Only God

Upon hearing this, the knights of Ausenco were abruptly shaken, their mouths dropping open in astonishment, and the leading knight Buzi was so stunned he couldn't recover his wits.

What they wanted was to pledge their allegiance to the pearl of the Danschel Empire.

However, Arsia had them swear their allegiance to God instead.

Was this against customs?

No,

Not only did it not go against customs, but it also fit perfectly with the traditions long upheld by Ausenco.

Not only were the knights in the venue taken aback, but the spectators in the stands also stirred, causing a loud clamor as people began arguing noisily, creating almost uncontrollable chaos.

Although it conformed to custom, this wasn't what the people of Ausenco wanted to see, so collectively they shouted and protested, insisting that the knights of Ausenco must pledge their loyalty to the Princess.

By this time, the people of Danschel had come back to their senses, offering collective support for the Princess's decision, angrily denouncing the shamelessness of the people of Ausenco.

On the luxurious stands, the envoys of Ausenco looked at each other in dismay, with the Ausenco Earl's jaw dropping in shock.

No one had expected the Princess to make such a choice.

Eden was also quite surprised.

He had a vague idea of what was happening, but he hadn't anticipated Arsia would resort to this method.

The knights of Ausenco turned red with anger, with the leading knight Buzi's face turning a shade of ashen, feeling as though they had been played. They had fought hard for victory, only to be denied the result they desired.

Arsia saw the expressions on those knight's faces and felt a wave of dissatisfaction in her heart. Those knights from Ausenco felt tricked, but "pledging allegiance" was never a part of the contest's rules, nor was it backed by any law. It was merely a local custom, and she herself was a Danschelite.

Now, when she was willing to follow this custom, these knights from Ausenco acted resentfully.

"Princess, this isn't right!"

An Ausenco knight protested.

"What rule is there? Isn't this your custom?

If one is to swear allegiance to the most esteemed, then why not swear it to God?"

Arsia paused for a moment, feigning a devout tone:

"Compared to Him, I am but rubble."

The knights of Ausenco were suddenly left speechless, looking at each other before collectively turning their gaze to their leader Buzi.

The tall and burly knight Buzi stood in the sunlight, casting a vast shadow, glaring with anger at the Princess and her guards,

"Princess, you have made a mockery of us. You well know that we wanted to pledge our loyalty to you!"

As his words fell, an immediate counterstrike from the Princess, already prepared, came.

"If you pledge your allegiance to me, you are making a mockery of your grand tradition."

Arsia said courteously,

"Brave warriors, I genuinely respect you and your customs from the bottom of my heart. If I were to make you swear allegiance, that would be mockery, but by not demanding your oath, I not only avoid mockery but also observe the propriety due from a foreigner."

At this moment, the people of Ausenco in the stands were somewhat at a loss for words. The Princess's response was quite fitting, and her words were logical. Meanwhile, the voices of the Danschel people grew louder as they joined in to support the Princess.

The Ausenco knights had nothing to say, their faces flushing with anger. Buzi, the lead knight, remained silent, his gaze filled with hatred towards the Princess. Suddenly, his frustration boiling over, he clenched the hammer in his hand and stomped over like a massive elephant.

Eden's eyes flashed as he stepped forward to shield Arsia, who, after her initial shock, quickly retreated several steps.

Clang—the sound of the war hammer tearing through the air echoed.

As the hammer fell with the weight of an elephant's leg, Eden gritted his teeth, enduring the discomfort, and chanted in the Ancient Language.

Spiritual Shock!

The war hammer abruptly halted mid-fall, then drooped sickly, while the giant-like knight Buzi, after a brief pause, lost strength and knelt on the ground.

Eden gasped for air, wiping the fresh blood seeping from his ears, a result of the backlash from using forbidden rituals like the Ancient Language in the arena, which left him with a moderate internal injury.

...This luck... really is...

Eden lamented inwardly.

Fortunately, the misfortune coin didn't degrade his luck to the worst extreme; otherwise, the war hammer would have inflicted serious injuries on him.

Although the arena restrictions weakened the force of the Spiritual Shock, Buzi, already exhausted from the battle, coupled with Eden being a Third Rank of the Holy Chorus, meant the colossal knight fell without the power to retaliate.

However, no matter the internal dynamics, to the audience outside the arena, it appeared that Knight Buzi had unethically attempted to injure Princess Arsia, only to be subdued by her protector with a single strike.

The Danschel people erupted into cheers, while many embarrassed Ausenco spectators lost face. A minority of Ausenco supporters cheered for the protector's action, and for a moment, everyone in the arena stood with Princess Arsia's decision.

Eden, still panting, continued to wipe away the blood from his ears, his hearing temporarily impaired, unable to clearly discern the overwhelming cries from the crowd.

People initially praised Eden's courage and denounced Knight Buzi's shamelessness. The excitement boiled over like wild horses breaking free, growing more intense.

People threw roses, lilies, begonias, and assorted unidentifiable flowers onto the ground, originally meant for the victor. Minstrels on the spot composed songs and sang praises with lavish words. In the sunlight, knights from Ausenco were left out in the cold.

Those voices began to evolve, seeking the finest praise and rewards for this protector, and finally, someone suggested, "Let him take an oath to the Princess!"

"Let him swear! Just as a knight finds the finest rose!"

"Only he is worthy of our august Your Highness!"

"God, have mercy on him, for it was You who blessed him with such happiness!"

"Let him take the oath, or perhaps the Princess should swear to him!"

The people cheered and jeered, insisting that the protector swear loyalty to the Princess as if it were an obvious and righteous course of action. If either party were to refuse, perhaps even God would grieve.

The Ausenco envoys in the luxurious stands were at a loss; they realized that not only were the Danschel people encouraging the oath, but many from Ausenco were also joining in, treating Eden as the true victor.

The sound of the crowd was like a tidal wave, driving the momentum of the event.

The gentle sunlight fell, a faint sheen rising amidst the dust. A breeze swept over the distant layers of green mountains, colorful petals fluttering down. Arsia remained silent, her approach towards Eden slow, as she extended her hand.

Princess raised her voice,

"In front of that terrible giant, you saved Arsia of Danschel and defended the glory of the Church and the Royal Family. Please give me a peace kiss, and I will become your patron."

Injured, Eden could hardly hear Arsia's words, and the words of the audience were not very clear either. He looked at Arsia and noticed that she was looking at him with a pleading gaze.

Arsia lowered her voice and said urgently,

"Promise me, otherwise it's hard to explain."

Eden couldn't hear her voice but understood her gaze.

Was he to give a peace kiss? It must be so.

Thus, Eden took Arsia's hand, then bent his knee slightly and, according to the custom, placed a kiss on the smooth, fair back of her hand.

Among the crowd, thunderous cheers erupted, with thousands of people shouting and singing heartfelt blessings. Petals fell like a storm, and some overjoyed nobles even threw their necklaces and rings.

Finally, someone led the charge and all present united their wills, chanting the knight ennoblement ordinance.

"In face of the greatest enemy, without fear."

"With brave loyalty, love thy people and thy lord."

"Speak the truth, prefer death over deceit."

"Protect from danger, this is my oath!"

At this moment, everyone fell silent, holding their breath and concentrating, as if waiting and expecting something. Their gathered gazes seemed capable of shaking the heavens and the earth.

Arsia opened her mouth and declared,

"Today, you are dubbed a knight!"

The crowd immediately plunged into a sea of jubilation.

............................

Among all people, Eden was the last to learn that he had been dubbed a knight.

At that time, because of forcibly using the Ancient Language, his ears were injured, so he couldn't clearly hear what people were saying.

He watched Arsia's movements, thinking it was just a peace kiss, never expecting that people would actually cheer for ennobling him as a knight.

If it wasn't for Veldor telling him face to face, he would never have thought that he had become Arsia's knight.

"But… this isn't according to the rules, I'm a priest."

Eden said, somewhat perplexed.

"It seems appropriate, yet not quite so, and if deemed inappropriate, it also seems to fit. After all, you were judged a heretic, and by that standard, you are no longer considered clergy and can certainly become a secular knight."

Veldor pondered for a moment and then spoke slowly.

Eden pressed his head and then sighed deeply,

"At that time my ears were injured... Now it's a little better, but I never thought people would actually want me to become a knight."

The dwarf priest laughed softly,

"Are you dissatisfied? That's the princess.

Many wish to swear their loyalty to her, and those Ausenco knights even fight tooth and nail for the honor."

"I…"

Eden paused,

"Anyway… It's just swearing loyalty, after all, we are already protecting Arsia at the request of the Queen, right?"

Swearing loyalty didn't have as much binding power as people imagined.

In those renowned families of the Empire, almost every woman had her own knight. If a knight made a clear oath to an unmarried woman, it did not mean he would become her future husband. Instead, she often chose another man as her husband, and he, despite his loyal and unwavering virtues, would not cease his loyalty to her and would marry another woman.

As a priest, Eden was very clear about these knightly stories and knew them even better than the knights themselves.

Veldor looked around and spoke at that moment,

"You don't know, people are already treating the scene as a beautiful story. Minstrels are turning it into legendary tales to sing about, and without a doubt, in everyone's eyes, you are the Princess's knight, and Princess is your patron."

"This… This is really…"

Thinking about how he used to dislike Arsia, Eden said subconsciously,

"This is really... such bad luck."

"Not everyone gets to have such coveted bad luck; you should rest well."

After saying that, Veldor stood up and left Eden's tent.

Alone in the tent, the priest lay on the bed, blankly staring at the tent for a while before slowly closing his eyes.

Swearing loyalty… Knight ennoblement…

Thinking of these, inexplicably, the kissed fair hand suddenly intruded into his mind.

The delicate skin, the faintly visible blue veins, the slight tremble of the soft down, and the water-like fingernails—the hand that he had kissed was so flawless, and he realized he had never before seen such a perfect hand.

After a while, Eden put his hand to his head, cautioning himself softly,

"Stop overthinking it."

In the past, he would never have engaged in such thoughts, and every night before sleep, the most he would ponder aside from heresy, was matters of theology.

But today, his mind was uncontrollably filled with slightly sensual musings.

It really was...

"Such bad luck, isn't it?"