Chapter 141

#141 The Tin Knight and the City of Scales

In the eastern part of the continent, the Kingdom of Ionia.

Marquis William Heming, a leader of the old nobility faction and a key figure of the current royal faction, was in the middle of reporting to the king.

“-So, as it stands, the Witch’s Apprentice and her group are currently staying in the Logria Federation and plan to move on to find the next treasure as soon as they finish regrouping.”

Having delivered his message with the poise befitting a noble—smooth yet not obsequious—William cast a quick glance at the king for his reaction.

“Excellent! Truly excellent! It seems like it hasn’t even been six months, and you’ve already gathered half of the Eight Treasures!”

The king was beaming with a smile that lit up his face.

His appearance was quite peculiar.

Not that he looked bad; in fact, if we were just talking about his face, one could say he was rather handsome.

The problem lay in his attire.

From neck to toe, what should’ve been splendid royal garments was replaced by shimmering silver armor.

Instead of a crown, he wore a helmet, and without that elevated face covering, you could hardly see his face at all.

As befitted the king of a nation, the armor was quite splendid indeed.

But at the same time, it was not only flashy but also possessed sufficient practicality.

One could see the blood and sweat of artisans who had worked tirelessly to meld these two competing elements.

William Heming thought to himself.

‘He always looks quite impressive on the outside.’

With that tall and good-looking figure clad in elaborate armor, he gave off an image fit for a painting even while merely sitting still.

It was understandable why naive young people, unknowing of the world, would swoon over their king.

Shallow as it may be, a remarkable appearance was, in itself, something that could be seen as a virtue of a ruler.

‘But the problem is just that he looks good on the outside.’

William let out a quiet sigh.

The very outfit he wore was a problem.

The king wearing armor? That could certainly happen.

Had it been during a special event—like a military inspection or a knight’s induction ceremony—traditional nobles like William would have respected it without harboring any discontent.

But wearing armor as everyday attire with no special occasion to justify it was a different story.

Goodness, a king who didn’t even take off his armor during paperwork, court meetings, or even mealtime?

“The kingdom continues its struggle to reclaim its former glory. A commander must never let down his guard during wartime.”

Some enthusiastic royalist vassals honored the king’s appearance as exemplary of a knight, but to William, it just seemed like madness. The word “eccentricity” couldn’t describe it more fittingly.

Gazing gloomily at a knight lance propped against the throne, William lamented his situation.

Had he not carelessly meddled with the witch’s apprentice that day, he wouldn’t have needed to share political partnerships with someone like this king.

“What a surprising thing it is. And also unfortunate. If only the Holy Kingdom had visited before I ascended to the throne, when I was still a prince. If only I had a compass to pinpoint the treasures, I would have fetched it myself!”

“…Is that so?”

William, who usually didn’t share the king’s opinions, found himself agreeing at this moment.

If the young king had gone out in search of the treasures and met his end, he certainly wouldn’t be suffering from these stomach aches now, he thought.

“By the way, hmm. The Witch’s Apprentice, was it? The name was Dorothea, right? What was the last name again?”

“Dorothea Aschengard, Your Majesty.”

“Aschengard. Quite an old-fashioned surname. It’s often mentioned in fairy tales and old legends. Nowadays, though, it feels like it’s becoming rare.”

“It’s too common a surname in the east, so many are changing theirs to something else.”

“Ha ha ha! Everyone’s seeking something new and unique, and thus, the most old-fashioned name has become the rarest—how amusing!”

The king chuckled merrily, but then, with a slightly troubled expression, he shook the report in his hand.

“Well, anyway, about this Dorothea, it’s great that the recovery work is being done promptly, but I must say, the report is too flimsy. Taking away the petty formalities and pleasantries, the gist is just that it’s ‘been retrieved from a deserted island,’ isn’t it?”

“…That is indeed the case.”

William couldn’t bring himself to say, ‘The original document that came in was even shorter, with no pleasantries at all.’

His role was to at least make Dorothea’s haphazard report presentable enough to hand over to the king.

“In the future, when the kingdom regains its former glory, the process of recovering that treasure will become a saga, passed down through the generations. However, if the contents are lacking, it will be a pity in many ways.”

“Well, we can just ask the witch for the details after all the recovery operations are done, can’t we?”

Sensing an instinctive foreboding, William attempted to change the topic, but as always, the king didn’t play along.

“Of course, that is my intention, but one cannot solely rely on a person’s memory, as memory can be unstable. I would wish for a more detailed record.”

“Your Majesty’s foresight in preparing for the future is something only a god could second guess. However, if we impose a new task on someone who is already excellently fulfilling their original duty, wouldn’t that be too much of a burden?”

Though his tone was polite, William was desperate.

Considering the witch’s temper that he had personally experienced, he could hardly imagine what kind of backlash would come if he added unnecessary tasks to her workload.

“Hmm, that’s a fair point. Then how about this? We send someone to follow them. If we take charge of the record-keeping, it shouldn’t impose any significant burden on them. Ah, or perhaps sending a royal bard wouldn’t be a bad idea!”

William thought to himself.

Isn’t this acceptable? he mused.

“A good idea… or perhaps not, Your Majesty!”

Not acceptable at all. Not one bit.

A chilling sensation of webbed fingers creeping up his spine made William quickly retract the words he was about to say.

The king, puzzled, asked, “Are you saying this isn’t feasible either?”

William pondered, considering what words might make this dense king give up.

Discussing the competition over what talent to send or political issues regarding foreign relations would be pointless.

If the king were a person who concerned himself with such matters, he wouldn’t even be entertaining the ridiculous fantasy of reviving the kingdom with just eight magical artifacts.

To persuade this knight-king, who had been born in the wrong era, spouting nonsensical phrases like “always on the battlefield” while dressed in armor every day, he needed to meet him at eye level.

“─Your Majesty, can a fledgling knight sharpening his skills alone at the training grounds perform the same as a squire demonstrating his skills before a knight commander?”

“Hmm, that’s not quite right, I suppose. There’d definitely be more pressure on one’s shoulders.”

“Just like that. A person may do something casually normally, but the moment someone is watching, they tend to get tense, especially if that someone holds a higher status. Just as the mindset of a squire performing in front of a knight commander differs from that of a squire engrossed in his tasks, if you try to lower your eyes and ears upon them to document their every action, they will surely not be able to perform at their full capacity.”

“Hmm, that does seem true.”

“Moreover, renowned knights of old didn’t seek to have their deeds known by others. If someone only acts honorably when being watched by others, can that really be considered true honor and justice? That’s merely a superficial action intended for future glory and gains. I worry that by having Your Majesty watch over them, this crucial task tied to the kingdom’s honor and future will devolve into nothing more than a theatrical performance for show.”

“Oooh!”

The king seemed greatly impressed as he stood from the throne, crossing the distance swiftly to grasp William’s hand.

William was taken aback, but the escort knights and attendants simply wore expressions of resignation, as if they had given up on all worldly matters.

“Sir William, you have bestowed a great realization upon me! Your words are indeed correct. If those performing a glorious task were compelled to act unnaturally due to their awareness of me being an audience, the value of this journey would be tarnished. I cannot stain the first step on the path of our glorious kingdom myself. You’ve articulated this excellently!”

“…I’m glad to have been of help.”

A faint smile appeared on William’s lips.

It wasn’t that he was happy about the king’s gratitude; rather, he had just realized that the webbed fingers creeping up had vanished.

The next day, rumors spread that the king had expressed deep gratitude while taking William’s hand, causing him to be even more looked down upon by the nobility until he became aware of it. William Heming savored his brief feeling of victory and happiness.

***

Clatter, clatter.

With the sound of hooves hitting the ground, the wagon wheels rolled incessantly.

In a corner of the driver’s seat, even on the jerking chair, Sophia was busily writing down notes with her pen, which the Tin Knight was curious about.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ wonders what Sophia is writing so earnestly!]

“Oh, this? I’m organizing and recording our journey and the information we’ve gathered so far.”

The Tin Knight tilted his head in confusion.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if it’s really necessary to take notes when Sophia has a good memory!]

“Information doesn’t mean much if you just keep it to yourself. Until now, I couldn’t just increase my burden, but now it’s no longer necessary.”

Sophia was physically delicate and couldn’t handle heavy bags well, so even if she documented things, she had no choice but to store them elsewhere. Plus, she couldn’t ask Adel or the Tin Knight to carry them for her.

And considering stacking everything in the wagon was unstable since they used the wagon as a consumable, it wasn’t wise.

However, now she could move while storing small items in ‘Hyden’s Gloves,’ and there was no need to shy away from making more luggage like before.

Of course, putting things in and taking them out consumed magical power, so it wouldn’t be wise to overdo it, but Dorothea wouldn’t be too picky about a few books.

The Tin Knight watched intently as Sophia tirelessly jotted down words in her thick book with an excited demeanor.

What she used was a pen that turned magical power into ink, the only item Sophia had requested from the many treasures of the West Witch.

Despite her unsteady posture that couldn’t even be called stable, and her mind-blowing speed of writing, Sophia’s handwriting remained neat and beautiful.

Yet, the writing was indecipherable to the Tin Knight.

Suddenly, the Tin Knight felt curious.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if Sophia is considering learning a new script!]

“A new script? Yes, of course, if you teach me.”

She gave an instant reply with not a moment of hesitation.

Having grown tired of merely driving the wagon from the driver’s seat, the Tin Knight took on the role of an impromptu instructor.

“Hmm? Is it a script based on the structure of the human body? How interesting.”

Sophia’s learning speed was astonishingly fast.

While the Tin Knight merely engaged in casual conversation due to the translation effect of the brooch, she grasped fully enough to trace back to the very essence of it from just a few words.

Even considering the brooch allowed the Tin Knight’s will to be conveyed, this was quite remarkable.

Pronunciation, grammar, and the nuanced differences in translation—the components that usually form obstacles in learning a new language were swiftly dissected, and eventually, Sophia began to grasp things the Tin Knight hadn’t even verbally mentioned.

In less than half a day, a stream of writing emerged that the Tin Knight could read.

[Thus, the party, having succeeded in defeating the West Witch, headed toward a new destination. There were three main objectives: to replenish resources exhausted from the recent battle and recover from fatigue, to obtain the ‘golem shaped like a horse’ mentioned by Franka Aglaia, and to take the third seal test of Adelheid von Lenart. Fortunately, there was a city in the Logria Federation that could suitably fulfill all three objectives simultaneously.]

[‘The left hind leg of the lion’ ‘One of the ten pillars supporting the federation’ ‘A place ruled by the most refined yet barbaric laws’]

[The City of Scales, Justitia. That was the new destination of the party.]