Chapter 11: Me and My Family (2) | Semi-Coercive Imperialist
The Knight Order headquarters was abuzz with the belatedly spreading news.
The new recruit Maximilian had killed a child. Of course, the child was a suspect in the murder of a noble, but the deceased noble had a terribly bad reputation. In fact, he was someone who deserved to die a hundred times over. Several media outlets in the Empire latched onto that part of the story.
"...Strange."
The Sentinel Knight Order's physical training room. The new recruit Leon thought about Max as he wiped down a training wooden sword.
He wasn't someone who stood out. That had been the case since their days at the knight military academy, Empire Point. There were distinct factions there, and Max had enough backing to appoint himself a leader if he wanted to. Nevertheless, he didn't belong to any faction. Nor did he create one. At first, Leon had thought something like, "He must hate even being associated with idiots."
That wasn't it.
Max was unexpectedly soft. But that didn't mean he gave off a purely gentle impression either.
He didn't try to trample others, but he extremely disliked being disregarded or having his pride wounded...
In a way, he was a very ordinary, small-minded man.
It may sound strange to say, but he was one of those many 'nobles who didn't seem noble' in this Empire.
"Twelve years old. Three years younger than the last time."
Leon's sparring partner, Tiana, mumbled as she swung her sword with a flick.
"Maybe madness was hiding behind his weakness. You know how people like that lose it once they snap."
Leon wiped his sweat and chuckled softly. A peculiar interest lingered on his gentle face.
"Max did seem a little crazy sometimes."
He wasn't quick to anger, but the type who bottled things up inside until one day he exploded and lost it.
"Still, Max is ahead of us. I'm jealous."
"Jealous? The media is going nuts right now."
At Leon's words, Tiana tossed her towel.
"There was no need to kill. These days, reporters are sharper than ever. He probably just got overeager on his first day. He's probably regretting it now."
"...Maybe."
"I'm telling you, he is."
The two of them left the training ground while drinking water.
"If we had done it, the higher-ups would've freaked out, right? But because it's Ebenholtz- Oh, loyalty!"
"Loyalty!"
As they were climbing the hallway stairs, they ran into senior knights. The two quickly saluted.
"Oh, good work. You two are Tiana and Leon, right?"
"Yes, that's correct."
It was Chiron and Julian. Chiron had a snake-like sinister impression, and the handsome Julian beside him, like a model, was Max's direct senior. Julian and Max bore a slight resemblance to each other.
Julian gave the two of them a nod.
"Keep up the good work."
"Yes, sir!"
The senior knights entered the underground sparring arena, and the two went up to the first floor.
Just then, they saw Max standing in front of the elevator.
"Max! Max! Heard the news. Congrats."
Leon approached in an overly cheerful tone. Max only nodded slightly.
"Yeah."
"Where you going?"
Just as the elevator doors opened, Max stepped in and replied.
"Called to the Deputy Commander's office."
***
Knock knock.
I knocked on the door to Deputy Knight Commander Anton's office. Soon, a voice from inside told me to come in.
When I opened the door, Anton was sitting in his office chair. He smiled warmly when he saw me.
"Good to see you, new recruit Maximilian."
"Loyalty."
"Come in."
I walked over and stood in front of his desk.
"You resolved quite a major incident in your first week."
He tapped a few newspapers laid out on his desk with his finger. The headlines were sharply divided.
[The Rising Star of Ebenholtz, Delivers Judgment to a Heinous Criminal!]
[A Cold-blooded Knight Who Raised His Blade to a Child, Excessive Force Controversy]
[Was the Noble Killer Really a Child? Lack of Transparency in the Investigation Process...]
"There are many who doubt us. Even what we saw with our own eyes, they claim is fabricated."
Many media outlets were hostile toward the Knight Order. Before my regression, I also loathed them, but behind that animosity was the Emperor's manipulation.
A public opinion campaign to shift the center of power from the Knight Order to the Imperial Guard.
"The grand jury has also been confirmed. I heard you didn't refuse the review."
"Yes."
The grand jury was scheduled for next month. Anton gave a bitter smile.
"Maximilian. I know the burden that rests on your shoulders. The name Ebenholtz shines too brightly. The weight of your family, the world's expectations… those things crush a person. But there's no need to push yourself too hard. Even if you move just one step a day, you'll reach your destination."
I looked at Anton. He was a self-made man. Though he came from a fallen noble family, nearly indistinguishable from a commoner, he had reached this position solely through skill.
"Yes. I'll engrave that deeply in my heart."
Anton Zefren was a compassionate man. A clear good man. One who leaned neither toward the Empire nor the revolution, simply trying to walk the right path.
But in an age when the signs of war grow stronger, there is no place for people like Anton. He is certainly someone worthy of respect, but he does not suit the position of Deputy Knight Commander.
"As a reward, your knight budget will be increased by 50,000 dollars per year."
Every knight was given a specific annual activity budget. New recruits were given a base of 300,000 dollars, and veteran knights with accumulated results could handle up to 2 to 3 million, or even more.
Knights used this budget to cover the cost of hiring informants, conducting missions, and other operational expenses.
"Thank you, Deputy Knight Commander."
"Is there anything else you want to say?"
"No. I'm fine."
"Then you may go."
"Loyalty."
I backed out of the deputy commander's office, retraced my steps, and took the elevator down to the second floor.
At that moment.
"Max!"
Someone called my name. I turned to look.
There were knights of noble birth. About five or six of them, all part of Chiron's faction.
The very people who had destroyed Anton and taken over the Knight Order before the regression.
"Max. What did the Deputy Knight Commander say? Tell us."
"Yeah, did he say anything special? Like, related to Ebenholtz or something."
They were wary of me. More precisely, they were afraid of a possible alliance between Anton and the Ebenholtz family. Anton's only weakness was his origin and background.
"Max. Did that old man Anton say anything weird to you, like-"
"Max. You should tell us what you heard in there-"
"Hey, Max. You remember we drank together there, right? I can arrange another round-"
Max. Max. Hey Max. Yo Max.
The way they kept tossing around my name so freely made me sick to my stomach.
"─Max?"
I cut them off coldly and asked back.
"When did I ever give you permission to call me that?"
"...Huh?"
I must become the most loyal person in the Empire. To exterminate an entire alien race, I absolutely must.
However, that doesn't mean I want to side with these scumbags rotting the Empire from within. That would only turn the lesser evil I chose back into the worst.
"My name is Maximilian, and this is not Empire Point where we used to hang around so carelessly."
"...."
The so-called knights were briefly speechless.
"Please be mindful of how you address me from now on. Before seniority, we are all knights here."
I passed them and headed toward my office.
Old memories briefly surfaced. The time I was treated like a pushover, a foolish noble.
"I should've realized it sooner."
Even now, those bastards still called me like I was some mutt they owned, but you are not the same as me.
I am not the same as you.
I am the son of Sebestian and the firstborn heir of Ebenholtz.
You and I were different from the moment we were born, and what Freya said was true.
I should never have tried to escape from Ebenholtz.
Because I am Ebenholtz itself.
And I now stand in a position where I can do what I must do.
***
How does a knight's day begin, and how are missions carried out?
I had completed my first mission with my direct superior Julian, but a superior was only just that, a superior. All tasks in the Sentinel Knight Order were systematically managed through the central computer's "Mission Management System".
Click.
I turned on the office computer. The interface screen appeared.
[Sentinel Mission Management System]
On one side of the screen, countless incidents reported in real-time from across the Empire continued to pop up like alerts.
Ding- Ding- Ding- Ding-
Monster appearances, rebel activity, heinous crimes, unsolved cases, the types varied widely. The incidents were ranked according to their severity and urgency.
These numerous missions were assigned to individual knights according to a specific algorithm. The top consideration was expertise.
Past mission records, training performance, personal specialties, all such data served as the criteria for assessing this expertise.
For example, a knight who had focused on subduing monsters, or one specialized in agent assassination and espionage, would be preferentially recommended related missions.
Of course, since they were only recommendations, one could reject them if desired, and not every mission found a perfect match. For general incidents where it was hard to determine specialization, knights could also choose and apply for missions directly from the list.
Thus, for new recruits, it was a process of discovering their area of expertise.
Click.
I clicked on the 'Wanted Criminals List' among the mission options. The screen was filled with mugshots of criminals with vicious expressions, accompanied by red warning messages.
I skimmed through their codenames.
"...?"
Suddenly, one called "Brain-Eater" caught my eye, a grotesque serial killer who was said to have devoured only the heads of Imperial citizens.
The attached crime scene photos were horrific. The victims' bodies all had their upper necks so badly damaged they were unrecognizable. The cross-sections were shredded as if torn apart by a wild beast.
"Hold on."
Suddenly, the last image of Jacob flashed through my mind.
Ch-ch-chk-!
His jaw stretching past human limits, splitting up to his ears. The sharp teeth squirming inside, charged with mana.
─Who is this 'Lexi' you say is coming to offer you a heart?
I had asked Jacob that, and in a rage, he revealed his true form.
Was "Lexi" really that precious to him?
But the child I killed in the park was different.
Just before I cut the child's throat, I had whispered something.
─I know who you are. Are you still waiting for Lexi?
The child showed no sign of agitation. He only looked at me with a faint smile, never revealing his true identity. He died maintaining the form of a weak child.
It was to protect his kind.
"...Lexi."
I muttered quietly.
Jacob hadn't reacted to me understanding an alien language. It was hearing the name "Lexi", a fellow of his kind, that made him lose control.
They prioritize keeping the existence of their kind hidden from humans above all else, even to the point of willingly accepting death.
But differences in personality and emotion clearly existed between individuals. Jacob, in particular, seemed to treasure a specific individual named Lexi.
Perhaps by Ezenheim standards, he was "extremely weak". That's why he responded to provocation, revealed his true form, and died at my hands.
"Brain-Eater."
I turned my eyes back to the "Brain-Eater" on the screen.
[Sentinel Knight Order Mission Management System]
[Knight Rank: 0 Year Maximilian von Ebenholtz]
[Mission Code: C-077]
[Mission Type: Wanted Criminal Pursuit and Elimination]
[Do you wish to accept the following mission?]
[Target: Brain-Eater (Unidentified)]
[> Accept Mission] [Decline Mission]
I clicked accept.