Ch.100The Weight of Vengeance (4)

“Found him…! Lord Caden…!”

At Helen’s words, Kirsy jumped up from her seat and moved close to her.

“…Wh…where…?”

“It seems he’s in the Vensrak Family’s Territory. He’s been staying there for several days…”

Vensrak.

He had already gone farther than she had imagined. It truly seemed like he had left without looking back.

Asena asks.

“…Who told you this?”

“Count Vensrak sent the information. He says Lord Caden is within his territory.”

Asena’s heart was beating rapidly. She felt overwhelmed as traces of him, who had grown distant, suddenly appeared.

But finding him wasn’t everything. It’s not like they could bring him back anyway.

Even so, there was a big difference between knowing and not knowing where he was and what he was doing.

Any news about him was welcome. It seemed Kirsy felt the same way.

“….Tell them to keep monitoring my brother from now on. Say we’ll pay for the expenses.”

“….Lady Asena, Vensrak’s information is expen-“

“-I know. Do it anyway.”

Kirsy nodded as well. Helen looked at them and didn’t argue further.

Helen bowed her head and was about to leave the room.

“…Helen?”

“…Yes?”

“Tell them to send even the smallest details. What he eats… what he thinks… I need to know these things too.”

Again, Helen simply nodded without saying anything.

****

Some time had passed since I arrived at Vensrak’s territory.

Today, I went out again to get a meal. I walk with my hood up, taking paths where few people pass by.

I’ll be leaving Vensrak’s territory tomorrow. I’ve spent a lot of idle time here.

I barely left my lodgings except to exercise a bit or to get food.

By now, my whole body was getting stiff. It was fortunate that I would finally be departing.

Today, I headed toward the nearest food place again. Somehow I’d ended up living like someone in hiding, but there was nothing I could do about it.

I could see the food place in the distance. I adjusted my hood without thinking and continued walking.

-Thud!

“…Ugh.”

At that moment, I bumped into someone. The impact caused my hood to slip down slightly.

The unidentified man groaned and said:

“Ah… really… don’t you watch where you’re going?”

I looked at the man who had bumped into me, then apologized so I could be on my way.

“I’m sorry.”

And just as I was about to pull my hood back up…

“…Huh? Aren’t you that guard?”

His words stopped me in my tracks.

“….Pardon?”

“The guard for the merchant caravan leaving tomorrow. You came a few days ago to ask about it, didn’t you?”

“……”

I looked him up and down. He certainly seemed to know me, but I didn’t recognize him.

Short stature. Sturdy-looking body. Disheveled appearance.

He didn’t look like a merchant or someone associated with the caravan.

He extended his hand and said:

“Ah, I apologize for my late introduction. I’m Yoren. I’m also hired as a guard for the caravan leaving tomorrow.”

“Ah, I see.”

I lightly shook his hand. So we would be working together starting tomorrow.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“Just getting something to eat.”

“Let’s go together. I was about to get something to eat too. It wouldn’t hurt to strengthen our relationship a bit early.”

After a moment’s hesitation, I answered.

“…..Sure.”

.

.

.

.

This man who introduced himself as Yoren had a tragic past. He said he had worked diligently as a farmer since childhood and lived comfortably. He had married, had two adorable sons, and was living a happy life when, due to circumstances he didn’t explain, he lost his entire family and gave up on everything.

During that period of giving up, his farming failed, he lost his land, and all he could do was wield a sword. He shared the grim thought that doing this job where death could come at any time might be because he was actually seeking death.

“…I see.”

While the conversation had certainly taken this direction, I did find it peculiar that this man was sharing his tragic life story during our first meeting. But I couldn’t say anything to someone sharing the sad story of losing his family, so I just listened.

Though I was born a commoner, I lived like a noble. So I wasn’t very familiar with commoner culture. Perhaps this was how they lived.

“I’ve told you my story, now it’s your turn.”

“….What?”

“Oh, you have to share too! It’s unfair if only I talk.”

“No, I don’t really…”

“You look like you have worries. How can you have nothing to say? Come on, speak up.”

“…..”

Was it that obvious on my face? I silently rubbed my dry face. I couldn’t tell him everything. It would be burdensome to say I was a nobleman expelled from my family.

There were people in the nearby square constantly announcing my name and the fact that I’d been expelled from my family—how could I possibly tell him?

But as he said, I did have worries.

Being alone was lonely. Perhaps it was because of the atmosphere Yoren had created.

I finally began to open up to him.

I didn’t talk about my siblings or anything like that.

I just told him, as he suggested, that I had worries too, and that I had to solve them alone, but I wasn’t sure if my choices were right.

Our conversation deepened and continued until evening.

The last day before the caravan’s departure passed quickly as I laughed and chatted with someone I had just met.

****

-Knock knock knock.

‘Lady Asena.’

In the deep dawn, Asena opened her eyes. Perhaps because she was waiting for something, her sleep wasn’t deep, and she could wake up quickly at the slightest sound.

“Come in.”

At her words, Helen entered the room.

There was only one thing Asena wanted to ask Helen who had sought her out at dawn.

“…Has it arrived?”

“Yes. A messenger bird arrived at dawn.”

With that, she handed Asena a letter.

Asena got up from her bed, sat at a nearby desk, and opened the letter.

Meanwhile, Helen continued with additional explanation.

“Lord Caden is reportedly moving as a guard for a merchant caravan.”

“….A merchant caravan..?”

Asena’s heart grew heavy at those simple words. Because it seemed Caden was doing dangerous work. Although she had originally wanted him to suffer and struggle, her heart was still stirred when she heard about what he was doing.

Asena shook her head. She needed to be stricter. She couldn’t waver.

“Count Vensrak gave money to another mercenary guarding the caravan to befriend Lord Caden. The contents of that letter are based on the testimony of the mercenary who became close to Lord Caden. It’s as good as Lord Caden’s direct thoughts.”

At the mention of Caden’s direct thoughts, Asena’s heart raced madly. A connection she thought was severed had been reestablished.

There was a lot of content, but nothing particularly important. Stories of his daily life. Content about recent worries he had. Jokes he had made. His condition. What he had eaten recently. His departure for the next city the following day.

But Asena’s heart ached as she read the letter. Because he was alive and breathing within it.

She could immediately tell this information wasn’t false. Though she was only reading a letter, Asena could vividly picture Caden within it.

She could hear his voice making jokes, see his deep, worried eyes as he shared his concerns, and picture the smile he used to hide his embarrassment.

Her lips began to turn downward. While she was so happy to hear news of him… at the same time, she missed him terribly.

He felt so vivid, yet she wondered if she would truly never be able to meet him again, which made her sad once more.

She regretted that their last conversation had been filled with anger. What would he think of her now?

She had vowed to resent him for life.

She had forgotten the kindness he had shown her in place of her parents and had parted with him while cursing him.

The more she dwelled on that being their last interaction, the more it hurt.

“….”

Asena shook her head. No. That couldn’t be the last. She lived with the hope that she would meet him again someday. She believed that he would come back to her someday.

“…Helen. Tell them to keep sending information about my brother.”

“Yes. You’ll be able to receive information about Lord Caden almost daily from now on.”

“…..I understand.”

Helen stood there for a moment, watching Asena read the letter, then slowly spoke.

“…..Lady Asena?”

“….”

Asena quietly looked up at Helen.

Helen asked her:

“….I know Lord Caden left the territory of his own accord… but if you were going to miss him this much, even buying information from Vensrak… wouldn’t it have been better not to expel him?”

“………”

“…I think the expulsion might make it even harder for Lord Caden to return-“

“-No.”

Asena interrupted Helen.

“…..A traitor like my brother is no longer a Praester.”

Asena’s voice trembled with emotion as she spoke. Part of it was putting on a strong front because she was in front of Helen. This anger was something she wanted to show Caden, but since he wasn’t there, she could only vent.

In truth, feelings of hurt probably outweighed her anger, making her emotions more intense.

Asena needed more time. She couldn’t be completely herself unless she was alone.

The only times she could truly be herself were when she was in front of Caden or alone in her room. Now that Caden was gone, time alone was more important than ever.

She wanted to pore over the letter by herself.

“You may go.”

She commanded Helen.

Helen bowed her head and began to close the door.

“….Sleep well.”

With that final greeting, the door closed.

-Creak. Thud.

Left alone, Asena read the letter again.

She could see his struggles and anguish in every line.

So she was worried about him too. Indeed, while she had wanted him to suffer… she felt uncomfortable. Therefore, she wished he would stop being stubborn and return.

….Even if she wouldn’t immediately forgive him. Couldn’t he at least be by her side? Couldn’t he adore her again? Was that no longer possible?

Her heart was complicated, mixed with anger and love.

She both resented him and loved him.

She wanted him to suffer yet didn’t want him to struggle.

“…..”

Her eyes quickly reached the end of the letter. The last line was a question from Count Vensrak.

‘Should we treat Lord Caden like a Praester?’

It was a simple question. While it wasn’t a secret that Asena had expelled him, only Count Vensrak knew that she still couldn’t let go and was having him spied on.

So he had to ask Asena. Whether to treat him with respect.

Asena immediately prepared a reply.

When someone asked if they should treat him kindly, her mind reflexively produced a thorny response.

In her reply, she wrote:

‘Caden is no longer a Praester.’

****

The day of departure finally arrived. I put on my sword that I had kept in my lodgings and prepared to leave.

After a quick breakfast, I went to the meeting place where the merchant was finishing preparations to leave.

Unlike the previous merchant, this one had a larger scale. There were 4 carriages and more than 10 guards.

I approached the manager to inform him of my arrival, then sat down nearby.

Yoren, whom I had met yesterday, approached me as I was resting.

“Friend, did you rest well?”

He approached with a smile.

I returned the smile and nodded.

Unlike yesterday, he was wearing armor. Cheap leather armor and a sword. It seemed he hadn’t lied about using a sword all this time.

“Here, don’t be nervous. Let’s wait while eating this.”

He handed me some small pieces of jerky.

Accepting his kindness, I asked:

“Nervous?”

“……..Yes, nervous.”

“Do I look nervous?”

I genuinely asked because I didn’t know. I was maintaining a certain level of vigilance, but… I wasn’t particularly nervous. However, there might be aspects of myself I wasn’t aware of.

He blinked as he looked at me and said:

“….Well, if you’re not, that’s good. You seem quite sheltered, so I spoke out of concern.”

“Hmm.”

While I had trained rigorously for half my life… compared to Yoren in front of me, I probably was sheltered.

I thanked him and chewed on the jerky.

Soon, the merchant gathered all of us. Our journey was about to begin.

.

.

.

.

This wasn’t good—contrary to Yoren’s concerns, I was starting to relax.

Bright sunshine. Beautiful trees surrounding us. The sound of hooves and the creaking of carriages that almost sounded melodic. A full stomach. The gentle swaying of the horse.

It would be so nice if I could close my eyes at this moment.

Up ahead, the merchant had already fallen asleep in the carriage with its back open, and Yoren was dozing off on his horse.

The coachman was yawning and closing his eyes. Since the horses knew the forest path well, there was no need to guide them.

Other guards and workers were the same.

Looking closely, it seemed only the horses and I were staying awake.

“…..Yawn.”

I yawned again, then patted my cheeks to drive away sleep. What I wanted to do and what I had to do were different.

Of course, nothing would probably happen, but if that was the case, they wouldn’t have needed to hire me.

I gathered my wits and surveyed the surroundings.

While the forest wasn’t dense, there were still places to hide.

As I turned my head slowly, maintaining vigilance…

“…..?”

Something moved in the bushes. I thought it might be an animal, but a strange feeling warned me it might not be.

“….Yoren.”

I whispered quietly to wake him up. I hoped I was wrong.

But before Yoren could gather his senses, the sound of an arrow cutting through the air came first.

-Whoosh!

An arrow struck the horse of the mercenary dozing in front of me.

-Thud!

The horse let out a loud cry.

“Bandits!”

They say attacks always come when you least expect them.

In broad daylight, who would have thought someone would attack such a large caravan?

With my shout, the sleeping caravan woke up, gathered their senses, and drew their swords.

But having lost the initiative, we could only be on the defensive for a while.

Besides the first arrow, several more flew from between the trees and fell upon us.

I deflected the arrows I could see, but eventually, my horse was hit too.

“…Ugh!”

The horse only staggered after being hit, but I knew it would be difficult to fight on horseback now. In a forest like this, mounted combat was impossible anyway.

Chaos filled the caravan. Bandits began to appear from between the trees and bushes.

As I dismounted, Yoren approached and asked:

“Caden! Are you alright?”

“This isn’t the time to worry about me. Watch out for the arrows..!”

Now that the first wave of arrows had passed, it was time for the second wave.

“Cease fire!”

The words didn’t come from our side.

It was a clear, gentle, feminine voice. The voice continued:

“I have something to discuss with an old acquaintance.”

The tense atmosphere relaxed slightly. Everyone was captivated by the voice that had momentarily halted the situation.

….It sounded familiar. I searched the forest to find the source of the voice.

“…Over here.”

This time, she spoke in a lower voice and with formal speech. Without the echo, it was easier to locate her position.

It was coming from above me.

Looking up, I saw a woman perched on a tall tree, looking down at me.

She wore brown and green clothes with grass attached, making her almost invisible until I consciously looked.

She spoke:

“It’s been a while, Caden Praes…. Ah. Is it just Caden now?”

“……You…”

She lowered her hood.

It was Shallon Payne.

“….Surely you haven’t forgotten me?”

The second daughter of the Payne Family, the dagger of the Praester Family.

The person I expelled from the Academy. The person who went missing on her way home.

She appeared before me again.

Reflexively, I assessed their numbers. From the moment she revealed her face, I realized a fight would be hard to avoid.

There were over twenty visible.

…..This was beyond what could be called a band of bandits. From the beginning… she hadn’t gone missing. She had been hiding under the skirts of the Payne Family.

Shallon, who had been wearing a small smile, suddenly hardened her expression.

Then, almost in a whisper, she asked:

“….You’re no longer a Praester, I hear?”