Ch.206The Romanticist (1)

“What is love?”

As Najin muttered these words, Merlin coughed awkwardly. As if something had gone down the wrong pipe, she kept coughing while repeatedly patting her chest. After clearing her throat, Merlin exhaled deeply and looked at Najin.

“Suddenly? Why that?”

It was truly an abrupt topic.

Merlin was quite taken aback by the question that came without context or warning, but she tried to appear calm as she shrugged her shoulders.

“What is love, you ask. That’s a very… hmm, very philosophical question. Why are you curious about that?”

“No reason, really.”

Najin looked at the ring he was holding.

It was the ring Dieta had given him. It was a ring that felt warm when held, and lately, Najin had developed a habit of fiddling with it.

Since the Outer Continent was generally cool, desolate, and dry, he often found himself missing human warmth, and this ring provided just the right amount of comfort when he did.

“You know,” Najin said.

“Yes?”

“I received a confession. When I got this ring.”

“……”

Merlin’s expression soured.

“Right. And?”

“I thought it was really cool.”

Without pretense, proudly, honestly.

Najin found Dieta’s straightforward confrontation admirable. How much courage must it take to express one’s feelings so honestly?

“When you think about it, isn’t it true?”

“What, what is? What are you talking about?”

“Does love really give such great courage? It’s like that in heroic tales too. Sacrificing everything for one’s lover, even risking one’s life… I could never really relate to that part.”

“R-really?”

“Why is that, I wonder? What exactly is love?”

It was a question born of pure curiosity.

If someone who had experienced romance or even marriage had been present, they might have offered Najin a plausible answer.

“Hmm, umm, hmm……”

Unfortunately, the only person present was a 1000-year-old girl who had avoided romance for a millennium—in other words, someone who had never experienced love. And to this girl, Najin’s question seemed both perplexing and embarrassing.

Merlin mumbled incoherently.

What is love? What on earth is this child asking? Isn’t such a topic embarrassing? Still, since he asked, I should give some kind of answer.

“Love is, you know? It’s like, really bright, and beautiful, and noble, and also, umm……”

Just as those who have never been in love hold fantasies about romance, so did Merlin.

The words tumbling from Merlin’s mouth—who had maintained these fantasies for a full millennium—were so embarrassing that anyone listening would feel secondhand shame, but unfortunately, there was no one present to point this out.

“Anyway, it’s like that.”

By the time she finished speaking, Merlin’s face had turned bright red. Najin pondered her words and nodded.

“Hmm. I don’t understand at all.”

“So,” Najin said.

“Shall I ask?”

“Who?”

“Who else? That person over there.”

Najin pointed to a knight tending to a flower garden.

A knight who lived and died for romance.

The most eccentric among the many eccentrics of the Outer Continent, the foremost oddball and Romanticist.

The freak, Anton Kehano.

He was the person who held clues about “La Mancha” that Najin had been searching for.

2.

A few days earlier, after completing the funeral rites for The Blue Spear, Najin had visited Kirhov. He wanted to deliver the last words and possessions left by The Blue Spear. When Najin arrived carrying the blue spear, Kirhov’s eyes widened, then he smiled bitterly.

“I see.”

He murmured.

“So that’s what happened.”

After hearing Najin’s story, Kirhov pressed his fingers against his brow. Looking at the blue spear Najin was offering, he shook his head.

“Shouldn’t that be given to you, his disciple? It’s not something I should accept.”

“I already have a spear. Besides, I’ve already received something else, so it’s fine.”

“Received what?”

“I received the spear of Rondinell, didn’t I?”

Kirhov blinked, then burst into laughter.

“Indeed. In that case, would you show me?”

And so he did. Najin demonstrated his skills with the spear before Kirhov, who gave him a standing ovation when the demonstration ended.

“I never thought I’d live to see this again.”

A good story deserves good alcohol. Muttering this, Kirhov brought out a bottle of liquor he had been saving, uncorked it, and accompanied Najin’s story with drinks.

“Yes. So that’s how he was until the very end.”

Kirhov laughed pleasantly, then suddenly looked at the blue spear. His eyes lowered as he gazed at the weapon Najin had brought.

“That spear can only be wielded by the most noble and strongest knight of Rondinell. I’m not sure if I’m worthy of it.”

“Wouldn’t it be fine? After all, it’s true.”

“Haha, well, you’re not wrong. I am the only knight left in Rondinell. In that case, I’ll keep it for now.”

Kirhov exhaled deeply and said:

“You said you’re looking for La Mancha?”

“Yes.”

“And the reason is to kill Quixote.”

“That’s right. And beyond that, to kill the Empress of Bliss.”

“Our goals align.”

Kirhov emptied his glass.

“I don’t know much about La Mancha myself. But I do know someone who might know about it.”

“Who would that be?”

“Anton Kehano.”

The freak, Anton Kehano.

Kirhov explained about this person known by that name.

“Anton Kehano is from the same family as Quixote, and he knows about Quixote’s past. I tried to extract information from him before… but, well, I failed spectacularly.”

“Failed… why?”

“Anton is an eccentric among eccentrics. Normal methods of negotiation don’t work with him. He’s not the type to talk under threats, and when asked about Quixote, he only gives cryptic answers.”

“But,” Kirhov pointed at Najin.

“You might be different.”

“Why would I be any different?”

“It’s not so much a reason as a feeling. Intuition. I trust my intuition quite a bit. I’ll tell you where Anton lives, why don’t you pay him a visit?”

Someone who knows about Quixote’s past and might have clues about La Mancha. Najin nodded. It seemed better than searching blindly.

“Go to this place. You’ll see it from afar. There’s a field of bright red flowers.”

And that brings us to the present.

Najin looked ahead.

There was a garden in full bloom with bright red flowers. Najin knew that creating a garden in the Outer Continent, where the sun rarely shines and the climate is terrible, was no easy feat.

“……”

There was someone watering the flowers.

He paid no attention to Najin’s arrival, circled the garden once, and only after finishing watering did he turn his gaze to Najin, who was standing there blankly.

“What brings you to my garden, boy?”

“Are you Anton Kehano?”

“My name is Anton, yes. But that’s a bit insufficient. What’s your name?”

“Najin.”

“Too short. Your first impression is so stiff that I’m already sighing. I’d prefer if you introduced yourself at length and in detail, in a way that might interest me.”

This person was difficult from the start.

Najin inwardly spoke to Merlin. Shall we do that thing? It’s been a while. Knowing what “that thing” was, Merlin screamed in protest, but Najin smiled slightly and began to speak.

“The youngest Sword Seeker to achieve the title at age 18, the youngest Free Knight, the youngest……”

Najin enumerated his achievements one by one.

Only when Merlin’s screams grew so loud they almost broke did Najin finish his introduction.

“Morning Star, Free Knight Najin.”

“Now that’s starting to interest me. Good! Very good!”

Anton clapped his hands and curled up the corners of his mouth.

“I am Anton Kehano. Others call me Anton the Romanticist, but I call myself a lover. The lover of the century, in fact.”

“Lover of the century?”

“Yes. Actually, even ‘lover of the century’ feels a bit inadequate. I’ve been chasing the same woman not for one century, but for several.”

Anton Kehano said.

“I’ve been searching for a woman for 400 years. The mischievous woman who stole my heart.”

3.

“Looking for information about Quixote, eh? I do know something about him. Quixote is my uncle.”

“What?”

“Alonso Kehano. That’s the real name of the Quixote you’re looking for. As you can tell from the name, he’s from the same family as me.”

The Kehano family.

Anton shrugged and continued.

“My uncle was quite a handful even when I was young, but now that has a different meaning. His infamy is widespread. I find it regrettable. Who would have thought he’d become like that.”

“Then about La Mancha……”

“Of course I know about it.”

Before Najin could ask if he could tell him about it, Anton raised his hand, as if to say stop there.

“I know, but it’s not something I can teach so easily. Besides, I don’t particularly want to.”

“Why not?”

“Look, boy. We’ve only known each other for about ten minutes. If you were me, would you tell everything to someone you’ve just met for 10 minutes?”

It was a fair point.

Najin swallowed the questions and words he was about to say. Rushing would only ruin things. Remembering the saying that the more urgent the matter, the more roundabout the approach should be, Najin spoke.

“You’re right. Besides, it would be unconscionable to seek valuable information without offering something in return.”

“Now you’re talking sense.”

“Anton Kehano.”

“You can call me Anton, for comfort’s sake.”

“Alright, Anton.”

Najin looked directly at Anton.

Though he appeared to be not much older than Najin on the surface, he was a being who had lived for at least 400 years. Additionally, Anton was a transcendent. Najin wasn’t sure how many stars he had, but the aura he emitted was definitely that of a transcendent.

“I’d like to propose a deal.”

“A deal, good. But information about ‘La Mancha’ is as precious to me as my life. That’s not just a figure of speech; it’s literally true.”

Anton snorted.

“Boy, what do you possess that could make me divulge information as precious as my life? If you’re thinking of betting stars, forget it. I have no interest in such trivial things.”

Go ahead, tell me.

“What can you offer me?”

The transcendent’s piercing gaze turned toward Najin. It was also a threat that things would get unpleasant if he offered something trivial in return. But contrary to Anton’s expectations, Najin showed no sign of shrinking before the pressure exuded by a transcendent who had lived for over 400 years.

He simply met that gaze with unwavering eyes.

Huh, look at this guy.

As Anton let out a scoffing laugh, Najin spoke.

“You said you were looking for someone, right?”

“That’s right.”

“You’ve been searching for 400 years but haven’t found her yet, you said.”

“Unfortunately, yes. She’s quite the troublemaker.”

“I’ll help you with that.”

“…What?”

“The woman you’re looking for, I’ll find her for you. Would that be sufficient compensation?”

Anton laughed incredulously.

“Look, if it were that easy to find her, would I have struggled for 400 years? Anyone can make empty promises.”

“Do you think I’m asking for payment upfront? Of course it’s payment after delivery. I’ll find her for you, and then I’ll hear the information.”

Anton’s eyes narrowed.

“You seem confident.”

“I’m actually quite good at finding people. I spent a long time tracking down people who took money and disappeared.”

“And,” Najin added.

“I have a capable guide. A guide who can find paths better than anyone.”

“A capable guide?”

“Yes, probably the most excellent in human history.”

“That’s arrogant. The most excellent guide in history would be Merlin, the great wizard of the Round Table. Are you saying you know a guide comparable to her?”

That’s what I’m saying, Merlin.

Najin said while inwardly trying not to laugh.

“Yes, one as capable as her.”

“Hahaha!”

Anton Kehano burst into laughter as if he couldn’t contain himself.

“Well, having too much confidence is better than having none. Good. Very good. This sounds entertaining just hearing about it.”

He offered his hand to Najin.

“I accept your proposal. If you find her for me, I will provide all the information you want. I swear on my honor, my name, my soul, and my body.”