episode_0025

“I can’t walk anymore.”

Alan and Lily hurriedly left the village, heading towards a secluded mountain path rarely traveled by people.

Although it was a choice to minimize the possibility of encountering others, unfortunately, Lily’s stamina was lacking.

“Hmm… can’t be helped.”

Unable to walk any further, Lily stopped in her tracks, and Alan extended his back and bent his knees in front of her.

“…?”

Nevertheless, Lily just stared blankly, not understanding what was being implied.

“Get on.”

“Oh.”

In fact, as Lily had never been carried even by her own mother, the concept of being lifted was unfamiliar to her.

“Sorry. Is it difficult because of my stubbornness?”

“It’s okay.”

“… You’re kind.”

Despite not fully understanding her situation, Lily silently following along made Alan grateful.

“But… Mister, what exactly happened?”

“…”

Thud, thud—

Lily’s sudden question.

Walking through the forest with closed lips, Alan finally spoke up.

“If someone commits a crime under duress, are they guilty or not guilty?”

“… Under duress?”

“Yeah. It wasn’t intentional; it was due to coercion, but a crime is still a crime. What punishment should that person receive?”

“…”

This time, Lily fell silent.

Aware that Alan was redirecting the conversation back to himself, she couldn’t respond hastily.

Or rather, the issue itself was complex.

“I don’t know. Even if that person had no intention, they still committed a crime, right?”

“Yeah. It wasn’t their will.”

“But in the end, a crime was committed, right?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s a difficult problem…”

Lily let out a deep sigh.

Though she didn’t know much about the world, her keen perception allowed her to grasp the contradiction in this issue.

The problem of whether someone coerced into committing a crime should be considered a criminal was a topic that sparked much debate even in the modern era Alan came from.

Some argued that if it wasn’t their will, they shouldn’t be held accountable, while others believed that regardless, since a crime was committed, there should be consequences.

“… But a crime is still a crime.”

In reality, problems like these didn’t have clear-cut answers.

Depending on one’s beliefs and values, the answers varied, and Alan had his own answer.

Alan’s answer was that “it’s still a crime.”

Even though he had infiltrated the hero party as a spy due to a curse beyond his control, and ultimately the curse didn’t activate… Alan couldn’t shake off the feeling of being a sinner.

The camaraderie, friendship, and everything he experienced with the hero party…

“No, this isn’t right.”

Anyway, Alan betrayed all of that.

People tended to judge everything based on their own standards.

“Mister, I don’t know the answer to that problem.”

“Yeah. It’s a problem without an answer.”

“But at least I understand one thing.”

“… What is it?”

After taking a deep breath, Lily spoke.

“At the very least, the person who was coerced… must be in immense pain.”

“That’s the correct answer.”

So that Lily, who was being carried, wouldn’t see, Alan quietly smiled sadly.

He wanted to pat Lily’s head, but she was already in his arms.

As Alan and Lily continued to move in silence for a while, they realized that night was approaching.

“Looks like we have to camp again today.”

“Camping can be enjoyable in its own way.”

“You’ll probably grow to dislike it later.”

“?”

Though Lily might feel like she’s camping, being Allen who has experienced camping to the point of getting tired of it, camping wasn’t particularly enjoyable.

“Well, let’s eat first and then sleep.”

“Yes!”

Saying that, Allen took out various ingredients from his bag.

…”

Seeing that, Lily’s face turned pale.

***

“We finally… arrived.”

“That’s right.”

“It truly feels like ‘finally.’”

Thanks to a few days of forced marching, the party of heroes was able to enter Atolkin earlier than expected.

“I… at least want to secure lodging and take a bath.”

“…But.”

“Irene. This is also for Irene.”

“?”

As if not understanding Irene shook her head.

“We’re going to meet Allen… dressed like that?”

…!

Only then did Irene realize the state she was in due to not having properly washed or changed clothes because of the forced march.

“Let’s secure lodging first.”

“Yes, that would be best, right?”

“I also want to bathe quickly. Shall we all bathe together after so long?”

“…Jenny.”

“Why? We used to do it often before.”

As Jenny said, except for Allen, the hero party often bathed together by the lakeside.

Of course, Allen, being a man, had to stay back alone to guard the campsite.

As they chatted idly while looking for an inn to stay, Rebecca caught sight of something strange.

“What’s that?”

The distance was still a bit far, so she concentrated her eyesight to enhance her vision.

“Why are you like this?”

“…It’s just…”

And as Rebecca realized what she saw in the distance, her expression stiffened.

“Let’s run for now.”

“Why?!”

“Irene. We don’t have time. The Royal Knights are over there.”

…!

At the mention of the Royal Knights, Irene’s forehead creased in worry.

They were knights with not a single good memory, no matter how positively one thought about them.

“For now, let’s go somewhere else.”

“Yes, let’s hurry.”

“Aww… I wanted to bathe.”

“There will be inns elsewhere.”

***

“Is he still stubborn?”

“Yes. Currently… there are a few witnesses, but he hasn’t been seen since a few days ago.”

“Did he notice and run away? Or was there even a reason to run away in the first place?”

…

Not knowing the detailed situation, the Knight Commander also remained silent.

“It’s unbelievable. He came to carry out the orders from His Majesty, but he’s already disappeared.”

Unlike the silent Knight Commander, the Crown Prince vented all sorts of complaints.

“Have a drink first to lighten the mood.”

“Just to drink this trashy liquor?”

…

Even a bottle costing 3 gold… to the Crown Prince, the most expensive drink in town was nothing but garbage.

‘Unbelievable.’

While ordering the subordinates to search and trying to appease the Crown Prince somehow by coming to the tavern, the Knight Commander found the Crown Prince’s indulgence in luxury more serious than expected.

‘This one bottle of liquor could sustain a family of four for two months.’

Despite that, to the Crown Prince who had enjoyed only the finest in the palace, it seemed nothing more than trash.

Although the Crown Prince had often pried into the Knight Commander’s affairs while acting as his assistant, he had never been as angry as he was today.

The one who will succeed the throne after the current status system, becoming an emperor, is indulging in luxury like this.

‘… Where is the empire heading.’

Still listening to the complaints of the prince while letting them flow in one ear and out the other, the knight commander took a sip of alcohol.

Unlike what the prince had called trash, it was a very sophisticated and smooth drink.

***

“…”

“…”

“…”

The warrior party, avoiding the royal knights, quickly found lodging, finished bathing, and scattered around to inquire, searching here and there to find mercenaries called “Irene.”

As the appointed time approached, the three faces that met again at the agreed place were all equally dark.

Realizing that they had come with similar information, they sighed deeply but soon began sharing information with a glimmer of hope.

“According to my inquiries… it was said he was last seen a few days ago.”

“… Me too.”

“… Me too.”

“…”

Hoping for even a slightly different answer, Irene ultimately received the same response from everyone.

Alen had already left the village.

“Ah, this is driving me crazy!”

Jenny, the most emotionally expressive in the warrior party, couldn’t contain her anger upon realizing the truth and flailed her arms and legs.

“…”

Irene remained expressionless, but her face had turned pale.

“Shall we go back to the lodging to rest for now?”

Rebecca, the most rational among them, suggested taking a break to wash away the fatigue brought on by several days of forced marching.

“We haven’t gone far yet…”

“We don’t even know where he went.”

“… But still.”

“At times like this, we should hope that Allen’s location comes from the information guild as soon as possible. We don’t even know which direction he went, so if we move blindly, we might end up farther away.”

“… That makes sense.”

In the end, realizing there was no answer, Irene sighed deeply.

Resigned, as they walked towards their lodging, they unexpectedly encountered someone.

“It’s been a long time.”

“…”