It was early dawn.
Everything was quiet along the Malidan walls, shrouded in darkness.
In the far corner, a gentle fla flickers to life like a match being struck.
Standing in front of the smithy before starting the day’s work, Antonio takes a drag of his morning smoke.
As he recalls how he lashed out at the Margrave the previous day, he exhales a bitter puff of smoke.
“Figured it wouldn’t work out, but it stings more than I expected.”
A sword incarnate chosen by the gods.
It’s said he will defeat Helmut. To be the one who forges that very sword would be the pinnacle honor for any blacksmith.
Not wanting to miss this opportunity, Antonio ponders a different approach.
“It’s strange indeed.”
His apprentices had been shocked when they first heard about it and tried to stop him.
They said it made no sense to hand a man a sword—soone who’s shown virtually nothing to prove himself—and expect him to defeat Helmut.
Antonio hadn’t really been able to refute them at the ti.
It was, after all, a gamble based on nothing but intuition.
‘But I still want to give it a shot.’
Even so, Antonio felt more drawn to Isaac than ever before.
‘Vision.’
‘That guy’s got vision.’
Acting as though he’s certain of his distant future rather than the present.
He has a deeper contemplation of the sword than others do, coupled with an oddly ferocious ambition.
Antonio doesn’t know where that drive cos from—like the sword-wielding ghost of soone who died unsung and unseen, it’s downright desperate yet filled with grit.
Of course, if grit alone could fell Helmut, anyone would have done it by now—
“Antonio.”
A hushed female voice cuts through the dawn air.
“Lady?”
There, with her spear propped over her shoulder, stands Silverna.
“Are you heading out on duty?”
When Antonio extinguishes his smoke and asks, Silverna gives a small shake of her head.
“No, there’s sothing I wanted to ask.”
“Hmm? ?”
Silverna hesitates briefly before speaking carefully, as if wary of being overheard.
“Why are you so fixated on Isaac’s sword?”
“Huh.”
“He’s certainly improving, but not to the point where you’d go so far as to use Frostsilver in forging a sword for him.”
Indeed, Isaac was growing stronger.
Before long, he’d gained a high win rate sparring with the dispatched nobles; in terms of physical training, he’d gone from near last place to a leading position.
His progress was so rapid that many people felt spurred on by it. Still…
If you asked whether he was so remarkable as to deserve sothing like Frostsilver, the answer would be no.
“Haha.”
Looking a bit regretful at having tossed away the rest of his smoke, Antonio clears his throat.
“You could say it’s a new challenge. He wants a style of sword I’ve never forged before.”
“……”
“And he, too, is challenging himself. Maybe you could say it’s not appropriate for my age, but I wanted to throw in at least one foot to join him in that challenge.”
It’s not the most compelling explanation, and Silverna realizes he hasn’t laid out his reasons very well.
But in truth, it resonates with her. She’d asked him only because her own thoughts were similar, and she needed them sorted out.
“Antonio.”
Having steeled herself, Silverna offers him her spear.
“Use this.”
“My lady?”
Silverna’s spear—
Forged from Frostsilver.
“I’m sorry to have you lt down the spear you made for , but you can do that, right?”
“My lady, that’s a pretty dangerous suggestion. Even so—”
“Coming from the man who charged straight to the Margrave and picked a fight, that warning doesn’t hold much weight.”
“……”
Antonio falls silent.
Hiding a small smile in the pre-dawn darkness, Silverna speaks up.
“Please.”
Antonio senses that her emotions, concealed beneath the surface, aren’t exactly the sa as his own.
He can’t say a word in reply when faced with that unspoken tenderness—he can only accept her spear.
“Thank you.”
With that, Silverna turns to leave, retracing the way she ca.
‘What a curious feeling.’
Silverna takes stock of her own condition with refreshing honesty.
She’s just handed over her precious spear, yet she regrets only that she can’t do more.
This must be that feeling of tender affection—
This must be what it’s like to have a one-sided love.
“Enough.”
Smiling brightly, she glances skyward.
Beyond the Malidan walls, the sun peeks out as though to praise her.
“Even if we can’t walk together.”
She decides to be grateful just to help him a little on his journey.
“That’s enough.”
To be content that the hand that moves forward holds a secret piece of her devotion.
“This is more than enough!”
As if in response to her shout, the wind drifts past, brushing her hair.
A new, refreshing day begins.
****
“Sharen.”
“Rihanna unnie?!”
It was early in the morning.
Sharen was startled to see Rihanna show up in her room.
After learning Rihanna had been staying with the maids, Sharen had fretted about possibly losing her own room. Her shoulders twitch in worry.
“Wh-what is it?!”
Paying no mind to Sharen, who’s already spooked, Rihanna hands her a neatly folded envelope-like paper.
“This is my opinion on Isaac’s sword.”
“Aha.”
Relieved that her room was safe, Sharen took it. She considered opening it but decided to let it be for now.
“Sharen, I heard you’ll be heading outside the fortress, just like the other scouting teams.”
“Huh? Right. It looks like the giants’ assassination plans are starting to surface, so we’ll be reassigned for full scouting duty.”
“I see.”
Rihanna speaks in a voice laced with mixed emotions. She gently strokes Sharen’s hair.
“Be careful out there, Sharen.”
“Huh, Rihanna-unnie?”
“I’d like to go, too, but I’d stand out too much. It seems impossible.”
“Yeah, I guess so?”
“Please—look after Isaac.”
Upon Rihanna request, Sharen nods vigorously, her eyes shining.
“Of course! Don’t worry, unnie!”
It’s the first ti Rihanna has asked her for anything, so Sharen answers with excitent.
Seeing her like that, Rihanna feels a bit of her anxiety lift.
‘Was she always this bright?’
When they were in Helmut, Rihanna hadn’t noticed—she’d just thought of Sharen as a naïve child who didn’t know her place.
Yet now, just a simple gesture like patting her on the head is enough to make her this happy.
“Sharen.”
Rihanna decides to take it one step further.
“Yeah?”
“You’ve been worried that using your Crimson Fla Strike makes your red river lose its color, right?”
“H-how did you know?!”
Sharen’s Red River would sotis take on a plum-red hue, and that troubled her quite a bit.
After all, in Helmut, Red River is supposed to be a bright, rose-like crimson.
“Don’t get too hung up on it. That color will beco your very own Red River.”
“B-but Father’s Red River doesn’t look like that at all.”
“You’re not your father.”
“Well… that’s true.”
“Don’t worry. Just let it flow naturally. Helmut’s sword isn’t about burying yourself in sothing or trying to beco anything.”
Helmut is…
Not soone who strives to be great—
But soone who cannot help being great.
They don’t forcibly try to do anything; rather, they put only what is uniquely theirs into the sword and let it blossom.
“Don’t lock yourself into a mold. Father… that’s why he won’t acknowledge us.”
“……”
“Is that too complicated?”
Sharen shakes her head.
“No, I got it! I’ll try! Thanks, unnie!”
“Alright.”
Sharen cheerfully packs her sword. She looks upbeat, but Rihanna repeats the sa warning she’s given her many tis before.
“And one more thing. You must never talk to anyone about Isaac or . Not a single slip of the tongue.”
“I know, I know! You and Isaac both treat like I’m so idiot.”
‘Why do I feel uneasy, though?’
****
“Today’s going to be easy. We’ve been through a lot, so they gave us a light assignnt.”
They stand in front of the rear ramparts leading toward the kingdom.
While the front lines are locked in fierce battle, the rear is basically just a gateway—practically brand-new compared to the front.
“We just have to stop by a nearby village and collect a small tax.”
Silverna says this with a smug grin. At her comnt that they should keep performing their duties even during a great den, everyone tilts their heads in puzzlent.
“And… why exactly are we doing that?”
Sharen asks, hand raised. Silverna nods as though it’s a fine question.
“Well, it’s not truly about collecting taxes. Even if we do get so, it’ll be just enough to grab a snack.”
With her spear slung over her shoulder, Silverna chuckles.
“The real point is more like a morale-boosting patrol. Even with the great den looming, we’re here to show the villagers we’ve got things under control so they don’t worry.”
“Ah, sounds kind of tedious.”
“You keep your mouth shut, got it? That’s an order from your captain.”
And just like that, Sharen has her right to speak summarily taken away.
“Anyway, we’ll drop by the villages, reassure the town elders, and that’s it. Since I’m from Caldias, I do have so symbolic value, you know?”
Having fought at the front lines for so long, this mission is practically a break for them.
“Alright then, let’s get this done in one go today.”
Silverna gestures to the horses they’ve readied. Thus, Reconnaissance Team 5 steps away—if only briefly—from the raging battlefield they’ve been imrsed in.
As everyone fastens their packs to their horses, Anna sidles up to Silverna.
“But, my lady—where’s the spear you normally use?”
“Oh? Umm, I left it behind. Figured I might as well get used to using other spears, too.”
“Huh? Really? That’s unusual.”
“I doubt I’ll be swinging a spear around today anyway.”
Though Anna knows Silverna quite well, she couldn’t possibly guess that her lady had allowed her prized spear to be lted down.
“Well, alright then.”
Anna drops it, assuming it’s nothing special.
anwhile, the others mount their horses and chat casually.
“There were tis like this in Helmut as well,” Jonathan says to Isaac with a smile, speaking from atop his horse.
“If bandits or beastfolk appeared in a nearby village, we’d ride out to handle it.”
“Ah, right. We did.”
At Isaac’s vaguely troubled reply, lodic jumps in to keep the conversation going.
“In Helmut, wouldn’t bandits avoid the area entirely?”
“That’s what I expected, too, but these fools were so ignorant they didn’t even realize they were in Helmut’s territory.”
“Haha, well that’s why they’re stuck living the bandit life.”
A very aristocratic-sounding remark. Well, everyone does live in their own world.
One way or another, the group starts moving toward the nearby villages on horseback.
****
Their first stop is Andes Village.
Despite calling it the “first,” it’s actually the one farthest from the ramparts.
They plan to visit the furthest village first and then loop back, visiting each in turn.
“…Ugh, my back’s killing .”
On horseback, Isaac mutters while tapping his lower back. He’s carrying no fewer than three swords at his waist.
Two of them are test blades that break easily, hence he brought spares—and the third is the Falchion for when all else fails.
“That’s a lot of steel to haul around,” Anna says with a wry laugh, and Isaac can only grin bitterly.
“I guess I’ll keep it this way until I get a real sword.”
“Then let’s hope Antonio works his magic soon.”
“At least this is lighter than a Helmut greatsword.”
“Really?”
Anna looks curiously at Jonathan and Sharen’s greatswords, likely wanting to try hefting them herself later.
Up ahead, Silverna clears her throat to chi in.
“Ahem, I’m sure he’ll finish it soon enough. Antonio is an incredible blacksmith.”
“It might still take a while, though.”
“No! Don’t underestimate Antonio. He’ll make sothing amazing, you’ll see.”
“……”
Nobody’s quite sure why Silverna is so certain, and she doesn’t explain further—she just shrugs it off.
Thus, Reconnaissance Team 5 arrives at Andes Village.
“…Dismount,” Silverna orders sharply the mont they enter.
A ghastly stench assaults their nostrils. The sticky odor of layered, coagulated blood fills the air, and a swarm of flies buzzes overhead with a maddening drone.
While the Malidan Barrier haven’t actually seen huge numbers of casualties, the rot and maggots churning here are far worse than any battlefield stench.
Weapons drawn, they cautiously venture in—only to find a heap of the villagers’ bodies piled up.
“This happened recently,” Isaac observes.
“They carved out specific parts—eyes, hands…” Anna adds, assessing the scene with chilling composure.
So in the group are shaking with rage or gagging at the horror.
Then—
“Keek.”
They hear a strange sound from behind and turn.
It’s coming from one of their own party mbers.
“Kik, kikk…”
Suddenly, a mory flits through Isaac’s mind—sothing a Helmut knight once said.
[He’s an unsettling man.]
Isaac had figured they didn’t like him just for being a junior knight or sothing, but Helmut’s knights prized chivalry; they wouldn’t badmouth soone for no reason.
[We often travel to help nearby villages…]
“Kik, kikkik…”
[And sotis, unfortunately, we find scenes where the villagers have been caught in terrible violence.]
“Kik-kik… Ah, ssk. Khh… Krhhut!”
[And every ti—especially when there are a lot of victims—]
“Ahhahaha! Huhhh! Ah, damn! Kuhahahahaha! hahahaha!”
[—he looks at it… and laughs, as if he’s enjoying himself.]
Isaac finds himself questioning if the man laughing before him is really that awkward, bumbling knight he traveled with—
Or even if he’s really human at all.
In the midst of this horror…
“Kahahak! Huh! S-sorry—! Ahahahahaha!”
Though he clasps both hands over his mouth, he can’t stop laughing, his face contorting like it might tear apart.
It’s not even that he’s struggling to repress his laughter—
He’s not forcing down an uncontrollable urge;
It’s a smile that cos to him naturally, shining bright.
He’s only trying to hide it, not stop it.
“Ssk… hoo… hoo… pffft! Kihihik!”
Even doubled over, face buried in his hands,
Jonathan’s spine-chilling laughter just will not end.
– – – The End of The Chapter – – –
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