Episode 201. The Child of the Prairie (2)
From Avern to the Northern Plains.
If you take the smoothest and fastest route, it would only take a week. You just have to go through several gates and castles without encountering any monsters.
Given that the Imperial Order gave Rubin the title of Imperial Inspector, it must have also meant that he was to be allowed to move around comfortably.
However, Rubin deliberately chose a route that would lead to many encounters with monsters.
As in the eastern jungle of Avern, at night he would call the monsters together, place Blane in the middle of them, and then disappear, leaving behind the same words as before.
‘I won’t let you die, so try everything you can.’
Blanet accepted Rubin’s words absolutely.
The overwhelming power he displayed against the orcs in the jungle on the first day. The sight was so bizarre that it came to mind like a nightmare every time I fell asleep for several days.
When fighting real monsters and facing a critical situation, Rubin would show up and intervene in the fight. Rubin’s realm was made up of cold, aura, and darkness. Then everything was quickly sorted out.
Buck! Buck!
“…I surrender, Your Majesty.”
Once every four days, Rubin and Blane would have a duel based on the Assassin’s Swordsmanship.
The gap was so humiliating that Blanet would rather be thrown into the middle of monsters.
“It’s not over yet, Blane.”
As Blaine picked up my dagger from the floor, Rubin continued.
“…yes?”
“In five days, we will reach the border of the Northern Plains. From today on, we will be sparring a little differently than we have in the past two months.”
Then, Rubin activated the Brion Aura on his practice dagger. The realm he had achieved, four layers of black lacquer Aura were added.
“I am helping you grow through this task, but I still have a mission to carry out for the palace. That mission is to track down the aura you see now.”
Aura slowly extended his burning sword towards Blane. The waves and heat of the Aura were directly transmitted to Blane’s darkness.
“We will gradually find out as we pursue, but we still don’t know who we will face.
“… … .”
“If things go badly, there may be someone stronger than me. The worst thing is that you face him alone without me.”
I don’t know if there’s just one person or multiple people. I also don’t know what level his Brion Aura is at.
“From today until we reach the edge of the meadow, hold my sword. I will only use the Brion sword style. While learning my attacks, prepare for any situation.”
Blane understood Rubin’s intentions. She nodded with a determined face. She held her sword firmly and began to do her best to receive Rubin’s Brion Aura.
Buck! Buck!
A different sound from when the Assassin’s Swordsman struck shook the forest.
Rubin wasn’t the only one who helped Blane grow on this journey. Kuze was also helping Blane in his own way.
When she returned to the campsite after finishing her training, Kuze was waiting for her, unable to hide his joy.
Knock knock… … .
Kuze clenches his fists in front of a blazing campfire.
“Miss! I finally made it.”
“What do you mean you succeeded?”
“A way to increase your long-range accuracy without putting your Roinecrow at risk!”
Even though he was on the verge of collapse from receiving Brion Aura, those words made Blane’s eyes sparkle.
“really?”
“Of course, it would be best to grow the realm of darkness further and extend it.”
Eventually, what Kuze was holding in his hand were large black feathers. There were five of them in total.
“Could this be the feather of Ojos?”
“Yes, these will be your eyes.”
She accepted the feather and looked at her Roinekrow in a corner. There was no way Kuze would have just let her pluck the feather.
In fact, Tina had a part to play in this process. Tina had won the King’s Run held at Gilleyfield Arboretum. She was clearly the king of a generation.
Ohos was at the Gillyfield Arboretum when Tina was the Emperor. It is only natural for the Roinecro of the Arboretum to follow the Emperor’s orders.
This was not only the case for Ojos. Hamil’s Roinecrou, and even Kuhn’s Roinecrou, were in the same situation.
Under Tina’s stern gaze, Ohos cooperated with Kuze, who occasionally asked for feathers. He also knew that it was for his master’s sake anyway.
“Then… what should I do with this?”
“To put it simply, it’s a temporary injection of darkness here. Only the owner who has formed a connection with Roinecrow can do this.”
Kuze continued his explanation with sparkling eyes.
“Although the duration is not long, if you attach this feather to an arrow and fire it, the girl’s darkness will increase along the radius. For now… try using the darkness as I did.”
“okay!”
Knock, knock… … .
The bonfire is burning.
While the secrets of using the dark smoke for Blaine were being taught, Rubin was spending some time alone in another part of the forest.
Blane thought she was receiving a high-level sword, but that wasn’t the case.
The Brion Auror she received was nothing compared to Rubin’s training partner.
“Haa… haa… … .”
A rough breathing sound echoing in the inner space.
After the training, Rubin was in the same situation as Blane. Every day, he continued his sword fight with Haneke in his inner world. Today is the same.
-Are you okay?
“It’s bearable.”
However, Rubin had three times more sword wounds on his body than the ones he had inflicted on Blane. His entire body was numb from having to block the seven-star aura.
“Let’s stop the sword fight for today and play chess. Haneke.”
-If the owner of the inner space so desires. However, I wish the chessboard were a little bigger.
Rubin snapped two fingers and reconstructed his inner world. With a roar, a chessboard large enough to fill the ground was created. Before they knew it, the two were on top of the watchtower.
“Let me start first.”
-As much as you want.
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The two moved the giant chess pieces as if they were using telekinesis.
-Okay, now tell me.
In fact, Haneke knew that Rubin had only played chess to facilitate conversation.
So, in a strategy game, even though it is relatively easy to destroy the weakling Rubin, I intentionally played it in a way that I hit and took damage.
“We’ll begin full-scale pursuit in a few days. We’ll soon be entering the northern plains.”
-Yes. Soon I will be able to see the face of the man who stole my family’s aura.
“Whether it was stolen or passed down, I don’t know.”
-If you weren’t a member of the Brion family, you wouldn’t have inherited it.
The chessboard had already become disadvantageous before he could even open it. Rubin smiled bitterly. Haneke’s strategy of pressuring from all sides without him even noticing was truly jaw-dropping.
“I will also investigate the whereabouts of Felkyon Brion.”
-… … .
“The grandson of the great general was fighting the Tohun tribe before being killed by the emperor. The story of Brion Auror being found in the grasslands may have something to do with Felkyon.”
-Are you saying that my grandson’s corruption may be revealed during the investigation?
Rubin thought the general was angry. The general’s strategy had suddenly changed to one-sided attack. Rubin read his complicated feelings through the ceaseless barrage of words.
but-
-If that’s the case, don’t worry.
“… … .”
Haneke continued, drooling.
-He’s already recorded in history as a traitor. What more honor would he have left to lose, no matter what petty deeds he actually committed?
Even without Rubin’s advance warning, Haneke had been assuming the worst from the beginning.
The Brion family did not operate a knighthood. They only passed down the family’s swordsmanship to those who inherited it by blood.
The only exception throughout the history of the family was Rubin.
Even that was possible because Rubin showed his grandson, who was branded a traitor in ‘The Tower of Light and Rebellion’. Before that, Haneke had not actively taught Rubin swordsmanship.
-The lineage of Brion Auror must end with you.
‘I have no intention of spreading the Brion Aura to anyone else either.’
-Yes. There is no reason to stay. The Brion bloodline has already disappeared from this world.
Passing on swordsmanship to Rubin was like giving him a tool to take revenge on the Emperor.
A general who became a hero by killing his grandson who joined the group of traitors and then committing suicide. It was meant to complete revenge on Emperor Telmah, who had created a family history so humiliating that it would not be washed away even after death.
-Funny enough, this time Telmach and I have the same idea. We think Brion Auror shouldn’t remain in the world.
As he said that, Haneke put his hand to his forehead. Ahem, drooling.
Because I suddenly realized that the flow of the chessboard was wrong.
-… I made a mistake.
“You had too many distracting thoughts, General.”
At least it wasn’t Haneke’s defeat, but the problem wasn’t Rubin’s defeat either. Rubin barely managed a draw by being unable to move a single word.
-That’s why I’m not a big fan of chess. There’s no such thing as a draw on the battlefield.
“I learned something new today.”
Rubin got up from his squatting position and dusted himself off.
“… Anyway, I understand. It’s fortunate that Haneke also wants Brion Auror to disappear.”
The only variable in the task of tracking down Brion Auror was Haneke’s will. Fortunately, it was solved easily.
There are some famous swordsmen who want to continue their swordsmanship even if their bloodline is broken, and there are also famous swordsmen who have Aura as their bloodline.
Haneke was the latter, and as he said, the last Brion Auror was held by Rubin alone.
“Whether they are the Tuhun tribe or the nobles of the surrounding area, I will definitely cut off anyone who holds the Brion Aura.”
* * *
Rubin headed north for a few more days.
“The horses are already getting excited.”
Rubin, Kuze, and Dahlia were each riding their horses. It was just beginning to dawn, and they were just beginning to climb the hill.
Now, if we just get over this hill, the northern grasslands bathed in the sun will spread out beyond.
Hehehe.
Purur.
As Kuze said, the horses reacted first.
These horses were not the so-called ‘Two-Hun Horses’ that were born and raised in the northern grasslands, but they still had an intuition that they had reached the northern grasslands, the home of all horses.
“Whoa. Whoa.”
Even though Blane calmed the horse down, the excitement did not subside. Instead, the horse’s movements seemed to gain strength and become more lively.
Eventually, the three people climbed up the hill.
A vast grassland began to appear before their eyes in the distance. The grassland was so vast that it could not be contained in the eyes.
What is even more surprising is that even this was a result of a significant reduction by the empire. It is difficult to imagine how vast the territory of the Tuhun tribe must have been in the past.
“I see the defense city and the military city over there.”
It was more like a fortress than a city. Castles were built here and there along the borders of the grasslands, and the castles were connected by high walls.
It wasn’t as much as the polar barrier that blocked the monsters, but it was a way to completely separate the grasslands from the imperial territory. If by any chance a disaster were to occur where the monsters overflowed from beyond the polar barrier, this would be the front line. When that happens, those castles would serve as key strongholds.
“Your Majesty, which of those places should we go to?”
“Let’s go to ‘Hiverdad’, which is closest to the place where the sword marks were found. It would be good to meet the person in charge there and get guidance on the northern grasslands.”
“All right.”
Their horses walked slowly down the hill, heading for Hiberdad, one of the military towns.
From his saddle, Kuze scanned the documents the imperial command had compiled of the castles near the plains, as well as the intelligence he had received from the assassins there.
“Hmm… According to the data, the current Lord of Hiberdad has been appointed as the ‘Tuhun Tribe Controller’ by the General’s Office. He is in charge of supplying the Tuhun horses.”
“I guess I’ll have to meet the Tuhun people through him.”
“Your name is Nerheim. I guess you’re a blood transfusionist.”
Those who can communicate with and control beasts, the Blood Tribe. As the name of the dormitory supervisor at Capotini Magic School was Srehim, it could be inferred from their name.
‘The lord and controller.’
It was quite a feat for a blood relative. In most cases, the reality is that you end up just assisting someone.
Although I don’t know, their ability to control beasts would likely far exceed the level of a typical bloodsucker.
‘You can compare it to the thread.’
It was only when the sun was high in the sky that Rubin and his party were able to stand in front of the gates of Hibertad.
Doo doo doo doo-
Doo doo doo doo-
From the other side of the castle, the sound of horses galloping can already be heard.
“Blaine. Roinecrow, keep your distance and wait. It would be troublesome if you were to stand nearby and catch the eye of the Blood Clan Lord.”
“all right.”
No matter how excellent a blood transfusionist is, he cannot control or communicate with Roinecrow. The source of Roinecrow is darkness, and darkness is a unique power that only the Assassin Swordsmen possess.
‘…come.’
After waiting for a while, a new movement was detected on the walls. Rubin knew that it was the Blood Clan Lord of Hiverdad.
“I heard there’s someone claiming to be an Imperial Inspector?”
The voice came down. Rubin raised his head and met the lord’s eyes. Then he smiled quietly.
‘I only thought about the Srehim office… … .’
The problem was that he thought of that eccentric and overbearing man as the average transfusion recipient. The figure looking down at Rubin from the ramparts was a woman who was completely different from Srehim.
Her clothes were accented with green, and her hair was also a vivid green. Her intelligent beauty made her look like an elf, but she was definitely not an elf. If she were an elf, Rubin’s darkness would have detected her.
The lord Nerheim began to descend the stairs. As a transfusionist, there were no beasts around her.
But that only speaks of what is visible.
‘Can this woman even control monsters?’
Beneath their feet, deep underground, a giant snake wriggled, ready to burst through the ground at any moment.
They were ordered to remain on guard until it was confirmed that Rubin was indeed an Imperial Inspector.
‘It was a good thing I dropped Royne Crow.’
“Hmm, hmm.”
Kuze, who had belatedly sensed the giant monster at his feet, coughed for no reason. Blane also put his hand on his bow with a wary expression.
“Can I see your pass?”
The lord was standing across from Rubin. She held out her hand with a majestic expression, without losing her smile.
Rubin said, handing over the pass.
“I am Luhan Melas. I am an Imperial Inspector dispatched by order of the Emperor.”
