Chapter 510: The Knight and You
At night, the castle hall of Chishui City was brightly lit. Attendants carried wine glasses and weaved through the crowd, musicians plucked at the strings of their instruments and sang softly, and plates of delicious food were brought to the tables. Tall-stemmed glasses were filled with crimson wine.
Noble men and women gathered in small groups, raising their glasses to converse and laugh. Edith was the center of attention, moving between the various groups of nobles with Earl Delta, seemingly enjoying it all.
Brian, however, felt out of place.
The collar of his undershirt choked him, the tight-fitting black coat restricted his arm movements, and the pointed high-heeled boots were even worse. He couldn't understand how the nobles could walk so nimbly across the smooth floor in such awkward shoes.
Brian couldn't help but envy Vanna, who, as the garrison commander of the First Army camp, at least didn't have to suffer this hardship.
However, when he thought of what Edith had said about them representing Roland's face, Brian couldn't help but straighten his back a little.
Suddenly, someone patted him on the shoulder. "You seem uncomfortable. Is this your first time attending such a banquet?"
He turned around and saw that it was Sir Seerte. The other man was wearing a broad-shouldered礼服(lǐfú), with a white纱(shā) around his neck, looking completely different from his usual self.
"Relax, you don't need to be so nervous."
"I'm not nervous—"
"It's not a bad thing," the knight waved his hand. "Everyone has things they're not good at. It's no big deal."
Brian was silent for a moment. "Where's Iron Axe?"
"Playing the role of a护花使者(hù huā shǐ zhě)," Seerte pointed to the other side of the hall. "Iffi and Sylvie小姐(xiǎojiě)'s popularity is no less than Edith小姐(xiǎojiě)'s."
Brian looked in the direction he was pointing. Although the dresses they wore were temporarily found by Edith, and their expressions were stiff, they were even more beautiful than the pearls of the Northern Lands in terms of appearance alone. "Those people don't know they're witches. And Iron Axe isn't protecting the witch小姐(xiǎojiě)."
"Oh," the knight twitched his mustache. "Is that so?"
"Accurately speaking, he's protecting those nobles," Brian nodded. "If Iffi小姐(xiǎojiě) gets angry, the people around her will suffer."
The two looked at each other and chuckled in unison.
"See, you look much more natural now."
"I..." Brian was slightly stunned, then realized, "Thank you."
"Ha, you're welcome," the old man beckoned an attendant, picked up a glass of wine, and then looked at him, "Would you like a glass?"
"No... His Majesty said that soldiers must not drink alcohol during missions."
"Not even during rest?"
"That's the rule."
"Well," he took a sip alone, "That's a pity."
"Do you think..." Brian hesitated, "Are those words that Edith小姐(xiǎojiě) said true?"
"Such as?"
"That a knight represents His Majesty when abroad, and should not refuse such invitations out of courtesy."
"Hmm... that's about right." The knight nodded.
Brian was immediately a little frustrated. "I may not be suitable to be a knight. I can't be as relaxed and natural as she is in this kind of situation."
"That's normal," the knight spread his hands. "Some people are naturally good at this, and knights who excel at banquets can indeed bring praise and admiration to the lord, and even diplomatic convenience, but it's not the whole of being a knight. In fact, my son is very bad at social activities among nobles."
"Are you saying... Dawn Morning Light?"
"That's right, he rarely deals with other nobles, and even often misses the lord's invitations, but no one can deny that he is an excellent knight."
"I didn't know Mr. Filin had such a side," Brian said in surprise.
"There's a lot you don't know," Sir Seerte laughed, "His temper is as stubborn as a stone. He even married a commoner woman from the theater as his wife, which made me furious at the time, and I even broke off contact with him. But later I realized I was wrong. Ms. Erin was impeccable as a wife. Apart from not having a family background or title, she was no worse than other noble小姐(xiǎojiě)s. It was difficult for them to persevere during that time." He changed the subject, "I heard that you fought desperately with the rebels to protect the grain and grass of Border Town?"
"Uh... it was Nightingale who really stopped them," Brian replied a little embarrassed, "If it weren't for her, I'm afraid I would have died in the basement long ago."
"But at least you stood up, didn't you? That's braver than most nobles. There are many nobles who only have the name of a knight, but run away at the sight of the enemy. I think His Majesty is willing to knight you, and he certainly doesn't value your social skills. As long as you stick to what you're best at, it's enough to be a qualified knight."
"I understand," Brian couldn't help but be moved. "Thank you for telling me this."
"It's nothing, just consider it a chat between the two of us," the knight stroked his mustache. "Seeing you, I can't help but think of Filin, and I can't help but say more."
After a while, Brian asked again in a low voice, "What about the other thing Edith小姐(xiǎojiě) said? About how social interactions between nobles are boring and tedious..."
"You really care about her," the old man looked at him with interest. "Could it be..."
"No, no! I'm just curious," Brian quickly waved his hand. "You obviously didn't agree with her when you looked at her, but now you look like you're enjoying it."
"Well," the knight clicked his tongue, "How should I say it, some people can handle everything properly even if they don't like it. I think Edith小姐(xiǎojiě) may be one of them."
"Can you do well even if you don't like it?"
"That's not surprising," Sir Seerte shrugged. "They are gifted and have countless talents, but that doesn't mean they like everything, especially since she is the daughter of a duke. Such social interactions should have become an instinct for her."
"His Majesty must need someone like her very much," Brian sighed.
"Perhaps," the old man was noncommittal. "But that doesn't mean His Majesty doesn't need others. As I said before, everyone has different talents. When you focus on one point and do it to the extreme, it will never be much worse than 'being able to do everything,' because a person's energy is always limited. That's why he puts his attention on you..." He paused, "Since seeing the changes in Neverwinter City, I think he is right."