Ch.206Departure

Nigel, Frider, Demian, Millia, and Lena were all staying at the Remnant Academy dormitory.

Due to the chaos across the Empire from various conflicts, the academy’s dispatch support had been suspended indefinitely.

“Civil war… Things have really gotten out of hand. Anyway, I’m glad you seem safe. I was worried when I heard you fought against the Empire’s First Sword.”

“I nearly died. That Ghost Sword was disgustingly vicious.”

In truth, I had practically died, and it was Hersella who won the battle for me.

“I still can’t believe it. To think Lord Valenstein would betray the Empire…”

“Lord? He’s just a senile old man who happened to split my chest in two.”

I pointed at my chest, still tightly wrapped in bandages.

It would probably be healed by the time we reached Landenburg… but it still throbbed with every step.

“Are you really okay, unnie? Should I cast a healing spell on you?”

“I’d appreciate that. Please do.”

“Leave it to me!”

The holy light Lena emitted gently enveloped my chest.

The lingering pain gradually faded away.

“That’s much better. At this rate, it won’t take long to heal completely.”

Her recovery ability is truly overwhelming.

She seems to have improved even more than before—at this point, she must be at least at the level of a high-ranking bishop.

“Um, Haschal… about those rumors going around lately. They can’t possibly be true, right? That you… people…”

Millia asked hesitantly with a slightly disgusted expression.

Frider, Nigel, and Lena also seemed to want to ask but couldn’t quite bring themselves to do it, carefully exchanging glances with each other.

Well, it’s a natural question. The rumors have spread throughout the world, so they must have heard them too…

“Right. Even I wouldn’t eat people…”

I wasn’t lying.

It wasn’t me who ate them—it was Hersella.

—-

Frider was planning to leave for the north soon.

He said something about fighting the werebeasts in place of the Duke of Faelrun.

Since he seemed to be planning to go alone, I persuaded him to take Demian and his group.

There wasn’t much point in them staying here anyway, and they’d be better off gaining experience fighting werebeasts.

“Right. I was uncomfortable with the idea of Senior Frider going alone too.”

“A major invasion… I’m a bit nervous, but both Demian and I have gotten much stronger, so we’ll do our best.”

After briefly considering, Demian and Millia nodded in agreement.

In the time we hadn’t seen each other, Demian had definitely grown stronger.

Judging by the aura he emitted, stronger than Duber, he might soon reach Master level with the right catalyst…

He might even return from this battle as a Master.

Millia had also been training hard, as evidenced by the noticeably more developed muscles in her back.

The bow she carried was also incomparably stronger than before.

Those three should be fine.

Nigel would naturally be heading east with me.

The only miscalculation was Lena’s insistence on coming along.

“Listen, Lena? Where we’re going isn’t some monster subjugation—it’s a battlefield. A war against thousands of Ka’har. It’s not a place for you.”

“If I don’t go with you, unnie, I think you’ll end up nearly dying again! Can’t you take me with you? I’ll stay safely inside the wall!”

What should I do about this…

“If we place her in the rear and have her focus solely on healing, wouldn’t that be acceptable? Though young, healers of her caliber are rare and would be a great help.”

“That’s right! I’m confident in my healing miracles!”

…It’s not that you’re confident—it’s that healing is all you can do.

In the end, I couldn’t break Lena’s stubbornness. I hope this will be okay.

—-

Despite the Empire being in a state of civil war, the Special Observation members, except for Frider, didn’t seem particularly concerned.

Kalix, showing no interest in the civil war, handed me a pile of vegetables, telling me to appreciate the elegance of vegetarianism.

Where did he get all this? Surely a muscle-bound bald dragonborn nearly 2m tall doesn’t tend his own vegetable garden.

Evian was apparently busy increasing the number of illegitimate children in the Kingdom of Panam.

He’s truly lost his mind.

What surprised me was Perneisia’s reaction.

The fairy who was usually drunk and holed up in her room came to see me, unusually sober.

“This civil war… do you think it will last long?”

“Well, I’m not sure. Why do you ask?”

“If the war drags on, the enemies won’t just be in the north and east. …Tell the First Prince not to trust the fairies.”

Aren’t you a fairy too…?

Perneisia left after giving only that warning.

Is she suggesting that Alvheim might intervene if the civil war becomes prolonged?

…This is giving me a headache. At this rate, it’s practically a world war.

I wrote a letter to Leopold and entrusted it to the dormitory manager.

I should probably go consult with him directly… but I don’t have time for that now.

—-

I visited Asha’s workshop to request repairs for my armor, which had been torn apart by Valenstein.

While there, I also handed over some of the payment I’d received from Leopold.

“Haschal, you always seem to push yourself too hard. They say if you overwork your body at a young age, you’ll suffer when you’re old.”

“What can I do? There’s no one else who can handle these things. I have to step up.”

I shrugged and forced a smile.

It did seem like things tended to go in bad directions whenever I got involved…

But if I hadn’t fought, there were several incidents where everyone would have died.

“That sounds like something a knight would say. Come to think of it, you do hold a knight’s position, don’t you?”

“I’d say I’m among the most legitimate of knights.”

After all, I’m a descendant of the Great’s Twelve Knights.

Unfortunately, this information was revealed right after the worst rumors about me spread, so no one seemed to believe it.

While Asha examined the torn metal plates, I looked around the workshop to pass the time.

I wonder if Leonore is inside… I should meet with her too.

“By the way, how’s business these days? With the Empire in this state, I thought you might be struggling.”

“Not at all. If anything, I’m busier than before.”

“Really?”

After the civil war broke out, Asha quickly changed her production line.

From a small number of high-quality items with dwarven craftsmanship to mass-producing weapons of average quality.

She’s been producing swords, spears, arrowheads, and selling them to nobles on both Ernst’s and Leopold’s sides.

The production costs are similar to ordinary military supplies, but the quality is a step above, so they’re selling like hotcakes.

“When war breaks out, weapon merchants make money. That’s how it works.”

I had no response to her smiling face as she said this.

Between this and the werebeast skin incident, this perfectly normal person has somehow turned into some kind of merchant of death in just half a year…

How did it come to this?

“Looking at the damage, it seems it was torn by a true silver sword. Repairs will take about three hours… why don’t you rest inside? You should meet ‘her’ too.”

“Good idea. I’ll leave it to you then.”

I left my armor with Asha and headed inside the workshop to meet Leonore.

—-

“I heard the rumors. Seems like you were thoroughly beaten by the witch.”

Leonore, whom I met again, was in much better condition than before.

Her bloodshot eyes remained, but at least she seemed able to wash and take care of herself now.

“I was played like a puppet in her hands. It’s infuriating.”

“I thought this would happen when I first heard your plan. It happened a day earlier than I expected. So, what are you going to do now?”

I explained to Leonore everything that had happened.

She probably only knew what Asha had heard through rumors.

“So… my brother is as good as dead, and my safety has been entrusted to you. Now that Isabella has rebelled, showing my face wouldn’t do me any good. My fate is quite tragic. From an Imperial Princess to the daughter of a traitor and servant of a Ka’har… Though I suppose this is still better than being imprisoned in a convent as a criminal.”

“Well, you might not be treated as a princess anymore… but I don’t particularly plan to treat you as a servant either.”

You wouldn’t know how to be a proper servant anyway, would you?

“I’m joking, no need for such a troubled expression. So from now on, I just follow you? You said you were going east, right?”

“Follow me? What for?”

Leonore crossed her arms and shook her head lightly.

The voluptuous mass she inherited from her mother jiggled on her arms.

“It’s obvious, isn’t it? Staying on the island would just be a waste of time, and joining Leopold’s forces wouldn’t end well for me. So I have no choice but to follow you. You promised to take responsibility for my safety for life, so you wouldn’t abandon me, would you? If you want, I could even call you ‘master’ or ‘my lady.'”

…It’s not my fault if I was momentarily tempted.

“No, that would be difficult no matter what. The people of Landenburg would surely recognize the princess’s face. If you showed yourself there, rumors would spread that Leopold or I had kidnapped the princess and were holding her hostage. I’m already in a difficult situation because of all sorts of bad rumors.”

“You could just wear a helmet or mask that covers your face. If you’re careful about your voice, I don’t think you’d be discovered.”

I tried to persuade her for a while, but she showed no signs of changing her mind.

Do I lack persuasive skills? Leopold seems to do it so well.

After three hours of debate, it was decided that she would also join the journey east.

Asha made a helmet for her.

—-

The next day, we left the island’s walls in the carriage Ludwig had given me.

Me, Nigel, Lena, and Leonore.

Though we were only four, in terms of skill, such an elite group would be rare. Probably.