The Returned Sword King Decided to Become a Tyrant Episode 45
Leap or Fall (1)
Esteban’s royal capital was one of the safest cities on the entire continent.
Citizens felt little anxiety, as they could walk down the alleyways without any worries, and sometimes festivals even took place late at night.
It may be because its overall size is small and easy to manage, but I can say for sure that it is not the only reason.
‘The Land of Knights’
The guards in charge of the security of the capital were made up of knights or those with similar abilities, as befitting their brave title.
The abilities of each individual were excellent enough to easily deal with minor crimes, and in the case of serious crimes that were difficult for the guards to solve, they could deal with them without a problem as long as they received help from the Knights of Argon, the third order of royal knights.
A safe city ruled by the King of Knights.
However, looking at the busy daily life of the guards, it seems that criminals who disrupt public order are bound to be everywhere.
“There are four criminals caught in the morning. One of them has no criminal record and was simply arrested for causing a disturbance, so he will receive a light punishment.”
The captain of the guard let out a small sigh at the voice of his subordinate who was continuing his report.
“So? What did you say was the reason for the disturbance?”
“He is a scholar who works in a neighboring territory. Judging from the statements of people around him that we obtained at the time, it seems that he caused a disturbance while drunk after being defrauded. To be exact, it was not a disturbance, but rather he was lying down on the street before being handed over to the security guards… … .”
“… … Phew.”
It was a very emotional sigh.
He was already very busy, and then he started drinking in broad daylight and collapsed on the street…
The captain of the guard, who had been holding his head that was aching for a moment, said:
“He said he had no criminal record, so just let him go and tell him not to do it again.”
“All right.”
“Oh, wait a minute.”
Towering-
The captain’s voice stopped the subordinate who was about to leave the office.
I forgot the most important thing.
When the subordinate turned to look at him, the captain of the guard tried to soften his frown and asked.
“And by the way, what is the name of the scholar who is said to have caused that disturbance?”
“My name is El Bardo.”
“El Bardo?”
It was an unfamiliar form of name.
Maybe it’s from the southern continent?
Still, it was a name that was somehow not unfamiliar.
“El Bardo… … El Bardo… … .”
At that moment.
“… …Official document?”
Suddenly, as the captain of the guard was pondering the reason for the familiarity, the existence of an official document that had been handed down from the royal family a while ago came to mind.
What was the content at first?
The captain of the guard, who had been pondering his memories, was startled and quickly stood up from his seat.
The chair fell over in the recoil, but I didn’t care.
“… … Prepare the report right now, right now.”
“Huh? To whom… … .”
“How old is this kid that he even forgot official documents!”
The captain of the guard threw the fountain pen that was on the desk at the behavior of his subordinate who was acting strangely.
When his subordinate, startled by this, jumped up and dodged, he glared and shouted.
“To His Majesty the First Prince who sent the official document, you idiot!”
“……ah.”
Edward took a migraine pill out of his desk drawer, poured it into his mouth, and swallowed it forcefully, tapping his Adam’s apple.
“Inform His Majesty that a scholar named El Bardo has been captured immediately, and send guards to track his location!”
“Yes? Yes!” I will follow your orders.
“You can’t miss it! Now!”
The expression on the captain’s face as he gave those instructions was filled with urgency.
* * *
El Bardo?
George pushed up his glasses, confirming that it was definitely not a Northerner’s name.
“Well, I get that general idea… … .”
Then he quickly scratched his head with an annoyed expression on his face.
“What does that scholar have to do with the temple?”
The capital’s shopping district.
In a place bustling with the footsteps of people going about their daily lives, two robed figures appeared.
The sight of their hoods down, as if covering their faces, might have seemed a bit suspicious in contrast to the lively atmosphere of the street, but the artifacts that obstructed their perception hanging from their waists made it seem insignificant.
Needless to say, those two people are me and George, who came out onto the streets under the pretext of being a temple.
“Is there any reason for Your Majesty to move in the first place? From what I hear, it seems that you were scammed and are being chased. If that’s the case, you can just order the guards to investigate and that’ll be it… … .”
Clearly, the guy was looking around and on guard for the Baron’s presence until the moment he left the palace with me.
But now that he was walking the streets of the capital, he seemed to have returned to his original sagging appearance, as if he had been assured that his safety had been secured.
It’s not some wild herbivore… … .
I looked at the guy with pitiful eyes and said.
“Opportunities always come in unexpected situations.”
“… … .”
“Think of it as part of your training and follow me. If you get caught by the Baron, things won’t go well for you anyway.”
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“Yes.”
“and…….”
I left a little hint, twitching the corners of my lips.
“Because you never know, this might be your job from now on.”
“Yes… Yes?”
I left George, who was startled by the long tail of his horse, behind and turned into an alley in the shopping district.
After walking for a while more, a shabby wooden building came into view at the end.
The only thing that gave an idea of the purpose of the old building was the words “Adventure Shelter” written on the striking signboard.
“It’s an inn.”
“If it’s similar, then it’s similar.”
At those words, George’s eyes lit up sharply.
It seems that he definitely noticed that something was strange.
The guy glanced around, checked a few things, and then opened his mouth quietly.
“There’s hidden surveillance. I don’t think it was built with good intentions.”
“Yes. This is where the forces of the back alley underworld are located.”
I nodded at the guy’s conclusion.
No matter how safe Esteban is, there are bound to be criminals who seek to cause chaos.
Of course, the royal family would never acknowledge this, so if you wanted to commit an illegal act, you had to run away to the shadows to avoid their eyes.
“Somehow… I guess they didn’t make you wear a robe to keep you from getting cold in the autumn wind.”
George shrugged and followed me into the inn.
The first thing I saw when I entered was the staff busily carrying food under soft orange lighting.
And then there’s the sight of mercenaries chattering noisily while holding glasses of alcohol.
Although it was not a building built for a good purpose, its appearance was not much different from that of a commoner’s inn.
George said, sitting at a table appropriate to the mood.
“So, of all the places you’ve been to, why did you come here?”
“According to the guards’ investigation, the scholar of courtesy visits the inn at this time every day.”
“Why in a place like this?”
“This is why you visit places like this.”
He said that after being defrauded, he ran into a huge debt and fled from a neighboring estate, being pursued by loan sharks.
Of course, it is impossible to live a normal life while being tracked.
That’s why it had no choice but to flow into this place, a place that was so secluded and uninhabited.
At least it was a place where no information would be left behind, and it would also allow them to avoid pursuit, so they probably thought it was a suitable hiding place.
furthermore.
“I couldn’t have survived without drinking every day. It doesn’t seem like a very good decision, considering I leaked information while drunk.”
“What the hell kind of scam was I involved in… … .”
“Even if I couldn’t do it, I would have ended up owing more than ten million gold.”
“Ouch!”
A dazzling amount of money.
“Is that true?”
“They said it was a fraud involving investment in research.”
“… … .”
That’s why George stuck out his tongue and frowned.
Of course, this was a fact that was not known to the world, nor was it discovered by the guards.
But the whole story of the incident was already unfolding in my head.
Why is an ordinary scholar being chased by such a huge amount of debt?
And what is the method and background of the ‘fraud’ he speaks of?
‘This time, I was definitely able to catch up.’
He also sent out a letter to the guards, telling them to keep an eye on the scholar who was causing a disturbance as planned.
That was the reason I left the temple after hearing the name El Bardo.
“So, Your Majesty, you came here in person? If it’s an investment scam of that amount, then there must be some rotten nobles involved, right?”
“well.”
I shrugged my shoulders at George’s question, which seemed to be guessing the situation.
This is a pretty good point, but it leaves out the most important part.
After all, the main point of this incident was simply ‘why did they do that?’
Then the guy started laughing and said,
“Well, the bottom line is that you just have to wait boringly for the goal to arrive.”
“Yes. According to the information, it will probably arrive soon.”
“… … It’ll probably be a bar crawl under the guise of waiting.”
Even though he said that, it was a good thing for him.
At least it would have been more reasonable to leave the temple and rest rather than stay in the palace where Baron Vidor was waiting.
At that moment, an employee who had discovered them sitting in their seats approached them with quick steps.
“Welcome, sir! Would you like to dine? What would you like to order?”
chuck-
The menu in the waiter’s hand was spread out on the table, and I looked at George’s face once before opening my mouth.
“First, can I have a beer and a hot chocolate?”
“All right!”
“Okay, just a moment!”
It was George who stopped the employee who was about to leave.
I looked to see what was going on, and the guy said, not hiding his bewildered expression.
“What is that? That childish choice called hot chocolate!”
“This is your drink. Don’t you need it?”
“Your Majesty, aren’t you the same age as me? It’s not like you’re treating me like a child, and what about hot chocolate… … Oh, well, that aside.”
George glanced at the employee and then spoke quietly.
“Beer? That cheap liquor that only mercenaries drink?”
There was another point where the guy was embarrassed.
Among the names written on the menu, there were certainly quite a few wines that even nobles enjoyed.
Although it was sold at a price considerably higher than the market price, it was not a burdensome amount.
But out of all those drinks, why did you choose beer?
“I know, too.”
“… … .”
Of course, whatever he thinks, it’s a pretty satisfying choice for me.
The countless wars we experienced before returning.
The pleasure of sipping a glass of beer while smelling the sticky scent of blood in the thick dusty wind was like a longing to me.
Rather, since it was never delivered to Wangseong, it could be said that it was a drink that I wanted to drink even on purpose.
That’s when George’s expression became indescribably distorted.
“What is this? What a strange face you have.”
A soft voice came from behind.
I turned my gaze and looked at the owner of the voice.
The man who approached us leisurely and friendly from the corner table was clearly an unfamiliar face.
“Would you mind buying me a beer too?”
But I instinctively felt its identity.
That feeling of being so light that it felt like walking on the wind was a unique characteristic of ‘that man’ that no one could imitate.
The man who approached me brought his lips to my ear and whispered quietly.
“It’s been a while, brother.”
Albedo Esteban.
Although he is the second prince of a country, he struggles to run away in pursuit of freedom.
… … It was a unique species.
