Chapter 28- Legend of the skies

“I’ve been looking forward to your story. How about you tell me about it, starting with what happened at Clausel?”

Both Lessard and Ulysses immediately nodded at Ren’s look and left him to it. Richter listened to Ren’s story as well, watching the martial arts tournament unfold in the Imperial Grand Arena and listening to the cheers of the crowd.

“There was a time when a monster called Thief wolfen appeared near our village —-“

The story to be told is really from the first battle.

What really happened that led to his escape with Licia.

“Did you fight the elf alone and save the day while defending the young Lady?”

“No, it was only with the help of Licia-sama that I was able to accomplish this…. And I think we were lucky. Fortunately, the horse the elf had with him also listened to me, and somehow we managed to escape.”

“Leonhardt-dono, the horse is now Ren’s partner, although I have not seen it with my own eyes yet.”

“Hmm, that is interesting to me as well. They say that a horse with the blood of a monster chooses the master it will serve, but you have charmed him with your own ability.”

“She’s a laid-back horse, maybe she just wanted to take it easy by my side.”

Richter laughed at the joke Ren made and his eyes lit up every time he heard the rest of the story.

When the talk of escapades had settled down, a waiter with a hall appeared, made them some tea, and then left.

Ren moistened his dry throat from talking for a while.

“I see Leonhardt-sama likes this kind of talk.”

“I can say I love them. There are many people in the sky continent who love heroic tales.”

“Is it because of your ethnicity?”

“Yes. This is not limited to me.”

Richter’s mother was born in the southern part of the Martell continent, and according to him, there are many passionate people in that country. The color of his skin is also a result of that. But apart from that, he says that the people of the Shelgad Empire tend to like heroic tales to begin with.

“The reason is the existence of the hero who saved our country.”

Richter was in a good mood as he spoke, so Ren said, “Please tell us about it, if you don’t mind,” as if to put the other party on their feet.

Richter is still in a good mood.

“Long ago, on the sky continent, there was a guardian deity called Phoenix.”

When the phoenix reached the end of its life span, it would turn to ashes and then resurrect in the form of a young bird. After repeating this process countless times, the phoenix, which was thought to live forever, lost its wisdom. Countless people have died as a result of the phoenix’s attacks.

“There is a hero who brought sleep to such a phoenix.”

The hero appeared out of nowhere and asked the Shelgadians living on the sky continent where the phoenix was. The hero headed for the center of the sky continent, where the phoenix resided, and a fierce battle ensued. The phoenix’s seemingly inexhaustible regenerative powers weakened as it fought, and finally the giant phoenix’s throat was pierced by the heroes sword.

“The hero stood by the people of the sky continent. He prayed for those who had sacrificed their lives and devoted himself to the restoration of the sky continent. The emperor of the time, who was deeply grateful for his behavior, said he wanted to ‘thank’ the Hero.”

The hero was entitled to everything, both wealth and fame in the sky continent.

But the hero wanted neither, much to the surprise of the people of the sky Continent.

“What he wanted was the blood from the phoenix’s throat. If he could have a vial of it, that would be enough—- he requested.”

“The blood of the phoenix, you say?”

“I heard it had great power. It was said that you could get the life force that the phoenix had, but I don’t really know the details. In any case, it would be a tremendous treasure.”

Now there was no way to be sure, and nothing was certain.

“It is said that the hero spent another short time on the sky continent and one day left the sky continent unnoticed. He never said his name until the end, just quietly —-“

“He was an amazing person, wasn’t he? I wonder how strong he was.”

“Well. I am curious, too, but as with the phoenix’s blood, there is no way to confirm it.”

The phoenix’s corpse was respectfully buried by the emperor of the time, and a new capital was established in its place.

Successive emperors were required to be strong, following the example of the hero who saved the sky continent. The current emperor is no exception to this rule and is a strong man who reigns at the fourth rank in the Order of the Sword King.

(My ancestors were strong too, but the hero of the sky continent seem to be great too.)

Ren muttered this aloud, and at Richter’s urging, resumed his own story.

Richter, who had finished listening to him, was already satisfied. He was satisfied with what he had heard, as Ren had been while listening to Richter’s story, and afterward he was immersed in the afterglow like a guest who had just finished watching a play on the topic of conversation.

“It’s a good story. I’d like to hear about the future heroic tale you’re going to spin. For this reason, I hope that the Clausel and Ashton families will continue to be friends.”

“Leonhardt-sama, may I ask about what you said concerning the Clausel family the other day —-?”

“Oh, how I would love to make an investment. I have a newfound fondness for the Clausel estate, which has given birth to a child like him. If this is the case, I would like to make a deeper connection with him in the future.”

Richter answered Lessard’s question without hesitation.

He was a pleasant man with good judgment. The details were to be worked out in due course, but the conversation proceeded smoothly.

“I’d like to get a few things together before I go home. I’m sorry to seem to be rushing you, but my past experience has taught me to make decisions without regret.”

Richter, who was smiling wistfully, and Ulysses’ gazes met.

“You remember, don’t you Marquis Ignat?”

“I do. The struggle for the succession of the Grand Dukes that broke out in the Kingdom of Shelgad, which rules the sky continent, is very famous.”

“……It’s a story that hurts my ears.  I told the Grand Dukes to keep it quiet, but the result is what it is.”

“Oh? Did you quit your knighthood as a result of that?”

Seeing Richter nodding, Ulysses seemed to understand.

Richter let out a few more words. Inwardly, he was thanking Ren for telling him so much and also thanking Ulysses for giving him this opportunity.

“I served my country as a knight, but I failed to fulfill my duty and caused a disturbance in the country. From then on, the I couldn’t allow myself to be a knight.”

Richter, looking remorseful, looks at Ren.

“…… Leonhardt-sama—-“

Unsure of the urgency of the conversation, Ren was unsure how to respond.

But Richter apologized for it.

“A long time ago, a struggle for the heirship of one of our country’s grand dukes broke out involving many nobles.”

There were two brothers in the Grand Dukes’ family.

The older brother’s ideology was dangerous, his younger brother chided him. The elder brother was a territorial expansionist who believed that Shelgad should actively intervene in disputed areas to secure his own interests. The younger brother said that this was not in line with the current times, and he and the elder brother had a falling out.

“How was the dispute over the heir settled?”

“There is no such thing as a settlement. In the end, they both died. They discussed whether a distant relative would succeed him, but the entire family was demolished.”

At first, his brother was targeted by a low-ranking nobleman who followed his brother and lost his life, and his wife and daughter secretly went into hiding. Upon learning of this, third parties, including Richter, searched for the ladies to protect them, but were unable to find them.

Meanwhile, the elder brother was assassinated in a runaway attack by a nobleman who adored his younger brother.

Needless to say, the struggle for the heir was an uproar throughout the sky continent at the time, since it took place in a family rich in power and influence, the Grand Dukes.

The bloodshed ended with no one happy.

“I was no longer qualified to be a knight. ……After that, as I was spending my days realizing my own helplessness, my father-in-law came to visit me. My father-in-law is a merchant on the continent of Martell. He suggested that I serve my country from a different perspective, not as a knight. I had a relative who was a nobleman with a trading company, so I thought I would give it a try.”

Because he was proud of himself as a knight, and at first he had my doubts about quitting the knighthood and becoming a merchant. However, he felt that he was no longer a knight because he had not done what he should have done as a knight. He could not get rid of this thought no matter how far he went, and he became an apprentice to his father-in-law as if he were running away from him.

He thought about becoming a civil official for a while, but his father-in-law was very supportive of him.

Fortunately, Richter had a talent as a merchant.

He was able to leverage the relationships he cultivated as a knight to create a trading company that was well known not only on the sky continent, but in many other countries as well.

“That’s why to me, you seem to shine brighter than the morning sun rising in the east. Or perhaps I admire you for accomplishing what I couldn’t.”

Richter said to Ren.

This must be his true feelings. This is probably the main reason why he was so strongly attracted to Ren and was so excited as he listened to Ren’s tale of heroism.

“I was also indebted to the late former Marquis Ignat at the time.”

“The woman who came out of hiding was originally a waiter in our imperial castle. If there had been even the slightest tension between our two countries, it would be troublesome—- Excuse me, it would have been troublesome.“

Ulysses coughed once, thinking it was too heavy a subject to continue.

“It’s the Lion King Festival. Let’s also enjoy the martial arts competition,” he said, turning everyone’s attention in that direction.

“Look over there. A boy from the Leonardo family will be fighting.”

Hearing this, Ren also turned his attention toward the hall.

The fight between Kaito and a student from another school began right at the referee’s signal, and Kaito, with his vigorous roar, dominated from start to finish. The other player was unable to do anything, showing the difference in power.

For those who were enjoying the spectacle, the members of the heroic noble family displayed their power one after the other.

The next person to appear was Sarah Riohard. She used her sword, which she has been honing since she was a child, to taunt her opponents, and like Kaito, she won the battle with a solid fighting performance.

Many in the audience were thrilled to see the young strength displayed by the heroic nobles.

“Oh!”

Ulysses glanced at his watch and realized that he had kept Ren too long. He had not planned how long they would talk, but he did not want to hold Ren for too long,

“I’m sorry. You’ve given me a lot of time.”

“It’s already that late?”

Then Richter said regretfully and looked at Ren and Lessard.

“You two, if you don’t mind, would like to join me for an early dinner? In the evening, Marquis Ignat will show me around the Imperial City, and I would like you two to join us if you would like.”

At this invitation, Lessard bows deeply and says in an apologetic tone of voice.

“I am honored by your invitation, but I have received several invitations…….”

“I thought as much. The Viscount Clausel, who is the topic of discussion these days.  I knew it was going to be difficult.”

Ren was scheduled to accompany Lessard from work in the evening.

However, by the looks of things, it seemed better for Ren to accept Richter’s invitation alone. Perhaps Lessard thought so, too, and he and Ren exchanged a look.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

On his way home from dinner, where he had been invited to the dinner table, he wondered if Ren would be there alone.

He was walking in the imperial capital when the sky had not yet darkened.

“I’m sorry I even had to send you off….”

Fiona said apologetically.

The reason she was here was because Fiona had also been invited to dinner earlier.

Ren walked with her down the main street on his way to the train station and laughed, saying, “Don’t worry about it”

“I’m always indebted to you.”

“You’re really kind.”

Fiona cocked her head, her profile illuminated by the red of the sunset left in the dusk.

“—- Fufu…”

Fiona smiles happily.

The time she could walk with Ren in this way was an unexpectedly pleasant time for her. The two of them had never thought that they would be able to return home together during the Great Festival of the Lion King, watching the festivities together.

But Fiona’s appearance, coupled with her position, made her stand out. So she had already changed out of her uniform and dressed a little differently than usual with her glasses and hat. A summery short-sleeved sweater suits her well.

Along the way, she browsed through a number of stalls.

Fiona enjoyed them and sometimes found pleasure in buying ice cream and other sweets for the two of them to eat together.

She wished this time would last forever.

She thought about it so strongly.

On the way, there was a street that was crowded with people.

She had unknowingly picked at the hem of Ren’s cloth.

“I-I’m so sorry ……!”

“No. It would be very difficult if we get separated.”

Fiona quickly apologized and then recalled what had happened in the Baldor Mountains.

Just before they passed through the suspension bridge, she recalled how she had picked at the hem of Ren’s coat that time as well, and was somewhat glad.

However, her relationship with the person she was thinking of was not as advanced as it had been back then. She was pleased to be able to live right next to him, but on the contrary, that was about it.

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