Chapter 77: Another Beginning of Misfortune (3)

[77] 11. Another Beginning of Misfortune (3)

When Feya opened her eyes,

three things registered in her senses:

A throbbing forehead,

a shabby house in ruins,

and the haggard faces of knights.

It was enough for her to figure out what had happened.

“You lost her, didn’t you?”

Sheila, who was leading the knights, glared at Feya. Feya rolled her eyes and sneered.

“The Central Knights have gone to the dogs, haven’t they? To think that you lost a single woman with this many men.”

Sheila’s face twisted in anger.

“You’ve got a lot to say for someone who’s been knocked out this whole time, barbarian.”

Now it was Feya’s turn to frown. But only for a moment. She stood up, stretching.

“Well, you can’t exactly plan for a surprise attack. Who would have thought that a mage of that caliber would be in a backwater place like this.”

Then, stepping towards Sheila, she added,

“Ah, and also, I’m sitting this one out.”

“What?”

Sheila’s face was full of confusion, and Feya tapped her forehead. It was already bruised black and blue.

“Gotta pay back this humiliation.”

Not leaving any debts unpaid. It’s a well-known rule among the Derin. A tradition they’d established to survive a harsh life.

Though she’d left her homeland, she hadn’t abandoned the tradition.

“I’ll make sure that mage bastard never walks again,”

Feya growled lowly, her face contorted. Her beautiful appearance made her seem even more threatening.

However, Sheila just laughed at her.

“…Why are you laughing?”

Feya asked, frowning.

Sheila smiled wryly.

“If you’re planning on chasing after that mage, then you’re better off joining us.”

“Do you mainlanders have some disease where you’ll die if you don’t speak ambiguously? What does that even mean?”

To Feya’s angry voice, Sheila shrugged her shoulders. Then, touching her own bruised cheek, she grimaced.

“Because it was thanks to that mage that Captain Rosalia escaped. And they’re currently on the run together.”

***

Rosalia, standing on top of a hill, watched Rem throwing a tantrum.

It had been going on for two hours.

He would scream at the sky, threw fistfuls of dirt, and then lay to the ground flailing his arms and legs, before getting up and repeating it all over again.

A sight that brought the word ‘lunatic’ to mind, but Rosalia couldn’t think of him like that.

More precisely, she couldn’t even raise her head.

His shop, his life, his safety…

She was the one who had brought this calamity upon him.

“Haah…”

Rem’s tantrum suddenly stopped, and he let out a deep sigh. Then he turned and walked toward Rosalia.

Rosalia reflexively lowered her head and mumbled.

“…I’m sorry.”

Rem didn’t answer. Instead, he simply drank some water from his canteen and sat down on a rock.

“So, what’s going on?”

His question was a bit random. Rosalia asked back, confused.

“What do you…”

“Why is the renowned Central Knights chasing you? And what’s this about you stealing the Imperial treasure?”

A troubled look appeared on Rosalia’s face. Then she spoke in a hesitant voice,

“…It’s a top-secret mission, so I can’t disclose to any outsider…”

“I just beat the shit out of fifteen or so knights, you really think I’m an outsider?”

Rosalia was at a loss for words. But Rem didn’t stop talking.

“And it’s not like I’m asking because I’m curious or anything. I need to know the enemy’s objective to plan our escape. This is a matter of life and death to me.”

“…”

“So, tell me. Why is the Central Knights, and the First Division at that, after you?”

A deep anguish filled Rosalia’s eyes. But she seemed to have made up her mind, and she let out a breath.

Then, looking at him with a serious expression, she began.

“First, my name is Rosalia Amalia Ulrike Adrian. I was born the third daughter of the prestigious Adrian family of the West. Although I was born into a noble family, I had a talent for the sword. So…”

“Hold on.”

Rem, as if he had a headache, placed a hand on his temple.

“Skip the unnecessary details and get to the important stuff.”

“…This is also important. You need to know my entire life to understand the gravity of this mission.”

“I don’t need to *understand*. I need information. Information that can help us out of this situation. Summarize it.”

A dejected look appeared on Rosalia’s face. But only for a moment. Then she began again,

“The Emperor has lived for too long.”

A look of bewilderment appeared in Rem’s eyes. It wasn’t something he’d expect to hear coming out from a knight’s mouth.

“This isn’t me being disrespectful, nor is it a declaration of rebellion. It’s simply a statement of fact.”

Sorrow filled her eyes.

“For 64 years since his ascension, how many crown princes do you think there were? No, it doesn’t matter how many. The important thing is that they’re all dead. And without even leaving behind heirs.”

From old age, from accidents, and sometimes even from treason.

Rosalia continued with a dark look on her face.

“Of course, the imperial bloodline isn’t completely erased. The Emperor’s nephew is still alive, and the throne was supposed to go to him.”

This was a fact that Rem knew quite well. After all, the magic tower also had classes on political affairs.

“The problem arose after that man appeared.”

“…That man?”

“Adolf Auguste von Titanisch, the Emperor’s illegitimate child.”

Rosalia gritted her teeth.

“He suddenly appeared out of nowhere, quickly earning the support of those old hags, and challenged the throne. Claiming that his blood was closer to the Emperor’s.”

“…And they actually accepted such a ridiculous claim?”

“Thanks to the schemes of those old hags, and beyond that, the Emperor is…”

Rosalia fell silent. Rem understood that silence.

The fact that Emperor Nicolai was old and senile was well known throughout the continent.

“Okay, I get that there’s a power struggle over the succession within the empire. But why are you being hunted?”

“…Because of this.”

Rosalia pulled out a small box from her bosom. She unlocked the complex lock and showed it to him.

“A stone…?”

As Rem had said,

inside the box was a crude, fist-sized stone. It was even half-broken.

An ordinary stone that could be found anywhere.

Something you wouldn’t expect to find in such an elaborate box.

“This is the treasure I stole. And it’s also a powerful magic tool.”

A powerful magic tool?

Rem examined the stone with a suspicious look.

“I don’t sense any magic coming from it.”

“That’s because it’s broken. At least that’s what the court mages said.”

“…What’s its function?”

At that question, distress appeared on Rosalia’s face. After much deliberation, she finally said this.

“It has many functions. But in my case, I only need one of them.”

Rosalia closed the box and said, as if sighing.

“It can identify those with imperial blood.”

At that moment, it was as if lightning had struck Rem’s mind. Rosalia’s words, combined with the situation, formed a single conclusion.

“Wait, you mean to tell me that that Adolf guy isn’t the Emperor’s illegitimate son?”

“That’s right. I’ve already secured some evidence, but none of it is concrete…”

“So you’re saying your mission is to…”

Rosalia nodded.

“Fix this stone, go back to the capital, and prove that Adolf is not the emperor’s son. And those who are chasing after me right now, they were sent by Adolf.”

A dismayed look appeared on Rem’s face. Then suddenly, he clutched his head and slumped down.

“Damn it…”

“A-Are you alright…?”

“Just shut up for a moment.”

He gave Rosalia a cold reply, then looked up at the sky. It was turning red with the setting sun. It seemed as if it was mocking him.

“Why did I even bother listening to this…”

He’d thought this was a big deal, but he didn’t think it would be this big.

To think that this was related to the Imperial succession…

Who knew something like that would come crashing through his shop wall.

Rem clutched his head harder. He tried to find a way to escape this absurd situation.

But nothing came to mind.

Life had finally, and once again, entangled Rem with hardship.

The depression, anger, and frustration rising from that.

But as always, Rem didn’t let it consume him. Instead, he stood up and started packing his things.

“…What are you doing?”

“Getting ready to leave.”

“…That’s a wise decision. By now, they must have started chasing us. I should also pack my belongings right away…”

“I’m leaving *alone*.”

Rem corrected Rosalia, looking at her coldly.

“Let’s go our separate ways from here.”

His words stung Rosalia deeply. Bewildered, she shook her head.

“It’s dangerous to travel alone. Now that you’ve attacked a knight, they’ll be after you too…”

“I can take care of myself. Didn’t you see me when we escaped from Hapnis?”

Rosalia couldn’t come up with a rebuttal and bit her lower lip. In fact, it was mostly thanks to Rem that they were able to escape the city.

“And then I’m going to run away to some remote town and hide. I’m sure they’ll eventually give up when they get tired of chasing after me.”

“That’s…”

Rosalia trailed off. It sounded like the best option, even to her.

…Likewise, she couldn’t offer Rem any reward or guarantee his safety. It would be ridiculous for her to interfere in his decision.

So, Rosalia decided to do what little she could.

“…Again, I’m sorry.”

Rem, who was shouldering his pack, looked at Rosalia, who was bowing. She then approached Rem and took out a small medal from her bosom.

“It’s a medal I received from the Emperor. If I succeed and survive… I will surely repay you for what you did for me today. This medal is proof of my promise.”

Then, with a serious expression on her face, she handed him the medal. Rem looked at it with a puzzled look, and then, sighing, he took it.

“Well then, it was a shit show, and let’s never meet again.”

Then, leaving Rosalia behind, he disappeared into the forest, towards the setting sun.

***

A week had passed since then.

Rem, who had been going through all sorts of obstacles to avoid pursuit, was finally able to enter a small town.

And naturally, the first thing he did was to sell the medal Rosalia had given him.

He didn’t think she’d survive. And even if she did, he had no intention of seeing her face ever again.

He crushed and divided the medal, selling the pieces at different shops to avoid leaving any traces.

And then, buying a bowl of warm soup with that money, he began to sort out his future plans.

Of course, hiding out in a remote town wasn’t easy.

Other than that, finding such a remote town itself was difficult.

A place that was isolated, had water and food, and wasn’t home to strange monsters. Surely such a place couldn’t be common in this fantasy world.

He’d probably have to search the entire east, if not the entire continent. And shake off his pursuers along the way.

And of course, that required money.

In the end, everything comes down to money. It was one of the few commonalities between South Korea and the Ea continent.

Rem sighed and took out his pouch. It was practically empty from having to flee in such a hurry. The money he got from selling the medal was already gone, spent on food and lodging.

Even a fugitive needs money to live.

And in this world, there was only one place that offered jobs to people with unknown backgrounds.

The Adventurer’s Guild.

Damn it, I really didn’t want to come back to this cesspool.

Rem let out a deep sigh and pushed open the door of the Adventurers’ Guild.

Thankfully, the guild was relatively deserted because it was still daytime. Rem was able to reach the request board without any problems.

He carefully scanned the board.

*Right, let’s just get some travel expenses and wash my hands out of this. Just grab one high-paying job…*

“Huh?”

A bewildered sound escaped his lips. Then he rubbed his eyes with both hands.

But the request paper stuck on the board didn’t disappear. Instead, it became even clearer.

Rem slowly read the request paper with a stupid expression.

——————————————————————-

[Rosalia’s wanted poster, drawn unnecessarily beautiful]

Name: Rosalia Amalia Ulrike Adrian

Age: 19

Height: 172cm

Characteristics: Highly skilled in swordsmanship, Crimson hair, Speaks like a noble.

Reward: 300 gold coins, dead or alive.

——————————————————————-

[Rem’s wanted poster, drawn like a walking corpse]

Name: Rem

Age: 19~20

Height: 189cm

Characteristics: Both hands are made of bronze, eyes are also strange, wearing some kind of weird shackle on the neck, white hair.

Reward: 150 gold coins, dead or alive.

——————————————————————-

Rem’s hand trembled. No, not just his hands. His entire body was shaking like a leaf.

“Excuse me, is there a problem…?”

The receptionist with a worried look on her face approached him. But Rem couldn’t tear his eyes away from the wanted posters. Without looking at her, he asked,

“This… how long has this been posted…?”

“Ah, since yesterday. Some knights suddenly came in and requested them…”

Knights. Rem shuddered.

However, the receptionist, oblivious to this, continued cheerfully,

“To be honest, I was surprised. It wasn’t just the reward, but also the fact that they asked for them to be distributed throughout the entire eastern continent.”

The entire eastern continent.

“I suppose that must mean that they’re particularly dangerous criminals? If they’re not caught this time, the posters might even spread across the whole continent…”

The whole continent.

At that moment, three people came to mind.

Amy, Clara, Parsley.

What if these wanted posters really did spread across the entire continent? And what if those three found out that he had become a criminal?

“This fucking…!”

“W-Wait, adventurer sir?!”

Rem ran out of the building.