Treatise Of A Failed Knight-Chapter 177: I Am Here

Chapter 177: I Am Here
I’m honestly really tired.
My body constantly hurts, and although I have taken Potions, they aren’t doing me much good at the moment. Potions become less effective the more they are consumed over time, meaning I can only rely on them for a limited period.
But this was unavoidable.
I had to sweep past all the enemies as quickly as possible, and while enduring, I also needed to do a thorough job.
How else would I ensure everyone’s safety?
’And although this may come off as insensitive, far fewer people than I expected actually died.’
I sigh deeply to myself.
It turns out the situation isn’t as bad as I suspected earlier.
’That’s likely due to the Spell protecting them.’ My gaze narrows on the golden dome shrouding the group. ’Are the Royal Knights responsible for it?’
I have to assume so.
None of the staff have an expertise in Shamanic Arts, and none of these sheltered students would be capable of successfully activating a Spell, even if they had the appropriate Special Resources in their possession.
’The guards of the Royal Academy are largely Knights, and even if they had Shamanic origins, the kind of Special Resources necessary to cast a Spell this effective is not something Academy Guards can afford.’ I think to myself, my focus resting on the few Royal Guards hidden in everyone’s midst.
Their Spell was able to stall Cadre 4 Magivores for an extended period.
That’s not something to scoff at.
"You all did well hanging in there for this long. But, there’s no need to be frightened any longer."
Although pretentious, I raise my voice and prop myself up as a trustworthy savior. A strange sense of confidence flows through me in that moment, and I approach the stunned group with a bold demeanor.
"For I am here."
I do my best to hide my heavy pants and soft trembling, instead maintaining the image of an invincible warrior.
The reason speaks for itself.
Their expressions ease a little, and although I draw near to them, they show no aversion to me.
’If I can get them to trust me, I’ll be able to get them to listen to me. Right now, the priority should be escape, and although everything has been immensely difficult for me, Ciel should still have a trump card hidden somewhere.’
Even now, I keep glancing in all directions, ensuring I’m not caught off-guard by anything.
"Who is the one in charge of this expedition?" I pause for a few seconds after asking this question before my focus moves to Seraphina. "You there, Miss, you’re the only Senior Professor here, aren’t you? In terms of seniority, you’re the highest."
"E-eh? How did you—?"
I chuckle silently at her surprise, but my heart further bleeds the moment I pay attention to her distraught expression. She must have been devastated after losing Justin and so many of her students. I doubt Seraphina has ever experienced true danger before, so it really shows her strength of character, how she is able to remain standing despite the current situation.
As for how I was able to guess her identity, other than being a Senior Professor myself...
"You have a brooch and ring with the Royal Academy’s insignia. It awards this to Senior Professors, while Junior Professors are given silver ones. This differentiates the two in terms of status and recognition—both within and outside the Academy."
"A-ah... you are right..."
Seraphina stumbles on her words, mumbling other unintelligent words which I cannot decipher.
While speaking to Seraphina, I notice a few unsavory gazes from one or two Royal Knights, but I choose to ignore them for the moment.
Instead, I address the students next, my distorted voice calmly filling the air.
"There’s a Magivore Beast Tide at the moment, and as the guardian of this mountain, I have come to rescue everyone. I already eliminated all the Magivores within the path leading to this place. The entrance is free as well, which means you should have a safe trip leaving this place and heading towards Lumian Town. We need to warn them and evacuate the people there as well."
"Y-you... eliminated all of them?!"
"No way!"
"Impossible!"
At this point, the Royal Knights are unable to hide their stupefaction any longer.
They’re most definitely finding it difficult to believe that a lone man defeated a horde of Cadre 3 and Cadre 4 Magivores, and in such a brief moment, too. Even an entire squad of Royal Knights would find it difficult to do without the help of an A Grade Armament.
I’m tempted to tell them I had help, but all my comrades died along the way. This would, a the very least, lend some credibility to my story. However, it would be easy to confirm I was lying if they decide to investigate.
Besides, since I just showed them my combat abilities by dealing with the Cadre 4 Magivores guarding the area, they have no choice but to believe me.
At least, to an extent.
’Although I had a lot of practice along the way, and I’ve gotten used to their patterns, it was still immensely difficult fighting all of them at once. I even had the aid of Frontflow, but taking so many Cadre 4 Magivores down certainly wore me down.’ I swallow my saliva and once again compel myself to hide my exhaustion.
Thankfully, with my mask and largely obscured body, it’s already difficult to tell my current well-being. My voice is also distorted, so they won’t be able to hear it shaking.
"Although I made sure to kill all the Magivores in our path, I fear that there could still be dangers lurking around. You wouldn’t mind if I escorted you until you reached Lumian Town, would you?" The moment I ask this question, a great number of students show relief.
Many of them nod excitedly, glad to receive my help.
Seraphina also nods in gratitude, thanking me for my extraordinary kindness.
One person, though, still appears troubled.
—Seth.
"C-can I ask... if you saw someone on your way here?" He suddenly speaks up, staring at me with glistening blue eyes.
"Someone?"
"A man with raven black hair. He’s tall, with olive skin... and handsome. He has an eyepatch on one of his eyes. He’s... he’s a professor who got separated from us. A friend. He contacted me not too long ago and told me—"
"I didn’t see anyone like that." I sigh, quickly cutting Seth off. "But once we reach Lumian Town, I could search the mountain for him. Right now, though, getting you all out of here is the priority, wouldn’t you agree?"
Seth flinches for a moment and then nods in understanding.
"Good. Let’s go."
At first, they were skeptical about leaving the golden barrier. After all, they couldn’t just trust the words of a stranger. What if I had bad intentions? But after discussing among themselves and also letting me convince them with my words, they had no choice but to concede.
The staff first proceeded out, then the students, and finally the Royal Knights, who—up to this point—have continued to glare at me suspiciously.
’Based on the trajectory of their gaze, their focus is on Frost Bite. Do they recognize the blade as belonging to their comrade, Edrin?’ I can’t help but think about the corrupt Royal Knight from whom I plundered the Armament.
It won’t do to have the Royal Knights suspect me at this moment.
Not when I might need their cooperation.
So—
’I should get them on my side...’ After thinking for a moment, I decide to arrange the formation of the group to ensure the surviving staff members stay in front, while Seraphina and Seth handle the students in the middle. Finally, the disguised Royal Guards will be behind, alongside me.
This way, we’ll be able to discuss more freely with one another.
With everyone so focused on survival, and with the commotion of a thousand people trying to make their way through the hall, it will be a miracle if anyone even tries to focus on our conversations.
Just in case, though, I’ll use the auxiliary-type Armament I took from Count Kaelen’s manor. The flat disk with a glowing orb at its center, a rare B Grade communication device.
I’m glad I brought it with me on this trip.
"You ten are Royal Knights dispatched for the special assignment of finding the Vey’lithar Sanctuary on this mountain, are you not?" Without wasting any time, I secretly address all of them directly through their minds.
They are unable to hide their stunned expressions, unable to deny the truth I just spelled out for them. So it was true, after all...
Because I’m using the Voice Transfer Disk, even a whisper from my lips will be clearly transmitted to the Royal Guards. No one will be able to notice me speaking, thanks to the dark mask that covers my entire face.
As convenient as this Armament is, though, it has a flaw.
I have to keep it close to my mouth to use it, which is why I’ve decided to stay at the very rear of the group. I also plan to explain to everyone else that this is an Investigative Armament meant to ensure everyone’s safety while hoping none of them recognize its true purpose.
There’s no time, though.
If I can obtain the trust of the Royal Guards, then there won’t be a problem, even if I’m suspected.
Even if they suspect me, I think they’ll cooperate until they reach safety.
That’s enough for me.
’We still haven’t left the vast clearing, which means I still have enough time to get them on my side...’ My eye lands on the Royal Knights, and I feel their curious, suspicious gazes on me.
It shouldn’t be that hard if I play my cards right.
"Who is your leader? Use your gaze to indicate." I continue to whisper to them.
Although I notice some hesitation among them, they eventually focus on one of the persons in the group. I observe the man for a moment and eventually nod.
I can’t tell if they’re being honest or not.
I’ll only have to trust them.
I hand over the Voice Transfer Disk to him, which allows him to communicate with me, but also ensures that any suspicious eyes among the staff or student will see that their guards are also utilizing the ’strange device’ that I’m wielding.
If one of their own is using it, it’ll clear any misunderstandings and increase their trust in me.
Two birds, one stone.
As I think this, a voice enters my head.
"My name is Dwain. I am actually the Deputy. The leader was among the first to die. It seems the beasts targeted him first. Some of our brethren have also perished, leaving us ten remaining." After this explanation, I’m more inclined to believe them.
But I didn’t notice any powerful Armaments in the cavern’s path, and I was using Aego Sight all through the journey. This means the Magivores plundered the Armaments before I arrived, or these people were killed before the rest retreated into the cavern.
Either way, I have no reason to doubt their words.
"I have no idea how you know of our secret assignment, but we’d also like to ask you a few questions. That Armament with you is a property of the Royal Knights and used to belong to a Knight known as Edrin. He went missing several months ago and has now been confirmed dead. So you’d forgive our skepticism, and unless you provide a satisfactory answer, we will treat you as a suspicious individual."
I nod.
That sounds reasonable enough.
Once he hands over the disk to me, I respond to all his queries. "Edrin was part of the Dark Guild. I was given the assignment to flush him out without anyone else knowing. We didn’t want to alert any Dark Guild members hiding in the upper echelon of administration."
Their unfazed expressions tell me that none of this is coming as a big shock to them.
They likely already recognize the presence of the Dark Guild in high society. Some of them may have even dabbled at some point. I already checked the ledgers, though, and other than Edrin, no other Royal Knight has a direct connection with the Dark Guild.
These ones are clean.
Why else would they be given such a delicate mission?
"I am a special agent who directly serves the King, so it’s not a surprise you don’t know about me. I was told to shadow your group in case anything precarious happened, and I also conducted my special investigation concerning the Vey’lithar Sanctuary."
As much as I would like to rat out Ciel and the other Vey’lithars at the moment, I shake my head.
Doing that would only prove her right.
"There is no Sanctuary here. Our prodding triggered the Magivore Beast Tide, though, which has ended up causing this disaster. After seeing the severity of the situation, I realized I couldn’t stay in hiding any longer, hence my presence. As for my possession of Frost Bite, it’s a gift from the King himself. You can confirm all of these things once we leave." I casually tell them the name of the weapon so they can view me as its legitimate owner.
As for everything else I said, they are largely unverifiable.
The ones that can be verified can also be tweaked to my benefit through my connection with the King. He will gladly corroborate my story after what I just did here.
"Do you have any further questions?"
I hand over the disk to Deputy Dwain once more, my gaze expectant.
"Not right now. We will believe you and follow your instructions. I can assure you of our full cooperation if it means everyone makes it out of here safe and soun—"
"HOOOWWWWWWLLLLL!!!"
A terrifying sound suddenly erupts from the walls of the vast cavern, causing the stalactites on the ceiling to fall and the entire floor to violently tremble.
Everyone becomes instantly paralyzed with the advent of this chaotic howl.
My blood runs cold.
This feeling—this stifling presence.
I never felt it with the other Direwolves; Not Cadre 3... and not Cadre 4.
’T-this... this is—!’
I hurriedly turn back just as the walls shatter like glass and three colossal entities charge out with a horrifying cry. Their overwhelming bodies are each fifteen meters tall, and their purple fur shines with crystalline light.
Their terrible presences and immense strength immediately send a strong feeling through me.
A long-repressed memory rises to the surface.
A certain helplessness.
Despair.
I feel great fear coursing through my veins.
’No! This is bad!’ Beads of sweat immediately appear on my face as I hurriedly face everyone.
My bloodshot eye flashes with desperation.
’This is the worst-case scenario!’
"Everyone, run! Run as fast as you can and don’t look back!" I yell with all of my strength, to the point where my throat begins to feel sore.
"The guards and I will try to buy as much time as possible, so RUN!"
At first, everyone is frozen in place.
Who can blame them?
The overwhelming presence of these beasts is enough to send chills down even my body.
But they have to run!
They have to flee at this very moment, or death is assured.
Thankfully, we were already at the fringe of the clearing, so if they run away now, they just might survive the harbingers of death who have just descended upon us.
The creatures that stand at the apex of the Magivore food chain, at the very limit of human ability.
Cadre 5 Magivores!
’How... how are three of them?!’ My body shakes with deep emotion.
’So this was your trump card, Ciel?!’