Book 1 Chapter 602
602.
A warp gate on the mountainside.
As soon as they exited the entrance, a viewpoint emerged, offering a panoramic view of the city.
Chelsea ran to the viewpoint and grabbed the railing.
“Wow-! So this is Retin, the central city of the Resentung region!”
Chelsea gazed at the city in admiration.
Whoosh-!
A cold winter wind, carried by an updraft, ruffled Chelsea's hair.
“It's refreshing!”
Despite the biting winter wind, Chelsea giggled.
For Chelsea, a wind mage, this winter wind seemed to be rather pleasant.
“Lalala~ lal~”
A cheerful song flowed from Chelsea's lips.
“Hey! Leo! What's going on?! Why is that annoying Chelsea Lewellen here?!”
“We're spending the vacation in the same country anyway, so isn't it good to spend it together?”
Celia grabbed Leo and shook him vigorously.
“Even if it's the same country, do you know how vast our empire's territory is?! And what's so good about it?!”
Hearing their conversation, Chelsea sharply turned her head towards the two.
For a moment, Chelsea and Celia's gazes met.
Chelsea pulled down the corner of her right eye with her right index finger and stuck out her tongue.
“Do I really have to see that sight even during vacation?!”
Abbad, who was watching Celia's strong rejection reaction from the side, smiled faintly.
“They get along well.”
“Does this look like getting along well to you?!”
Abbad merely smiled at the exasperated Celia.
“Lady, please calm down. There are many eyes watching right now.”
Startled by those words, Celia looked around.
The questioning gazes of passengers exiting the warp gate were directed at Celia.
Seeing that, Celia cleared her throat with a "ahem-!" and straightened her attire.
Celia, who instantly transformed back into a perfect noble lady, spoke to Niel.
“Thank you, Niel unnie.”
“As a knight of Gerdinger, and as your escort knight, it is only natural for me to serve you, Lady.”
Niel, clad in light armor unlike Celia, pounded her chest with her fist.
“The Rhoda family always considers Gerdinger's honor.”
Celia smiled at her trustworthy appearance.
Celia and Niel were not just in a lord-vassal relationship but had been like sisters since childhood.
Celia, who pursued perfection in everything, often showed weaknesses when she got excited like just now.
Whenever that happened, Niel would take care of Celia like an older sister.
‘Having Niel unnie by my side always makes me feel secure.’
“Young Master Abbad. I've bought the traveler's guide sold here at the warp gate.”
“Huh? Machael Luzia? Why are you here, you rascal?”
“As a Lewellen mage, isn't it my duty to assist Young Master Abbad and Lady Chelsea?”
“Duty, my foot! What makes you think you can come here?!”
“Hmph. This is the place that will become Young Master Leo's territory.”
“I've never understood this before, but why do you call Young Master Leo, Young Master Leo?! That person is a direct descendant of Gerdinger!”
“Before that, he's the heir of the Flobe family! Young Master Abbad and Lady Chelsea's best friend! Doesn't that alone seem sufficient for me to call him Young Master?”
“That's ridiculous!”
Niel and Machael started arguing, pressing their foreheads together.
All eyes in the vicinity were instantly drawn to the huge commotion, which was incomparable to the one Celia had caused just moments ago.
“Oh dear? Why are they fighting?”
“Those family crests… seem to be Gerdinger and Lewellen.”
“Ah, the two heroic noble families of Rhodren?”
“They said they didn't get along well, and it truly seems to be the case.”
“I think the female knight will win?”
“No, I wonder if the male mage will win?”
People coming and going through the warp gate began to whisper.
As attention instantly focused on them, Celia covered her face with her hands, looking embarrassed, and Abbad gave an awkward smile.
At this point, it was difficult for Celia and Abbad to stop them.
“Leo, try to stop them.”
Celia urgently said in a low voice, but there was no reply.
“Leo?”
Celia removed her hands from her face and glanced sideways.
Leo, who had been there moments ago, was nowhere to be seen.
“L-Lady Celia. If you're looking for Young Master Leo, he's over there…”
Martina, who had come along to assist Leo, carefully pointed to one side.
There, Leo was looking at the scenery of Retin from the viewpoint with Chelsea.
“Leo oppa, why do you bother putting in a coin and using binoculars? You could just solve it simply with magic.”
“Because I think this has its own kind of charm.”
“Is that so?”
At their attitude, as if they had nothing to do with them and were drawing a line, Celia felt her temper rising.
“You two! Try to stop them!”
Celia walked up to the two and said, grinding her teeth.
“Who are you? Do you know Leo oppa?”
“I've never seen you before?”
As Leo and Chelsea treated her as if she were a strange person, Celia's red eyes flashed.
Seeing that, Leo muttered to himself.
‘If I tease her any more, she'll explode.’
Chelsea seemed to feel it too and clicked her tongue softly.
“I don't want to get caught up in those two fighting.”
“What?”
“You still don't know, do you?”
It was then that Chelsea's face slightly clouded over.
“Lady Chelsea is much prettier than Celia Gerdinger!”
“Don't be ridiculous! Lady Celia is prettier! Men prefer the beautiful yet cool! dignified type like Lady Celia!”
“You're talking big for someone who isn't even a man! Lady Chelsea is truly like a delicate flower…”
“Lady Celia is like a rose too!”
At the two people's shouts, Celia's mouth opened and closed.
“Wh-what is that?”
“Those two! Whenever they fight, they always drag us into it!”
Chelsea also shrieked.
Chelsea had previously encountered Niel while walking with Machael at school.
The two invariably got into an argument, snarling at each other, and then from a certain point, they started boasting about Celia, Chelsea, and Abbad, fighting over who was greater.
Both had different departments and were such sworn enemies that they usually avoided each other, making actual encounters rare, but their clashes were already a famous spectacle among upperclassmen.
Naturally, from Chelsea's perspective, it was an embarrassing incident that made her want to die on the spot.
Watching the two, Celia recalled what her seniors sometimes said, which she hadn't understood at the time.
‘Oh my~ a single rose.’
‘The world's strongest lady is passing by.’
“That was all because of that?!”
“If Lady Celia sets her mind to it, charming your young master is no big deal!”
“That's laughable! Young Master Abbad is the one who could charm your lady…”
“Kyaaaaaaack!”
Celia, her face flushed red, shrieked and sprinted towards Niel.
Abbad, who usually reacted calmly to everything, seemed flustered this time too, and rushed to Machael to cover his mouth.
At that moment, Leo's Slayer Knights approached.
“Young Master. What shall we do?”
As Austin cautiously asked, Leo smiled faintly.
“I don't know them.”
“Me too.”
Chelsea also agreed with Leo's words.
At those words, Karin cautiously opened her mouth.
“Young Master.”
“Why?”
“Can we pretend to be part of your party too?”
At those words, Leo gestured behind him with his chin.
“Stick close.”
“Yes.”
At those words, Leo's knights swiftly lined up behind him.
Seeing that, Chelsea admired them.
“They're quick to assess the situation.”
“We realized through Young Master Leo that it's important to choose sides well.”
At Karin's words, the other knights nodded.
Seeing that, Chelsea shook her head.
***
“We apologize! Lady Celia!”
“We apologize! Young Master Abbad!”
Niel and Machael each bowed 90 degrees to their respective masters.
Celia looked at Niel, smiled awkwardly, and shook her head.
“It's alright, Niel unnie. I often do that with Chelsea too, you know?”
“You know we've often fought since we were little, right? So you don't have to be too sorry, Machael.”
Abbad also patted Machael comfortingly.
Chelsea, who had been watching them intently, said offhandedly.
“Still, we don't bring such disgrace to our families.”
At those words, the two slumped their shoulders.
Celia and Abbad glared at Chelsea.
Flustered by that, Chelsea quickly hid behind Leo and poked only her head out.
Currently, the group was at a cafe not far from the warp gate, warming themselves up.
Even for knights and mages trained through rigorous practice, there was no benefit in being exposed to the cold wind on a freezing winter day.
Especially the Resentung region, geographically, is close to the northern part of the continent, which can be called a land of extreme cold.
Abbad, who was warming himself with a warm drink, asked.
“Speaking of which, Celia. I heard that some graduated seniors are in the Gerdinger family?”
“Yes. Senior Zamua, Senior Torua, and Senior Ulta are here.”
“It would have been good to greet them.”
“They're currently with Lys oppa suppressing rebels, so they're not at home anyway.”
Leo and Celia also came to Resentung without hearing news of the graduated seniors, including Lys.
“Leo oppa. Are you planning to go straight to Retin's government office like this?”
Chelsea asked while eating ice cream.
The people of the Lewellen family had come here by Leo's invitation.
As such, they had no choice but to follow wherever Leo went.
“Hmm.”
Leo flipped through a travel guide sold for tourists.
Regas had perfectly prepared documents that could prove Leo was the rightful owner of the Resentung region.
Not only the land deeds of the Resentung region, but also a certificate proving that Leo's grandmother, Nyla Gerdinger, was the legitimate heir of the Tungkhan Kingdom.
In addition, even an artifact that could prove it.
Retin here was once the capital of Tungkhan long ago.
Retin's government office was the central government that extended its administrative power throughout the entire Resentung region.
And the highest power holder here, Sis Zigma, was the commander of the Tusen Knights.
“But even if the documents are perfect, will the Tusen Knights willingly hand over the entire region to Leo oppa?”
Decades had already passed since Tungkhan's downfall.
Many people had already forgotten the country called Tungkhan.
Even the people living on this land now found the name Tungkhan unfamiliar.
It was questionable whether an ancient royal family returning to such a place would be willingly enthroned as king.
“Grandfather said that Tungkhan's legacy here in Retin can only be retrieved by those who are qualified. He also said that the Tusen Knights desperately need that legacy to gain true power.”
“Aha. But what is that legacy?”
“The blessing of the Great Spirit of Fire, Ista, the Spirit of Purification.”
“Come to think of it, wasn't Tungkhan's founding king a convenant holder of the Spirit of Purification?”
Retin was the birthplace of the Great Spirit of Fire of this era, and Ista, the Spirit of Purification, and was an active volcano long ago.
However, the Giant King of Tartaros attacked this place to annihilate the Spirit of Purification.
At that time, Tungkhan's founding king fought alongside Ista as her convenant holder.
In that process, all of the volcano's power was used up, and Retin became an extinct volcano.
It is said that the Giant King ultimately retreated without achieving his desires.
“Did Tungkhan's founding king, who overexerted his power in that battle, pass away, and Ista, in return, bestowed blessings upon the Tungkhan royal family?”
Celia crossed her arms.
The Tusen Knights were originally a powerful knight order that commanded the entire continent.
But by now, their power had weakened to the point where they could barely manage only the Resentung region.
The reason for this was the absence of the Tungsan royal family.
Chelsea asked Celia.
“By the way, is qualification about bloodline?”
“Since it's a Great Spirit, he said it would be difficult to gain qualification through bloodline alone. There will surely be a test.”
“Leo oppa would easily pass any test, though!”
Chelsea snorted with a "heheh!"
If it was Leo, the Hero of Beginnings, even a Great Spirit elder wouldn't be able to refuse to acknowledge him.
Hearing Chelsea's words, Aty muttered so only Leo could hear.
-Ista is known for being ill-tempered, so it won't be easy, Master.
As an Aty who had been with the founding of the Rhodren Empire, she was well aware of the Great Spirit residing in the neighboring region.
-If Leo doesn't please that spirit, things might get a little difficult.
As Elsie muttered worriedly, Laruel, the oldest existing Great Spirit, snorted.
-Who does it think it is to reject Lord Leo? If it refuses, we'll just twist its wrist.
-Tw-twist its wrist…! Laruel! Can you do that for me? Haa! Haa!
Aty reacted violently to those aggressive words.
Just then, Leo, who was reading the guide book, spoke.
“This city is famous for its hot springs.”
At the sudden murmur, Celia tilted her head.
“Of course. It's why this city is renowned as a tourist destination.”
Leo raised his head and glanced to the right.
Gerdinger's attendants, who were there to accompany Leo and Celia, were seated.
Leo shifted his gaze and looked to the left this time.
Similarly, there were people from Lewellen to accompany Chelsea and Abbad.
Leo was sitting right in the middle of them.
“Let's go to the government office tomorrow.”
“What? Then what will we do first?”
Leo smiled faintly at Celia, who had a puzzled expression.
“Sightseeing.”