My Childhood Friend Told Me to Go Marry the Most Beautiful Woman in the Kingdom, So I Seriously Started Improving Myself—and Somehow Ended Up Making Women Fall Hard - Chapter 50 & 51

Act 04

Chapter 50: The Title of Knight

The slave traders who had been thrown into the cells were slumped against the walls.
The ledgers and contracts were bundled together with sealing tags, and everything that looked like evidence had been confiscated.

“Hort. Next is the handover. Don’t say anything unnecessary, got it?”

Captain Oren’s cat ears twitched.
They weren’t relaxed ears.
They were wary ones.

“Understood.”

This major bust had been reported to the Third Knight Order in advance.
That said, the Third Knight Order didn’t require formal approval.
Operations were carried out at the discretion of the on-site captains.

When requesting support or conducting joint operations, they usually contacted other units.
But this time, the Second Knight Order had already been operating nearby, so even that wasn’t done.

However, just as we were about to begin interrogating the slave traders, an order to stop came down.

From Daitaros Mephi, Vice-Commander of the Third Knight Order and Captain of the Second Unit.

The message was simple.
The Second Unit would handle the interrogation—so we were to hand them over.

Captain Oren was clearly ready to refuse.
But doing so would risk a clash with the Second Unit, which would escalate into a conflict with the Third Knight Order as a whole.

When investigating the truth behind a case, creating unnecessary friction would only get in the way.

Because of that, she had no choice but to agree to the handover.

From outside, steady footsteps approached.

Tall knights entered the Fifth Unit’s training grounds, bringing a chill with them.
At their front was a man wearing glasses, a gentle smile on his face.

His movements were polite and refined.
His shoulders were broad, and even without armor, he looked imposing.

The Vice-Commander of the Third Knight Order—
Daitaros Mephi, Captain of the Second Unit.

“…Good work. Captain of the Fifth Unit, Oren Ferna. Excellent control of the scene.”

His voice was calm, and it was clear he was properly acknowledging Captain Oren’s achievements.

“It’s our job. Still, this handover feels pretty forceful, Captain Daitaros.”

“Haha, my apologies. It does look like I’m taking credit for your hard work.”

He scratched his head and apologized so easily that it made you wonder—was this person really a bad guy?

If he weren’t already under investigation by the Marshal, he looked like the last person anyone would suspect.

“However, the Second Knight Order was also involved in this major operation. From our side, we judged it would be better handled as a Third Knight Order case. That’s why we’re asking for the handover.”

“Hmph. Can’t be helped. But make sure our contribution is properly recognized.”

“Of course. I’ll arrange a special bonus for the Fifth Unit knights from the Order’s budget.”

In response to Captain Oren’s complaint, Captain Daitaros promised to evaluate their work fairly.

Second Unit knights stepped toward the bound slave traders.

“…You lot. Resisting is pointless. You were caught red-handed. There’s no escape. Please submit to the procedure peacefully. If possible, it would be best if you honestly explained the full extent of your crimes.”

His tone was polite—even toward criminals—which almost made me worry about him.

I stood there holding the stack of ledgers.

Captain Oren was the main figure here.
I was just the secretary—the one handling the evidence.

I stepped forward and handed the ledgers over to Captain Daitaros.

“The kidnapping list matches the warehouse ledgers… hmm. You lined this up beautifully.”

Those words slid straight into my chest.

Captain Oren spoke up shortly.

“Hort gathered it all and cross-checked everything.”

“I see.”

Only then did Captain Daitaros turn his gaze toward me.

Behind his glasses, his eyes looked at me gently.

“You’re Hort Rubel, right? I’ve heard about your work this time. After joining the Fifth Unit, you reformed the slums and moved people’s hearts. Thanks to that, the kidnappers were exposed. That’s not something an ordinary knight could pull off. It’s a flexible way of thinking—very fitting for a trainee.”

“…No, I’m really nothing special.”

“Don’t be modest. You produced results.”

He said it firmly, without hesitation.

Then Captain Daitaros took out a single letter.

It bore the Marshal’s wax seal.
The paper was different—this was a document from higher up.

“Let’s get to the point. We’ll take full responsibility for the slave traders from here. Captain Oren, leave the rest to us.”

“I get it. I trust you, Captain Daitaros.”

She clearly trusted him as well.

…Was this man really a bad one?

Since he was under investigation, I’d been looking at him with suspicion—but he didn’t seem like a bad person at all.

“Now then. For the key contributors this time—Captain Oren, and Knight Trainee Hort Rubel—I’ve brought a reward from the Marshal himself, praising your achievements.”

“A reward…?”

“Yes.”

Captain Daitaros reached for another document.

“Captain Oren Ferna—effective today, you are promoted from Section Knight to Battalion Knight.”

“Hah?! That’s… a promotion?!”

“Yes. Congratulations. You’re now among the ranks of battalion commanders.”

“Hmph! I’m not happy at all!”

She said she wasn’t happy—but her tail was swaying back and forth.

In the kingdom, knights are ranked by clear titles.

♢

At the very top stand the Crown Knights.

1* Page (Knight Trainee)

2* Knight (Full Knight)

3* Knight Leader (Platoon Commander — leads five to ten)

4* Section Knight (Company Commander — leads fifty to one hundred)

5* Battalion Knight (Battalion Commander — leads five hundred to one thousand)

Up to this point, they’re considered regular knights.

6* High Knight (Senior Knight) — A special position. They hold authority equal to a Battalion Knight, but can act independently, even outside a knight order.

Senior Knights are a unique role—not tied to a unit or order, but granted as a title to those who have proven exceptional merit.

7* Knight Commander (Knight Order executive, overseeing multiple units)
8* Deputy Commander (Vice Commander of a Knight Order—usually one or two per order)
9* Grand Commander (Commander of a Knight Order—one per order)

These are the true executives of each knight order, positions only a few can ever reach.

10* Grand Marshal — The supreme commander of all knight orders.

11* Crown Knights — Authority equal to the Grand Marshal. Rank equal to a duke. Knights of overwhelming, unmatched strength—recognized by the king as special beings. At present, only three exist in the kingdom.

♢

Captain Daitaros’s gentle smile deepened.

“Hort Rubel, Knight Trainee. It’s time to properly reward your achievements as well.”

I swallowed.

“…Me?”

“Yes. You.”

Captain Daitaros spoke as if reading from a formal record.

“For this operation’s key contributor—Hort Rubel!”

“Yes!”

“You made major contributions to the Fifth Unit’s on-site control, securing evidence, dismantling kidnapping and smuggling organizations, and restoring civilian safety. Taking all of this into account, it has been decided that you will be granted an official knight’s title. Congratulations. As of today, you are awarded the title of Knight.”

For a moment, the words didn’t register.

An official knight?
Me?

I’d been just a Page—a knight trainee.

Captain Oren narrowed her eyes.

“…So you’re promoting him to Knight?”

“Yes. He will be granted a knightly rank. It’s a single-generation title, but it officially certifies him as a knight recognized by the kingdom. There’s also a pension, so even after his term ends, he’ll be secure.”

Captain Daitaros joked lightly about the pension and laughed.

“This has also been approved by the Grand Marshal himself. The Marshal has sanctioned granting you the title of Knight.”

The moment the Grand Marshal’s name was mentioned, my back straightened on its own.

“…Yes!”

I returned the salute without thinking.

The first step toward becoming a Crown Knight.
Still far away.
So far it almost sounded like a dream.

“Very few become Knights at your age. But remember this—becoming a Knight comes with responsibility. Knights exist to protect the kingdom, and to protect its people. Are you prepared to shoulder that responsibility?”

“Yes!”

I answered without hesitation, and Captain Daitaros nodded with clear satisfaction.

“Good answer. Then prove it with results from here on. Someone like you has value to the Third Knight Order. I’m expecting great things.”

“Thank you very much!”

…Value.

That word cooled something deep in my chest.

Captain Oren stepped forward.

“Hort’s the Fifth Unit’s secretary. Don’t just take him away.”

Daitaros’s smile didn’t falter.

“I won’t. He achieved these results because he worked with the Fifth Unit. The Fifth Unit’s achievements belong to the Fifth Unit.”

His tone was gentle—yet there was a pressure that made it impossible to argue.

A strange man, I thought.

“Well then, my report is finished. I’ll be taking custody of them now.”

The slave traders were taken away.
In exchange, the achievements were presented properly.

Before leaving, he looked back.

“You have good eyes. Once again—Hort Rubel.”

He held out the wax-sealed document in front of my chest.

“This is your knightly patent, proof of the title of Knight. Take it. The kingdom has recognized your achievements. Congratulations.”

Captain Daitaros handed it over and truly left.

The paper was heavy.
Just a single sheet—yet heavier than any armor.

Captain Oren spoke bluntly.

“…Congrats. If you get cocky, I’ll scratch you with my claws.”

“That’s a terrifying way to celebrate.”

When I gave a wry smile, she snorted.

“A Knight of the Fifth Unit represents the Fifth Unit. Don’t die.”

The Third Knight Order wasn’t kind.
But it did properly recognize honest work.

It almost felt like a lie that I’d been so wary—
Captain Daitaros now seemed broad-minded, someone with real depth.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

Afterword

Hello, this is the author, Iko.
Thanks to all of you, we’ve reached ⭐︎5,000 reviews!!!
Seriously—thank you so much!!

Now then, let’s begin Act 04.

Chapter 51: Let’s Start the Investigation

Captain Daitaros took the slave traders away.
Beyond the iron bars, everything grew quiet.

Captain Oren stood there with her arms crossed, silent for a while.
Her cat ears twitched—just once.

“Hort… congratulations on being approved as a Knight.”

“Thank you very much.”

Normally, you’d travel between units as a knight trainee, spend several years as a knight’s attendant, and only then—if you were lucky or achieved major results—earn a knightly title.
What I’d been given this time was clearly exceptional.

The fact that the newspapers had made such a big deal out of it was probably the biggest reason.
It had become an achievement the kingdom couldn’t ignore.

There was no doubt that Gina’s support from the shadows made this possible.
But that wasn’t all.

Nagi had defeated the monsters.
Commander Adelheid had fought alongside us.

Because of that, I’d been able to reach these results.

From the perspective of the Third Knight Order’s knights, a young upstart suddenly standing shoulder to shoulder with them probably wasn’t very amusing.

I tucked the wax-sealed document inside my chest and let out a breath.

I was happy. Truly happy.
But I also understood this wasn’t a place where happiness alone was enough.

“Captain.”

“Yeah?”

“Please continue to guide me from here on as well!”

“I know. I won’t just throw you away.”

“Thank you. And about Captain Daitaros… he really seems like an amazing person.”

She looked straight at my face—and let out a sigh.

“There’s something about the way he smiles. It’s gentle, but at the same time… intimidating.”

“Daitaros Mephi is my senior.”

“Senior?”

“Yeah. When I first joined the Third Knight Order, he was one of the senior knights who trained me. More honest than anyone, serious as a knight… and a man who truly aims for the Crown Knights.”

Purely aiming for them—the peak every knight in this kingdom dreams of.

“He really is amazing, huh.”

“Yeah. He’s so straightforward it actually gets on my nerves.”

She shrugged.

“But there was an incident.”

“An incident?”

“…It hasn’t been resolved yet. That’s why I’m telling you now. A cult that worships demons—the Black Ram.”

“Black Ram?”

“Yeah. You know that demons exist in this world, right?”

I’d learned about demons from books while researching spirit summoning with Rina.
Beings that stood opposite to spirits.

Spirits chose to live alongside humans and lend them their power.
Demons also granted power—but always demanded a price.

“Yes. I’ve looked into demons before.”

I hadn’t told Rina, but when I was wondering if I could help with spirit summoning research, I’d come across texts about demons.

“The Black Ram was a shady organization that worshiped demons and summoned them. They called their members ‘Black Sheep’ and assigned them numbers. The Third Knight Order wiped them out. It was a bloody, fiery, and bitter operation.”

Captain Oren’s voice dropped slightly.

“We were supposed to have won.”

“…Supposed to?”

“After the big operation, several members went missing. Then there were cases where family members died under suspicious circumstances. One of those ‘accidents’ was Daitaros’s fiancée.”

My throat went dry.

Deaths with no evidence left behind—there was no way I could call that coincidence.

“That’s awful…”

“That’s when he changed. He threw himself into work and stopped showing mercy to criminals. Polite tone, every escape route sealed. He smiles—but it’s cold. Still, he kept producing results and climbed all the way to his current position as vice-commander.”

Captain Oren clenched her fist for just a moment.

“He became a workaholic, and he’s definitely harder to deal with than he used to be.”

“I see…”

Vice-Commander Daitaros was listed as a subject of investigation by the Grand Marshal.
That fact snagged in the back of my mind.

I couldn’t bring it up here. Not now.

“…It just caught my attention.”

“Even if it does, swallow it for now. He looks like someone who doesn’t choose his methods to get promoted—but it’s all for the kingdom.”

“Yes.”

Captain Oren flicked my chest lightly with her finger.

“You just became a Knight. It’s fine to be happy. But don’t walk into deep waters with that happy face on.”

“Yes.”

There was somewhere else I needed to step into—right away.

“I want to investigate the body that was found underground, Captain.”

“The case where the corpse from the Eleventh Unit turned into a wraith, right?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. You’ve already been appointed a Knight, so you don’t need a supervising officer anymore. But you never know what might happen—take Daut with you.”

“Thank you.”

With her official approval, I headed to the orphanage together with Daut.

The wraith we defeated beneath the orphanage.
The fragment of the cloak that remained.

Eleven.

I took out the clasp wrapped in cloth from inside my coat.

A gray cloak.
A number engraved on the clasp at the chest.

♢

The orphanage gate was dim even during the day.
The shadow of the stone church fell over it, and the children’s voices felt like they were being swallowed by the walls.

I took a breath once in front of the gate, then knocked.

“…Is Sister Natasha present? This is Hort Rubel of the Fifth Unit.”

The sound of a key.
Creaking hinges.

When the door opened, the blue-haired sister peeked out.

The redness in her eyes was lighter than before.
Had she finally slept?

“Lord Hort… thank you for coming!”

She greeted me with a smile.

Come to think of it, I felt like I’d only seen her crying before.

“So today, you’re smiling at me.”

“Hey, hey, Hort. What are you suddenly saying?”

Daut immediately jumped in at my words.

“No, it’s just… I’d only ever seen you with tears in your eyes before. So seeing you smile made me happy.”

“Oh my! That’s thanks to you, Lord Hort.”

“Huh?”

“Ever since the day I asked for help, no monsters have appeared. I also heard the kidnappers were caught. The children were protected. This truly feels like God’s will.”

Sister Natasha clasped her hands as if in prayer.

I answered with just one thing.

“It was your courage that protected the children.”

“E-Eh?”

“You came to me and asked for help. That’s why I could act. Your brave decision changed everything.”

“Whistle~!”

“D-Do you really think so…?”

At my words, Daut whistled teasingly, while Natasha’s face turned bright red.

“P-Please, this way…”

Flustered, the sister changed the subject and led us inside the orphanage.

The floorboards were worn and creaked.
The air smelled of candles, medicinal herbs, and faint sweat.

It was safer now—but there were still many problems left.

A child peeked out from the corner of the hallway and looked at me.
His eyes were frightened—but he didn’t run.

I raised my hand slightly.

The child blinked once, then quietly hid behind the door.

“…Were you able to sleep last night?”

“Yes. The children too… I think they finally slept properly. And we’ve been sharing the food from the hospital soup kitchen you set up, Lord Hort, so we’re able to eat full meals now.”

I had arranged for the people working at the hospital to also send meals to the orphanage children.

At first, the money came from the gold Gina had given me.
But once it was officially approved as part of the Third Knight Order’s budget, food supplies were added as a regular duty of the Fifth Unit.

It might have been a small step—but because I acted, the country moved.

“Thank you… truly.”

“You don’t need to thank me. I only created the chance for things to improve.”

“Saint…”

Natasha looked at me with heated eyes.

“Uh, Sister?”

“Ah! My apologies. Um—what brings you here today?”

“There’s something I wanted to ask you.”

I gently placed the clasp I’d wrapped in cloth onto the desk.

A fragment of a gray cloak.
The clasp from the chest.
An engraved number.

Eleven.

Natasha’s gaze was drawn to it instantly.
Her fingertips trembled—just slightly.

“…That is…”

“The wraith we defeated under the orphanage had it. There’s an ‘Eleven’ mark on the cloak clasp.”

The air froze.

She swallowed and quickly looked away.

It wasn’t avoidance—
It was the motion of someone swallowing pain.

“…The Eleventh Unit…”

“You know about it?”

“Yes…”

Still gripping the back of the chair, she spoke in a low voice.

“The Eleventh Unit… that’s the Gate Guard Unit, right?”

“Yes.”

“The unit that protects the capital’s gates, watches who comes and goes, and runs inspections… and a body from that Eleventh Unit was dumped beneath the orphanage?”

“That’s correct.”

Sister Natasha nodded slowly.

Then she held her trembling hand with the other, as if steadying herself, and looked at me—like she’d made up her mind.

“…My father was also a member of the Eleventh Unit.”

“Your father…?”

My voice came out much quieter than I expected.

She nodded.
Her fingertips had gone pale.

“Yes. My father was… the deputy captain of the Gate Guard Unit.”

“Deputy captain…”

Natasha’s father had been in the Eleventh Unit?

A cold weight sank deep into my chest.

That ‘Eleven’ clasp wasn’t just pointing to some random member of the unit—it was touching something much deeper.

“…Do you know Captain Uragar as well?”

When I said the name, Natasha’s shoulders trembled slightly.

“I do.”

She answered immediately.

“He was my father’s… subordinate.”

“Subordinate?”

“Yes. The current Gate Guard captain, Uragar, worked under my father… before my father died.”

“He’s passed away?”

“Yes.”

She said it firmly—
But her voice was shaking.

I let out a breath.
My throat felt dry.

The wraith beneath the orphanage…

“…Miss Natasha. Do you know where your father’s body is now?”

“…I don’t.”

Natasha didn’t smile.

“I was told he died. …But I never saw his body. Only the documents were delivered.”

“…When was that?”

“Several years ago. They came from Mr. Uragar.”

A chill ran down my spine.

“Is it possible that this clasp belonged to your father?”

“I… I don’t know.”

She shook her head.

“But… my father was left-handed. The way the clasp was worn down was a little unusual.”

“The wear marks?”

“Yes. There was a kind of wear that came from a left-handed habit.”

Only then did she finally meet my eyes.

“Lord Hort. I have a request.”

“…Yes.”

“If—if it turns out to be my father… I want to offer proper prayers. My father was a kind man. He was proud of guarding the capital as a gatekeeper, and he believed in exposing wrongdoing for the sake of justice.”

I could feel it—
The hope that she might finally learn the truth behind her father’s death.

“I promise you, Miss Natasha. I will protect this orphanage. And I will uncover the truth connected to your father—no matter what.”

“…Thank you.”

Natasha let out a breath.

Just that single breath seemed to ease her expression a little.

I wrapped the clasp back in cloth and stood up.

Outside the door, the children were still peeking out, watching us quietly.

“Hey—you guys. Want to play?”

When I called out, the kids all popped out at once.

I spent some time with them, running around and playing tag.

“Think of it as practice for when your kid is born, Sir Daut.”

“Me too, eh?! Guess I’ve got no choice! Alright—let’s do this!”

The Eleventh Unit.
Uragar.
And Sister Natasha’s father.

The mystery was only getting deeper.