Only Obedient to Me! Sir Knight Chapter 40

The meal was a lively affair. At first, people who had been unable to speak to Rowy, conscious of his presence, quickly became boisterous as soon as Van smiled and greeted them first. Perhaps because they deliberately avoided serious topics like demons, the atmosphere only improved as time went on.

Of course, the “good atmosphere” was only from the perspective of the others… Rowy hated noisy spaces like this and despised making conversation with strangers. Still, because Van was sitting nearby and skillfully deflecting the attention directed toward Rowy, Rowy just had to eat quietly without paying mind to the others. But if he was going to be like that, why did he even come along? Well, because….

“…”

Rowy glanced at Van, who was smiling brightly beside him. If you listened closely, they weren’t even talking about anything special, yet Van would burst into loud laughter whenever someone said something.

‘…He looks so bright.’

…If it weren’t for that face, he would have left a long time ago. Rowy, who successfully suppressed the spite that tried to well up, went on eating quietly.

“Haha.”

Whether he knew Rowy’s heart or not, Van burst into loud laughter again. It was exactly as Rowy had sensed. Amidst the people he had missed, Van was laughing brightly for the first time in a while. Being treated so warmly by them, even after he had left like a fugitive without a proper goodbye, felt as if the stone that had always pressed on a corner of his heart was washing away. It was almost as if they had returned to the way things were in the past.

“…”

Of course… not everything was exactly the same as before. The empty seats, the people who hadn’t come. Van laughed even louder whenever he saw things like that. The raucous meal continued late into the night. There were a few who showed tears as they parted, but Van just kept smiling and chuckling even while saying his goodbyes. And Rowy was watching such a Van with a sullen expression.

‘Why does he keep smiling like that?’

How could he possibly say goodbye for so long? Anyone would think he was heading far away. He was going to the temple tomorrow anyway. …And why is that guy being so clingy? Rowy glared with annoyance at Max, who kept grabbing and hanging onto Van’s waist.

“Captain…!”

“Haha.”

“I really missed you!”

“Yes, yes.”

…Why is he even entertaining that? Finally, Rowy, thoroughly irritated, trotted over to Van and poked him hard in the side.

“…Master?”

“I’m tired.”

“Oh, please, come this way.”

Van, who had been laughing and chatting with Max, was startled and quickly pulled Rowy to his side. Now that he thought about it, it was well past Rowy’s bedtime. Because they had met after so long, there was so much to say that the meal had dragged on.

“Then, I’ll be off now.”

As if he hadn’t been talking for so long, Van finished his goodbyes hurriedly and headed toward the inn with Rowy. Since both the restaurant and the inn were in the central plaza, they arrived quickly.

Even upon returning to the inn, soothing the grumbling Rowy, finishing their preparations for bed, and lying down together, Van was still smiling happily. Seeing that face made the spiteful feeling surge again. Rowy poked Van repeatedly with his finger for no reason. It made him even more irritated that he was hard everywhere he poked. Rowy asked in a voice full of spikes.

“Do you want to live in the temple again?”

“Pardon? With you, Master?”

“Why would I live here?”

“Then, I have no reason to live there either, do I?”

“…”

…That’s true, isn’t it? Rowy’s mood brightened instantly, and he burrowed into Van’s arms again. Van pulled him close, holding him, and asked in a low voice.

“After we break the curse, that is.”

“Yeah.”

“Are you planning to go back to the island?”

“Well, I suppose so?”

“Then, would you truly consider having the castle renovated this time?”

“Hm?”

At the sudden comment, Rowy, who had been burying his face in Van’s chest, looked up.

“Why all of a sudden? I made it perfectly fine with magic. I even embedded mana stones into it.”

“Even so. It’s different from fixing it manually.”

“Well, do whatever you want.”

Rowy nodded vaguely. He didn’t understand why he wanted to fix it up as long as it didn’t collapse, but…. However, Van had more concrete plans than he thought. He said the captain had offered to introduce him to a repairman—heaven knows when they’d had that conversation. As for the castle, which appeared to be of high value, he had already asked Seilan separately about a restoration expert.

“…When on earth did you get close with Seilan?”

“Pardon? We aren’t close.”

“…”

Rowy, who didn’t even hold conversations with people he wasn’t close to, shut his mouth. Even while he was silent, Van kept rattling on about what he would fix and how. It was to the point where it seemed like he was going to rebuild the castle from scratch.

“…Wait, were you that dissatisfied with the castle?”

“It’s a place we’re living in together, so it’s good to have it repaired.”

…Well, if you put it that way. Rowy grew quiet again and just nodded.

“So, once we return…. First things first…”

‘Returning, huh….’

That sounds pretty good…. Rowy yawned softly, using Van’s continuous voice as a lullaby as he closed his eyes.

. ꕤ ｡ ˚⋆

While the ritual was being prepared, Van and Rowy visited the temple regularly. It was because Van wanted to provide some help, as it had been a long time since he had visited. Under the permission of his generous master, Rowy, Van returned to caring for the temple children and looking for places to repair, just as he had done in the past.

While Van was busy moving about, Rowy also wandered around the temple, busy in his own way. It certainly wasn’t to help the temple like Van was… it was because he had become interested in divine power.

Unfortunately, despite running around diligently, he didn’t learn much, mainly because he couldn’t even have a proper conversation with the priests to begin with. For example, it went like this. When he asked a priest about blessing prayers….

‘Is this really effective? What’s the principle behind it?’

‘If you pray, everything is fulfilled.’

‘Do you mean that divine power is unleashed when you pray?’

‘Pardon? If you just pray, it all works out.’

‘…’

It didn’t seem like they were deliberately trying not to tell him; they genuinely seemed to think that way. That everything happens if you just pray.

‘How can that be?’

The mage, who could never tolerate not digging into the principles of things, tilted his head. He had hit a wall right from the start, but that wasn’t enough to stop Rowy’s curiosity.

‘In that case, I will find out for myself.’

And so, under the guise of “researching divine power,” Rowy started popping up in the middle of blessing prayers. Naturally, complaints poured in from the customers—or rather, the believers—about his intrusion.

‘Mages Prohibited.’

In the end, Rowy was issued a ban on entering the prayer room. Rowy grumbled upon seeing the large notice posted on the door. Of course, posting a piece of paper wasn’t enough to stop Rowy. However, after he was dragged away by Van, who had shown a rare, stern expression, Rowy had no choice but to stop raiding the prayer rooms.

‘With that scary look on your face….’

Seeing as the person who always listened to anything Rowy said with a smile had hardened his expression… it was a bit scary, even for Rowy. For that reason… Rowy had no choice but to turn his interest elsewhere.

The new target he found was the Elysian Temple’s other source of revenue: talismans. More precisely, he felt interested in the holy phrases written on the talismans. Rowy had been thinking he should study them ever since he saw the holy phrase written on The Holy Sword.

‘I want to learn holy phrases.’

‘Holy phrases?’

What would you use those for? Doubt filled Van’s face. Although he didn’t understand it… Van still found a teacher for Rowy. The person he was introduced to at that time was Priest Liner, who was currently in front of Rowy.

“Hi.”

“…”

Rowy waved his hand with a flutter, offering a greeting. Priest Liner, receiving the greeting, bowed his head to Rowy in return. As he did, the white cloth covering his face fluttered along with him. Curiously, Priest Liner covered half his face with a white cloth, explaining that it indicated he was in the middle of a vow of silence.

‘What kind of training is it to not talk?’

He couldn’t understand it at all… but regardless, Priest Liner was a pretty good teacher.

It was said that among the priests, he knew the most about holy phrases, and as expected, every time Rowy asked something, the content he wrote down immediately was excellent enough to satisfy even the demanding Rowy. Thanks to that, Rowy was currently in the middle of satisfactory holy phrase research.

“Hmm, hmm….”

Rowy, humming as he pulled out a chair next to Priest Liner, examined the talismans spread out across the table.

“What is this? Drawing talismans again? You said you were finished yesterday.”

Priest Liner, whose erudition was high enough to be acknowledged even by the genius mage Rowy, was currently:

‘Pregnancy prayer.’

…Busy drawing pregnancy prayer talismans.

‘…It seems like Seilan ruined the temple.’

“Hmm, well, keep at it.”

Rowy, who nodded vaguely with an ambiguous expression, took out the model of The Holy Sword from his robes. It was that very model he had received as a prize for darts. Lately, Rowy had been pouring his energy into analyzing the holy phrase written on it. Floating the model in the air, Rowy opened the holy book he had borrowed from Priest Liner.

‘It reminds me of my time at the Academy….’

In the temple backyard where the two had settled in, only the sound of Priest Liner drawing talismans and Rowy flipping through the holy book could be heard. This very time was the moment Rowy liked most these days.

‘Maybe I have the constitution to be a priest.’

Thinking such ridiculous thoughts, Rowy’s peaceful daily life in the temple continued again today.

“…”

And… there was a gaze that was persistently watching such a Rowy.