Chapter 13

Chapter 13: The Battle for the Porter - Imperial Capital (1)

"How was the Ducal House?"

A tedious journey. Even among men, conversation partners were a necessity. We'd been on horseback for a week straight.

Granted, this was a prince's procession — royal knights flanked us, they pitched the tents themselves, and the food was excellent — but boring was boring.

Before I could even answer, Prince Gatos spoke.

"Not much fun, is it? The Duke confiscates all the people's entertainment and replaces it with nothing but production facilities. However much you pursue economic efficiency, how can you expect people to live on production alone?"

Look at him talking behind the Duke's back. Then again, Gatos was the honest type. In romance fantasy, gossip and public humiliation were standard fare. In the Hunter world, almost everyone was blunt to a fault, so adjusting wasn't going to be easy.

"By the way, I hear Ephrin Lapitess has run away from home."

I nearly fell off my horse. You should've led with that. That was the interesting part.

"When did it happen?"

"Today's carrier pigeon says two days ago."

The prince received a white carrier pigeon once a day. Even while traveling, the work never stopped. No forty-hour work weeks in this world.

"Apparently the estate had some emergency underground passage, and the boy dug a tunnel from there and escaped. Quite impressive."

Gatos laughed heartily. If Ephrin had been aligned with his faction, he'd have been scrambling to find her, but since she was the First Prince's side, it was just an amusing anecdote to him.

Come to think of it, all those swords with dulled edges hanging on the wall — they hadn't all been worn down from training. She'd been digging a tunnel with them. Impressive regardless, Ephrin. See you next time.

Gatos probed carefully.

"Was this your doing?"

"No."

I drew a clear line. And it was true. Ephrin was always destined to leave. But Gatos made a noncommittal hum that said he thought it was my doing anyway. The higher the rank, the more likely they'd already decided on the answer before asking.

"We'll arrive at the Capital soon. I've seen your etiquette, so I trust you'll do well."

Gatos said.

"There may be people who offend you. I'm ashamed to say it, but many nobles hold prejudices against Yensi people. I have no such feelings."

I knew that. I didn't really care about people like that. If I was great, that was all that mattered. The people who wouldn't even return my calls back when I was a nobody had come crawling the instant I manifested S-rank talent.

Elementary school friends, kindergarten classmates, daycare acquaintances — all reaching out to say congratulations. Some even claimed to be upperclassmen from decades prior at my high school and pitched business investments.

"It doesn't bother me."

"That's good to hear."

"Being from Yensi is just a very small part of who I am."

"That's a fine thing to say."

Shout-out to Ephrin. That was an elegant line, so I borrowed it. I'd always thought her wordcraft was exceptional — the perks of being nobility.

"I envy you."

"Why is that?"

"Being a prince takes up an enormous part of who I am, even though I never wanted it to."

Gatos drew the curtain aside and looked out. Below the hillside, high walls encircled a basin, and the people inside moved like ants.

"The Imperial Capital."

At the center of the Capital, the spire of a white castle gleamed gold under the sunlight.

***

"My name is Appari Tion, and I'll be attached to the Second Prince's division for one week. A pleasure to work with you all."

I offered the Trafviche salute and greeted the assembled staff. The Chief Attendant, attendants, royal knights, cooks, the Imperial Library's librarian — every key figure in the Second Prince's division was present, minus those away on assignment.

Obviously, I hadn't summoned them. The Second Prince had. Talk about overkill. Since when did a division commander summon a regimental officer just because a private showed up?

"Is there any post that currently needs Appari?"

The prince asked. Honestly, I'd expected minimal interest. But nearly everyone pounced.

"We're always short-handed."

"I filed for additional personnel, but it keeps getting rejected......"

"Our division has the greatest shortage."

"We need him more!"

In order: the Second Prince's kitchen, steward's office, accounting office, cleaning division.

So none of the places I had in mind. I'd come here for honor, at the very least.

Not because I had any personal craving for glory — I'd gotten my fill of that in my past life. But nearly all the main and supporting characters here were nobles, and mingling with them required at least a title.

"I'd like to join the Royal Guard."

I declined every hopeful pair of eyes and stated my preference. Their warm looks — as though watching an endearing youngest sibling — turned on a dime.

"Tch, with that scrawny build? What kind of guardsman?"

"Your Highness, why did you bring someone like this?"

The prince was so kind that his subordinates walked all over him. Like looking at Ephrin's guards all over again. Though these people were different — they did their jobs well.

They simply spoke freely because the prince was kind. The hostility toward me, of course, was a separate matter.

"Captain Kanna?"

The prince ignored their outcry and addressed the one person who remained composed. That was right — it was you. Kanna. Kanna Karamov.

The woman who would later become Marina's royal knight. The one who would become Marina's closest friend. Currently stationed in the Second Prince's Guard, she'd eventually catch Marina's eye and transfer to become Marina's personal knight.

I'd come here to see her. She was as beautiful as her illustration — no, even more beautiful.

A platinum-blonde bob and blue eyes that suited her perfectly.

"The Guard does not currently require additional personnel."

Kanna said firmly. Come on, why not? Just let me in. Since when was any military unit fully staffed? More was always better, wasn't it?

"Didn't Private Braman transfer back to his hometown?"

"Current troop strength is sufficient. And I'm concerned about disrupting unit cohesion."

Kanna said. She spoke her mind. Full marks, Kanna-Cola.

"Am I that disruptive?"

"Yes."

When I asked, Kanna answered without missing a beat. I pressed further.

"Is it because I'm from Yensi?"

"That's not entirely unrelated."

Brutally honest. There was no way Kanna was prejudiced against Yensi people. She was a fair person, as far as I knew. She was simply accounting for the anti-Yensi sentiments within her unit.

"Isn't managing that the commander's responsibility?"

"Are you trying to provoke me?"

Kanna smirked. The prince watched with interest before chiming in.

"Why not give him a try, Captain Kanna?"

"No."

As far as I knew, Gatos also held the rank of corps commander. So a captain had just told a lieutenant general "no." She was insane. Absolutely insane.

Kanna's ironclad defense. Not even the Emperor could breach it.

But Kanna had told a lie. One clearly unnecessary addition. If I simply disrupted cohesion, then fine — I'd have had to stay quiet. But that lie gave me an opening.

"Saying you don't need additional troops is a stretch."

"What?"

Everyone's attention converged on me. This was nothing like Kanna pushing back against Gatos.

Kanna and Gatos had a personal rapport; I had none with her. Kanna at least held a title; I didn't. That gap was bigger than it seemed.

"You're saying I'm lying?"

"Yes, I am."

Kanna's expression hardened.

"Appari, that's enough. Push further and it could be taken as insulting a noble."

Gatos tried to rein me in, but backing down now would only make me look foolish. I had 「The Bed Strewn with Rose Petals」 and the evidence to infer from.

"Can you explain why that statement is false? Because if it's not false, then you've insulted me."

Kanna's hand clattered the scabbard at her side in warning. The formerly peaceful Second Prince's quarters filled with tension.

"First: I saw a Black Tree at the Ducal Estate. It was still in its sprout stage, but the Black Tree is a tree whose roots lie beneath the Trafviche continent. If even one has been found, it's a harbinger that they'll spread across the entire continent."

That was 「The Bed Strewn with Rose Petals」's lore. My second point was lore combined with my own inference.

"Second: once Black Trees begin to emerge, their followers — the Black Horde — will naturally appear as well. Those dark-magic practitioners would have detected the signs of the Black Tree earlier than the Empire. I understand troops are currently being mobilized not just in the Ducal Domain but across the realm to suppress them."

Otherwise, Airi would never have been sent into a dungeon with guards that incompetent. The Duke himself had apparently been conducting frequent subjugation campaigns nearby.

The Black Tree was the most malignant threat in this world. Marina was destined to eradicate it. It spawned monsters — fiends far stronger than ordinary ones — and spread dark miasma.

"Given all that, claiming the Second Prince's Guard — which defends the Capital — has sufficient troops is a stretch, I'm telling you."

It wasn't really Kanna's fault. Her only mistake was an unnecessary addendum. Strictly speaking, I was the one being unreasonable by splitting hairs. But I had a reason to get into the Guard.

"How about it, Dame Kanna?"

"...You're not wrong."

Kanna nodded slowly. Prince Gatos looked surprised too. Once the Black Tree spread across the continent, the Empire would be obligated to inform the public, though the formal announcement likely hadn't been made yet.

My knowing this must have startled them. I was certain — right now was just before the novel's beginning. Just before the Black Tree spread continent-wide. Marina would appear in the Capital soon.

Which meant the Guard and soldiers were about to be at their busiest.

"Ha ha. Seems Captain Kanna got bested."

Gatos laughed heartily. Kanna's expression remained composed. But she was no pushover either.

In the novel, it didn't matter whether this person was a general or a colonel. Whoever was closest to the protagonist was invariably the strongest — whether in willpower or physical prowess.

"In that case, I'll administer the Guard entrance exam on the spot."

"An exam?"

"Yes. The Guard normally accepts recruits through open enrollment, so unscheduled admissions like this have never occurred. Therefore, I will personally administer the test."

Kanna turned her gaze to me.

"Follow me, Appari."

I fell in close behind her. Prince Gatos tried to follow out of curiosity, but the Chief Attendant caught him.

"Your Highness, you have a mountain of documents to sign."

"Can't I just watch that first?"

"No."

Gatos was ultimately dragged away by the Chief Attendant, leaving me walking alone with Kanna. The Capital was vast, and the path to the training grounds was long. Kanna's expression was rigid, but that was essentially her trademark.

Different from Ephrin's stony face. If Ephrin was fire locked in ice, then Kanna was earth that embraced everything. The opposite, in a way.

That I'd even gotten this far was thanks to Kanna's kindness. She'd told the unnecessary lie about full capacity to give me a chance to push back. Of course, I'd exploited it, which made me the villain.

We arrived at the training grounds before long. The grounds hummed with the heat of countless soldiers drilling. Sharpened polearms hung on racks alongside each section, and the floor was divided into individual areas by white lines.

"Captain Kanna, salute!"

"Salute!"

Kanna acknowledged each soldier's salute and led me into an empty section.

She tossed me a sword from the wall. I caught it. Kanna drew a sword of her own.

"The Guard entrance exam begins now, Appari Tion. The proctor and examiner will be Captain Kanna Karamov."

Stiff as a board. Bring it.