘I want to protect this village.’
But there was something even more important.
‘I want to protect Lord Perda.’
And something even more important than that.
‘!I want to keep hearing what he thinks about me!’
A woman who lacked the courage to ask directly.
And a man who could not say it directly.
For a relationship like that, this was the perfect opportunity to hear his true feelings.
That was practically the entire reason.
Just as Valdrova was about to answer—
“Lord Perda.”
Ruri entered the room.
“How is the situation in the village?”
“The recovery is progressing smoothly.”
“There isn’t any bad news?”
“There doesn’t seem to be. The number of deaths is minimal, and although there are many seriously injured people, they received emergency treatment quickly, so their lives are not in danger.”
“That’s fortunate.”
“Allow me to serve you.”
With skillful and swift movements, she took her place and served the tea.
Ruri’s gaze briefly shifted toward the armor.
“Hmm?”
Normally, she was indifferent toward humans.
However, for some reason, she could not stop looking at that armor.
Ruri stared at it.
She had an expression as if she were about to realize something, yet at the same time was not completely sure.
A moment later.
“…Huh?”
Ruri’s expression suddenly deteriorated.
Valdrova knew that expression very well.
‘She figured it out!’
Inside the armor, her face turned pale.
Ruri stared at her silently in disbelief.
And, true to the Vow of Silence, she kept her mouth shut.
Perda, who had noticed nothing, merely found Ruri’s behavior strange.
“What’s wrong?”
“…It’s nothing. I simply remembered the trash that was left in the village for a moment.”
Ruri pretended everything was normal, finished serving, and stood behind Perda.
“Then, let’s continue the conversation—”
“Excuse me.”
Ruri interrupted him.
“May I ask what you were talking about?”
“…This is the first time you’ve asked a question like that.”
She had always fulfilled her role.
She remained like a background ornament and never intervened.
“It seemed like a rather important conversation. I thought perhaps I should know as well.”
Perda answered without any issue.
“I asked whether she could swear loyalty to me as a knight.”
“A knight’s loyalty…?”
Her face showed complete disbelief.
“And has she already accepted?”
“I was about to hear her answer.”
“My…”
Ruri narrowed her eyes and slowly observed the knight.
“Really?”
Valdrova involuntarily shrank back.
Was she planning to reveal her identity?
Desperately denying it in her mind, she sent a sort of telepathic plea.
Please, pretend you don’t know!
Ruri had no intention of exposing her.
However, she reacted in a much crueler way than Valdrova had imagined.
“Lord Perda. What do you think about this?”
“About what exactly?”
“A situation in which a high-ranking knight swears loyalty to a commoner.”
Perda answered.
“A knight cannot swear loyalty to a commoner, but she can swear loyalty to her own convictions. If those convictions lead her to protect ordinary people, it may appear that she is swearing loyalty to them. And that is something noble.”
That was precisely the reason he had appointed William as Captain of the Guard.
If the village continued growing, he was even considering granting him a knighthood.
“That was only an example. Then let me put it another way. Let’s say that…”
She pretended to think for a few seconds before continuing.
“What would happen if Lady Valdrova swore loyalty to Lord Perda?”
Perda frowned and answered.
He looked at Ruri as if asking whether she had lost her mind.
“That’s absurd. Something like that cannot exist. The one who should swear loyalty is me, and the one who should grant me her trust is her. For her to swear loyalty to me would be little short of disrespectful.”
“Exactly my point.”
“If you already knew that, don’t make comments like that so lightly. I can’t tolerate it even as a hypothetical example.”
“My apologies. I was merely curious.”
Ruri crossed her arms and glared at Valdrova.
Her expression seemed to say,
Do you understand now how ridiculous this situation is?
“Then, what is your answer?”
Perda asked.
Valdrova’s answer had already been decided.
Haimiya_cutie.
Body IntegrationRuri is enjoying this situation.
Haimiya_cutie.
Body IntegrationOho