Magru Trell’s Cursed Armament, rooted in the user’s body and soul, was inseparable from them. In fact, the body and soul themselves served as materials for the armament. If the user perished, the Cursed Armament would be destroyed along with them.

  After Magru's death, the Cursed Armament became magical remnants, and the Spatial Magazine was also ruined. Charlot Mecklenburg sold the remains to Reggie Asu, a detective from the Fierce Horse Detective Agency, for twenty-five écus.

  The two magical gun holsters were leather gloves, each exposing five fingers, possessing properties of extreme durability and resistance to dust.

  Baron Feller had a strong preference for collecting magical items, though he disliked weapons, particurly Extraordinary firearms. As such, his collection only included two magical guns, both of which Charlot had already gifted to Dolores Soumet and Frederica.

  Charlot had no regrets. These people were helping him guard Silver Dove Castle, and he had no need for the weapons himself. Entrusting them to those who could make better use of them was the right decision.

  As Charlot admired the collection of Extraordinary items, he couldn’t help but acknowledge Baron Feller’s excellent taste. Aside from the limited number of magical weapons, each item was exceptional, valued at hundreds of écus, with some exceeding thousands. These were the true representation of Baron Feller’s wealth.

  Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Charlot called out, “Who is it?”

  Dubin Alger’s voice came from outside, tinged with excitement. “It’s me, Dubin. I have good news to share.”

  Charlot, of course, wouldn’t invite a man into his bedroom. He opened the door and asked, “What’s the good news?”

  Dubin grinned proudly and spread his arms, emitting a faint radiant glow throughout his body.

  Charlot excimed in surprise, “Combat energy? Have you advanced to become a Knight?”

  Dubin nodded vigorously. He had once attended the Habosk Public Academy, where he was a cssmate of Zimourman Axel Robin. If he hadn’t been expelled, he wouldn’t have taken so long to achieve Knight status at his age.

  Charlot had never inquired about Dubin’s past, but noticing the familiar glow, he couldn’t help but ask, “A Radiant Knight?”

  Dubin replied, “Yes! I bought a costly training manual for the Radiant Knight’s Breathing Technique and have been practicing it diligently. Earlier, while practicing swordsmanship with the magical rapier over there, I unexpectedly broke through.”

  Charlot was happy for Dubin but couldn’t help recalling another practitioner of the Radiant Knight’s Breathing Technique, the high-ranking Knight Harriet Alva, the brother of Addison Alva from the Fierce Horse Detective Agency, and the only opponent Charlot had defeated in a duel.

  Though that duel wasn’t solely his doing—he had Lord Leo’s assistance and had used firearms despite promising not to—Charlot had still won.

  Dubin, eted like a child, was now radiant with pride. Though confident in his swordsmanship and natural talent, he had long been relegated to the City Patrol Guards, serving as a low-ranked sergeant dealing with trivial matters. Though outwardly cheerful, he often felt stifled.

  During this campaign with Charlot, Dubin had worked tirelessly, taking on all sorts of tasks without a word of compint. However, as the likes of Yellow Bear, Frederica, Spotted Deer Gwen, and Wind Wolf Bancroft joined Charlot’s ranks, Dubin began to feel a growing sense of urgency and competitiveness.

  Now that he had surpassed the Power Seed threshold and attained combat energy, becoming a Knight, Dubin’s first thought was to share his joy with Charlot—even though Charlot wasn’t the most ideal person for such celebrations.

  Charlot said, “Gather everyone. Let’s drink to celebrate!”

  Dubin agreed and went off to inform their companions.

  At present, Silver Dove Castle was occupied by members of the West Wind Knight Order. Each leader had their own room, and Charlot had even incorporated Baron Feller’s former servants into his squad for seamless operations.

  Soon, everyone gathered in the castle’s banquet hall.

  Due to the short notice, the kitchen was still preparing food. For now, only barrels of ale and some fruit wine were avaible.

  Charlot raised his gss first and said, “A toast to Dubin for becoming a Knight.”

  Neither Dolores, Frederica, nor Yellow Bear were surprised. They all knew of Dubin’s exceptional swordsmanship and deep potential, believing he would eventually break through.

  Spotted Deer Gwen and Gale Wolf Bancroft, though both tenth-tier Knights, were adventurers who had achieved their status ter in life. They sincerely congratuted him.

  Seeing everyone present, Charlot decided to seize the moment to boost morale. Although Dolores and Frederica couldn’t strictly be called his subordinates—Dolores was his subordinate in name only, while Frederica had essentially infiltrated his group—Charlot still wanted to inspire them.

  In a serious tone, Charlot said, “Under the Empire’s new orders, we might be stationed at Silver Dove Castle for a long time. While we’ve achieved several victories along the way, we ultimately failed to save Baron Feller’s family. I don’t know if there will be repercussions, but I can assure you: any responsibility will be mine to bear, and any rewards will be shared with all of you.”

  Charlot was about to continue his motivational speech—a skill honed during his time as a teacher—when someone rushed in to report, “Commander, Lady Nancel is here again.”

  Charlot set down his cup and left the banquet hall without a word. Dolores, Frederica, Dubin, Yellow Bear, Spotted Deer Gwen, and Wind Wolf Bancroft all followed him to the castle wall.

  From a distance, Charlot saw an “old acquaintance,” Hughes, and couldn’t resist shouting, “Hughes, how about a duel between men?”

  Hughes hated Charlot with a passion. Though aware of Charlot’s cunning, he still stepped forward and pnted his Knight’s Lance firmly on the ground. “Come down!”

  Charlot hadn’t expected Hughes to actually agree to a duel.

  Having crossed swords with Hughes before, Charlot knew the man was formidable. Though Charlot had twice made breakthroughs during their battles, learning two moves of Arsilo Swordsmanship’s Angel’s Twelve Movements, the gap in their tiers was too significant. A one-on-one fight would be near impossible to win. Besides, Charlot couldn’t leave Silver Dove Castle—abandoning it would lead to the failure of its byrinth transformation. He had only intended to provoke Hughes.

  Seeing Hughes stand before the two armies, Charlot chuckled and said, “Just joking. Did you take it seriously?”

  Hughes, enraged, bellowed, “Do you have no sense of Knightly honor?”

  Charlot replied, “I don’t cultivate combat energy, nor am I a Knight. How could I have any Knightly honor?”

  Despite Charlot’s admission of jest, both the West Wind Knight Order and the Silver Dove Castle militia cheered him on, mocking Hughes.

  Hughes gred at Charlot coldly, sneered, and waved his hand. Two teams of South Seraph warriors approached, depositing hundreds of severed heads divided into three piles. Hughes said, “I heard you’re from Behemoth. I casually wiped out three families, including one that had members accepted into Strasbourg University. Care to see if any are your kin?”