Now that he had finished eliminating the threat, he turned to the women. "Please wait here for a bit. There should be some clothes that you can use. I'll bring you to the nearby village."
Some of them were shaking in fear. The trauma of living in this hell almost made her collapse. Some even let out a shrill while crying.
However, he could see some of the strong ones. They gritted their teeth and even lowered their heads, thanking him.
'I have never thought about this, but commoners' lives are so easy to be destroyed. Bandits can even do this and even if I can save them here, they'll experience the trauma… The noble can experience the same thing, but they have the money and prestige to avoid most of the attempts. But it's different from commoners…'
Looking at their state, Noel wondered about one thing. 'Have I actually saved them? There bound to be someone who thinks death is mercy.'
His doubt was proven when one of them suddenly spoke, "Thank you for saving us, Sir Knight. But…"
She glanced at the women beside her and bit her lips. "We have lost everything. Even if we can continue to live, we have no more home. There's no one who wants us. That's why…"
Noel closed his eyes for a moment and turned around, walking to the bandit leader. He then brought the axe and placed it in front of the woman.
"Sometimes, life is worse than death. You've lost everything, so it's better to die. I understand it perfectly." Noel looked at them and finally introduced himself. "My name is Noel Ardagan."
"…" The women were surprised by the family name because only the noble had a family name.
Noel then continued, "Yes, as you were aware… I was a noble."
"I am just a fallen noble. I am no different than any of you. I've lost everything." Noel placed his hand on his chest as if he felt the pain in his heart. "It was painful. I fell into despair. But even so, I keep fighting.
And now, I have become stronger and I can kill bandits to save all of you. So, please don't think it's over."
Some of them had brightened expressions, but they still said, "But… we are just weak women. We'll become a burden and after this, no one will want us anymore. In the end, we'll continue to live ."
"That's where you are wrong." Noel put on a genuine smile. "Although I hate to admit it, my teammate is a woman like all of you. But she is far stronger than me. Whether you are a woman or a man, that doesn't matter."
"A woman… who is stronger as Sir Knight…"
Noel then handed the axe to the one who spoke the most. "Please hold this axe."
The woman followed his instruction and lifted the axe, but she was too weak. She could only raise it for one centimeter and her body was already shaking.
Noel then helped her again before glancing at the woman next to him. "You too… How about helping her hold the axe?"
The woman didn't understand what Noel was talking about, but still followed his instruction. To their surprise, they could raise it to the top of their heads.
"Eh?" They were shocked because it was supposed to be impossible.
Noel smiled and took back the axe. "You said you don't have anyone to take you in. That's fine. You have eighteen others who shares the same pain and understand you the most. If you can't do it alone, then do it together. Rely on the others and ask for their help."
"But in the end… we're only women. We can't do—" They wanted to deny it again, but Noel shook his head.
"No. That's not true." Noel looked at her and asked, "What did you do before?"
"I… I weaved sandals from straws."
"When you first tried to make one, can you do it?"
"No." The woman shook her head helplessly.
"Then, now, can you make a sandal?"
"See? You can do it." Noel smiled. "Everyone can't do it at first. But they continue to do it until they can. Just like you." He then turned to another woman. "How about you?"
"I… I made clothes… I also couldn't do it at first, but after a while, I managed to make my first clothes…"
"That's right. You can do it as long as you continue trying. What about men's job? Farming? Plowing the field? Then, just do it.
I know that it will be hard for you at first, but the more you do it, the more skilled you are. Just like my teammate, she chose to swing her sword continuously.
"If it's too hard for you, ask someone next to you to lend you a hand. I know that you can do it… Just don't be afraid to try it because it's weird. They don't understand you… Only these nineteen people in this room can understand each other.
"If you hate the bandits? Then, hate them. Take up the sword and practice. It'll be painful, but I am sure that it'll be different after you do it for a long time. When you do, you can capture the bandits and throw them to jail or even kill them like what I did here. That's up to you… But please remember, the hope is there.
Don't lose hope and please keep living on."
They looked at him with a dumbfounded look. Some of them even cried.
"I don't know. Even I don't know if I'm suited to be a knight or not after becoming a fallen noble. But what I know is… You won't be able to do it if you don't try it." Noel smiled. "One month… Please continue to live for a month. If you still think you can't do it, then you can use this axe to kill yourself."
They ended up crying, finally dropping their guards. They cried until there was no tears left.
Unbeknownst to them, Anna was staring from the tunnel, leaning her back to the wall. She looked at the ceiling and sighed, thinking, 'I thought I recognized some of them, but those nineteen people formed a Blue Rose Mercenary in the past life. They did a variety of jobs from building a house to bandits subjugation. The women were independent that they could do everything.
Their fame spread and they became a guild that helped people. I really can't win against him…'