A Flustered Knight and a Sinful City

“Come in, and close the door behind you. Do not make me repeat myself.”

Saranya’s voice remained husky, her passion not yet entirely subsided.

“Oh, I understand!”

The young knight nodded awkwardly, her copper-buckled deerskin boots scuffing against the doorframe as she stepped inside. She then turned and pushed the door shut.

“My name is Vireta, and I am the acting branch commander of the Night Lily Knights for the Vero jurisdiction…”

“You? A branch commander?”

“Yes, yes, I am…”

Saranya narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing the flustered young woman before her.

Within the Empire, knightly orders were broadly categorized into two types: those affiliated with the Church and those directly subordinate to the Empire.

Church-affiliated knightly orders did not possess distinct jurisdictions in the strictest sense; their organizational structure mirrored that of the respective Church’s local branches, essentially serving as the Church’s enforcement arm.

The most representative example was the Holy Fire Papal Knights of the Holy Fire Faction, who ceaselessly hunted heretics and imperial rebels. Setting aside their cruel and ruthless methods, their martial prowess remained undeniably formidable.

Imperial-affiliated knightly orders, by contrast, were independent military organizations, complete with their own territorial jurisdictions and leadership cadres. While they reported directly to the Imperial center, they also enjoyed a degree of autonomy in their administration and operations.

The Night Lily Knights belonged to this latter category of Imperial-affiliated orders. In fact, their history stretched back far further than the Olavi Empire itself.

Legend had it that the Night Lily was initially a grassroots organization formed by ordinary people for self-preservation.

In ancient times, when witches and various 异族 (TL Note: non-human or foreign races, often depicted as monstrous or hostile) spellcasters roamed freely, many witches would abduct girls from ordinary families to bolster their covens. They would then select children with elven blood, as only such girls could be trained to become witches.

The Night Lily’s earliest members were desperate parents who had lost their children. Over time, their ranks expanded to include the girls they found and rescued—most of whom were orphans with nowhere else to go. These girls chose to join the Night Lily, embracing its mission to save others.

During the subsequent era of the Olavi Empire, driven by the necessity of its anti-magic policies, the Emperor formally integrated the Night Lily into the Imperial Knights. From then on, the Night Lily became an officially sanctioned witch-hunting organization.

Today, the majority of the Night Lily Knights are women, perhaps a continuation of their order’s long-standing tradition.

“But you, you’re quite weak…”

Saranya had no recollection of the person before her, and the fact that this individual didn’t recognize their supposedly missing Grand Commander immediately raised her suspicions of an impostor. However, the silver lily crest emblazoned on the young woman’s chest quickly dispelled that doubt.

The girl’s gray cloak was soiled, trailing along the floor and obscuring her overly slender waist. The edges of her dark steel breastplate were worn and faded, and the belt at her waist hung askew, not properly fastened.

Vireta’s physique simply couldn’t fill out the armor, and her every movement lacked the bearing of a strong warrior. In earlier times, such an individual would never have been permitted to join the Knights.

To allow someone like this to become a branch commander for a jurisdiction? It was utterly preposterous.

“Clang.”

Vireta attempted to salute, but her gauntlet struck the doorframe, sending a large chunk of plaster crumbling to the floor.

Saranya’s brow furrowed deeply.

“I-I’m so sorry!”

The young woman’s voice carried a slight childish lilt as she nervously twisted her fingers, subtly nudging the fallen plaster aside with her foot. Fine braids of her light blue hair hung down past her temples, their tips frizzing outwards, and her round, amber eyes blinked frantically, her baby-fat cheeks flushed with acute embarrassment.

“Such a tragedy occurred during the Church’s priestess selection, and the Night Lily Knights have always maintained good relations with the Moon-Marked Sect. We felt it was necessary to offer our condolences…”

“Then why aren’t you at the Church’s sanctuary? What are you doing at our Redwater Tavern?”

“Eh? You don’t know…?”

Vireta sighed, shaking her head gently.

“The Moon-Marked Sanctuary has been sealed by the City Council. The Weinshield family is spearheading the investigation into the voter fatalities, and all the sanctuary’s clergy have been sent home, leaving only Miss Paresha, along with Captain Phillo and his divine guard squad…”

Vireta shifted slightly, her gaze drifting past Saranya to Kaelan, who was still stirring on the bed.

“Lady Hillburg invited them to stay at the tavern, so—”

“I see. And Paresha? What is her status now…?”

“Well, the surviving bishops of the Pedomar Faction have declared their support for Miss Paresha. Miss Paresha is now the new priestess of the Moon-Marked Sect.”

Saranya’s stern expression softened slightly.

“What about the Moon-Marked Sect’s bishop? Old Bishop Doron has passed away. Who will succeed him?”

“Well, theoretically, the senior archdeacons of the Church should convene to decide this. But as I mentioned earlier, the clergy have all been forcibly dispersed… So there’s no definite news yet. I have a feeling… the Weinshield family is quite ambitious.”

The Weinshield family… Lucius. He and Paresha still had an engagement. Saranya wondered if this engagement had been formally announced to the public. If so, things would become complicated.

If Paresha were to marry Lucius, he would undoubtedly use it to secure the position of bishop. Therefore, Paresha absolutely could not fulfill this engagement.

However, noble engagements were not trifles. If Paresha were to unilaterally break the engagement without a valid reason, her prestige would suffer significantly. People would perceive her as leading the violation of public morals and deem her an unqualified priestess.

Lucius… that fellow was truly troublesome.

Setting aside the matter of the engagement for now, was it possible for them to reorganize the Church and elect a new bishop through proper procedures?

Saranya propped her chin in her hand, pondering seriously.

“Vireta, could your Night Lily Knights consider lending a venue to the Church and helping to organize the clergy?”

The words had barely left her lips when Saranya herself marveled at her quick wit, able to devise a countermeasure the instant she heard the problem.

She seemed to have regained some of her confidence, returning to the peak form of her days as Grand Commander.

‘Was it because I had just thoroughly vented my desires upon my master…?’

‘To be honest, after unleashing her desires upon Kaelan’s small body, her mind had indeed cleared considerably, even though she’d had no such intention beforehand…’

‘Human ‘XP’ (TL Note: A common internet slang term, short for ‘experience points’ or ‘sexual preference/fetish,’ used here to humorously refer to unusual or specific desires), truly wondrous.’

“Um… the venue…”

Vireta’s face crumpled, and her next words made Saranya’s vision go dark.

“We were just evicted last week…”

“Evicted? What happened?”

“Ever since our Grand Commander and the core elites of the order went missing, the Knights’ influence began to steadily wane. The Night Lily’s operations in the Vero jurisdiction were severely impacted, constantly short on funds. The previous branch commander then seized an opportunity to negotiate a deal with the Bloodsail Alliance.”

“Bloodsail Alliance… previous branch commander…”

Saranya felt a growing sense of dread.

“What kind of deal?”

“They said they needed to go out to sea at night to salvage some sunken cargo. They asked our branch commander to personally lead a team onto three ships as sailors, and the compensation they offered was very generous, so we agreed… But it was a trap! Those scoundrels had people ambushed in the ship’s hold. They lured our branch commander and her team out to sea, and then they…”

By this point, Vireta was sobbing uncontrollably, her eyes bloodshot, large tears streaming down her cheeks.

“I was a squire left behind at the branch. When I received the news and rushed to the docks with everyone else to support our branch commander, I saw with my own eyes… I saw that Commander and her team had already been—”

“Ugh—”

Overwhelmed by the painful memory, Vireta trembled violently, bending over to retch convulsively.

Saranya’s nose stung with empathy. She quickly knelt down, gently patting Vireta’s back.

“I understand. It’s alright, you don’t need to say any more…”

“We mortgaged our headquarters to the Weinshield family’s bank. Now we can only live in the stables of the lower city… Um, please forgive me… could you spare some food…? We truly, truly have no money left…”

“…”

While vile perpetrators grew rich, idealistic warriors were left to wander the streets.

Vero, truly a city of sin.

If she were to stand by and do nothing in such a situation, she would never forgive herself.

Saranya rose to her feet, her gaze gradually sharpening to a knife’s edge.

“You want food. Do you want a place to stay too?”

“Can… can we?”

Vireta’s eyes first lit up, then she suddenly flushed, bowing her head in shame.

“I’m sorry, I hadn’t originally intended to come here begging for charity—”

“No, do not apologize. I will ensure you earn your recompense through labor. Besides, it is my inherent duty to see that my companions who follow me are fed and clothed.”

“Follow you…? I don’t understand… what do you mean…?”

Saranya righted the overturned chair with her foot and helped Vireta onto it.

“Look up.”

Vireta lifted her head, a hint of confusion in her expression.

“Look at me. Do I seem familiar?”

“Uh…”

Seeing Vireta’s troubled expression, Saranya gave a helpless smile and sighed.

“Hmph… these squires nowadays, do they not even recognize their own Grand Commander?”

“Eh?!”

Vireta froze completely, her eyes widening abruptly as she stared at Saranya.