During the week-long vacation that Laius gave him, Arendt suffered endlessly.
After sohow shaking off the servants who were clinging to him with tears and snot running down their noses, the next one to barge in was Count Stadler, who was supposed to be in the magic stone mine laboratory.
After shaking off the Count, who wore a face full of such excessive concern that it was almost burdenso and kept prying with endless questions, he returned to his room, only to be greeted by the bright glow of the communication crystal ball.
It was Llewellyn.
He tried to ignore it, but the crystal ball continued to flash and show its presence.
When he finally answered the call, as expected, a torrent of complaints started pouring out.
– Why on earth do you get involved in a major accident every ti people take their eyes off you? Take care of your own neck before you tell soone else to take care of themselves, you idiot!
“…You’re so noisy.”
Arendt ended the call and threw the crystal ball into the closet.
At this point, his patience was starting to reach its limit, and the mont he saw Arcus, who had abandoned the busy Union and barged in, it completely disappeared.
“So that’s why you ca here.”
Neumann smiled awkwardly after hearing the general circumstances.
Arendt was always sowhat relaxed, yet never lost his air of dignity.
But today, he was so exhausted that he practically collapsed on the guest sofa and lay there.
“I’m going to lose my mind from how annoying this is.”
Arendt grumbled, chewing on his snack with obvious irritation.
Even the movent of putting the snack that Neumann had personally prepared into his mouth was oozing with annoyance.
“If it’s going to be like this, they might as well just give so work. All they do is follow around and won’t even let go near any docunts.”
“Heh heh, well, given the nature of the situation, it can’t be helped. I was quite shocked myself when I first heard the news.”
Neumann smiled kindly as he poured himself another cup of tea.
“But isn’t that proof that you are loved? That’s a good thing.”
“…”
Arendt just wore a sulky expression, saying nothing in response.
Neumann, who had been staring at him quietly, spoke again.
“Sir Arthur said he would co to see you before sunset, so you may make yourself at ho until then.”
“…Yes?”
Arendt, who had been staring blankly, raised his head in bewildernt.
Neumann smiled as their eyes t.
“Before you arrived, I received a call from the palace. They said that Sir Arendt was nowhere to be seen, and that he might co this way, so please do not let him go anywhere.”
“…”
It was a situation that gave a strong sense of déjà vu.
Neumann spoke a few words to Arendt, who was staring blankly into space, holding a snack in one hand.
“You’re still getting along so well. It’s really nice to see.”
“Seriously, those annoying people.”
Arendt muttered wearily and stuffed the snack he was holding into his mouth.
“Is there any interesting intel?”
“It’s still the sa. Nothing much has happened, but there are rumors about Captain Laius and Sir Arendt, who were chosen by the Holy Sword. And…”
Neumann looked at Arendt aningfully.
“The incident of the statue being destroyed in the prayer room also caused quite a stir.”
But Arendt showed no change in his expression.
Arendt asked, picking up another snack.
“So what were the reactions to that incident? His Majesty declared it to be the work of remnants of the Evil Cult.”
“The people’s reactions are similar. Most people think that we should simply find and punish the villains who committed the blasphemy, but that won’t be easy. If soone can sneak in without being caught and behead the statue, they must be soone with incredible power.”
Neumann, too, did not delve further and simply gave Arendt the answer he wanted.
“It will probably be covered up soon. I heard that His Majesty is already looking for a sculptor to create a new statue. Right now, the interest in who will sculpt the new statue is greater than in catching the culprit.”
“Hmm.”
The fact that attention was drawn to the new sculpture seed to be the intended result of High Priest Lumiel.
If it was soone like Lumiel, there was a high possibility that she would have had a vague idea of who the culprit was.
This was certainly an unpleasant incident for Lumiel, who had devoted her entire life to her faith in Luce.
‘I have no excuse even if she doesn’t want to et again.’
But she seed to have just pretended not to know.
It was quite an impressive display of understanding.
“I think you would be more interested in the comrcial side of things than that?”
Neumann, who had been staring blankly at him, naturally changed the subject.
Arendt, who had been lost in thought for a mont, focused.
“Has anything changed?”
“As your fa grows, the nas of the Neumann rchant Group and the Khan Union are spreading. I didn’t expect this, but it seems to have had an unexpected publicity effect. That ans…”
“Rumors have already spread about what happened.”
Arendt finished Neumann’s speech with a weary look on his face.
Neumann nodded briefly.
“Yes. And I have so news that might upset Sir Arendt. Would you like to hear it?”
“What is it?”
“A person sent by Count Eckhart is near the Imperial Palace…”
“That’s enough. I don’t want to hear it.”
“Heh heh heh.”
Neumann burst into laughter at his words being cut off.
“Okay, I’ll take care of it. Your father just…”
“I don’t have a father.”
“…I think the Count is just curious about Sir Arendt’s well-being.”
Neumann, who hesitated for a mont, changed the way he addressed him..
“We’ve got our informants monitoring them closely, but there doesn’t seem to be any major issues. We’ll keep an eye on things for now, and when the ti is right, we’ll calmly persuade them and send them back.”
“Isn’t it quicker to just knock so sense into them instead of trying to calm them down?”
“I’ll sort it out quickly. Honestly, I’m kind of afraid that you might end up beating them up yourself.”
When the rchant leader spoke so quickly, a hint of regret flashed in Arendt’s eyes.
“By the way, could you tell more about the other groups? There have been people trying to make contact with the Neumann Group, right?”
“Yes. The war is about to break out, so they want to establish a link between the imperial family and the front lines to supply supplies before it does. In addition, since you, Sir Arendt, who has ties with , has gained so more notoriety, I can’t say that your influence hasn’t played a role
The Neumann rchant Group was supplying various items to the imperial family, so the other rchant groups believed that they could get in touch with the imperial family through him.
Neumann added seriously.
“War is also a battle of supplies, so I’m managing things properly without refusing most of them. The more allies we have, the better. Of course, we’re conducting thorough investigations, just in case the enemy is among them.”
“That’s a good thing, but…”
Arendt frowned slightly.
“How is my reputation like?”
“Haven’t you already felt it in the palace?”
When Neumann asked with a puzzled look on his face, Arendt grumbled in annoyance.
“I can’t even investigate properly because my seniors and the captain are interfering.”
The nobles were unable to even dare to speak to Arendt due to the chilling montum of Laius and the Third Knights.
Arendt also found himself unable to move, although he initially found it comfortable, because whenever Arendt tried to do sothing, the knights would foam at the mouth and go wild.
He never dread that he would be treated like this in his life.
Neumann burst into laughter as if he knew what he was talking about.
“Oh, I see. Well, let give you an example to make it easier to understand.”
“An example?”
“Yes, while Sir Arendt was still in bed… a devout noble contacted and said he was planning to build a new temple for Luce.”
He wanted to obtain materials needed for construction.
Arendt’s brow furrowed at the ominous feeling that was already creeping in.
“And?”
“It was about wanting to build a temple in the territory to commorate the awakening of the Holy Sword, but to cut to the chase…”
There was a hint of pity in Neumann’s eyes as he looked at Arendt.
“He ntioned wanting to build a prayer room for Sir Arendt.”
“Pfft, cough! Cough! Cough!”
The snack flew out of his mouth.
“Oh my, are you alright?”
Neumann hurriedly handed him tea as he coughed repeatedly, his face turning bright red.
Only after gulping down the tea and pounding his chest could Arendt raise his head again.
“Cough cough, wait a minute, what are you saying? What did he want to build?”
Arendt asked back in disbelief, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
Neumann answered with a weary look on his face.
“It is as you heard. He said he would place the statue of Captain Laius in front of the statue of Lord Luce, and make a small prayer room for Sir Arendt next to it.”
“This crazy…”
The apprentice knight’s gaze turned to the sky as he muttered in confusion.
Neumann looked at him with pity and took a handkerchief from his pocket.
“Please use this. Fortunately, it was said that the plan fell through because the Great Temple did not grant permission, but that’s about it.”
Arendt took the handkerchief, wiped his face, and asked again.
“No one found that strange?”
“Yes, that’s what it seed like. Rather, everyone seed to be wondering why permission wasn’t granted.”
“This is driving crazy.”
Arendt, who had regained his composure, threw the handkerchief down on the table.
Neumann asked him cautiously.
“What will you do? Honestly, I’m having trouble making a decision. As a rchant, it’s true that there are profits to be made, but I’m concerned as it seems there’s nothing good for Sir Arendt in this situation.”
Arendt was always adept at capturing attention and using it in all sorts of unusual ways.
But at least this ti, it was sothing that Arendt had not intended, so it was difficult to predict what the results would be if he moved recklessly.
Arendt thought the sa thing.
“Aside from it being annoying, it’s not a very good situation.”
It wasn’t a problem that could be solved just by Laius’ nagging.
They say that everyone in the palace was keeping their mouths shut out of fear of the hero of the Holy Sword, but there was nothing they could do about the public opinion that was outside.
“Why do you think so?”
“There are restrictions on your future actions. A troublemaking, reckless apprentice knight will do whatever they please, but…”
Since he had been given the grand nickna of “The Hero’s Benefactor” by God, whatever he did from now on would be t with interference.
That was not a role that suited Arendt von Eckhart.
It didn’t make sense for a supporting character to receive as much spotlight as the main character in the first place.
While Laius was doing his job, Arendt had a lot to do in the shadows.
“…What should I do?”
Neumann let out a short sigh as he saw the golden eyes sparkle.
“Well.”
That was the look in Arendt’s eyes when he started to plot sothing, but Neumann didn’t intend to stop him.
‘It’s a miracle that he’s been quiet until now.’
He knew that it would be a bit frustrating for the knights, but they couldn’t keep fighting with that temper forever.
Above all, Arendt preferred it when he was at least causing a bit of trouble here and there.
“If you need anything, please let know. As always, I will be happy to help.”
“Hmm…”
Arendt straightened up, crossing his legs.
He started to really think about it.
At a ti when all eyes were on him, struggling and telling them not to look was pointless.
After drawing attention to the main character, Laius, he had to leave him in the middle of the stage and exit naturally.
That way, he could do so backstage tricks or sches.
‘Then…’
After a while, a smile appeared on Arendt’s lips.
“Well then, that’s good. There is sothing Lord Neumann can help with.”
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