Flo quickly intercepted Lawson's words with a laugh: "There's really no need, Lis. That was just drunken nonsense. If you insist on making amends, our Golden Radiance Order can gift Sir Lawson a set of mental magic scrolls as compensation."
Flo, who had initially planned to stay out of it and watch Lis embarrass herself, couldn't remain seated after hearing Lawson's demand. Lis's status was special—if the Grandmaster found out she'd been poached right under his nose, he'd skin Flo alive.
He shot Lawson a glance. You're short on members, but do you have to poach so blatantly? Who tries to recruit someone right in front of their own order?
Lis stood silently, wrestling with whether to honor the bet. Despite her frivolous exterior, she was a knight who adhered strictly to her code. Since childhood, she'd been drilled in the Tenets of Chivalry: Humility, Oath, Loyalty, Compassion, Valor, Justice, Sacrifice, Honor, Benevolence, and Righteousness.
This was her moment to uphold her word. As for loyalty—she wasn't betraying anything. Knight orders swore allegiance to the nation, not even the emperor himself.
Her hesitation wasn't about keeping the promise, but whether she dared to. A lingering shadow in her heart always held her back from true defiance.
"Flo, enough." Lis made her decision after only a brief pause. "I said I'd agree to anything within the law."
"But even if I join your Platinum Knights, you'd still struggle to break into the top five, right? Last I heard, you only have seven members. The top five orders each have over a dozen full knights—and their captains and vice-captains are all sixth-tier. Allen's still stuck at peak fifth-tier, isn't he?"
"No need to worry about that, sis. Honestly, that bet was nothing serious," Lawson chuckled.
Seeing Lis actually agree, Flo panicked and pressed on: "Lis, don't take drunken rambling seriously. Their order's about to lose its royal title—all their honors and resources will be slashed. Don't throw your future away on a whim."
Lis sneered. "Look at you, Flo. You didn't stop me when I made the bet, but now that someone's being poached, you're scrambling? Get lost! I'm not yours anymore—I'm a knight of the Platinum Order now!"
"You—"
"What about me? Who gave you the right to lecture me? If you hadn't sabotaged my entrance exam back then, Thorn would've recruited me into the Platinum Knights years ago. That spot Allen has? It should've been mine!"
"Sigh… The Grandmaster will lose her mind over this."
"That old hag should drop dead! Always forcing me into matchmaking with those spoiled, worthless brats—not a single one's fit to lick my boots!"
Lawson, feeling awkward, pulled out the pocket watch Luna had given him and checked the time. "Uh, it's getting late—I should head out. About that bet, sis, really, don't feel obliged. Think it over."
With that, he hurried off.
The watch showed nearly six. The sun dipped below the horizon as dusk approached. Lawson sprinted back to the Platinum Knights' base—though not particularly fast, his endless stamina let him maintain a full dash indefinitely.
Only Allen and Luna were in the main hall; the others hadn't arrived.
"Lawson, you're back. I thought the city's glamour had swallowed you whole," Allen teased. Having grown up in the forest, Lawson had never seen urban grandeur before.
"The others will meet us directly at the venue. We can head there now," Luna added.
Lawson smiled apologetically. "Sorry to keep you waiting."
"No worries, we just got here too," Allen said. In truth, he'd been waiting an hour.
Luna didn't expose his lie—she'd arrived even earlier.
"Xeus can't make it due to family matters," Allen sighed. "But word's already spread about you making him kneel. I've smoothed things over with our family, but others might cause trouble."
Lawson shrugged. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
Outside, Allen's personal carriage left Lawson awestruck—a chariot pulled by two majestic unicorns. Even after encountering countless magical beasts, Lawson couldn't help admiring them. Most monsters he'd met were hideous.
"Lawson, if you like it, it's yours. I barely use this thing," Allen offered. It was true—he only brought out this ostentatious vehicle for dignitaries. Since the old captain left, it had gathered dust in the backyard.
Back then, under the former captain, VIPs frequented their base. Now, as the new leader, Allen's fifth-tier strength paled next to even the vice-captains of other orders—all sixth-tier. With the Platinum Knights' decline, no important guests visited anymore.
"No thanks. It's impressive, but using it feels… inappropriate," Lawson declined, already plotting to start an automobile factory in this kingdom.
Compared to carriages, cars were far superior—even unicorn-drawn ones only matched vintage cars in speed, paling next to modern vehicles.
Soon, they arrived at a towering, luxurious building. Lawson marveled at how such architecture existed in this technologically backward world.
"This was designed by a foreign seventh-tier mage. Impressive, huh?" Allen boasted of his nation's grandeur.
"Wait, Captain, weren't we supposed to go to Dragon Abyss Hotel? Why are we at Scarlet Royal instead?" Luna whispered. Dragon Abyss, a chain from a powerful neighboring kingdom, was arguably the empire's finest—Scarlet Royal couldn't quite compare.
"Budget… issues," Allen muttered, pulling her aside.
Remembering Allen's promise to pay Lawson tenfold, Luna pressed, "Don't tell me his salary's coming from our order's funds?" She dreaded the backlash if other members found out.
"Don't speculate. Let's eat—and keep quiet," Allen hissed.
Lawson, still awestruck, missed their exchange.
"Captain Allen, welcome. Your private room is ready," a portly manager greeted obsequiously.
Allen nodded. "Thank you. Have the others arrived?"
"You're the first, sir. The other knights aren't here yet."
"How about we wait inside?" Lawson suggested—then noticed Allen and Luna's suddenly grim expressions. "What's wrong?"
Outside, a frigid wind howled, scattering withered leaves.
Allen took a deep breath and forced a smile. "Never mind. Let's go in."
But Luna couldn't let it go. Clenching her fists, she seethed: "They're not coming! If they intended to, they'd be here by now. Just like during the Forest Serpent mission—they used their family influence to bail last minute, despite it being a full-order operation…"
Understaffed, she'd nearly died that day. Without Lawson's rescue, she'd have perished in that serpent-infested forest.
The memory festered like a thorn—not because she'd almost died, but because those so-called comrades had abandoned them without a second thought.