“Young Master.”
“Lunelle?”
“There’s sothing I must urgently tell you.”
Still exhausted from last night’s events in the basent, I sat at my office desk, a tired expression on my face. I slowly lifted my head at the soft knock and familiar voice.
“What is it?”
“I... That is, um...”
“......?”
But Lunelle, who entered through the door, didn’t carry her usual tough deanor. Instead, she looked awkward and hesitant.
“Is sothing troubling you?”
“...No, it’s not that.”
“Haha. It’s fine. Whatever it is, just speak freely.”
Only after I gently smiled and urged her on did she flinch slightly and finally begin to speak.
“Did you... take a new knight’s vow recently?”
“...Excuse ?”
Hearing that, I sprang up from my chair, wondering if word of what happened in the sealed basent had already begun to spread.
“Judging by that reaction, it must be true.”
“Where did you hear that?”
Thinking it over, besides the liquid monster that had terrified the maids, only Parsha had witnessed receiving Ferris’s knight’s vow.
But Parsha wouldn’t casually spread sothing like that around, especially not when I had told her to keep quiet.
“...I didn’t hear it from anyone.”
“Then?”
My confusion was quickly resolved by Lunelle’s next answer—though in a way that left even more unsettled.
“...I felt it.”
A new wave of questions imdiately surged into my mind.
“You felt it? Felt what, and how...?”
“Well, it’s a little complicated to explain, but...”
Lunelle frowned slightly as she tried to piece together an explanation.
“It’s like... sothing connected. Or maybe I could say, I sensed the presence of a new absolute ally of my master...”
“......”
“I’ve always felt a connection with you, Master, but this is the first ti I’ve sensed soone else being added to that. That’s why I ca here, even if it’s impolite...”
What the hell. That’s creepy.
She can feel when soone forms a contract with ? What is this, a hive mind? It sent chills down my spine.
“Maybe it’s... so kind of bond that forms between those who’ve taken the knight’s vow?”
“...Is that what it is?”
“Haha, it’s only my second ti too, so I’m not sure.”
It was the only explanation I could think of, so I gave a vague reply. Lunelle tilted her head slightly but accepted it for now.
“But... why do you look so down?”
“Ah, that’s...”
“As I said, you can talk freely.”
“...Understood.”
Having noticed her gloomy expression for a while now, I pressed her gently again. After so hesitation, Lunelle finally closed her eyes tightly and let it out.
“Why... Why did you add another knight without discussing it with first?”
“...Huh?”
“Master, a knight’s vow should not be taken lightly.”
As she suddenly began her lecture, I tilted my head in confusion.
Wasn’t the knight’s vow basically just a glorified slave contract... no, a mutual employnt contract?
It’s one of the strongest legally binding contracts, and it can’t even activate unless both parties genuinely consent (proof that what happened with Ferris wasn’t forced), so it couldn’t be abused through coercion either.
“A knight who takes the vow becos fully bound to their master.”
“...Right.”
“And in return, the master is also obligated to safeguard the knight’s honor, pledging their soul.”
I still didn’t fully get it, but based on Ferris’s words, it seed like there was sothing more to it.
“To put it simply, while the knight must give absolute loyalty, the master must also uphold the knight’s pride and dignity.”
And once again, I’d stumbled into another hidden lore detail I didn’t know about.
In the ga, you could only form the vow with knights whose affinity was maxed out, so there was no real need to worry about penalties.
“For example, if I considered having my feet washed by you every day as my honor, then you would be obligated to wash my feet every day.”
It still didn’t feel real to —until Lunelle said that with a very serious expression.
“...Should I prepare a washbasin and towel?”
“Ah—no! That was just an example. I would never make such a ridiculous request,”
Relieved, I lowered my voice while glancing at her, and she quickly waved her hands, flustered.
“My honor lies in wielding the sword. From the mont you gave that back to , I beca your knight for eternity.”
“...I appreciate that.”
“The issue is what kind of honor the new knight holds dear.”
I was [N O V E L I G H T] still feeling moved when Lunelle straightened up again, her tone serious once more.
“If that knight defines sothing unusual as ‘honor,’ you are still bound to fulfill it.”
“...That’s a little terrifying.”
“That’s why the knight’s vow isn’t taken lightly. Both sides need deep trust.”
Then, right as she said that, Lunelle began muttering while casting sidelong glances at , her gaze full of vague resentnt.
“That’s why it’s always romanticized in knightly literature...”
“...What?”
“And I’m just saying this as a general comnt...”
Given that Lunelle rarely ever expressed dissatisfaction, I perked up my ears to listen.
“In those stories, the most popular knights are the ones who serve only one master their whole lives... and the most popular masters are those who pledge the vow with only one knight...”
And then it clicked.
“...Are you sulking because I made a vow with another knight without telling you?”
“...N-No, not at all. That’s absurd.”
“Really?”
“...Yes.”
Though she kept shaking her head in denial, the pout on her face was hard to miss.
How did the Emperor’s vicious Hound end up like this?
The thought crossed my mind—but I quickly erased it. This Lunelle was a hundred tis better than that tragic version.
“Even if you gain more knights... just don’t forget that I was the first.”
“...Haha.”
Cute redia, now cute Lunelle too. I was stepping into territory no veteran player had ever reached before, and the feeling was... strange.
“More importantly, you should quickly figure out what that knight defines as honor and start negotiating.”
“......”
“I’m sure you’ll handle it well, but just in case... I thought I should say it.”
And so, as I scratched my head awkwardly, Lunelle, her cheeks faintly flushed, threw out a quick change of topic.
“I understand what you an, but in this case, I don’t think it’ll be much of a problem.”
“Huh? What do you an—?!”
At my reply, Lunelle tilted her head, shifting her gaze to my hand—only to freeze in place, mouth agape.
“At this rate, she won’t be raising any swords, let alone starting a rebellion.”
From beneath my desk, where she’d been huddled since earlier, Ferris was now desperately nuzzling my outstretched hand, drenched in cold sweat.
“...What is this...?”
“...Would you believe if I said I don’t know either?”
This bizarre phenonon had been going on for six hours now, ever since I made the knight’s vow with her in the basent.
***
“Um, could you maybe stop now?”
“...!”
“You’re starting to make uncomfortable.”
Ferris, trembling violently as she rubbed her cheek against my hand, snapped out of it at the cold voice above her.
“A-Ah... I-I’m sorry.”
“......”
“I-I just... got used to servile behavior, I guess...”
That was a total lie.
Rubbing against a stronger figure as a sign of submission was a deeply ingrained instinct among wolf beastkin.
Ferris, still carrying her wild instincts after years of bloodshed, had never experienced such overwhelming terror before—and her instincts had taken over.
The excuse, however, was part of the survival skills honed through a lifeti of slavery.
“If you’re back to your senses, then let’s talk.”
“...Huh?”
“What is the honor you seek?”
But the one speaking to her now was Whitney Ringaarden.
Unaffected by her excuses, his narrowed eyes bore down on her with pressure.
“M-My... honor... you an?”
“......”
“What was that again...”
While the sudden pressure certainly flustered her, there was a deeper reason for her dumb response.
...What even is it?
She had seen more filth than anyone—born a beastkin, enslaved and trained as an assassin for over fifteen years.
Naturally, there wasn’t much ‘honor’ left to protect.
“Your public image. Your pride. So abstract value you uphold—define that, wolf.”
“If it’s sothing like that... hmm.”
After a mont of silence, it was only when Lunelle offered a dictionary-style explanation that Ferris could finally speak.
“I... I want to rise to a high position.”
That desire was common, but in Ferris’s case, it carried sothing extra.
“And... to catch the eye of a handso, strong, powerful man... marry him... and live a peaceful, comfortable life...”
Those were the minimum requirents she had set for herself—so she wouldn’t be ashad of her own greedy dream.
“Is that good enough?”
“...Yes.”
“If that’s the honor you seek, then I can grant it for you.”
Apparently, Whitney found her transparent desire pleasing, because he smiled softly as he whispered.
“In exchange, you’ll have to offer a lot in return.”
Of course, the tone that followed was chilling enough to rekindle her trauma from the basent—but the words before that sounded sweet to her ears.
“Well, not that you have a choice now. You’ve already sworn the vow.”
And as he said, Ferris, who had broken down sobbing and pledged herself in the basent under crushing fear, no longer had any choice.
“I look forward to working with you, Ferris.”
“......”
“Let’s get along well.”
As Whitney gently patted her head with a smile, Ferris beca aware of sothing.
...Wait a minute.
Her survival instincts, honed through fifteen years on the bottom. Her adaptability. Her sharp intuition.
Even if he’s just a count... Whitney Ringaarden is soone even Maier acknowledged. Being his right-hand would definitely be a high enough position...
All of that quickly led her to a new conclusion.
And he’s handso... stronger than ... more powerful...
She glanced up at Whitney’s half-lidded eyes and smooth features, and her eyes sparkled with clarity.
Oh?
She had just realized sothing critical: that maybe... this wasn’t misfortune, but a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity to start anew.
—Swish, swish...
It was from that mont that Ferris’s tail began swaying rapidly as she looked up at Whitney.
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