Chapter 149

Chapter 149: A Walking Fortress

“S-Squad Leader! Something seems to be approaching!”

The gatekeepers immediately adopted a Level 1 alert posture.
They raised their rifles, concealing their bodies behind cover.

Shortly thereafter, the source of the vibration revealed itself from the dense forest.
It was a large boulder.
The boulder was moving.

Such a misunderstanding was brief; as it drew closer, they realized it was not a golem, but a suit of armor.
No, was it truly just armor?
Its weight was so immense that vibrations spread with every step.
It was as if an underground golem had arrived.

It came closer.
A body roughly two meters tall felt like a mountain.
As he approached, the squad leader opened his mouth to carry out his duty.

“H-Halt…!”

A man who could not even properly pronounce the short word ‘halt.’
Once close enough, the armored figure stopped on his own, placing his shield in front of him.

Rumble!

With a deep resonance, the man ceased moving.
The gatekeeper cautiously approached and asked him:
“W-Who are you?”

His speech naturally became polite upon sensing a threat to his life.
In response, the armored man silently unfolded a crumpled piece of paper.
It was extremely worn, but the seal stamped on that document belonged to Count Consillus.

“As a knight who achieved merit in this monster subjugation battle, this proves an audience with Regent Ferda Valdrova… huh?”

The gatekeepers exchanged glances upon seeing the document.

“That can’t be… isn’t there a mistake?”
“The Armored Knight who was supposed to come already entered, didn’t she?”
“Right, they said she would arrive in the morning, and she did arrive in the morning…”

The guards wore troubled expressions, as they could not deny him entry while he held the certificate.

“Y-You may pass.”

When the squad leader returned the certificate, the armored man raised his shield and began walking.
Insufferably heavy steps headed toward Hestia Village.

Meanwhile, Erica was pleased that the Armored Knight, Valdrova, had accepted her proposal.

‘I thought it would take longer to conclude; I never expected it to be resolved like this.’

Erica clenched her fist to suppress the tremor born of achievement and expressed her gratitude.

“Ahem! Thank you very much. If the day comes when the Serdes Continent is saved, it will undoubtedly have been possible thanks to your assistance, Knight.”

Taking advantage of the good atmosphere, Erica astutely asked once more:
“Anonymity is guaranteed, so could you perhaps tell me a little about your identity?”

Valdrova shook her head firmly.

“Understood. Unfortunate, but… it cannot be helped.”

A trait of the Spawns of Iorga: curiosity must be satisfied at all costs.
Harboring the determination to uncover her identity someday, she brought the conversation to a close for now.
She released the barrier magic.

“Then tomorrow, please stop by the Adventurers Guild first instead of the Labor Union here. There are things to coordinate, and since I know you are not working simply for money, we will need to adjust schedules.”

Valdrova nodded.
Thus, Valdrova and Erica stepped outside.

Hanson, whom they thought would be waiting at the door, stood in front of the labor union lobby, bewildered.
It was due to the statue standing at the entrance.

Hanson spoke while looking at that statue:
“Excuse me, this is not the Adventurers Guild; it is the Labor Union. This is no place for you, sir…”

No, that was not a statue.
It was a man clad in armor so heavy that calling it a fortress would not be an exaggeration.
The armor and shield undulated as if repeatedly melted and hardened, appearing so heavy that taking even a single step seemed difficult.
At the same time, the fact that he took a step proved he possessed strength so tremendous that no one would dare block his path.

Faced with a sight that took the breath away just by looking at it, Erica tilted her head slightly and asked Valdrova:
“An acquaintance?”

Valdrova shook her head.
If it were an acquaintance, it could only be dragons—yet no dragon walked around in such armor. Even in human form, they maintained their own appearance rather than being so heavily encased.

The knight’s helmet, motionless as a statue, shifted.
Valdrova felt a gaze coming from beyond the visor.
He was looking at her.

“You…?”

A deep resonance broke the silence.

“A shameless thief who steals the achievements of others.”

That was the moment.
In the eyes of Valdrova, whose combat intuition surpassed anyone else’s, it became clear.
The precursor to his movement: he intended to smash her head with the club.

The thick, hard club swung.

“What do you think you’re…!”

Erica attempted to respond swiftly, binding his arm with magic to halt the club.

Crack!

No, she could not.
Erica’s intent shattered alongside the Binding Chains she had cast.

“W-What…!”

Erica’s magic was a 5th Circle binding spell, potent enough to restrain even an ogre, unmatched in raw force.
Yet that man shattered the spell effortlessly.
She had assessed him based on that heavy armor, but even that had been an underestimation.

That force struck toward Valdrova’s head.

Boom!

A shockwave erupted.

“Kyaak!”
“Uwaak!”

Bystanders fell backward, and dust fell from the ceiling in clumps.
Had that strike landed cleanly, she would have been left mangled.
Yet that did not happen.

His club did not touch the ground, stopping right above the Armored Knight’s head.
Just as he swung the club with one hand, the Armored Knight caught the end of the club with a single hand.

“Mmm…”

The man exhaled heavily.

“For a thief, you have skill, don’t you?”

Valdrova looked around while holding that club.
People had collapsed; the building trembled violently.

‘The building… nearly collapsed.’

Emotion surged within her.

‘The building I built…’

A surge of anger she had not felt since the Godwin incident.
Just as that emotion was about to erupt from Valdrova’s heart:

“What is all this commotion on someone else’s territory?”

A youthful voice sounded at that moment.
A commanding weight difficult to believe from a man who had not yet turned twenty.
Upon hearing that voice, Valdrova’s anger evaporated like mist.

The voice that stepped between them belonged to someone Valdrova knew very well.

‘Ferda-san…!’

Her incredibly dashing fiancé.

Before the incident, Ferda had received a report from Isabella.

“The Armored Knight has already entered, but there is news that another Armored Knight has arrived.”

Wondering what nonsense this was, he asked in return.

“One is the Armored Knight who originally worked here, and the one who arrived later is a man bearing the certificate of Count Consillus.”
“Is that so?”

The first to arrive was the familiar Armored Knight, and the one who entered later was undoubtedly Alberto, called the Walking Fortress.
Had it ended there, it would have been dismissed as a simple error, and Isabella would not have reported it specifically.
However, what followed was the issue.

“That man was heading toward the Labor Union, not toward Valdrova Castle.”
“Does that fellow want to work as well, just like the Armored Knight?”

He wondered if that bastard was also an eccentric like the Armored Knight.

“That does not seem to be the case. It appears he might hold a grudge against the Armored Knight who arrived first.”
“A grudge?”
“It is speculated that people welcomed him assuming the Armored Knight arriving today was naturally the one who works here, and he harbored resentment because of it.”

Isabella’s words held merit.
The working anomaly was only that Armored Knight, and if he headed to an unrelated place, her speculation fit.

“An incident seems likely to break out, so I am reporting in advance and intend to depart for the scene.”
“I will go as well.”

Two figures of monstrous strength gathering in one place.
Curious about what might unfold, Ferda decided to witness it with his own eyes.

Upon arriving at the scene, an astonishing sight was taking place.

Boom!

A terrifying shockwave radiated from the Union building.
Tables and chairs, and even people, were pushed back across the entire area.

‘Remarkable.’

Ferda naturally assumed the Armored Knight’s side would be pushed back.
The Armored Knight possessed monstrous strength, but considering Alberto’s reputation, she should have folded before him like a dry leaf.
Yet the scene unfolding before his eyes was entirely different.

The Armored Knight, blocking the strike with one hand, proved she was no lightweight either.
With those two forces matching equally, a shockwave formed, shaking the entire building.
Ferda wondered inwardly who would be stronger if they truly fought to the end.
However, he could not allow it.
This was not a battlefield; it was Hestia Village.
He could not stand by and watch the building collapse.

“What are you doing in someone else’s territory?”

When Ferda appeared, the vicious atmosphere vanished.
Ferda stepped between the two knights and looked toward Alberto.
Imposing from afar, even more massive up close.

Alberto handed the certificate to Ferda.

“The certificate to come here isn’t a permit to cause havoc, is it?”
“I merely sought to apprehend a thief who coveted another’s achievement.”

Ferda was slightly surprised by that.

‘He can speak.’

The Walking Fortress, Alberto.
Having never heard of him speaking, Ferda had naturally assumed he was a mute whose tongue had been cut out.
Yet that was not the case.
He simply refrained from speaking because there was no need to.
While Alberto spoke, the armored figure behind Ferda remained silent.

“That was likely not the intention.”

Inevitably, Ferda defended her instead.

“She took a Vow of Silence and was swept along by the atmosphere without an opportunity to explain herself. The theft of achievements was merely a public misunderstanding. Isn’t that so?”

Ferda glanced sideways at the Armored Knight.
She nodded vigorously.

‘Ferda-san…….’

Valdrova was indescribably happy that he took her side despite her disguised form.
Though broad from wearing armor, that back looked immensely wide and reliable.

‘That simple fellow wouldn’t do such a thing deliberately.’

Judging by how she behaved at the Union, she likely stood there thinking she had to do something, completely unaware.
Ferda simply viewed the Armored Knight as someone possessing foolishly deep affection and honesty.
It was undoubtedly an incident born of misunderstanding, rather than an attempt to steal credit.

“Mmm…….”

Alberto let out a breath.
He seemed to contemplate, though the club remained raised toward the opponent.

“Even the individual themselves cannot fully know a human’s inner thoughts; how could you?”
“On that point, I agree.”

Because maintaining a steadfast heart is difficult, it becomes an object of admiration.
A person’s heart changes as easily as flipping a palm.

“Even so, since she has declared with her own actions that it is a misunderstanding before everyone, how about we overlook the part where you wielded force recklessly and put us in a difficult spot?”

Ferda spoke with gravity.
This was Valdrova territory, and he could not tolerate threats against it.
If the knight intended to cross the line further, Ferda proposed this with the full resolve to fight.

“Understood.”

Alberto retreated obediently.
He had not come to cause trouble in the first place, and his true objective was Ferda.
Fortunately, he was not needlessly combative.

“Follow me.”

The incident was resolved for now as Ferda left with him.
Alberto rested the club on his shoulder.
Five distinct finger impressions were etched into the end of that club.

Ferda conducted the discussion in the Town Hall, the largest building in Hestia Village.
Since many people often gathered there for village matters, it had a proper reception room, so they conversed there.
The reason for avoiding the castle was simple.

‘Because of Ruri.’

Knights had to bathe upon entering; that was the rule.
To do so, they had to undress, but Alberto never removed his armor.
Even without a foul odor, it was impossible for Ruri, who harbored deep resentment against knights, to show flexibility toward Alberto.
Therefore, Ferda arranged the meeting at the Town Hall from the start.
Alberto did not seem to mind either.

“So, what reward do you desire?” Ferda asked first, as outlined in the certificate.

“I have no need for one.”

As expected.
He had come to see Ferda, not driven by simple material desires.

“Then, what is the purpose of your visit?”
“Do you know of the white demons?”

A defining characteristic of demons was black skin.
Yet among them, unusually, there existed one with white skin.
Gokma was such a bastard.

“I know of them.”
“I encountered that bastard.”

It was hardly surprising.
For a wandering knight who purged anything disrupting the peace of the world, demons were the top priority.
In that pursuit, an encounter was inevitable.

‘Is he trying to cooperate here to eliminate him?’

If so, it was a favorable development for Ferda.

“He told me something.”
“What did he say?”
“That he discovered the material for a new Demon King.”

A Demon King.
The Black Dragon Godwin was the root cause of everything, but the Demon King was by no means negligible either.
The Twelve Heroes had fought desperately to kill him, and in the end, one hero perished in mutual destruction.
If that was what the demon said, Alberto could have simply set out to find that Demon King candidate.
Yet Ferda easily deduced why he had come here specifically.

“Is it me?”
“Correct.”
“And you believe the words of that demon?” Ferda asked, subtly probing if he was a fool.

“No, I do not believe them.”

He was no fool.

“However, there was no reason to dismiss those words entirely either.”

Yet he was not reckless enough to ignore a warning.
Ferda leaned back against his chair.

“And if you inspect me and find I truly am a figure worthy of becoming a Demon King?”
“Everything is for the Serdes Continent.”

Meaning he would kill him.

“What is a Demon King?”
“A fool who wishes to turn this continent into a void.”
“Could I become such a fool?”
“Anyone can become such a fool. Creating void through loss, filling the void with twisted emotion. That is what a Demon King is.”

Ferda understood those words.
After his mother died, all affection vanished, and in the end, he was even cast out.
Just like his distant future self before regressing to this timeline.
That version of himself was no different from a Demon King.

“Then let me ask. Are you certain you will not become a Demon King?”

Ferda contemplated those words.
For Valdrova’s sake, he was willing to do anything.

“No.”

Therefore, he could not make such a claim.
A heart willing to do anything could corrupt and eventually distort even its original pure intentions.
Humans were inherently like that, and Ferda was human.

“Then, allow me to make a proposal.”
Ferda extended his hand.
“There is an abandoned territory not far from here.”

The land of the executed Thesalos Walcher.
The time had finally come for that territory to find its true owner.

“How about monitoring me from there?”