act13d5

What are you waiting for? Doesn't a knight like her just tear at your heartstrings?! Don't forget! Thanks to the generosity of the good-hearted souls at Roar Guards Company, this season's commission fee is just half the normal rate!

—Hold on! Something's happening here!

The two of them are at a standoff, but Maria's laid down her shield! What is happening here?! Is she hoping to take on Ingra's giant axe with that fragile sword of hers?!

There's an enormous difference in both size and power!

I can't emphasize this enough—! Commission's half off! Isn't this act of courage worth a few dozen gold coins?!

Hahh... haahh...

...Not bad, kid... A faint light envelops your blade. Is this your last gasp?

Ha, excellent! I'll rip your arms out, and gag you with your own flesh—

I must win... I must...

What am I doing... Are you meant to kill your opponent in the knight sports?

I don't need my shield... I can't block his axe...

He's hurt too, but he doesn't care... He's like a monster, and he enjoys killing...

How should I... face an enemy like him... An enemy? Isn't he a knight?

A knight...?

'To be a knight is to be the noble light that illuminates the land...'

Ahh—!

O-Owww...

...Came around finally?

Auntie...? What... happened...? Oh.

Do you remember now?

...Did I lose?

Yep.

But Ingra passed out too. Neither of your scores changed at all.

I-I see. Phew... That's good—

It's not good! You're hurt!

You should've forfeited the match, going up against an opponent like that! It's just a single match! There are so many ways for us to get those points back!

If you just want to get a title and keep your family's nobility, there's no reason to go that far—

I... I never thought about forfeiting, not even once.

Maria!

Do you have any idea how lucky you are to get out of a fight against Ingra in one piece?

If you get hurt again, what good does getting into the Major do to you?!

...He's really strong, but...

He's not like the other knights. He comes from an insanely well-off family, and he's only in the competition to hurt people. He lives for it. That's the kind of man Olmer Ingra is.

Maria, if you get hurt like this again, I won't let you fight anymore.

I—

Listen to me!

F-Fine...

Don't move so much. Get some rest.

That match ended in a draw, but you'll have more and more companies trying to woo you... Marcin and I will turn them down for now. Try to rest up and get better.

Yeah...

Oh... What's that sword?

...That's the sword I used to carry. I dug it out while you were training the other day.

But why are you carrying that sword specifically...?

(Even though Zofia's already...)

No reason at all.

But if something bad happens to you because of him, I'll kill him personally, even if it means I'll have to face the National Council.

Y-You're way overthinking it...

...Can I see it? It kinda looks like it hasn't been used in a while.

No. Get some rest.

I might start to rust if I lie in bed all day...

No dice.

Please, Zofia! Auntie! I won't ask for anything else! I'll be good and rest up!

*Sigh*... You're becoming more and more like your sister...

Take it. Don't you do anything weird with it. I'm quite fond of it.

Eh... This is pretty dusty...

That's the proof that I treasure it!

Where are you two going, carrying all that stuff with you?

We're going to pay Maria a visit.

I will never forgive Ingra for doing that to our girl...

Spare her the noise and give her some peace and quiet. Zofia will take care of Maria.

Well, I can't just sit around and do nothing! Did you see that last swing Ingra took at her? What happens if that comes back to haunt her?

We've got an old knight and an old craftsman here. There's bound to be something we can do to help.

What if you run into Młynar instead? Do you think he won't throw you two out the door?

...That prick wouldn't dare do that to us when his old man was still around, and I know when to run if it comes to it!

...Hmm, the moment the two of them left, I got a new customer. They just might be the albatross around my neck.

Welcome. It's been a while since we've had such a beauty in here. What can I get you?

Hm...

...This one has a pretty name. Let's go with this one, the 'Thorn Tear.'

卡西米尔 4上

3:49 P.M. \ Clear \ Kazimierz Kawalerielki Alliance, a private open-air loft

...I see you've arrived, Mr. Mob.

Wait. It's you. I saw you back at the arena and you said—

No. That's neither here nor there. Now, don't be so wound up. Take a seat.

Allow me to introduce myself again—please, call me Czarny. I'm one of the rotational managers, currently responsible for a division of the Knights Association.

I'm also an executive of the Mieszko Group Major & Publicity Department, and have had the great fortune to be selected as Divisional Spokesman to the General Chamber of Commerce.

Th—The G.C.C.? Pardon me for my incredible rudeness earlier, Mr. Czarny...

Forego the formality. I'm no critic of your... vernacular, 'Greatmouth Mob.' Or, perhaps, I should be calling you by your real name?

N-No need...

Haha, I only jest... Now, why don't we take a look outside. Glorious view, isn't it?

There are some old types that hate this reinforced concrete jungle, the city of seamless day and night. But if you ask me, it is what symbolizes our strides towards civilization.

Our vast forests, grassland expanses, are a priceless part of Kazimierz, true, but our hardy Kazimierz hands built up great skyscrapers where the forests parted. It's something we ought to be proud of.

It is the only way we find shelter when a Catastrophe strikes, the only way form a front that can stand firm against our foreign enemies. Kazimierz is now prosperous, a rapidly developing place...

Would you agree? Mr. Mob?

Course! You're right on the mark!

But Kazimierz's strides are far from over. The road we have to walk is still long.

For example... Mr. Mob, take your hometown, our 'City of Saplings and Artisans,' Ognisko.

In the thousand miles around it, how many deprived villages lie? How many troubled lands unafforded the protection of a city?

Y-You really know your stuff, for sure. I was outta there, like, twenty-plus years ago. Can I, uh, ask why you're telling me all this, though? Truth is, you're kinda bugging me out here...

Your frankness is another part of what draws me to you. I've come to make you an offer, Mr. Mob. One that will take us in joint strides. You've been poached.

...Me? But I just took a down from the Roar Guards Company...

Please, relax. This contract is confidential, sealed by none other than Mr. Pavel himself. Now, from today on, your employer will be...

S-So I'm a Mieszko guy now?

You could put it that way... but let me nitpick it very slightly.

Yeah?

From now on, you're MY guy, Mr. Anchorman.

Hiyaaaaaah—!

...Let's stop here for today.

Huh? But I can still...

Overdoing it will undo you! You only just finished recovering. We're all sturdy Kuranta, but no-one torments her body like do!

Alright...