The Escort Knight Who Is Obsessed by the Villainess Wants to Escape - Chapter 76

After crossing the field, we moved by teleportation.

As soon as I blinked, we arrived at the entrance of Eliza’s mansion.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down, it’s okay.”

I gently patted Yuel, who seemed startled.

It looked like Yuel was alarmed by the sudden shift in space.

Because of Yuel, Eliza was startled as well.

There was no need to soothe her, though.

As soon as Yuel raised his front paws, Eliza teleported far away.

‘Is she really using such advanced magic in a place like this…? And why is she staring like that?’

While I was calming Yuel down, the knights guarding the entrance rushed over.

“The young lady has returned!”

Several knights and soldiers hurriedly ran out.

‘Why do they look so surprised?’

Their urgency was unusual.

Their expressions were like those of people who had just seen someone return from the dead.

‘…Could it be? Eliza, did you leave without saying anything?’

Soon after, the head butler, Miguel, and Eliza’s personal maid, Lia, appeared.

By now, I had grown familiar with their faces.

“Young lady—!”

Among them, Lia looked as pale as a sheet.

She was running towards us as if she might collapse any second.

Her red hair was disheveled from the rush.

“Young… young lady….”

Lia spoke between labored breaths.

“Where, why, all of a sudden… without a word….”

Her pale lips were trembling.

It didn’t seem like she was just exhausted.

Just a feeling.

Lia was shaking like someone who had just escaped drowning.

In contrast, Eliza was calm.

“There was something urgent.”

Lia looked at me.

Her weakened black eyes.

For some reason, it felt like it was my fault, so I subtly averted my gaze.

Lia turned back to Eliza.

She hesitated as if she wanted to say something, her lips quivering, but in the end, she just lowered her head.

“Are you hurt anywhere…?”

“No. I’m perfectly fine.”

“I see… That’s a relief….”

While Lia let out a sigh of relief, Eliza called Miguel.

“Miguel. Take care of this.”

The ‘this’ she was referring to, which she pointed to as casually as if it were ordinary luggage, was the Sun Statue I had brought.

A sacred Statue said to grant any one miracle, once.

It had been sought after by countless powers for ages, and now it was inside Eliza’s domain.

Recognizing it, Miguel stammered.

“T-This, could it really be…?”

“Yes. The revered Sun Statue. Judas found it.”

“You mean to say…?”

“From now on, Judas is my personal knight.”

At that moment, silence fell.

For such an important declaration as naming her first personal knight, the words carried no weight.

It was as if she were saying, ‘This is my friend.’

Well, it’s not like it’s something grand or worth celebrating.

Being a personal knight isn’t that significant.

Frankly, the Sun Statue is much more important and impressive than I am.

“But since the knighting ceremony hasn’t taken place, it’s not official yet.”

“I understand. Then, when will the knighting ceremony take place?”

“I’m not sure….”

Eliza stared at me for a moment before answering.

“I’ll have to think about it.”

With that, she approached me.

“To be honest, I didn’t expect you to really bring back that Statue.”

I didn’t either.

Who would’ve thought the final test’s goal would be a Statue I knew of?

Moreover, it’s not even supposed to be obtained by anyone at this time.

“But you always exceed my expectations.”

“…Thank you for the compliment.”

Eliza smiled softly at my words.

“You need to return to the training camp, don’t you?”

It had been several days since the test began.

I should stop by the training camp first and inform Gawain of the situation.

“Yes, that’s right. I plan to report to Sir Gawain first.”

“Okay… It’s a shame, but it can’t be helped. I have things to do as well, so I’ll let you go for now.”

I wasn’t sure what exactly she found disappointing, but I nodded anyway.

“And.”

Eliza spoke again.

“Thank you.”

Is she thanking me for bringing the Sun Statue?

Well, it’s certainly something worth gratitude.

“I was just doing what needed to be done.”

“…Right.”

For a moment, Eliza’s smile became a bit ambiguous.

Without giving me time to dwell on that subtle shift, she turned her body and headed back into the mansion.

I watched her retreating figure.

Her flowing black hair.

Her long, stretched-out legs.

The face that had gotten closer….

‘…Stop it!’

I quickly shook my head and made my way to the training grounds.

***

Eliza filled the vase with water herself and moved the marigold from her hair into it.

She quietly stared at the vase, lost in thought.

‘…What is this?’

Her current feelings were strange.

It wasn’t just now.

Ever since that moment when her face had been so close to Judas’s, a certain impulse lingered, tickling her heart.

It wasn’t just then, either.

When Judas had called her name, her face had flushed hot.

That feeling was akin to embarrassment.

But it was just her name being called. Why had it made her react like that?

She had tried to understand the root of this reaction, but she couldn’t interpret it at all.

‘It’s not exactly a bad feeling….’

But if she were asked if it was a good feeling, she would tilt her head in uncertainty.

It couldn’t be classified either way.

It was unfamiliar, awkward, and strange.

Especially why she had looked at Judas’s lips at that moment—she couldn’t understand the reason or the purpose behind it.

The sight of Judas looking up at her.

The flustered expression that somehow seemed subtly different from his usual self.

She saw that expression often, so why did it feel different this time?

‘…I don’t know.’

In the end, Eliza couldn’t find an answer.

She placed the vase on the windowsill in her bedroom.

Next to the pot of anemones.

Before she knew it, the stems in the pot had grown, and blue flower buds had formed.

A smile naturally appeared on her face.

She might not know what she had felt earlier, but she definitely understood how she felt when looking at the anemones.

She liked it.

For now, that was enough.

‘When would be a good time for the investiture ceremony?’

As she looked at the calendar, her gaze fixed on one date.

February 16th.

Her 18th birthday, and also the day of her coming-of-age ceremony.

Many people would be attending.

And in front of them….

‘Hmm.’

A thought crossed her mind, and Eliza nodded.

‘That should do. It’s not a bad plan.’

***

In the carriage, I checked my reward.

That quest that had arrived when I pulled out the Solar Statue.

‘Follower of the natural order,’ or something like that.

It wasn’t a reward I could choose, but rather one that was given automatically. So, I’d already received it.

If it’s a trait, then it should have been added by now.

I just hadn’t checked what the reward was yet.

[A reward is being provided.]

[‘The Drawn Moon’ is added as a trait.]

‘…The Drawn Moon?’

Curious about what kind of trait it was, I opened my status window.

[The Drawn Moon.]

• Strengthens the effect of ‘Revelation’s Discovery.’
• Increases the user’s mana growth rate from (2x > 3x).

‘…Hmm?’

It was a rather peculiar reward.

Of course, it’s good if my mana increases.

It’s a great thing, but three times as much?

Even twice the speed had been plenty fast.

After checking my stats for the first time in a while, I was shocked.

“…What’s going on?”

[Stamina: 54.3]

[Strength: 48.5]

[Agility: 50.1]

The three stats had increased evenly.

But.

[Mana: 43.5]

The magic stat had dropped by 1.5.

Not long ago, it was at 45.

“Can this even happen…?”

I had never heard of magic power decreasing.

Suddenly, a memory flashes through my mind.

At the altar where the Sun Statue was enshrined, when I hugged Eliza.

I felt something leaving my body at that moment.

Instinctively, I had hugged Eliza to confirm it.

“So, could it be that what left me back then….”

A few scenes flashed by rapidly.

At some point, Eliza began hugging me as if it were the most natural thing.

A little unnaturally so, in fact.

Perhaps, for the past five years, Eliza had been hugging me to absorb my magic power.

That seems to be the most likely scenario.

Only now, after my stats had changed, did I realize this.

“Was that it all along…?”

The content of the first scripture I had heard five years ago.

The Sun absorbs the Moon.

In the end, the Moon dies to the Sun.

“…Surely, I won’t actually die, right?”

Even if what Eliza wants is my magic power, it doesn’t drastically change reality.

I just resolve myself anew.

“I’ll have to work harder to raise my magic stat.”

***

When I arrived at the training camp, Hermes was there to greet me.

“Oh! Sir Judas! You’ve returned!”

She said, running toward me.

“How did it go? What were the results? It was the revered Sun Statue, right? Did you find it?!”

“Unfortunately….”

I deliberately paused slightly.

Hermes’s expression quickly shifted to disappointment.

“I found it.”

“Ah… I knew it… After all, finding that holy Statue is hardly an easy… What?!”

“It was hidden in some ruins, but I found it.”

I deliberately kept silent about Hazle and the Imperial Mage Corps.

Even though Hermes and I had been together for a long time and had established a relationship of trust with the information guild, this wasn’t a simple matter.

For Eliza’s sake, it was better to keep this hidden.

I’m a little proud that I’ve become sharp enough to notice that.

But I shouldn’t become too smart.

“The Sun Statue, the lady has taken it….”

“Ah, come on!”

Hermes slapped my arm.

“I was just thinking of some comforting words because I thought you had failed!”

“It hurts….”

It wasn’t a joke; it actually stung.

This person was, after all, still a knight.

“You can handle a bit of pain.”

“A knight who hits their escort target?”

“Anyway, congratulations. You’ve finally achieved what you wanted!”

What I wanted….

That’s a funny expression.

When I first came to the training camp, I had planned to run away.

“It’s not entirely wrong.”

Since I had decided to become Eliza’s escort knight, I had indeed achieved what I wanted in the end.

“Thank you.”

“So, has the lady acknowledged you? When’s the knighting ceremony?”

“I’m not sure about the ceremony yet, but she did acknowledge me.”

“Hmm.”

Hermes crossed her arms and rubbed her chin.

“Somehow, it feels a bit disappointing.”

“What does?”

“You’re the first escort knight to emerge from this training camp in years. Plus, you saved her life when you were young, shared a roof, and basically shared souls. It just feels a bit anticlimactic….”

“Please, be careful with your words. I’m terrified someone might hear. And why would you feel disappointed when the knighting ceremony is still pending?”

“Wouldn’t it be more fun to keep it a secret and have her grandly acknowledge you later?”

“Why would that even be fun….”

She’s an odd woman.

Despite my sarcastic remark, Hermes kept smiling brightly, as if she found all of this amusing.

Tilting his head, he asks,

“But then, what happens to me? A Escort knight for the Escort knight?”

“…Huh? That’s true.”

Hermes is the Escort knight Eliza assigned to me.

Strictly speaking, he’s a bit different from the kind of Escort knights nobles use, but to me, it’s all the same.

Anyway, he’s protected me well for the past five years…

Now that I’m going to be guarding Eliza, what about Hermes?

“The young lady will surely manage things well.”

“Mm. That’s a fair point.”

Hermes, who had been staring at me, grinned.

“Congratulations, Sir Judas.”

I returned his smile and nodded.

“Thank you.”

***

After exchanging farewells with Hermes, I went to find Sir Gawain.

I had a duty to report to him, and I wanted to share the news as soon as possible.

When I first arrived, my impression of him wasn’t particularly great.

But thanks to Eliza, I received personal training from him, and now, our relationship isn’t bad.

Honestly, Gawain has helped me a lot.

Though it started as punishment, he was serious every moment.

He never gave empty compliments, but neither did he belittle me.

He was truly an objective teacher.

At first, he said he wasn’t confident in being a good teacher, but by my standards, he was more than enough.

“Hmm. So, it’s come to this,”

Gawain said calmly.

I had just finished reporting to him.

“Yes. I’ve recovered the Sun Statue.”

“That Statue….”

Sitting in his office chair, he leaned back, slowly nodding his head.

Beneath his thick beard, the corner of his mouth twitched.

Does he grow his beard to hide his expressions?

“Ah, and regarding something that happened during the trial….”

I can’t talk about Hazle or the imperial family.

I don’t know how Eliza has decided to handle things yet.

So, I leave that part out and only mention what I experienced.

“I formed a sword using sword energy.”

“…….”

“And though it was brief, I also touched upon that ‘realm’ you mentioned, Sir.”

“Hmm…”

Gawain slowly nodded and stood up.

“Not only have you become a Escort knight, but you’ve also mastered that realm in one go….”

Then, suddenly, he walked over to the window.

‘…What’s going on?’

He stared at the window for a long while.

Without turning to face me, he spoke.

“Splendid.”

His voice, for some reason, sounded choked, like someone trying to hold back tears.

‘…No way.’

I asked, half in disbelief.

“Sir Gawain. Are you crying?”

“…Ahem! Ahem!”

He exaggeratedly cleared his throat several times, still speaking in a slightly strained voice.

“Don’t, don’t spout nonsense.”

I couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle.

‘He cried, he definitely cried.’