His clothes were flashy, and he looked very clean. At a glance, he looked to be from some well-off family. Is he a noble? I asked this question inside, and before I knew it they had arrived right in front of our noses. The man didn’t get off his horse, and he just looked down to survey his surrounding. The first one to open his mouth was a man in armor, who looked to be the oldest in the group.
“Are you the mercenaries, who defeated the monsters that appeared at the South Gate?”
He asked a question without adding any superfluousness. However, his tone of voice couldn’t hide his arrogance. He looked at them as if they were repulsive creatures. His face, which was covered by the helmet, was probably distorted in contempt. Hosane quietly observed him. He had no choice, but to bow and reply in a polite manner.
“I am the leader of the Champagne Mercenaries, Hosane. What can we do…”
“Kkhmm.(TLN: he cleared his throat) I am the Leader of the Phoenix Knights, Crent. This is the eldest son of Marquis Kyle de Clan, Elkino, who is staying with Lord Halberk! You have defeated the South Gate’s monsters instead of the city guards. Our lord’s precious steps have traveled here to commend you. Get on your knees!”
Except for the confused party members, everyone nearby started to get on their knees, and they bowed.
Huk. Everyone has to get on their knees when a son of a noble wants to commend them? If it has to be like this, then I’d rather not be commended by him.
The only people there who didn’t bow down was the Champagne Mercenaries. They still hadn’t realized what was going on. When the Marquis’ son saw this, his face started to crumble in distaste. The flustered man cried out in a loud voice.
“You insolent fools! How dare you stand tall in front of this personage! Hurry up at get on your knees!”
The party members finally realized what was going on. Everyone started to slowly get on their knees with a sour expression. Unexpectedly, the one to say a word of contradiction was Isana. He spoke in a calm voice as his gaze didn’t leave the man in armor.
“According to the imperial law, the custom of getting on one’s knee to greet a person can only be done for the empire’s royal family. Even if you are a son of a noble, you aren’t part of the royal family. We don’t need to show you the highest level of courtesy.”
Oh oh! There was such a law? As if his words were true, the knight made a startled expression. However, he refused to back down, and he yelled excitedly.
“Wha, what did you say! You talk well through your pie hole! Do you not realize who this is!”
“Even if the pope of the demonic god’s church demanded it, I wouldn’t do it since he isn’t from the royal family. You cannot require the people to greet you on their knees. It is the law. Do you and the master you serve want to be brought up for treason?”
“ …!!!… ”
In the end, he was right. If one insisted on receiving a form of greeting only given to the royal family, it meant one has aspiration to become a royal. It basically signified the person was trying to get rid of the current royal family. It meant the person wanted to establish oneself as the new emperor.
These were obvious words, but the leader of the knights didn’t show any signs of easily agreeing with him. Instead, he turned toward his underlings, and he used the knights to threaten them.
“Ee..eeek! What are you guys doing! Arrest these impertinent bastards immediately! Their crime is challenging and insulting a noble! How dare you be impertinent in front of Elkino-nim! You will pay for your sins!”
Chapter 33
Start from the beginning
