The Elf Journey In The Western Fantasy World-Chapter 30: The King’s Runaway Knight

The official at the station gave him a scornful once-over, his tone filled with impatience.

"Pay if you want to enter. If not, get lost. Lowly beggars like you should be grateful that His Majesty is merciful enough to even allow you a chance to enter the capital. Stop wasting time—there are people waiting in line behind you."

The man’s face turned pale.

He could feel the subtle, probing gazes from the people behind him.

After a long moment, he hesitantly pulled out a small pouch wrapped in cloth from his belongings, his hands trembling as he reluctantly handed it over.

The official snatched the pouch without hesitation, weighing it in his hand.

Feeling its weight, his expression softened slightly.

"Go fill out the registration form. Next!"

Darius furrowed his brows, his expression filled with disapproval.

However, their main goal was to reach the royal palace, and they didn’t have time to interfere for now.

Besides, matters involving city gate fees were tangled in a web of vested interests, making it difficult to resolve in a short time.

Before entering the city, Illiya and his group had planned to keep a low profile.

However, as soon as they stepped inside, their plans were immediately disrupted.

A black-haired knight in armor approached them with a clear target—someone among them, specifically a certain red-haired swordsman.

The black-haired knight greeted them in a familiar manner before enthusiastically embracing Darius.

"Hey, Captain Darius, long time no see! I thought you weren’t coming back."

Darius was held in a tight embrace, unable to move, and could only nod perfunctorily.

The black-haired knight didn’t mind Darius’s half-hearted response in the slightest.

Instead, he leaned in with a mysterious (gossipy) expression.

"I told you that eloping with the crown prince was a bad idea. Now that he’s the king, hasn’t he abandoned you? You must have come back after hearing that the king is making his lover official, right?"

The black-haired knight shot Darius a sympathetic look, his face practically spelling out, "I understand."

"People... they’re always like that."

Illiya froze on the spot, completely stunned.

Did he just overhear some huge secret?

Was it really this explosive?

Darius’s identity wasn’t exactly classified information.

In fact, back in Haneulseong City, he hadn’t made any effort to hide it.

He was even called "Captain," which made things pretty obvious.

But what no one knew was that this swordsman, when he was still a royal knight, had once eloped with the then-crown prince.

Holy sh*t, dear Darius the Greatsword.

That was the only thought running through Illiya’s mind.

The others were equally shocked, their minds blank, unsure of what expression to wear.

In summary, they had all been dumbfounded by this juicy (gossipy) piece of news.

Even Drow, the dark elf who rarely paid attention to outside affairs, had a brief moment of loss of composure.

A heavy silence spread over the group, making the atmosphere increasingly awkward.

Of course, the person who wanted to disappear the most was the one at the center of the topic.

In the end, it was the ever-adaptable Young Master Eoryun who recovered first and broke the suffocating tension.

"...Hahaha, I never expected you to have such a legendary past, Swordsman Darius."

Naturally, the moment he finished speaking, Eoryun received a death glare from Darius.

If looks could kill, the young master would have been stabbed into several pieces by now.

Darius was, quite frankly, in despair.

He hadn’t expected to be recognized the moment he stepped into the royal capital—let alone overhear such an utterly embarrassing rumor.

He had already explained the truth before, so how was it that even after more than ten years, people still hadn’t gotten it right?

He was exhausted.

"Stop spreading nonsense. I explained this before—it wasn’t an elopement, it was a journey! A journey, not an elopement!" After more than a decade, Darius was once again forced to clarify.

"It was really just a journey! Not an elopement! How did it get twisted into this mess?"

Illiya and the others clearly didn’t believe him.

The looks they gave Darius were filled with deep skepticism.

Darius: "..."

This is ridiculous.

He was speechless.

And when he considered the fact that the entire royal capital probably believed the same thing, he suddenly felt that being misunderstood by his companions wasn’t all that hard to accept.

The black-haired knight also realized that he might have put his foot in his mouth.

Why had he brought up such a sensitive topic?

Hopefully, he wouldn’t face any petty revenge for this later.

But aside from catching up with his former captain, he did have official business to attend to—namely, leading this group to meet His Majesty the King.

After all, it was a direct order from the king himself.

Thinking about his superior’s penchant for mischief, the black-haired knight, despite his thick and sturdy armor, suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

He couldn’t help but feel sorry for the people standing in front of him.

"...What a pity—no, wait." The knight’s tongue slipped, and he quickly coughed to cover up his awkwardness.

Illiya who is utterly confused: "???"

You’re acting weird.

The black-haired knight used his strong mental fortitude to forcibly erase what had just happened from his memory.

His hand, hanging by his side, unconsciously clenched, and when he felt the solid object in his palm, he instantly felt at ease.

"This is the situation, Captain Darius. Don’t be surprised about why you were discovered the moment you entered the city, even though you’ve been away from the royal capital for over ten years. The reason this happened is entirely because His Majesty the King had everything prepared in advance! Your whereabouts are inescap... inescap..."

Inescap... what?

The black-haired knight got stuck.

He struggled to recall the rest of the sentence and finally forced out the words, "Your whereabouts are inescap... inescapable from His Majesty the King’s grasp! Don’t even think about escaping from His Majesty’s palm—it’s useless. After all, His Majesty the King is handsome and dashing, charming and... and charming..."