Chapter 115
Yan, the Chief Instructor, and Diana stepped out of the main gate, accompanied by numerous instructors. There, a Royal Knight, fully armed and with a stern face, awaited them.
Yan’s eyes sparkled at the sight.
‘Knight of the Seventh Order, Kyle.’
They had crossed paths several times before.
Adorned in golden armor, Kyle bore a greatsword on his back.
His face was expressionless as he gazed at Yan, but inside, he was burning with frustration.
‘Again, petty politics dim the empire’s brightest talents.’
Were Yan and the Chief Instructor accused of public deception and insurrection?
Such nonsense.
Kyle had been a witness to Yan’s actions during the train derailment incident.
Anyone but a blind man would have seen how swiftly Yan had handled the crisis.
And in the North, he had heard of Yan aiding Duke Beowulf in driving back the barbarian hordes.
But public deception?
‘It’s laughably absurd.’
Kyle had ears and eyes.
This was a strike not at Yan, but at the Chief Instructor.
The bitterness between the Chief Instructor and the Special Task Force Commander meant that a capable talent was fading away, unseen.
Kyle wished he could urge them to flee…
But that was impossible.
His affection for Yan was personal.
With a direct command from the Emperor, revealing such feelings would tarnish the name of the Royal Knights.
‘Had I known, I would have insisted on taking him as a probationary knight.’
Regret is always too late, no matter how swift.
As these thoughts lingered, Diana stepped forward to confront Kyle.
“We need to know the charges against them.”
Kyle’s eyes dimmed at the unexpected appearance of the Inspector General.
“Were you with them? The Inspection Bureau has been looking for you.”
“From the Inspection Bureau?”
Kyle had not heard any news of being sought after.
He frowned at Diana.
“Embezzlement, breach of trust, and conducting an illegal targeted investigation against the Special Task Force Commander out of personal vendetta,” he heard.
Diana, incredulous, retorted, “What are you talking about?”
But Kyle, without further explanation, instructed the probationary knight accompanying him.
“Tell the Inspection Bureau… the former Inspector General is here.”
Diana grasped the situation from Kyle’s words.
‘That bastard of a Special Task Force Commander.’
Her fists clenched tightly, grinding her teeth.
The issue wasn’t with the Special Mission but with the Inspection Bureau, meaning the Special Task Force Commander had swayed the inspectors.
“First, resolve your own matters,” Kyle said coldly to the Chief Instructor and Yan.
“You will be arrested for insurrection, conspiracy to insurrection, incitement to insurrection, and so on. You may exercise the right to remain silent, but doing so during the hearing may complicate your defense, and anything you say can and will be used as evidence.”
Click!
Silver handcuffs enclosed the wrists of Yan and the Chief Instructor.
As the cuffs locked, their mana dampened like waterlogged cotton.
These were mana-binding cuffs, designed to restrain high-ranking knights.
Kyle loaded Yan and the Chief Instructor into the back of a prisoner transport carriage.
Yan obediently followed Kyle’s orders and closed his eyes.
‘Whatever the charge, it’s all trumped-up nonsense by the Special Task Force Commander.’
He had no intention of clearing his name.
Even if he did, the Special Task Force Commander would fabricate another case to imprison them again.
What mattered was not clearing his name but counterattacking the Special Task Force Commander.
‘First, I need to find out who’s in league with him.’
With his thoughts in order, Yan opened his eyes and addressed Kyle, who was climbing into the front of the carriage.
“How could we have committed such crimes?”
Kyle hesitated at Yan’s question, then stepped down from the carriage.
“Nobles who doubted the honors you received in the capital secretly investigated,” he said.
“Investigated? The nobles?”
“Yes, and at the request of Count Zion, who represents them, a hearing will be held in five days. The Special Task Force Commander’s hearing was scheduled, but now it’s been canceled.”
Yan’s eyes gleamed.
‘Count Zion?’
He had briefly encountered the man when rescuing trainees left behind in the East.
And during the award ceremony in the capital, Count Zion had cast a hostile gaze at both the Chief Instructor and himself.
He remembered the Chief Instructor’s words about the Special Task Force Commander courting nobles who were at odds with him.
‘So, Count Zion is in cahoots with the Special Task Force Commander…’
Only the great nobles had the authority to convene a hearing.
Given the strained relations between the Special Task Force and the nobility, if not for Zion, no other noble would have initiated this hearing.
And likely, Zion had received a hefty reward for arranging it.
Yan spoke up, having sorted his thoughts.
“Sir Kyle, I have a favor to ask of you.”
“A favor?”
“It’s something only you can do for me.”
Kyle shook his head.
“Perhaps before, but now you’re a criminal.”
Despite the refusal, Yan pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from his attire and quickly scribbled something.
He then folded it neatly and handed it to Kyle.
“The recipient is written on the back; please deliver it to them.”
At Yan’s action, Kyle’s eyebrows twitched.
“And there’s a girl named ‘Lia’ sleeping inside. Please send her to His Highness, the Crown Prince.”
“It’s impossible!”
Despite Kyle’s outburst, Yan persisted, his voice firm and his eyes intense.
“Do you truly believe I committed those crimes, Sir Kyle?”
Kyle was silent.
“I implore you.”
Watching Yan’s face, Kyle sighed deeply, looking up at the sky.
‘Damn it all.’
For some reason, he couldn’t easily dismiss what he believed to be an innocent Yan’s last request.
“The debt I owed you from the train incident is now repaid.”
“Thank you.”
Finally, Kyle clenched his eyes shut and snatched the paper from Yan, stuffing it into his pocket.
“Go ahead and depart.”
At Kyle’s command, the coachman cracked his whip.
Hee-hee-hee-hing!
The carriage carrying Yan and the Chief Instructor headed towards ‘Fargo’ prison, notorious for holding the most heinous criminals.
* * *
At that moment.
Crown Prince Leon clenched his eyes shut and set down the communicator.
“Have you finished the communication?”
The person sitting across from him asked, sipping tea.
Leon gritted his teeth and glared at his counterpart.
“…Special Task Force Commander.”
“The hearing you prepared, Your Highness, seems to have fizzled out with this. Those who raised questions have committed a grave sin.”
The Special Task Force Commander twisted his lips into a smirk as he rose from his seat.
“But do not worry. I shall make good use of the stage you have set, Your Highness.”
With a sly smile, the Special Task Force Commander placed his teacup back on the table with a clink.
Clink!
As he stood up, he continued.
“Of course, it will be your brother and his disciple who will take the stage, not me.”
Without looking back, the Special Task Force Commander disappeared through the door.
Leon watched his back with a glare and then closed his eyes.
And then, he spat out a curse unfamiliar to his tongue.
“Damn it all.”
* * *
Fargo Prison.
The empire’s worst penitentiary, infamous for housing the most notorious criminals.
Most of the prisoners detained were so vicious and violent that the guards could execute them summarily without any report.
“…Whew.”
The Chief Instructor, his arms bound, whistled at the sight within the prison.
Dust fluttered in the air, and the stench was overwhelming, indicating that excrement had been left unattended.
It was a prison in the strictest sense, with no concept of hygiene, only confinement.
“I heard that nobles and high-ranking officials get sent to decent prisons when they commit crimes. Never thought I’d end up in a place like this.”
The Chief Instructor chuckled as he followed the guard down the corridor.
Prisoners trapped in other cells burst into laughter upon seeing the Chief Instructor.
“Hahaha! Never thought that bastard would end up here!”
“Thank the gods! I get to tear apart that dog myself!”
“Hey, newbie! Get ready; I’ll come to visit you later.”
“Hey, that one’s mine. I’m here because of him, after all.”
Some prisoners banged on the bars like madmen, while others drooled over the Chief Instructor’s handsome appearance.
And there were several who bore a grudge against the Chief Instructor.
“You seem quite popular.”
Yan glanced at the Chief Instructor and remarked.
The Chief Instructor snickered in response.
“Those are the scum I locked up before I volunteered for the Dragon Soldier Project. Never dreamed I’d meet this trash again.”
“Shut your mouth!”
Crack!
The Chief Instructor’s body jolted from the shock.
His eyes were filled with rage.
He slowly turned his head.
“Hey, shouldn’t we, former civil servants, be a bit more civil to each other?”
The guard gripped his whip tightly, scowling.
“You think you’re still a civil servant, you piece of trash! Don’t forget you’re a prisoner now.”
“…Tsk.”
The Chief Instructor clicked his tongue and turned away, following the guard.
Yan also kept silent, heading towards the cell that would be his new home.
They reached a room at the very edge of the prison, amidst the jeers, curses, and threats of the other prisoners.
Inside, men with an unmistakable air of danger smirked wickedly.
Thud!
The guard kicked Yan and the Chief Instructor in the back, shoving them into the cell.
“Try to get along now.”
Clang!
The guard snorted and locked the cell door.
Yan and the Chief Instructor, now inside the cell, chuckled at the departing guard.
“No mercy there.”
“Indeed.”
Yan turned to look at the prisoners who had been there before them.
Four bald men, covered in menacing tattoos, grinned at them.
“Welcome, pretty ones.”
“Such good-looking newbies, we’re in luck.”
They cackled among themselves, pulling out crudely made wooden knives.
The Chief Instructor smiled back at them.
“Pigs trying to speak human?”
“The pretty one doesn’t seem to grasp the situation yet?”
One of the bald men approached slowly, wooden dagger in hand.
The Chief Instructor, with a full-blown smile, started walking towards the bald man.
“Yan, don’t interfere. Just stand back.”
The Chief Instructor’s hands twitched.
“I need to taste blood to quell this irritation, even if just a little.”
With those words, the Chief Instructor lunged at the bald men.