The Female Knight of Doom - TFKOD 66: Blondes and Redheads

The king appeared to be in remarkably good spirits and showed no hesitation in responding to Alice’s inquiries.

He gestured gracefully toward the individual seated behind him.

His finger settled on the woman, who was seated just behind him, and he announced with a regal air, “This lady, Liliel Flamel, hails from the esteemed Flamel family and serves as my court mage.”

Alice was utterly perplexed, her mind swirling as if caught in a dream, each of his words seeming like an enigmatic puzzle.

“Court… mage?” She echoed softly, her confusion deepening.

“You are undoubtedly familiar with the role of a court mage, are you not? While the current consensus venerates the God of Light, out of reverence for that divine power, most tend to avoid mentioning the God of Darkness. Yet, there exist regions in this world where the sun’s rays seldom reach, and in such places, those devoted to the God of Darkness can prove invaluable. Typically, the populace is reluctant to engage extensively with mages; however, a noble lord of distinction must possess an exclusive mage—without one, such a lord would be deemed lacking in propriety.

Just as your esteemed mistress, Duchess of Felix, is served by Lady Meredith, I have my Liliel. Lady Meredith is renowned in magical circles, though not the foremost; the king’s mage must be among the finest, and naturally, that honor belongs to someone from the Flamel lineage. I have corresponded with them, and they graciously sent me Liliel.”

At this moment, he beckoned Liliel to step forward.

She gracefully emerged from the shadows behind the throne and, without hesitation, settled upon the king’s lap.

He touched her shoulder, “Why don’t you tell this little friend about the Flamel family?”

The mysterious mage opened her mouth, her voice completely emotionless and slightly hoarse, “The Flamel family is the oldest mage family on this continent and is home to the most famous mages. It is said that their ancestors made an agreement with the God of Darkness. The God of Darkness pierced his finger and smeared the magical blood on the Flamel family’s hair. From then on, all the members possessed extraordinary magical powers and, in particular, red hair. All who worship the God of Darkness hope to establish a relationship with them and enter the Flamel family’s Mage Tower to study. The Tower is the sanctuary in the hearts of all mages.”

As she spoke, she turned her head so Alice could see her hair color clearly.

The king placed his hand on Liliel’s neck and lifted a strand of her hair, “Red hair is quite rare here, but the red hair of the Flamel family is particularly special, and different from ordinary red hair.”

Just as he said, the red color of Alice’s hair was not the occasional red, but exactly the same as the female mage named Liliel in front of her.

Alice, who knew nothing about her background, couldn’t help but tremble in her teeth.

Is her father really a mage? And from that most prestigious family? If that’s the case, why didn’t her mother say a word about it, and even refused to ask his family for help before she died? Such a complicated problem cannot be easily solved in a short period of time.

She could only focus on the question at hand, “Your Majesty, are you saying that I am actually from the Flamel family?”

“I didn’t say that,” he laughed. “I only said that your hair color is the same as hers, which is very unusual and gives me an interesting idea.”

He turned to the duchess, “Sylvie, may I borrow your knight for a while?”

The duchess was somewhat suspicious, “That depends on what you require of my knight.”

“The way you speak, it sounds like I’m asking her for something strange. I just want her to go east, to the Flamel Mage Tower, where the followers of the God of Darkness gather, and deliver me a letter. Her hair is so strikingly red; perhaps she’ll have a chance to see the archmage.”

“I don’t see the need,” the duchess said rather coldly. “Why don’t you send one of your own?”

“What else could it possibly be? Sylvie, your penchant for posing questions whose answers you already know is quite remarkable. Had I truly dared to send my people to the Mage Tower, I can assure you that before they even departed from the royal capital, my dear uncle—the ever-bright and venerable high priest—would have appeared here, incessantly chiding me. He would remind me that, as a paragon of light, I ought not to maintain too close a connection with the followers of Darkness. To put it plainly, my uncle has been within the temple since his youth and holds quite traditional views. While he can tolerate Liliel’s presence at my side, that remains the utmost of his allowances. Frankly, I believe it is wisest not to provoke him further.”

The duchess neither confirmed nor denied, and remained silent.

But the king, understanding that she was effectively half-agreed as long as she didn’t object, hurried on while the iron was hot, “I know you’re not happy with Rachel because of your sister. If we can finally forge an alliance with the mages, the royal capital will be able to drive Rachel out and no longer have to rely on his Mercenary Union. You won’t have to lift a finger; you’ll just have to stand by and watch Rachel’s misfortune and disgrace.”

The duchess was clearly a little shaken, but she maintained her cool demeanor, “Let me think about it.”

“By all means,” the king said, trying not to appear overly enthusiastic. “There’s plenty of time. You can visit whenever you like. Your niece can come to the palace more often, and I’ll tell the queen to pay more attention to the young talents in the royal capital.”

The conversation seemed to be drawing to a close. The atmosphere in the king’s audience hall, while not heavy, was certainly unpleasant.

Just then, the king’s attendant entered and announced, “Your Majesty, the Deputy High Priest of the Royal Temple has arrived.”

His face lit up, “Ah, Etienne! Let him in.”

He turned to the duchess, “Etienne is our new Deputy High Priest at the Royal Temple, a very pleasant young man… Have you heard of him?”

The duchess nodded, “I remember he attended my banquet last year, but back then he was still the Deputy High Priest of Poztar.”

“Correct, it is he,” he nodded. “This spring, the Chief Priest of the Temple in the Royal Capital changed. The new chief priest wanted to support some of his people, so he appointed several deputy priests from other temples to the royal capital. This deputy high priest, Etienne, was recommended by the High Priest of the Temple in Poztar. He is very young and outstanding. The only drawback is that he has lived outside the royal capital for a long time and seems a little… overly reserved. But for a priest, that’s probably not a problem.”

The duchess thought for a moment, “I remember the color of his hair… was he of royal blood?”

The king pursed his lips, “This is a bit disturbing. His hair color is almost identical to that of the current royal family, which makes some people think he is my son or the high priest’s illegitimate son. I solemnly declare this to be false. Etienne’s royal line descends from the Grand Duke of Ponidia two hundred years ago, and has no relation to me or the high priest.”

He was at this point when Etienne, the deputy high priest, entered, wearing his fine robes.

Etienne seemed surprised to see the duchess and her entourage, but he bowed to the king before saying, “Had I known Your Majesty had guests, I would have come another time.”

The king shook his head with a smile, “It’s all right. I asked them to let you in. The Duchess of Felix is ​​no intruder.”

Etienne turned and bowed to the duchess, “I have met you before, Your Grace. These two…?”

“The niece of the late Duke of Felix…” The king paused, unable to remember her name.

Miranda quickly stepped forward and bowed, “Miranda.”

“Lady Miranda,” the king continued. “This is a very famous knight, Alice Quint, the only female knight in the West Felix, and perhaps the only female knight in the entire continent.”

Even before coming to the royal capital, Alice had hoped that she might meet Etienne again, but she never expected that it would be in the presence of the king.

Taken by surprise, she instinctively saluted him as she had the first time they met.

Etienne was clearly surprised, but he was much calmer than her and said with a smile, “I met Alice once last year at the Her Grace’s party, but we didn’t speak. I’m very happy to meet her this time.”

His comportment was nothing short of exemplary, and his demeanor perfectly embodied the essence of his identity. The king appeared visibly pleased, a testament to Etienne’s impeccable bearing.

Alice couldn’t help but observe that not only did Etienne bear a striking resemblance to the king—down to the subtle timbre of his voice—but that his presence evoked the very image of royalty itself. Had the king not recently revealed the true lineage that bound Etienne to the royal bloodline, she might have genuinely believed him to be the king’s own son.

Lost momentarily in her contemplations, she noted the duchess engaging in a few more words with the king before gracefully announcing her departure, accompanied by Miranda and Alice herself from the audience chamber.

The duchess remained silent until they left the royal palace.

Only when they were completely away from the courtyard and boarding the carriage did she burst into laughter, “This Etienne really is his illegitimate son. When I saw him before, I thought he looked like the king, but I thought it was just a coincidence… How interesting.”

Alice and Miranda’s eyes widened, “His Majesty didn’t say…”

The duchess looked at the two simple girls with a very loving expression, “If the Reverend Etienne’s royal blood really did descend from the Grand Duke of Ponidia, the king wouldn’t have had to personally investigate the matter.”

“But His Majesty also mentioned the high priest; how can you be so sure?” Miranda asked cautiously.

The duchess’s gaze grew even more tender, “Silly girl, if the high priest had a child out of wedlock, the king wouldn’t have hidden anything, let alone interfered. He would simply have chosen a more cunning way to reveal the matter, so that the high priest would be stunned, and he wouldn’t have to come to him every day and cause trouble.”

Miranda, who hadn’t seen much of the world, couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed, feeling that the relationships within the royal palace were truly terrible.

But the duchess’ answer only deepened her doubts, so after a while, she began to question again, “How could His Majesty have a bastard child? I heard from my family that His Majesty loved Her Majesty very much.”

Miranda’s childish words made the duchess laugh, “Of course the king loves the queen. Their marriage has brought nearly twenty years of stability to the North. If someone else had been queen, that probably wouldn’t have been possible. But the king’s love for the queen doesn’t prevent him from loving others… That’s how aristocratic marriages are. Don’t expect marriage to be too rosy.”

Her words made Miranda, who had been asked by her parents to come to the royal capital in search of a mate, flinch.

But the strong human desire to chatter won out, and she plucked up her courage and continued to question her serious aunt, “Does His Majesty have many mistresses?”

The duchess looked at her, as if wondering if she was of an age to discuss the subject, and finally answered, “I think there are two or three. The mage Liliel you saw today was with him a long time ago. Judging by her age, Deputy High Priest’s Etienne may have been born of Liliel.”

Alice, who had been wordlessly pursed her lips, suddenly interrupted, “She’s a mage. She must be able to concoct a medicine for herself to prevent the child’s birth.”

The duchess seemed to find the topic a bit abstruse and frowned slightly, but she still replied, “Perhaps he wanted a red-haired child to improve his relationship with the Mage Tower. Unfortunately, Liliel gave birth to a blonde child, who was completely useless and had to be abandoned and thrown into the temple to fend for himself.”

The duchess seemed to have no intention of continuing the topic. She raised her eyebrows arrogantly and made a final conclusion to the young deputy priest of the temple.

“Poor child.”