Chapter 9: Chapter 9

Stepping out of the tent, Shan felt that the gazes of the people around him had completely changed from before.

‘As expected…’

Unlike when they had regarded him as just a child with a sword at his waist, emotions of vigilance or outright contempt were now blatantly palpable.

It was likely due to his two eyes that glowed when night fell.

Snorting softly, he headed toward the castle gate and spotted Roden leaning against the wall with a torch in hand.

Noticing Shan’s presence, Roden spoke up with a bright expression.

“You’re late! Didn’t the show end a while ago? I was worried.”

“Sorry. I lost track of time talking with the troupe members.”

As Shan briefly related the conversation he had shared with them, Roden showed a fairly surprised look.

“That’s impressive. It couldn’t have been easy for a group of Altoans of that size to gather here in Libert.”

“They asked me to travel with them too, but I refused. I’m going to become a knight in Pendia.”

When Shan spoke while shrugging his shoulders, Roden looked at him with an admiring expression before reaching out to stroke his shaggy black hair.

As hair caught in the joint of Roden’s metal gauntlet was yanked out, a scream involuntarily escaped Shan’s lips.

“Ouch, that hurts!”

“Haha, sorry. I just found you commendable. For tonight, let’s sleep in a rented tent. It seems the castle gate won’t open.”

“Why?”

“Because this city supports Duke of Morayen. You know, the side that lost today’s battle. They seem to think the victorious army might ride their momentum and invade all the way here. If there were a spy among the people outside the wall colluding with them, it would be troublesome.”

“Ah…”

Even if he didn’t fully understand, Shan seemed to grasp that it was some kind of headache-inducing reason.

Seeing Shan’s expression, which clearly showed he didn’t understand, Roden snickered and spoke.

“Well, I asked the people around here and roughly figured out the way to Pendia, so you don’t have to worry. Starting tomorrow, we’ll buy a horse each before heading out, so it’ll be much easier.”

“I’ve never ridden a horse before.”

“You can just learn. Surely you wouldn’t find riding a horse difficult at this point?”

“That’s true.”

Indeed, when it came to any physical skill, Shan could hardly imagine failing to perform it properly.

“But aren’t horses super expensive?”

“Didn’t I tell you? I’m rich. If I sell all the jewels I have, I could buy ten horses easy. Though something like a Mount Horais warhorse would be difficult since those aren’t bought with money.”

Warhorses of Horais were strategic assets managed with special care, even in the Kingdom of Horais, which was famous for possessing many fine horses.

Knights from other kingdoms even went to serve the nobles there just to obtain a Mount Horais warhorse.

Chatting as they walked, the two entered the tent Roden had rented in advance, unpacked their belongings, and lightly wiped their bodies with wet towels.

Midway through, Roden looked at Shan’s upper body revealed beneath the candlelight and spoke.

“It was too dark to notice when we washed yesterday, but looking at you now, you have quite a lot of scars. Did you get them from fighting?”

“No, I used to get beaten up a lot in the past. They all came from back then.”

In fact, he hadn’t merely been beaten; there were times he had suffered far more malicious torment.

Things like having his body seared with dry twigs taken from torches or bonfires, or being poked with sharp skewers until he bled.

At times, he was forcibly stung by large bee stingers or fed poisonous mushrooms mixed into his food.

Usually, that kind of torment came more often from peers his age than from adults.

Because the more ignorant and innocent they were, the easier it was to cross the line.

Thinking back on it now, it was a miracle that he hadn’t ended up disabled or dead.

As Roden listened to the story, he gazed at the countless marks remaining on Shan’s body and let out a deep sigh.

“Later, when we have the chance, let’s ask a priest with high holy power to erase them all. They weren’t formed for a good reason anyway, so there’s no need to keep them.”

“Isn’t that expensive?”

“I told you, I’m rich. To be precise, my father is the rich one.”

His father, the merchant guild master of the capital Pendia, was wealthy enough to slap the cheeks of most nobles.

Of course, his social standing was far lower than theirs.

After wiping his body and changing clothes, Shan lay down first on the cloth lined with straw and gave voice to the question lingering in his heart.

“Roden.”

“What is it?”

“Roden, you want me to succeed as a knight, right?”

“Of course.”

“Is that because you hope I’ll help you after I become a great knight or a lord?”

The reason Shan brought this up out of nowhere was that he recalled what he had heard at the troupe earlier.

The talk about how no one would help an Altoan orphan with no special connection, both materially and spiritually, based on talent alone…

Furthermore, recalling the conversation Roden had brought up before, Roden should have felt jealousy toward Shan’s talent instead.

Yet, the reason he still bothered to help was likely to reap the sweet rewards after Shan grew spectacularly.

Shan wanted to clarify through Roden’s answer the reason why he was helping him.

It was because he felt anxious that someone helping him for no reason meant this bond could vanish like an illusion at any time.

As Shan waited quietly, Roden’s deep and heavy voice sounded from behind his back.

“If I said there was no reason like that, it would naturally be a lie… well, it’s not just because of that.”

“Then what is it?”

“Do you remember when I saw you before and called out to the Goddess?”

“Yeah.”

“This… I don’t know how to put it into words… but I felt something like a revelation, you see? I don’t mean that I became a saint and heard the Goddess’s voice or anything.”

Roden, who rambled as if unable to properly organize what he wanted to say, soon smoothed out his words to some extent.

“So, the moment I saw you, that exact thought struck me. That a rough gemstone, which could transform into anything depending on how it was sculpted, had fallen into my hands. If I were to abandon it here or carve it carelessly, it would either become nothing or turn into something terrible that everyone fears… but if processed well, it could conversely bloom into the most brilliantly shining jewel.”

Unbefitting his rough appearance, it was truly an analogy worthy of a jeweler’s son.

“I’ve failed to become a proper knight, but if I can help you stand on your own as a splendid knight, or even something beyond that, then I could say my life had some meaning too. Sir Roden, the first companion and squire of Shan, the strongest knight matching the Great Emperor Baren… how cool would it be to be written down in an epic like that? Thinking about it that way, I even wondered if my fear of blades was bestowed by the Goddess just to make me meet you.”

Having spoken up to that point, Roden cleared his throat with a dry cough, picked up the leather canteen he had set beside him, and gulped down water.

Shan could feel that this was Roden’s own way of hiding his embarrassment.

Thinking about it, just as Roden said, the reason he and Shan were able to travel together like this was all thanks to his fear of blades.

Had it not been for that, Roden would have continued training in Pendia to become a knight, or even if not, he would have brandished a weapon to subdue Shan when he first sought him out.

If so…

‘I would have killed Roden.’

Shan’s extraordinary combat intellect vividly drew the fight that would have occurred between them close to reality just by lightly closing his eyes and imagining it.

Roden was far stronger than Shan, but because he was dull, Shan would have been able to dodge the swung flail, circle behind him, and drive a sword into the back of his knee.

After robbing him of his mobility like that, Shan would have circled around him, repeatedly plunging his sword and axe into the joints exposed between the chainmail, or into the neck and face unprotected by a helmet, gouging away flesh.

Imagining it like that, Shan suddenly felt fear toward the weapons that had been like extensions of his own body.

The fact that he could have gruesomely killed someone who already felt as close to him as Celina or Priest Ador, perhaps even closer, despite having met only a few days ago…

What snapped him out of that gruesome thought was Roden’s voice, mixed with awkwardness and embarrassment.

“Well, it’s roughly something like that.”

“I get it now, so you can stop talking.”

“Hey, you’re the one who asked in the first place…”

At Roden’s grumbling voice filled with disbelief, Shan smiled silently and buried his head.

After all, they were together right now.

Before falling asleep, Shan resisted his drowsiness and mumbled softly.

“Roden, you’re too big to be a squire.”

Though it was nothing new, Shan truly came to want to become a great knight.

One stronger and more renowned than anyone else in this world.

*

Staying in a tent rather than a proper building, the two of them stood night watch in turned that night as well.

Because even if the likelihood was low, it would be troublesome if a thief broke in.

Contrary to the previous day, Roden stood guard first and went to sleep when half the night had passed, swapping with Shan.

Sitting quietly, drowsiness seemed ready to wash over him, so Shan stepped out of the tent to shake off the sleepiness and stretched lightly.

If he bumped into someone like this, they would probably be startled thinking they had encountered a wild beast, but he didn’t particularly care.

‘If someone tries to lay a hand on me like before, I’ll give them a harsh lesson.’

Still, considering what he had discussed with Roden, cutting off their wrist was a bit much; beating them up would be more than enough.

Unlike in the past, now that he had grown taller and gained some meat on his bones, doing that much was entirely possible.

While warming up by bouncing lightly in place alongside various stray thoughts, a boisterous noise carried over from a distance.

‘What is that?’

The identity of the noise belonged to the army seen earlier during the day… specifically, a group presumed to be a very small portion of it.

The exact number was uncertain, but it was roughly sixty to seventy people.

The man who appeared to be their leader was shouting loudly and arguing with someone beyond the castle wall.

Only after seeing the blue tassel on his helmet did Shan realize that the man was one of the knights from the battlefield seen earlier that day.

Because of the distance, the conversation was hard to hear clearly, but roughly speaking, the knight was threatening to burn down the city if they didn’t pledge allegiance to some count, while people atop the wall were laughing at him.

‘Should I wake Roden?’

After a brief hesitation, Shan saw that other people settled around the wall continued sleeping and concluded it was fine to leave him be.

Because if that army had been dangerous, these people would have been the first to flee.

As expected, the knight with the blue tassel and his troops did not dare to attack the city and instead began setting up an encampment nearby.

Conversely, the city side seemed to lack the strength to attack them as well, making no attempt to repel them.

After the sun had risen fully, Roden woke from his bed, spotted the barracks set up far from the castle wall, and let out a soft sigh with a “Hah.”

“I really didn’t expect them to come this way… well, our tent is close to the wall anyway, so it should be fine. Wait here while I go buy some horses.”

While Roden left to negotiate with horse traders, Shan spent time idling in the tent before setting off.

His destination was the Monster Troupe of Altoans he had met yesterday.

Once they bought horses, they would depart immediately for the east, so now was the only opportunity to meet and talk with them.

Since the performance started in the late afternoon, there would be plenty of time to say goodbye.

Considering the stared of others, the resting place of the Altoans had been set up a short distance away from the castle wall.

As he neared the front of the red tent, unexpected screams and pleas carried over from ahead.

“Please, my lord! Have mercy!”

“Eek!”

Debbie, the woman with butterfly wings on her back, was being dragged out with her hair held in the grip of a mercenary.

When her older brother Pen crawled on the ground on his knees to beg, the mercenary holding her hair snorted and shouted harshly.

“It’s not like it wears out from being used! I said we’ll play around a bit and return her! What’s a whore like her acting so pricey for when who knows how many guys have shared her already…”

Currently, the purpose of the army stationed near this city was to intercept groups of defeated soldiers entering the city.

Since there was almost no chance of the city side attacking right now, the knight had loosed the mercenaries under his command appropriately, and as was customary, the mercenaries used the freedom granted to them in the trashiest manner possible.

One of the giggling mercenary’s comrades tossed a single silver coin onto Pen’s head from his bosom as if acting generous.

“Here, we paid the whore fee, so this is a transaction. Got it? If you make a fuss later, know that I’ll kill you.”

“Are these wings real? Can I try snapping one?”

As another man twisted the delicate butterfly wings with a sadistic smile, the dragged Debbie let out an ear-splitting scream.

With the very voice that had softly praised Shan’s eyes yesterday, calling them beautiful like jewels.

Shan had no concrete knowledge regarding sex or prostitution, but he instinctively sensed that those mercenaries were tormenting her and that something terrible would happen if she was dragged off like this.

Looking around, the people nearby who had gathered to see what was happening turned a blind eye as if it were none of their business, while the other troupe members were terrified and dared not step forward.

If so, he had no choice but to step forward himself.

“My pants are gonna get pulled off, you bastard!”

After kicking Pen, who was desperately clinging to his trousers, the mercenary turned his head and realized someone was blocking his path.

A boy with shaggy black hair and strikingly vibrant green eyes.

Shan pointed his sword at the mercenaries and spoke in a low voice.

“Let go.”

“What?”

“Let go. Before I cut it off.”

The informal speech, which had barely come out after Roden told him several times to speak comfortably, slipped out toward these men all too easily.

At this, the mercenaries looked at each other and burst into snickers.

“What kind of crazy brat…”

“Did you pick up your dad’s sword and come out? I’ll let it slide just once, so get lost.”

“These bastards are Altoans; if you want to play righteous knight, you should look into things more properly…”

Before the mercenary could even finish his sentence, he realized Shan had approached right in front of him and stumbled back in shock.

Then, a burning surge of agony rushed from the hand that had been gripping the Altoan woman’s hair until a moment ago.

His instinctively raised right hand was missing everything above the wrist.

“M-My handddd!”

At the desperate scream, his two fellow mercenaries quickly tried to raise their weapons in response, but Shan’s blade was far faster, stronger, and still more precise than in his previous two fights.

Crimson blood, entrails, and whitish cerebrospinal fluid gushed from the torsos severed cleanly in half at the waist, diagonally from collarbone to flank, and through half of a skull.

All the people around could see was a flash of something, followed by fragments of what had once been human tumbling in all directions.

Screams and shouted far more clamorous than a moment ago echoed out.

“C-Crazy!”

“He killed people!”

The people who had been watching with smiled as the Altoan woman was dragged off fled in horror at the sight of the mercenaries being slaughtered.

Not only were they afraid of what that young swordsman might do, but if things went wrong, they could be branded as his accomplices and harmed by the army stationed nearby.

While they fled, Shan cooled his briefly flushed head and gazed quietly down at his blood-dripping sword.

For the first time, a sword he had swung wildly not to protect his own life or to torment others, but filled with seething rage.

He felt as though he could sense something different from before within it.

It was not yet certain, merely a feeling, but…

Pausing only briefly in thought, Shan approached Debbie, who was still dazed, and removed the severed hand that was holding onto her hair.

“Can you stand up?”

“I-I… yes…”

Rather than answering with understanding, it was more like a reflexive response in a half-dazed state.

Rushing over to support Debbie, Pen bowed deeply to Shan and spoke.

“Thank you so much, Shan! How can we ever repay this grace?”

“It’s fine, so take her inside quickly. Stay close to the castle wall if possible. Because those guys said they were enemies with the city.”

“A-All right. But what about you?”

“I’ll have to think about that from now on.”

Literally an act committed because blood rushed to his head, he had no plan whatsoever.

Of course, even if he were sent back to the past right now, he would do the exact same thing.

Fortunately, the Monster Acrobatics Troupe folded the red tent in an instant, loaded all their belongings onto a wagon pulled by two horses, and finished preparing to move.

It seemed they had originally felt uneasy seeing the arriving army and had been preparing to leave when they met with the misfortune.

While moving together, Roxy, the troupe leader, bowed deeply to Shan in expression of gratitude.

“Thank you so much, Shan. If Debbie had been dragged off by those bastards, who knows what they would have done to her…”

Roxy’s wrinkled face as he spoke held deep remorse alongside worry.

Where until a moment ago it was a question of whether Debbie’s body would be harmed, now it was a situation where everyone’s lives were at risk.

Even so, the reason he didn’t hold this against Shan was not only out of decency, but also because the martial prowess Shan had shown earlier was too terrifying.

The other troupe members were likewise filled with complex emotions in various ways, so only Pen expressed pure gratitude.

Around the time Shan and the people of the Monster Acrobatics Troupe reached the base of the wall, Roden ran over clutching the reins of two horses with a flustered expression.

“Shan! What on earth happened!? I heard a rumor that you killed Count Balik’s mercenaries…”

“Things just turned out that way. It seems I’ll have to fight those guys, but helping out would be hard for you, right?”

Having gradually realized the deaths of their comrades, several enraged mercenaries burst out of the distant barracks and could be seen pointing in this direction.

Seeing that sight, Roden uttered an ambiguous sound (somewhere between a hiccup and a scream) with a “Hick.”

Just looking at the bladed weapons they held seemed to make his legs tremble violently.

“Just give me one horse for now and stay here with these people. I’ll try to drive those bastards away somehow.”

Standing under this castle wall, those guys wouldn’t dare recklessly charge in, but that didn’t mean it was safe.

They could get hurt if arrows were shot from afar, and even if not, they couldn’t hold out under this wall forever.

Someone had to personally step forward and repel them.

Instead of scolding Shan for doing something reckless, Roden asked with a worried expression.

“Can you win? I heard there’s even a knight among them.”

“If it’s just one, I can manage.”

“Ah, damn it. If I knew this would happen, I should’ve looked for a small set of armor at least…”

After sending Roden to the troupe members, Shan mounted the horse Roden had left behind.

It was a grey horse with a thin mane and a somewhat lean build.

“Whoa, whoa.”

Though it was his first time riding a horse, keeping his balance was not very difficult.

To begin with, Shan was someone who could stand on one foot atop an upright wooden pole.

Fortunately, perhaps because Roden had picked a good horse, the creature snorted lightly in response instead of throwing a temper when an inexperienced rider mounted it.

Shan stroked its mane to soothe it as he had roughly learned last night, then lightly pulled the reins.

“Now, let’s move. Over that way… yeah. Faster.”

As he lightly nudged its belly with his feet resting in the stirrups, the horse began to pick up speed.

Although his body bounced up and down and his hips lifted off the saddle, his waist immediately moved according to instinct, matching the rhythm.

If there were time, he would practice riding slowly like this, but regrettably, the enemy had approached right before his eyes.

Shan let go of the reins at once, pulled out a bow from the leather pouch at the horse’s flank, and strung the bowstring.

This was something he had taken from one of the mercenaries he killed earlier.

“Hey kid! The one who killed my men is…!”

Upon reaching a distance where voices could carry, the man at the lead of the mercenaries shouted.

Since his face was different from the knight seen at dawn, he was likely the captain of a small mercenary squad or the like.

Before his interrogation could even finish, an arrow, empowered by the running speed of the horse, grazed the shouting man’s cheek and pierced the head of the person behind him.

Shan quickly grabbed the reins, turned the horse around, and let out a soft sigh.

“Ah, I missed.”

Trying a single shot made him realize that shooting a bow well and shooting from atop a horse were two separate matters altogether.

Though he had already gotten a rough feel for it.

In that it required trying whole twice to master, mounted archery was clearly an exceedingly difficult technique.