In the Hedley Empire, within Atte City, in a certain earl's mansion.
Laine stood before a room in the mansion, still feeling somewhat dazed.
Because not long ago, he was still at the border, fighting against the invading Demon Race army as the captain of a knightly order.
In the blink of an eye, he had appeared in this earl's mansion, about to take on the role of a private butler to care for the earl's daughter.
The drastic change between two vastly different identities left Laine unable to adapt for a long time.
After taking a deep breath, Laine raised his head and knocked on the door.
"Knock knock knock..."
Soon after the knocking sound, the door slowly opened.
As the door to the boudoir gradually opened, a faint floral fragrance wafted out from the crack.
Then, a little girl poked her small head out from behind the door and looked up at Laine.
Nanaly Ashi, the nine-year-old only daughter of Earl Horace Ashi of the Hedley Empire.
Laine looked down and found that Nanaly took after her beautiful mother in many ways, from her delicately carved features to those sapphire-like blue eyes.
Nanaly's hair was golden, falling just to her back on her petite frame, looking very soft and fluffy. She wore a clean princess dress, with her small feet in clean white socks touching the ground, as adorable as a doll.
The gazes of the tall man and small girl met, symbolizing the beginning of all fate.
This is the story of a knight-turned-butler wearing a smiling mask, and a lonely and fragile young noblewoman.
♤♡♢♧
The story goes back to two days ago.
Outside the borders of the Hedley Empire, in Demon Race territory, in the human year 1404, September, autumn.
In a space created by Demon Race mages, a man in black armor sat with his sword atop a mountain of corpses.
An invisible pressure released, making it difficult for the Demon Race warriors below to advance even half a step.
The man's deep black armor was imprinted with indelible bloodstains, looking at first glance like a dark knight of the Demon Race.
But the golden national emblem of the Hedley Empire on the left side of his breastplate indicated that this man was indeed a knight of the Hedley Empire.
Behind this man stood a group of knights wearing the same jet-black armor, except their breastplates did not bear golden emblems.
The Demon Race warriors racked their brains trying to understand why the Hedley Empire, which had always prided itself on sanctity and nobility, would create such a group of monstrous knights in black armor.
The dark red sky, originally meant to suppress the fighting power of human knights, seemed to become a foil for this man, causing the Demon Race commanders and soldiers below to tremble with fear.
At this moment, the man slowly raised his head, the friction between his helmet and breastplate making a harsh sound that caused the Demon Race warriors below to collectively take a step back.
"It's time to end this..."
A voice that seemed to sigh transmitted through the helmet.
Although the man's face couldn't be seen through the helmet, just hearing this voice made people feel that this man was... harmless?
It gave the impression of someone very young, without any sense of authority - if he weren't sitting on a mountain of corpses at the moment.
Just as the Demon Race warriors were wondering what this man meant, a long horn blast sounded from behind them in the Demon Race city.
Retreat!
Hearing this horn, the Demon Race warriors were greatly relieved and hurriedly withdrew like the receding tide.
Watching the retreating Demon Race, the man did not choose to pursue, but slowly stood up and jumped down from the mountain of corpses.
Looking at the group of knights standing straight before him, the man said flatly, "Return to the city."
"Yes, sir!"
♤♡♢♧
Inside the border defenses of the Hedley Empire.
"Captain Laine!"
The man who had just been sitting on the mountain of corpses had barely found a place to sit down when a messenger came running over:
"News from the Council of Elders! The Demon Race has signed a peace agreement. We don't have to fight anymore!"
"No more fighting?"
As the words fell, the surrounding circle of knights all turned to look at the messenger.
"That's right, no more fighting!"
The scene was silent for a moment, then all the knights erupted in unprecedented cheers.
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Laine slowly removed his helmet, revealing a face that seemed gentle and scholarly, yet embodied steadfastness in every aspect.
Laine, captain of the "Dark Corrosion" knightly order, was quite young at twenty-four by the standards of knightly order captains.
Unlike those around him, Laine had black hair that was extremely rare in the Hedley Empire, making him quite eye-catching.
Taking the intelligence report from the messenger, Laine glanced over it briefly and said:
"The last time the Demon Race signed a ceasefire agreement, they stayed peaceful for six hundred years. I wonder how long they'll behave this time..."
"If you ask me, we should charge straight into the Demon King's Castle and wipe out the Demon Race once and for all!" The Vice Captain punched his fist, saying fiercely.
Laine glanced sideways at the Vice Captain: "If the Demon King comes out, are you going to fight him?"
Hearing this, the Vice Captain immediately deflated, chuckling, "That's what we have you for, right?"
"Get out of here!"
Laine gave the Vice Captain a kick, sending him and his armor rolling several times.
Looking at the Vice Captain's beard that had almost turned white, Laine shook his head:
"No need to think too much about it. The Demon Race has retreated, so our duty is done. We might as well go home and enjoy life. By the time the Demon Race attacks again, it won't have anything to do with us anymore."
Just then, another messenger came running over: "Captain Laine, there's a letter for you!"
"A letter for me?"
Laine took the envelope in confusion, read the contents once, and fell into silence.
"Captain, what's wrong?" A nearby knight couldn't help but ask.
Laine quietly put away the letter and slowly said: "My adoptive father is critically ill."
"Captain, please... accept our condolences?"
Looking at Laine's slightly upturned mouth, the knights felt something wasn't quite right.
Suppressing his smile, Laine stood up: "Help me remove my armor."
The Vice Captain stepped forward to remove Laine's armor, while a team member also led a horse over.
Watching Laine mount the horse lightly, the Vice Captain solemnly said: "Captain, have a safe journey!"
"Please help me explain to the King. I'm heading back first..."
After instructing the Vice Captain, Laine waved goodbye to the knights, then raised the reins—
"Hya!"
"I'm off to feast!"
Watching Laine disappear in the blink of an eye, the Vice Captain was stunned for a long while before slowly coming to his senses:
"What does he mean by 'feast'?"
♤♡♢♧
Atte City, located adjacent to the capital of the Hedley Empire, was even more prosperous than the capital itself.
After two days of travel, Laine finally arrived in this city, riding on a lean horse.
Slowly weaving through the bustling streets, looking at the prosperous scenes, Laine felt for a moment as if he were in another world.
The empire was developing at light speed. Ten years of being a knight had left Laine feeling somewhat out of place in the current world.
Unfortunately, it was still far, far away from the bustling metropolis in his memory, with skyscrapers and endless streams of traffic.
Laine wasn't a transmigrator, or rather, Laine had almost become a transmigrator.
The reason for saying this was because when Laine was still in the orphanage as a child, a strange consciousness had rushed into his mind, trying to occupy his body.
And then... that consciousness failed, and was even devoured by him, giving him a bunch of inexplicable memories.
Although the body was still controlled by the main consciousness, Laine's daily behavior was often influenced by those strange memories.
For example, he would often blurt out some odd vocabulary and such...