The Golden-Haired Summoner - Ch. 23
“Hansen, Philo! I’ll be in your care, then.”
“What, you know each other?”
“Of course. We’ve been traveling together, haven’t we?”
“They’re commoners, though?”
“That just means they must be very skilled knights. I heard it’s several times harder for a commoner to become a knight compared to nobles.”
The knight captain looked like he couldn’t believe his ears.
“Are you insulting nobles right now?”
“Insult? Are you saying that praising commoners is an insult to us?”
“Listening to you talk, it sounds like you’re saying nobles are—”
“Sigh. I’d rather not engage in this pointless and crude conversation. I came here for a change of pace, not to listen to old-fashioned lectures.”
“O-Old-fashioned?!”
“Yes, old-fashioned. That’s what you are.”
A stifled laugh came from somewhere close by.
Since only knights were around, it had to be one of them. The knight captain’s face turned a furious shade of red.
“Who the hell just laughed?!”
Fuming, he shouted at the room, but I had no intention of getting caught up in this any longer.
Without looking back, I walked straight out of the dining hall.
I could feel Hansen and Philo quickly following behind me.
[Raiii!]
[Yes! Understood!]
[Understood what?]
[You were about to order me to humble that arrogant knight captain, weren’t you?]
[That’s right. You do learn.]
As I kicked the inn’s door open and stepped outside, urgent voices followed behind me.
“Miss, please wait!”
“Let’s go together!”
—
The weather was bright and sunny, and the bustling atmosphere of the market was pleasant.
As I stepped into the crowded street, watching people busy at work, I realized something—once again, I was being avoided.
“…Is this the Miracle of Moses?”
The moment people saw me, they parted on both sides, clearing a path. It wasn’t my imagination.
I saw it clearly—the countless wary eyes that refused even to brush against me.
“Miss!”
“You mustn’t go alone.”
“Ugh.”
I shot a glare at Hansen and Philo, who had caught up to me too quickly.
A young girl walking around flanked by two knights in gleaming armor—it was obvious why I had immediately become Public Enemy Number One.
For commoners, nobles were nothing but trouble. Even the smallest offense could cost them their hands or tongues.
To them, I probably looked like a walking bomb.
One of the things that shocked me most after being born into this noble society was the realization that I could kill a commoner without facing any consequences.
Like how killing a pig was considered nothing unusual.
That was really the level of recognition they had.
If someone killed animals needlessly for fun, they might be called cruel and looked down upon, but it wasn’t illegal.
Now, I was staring straight into fearful eyes.
They looked at me as if I were a wolf—and yet, I was just a small, young child.
I acted indifferent, but the wary glances didn’t feel great.
Today was just full of things that rubbed me the wrong way.
Suddenly, I wondered—did I really need an escort?
“Hey, can’t I just walk around alone?”
“How could you even think that? Absolutely not.”
“Do you not understand? A noble lady must not wander alone without attendants!”
“Why? Like you said, I am a noble. Who would dare harm me?”
Especially when I was this harmless and adorable.
I had full confidence in my cuteness. Every time I looked in the mirror, I saw undeniable signs of future beauty.
“The academy is safe. But outside of it, things are different.”
“It doesn’t look that unsafe, though?”
The streets were clean, and the market people seemed friendly. I glanced around, but the knights remained firm.
“This city is far from the capital, so security isn’t great.”
“Philo is right. Pickpockets and homeless children are everywhere—you just don’t see them. Border towns, especially, are full of criminals…”
Well then. No choice but to—
“Ah!”
“Miss!”
Without warning, I dashed straight into the crowd.
Hansen and Philo’s distressed shouts rang behind me, but I ignored them.
Sorry, but I want to walk alone. The armor was just too conspicuous. Bye now!
“Heh! I hate being treated like a kid—”
Before I could finish, my body was lifted into the air. Effortlessly.
“Miss, what are you doing? It’s dangerous!”
“If you wish to go somewhere, we will accompany you.”
…Right. I forgot.
They were fully trained, physically powerful knights.
And I was a scrawny, idle ten-year-old.
“Ugh, let go!”
Dangling off Philo’s arm like a sack of potatoes was humiliating.
I barely managed ten steps before getting caught.
“Put me down!”
“I cannot.”
“Ugh! I don’t need protection!”
I struggled with all my might, but Philo’s grip didn’t budge.
Damn it. Does he even need to hold on this tightly?!
[Master, you’ve been caught.]
[Argh! Like I don’t know that?!]
I kept wriggling, trying to break free, but it was no use.
Just as I was about to start fuming in frustration, I heard an unexpectedly guilty voice from above.
Philo was still holding me mid-air.
“Do you… really dislike us that much?”
“Huh?”
“We’re sorry. It’s because we’re commoners, isn’t it? If it were other knights, you wouldn’t be acting like this…”
Oh, great. Now we had self-pitying commoners.
Or two, actually.
Hansen, the red-haired commoner knight, wore the same gloomy expression as Philo.
I stopped struggling and glanced at his sword.
Ah, yeah… sorry about that.
That sword was actually an alloy.
Rai ate all the mithril. I didn’t know it only had 1% to begin with.
The two hulking knights looked completely dejected, clearly misunderstanding everything.
“We can arrange for different knights if—”
“Haaaaah, enough of that. Listen, knights?”
I sighed dramatically and stared at them.
“If I did care about that sort of thing, then this position you’re holding me in would already be wildly inappropriate. Don’t you think?”
“A commoner manhandling a noble lady? You could lose your heads for this.”
Philo seemed genuinely shocked by my words, and in an instant, he set me down on the ground.
I had only been joking, but judging by the way his face turned pale, it was obvious how much harassment they had endured.
“Please forgive us, my lady.”
“If we offended you, we will accept whatever punishment is necessary.”
If they had been noble-born knights, they wouldn’t be trembling like this.
Hearing two commoner knights apologize so instinctively made me sigh.
It was probably that unpleasant knight captain’s doing.
“Let’s get one thing straight. It’s not because you’re commoner knights that I don’t like you…”
“It’s not?”
“It’s just that—I hate having escorts! I never asked to be protected!”
Why was that? I had always disliked being treated as someone who needed protection.
It made me feel powerless, like I was a fragile thing, regardless of my own will.
Of course, in reality, I was weak—a powerless girl—but that didn’t mean I had to like it.
After I shouted, Hansen and Philo blinked at me in surprise.
“…But these days, the Swarm has been more active, and—”
“Hey.”
“Ah.”
Swarm?
Before Hansen could continue, Philo nudged him hard in the ribs, cutting him off.
“The Swarm? What’s that?”
“There’s no need for you to know, my lady. That’s why we’re here.”
“Yes, we will protect you.”
I wasn’t someone who could let go of curiosity easily.
Despite being lazy, I was also incredibly impatient.
Crossing my arms in a sulky stance, I looked up at Hansen, scowling.
“I want to know!”
“It’s really nothing—”
“If you don’t tell me, I’ll throw myself on the ground right here.”
I would never actually do something that childish, but they clearly didn’t want to test the limits of my temper.
After hesitating for a moment, they finally gave in.
“Recently, an anti-noble faction known as the Swarm has been growing in power. They’re commoners who hold deep hatred for the nobility… and they kill nobles without reason.”
“Huh? Without reason?”
“Yes. There have already been several victims.”
“The Swarm… But why that name? It sounds way too cute for what they do.”
“They didn’t name themselves. Since they’re willing to throw their lives away to assassinate nobles, people started calling them that. It was meant as an insult… but despite the name, they’re extremely dangerous and indiscriminate. Do not take them lightly.”
I see.
Now the name made some sense.
Bees die when they sting, since their stinger gets torn from their bodies.
So the Swarm must refer to their philosophy—killing nobles in a suicide attack.
Meanwhile, their victims didn’t always die, making their sacrifices seem somewhat futile in the grand scheme of things.
But why go so far just to kill nobles?
I knew it was because I was a noble, but I still couldn’t understand their reasoning.
“That’s ridiculous. Killing nobles—what do they even gain from that?”
“They believe that since commoners outnumber nobles, if they keep killing one by one, eventually, all nobles will be eradicated. They want a world without nobility.”
“They’re idiots. If all the nobles disappeared, they’d just take over those roles themselves.”
“Regardless, they’re a serious threat, so you must be cautious.”
I let out a loud, dismissive snort.
I wasn’t scared of something like that.
Besides, there was no way I’d run into the Swarm.
No way I’d be that unlucky.
I hadn’t even left the academy in two years!