Chapter 78: Reunion
Before leaving the Domain of Count Wilcock.
Robin exchanged greetings with Theodric.
“I’ll be going. When I co back, I’ll probably be coming together with the rcenary band.”
“You’ll take care of things on your own. And Ilda.”
“Yes?”
“Take care of yourself.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t be fighting on the front lines, and even if I do fight, I’ve gotten stronger thanks to Grandfather, so nothing serious will happen.”
Ilda assured him.
Theodric tried to add a few more words, but closed his mouth.
“If you’re done saying goodbye, hurry up and get on.”
When Serena urged them on, Robin and Ilda climbed into the carriage.
With Ilda bowing her head deeply toward Theodric as the last gesture, the carriage set off.
Compared to infantry marching all the way to the front lines, it was quite a privilege.
Watching the carriage grow distant, Theodric muttered,
“I hope you don’t beco intoxicated by blood.”
The sound of hooves and wheels gradually faded away.
It took three days to reach the western front.
When he stretched his stiff body and set foot on the ground, a sense of alienness washed over him.
A sturdy barricade made of packed earth and stakes.
Tents pitched densely together.
Shouts cutting through the stench of filth.
Above all, the blood-soaked sll刺激ing his nose made it feel real that he had arrived at a battlefield.
“So this is it. The battlefield looks like this.”
“Serena, you could have stayed in the rear, but you’re really choosing hardship.”
“You said we’d win anyway, right? Seeing it in person makes
feel like I was deceived, but whatever. This is all experience too.”
Serena had followed the Admiral on the condition of staying in the rear, but then changed her mind and decided to follow Robin.
Since having a spirit mage was always an advantage, the Admiral readily agreed.
The talk that Wilcock had devised a strategy that would guarantee victory also played a part.
‘Will I get to see the war weapon shrouded in mystery.’
Because they had been told to keep this confidential, the three of them harbored a quiet expectation.
As the three stood at the camp entrance, a soldier approached.
“Are you Robin, Ilda, and Serena sent by Count Wilcock?”
“Yes. We were added as rcenaries.”
“I will guide you to your tent.”
Without another word, the soldier led them to a round tent.
It was small, but it had been prepared just for the three of them.
“You three will be assigned camp managent duties. You won’t be heading to the front lines, so you can rest easy, but don’t let your guard down too much. This is a place directly adjacent to the enemy, after all.”
The soldier’s explanation stuck to the essentials.
als and sleep followed fixed schedules, and guard duty would be assigned later.
When the brief explanation ended, the soldier exited the tent.
With only the three of them left inside, Serena lay down on a simple cot.
“I’m exhausted after being in a carriage for three days straight. I’ll get so sleep, so wake
up if anything happens.”
With that, Serena fell asleep almost imdiately.
‘It’s not even surprising anymore.’
“I’m going to look around the camp. Would you like to co along, Miss?”
“Yeah. It’s better to adapt quickly.”
After putting down their luggage and leaving the tent, the two walked at an unhurried pace.
The land stretching along the front lines was so vast that its end was nowhere in sight.
Once again, he felt just how imnse Count Wilcock’s power was.
After wandering through the crowded encampnt for about thirty minutes.
A familiar voice tugged at Robin’s ears.
“Move faster, you ox. I’m starving to death.”
“How much do you even shove into your mouth in a day, anyway.”
“Beautiful won are supposed to eat heartily.”
A burly, muscular man and a woman with red hair tightly tied back bickered as they carried a cauldron.
Robin stopped for a mont and looked at their backs.
Just like in his old mories. Unchanged.
‘They look exactly the sa as when I saw them last year.’
Perhaps sensing his gaze, Mirian ca to an abrupt stop.
“What is it, you said you were hungry. Why did you put the cauldron down?”
Mirian slowly turned her head, and her eyes t Robin’s.
“…Robin?”
“Long ti no see, Sis.”
Torgen also turned his body to face Robin.
His face was filled with surprise.
Mirian walked slowly toward Robin.
Robin approached as well.
When they were close enough to touch if he reached out, Robin awkwardly opened his mouth.
“I don’t know if you got my letter. Sohow, I ended up all the way here. It’s a long story if I explain…….”
“Co here.”
Mirian pulled Robin into an embrace.
It was snug and warm.
Unconditional affection flowed through him.
“You had it hard, didn’t you?”
“…A little.”
“You did well.”
Mirian saw through the hardships he had never told anyone about at a glance.
Just a few words were enough.
The bridge of his nose tingled.
When the few-second hug ended, Ilda and Torgen had approached.
“I heard you were coming, but what’s with that hair color?”
“Black hair stood out too much. Doesn’t it suit ?”
“Blond suits you too.”
Torgen offered a simple greeting.
Robin averted his gaze so his reddened eyes wouldn’t be noticed.
Mirian didn’t miss the chance to tease him.
“Did you miss this big sister’s arms? You’re still such a kid.”
“I-I didn’t!”
When Robin vehently denied it, Mirian and Torgen burst out laughing.
Ilda was seeing this side of Robin for the first ti.
He always felt so dependable, yet he couldn’t hold his ground in front of Mirian.
As the laughter subsided, Mirian’s gaze turned to Ilda.
“So this young lady here is Ilda Tefir?”
“Yes. I’m Ilda Tefir. Nice to et you.”
“You’re even prettier up close. Ah, I’ve seen you before. I was curious how Robin worked, so I secretly watched him. You probably didn’t see , though.”
“What? When did you do that?!”
Robin protested to Mirian, apparently unaware.
Mirian just smiled broadly and didn’t answer.
Admitting he couldn’t win, Robin changed the subject.
“Where is everyone else?”
“You can’t et them right now. They’re out there.”
Mirian pointed beyond the barricade.
Calimacos, Paul, Brandok, and Felix were active on the battlefield.
Mirian and Torgen had returned to the encampnt to rest, and by good timing, they t Robin.
When Robin showed a disappointed expression, Mirian mischievously smiled and slung an arm around his neck.
“Let’s go inside and talk about everything we missed. Have you eaten yet?”
“Not yet.”
“Perfect. I’ll show you how this big sister’s been living. Follow .”
As Mirian dragged Robin along, she shouted to Torgen.
“You can move the cauldron without , right? I’m counting on you!”
“T-that demon of a woman…….”
As he sighed and tried to lift the cauldron.
Ilda ca over to help.
“You’re Torgen, right. I’ll help you.”
“Ilda… thanks. Ah, it’s better not to expect polite speech around here. It’s all rough types.”
“That’s fine. I’m not a noble anymore, after all.”
“That’s refreshing. Robin really made a good female friend.”
“Th-that’s not it…….”
Ilda hoisted the large cauldron high and passed by Torgen.
The girl, her nape flushed red, didn’t even realize how heavy the cauldron full of stew was as she hurried after Robin with quick little steps.
“I thought you were dating now that the wall of status had collapsed. Are you still in an employer–servant relationship?”
Watching the girl emitting a pink-tinged atmosphere even on the battlefield, Torgen let out a snort of laughter.
The place Mirian led them to was an encampnt where several large tents were clustered closely together.
Five tents large enough to house about twenty people were pitched in a semicircle.
Standing in front of the third tent, Mirian spread her arms and said,
“This is where I stay.”
“It’s pretty big.”
“Right? It looks simple on the outside, but once you go in, there are private beds and everything you’d need.”
“It can’t be easy to arrange private quarters in the army. They must have put in quite a bit of effort.”
“That’s because this big sister has to stay beautiful. I suffer every day fending off rcenaries who have their eyes on .”
It was self-praise, but Robin more or less agreed.
Objectively speaking, Mirian was beautiful.
Though given the situation, it was hard to imagine anyone harboring romantic feelings.
“You probably heard in my letter, but I’m serving as the leader of our rcenary band’s 3rd squad. I’m more capable than you thought, right?”
“You said all the early mbers beca squad leaders, didn’t you? Paul, Torgen, Brandok, Felix. Then doesn’t that an I could be a squad leader too?”
“What? Puhahaha… What am I supposed to do with this cute little guy.”
Mirian wrapped an arm around the back of Robin’s neck.
Robin tried to resist in his own way, but Mirian’s strength refused to let go.
As he bent at the waist and struggled to escape from her heavy embrace, rcenaries ca out of the tent.
“Squad Leader of the 3rd, who’s that pretty-looking kid?”
“Everyone, say hello. He’s my younger brother. Sohow, he got added as a rcenary.”
Only then did Mirian release Robin.
Robin caught his breath and greeted the rcenaries.
“Hello. I’m Robin. I was assigned here by order of Count Wilcock.”
The rcenaries approached and alternated their gazes between Mirian and Robin.
One of them asked in a disbelieving voice,
“Squad Leader of the 3rd, you had a younger brother?”
“That’s right. He’s so handso it leaves you speechless, doesn’t it?”
“That too, but… why on earth is he on this battlefield……?”
“There were circumstances. I also ca to see my sister’s face while I was at it. I have connections with the Captain and the other squad leaders as well.”
The rcenaries’ reactions varied, but they had one thing in common.
Curiosity.
It was surprising enough that a boy who looked like a noble young master had voluntarily co to a battlefield, but they were also curious about what kind of ties he had with the squad leaders, the core mbers of the rcenary band.
Just then, Torgen and Ilda stepped into the encampnt carrying the cauldron.
Unlike Ilda, who carefully set it down, Torgen slamd it onto the ground with a thud and shouted in a booming voice.
“Hey, you lot, the stew’s here! Anyone who wants to eat, get out here quick!”
rcenaries poured out from the tents of the 2nd squad that Torgen managed.
They all lined up in perfect order, holding empty bowls and spoons.
As they began ladling stew one by one with precise movents, the rcenaries of the 3rd squad also started bringing out bowls from their tents.
One rcenary, reading the situation, set down four bowls.
Torgen handed them to Mirian, Robin, and Ilda and said,
“Let’s eat too.”
“You worked hard, Torgen. I’ll help next ti too.”
“Just hearing that is thanks enough. You’re better than your sister.”
“What?! I don’t skip al duty either, you know?”
“What do you an you don’t skip it. I did almost all of it last week.”
Bickering back and forth, Torgen and Mirian perched themselves on a log near the tents.
Seeing how natural it all was, Robin could roughly picture how the rcenaries usually ate.
Robin and Ilda also sat down side by side and picked up their spoons.
It was salty, but with generous amounts of at and vegetables, it was more than enough to fill the stomach.
As warmth spread through them, Torgen, Mirian, and Robin let their pent-up stories bloom.
Listening to the three of them, Ilda got a sense of what Robin had been like before coming to Regiville.
It was like watching the youngest sibling shrink in front of older brothers, and a faint smile ca to her lips.
“When our sweetheart tried to comfort
and totally ssed it up, my heart went thump. Even now, just thinking about it makes my heart lt.”
“…How long are you going to keep talking about that.”
“Of course I’ll keep it up for my whole life!”
“Robin does have a cute side, despite how he looks. He’s good at acting cute too. You’re still using that cat-like aegyo, right?”
“Sis, Torgen, please stop…….”
As the two squad leaders teased the suddenly appeared boy, the rcenaries couldn’t help but steal glances.
That was because Torgen and Mirian, who fought like demons on the battlefield, were chatting with relaxed expressions.
It wasn’t that they lacked human warmth, but the longer one experienced war, the more dulled emotions inevitably beca.
Death inevitably followed war, and becoming accustod to death was part of that.
As the cheerful al was drawing to a close, Robin spoke up.
“Sis. If you have ti, how about sparring with .”
“I don’t have duty today, so ti is fine, but with ?”
“Yeah. I’m curious how much stronger you’ve gotten.”
Mirian smiled as if she found him cute.
“? Or you?”
“Both.”
A competitive light settled into Robin’s eyes as he looked at Mirian.
They hadn’t fought yet, but he could tell.
Compared to seven years ago, Mirian’s presence had changed.
The sa went for Torgen.
Robin was curious about the saying that war changed people.
As the two were about to look for a suitable spot, a rcenary approached.
“You’re the squad leader’s younger brother, right. If you don’t mind, how about matching up with
first.”
He was a rcenary of average height with solidly built muscles.
Robin looked back at Mirian.
“Kel, I know you’re trying to look good in front of , but my little brother is stronger than he looks.”
“I know. Just at a glance, he’s trained with the sword for a long ti. That’s exactly why I want to cross blades with him even more.”
After replying politely to Mirian, Kel looked at Robin.
Mirian shrugged her shoulders.
It ant the decision was Robin’s.
“What’ll it be? Kel’s one of the top five rcenaries in the 3rd squad.”
‘I want to trade swords with Sis first, but this isn’t bad either.’
“You said your na was Kel, right. I’ll learn a thing or two from you.”
“I should be the one saying that. I’ve been curious for a while just how capable the squad leader’s younger brother is.”
Kel drew his curved blade.
It was similar in shape to the sword Mirian used.
The rcenaries gathered around, centering on Robin and Kel.
There was no spectacle more entertaining than a sparring match.
Watching, Torgen opened his mouth.
“Don’t just laze around because you’ve got nothing to do, finish it quickly. The dishes are piling up. If you’re ready, start.”
A rcenary who had been through the wringer on countless battlefields charged toward Robin.
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