Zeke fell silent for a moment at Shadia's request for an opportunity, then slowly opened his mouth.
"What kind of opportunity do you mean?" Shadia spoke in a calm voice.
"As I mentioned earlier, the Old Man of the Mountain is the enemy of me and all the Salmak operatives. If you give me a chance, I'll select those among them who could become useful to the boss's forces."
The assassins of Salmak were the finest killers on the continent.
If they joined Zeke's side, they would have been a great asset.
'If I first pulled the Salmak assassins to my side and then struck the Old Man of the
Mountain, it would have been more efficient.ʼ
Salmak was one of the groups Zeke needed to eliminate anyway.
Fighting Narak and Siemens with an unreliable enemy like the Old Man of the Mountain at their backs had been burdensome.
It would have been more advantageous to clean up Salmak and the Scorpion Clan holding out in the desert region and then face the alliance of Siemens and Narak in fullscale war.
Zeke nodded at Shadia's words.
"Very well. I'll leave this to you, Shadia. Are all the Salmak operatives with you now trustworthy?"
At that, Shadia shook her head.
"Some among them are separately sending information to the Old Man of the Mountain.
He always deploys personnel in such a way that they monitor each other." It was a cunning method to make comrades distrust one another.
That way, the Salmak assassins couldn't unite their strength against him.
Zeke nodded.
"Gather the selected personnel, excluding the spies. We'll remove the Godok and then take out the Old Man of the Mountain's people. Then he'll think you've eliminated them and use that as an excuse to send assassins."
"Exactly. When he sends assassins that way, I can persuade them again and pull the killers to our side effectively."
Zeke organized the plan as Shadia suggested, then recalled the space where Salmak was staying.
'That place was likely an ancient ruin as well. I was curious what might be hidden beneath it.ʼ
Having decided to eliminate Salmak, Zeke wasted no time.
Shadia, who had received the order, had already vanished from the carriage.
Left alone, Zeke gazed out the window.
Beyond the window, he could see the cityscape of Atlas and, in its center, the form of the Four Seasons Star.
Zeke's gaze deepened as he looked at the Four Seasons Star.
*
Upon arriving in Atlas, Zeke headed straight to the Four Seasons Star.
Since he had come at the summons of the family head, Arthur Draker, he went without delay to the Family Headʼs Office.
Zeke still felt tense whenever he faced Arthur Draker.
Although Arthur Draker showed favor toward him in this life, unlike his previous one, he was still an unfathomable person, which made Zeke wary.
Moreover, this time there was something weighing on his mind, making it even more so.
'He couldn't be about to question me regarding Bacchus, could he?ʼ
Zeke had defied Arthur Draker's order, conveyed through Souma, and let Bacchus go.
Because he had decided to help Bacchus and his mother, Carmilla.
He had sent a severed arm with fake evidence to the Black Stage, but Arthur Draker was no ordinary man.
He might have seen through Zeke's trick.
Zeke cautiously opened the door to the Family Headʼs Office and entered.
But as he stepped inside, an unexpected scene awaited him that Zeke had never imagined.
Pop!
At first, he thought it was an attack from the explosive sound and quickly reached for his sword, but it wasn't aimed at him.
'...What is this?ʼ
Looking around in confusion, he saw phrases like "Congratulations, Knight of Salvation!" and "Welcome Back, Continental Celebrity Zeke!" written large and plastered on the walls of the Family Headʼs Office.
Even Arthur Draker, who had set off the celebratory fireworks, and Baron Draker and Howard Draker beside him, were wearing party hats together.
At this unbelievable sight, Zeke felt for the first time since his regression that his spirit might break.
Arthur Draker pushed the awkwardly standing Howard on the back.
"What are you doing, Howard? Go give our Knight of Salvation your congratulations."
Howard forced a smile and approached Zeke holding a three-tiered cake inscribed with celebratory messages.
Atop the cake was a decoration resembling Zeke holding Bahamut, with candles blazing brightly.
Howard lifted the cake toward Zeke's face as if urging him to blow out the candles.
Seeing Howard, the one responsible for the Draker family's judiciary as a member of the Cross Order, acting like this, Zeke thought he must have some serious weakness gripped by Arthur.
'...I suppose I should blow them out first.ʼ Zeke blew out the candles on the cake.
Then Arthur behind him laughed and clapped, and Baron standing beside him applauded enthusiastically without changing his expression.
If Duke, his master, had been beside Arthur, Zeke might have thought this situation was possible, but seeing Baron Draker, the captain of the Black Stage, like this was somewhat terrifying.
Arthur grinned at Zeke, who was showing full wariness.
"Boy, why do you look like you've seen something you shouldn't? Your proud father prepared a celebration party for his son—you should be moved, not wary."
"I am moved, Family Head."
Seeing Zeke respond immediately, Arthur clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"Enough, enough. I knew you'd react like this anyway. Come, sit down."
The four sat on the sofas in the Family Headʼs Office.
Howard brought a knife, plates, and forks, skillfully slicing and distributing the cake.
Baron diligently brewed tea beside them.
Zeke found the scene so unfamiliar that he couldn't shake his discomfort.
'Baron is the Family Head's confidant, so that's one thing, but what weakness does Howard have...?ʼ
Howard Draker was packaged as a war hero, but in reality, he was a sly opportunist.
In his previous life, Howard had been the one who most greatly contributed to handing the Draker family over to the empire.
Though the history of the phenomenal world had changed due to Zeke's regression, it was quite surprising to see Howard showing such a subservient attitude.
Zeke anew felt the terror of Arthur Draker and reconsidered his death. The family's handover to the empire might have been part of Arthur Draker's grand scheme.
It was necessary to consider the possibility that his death from illness was fake.
Whether sensing Zeke's thoughts or not, Arthur spoke to him while eating the cake.
"You've achieved great merit again this time." Zeke bowed humbly to Arthur.
"It was good fortune."
At that, Arthur laughed.
"Hahaha! How could mere luck save the Holy Kingdom and utterly defeat even the imperial army on the emperor's personal campaign? Being too humble isn't always a virtue, boy."
Zeke found it quite unfamiliar to see Arthur in such high spirits.
Then, Baron handed out the brewed tea to everyone.
Arthur savored the aroma and nodded.
"Indeed, tea is best when you serve it, Baron."
Baron bowed to Arthur with his unchanging expression.
"You're too kind, Family Head."
Seeing such a Baron, Arthur shook his head and clicked his tongue.
"Anyway, you and Zeke are just alike."
Though he said that, Arthur's expression was one of great satisfaction.
As he drank his tea, he turned to Howard.
"Howard, what do you think of Zeke's merit this time?"
At Arthur Draker's call, Howard startled and raised his head.
"M-Me, sir? Well, that is..."
Unlike before, Howard was visibly afraid of Arthur Draker.
Arthur gazed steadily at Howard, waiting for what he would say.
Howard broke out in cold sweat and finally spoke.
"S-Sir Zeke Draker's achievement this time is truly astonishing. At such a young age, in such a short period, I've never seen a knight accomplish so much." At that, Arthur Draker smiled slyly.
"Oh, is that so? Then, what reward should be given to Zeke for such an enormous merit?"
At Arthur's words, Howard rolled his eyes this way and that before finally speaking.
"I-I think promoting Sir Zeke Draker, who has achieved this merit, to the Guardian Knight
Seat would be appropriate."
Zeke was quite surprised by Howard's words.
'I never thought Howard would bring up the Guardian Knight Seat first.ʼ It had been less than a year since Zeke became a senior knight.
In such a situation, granting the Guardian Knight Seat again would have been quite burdensome.
Arthur stroked his neatly trimmed mustache with a grin at Howard's words.
"The Guardian Knight Seat, eh? Well, the position Abel held is vacant now." At the mention of Abel, Howard flinched noticeably.
Zeke understood why Howard was so tense around Arthur.
'Howard had ties to Siemens and the empire. With the heir candidate Abel missing, the influence of the Siemens family has significantly diminished. And with the emperor's death, the empire's situation is unstable, so he has no choice but to shrink back.ʼ
He had risen to the Cross Order councilor position by borrowing Siemens's power, but in the current situation, it would have been hard to receive proper support from them.
The position of Cross Order councilor couldn't be maintained solely by one's own ability.
Especially for someone like Howard, who had filled his deficiencies with political maneuvering, external power was even more essential.
With the Siemens connection severed, Howard absolutely needed Arthur Draker's power to maintain his councilor position.
'Arthur Draker has gripped Howard's weakness and pulled the Cross Order councilor to his side... Is this the Draker way?ʼ
In fact, it was commonplace in the Draker family.
Even though the Principality of Vadoka had complex political struggles, Draker's politics were incomparable.
Blackmail, persuasion, camaraderie, lobbying—of course, even sending assassins without hesitation—that was Draker.
They professed to be knights among knights on the surface, but in reality, Draker was the hotbed of the most base power struggles.
Arthur Draker stood at the pinnacle of such a Draker family.
Now he was eating sweet cake with a smile, but he was also an unpredictable figure.
Arthur nodded at Howard's words and asked Baron.
"What do you think, Baron? Howard says so. Would it be fine to elevate Zeke to the Guardian Knight Seat?"
Baron silently pondered Arthur's question before slowly speaking.
"I believe Sir Zeke's merits are sufficient for that. However, the Council of Elders and the Cross Order won't accept it easily."
Arthur had once forcibly pushed to elevate Abel to the Guardian Knight Seat.
He had ignored the family's procedures under the pretext that Abel was a black knight and granted him the Guardian Knight Seat.
Though Abel's disappearance left the position vacant, guardian knights weren't fixed in number, so his absence didn't pose a particular problem.
Arthur nodded at Baron's words.
"You're right. Hey, Howard, can you handle the Cross Order councilors on your end?" At Arthur's sudden words, Howard's face paled.
If he refused here, he would surely lose his qualification as a Cross Order councilor.
Howard had no choice but to nod.
"Y-Yes, Family Head."
Arthur smiled in satisfaction at his words.
"Good, Howard will handle the Cross Order. As for the Council of Elders..." Arthur Draker trailed off, lost in thought.
Then, Zeke looked at Arthur and spoke.
"Family Head."
At Zeke's words, Arthur brightened. "Oh, yes. Do you have a good idea?" Zeke slowly opened his mouth.
"I do not wish to receive the Guardian Knight Seat."