Yuri and his group returned to Briol.
Although their schedule had been delayed by stops in Adelbine and Bursen, their travel had been so swift that not much time was lost overall.
As soon as he got back, Yuri met privately with Fiore and explained everything that had happened in the Empire and Adelbine.
Fiore’s expression grew increasingly serious as he listened, nodding slowly.
“So those things really happened.”
“Black magic…”
Now that a concrete threat like black magic had been revealed, persuading him became much easier.
Fiore tapped the armrest thoughtfully.
“If what you say is true, then the Empire’s problems could escalate.”
“This isn’t something we can just brush aside.”
“Do you truly believe the Imperial Palace is involved with black magic?”
“I’m certain.”
“And the Emperor?”
“I don’t know that far. But I think the Crown Prince is the likely culprit.”
“The Crown Prince, huh…”
Fiore muttered to himself.
“This is serious.”
He seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, then nodded decisively.
“Alright. For now, let’s keep this between us.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’ll discuss the next steps with you.”
“Understood.”
Though he often seemed indifferent, Fiore was the kind of man who didn’t hesitate when action was needed. Knowing his father was on his side gave Yuri a sense of reassurance.
“By the way, Yuri, a delegation came from Yohaim.”
“Yes, I heard.”
“They said they came on your recommendation.”
“We just happened to cross paths.”
“I thought they were here to attack Briol.”
“Hahaha…”
“Who sends an army to another country just for training?”
“Sir Gonté was worried about the young knights’ morale, so we decided to pass on Briol’s traditional training methods.”
“What kind of training is that?”
“Grit and guts, pure and simple.”
“Briol has such a tradition?”
“It’s just getting started.”
“Hmm…”
“Just trust me on this.”
“Alright…”
Fiore looked skeptical but gave Yuri a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
“I see. You’ve grown up now, so I trust you’ll handle it well.”
“I won’t let you down.”
“I don’t have much faith myself, so just live up to Sir Gonté’s.”
“Understood.”
“Go on.”
“Yes.”
As Yuri stood, he asked, “By the way, where are my two older brothers?”
“They went to school.”
“Excuse me?”
“Cedric said he was writing a thesis, so he went to Francez. Joshua tagged along, saying he wanted to study too.”
Francez, part of the Flandre family’s domain, housed the largest university in Briol.
“Oh, that’s good.”
“Maybe.”
Cedric had always been studious, but Joshua’s change was surprising.
In his past life, around this time, Joshua would have been causing trouble—probably setting fire to a palace building while playing with fire.
And back then, Yuri had been right there with him.
“They’re growing up well on their own, even without much from me.”
“Seems so.”
Yuri knew his father was excellent with the sword but poor at raising children. In their past lives, Joshua and he had become reckless under his neglect.
Cedric was a different story—he would have thrived no matter who raised him.
So, if Joshua had changed this time around, it was largely thanks to Yuri.
“I’ll keep a close eye on my little brother from now on.”
“Hmm, alright…”
“I won’t hit him.”
“You didn’t say anything.”
“I’m off to meet the Yohaim delegation now.”
Yuri bowed to Fiore and went to meet the knights from Yohaim.
Before long, Ena appeared and stuck close to his side, carrying the items Yuri had asked her to bring.
“Your Highness, you’ve grown taller since I last saw you.”
“Still growing.”
“You were so cute when you were little…”
“You’re still cute now.”
“Uh… yes, that’s true.”
“Why the weird answer?”
“Even when I agree, you seem dissatisfied.”
“Do you want something?”
“Yes.”
“Say it.”
“Sir Laurent’s autograph.”
Laurent, the tournament champion, was enjoying peak popularity at the palace. He was constantly invited to social parties among Briol’s nobility.
Yuri frowned.
“Don’t you want my autograph?”
“I have plenty already.”
“What?”
“You gave out a ton before, saying they’d be worth a fortune someday. I’ve kept them all.”
“I changed my autograph. Those are the old versions.”
“Huh?”
As they chatted, they soon arrived at the Yohaim delegation’s camp set up just outside the palace.
Sir Gonté appeared and greeted Yuri.
“Your Highness!”
“Sir Gonté!”
They embraced warmly.
Yuri was excited at the thought of training an army that could check the Empire, and Gonté was eager to change the mindset of Yohaim’s youth.
“Sir Gonté, what have you been eating? You look great.”
“Your Highness, you look radiant yourself.”
“Take your time resting. You came so fast—did you miss me that much?”
“Exactly. I was so eager to see you, I rushed over.”
Yuri suddenly noticed a familiar face standing behind Gonté.
It was Amundson, who had lost a duel to Simon and inadvertently triggered this delegation’s visit.
“Oh, Sir Amundson is here too.”
“Long time no see.”
“You’ve been training hard. Your eyes look different.”
“I’ve been waiting for revenge.”
Yuri nodded.
If it weren’t for the ‘Art of Feigned Injury’ that he had taught Simon, Amundson might have won. Now, with his training, Simon would have to be on his toes.
“Good. Once this training ends, I’ll arrange another duel between you and Simon.”
“Thank you.”
“By the way…”
Yuri glanced at the Yohaim men lounging nearby.
They didn’t exactly look like knights. When young knights gather, there should be some kind of fiery energy, but these guys were all sitting in the shade, fanning themselves and chatting.
Yuri shook his head.
“Sir Gonté.”
“Yes?”
“Are these really knights?”
“Yes. They’re all Yohaim knights or candidates.”
“Pathetic.”
“Indeed.”
“The Yohaim knights I knew weren’t like this.”
“Of course.”
Yuri didn’t know much about Yohaim’s past, but he decided to flatter Gonté a bit.
“I heard that back in your day, you all trained so hard you could chew through steel, but now they’re just lounging around…”
“It’s truly lamentable.”
“Sir Gonté, let’s work together to restore the old glory of the Yohaim knights.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Yuri knew Yohaim had never been particularly strong militarily, past or present.
But that didn’t matter.
He reached out to Ena.
“Ena.”
“Yes?”
“Ready?”
“Here.”
Ena held up three red hats.
Yuri took one, Gonté took one, and Ena wore the last.
Pulling the brim low to cast a shadow over his eyes, Yuri stepped forward.
“Everyone, assemble.”
A few Yohaim knights nearby glanced over but didn’t pay much attention. They were still lounging.
Yuri took a deep breath and shouted like thunder.
“Everyone, fall in here!”
His sharp voice shook the entire camp.
Only then did the knights begin gathering, looking puzzled as they tried to figure out what was going on.
One quick-witted knight stepped forward and bowed.
“Greetings to the Third Prince of Briol.”
“And you are?”
“I’m Owl, a knight of Yohaim.”
“Owl, huh? A fitting name.”
Yuri nodded.
“From now on, you’re not Owl anymore. You’re Number One Owl.”
“Huh?”
“You’re the leader of the rookie owls back there. I’ll be giving orders through you.”
“Yes, yes.”
“You’re no longer humans. Got it?”
No response.
Yuri shouted again.
“Got it?!”
“Y-yes…”
Their answers were weak and uncertain.
They still didn’t fully grasp the situation.
Yuri motioned, and Gonté and Ena stepped forward.
“We, your instructors, will be guiding you from now on. Our word is law. Even if we told you that red beans make tofu, you’d have to believe it. Understand?”
“Y-yes…”
“Don’t raise your voices!”
“Y-yes…!”
“Drop down.”
“Huh?”
“DROP DOWN!”
The entire group hit the ground. As they began to understand, their expressions hardened.
“Roll to the right.”
Yuri’s voice was low, so they hesitated.
He then walked forward and kicked one of the knights on the edge.
As he fell, the others nearby tumbled over him.
Yuri kicked the rolling knights, making them roll even more.
“If I say roll, you roll. Got it?”
“Yes!”
“Roll to the left!”
A rumble of bodies.
“Roll to the right!”
More tumbling.
“Stand up!”
Snap.
“Lie down!”
Thud.
Gradually, discipline was sinking in.
“Hmph…”
Yuri sighed inwardly.
He expected at least one to resist.
A blue-faced kid suddenly showing up claiming to be a prince, barking orders to people who weren’t even his country’s nobles—surely that would spark some rebellion.
Then he could beat them up as an example and scare the rest into line.
But these guys just rolled as they were told.
From Yuri’s experience as a mercenary, getting pushed around and pushed back, Yohaim’s knights seemed even less spirited than most rookie mercenaries.
“Why are you all so slow? Can’t you move any faster?”
Yuri, shouting as she weaved through the knights, soon handed over her role to Ena.
“Instructor number three.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“I’m not a prince—I’m Instructor number one.”
“Yes, Instructor number one.”
“Keep rolling.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Instructor number two, come with me for a moment.”
“Yes!”
Beneath the brim of her red cap, Gonte’s eyes sparkled with a fierce joy.
“As expected of Briol…”
He muttered the name under his breath.
Of course, Briol itself didn’t run drills like this.
“Get up! Roll forward! Roll backward!”
Ena wasn’t intimidated by the dozens of burly men before her; she had them rolling around with ease.
“Hurry up! What’s taking so long? You’re so slow, I’m about to yawn! Everyone, handstands! Hey, you there—what’s this? Can’t even do a handstand and you call yourself a knight? Aaaargh!”
“Hmm…”
There was definitely talent here.
Yuri and Gonte made their way to the tent where he was staying.
“Instructor number two.”
“Yes.”
“As Instructor number one, I’m planning to design a new training course. What do you think?”
“Hmm…”
Yuri spread out the curriculum she had prepared.
After reading it, Gonte nodded enthusiastically.
“This is excellent, Your Highness—no, Instructor number one.”
“Right.”
“But what about the training facilities…?”
“We’ll have them build it themselves.”
There was no shortage of manpower. The knights of Yohaim would construct their own training grounds to push themselves harder. That, too, was part of the training.
To wage guerrilla warfare against a stronger army, the ability to set traps and quickly establish temporary fortifications was essential.
“Instructor number one.”
Gonte looked at Yuri with admiration.
“This course shouldn’t be a one-time thing.”
“Hm?”
“I believe more young men should experience this training.”
“Instructor number two…”
Yuri patted his shoulder.
“Don’t worry. Once these Owls show their new skills, everyone will want to go through this training.”
“Ohhh…”
“Then maybe Yohaim itself will design its own training courses.”
“Oohhh…”
“Sir Gonte, you’ll be in charge. Then you’ll be Instructor number one.”
“I will do my best to learn.”
“Good.”
A fire of determination blazed in Gonte’s eyes.
“By the way, Instructor number three is impressive. To be a knight with such a slender frame…”
“She’s not a knight.”
“Huh?”
“Just a natural-born instructor.”
With their discussion finished, the two stepped outside.
Ena was still pushing the Owls hard. They’d been rolling so much that even though they were knights, they were all exhausted and staggering.
“Don’t make eye contact with me, got it?”
“Yes!”
“Is it tough?”
“No!”
“If it’s not, why are you so slow? Roll five times to the right, six to the left, seven forward, eight backward—go!”
Even Yuri found herself swallowing hard at the sheer spirit on display.
“Where on earth did she learn that?”
Either way, it was a good sign.
The more excellent instructors there were, the better.