The Adventures of an Overpowered Knight in Another World

Chapter 523: Chapter 523- A Visit To Aetherion

Reinhardt spoke in a light tone. However, his words left a deeper impact than he intended. For a moment, Princess Diana said nothing.

In the distance, the marigolds swayed in the breeze, their golden petals brushing against one another, filling the silence with a soft rustling sound.

Slowly, her hands that were clenched around her arms loosened. That said, her trembling did not stop completely.

"When I close my eyes, I still feel it. The weight. The pull. As if invisible chains were wrapped around my soul. I could see everything; I could hear everything. I screamed, but no sound came out. I begged... but my body obeyed something else. I thought I would never wake up."

Reinhardt listened without interrupting, his expression calm and grounded. He understood where the woman was coming from; after all, the spell that was cast on her was no ordinary spell, but a Monarch level one, a powerful spell that even surpassed High ranking spells.

Diana was an ordinary woman, after all; it was no wonder the spell left trauma in her.

Reinhardt sighed. "Your Highness, you are giving yourself far less credit than you deserve. You woke up because you resisted. Even when you were bound, even when your will was suppressed, you did not surrender. That is why I could reach you."

She lifted her head and glanced at him. "...Reach me?"

"Yes. Monarch level spells feed on despair and consent. The moment you truly gave in, it would have completely taken over you, and no one could have pulled you back. But you never did. That light you saw wasn’t mine alone. It was you answering my call."

Of course, had she completely given in, his skill would still have managed to rescue her. Nonetheless, the amount of trauma she would have suffered in return would have been equally great.

"Your Highness, you are not to be blamed. If there is anyone at fault, it is the demons."

That’s right; the demons are to be blamed for every bad thing happening around the world. Reinhardt’s extreme demon racism managed to evoke a laugh from Diana, who finally relaxed and stopped trembling.

"Sir Reinhardt really does hate demons. But thanks to you, I feel better now."

Reinhardt nodded and then stared at Diana intensely.

"I’m relieved you are alright now. Though I believe the events of the nightmare aren’t everything you wanted to talk with me about, right?"

Call it his gut feeling, but he could tell that Diana was weighed down by something else, something that wasn’t just about the capital.

What’s more, given her background and the circumstances that led her to flee here, he could pretty much imagine what was weighing on her mind.

"It seems like I can’t hide anything from the Divine Paladin. Indeed, I had another motive for seeking you. I have a request, and I wonder if Sir Reinhardt is willing to hear me out."

Diana spoke, tightly clenching her delicate little hands. Her tone was part worried and part hesitant.

"Your Highness, please speak your mind."

On his urging, the woman finally spoke about the thing that was on her mind.

"I was wondering if Sir Paladin is willing to use that skill you used before to teleport me to Solaris again."

Reinhardt frowned. Using [Ethereal Stride] was no biggie for him. That said... "Is the princess saying that you want to go back to your kingdom?"

As a citizen and princess of the Kingdom of Aetherion, it was only natural for her to worry about her kingdom and family.

Diana shook her head. "I don’t know. There is a part of me that wants to go back and support my father and mother in managing the kingdom. However, when I think about Vaerion and the events of that day, it makes me think otherwise. I cannot make up my mind."

While hearing the worries of the princess, Reinhardt made quite a strange face; after all, he was the culprit who not only brought Vaerion’s soon-to-be-wedded wife to the secret place of his debauchery but was also the one who kidnapped her.

Whether he liked it or not, he had gotten himself involved in this, so he needed to see this through to the end.

"I understand. How about this, you can teleport with me back to the Kingdom of Aetherion and see how it is doing before making your decision?"

After seeing the capital, the decision the princess would make would solely depend on her.

Diana thought for a while before nodding her head. And so, with the princess grabbing the knight’s outstretched hand, they teleported away from the gazebo.

.

.

The next second, when the world settled in, they were already in Aetherion.

"This place is... the northern park?"

"That’s right." Reinhardt nodded. This place was where he had culled two Demon Generals who were giving the members of his squad a difficult time. The reason why he had teleported them to this secluded corner was because they needed a disguise.

"Your Highness, please cover yourself with this." He passed her a large fur cloak that was of excellent finish.

With Diana’s looks and natural grace, she stood out too much even with the veil on. If someone close to her saw her, they would most definitely recognise her, which was why he passed her the cloak.

Diana glanced at the cloak and hesitated for a while. She was royalty, raised to be meticulous about propriety. To accept clothing from another man, especially one that had been worn and carried his scent, was not a small thing.

To accept the cloth felt... intimate in a way she wasn’t prepared for.

Nevertheless, her hesitation did not last long and she quickly wrapped the cloak around her. The warmth seeped in at once, chasing away the chill. At the same time, the subtle yet unmistakable scent of a man drifted to her nose from the fabric.

That said, to her own surprise, it did not cause her as much aversion as she thought and instead steadied her breathing.

Why was it that she felt quite safe just by wrapping this cloak around her?

"...Thank you," she muttered in a voice that only she could hear.

Reinhardt too put on his own cloak. Even so, there was no hiding him. His height, his build, the oppressive calm of his aura, it was like trying to disguise a fortress by draping cloth over it.

"Your Highness, remember that we are here to investigate. Please do not stray too far away from me." Saying that, he took the lead.

Diana nodded and followed behind at a modest distance.

The Capital of Aetherion, which had suffered massive damage under the schemes of the vile demons, had already recovered much of its previous splendor.

The streets were filled with activity, people were vibrant, and the infrastructure was reconstructed from scratch once again. Looking at the place, one wouldn’t even think that not long ago it was almost razed to the ground by tens of thousands of demons and three Heavenly Kings.

Persisting will and endurance... that was the greatest strength of humanity.

The two began to walk, not toward the palace but into the city. They moved through side streets first; Reinhardt deliberately avoided the main avenues as there were many guards patrolling the area.

Even though the chances of them getting found out were very small, he still didn’t want to take the chance.

Diana stayed half a step behind him, her head lowered, as she carefully observed her surroundings. To anyone watching, they looked like an armoured knight escorting a noblewoman of some minor house and nothing more.

Reinhardt and Diana walked around the side streets, taking in all kinds of views. The city might have recovered from the events of three months ago; however, the faces of the people told a different story.

Shops were open, but not fully alive. Merchants spoke in dismissive tones, as did the customers. The entire atmosphere of the populace seemed to be stretched taut. There was no laughter, no kids playing around... a stark difference from the magnificent city that he had witnessed not long ago.

Reinhardt stopped in front of a fruit stall and casually asked, "How’s the business, boss?"

The fruit stall owner glanced up at Reinhardt with clear irritation written across his face. "What d’you want? Can’t you see I’m busy? If you ain’t buying, don’t block the stall. Shoo now."

Reinhardt didn’t mind. He took out a pouch full of gold coins and threw it at the owner. "How’s that, boss?"

The stall owner caught the pouch, and when he felt the jingle, his entire body froze. Then, when he opened it to count the coins, his entire attitude turned a complete 180 degrees.

"O-Oh! My apologies, sir. Didn’t realise you were a customer. Please have a look; buy anything you want."

The shopkeeper rubbed his palms and switched to his business mode. While the change was nauseating, Reinhardt did not mind.