The Holy Guard opened the door, and standing outside was Galahad.
At this moment, he had changed into casual attire, wearing a bright smile as he looked at Zoe.
“Miss Zoe, I apologize for refusing your request earlier today. The Church has been eyeing the Principality of Tis greedily, and His Highness William has far too many matters to attend to. He simply couldn’t spare the time. I offer his apologies on his behalf.”
Galahad carried himself with an old-school knightly demeanor. With his handsome face and tall figure, he slightly bowed in greeting, which made Zoe blush a little.
He… he really looked like one of those tragic protagonists in her novels.
Zoe was just a little maid, and her greatest hobby was reading knight stories. Now, standing before her was a knight both elegant and handsome, and it left her slightly dazed.
Yet somehow, when she began to daydream about those romantic scenes from her novels, Erwin’s words echoed in her mind—“The stronger we are, the more enthusiastic they become.”
Galahad was very enthusiastic.
She suddenly remembered the first time she saw Galahad—his expression had been cold and unapproachable, completely different from the cheerful smile he wore now.
Without realizing it, Zoe frowned slightly.“As an apology, allow me to take you for a stroll through the streets of Blood Harbor. Wherever you want to go, I can accompany you—anywhere at all.”
Galahad lifted his head slightly, focusing intently on the girl in front of him.
He was here under the prince’s orders. When the prince had learned that this new type of musket could reach a firing range of 700 meters, he had nearly gone mad.
Seven hundred meters—seven hundred! Even if the pamphlet’s description exaggerated the range by double, and the true range was “only” 300 meters, that would still be enough to completely change the tide of war.
The Imperial Army was still in the era of lining up to fire muskets. Their front-loading smoothbore guns couldn’t hit anything beyond 100 meters—no, even 50 meters and the bullets would go who knows where.
Even within range, effectiveness relied on the enemy standing close enough together for proper impact.
Seven hundred meters… the prince couldn’t even fathom how such a feat was possible. If the rest of the pamphlet hadn’t proven accurate, he would’ve thought it was a scam.
The prince issued a direct order: they must acquire one of those guns.
Galahad had considered stealing one, just like he had stolen the booklet. But the people of Castel guarded their guns with extreme vigilance.
They carried them almost all the time, and at night, they always posted sentries—and not just one group. Galahad had already tried sending people in several times. All attempts had failed.
As for using force… that option had never even crossed the prince’s mind.
After seeing a rifle with a 700-meter range, who would be dumb enough to try fighting its owners? Did they want to get shot just to test the thing?
Who knew how many more such weapons Castel possessed? A powerful, distant, and currently non-threatening island—wasn’t that the perfect natural ally for Tis?
And so the task fell to Galahad.
He had no choice but to dress up, suppress his discomfort, and come here to try and lure the team leader named Zoe.
Damn it, he had done his research—Zoe was just an ordinary maid from Duke Cohen’s domain!
Galahad held a noble title personally bestowed upon him by the Empress. Though she was gone, noble blood still flowed in his veins. The thought of walking beside a commoner, and even having to win her favor, made him feel utterly sick.
But disgust aside, Galahad still performed flawlessly.
With his striking appearance, he had never failed—whether with noble ladies or unmarried girls, he always succeeded if he made a move.
Yet this time, something felt… off.
Perhaps it was intuition, but he felt as though there was a flicker of *disgust* in the eyes of the commoner woman before him?
No, impossible. He must be mistaken. What woman could resist his charm?
Galahad composed himself, smiling as he extended the invitation.
And then, he saw Zoe’s frown relax, her brows rise slowly, her eyes widen, and a look of delight spread across her face.
“You—You mean it? Anywhere at all?”
Galahad blinked. This was actually a little trick of his—a slightly suggestive hint laced with ambiguity, letting the woman imagine freely, torn between hope and hesitation. But… why did she seem *excited*?
Galahad’s gut told him something wasn’t right, but the words were already spoken. He had no choice but to go along with it.
“Yes. Anywhere at all.”
“That’s great!” Zoe turned to glance behind her. Erwin gave her a smile and a nod. “I’ll go with you! Let’s head out right now!”
“Uh… okay.”
“Wait just a sec!” Zoe dashed back into the room, and before long, she emerged in a new outfit.
Her dress had been swapped for trousers and a jacket, with a brown trench coat over the top. On her feet were a pair of leather loafers, and her hair was tied up in a messy ponytail.
*(Testing a run. This is probably the effect I was aiming for.)*
Most crucially, she held a charcoal pencil and a notebook in her hand—what on earth was she planning to do?
Galahad’s eye twitched. His flawless facade cracked ever so slightly. But before he could say anything, Zoe happily grabbed his arm and began dragging him out of the room.
“I’ve been wanting to visit the slums for a while now to gather material for a novel. Castel doesn’t have places like that… Hey, you’ll keep me safe, won’t you?”
*Bang.*
The door shut.
Silence fell over the room. After a moment, Erwin let out a long sigh. “I knew it.”
Once the *Codex of Imperial Truth* had gone missing, it was inevitable that the prince would set his sights on their bolt-action rifles. No one could resist the allure of such a powerful weapon—it was something capable of reshaping the battlefield.
Sitting across from him was Granny, wearing her round spectacles as she studied a book on her lap titled *Simple Methods for Making Explosives*. She slowly licked her finger and turned the page.
“Do you think that prince is a smart man?” Granny asked.
Erwin narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, and then smiled as he shook his head. “He *is* smart. See, he only tried to approach Zoe—he never sent anyone to deal with me, even though I’m the one commanding the Holy Guard.”
“Oh?”
“I’m an officer in a rising territory, leading an elite squad of soldiers. With that kind of background and position, no matter what price he offers, it would be difficult to sway me. As for Zoe—well, pardon me for saying it this way, but through the eyes of a prince, she would seem like nothing more than a maid.”
Granny looked up and pushed her glasses, slowly nodding.
“So the prince is a clever man, then?”
“He’s certainly clever. But the smarter he is… the dumber he ends up being.”
Erwin glanced at the bolt-action rifles in the hands of his soldiers.
“He’s about to find out exactly why.”