'...Why?'
Why had it been left behind? Puzzled, he picked up the clothing, and the long, trailing hem was suddenly tugged tight. Only then did Yuder realize that a portion of the garment had been trapped beneath him, causing a moment of embarrassment.
'Surely, it wasn't removed because of this... Does this mean I should return it today, after I leave first?'
No matter how much he thought about it, the latter seemed more plausible. After completely freeing the trapped hem of the garment, Yuder folded it roughly and set it aside, then rose from his spot. He felt less fatigued, perhaps due to the sleep he had, but his eyes were still quite heavy.
'It's a relief that I don't necessarily have to participate in today's training...'
Normally, he wouldn't have been this tired just from staying up for a day. The likely cause of his poor condition was closely related to the incident that had occurred in the early morning, but since it was all a result of his own choices, there was no one to blame.
He sighed and prepared to go outside. First, he wanted to check if there was anything wrong with Kishiar's body, so he folded the outer garment that he had left behind, draped it over his arm, and left the room.
However, before he could reach the Commander's office, someone called out to Yuder in the hallway.
"Yuder!"
Turning his head, he found himself face-to-face with Steiber Rendley, who was the Deputy Commander of the Sul Division. He was with a few other members. As soon as they exchanged brief eye contact, Steiber immediately opened his mouth to ask a question.
"You weren't seen all morning, did you go somewhere?"
His gaze was fixed on Kishiar's clothes hanging on Yuder's arm. He probably didn't recognize whose clothes they were, but he seemed to guess that Yuder had been somewhere related to them.
"No, I just woke up a bit late... I was just about to get moving."
"Oversleeping? That's unusual."
Steiber, who had widened his eyes, chuckled after a moment.
"You must have been tired from working too much these days. No matter how young you are, health is the most important. I'm over 40 now, and I can definitely feel that my body isn't what it used to be. You should be careful in advance. You look quite pale, do you want some special health juice made at our bakery?"
Yuder thanked the kind middle-aged man who was showing concern for his pale complexion, assuring him that he was fine.
"But... what were you three discussing here? Was there an incident?"
The atmosphere between him and the other members was strangely different from usual. It didn't seem like they were just chatting, and sure enough, when he asked, Steiber expressed admiration.
"How did you know? Actually, we were discussing an incident that happened at the training ground."
An incident at the training ground? Yuder's eyebrows twitched at the unusual feeling.
"There doesn't seem to be anyone in the Commander's office, and it's also difficult for us to handle it on our own, so when I saw you, the assistant, I called you... haha."
"There's no one in the Commander's office? Nathan Zuckerman should be there."
After Kishiar entered his cycle, the Deputy Commanders rarely came to the Commander's office, but if they deemed it necessary, they occasionally came up to convey their opinions to Nathan Zuckerman or Yuder. Of course, Nathan Zuckerman wasn't always in the Commander's office, but if that were the case, he would have called Yuder to take some action, so it was incomprehensible that he had left his post without any news.
"I thought so too. But the door was completely locked. And there was someone who saw the Commander's carriage leaving a few hours ago. So we thought the Commander had temporarily gone out with Zuckerman and you."
Steiber, stroking his chin, sighed in response.
"It's fortunate that you were here... Hmm."
'The carriage left...?'
In that case, as Steiber said, it was highly likely that Kishiar had temporarily left the Cavalry and accompanied Nathan Zuckerman.
'I wonder what happened. He should barely be able to move since his cycle hasn't ended yet. Is he okay?'
He couldn't think of where they might have gone. Yuder decided to abandon his plan to go to the Commander's office for now.
"I see. I didn't know the Commander had left."
"If he didn't tell you, he probably didn't go far. It's better to wait for him to return and tell us."
"But Steiber... can everyone wait until then? The atmosphere isn't very good right now..."
One of the members who had been with Steiber interjected with a furrowed face. It was Dover, who was relatively quiet among the members.
"If we go back and wait for the Commander to come, someone might really rush into the training ground to fight the Imperial Knights.
"That's the problem... Hoo. Everyone has been patient enough, so I don't know what to say..."
"I'm also worried about the condition of the item."
"What exactly happened?"
Yuder cut off their conversation and opened his mouth. He couldn't ignore the mention of the Imperial Knights.
'What happened? Is it related to them?'
"Hmm. Well..."
Eventually, Steiber began to speak with a troubled look in his eyes.
"To put it briefly, it's an emotional issue related to the use of the training ground. We were allowed to use the training ground only until the morning, and when one of us left, he realized he had left something behind and went to get it, but the knights wouldn't let him in."
"They wouldn't let him in?"
At Yuder's question, Dover, with his shoulders slumped, muttered, “And they were extremely insulting.”
"Even though it would only take a moment, and it was an important item, so we promised to get it right away, they mocked us. There have been similar incidents before, but it never got this serious. Today, it almost exploded. We thought of calling the Commander through Steiber and a few of us came back first, but we don't know what to do in this situation. Phew."
Among the training grounds that the Cavalry could use, the rest, except for the open space behind the barracks and the small space inside the barracks building, were originally used by the Imperial Knights. Kishiar had chosen the training grounds close to the barracks and allowed the Cavalry to use them for a set time, which the knights found extremely unpleasant.
They often sent silent threats and pressure to the Cavalry members during the change of training ground usage rights, and some even started quarrels as if to make them hear from outside before the training ended.
"Ever since the festival where the Cavalry's name rose, it had been quiet, but I never thought this problem would erupt. I understood Steiber's words, 'we've endured as much as we could.'”
"So... where are the other members who were training there now?"
"They're still in front of the training ground."
"How many?"
"About... fifteen."
"And the Imperial Knights?"
"Over twenty."
Yuder looked at the faces of the members, each with a different expression. Even the cautious Steiber, who suggested waiting for now, couldn't hide his discomfort, indicating that he had been quite troubled by this issue. And yet they had endured until today. The long-standing feelings towards the Imperial Knights stirred anew.
"Yuder. Would you come with us if you're okay?"
Dover, sighing deeply once again, asked Yuder for help.
"Whether we wait for the Commander or not, it seems difficult to calm those guys down with just us. The Imperial Knights might have provoked more in the meantime..."
The incident where Yuder single-handedly took down several Imperial Knights knights who were picking fights was already famous within the Cavalry. Seeing the hopeful looks in their eyes, Yuder felt strangely unfamiliar, but he nodded firmly.
"Okay."
"Thank you, Yuder. It's a matter that I, as the Deputy Commander, should be responsible for... It's embarrassing, but I can't be more relieved that you're coming with us."
Steiber lowered his voice and expressed his gratitude with a relieved face.
"No problem. I'm glad if I can help."
"Just being there is already a big help. We're sorry to call you out for this when you looked tired."
Yuder looked at Steiber's face thoughtfully. He was popular among the members and had excellent abilities, but he still lacked experience in playing the role of Deputy Commander in hostile situations. It was impressive to see him smiling honestly, without any sign of hurt pride, in such a situation.
'Just like Ever, experience comes with time, so it doesn't matter.'
This opportunity might be a good chance to show him how to handle such situations to some extent. It was a good choice for them to come to Kishiar first, but they also needed to know that there was no need to be considerate of the Imperial Knights.
"Dover! You're here?"
"Where's the Commander?"
"Huh? It's not the Commander, Steiber and Yuder came together."
"Yuder?"
"Yuder?"
Following Dover's lead, they headed towards the training ground where the Cavalry members were said to be gathered. As they approached, the faces of those who could not hide their anger rushed toward them. Amidst them, Yuder spotted the familiar faces of the Eldore siblings and let out a low sigh. Indeed, if the Eldore siblings were involved, it was understandable why Dover was worried that the angry members might not be able to hold back any longer.
As he looked around, he saw knights inside the training ground, flaunting their swords as if to show off. They pretended not to care about this side, but anyone could see they were mocking. Most of them were strangers, but three were familiar. If he didn't know their names but recognized their faces, there was only one reason. They were the ones who had ignored Kishiar and passed by some time ago.
Upon recognizing their faces, Yuder's eyes gradually narrowed.
'Hmm...?'
After imprinting the faces of those who had ignored Kishiar in his mind, Yuder, who was looking around again, spotted another familiar knight.
'Kiolle da Diarca. Seeing him here again.'
He was the one among the knights who was yawning with the most nonchalant expression. He hadn't noticed Yuder yet, but after seeing him, Yuder thought that this matter might be resolved much better than he thought.
"Steiber! Listen! Those guys..."
"Did the Commander give permission? Then we can now enter the training ground, right?"
"Wait, just a moment. Let me speak first..."
In the midst of the excited Cavalry members, Yuder took a step forward to rescue Steiber, who was waving his hands as if surrounded by excited puppies.
"I'm sorry, but the Commander is not here right now."
"Huh?"
Upon hearing the soft yet strangely nerve-grabbing voice, the members all quieted down at once.
"He's not here? So we can't go in again?"
"Do we have to wait until we can go in tomorrow?"
The Eldore siblings asked in unison. Yuder, enduring the gaze of several pairs of eyes turned towards him, continued his words.
"No."
His lips, which had been tightly closed, drew a faint upward curve.
'...Why?'
Why had it been left behind? Puzzled, he picked up the clothing, and the long, trailing hem was suddenly tugged tight. Only then did Yuder realize that a portion of the garment had been trapped beneath him, causing a moment of embarrassment.
'Surely, it wasn't removed because of this... Does this mean I should return it today, after I leave first?'
No matter how much he thought about it, the latter seemed more plausible. After completely freeing the trapped hem of the garment, Yuder folded it roughly and set it aside, then rose from his spot. He felt less fatigued, perhaps due to the sleep he had, but his eyes were still quite heavy.
'It's a relief that I don't necessarily have to participate in today's training...'
Normally, he wouldn't have been this tired just from staying up for a day. The likely cause of his poor condition was closely related to the incident that had occurred in the early morning, but since it was all a result of his own choices, there was no one to blame.
He sighed and prepared to go outside. First, he wanted to check if there was anything wrong with Kishiar's body, so he folded the outer garment that he had left behind, draped it over his arm, and left the room.
However, before he could reach the Commander's office, someone called out to Yuder in the hallway.
"Yuder!"
Turning his head, he found himself face-to-face with Steiber Rendley, who was the Deputy Commander of the Sul Division. He was with a few other members. As soon as they exchanged brief eye contact, Steiber immediately opened his mouth to ask a question.
"You weren't seen all morning, did you go somewhere?"
His gaze was fixed on Kishiar's clothes hanging on Yuder's arm. He probably didn't recognize whose clothes they were, but he seemed to guess that Yuder had been somewhere related to them.
"No, I just woke up a bit late... I was just about to get moving."
"Oversleeping? That's unusual."
Steiber, who had widened his eyes, chuckled after a moment.
"You must have been tired from working too much these days. No matter how young you are, health is the most important. I'm over 40 now, and I can definitely feel that my body isn't what it used to be. You should be careful in advance. You look quite pale, do you want some special health juice made at our bakery?"
Yuder thanked the kind middle-aged man who was showing concern for his pale complexion, assuring him that he was fine.
"But... what were you three discussing here? Was there an incident?"
The atmosphere between him and the other members was strangely different from usual. It didn't seem like they were just chatting, and sure enough, when he asked, Steiber expressed admiration.
"How did you know? Actually, we were discussing an incident that happened at the training ground."
An incident at the training ground? Yuder's eyebrows twitched at the unusual feeling.
"There doesn't seem to be anyone in the Commander's office, and it's also difficult for us to handle it on our own, so when I saw you, the assistant, I called you... haha."
"There's no one in the Commander's office? Nathan Zuckerman should be there."
After Kishiar entered his cycle, the Deputy Commanders rarely came to the Commander's office, but if they deemed it necessary, they occasionally came up to convey their opinions to Nathan Zuckerman or Yuder. Of course, Nathan Zuckerman wasn't always in the Commander's office, but if that were the case, he would have called Yuder to take some action, so it was incomprehensible that he had left his post without any news.
"I thought so too. But the door was completely locked. And there was someone who saw the Commander's carriage leaving a few hours ago. So we thought the Commander had temporarily gone out with Zuckerman and you."
Steiber, stroking his chin, sighed in response.
"It's fortunate that you were here... Hmm."
'The carriage left...?'
In that case, as Steiber said, it was highly likely that Kishiar had temporarily left the Cavalry and accompanied Nathan Zuckerman.
'I wonder what happened. He should barely be able to move since his cycle hasn't ended yet. Is he okay?'
He couldn't think of where they might have gone. Yuder decided to abandon his plan to go to the Commander's office for now.
"I see. I didn't know the Commander had left."
"If he didn't tell you, he probably didn't go far. It's better to wait for him to return and tell us."
"But Steiber... can everyone wait until then? The atmosphere isn't very good right now..."
One of the members who had been with Steiber interjected with a furrowed face. It was Dover, who was relatively quiet among the members.
"If we go back and wait for the Commander to come, someone might really rush into the training ground to fight the Imperial Knights.
"That's the problem... Hoo. Everyone has been patient enough, so I don't know what to say..."
"I'm also worried about the condition of the item."
"What exactly happened?"
Yuder cut off their conversation and opened his mouth. He couldn't ignore the mention of the Imperial Knights.
'What happened? Is it related to them?'
"Hmm. Well..."
Eventually, Steiber began to speak with a troubled look in his eyes.
"To put it briefly, it's an emotional issue related to the use of the training ground. We were allowed to use the training ground only until the morning, and when one of us left, he realized he had left something behind and went to get it, but the knights wouldn't let him in."
"They wouldn't let him in?"
At Yuder's question, Dover, with his shoulders slumped, muttered, “And they were extremely insulting.”
"Even though it would only take a moment, and it was an important item, so we promised to get it right away, they mocked us. There have been similar incidents before, but it never got this serious. Today, it almost exploded. We thought of calling the Commander through Steiber and a few of us came back first, but we don't know what to do in this situation. Phew."
Among the training grounds that the Cavalry could use, the rest, except for the open space behind the barracks and the small space inside the barracks building, were originally used by the Imperial Knights. Kishiar had chosen the training grounds close to the barracks and allowed the Cavalry to use them for a set time, which the knights found extremely unpleasant.
They often sent silent threats and pressure to the Cavalry members during the change of training ground usage rights, and some even started quarrels as if to make them hear from outside before the training ended.
"Ever since the festival where the Cavalry's name rose, it had been quiet, but I never thought this problem would erupt. I understood Steiber's words, 'we've endured as much as we could.'”
"So... where are the other members who were training there now?"
"They're still in front of the training ground."
"How many?"
"About... fifteen."
"And the Imperial Knights?"
"Over twenty."
Yuder looked at the faces of the members, each with a different expression. Even the cautious Steiber, who suggested waiting for now, couldn't hide his discomfort, indicating that he had been quite troubled by this issue. And yet they had endured until today. The long-standing feelings towards the Imperial Knights stirred anew.
"Yuder. Would you come with us if you're okay?"
Dover, sighing deeply once again, asked Yuder for help.
"Whether we wait for the Commander or not, it seems difficult to calm those guys down with just us. The Imperial Knights might have provoked more in the meantime..."
The incident where Yuder single-handedly took down several Imperial Knights knights who were picking fights was already famous within the Cavalry. Seeing the hopeful looks in their eyes, Yuder felt strangely unfamiliar, but he nodded firmly.
"Okay."
"Thank you, Yuder. It's a matter that I, as the Deputy Commander, should be responsible for... It's embarrassing, but I can't be more relieved that you're coming with us."
Steiber lowered his voice and expressed his gratitude with a relieved face.
"No problem. I'm glad if I can help."
"Just being there is already a big help. We're sorry to call you out for this when you looked tired."
Yuder looked at Steiber's face thoughtfully. He was popular among the members and had excellent abilities, but he still lacked experience in playing the role of Deputy Commander in hostile situations. It was impressive to see him smiling honestly, without any sign of hurt pride, in such a situation.
'Just like Ever, experience comes with time, so it doesn't matter.'
This opportunity might be a good chance to show him how to handle such situations to some extent. It was a good choice for them to come to Kishiar first, but they also needed to know that there was no need to be considerate of the Imperial Knights.
"Dover! You're here?"
"Where's the Commander?"
"Huh? It's not the Commander, Steiber and Yuder came together."
"Yuder?"
"Yuder?"
Following Dover's lead, they headed towards the training ground where the Cavalry members were said to be gathered. As they approached, the faces of those who could not hide their anger rushed toward them. Amidst them, Yuder spotted the familiar faces of the Eldore siblings and let out a low sigh. Indeed, if the Eldore siblings were involved, it was understandable why Dover was worried that the angry members might not be able to hold back any longer.
As he looked around, he saw knights inside the training ground, flaunting their swords as if to show off. They pretended not to care about this side, but anyone could see they were mocking. Most of them were strangers, but three were familiar. If he didn't know their names but recognized their faces, there was only one reason. They were the ones who had ignored Kishiar and passed by some time ago.
Upon recognizing their faces, Yuder's eyes gradually narrowed.
'Hmm...?'
After imprinting the faces of those who had ignored Kishiar in his mind, Yuder, who was looking around again, spotted another familiar knight.
'Kiolle da Diarca. Seeing him here again.'
He was the one among the knights who was yawning with the most nonchalant expression. He hadn't noticed Yuder yet, but after seeing him, Yuder thought that this matter might be resolved much better than he thought.
"Steiber! Listen! Those guys..."
"Did the Commander give permission? Then we can now enter the training ground, right?"
"Wait, just a moment. Let me speak first..."
In the midst of the excited Cavalry members, Yuder took a step forward to rescue Steiber, who was waving his hands as if surrounded by excited puppies.
"I'm sorry, but the Commander is not here right now."
"Huh?"
Upon hearing the soft yet strangely nerve-grabbing voice, the members all quieted down at once.
"He's not here? So we can't go in again?"
"Do we have to wait until we can go in tomorrow?"
The Eldore siblings asked in unison. Yuder, enduring the gaze of several pairs of eyes turned towards him, continued his words.
"No."
His lips, which had been tightly closed, drew a faint upward curve.
