episode_0051

“What’s going on all of a sudden?!”

The innkeeper lady exclaimed.

Is that man her husband?

“Thieves have appeared outside!”

“Thieves?! In this village?!”

“How many are there?”

I stepped forward and asked him.

“Are you… a guest?”

He inquired.

“Yes. Didn’t you just mention thieves? How many are there? What weapons do they have?”

“Well, um…”

“I heard you used to work as a squire before. You must have an eye for these things.”

“Could it be… a knight…?”

“…That’s how it was in the old days.”

Until I reach Brigal, I must conceal my identity as much as possible.

Changing my tone of voice can be quite helpful.

Moreover, pretending to have been a knight in the past is not entirely a lie.

“Indeed! That’s a relief! Quickly grab your weapons and flee; it will be a great help!”

“Flee?”

“Yes. The opponents were not ordinary bandits. They disguised themselves in rough clothing but wore chainmail underneath. While their weapons varied, they were well-disciplined. They are not foes we can easily face!”

“I see…”

Sometimes it happens.

Properly trained armies sometimes turn into bandits by chance.

Or they pretend to be bandits…

“How many are there?”

“It’s not a number we can handle! We need to evacuate all the villagers immediately!”

“First, calm down.”

I gently pressed his shoulder with my hand.

“Gasp…!”

“Feeling a bit calmer now?”

“Uh… yes…”

“Now, tell me when and where you saw them.”

“Oh, yes. Sir.”

Sir, he says.

“I went out this morning to find acorns for the pigs, but they were waiting at the entrance to the forest. When they saw me, they chased me and asked about the village. I tried to escape, but my leg isn’t in good shape…”

“It’s alright. Go on. What did they specifically say to you?”

“Well, they said… they would raid the village around noon today but wanted to avoid unnecessary killings. So, they advised everyone to stay away until then.”

“Hmm…”

Certainly not your average bandit group.

Normally, they wouldn’t engage in such warnings.

“Is there any lord nearby who could help?”

“This is a frontier settlement near the border, so… even if we ride, it will take us past noon to reach the nearest noble’s estate.”

Frontier settlements, including those near the border, do not pay taxes to the kingdom, nor do they receive military protection in times of need.

There may be armed guards at the gate, but they serve merely as security.

Sending an army near the border could be seen as a military provocation against neighboring countries.

“Is there anywhere we could escape to?”

“There’s a burrow inside the forest. We should be able to hide everyone there for now.”

“That’s fortunate… So, how many were they?”

“They were probably over twenty. If we gather all the able-bodied men among the villagers, we might exceed thirty, but our opponents are undoubtedly well-armed and trained individuals. They are unbeatable.”

“Were they all knights, by any chance?”

“Not all of them. Only one person who seemed like the leader looked like a knight.”

“Any wizards?”

“Well… I don’t think there were any.”

“I see.”

It would have been easy to handle if Linder were here. It’s a shame.

“So, are you planning to fight?”

“Yes. I must wait for a certain Marquis Jeron who is coming to this village. I have nowhere else to go.”

“But considering the numbers…”

“Don’t worry. You go and evacuate the villagers. My colleagues and I will take care of it.”

“Really! Even so…”

At least we have a rough estimate for now.

Conquering a village like this would require twenty soldiers and one knight, just the right amount needed.

There’s no chance that these fleeing knights and their subordinates are trying to cross the border.

If that were the case, they wouldn’t waste time like this.

Since pursuers might be coming from behind, even if they see the village, they’ll either ignore it or, if they have to raid due to urgent food needs, they will do so swiftly.

They wouldn’t take the time to evacuate the residents without causing a major conflict like they are doing now.

Those bandits probably have no interest in this village’s goods or food.

They’re not bandits to begin with; they are clearly soldiers disguised as bandits.

So why would these soldiers do such a thing?

At this point of disguise, they don’t represent the military of this country.

Sending soldiers disguised as bandits to another country is a huge diplomatic breach, so they are also concealing their identities.

“Did you see their faces?”

“Well… They were all covering their faces with cloths.”

More suspicious.

For commoners to identify soldiers from another country just by seeing their faces, facial features must be distinctive.

For example, pointed ears like elves, dark skin like dark elves, or black hair and eyes like ebony…

At least those soldiers likely came from a distant place where racial distinctions are clear.

To sum it up, twenty soldiers and one knight from a distant land were sent to occupy a village in another country.

Even though it’s not a protected area, it’s still another country’s territory, so if discovered, it could lead to a diplomatic disaster, hence it should be handled quietly.

The purpose of such an event is generally singular.

Just a brief moment of waiting.

For instance, meeting someone…

“…”

I smell something.

A very foul odor.

“I handle things very well~. Don’t worry about us and evacuate safely.”

“Oh, thank you very much! Really, thank you! I will inform the village chief…”

“We’ll talk about that later; you should get to work quickly. I’ll go see my colleague… Oh, and just in case, take only one child we are protecting with us.”

“Yes. Honey, did you hear? Take the child and go to that cave.”

I went back upstairs to the bedroom.

“…”

Spect is sleeping soundly.

Feeling a bit guilty for waking him up so soon, I gently woke Kona up first.

“Eh…? Morning…?”

“Come with me for a moment.”

“Huh? Is the carriage here?”

“It’s not about that.”

Still rubbing his eyes, I forcibly pulled Kona out of bed by his arm.

“Wait, what’s going on…?”

“Bad guys are here. We need to flee.”

“What about Mr. Spect over there?”

“He’ll come later. Anyway, you run first. And… He’s not that guy. Call him ‘brother.’”

“…?”

I entrusted Kona to the innkeeper lady and returned to the bedroom.

“Hey, wake up.”

“…”

“Enemies.”

“…!”

Spect immediately opened his eyes and grabbed the sword placed beside the bed.

Sharp like a knife.

“Where are they?”

“We still have some time. Loosen up a bit.”

I took out a low-grade stamina potion from my bag and handed it to him.

Stamina potions, as the name suggests, restore stamina instead of wounds.

However, unlike healing potions, when the potion’s effect wears off, the regained stamina rapidly depletes again.

It feels strong and quick, like coffee.

If you drink a little while your stamina isn’t too low, it’s almost indistinguishable from real coffee.

“Ahh… Okay…”

Spect relaxed, yawned, took a sip of the stamina potion, gulped it down, and exhaled.

“Phew…”

Then he got out of bed and lightly stretched his body.

Truly a professional.

“So, who are they and how many are there?”

“One knight and twenty soldiers. They’re planning to raid this village at lunchtime.”

“What? A knight and soldiers?”

“They may look like bandits at first glance, but judging by the situation, they’re likely a knight and soldiers.”

“Why would people like them come to this frontier village…? Where do they belong in the first place?”

“I don’t know. But I have a guess.”

“…Hmm.”

Spect furrowed his brow slightly.

“Indeed. Are they interceptors?”

“Probably?”

Though it’s still doubtful, Brighal is the only one that comes to mind.

Horanse must have been prepared for me to chase after them from the beginning.

So, contacting their homeland before taking Krisha away to stop me… No, calling for reinforcements wouldn’t be surprising.

Well, they might also be considering killing me?

They probably didn’t anticipate having Spect on my side.

If that were the case, twenty soldiers alone wouldn’t stand a chance.

…Or maybe that one knight is quite formidable.

“So, what should we do?”

“For now, if those guys block the way, Jebon, the mabu, won’t be able to come here. Our goal is Brighal.”

“…And then?”

“Well… Some can be captured alive and sent as witnesses to the royal family of this country, which would be ideal, but we don’t have time for that.”

Our goal is to reach Brighal quickly, while their goal is to hinder us.

There’s no time to deal with follow-up measures one by one.

“The enemy will probably try to delay while retreating reasonably. So, the most certain solution is to chase after them and kill them all. It might be difficult for me alone, but with you, it might not be impossible.”

“…”

“Well… In the end, it comes down to that, right? Calculations.”

“Yes. Killing people, especially soldiers belonging to a country, comes at a high cost…”

Spect is originally a mercenary.

“I usually don’t take on such requests. Getting involved deeply in politics is just bothersome. However, I understand Rashwood’s circumstances, so if you officially request it, I’ll accept.”

…”

There are various types of mercenaries.

Those skilled with swords, those skilled with bows, those good at guarding…

But fundamentally, they can be divided into two categories.

Mercenaries who kill people, and those who don’t.

Of course, every mercenary eventually gets blood on their hands, but enjoying it or being twisted by it is another matter.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Spect belonged to the latter.

He will kill if necessary, but he doesn’t actively enjoy it.

Asking someone like him to cooperate in killing someone close to twenty is quite a request.

It would be a relief just to hear the story.

If the opponent were truly heartless bandits with no mercy, it wouldn’t be such a difficult request, but right now, they are just soldiers pretending to be bandits.

Moreover, they even warned the villagers to flee.

It means they are individuals who want to avoid senseless killing.

Whether for ethical reasons or practical ones…

“Hmm…”

Now, what should I do?

If I ask despite the difficulty, Spect will go along with it.

“Well, in that case… I’ll have to make a more challenging request.”