Episode 16
I slowly got up from my seat.
I put my backpack containing my clothes on my back and climbed onto the horse that seemed to be in the best condition and most likely to run among the horses around me.
My destination is clearly the academy.
The relics of the founding king hidden there are ownerless, and I intend to become the owner of them again, just as I did in my previous life.
After lightly stretching his stiff body, he began to leave the place.
The previously quiet night insects are now chirping, ringing in my ears.
What a peaceful night this is.
‘It’s the Academy… … .’
The academy is located in the Ascendible Territory adjacent to the capital.
With so much to see and eat, it is also the second largest land in the kingdom.
If you go now, you’ll probably be able to enjoy a leisurely ‘vacation’.
However, I have no intention of going to the academy right now.
Suddenly I raised my head and looked up at the sky.
The full moon looks down at me from the sky.
‘By now… … he must have returned to his original form.’
The Academy is a destination, but not a primary destination.
There is a place you absolutely must stop by before going to the academy.
In fact, in this world, my sister and Ron are the ones who remain in my heart as a kind of foolishness and regret.
My sister couldn’t protect me, and I only received from Ron.
But beyond those two, there is one person who gave me life, gave me the strength to seek revenge, and made me a ‘human’ from a worldly fool.
That’s my teacher.
Although he is now a forgotten being, he is a symbol of fear that those who remembered the past master were reluctant to even think about.
A hidden hero who rose to the top as a black magician and wandered the world with the founding king.
Valentine Milos.
When I think of my teacher, a part of my heart aches.
I feel sorry for my sister and Ron, but my top priority in life is my teacher.
How long has it been?
My heart is pounding.
* * *
After riding a horse for about 10 minutes, we came across a frighteningly small castle wall.
As I expected, there was a village nearby.
Then, my eyes met with the guard standing in front of the gate.
First, I showed the guard the small emblem of the Marquis that I had in my arms and he bowed his head.
“I didn’t realize it.”
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Judging from the way he bows his head without saying much, it seems he has seen quite a few ill-tempered nobles.
I slowly got off my horse and entered the village.
The name of the village is Arbeloa.
To be exact, it was a territory ruled by Viscount Arbeloa, a vassal of Duke Ascendible, one of the two dukes in the kingdom… … I remember hearing that somewhere.
Of course, I don’t intend to pay any more attention to it than that.
Actually, I have never seen either Viscount Arbeloa or Duke Ascendant.
They’re all going to get screwed anyway, so what’s the point of caring?
I looked around quietly.
It was clearly a small town, but surprisingly, it had everything you could want.
Of course, there are shops, inns, restaurants, etc.
Even now, there were people who were presumed to be mercenaries around, and children were running around happily, so this village was a relatively peaceful place.
‘It seems like a pretty good place to live.’
In lands ruled by evil lords, ninety-nine out of a hundred children have gloomy expressions.
It’s not even daytime and the sun is out, but the kids are running around so cheerfully, especially in the village?
I’ve rarely seen anything like this.
The owner of this estate seems to be at least not an evil lord.
When I look at the children laughing, I feel strangely uneasy.
I quietly, like a hermit, took the reins of my horse and entered what was strongly assumed to be an inn.
As I tie the horse in the stable and go inside, I hear the chattering voices of mercenaries.
‘Surely there won’t be any trouble here like in a third-rate novel.’
I sat down at an empty table, my mind wandering.
Then a woman approaches.
“This is the first time I have a young guest coming alone. Would you like a meal or a room?”
Are you an employee?
no.
I should say that they feel more like mercenaries than employees.
I took three shillings out of my bosom and placed them on the table.
“A light pie, a drink, and a room.”
The woman smiles slightly and hands me two shillings again.
“One shilling will do. I’ll bring you the apple pie, a specialty of the Arbeloa estate. And for drinks, milk? Or maybe beer?”
“Milk will do.”
Because I’m a kid.
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The woman nods and turns as if accepting the order.
I stared blankly at the two shillings sitting on the table.
Is it because it’s worth living?
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It’s refreshing to see them not putting a single dent in my case, even though I look like a foreigner at first glance.
but.
‘There is bound to be a difference between before and after a war.’
I sat on the chair and waited quietly.
The chattering voices of sword-wielding mercenaries reach my ears.
‘You said you would completely wipe out the seeds of the demons?’
‘I heard that a large number of Mana users will also participate in the large-scale operation.’
‘Why are you doing such useless things? Other kingdoms and the Tulcan Empire are just sitting still, so why is the Teslan Kingdom the only one doing this?’
‘They say there are almost 20,000 Mana users. Then, what are we going to eat and live on?’
‘Isn’t this f*cked up?’
It’s a new thing, but in a tavern, especially one with an inn attached, all kinds of rumors from the world gather.
As I briefly mentioned when I was with Ron, the Marquis’ elite Iron-Blooded Knights are currently deployed on a mission to subdue the Forest of Demons.
It goes without saying whose order it was, but I feel like I should mention it once.
The king himself.
The King of Teslan summoned a large number of ‘private soldiers’ from each family and ordered them and the mercenaries wandering around looking for work to subjugate the Forest of Demons.
Although it has never been mentioned in detail, the Forest of Demons is huge.
It’s really huge.
A vast forest of demons spread out across the lofty and majestic mountain range known as the Grand Canyon.
It’s called a kind of neutral zone, and on the surface it’s a really quiet place.
Inside there are ogres, orcs, goblins, elves, and harpies.
And even the Imoogi.
Although there are all sorts of bizarre races, they do not go outside the Demon Forest.
No, I can’t go out.
The problem is not that Julius Teslan, who is known to have destroyed the Gunnar Empire, the first empire of mankind that existed long ago, and established a new nation, forced them to make a ‘pact’.
Human greed.
That’s the real problem.
Monsters that live within their own ecosystem, or rather, these different species, unfortunately, can be said to be a very beneficial ‘tonic’ to humans.
Troll blood is used as an ingredient in potions, ogre sinew is used as a bowstring for longbows, and Parekh, a monster whose entire body is made of iron, is also an ideal material for making weapons and armor.
Harpy feathers are also used by noblewomen for decoration, and human-like elves are so beautiful that they are sometimes raised as slaves.
Let’s just look at the situation.
Conquer the forest of demons.
The words are nice.
But this expedition is sure to fail.
‘It was to some extent… … .’
Ah. I remembered.
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The Iron Blood Knights lose about a third of their manpower in vain, and the private soldiers of other nobles also suffer casualties of at least a third.
A miserable failure.
I didn’t know much about it at the time because I was young, but now that I look back, the political smell is so strong that it’s disgusting.
However, one thing is certain: from the moment the subjugation of the Demon Forest failed, King Teslan lost the hearts of the people and all support from the nobles.
It was probably from this time.
The division of the kingdom began.
And a year later?
As far as I know, there was a civil war after this.
“Anyway, the king’s kid is the problem. When an incompetent person gets power, this is what happens… … huff!”
The mouth of the hairy mercenary who was harshly criticizing the king was quickly covered by another mercenary.
Then he looks around to see if there are any soldiers, and then lets out a sigh of relief.
In an aristocratic society, there are more than a few people who lost their balls while insulting the aristocracy.
Moreover, since insulting the king is punished more severely than insulting a noble, such an act is certainly not an exaggeration.
The brief silence did not last long.
The hairy mercenary and the skinny mercenary, who were sitting quite close together, start talking again.
“By the way, did you hear the news?”
The mercenary, who had spit out after seeing the mercenary’s finger in his mouth, immediately asks back.
“What’s the news?”
“They say that the third son of the Marquis of Valanti used black magic.”
“That fool?”
This time, the mercenary who had been talking didn’t shut the hairy mercenary’s mouth.
“I heard you even went to jail?”
“It’s X God, X God.”
And then they burst out laughing, but I wonder what kind of expressions those guys will make when they find out that the person in question is listening.
“But what talent did that idiot have to learn black magic? Black magic has been extinct for a long time.”
“I don’t know. Since he was such a brat, he must have picked up some black magic here and there.”
I looked at them quietly, as if I was really in love with them.
Should we say that it is the attitude of an audience member watching a kind of play?
That was when.
“What do you find so funny?”
The woman who took my order placed the apple pie and milk in front of me and asked,
By the way, is it fun?
He quietly brought his hand to my lips.
I don’t know when it started, but the corners of my mouth started to curl up.
I guess the situation was so funny that I didn’t even realize I was laughing naturally.
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“Aren’t you going to tell me? I’m so bored.”
The employee sat down in front of me and asked.
Are you willing to be my conversation partner?
I quietly observed the staff.
Looking closely, this woman was quite pretty.
Age: at least late 20s to early 30s.
There are three long scars on his left cheek, as if he had been scratched with something like a claw, and tendons are naturally protruding from his raised arm.
I guess this woman must have worked as a mercenary for a while in her day.
Ah. What’s so funny?
“I was surprised to hear that the third son of the Marquis of Valantier was mentally retarded.”
The employee laughs slightly.
“People are usually like that. They base their judgment on rumors about things they can’t see and judge for themselves.”
It felt a bit like a sermon, but I didn’t mind.
“How about you?”
“What?”
“It’s like a standard for judgment or something.”
“Of course I’ll see it for myself and make a judgment. Rumors are just rumors.”
I ended up laughing hysterically.
“But sometimes rumors can be true.”
The female employee also laughs slightly at my words.
“Is that so?”
“yes.”
