A sudden announcement declaring the end of the exchange match.
As if to prove those words, Pjol stepped back.
“What? It’s really over?”
“It ends just like this?”
The atmosphere, which had been heated up, cooled down instantly as if doused with cold water.
The instructors were no different.
A perfect record—seven wins out of seven matches. Yet, no one was celebrating.
It was because the conclusion felt unsatisfying.
“Did you see that just now?”
“He blocked two attacks so easily…”“And it was Ron, no less. That guy might slack off in everything else, but when it comes to skill, he’s among the best.”
“Was there really someone that skilled under Baron Kelven? Why haven’t we heard of him before?”
A commotion broke out among the instructors.
Luna clicked her tongue, clearly displeased.
“What a shame. It was a good chance to gauge his skills.”
“Keke, we learned the most important thing, so it’s fine.”
Pjol’s skill was impressive, but more importantly, Bickerd was someone they couldn’t afford to mess with.
If they had launched a surprise attack at dawn, it would have been their side that suffered instead.
‘Well, if I went all out, I could have taken down one or two of them.’
The problem was that Luna and Rezé’s survival wouldn’t have been guaranteed.
Avoiding the fight was definitely the right choice.
“That was entertaining. It’s been a while since I saw something fun.”
“Still, it feels like something’s missing.”
“What if Pjol had joined the match?”
Even though Pjol had declared the match over, people weren’t leaving just yet.
The crowd formed a natural arena, and at its center, a young man stepped forward.
It was Nade, Baron Kelven’s son.
“With such exceptional skill… As expected of an Annwood Academy instructor.”
“Thanks for the compliment. They weren’t bad either. But with those injuries, they should focus on nurturing young talent rather than fighting on the front lines.”
“I will take Dame Lowell’s advice to heart. I’ll bring it up with my father.”
“Like that war maniac would actually listen.”
“Haha, they say he was like that before I was born. I wouldn’t know—I’ve never seen it myself.”
Nade gave an awkward smile.
The girls watching him let out delighted shrieks.
“Kyahhh!”
It wasn’t envy. I had made plenty of people scream before, too.
Huh? You think those were screams of a different kind?
…Let’s move on. Now’s not the time to dwell on trivial things.
“I still don’t get it. They could’ve secured a clear victory, yet they stopped.”
“Isn’t it obvious? They knew they’d lose, so they backed out.”
“So that’s it. Rather than suffer a humiliating defeat, they chose pragmatism.”
“If that’s the case, then I’m disappointed. That’s no different from running away—ow!”
A merchant suddenly let out a scream and collapsed to the ground.
A young boy stood proudly over him.
It was Adel, the leader of the Trash Sprout Defense Squad.
“You got it all wrong! Pjol showed mercy—that’s why they survived!”
“Mercy? He didn’t retreat?”
“If Pjol had fought, he would’ve won. He could’ve taken them all down alone! If he can win 17 against 1, then 8 against 1 is nothing.”
“Kid, I hate to break it to you, but his opponents were knights. And not just any knights—they were elite.”
“Ugh! Whatever! If they fought, the old man would’ve won!”
Adel kicked the merchant’s leg again.
But this time, the merchant didn’t fall. He had braced himself.
“You brat!”
“Ugh…!”
As the merchant raised his hand, Adel flinched.
But his hand never landed on Adel.
Because I had grabbed it.
No, not just me—Luna had, too.
“Mister, don’t take out your anger on a kid.”
“Why are you grabbing me?! He hit me first!”
“And you insulted him first—convenient how you left that part out. You want to see that knight’s skills for yourself? Fine, I’ll show you. But the one experiencing them will be your body.”
Luna’s cold gaze sent a shiver down the merchant’s spine.
“…Damn it!”
Muttering a curse under his breath, barely audible to us, the merchant turned and left.
Adel shook his fist at the retreating figure.
“Hmph! Don’t underestimate the Trash Sprout Defense Squad ever again!”
Smack!
“Why’d you hit me?!”
“Because we did all the work! All you did was cause trouble!”
“That wasn’t trouble! That was justice!”
“Justice, my ass!”
Scuffle, scuffle—.
Luna really gets along well with kids. Probably because they share the same mental age?
“Be more careful. Do you have any idea how scary people can be?”
“Hmph! No way they’re scarier than demons.”
“…There are plenty of people scarier than demons.”
Luna’s gaze shifted past Adel.
Standing there was Pjol.
“Especially guys like him. The ones who seem kind are usually the dirtiest.”
“Yeah, people can be scary. Jealous of a great knight like him.”
“You little—!”
Luna grabbed Adel’s cheeks and lifted him into the air.
Adel flailed and shouted.
“Acela, attack! Stop this vicious woman!”
“Eh? M-me?”
“You’re the designated sacrifice!”
“O-oh, right! Take this!”
Acela rushed at Luna.
Scuffle, scuffle—.
She started punching Luna’s leg with her tiny fists.
Well, it was more like flailing than punching, but it was enough to make Luna let go of Adel’s cheeks.
Acela was just too adorable.
“Deputy leader! Retreat for now!”
“I’ll get you next time!”
The leader and deputy leader of the Trash Sprout Defense Squad, Adel and Whale, ran away, shouting lines straight out of a third-rate villain’s script.
“Those idiots… They have no idea.”
“Keke, are you worried about them?”
“Hmph! As if! Why would I worry about those arrogant brats?”
Was she embarrassed? Luna hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“I just… don’t want any more sacrifices.”
Her words carried a firm determination.
A strong resolve to rescue Dolores.
“Even against such a powerful opponent?”
“We’re stronger, so it’s fine.”
Not “I,” but “we,” huh?
But I am a cool and rational man of the city. I was just about to bring Luna back to reality when—
“Huff… Huff…”
A sudden panting sound made me lower my gaze.
Acela was clinging to Luna’s leg like a cicada, completely exhausted from punching her earlier.
Luna carefully pried Acela off with both hands.
Her movements were surprisingly gentle.
“Alright, go catch up with those guys.”
“Y-you’re letting me go?”
“What’s there to let go of? I never caught you in the first place.”
“T-thanks! Pretty lady!”
“…Who are you calling pretty? Say ‘gorgeous lady.’ No, ‘more beautiful than a goddess’ lady.”
“Okay! More beautiful than a goddess lady!”
Brainwashing an innocent kid like that!
“Keke, you could say that’s worse than a kidnapper’s crime.”
“You’re not talking about me, right?”
“Of course not. How could I ever say that to the lovely Luna, who is even more beautiful than a goddess?”
“Hmph, you sure know how to talk.”
A satisfied smile spread across Luna’s lips.
Ah, if only the whole world were full of people like Luna.
It would be a truly beautiful world… and so easy to take advantage of.
“Don’t follow strange people, okay?”
“Okay!”
Acela flopped onto the ground and wriggled through a small hole in the fence.
“Pjol, you don’t have to listen to the ignorant.”
“Next time, make sure to show them your real strength! No need to hold back!”
“Sir Pjol! Stay strong!”
Nade had admitted defeat.
Yet the cheers for the victor were few.
Instead, the townspeople were cheering for the knights… No, for Pjol.
“So that’s why Dolores, someone as sharp as she is, ended up getting kidnapped… It was all because of him.”
That’s right.
Pjol was deeply trusted by the townspeople.
If he asked for help, anyone would blindly follow.
“What are you all standing around for? The exchange match is over—get back to your posts already!”
“Whoa!”
“L-Lady Lowell is mad! Everyone, move!”
The instructors scrambled to get away from Lowell’s wrath, and the defeated Trash Knights hung their heads in humiliation.
Even the townspeople and merchants, preparing to return to work, added to the sudden chaos.
“Zero!”
“Keke, it’s dangerous to go against the flow. I’ll see you later.”
Luna, too, was swept away by the crowd.
She tried to stick close to me but failed—because a terrified Rezé was clinging to her tightly.
I wasn’t worried.
Not only did this give me time to think, but it was also just another part of the story.
‘So, this is where things pause for now.’
There had been a few deviations from the story I knew.
Originally, this exchange match arc ended with the Trash Sprout Defense Squad singing praises about Pjol’s greatness.
Listening to them until the end would raise their favorability—a bonus.
But now, the opposite had happened.
They had doubted Pjol.
Disappointed, the kids had left.
‘That’s because they know we suspect knights kidnapped Dolores.’
A positive change—one that might help in rescuing Dolores.
But that was as far as it went.
It wasn’t a drastic enough shift to completely alter the story’s course.
“Don’t push!”
“Argh! I’m gonna fall—!”
I let myself be carried by the flow of people.
Once swept into the crowd, I would randomly run into a character.
The selection pool?
Anyone I had spoken to at least once.
An event with a high chance of landing on a dud.
After a while, the crowd started slowing down, then came to a stop.
And the person standing in front of me was…
‘Daike, huh?’
Teron’s hunting dog, Daike.
He was silently watching the knights.
Admiration, longing, fear, jealousy, regret—his eyes held a mix of emotions.
Even though he was trained to suppress his feelings, his gaze betrayed him.
‘Dreams are like that.’
That’s right.
The reason Daike was acting this way…
Because his dream was to become a knight.
No, rather—his dream had been to become a knight.
A hunting dog and a knight.
At a glance, they might seem similar.
But they were completely different.
A hunting dog was a filthy existence that obeyed its master’s every order.
A knight was a noble figure who could defy their master’s will and offer counsel.
A hunting dog could never reach the status of a knight.
“…”
Even the defeated Trash Knights, slumped in disgrace, must have seemed dazzling to him.
He took in every detail of their retreating figures.
I slowly approached Daike.
“Keke, did you lose your group?”
“Ugh!”
Daike flinched so hard he nearly jumped off the ground.
Then, upon recognizing me, his expression returned to normal.
Cold, disinterested, but tinged with competitiveness.
Feigning ignorance, I casually draped an arm over his shoulder.
“Knights… It’s a noble profession.”
“…Is that so?”
Was it because I spoke positively about knights? Daike’s hostility seemed to wane slightly.
“Now that I think about it, a knight’s role suits you perfectly, Daike.”
“For me?”
“You protect Teron, don’t you? I don’t see much difference between that and a knight’s duty.”
Daike stared at me, his face blank.
Then, suddenly, he shook his head violently, as if trying to rid himself of intrusive thoughts.
“…No. That has nothing to do with me.”
That’s right.
Daike was Teron’s hunting dog.
A creature that could never become a knight.
An unattainable dream—one he understood better than anyone.
That’s why he looked at knights with such longing.
It was the same in the game, and this time was no different.
The fate of Daike, the hunting dog, was—
Thud.
I was recalling Daike’s final moments from the game when he suddenly pushed me back slightly.
“Get lost.”
“How cold. Why?”
“We’re not the kind of people who should be talking.”
“Keke, but weren’t you the one talking to me just a moment ago?”
Twitch.
A thick vein bulged on Daike’s forehead.
It seemed his patience had reached its limit.
Time to back off.
‘Well, it was a dead-end event anyway.’
Since I had already antagonized Teron, getting close to Daike wouldn’t benefit me.
I slowly lowered my arm from his shoulder and glanced at my wrist.
“Oh dear, looks like it’s time for my appointment. I should get going.”
“…I don’t see a watch on your wrist.”
“Would you believe me if I said it’s a clock only visible to good people?”
Daike gave me a long, silent stare.
It wasn’t hard to guess what he was thinking.
Something along the lines of “Do you think I’d believe that?” and “Please just go away.”
“Keke, well then, I’ll be off.”
With that, I turned and left.
A system message popped up:
[Daike’s favorability toward you has dropped significantly.]
–TL Notes–
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