The wheels of the carriage rolled endlessly over the bumpy road, occasionally crunching over small stones and producing a light clattering sound.
Rita rested her chin on her hand, sitting cross-legged in the coachman’s seat, watching as her obedient little horse galloped wildly down the path.
Rita couldn’t ride or drive a carriage; otherwise, on the day Dorothy stirred up trouble, she could have taken Cecilia out of the city on horseback.
But it didn’t matter—using Enchantment Magic was far more convenient than learning to ride. As long as she gave the little horse a command, it would switch to autopilot and find the way by itself.
Enchantment Magic, isn’t it just wonderful?
“Rita.” Cecilia’s voice drifted out from inside the carriage: “Where are we now?”
“I have no idea.” Rita replied.
А
There was a moment of silence inside the carriage, then Cecilia’s head popped out from within.
“Anak Plains. Remember it. Up ahead, there’s Safras City. It’s not a big city, but it’ll be enough for us to rest for a while.”
Rita glanced at the little horse pulling the carriage, her palm stroking the thick mane on its back as she let her consciousness drift inside.
Ah, it’s true. Pearl said the same thing.
To be able to see at a glance where you are—Rita wished she could learn such a skill.
The two of them were now traveling the road to the royal capital, and along the way, it was just the two of them.
With Rita—who could even defeat Dorothy—there was little point in seeking more guards.
That’s just how traveling works: too few people and they’re not enough protection; too many, and you draw too much attention. So it’s best to hire a few strong ones and that’s that.
A girl like Rita, who grew up in a safe country, had never imagined that traveling could be dangerous, nor realized how troublesome a trip could be.
Only after setting out with Cecilia did she gradually understand these things.
Sigh, thanks to my homeland’s strength, thanks to its convenient transportation.
Speaking of Dorothy, one has to mention the whole series of disturbances she set off.
There were quite a few casualties in the city, but most were soldiers. Moving away the shattered stone gate was a huge project, likely to take several, maybe dozens of days. As for the subsequent rebuilding, that would take even longer.
But none of that was Rita’s concern anymore.
As for the candidates who participated in the second round and handed in their Record Stones, Cecilia had declared all of them qualified. Of course, this might be under a lot of pressure, but with so many Record Stones lost, there really wasn’t a better, more convincing way.
This matter was also backed by the support of two Holy Knights who had come to Solus City.
Oh right, there were those two…
A few days earlier.
“Lady Cecilia, let’s go! To the royal capital!”
“You were supposed to go to the capital in the first place,” Brownie said coldly. “The power of Goldblood is extremely precious and must never fall into the hands of ordinary people. From the moment you accepted the Goldblood, you only have two possible endings: either become a Holy Knight, or be judged by the Holy Knights.”
Was that a threat?
“That’s right, that’s right. Our mission may have been to support Solus City, but we can’t ignore this matter. So, you’ll have to come with us.”
The other Holy Knight showed no malice, but that smiling face put invisible pressure on Rita, telling her not to try anything rash.
Not that Rita ever would.
But the tension in the air was clear—it didn’t seem like this would end easily.
Yet the awkward atmosphere was instantly shattered by one person’s appearance.
A young girl’s graceful figure landed like the wind, stopping at the entrance to the passageway.
All eyes turned to her at once.
Promi, still wrapped in bandages, looked up and took in the two opposing sides.
When her gaze landed on Brownie, her pupils suddenly shrank.
“……”
“Hm?” Brownie turned to look at Promi, lifting her lashes.
Then, she dashed over, grabbed Promi’s shoulders, and shook her, fussing over her with hugs and kisses.
“Promi! Are you alright? How did you get hurt so badly? Who did this? Did someone bully you? Why didn’t you reply to my letters! I was so worried! Come on, tell your sister! What happened!”
DC……
Who is this?
Was this really the same person who’d just threatened her with a face as stern as Sima’s?
“Ugh, ugh, ugh.” Promi’s head was shaken back and forth, and then she reached out to knock Brownie’s hand away.
Brownie stared, wide-eyed, nursing her slapped hand with a look of grievance as her eyes reddened at once.
“Promi, how can you treat your sister like this, woo… wuuu…”
“A sis-con’s like that, you’ll have to understand.” The other Holy Knight shrugged, explaining to the bewildered Rita.
The words had barely left her mouth when Brownie shot her a fierce glare. That Holy Knight seemed to expect this and simply covered her mouth with one hand, still smiling.
Alright… alright then.
A little scary.
“I’m not a child. I don’t need your concern.” Promi shot Brownie an angry look.
“My little sister’s all grown up, woo… now comes her rebellious phase… wuuu…” Brownie wiped her tears, sniffling loudly.
“And why did you start a fight with Rita?” Promi shot a side glance at Rita, whose face was now full of speechless exasperation after her standoff with Brownie.
Brownie gave a simple account of what had happened, and Promi frowned slightly: “Rita is my savior. Is this how you treat her?”
“Savior?”
“That’s right.” Promi quickly recounted the events of the trial.
“Ah! Ahhh! I see!” Brownie’s eyes widened, and with a few quick steps, she stood before Rita. Before Rita could draw her sword, Brownie had seized her hand.
“Good person! Miss Rita! You’re a good person! I can’t believe I was so rude to you! What a sin!”
Rita nodded stiffly, still unable to recover from Brownie’s extreme mood swings: “Uh… it’s, it’s fine…”
“No! How could it be fine! You saved my cute, kind, gentle, cheerful little sister, and I drew my sword on my benefactor! I even broke your sword!” Brownie shook Li Tianya’s hand up and down.
“Brownie, you broke Rita’s sword?” Promi’s voice rang out.
“No! No, that’s not it! I only sensed something wrong about that sword and the person—no, I shouldn’t make excuses in front of my adorable sister. It was me! I’ll compensate you! I’ll give you a better sword!”
“Rita, you… blocked my sister’s attack?” Promi’s voice was full of disbelief.
But Rita didn’t hear Promi’s mumbling—her mind was full of other matters.
- 1500……
Anyway, that sword made from a digger’s bucket wasn’t very handy. Rita had wanted to replace it after getting it, but since Cecilia had found someone to forge it for her, it was meaningful, so Rita kept using it.
“………”
“What about the crest? Oh, that’s a minor thing. As long as you don’t use the crest’s power during the trials, it’s fine! Keep it up! Hope to see you among us soon!” Brownie gave Rita a look of utmost determination.
Wh-what’s with this person?
This weirdo, what exactly is she saying!
“But as for the matter of you being given the crest, that’s not something we can decide.”
After a while, Brownie’s voice became more composed, and much more serious:
“It’s either become a Holy Knight, or have your Goldblood taken back by the Holy Knights and the royal family. There’s no changing that.”
Rita understood.
Even if she didn’t choose to stay by Cecilia’s side, the moment she revealed her crest, she had no other road to take.
Unless she could really escape the pursuit of two Holy Knights.
But Rita had no regrets. Choosing Cecilia, choosing to continue hiding her identity and remain in the human world—this was her decision.
To become a Holy Knight was what she must do, not something forced upon her by Goldblood or the crest.
“But as for now, I haven’t seen any crest. Fran, did you see one?”
“Saw it, I did.” The other Holy Knight, Fran, shook her head from side to side.
“Hm?” Brownie glared at her.
“Alright, alright! I didn’t see anything!” Fran waved her hands quickly.
Only then did Brownie nod with satisfaction and turn back to Rita.
“Since Her Highness Cecilia chose to entrust you with the Goldblood, then not as my beloved sister’s sister, but as the exclusive knight of Her Highness Rosalia, I have something to say to you: Since you have already chosen to shoulder this responsibility, you must fulfill it properly, whether it’s becoming a Holy Knight, or carrying out Her Highness Cecilia’s will.”
“I’m no one’s exclusive knight, but if you spend enough time with Brownie, you’ll see—she’s just this kind of annoying person. She’s a terrible person, so just treat her harsh words like thin air,” Fran said, giving a big thumbs-up.
“In any case, good luck! See you in the royal capital!”
After leaving the passage, Rita needed to find a place for Cecilia to rest, and tend to her own wounds.
A chilly, blood-scented breeze blew at dusk, and only then did Rita remember that Cecilia seemed to have been silent the whole time.
Wait! Wasn’t saying she’d become Cecilia’s Holy Knight just something she said herself? She hadn’t even asked Cecilia!
“Lady Cecilia, um……”
“Go ahead.”
“I said I wanted to be your exclusive knight, so…”
“I don’t mind. If I did, I could have had them drag you back then and there.” Cecilia looked at Rita as if she were an idiot.
She’d spoken with such confidence just now—how could she not see her tacit approval?
“But, I’m… a dream demon…” Rita scratched her head.
“Oh, right. About that, there’s something I nearly forgot.”
Cecilia sped up, came up to Rita, and reached a hand between Rita’s torn clothes.
Wh-what are you doing! We’re out on the street!
Rita shrank her neck nervously, but found Cecilia’s hand wasn’t heading anywhere strange—it was aimed at her pants pocket.
Under Rita’s astonished gaze, Cecilia fished out a Record Stone engraved with Momoka’s name.
Cecilia casually tossed the Record Stone to the ground, then stepped on it, grinding it to pieces with all her strength.
“Next time, remember to destroy things like this,” Cecilia said, moving on ahead. “Come on, let’s go get dinner.”
Of course, if she hadn’t been blushing so hard when crushing the Record Stone, that scene might have looked a bit cooler.