Repeat Vice - The Villainous Noble Doesn't Want to Die, So He Swore to Not Die As One of The Four Heavenly Kings

Chapter 13: Dark Knight

The ship that arrived at the Rougvelt pier was greeted by a group of knights clad in jet-black full plate armor.

While all the jet-black knights were wearing similar armor, each of them carried their own unique weapons, giving off a lack of uniformity.

The jet-black knights lined up side by side on the beach of Rougvelt.

The knight who came up to the pier as a representative was holding a halberd.

Upon seeing this from the ship, the sailors all expressed their vigilance uniformly.

“What are they… Where is everyone from the village?” Log muttered with a grim expression.

“Those under Clinton’s command, did they dare to target our absence!?”

“Calm down, fool,” said Rofus, grabbing Fol by the collar just before she was about to rush out alone.

“Let go, Rofus! They’re not just ordinary folks!”

“Look at the flags the knights are holding,”

I point to the flags held by the knights, and the crescent moon emblem adorned on the mantles worn by the knights.

“Remember this well. And never forget it. That is the emblem symbolizing the Lightless family, your rulers,”

I said as I infused magic into my legs, letting my cloak flutter as I descended onto the pier alone.

Following suit, Carlos also descended.

The welcoming knights immediately knelt upon seeing me.

As if in response to that signal, the knights on the beach also knelt in unison.

These jet-black knights—they were the unique forces owned by our Lightless Marquis family.

Selected from among the ordinary knights, each one possessed the strength of a thousand men.

They were permitted to wear the dark armor, and the symbol of the Lightless family—aptly called the Dark Knights.

With their exceptional strength, it was surprising to see so many of them gathered for a single mission like this.

In front of me, the jet-black knight holding a halberd removed his full helm.

He was a man with a handsome face and long white hair.

“You’re safe, young master.”

“It’s you, Alba,” I said.

Among the Dark Knights, he was a man with exceptional strength.

He was my father’s guard and confidant, the head knight.

Alba, the leader of the Dark Knights.

“If you’re moving, it must be at my father’s command. How did you know I was here?”

“…Master was deeply worried. Please return to the capital immediately,” Alba replied, not directly answering the question.

I chuckled at his response.

“That’s not an answer. Are you underestimating me?”

“Not at all. But Master instructed me to remind you not to overexert yourself,” Alba said.

His words made me glare at Carlos.

“I shouldn’t have done anything but… I’m sorry,” Carlos simply bowed his head and apologized.

I clicked my tongue at that.

What unnecessary things he had done.

“Young master, Carlos only did it for your sake—”

“Shut up. What right do you have to intervene between me and Carlos? Speak without permission again, and I’ll put a hole in your gut,” I said to silence Alba’s attempt to intervene.

“Understood,” Alba said quietly, respecting my authority.

He acted quickly.

He gave orders to the other Dark Knights, and the villagers who had been detained were quickly released.

The first to come running towards us after being released was Greg.

“You guys! You’ve returned safely, you bastards!”

Greg hugged Log, hugged each of the young men, and then ran to Fol, who had managed to escape from his grasp.

After a round of reunions, Greg turned to me and Carlos.

“It’s good that you’re safe, kid! Did you manage to defeat the monsters?”

As soon as Greg called me “kid”, the surrounding Dark Knights became tense.

Some even placed their hands on their sword hilts.

I warned them not to act and they backed off.

“They were unexpectedly strong, but we managed. You can ask Log or Fol for details. With the monster threat under control, you’ll soon be able to catch fish again,” I said, feeling relieved.

Greg’s eyes welled up with tears of gratitude.

“Thank you so much. What can I offer you in return, kid?”

“I don’t need anything. I’m not so fallen that I need to be repaid by commoners. More importantly, my men went through a lot.”

“Well, I apologize for that. I thought Clinton’s men had come back again and caused a ruckus… They were soldiers from your place, huh, kid?”

Even though you caused a commotion, you couldn’t do anything and were quickly subdued.

Well, our Dark Knights are a bunch of powerful individuals who can wipe out entire armies by themselves.

If they struggled with a riot from the villagers in this run-down fishing village, it would have been a major embarrassment.

“If anyone’s injured, let me know. We’ll have our people treat them.”

“No need to worry. Our people aren’t soft enough to get injured from a little bump,” Greg said, laughing heartily.

Then Carlos interjected.

“Sorry to interrupt your conversation. Rofus-sama is a bit tired. Could you provide a place for him to rest?”

“Oh? Well, standing around chatting here is a bit much. In that case…”

“—Come with me, Rofus. Our clinic is nearby.”

Before Greg could finish speaking, Fol appeared and grabbed my coat slightly, leading me away.

I sighed and followed along.

“Hey, Fol?”

“Over here,” Fol said, pulling me along.

But strangely enough, she was walking quite slowly, as if considering my well-being.

Seriously, what’s with this unnecessary concern?

Fol whispered something to me that only I could hear.

“You fool, it’s not the time to entertain our father.”

“Who’s the fool?”

“You’re barely standing… and yet, you jumped off the ship like that, trying to show off.”

“I’m not showing off. Besides, I have magic, so it’s not a problem to walk.”

“Even with magic, your wounds won’t heal. Don’t be foolish.”

“I’m not being foolish.”

What does she think she’s doing, lecturing me like this?

I’m beyond surprised; I’m downright disgusted.

It’s repulsive.

Fol, oblivious to my inner thoughts, continued speaking in a low voice.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but was there really nothing wrong?”

“There was nothing wrong, of course!”

My and Fol’s screams echoed.

Watching us, Log muttered to himself meaningfully, while Greg showed a bewildered expression, “Huh… Fol and the kid?”

I can’t help but think.

What a ridiculously amusing comedy of a conversation.

Everyone saying whatever they want, it’s getting out of hand.

Among them, Alba, the head knight, who had silently followed us, slipped through Carlos’s vigilance and came silently by my side.

“!”

Carlos widened his eyes in surprise.

A movement so silent that even Carlos couldn’t catch it.

On the flip side, if this person were an assassin, Carlos wouldn’t have been able to stop him.

Alba, the head knight, wasn’t just for show.

He stared at me with piercing eyes, and muttered softly.

“…Permission to speak.”

Ah, I remember now, I had forbidden any unauthorized statements.

“Fine. It’s a reward for outdoing Carlos. You have my permission to speak. Go ahead.”

“Then… I have observed that young master’s movements seem slightly off. And also, that… young master seems to be acting rather familiar with that person. Could it be that you are injured?”

“That’s right. I do have a rather serious injury. Well done for noticing, Alba. I’ll give you credit for that.”

As expected of someone who inherited the position of head knight from my father, Carlos.

“And… This is just a guess, but… Young master, could it be that your left eye… you can’t see with it?”

“How did you even know that?”

Why, how could he possibly know that?

With most of my body covered by my coat, it’s hard to tell I’m injured just by looking at me.

Normally, even walking would be difficult, but I’m forcing myself to walk using magic but it should be hard to notice that.

Probably, he sensed a slight discomfort from my walking and predicted that I was injured from it, along with Fol’s concerned remarks.

Well, if someone had exceptional observation skills, it wouldn’t be surprising to notice.

But I don’t understand why he found out about my left eye.

Did I inadvertently make a gesture that my left eye couldn’t see?

What kind of gesture would that even be?

It’s more than surprising; it’s downright cringe-worthy.

It makes me feel sick.

Alba, who usually doesn’t change his expression much, now looked at Carlos with piercing eyes.

“Carlos… While you were accompanying him…”

A low voice, even filled with killing intent.

In his eyes, there was anger and disappointment towards Carlos.

Carlos could only bow his head in response.

“I apologize for going too far.”

To my words, Alba gracefully backed down.

“…Is it over? We’re almost there, so let’s go,” I said, eager to move on.

Boredom pushed me to point to a wooden house standing on top of a hill.

It wasn’t something I was expecting, but it looked like a typical peasant’s house, for better or worse.

“It’s shabby. Looks like it could use some fixing for the draft,” I remarked.

“Shut it. It’s better than being out in the wild. Just come in,” For replied.

Nudged forward by For, and we entered the house.

At that moment, Alba grabbed For’s wrist, which had been pushing me.

“Huh?”

Alba’s sudden grasp surprised For, while Alba looked at him with emotionless eyes.

“You’ve been rather disrespectful to the young master since earlier. It seems you’re quite close to him… Are you a woman? No, I don’t think so, but what exactly is your relationship with the young master?”

I released a dark sphere, blowing Alba away for blabbering nonsense. He crashed through the entrance of the house, collapsing onto the rocky ground outside.

Ignoring the commotion around us, I walked over to where Alba had landed, looming over him with a cold gaze.

Alba’s chest plate had a hole from my dark sphere, exposing his trained abdomen.

It seems my magic’s direct hit didn’t penetrate after all.

“When did I permit you to speak? Babbling nonsense… But as I declared, I intended to make a hole in your belly, but you’re quite sturdy, Alba.”

Alba wiped the blood from his mouth and then emerged from the rocky ground where he crashed, kneeling before me.

“If it displeased you, I apologize.”

“Enough. Begone. You’re a nuisance.”

“As you wish… I will promptly send a skilled healer to tend to your arm.”

With those words, Alba disappeared into his own shadow.

Shadow-to-shadow magic – Shadow Move, I presume.

To wield teleportation magic without incantation requires considerable skill.

His skill is undoubtedly excellent, but he’s quite vexing.

“Sorry for the broken entrance. I’ll cover the repair costs,” I said to the bewildered Greg, who gave me a thumbs-up with a wry smile.

“Yeah, don’t worry. I was actually thinking the ventilation was poor. Come on in without hesitation.”

Meanwhile, For furrowed her brow, approaching me and forcefully pulling the edge of my coat.

“Hey! That’s going too far. That white-haired guy, isn’t he a soldier of Rofus? What were you thinking, casting magic at him?”

For was scolding me vehemently.

Why is she angry at me?

And it’s not even because I broke the entrance but because I cast magic at Alba.

Why are you angry? I don’t get it.

“Let’s just go inside already.”

“Stop pulling. I can walk by myself.”

And with For pulling me along, I was led inside the house.

Sitting on the sofa in the house, receiving healing magic from Carlos on my right and bandages brought from the infirmary by For on my left, I was interrupted by a dark knight who had come to visit.

She held a wand with a black motif in her hand.

Oh, right, Alba mentioned earlier that he would send a skilled healer.

Upon entering the house, she removed her full-face helm gracefully, revealing a young woman with black hair.

I didn’t know there were women among the dark knights.

Although she was clad in armor, she made a gesture as if she were holding the nonexistent hem of a skirt when bowing.

From her demeanor, she was probably a noble’s daughter.

But she looked quite young.

She might be in her early twenties, or even late teens.

Dark knights are purely merit-based, so she must be quite skilled, but…

The female knight wiped the sweat from her forehead and approached me, disregarding For’s presence next to me, and examined my missing left arm.

“I heard you were injured, but… I didn’t expect it to be like this… Since you were walking on your own, I assumed it was something lighter…”

“Forget the details and just apply healing magic. You’re a skilled healer, right?”

“Of course, but… This isn’t a simple injury. The powerful magical traces covering your left side… It’s like a curse. I heard you fought against a sea monster, but what exactly did you fight against? Even the highest-ranked ancient dragon, the Ancient Dragon, couldn’t match it?”

The female knight examined my wounds, almost on the verge of tears. Or rather, she seemed to be observing the magical remnants left on the wounds.

Apparently, the magical power of the Whale remained in my wounds like a curse.

But is she really skilled in magical perception?

It seems she’s sensing a glimpse of the Whale’s power from just the magical remnants left in my wounds.

“No, I fought against a whale-like sea monster with quite a bit of magical power. I certainly defeated it. It may have been as strong as the Ancient Dragon, or even stronger.”

I had to use ancient magic inherited from the mythological age, “The Deeds of the first generation,” to finish it off.

“…You’re saying it’s not a being that humanity can handle. I’ll do my best, but perhaps… It’s difficult to fully restore your left arm… I’m sorry.”

The female knight bowed deeply.

I looked at my missing left arm and somehow thought, I need to make a good prosthetic.

“What about my left eye?”

The female knight said, “Excuse me,” and leaned in to peer into my left eye.

“How much can you see now?”

“Nothing at all.”

“I see… Well, I’ll do my best, but it may be difficult to fully restore your vision.”

“I see.”

I wasn’t particularly shocked since I had some inkling about it.

Even when I pour magical power into my left eye, there’s no reaction at all.

It feels like my left eye isn’t even mine anymore.

“Enough talk. Start the treatment.”

When I urged her, the female knight nodded with a tense expression.

“I will do my best.”

From there, incredibly refined magic circles spread around me like a barrier, and within them, I received healing magic from the female knight.

Carlos assisted as an assistant, and For seemed to want to do something but was politely refused by the female knight.

The healing magic lasted for hours, and by the time it was finished, the sun had risen high, and it was evening.

“It’s finished…”

Wiping the sweat from her forehead, the female knight announced the end of the treatment.

The pain all over my body had disappeared like a lie, and the burns on my left side, which had been blistered, had healed without a single scar.

And surprisingly, the vision in my left eye, which I had almost given up on, had improved slightly. It was still blurry, and I couldn’t call it normal vision, but it was a vast improvement compared to when I couldn’t see anything at all.

However, what was astonishing was that the iris of my left eye, which had been pitch black, had turned emerald green, as if the pigmentation had been drained. Ironically, it was the same color as the sea whale’s eyes.

By the way, as expected, my left arm did not regenerate.

The female knight is apparently capable of using the highest-level healing magic, but even she couldn’t restore my left arm.

And despite her own regret, she promised to continue the treatment to the best of her ability.

I nodded in satisfaction, and the female knight wiped her forehead once again, looking exhausted.

“You should rest. You used quite a bit of magical power.”

“Yeah… Thank you for the treatment. What’s your name?”

The female knight, whose expression relaxed a little, replied, “I’m Valerie, of the dark knights.”

Valerie, the dark knight.

Certainly, I did hear that the dark knights are a gathering of elites who use shadow magic, but… She’s surprisingly young.

“I’m grateful for your help, Valerie.”

“No, it was my duty… But still, I’m relieved that I was able to help you even a little.”

Valerie bowed her head deeply.