City of Outlaws (1)
The long winter was coming to an end, but there was still a cold atmosphere in Sturmma.
Although it is said that this is due to the characteristics of the North, where winter does not easily go away, that alone cannot explain the gloom that pervades every corner of the mansion.
“…There are a lot of documents.”
It was daytime, but the office was dark and there was not enough sunlight.
Rutger, who was holding a pen there, looked back at the piles of documents piled up on either side of him and his face hardened again.
“There is no end. “The end.”
Today’s tasks piled up again, even though they were all done overnight.
Rutger was dry washing his face as if he couldn’t come to his senses as he looked at the documents waiting for me again.
Knock knock.
“Come in.”
The sound of the knock on the door was small and cheerful.
Rutger, who had already figured out who was visiting by the sound of footsteps, opened his mouth without even raising his head.
“Mr. Rutger. “You are here.”
“It’s always here these days. It seems like interest in me has diminished. “Dorothea.”
He was saying it as a joke, but the corners of his smiling lips actually looked bitter.
Tasks are increasing as the situation changes rapidly.
Dorothea, facing Rutger, pursed her lips for a moment at his seemingly depressed attitude.
“I have a telegram to deliver.”
“To whom?”
“It’s a telegram from Lord Vlad.”
That’s why the name Vlad came up in a hurry.
It was quite awkward to give the honorific title of Sir to a guy who couldn’t properly ride a horse, but seeing Rutger with his eyes wide open made me feel like I was making up for it a little.
“What’s going on? Did he ever contact me separately?”
For Rutger, the name Vlad was certainly a welcome one, but it was also a name that worried him.
Because I knew very well that the depression that was currently floating around the mansion started right next to Vlad.
“…Is it because of Josef?”
“no. “It’s not like that.”
Dorothea carefully put down the notes she was carrying and opened her mouth.
“I don’t know why, but he asked me about the tribe I was born in.”
“Your tribe?”
Rutger’s eyes narrowed at the completely unexpected answer.
It wasn’t about Josef, it wasn’t about Radu and Pierre, it was suddenly about Dorothea.
“So did you answer?”
“……what. “There’s no reason not to tell me.”
Unlike other races that live rooted in one place, the beast people who lost their original homeland constantly wandered from city to city.
In order to find the whereabouts of such beastmen, the help of fellow tribesmen would have been inevitably needed.
“This year, they say it’s in the city of Namarca.”
The finger pointing to the map spread out on the desk was stopped in one place.
City Namarka.
A city located near the south of the central region.
However, Rutger’s gaze was not focused on Dorothea’s finger but on Vlad’s telegram that she had put down.
“…I don’t know what I’m going to do, but I’m sure I’ll do it well.”
Since only short text messages could be exchanged, it was a magic telegram that could only write a few words.
Therefore, it was a telegram that had no choice but to be written down in detail, but at the end of Vlad’s words, there was also clearly a greeting to someone.
It was only a few words of greeting, but no greeting could be as comforting as this to Oksana, who had now lost her strength.
※※※※
“Is it Namarka or Nimirka? Why is it so deep?”
The entire path I was walking on was muddy, as if the heavily frozen ground had melted.
Even though he was riding a horse, Radu was frowning and grumbling as the mud splashed up to his thighs.
“If you’re going to keep complaining, go north.”
“…….”
However, Radu had no choice but to quickly close his mouth at the eerie voice coming from next to him.
It was true that I didn’t like the destination, but it was still better than heading north.
“That’s what it says. Why is this so extreme? Are all northerners like this?”
“huh. Everyone is so extreme. So please shut up.”
Not only is it extreme, it’s also f*cking outrageous.
However, since the person holding my lifeline was Vlad, Radu had no choice but to keep quiet.
“Let’s go back to the north now. Why do you keep getting so anxious that you can’t stick your head into the dragon’s maw?”
“It’s late. “What should I do if I can’t go?”
The party that left Arnstein’s territory was now heading to a city in the south, not the north.
Pierre, who didn’t like the direction, also started to mutter, but Vlad clearly had a good reason for heading here.
“Marcus told me that the road to the north is already covered in dragon blood scallions. “Can we get through all of that with just us?”
“Damn it. Anyway, those dragon b*stards don’t like anything!”
“…You’re not telling me to listen to you now, are you?”
The County of Arnstein was located close to the center in the central region.
What this meant was that in order for Vlad to safely head to the north, he would have to pass through quite a few central territories, and it also meant that it would ultimately be difficult to break through the siege of the Dragon Slayer Knights.
Of course, Vlad had no intention of heading north from the beginning.
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“There are estates written by Count Arnstein himself. From now on, we will follow the territories where the Court Duke faction is located and go to the north as he told us.”
When Vlad said that he would follow the most reliable route and only choose safe places, even Pierre could only nod as if he had no choice.
“I can see it! “That’s Namarka over there.”
“iced coffee. “I guess I can sleep at the inn today.”
With a sigh of relief from Radu, the city spread out dizzyingly was seen through the fingertips of Nibelun, who took the lead.
The city, surrounded by flimsy fences, looked dangerous, but it was actually a busy place with people bustling around inside.
“…Namarkara.”
Vlad, who was looking at the scenery of Namarka from the hill with Noir, began to laugh wildly at the vaguely strong scent of his hometown.
“Looking over there makes me feel calm for the first time in a long time.”
City Namarka.
A place where the three surrounding lords all claim that it is their city.
That’s why the people around Namarta, which no one controls, called it a city of outlaws.
※※※※
“Where are you going?”
“You know what.”
“…I’m a guard?”
“Oh yeah?”
Vlad, who was passing a wooden fence that did not look like a castle gate, saw a man grabbing him.
The guard, who had impressive missing teeth here and there, just had a grumpy expression on his face, as if he was used to Vlad’s attitude of ignoring him.
“Then you should have said it a long time ago. “You can’t tell them apart from the guys next to you.”
No matter how crazy a lord was, he would at least send out the soldiers guarding the castle gates with proper equipment.
However, the city of Namarka was full of criminal organizations rather than lords, so the guards’ outfits were no different from those of thugs.
“ID.”
“doesn’t exist.”
Although Vlad spoke so confidently, the guard naturally held out his palm as if he knew he would do so.
The appearance of the group, vividly recreated by a former back alley veteran, did not feel at all out of place compared to the people currently lined up in front of the castle gate, so the guards had no reason to be particularly wary.
“What are the toll prices these days?”
“Preemption.”
“Oh, you really shouldn’t do this.”
Truly a city of scoundrels.
Vlad scratched his forehead while combing his tangled hair as he saw them shouting to make the first move, which is almost like an unwritten law in the North.
The tall face that was visible thanks to the raised head was impressive, but the smile with a lot of dark stains seemed so raw that there was no need to ask where he was from.
“Two old men, a cat, and a kid…”
The guard, who had lost his guard at Vlad’s carefree attitude, looked at the group lined up behind him.
Looking at the old men coughing loudly and the beastman man with crossed-eyed pupils, they were a pitiful group of people who seemed to have nothing to eat.
“Three silver coins. The old people just treated it as one.”
“You’re doing a good job. “Take it.”
Vlad, who stuffed the silver coin into the guard’s arms with a skillful hand, hurriedly let the group into the gate.
Pierre, shaking with anger, stood stretched out for a moment, but in the eyes of the guard, he was just a tall, skinny old man.
“That b*stard….”
“You have to endure it, what can you do? “You have to pass through here to reach the next territory.”
The scene in Namarca, where Pierre was taken with great effort, was as chaotic as expected.
“…It is a completely corrupt city. “God is putting me to the test again today.”
Beggars clinging to the slightest gap and prostitutes already standing in alleys with their tops off.
Moreover, the sight of drunk people lying here and there was so bad that it was hard to tell whether they were corpses or not.
“Radu. “Come here.”
“…You call me your older brother?”
Vlad called his blood-brother like a puppy, but Radu could not express any dissatisfaction.
If you follow Mirshea, you might die, and if you go north, you might be trapped for the rest of your life, so the only person you can stick with is Vlad.
“Put this in your pocket and stand on the street for a moment.”
“hmm?”
Vlad, who didn’t know the city’s geography well, but had found his own flow through his experience in the back alleys, was now standing in front of the main street where there seemed to be more beastmen than humans.
The subtly differentiated atmosphere along the road clearly indicated that this was the territory of the beast people.
“Why is this?”
“You may not know it yet, but northerners have an impatient personality.”
“……okay?”
“Go quickly.”
Radu, who grabbed the money bag with a jingling sound, stood in the middle of the street without any understanding.
The sight of Radu standing on the side of the road as if everything was awkward was the very sight of an old man who had lost his way.
“…It looks like it’s not just the body that has aged.”
Vlad, who was watching Radu while standing in an unseen corner, clicked his tongue.
Although he was a person who led the Dragon Slayer Knights, the current Radu did not even notice the pickpocket that had just passed by him.
“Let’s see where it goes.”
Although I was walking along with the crowd, I could clearly see Vlad’s blue eyes.
The young beastman’s tail was wagging a lot, with its ears pricked up as if nervous.
The young pickpocket, who was looking around to see if anyone was following him, checked the bag he had just given Radu and was hiding in a dark alley.
※※※※
A pitch-black cat was running out of a dizzy alley.
Although he was out of breath showing how much he had run, the young cat’s speed did not decrease at all.
“Holy shit!”
He was a young pickpocket who climbed over a wall and hid in a familiar alley, but soon he was startled by a sound he heard.
“Are you here?”
“…!”
Blonde hair and blue eyes that are clearly visible even in a dark alley.
Vlad’s eyes, looking at the pickpocket as if all his running so far had been in vain, even had a hint of mischief in them.
“How stupid! “They followed me in here!”
Seeing Vlad like that, the young pickpocket began to laugh.
The surprised expression he had shown earlier disappeared and other young men of the beastman race who were waiting behind the guy with a deep smile began to come out.
“I heard there are guys like this. Not knowing how precious your life is, you only chase after money…”
“Yes. I know everything. “You lured me in on purpose.”
However, Vlad just nodded despite the kid’s ridicule.
“Aren’t there any more brothers you can call? If possible, I hope they are high-ranking people.”
Jorge said:
The best bait is bait that doesn’t know it’s bait.
Vlad just grinned at the young pickpocket who led him deep into the alley where the Lu family stayed.
This alley where Vlad is smiling is the territory of the beastmen.
Among them, it was the place where Dorothea’s tribe, the Luga people, were located.
