Chapter 12: Catastrophe (1)
Change always cos unexpectedly.
It was true when we fled from Rehaim Castle, and the sa when a carriage appeared at our cabin without warning.
It was probably around the ti Hena was preparing dinner.
It was an ordinary day. I was playing chess with Sirien.
The outco of the ga was already determined.
It wasn’t a ga for re entertainnt. In fact, I was quite serious.
It’s just that I had never managed to win against Sirien, no matter how hard I tried.
To be honest, it hurt my pride.
At first, it seed like I might win, but as I got better, I realized Sirien had been holding back.
Yet, this infuriating girl would never concede victory.
In the end, Sirien declared checkmate.
I knocked over my king.
“I lost. Ah, just once I want to win. Play along a little.”
“No. If Razen wins, I think he won’t play with again. Win with your skill.”
“…….”
How did she know?
It seed it would be a while before I could tell Sirien, ‘You’re not good at chess.’
Our rule was that the loser had to pick up the chess pieces.
As a slave to my competitiveness, I began to gather the pieces.
Suddenly, there were urgent footsteps from upstairs.
Having lived with the siblings for so long, I could identify who it was just by their steps.
It was Terion.
“The carriage! The carriage has arrived!”
“Really?”
As soon as Terion shouted, Sirien jumped up.
Hena also stopped her cooking and wiped her hands on her apron, and my head turned sharply.
It was only natural for us to rush out to greet the carriage.
Indeed, the silhouette of the carriage could be glimpsed through the woods.
It was a familiar sight.
The old cargo carriage we had arrived in.
The very one that reeked and was dusty. Initially, it looked like junk, but now it seed endearing.
The difference was that this ti, the canvas was removed, allowing us to see the people on the carriage.
The coachman was different from before, and there were a few n wearing hoods.
Including the coachman, there were six of them.
Their faces were hard to make out from a distance.
Terion had set off before , leading the way.
The n on the carriage waited quietly for Terion.
‘Sothing feels off.’
A strange unease washed over .
I paused for a mont, placed my hand on Sirien’s shoulder, and whispered,
“Sirien, go back to the cabin with Hena.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Just do as I say for now. I’ll co for you.”
Sirien tended to trust in these situations.
She asked no further questions and followed my instructions. Leaving Sirien behind, I hurried after Terion.
I had to catch up to him.
* * *
This world was rife with power struggles.
Deep-seated animosity existed between demons and humans, and, just as it was between Sirien and the female protagonist in the novel, conflicts among humans themselves were endless.
Thus, it could be said that this was the era of knights.
Powerful individuals had the strength to change the course of wars, and every noble was desperate to have an outstanding knight in their service.
However, not all nobles went to war.
Tis of war were naturally shorter than tis of peace.
The battlefield was where knights shone the brightest, yet their most common use was on escort missions.
Therefore, to beco a knight, one had to learn the art of escorting others.
The Sword of Eilencia.
Being born the son of Count Berthus was unquestionable.
That’s why I was certain.
‘At the very least, those guys are not knights.’
The essence of escorting is vigilance. No matter how well one wields a sword, a stab from behind ans death.
Failing to properly survey one’s surroundings puts everyone’s lives at risk.
Yet, those people seed to be casually chatting atop the carriage, showing no sign of vigilance.
Even as Terion approached, they did not co down from the carriage.
It ant they lacked even basic manners.
They were clearly not the right choice to escort the siblings to the fortress.
The one who seed slightly better was the man who appeared to be the leader of the group.
He stepped down from the carriage and walked steadily towards Terion.
By that ti, I had also caught up with Terion. The man scanned us.
“Are you His Grace, Terion?”
“Yes. Are you sent by my uncle?”
“Yes. The person beside you must be Sir Razen. It’s an honor to greet you. My na is Ludbeck. I have been ordered to escort you.”
Terion’s guard was lowered.
Because he knew our nas.
Count Roxen had called this place a hideout.
The information that we were hiding here was supposed to be highly confidential, so these n must have been sent by Count Roxen.
Moreover, Ludbeck knew not only our nas.
“I heard there were four of you. Is the lady inside?”
“Hmm? I thought she ca out with us. Must have forgotten sothing.”
“Is that so? Then we will bring her to you. Hanson, Trang, go fetch the lady politely. Do not do anything rude.”
“Yes, Captain.”
Ludbeck knew of Sirien and Hena’s existence as well.
At his gesture, two subordinates headed toward the cabin.
I felt uneasy, but I had no intention of stopping them.
After all, they seed to be people sent by Count Roxen.
There must have been a reason he didn’t send the family’s knights or private soldiers.
For all I knew, they could be rcenaries of so renown.
But as the two n passed by , a familiar scent wafted through the air.
I had to make a decision.
“Cough...”
I drew my sword.
And slashed.
I finished one of them off in a single blow.
Terion looked taken aback, but there was no ti to explain.
Bright red blood splattered on my cheek. The warmth of human blood felt surprisingly hot.
In the corner of my vision, a human body collapsed.
Thump. Thump.
My heart raced.
This was my first kill.
My hands seed to tremble slightly.
It’s fine.
It wasn’t enough to interfere with swinging my sword.
The illusion of blood flowing swiftly was actually welco. Sharpened senses would aid in battle.
Years had passed since I learned to use a sword and now to my first kill. But it seed a few seconds would suffice for the second.
‘With this montum, just one more...!’
Just as I was about to deal with another defenseless foe, a cold tallic sound rang out.
It was Ludbeck.
A heavy iron sword charged towards .
Discarding his polite deanor, he curled one corner of his mouth.
“You’re a quick-witted kid. It was a carefully prepared act. How did you know?”
“No matter how you dress up your words, guys like you always give yourselves away. It reeks of decay.”
“Ha. Is that so? Such arrogance. Don’t be mistaken. It wouldn’t have mattered whether you noticed or not.”
Of course.
There were too many clues.
Their attention never once strayed outside.
They never considered the possibility of wild beasts or unnoticed trackers.
Their gaze was fixed solely on Terion and .
The way they looked at my sword was particularly irritating, as was their assessing glance at the calluses on my palms.
It was as if they were looking at an enemy they needed to kill.
The decisive factor was the sll.
A foul odor emanated from the subordinates as they passed by .
I had slled it before.
It was the scent sotis emitted by criminals caught by senior knights of the order. A mix of cheap liquor and drugs.
Those who slled like this were invariably trash.
In the novel, the female protagonist would shudder at this.
- Smoking cigarettes made from mulette flowers emitted a fishy sll. People called those addicted to this drug “sewer rats.”
- For the hopeless sewer rats, mulette flowers were quite expensive. And the addictive nature of mulette flowers could instantly break a person’s will.
- Naturally, the sewer rats would beco slaves who would do anything for money. They were easily expendable.
No matter what, these n were unfit to serve as escorts for the siblings.
Though, if it were the other way around, perhaps.
“If you had followed obediently, you wouldn’t have had to die a painful death.”
“That wouldn’t have been the case, would it? Traveling with stinking guys like you would be torture itself. Even a half-used rag would sll sweeter than you.”
“Quite the foul mouth for a noble’s son.”
I exchanged a few blows with Ludbeck.
Fortunately, he wasn’t exceptionally skilled, but I wasn’t at an advantage either.
This is dangerous.
My rational mind sounded the alarm.
Honestly, I couldn’t be sure of victory.
Even one-on-one, he wasn’t an easy opponent, and he had his n with him.
The movents they made to flank prevented from recklessly charging in.
It seed worth trying. However, I couldn’t shake off the impression that it was a tricky situation.
I couldn’t afford to be tied down here.
After all, if this was Count Roxen’s intention, difficulty was to be expected.
I had held my own against the knights of Eilencia.
Count Roxen must have had so idea of my abilities, so he wouldn’t have sent completely incapable n.
At the very least, he would have included one useful person. I could only hope that Ludbeck was the only one.
Terion was also engaging with so n nearby.
A decision was needed once again.
“I’ll clear a path for you, so go protect Sirien and Hena. I’ll handle things here.”
“What? But you are... Can I trust you with this?”
“Absolutely.”
As promised, I desperately cleared a path and sent Terion off.
I managed to injure one of their arms, even if it ant taking risks. Two had slipped away earlier, and the remaining two surrounded .
As a result of sending Terion away, I was left with wounds on my left shoulder and thigh.
There was bleeding, but it wasn’t deep.
Ludbeck sneered.
“Do you know? My employer said this. To erase you from this world.”
“Do your best.”
“But you know, there was nothing in the request about killing you nicely. That ans as long as the job is done cleanly, anything goes. I’ve heard the young lady is quite beautiful. I wonder what her cries will sound like?”
“Your mouth reeks of rag. I’ll make sure to clean it up properly.”
I had intended to stay calm.
But that was no longer an option.
My head went cold.
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