As we passed through the watchtower guarding the entrance, the drawbridge and the water-filled moat beneath it first caught my eye.
The towering outer walls, along with the castle towers, surrounded the inner castle.
The gaps were filled by solidly built castle walls that connected them.
It was a very grand fortress, but far from luxurious.
This was Lionheart Fortress, where the Royal Knights had been stationed.
I couldn’t believe I had actually come all the way to Lionheart Fortress.
How did I end up here?
As I was looking at it with a bitter feeling, I heard noisy voices from behind.
“If you don’t go first, I’ll go first! Commander!”
“Yeah, we should go in… That’s right…”
“Come on! Let’s go inside quickly!”
The owners of the voices were none other than the elf Clara and the dwarf girl Ruby.
During the time we spent riding in the carriage, we exchanged greetings and had simple conversations.
Clara ran ahead towards the drawbridge first.
On the contrary, Ruby slowly pushed my back as I hesitated outside.
However, naturally, a certain girl stepped in between.
Her hair, which was so short at first that I mistook her for a boy, had grown to reach her back at some point.
Thanks to washing away the grime, her fair and soft skin was beautifully showing off its elegance.
The girl was wearing clothing similar to the squires of the knights.
It was comfortable to move in, but far from fancy.
The girl’s mouth was smiling, but at the same time, slightly stiff.
“I will personally escort Teacher.”
“Then I’ll leave it to you!”
“Yes, you can count on me.”
That girl was none other than Helia.
Half a year after meeting me, Helia had officially become my squire.
Of course, I had no interest in exploiting minors, so I tried to refuse.
[Teacher, is there something lacking about me?]
[On the contrary, you’re more than enough.]
[Ah, I see. You’ve grown tired of me.]
[There’s no way I could be tired of you.]
[Then why?]
[Well, you’re too y—]
[Why? Why? Why?]
[Y—]
[Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?]
Because Helia’s will was so stubborn, I had no choice but to accept her as my squire.
It absolutely wasn’t because I was pushed back by Helia’s momentum or got scared.
I glanced and rolled my eyes to look at Helia.
Helia, who was stuck to my side like sticky rice, was grinning for some reason, looking so happy.
She was such a cute child.
Was that thing I saw before… a mistake?
Somehow it felt like I had poked a hornet’s nest.
I decided to slowly solve this problem later.
For now, I had to put out the urgent fire first.
I had to somehow rebuild the Royal Knights right away.
The current Royal Knights were barely maintaining their existence.
In fact, they had lost all their previous prestige.
Even the commander’s inauguration ceremony, which was originally supposed to be held at the Joint Council of Races, had to be simplified because the other races of the alliance refused for various reasons.
Just looking at this, one could see how far the name of the Royal Knights had fallen.
Of course, for me, this was better.
Otherwise, we would still be staying at the royal castle.
At that moment, the elf walking ahead suddenly turned her back.
Her silver hair followed her body half a beat late as she spun around.
Clara smiled and spread her hands.
“Commander! And Helia! I sincerely welcome you to Lionheart, our home!”
“Commander and Helia already know that since they’ve entered.”
“Still, we should greet them! It’s their first time here!”
As I watched them start bickering again, I shook my head.
While riding the carriage here, we exchanged greetings and had simple conversations.
The elf’s name was Clara, and she proudly said she was 180 years old.
But that was still very young for an elf.
If converted to human age, it would be around 17 to 19 years old.
And Ruby, who often fought with Clara, was also 18 years old.
Outwardly, she just looked like a newbie chick.
But still, they were talents who had officially joined the Royal Knights.
“But why don’t I see a single person here?”
Lionheart was a fortress, a huge castle, and at the same time, a home.
Naturally, managers were needed to maintain such a large castle.
At my words, Clara smiled bitterly.
“About that… Everyone quit.”
“They quit?”
“Yeah, half of them. And the other half were taken back by their respective races or countries.”
This was driving me crazy.
I had heard about it verbally, but I could feel it firsthand again.
The fact that cracks had begun to form in the alliance’s relationship.
Well, that’s why it went to hell in the original story.
They would probably act conservatively to protect their own territories rather than cooperate with each other for the time being.
Because the current Royal Knights were like a tiger with its teeth pulled out.
Still, the situation was better than in the original story.
Although few in number, there were at least 3 surviving knights belonging to the Royal Knights.
Thanks to that, the name of the Royal Knights was somehow maintained.
Moreover, Lionheart Fortress was also in a better state than in the original story.
Although it was filled with dust due to lack of maintenance for several months, in the original story, Lionheart Fortress had become completely ruined.
In fact, in the game, you could recapture Lionheart Fortress, which had been occupied by monsters in the middle of the story.
At that time, after recapturing Lionheart Fortress, the protagonist’s reaction was a masterpiece.
[Is this supposed to be a fortress? Isn’t it a ruin?]
[Yes, this is where the Royal Knights were stationed in the past.]
[There’s only one wall left?]
[The monsters thoroughly destroyed everything else that remained. They must have hated the Royal Knights that much.]
In the original story, Lionheart Fortress literally had only one outer wall left.
Even that was used by the monsters to mock it by defecating on it, according to the original description.
And of course, it was the player’s job to restore it.
From stone and wood materials to the cost of various manpower, you had to directly obtain everything and personally construct the castle.
“For now, we need to contact the kingdom to replenish the manpower.”
“There’s an elven forest nearby. I’ll go and ask them directly too.”
“…”
For a moment, I almost had PTSD.
Asking for help from those contract gangsters?
From those guys who go crazy if you just touch a single tree?
However, I shook my head.
This wasn’t the time to be picky.
I had to use everything I could for now.
Anyway, Helia and I were directly guided by them and roughly surveyed what we needed immediately.
Lionheart Fortress was much larger and grander than I had imagined.
At least more so than the Lionheart restored in the original story.
And now we were all gathered in the dining hall.
“You probably already know, but let me introduce myself again. I am Hans, I have been assigned as the commander of the Royal Knights.”
I had pondered a lot.
Could I really act as the commander of the Royal Knights?
I had thought about it countless times, and my conclusion was always the same.
I really wasn’t fit to be a commander.
I didn’t have transcendent strength at the level of the Royal Knights, nor did I have outstanding strategic intellect.
In the first place, I was just the Time Stop Breeding Uncle.
What more could you expect?
“The problem we are currently facing is the rebuilding of the Royal Knights. We must prioritize solving that somehow.”
“That’s obvious.”
“We’ll help with all our might too.”
“If that’s what Teacher wants.”
“In that sense… As soon as the personnel requested from the kingdom are dispatched here, we will go to retrieve the Royal Knights member who deserted.”
Out of the 3 surviving Royal Knights, one of them had quit the Royal Knights and run away.
But unfortunately, in our current situation, each and every person was so precious.
So, we would catch the deserter and use them again.
Punish them according to the law for desertion?
We didn’t have that luxury.
In a situation where even dog poop was precious, it couldn’t be helped.
Especially since it wasn’t just an ordinary soldier.
If it was a mid-level talent among the Royal Knights, even more so.
According to Clara, the deserter this time was one of the core members of the Royal Knights.
“But Commander, is that really the right thing to do?”
“What?”
“Honestly, it’s understandable. Not being able to protect even a single person and having everyone die right in front of your eyes.”
“…”
“So it’s not unreasonable to run away.”
I didn’t expect such a skeptical reaction.
Was it because they had directly experienced hell and were reluctant to drag someone back into it?
But I couldn’t give in either.
“That’s exactly why.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Let me ask you the opposite. Why didn’t you run away?”
“Well, that’s…”
“…I don’t really know.”
“It’s simple. Because you became each other’s support.”
It was ironic.
The elf and dwarf, whose racial rift was the deepest, became each other’s support.
That just showed how much of a hell it was there.
And here, I brought up this logic.
“But what about that person now?”
“That’s right, Big Sis has become all alone now.”
“We are the only ones who have experienced that hell.”
“Yeah, and as time passes, she will slowly crumble.”
Of course it was nonsense.
How would I know if that person would crumble or not?
But whichever it was, there was an answer.
If she was crumbling, I would somehow persuade her by making her talk.
And if she hadn’t crumbled…
Then I would kneel down and beg.
If even that didn’t work, I would cling to her pants and beg.
Shameful?
Bullshit!
Is this the time to worry about saving face when the demons could invade at any moment in this situation?!
I had a thought when I became the commander.
Although I ended up taking the position of the Royal Knights’ commander, I had no intention of continuing this for years.
Because my abilities were lacking.
Too much was worse than too little.
If you coveted a position beyond your means, someday your limits would be reached.
And if that happened, the situation could actually become much worse than now.
However, since I had already blurted it out, I couldn’t say I was quitting with my own mouth.
The best case would be if the Royal Knights directly kicked me out without me having to quit…
But in this situation where the Royal Knights had fallen apart, I couldn’t deliberately troll them.
So, I thought.
I would do my best for 1 year, but slowly lay the groundwork.
[Aren’t we like family? We’re family! Family!]
[I’m fine. I’m fine, but what will your seniors think when they see this?]
[Isn’t this the kind of thing the deputy should be doing diligently?]
There are people like that.
Not incompetent, but subtly annoying and irritating.
If that person was your boss, it would drive you crazy.
But what if that boss suddenly quit the company one day?
Who would stop them?
It’s the same now.
Moreover, that deserter knight was said to be a mid-level and core member.
What if that core member couldn’t stand it anymore and demanded my resignation?
And what if I got kicked out because of that?
“Once we’re in the same boat, we’re family. How can a family member turn a blind eye to the pain of their family?!”
But for now, mental care came first.
First, I had to catch that deserter somehow and give them a mental pillar.
And after that, I could subtly act in an annoying and irritating way.
Of course, if the annoyance was too severe, they might lash out first.
So I had to maintain an appropriate line.
I knew all too well what it felt like to be ‘subtly’ annoyed.
To put it simply…
I would become a thorn in their side.
I’d show them properly what a family-like knight order was.
As we passed through the watchtower guarding the entrance, the drawbridge and the water-filled moat beneath it first caught my eye.
The towering outer walls, along with the castle towers, surrounded the inner castle.
The gaps were filled by solidly built castle walls that connected them.
It was a very grand fortress, but far from luxurious.
This was Lionheart Fortress, where the Royal Knights had been stationed.
I couldn’t believe I had actually come all the way to Lionheart Fortress.
How did I end up here?
As I was looking at it with a bitter feeling, I heard noisy voices from behind.
“If you don’t go first, I’ll go first! Commander!”
“Yeah, we should go in… That’s right…”
“Come on! Let’s go inside quickly!”
The owners of the voices were none other than the elf Clara and the dwarf girl Ruby.
During the time we spent riding in the carriage, we exchanged greetings and had simple conversations.
Clara ran ahead towards the drawbridge first.
On the contrary, Ruby slowly pushed my back as I hesitated outside.
However, naturally, a certain girl stepped in between.
Her hair, which was so short at first that I mistook her for a boy, had grown to reach her back at some point.
Thanks to washing away the grime, her fair and soft skin was beautifully showing off its elegance.
The girl was wearing clothing similar to the squires of the knights.
It was comfortable to move in, but far from fancy.
The girl’s mouth was smiling, but at the same time, slightly stiff.
“I will personally escort Teacher.”
“Then I’ll leave it to you!”
“Yes, you can count on me.”
That girl was none other than Helia.
Half a year after meeting me, Helia had officially become my squire.
Of course, I had no interest in exploiting minors, so I tried to refuse.
[Teacher, is there something lacking about me?]
[On the contrary, you’re more than enough.]
[Ah, I see. You’ve grown tired of me.]
[There’s no way I could be tired of you.]
[Then why?]
[Well, you’re too y—]
[Why? Why? Why?]
[Y—]
[Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?]
Because Helia’s will was so stubborn, I had no choice but to accept her as my squire.
It absolutely wasn’t because I was pushed back by Helia’s momentum or got scared.
I glanced and rolled my eyes to look at Helia.
Helia, who was stuck to my side like sticky rice, was grinning for some reason, looking so happy.
She was such a cute child.
Was that thing I saw before… a mistake?
Somehow it felt like I had poked a hornet’s nest.
I decided to slowly solve this problem later.
For now, I had to put out the urgent fire first.
I had to somehow rebuild the Royal Knights right away.
The current Royal Knights were barely maintaining their existence.
In fact, they had lost all their previous prestige.
Even the commander’s inauguration ceremony, which was originally supposed to be held at the Joint Council of Races, had to be simplified because the other races of the alliance refused for various reasons.
Just looking at this, one could see how far the name of the Royal Knights had fallen.
Of course, for me, this was better.
Otherwise, we would still be staying at the royal castle.
At that moment, the elf walking ahead suddenly turned her back.
Her silver hair followed her body half a beat late as she spun around.
Clara smiled and spread her hands.
“Commander! And Helia! I sincerely welcome you to Lionheart, our home!”
“Commander and Helia already know that since they’ve entered.”
“Still, we should greet them! It’s their first time here!”
As I watched them start bickering again, I shook my head.
While riding the carriage here, we exchanged greetings and had simple conversations.
The elf’s name was Clara, and she proudly said she was 180 years old.
But that was still very young for an elf.
If converted to human age, it would be around 17 to 19 years old.
And Ruby, who often fought with Clara, was also 18 years old.
Outwardly, she just looked like a newbie chick.
But still, they were talents who had officially joined the Royal Knights.
“But why don’t I see a single person here?”
Lionheart was a fortress, a huge castle, and at the same time, a home.
Naturally, managers were needed to maintain such a large castle.
At my words, Clara smiled bitterly.
“About that… Everyone quit.”
“They quit?”
“Yeah, half of them. And the other half were taken back by their respective races or countries.”
This was driving me crazy.
I had heard about it verbally, but I could feel it firsthand again.
The fact that cracks had begun to form in the alliance’s relationship.
Well, that’s why it went to hell in the original story.
They would probably act conservatively to protect their own territories rather than cooperate with each other for the time being.
Because the current Royal Knights were like a tiger with its teeth pulled out.
Still, the situation was better than in the original story.
Although few in number, there were at least 3 surviving knights belonging to the Royal Knights.
Thanks to that, the name of the Royal Knights was somehow maintained.
Moreover, Lionheart Fortress was also in a better state than in the original story.
Although it was filled with dust due to lack of maintenance for several months, in the original story, Lionheart Fortress had become completely ruined.
In fact, in the game, you could recapture Lionheart Fortress, which had been occupied by monsters in the middle of the story.
At that time, after recapturing Lionheart Fortress, the protagonist’s reaction was a masterpiece.
[Is this supposed to be a fortress? Isn’t it a ruin?]
[Yes, this is where the Royal Knights were stationed in the past.]
[There’s only one wall left?]
[The monsters thoroughly destroyed everything else that remained. They must have hated the Royal Knights that much.]
In the original story, Lionheart Fortress literally had only one outer wall left.
Even that was used by the monsters to mock it by defecating on it, according to the original description.
And of course, it was the player’s job to restore it.
From stone and wood materials to the cost of various manpower, you had to directly obtain everything and personally construct the castle.
“For now, we need to contact the kingdom to replenish the manpower.”
“There’s an elven forest nearby. I’ll go and ask them directly too.”
“…”
For a moment, I almost had PTSD.
Asking for help from those contract gangsters?
From those guys who go crazy if you just touch a single tree?
However, I shook my head.
This wasn’t the time to be picky.
I had to use everything I could for now.
Anyway, Helia and I were directly guided by them and roughly surveyed what we needed immediately.
Lionheart Fortress was much larger and grander than I had imagined.
At least more so than the Lionheart restored in the original story.
And now we were all gathered in the dining hall.
“You probably already know, but let me introduce myself again. I am Hans, I have been assigned as the commander of the Royal Knights.”
I had pondered a lot.
Could I really act as the commander of the Royal Knights?
I had thought about it countless times, and my conclusion was always the same.
I really wasn’t fit to be a commander.
I didn’t have transcendent strength at the level of the Royal Knights, nor did I have outstanding strategic intellect.
In the first place, I was just the Time Stop Breeding Uncle.
What more could you expect?
“The problem we are currently facing is the rebuilding of the Royal Knights. We must prioritize solving that somehow.”
“That’s obvious.”
“We’ll help with all our might too.”
“If that’s what Teacher wants.”
“In that sense… As soon as the personnel requested from the kingdom are dispatched here, we will go to retrieve the Royal Knights member who deserted.”
Out of the 3 surviving Royal Knights, one of them had quit the Royal Knights and run away.
But unfortunately, in our current situation, each and every person was so precious.
So, we would catch the deserter and use them again.
Punish them according to the law for desertion?
We didn’t have that luxury.
In a situation where even dog poop was precious, it couldn’t be helped.
Especially since it wasn’t just an ordinary soldier.
If it was a mid-level talent among the Royal Knights, even more so.
According to Clara, the deserter this time was one of the core members of the Royal Knights.
“But Commander, is that really the right thing to do?”
“What?”
“Honestly, it’s understandable. Not being able to protect even a single person and having everyone die right in front of your eyes.”
“…”
“So it’s not unreasonable to run away.”
I didn’t expect such a skeptical reaction.
Was it because they had directly experienced hell and were reluctant to drag someone back into it?
But I couldn’t give in either.
“That’s exactly why.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Let me ask you the opposite. Why didn’t you run away?”
“Well, that’s…”
“…I don’t really know.”
“It’s simple. Because you became each other’s support.”
It was ironic.
The elf and dwarf, whose racial rift was the deepest, became each other’s support.
That just showed how much of a hell it was there.
And here, I brought up this logic.
“But what about that person now?”
“That’s right, Big Sis has become all alone now.”
“We are the only ones who have experienced that hell.”
“Yeah, and as time passes, she will slowly crumble.”
Of course it was nonsense.
How would I know if that person would crumble or not?
But whichever it was, there was an answer.
If she was crumbling, I would somehow persuade her by making her talk.
And if she hadn’t crumbled…
Then I would kneel down and beg.
If even that didn’t work, I would cling to her pants and beg.
Shameful?
Bullshit!
Is this the time to worry about saving face when the demons could invade at any moment in this situation?!
I had a thought when I became the commander.
Although I ended up taking the position of the Royal Knights’ commander, I had no intention of continuing this for years.
Because my abilities were lacking.
Too much was worse than too little.
If you coveted a position beyond your means, someday your limits would be reached.
And if that happened, the situation could actually become much worse than now.
However, since I had already blurted it out, I couldn’t say I was quitting with my own mouth.
The best case would be if the Royal Knights directly kicked me out without me having to quit…
But in this situation where the Royal Knights had fallen apart, I couldn’t deliberately troll them.
So, I thought.
I would do my best for 1 year, but slowly lay the groundwork.
[Aren’t we like family? We’re family! Family!]
[I’m fine. I’m fine, but what will your seniors think when they see this?]
[Isn’t this the kind of thing the deputy should be doing diligently?]
There are people like that.
Not incompetent, but subtly annoying and irritating.
If that person was your boss, it would drive you crazy.
But what if that boss suddenly quit the company one day?
Who would stop them?
It’s the same now.
Moreover, that deserter knight was said to be a mid-level and core member.
What if that core member couldn’t stand it anymore and demanded my resignation?
And what if I got kicked out because of that?
“Once we’re in the same boat, we’re family. How can a family member turn a blind eye to the pain of their family?!”
But for now, mental care came first.
First, I had to catch that deserter somehow and give them a mental pillar.
And after that, I could subtly act in an annoying and irritating way.
Of course, if the annoyance was too severe, they might lash out first.
So I had to maintain an appropriate line.
I knew all too well what it felt like to be ‘subtly’ annoyed.
To put it simply…
I would become a thorn in their side.
I’d show them properly what a family-like knight order was.
