CH 24

[Earlier]

"Alright, let's do my best!"

With a determined spirit, the silver-haired girl, Vita, began to walk through the Kurouded streets. ――To be honest, at first, it was a mission that she wasn't motivated to do.

Originally, she belonged to the headquarters of the knight order. She came to Salem to undertake a patrol mission as a "senior knight." There is a branch of the knight order in this city, and of course, there are a considerable number of knights stationed there.

However, most of them are "junior knights" from the sixth to the fifth rank and "intermediate knights" from the fourth to the third rank. Knights like Vita, from the second to the first rank, are ordered to be based in the capital to deal with the protection of the royal family.

However, monopolizing strong people in the center could provoke backlash from the surrounding regions. It seemed as though everything other than the capital is unimportant. Therefore, there was a mission to dispatch senior knights to patrol the city, which also had a demonstrative meaning.

"No problem on the main street. No problem in the alleyway. Oh, I found a cat!"

Vita pointed her finger briskly. Her eyes were filled with enthusiasm. To be frank, it was a meaningless job. Most of the villains could be dealt with by the military police and junior knights alone.

There were hardly any wrongdoers who waited for the timing when senior knights were present to cause a disturbance. Vita had thought that until just recently.

However, it was because she had heard that Iris, whom she hated so much, had gone to hunt the monsters in this region. She had only undertaken the mission to provoke that woman, pretending to have coincidentally met her. But now...

"...If I do my best like this, can I become a "normal" person?" Vita murmured plaintively. Now, she is trying to change herself. She, too, had been raised normally until her childhood.

As a daughter of a noble samurai family, she had longed to become a "knight of justice." However, her family, the Camblor family, had decided to produce "knights for authority" that could surpass Iris.

Thus, Vita was twisted. She was required to have a strong loyalty to her family and combat skills. She had been continuously trained, almost as if it was brainwashing.

As a result, Vita lost her righteousness and became an unbearable existence with no heart to protect the citizens. But...

‘Vita... I wonder how you're doing now…’

There was someone who worried about herself like that. A man who forgave her for trying to kill him and was concerned about her.

‘Kurou-san... thanks to meeting someone like you, my mind is all messed up…’

She felt a sense of aversion towards the Camblor family. There is also hatred towards Iris, that was planted by her family. Those things that had been beaten into her with a whip were not easily erased.

However, Vita remembered. The joy of being cherished by someone. The desire to

become a "knight of justice" who could bring such joy to the people.

‘I want to be like that too. A knight who can protect someone and make them smile... I want to try becoming someone like Kurou-san too!’

With the longing that sprouted in her heart, Vita earnestly patrolled the area. She looked around every corner of the town, intervened in small disputes between the people, and reached out with a smile to those who were lost or troubled.

She actively worked to solve the troubles that she had ignored so far, thinking "it's troublesome", "leave it to the military police", and "don't let the commoners bother me, a noble."

It was impossible for the people to hate a young girl knight who worked so hard like that.

"You're doing your best, miss!"

"Thank you so much for your help!"

"Thank you, big sister!"

Words of appreciation and gratitude came from the people. And their unreserved smiles penetrated Vita's heart.

"No, no, that's enough for now!"

Before she knew it, Vita was also smiling naturally. She advanced through the lively town in high spirits. Ah, is it really this pleasant to work hard not to defeat someone, but to make someone happy?

‘I didn't realize that doing something to be proud of could make my heart feel so uplifted,’ thought Vita as she savored the joy of being a knight. "Now then, where should I go next...?"

After leaving the shopping district, Vita eventually arrived at a beautiful fountain square. She hadn't noticed it before, but she seemed to have finished touring the city and arrived at the gate on the inner side. People with a refined air were coming into the city one after another.

"Oh well, I guess this is the end of my job here," shrugged Vita.

She thought she should at least look around, but there probably wouldn't be any problems at the gate on the inland side. After all, everyone who entered from this gate came from near the capital.

There might be some villains trying to sneak into the inland from the outskirts, but there wouldn't be anyone trying to leave the inland for the outskirts.

‘There are bad people even in the mainland, but outside is dangerous because of monsters and limited supplies. There is no benefit to going outside.’

That's why neither Vita nor the military police were particularly cautious about visitors from the capital side.

"What I should worry about are pickpockets approaching people from the capital side... Hmm, it doesn't seem like there are many of those types around. Alright, let's do another round of patrol!"

With enthusiasm, Vita raised her hand. And so, she turned her back to the gate and prepared to tour the city again—when suddenly, she heard a voice.

"You're a knight, aren't you? This is convenient for me."

"Huh?"

――In the next moment, Vita felt an intense pain rush through her back as the tip of a blade pierced through her chest!
RECENTLY UPDATES