Arcadia's Ignoble Knight, Volume 9 (Light Novel)

• Attractive male lead
• Beautiful female lead
• High fantasy
• Progression fantasy
• Ruling class
• Strong to stronger
• Arroigant villains
• Magical technology
• Heartwarming romance
• Marriage
• Devoted love interest

Sylvia woke up with a pained groan. Her head ached like someone had crushed it with a mallet.

She didn’t open her eyes right away, choosing instead to take stock of her situation by sensing the physical changes in her condition. Her body ached. There was an incredible soreness radiating from her back, but it was a dull feeling, the kind of pain that came from an older injury that had already healed. Furthermore, it seemed she was sitting on a stone floor, and her legs and arms were both bound in chains. Also, there was something around her neck.

Opening her eyes, Sylvia was greeted by a dark room made of stone and steel, a prison cell. She cast her gaze around, but there really was nothing to see. There was not a single clue that would let her know her location.

As she looked at her new surroundings, the sound of a door squeaking open and closed echoed around her. She turned toward the bars of her cell. Two people walked into her view. One of them was a handsome man with immaculate blonde hair and blue eyes, while the other was a little girl with similar colored hair and eyes.

“Cleopatra…” Sylvia murmured, her voice cracking thanks to her dry throat.

“It seems you have finally woken up,” Cleopatra muttered with a disdainful smile. “I was wondering how long it would be. I wanted to speak with you at least once before you were executed.”

Sylvia couldn’t contain her frown. “You plan to execute me?”

“That’s right.”

“Do you really think you can? Do you think the people would let you?”

“The people?” Cleopatra snorted with disdain as a cold smile spread across her face. “I suppose you are no longer aware of what’s happening, having been locked up in here and unconscious for several days, so let me explain the situation to you.”

Sylvia tried to adjust herself to be more comfortable, but it was very hard to get comfortable sitting on the floor with her arms forced above her head.

“The Murakumos attacked Casadinia in the thousands. They were like a swarm of locusts invading the city. Just when all hope seemed lost, I arrived in time to lay waste to them. I saved the city while you were nowhere to be found. However, numerous lives were lost in the wake of this incident. Amidst this chaos, many voices cried out, asking who was responsible for this… and do you know what I told them? I said you were to blame. I told them you had been the one creating those Murakumos all along, that this was your plan to subdue the people.”

“The people would never believe you,” Sylvia said at last.

“Oh, but they have.” Cleopatra’s cold smile turned several degrees colder. “You see, humans are nothing but a flock of mindless sheep who follow the person that shows the greatest qualities of a shepherd. You were never really that good of a leader, Sylvia. Cold and emotionless, the people simply can’t understand you, so they don’t follow you out of a sense of respect, but of fear. To them, you are like this vengeful god acting from on high. On the other hand, Callisto here is quite charismatic.”

“You honor me, My Lady,” Callisto said with a slight bow at the waist.

Cleopatra smiled at him before turning back to Sylvia. “Since the people can’t understand you, they don’t follow you out of choice but because there was no better choice. Now that they have been presented with Callisto, who is kind, helpful, and charismatic, they have no need for you. While you were toiling in here, he has been helping the people recover, so when he told them that you’re the one who was responsible for all this, they naturally believed him.”

Sylvia closed her eyes as a strange ache appeared in her chest like her heart was being stabbed by an icy stake. She didn’t know what this feeling was. It spread through her body like an insipid invader, chilling her to the bone.

“You said… this was for revenge,” Sylvia said at last. “But I don’t understand why you are trying to get revenge. I’ve never done anything to you that would warrant such a strong hatred.”

“Hmph!” Cleopatra narrowed her eyes and glared at Sylvia through the bars. “I suppose you wouldn’t. You have such a broad view that you’re unable to narrow your focus even a little. Always looking at the big picture. Never looking at the little pieces within that picture. You see the trees but not the leaves.”

Cleopatra walked up to the bars and placed her hands on them, her stare penetrating the cell as she continued to hatefully keep Sylvia within her gaze. With her blue eyes narrowed, she said, “Let me tell you a story, Sylvia. Once, there was a little girl living with her family. This girl wanted nothing more than to play with her friends, have her father pat her on the head, and listen to her mom tell her stories before bedtime. However, one day, all that was taken away from her.”

Closing her eyes, Cleopatra’s arms shook, causing the bars to rattle.

“The girl had been playing just outside of the village when it happened,” the woman trapped in the body of a girl continued, eyes still closed. “A bright streak of silver light came crashing down from the heavens, destroying her village in a single fell swoop. The village was turned into nothing more than a crater. She saw it all happen with her own eyes. That trauma was enough to unlock her hidden potential, turning her into a Sorceress.”

Cleopatra opened her eyes again.

“While I do not remember much about what happened, I do remember seeing you floating over the village just before it was destroyed. After that, you came up to me as if nothing happened and asked me to come with you. I wasn’t strong enough to kill you, so I took your hand and promised to have my revenge. Someone later told me that you did it because the villagers were harboring fugitives from the noble faction who rebelled and refused to surrender after your victory over them. Even so…” Cleopatra bared her teeth at Sylvia. “Even so, there was no reason for you to destroy the entire village! My family! You took them away from me! You took everything away from me!”

Sylvia frowned as the girl screamed at her. While she did remember finding Cleopatra alone and crying, she did not remember destroying a village. She had never actually destroyed a human village before, not even during the Succession War that Cleopatra was talking about. What’s more, when she found Cleopatra, the girl had been hiding within the mountainous border between Arcadia and Elysium. There had been no village.

What is going on here?

“Who was it that told I destroyed your village?” asked Sylvia.

“It doesn’t matter.” Cleopatra removed her hands from the bars and coldly snorted. “I only came here to inform you of what’s going to happen. The people are calling for your head, and so, in two days, we are going to publicly execute you in order to quell the people’s rage. Let’s go, Callisto.”

“Yes, My Lady.”

Cleopatra and Callisto soon vanished from her sight. Sylvia heard the door squeal open and then closed, leaving her alone in solitude.

Sylvia closed her eyes as she thought about what she had been told, but she couldn’t figure out what was going on. Cleopatra’s words made no sense. The nobles had never gone into any villages for refuge. After her victory over them, almost all of them had capitulated without a fight. The few who didn’t surrender continued to fight until their deaths. Even if there had been a few who sought refuge in a small village, Sylvia would not have destroyed an entire village just to get rid of them.

Something was wrong, but she couldn’t figure out what.

***

After Cleopatra shut the door to the prison, she leaned against it and took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm down. The anger surging through her veins made her feel irrational. Callisto stood beside her, waiting patiently as she settled her turbulent thoughts.

“Are you feeling better, My Lady?” he asked.

“A little.” Cleopatra sighed. “I had no idea that finally confronting Sylvia would make me so angry.” Her frown deepened. “I think it’s that face of hers. That damnable expressionless face. Did you see the look she gave me? It’s like she doesn’t even remember destroying my home.”

“Sylvia has lived for a long time,” Callisto said. “I imagine there are many things she has forgotten or never cared to remember.”

Callisto was right, of course, and the thought made Cleopatra click her tongue, but she retained her calm and walked up the stairs and out of the prison. The world shifted from gray walls, floor, and ceiling, to something more extravagant. Cleopatra ignored the artful decorations as she walked through Callisto’s mansion in Casadinia.

“In your opinion, when should we come forth and let everyone know about Sylvia’s ‘crime’?” asked Cleopatra.

“I’d give it a few more days,” Callisto said after a moment’s thought. “Right now, the people are mourning. However, once they finish crying over the loss of life, they will want someone to blame. We’ve already begun circulating the rumor that Sylvia was responsible for the Murakumo attack. If we wait another few days, the rumor will soon spread, and the people will wholeheartedly believe us when we tell them that Sylvia was the one responsible for the Murakumo attack.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Cleopatra decided after a moment.

As they entered a sitting room, Callisto glanced at his companion. “By the way, I’m awfully surprised you would lie and tell Sylvia that people were already calling for her death. That’s not really your style.”

“I had hoped she would lose heart when I told her that the people she worked so hard for wanted to see her killed.” Cleopatra turned her head and looked at the door they had entered through, a soft growl escaping her throat. “As always, I was disappointed.”

***

Cassidy had been living inside of the Peacekeepers headquarters ever since they escaped from Lady Sylvia’s mansion. Being a maid born from a family of maids, she had taken it upon herself to keep the place clean, but if she was being honest, doing her maidly duties was just an excuse to do something. She needed to work to keep her mind occupied.

She had been confined to the headquarters ever since she appeared alongside Christo and the other servants. Due to the current political climate, Commander Klein had told them to remain inside. Cassidy didn’t really understand, but she had heeded his advice and hadn’t left the headquarters, even though she really wanted to.

At the moment, Cassidy was not doing anything maid-like. She sat on her bed, a book in her lap. It was titled The Maid and Her Master. This book happened to be one of her favorites. Lady Erica had given it to her after learning about her master-servant fetish. She said something about how fetishes should be cultivated instead of suppressed. However, despite the fact that this was easily her favorite book, Cassidy couldn’t even bring herself to read it. She just stared at it with a blank look.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

At the sound of someone knocking on her door, Cassidy looked up.

“Who is it?” she asked.

“It’s Christo,” came the answer.

“Ah. H-hold on just a minute, I’ll open the door!” Cassidy quickly hid the book underneath her pillow, straightened out her maid clothes, then hurriedly walked toward the door. She opened it to reveal Christo on the other end. His bright smile soothed her as he stood there with his silver hair spiking out in all directions. Her body relaxed unconsciously upon seeing that cheerful demeanor.

“Heya, I came to check on you. How are you holding up?” he asked.

“I’m doing… well, I’ve been better, but I’m okay.” Cassidy shook her head to dispel her anxiety. “Are you here to visit? I thought Commander Klein would be keeping you busy with work.”

“I was working. However…”

“However?”

Christo grinned as he held out a small sheet of paper. “I got a message from someone who wants to see us.”

“A message?” Cassidy tilted her head. “From who?”

“Just read it and find out.”

Christo handed the message to Cassidy, who curiously took it and looked at the contents. The message was rather straightforward. “I want to meet. C & E.” That was all it said. She frowned for a moment. There was no address, name, or anything to indicate who might have sent—no, wait. C & E? Were those initials? C and E… C… and…

“This is from Caspian and Elincia!” Cassidy shouted excitedly.

“Ssshh! Not so loud!” Christo placed a hand to his lips.

“Oh… sorry…” Cassidy said contritely.

Christo chuckled. “It’s okay. I get that you’re excited. I am too.”

Nodding, Cassidy held the letter to her chest. “I’m so glad to hear they’re safe. There have been all kinds of rumors about them lately.”

“Yeah… I heard a story about how Caspian and Elincia fought against a Lich King, and then there’s that one about how they took down a marquis… I even heard they fought against pirates.” Christo shook his head before grinning at her. “Anyway, this is asking me to meet with them. This letter came with a map showing where we would meet. Since you’re also their friend, I thought maybe you’d like to come.”

When she heard Christo’s offer, Cassidy couldn’t help but burst with joy. “Yes! I would love to!”

“In that case, let’s go,” Christo said.

Cassidy suddenly stopped. “Huh? Wait. Now?”

“No time like the present,” Christo said as he offered Cassidy his hand. “Let’s go!”

“O-okay!”

Cassidy didn’t think about it as she placed her hand within Christo’s and allowed him to lead her through the Peacekeepers’ headquarters. Her room was on the second floor. Nobody stopped them as they walked down the stairs to the main entrance, though a voice did speak up just as they were about to leave.

“Just where do you think you’re going, Christo?”

Christo froze as though his body had become a block of ice. He slowly craned his neck to look behind them. Cassidy also turned around.

A man stood several meters away, hidden by the stairs, arms crossed. While he didn’t have a single strand of gray hair, his dark eyes were hard and unrelenting, making him appear older than he really was. His chiseled face complemented the Peacekeeper uniform that he wore. Several medals jangled from his left breast and epaulets decorated a crimson shoulder cape that went down to his knees.

“Commander Klein… what a pleasant surprise,” Christo stuttered. “What are you doing hiding over there? Shouldn’t you be in your office?”

“I was just coming back from having a meal when I saw you sneaking outside.” Commander Klein narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Cassidy, who squeaked. “You know it’s dangerous to let her walk out… given that she worked for Lady Sylvia. We’ve heard no reports that they are after people who worked for her, but that could just mean they’re very good at masking their trail.”

“I’m sure it will be fine.” Christo tried to sound confident. “I mean, it’s not like that many people know who Cassidy worked for. She never really left the mansion, so I somehow doubt she’ll be recognized.”

“That’s a naïve way of thinking,” Commander Klein said, then sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “If you’re going to take her outside, then you should at least have her wear something other than those maid clothes.”

Cassidy gave the man a confused glance, but Christo looked even more shocked than she did. The commander merely sighed before having the two follow him. He took them to a room located on the first floor, stopped in front of it, and knocked. Some shuffling came from the other side. It was followed by the thumping of footsteps. Then the door opened.

“Commander Klein… and Needle Dick.” The woman on the other end glared at Christo through her red bangs before shifting her attention to Cassidy, who suddenly straightened under that glare like she had been shocked. “And the maid.” She frowned before looking at Commander Klein. “Mind if I ask what this is all about, Commander?”

“Christo is about to take Cassidy outside, but given the present situation, I don’t believe having her travel outside in her maid uniform is a good idea. You two are about the same size, so I was hoping she could borrow some of your civilian clothes,” Commander Klein explained.

The redhead didn’t appear very pleased to hear this was the reason for their visit, but then she shrugged and said, “Sure. Why the fuck not?”

Once they had the redhead’s permission, she let Cassidy come into the room, though the others had to remain outside. The woman, whose name was Annah, told her to “shut the fuck up and sit the fuck down,” which was how Cassidy found herself sitting on the bed as the Peacekeeper rifled through her drawers. After several minutes of this, she tossed her several articles of clothing.

“Put those on and get the fuck out of my room,” Annah said.

“Um… um… okay…”

While Cassidy felt embarrassed about stripping in front of someone she didn’t know, she quickly removed her maid uniform and put on the clothes Annah had given her. It was a pretty simple outfit. Black shorts, a black shirt, a blue blouse, and a blue coat that went over the whole ensemble. Cassidy did feel a little exposed because the shorts barely covered half her thighs and the coat and shirt were both sleeveless. It completely showed off her arms! She had never worn something so scandalous before! However, she didn’t complain because Annah kind of scared her.

“Um… thank you very much.”

“Sure. What the fuck ever.” Annah waved her off.

When she exited the room, Christo and Commander Klein both looked at her and had very different reactions. While the commander placed a hand over his face as though he was ashamed of something, Christo gave her a thumbs up and grinned.

“Wow! You look good in that!”

“R-really?” Cassidy tried not to squirm and resisted the urge to pull her shorts down. That would just expose her body more. “It’s not… too short?”

“Not at all! You look great!” Christo was still grinning as he grabbed Cassidy’s hand and began pulling her along. “Now, let’s go! We’ll be back soon, Commander!”

Commander Klein didn’t say anything, but Cassidy saw the aggrieved expression on his face before they left.

It had been a while since she had gone outside. The last time she went outside had been when they were escaping from Lady Sylvia’s mansion. During that time, Cassidy had been forced to keep her head down and could do nothing but scream as the air exploded all around them. She hadn’t been able to get a good look at the city because of how dangerous the situation had been.

Now she could see the city.

And what she saw shocked her.

Many of the buildings that she walked past had been destroyed. Walls had collapsed, roofs had caved in, and several buildings had become nothing more than piles of rubble. The amount of destruction was shocking. However, more than the destruction of the houses, it was the mournful and destitute expressions on the faces of the people that really shocked her. Everyone had a hopeless look.

“I can’t believe this happened,” someone said to her left.

“Our home… our home is gone…” another said.

“Those damn things killed my wife!”

“My children!”

A lot of people were in mourning. Cassidy tried not to look, but her eyes couldn’t stop from wandering over to the young woman as she held her dead children, to the man who was mourning the loss of his wife. They weren’t the only ones. Many people were crying next to the corpses of their loved ones. It was enough to make Cassidy wish she hadn’t gone outside.

“It’s horrible, huh?” Christo said, not looking at her but instead at the people crying. “A lot of people were killed during the Murakumo attack. We can rebuild houses and restore buildings, but there are some things that nothing will ever fix.”

“It is terrible,” Cassidy agreed.

The scenes that Cassidy had witnessed replayed themselves over and over as they continued on. Sometimes, it would be children crying over their parents, while other times it would be parents crying over their children, or people crying over spouses. But that wasn’t the only scene that kept replaying. Sadness wasn’t the only emotion permeating this place.

“Take that! And that! You damn machine! Damn it! Damn it!! I’ll kill you!!”

Cassidy paused when she saw an older gentleman kicking and stomping on a machine that she recognized as a Murakumo. Of course, the Murakumo didn’t respond. It had already shut down, but the man didn’t seem to care as he continued to brutally kick it.

“Give me back my wife! Give me back my kids! Give them back!!”

Looking away, Cassidy continued to follow Christo, who appeared somber as he kept walking. She had never seen him look anything other than cheerful. The change in disposition shocked her.

They eventually made it to a park. The parks didn’t really get hit by the Murakumos, which had targeted only certain areas that had a heavy civilian population. Because of this, the park they walked through remained surprisingly pristine. As she peered at the numerous trees lining the area, Christo eventually stopped several meters from a cloaked figure.

Cassidy looked at the person hiding their face within a cloak, wondering if this was really Caspian. She couldn’t see anything. However, Christo suddenly grinned as he raised his hand and waved.

“Yo! How’ve ya been?” he asked.

“I’ve been better,” the voice that came out was definitely Caspian’s. Cassidy felt joy surge through her heart, but then she paused when she realized someone was missing. Before she could ask anything, the cloaked Caspian spoke again. “We can’t talk here. I’ll take you to where we’re staying for the time being. Follow me.”

“Okay!” Christo cheered. “You know I’d follow you anywhere!”

Caspian sighed but gestured for them to follow. Cassidy had so many questions as she and Christo followed him, but she held her tongue because she knew now wasn’t the time to ask. She would also probably have most of her questions answered soon anyway.

They traveled back into the city, which confused Cassidy a little, though she couldn’t quite figure out why. She also felt cautious. It was probably her imagination because no one was looking at them when they walked by, but she still felt like everyone was staring at them. She didn’t know why she felt this way.

She shook her head.

I’m just being paranoid. Stop it, Cassidy. You don’t want to get worked up like this.

They arrived at their destination while Cassidy tried to calm her frayed nerves. It was an inn that had mercifully survived the assault. It was currently being used as a refuge for people. Of course, very few people were actually living inside of the inn, which seconded as a tavern. It was being used to feed all the people who had been left homeless by the Murakumo attack. There was a large line outside the tavern. Cassidy glanced at the young woman standing in front of a large pot boiling over an open fire. The scent of stew filled her nose and reminded Cassidy that she hadn’t eaten in several hours.

Caspian and Christo stopped walking when Cassidy’s stomach growled. Their looks caused her to blush as she held a hand to her stomach.

“W-what?” she asked, looking away.

“Nothing,” Caspian said with a sigh before turning back around and walking on.

He entered the building, led the two of them up a set of stairs, and stopped in front of a door. Taking a set of keys from within his cloak, he unlocked the door and opened it. Then he gestured for them to enter.

Cassidy entered the room after Christo. It didn’t have much. There was a bed and a few pieces of random furniture, but it was pretty threadbare. The most interesting thing inside this room was the person standing by the window. Like Caspian, they were covered in a cloak. Their back was turned to the group as they stared out the window.

Caspian shut the door behind him and locked it. The figure still hadn’t turned around.

“I’ve brought them,” he said.

“Oh…” A soft, delicate, and easily recognizable voice came from the figure, who finally turned around. Cassidy still couldn’t see much of their face, but she knew the delicate chin and soft lips that were visible from within. “Thank you, Caspian.”

“Lady Elincia?” Cassidy took a hesitant step forward. “Is that you?”

Delicate hands appeared from within the cloak’s sleeves as the person reached up and removed their hood, revealing the fair skin, blue eyes, silvery blonde hair, and long, pointy ears of Elincia. She smiled at Cassidy, who felt tears pricking at her eyes.

“It’s been a while, Cassidy. I’m glad to see that you are safe and sound.”

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