WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

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◈ Sword Master of the Fallen Kingdom

Chapter 75

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Seeking the Road Ahead (3)

Kyle did not answer right away. He only turned to look at Elysia beside him.

Covered by her black cloak and hood, Elysia stared at Kyle with unwavering eyes. It had not even been a week, but the trust in those clear golden eyes was firm. Had she cast aside every last doubt after the two wyvern knights died? Their gazes met for only an instant before Kyle turned back toward Jade.

"Yes. We are crossing the Duchy of Tervan. We do not have much time."

"Haa... Yeah, figures. I guessed as much when I ran into you here."

Jade let out a sigh and scratched roughly at his head. Kyle looked at him, then asked in return.

"What about you? Jade, were you not planning to cross this place too? The only people who come to Nibelmund are those coming down from above or going up from below."

"That is true, but..."

"You can tell just by looking, right? This is what the situation is like. Even if I want to go, I cannot."

He was right. The sun had not fully set yet, but the inside of the inn was packed with people. Considering this was one of the most expensive and best-equipped inns in the middle of the city, the cheaper inns on the outskirts and any passable lodgings were probably already full. Just as the guard at the checkpoint had said, plenty of people seemed to be stranded because of the civil war.

"But with your skill, would that really be a problem?"

Kyle sounded doubtful. As far as he knew, Jade was among the strongest Gold-rank mercenaries active in the south. This was not a large trading convoy. There was no way he could not look after himself.

"If this civil war were like the usual ones, sure."

"You mean it is that serious?"

Jade groaned. Then he went on, as if explaining.

"You know the Hamar Trade Company, right? The ones based in the Kingdom of Sarmaren."

Kyle nodded. Beyond the Duchy of Tervan, on the southeastern side of the continent, lay a trade kingdom whose long, curved territory followed the southern coastline. The Hamar Trade Company was fairly famous even in the Kingdom of Sarmaren.

"What about the Hamar Trade Company?"

"Their convoy crossing the Duchy of Tervan got wiped out."

"Wiped out?"

"All the mercenaries died, and only a few company members and convoy leaders made it back down with nothing left. Because of that, more than a few convoys are stuck here in Nibelmund right now. From what I hear, the barbarians are running wild..."

"How many are there?"

Kyle asked. Beside him, Elysia quietly perked up and listened.

"I do not know. They said roughly hundreds, I think."

"......."

"That is what people are saying. The truth might be even more than that. No one knows the details."

"So that is why you were sitting around here?"

"What else could I do? Even I cannot handle hundreds of barbarians. Those people are born climbing mountains and hunting. When barbarians like that move around in packs, what can you do? Better to watch the situation than get myself killed acting brave. A man should know his one and only life is worth something."

Jade answered as if it were nothing. There was not a shred of embarrassment or shame in his words. Watching him, Kyle thought to himself.

Now that I think about it, he was always like this.

From the first time they met, setting skill aside, he had been strangely quick to read the situation. He knew when to step forward and when to step back.

Mercenaries who survived long in this field did not do so simply because they were strong. They survived because they were sharp. No matter how strong someone was, if they ran wild and earned grudges everywhere, they could end up dead without anyone knowing. Kyle was the only exception. If necessary, he used any means and methods available. He dealt with the aftermath the same way.

"On top of that, they say regular army troops joined in too. Some count, was it? This country always had frequent civil wars and rebellions, but I never thought they would openly join hands with barbarians like this."

"How long have you been staying here?"

"A week."

"And then you spotted me?"

"Exactly! The timing was perfect. So, about that, how about traveling together?"

Jade, back to his cheerful expression from the start, made the offer to Kyle. Kyle stayed silent and considered it.

The civil war in the Duchy of Tervan. Barbarians who had joined hands with regular troops. A trade route completely blocked.

There was no sign it would be resolved anytime soon. That did not mean they could wait until the road opened. They had taken down two wyvern knights, but it was only a matter of time before the Empire noticed and tried something else. Kyle and Elysia had to cross the Duchy of Tervan and reach the Federation as fast as possible.

"Where is your destination?"

Kyle asked. Jade answered at once.

"The Kingdom of Sarmaren. What about you and the lady beside you?"

"We are going to Renavik in the Grandecia Federation."

"Renavik?"

Jade frowned.

"That is the capital of the Kalov Kingdom. The place with the Federal Assembly."

"......."

"Damn far away. Anyway, the fact that we both need to cross the Duchy of Tervan does not change."

"What were you planning to do if I had not shown up? Keep waiting?"

Kyle looked down at the table. All three of them still had not touched their food. The same went for the servers carrying food back and forth around them. Thanks to the soundproof barrier using Wind Magic, neither the conversations around them nor Kyle and Jade's voices leaked outside.

"I was not going to keep waiting. I was planning to go see Serentia tonight."

"Serentia? The best intelligence guild in the south?"

Elysia, who had been listening, cut in. Jade looked interested as he answered the woman joining the conversation for the first time.

"Right. Serentia, the best intelligence guild in the south. They have a branch here in Nibelmund too. Well, any large city has one."

"Then why have you not gone until now?"

Elysia asked in an innocent tone. After a brief pause, Jade muttered in a shrinking voice.

"Because I had no money..."

"No, I am not joking. Those guys are seriously expensive. Even if a Gold-rank mercenary makes good money, you need to brace yourself. Their information is that reliable, so there is demand, but still."

Jade mumbled as if making excuses. For some reason, Elysia stared at him with cold, unimpressed eyes.

"So, are we going together or not? If we are crossing the Duchy of Tervan anyway, I think cooperating would be better. We worked together on House Valerian commissions several times before. If you two are fine with it, we can stop by the Serentia branch too. The information fee is expensive, but not as expensive as your life."

Jade made one last offer to Kyle. He looked at Kyle seriously. Elysia beside him was also looking at Kyle.

Traveling together...

There was no coldly logical reason to refuse. Jade was more skilled than most elite knights from major houses. Even among Gold-rank mercenaries, he stood out as particularly strong. They had also once handled several commissions together. They had saved each other's lives before, so at the very least, he was not someone who would stab Kyle in the back.

And Serentia too.

Kyle had planned to stop by once to gather information. He had more than enough money, and it was true that no information network was as reliable as theirs.

There were also things he was personally curious about. The Twin Fangs of Silence, the assassination guild that had once been under Serentia, had been wiped out to the last member, including its guild master, in the Kingdom of Alenos ruins Kyle had recently passed through. Did Serentia know that he was the one who had killed them, then slaughtered the House Filein forces afterward?

How far had the rumors of the two dead wyvern knights spread? What was the Empire's current movement?

"Not a bad idea."

Traveling with Jade, getting information from Serentia, and then setting out seemed fine. At the moment, he could not think of a better method.

"Oh. Then you agreed?"

"Do as you like."

Leaving the grinning Jade behind, Kyle tapped the table with his finger again. With a rush, the noise from every direction poured in all at once. By then, much of the food they had ordered had cooled.

"It is still too early to head out, so let us move later tonight. Those gloomy bastards do not open for business before the sun goes down."

Jade smacked his lips and picked up his utensils first, starting his meal. Elysia, who had been watching the mood, carefully gripped her fork and moved food onto the plate in front of her. Kyle watched the two of them for a moment, then turned his head aside.

Customers kept pouring into the inn before the sun had set. At some point, it had become full, and scowling mercenaries left the inn grumbling after failing to get rooms. In the middle of the dining hall, servers carrying cups of liquor and plates of food moved busily. Merchants with stifled expressions kept pouring alcohol down their throats.

Kyle moved his utensils leisurely in the middle of it all. He chewed on well-cooked meat and soft wheat bread. The loud, bustling atmosphere felt oddly comfortable. It let him forget his stray thoughts for a while. At least while he was inside this noise.

"I am going up first. I need to sleep."

After finishing a quick, simple meal, Kyle rose first.

Jade, still chewing, glanced at Kyle and said,

"Yeah? My room is 304, so come find me if something happens. If I am not on the first floor, I will be in my room on the third."

"I should go up too."

"Huh? The lady too?"

Kyle left without listening to the rest. Cutting through the confused crowd in the dining hall, he headed for the stairs leading up. Elysia followed behind him with her hood pulled low. Left alone, Jade stared blankly at the backs of the two people as he chewed through the food still half left on the table.

***

Kyle went up to the third floor of the inn. Unlike the first floor, the third floor, lined with guest rooms, was sunk in silence.

Holding the room key he had received from the server, Kyle walked down the straight hallway. There was a small window for light. Two rooms stood right beside it. He stopped in front of one of them and was just lifting his key.

"Kyle."

A familiar voice sounded. Kyle turned to the side. Elysia, who had followed him, stood there. Kyle looked at her, then abruptly asked,

"How is your body?"

"No problem. I did not run too hard, and I ate, so it is not that bad."

Kyle brought his hand to Elysia's forehead. Even though this was already the third time, Elysia still shrank her shoulders a little in surprise.

"You are still not fully recovered."

"......."

"Still, by the day after tomorrow, your fever should be completely gone. I picked two rooms on purpose, so go inside and rest properly."

Kyle took his hand away from Elysia's forehead. Her complexion looked far better than when they had been chased by the wyvern knights. Still, she was not in any condition to push herself. Since things had turned out like this, it was better for her to get proper rest.

"I am fine. We have to go out soon anyway..."

"The trip to Serentia's branch will be just me and Jade. So there is no need for you to follow us for no reason."

"What?"

Elysia's eyes widened.

"What does that..."

"Even if they are an intelligence guild that puts money first, the danger does not change. I am telling you to sleep through tonight without worrying about anything. Starting tomorrow, we will be busy."

There were many things to do besides getting information right away. They had to buy the food they had run short on. They had to buy new clothes to replace the torn ones. They also needed horses for travel. Especially horses. In a situation crowded with people like this, they would be even harder to find. Even if they paid extra, they would have to spend a good while searching.

"Kyle..."

Elysia's reaction was different from what Kyle expected. She lowered her head and muttered in a small voice.

"Am I... that unreliable?"

"What?"

Kyle asked back, unable to understand. At that moment, Elysia slowly lifted her head.

Ah.

Kyle let out a sigh without meaning to. Elysia's golden eyes, staring straight up at him, were trembling with anxiety. For some reason, he remembered what she had said last night. That she was not such an impressive person. That she had only wrapped herself in appearances to keep herself from looking weak.

The fear and terror that she could be abandoned at any time.

The initiative between the two of them now belonged entirely to Kyle. If he broke the escort commission at any moment, Elysia would have no choice but to be abandoned. That was why she wanted to be of use to Kyle somehow. She did not want to only receive help one-sidedly and lean on him.

Bluntly put, if the Dragon Heart alone had been Kyle's goal, he would not have needed to struggle with an escort. He could have just killed Elysia and taken it.

Kyle had not done that because the Dragon Heart was not his goal. It was a means to achieve that goal. To Kyle, Elysia was nothing more than a piece on the board for destroying the Empire. The Grandecia Federation was the same. Kyle himself was no exception.

A tool that could be thrown away whenever needed.

Everything was like that. Kyle was the sort of man who could sell his soul to a devil for revenge. If the Empire would fall in exchange for killing Elysia in front of him right now, he could draw his sword without a moment of hesitation. He could kill her. He had been twisted for far longer than three years.

You are bound by the past, just like me. Just as I fear dying without doing anything, you fear being left alone and dying. Separate from your trust in me, you cannot be certain whether I trust you.

"Please, Kyle. Please take me with you too."

"......."

"I will never hold you back. I will not get in the way. I might be useful. I know the Empire's information well. So please..."

Elysia broke the flowing silence and pleaded desperately. It did not last long.

"So please..."

"I am sorry. I was being stubborn for no reason. Forget what I just said."

Elysia dropped her head. She clenched the key in her trembling hand and was about to enter her room when Kyle grabbed her wrist. Elysia's body flinched. Slowly, she raised her head and looked back at Kyle.

"Kyle...?"

"Rest for a bit, then come out."

"Ah..."

"If you are too tired, I will wake you."

Elysia's expression brightened at once. After nodding a couple of times, she went into her room. Kyle watched her for a long while, until she entered the room and disappeared completely.

Was it pity?

Dreams were mirrors that reflected the inner self. Last night, Kyle had heard her unconsciously call for her birth mother in her sleep. Was that why?

Even though he knew there was no need, he allowed Elysia to come along.

What he had just done was certainly unlike him.

Or maybe it was only cheap hypocrisy.

Kyle stood lost in thought in front of the hallway for a while, then inserted the key into the doorknob. Click. The lock opened from inside.

Just like Elysia, Kyle stepped into his room. Not long after, the hallway where the two had disappeared fell back into the same silence as before. The orange glow of sunset streaming in from the window lit the surroundings. In the middle of the hallway, quiet enough that even breathing seemed still, drifting dust floated soundlessly.

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