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SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
Imperial Palace Audience Chamber.
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A place where the Emperor personally meets with his subjects or foreign envoys.
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“This is something the former Emperor entrusted to me.”
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Vitalianus placed a wooden box on the table and gently pushed it toward Sylvia.
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Sylvia opened the lid of the box in front of her.
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“This is……”
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Inside, she discovered the Imperial Seal.
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The former Emperor had entrusted the Imperial Seal to the Sword Saint.
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Even abolishing the position of Imperial Seal Minister for this purpose.
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“What could have been the reason?”
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Sylvia somehow felt she understood why.
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“I understand you are coordinating the day of the coronation ceremony.”
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“That’s right.”
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“I will assist so that preparations go smoothly. And please, speak more humbly.”
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“You’re not reigning yet. I will do so after the coronation.”
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A quiet exchange of words.
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The atmosphere was distinctly different from when she had met the two previous princes.
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“Originally, there would have been much to discuss, but all my questions were answered on the way here.”
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Vitalianus made a movement to wrap up the conversation.
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“Won’t you have some more tea before you go?”
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“No. I just want to rest a bit today.”
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“Understood.”
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The two rose from their seats.
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A very brief and concise meeting.
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The Sword Saint didn’t ask Sylvia a single thing.
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“And…”
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He took out a golden medal he had been carefully holding close to his chest and neatly placed it beside the wooden box.
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An octagonal medal engraved with a roaring lion.
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The only one of its kind on the continent, a symbol of honor granted to only one person.
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The Guardian Knight of the Emperor medal.
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To be the Emperor’s Guardian Knight was to be the Empire’s Guardian Knight.
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The shield that protects the Empire and the sharpest sword that symbolizes it.
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Vitalianus had set it down.
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A medal he had held to his chest his entire life.
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A symbol that weighed heavily on his heart but also filled it with pride.
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Only now had he put it down.
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His heart felt lighter.
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But just as empty and hollow.
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Sylvia looked at the Guardian Knight’s medal.
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The Imperial Seal symbolizing the Emperor and the medal symbolizing the Guardian Knight.
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She quietly gazed at the medal placed beside the seal.
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Her gaze fixed on it as she spoke evenly, without any rise or fall in tone.
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“You may keep this. Sword Saint Vitalianus Mahel. If not you, then who else could be the Emperor’s Guardian Knight?”
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Surprisingly, it was Vitalianus who was taken aback by those words.
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Although none of it showed on his face.
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Then, as if realizing something, he nodded slightly.
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“Please, take my life soon. This medal is no longer worthy of me.”
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“If the Sword Saint is not worthy, then who is?”
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“There must be someone. Surely.”
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At that firm voice, Sylvia finally looked at the Sword Saint.
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“…There is one person, but he cares little for such honor or the power that comes with it. He might refuse.”
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“If truly there is no one else, then please recommend him again at that time.”
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In the Sword Saint’s mind, however,
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“That won’t happen, though.”
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That heavy medal would never return to him.
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***
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
Sylvia’s face, seen again after a long time, was even more haggard.
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Although she had returned from the brink of death, her complexion was worse than before.
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“How dare you. To defile me so.”
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Sylvia’s expression was cold and resolute, filled with a commanding dignity as she spoke harshly.
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Seeing her like that, Hio clapped his hands and gave a thumbs up.
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“Oh, you really look like an emperor now.”
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Only then did Sylvia soften her expression and smile wryly.
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“Really? I’ve been practicing secretly a lot.”
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She was trying not to show it in front of Hio.
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Concealing the dark circles from her sleepless nights with makeup, she forced a brighter smile.
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“By the way, what happened? You don’t look well.”
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Instead, Sylvia asked Hio.
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He sighed with a sullen expression.
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“Nothing. It’s because of some useless brute. Don’t worry about it.”
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A Death Knight, large but useless, had stubbornly summoned himself back and hid.
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Shaking his head, Hio asked Sylvia, “How about you? Do the nobles in the capital listen to you?”
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Although Sylvia had led the Eastern Alliance army, wiped out the leadership of the First and Second Princes, and absorbed their forces, that wasn’t enough to lead the Empire.
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Ultimately, she had to win over the nobles and fill the vacant positions with her own people…
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“No way.”
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They wouldn’t follow Sylvia’s words.
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“Of course, they pledge loyalty outwardly. She is the last legitimate heir and the coronation is near.”
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But their true intentions were different.
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Sylvia had no real power base in the capital.
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Her only card was the Eastern Alliance nobles, but to those who had long held power in the capital, the Eastern nobles were nothing more than country bumpkins.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
So they swore loyalty outwardly while harboring other intentions inwardly.
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They waited for the powerless Emperor to be crowned so they could expand their own power.
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How to fill their own bellies more.
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How to seize even more power.
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“Who would sincerely pledge loyalty to me now?”
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“Who would genuinely follow the princess who had been pushed aside by the two princes?”
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Everyone would only seek to use her.
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“So, I just changed everything.”
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Sylvia’s eyes glistened with a dark gray shade as she said with a sly smile.
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Her raised lips looked both cold and sorrowful.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
“I’m done being used, ignored, and hidden away.”
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So she had changed everything.
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All to make everyone truly loyal to her.
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To wipe out the dirty schemes and follow the new Emperor with their whole souls.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
Sylvia quietly gazed down at the Imperial Seal inside the wooden box.
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“To live a lifetime as Emperor without anyone to trust… is just too cruel.”
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She gathered all the nobles and asked their souls directly.
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Under the new Emperor, how would they lead the Empire?
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The answer was disgraceful.
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The war had left many vacancies, and the amount to be devoured overflowed.
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Politics?
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The Empire’s future?
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‘Who had time for that?’
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Only thoughts of how to grow their power.
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How to seize even more profits.
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“That’s why I just changed everything.”
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Sylvia smiled bitterly.
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“How about that? Scary, isn’t it?”
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Hio sighed deeply.
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He opened his Trait – Ghost’s Eye and looked at Sylvia.
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“Yeah… really scary. So that’s why you had quite a lot of Killing Intent built up.”
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“Hehe… Oh, and about this.”
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Sylvia pointed to the medal placed beside the Imperial Seal.
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“Want it, Hio?”
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He knew what it was.
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The Guardian Knight’s medal.
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A symbol of the sword and shield protecting the Empire.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
A medal that demands respect from every citizen regardless of rank.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
In the game, Vitalianus had held it until the very moment of his death.
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“Who offers a Guardian Knight’s medal like that?”
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Hio chuckled, and Sylvia laughed awkwardly.
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“By the way, aren’t you going to have another bodyguard beside you now?”
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“No. Is that really necessary? Everyone in the palace will now follow me sincerely.”
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“…Hearing that is a bit scary.”
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“I don’t think such loyalty has any real meaning anyway.”
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“Then I know a good knight I can introduce you to.”
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“A knight? You, Hio?”
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“Yeah. But he’s a bit shy.”
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Hio summoned his magic to call forth the Death Knight.
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“You’ve seen him a few times before, haven’t you?”
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The black aura of the Death Knight surged forth.
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His large frame gave off an intimidating presence.
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Sylvia’s eyes went wide at the sudden appearance of the bulky figure, but she soon nodded.
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She did remember seeing him several times on the battlefield.
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After all, he wasn’t just any summoned creature summoned by Hio.
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Sylvia was about to decline since she neither needed nor wanted a bodyguard, but—
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“Ah, why? You ran away on your own, so I summoned myself on my own. What’s the problem?”
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“Where do you get off looking at your master like that? Oh, you don’t have eyes? Sorry.”
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
The way Hio bantered with him was strangely familiar.
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“His name… Ter? Teddy? Hmm… Ter sounds better. Ter it is. Why? The name’s just nice.”
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Covered entirely in black, with a gloomy soul, his awkward hand gestures and slightly hesitant steps were oddly familiar.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
Sylvia froze in place.
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“Go over there. Don’t cling to me. Or are you embarrassed being all black? That’s a pretty dangerous race, you know.”
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Racist thoughts…
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She didn’t consciously remember every action.
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She just knew because she had someone who had been by her side her entire life.
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Someone she had searched for but never found her soul.
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Without looking into the soul, even if the soul changed or the appearance changed, she could never not recognize him.
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‘How… how could she have treated her knight so badly until the very end?’
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
“Hio.”
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Sylvia smiled brightly at the two who were still bickering.
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“I need a bodyguard.”
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Even when death was near, she had been able to smile because he was there beside her.
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“Will you be my knight?”
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***
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
She smiled warmly toward the knight and reached out her hand.
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***
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
“His name… Ter? Teddy? Hmm… Ter sounds better. Ter it is.”
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At those words, the black knight snapped his head toward Hio, but Hio just shrugged.
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Though his expression was unreadable, their energy connection allowed him to roughly sense his intentions and emotions.
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The emotion suddenly thrown before Sylvia was complicated.
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Confusion mixed with a bit of worry.
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And embarrassment.
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Embarrassment over having become so dark that he could no longer stand beside the noble Emperor.
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Embarrassment over the weakness that had turned him into such a being.
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Would Sylvia be displeased with him? A faint unease.
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But then—
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“I need a bodyguard.”
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Sylvia’s radiant smile.
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A sparkle hanging faintly at the corner of her eyes.
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“Will you be my knight?”
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And seeing the outstretched hand, the knight’s tangled feelings vanished as if washed away.
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His surprised look disappeared without a trace, and without hesitation, he stepped forward.
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Toward the hand stretched out to him, he walked as if it were only natural.
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He knelt before her, taking her pure white hand in his pitch-black one, bowing his head.
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The feeling Sylvia sensed from her knight was only one thing.
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Sincere loyalty.
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For her, if it was what Sylvia desired, he would do anything without hesitation.
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An eternal vow of allegiance that would not waver even in death.
SpecialCharactersAndSymbols!@#$%^&*()_-+=[]{}|;:\"'<>,.?/
Sylvia grasped the knight’s black hand tightly.
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Her hand was much smaller, but she held the cold hand gently as she rose.
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“I want to see the garden.”
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Hio nodded with a smile at Sylvia, who suddenly stood up.
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In the end, she would like it so much.
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Thinking she really was a foolish knight, as someone once said.
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They walked side by side out of the audience chamber toward the garden.
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Sylvia’s hand was wrapped around the knight’s large fingers.
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“You know, Ter.”
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Sylvia’s call went unanswered.
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Because he couldn’t speak.
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Yet something was conveyed.
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Eyes directed at her.
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A lowered head as if listening.
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Movements that showed he was paying attention.
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“I had so much I wanted to say, but now only one thing comes to mind.”
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Still no reply.
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But that didn’t matter.
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He wasn’t a blunt knight to begin with.
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As always, she spoke, and he listened.
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That was enough.
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“Thank you. For being by my side.”
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Sylvia smiled brighter than ever.
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“I’ll keep thanking you, from now on too.”
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The Emperor and her knight.
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A girl who commands souls and a knight who refuses death.
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Everyone they passed bowed deeply and made way for them.
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“Thank you, Teordo.”
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There was nothing to stop them on the way to the garden.
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The Guardian Knight’s medal and the Imperial Seal lay side by side.
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Looking at them, Hio smiled.
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They really did belong side by side.
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I knew it would be like this!
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***
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Just as he was happily smiling after a long time, Furnel’s voice bubbling from deep within disturbed him.
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“What again? Why?”
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“Why? What do you mean why! Why don’t you bring up the Imperial Palace Library story?”
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“…Huh?”
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Furnel sounded frustrated, pounding his chest hollowly.
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Of course, there was no chest, so it was all noise made with his mouth.
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He had urged repeatedly to bring it up…
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“Oh dear! Stop the nonsense and just talk about the library! Aren’t you young? Already losing your mind?”
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“Alright, alright. I’ll do it today…”
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Like a ghost completely dried up of emotion.
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“First… to extract the Killing Intent accumulated in Sylvia’s body.”
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He planned to summon the Death God.
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Because they had to remove the energy Sylvia had built up while seizing the palace and also thoroughly study the skills.
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During the summoning and for twelve hours afterward, he would suffer a brutal penalty of being unable to use any other skills.
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What exactly was the effect that warranted such a terrible penalty?
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Hio’s expectations were high because a powerful penalty always came with power to match.
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“Now… Death God.”
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[Skill – ‘Death God Summon’ activated.]
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As the skill activated, the room darkened rapidly.
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The air filled with Deathly Energy.
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Behind Hio, the Death God appeared.
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A ghost who governs death.
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And…
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A blood-red scythe stopped right before Hio’s neck.
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Killing Intent thickened, ready to pierce his throat at any moment.
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From the dense darkness, red eyes flashed as they gazed down at Hio.
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Only then did the skill’s description come to mind.
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The final line that had been overlooked until now.
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“Be cautious. The Death God’s scythe shows no mercy even to the summoner.”
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