Chapter 247
I should have asked Ardin instead.
As we seemed to arrive at our destination and sensation gradually returned to my body, I checked on Lionel first. His face was slightly pale as he gazed down at me.
“Lionel….”
He must have had a hard time after all.
“Are you all right?”
When I nodded, he smiled with evident relief.
“It’s all over now.”
He relaxed his arms and released me from his embrace.
Only then could I look around.
Thanks to the protective magic from both the Chancellor and Ardin, no one had fainted.
The dizziness and nausea couldn’t be helped entirely, so Vivian didn’t look so well, but everyone else was fine.
The place we’d arrived was a spacious area with an enormous magic circle inscribed on the ground, just like our departure point. It seemed this was how long-distance mass teleportation portals were installed and managed.
“Welcome, Your Grace.”
Mages who appeared to be the site’s administrators approached Lionel with greetings.
“We’ve sent word ahead to the castle. The knight order should be arriving shortly.”
“Good work.”
Lionel nodded, wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and began walking.
When we stepped outside the building, pitch-black darkness greeted us.
‘So this is Hered.’
It was the middle of the night, so there wasn’t much to see, but the mild temperature was unmistakable. It was as if the winter that had been creeping closer had withdrawn entirely.
Just then, from far in the distance, the sound of the earth trembling reached us.
As it drew gradually nearer and revealed itself, the source turned out to be roughly fifty warhorses and armored knights.
I stood frozen in awe at their staggering power, and they halted with a discipline that defied the speed at which they’d charged.
Then, in picture-perfect unison, they dismounted and dropped to one knee before Lionel to pay their respects.
“My lord, we have arrived!”
The thundering voice of the knight at the vanguard made my ears ring.
The man was built like a bear, and his voice was just as massive.
“Good, Hamed. Where is the carriage for my bride?”
Something about Lionel’s voice sounded tinged with a sigh.
“Ah… oops!”
At that, the man to Hamed’s right leaned in and whispered:
“It should be following behind us by now. I notified them before we departed.”
“So I’m told!”
Lionel let out a sigh that was unmistakably obvious this time, then nodded.
“Fine. Come here and pay your respects. This is the future lady of House Luanax, whom you will all serve.”
The knights rose, and every last gaze converged on me at once.
…This was incredibly intimidating.
Hamed had been staring at me with his eyes wide, and only after the man on his right jabbed him in the ribs hard enough to make an audible thud did he finally bow properly.
“I am Knight Commander Hamed. It is an honor to meet you.”
“I am Deputy Commander Miguel. I will serve you with all my heart.”
It seemed this Miguel had taken over as the actual brains of the knight order in Hamed’s stead.
“It’s nice to meet you all.Let’s get along well from now on.”
Hiding my awkwardness behind a smile, I returned their greeting, and both knights’ eyes sparkled with almost excessive enthusiasm. Their reaction was so different from the Luanax knights I’d dealt with up to now that it caught me slightly off guard.
‘Come to think of it, this is the first time I’ve been properly introduced and exchanged greetings.’
Up until now, the Luanax knights had been exceedingly deferential to me, but they never spoke to me unless strictly necessary. They even seemed to make a deliberate effort to avoid eye contact.
I, too, had thought of the knights as watchdogs when I first came from the monastery to the Luanax manor, which had soured things. And once that dynamic set in, the distance persisted, leaving a lingering awkwardness to this day.
But I couldn’t continue like this after marrying Lionel, so I’d need to work on improving the relationship gradually.
Lionel must have had exactly that in mind when he introduced me to the knights of his ancestral castle.
Then, Miguel approached us with a cautious air and spoke.
“Your Grace, there is something I must inform you of before you enter the castle.”
