WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Ode of the Brave ◈

Chapter 73

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Waves slid flatly onto the sandy beach. When they receded, they left the fine sand smooth and level.

As I watched them quietly, it felt as though the dregs in my heart were being washed away too, leaving my mind clean and ordered.

Ricart raised his head.

Before him was water stretching all the way to the end of the world.

It was the sea, something he had heard of but never seen in his life.

Ricart stared blankly at the endless horizon for a while. What could this grandeur possibly be? Who but a god could create such harmony?

He felt both shock and awe. He could hardly believe it. Seeing it was far more shocking than meeting a vampire in person.

The sea wind blew in and roughly tousled Ricart’s hair. It went wild in every direction, but he had no chance to care.

It was not the right season to visit the sea, but that did not matter. The wind might have been cold, but compared to the winter winds of the north that seemed to tear flesh from bone, it was warm.

It was cold, yet not cold.

His chest felt wide open, and all he felt was refreshed.

Soft clouds floated in the blue sky like wisps of cotton. The sun’s gaze was not harsh, only comforting.

And the sound of the waves truly resembled wind blowing across a field.

Shhhhh...

“I can’t believe it...”

Ice, who had been looking out at the sea a short distance away, spoke. It was his first time seeing the sea too.

The two young swordsmen watched the sea for a long time. How far did it stretch? Would they fall off the edge if they reached the end?

“This is the end of the world.”

Ice said.

“No. Maybe heaven is somewhere beyond there. Not in the sky.”

Ricart’s thought felt more realistic than an ideal land floating in the heavens. It was easier to imagine an island somewhere unknown, a perfect place waiting there.

Ricart gently stepped onto the smooth wet sand. Footprints formed in it like they did in snow. Then a thin wave rolled in and swept over the soles of his feet.

He scooped up a little seawater and tasted it.

Good heavens. It really was salty!

Most salt people ate was rock salt, so Ricart had believed all salt was mined from mountains. Yet this endless water was all saltwater.

He truly could not believe it. Salt was an expensive ingredient, and it felt as though even his sense of money had been turned upside down.

He looked back at the sea.

No matter how long he watched, he did not think he would grow tired of it. He also found himself wishing his other friends could see the sea at least once.

The refreshing view filled Ricart with excitement. He shouted toward the sea.

“Waaaaaaaaah!”

Ice turned at Ricart’s strange behavior and laughed. Then he shouted too.

“Waaaaaaaaah! Hahahahaha!”

Laughter burst out of them naturally.

Since they had already come this far, Ricart threw off his equipment and jumped into the seawater.

Splash, splash.

The cold that seemed to squeeze his heart, their bursting laughter, and the sense of freedom.

Ice threw himself into the water too. The two of them splashed around like children.

Since ancient times, immersing oneself in saltwater had held sacred meaning. In other words, God had prepared salvation for all people.

But no matter what, dealing with the aftermath was difficult.

After some time, they lit a campfire and dried themselves. It was already a chilly autumn, and they could easily catch pneumonia if they were not careful.

Ricart and Ice hung their wet clothes beside the fire and shivered.

Still, it would have been pathetic alone. Since they had acted like fools together, all they could do was laugh.

“What will you do once you become a Sword Master?”

Ricart normally did not pry into what his friends chose to hide, but for some reason, he could ask lightly now.

“Well, I don’t know.”

“Will you have to return to the church once you become a Sword Master?”

“Probably...”

“That’s a shame. I wish we could all stay together forever.”

“So do I. But if I cannot do what I must, my younger sibling’s death will have been meaningless.”

“Can you tell me about your sibling?”

Ice did not answer right away. He stared at the campfire for a while. The flickering flames were not fierce, but gentle.

“They smiled a lot. But because of that, they committed a sin. They were punished and died. I had to spit on my sibling’s corpse. So only devotion to God can save them.”

Ricart could not understand, but out of consideration for Ice, he did not criticize his religion.

Still, perhaps Ice’s feelings for his sibling were stronger than the religion itself.

Ice seemed to suffer over having stood by and watched his sibling die. Worse, instead of recovering the body, he had spat on it.

The pain was rooted too deeply for Ricart to simply say it was in the past and Ice should forget it. Besides, saying that might be a grave insult to Ice.

And Ice seemed to feel guilty over whether he had any right to be happy when his sibling had died so miserably.

A pain he could not escape.

Ice was trapped in a prison without bars, struggling helplessly inside it.

“...Smiling became a sin. When there’s so much saltwater in the world.”

“Yeah. I wish my sibling could have seen the sea too.”

“Maybe they already saw it first.”

“Hm?”

“Somewhere far out in that sea, there must be an island for pitiful souls. A place without pain or suffering. They’ll be waiting for you there. If you meet again someday, they’ll welcome you with a smile.”

Ice quietly watched Ricart, then simply smiled.

Countless stars sparkled above the black sea. Yes, there were so many beautiful things in this world.

The waves murmured softly, the campfire crackled, and stars glittered overhead.

The next morning, Ricart and Ice shook the salt from their dry clothes and put them on. They equipped themselves again and headed south along the coast.

They left at dawn and arrived in Harlen around morning.

Just as they had seen the sea for the first time the day before, Ricart and Ice experienced a great city for the first time.

Ernberg was a small town with around a thousand people. Rainfurt was the largest city they had seen, but even that could not compare with Harlen.

Ricart could not even guess how vast Harlen was. Its population seemed well over ten thousand. The harbor was enormous, the ships were huge, and the market overflowed with every kind of exotic item.

Ricart had thought Stormhertz was a backwater, but apparently the entire north was just the boondocks.

Ricart first approached a fishmonger at the market to ask for directions. The fishy smell from the piles of fish on the stall was enough to make his head spin, but he did not frown.

“Excuse me. Do you know where I can find the Rose Acrobatic Troupe?”

“...Well, I don’t know the name, but if you want to see acrobats, you’ll have to go farther into the city.”

“Is that so? Could you tell me roughly where?”

“First, find the Grand Temple, then head south. Ask people there, and they’ll tell you.”

“I understand. Thank you.”

Ricart handed over a copper coin and turned away from the fishmonger.

Finding Harlen’s Grand Temple was not difficult. It was one of the city’s most important buildings, and it was large enough to see from far away.

There was a square before the Grand Temple. At its center stood an execution platform stained with blood, though public executions were not held at the moment, so the city’s children used it as a place to play.

After walking south for a while, they saw boats passing through canals. The houses were narrow, long, and packed tightly together. The canals smelled a little foul, but not terribly so.

Ricart stopped another passerby and asked.

“Excuse me, where can I see the Rose Acrobatic Troupe?”

“Hm? Are you travelers?”

“Yes, more or less.”

“Then it will be hard for you to see the show. You need an invitation to enter. The place is beside an entrance to the catacombs. Turn right on that road over there and keep going. You should find it.”

Catacombs were underground cemeteries that had existed since ancient times. They differed from city to city, but some were so vast and maze-like that one could get lost inside.

“I understand. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Have a pleasant trip.”

The passerby smiled brightly. Unlike the blunt, harsh north, the people here seemed more relaxed.

Ricart and Ice walked as the passerby had directed them. After walking for some time, they found an entrance to the catacombs sealed with iron bars, and beside it stood a very large building.

Sure enough, a sign was fixed to the building’s wall, bearing the name Garden of Roses.

“I think this is the place. Let’s find an inn first.”

“Yeah.”

Now that they had identified the location, it was time to settle in and make a plan.

Ricart and Ice found lodging not far from the Garden of Roses. They unpacked, ate smoked herring, then wandered the alleys to learn the lay of the area.

“Doesn’t that catacomb seem suspicious?”

Ricart asked as they walked through an alley that saw little sunlight.

“Isn’t it almost certain?”

“They probably don’t operate openly. Otherwise, it would be the perfect place to draw suspicion.”

“But how do we get invited? Should we sneak in at night?”

“They are a race of the night. Making a move at night feels like giving up our advantage.”

“Hmm...”

“Let’s observe for now. There’s no hurry. We may have to face a high vampire. Let’s be careful.”

“Do you want to visit the Thieves’ Guild?”

Every city had a Thieves’ Guild, like a shadow wherever there was light. They might know something about vampires.

But Ricart shook his head.

“Let’s watch that for now too. I don’t think it would be good to reveal who we are.”

Even an overwhelming beast began by concealing itself and watching quietly when hunting small prey. Ricart was not the type to swagger about, trusting only in his swordsmanship.

So on the first day, they explored around their lodging and checked the location of the city gates, along with when they opened and closed.

Afterward, they returned to the inn and watched the Garden of Roses through the window that night.

Sure enough, once night fell and ordinary people had gone to bed, lights came on in the building, and people began gathering one by one. Some arrived by carriage, apparently wealthy.

Yet every one of them wore a black long cloak that covered almost their entire body, white gloves, and a neat hat. Their clothing was exceedingly formal.

Ricart and Ice merely watched the scene in silence. Before long, the doors closed after everyone seemed to have entered.

Much later, people began to emerge again. They laughed happily, perhaps because they had watched an entertaining performance. Those who had come by carriage left in their carriages, while the rest walked home.

“Eight are missing.”

“Huh?”

“The number of people entering and leaving is different. Eight people are gone.”

Ice was often surprised by Ricart’s abilities, but Ricart impressed him again. He had counted them all and compared the number entering with the number leaving.

And it was night, so they were not even easy to see.

“But the people were laughing.”

Ice spoke. The people had been enjoying themselves too much for something to have happened inside.

“For vampires, wouldn’t it be easy to take out a few people without anyone noticing?”

“Hmm... That certainly does seem suspicious.”

“But remember, our request is only to kill the vampire named Armand.”

“Yeah.”

Ice nodded.

The next day, Ricart and Ice merely wandered around the area again. However, the catacombs did not have only one entrance. There were several.

Some entrances were not sealed off, and vagrants lived nearby with fires burning and tents set up.

They looked extremely vulnerable to vampire attacks, but they did not seem to have much trouble living there. And for vagrants, their faces and clothing were fairly clean.

That night, Ricart and Ice watched the Garden of Roses from their inn window again. People gathered to watch the performance, and once more, fewer people came out afterward.

Five were missing that night.

They spent the next day similarly, making plans about whether to enter the catacombs or ambush audience members at night and steal their invitations.

Then, after everyone had entered the theater, a gentleman came outside. He looked directly toward where Ricart was, removed his hat, and gave a polite bow.

As though he knew perfectly well that they had been watching.

Then he put his hat back on and entered the building. The door closed.

Ricart and Ice both widened their eyes and looked at each other.

Ricart grinned.

“Hehe, we got caught. How did he know?”

“They’re awfully perceptive.”

They seemed to have noticed despite Ricart and Ice doing nothing suspicious. The inn and theater were not even that close. Naturally, they had not watched with a light on in their room.

The next day, the innkeeper delivered an invitation from the Rose Acrobatic Troupe to Ricart and Ice.

It felt like a duel arena.

Ricart could be cautious when he needed to be, but he could also be bold. He thought this might be for the best.

Wanting to see what they looked like, he immediately visited a tailor, had formal clothes made, and waited for night to come.

As time passed, the sun gradually disappeared.

At the hour when the race of the night awakened, Ricart and Ice put on white gloves, formal suits, and black long cloaks. Carrying only a dagger each, they headed for the Garden of Roses.

Tonight, the stars in the sky did not seem beautiful.

They seemed to be giggling unpleasantly.

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