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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: The Iron Mage
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As the light drew closer, their silhouettes began to take shape.
"Captain, we've just arrived!"
"Y-You're safe!"
The ones approaching us were two knights holding torches.
"We're so glad you're safe."
"It was a truly terrible ordeal."
We said nothing in response to their friendly greetings.
Because we all knew. They had fled without fighting and only returned now, after seeing the battle was over.
"Where have you been? It's been a long time since the signal flare went up."
"W-We went too far out. We were ambushed by orcs on the way and were delayed fighting them off."
It was a plausible story. But they were lying.
"Is that so?"
In response, Ilia calmly looked over their attire.
So the reason we were short on knights was because these bastards deserted.
They must have seen a knight killed by the Orc Warrior, panicked, and fled. Their clothing told the tale of their lies.
"Where are the soldiers?"
"There were too many orcs; they were wiped out. We wanted to protect them, but there was a powerful foe."
"Lead the way."
"Pardon?"
At Ilia's command, the knight's face went pale.
"It's late today, so if we come back tomorrow..."
"I don't care. Take me to where the soldiers died."
"It's a long way from here. If we go there now, we won't be able to reach As Castle today."
"I said, lead the way."
At Ilia's words, the knights clenched their teeth and glanced at each other.
"I suppose we have no choice. Please, look at this map."
The knight in front approached Ilia, as if to show her a map.
Wow. So obvious. So damn obvious.
"The place we fought was right around here..."
*Clang!*
"Kuaargh!"
Just as the knight aimed for Ilia's neck with a dagger hidden under the map, I sent his wrist flying with Agnes, which I had already prepared.
"Aaargh! My hand, my hand!"
He clutched his bleeding wrist and screamed.
"Funny how you men who claim to have fought a fierce battle with orcs aren't stained with a single drop of green blood, yet you're caked in human blood."
"Kugh!"
Hearing Ilia's words, the other knight dropped to his knees.
"I'm sorry! P-Please, spare me!"
"What did you do to the soldiers?"
"Th-That bastard killed them all! He said we had to kill them since they saw us run away, so he killed every last soldier!"
The knight pointed at the one still clutching his wrist.
"Don't give me that bullshit! You were smiling while you killed them with me! Where do you think you're going, trying to get out of this alone? You killed more than I did!"
The knight whose wrist was severed stopped the bleeding with his aura, then glared at the kneeling knight as if he wanted to chew him up and spit him out.
"Lady Ilia, my Pudeng family has served the Marcus family for generations! This time... it was truly unavoidable!"
The kneeling knight slammed his head to the ground before Ilia.
"Please, forgive me just this once! If you let this slide, I'll speak to my father and..."
*Shlick!*
Ilia walked up to him and, without hesitation, sliced his head off.
"Aaargh! Spare m—"
*Thunk.*
She turned and plunged her sword down into the neck of the knight whose hand had been cut off.
*Clang!*
Her sword pierced his neck and struck the ground, shattering. She tossed the broken half behind her and said.
"Pathetic trash."
Damn, what a cool woman.
**
The next day, as soon as the sun rose, Ilia returned to the battlefield and began the work of recovering the soldiers' bodies.
Though she must have been exhausted herself, she searched the forest, trying not to miss a single soldier's corpse.
But the bodies of the soldiers killed by the knights were nowhere to be found, perhaps thrown into the river after they were murdered.
We gave up searching for their bodies and finally returned to As Castle.
"Woooooah!"
"Welcome the heroes!"
"Thank you for protecting us!"
"Long live the heroes!"
"They're the heroes who defeated the Orc Warrior!"
When we arrived at As Castle, a huge crowd had gathered and began to cheer. The reason for such a commotion was simple. The mages who had taken Ka-Ruda's corpse had identified the creature as an Orc Warrior.
The appearance of an Orc Warrior usually meant massive human casualties, but this time, it had been taken down with minimal losses, which was why the people were praising us so fervently.
"Long live the Iron-Blooded Knight!"
"That's Lady Ilia, the one who faced the Orc Warrior alone!"
"Long live the Iron-Blooded Knight!"
"Iron-Blooded Knight, please look this way!"
"You're beautiful, Iron-Blooded Knight!"
The Iron-Blooded Knight was Ilia. It was an honorable title given to her for charging the Orc Warrior alone, wounding it, and never backing down even when facing death.
Her nickname, the Iron-Blooded Knight, is the same as in the novel.
"The Iron Mage!"
"Young Lord Yuren!"
"You're so handsome, Mage!"
"Thank you, Iron Mage!"
This time, the cheers of women rang out.
[The Iron Mage, he says. Pfft.]
'Quiet, Agnes.'
[A mage with barely a speck of mana. Pffft.]
'This brat.'
The Iron Mage was, absurdly, me. The nickname came from the accounts of the surviving soldiers, which led to me being called a mage. It seemed that in their eyes, I was a mage who manipulated steel.
"Yuren."
"Yeah."
Amidst the cheering, Ilia, who had been silent, called my name.
"Thank you so much for saving me twice."
"It was the natural thing to do."
"If you hadn't come, I would have died there yesterday..."
She lowered her head, her shoulders trembling.
"I won't ever be beaten like that again. I will stand at the very top. I won't lose to anyone."
Now, she would truly blossom her talent and become a knight worthy of the trait, Sword Queen.
"Yuren, let's go to my house."
"What?"
"My father insisted that I bring you."
This was a development I had fully expected. It was just me going instead of the protagonist.
Well, since I'm going anyway, I might as well loot the place.
I was originally planning to travel somewhere else to find treasure, but I decided to take this opportunity to raid the hidden treasure in the Marcus Marquisate.
"You'll come, right?"
"Ah..."
"You're not going to come?"
Ilia, who usually seemed so tough, felt like she had been softening up, but only towards me, since yesterday.
Well, I did save her, so her favorability must have gone up quite a bit.
[Creator's Eye is activating.]
[Name: Ilia Marcus]
[Traits: Kingdom-Toppling Beauty, Sword Queen]
[Favorability: 45 (Favorable) ]
Hey, wasn't she unfavorable last time I checked? Did it go up this much just from saving her a couple of times? Was a dating sim always this easy?
"If the Marquis has summoned me, I should go."
"Great!"
The Marcus domain wasn't far from As Castle, but perhaps due to our battle fatigue or because Marquis Marcus ordered it, the house's mages came and teleported us to the estate.
"It's been a while since you've been to our domain, right?"
"It has."
I've never been here before. This is the first time.
All these marquis estates are ridiculously huge. I have no idea how they manage them.
"Gr-Grand Prince, I never knew a place where people live could be this vast."
I heard Giranox's dumbfounded voice from behind me. I understood how he felt, since I'd had a similar reaction when I first saw the Lox estate.
The Marcus estate was just as expansive as the Lox estate. Its garden was as large as ours, but the types of plants were different. It seemed the climate here was different from that of the Lox domain.
"This way."
I followed Ilia's lead to the mansion. While the Lox mansion had the form of a typical grand estate, this place looked more like an apartment building.
I never made a setting like this. Who the hell set all this up?
It was as if the novel was filling in the settings on its own; there was nothing here that wasn't unique.
"We welcome Young Lord Yuren Lox."
"Welcome!"
As I stepped inside, the butlers and servants, lined up in rows, greeted me.
"My name is Legi, the head butler. This way, Young Lord."
"I'll see you in a bit."
Ilia waved at me and went up to the second floor.
"First, if you would please wash up in this room."
Just as I thought, starting with a bath.
After washing in the grand bath, I was led to the adjacent room to be fitted for clothes. A tailor took a slightly large formal suit and instantly adjusted it to my size.
Now I'll be called for a meal.
I was familiar enough with the noble lifestyle by now to know what would happen next.
At home, it was Chirein Soup every day. On the road, I ate whatever I could. Yesterday, I just chewed on jerky. I was looking forward to a splendid, noble-style meal here.
"Young Lord Yuren, I will guide you to the dining hall."
I followed the butler, Legi, into the dining hall on the first floor. A fragrant aroma wafted from within.
The hall was enormous, but the dining table wasn't very large, perhaps because it was only used by the direct Marcus family line.
"It's been a while."
"Yuren Lox, greetings to His Lordship, Marquis Rayen Marcus."
The Marquis and Ilia were already seated, so I greeted him according to noble etiquette.
"Don't be so formal. Have a seat."
"Yes."
Sitting opposite the Marquis felt a bit pressuring, so I sat across from Ilia instead.
"First, I must thank you."
"Pardon?"
"Before she is your fiancée, she is my daughter. Thank you so much for saving her life."
"It was only natural that I do so."
"Huhu."
Rayen Marcus is a man's man who appreciates confidence. Showing manliness rather than humility would raise his favorability.
"Seeing you like this, you've really changed. They say a leopard can't change its spots, but that doesn't seem to apply to you."
"I've worked hard."
"Yes. That's what's important."
The Marquis seemed to like me, glancing between me and Ilia with a subtle smile.
"Dinner is served."
Someone who appeared to be the head butler brought in the food.
It's finally here. But the smell is somehow familiar. Don't tell me...
When the head butler lifted the lid of the tureen, a familiar-looking dish was revealed.
"Ah..."
"Haha, you've had a rough couple of days, so I had the Marcus House's special Chirein Soup prepared. One taste of this, and all your fatigue and muscle aches will vanish like they were never there."
"Ah..."
Rayen's words shattered my expectations. I had wanted to try the specialties of the Marcus domain, but what sat before me was the soup I'd eaten countless times. The ingredients and color looked slightly different, but it was still the same thing.
"Yuren, the Marcus family always has this special soup after returning from battle. It's delicious."
It might be delicious for you, who only has it occasionally. I'm the guy who even adds poison to it!
"Haha, yes. It looks delicious."
I smiled, putting on the forced grin that is an essential tool for any functioning member of society.
"Hoo..."
Still, I was hungry, so I was lifting my spoon when I heard the Marquis's next words and dropped it.
"So, when are you two planning to get married?"