How many nobles were there in the capital? Not all of them were sensible. A little thought would have made that obvious.

"What do you say? Come to my domain, and along with a manor, I can personally grant you the title of Guardian of the Domain..."

It started with a fellow called Baron Somerset. Encrid tried to let them down gently whenever possible.

"I'm not interested."

He had never faced anything like this before. When in his life had he ever attracted so much attention from nobles? He turned the man away by making his wishes clear.

"Well, er."

Baron Somerset was at a loss for words, silenced by the firmness of the rejection. He had no idea that this was Encrid being kind. And so, inwardly, he found it insolent.

He knew the man was exceptionally skilled, but who could get through life on a sword alone? Everyone needed backing. Surely that was essential if one hoped to make a name for oneself in the capital. People only saw as much as they knew, and to Baron Somerset, this was simply common sense.

"I'll be going, then."

Encrid dipped his head and turned away. The young page saw his master's hands trembling. Even so, he thought the departing Savior of the Kingdom looked magnificent.

'He's so cool.'

Noble or not, he said his piece and walked away. How many children could see that without admiring him?

Others admired him, too. Some palace maids had even formed a group to debate whether Encrid or Jaxon was more handsome. At times, Audin and Rem, and even Dunbachel and Teresa, entered the running.

Encrid had already made a name for himself among noblewomen, but this went far beyond that. Not a noble in the capital was ignorant of Encrid and the Lunatic Company. Some even brought their daughters. For Krang's sake, Encrid did at least meet them all.

"This is my daughter."

She was fairly pretty. The way she shyly lowered her head made her seem innocent, too. Looking at the young lady's bare arms, Encrid thought she wouldn't even be able to hold a rapier properly with those forearms, and declined.

"I'm busy."

"Busy with what?"

"I have to train."

There were various polite flourishes, but that was the gist of their exchange.

Some brought their daughters; others asked him to become their heir.

"I have no children."

The old man was scrawny and looked about seventy. He claimed never to have spent his wealth recklessly in all his life, and said siding with the king this time had been the greatest gamble he had ever taken.

After Encrid had humored him for a while and sent him away, Jaxon approached.

"I hear he has six children. He threw them all out because none of them pleased him."

The noble was a miser among misers, said to eat black bread rather than white even at home. And such a man had come offering his entire fortune. In fact, he had even brought the deed. All Encrid needed to do was stamp his seal on it.

Encrid didn't have a seal. He was a commoner.

More nobles came after that. And these were only the ones with some actual clout, the nobodies having already been weeded out. A few of the visitors were rather unusual.

"Let me say this first: I'm not from Aspen, and this is simply a commission. There's no need to cut me down or beat me. All I'm here to do is relay their message and hear your answer."

The man was so nervous that cold sweat dripped from him despite the shade of the tree. He appeared to be a magistrate working in the capital, a life peer who earned extra income through various commissions. Judging by his pleading insistence that he was only the messenger, someone seemed to have some hold over him.

Encrid nodded.

"Aspen has promised you a dukedom."

Was the civil war solely Naurilia's concern? No. It was something every neighboring nation would take an interest in. In a sense, it was only natural that Aspen should be the first to make such an offer.

What sort of man was Encrid? Was he loyal to his country, or did he want something else?

"They also said a marriage to a princess could be arranged, if you wished."

Encrid began to worry that the magistrate was becoming dehydrated. Sweat was pooling and streaming down him.

"I refuse."

"Ah, yes. Understood."

He didn't seem inclined to try persuading him a second time.

Mountains of gold coins, beautiful women in his arms. All these offers were beginning to grate on his nerves.

"Cut a few of their arms off. Bet they won't come back."

That was Rem's advice. Encrid was so annoyed that it actually sounded tempting.

"Better to just ignore them."

Ragna offered his opinion, too. That was at least a gentler approach, but the problem was that the noble bastards didn't come alone. They brought pages or maids. Would the nobles suffer? No, their servants would. When a little child came looking for him, trembling all over, it was hard to simply ignore them.

"Ho ho. You need only calm your heart through prayer. You can pray with your visitors as well, Brother Captain."

While the first sort of prayer was quite literally prayer, the sort shared with visitors might involve an exchange of fists and feet. Encrid thought it no different from Rem's suggestion.

Dunbachel and Teresa had no interest in such matters. Jaxon privately thought it would be easier to kill them in secret, but didn't say so aloud. He knew better.

Esther merely watched with languid eyes.

"A demon has marked you. You should be careful."

When she told him that, Encrid's response truly unsettled her.

"It'll be strong, right?"

He asked how powerful the demon was.

"Think it'll be hard to beat?"

And that look on his face, as though he were looking forward to fighting it.

"Crazy bastard."

Esther went to the trouble of taking human form just to swear, then turned back into a panther. She was talking to herself, but if she didn't say it out loud, she would only feel more stifled. She couldn't harbor such frustration if she wanted to maintain her spell world. Besides, Encrid wasn't the sort to scold her for suddenly saying something like that.

In any event, Encrid took no one's advice and decided to keep turning the visitors away as best he could. They were still a nuisance, though. He was even considering simply running off to Border Guard when another visitor came.

"It has been a while. Savior of the Kingdom, Demon Killer, Border Guard's..."

"I think that's enough."

They had met before. Encrid thought that if he forgot her name again, that beautiful face would turn into an angry Ghoul's, and opened his mouth.

"Lady Vaisar."

"... You haven't forgotten my name, have you?"

"How could I?"

Encrid was an exceptionally glib man. He managed to get through the exchange without saying her name.

Even Kin Vaisar, counted among the capital's greatest beauties, couldn't press the matter. She hadn't come alone, and there was no flaw in what the man before her had said. She could hardly demand that he tell her her own name. It would be rude, and beneath her dignity as a noble.

'I do think he's forgotten.'

She was suspicious, at least. Justifiably so. Encrid had indeed forgotten her name while repeating today.

As he watched her, wondering why she'd come all the way to the training ground, five attendants and an old man approached from behind her.

"I hear you've had a great many tiresome visitors lately."

It was Marquis Vaisar. Kin bowed her head and stepped aside.

"No need to arrange a seat for me. I have no intention of troubling you or taking up your time."

Marquis Vaisar was an efficient man by nature. He hated wasting time. That set him apart from the other visitors. Instead of sending a page or maid, he had sent a member of his house, and had come right into the training ground himself. With Rem and the others watching, he spoke.

"I hear you're well past marrying age. Marry Kin."

Encrid was no fool. Even Krais had acknowledged his intelligence. Kin lowered her head without a trace of embarrassment, while the marquis acted as though there could be no downside to his proposal.

"Marcus will inherit my marquisate."

Taken together with that statement, the meaning of the offer was clear. Kin Vaisar was a symbol. A symbol linking Encrid to House Vaisar.

What advantage would that bring? Once the award ceremony began, House Vaisar would receive a dukedom. It had that much influence, and Marcus Vaisar was among those who had rendered outstanding service in the battle. If he became head of House Centerpole, a dukedom was assured.

Take the kingdom's one and only ducal house as your backing. Do whatever you wish. Nothing will be forced upon you. That was the meaning hidden in the proposal.

Marquis Vaisar was no fool, either. He had no intention of coercing or constraining Encrid in any way. If Encrid would simply forge a closer bond with them, he would give him the kingdom's greatest beauty and anything else he needed. That was the marquis's offer.

He could have offered another daughter of the house instead of Kin, but he hadn't. Kin Vaisar was his way of showing respect. It was such a bold offer that even Krang, had he heard it, might have wondered whether Encrid would accept.

Encrid stared at the marquis for a moment, then turned his eyes to Kin Vaisar.

Daughters of noble houses commonly entered political marriages. Society encouraged it. But did that make it enjoyable? Did it make them happy?

Encrid didn't know Kin Vaisar well. But he did see her as a person, not merely a woman. Though they weren't well acquainted, they had crossed paths and spoken a few times. The Kin Vaisar he had seen then hadn't seemed to want a life as the mistress of a manor.

What he was about to say might itself be presumptuous, but Encrid did what he always did. Since when had he ever held his tongue for the sake of manners?

"What's your dream?"

So he asked. Kin Vaisar turned her expressionless face toward him.

She was a symbol. Merely a partner in a political marriage. That was all. He didn't need to feel any affection for her; he needn't do anything at all. So what was this about dreams? It had nothing to do with the situation.

"Don't you have a dream? Something you want to do?"

Kin Vaisar was flustered. This bastard really was an unpredictable bastard. Marquis Vaisar remained silent. He wasn't a man who showed his feelings.

Was she allowed to answer?

"I think you do."

She had been born into a noble house, but she hadn't meekly stayed at home. And so there was something she wanted to do. But it wasn't something she could say before the head of the house. Within the family, the marquis's word was law. If he told her to enter a political marriage, that was what she did.

"To be with the Savior of the Kingdom."

Kin gave the model answer. No one spoke. The marquis, too, merely watched.

"Something. You want. To do."

Encrid asked again, each word clipped and distinct. Kin began to sweat. She felt as though she were standing at the edge of a cliff.

"Tell him."

The marquis spoke with his gaze fixed on Encrid. Only then did Kin cautiously open her mouth.

"I'm interested in working with jewels. I've been doing a little on the side."

"For a little sideline, I hear you've approached a fairly sizable trading company."

The marquis already knew. Kin Vaisar had an excellent eye for jewels. She also led the capital's fashions and trends. It came from her innate sense and the eye she had cultivated since childhood as a daughter of House Vaisar. Of course, that innate sense was good enough to call her a genius.

"Is that what you wished to do?"

The marquis asked. Kin didn't know how to answer in this situation. When she remained silent, Encrid spoke for her.

"Why even ask? People get stubborn when they're old. Stop being so stubborn and leave her alone."

Most of the attendants were appalled. Hadn't that crossed a line? Still, none intended to attack. Encrid alone was frightening enough. With the others standing behind him, it was only natural that they wouldn't dare.

Rem was grinning as he licked the edge of his axe.

"That's filthy."

Ragna chided him.

"Mind your own business."

The two soon began bickering.

"You think it's because I'm old?"

The marquis blinked as he asked. There was no trace of amusement in him. It might have been intimidating, but compared with the demon-possessed Count Molsen, it was almost cute.

"My sword is all I need to prove myself."

Encrid answered. That was the end of the conversation. He had no reason to treat this man differently from the other nobles. He truly thought that. Marquis Vaisar, Somerset, whoever they were, they were all the same.

"I'll be going, then."

Just tiresome people stealing his training time.

He bowed his head politely and turned away. The marquis glared at him for a moment before turning his own head. He did look thoroughly put out.

"He's still a marquis. You sure that'll be all right? Or should we just give him a little snick?"

Rem drew the edge of his hand across his throat as he offered more advice. Encrid ignored him.

"What a waste of time."

He meant it. He had learned and realized so much that his body itched to move. And with good reason: he had lacked talent from the moment he first picked up a sword.

Yet he had awakened his Will in an instant, put it into practice, and even imitated Ragna's sword. Now that he could feel the changes in his body, every swing was ten times more enjoyable than before.

Of course, to people who didn't know, Pell included, he was simply a training-obsessed madman.

Having seen how beautiful Kin Vaisar was, Pell looked at Encrid and wondered whether the man's two balls and one rod really were made of stone.

"Is he impotent?"

He asked Dunbachel, who stood beside him.

"I think so, too. He won't fall for me, either."

Pell looked at the sour-smelling Dunbachel and thought,

'I wouldn't fall for you, either.'

The Beastman beside him really hated washing.