Haha, I'm so tired. ......

　As soon as we returned to the room we had taken at the nearest inn after the joint ordination ceremony, I slumped down in my chair and let out the fatigue that had built up in my body and mind.

　It had been a truly fulfilling time.
　But the quality of the time I spent there is one thing, and the degree of fatigue is another, no matter how great the experience is, fatigue is a reasonable consequence.

　And even after the ceremony was over, I had to take questions from other new knights one after another, and it was hard to respond to them.

　First of all, let's take a rest at this inn and finish cleaning up before going to meet everyone.

　Before that, I'll have to meet up with Garnett here as promised.

　As I was relaxing with this in mind, an employee of the inn knocked on my door and said to me.

''Excuse me while you relax. The Knights have arrived, may I pass you in?
...... Which Order are you from?

　Has the garnet arrived?
　At first I thought so, but I quickly reconsidered, ''No, no.

　Just like they didn't confirm it when Garnett arrived before the ceremony, if it was a senior knight's group official, they should be let through immediately.


　Considering the response of the inn, I can assure you that it's not Garnett at least.

''The Purple Joint Order, sir.

That response was unexpected - no, I could have assumed the possibility itself.

　If that young man was as I imagined, it wouldn't be surprising if he thought the same thing as I did when he saw me on the stage.

'...... Please go ahead and let me in,'
Yes, sir.

　After a while, the door opens, and as expected, a young man in formal dress - Mark Easton of the Purple Jade Order - enters the room.

　Short black hair. He's tall enough to be not much different from me.

　I have to say that his eyes are not good, but I feel that it's not because he was born with those eyes, but rather the result of the negative emotions seeping out of his heart.

　Anger, frustration, or condescension? ...... I tried to find the source of Mark Easton's emotions, but I can't seem to figure out why.

　...... No, if this young man is really the Mark I know, I'm aware of the reason why he's looking at me like this.

''It's been a long time since you've been here, Cavalry(──)Dan's(──)chief(──)lord(──).''
There you go ......, you're even more tangential than I thought.

　After exchanging words with him in person, I am convinced.
　This young man is my brother, Mark of the White Wolf Forest, after all.

　The last time I saw Mark was 15 years ago.
　The last time we saw each other was the night after we left our hometown, over the objections of our parents, when Mark was on his way to bed and we said to each other, 'I'll see you tomorrow.

　At that time, Mark was less than ten years old, and now he's twenty-three or twenty-four.

　I can't even tell you how old he is, I'm really a bad brother.

It's only natural to be a bit of an outsider. How many years have passed since then?

　Mark's use of polite expressions of respect in his words is not because I'm his brother, but probably because I've taken on the title of Knight Commander in a bent way.

　If I had met him again as a third-rate adventurer up until a year ago, I'm sure he would have absolutely abused me harshly and painfully.

　The indignation that exuded from behind the calm expression on his face spoke eloquently of this.

'I can't be optimistic about 'all's well that ends well'. You know how hard my dad and mom have had to work for .......

　It's justifiable anger. It's justified criticism.

　I don't expect them to respond to me all the time, saying that I'm just happy to have gotten a result despite all that's happened.

There are no words. I'm sure I was a jerk until now, but from now on, I'm going to have to go to . But from now on: ......
Nothing in the future: ......!

　Just as Mark was about to raise his eyebrows and raise his voice, the door that had been methodically closed was opened without warning.

It's good to see you!　Lou: ......

　Is this exactly what time stops for?

　Garnett, who had jumped in, first stiffened at the unexpected presence of the first guest, then looked repeatedly at the face of the first guest and me, and stiffened even more when he noticed the similarity in facial features.

　Mark, on the other hand, was also startled by the sudden intruder, and immediately afterwards he was speechless, with the figure in his field of vision from head to toe.

　You'll be able to find out if the intruder is the daughter of the Argentean family, or if you're simply astounded by her out-of-place good looks.

　Normally, it might be the former, but personally I would have preferred the latter.

'...... Mr. Luke!'
Huh. ......!

　He almost blew up at the too abrupt switch in angle, and the laughter that flowed back from his lungs hurt his oral and nasal cavities.

　However, Mark didn't seem to have the first half of Garnett's statement in his head that much, and he was just baffled without touching the leopard print.

''Ni, brother ...... Lord Knight Commander, is your daughter over here ......?
Didn't your mother ever tell you that?　I thought we went to the village once to say hello.
'What? I didn't think that letter was ......!　I'm not listening to you!　You just brought the man you're going to marry!　I have no idea where or who he is at all!
'I think there's a certain amount of talk in King's Landing.
'I was training in a regional assignment until recently!　I don't know any rumors about King's Landing!

　The grimness is removed from Mark's face, and instead the color of confusion that would be close to his true mood paints his face.

　I see, it's a typical motherly failure.

　I'm sure I've told you that A(le)ma(t)is the son of a knight's family, but I guess that information about that area was left out when I wrote the letter that I was sending to Mark.

　The fact that I had a partner like that was important to my mother, and what kind of family the child came from was probably not a big deal to her.

　As I was often thinking about how far I had explained, Abigail appeared from behind Garnett without a sound.

You will find that you will be able to get a good deal more information about the company. We have been dating Luke-sama with a view to a future engagement.
'A, Argenteer ......!

　Mark looked at me and Garnett in turn, even more astonished and confused.

　I laughed back wordlessly and substituted a reply, while Garnett looked away embarrassed.

''By the way, I thought you were from the purple rainbow, do you have urgent business with Master Luke?
...... No, you don't have to do it right now. I'll let you change the day. So, Sir Knight Commander, I'll leave you alone for the day!

　He said this somewhat quickly, and Mark ran out of the room like he was running.