The Male Lead Knelt Before Me

Translator: Missme

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Editor: Aru

A representative from the imperial administration arrived a few days later.

He said precisely what Count Van Der had told me a few days before.

That he lost the paperwork for the budget proposal, so please rewrite it and obtain Caleb’s approval again.

“We need to hurry since it’s an urgent matter, and because we’ve already given the Imperial Knights the same information, please choose a member of the Royal Knights to accompany you and come to the province tomorrow morning.”

Although it was near to unilateral notification, I was able to go at a leisurely pace because I had been informed in advance.

Someone knocked on the door as I was preparing the paperwork.

“Oreu, Lady It’s Natalie Seria.
Is it okay if I come in?”

Dame Seria? What’s going on?

I saw Natalie’s face as soon as I asked her to come in.

“What brings you here?”

“I’m here to give you something.
It’s a cookie I made with Mila last night.”

Natalie handed me a cloth pocket with a red ribbon on it, which appeared to be full of cookies.

“Do you mind if I open it and eat it right now?”

“Of course, I brought it for you to eat.”

 

I let go of the ribbon as I pushed the paperwork I was packing next to me.

As expected, it was full of cookies.

“Wow, it looks like a rabbit.”

“Yes, Mila made it.”

The thought of Mila kneading the dough with those fern-like hands made me laugh.

“So cute.”

“If you look, you’ll find bears, too.
I only made the squares.”

I ate the cookie while listening to Natalie’s explanation.

‘It’s delicious.’

After eating one, I inadvertently ate one more and raised my head, and I made eye contact with Natalie.

Oh, I guess I should tell her it’s delicious, right?

“It’s so delicious.”

“I’m glad you like it.
However, are you busy?”

Natalie’s gaze was drawn to the jumbled paperwork on the desk.

I felt ashamed for some reason since it was a little messy, so I straightened out the strewn paperwork.

 

“I need to get some paperwork ready to bring with me.”

“Are you going to work on it at home?”

“No way.
This time, I need to take these to the place where Lord Egon is.”

“Do you mean you’re going to the place where the Commander is?”

“The imperial administration informed me that they had lost the paperwork and requested that I resubmit one after obtaining new approval.”

“So, after you fill out the new paperwork, Lady Oreu, shouldn’t they just leave to get the new approval?”

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“It’s… urgent paperwork, so I don’t think I’ll have time to organize and pass it over to them.
That’s why I have to go there while also completing out paperwork.”

“If you leave it to the Vice-Commander…… you couldn’t.
Since he’s been dispatched as well.”

I nodded, relieved on the inside.

I’m glad I made a good match with the Count in advance.

If I had to say something like, “I’m going because I missed him.” here……

It made me cringe just thinking about it.

Given Natalie’s personality, even if I said that she would accept it calmly.

“Just in case, I’m asking, but are you going there alone, Lady?”

“No, I’ll go with the imperial knights.”

“Are you saying that none of our members is following you?”

“Actually… One person must accompany me.
However, I haven’t requested one yet.”

I said with an awkward smile.

I suppose I’ll have to step outside, explain the issue, and ask someone to accompany me.

“Can I then follow you?”

“Do you wish to accompany me, Dame Seria? Is everything going to be fine? What about Mila?”

Mila’s only guardian was Natalie.

Without her, Mila would have to be alone.

“I’ll just leave her over to our next-door neighbour.”

Natalie, unlike me, who was filled with anxiety, answered calmly.

“If it’s your neighbour, do you mean Ryan’s?”

“That’s correct.
Mrs Chest not only adores Mila, but she also comes to look after her regularly, and I believe it is safe to leave her in her care.
You can ask one of the members if it’s too much for you.”

“But……”

“Or maybe you don’t trust my abilities, Lady?”

“There’s no way.
If you come with me, Dame Seria, I’ll be more than relieved.”

I remembered Natalie’s fighting skills before.

Except for Natalie, all members of the Royal Knights are men, and Natalie rarely loses against the others.

As a result, there was no dispute about her abilities.

“I’m concerned for Mila’s safety.
The leaving time is also tomorrow.
It happened so quickly that I’m not sure you’ll be okay……”

“It’s all right.
I was concerned about Mila as well, but I owe a great deal to you, Lady.
I’d like to assist you in this.”

I couldn’t persuade Natalie to change her mind.

“Can I then ask you for a favour?”

“It’s an honour, Lady.”

* * * * *

I got up early the next morning and went to the palace’s main entrance.

There were already several people at the main gate, including Natalie.

They appeared to be the knights to accompany me, as they wore a sword around their waist and a red uniform embroidered with imperial patterns on their right arm.

Half of them were women.

Female knights may not be common, but seeing that there are half of them, I thought the Count paid a lot of attention.

“Are you Lady Elena Oreu?”

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“Yes, that’s right.”

“My name is Freya Vine, and I’m a member of the Imperial Knights’ first division, and I’ll be escorting you this time, Lady.
One person is yet to arrive.
Could you please wait a moment, Lady?”

I nodded readily in response to the words of the knight with ginger-coloured hair.

In any case, we arrived earlier than our scheduled meeting time.

How long have we been waiting?

“Oh, he’s on his way.
He’s over there!”

Someone yelled and pointed to a specific location.

I could see a man in a black uniform rushing from a distance as I moved my sight.

He was as big as a bear and had a familiar face with copper-coloured skin.

“Sorry for being late.”

The man was Herschel Themis.

* * * * *

Thud!

As the magnificent demonic beast passed, the entire mountain shook violently.

The reaction caused the branches to tremble and the leaves to fall.

Some landed on Caleb’s head and shoulders.

He once brushed off the scabbard, which was crimson with the beast’s blood, and placed it to the scabbard.

“It’s finally dead.
I didn’t know there would be Rykel left.”

Gerlin, his accompanying subordinate, sighed as he observed the demonic beast.

Similarly, his face, which was stained with the beast’s blood, was streaked with tiredness.

It was a foregone conclusion.

It had been more than half a day since he discovered the traces of this beast known as ‘Rykel’ and began shooting to capture it.

“It’s a good thing we caught it.”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.
If we merely went back without realizing there was still a Rykel……”

Gerlin scowled, as if just thinking about it was a nightmare, and turned to face the dead demonic beast.

There was a female one lurking this time, unlike the last time he thought he had caught them all.

He noticed a branch the size of a human forearm had been broken while scouting, and it was lucky that he had scoured the cave for four days to locate it because the loss of life would have been enormous otherwise.

Caleb, who had inserted his sword, reached out and wiped the magic blood from his face with his hand.

His face was covered in black blood.

If it were ordinary people, the appearance would have felt strange and dirty, but Caleb did not appear like that.

On the contrary, his typical brusque demeanour was amplified, and there was even a sense of intimidation.

He’s drenched in blood, but instead of being unsightly, he appears to be quite cool……

‘Face is everything, as expected!’

Gerlin frantically touched his face.

He had never considered himself to be unattractive, but he wondered whether he would feel the same way as Caleb if he buried the same demonic beast blood.

“Do you require a towel? There is a clean towel among the luggage left outside the cave.”

“It’s all right.
Instead of that, I wish you could give me matches and flares.”

“It’s right here.”

Gerlin took out the matches and flares he had in his arms and held them out to Caleb.

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Caleb lighted the flares’ end thread, and red smoke billowed up.

Although the day was bright, the smoke was visible.
Even from a distance, it is clearly visible.

The red smoke means that they have dealt with the beast, so the plain knights and soldiers who guard the province who saw the smoke would come here.

“Let’s take a break until they come.”

“Yes, Commander.”

Only then did Gerlin and the other knights’ dismount.

Caleb glanced at the dead body of the demonic beast while they took a break and cared for the horse.

At first glance, Rykel looked like a lion, but it was much more bizarre and had black fur.

Their sharp claws and teeth are the basics, and the cubs were also tall enough to slightly exceed the height of a normal adult male, and their three-pronged tail created poison.

As a result, it resulted in a high number of casualties and was chosen as the top priority while subjugating.

Caleb, who was extracting the mana stone by splitting Rykel’s belly, had an odd feeling.

‘Was Rykel always this thin?’

Despite the fact that this Rykel had just recently reached adulthood, it appeared to be hungry for quite some time.

Caleb, who was watching the Rykel bones protrude from its leather, had a brief moment of reflection.

“Lord Madin.”

“Yes, Commander.”

Gerlin, who had been napping nearby, leapt to his feet in response to Caleb’s words.

The other knights then gave Caleb an anxious look.

“Let’s take a closer look at this area.
Are you able to leave right now?”

“Of course, Commander.”

“Commander, we’re……”

“Leave the others to rest a little longer and return with the dead body, when the plain knights and soldiers came.”

Caleb’s words brought a sigh of relief to some of the knights.

This was due to their fear that Caleb would ask them to follow him despite their desire to rest.

They then looked reverently at Caleb and Gerlin.

They could utilize Aurors even if they belonged to local estates, but they weren’t as good as the Royal Knights and weren’t as attentive.

When Caleb, who had the knights on standby, climbed on the horse, Gerlin also climbed on the horse.

And the two went exploring in the nearby caverns.

‘As expected.’

Caleb soon discovered Rykel cubs huddled in a cave.

There were signs of faeces all over the cave as if the feeding had already been completed.

Gerlin, who had accompanied him, scowled as he looked around.

“It’s not even breeding season yet, but there are cubs… They’re also fairly huge.
I believe they are on the verge of becoming adults.”

“We’re going to take care of everything.”

Caleb drew his sword from his belt.

The Rykel cubs returned the stare, sensing oddity.

It had a hostile look in its bright yellow eyes.
The cub tried to lift its tail and expose its toenails and teeth, but it was still a baby.

Rykel could not make poison until it became an adult, and its skin retreated like an ordinary beast.
It’s gotten to the point where even if it’s not a sword wrapped around Auror, it can be easily slashed.

It happened when a battle was on the verge of being slaughtered and only a few people still live.

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“Ugh!”

“Commander!”

Caleb’s arm was bitten by one of the Rykel cubs.

It was a calamity because there were only two people present, but several demonic beast babies.

Caleb poked Rykel’s torso, which bit him, casually.

The demonic beast’s ribs were broken and its heart was stabbed by the blade of the sword wrapped by Aurors.

Another sword blade was caught on the demonic beast’s dropping back.

“Are you all right, Commander?”

“I’m fine.
What about the Rykels you were dealing with, Lord Madin?”

Caleb inquired, drawing the sword he’d been using to deal with the Rykel cubs.

This was because he remembered Gerlin was dealing with a Rykel.

But that was no longer the case.

Gerlin later looked around, embarrassed.

Soon after, the sound of inhaling could be heard.

“Did you miss it?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Run after it!”

“But, Commander, didn’t you get hurt?”

Caleb’s arm drew Gerlin’s attention.

The Rykel not only shattered the iron gauntlet but also injured Caleb’s arms.

The wound, which was the place of Rykell’s recent bite, was evident through the ripped cloth.

“You need to get a treat……”

“The general public’s safety comes first.
Let’s track him down first.”

Caleb mounted the horse after returning the sword to its scabbard.

Gerlin, on the other hand, ascended the horse, startled that Caleb had been injured and that he had missed Rykel.

Caleb’s arm, however, quickly began to deteriorate.

Over the spot where her teeth had dug, blood continued to pool and flow nonstop.

The wounds could be healed with holy water, however, the wounds contained bits of a broken gauntlet.
If holy water had been administered without the sculpture being removed, the wound would have infected inside.

Caleb had to clamp his teeth and stop tracking at some point.

“Lord Madin, could you go after Rykel by yourself and take care of it?”

“Yes!”

“Then please.”

Caleb’s word was followed by Gerlin, who nodded his head with a sense of duty.

There was only one cub.

Gerlin would have no trouble dealing with it.

Caleb felt a sharp pain in his arm as he watched Gerlin’s back go away.

“Don’t get hurt and don’t overdo it.”

He suddenly remembered what Elena had said to him before.

—————