Knight Lords: Infinite Simulation and the Path of Light

Chapter 115 Children's Games 1
"Tell me, why did you start a fight as soon as you arrived?"

Golza rubbed his temples, a slight headache throbbing. He'd only been separated from this kid for a short while, and this seemingly harmless fellow had already gotten him into a big mess. Golza's once spacious office was now packed with about a dozen people of varying sizes.

Seeing that neither group of people spoke, Golza's headache worsened. He had no choice but to wave to the halfling Silev.

"Silif, you can go ahead and get busy. There's nothing for you to do here."

The halfling hadn't wanted to stay there anyway, and when Golza told him to leave, it suited his wishes perfectly. He quickly bowed and left as if his pants were on fire.

Watching the halfling leave, Golza's gaze returned to the group.

"Tell me, gentlemen of distinguished status, what's the matter this time?"

Seeing that neither side was speaking, Golza had no choice but to look at Havent.

"Little Vent, tell me, why did you beat them up?"

Hearing that he had been called out, Knowing that he couldn't avoid it, Havent could only raise his head and give Golza a sunny smile.

"Look at what you're saying, no way! You know how obedient I am."

Looking at Haven's sincere face, if I hadn't been there at the time, I would have actually believed what the kid said.

“You had the table leg in your hand raised, and he was already unconscious. If Silev hadn’t arrived in time with us, you would have knocked him down with that stick.”

Hearing that Haven wanted to hit him again after he had already been knocked unconscious, Anda felt a chill run down his spine and involuntarily moved to the side.

“Master Golza, really no, I just had a friendly sparring session, which we both agreed to. You can ask them if you don’t believe me.”

Looking at Havent, who was spouting nonsense, Golza couldn't help but feel exhausted. In fact, as a teacher who had worked at the Royal Academy for many years, he was well aware of some of the things going on, especially recently, the children of nobles from different regions were fighting more and more fiercely. The frequency of such fights or quarrels had increased exponentially in the past six months.

Now my junior sister's child has arrived, and such a big incident has occurred on the very first day. It seems that there will only be more such incidents at the school in the future. My junior sister is such a gentle and well-mannered woman, but I never expected that her child would not inherit any of her good qualities.

If Haven could hear Golza's inner thoughts right now, she would definitely have a good talk with this mage who was deceived by his junior sister's appearance. After all, as a victim, Haven could only say that she also had a very fulfilling childhood.

"Alright, alright, I don't want to get involved in your noble affairs, and you don't need to explain anything to me. I don't care what you do in private, there's an ironclad rule on campus that you can't cross."

Haven, you've just arrived. I'll emphasize again: any disputes among you nobles must not involve ordinary students of the academy. Otherwise, if discovered, the academy will imprison you according to imperial law. In serious cases, death is not a distant prospect for you.”

Under Golza's stern gaze, Haven nodded pragmatically.

"Don't worry, don't worry, Master Golza, we really just had a friendly exchange of skills."

Golza, tired of hearing Haven's rambling on, waved his hand dismissively at the others.

"Alright, I don't want to hear you anymore. You can leave now."

Seeing that Golza had lost all desire to speak and had given them the order to leave, Havent shrugged helplessly at Kubant and Lori, then turned to look at the six remaining silent Anda.

"Then let's go~"

"Wait a minute~"

Just as Havent was about to turn around and leave, Golza called him back.

"Ah~ what's wrong? Master Golza."

When asked by Haven, Golza did not answer, but instead looked at his assistant.

"Lina, send them out first."

"Yes, Lord Golza."

Watching Anda and the others being taken away by the female assistant, Haven clicked his tongue in regret. They had originally agreed to let them sleep for three days, but Golza, who had rushed over, had given them a few doses of potion and woken them up. He was just planning to leave early and find a place to ambush them, but unexpectedly, he was kept there by the mage Golza.

"Little Went, stop looking and try to avoid getting into trouble."

Turning back, he saw Golza staring intently at him. Realizing his intentions had been seen through, his face flushed red.

"I was just looking, I was just looking, I didn't mean to do anything."

After saying that, he couldn't help but chuckle twice.

"Sigh~ I know I can't persuade you. After all, this is how your noble family has always been. Every generation has gone through this process. Your father, your grandfather, your great-grandfather, generation after generation, have long forgotten why it started. But as a teacher and your mother's senior, I still hope that you will think more before you act, even if it's for the sake of those who care about you."

Sensing the sincerity in Golza's words, Haven nodded very sincerely and solemnly.

"I understand, Venerable Golza, thank you for your concern."

At this moment, the female assistant who had seen Anda and the others out also returned.

"Alright, Little Went, you can go now. Remember what I just said: think carefully before making any decisions."

"Okay, I understand, Mage Golza."

Watching the three figures leave, Golza, sitting on the sofa, couldn't help but sigh softly. In truth, what he had said was meaningless; the same history always kept repeating itself.

"Lord Golza, shall we record what happened today?"

He picked up the slightly cooled lemon tea, took a sip, thought for a moment, and casually said:
"No need. No ordinary students got hurt. This little guy isn't exactly an obedient child."

Thinking of Havent's outstanding talent report, and learning from his conversation with his junior sister that Havent had come to the capital from the North all by himself, he couldn't help but shake his head.

"There will be more and more of these kinds of things in the future, until one day this group of people finds a winner and loser."

However, it was clear that the female assistant did not quite understand why Golza said that.

The three people who left the Amysia Building were a little unsure of what to do for a moment. They stood at the door for a few seconds in a daze.

"What should we do now? Those guys must be far away. What a pity. When I run into them next time, I'll make sure they get a good three-day sleep."

Cuban looked at Havent, who was standing to the side, with a shocked expression. He remembered that when he was a child, there was a party at home, and Earl Hyland and Lady Louise brought him to attend. At that time, Havent was only six or seven years old and was a quiet child who did not talk to anyone and always played by himself.

Unexpectedly, Haven, who had been virtually invisible before, had changed drastically after several years apart. Not only had he become more talkative, but he had also become quite formidable in combat.

"Well, Haven, why don't we go back to my place first? I'll tidy up a bit, and then I'll take you two out for dinner."

After glancing at Cubant, who was covered in blood, Haven realized what had happened and gave a dry laugh. He had been so focused on finishing what he had said that he had forgotten that this guy was the one who had been beaten up in the first place.

"Hehehe~ Um, are you alright...? Well, you don't seem quite alright. Should I take you to see a doctor?"

Seeing Havent's concerned expression, Cuban gave him a friendly smile, but he gasped as he pulled at the wound on his lip. "I'm fine. I have ointment at my place. I'll just put some on when I get back. People will laugh at me if they find out I'm beaten up like this and I have to see a doctor."

Seeing that Kubant was very insistent, they stopped trying to persuade him and the three of them walked toward the carriage parked in the open space.

after an hour
"Hi~his~his~"

Kubant lay face down on the bed, shirtless, while Lori sat beside him applying a jar of dark green ointment to the wounds on Kubant's body.

"Kubant~ We people from the North, even if there are few of us from the North who come to the capital to study, there should still be a dozen or twenty of us, right? How come you're all alone? If I hadn't happened to catch you today, you would have been in big trouble."

Upon hearing Havent's question, Cuban paused for a moment, seemingly unsure how to respond.

"Ah? What's wrong?"

After waiting for a long time without receiving a reply, Haven sat up from the recliner and looked at Kubant.

Seeing Haven's questioning gaze, Cuban didn't answer Haven's question directly, but instead asked Haven a question in return.

"I don't know how much you know about the situation here, but since you just mentioned that my father sent you to help me, you should know that we belong to the royalist camp, right?"

"Ah, yes, I know that. I heard my father and your father talk about it when I came here."

Cuban, who was lying on the sofa, gently patted Lori's leg, indicating that the latter could stop for now, and then got up and walked to the liquor cabinet.

"Would you two like something to drink?"

"Blackthorn!"

"Mead!"

Cuban took a few bottles of wine from the wine cabinet and placed them on the table.

"I don't have a wide variety of drinks here, so please choose what you like to drink."

Cuban sat back down on the sofa, poured himself half a glass of red wine, tilted his head back, and downed it in one gulp.

"Okay, then I'll save you the trouble of explaining it to you again. I'll just tell you about our situation here."

You just asked where the other heirs from the North are. Actually, they're all still at the academy, but due to some circumstances, they're no longer gathered together.

"Because of some things?"

"Correct!"

Cuban let out a long breath, staring blankly at the ceiling as if he were recalling something.

"I don't know exactly when it started, but suddenly one day, the sons of nobles from several provinces in different directions of the empire began to fight each other in academies, banquets, parties, and all sorts of places where they could meet."

In the past, the various forces were relatively balanced, but in recent years, with the increasing number of wars in the North, many nobles have died in battle. As a result, some heirs studying in the capital have had to drop out of school early and return to the North to inherit their territories.

Meanwhile, the southern provinces, which had always been weak, have suddenly become strong in recent years with the support of the church. If that were all, it wouldn't have been a big deal, since the people of the North are quite brave and, even if they are outnumbered, they are not at a disadvantage against them.

but……"

At this point, Cuban choked up, and Haven, sitting a few meters away, could see that Cuban's eyes had reddened.

"After Brother Hildaman's unexpected death, things took a sharp turn for the worse. The series of events that happened during that time caught us off guard, and by the time we came to our senses, the situation of us Northerners in the capital was already very precarious."

Seeing Cuban reminiscing about the glorious past and falling into a state of grief, Haven hesitated for a moment, but still reached out to interrupt the sad Cuban.

"Then who are you, Hildaman?"

"Huh? You don't recognize him?"
"Oh, yes, yes, you were probably only two or three years old when Hildaman came to the capital. But you should know his father. Hildaman's full name is Hildaman Newn Ward Charlton."

Upon hearing that familiar last surname, Haven instantly recalled the handsome, white-bearded, white-haired, scarred old man who had returned from the Arma Line when he left the North.

"So he's the Marquess of Charlton's son!"
You just said he died accidentally? How can something like that be an accident?

Seeing Havent's slightly questioning look, Cuban couldn't help but laugh self-deprecatingly.

"Yes, that's what the official announcement said. Hildaman's death was due to an accidental fall into the water, but Hildaman was already a level 24 mid-level Earth Berserker at the time. Let alone just the small river a few meters deep in the licorice garden in the academy."

"It's the Dakar River outside the capital. Hildaman fell into the middle of the river, but thanks to his fighting spirit, he managed to walk all the way to the shore in one go. So, whether it was an accident or not, Havent, you can decide for yourself."

Even Lori could tell that this was very strange, let alone Havent, who stroked his chin and began to deduce based on the information he already knew.

"The Marquis of Charlton's child died so inexplicably, and the Marquis himself has no reaction?"

Cuban shook his head slightly.

"I don't know, but based on the information my father occasionally revealed in previous conversations, there should be some, but it seems to have been suppressed. I only came to the capital in the third year after my elder brother Hildaman passed away."

The nobles of the western provinces, who were originally very close to us, did not show a particularly close relationship after my arrival.

When I first arrived in the capital, I didn't know much about anything here, and since I'm not a person who enjoys fighting, I didn't pay much attention to these things.

"And it wasn't until I faced the siege from the southerners and fought alongside them that I learned some things. The cause of Hildaman's death, and the ongoing infighting among the noble sons of several regional powers, was likely partly related to this."

At this point, Cuban deliberately paused for a couple of seconds before continuing:

"Do you know what a secret realm, or demi-plane, is?"

"Hmm? I know, they're just some legends or demigods who built independent small planes according to their own rules, similar to spatial rings, except that living things can live inside them. The smaller ones are a few hundred hectares, and the larger ones are as big as a province."

"According to what I learned later, during the same year that Brother Hildaman was born, a legendary secret realm appeared in Mount Garan. At that time, due to the restrictions of the spells, only those below the high rank could enter the secret realm to investigate. Brother Hildaman was one of the few people chosen by the academy."

"Oh, then that's it, that's right. But how come the school didn't do anything about something so obvious?"

After finishing the last sip of wine in his glass, Cuban stood up and stretched, feeling less pain.

"They tried to manage it, but they didn't really."
"Come on, it's your first day at the academy, let's find a place to have a good meal. We can talk about these upsetting things over there at the dinner table."

They tried to intervene but didn't—you two are definitely father and son.

"Okay! Let's go!"

(End of this chapter)