Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

"The Andrei, like Irian, I think."

"Then... Prince Lyle was also a... former king?"

"No, perhaps he will be in the future, but tonight's actions have almost made me abandon that idea. A knight who can't climb trees is not a good king."

Kayla watched Lyle slowly rise and offered a word of support for the new guest, saying, "Local shortcomings cannot be generalized to the whole. A king must have a long-term vision, as you taught me."

“Yes, of course,” Echel hummed, seemingly displeased that his granddaughter was helping an outsider, even though he knew she was right. “But I’m not the king anymore, and I don’t need to think about the big picture.”

Watching her grandfather grumble like a child, Kayla smiled at Lyle, like a daffodil blooming on the riverbank.

Her expression returned to seriousness, her eyes becoming arrogant yet dignified, elegant yet solemn.

“Mr. Lyle Buller, standing before you is the fifth king of the Kingdom of Lewesser, Keira Lewesser.”

Kayla held her chin high, her gaze fixed on Lyle. Lyle realized this seemed to be some kind of audience with the king.

But knowing this was of no use, he could only awkwardly and tremblingly offer a hat-tipping gesture to the beautiful queen.

"Hmm... It's an honor to meet you, Your Majesty Queen Kayla."

Perhaps it was Lyle's comical demeanor, or perhaps it was his utterly clumsy and flawed etiquette.

Kayla transformed back into a young girl for a moment, revealing a sunny smile, before reverting to her haughty queen form in the next instant. Glancing sideways at what was behind her, she extended her arm adorned with an emerald green leather glove, her five fingers like those of an elf freed from its cage, placing them before Lyle.

Lyle looked at the arm laid out in front of him, then at Kayla's eyes, a deep emerald green.

Until consciousness was swallowed up by the greenery, the strings of the brain snapped.

"what?"

Kayla's face was like a ripe apple, and her voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

“You should offer a kiss on the hand, Your Excellency Lyle.”

Is that what it means?

He silently apologized and extended his hand to that delicate arm.

His black leather gloves, he held one... black leather glove.

Lyle stared at Echel’s hooded head, his face in the shadows seeming to emanate a dark aura.

“Kayla, this isn’t official diplomacy; there’s no need to practice national etiquette.”

He turned his head and glared fiercely at Lyle. "You better watch yourself!"

“But Grandpa, you taught me basic manners.”

“We are just friends. Lyle has a living uncle, so he should be about your age. You can greet each other with the same etiquette as Lewesser.”

Are you sure?

"I'm sure."

"You're not going to back out?"

"I, Echer, will never regret it."

“Okay.” Kayla shrugged, skipping like an elf, her long golden hair waving like waves in the air, her laughter blending with the sound of wind chimes. She walked up to Lyle, hugged him, and whispered in his ear.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lyle."

It receded like an untouchable gust of wind.

Echer's quiver fell to the floor.

"what is this?"

"The hug is a new trendy greeting in Lewes this year. As king, you should follow the trend."

"Ban it! Lewesser will not tolerate such licentious etiquette."

"No, hugging can improve relationships between people, and anything good will be practiced in Lewes."

Echer gritted his teeth.

Kayla looked at her arm.

"grandfather."

"what happened?"

"Is Lord Lyle really from your side? When he picked him up, he was just like us."

"...Maybe it's some kind of magic. He's the sheriff of Cassandra, he has normal social activities."

"A sheriff? A bodyguard for wandering knights? That's impressive."

“He’s nowhere near as good as a ranger,” Echel stared at Lyle as if he were a dead man. “What do you think, Lyle? How does it feel?”

Lyle's consciousness was still immersed in the sudden soft hand.

"It feels...soft?"

Echer pounced on him like a wild beast.

……

“I understand, Lord Lyle, you want our Sword Dance Grass.”

"Yes, just one Datura stramonium is enough."

“Hmm… If it’s just one, I can still give it to you. However, while Lewesser is open to new things, he still retains old traditions. If you want to get the Sword Dance Grass, you must prove that you are worthy of it.”

“Yes, Echer and I have talked about the coming-of-age ceremony in Lewes, and I am willing to participate in the hunt.”

“Well, but Mr. Lyle should be a long time old now. To be fair, your hunting target must be decided by me, the one who provided the Sword Dance Grass, is that alright?”

“Of course, it is my honor, Your Majesty.” Kayla was clearly more focused on the big picture than some granddaughter-obsessed person, so she probably wouldn’t make things difficult for him.

Kayla placed her palm flat on the table, a habit of Lewesser's, to indicate that the decision was final and could not be refuted or changed.

"Lord Lyle, Lewether is willing to give you a chance to obtain the Sword Dance Mandala. In exchange, Lewether needs your possible help and convenience in the future. This is an investment. Don't be surprised, we don't need any actual bargaining chips. I think our friendship is more valuable. You are someone that Echel values. I trust my grandfather's judgment, and I also trust my own eyes."

Lyle removed his hat, placed it on his chest, leaned forward, and bowed. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

“We will begin your hunting ceremony tomorrow. Tonight, I would like to trouble Lord Lyle and my grandfather to rest at the Dawn Palace. I know this is a waste of your time, but my people need rest, and in the dark, wild beasts have the advantage over us.”

“I don’t care, as long as Kayla is here, it doesn’t matter when it starts.” Echel

“Then we will proceed as you command, Your Majesty Queen Kayla.”

Lewesser spends his nights in a hammock.

Kayla lay on the right side of the side-by-side hammocks. "Lord Lyle, I've heard that people on the ground lie on wooden plank beds. I wonder if you're used to being in a hammock?"

Lyle lay on the left. “I’m fine, Your Highness Kayla. I’ve rested in a hammock before (in my previous life). In fact, hammocks are very popular with sailors on ships because they won’t fall off due to sudden swaying.”

"The ocean—although I've heard about that large lake from my grandfather's stories, I've never seen it. I've never left Lewesser, and I wonder if I'll ever get to see it?"

“Kayla, would you like to hear Grandpa tell a story?” Echel, sleeping in the middle, had her silver falcon bow, quiver, and a gleaming dagger hanging on the side facing Lyle.

“Okay, after I grew up, I rarely heard my grandfather’s stories anymore.”

"Ahem, today, Grandpa will tell you a story about a great hero who saves the world."

Lyle listened intently, curious whether the bedtime stories in this other world were the same as those he had experienced.

"A long, long time ago, there was a great hero named Echel..."

Lyle fell into a long silence.

"When Echel was six, he dug a trap and killed an adult black bear. He traded its pelt for a very powerful bow. At ten, he used this bow to kill a three-meter-tall brown bear. His feat was celebrated throughout the village, and all the girls adored him. When he came of age, Echel was no longer satisfied with ordinary prey. He hunted a ten-meter-tall bear spirit. The beast had a rocky shell that arrows couldn't pierce, but Echel was not afraid. He leaped and darted among the branches, even the most agile monkeys couldn't catch him. He dodged the bear spirit's claws and shot an arrow into its eye, smashing its brain. Echel had grown up, and he had become increasingly powerful. A beautiful young woman named Greya declared that she would marry no one but him..."

“Grandmother doesn’t seem to be called Gloria, nor does she have any nickname for her,” Kayla stated a fact.

"...Aha, I told you it's a story, detached from reality."

The story of someone with the same name who has been killing bears since childhood.

Besides glorifying Echer and establishing a spiritual cult around Kayla, this story also has some reference value; perhaps Lyle could take a look at the method of trap construction.

Of course, there's a significant exaggeration involved. In the story, Echel kills bears when she's happy, when she's sad, when she's hungry, and when she's full, she kills bears to aid digestion. It seems like everything can be solved by killing bears. The adversaries are even more outrageous: ten-meter-tall bear spirits with rock-skinned bodies, fire bears, two-headed bears, bear mages, and finally, a bear god as large as a mountain. An average of three bears a day, and the bears haven't gone extinct—that's already absurd.

This is the story Lyle listened to all night about Echer, the bear-clan killer.

Finally, Lyle counted the bears and drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 84 The Damned Bear Clan Assassin

What woke Lyle from his slumber was Echer's large slap, which sent him sprawling from the hammock to the floor.

The sound of its beak striking the floor was a sudden, powerful impact, more effective than being splashed with icy water. Fortunately, the beak was made of leather, which cushioned the impact and prevented a concussion.

Lifting his still slightly swaying head, Lyle got up from the floor. Last night was probably the best sleep he had ever had in his life. The soft hammock was much more comfortable than his wooden bed at home, so Lyle didn't have much morning grumpiness.

Sunlight streamed in through the entrance of the Dawn Hall, painting the interior a pale gold. The green shadows of the surrounding plants were also projected onto the wooden planks. The sunlight here was not glaring, perhaps because it was shrouded in dense forest mist. The abundant moisture created a thick fog around the area, making it feel like a fairyland.

Echer had already packed his things. He was toying with a small dagger in one hand, tossing it in the air, but his eyes were fixed on himself.

"I really don't know what to say to you. You're doing deep meditation on your first night in an unfamiliar environment. You should at least have some sense of vigilance."

Echer wasn't overly angry, but her tone was tinged with complaints, even including some complaints about her juniors, which made it seem like the distance between them had narrowed considerably.

Lyle's careless and reckless behavior was interpreted by Echel as an act of closeness to Lewes, and that making guests feel at home was the best way to thank the host.

"Has Lord Lyle gotten up?"

Bathed in golden sunlight was Kayla, dressed in dark green leather armor, like a tender bud welcoming the sun. Her golden waves were styled into a ponytail, and without her white robes, Kayla had lost some of her gracefulness; her sharp outfit gave her a touch of heroism, and her queenly charm was undiminished.

Good morning, Your Majesty.

“Kayla will suffice, Your Excellency Lyle. You are not my subject, we are friends.”

“Okay, Kayla.”

After getting ready, the three of them stood on the terrace of the Dawn Palace, a large platform without railings. This was not the main entrance to the palace, and there were no stairs for going up or down.

"What I'm thinking is, anything is possible in Lewesser, except for stairs." Lyle, with a bad feeling, tremblingly expressed his needs.

Where is the children's access road?

“There’s no children’s access here, Lyle. You should do as the Romans do and try out the Lewesse lifestyle. You might just like it.”