Date - 04 / 04 / 708 Ephit Calendar
Time - An Hour Before Midnight
Location - Caddel Family's Mansion
"How's Athena doing?" Richard asked while stepping into the room.
It was an elegant room properly furnished with lovely furnitures and painted with both gold and silver-colored paints. Candles on walls and chandelier lit up the room. Centered in the room was a king size bed. And on the bed was a young lady sleeping soundly.
Besides her and Richard, a woman in a black and white maid uniform was there.
"According to the doctor, she is doing fine, sir. She received no wound, both internally and externally. The reason for her current state is that she experienced shock," the maid replied with her head bowed to Richard.
He approached the side of the bed. Although the red veil around the bed did not let him see her clearly, he was relieved that she was safe.
"Watch her closely and let me know immediately if any changes occur."
"Yes, sir."
"Where is the doctor?"
"He is currently in the next room."
"Alright, I want him always ready."
"Yes, sir."
He turned and left the room. The maid looked up after the door was shut.
Outside the room, Richard turns to the man waiting for him there. His brown colored eyes lit up in rage. The rage targeted the bowing man.
"Did you catch the other assassins?" Richard asked, while taking out a pen from his pocket. He's dressed in a light black coat over a light blue inner shirt, and a black trouser. His black long hair fell over his shoulders, and on his chin was a neat black goatee.
"We did, sir, all of them."
"You are lucky you did. I would have skinned you and the rest of the men alive."
The man shivered from a chill down his spine. He knew his master very well and knew he meant it literally when he said that.
"Explain to me how assassins got in?" Richard asked, while walking down the hall.
"The mansion's magic barrier is under maintenance because of the previous incident. This was the reason we could not detect them."
"So you are telling me that without a magic barrier, sixty-eight guards can not detect intruders? Tell me why I need to keep you all alive?"
"Forgive us, sir."
"Forgive you? If I had not returned to the mansion and detected the abnormality, my daughter would have been dead, yet you seek my forgiveness?"
"In their defense," a voice spoke and a man came out of the shadows. He wore a hood that perfectly covered his face. "The leader of the assassins possessed comparable strength to you. Even if a guard had detected them, they would have killed him before he had the chance to sound the alarm."
Richard takes a turn to the left and the duo behind continued to follow. "Did you accomplish your task? Have you found anyone befitting to be a knight for her?"
"So far, I've found four candidates that meet the requirements. However, each of them will be hard to recruit."
"Stefan! What year is it?"
"It is the year 708 of the Ephit Calendar."
"The royal selection begins this year and Athena lacks a knight. How will she compete in it? I don't care who it is. I'll personally visit them if they're knight-worthy and haven't joined the other candidates."
"Well, the first is the hermit living in a small village outside Ephit city."
"The famous retired imperial soldier?"
"Yes, sir."
"Proceed."
"The old sir has declared his intentions of joining the royal selection. Using my own words, he said as long as he deems a royal candidate worthy, he will serve as their knight."
"Meaning I can't go personally to persuade him. Next."
"The second one is a knight from the previous selection, sir Yang Kai. Currently he is in Ephit city, however, his purpose is unknown."
Richard stops before a door and opens it. Just before he steps in, he turns to the other man. "All guards on duty tonight are to be whipped first thing in the morning."
"Yes, sir."
Richard steps in and Stefan follows him, shutting the door after he entered. The room was a large office. A beautiful desk and chair sat on one end. Behind them was a large floor-to-ceiling window and two three-seater chairs placed before them. In between was a small table that held a jug and several glasses. A small room was across from the office door. In it were shelves and shelves filled with books.
"As he is an old knight, it would be hard to persuade him. His loyalty is to his master, even if that master is dead," Richard sighs while taking a seat. "Move on to the next."
"Next is the previous sword saint."
"The one from the Jarl family. Oh, I thought he disappeared."
"He did. I found him in a town close to the borders of Demiga kingdom. He is now known as Kim Taeyang."
"According to rumors, he became a coward. Why will I trust someone like that with my daughter's life?"
"The rumors are not really true. From what I found out, he doesn't involve himself in unnecessary fights. He deems his time as an important commodity. He resolves things promptly to avoid wasting time. So unless they pay him to, he rarely fights. Among all the candidates, he is the easiest to gain, though it will cost a fortune for his service."
"So he is a coward."
At Richard's words, Stefan remained quiet. "He is no longer a sword saint. Facing an imperial soldier is impossible for him. At most, he will be on my level. Plus, he will have lots of enemies, too."
"He may no longer be a sword saint, but nine years of experience doesn't just disappear like that, sir."
"So the reason he makes this list is his experience as a sword saint?"
"Yes sir. Despite losing the Sword god's love, he can handle any imperial soldier."
"I still believe anyone on my level can take him. Nine years, you say?"
"Yes, according to what I found out, he was the first sword saint to become one from birth, meaning the Sword god loved him from birth. However, he entered the battlefield at five and officially claimed the title of sword saint. At fourteen, the love of the Sword god left him and someone else took the title of sword saint."
"Put him aside. Who is next?"
"Rachael…"
"Of the Leonard family?" Richard interrupts.
"Yes. I'm sure, sir, is aware of the difficulty in acquiring her."
"Yes, it will be much easier to persuade Yang Kai than her." Richard pinches the area between his eyes.
"I think so too."
"Set a meeting with him as soon as possible."
"Yes sir. Concerning the previous sword saint?"
"Forget about him for now and find someone else."
"Yea sir."
"You may leave." Richard waved his hand at him.
Stefan disappeared into the dark, and Richard sighed. "I wonder how this century's royal selection will go."