Greatest Alchemist? Chapter 692

It wasn’t only the Prime Minister who was ashen

Upon learning that the Sanctuary Knight Order was a much larger organization than they had imagined, as well maintain great power, King Valkyra and the newly appointed Knight Commander Guilford could hardly keep their calm.

Given the nature of the Sanctuary, it wasn’t a concern that they would invade foreign countries, but even so, having an army right next to the Valor City which was jointly managed by the Trination, they naturally felt conflicted.

「If they are protecting the surroundings of the Sanctuary, it would not be terrible, would it?」
「Your Majesty, perhaps we could reduce the knights stationed in Valor and Wedgefort?」
「Fumu, perhaps it would be worthwhile to decrease it slightly to guard the center of the continent.」
「Your Majesty, Commander Guilford, I also support the decrease, however, we must coordinate this with Yggurle Kingdom and Lomaria Kingdom.」
「Umu, I will send a letter. Proceed with that plan.」
「Understood!」

Though the Knight Orders in the Sanctuary were few in number, if Simon was saying that they possessed a strong military, the Trination could reduce the number of personnel charged with maintaining public order. This was not bad at all. The national treasury was finite, after all.

In recent years, thanks to the innovative magic devices that started in Volton, to the Construction of Wedgefort and Valor, and the Sanctuary just beyond them, Valkyra Kingdom was in an unprecedented boom. And so, the national treasury had some leeway because of it, but even so, there was never enough money to run a country.

There was nothing more they could do about the powerful knight order in the Sanctuary. Accepting this, the conversation shifted to how they can cooperate going forward.

At that moment, Guilford remembered something and asked Simon about his father Galahad.

「Lord Portfort, is my father well?」
「Ah, u, umm, h-he’s doing well. About that……」
「？？」

They had been so focused on the fact that the Great Spirits were the reason behind the founding of the Knight Orders, but he thought it strange that Galahad’s name wasn’t mentioned, so he may have been worried as a son.

However, he was puzzled upon seeing Simon become flustered hearing about Galahad.

「Is something the matter with Father?」
「Hmm, rather than that, how do I say this……」
「What’s wrong, Simon? Did something happen to Galahad?」

King Valkyra found Simon’s meandering strange and pressed him for answers.

「Sign, I suppose you will find out eventually. In truth, Galahad has……」
「Galahad has?」
「Father has?」
「……been appointed as the Knight Commander of the Sanctuary Knights.」
「……ha?」
「……eh?」

Neither King Valkyra nor Guilford could immediately grasp the meaning of what Simon had just said, but after a short pause, all they could let out was a puzzled exclamation.

King Valkyra and Guilford were utterly flabbergasted, though that reaction was hardly surprising.

Galahad, who had voluntarily retired to make way for the next generation, being appointed as a knight commander in the Sanctuary was far beyond what they had expected.

「Is something wrong my ears? Did I just hear that Galahad became a knight commander?」
「Your Majesty, I heard the same thing.」
「Galahad was more lively than he had been during his time in the capital. He leads the younger knights to do as he pleases in dungeons in the Demon Continent.」
「Wha!?」
「F-father…………」

King Valkyra and Guilford were speechless to hear about Galahad’s current situation from Simon.

They had been under the assumption that he would be living a leisurely life of retirement like Rosary, but hearing that he was more active than during his time as the knight commander of the Imperial Guard, the King and the son had complicated feelings.

「Lord Portfort, you mentioned dungeons, but you mean simply to commandeer them, yes?」

When Guilford asked that, Simon shook his head.

「No, at the front, swinging his sword. According to what I’ve heard, he has raised his level by a considerable degree, and his appearance had also become quite youthful.」
「Wha!? A dungeon that raised his level by that much is……」
「Umu, it seems the Sanctuary Knights use high difficulty dungeons to level up. The members may be young, but among the knights within the continent, their levels are the highest. Well, Galahad did mention that strength does not necessarily equal level.」
「I see……, it’s a relief their numbers are on the lower end.」
「Your Majesty, that perception is mistaken.」
「Wasn’t it you who said they’re few in numbers?」

When King Valkyra thought that it wouldn’t pose a huge problem since the Sanctuary Knights were few in number and dismissed it lightly, Simon refuted him.

「The Sanctuary Knight has a very limited cavalry, but all of them have Battle Horses that have undergone at least one evolution. Now include the golems with bottom halves of horses. Naturally, they’re able to coordinate with the other types of golems as well, so please do not underestimate their fighting strength.」
「……I see, I’ll gladly decrease the number of knights stationed in Valor.」

King Valkyra relinquished the idea.

Due to the unique nature of the Sanctuary, they likely wouldn’t pose a threat to the Trination.

With that being the case, he resigned himself to thinking of how Valkyra Kingdom can benefit from this.

Guilford being Guilford, he still wasn’t fully convinced, but he was still glad that his father seemed more lively than when he was at the capital.

(Perhaps I should propose joint training with the Sanctuary Knights.)

And so, Guilford resolved himself to strengthen Valkyra Kingdom’s knights.

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