Ilya Lindsay had lived her life in the eyes of others.
The background of the Lindsay family, their talent for swords, and her beauty that had bloomed, which made her look so pretty in the eyes of the people who saw her.
At first, she thought that this was life, but only after her heartbreak because of her brother, Carl, did she come to realize the truth.
‘In the end, he couldn’t recover.’
‘I thought he was a genius who would support the continent in the future.’
‘Ilya Lindsay? She does have great talent, but it is not enough…’
‘She seems to have a soft heart.’
Their friendly gazes could no longer be seen.
After losing her brother, the only thing Ilya’s ears could hear were the arrogant remarks against her family and herself.
And that was why her lively expression had disappeared.
The reason she tried to hide her feelings and show a respectful appearance as everything happened to her was to not give a gap to the public who were waiting for that chance to pounce on her like hyenas.
To Ilya, who was in such a state, Judith, whom she had met after a long time, said something. A soft swear word.
‘Are you an idiot?’
‘What?’
‘I am asking if you are an idiot. Why would you care about them? Isn’t it frustrating? How long are you going to live by listening to what they say?’
‘But…’
‘No, listen to me. Are those people who keep talking even the ones who matter to you at all? Even if you become the best swordsman in the continent, or even the best swordsman in the universe, and destroy mountains or part seas, words from people like these will always be there against you. Don’t you think so too?’
‘…’
She couldn’t say no.
And that was why Judith taught Ilya swear words.
If they were going to bite at her regardless of whatever she did, then she didn’t have to try and look good.
Instead, Judith told her to use those swear words. Until her heart felt light.
‘Though she didn’t mean it like this…’
Watching the atmosphere that seemed almost frozen at the banquet, Ilya remembered what happened that time.
Thanks to Judith’s special training, her mouth became a lot rougher than before.
But the cursing she did right now, wasn’t intentional.
Perhaps to a friend like Bratt or Judith, she could unload her feelings to her heart’s content.
That was what she thought, but…
No.
The situation now was disconcerting and awkward. People's expressions seemed to be burdensome at the words she had said unconsciously.
It felt like hot steam was going around her body.
But, why was she feeling a strange sense of pleasure?
‘… it doesn’t feel bad.’
And that was why, Ilya cursed out again.
“****”
Flinch.
The same response came again.
It wasn’t very openly displayed, but it was noticeable enough.
The people who kept judging her couldn't hold back their shocked expressions, and some of them coughed without knowing what to do.
Normally in such a situation, she would have been pushed under the unbearable pressure that she felt from these countless gazes. But not now.
Ilya looked at Airn and Lulu with a bright smile and spoke in a clear voice.
“Airn, would you like to sit down?”
“Huh? Uh…”
“Lulu, pick up the wand. It was painstakingly crafted, don’t drop it like that.”
“Yes, yes….”
It wasn’t just the nobles of Rabat and Palanque who were shocked.
Even those on her side, the people from Calven, and even Airn and Lulu, were shocked.
Amira Shelton was feeling restless as she didn’t know how to deal with this situation and the commander just laughed.
Of course, It wasn’t like he had no ideas on why Ilya said that.
Although it was small, Gregory Griffin, the commander of the Calven Knights, seemed to let out a smile.
‘It is true that it is difficult, but the burden she must be feeling is probably greater than what we can even imagine.’
It was obvious why Ilya was cursing.
Right now, she could hear the words the people were saying.
Perhaps even the countries of Rabat and Palanque wouldn’t deny what their nobles had done.
What will happen now?
Will they start arguing?
It wouldn’t be wrong to assume that, but in case this led to a fight, then it was clear who the one having the upper hand would be.
Will Ilya Lindsay follow up on the words of the people who had talked against her and try to do something more?
It would indeed be troublesome, but it wouldn’t be that bad.
Unless those nobles would pretend to act like they didn’t know they had just disrespected a Sword Master who was also the lady of the Lindsay family, they wouldn’t take this matter further.
Rather, if they would manage the situation well and relieve Ilya Lindsay’s mood even a little bit, they might be able to forge a good relationship with Lindsay's family.
'However, a woman who is known to be calm and mature to say such harsh words… I don't understand.'
After finishing these thoughts, the commander of Calven laughed.
But no one even noticed him.
Everyone was looking at Ilya Lindsay.
With a casual expression, the silver-haired girl was concentrating on her conversation with the blonde man, Airn Pareira, who was sitting next to her.
After a while, Perry Martinez, who looked as if he was confused by what he heard, walked towards Ilya.
Even in the midst of so much complexity, his eyes were intensely fixed on her.
And the proud daughter of the Lindsay Family wouldn’t back out either.
She turned her gaze and met the man's eyes, and although she had the same expression as before, it was a lot colder.
The commander, who noticed that, smiled.
And said while looking to his side.
“Amira, relax.”
“Huh? Yes! No, that…”
“Didn’t I already tell you? Don’t think too much about it. Have something to eat and pretend nothing happened.”
“T-that… yes. Alright.”
Having calmed Amira Shelton, he quickly walked towards Ilya.
However, he also knew that it wasn’t good for Calven to enter and make a huge mistake.
What kind of words should he say to get rid of that annoying magician?
It was when Gregory Griffin was thinking.
In the center of the banquet hall, a strange thing happened.
Woong!
A vibrating sound that drew everyone's attention.
With that, an empty space was slit vertically.
Then, as if a dark tent had been cut by a sword in the middle of noon, a brilliant gold light leaked out. And everyone’s eyes widened at the sight.
It was the same with Airn Pareira and Lulu.
However, their reaction was a bit different from the others, and it was because they had experienced this once before.
And before long, as they had expected, the golden portal expanded, and people began to come out of it.
Step!
A constant clear sound of iron boots hitting the marble echoed in succession.
It was the sound made by fully armed knights ready to wage war.
The black cloak and the symbol near the chest said it all. The fact that the soldiers in front of them were the members of the Black Knights of the Holy Kingdom Avilus.
At that moment, the nobles who let go of their worries, sighed in relief.
Of course, their interest didn’t fade right away.
They wanted to see the soldiers of Avilius, who were known to be the most powerful Knight Order in the continent.
And also because of their commander, who would soon show up.
A person who had risen from a mercenary to a knight, and then finally, a commander, Ignet Crescentia.
Anticipating her appearance, everyone in the banquet hall stopped whatever they were doing and stared at the golden light.
Woong!
Woong!
Meanwhile, the Black Knights continued to appear.
Five, ten, fifteen, twenty.
Even though it was quite a large place, the area felt full as the Black Knights kept pouring in...
And it seemed like they were formidable people since they made the people in the banquet feel suffocated.
However, the person who came out soon broke the cramped air in the banquet hall.
A girl with dark makeup and a black dress which didn’t seem right for her age.
The people who saw it were puzzled, and then heard her speak.
“Huh? I must have made a mistake. I was going to make the portal outside the banquet hall.”
“Couldn’t the mistake have happened because of your stingy desire of saving the gold? From now on, use the gold properly.”
“If you can save it, then it should be saved!”
“Don’t speak.”
A knight who had gray hair followed the girl.
Seeing this face, the faces of the people of the three kingdoms who were present there went stiff.
Unlike the girl, this person was known. Like Ignet, he was recognized for his skills and rose to the rank of vice-commander.
‘Greg Phoebe…. A Master was it?’
Perry Martinez narrowed his eyes and looked at the person who was one of the 100, as well as the other strong people who were present along with him.
He couldn’t help it. The power of the Holy Kingdom seemed to be a bit too much to be considered as just a collaborator for the dungeon loot.
So, it was natural for him to measure their strength.
Of course.
Wong!
Spa!
Such a meaningless comparison of power was proved pointless as soon as that last person came out.
The third rank in the three strongest people of the Holy Kingdom.
Black Knights Commander Ignet Crescentia.
As her gaze passed through the crowd, most of the people in the banquet hall turned their heads away from it, unable to look into her eyes.
Wheik!
What kind of atmosphere did the strong exhibit?
Each one would obviously be different, but it could be divided into two broad categories.
The first one were the ones who didn’t seem ordinary to others despite not knowing their true level, and the second were the ones who exuded so much pressure that people couldn’t even look at them.
Ignet was obviously the latter.
People with weak energy couldn’t even look at her, as if they were in front of brilliant light.
“…”
Of course, not everyone was like that.
Among them was Sevion Brooks, the best knight in Palanque, who devoted his entire life to sword.
‘I am trembling.’
His heart was pounding. The heat around his body was telling him that he was excited.
He was burning up as if he had approached the sun.
Ignet was a person who couldn’t be approached by normal people, but for those who wanted to be strong, she could set their hearts on fire.
‘I want to fight against it.’
Step!
Sevion Brooks took a step ahead, trying to hide his emotions.
He knew that the girl in front of him was much younger than him, yet he couldn’t stop feeling the pressure that she exuded.
He also knew that this girl was more influential and stronger than him.
But such things did not matter between two swordsmen.
At least now, he thought so, and to carry out those thoughts, he tried to walk towards the commander of the Black Knights.
However…
“…”
Ignet Crescentia didn’t even look at Sevion Brooks.
And the same was true for her steps. The woman passed the top knight of Palanque as if she couldn't see him.
And naturally, people looked at where she headed.
And once again, they ended up holding their breath.
“A lot… you have changed a lot since we last met.”
“…”
“Spill it. All this while… what just happened?”
Ignet was looking at that one person with a gaze as hot as the sun.
And looking at her in the eyes, Airn Pareira got up from his seat.
