Declared Dead, Exiled, and Betrayed— Now I Walk Away, but I'll Save One Who Cared - Chapter 21

“Man, the drinks taste great today!”

“Yeah, no kidding!”

“The guild building got all fancy, but at least this place stayed the same. Glad it didn’t change.”

“Absolutely!”

“Wasn’t it the lord who wanted to renovate it, but Lord Lax opposed it?”

“Yeah, that’s what I heard.”

“He was like, ‘A guild tavern is a den for roughnecks! We don’t need fancy crap!’”

“He really gets it.”

“For real. If this place turned into some trendy date spot, it’d be awkward to come here.”

“Wouldn’t be as fun either!”

“Couldn’t even get into a proper brawl!”

Everyone laughed, indistinguishable from one another in the rowdy crowd.

It had been a month since the Stampede was quelled.

At the guild of Riofendarl, which had been rebuilt at an astonishing speed, adventurers continued to drink in this deliberately grimy, lively space, washing away the exhaustion of their daily struggles.

“But damn, who would’ve thought Lady Shifa and Lord Lax would end up together?”

“Lord Lax is a total lolicon!!!”

“Hahahaha!”

“I heard about Lady Eranda… What a mess that was.”

“Yeah, even the lord said Lord Lax stormed out in anger, but he came back because he was worried about Lady Shifa, right?”

“Well, he left because they told him he was banished, but coming back out of concern? That’s damn cool.”

“I’m jealous…”

“And he even protected her from a dragon’s breath. That was insane.”

“Not just that—he made sure all of us could escape, then BAM! The dragon turned to dust in midair. It was like a dream.”

“And that massive black crystal that fell… That thing was unreal.”

“Seriously. Just having a chunk of it could set you up for life.”

“Since Lord Lax was the one who defeated it, that crystal belongs to him, right?”

“You guys don’t know?”

“Know what?”

“Lord Lax donated the crystal to the royal family.”

“WHAT?!”

“No way!”

“Unbelievable…”

The black crystal was proof of having defeated the Stampede’s boss.

It served as undeniable evidence that the Stampede had been eradicated.

It was an incredibly valuable gemstone, brimming with magic, and used for crafting all sorts of powerful artifacts.

And this time, the crystal was the largest in history.

After all, dragons were mythical creatures.

There had never been a single recorded case of a dragon appearing in a Stampede—until now.

With such an unprecedented event, even the royal capital was in an uproar.

“The royal family is apparently overjoyed. Rumor has it, Lord Lax might even get knighted or become a noble.”

“Seriously?”

“Wait… is that okay?”

“I don’t wanna see Lady Shifa crying over this…”

“No worries there.”

“Oh, Laila! You’re back.”

“Laila, hey!”

“Thanks!”

“So? Why’s it not a problem?”

“Lord Lax donated the crystal in exchange for royal support for Riofendarl’s development and for official recognition of his engagement to Lady Shifa.”

“Ah, I see. And the royal family’s response?”

“Of course, they agreed to everything. They’re even considering sending the High Priest of the Royal Capital to officiate their wedding.”

“Holy crap.”

“That’s national guest treatment.”

“Lord Lax, man…”

“At this point, shouldn’t we start calling him Lord Lax?”

“Right? It feels wrong not to.”

“Wait, this is bad. I was thinking he just married rich, but… did he actually marry down?”

“Actually, Lord Lax is from a noble family in a neighboring country.”

“…WHAT?”

“Wait… are we screwed? Didn’t we treat him like crap not too long ago?”

“Please, if someone has to get executed, let it be Samid!”

“WHY ME?!”

“We should be fine. Lord Lax doesn’t seem angry.”

“He’s honestly a great guy.”

“Yeah, no doubt.”

“Speaking of which, that Jekyll guy was an absolute disaster.”

“Didn’t they never even find his body?”

“According to Claire, he abandoned Lady Eranda—even though she was his fiancée and pregnant with his child—to save his own skin.”

“That’s next-level scumbag behavior.”

“And Lady Eranda… she went missing, right? Where did she go?”

“Into the Forbidden Forest.”

“That’s rough. That place is crawling with powerful monsters, and there are even rumors of demons…”

“If she’s alive and gives birth, that child will have Riofendarl’s bloodline. Let’s just hope there’s no succession crisis in the future.”

As for Alessandro and Jekyll, it was almost certain that they had perished in the dragon’s breath.

After all, Claire had seen them leaving the fortress, and wagon tracks leading away had been found on the road—right where the dragon’s breath struck and caused a massive explosion and wildfire.

On the other hand, Lady Eranda’s fate remained unknown.

It was confirmed that she had entered the Black Forest, but after that, all traces were lost.

“Still, ever since Lord Lax went missing, this city was gloomy—but it brightened up all at once when he returned.”

“Well, it did go pitch dark for a while during the Stampede.”

“A toast to Lord Lax for clearing even that away!”

“Ah, cheers!”

“Yeah, cheers!”

“But come to think of it, Claire and Lord Lax aren’t here today.”

“Claire’s got some serious guts. If I had screwed up that badly, I wouldn’t be able to just hang around the guild, the tavern, or even stick with ‘Flash’ like she does.”

“Didn’t she say something like, ‘I don’t mind being Lax’s slave, just let me stay… No, actually, I’d feel safer that way, so please just take me’?”

“I lost it when I heard that.”

“You don’t see a confession that calculated every step so shamelessly very often.”

“It was funnier watching Lord Lax struggle to keep a straight face when turning her down.”

“Wasn’t that the time Lady Shifa found out and gave Claire a public beating? I know I shouldn’t laugh, but damn, that was funny.”

“Don’t remind me. Claire actually said, ‘Shifa… is this what you’re into? Got it. Just tie me up and whip me while forcing me on Lax.’ Like, what the hell?!”

“Pffft!”

“Stop it, man!”

“For real.”

“Anyway, aren’t Lord Lax and ‘Flash’ heading out on a dungeon expedition tomorrow?”

“Yeah, they’re really doing it?”

“Apparently so.”

“Did something happen?”

“Well, after Jekyll disappeared, ‘Flash’ only had three members left—Lord Lax, Michelle, and Claire.”

“Wait, didn’t Jekyll recruit two new guys?”

“Yeah, but they died in the Stampede.”

“Oh… right.”

“And for some reason, Meria, the daughter of the guildmaster from the neighboring town, joined them.”

“Why?”

“Apparently, when she heard about the Stampede, she followed Lord Lax back here.”

“Damn it, an unexpected intruder…!”

“She did go back home once, but she wanted to explore the dungeon so badly that she came back and forced her way into the party. And from what I hear, she’s strong enough to keep up.”

“Got it.”

“So now it’s Lord Lax alone with three women, huh?”

“What kind of blessed harem is that?”

“And to top it off, Lady Shifa got jealous.”

“…What?”

“Jealous Lady Shifa is adorable.”

“And so… she’s going too.”

“…WHAT?!”

“What is she even doing?”

“No idea. But apparently, even the lord approved it, so the harem is officially happening.”

“That’s hilarious. I bet Lord Lax is a nervous wreck right now.”

“Hahahahahaha!”

And just like that, another night in Riofendarl slowly passed…