MFTR 51

Chapter 51

 I’m Heading to the Royal Palace Right Now
 When Anette was still the commander, subjugation expeditions never took this long.

No matter how late, she always returned within a week. So it had come to feel like a given—she never died and always returned on time.

“It might be because the knights departed later than scheduled. In the meantime, the number of monsters could’ve increased, making things more difficult.”

“Or perhaps the newly appointed commander, Sir Millard, was eager to prove himself. With a shift in leadership, the atmosphere may have changed, and they could’ve ventured deeper into monster territory.”

Courtiers tried to reassure the worried king with various suggestions.

And to a certain extent, they were right.

During the last expedition, Anette had returned injured, prompting the king to make a swift decision regarding her position. Removing her from the role of commander and appointing the vice-commander, Jeon Millard, in her place hadn’t been a difficult decision.

Everything had been swiftly reorganized. Yet, for some reason, the royal knights delayed their departure multiple times and eventually left well past the original schedule.

Still, they had left, and there hadn’t been any issues before—so surely, they would return safely this time too.

The king stroked his chin, still wearing a doubtful expression despite the courtiers’ calming words.

His gaze unconsciously shifted to his left—to the man who had not spoken a single word during the entire meeting.

The man with navy hair and amber eyes—none other than the Marquess Millard, father of the new commander Jeon Millard.

His face remained cold and detached, not showing the slightest concern even while listening to a conversation about his only son.

‘Heartless bastard.’

The king inwardly cursed him, even though he himself had remained indifferent when his own daughter had been attacked by monsters with no one to protect her.

Of course, the king understood why the marquess behaved as if he felt nothing for his son or the world.

He would’ve rather not had to see that expression, but there had been no one as capable as the marquess to fill the position of chancellor.

Lamenting the lack of talent in his kingdom, the king furrowed his brows and looked away.

The matter of the royal knights had already left his mind.

At the Same Time

The Heyworth Royal Knights were at a temple near the capital of the Heyworth Kingdom.

It was routine for the knights to purify themselves at the temple before entering the palace.

Now, with their purification complete, every single member of the Royal Knights wore a dark, grim expression.

“Vice-Commander…”

Brahman tried to speak in a devastated tone but paused.

The amber eyes, which had never once lost their composure, were trembling—no, they seemed to be burning with something indescribable.

The man who wouldn’t bat an eye even if the sky were falling now radiated a chilling aura as he stared into the void. Brahman was so stunned, he forgot what he had been about to say.

He glanced at Jeon, then sighed and rubbed his face with both hands.

He still couldn’t believe what had happened.

He recalled what happened just an hour earlier when they had entered the temple for purification.

The priests, who usually greeted them with sour expressions, had unusually welcoming faces this time.

They never offered their services for free and had always made the knights feel unwelcome, especially giving Anette a hard time. Yet now, with her gone, their attitudes had shifted noticeably. It was disgusting.

Though they were all silently displeased, they couldn’t skip the purification ritual, so they endured.

Then one priest casually dropped a remark.

<“Still, the Alkan Empire is really something. How could they make someone like that their Grand Duchess…”>

The knight’s ears perked up. The priest didn’t even finish his sentence, merely clicking his tongue in disbelief.

It was then they realized why the priests had greeted them so cheerfully.

<“What do you mean by that?”>
<“The Alkan Empire?”>

A sudden sense of dread fell over the knights.

The priests, now realizing the Royal Knights were unaware of the situation, wore awkward expressions.

A new recruit, Luke, spoke up in a trembling voice.

<“Who exactly did the Alkan Empire take in as their Grand Duchess…?”>

<“Well, you see… the former commander… she…”>

The priests stammered, caught off guard by the weight of Luke’s reaction. They had assumed the knights already knew Anette had gone to the Alkan Empire—and that, like them, the knights would be relieved she was gone.

They thought they could vent freely about how an unspeakable event was taking place—a member of the Alkan royal family marrying someone tainted with the seed of monsters.

But the knights’ murderous expressions forced the priests into silence, until finally, under pressure, one of them confessed.

<“The former commander… she’s entered a political marriage with Archduke Harzent of the Alkan Empire…”>

<“Bullshit! Watch your mouth!”>

<“What—how dare you use that word with a priest?”>

<“Then don’t speak bullshit—”>

<“Enough, Luke!”>

Brahman, still reeling from the shocking news, snapped out of it and stopped Luke and the priest from escalating the situation further.

Reluctantly, he apologized, coaxed the priest back into cooperation, and they completed the purification ritual before leaving the temple.

Now, every knight stood in silence, their faces stiff with despair.

Anxiety, dread, and fear gnawed at them.

Luke finally spoke, his face pale.

“Vice-Commander… Is it true? Did the commander really…”

“…”

“This is all my fault…”

“Nothing has been confirmed yet.”

Jeon’s sharp voice cut through Luke’s self-blame.

The trembling in his amber eyes had vanished. His previously intense expression returned to its usual cold, unreadable calm.

Brahman blinked, looking at Jeon who had reverted to his stoic self.

Then he turned to Luke, who was crying openly now, and let out a sigh as he wiped his face.

Luke was only seventeen, a fresh recruit who had joined less than six months ago.

Every knight in the Royal Order owed Anette their life in some way, but Luke owed her even more—because of her injury.

He had made a grave mistake in the last expedition and would’ve died if Anette hadn’t shielded him.

As a result, the tendons in Anette’s left hand—her sword hand—were completely severed.

While others insisted she’d recover and return, Luke couldn’t believe it. He had been consumed by guilt.

Now, it seemed his fears were coming true.

“Y-you’re right, Vice-Commander. Nothing is confirmed.”

“Yes, surely the priests misunderstood something.”

The others began chiming in, trying to comfort Luke—and themselves.

Still, the priests’ words had been too specific to dismiss.

They mentioned that an engagement contract had already been certified by the Alkan Empire’s temple. That the imperial envoy had entered the capital that very morning with an enormous bridal tribute procession.

Yet the knights denied it all.

Even Brahman forced a smile and added:

“Yes. It’s absurd. The commander would never leave us like that.”

Unlike Luke, Brahman had served in the Royal Knights even before Anette joined.

He and Jeon had spent ten years at her side.

They couldn’t believe it.

Anette had cared about the Royal Knights—more accurately, she had nothing else to care about. There was no way she would leave without even a farewell.

At the root of their thoughts was arrogance. The belief that Anette could never abandon them.

But Jeon’s amber eyes, which had finally stilled, began to waver again at Brahman’s words.

‘Really? Are you so sure?’

Jeon recalled Anette’s face—always unreadable, rarely emotionally swayed.

She had never formed strong emotional attachments and was numb to mental anguish.

The knights, for all their grief, hadn’t exactly been warm toward her. They had never expressed how much they relied on her, or how proud they were to serve under her.

So perhaps she truly had no attachment to them.

Maybe she had left them behind with a clean heart and a light step.

Especially with that look in her eyes the last time they met—void of any lingering affection.

“…”

Jeon clenched his fists tightly and gritted his teeth.

He had told himself he’d seen it wrong, that he was mistaken.

But now, he wasn’t so sure.

“I’m going to the palace. Right now.”

Jeon declared in a steely voice.

The knights, slouched like abandoned puppies, all looked up in unison.

They were afraid that Anette might really have left, but until they saw it with their own eyes, they refused to believe it.

Their capes, bearing the crest of the Heyworth Royal Knights, fluttered behind them as they left the temple.

And so, they rushed toward the capital of Heyworth.