The Count’s Youngest Son is a Player

Chapter 74

Knock, knock.

“Come in.”

Upon Raul’s invitation, a group of individuals stepped into the office.

“Congratulations, Raul. I always knew you’d pass, but becoming a certified knight at 15?”

“Con-congratulations!”

“Top of the class as expected! You’ve really lifted our spirits, you know?”

The ones offering their bright greetings were none other than Raul’s academy classmates. Naturally, Dalton was the first to open his mouth, followed by the others who also extended their congratulations.

Raul, expressing his gratitude, seated them around the conference table and began to speak.

“I suppose your presence here means you’re interested in our Knight Order? Have you all given some thought to the offer I mentioned?”

The group silently nodded in response to Raul’s words. Raul had gone out of his way to look after his academy peers while recruiting new guild members.

This year’s academy entrants were of notably high caliber, with those qualifying for Class S being exceptionally promising talents. Among these classmates, Raul had extended invitations to join the Knight Order to those who met his criteria.

“Shall we discuss this one by one then?”

Raul presented them with two options.

The first was a temporary employment contract (Contract A), where for a fixed period, they would join the First Knight Order as mercenaries, receiving pay while undertaking assignments together.

The second option was a full membership contract (Contract B), fully integrating into the Knight Order, receiving wages and equipment just like other knights, and swearing allegiance to the First Knight Order, and by extension, to Raul as their lord.

Though Raul had laid out both options, he assumed most would opt for the first, given their youthful prospects.

“I would like to join the First Knight Order, if I may.”

Contrary to Raul’s expectation, all ten classmates expressed their desire for Contract B. Among them were individuals like Dalton, originating from high noble families, making their choice quite surprising.

Naturally, Raul had no complaints, welcoming them with open arms.

“But why choose to join our Knight Order? Feel free to speak candidly.”

A classmate from a baron’s family cautiously responded.

“To be honest, I’m not slated to inherit my family’s title, and the reality is, it’s not easy to join such a renowned Knight Order later. Besides, the benefits here far exceed those of other orders, so I see no reason to refuse.”

Indeed, the individuals Raul had approached were distant from being their families’ heirs.

For them, joining a famous Knight Order and becoming a renowned knight seemed a better path than returning to serve their family estates upon graduation.

‘Ten recruits, not bad at all.’

Raul had reached out to about twenty individuals. The ones who didn’t show were either from influential noble families or entangled with the Randal household, making their recruitment impractical from the start.

Moreover, the fact that ‘he’ Raul had initially aimed for from the academy had shown up, couldn’t but bring a smile to Raul’s face.

As conversations with everyone concluded, it was finally Dalton’s turn.

“Dalton, are you sure about this? Wouldn’t Contract A be a better fit for you”

Frankly, I coveted his talent, but the notion of him formally joining the First Knights Order instead of staying with the Templeton Duchy seemed absurd.

Dalton shrugged and said calmly, “Why? If a talent like me is willing to join, they should welcome me with open arms. Are you uncomfortable having a friend as your subordinate?”

“It’s not that but….”

When Raul made a slightly sour face, Dalton chuckled and took something out. “I knew you’d be worried about this. So, I brought this. Here!”

What Dalton presented was an elegant letter envelope. Raul carefully opened the envelope and checked its contents.

‘…!’

The letter was penned by none other than the Marquis de Templeton, the Sword Sage himself.

It was a brief letter—small words of praise for Raul’s achievements and a request to take good care of Dalton. The letter was straightforward, sincere, without any hidden meanings.

Raul carefully put away the letter and stared at Dalton. How on earth did he manage to have the Sword Sage send his cherished grandson to another Knights Order?

Sensing Raul’s mood, Dalton averted his eyes and bowed his head deeply.

“Sorry! I was supposed to keep it a secret, but the old man kept asking, so I had to tell. But I didn’t tell everything.”

Recently, after demolishing the Imperial Hounds, Dalton had asked Raul to keep the battle details confidential as much as possible. It seemed, however, that Dalton had ended up discussing it with the Sword Sage.

‘Well, it doesn’t really matter.’

After all, what Dalton had seen was only a part of it, and it was fine to share with the Sword Sage. The Sword Sage had been a staunch anti-imperialist in his previous life, too.

“Phew. That’s fine, but are you really okay with this? Even if the Sword Sage is fine with it, the Ducal House might not take it well.”

“Psh. Better for me. I’ve wanted to escape that stuffy and outdated household for a while now. Besides, everyone except my father seemed happy about it.”

It appeared the factional strife within the Ducal House was not trivial.

“So, I’m counting on you going forward, Master!”

“Of course, welcome aboard.”

Dalton and Raul had agreed to continue their friendship in private. For now, though joining the Knights Order, who knew what the future held?

Thus, ten knight hopefuls, including Dalton and his classmates, joined the First Knights Order.

Dalton left after their catch-up, and Raul continued with the interviews.

He wanted to personally look after at least the newly arrived knights and the squires, if not the soldiers.

The interviews went on late into the night, until only one candidate remained.

Click.

The last interviewee was an ordinary-looking soldier who seemed a bit anxious, perhaps unsure why he was summoned.

“Welcome, Mr. Brown.”

“Ah, hello, young master Raul!”

Nervous, soldier Brown stuttered slightly as he cautiously took a seat on the sofa.

Rustle. Raul personally poured the tea, while Brown seemed so burdened that he couldn’t even make eye contact, stiffening in his seat.

After Raul served himself some tea and sat down, Brown cautiously began to speak.

“May I ask… why you summoned me?”

Raul didn’t immediately answer Brown’s question, instead taking his time to calmly sip his tea.

“Why don’t you start by having some tea, Mr. Brown. Or should I say, Mr. Kane?”

“Excuse me, what do you mean…?”

Brown stuttered in confusion, his bafflement evident in his expression. It was a very natural reaction, but Raul didn’t miss the brief, involuntary twitch of Brown’s body.

Raul remained silent, merely looking at Brown dispassionately. An uncomfortable silence settled in Raul’s office.

* * *

“No, this can’t be happening!”

John Kane, head of the intelligence guild, “The Wings of Freedom,” screamed in agony inside a log cabin.

After escaping the capital city and evading the Imperial Hounds, Kane had headed for a safe house prepared in advance in the outskirts of a civilian village.

The safe house was meant for elite agents who held key positions in the guild, those who were not only Kane’s disciples but also his close friends and virtually his family, despite Kane’s orders to stay away until the situation had cooled down.

The interior of the cabin was a disaster. It was so ravaged by sword marks and soot that no intact piece of furniture could be found, and dried bloodstains covered various spots of the wooden floor.

Kane, his head in his hands, remained motionless on the floor for a long while. However, regaining his composure, he clenched his teeth and began to survey his surroundings.

As one of the kingdom’s most renowned spies, his abilities to gather intelligence and track were unmatched. As he cooled his head and investigated, clues began to mentally organize themselves.

The amount of blood at the scene was minimal compared to the signs of combat, and there were no indications of buried bodies nearby.

‘Could it be that everyone was captured?’

It was a silver lining in an otherwise dire situation, but not something to be relieved about, given the empire’s intelligence division’s notorious reputation for turning people into monsters.

‘Hang on, brothers. I will definitely save you.’

Kane had no choice but to head back to the capital following the traces left by his foes. Panting, Kane wrapped his blood-soaked arm with a bandage.

Though he had located what he suspected to be the enemy’s hideout, infiltrating it proved impossible. Not only was the site heavily guarded, but at some point, he had also picked up a tail, making it difficult to move around.

He had already clashed with pursuers several times, either repelling them or fleeing, and his injuries were steadily accumulating.

‘I can’t go on like this.’

Alone, he could find no answers. But who could he possibly ask for help? He had no way of knowing which noble family was entangled with the pervasive reach of the Imperial Hounds throughout the capital.

As he aimlessly wandered in sheer desperation, news broke out:

– The Gates disappearance case was the doing of the imperial intelligence agency known as the ‘Imperial Hounds.’

– The Imperial Hounds were turning people into monsters through the use of forbidden magic.

At the same time, other news spread:

– Count Ashton’s son, Young master Raul, had utterly destroyed a combat unit of the Imperial Hounds.

– Young master Raul’s First Knights had captured the remnants of the Imperial Hounds.

Upon hearing the news from the press and the public, Kane felt as if he had found a ray of light in the darkness.

Having witnessed the First Knights’ prowess at the knight order ceremony, he found no reason to hesitate.

‘But how do I meet Young master Raul?’

Suddenly, the now-famed Raul seemed as unreachable as the stars in the sky.

Contemplating whether he should sneak into the Count’s mansion, the recruitment of new members by the First Knight Order appeared as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him.

Kane assumed the identity of ‘Brown’ and enlisted as a soldier. Given his expertise at the expert level, it was no surprise when he was accepted.

Now, all that was left was to find an opportunity to approach Raul, but unexpectedly, Raul summoned him himself.

Before he had time to process this turn of events, he was standing face to face with Raul. Raul’s first words sent his heart plummeting.

‘How on earth did he figure out my true identity? Is he in league with them too!?’

The temptation to reach for the concealed dagger was something he barely managed to suppress. The excitement initially surged but was soon quelled by the soothing aroma of tea, helping him to gather his thoughts.

It was almost impossible for Raul to be allied with them, considering the Gate incident and what had transpired at the knight order ceremony.

Moreover, he had seen it with his own eyes in the spectators’ stand at the ceremony – the divine aura emanating from Raul, filling the colosseum, and the pure white wings that sprouted from his back.

‘Indeed, if not Young master Raul, then who can I trust?’

Though he was curious about how Raul had discovered his identity, that was not what mattered most. His family members might be undergoing torture and experimentation at this very moment.

Faced with a dire situation yet presented with such an opportunity, what was there to ponder upon? Kane rose abruptly from the sofa, dropped to his knees, and bowed his head.

“Young master Raul, I beg of you, please help me!”

And then, he realized that he had made the right decision. Three knights had appeared out of nowhere, swords pointed at his neck.

‘Had I drawn my dagger…?’

A cold sweat ran down his back. Whether Raul understood his turmoil or not, he dismissed the knights with a gesture, helped him to his feet, and smiled.

“Shall we talk again?”

Overwhelmed by Raul’s mystical golden eyes and the aura around him, Kane found himself speaking almost involuntarily.

(To be continued)