It was truly a peculiar place.
The Marigold Knights Order.
"What do they do over there?"
"They're knights, I heard?"
"Knights? Why would knights be doing village repairs, my friend?"
"If they call themselves knights, then well..."
"They're called the Marigold Knights Order."
"Mary?"
They would stay in villages devastated by floods and lend a helping hand.
They would solve tax issues or bandit problems in the borderlands.
They would track rumors of magical beasts and hunt them down.
"...what on earth."
In any case, it was a type of knights order I'd never seen before.
"What exactly are they doing?"
For ordinary people, it would be enough to simply think, "What an unusual knights order," and move on.
But the Imperial informants from the capital had a different perspective. They had been sent from the Empire with the mission to monitor Lancel Dante.
"Sir Deville. Is this right?"
"What do you mean?"
"Is this really a meaningful task? I'm starting to wonder what we should even be reporting."
The agents following Lancel Dante's movements were becoming increasingly confused.
They couldn't comprehend what purpose the Marigold Knights Order served.
"Didn't His Highness emphasize this? They might be potential rebels! We need to keep tracking them. Looking at how their numbers are growing, they might truly be traitors as the Imperial Court suggested."
"That's true."
"Stop complaining and just keep following them. If necessary, we'll request reinforcements from the Imperial Court and wipe them out in one go."
During their journey.
Until the knights joining the Marigold Knights Order gradually increased in number, the Imperial informants thought they were plotting rebellion.
"What would they do after building up their forces? Threaten the Imperial Court, of course. There's also suspicion that he might be the one who hid Princess Claria somewhere."
"That's certainly possible."
But as time passed, the activities of the Marigold Knights Order increasingly confused the informants.
"Rebuilding collapsed houses, helping with farming, capturing bandits, retrieving collected taxes, exterminating magical beasts..."
"What are they trying to accomplish?"
"That's what I want to know! Argh, Lancel Dante! How far do you plan to drag me from my comfortable life at the Imperial Court?"
"Seeing them clash swords in training every day, their purpose does seem to be honing their martial skills..."
What seemed like a pursuit that would end in a year or two stretched on, eventually surpassing five years.
"The Marigold Knights Order? Ah! You mean Sir Lancel Dante and his knights? They're excellent people. They completely cleared out the magical beasts that were causing trouble here!"
"If it weren't for them, I don't know how we would have survived this year..."
"My daughter fell head over heels for that knights order and broke off her engagement. They're absolutely cursed!"
"They were incredibly strong!"
.
.
.
It was a much longer journey than expected.
"Maybe they're just good people?"
"Don't jump to conclusions! Their goal might be to deceive us!"
"Yes, sir!"
Though he said that, the Imperial informants' vigilance had hit rock bottom long ago.
Yes.
They had already realized it after noticing that increasing their numbers and building power wasn't their goal.
That they were neither traitors nor a threat.
After all, the Marigold Knights Order was gradually dispersing.
"Commander Lancel."
"You're leaving?"
"Yes. I've realized that people live in the dark corners of the continent, in remote places where the hand of salvation doesn't reach."
"So you'll become an explorer of uncharted territories."
"I must endure. They need help too. That's the kind of person I want to be."
"I see. You'll do well, Ivan."
At the crossroads.
Lancel Dante handed a cloak to a knight who had chosen to depart.
The once pure white cloak now had flower and bee decorations embroidered on it.
"Take it. This cloak proves you are a knight of Marigold. Wherever you are, whatever you do, it will remind you that you were with us."
"Commander..."
With a wave of his hand, he left the Marigold Knights Order.
If it had happened once, it might have been dismissed as the whim of a few. But as it happened a second and third time, the Imperial trackers had no choice but to change their perspective.
"Two more left the knights order today."
"They called it graduation..."
"Should we report that they're disbanding on their own?"
"...Let's wait and see for now."
They continued their surveillance.
Because there was always a possibility.
Who knew if they might gather again and plot rebellion?
That's what Deville, who led the informants, thought.
But.
"I'm deeply grateful for everything, Commander Lancel! Marigold Knights Order!"
"My ears are going to fall off. This beast-like man is shedding tears."
"Sniff!"
The knights order that once had forty members was now down to thirty.
"Ah, before leaving, I had hoped to take away Master's bachelor status, but you really don't give in easily."
"Thanks to you, I haven't had a peaceful night's sleep, Yuri. I'm secretly relieved you're graduating."
"Hehe. Will you at least give me a goodbye kiss?"
"..."
"...Sigh, I truly loved you for who you are, but now I'm worried. I guarantee you'll be alone forever. Are you okay with that? Will you regret letting me go for the rest of your life?! Am I being petty? Well, maybe!"
"Alright, alright. So where are you planning to go now?"
"I told you. I need to circle the Empire and return to the capital. Then I'll build a magnificent orphanage. Much better than where I used to live. Ah! I'd also like to visit the archipelago you mentioned, Master."
"That will be quite a long journey."
"..."
"..."
"...Master, if you get lonely, come to the capital. In about 20 years..."
"Not interested."
"Ouch!"
The thirty-member knights order dwindled to twenty.
"You're going to the edge of the continent?"
"Yes! For a man, traveling the world is a necessary rite of passage once you're born, isn't it, Commander?"
"Don't die of thirst in the desert."
"Hahaha!"
Twenty became ten.
"Mona. It pains me that even my reliable vice-commander is leaving."
"You were planning to let me go from the beginning, weren't you, Sir Lancel?"
"Well. I wonder."
"That's what I've always believed."
"...Let's go with that."
"Sir Lancel. My desire to become a knight my dead brother wouldn't be ashamed of... actually... has changed recently."
"Oh? To what?"
"I want to become someone like you, Sir Lancel. Because I think that's the true image of a knight my brother wanted."
"...I'm not that kind of person, Mona. You can become someone much more remarkable. I guarantee it."
"That's part of what I meant. Sir Lancel. You really are..."
"...This is a first. To see you shed tears. I've never seen that before."
"Enough! I'm leaving!"
"The vice-commander is embarrassed, Commander."
"Indeed."
"Ugh!"
Ten soon became two.
"Aren't you leaving?"
The one who stayed by his side until the end was a mage.
"I stayed a bit longer because I thought the Commander would be lonely. How about that? Makes you want to praise me, right?"
"But you're about to leave too, aren't you?"
"Well... I was just thinking about it."
"Comet. Did following the knights order help with your magic?"
"Not at all. Not at all. Not even a little."
"Surely it helped a bit, honestly."
"Not at all."
"Strong denial is affirmation."
"...Rather than magic..."
"...?"
"Ah, it's nothing. I'm leaving!"
"Wait. Take my horse."
"What? What about you, Commander?"
"I can walk."
"Hehe, I won't refuse."
"Please."
The last mage donned his cloak.
"Thank you, Commander. Meeting you was the most magical thing in my life. Truly."
Like all the others before her, she too disappeared, fluttering the pure white cloak with flowers and bees emblazoned on it—the cloak of the Marigold Knights Order.
.
.
.
"..."
Eventually, only Lancel Dante remained on the road.
Standing alone in the sunset, he quietly gazed at the setting sun.
"Lancel Dante."
The Imperial informants approached him.
In truth, surveillance had long lost its meaning between them. They had known of each other's existence for a long time.
He had even openly demanded their cooperation when helping villagers attacked by magical beasts, saying, "Stop lurking and come help!"
Of course, they did help.
"So you're alone in the end. Did you start this journey with this intention from the beginning?"
"The eggs I was nurturing simply hatched, Marquis Deville."
"...Yes. That's right. They all seemed to need a wider world than being confined in an egg."
Deville, the Imperial informant and court noble, now stood beside Lancel. He handed him a small bottle of fruit wine.
Lancel accepted it with a slight smile and took a drink.
"Now that you're alone, what will you do?"
"I'll think about it from now on."
Lancel's expression as he said this was somehow melancholic.
"The answer must be somewhere."
"...Indeed."
Marquis Deville turned his back.
With a small wave of his hand, he concluded his seven-year pursuit, which was long in some ways and short in others.
"I wish you good fortune, Lancel Dante."
And so, ten years passed.
12.
===============
—Imperial Year 826, June 1st, Weather: Very Clear.
—The Marigold Knights Order has discovered a total of 'twelve' hero candidates. Marigold's Karma decreases by 12 points every 2 years.
—The current Karma value is '798'.
â»Blessing of Happiness! Marigold's Karma does not recover even after playthroughs!
===============
Through several lifetimes searching for hero candidates.
Lancel had essentially discovered all the promising individuals he could find. There was no point in scouring the Empire anymore.
Those twelve hero candidates now served the truly grateful role of lowering Marigold's Karma. It was like auto-hunting.
'60 points in 10 years... To reduce the 298 points needed to escape the terminal illness... about five more playthroughs?'
Lancel finally felt relief.
Yes. He just needed to endure five more times. Then the moment of liberation would come for Marigold too. For Lancel, that was enough.
"Mary. We don't have much longer to go."
.
.
.
That day, Lancel met the Food Parasite Marigold again.
"Mary."
-Sir Lancel.
Just being embraced by her seemed to melt away all his hardships and fatigue.
'Five more playthroughs.'
During that time, this tiny One-Horned Marigold and Food Parasite Marigold would be with him. Yes. This was enough.
This was truly enough.
—————————
-Food Parasite Marigold's Guardian Saint feature! Now you can select a previously seen game timeline again!
1. Imperial Year 809.
2. Imperial Year 816.
-Would you like to restart the game?
—————————
"...?"
Cancel what I just said.
Lancel's expression turned blank.
'809... that's before Marigold died?'
Since she died at thirteen, in 809 she would have been only eight. It was a point when she still had 5 years left to live.
Lancel jumped up and embraced the Food Parasite Marigold.
-Woah!
"Food Parasite! You're the best!"
The One-Horned Marigold toddled over again and patted his back, but he couldn't help it.
Good things are good.
This definitely isn't favoritism.
'Yes. During these five playthroughs, if I can find the living Marigold and give her happy days each time...'
Isn't this absolutely the best?
[Lost Marigold - END]
[NEXT - Girl Marigold]