Chapter 25: Holy Knight Claycius

In the investigation room at the Temple Knights’ headquarters in Holy Star City.

“So, it’s a misunderstanding?”

The handsome man, clad in standard pure white holy knight armor, set down his pen after removing his helmet and placed it on the table. His meticulously styled short golden hair reflected a faint glow under the magical lamp. The four-winged holy emblem hanging on his chest and the holy mark wound around his other wrist proved his undeniable status as a holy knight.

Across from him, a young man with black hair and fox ears immediately began to rub his hands together with a smile.

“Uh, yes, yes, yes! We just suddenly saw someone familiar and got too excited for a moment… We wanted to clarify things, so we followed without greeting you, really no ill intentions, Brother Claycius!”

It was obvious that the holy knight named Claycius knew this person, but he didn’t seem particularly friendly. Instead, he sternly frowned and tapped the table with the hilt of his sword.

“Stop trying to get cozy with me. In the name of the Goddess, if you did anything foolish, don’t even think about escaping punishment easily, even as the Vice President of the Lingyin Merchant Association.”

At this point, Claycius shifted his gaze to the several girls sitting on the other sofa, discreetly scanning them before adopting a gentle smile.

“Now then, ladies, could you share what happened? You don’t need to fear or worry about retaliation. I swear in the name of the Goddess, under the protection of our Temple Knights, no bad guys can harm you.”

The girls exchanged glances, and naturally, their eyes finally settled on the white-haired witch girl wearing a white fox mask with a pair of fluffy fox ears.

“Haah…”

With a light sigh, Vilyric felt a bit troubled but ultimately had to stand up. She made eye contact with Claycius’s soft yet authoritative gaze and pointed at her adorable fox ears.

“Well, sort of. Do you think this thing looks like theirs? Although I still don’t really understand the situation, at least this guy named Ming Lan probably doesn’t have any ill intentions.”

“Is that so…”

The young holy knight pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the white fox girl and the man claiming to be Ming Lan, probably trying to assess the differences in their appearances to judge if there was any lying involved.

“Miss Xī, if I may be so bold, could you temporarily remove your mask? After all, the information I have…”

“No, no, no! You can’t take it off! Absolutely can’t take it off! This is no joke, Brother Claycius!!!”

“?”

Before Vilyric could say anything, the fox-eared man Ming Lan was frightened by the request and started flailing his arms in strong opposition. Although the white fox girl was somewhat bewildered by his reaction, she also shook her head in agreement—she couldn’t remove the disguise of the Mask of the God Fox here.

Seeing this, Claycius naturally couldn’t press the issue further. In the end, he nodded, seemingly convinced by their words, and his expression eased a bit.

“Well then, let it be… Ming Lan, even if they’re familiar faces, you should be a bit more cautious. You might think it’s no big deal, but it looks different to outsiders.”

“Ah… Hahaha… You’re right, you’re right, Brother Claycius is teaching me a lesson…”

It was somewhat comical; despite hiding quite impressive strength, the fox-eared man named Ming Lan acted just like a shrewd merchant, constantly rubbing his hands and smiling at the young holy knight. Claycius didn’t continue the banter and instead directed a curious gaze back at the white fox girl.

“Miss Xī, according to your identification, you seem to be from the United Kingdom. Although, as the captain of the Temple Knights in Holy Star City, I shouldn’t pry too much into your relationships…”

“But as you can see, I have some private acquaintances with this guy, and I know very well what kind of person he is, so… I’m particularly curious about what could drive Ming Lan to act so irrationally. So, Miss Xī, do you know this guy or not?”

Upon hearing this, Ming Lan also turned his head around, revealing a look of genuine hope and expectation, as if he was yearning to hear a certain answer.

But in the end, Vilyric merely fell silent and shook her head again.

“I’ll say it again, I don’t know anyone named Ming Lan, nor have I heard of the Lingyin Tribe. What happened today has left me dumbfounded, but to understand the truth, I need to wait and gather more information before making any judgments.”

“Miss…”

The fox-eared man appeared visibly dejected and disappointed, his head drooping slightly, with his two fox ears sagging noticeably.

Noticing the change in atmosphere, Claycius nodded thoughtfully.

“Well, fine, since it’s like this… If you don’t mind, how about you ladies communicate directly at my knight headquarters? The safety and privacy here are quite good, and I’ll step out to handle some things and bring you some refreshments back; no need to rush.”

…The Temple Knights, huh?

While Vilyric didn’t quite understand Claycius’s motives behind this, considering his earlier mention of a personal connection with Ming Lan, it merely explained her intention to find a place to talk with the man claiming to be Ming Lan. Here… it should work too.

“Alright, I have no objections.”

Since Vilyric nodded, the others naturally wouldn’t oppose anymore. After smoothing things over, Claycius promptly stood up and left the space for both parties, looking like he had no intention of prying into secrets.

The Priestess discreetly scanned the room with sp to confirm there were indeed no eavesdropping or surveillance devices before sitting back down on the sofa. Her gem-like clear silver-blue eyes under the mask met Ming Lan’s, who seemed somewhat anxious, and she slowly exhaled.

“Alright, now let’s talk. What exactly is going on?”

……

Outside the investigation room, in another waiting room.

“Crack.”

As the door handle turned, Claycius strode into the room, his tall figure clad in white armor, and the merchant waiting anxiously on the sofa quickly rose to greet him.

“Captain, how is the situation?”

The young holy knight placed the helmet that was tucked under his arm back on the table, casually poured himself a glass of water, and drank it before smiling reassuringly at the merchant.

“Mr. Xavier, don’t worry. Those ladies are all safe; this should be a misunderstanding… Speaking of which, the name of the stalker, you’ve probably heard of it; it’s Ming Lan, the Vice President of the Lingyin Merchant Association. With his status, he wouldn’t go doing anything sneaky, and the ladies who were followed also confirmed that he indeed meant no harm. Thank you for coming all this way to report.”

“The Lingyin Merchant Association?”

Xavier’s brow furrowed slightly, while Sasha, sitting beside him, perked up as if she heard something intriguing.

“Wow, is that the one rumored to specialize in selling all sorts of incredible treasures, with every transaction worth at least a million gold coins? That’s a super giant merchant association that’s completely on par with Cecilia! Hehe, Captain, sounds like you’ve run into tough competition this time ~”

The President shot a sideways glare at the girl, unimpressed.

“What do you mean ‘run into tough competition’? I’m not in a business war with them; besides, with that kind of sneaky behavior at the time, who knows what they were up to? I simply did what I should have done.”

In response, Claycius laughed affirmatively.

“Mr. Xavier, you’re a beacon of light; that’s commendable. You need not worry. I’m also acquainted with the Lingyin Merchant Association. They’re an organization that only engages in legitimate business, and we Temple Knights have our own rules. We won’t disclose the identity of the complainants to the parties involved.”

“That’s good… Since Captain Claycius has guaranteed that, I can rest easy. It’s getting late; let’s not take up any more of your time and take our leave.”

“Aren’t you going to meet those girls? It seems there’s someone you know among them?”

Without a hint of hesitation, Xavier smiled and shook his head.

“It’s probably best to pass. Although that girl indeed has done me a favor, it’s just a one-sided relationship for me. Now that I’ve established a connection with the Lingyin Merchant Association, there’s little left that I can do for them, so why bother meeting up?”

“If it’s truly fate, I’m sure we’ll meet again in the future under more appropriate circumstances. I… look forward to that day.”

   

---