Chapter 26: Death of Silver Eagle

The father and daughter chatted like this.

Because there really weren’t many people buying from them.

Goods in the Imperial City were cheap.

Logically, with the influx of refugees, prices should have gone up.

But this was different from usual—it was a competition between merchants.

“Father, will those three children die?”

“Maybe. Stealing, and they’re beggar kids from the gangs. Even if they don’t die, their hands will be chopped off.”

“Can we save them?”

“Go to the Monastery, Claire. The Church and the Monastery suit you. You’re kind.”

The man smiled, then slowly sat back onto the cart frame.

Even though there were a lot of people tonight, their goods weren’t that cheap.

Even at near cost price, it was hard to sell.

Just a few Orens could buy a loaf of bread.

Between knowledge and bread, people would still choose bread first.

On the other side, Mel Carlo and the others had already returned to the gang’s courtyard.

They ate well today and felt good.

A bath and a good night’s sleep sounded perfect.

“Hey, Chocolate, do you know who the silver-haired knight I met that day was?”

Aka asked the chubby boy.

“Aka, I think he might be the Silver Falcon of the Edwin family. I heard that lord is very gentle, different from other nobles. He’s friendly to commoners and is a righteous person.”

“You’ve seen him too?”

“No, never met him. Just heard of him. His master is the Sword Saint of the Kingdom.”

Chocolate’s face was very calm as he spoke, without a hint of longing.

To him, most knights were no different from villains.

Even the so-called ‘friendly’ Silver Falcon—who knew what kind of trash he might be behind the scenes.

He hated knights and the Church, too, because his parents died at their hands.

But seeing Aka so admiring, he didn’t say anything to spoil the mood.

After this night, Mel Carlo returned to the state of desperately memorizing things, writing everything he could remember onto paper in case he ever forgot one day.

He even wrote down the entire process of his reincarnation.

This was a fantasy world.

If one day he was hit by some strange magic and forgot everything, at least this notebook could remind him who he was.

A week later, Mel Carlo stopped recording game content.

He had written everything he could think of, even content from derivative works.

For the remaining details, he would add them as he remembered—memory capacity was limited, after all.

That day, Aka was in high spirits.

News of a victory from the borderlands had arrived.

Although it wasn’t a complete victory, just a single battle was enough to lift spirits.

The knight order that had gone to war was returning to the Imperial City today.

Aka wanted to see the glory of the knights no matter what.

“Mel, aren’t you coming with us?”

Aka tried to invite Mel to watch with them.

But Mel Carlo, having finally finished his notes, just wanted to rest.

Feeling the cold wind outside—no thanks.

“You guys go. Tell me about it when you come back. Let me rest a bit.”

Mel Carlo sat by the stove, eyes half-closed.

He didn’t want to think or move.

[Throwing Blade], [Assassin’s Breathing Technique], [Dagger Attack]—these were already at max proficiency.

[Backstep] Proficiency: 1601/10000

[Steal] Proficiency: 320/10000 Effort Value: 31807

And [Powerful Slash], [Cut], [Thrust], [Uplift]—there were four skills he could practice, all upper limb skills, so they didn’t conflict with other training.

“Let’s go see Uncle Anke.”

Mel Carlo yawned and walked to the second floor.

He opened the door and found it empty inside.

The stove had only just gone out.

“Didn’t expect Uncle Anke liked crowds too.”

Now the gang courtyard was empty—just him left.

It was a bit lonely.

Aka and the others had already run to the city gates.

The roads on both sides were packed with people, but soldiers had cordoned them off.

The middle road couldn’t be occupied, as the knight order would be passing through.

There was no music.

Only the howling wind and the sound of silent breathing.

A few children poked their heads out from the crowd, sensing that something was off.

Wasn’t this supposed to be a triumph?

Why was it so quiet?

The leading members of the knight order entered the city first.

Behind them was a carriage, carrying a giant stone.

A brand-new sword was embedded straight into the stone.

“That’s the Sword in the Stone? I heard only chosen heroes can pull it out.”

“Wait.”

Someone beside them suddenly widened their eyes.

Because on the carriage behind, there was a person’s corpse.

Silvery hair draped over the wagon.

A once handsome face was stained with blood.

The skin had no color—a cold corpse.

Finally, someone recognized it.

“That’s the knight lord of the Edwin family. My god, how could the Silver Falcon be dead?”

“Wasn’t this just a mission to retrieve the holy sword from the borderlands? And the Sword Saint went too. He’s the Sword Saint’s disciple!”

The crowd erupted into chaos.

Many women who admired the Silver Falcon began to weep.

“The knight order’s numbers seem wrong.”

After the knight order entered the city, someone noticed the numbers were off—half the people were missing.

Was there only one body?

The knight order members lowered their heads, many wounded.

Next to the silver-haired knight’s corpse stood an aged man with a striking cross-shaped scar at the corner of his eye.

He was the Empire’s strongest Sword Saint, but his disciple was dead.

“Eugene!!! What happened?! Why did Big Brother die! Didn’t you promise to protect him?!”

An enraged red-haired girl burst through the crowd, kicking the old man’s head in fury and knocking the old Sword Saint to the ground.

Her fiery red hair drew everyone’s gaze.

But the old man didn’t resist, letting the red-haired girl bite his arm.

He stood again.

The girl was still kicking and punching one of his legs, like an angry little lion.

The old man was silent.

He could only clench his fists, unable to hold back his tears.

“I’m sorry. As a master, I failed to protect him.”

After a round of hitting, the girl’s strength seemed to wane.

“Why? Didn’t you promise to protect Big Brother?”

She jumped onto the wagon, grabbing the silver-haired knight’s hand, hoping her brother would respond as he always had.

But her brother’s warmth was gone—only coldness remained.

Aka stood in the crowd, as if his soul had left him.

He could only watch from afar.

Just a few months ago, the knight lord had still been alive.

“Chocolate, is that girl also from the Edwin family? She looks so sad.”

Lily asked the chubby boy beside her.

“Never heard of her. Besides, that fiery red hair is a bit scary.”

Chocolate spoke slowly.

Even among humans, red hair was usually a more natural shade.

Such bright red was generally unique to demons or to humans with demon blood.

They weren’t the only ones who thought this.

Many others did, too—because that’s what they’d heard all their lives.