Chapter 312: Divine of the East (3)

As if stomped on by a giant, the luxurious carriage shattered to pieces and instantly drew the attention of the surrounding nobles.

“What in the world is this commotion?”

“Count Sinva’s carriage suddenly broke apart.”

“... Serves him right.”

“A true blessing from the Solarian God.”

“M-Master! People will hear you.”

“

Ahem!

”

Nobles were, by nature, proud beings. And Count Sinva, who wielded his authority with arrogance and belittled others, was far from welcome among them. His misfortune brought both satisfaction and amusement to those nearby.

“You...!”

The coachman quickly helped Count Sinva, who was crawling, to his feet and dusted off his clothes.

“A-are you all right, Master?”

“Shut up.” Growling lowly, Count Sinva took out his anger on the innocent coachman and glared at Kai. “What did you say just now?”

“I didn’t say anything,” Kai, unfazed and calm, replied in a bored voice.

His tone only scratched at Count Sinva’s pride again.

How dare he speak to me with that tone and that expression?

It was a face and voice that clearly showed he was feeling annoyed.

Veins bulged on Count Sinva’s forehead as rage surged through him. “Nonsense! Just now, you clearly—!”

Knights patrolling the royal palace perimeter had noticed the commotion and approached.

“What’s going on here?”

How dare mere knights...

Count Sinva had been ready to scold them harshly, but suddenly shut his mouth as he noticed the emblem on their chests.

That emblem is surely...

It was the emblem of the Guardian Knights, one of the two Royal Knights that served under the king. No matter how high a count's rank may be, one could not treat the Royal Knights carelessly.

Count Sinva forced a trembling smile as he responded, “It’s nothing. The carriage... the carriage suddenly malfunctioned.”

“... A malfunction, you say.”

The Guardian Knights looked at the wrecked carriage and showed troubled expressions.

“We’ll send someone to repair it, Count Sinva.”

“

Oh

, I won’t forget the royal family’s generosity today.”

Being shown such favor in front of the other nobles brought a bright smile to Count Sinva’s face. He glanced at Kai and slightly smirked.

Surely he’s now aware of the difference between us.

That pitiful state, unable to even speak in front of the Guardian Knights.

Right. There’s no need for me to waste energy dealing with a bumpkin from the east.

After all, he had power.

Then Count Sinva put on a wronged expression and said to them, “By the way, it seems that the nobility's order has fallen during my absence from the palace.”

“Pardon? What do you mean by that...”

“

Haha,

it’s embarrassing to say it myself, but... no, never mind.”

The way to make people curious was simple. It was to start speaking, then suddenly stop!

As the Guardian Knights tilted their heads in confusion, Count Sinva resumed his words with a generous expression. “My, my. If you look at me like that, I suppose I have no choice but to continue. It was just a minor quarrel, nothing worth worrying over.”

“With whom...?”

Rather than answering, Count Sinva just glanced sideways and cleared his throat. Of course, his gaze fell on Kai.

How childish.

Kai, fully aware of what the count was trying to do, couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

“Was it this person?”

The Guardian Knights looked at Kai with troubled expressions.

“Sorry, but may we have your name?”

“

Hm?

” Kai let out a hum, raising the end of his sentence as if finding it amusing.

𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

The Guardian Knights before him were unfamiliar faces.

These must be the ones who weren’t present during the fight with Paval.

That meant they were essentially rookies within the Guardian Knights unit.

“My name is...”

Just as Kai was about to introduce himself, a loud voice rang out from behind.

“What’s everyone doing here gathered like this?”

Oh, I’m screwed.

Kai’s expression immediately soured. It was a voice he recognized all too well. It was also the voice of the one person he least wanted to encounter at the palace.

“C-Commander, sir!”

“Ah-TEN-shun!”

The rookie Guardian Knights snapped to attention, saluting Paval as he approached.

“What’s going on here?” Paval scanned the scene with his unique stern gaze as he received the report from his subordinates. “

Hm

. The carriage broke apart? Like this?”

Staring at the shattered carriage, Paval let out a dry laugh and turned to Count Sinva. In a land without tigers, the fox played king.

Count Sinva, who had been playing the role of king in the line, now spoke with an unusually cautious tone. That was only natural as the Royal Knight commanders were treated as equals to counts. On top of that, they were among the most powerful figures within the royal court. If one made a mistake, a remote lord like Sinva could be easily crushed.

“To meet the famed commander of the Guardian Knights in such a place...”

Paval cut him off and his eyes widened in surprise. “Kai?”

He quickly approached Kai, who was now rubbing his forehead and sighing.

“What brings you here, Kai?”

“I’m standing in line.”

“Why are you standing in line...?”

“What do you mean?”

As Kai tilted his head in confusion, Paval was the one who looked taken aback. “Didn’t His Majesty send you a letter himself?”

“You mean this one?”

Kai pulled a letter from his inventory and handed it over.

At that moment, gasps echoed from the crowd around them.

“A royal invitation bearing the Rashion seal...”

“Wait, he stood in line despite having that?”

“More importantly, the fact that Baron Kai received such a letter means...”

“He’s even more impressive than the rumors say.”

MID Online

had a strictly hierarchical social structure. Naturally, whenever the royal family hosted an event, distinctions were inevitably made. The invitations sent to nobles across the kingdom were no exception.

“Oh my, those personally invited by His Majesty do not need to stand in line. Didn’t His Majesty mention that?”

This careless old man, seriously...

Kai’s brow slightly twitched. There should be a limit to how blunt someone could be. How hard would it have been to include one more sentence in the postscript? Thanks to that, Kai had wasted his time and gotten into trouble with some random nobody.

Kai let out a sigh and responded, “He didn’t mention anything of the sort.”

“

Ah

...” Now understanding the situation, Paval bowed his head in apology. “It seems there was some miscommunication during the delivery process. Please allow me to apologize on his behalf.”

Kai placed a hand on Paval’s shoulder and said, “Please raise your head.”

Paval looked up at him with a face full of gratitude. “Truly, you have such a generous heart...”

Of course, there was a reason Kai had hurriedly stopped him.

It’s too bright.

When Paval bowed, the top of his shiny bald head reflected sunlight so strongly that it blinded him. Of course, he couldn’t say that out loud.

“It’s fine. So, where should I go?”

“

Ah

, just head to the main gate and present your invitation. However...”

Paval glanced between Kai and the shattered carriage with a suspicious expression.

Of course, Kai simply wore an innocent face, pretending to know nothing. His expression was so convincing, it almost looked like he truly didn’t know anything.

Having caught on, Paval merely forced an awkward smile. “That carriage is completely wrecked.”

“That’s how cheap carriages are, aren’t they?”

“The brand of that carriage is considered one of the top in the kingdom, though.”

“When consumers buy something, there’s one thing they can never avoid. Luck. Very unfortunate.”

Kai adamantly denied any connection to the incident.

In the end, Paval nodded and smiled brightly. “I see. It seems Count Sinva was just terribly unlucky.”

“Exactly.”

While the two exchanged cheerful conversation, Count Sinva wore a blank expression, as if he couldn’t comprehend the situation.

That... that lowly baron, how is he so close to the Commander of the Guardian Knights?

In his worldview, power was everything. With greater power came connections to higher nobles, and it changed one’s social circle. However, though he had risen to the position of a great lord of the west by accumulating wealth through his merchant guild, he could never quite break past a certain wall.

The royal insiders never give anyone an opening.

They were the ones who could be called King Beoruk’s hands and feet, who radiated powerful charisma. Even with the title of Great Lord of the West, they never easily opened up to someone like him. And yet, how could a mere baron be so close to one of the kingdom’s most powerful figures, Paval?

And what? A handwritten royal invitation from His Majesty...?

It was something he himself had never received and had only heard of in rumors. To think that an eastern bumpkin would be carrying one...

Are those recent rumors true?

The Divine of the East, Kai. A rising noble from the East, known for rapidly developing his territory with an endless flow of wealth. On top of that, rumors had recently spread that he had dispatched dwarf blacksmiths across the entire continent.

Naturally, most of the conservative nobles scoffed at those rumors.

Dwarven blacksmiths are treated like national treasures even in the empires. And he supposedly has over a hundred of them in a single territory?

Count Sinva had been one of those people. After all, people might believe it if someone they knew won the lottery, but they would never believe it if that person became president.

When it came to rumors that went far beyond their understanding, people tended to put on skeptical lenses first. It was one of those bad habits that defined the limits of people. Moreover, it was also proof that information about Libertia’s existence had spread mostly among only players.

“In any case, Kai, allow me to escort you personally.”

“It’s fine. I’ll go alone.”

“I cannot allow that. Treating you poorly would be an insult to the Solarian Church.”

As Paval firmly expressed his intent, Count Sinva suddenly grew nervous.

“Is Baron Kai affiliated with the Solarian Church as well...?”

At some point, the word Baron had naturally attached itself to Kai’s name.

Paval glanced at Count Sinva indifferently and gave a lazy nod. “Of course. Kai leads the Holy Blood Order of the Solarian Church.”

“H-Holy Blood Order...”

Count Sinva’s face went pale. Even though he had been living in the narrow well that was the western region, he had at least heard the name of the Holy Blood Order.

He quickly looked over at his son. His son, too, was staring back at him with a similarly pale face.

F-Father. The Holy Blood Order is rumored to be the most powerful combat unit of the Solarian Church...

I know that, you fool!

At this point, whether he was above a baron in the Rashion hierarchy didn’t matter. As the head of the Holy Blood Order, Kai likely held a position equivalent to a bishop or higher within the Solarian Church.

Count Sinva awkwardly smiled and said to Kai, “You were truly a remarkable figure. I was hard of hearing and failed to recognize you.”

A strange scene unfolded in which a count spoke formally to a baron. What made it even more intriguing to the surrounding nobles was that it was Count Sinva, who normally wouldn’t even acknowledge barons and viscounts as equals.

“It’s fine. How would you have known?”

Kai’s words brought light to Count Sinva’s face. “Truly, you embody the mercy of the Solarian Church...”

“So please continue not knowing who I am from now on.”

Even as Kai gently interrupted him, Count Sinva didn’t dare protest.

“You can do that for me, right?”

Kai spoke with a smiling face, but Count Sinva felt more threatened than ever.

Behind Kai stood Paval, glaring directly at him with fierce eyes.

“Y-yes, of course.”

“Great. Then... Count Shoe, was it? I hope you’ll be more mindful when lining up in the future. And maybe invest in a sturdier carriage.”

“Th-thank you. I’ll purchase only the finest carriages from now on.”

Count Sinva didn’t even dare to correct Kai mispronouncing his name as Shoe,[1] and from that day forward, he came to be called Count Shoe among the nobles.

1. Count's name is Sinva 신바 whereas shoe is 신발. So the addition of ㄹ turns the pronunciation to Sinbal. ☜