I Became a Ruined Character in a Dark Fantasy

"Ah!" At last, Nasser let out a breath of realization. He had recalled the beastfolk warrior and the elder fairy who had crossed the Inner Sea to the South.

"That's right. Originally, I had planned to head to the capital after this." Miguel, nodding as he spoke, glanced down at the charm in his hand, which had begun to flicker faintly. "But I was told to leave it alone. It said there are already those bound by fate in the capital and that they will help each other make the best choices."

A faint smile played on Miguel's lips as he turned back to Mev. "Sir Philip is already Sir Ian's knight. So when the time comes, he will surely go to serve his lord."

As Mev’s expression shifted to one of surprise, Nasser asked, "Sir Philip? But even if Sir Ian knighted him, official recognition is impossible."

Miguel simply shrugged. "I don't know the details, but I heard that Her Highness the Princess was present as a witness."

"Well then." A smile flickered across Mev's face. "Philip is truly fortunate. To be able to serve a lord like Ian."

"But that also means he's caught the Order's attention—both in a good way and a bad way. It's best to avoid contact with him for his own sake." Nasser added.

"I hadn’t thought that far, but the Platinum Dragon might have." Miguel scratched his chin before continuing. "In any case, it said it would be best for me to travel South with you both. Going alone wouldn't be ideal. I only spent a short time with that tailless beastfolk, and the rest I only heard about in stories. Isn't that right?"

Mev and Nasser, the ones who had told him those stories, both nodded. Right after, Mev turned to Nasser. "I had a feeling we'd meet again someday, but I never expected it to be this soon."

"Indeed. Even with travel time, it's been, what, a little over a year at most?" Nasser nodded before stroking his chin. "We'll need to head West. Do you remember the route we took to slip past the frontier last time?"

"Of course. We'll need to stop by Drenorov to meet Count Westwood. He'll have no trouble making identification documents for us."