Noa twitched Rose's sword between his fingers, lifting it toward the light with the curiosity of a collector examining a newly acquired relic.
"Mmm… this is not bad."
The blade was slightly shorter than a standard knight's sword—crafted for agility rather than brute force, its balance favoring speed over devastation. It was the kind of weapon that danced instead of roared. Where Kaelen's blade sought to cleave fate in half, this one preferred to weave through it.
He rotated his wrist.
A thin current of dark purple aura seeped into the steel like ink dropped into water.
crack
A faint fracture splintered across the surface.
Noa froze.
The blade trembled.
"Shit!"
He immediately withdrew his aura, the purple glow snapping back into him as though embarrassed by its own enthusiasm. With exaggerated nonchalance, he slid the sword back into its sheath and adjusted it just enough so that the cracked portion faced inward.
"Heheh! This will do."
He nodded to himself, praising his own crisis management skills as if he had just prevented a continental disaster rather than committed mild weapon abuse.
The three knights approached at a brisk pace, boots striking stone in uneven rhythm.
"Hey! Who are you?"
"Are you going to do something to our captain?"
Before Noa could answer, their eyes had already caught sight of the dark aura that had briefly wrapped around Rose's blade. Recognition dawned. Uneasy, but not hostile. They had seen the monsters fall.
Not as cleanly as Kaelen's execution—his had been painless.
Noa's had been… brutal.
"Oh! I was just watching him, don't worry." Noa smiled gently, as if he were a tourist admiring local architecture rather than the man who had bisected three abominations seconds earlier.
The knights slowed, instinct overriding impulse.
"What's your name?" one of them asked. His tone held caution, but not aggression. If hostility had been present, they would already be corpses cooling on the pavement.
"Noa. Noa Ravel."
"Noa? Never heard of it."
Noa stepped closer without hesitation and tapped the soldier's shoulder as though greeting an old friend.
"Oh, don't worry," he said lightly. "You will very soon."
It was not a threat.
It was not a boast.
It was a statement delivered with the same certainty one uses when announcing sunrise.
"…Anyways, are you Blackmoor's knights?"
Confusion flickered across the soldier's face as Noa casually draped an elbow over his shoulder, leaning in as if sharing a secret.
What is this guy on about?
"Yes," the knight answered after a brief pause.
Noa's smile widened like a cat discovering an unlocked pantry.
"Great! Then please take us with you to meet your lord."
"Us?" the knight blinked.
"My maid is still coming this way." Noa pointed lazily toward the jewelry store down the street.
He has a maid serving him? Is he a noble?
And…he wants to go with us?
Before further speculation could mature, Rose arrived, slightly out of breath.
"Huff—huff—"
"You're back," Noa greeted her as though she had merely gone to fetch tea.
He handed her sword back instantly, careful not to draw attention to the subtle crack. If she noticed later, that would be a future problem. And future problems were famously unreliable.
"Hey Rose, these guys are Blackmoor's knights. Let's go with them."
Rose blinked at the knights.
"Go… with them?"
"Yes."
The knight who had first spoken straightened his posture.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Kenar, a knight of Blackmoor. Thank you for helping us earlier."
I guess they recognize we don't mean any harm, Noa concluded lazily.
"I'm Rose," she said with polite composure. "We're here with permission to speak with Duke Blackmoor from Her Majesty, Princess Vionette."
Unlike Noa, Rose understood diplomacy.
She retrieved a letter from her pocket and presented it with proper decorum. The royal seal shimmered against the parchment like a silent declaration of authority.
Kenar's eyes sharpened.
The royal seal?
His gaze flicked toward Noa.
If they have the royal seal… then who is he?
His jaw tightened slightly.
"Rose!" Noa suddenly shouted, stretching his arms wide as if mourning a lost era.
"Yes, my lord?" she replied flatly, already anticipating nonsense.
"My Batman role-play! You ruined it!"
"…I'm sorry, but what?"
Rose's expression did not change, but somewhere deep within her patience sighed and packed its bags.
Noa brushed his hair back dramatically, accepting the collapse of his mysterious persona.
"Forget it. Let's just go." He turned to Kenar. "So? Can we?"
I knows the way to the mansion. We don't have to follow them, Rose thought irritably, though she kept it to herself.
"Yes," Kenar replied after a measured pause. "Please follow us to the mansion."
While two knights carefully lifted Kaelen and rushed him toward the medics, Kenar accompanied Noa and Rose.
***
Inside the jewelry store, Lucien's consciousness returned like a reluctant tide.
He lay face-first on the polished floor, cheek pressed against cold marble.
"Uhhh…"
He pushed himself up slowly, arms trembling with both weakness and humiliation.
His gaze drifted—and stopped.
The four knights were still unmoving.
He had hoped it was a dream.
It was not.
"That damn… I'll get you next time."
His fist clenched, knuckles whitening.
"How dare you… how dare you hurt a noble?"
His pride bled more fiercely than any wound.
The door creaked open.
"Oh my. What happened here? Are you okay, man?"
The voice was elegant.
Carefree.
Almost amused.
Lucien stiffened.
***
The duke's mansion rose from the earth like a monument to disciplined ambition. Its stone walls were carved with refined detail; tall windows framed in iron and glass reflected the fading daylight like watchful eyes. Ivy traced elegant paths along the façade, softening its authority without diminishing it.
A wide staircase led to heavy double doors beneath an arched balcony, as if inviting guests to ascend into judgment.
The grounds were immaculate—fountains murmured quietly, hedges trimmed with surgical precision. Wealth did not shout here.
It whispered.
knock-knock-knock
The doors opened with a smooth creak, revealing a maid who bowed politely.
Kaelen was taken elsewhere, toward healers and quiet rooms where pain could be negotiated.
Inside, polished marble floors reflected crystal chandeliers like fractured stars. Velvet drapes framed towering windows. Portraits of ancestors lined the walls, their painted gazes heavy with expectation.
The air itself seemed disciplined.
Kenar walked slightly ahead, observing Noa from the corner of his eye.
At first glance, Noa appeared ordinary—aside from his eyes. His clothes were of high quality, yet not noble fashion. His posture relaxed. Too relaxed.
He isn't surprised.
"Have you been to the royal castle before?" Kenar asked casually.
"One time," Noa replied.
Technically true.
Only one? Kenar calculated silently. Then not high nobility. Perhaps on a mission?.
They walked on.
…
"Please wait here. His Lordship is in a meeting. He will allow you to enter shortly."
The room they were led into was refined yet intimate—two sofas facing one another, a low table adorned with delicate snacks arranged like miniature sculptures.
Noa sat down immediately.
Rose remained standing beside him.
"I thought you would barge in," she murmured.
Noa leaned forward, one eye narrowing.
"Do I really look like the type?"
"I thought you were."
He leaned back, stretching his arms along the sofa as if claiming the furniture by divine right.
"As I said before, I respect people without judging them by power. As for Duke Valric…" His eyes gleamed faintly. "I'll decide after meeting him. We can't just use our authority everywhere, you know?"
Rose stared at him with mechanical stillness.
I can't understand him at all. Sometimes evil. Sometimes righteous.
"Are you righteous or evil?" she asked bluntly.
Noa grabbed a biscuit.
"I just go with how I feel."
"What does that mean?"
"If I'm in a really good mood and someone asks for help, I'll help. If I'm in a really bad mood, I might kill them. If I'm neutral and they're strangers, I'll ignore them. Something like that."
Rose blinked.
"…You would kill someone asking for help?"
"It's rare," he said thoughtfully, chewing. "But possible."
Isn't that called evil, you jerk? Why did the princess choose this guy?
Unbeknownst to her, the princess had begun to resemble him more than she realized.
knock-knock
The door opened as a main entered.
"His Lordship permits you to enter."
…
Rose opened the door as Noa stepped inside.
Duke Valric Blackmoor looked up immediately.
His gaze landed on Rose first—recognition flashing across his eyes.
"???"
…Rose. The head maid.
Even a duke could not ignore her presence.
Then his eyes shifted to Noa.
It seems she accompanies him… not the other way around.
That implication tightened something in his chest.
Why wasn't I informed? Those fools.
A faint wrinkle formed on his forehead before smoothing away.
"Hello~ I'm Noa Ravel."
Noa sat without waiting to be invited.
Rose stood behind him.
"It would be my pleasure to make your acquaintance. I'm Valric Blackmoor," the duke replied smoothly.
Ravel? I've never heard of it.
"May I know what business our honored guest has here?"
Noa leaned forward, resting his jaw against interlocked fingers. His eyes, dark and unreadable, reflected no deference—only interest.
"I want Kaelen."