The smoke cleared, and the great crisis of Beacon City was declared over. As the vision gradually became clearer, the power of the explosion from the meteorite impact left a crater outside the city with a diameter of around five hundred meters, and the shockwave thoroughly plowed the nearby ground. The previously desolate and sandy land, due to the life force being extracted by the mist tree spirit, was completely upheaved by Aya's spell, turning several square kilometers of fertile land outside the city into a barren desert. A main road that originally connected Beacon City to surrounding towns was also completely cut off.

The explosion stirred up dust into the sky, and the air quality around the beacon was expected to be poor in the coming days. But at least the disaster was kept at bay, and the city remained unharmed, which was the greatest fortune for the city residents.

"Your Highness Vivian! Your Highness Tiran!"

On the temporarily cleared city wall, the Shadow Knights awaited the return of Tiran and Aya, along with the rescued queen and a certain Theurg who was expertly tied up like a dumpling by Tiran.

"I am incompetent, failing to realize the enemy's deception. I am willing to accept any punishment."

The lead knight, with a face full of shame, knelt down on one knee, appearing as if he wanted to draw his sword and apologize on the spot, though he was nervously drumming in his mind. When he received the task to protect Vivian under the second princess's domain, he was actually quite nervous—not so much about the enemy's threat, but mainly because he had heard stories about the second princess being a formidable figure in the capital, with a capricious and unpredictable personality. If he accidentally offended her, he was unsure of what consequences he might face.

And now, with a major negligence on his part, at the moment the crisis was averted, he not only breathed a sigh of relief but also wondered if his life was in danger.

Ultimately, he decided to shoulder the blame for the sake of his subordinates. Tiran glanced back at his own mother, the queen, who shrugged and seemed to imply, "It's your problem to deal with," leaving him to handle the situation himself.

"Minister, please rise... I mean, well, thank you for your hard work?"

This didn't seem quite right either. According to what etiquette teachers had taught him, how should he respond in this situation? Princess Vivian's little mind couldn't recall the memory of cramming noble etiquette lessons.

Well, forget it. There were no onlookers around, and the city guards had been cleared out by the Shadow Knights, so he just had to proceed however he liked.

"Ahem! Anyway, the one responsible for this sneak attack is beyond your reach, so there's no need to be too hard on yourselves. Forget about punishments. I will personally take care of my mother's safety from now on. You all can go back to report to His Majesty..."

Waving his hand as if to brush off dust, Princess Vivian said casually.

However, to the Shadow Knight captain, these words carried a different implication: "I won't hold you accountable, but you are no longer needed for security in the future."

If he could be punished on the spot, he might actually feel relieved, but Tiran's reaction made the captain feel that his negligence would be severely punished.

If the consequence was his dismissal and imprisonment, he could accept it, but he was worried about implicating his family.

"Yes…"

The knight captain rose with a lifeless face, excused himself, and slowly turned away.

"Um, did you misunderstand something?"

Noticing his expression, Tiran also felt puzzled. Had he made a mistake in his knowledge?

"Are you upset about taking a break and going off duty? Then... how about I give you some bonus? Oh right, today is my birthday. Why don't you all attend the evening banquet together?"

Tiran was bewildered. Were all Shadow Knights workaholics? Weren't they happy about having a break to relax?

"...Huh?"

The knight captain's eyebrows twitched. Even though he was trying hard to control his confusion, a faint sound of perplexity escaped him.

Had he misunderstood something? Surely not, right?

Finally realizing the problem, Tiran felt a bit awkward explaining it as it might seem a bit foolish. How could he resolve the situation?

Pondering this question, Princess Vivian suddenly saw Johannes, who was tied up like a hog and lying feigning death near the crenellation of the wall, and her eyes lit up as she dragged the unfortunate fellow over.

"Right, this guy is one of the masterminds behind the kidnapping. Please escort him to the capital for interrogation. By the way, he is a member of the Church, and apparently a skilled Theurg."

"What?"

Even the thickest-skulled person would realize that Tiran's trust in him was implied by entrusting this task to him. Seeing the relieved expression of the captain, Tiran also breathed a sigh of relief internally.

"I hate those nobles and their intricate ways of communication. It's too tiring. Why can't they just speak plainly?"

"Your Highness, rest assured! There's no need to return to the capital. Just give me a night to interrogate him, I guarantee that I will extract all the information he knows."

"Ah! A professional Shadow Knight indeed. I'll leave it to you then."

Tiran nodded confidently with his arms crossed. The stern-faced Shadow Knights quickly hoisted Johannes and escorted him down below the wall.

"Huh? Interrogation?"

Johannes was a bit confused. "Wait! Isn't this too much! Silver War Maiden? Your Highness Tiran! Aya? We know each other, right? Don't be so ruthless! Can we skip the interrogation?"

This wasn't what was agreed upon! Before setting out, the teacher had clearly said that His Majesty, the War King, could probably anticipate the Church's actions, and even if he was captured, as long as the queen's safety was not threatened, Milanía would not go too hard on him...

Wait.

But, the safety was indeed compromised.

Vera, you bastard, you've gotten me into trouble!

Theurg felt like cursing.

"Hold on! Don't rush with the interrogation! I'm just a nobody, and now I'm still an intern. I don't have any valuable information!"

"Whether it's valuable or not, we'll see after you confess."

Facing the criminal who kidnapped the queen, the knight captain no longer cared, and with a stern face, he ordered his subordinates to continue escorting him down to the city.

Despite Johannes' reluctance, he was powerless against several strong knights who pressed him down without resistance.

"Your Highness Tiran! Have some mercy! And, Miss Aya! I've helpfully taken photos for you. Please, help me out!"

Remembering the incident at the underground trading fair in the capital when a bunch of otaku peeked under her skirt while she was in cosplay, Aya nearly couldn't resist dealing with the guy harshly.

At that moment, another Shadow Knight in similar light armor hurriedly ran up the stairs from the side, looking a bit out of breath, clearly having exerted himself running for quite some time.

"Urgent report from the capital. The city's back garden was attacked, and Heinrich has escaped."