VIO Ch 3 – New Knight (III)

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Translator: mii

Editor: sleepchaser

He had thought it was Erik.

The moment Vio had caught sight of the figure standing behind him, he mistakenly thought that Erik had returned to kill him. 

His feet went limp. He screamed and cowered. 

By the time Rille’s touch brought him out of that very dark place, she had already finished off Legion.

“There’s nothing to fear anymore, Master. I have already blasted the thief away with a kick,” she said, her sweet and gentle smile in stark contrast with such disturbing words.

“Huh? Blasted away with a kick? What?”

Had his ears been playing tricks on him? But sure enough, once he left the safety of the back of the desk, the sight that greeted him proved just as Rille had said. A young man was lying face-up in the garden.

As soon as Vio noticed the young man’s short brown hair and fit body, a wave of relief finally washed over him. Erik’s hair had been a dull shade of blond. Compared to this young man, he was a little shorter and thinner. They were different people.

From what Vio could see, the intruder had fainted momentarily. He then woke up with a groan and sat up in an unsteady manner. Blood flowed down his nose.

“Hm, so you can already get up after I kicked you that hard? You’re pretty sturdy, huh?” Rille rolled her hands into fists, bringing them in front of her body, taking an offensive stance.

It took Vio aback. “R-Rille? Rille, you know martial arts?”

“Yes! That’s only natural, Master. As a maid who serves the Lesserhain family, a family that excels in military arts, I won’t be able to protect you if I don’t know how to fight!” said Rille as she placed her right leg on the window sill. Any moment now and she would hop through the window, paying no regard to her dress. 

At that moment, Jill shouted, “Stop it, Rille!”

“Mister Jill? Why are you telling me to stop? There’s an intruder here, look!” said Rille, jabbing a finger toward the young man sitting in the garden, her brows raised in alarm. 

Jill immediately bowed to Vio. “I’m sorry, Young Master. That person is Legion Salt.”

“…Huh?” Vio stared at Jill in puzzlement, then once again shifted his gaze to the young man. The poor thing had trouble dealing with his nosebleed.

⋆̩☂︎*̣̩ ✢ ⋆̩☂︎*̣̩

A knock sounded on the door. “Many thanks for the hot water and change of clothes, Lord Violant.”

The moment Vio had heard the knock, he tore his gaze away from the oranges and reds bleeding from the horizon, looking at the door instead.

There, Legion Salt stood with his head bowed, deferential in his posture. He had cleaned up the filth he had accumulated during his journey and changed into a set of clean clothes.

After dressing neatly like this, Legion transformed into a refreshing and agreeable young man. The fearlessness and honesty distinctive of military men were apparent from his appearance. His tanned skin spoke of healthiness. He looked like a “serious” knight, harsher and sharper than the kind servants around Vio.

The one noticeable shortcoming was his amber eyes, which made him look frightening at first glance. Even so, they suited him as a knight. His glare would be a terrifying sight to behold, sure to strike fear into the hearts of criminals. 

Although Legion wore a black shirt, his muscles were clearly defined. Women of marriageable age would definitely praise his manliness and grow flustered at the sight of him.

Vio nodded to Legion’s gratitude. He then prompted him to sit on a chaise longue. Bubbling with energy, Legion obliged. Rille stood behind the other chaise longue in which Vio sat, glaring daggers at Legion. Similarly, Jill stood next to his master. Vio wasn’t fond of knights, but thanks to Jill and Rille accompanying him, he could tolerate having one nearby.

“Jill, the butler, has informed me of everything. I’m sorry for mistaking you for an intruder,” said Vio frankly. He ought to take responsibility for his servants’ mistakes.

“No, it’s natural for you to be vigilant of me. For this reason, won’t you please place the blame on me instead of the butler?”

“Me blaming Jill? I won’t do that. I know that Jill’s actions were fueled by his concern for me… Well, it’s troubling if he does things without my knowledge though.”

Noticing Vio’s glance, Jill performed a deep bow. “I’m very sorry for my impertinent behavior, Young Master.”

“Alright. I forgive you, so raise your head.” Vio nodded, before turning to Legion again. Before Legion could utter a word, Vio said, “My mother and Jill wish for a new guardian knight for me, but I don’t need one. Ah, don’t worry about the salary you have received. You took the trouble to come to this remote region, so let me pay your travel expenses too. Also, it should be hard for you to return immediately, right? If you’d like, you can rest in this mansion for a few days.”

“I appreciate your generosity, Lord Violant. But I still wish to be your guardian knight. May I have the honor to receive that duty?”

Vio tilted his head a hint. He had thought that Legion wished to write off his debt. Therefore, he had proposed to erase all of his future troubles. Yet contrary to his expectations, Legion still wanted to be his knight.

“I’ll speak to my mother, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

“It’s not like that. I want to work for you. I was searching for someone I wanted to serve. And I have finally found him with you!” A bright smile lit up Legion’s face, his amber eyes sparkling. 

Vio blatantly frowned. “Sir Legion Salt, have you heard the rumors of me in Nada to— no, everyone in the Lord’s residence should’ve already mentioned them to you, right? Especially my brother and father. Do you want to work for an ‘incompetent younger brother?’ For ‘trash’ like me? The reason I’m in Leca town is that they have driven me out of the Lord’s residence. If you were to work for me, your salary would be less than if you had worked for my brother, and I can’t leave the mansion. You’ll pass your time without doing anything, and your sword would end up rusting together with your skill—”

“Young Master,” said Jill, unable to hold back from speaking, but Vio raised his right hand to command him to stop.

“I won’t take back my words,” said Vio. “Return to the royal capital and join the Royal Knights again. You’ll feel at ease since you won’t have to be adrift in the streets. Anyhow, my family will fall into ruin sooner or later.”

“Master!” Large beads of tears spilled from Rille’s red eyes. “Please don’t say such a terrible thing.”

“Rille, you have seen the brutality of my family. Right now, although no one can interfere with the Duke’s reign, heaven will surely punish them. And when that happens, people will condemn me as well.” He turned to Legion. “If you work as my knight, you’ll also get involved.”

Legion widened his eyes in surprise. “Condemn? Aren’t you mistaken about that? From what I could see, the civilians in Leca town live in peace. Your servants adore you as well. I apologize for my rudeness, but I don’t see this place as Lesserhain’s territory. That’s my answer.”

“…I see. So the civilians live in peace? I haven’t been able to see this since I can’t leave the mansion. It seems like I chose good inspectors.” A smile graced Vio’s lips at the unexpected good news. At present, his position was the [tn content=”reeve”] Local official. Something similar to ‘mayor’, I guess? My editors and I decided that ‘mayor’ sounds too modern, so we changed it to reeve![/tn] of Leca town. Therefore, he handpicked inspectors to oversee the taxes and manage the affairs of Leca town, and Amade village, which belonged to the former. The current inspectors were well-known and hard workers.

Other than that, Vio had set his sights on Leca flowers, which were named after their home and contained a great deal of magic essence. Prior to his move here, Leca town did not have a special product it could boast, so he thought up a few ideas with Leca flowers in mind. Such as using them to make ink for magic circles and candy that rejuvenated one’s magic reserves. Profit had just begun to rise. And as profit increased, the amount left after taxes would too. Because of that, the civilians worked harder and harder.

“You’re a great ruler. What’s wrong with wishing to serve such a person?”

“Uh, I don’t mean to speak ill of your belief, but listen. Although I cherish this town, that’s because it’s mine. There is nothing more to it. The next lord of the Lesserhain territory will be my elder brother, and I can’t leave this place. I can’t do anything. It is also a sin to be unable to stop my family’s wrongdoings.”

“You’re ill, so there’s nothing you can do about it. God surely understands too!”

Vio sighed. “What a stubborn person. Anyway, I don’t need a guardian knight. Don’t have your sword out during your stay. I don’t want to see one in this mansion.” He rose to his feet without asking for Legion’s opinion, giving up talking sense into him. “Jill, send my meal to my room.”

“Understood,” answered Jill as he bowed politely. Vio nodded to him and headed for the door.

“I will not give up, Lord Violant. Right, please just call me Legi.”

“…Legi?” Despite deciding to ignore him, Vio suddenly stopped in his tracks. He looked back.

“Yes!” Legion replied, countenance one of joy. Vio hadn’t meant to call out his name. Still, he had to admit that Legion’s delight made him resemble a dog. 

Legi, that name sounds familiar. Ah, I remember now. It’s from “Princess Dances with the Night.” He’s a knight with incredible strength, and… oh, he served under Brother Rupheus. But he was treated horribly there. The protagonist, Night, will pull him out from that hell. Then they will become comrades.

Vio never expected that Legion was a supporting character with a decent role in “Princess Dances with the Night.” Not until he told Vio to call him “Legi.” A chuckle escaped Vio’s lips and he said, “I see, Legi, huh? After you leave this place, you should head to the neighboring country of Ruslan. The princess who’s next in line for queen seems to be a very talented and wonderful person. I’m sure she’ll treat you well.”

“You must be joking. I want to serve Lord Violant!”

But Vio merely waved his left hand and left the room.

Brother, your willfulness is even worse than it was in the manga, huh… Sir Legion is supposed to be a vital character in the story. I never imagined you would have already fired him…

Rupheus had impressed Vio, but for a strange reason.

Translator ramblings:

A bit worried about how I translated some stuff like ‘military men’ and ‘martial arts’… :blobnomcookie: I like the nickname too! Legi sounds better than Legion, I guess? ^^

Also a bit note here, Rille actually calls Vio as ‘Vio-sama’! But making her call Vio ‘Master Vio’ sounds a bit strange in my ears… Sometimes, Rille and Jill also use their name when talking, like “Rille understands. I will do as you wish,” or “This fits you well, Young Master. Jill is very pleased,” but it sounds kind of childish… or maybe it’s just me who’s thinking too much??? :googlecat: