I, reincarnate as the leader of the villainous knight order

Chapter 51: Eleanor in My Eyes

“Justin!”

No way!? When I called out to the stableman to bring my beloved horse Eleanor to the exit of the royal castle, a different Eleanor showed up.

“…What happened to the Chief Priest?”

“Well, you see, he was having a long chat with the king, so I came here first. After all, if I take my time, Justin might leave, right?”

Until this morning, she was using honorific language, but now she’s speaking informally. Isn’t she getting a bit too close? The stableman, who had never seen a young lady speak so familiarly to me, seemed shocked.

“Hey… wait, did you come here without His Majesty’s permission!?”

“Huh? But it would be rude to interrupt their conversation, right?”

I instinctively covered my face with one hand and sighed. But well, in the mountain village, asking for permission to leave during a conversation might be considered rude. Is this a difference in common sense? I understood that, but it’s too risky.

“Sigh… Listen, the people you were with are the most important in this country and the most important in all the temples. Remember, it’s unthinkable to leave without permission as a matter of courtesy. Also, always speak politely in the royal castle, no matter how close you are with the other person.”

“Even Justin…?”

She pleaded with me with upturned eyes, but when did we become close?

“We just met this morning, didn’t we…? The name Eleanor is the name of my beloved horse to me; I don’t associate it with you, Miss Saint… And when you call me, please use an honorific. If you don’t like ‘sama,’ ‘Commander’ is also fine.”

“Well, since leaving the village, no one has called me by name. But, calling you Commander Justin makes me feel like I’m part of the knight order! From now on, I’ll call you Commander Justin!”

Seeing her quickly switch to formal language, it seems she’s not completely airheaded. In that case, it wouldn’t hurt to give her another piece of advice.

“People tend to reject what’s different, so until you can mimic the behavior of a noble young lady, it’s better not to come to the royal castle too often. Otherwise, you might face subtle harassment. …Good luck.”

“Got it! I’ll do my best!”

“Hehehe.”

It seems the considerate stableman brought my beloved horse Eleanor. They were watching us at the entrance to the royal castle.

“Thank you. You saved me.”

I really was saved. Now I can distance myself from the Saint. If I stayed with her, I might get blamed for leaving His Majesty’s presence without permission. I thanked the stableman and mounted the horse, departing promptly.

“Jest, you were well-behaved.”

The voice from my back sounded completely groggy.

“Haha, so you were sleeping. Sleeping while stuck to my back, that’s quite skillful.”

“Were I good? When we get back to Justin’s nest, will you give me cookies again?”

I see, because of the promise. Fortunately, what Jest did while being controlled didn’t cause any problems, and the fact that he formed a magical contract is actually the more important issue. So, there shouldn’t be any repercussions going forward. For now, I can breathe a sigh of relief.

While I felt relieved, in a room in the royal castle, chaos was yet to unfold.

[Inside the Royal Castle]

Let’s rewind a bit. After ordering the knights of the First Knight Order to listen to Prince Ernest’s words with great difficulty…

“That’s why I don’t know! The Chief Priest only gave us information during the Diane abduction incident! When it came to the fragments of the evil god… it’s natural to consult the temple!”

“Please, Prince Ernest, try not to get so worked up. We are here only to listen on His Majesty’s orders.”

“What other information did you receive from that Chief Priest? I want to hear everything.”

In reality, Ernest only received the parts of the information from the Chief Priest that suited the priest’s agenda. The Chief Priest was not just a step, but several steps ahead as a strategist, or rather, Ernest had complete trust in him based on preconceived notions of his position.

Even during the Diane abduction incident, in a sense, Ernest was manipulated by the Chief Priest. And today, for the first time, he learned of the Chief Priest’s outrageous actions, feeling a sense of fear of being treated like a fellow in the same boat.

“Why… since he, Vandière, returned from the Taleraan Marches, everything has gone wrong! What on earth…!? Why is he being praised!? Until now, it was always me…”

Ernest clasped his head in both hands and began pacing the room unsteadily. Because he had repeatedly experienced receiving praise from those around him for admonishing Justin’s actions, this pattern had become entrenched in Ernest’s mind.

In his haste to restore the broken cogwheel, he ended up with that trial, not realizing it would further corner him. When the First Knight was about to give up on the conversation, someone entered the room where Ernest was being held under house arrest.

“Prince Ernest, you shouldn’t trouble the Royal Guards too much. If you know something, speak up. If you don’t, you should tell us the last time you contacted the Chief Priest, and how you usually communicated with him. If you feign ignorance, nothing will be investigated.”

“Diane…! All right, I understand. I’ll tell you everything I know.”

The appearance of Diane, who was being educated to become the future queen, brought relief to the First Knight Order, and Ernest regained his composure and sat down on the sofa. However, no one noticed that there was no longer the radiant glow of a love-struck maiden in Diane’s eyes as she nestled closer to Ernest and sat beside him.