“Well…”
Erin mentioning the name Dawn Alliance made me involuntarily lose my composure.
“…Where did you hear that name?”
“Before that, allow me to reveal who I am. I said I belonged to a certain knight order… that order is called the Royal Special Operations Knights. We do not normally appear in public; we are a knight order that secretly deals with crises facing the kingdom. And I serve as the vice-captain of that order.”
“The Special Operations Knights…?”
I had no idea something like that even existed.
It sounded like something out of a storybook, and I couldn’t help but feel a bit doubtful.
Sensing my thoughts, Erin took out a certain crest and presented it to me.
“This will serve as proof of what I’ve said.”
“This is… the royal crest?”
I had seen the crest Erin showed me before.
Rather, it would be strange if I hadn’t.
It was the emblem of this very kingdom.
With this, the possibility that Erin was trying to scam me disappeared.
If someone committed fraud using the royal crest, it would be an immediate death penalty without question.
No one would take such a risk.
“The Special Operations Knights act as the sword of the royal family, carrying out their will. Therefore, we are permitted to bear and use this crest when necessary.”
“I see… it certainly seems genuine.”
I did consider the possibility that it was a fake and that a criminal was trying to deceive me…
But from what I could tell, the crest was real.
I’d heard that various mechanisms were put in place to prevent forgery.
“Understood. I’ll trust you.”
“Thank you.”
Now then, this is where the real discussion begins.
“So… why do you know about the Dawn Alliance?”
“A dangerous terrorist organization that could overthrow the nation exists… namely, the Dawn Alliance. We had also obtained information about them.”
The Dawn Alliance had existed since long ago, yet had never been crushed and continued to operate in the shadows.
Persistent, resilient, and extremely difficult to track down.
To think they had information on such an organization…
Perhaps the Special Operations Knights were even more impressive than I thought.
“However, it has been difficult to gather information… and even when we do, we only learn more about the enemy’s overwhelming power, without gaining anything useful… To be honest, we were at a loss. We could do nothing but hesitate, unsure of how to respond.”
“And so… you came to me?”
“Yes. Based on fragmented information and speculation… Lord Stuart, haven’t you and your companions fought the Dawn Alliance several times already? And haven’t you obtained a certain amount of information?”
Bullseye.
“Contacting you had been under consideration for some time… and fortunately, you have come to the royal capital. In that case, we couldn’t let this opportunity slip by.”
“So that’s why you approached me?”
“Yes.”
Erin looked straight at me.
“There is still much we cannot say due to the lack of information on the Dawn Alliance… however, based on my personal intuition, I believe they are not an enemy we can afford to ignore. No—rather, I believe they are a powerful threat that must be dealt with as a top priority.”
“Intuition… huh.”
But… yeah.
Intuition shouldn’t be underestimated.
In other words, it’s the result of unconscious calculations based on one’s accumulated experience.
If it’s Erin, someone who serves in the Special Operations Knights, I doubt she would reach the wrong conclusion.
“Please… will you cooperate with us?”
I couldn’t answer immediately.
I wanted to know more about the Special Operations Knights and whether they were truly trustworthy…
There was still a possibility that everything about Erin was a complete lie.
The crest could have been obtained from somewhere else.
There were many things I needed to think about.
But… that wasn’t enough of a reason to refuse.
“…Alright.”
“Then!”
“For now, I’ll take you to my companions. We can discuss the details there.”
If I kept doubting, it would never end.
Rather than that, I chose to believe—even if it meant being deceived.
“Thank you, Lord Stuart.”
“Uh… Fate is fine.”
“Then please, call me Erin as well.”
We exchanged a handshake with a smile.
“Nice to meet you, Erin.”
“The pleasure is mine, Lord Fate.”
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