WeTried Translations
Translator: Dawn
Editor: Dawn
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Genius Knight of a Fallen Race
Chapter 23
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An Old Bear Watching a Show
After the fight, the Alto expedition party was stripped of their equipment and all thrown out into the wasteland outside the building. Before long, passing monsters would leave not even a trace of the corpses, just like what they had intended to do to the “Green Eyes.” While sorting through the few belongings the bandits had left behind, Shan called out to Roden, who was tending his sword.
“Roden, can you take a look at this?”
“What is it?”
“It looks like some kind of expedition log, but I can’t read it.”
Roden took the small booklet and immediately understood why Shan had trouble reading it. The handwriting was atrocious and rushed, with messy scrawls packed with abbreviations commonly used by explorers. At this point, it required not reading skills, but deciphering to understand it. After staring at the text for a while, Roden eventually handed it over to the smartest one present, Mage Jerpo. Not long after, once he deciphered the contents, Jerpo let out an exclamation.
“Oho...!”
“Did you find something?”
“Yes. For now, I understand why they launched such an ambush.”
According to the contents of the log, the Alto expedition party had already run into trouble on their previous expedition and had borrowed quite a large sum of money. That was why they pushed themselves and set out on such a distant expedition to the north this time.
“They’re already buried in debt to the point of suffocation, and then they spot a group with only about half their numbers, bringing two horses, carrying a fair amount of baggage, and even having a child among them… On top of that, there’s a mage like me, who likely carries expensive catalysts. This may have seemed like a low risk, guaranteed profit to them. I’m not saying I agree with it, but I can see why they lost their heads.”
Hearing it laid out like that, it almost looked like they were inviting someone to come eat them. Of course, if even one of them had seen Shan’s ability back in Sedil City, they would never have attempted such a thing. However, they didn’t know.
“On top of that, it seems they discovered a fairly decent Alto ruin in the north. It’s so large they couldn’t carry everything back in one trip. If they robbed us and used that money as capital, one more trip would have brought them huge profit.”
Selling the location of the ruins to someone else was also an option, but that would have meant taking a massive loss. In the end, their inability to restrain their greed led them to their deaths.
“Alto ruins, huh…” Roden let out a quiet murmur at the unfamiliar concept.
He didn’t expect a clue to something countless explorers longed to discover at least once would come like this.
“Does it say how far it is?”
“I can’t fully interpret the notation of the person who wrote this, so I can’t be certain, but it’s probably about as far again as where we went last time.”
“That’s far…”
With that distance, they would probably have to throw away a significant portion of the monster spoils they had hunted. They would need to bring much more food and other supplies.
Now it was time for a discussion. The topic was:
Should we sell this information to another expedition party, or attempt the excavation ourselves?
Since the ruins lay to the north, they also had to consider the possibility that the Crusaders of the Ajun Kingdom would intervene.
“I want to go,” Shan, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.
If it was an Alto ruin, there might be a decent magical artifact there. He wanted an item imbued with permanent magical power, not something that needed a mage to keep casting spells on it. If he could obtain equipment even better than what the royal guard knights he once admired had, it would be truly exhilarating.
“I agree.”
Jerpo, being a mage, also showed interest in Alto relics.
“Hmm.”
In contrast, Priest Vent didn’t look very pleased. The spoils they had already obtained were more than enough to support the monastery for a while, so he didn’t want to take on extra risk. Still, the conditions were too good to pass up. They knew the location of the ruins, and they had a warrior on the level of a high-ranking knight with them. He was getting older, taking longer to recover after returning from an expedition. He figured that it might not be a bad idea to earn enough this time to retire from the field altogether.
“Alright, let’s go.”
The decision didn’t take long. As everyone celebrated reaching an agreement, Vent suddenly looked at Roden and spoke.
“But Roden.”
“Yes, Priest.”
“Have you never killed a person before?”
“…Pardon?”
“I noticed earlier you were trembling quite badly. You know Shan’s ability well, and you can fight yourself decently, so I couldn’t think of any other reason.”
In truth, Roden had never killed a person before. Someone who trembles at the sight of a blade can hardly engage in anything beyond a fistfight. Though the guess wasn’t exactly accurate, it was close enough. After a brief moment of hesitation over how to respond, Roden decided to reveal his secret honestly. Until now, he could get by with the excuse of “no one asked, so I didn’t say,” but if he hid it here and it was revealed later, the sense of betrayal would be hard to mend. Especially since they were about to head into something important.
“There is actually something I need to tell you regarding that.”
Roden confessed honestly to the two of them. He told them about his fear of blades and how severe it was. At the unexpected revelation, the two exchanged glances for a moment.
“I thought as much. Better we find out now. It would’ve been troublesome to learn this in a truly dangerous situation.”
“You seem able to handle something like a kitchen knife yourself. Does it only happen when someone else points one at you? Even if monsters are holding it…?”
Roden felt a bit flustered at Vent’s easy acceptance and Jerpo’s academic curiosity. He was essentially hiding a critical flaw as a warrior from his companions. They should be angry, or at least ask to renegotiate shares. When he said that, Vent laughed heartily and replied.
“Yours is a bit more severe, but everyone has at least one flaw. Compared to things like kleptomania or not being able to fight without alcohol, yours is tolerable.”
“Well, to be honest, it’s because we have Shan.”
As he said, the reason the two accepted Roden’s flaw so calmly had a lot to do with Shan. When that young warrior alone had the ability to slaughter an entire seasoned expedition party, a teammate being unable to fight in front of blades hardly counted as a real flaw.
“Please keep it a secret.”
“We will.”
“Don’t worry. Mages are used to keeping secrets.”
The two also had no desire to expose Roden’s secret and disband the expedition party.
***
After several days of marching, the “Green Eyes” returned to Sedil City, and word about them spread quickly. Of course, Shan had already gained fame from the impressive display of skill he showed in the plaza, but this time the focus shifted to his outstanding exploration ability.
“Huh, isn’t that werewolf hide?”
“I heard this was their first expedition. That’s impressive.”
“Honestly, they took so long I thought something went wrong.”
Normally, any expedition party would only skim the edges of the Demon Realm on their first outing and return. With no information, they lacked experience on where monsters inhabited and how to fight them, so they would burn through supplies in inefficient battles.
However, the Green Eyes returned carrying spoils that clearly showed they had gone quite deep. Of course, they had two experienced members, Vent and Jerpo, but both were the type to temporarily join other parties when needed, so their influence shouldn’t have been that great.
“Are you not recruiting more members?”
“I’m confident in my archery…”
“I know a secret route!”
Several people tried to slip in and join, but Shan and Roden did not recruit additional members. They were about to excavate a ruin, and adding people now would only reduce their shares. Of course, fewer people meant inconvenience, but Shan’s overwhelming strength alone solved most of those problems.
As for the rest, the expedition log they obtained from the Alto expedition team would help. All the profits they secured went into a shared fund to purchase necessary supplies. They bought two more horses to carry goods and also purchased several magical tools useful for exploration that had been too expensive before.
“Do we really have to buy this…?”
Even Roden, the son of a wealthy family, thought twice as he squeezed his eyes shut—that was how expensive the magical tools were. There was a reason expedition parties sometimes went bankrupt.
While Roden worked tirelessly day and night, Shan spent his time as leisurely as ever. Of course, even then, he trained consistently to maintain his condition. He didn’t need to push himself to the point of overexertion, but he knew better than anyone that his body would weaken rapidly the moment he became lazy. While he was stretching as usual in the inn’s yard, an unexpected visitor arrived.
“It’s been a while, Alto friend.”
“Ah, you’re the one from before…”
The one who came to see Shan was the guard he had once sparred with using wooden swords. He was a skilled man, likely a former explorer.
“I’ve been hearing rumors. You made quite a decent haul.”
“More or less.”
“Everyone finds it remarkable. It’s impressive to see someone so strong at your age. But it seems you’re also skilled in exploring, too.”
A strong warrior did not necessarily make a great explorer. Exploring the Demon Realm required not just combat ability, but also techniques like finding the right paths and managing supplies properly. Of course, Shan left all of that to Roden, but to outsiders, it looked like part of Shan’s own ability. More than anything, Roden didn’t look like someone who would be that clever.
“More importantly, someone is looking for you.”
“Who?”
If someone could give orders to a guard, they were probably an influential figure in the city, such as an administrator. But the person turned out to be someone even greater than Shan expected.
“The lord of this city.”
“Ah, the count… I mean, His Excellency the Count?”
“That’s right.”
In that case, naturally, refusing was not an option. If a mere commoner, especially an Alto, refused the count’s invitation, it would end with an enraged noble whose dignity had been severed. He wanted to discuss it with Roden, but Roden had already left the inn early to procure goods. After a brief moment of thought, Shan nodded.
“Alright. I’ve been sweating quite a bit... Can you wait while I wash up first?”
“Sure.”
After washing and changing into clean clothes, Shan hesitated for a moment before removing the sword from his waist. The count probably wouldn’t allow him to stand before him armed anyway, and if a fight broke out, it might be better to seize a weapon from an enemy nearby. Of course, it would be best if no fight happened at all, but just because he didn’t want one didn’t mean the other side felt the same.
Unaware that Shan was internally considering how to take the count hostage and escape the city if things went wrong, the guard led him to the count’s castle. The castle where the Count of Sedil resided was not in the center of the city, but attached to the outer wall. That was because this place had originally been a small fortress that gradually expanded into a city.
As they passed through the gates, people’s gazes gathered. As if asking,
“Who is that guy to be here?”
It seemed the count was not someone who frequently invited guests. Entering the courtyard, Shan immediately felt it was not as luxurious as expected.
I thought nobles all lived in extreme luxury.
Even someone like Kalion Weavers, who wasn’t even a noble, lived surrounded by every imaginable luxury. In comparison, the Count of Sedil’s castle was, at best, modest and practical—at worst, shabby.
It was hard to believe this was the residence of someone who had amassed great wealth by selling large quantities of monster materials and Alto relics through the Explorer’s Guild every year. While he thought that, a stern-looking middle-aged man approached Shan with a displeased expression.
“So you’re Shan? The Alto explorer?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Judging by his attire, he seemed to be an administrator under the count, which would make him at least a minor noble. When Shan greeted him with proper etiquette, the man looked surprised. Among explorers, those who knew manners were usually priests or mages, while most warriors were ignorant and couldn’t even read.
“Hm, you don’t seem likely to offend His Excellency… Still, just in case, remember what I’m about to tell you. Understood?”
“I will remember.”
“If you don’t want your head cut off, don’t forget it!”
In truth, everything the administrator explained was things Shan already knew. He taught Shan common etiquette, such as not making eye contact unless permitted and kneeling with the right knee. After memorizing it all, he still had to wait nearly thirty minutes before he could meet the count.
What a hassle…
He once had ambitions of becoming a knight, even a noble lord, but the tedious formalities of noble society had already made him sick of it. Soon after, Shan entered the reception room, stopped about six steps below the count’s seat, and knelt on one knee in a precise posture. Thanks to Darkal’s and Roden’s constant training, along with his natural physical talent, the posture was as sharp and elegant as a blade.
“Alto Shan greets His Excellency the Count, lord of Sedil and shield of Pendia.”
“You’ve been trained quite well. Is that the work of that jeweler fellow?”
The voice from above sounded rough and thick, almost like a beast. When Shan remained silent, the count clicked his tongue.
“Raise your head. You may answer.”
Only then did Shan lift his head and look at the count for the first time. The Count of Sedil, who looked to be around fifty, was tall and broad, proving the claim that he had once been a knight. However, though he might have been different in his youth, he was now quite overweight, making it hard to imagine him fighting as a warrior. Shan looked at the bear-like, arrogant count and answered the earlier question.
“If by jeweler you mean Kalion Weavers, then yes.”
“I once cut off that old man’s limbs and drove him out. I heard his son recently brought in a swordsman, so I invited you, wondering if you might be an assassin.”
Roden had told him before that the Count of Sedil had once expelled Kalion’s company from Sedil. Strictly speaking, it wasn’t just them. He had driven out everyone dealing with mana stones at the time, so it supposedly wasn’t personal. But hearing him now, it sounded like there was clear resentment.
“I only came to this city to work as an explorer.”
“Yes, you’ve produced decent results. I’ve received reports.”
The fact that he knew Roden’s identity right away showed how firmly he controlled information in the city. It made sense since he owned the Explorer’s Guild. It was natural that he knew everything about explorers.
“I hear you caused a disturbance in the plaza with a sword… Hm, I don’t like beating around the bush. I heard you handle a blade better than most knights. I want to see your skill.”
At the unexpected demand, Shan narrowed his eyes and glanced around. Judging from the presence of the two knights beside the count and the other soldiers, it didn’t seem like they would attack immediately.
“Are you asking for a spar?”
“Yes. Your opponent will be a knight. Or are you not confident?”
Shan hesitated briefly.
Should I answer confidently? Or act submissive and back down?
He couldn’t tell why the count suddenly wanted to see his skill, or whether he harbored ill will toward the Weavers' family and Roden. If Roden were here, he could at least read the situation and guide him. After a short moment of thought, Shan made his decision. Without Roden, trying to calculate complicated political moves he didn’t even understand would be pointless. It was better to act as he pleased.
Besides, he found the count’s attitude irritating—summoning him on a whim just to test him. He wanted to teach him a lesson. He had also wanted to fight a proper knight for a while. If things went wrong, he could always put a blade to the count’s throat and escape somehow.
“If you grant me a sword, I can fight anyone.”
“Confident, aren’t you? Good! Sir Gowell.”
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
The knight standing to the count’s left stepped forward. Clad in full plate armor and wearing a longsword at his waist, he looked imposing. In contrast, Shan stood in plain clothes with only a cloak to ward off the cold.
“Here’s a sword.”
The guard handed him a longsword that clearly looked inferior to a knight’s weapon. In fact, even a typical longsword couldn’t compare to what the opponent had. The blade of Sir Gowell’s sword bore unknown characters engraved along its center, which emitted a faint glow.
A magic weapon…
Mages wouldn’t go as far as engraving runes just for temporary enchantments. That had to be a relic from the ancient Alto Empire. Such items usually only passed down in prestigious noble or knightly families, yet here, even a subordinate knight wielded one. He didn’t know what magic it held, but if it clashed with this mediocre blade, it would probably snap it in half. The overwhelming difference in equipment carried a sense of malice.
“Then begin.”
The spar began at the count’s command, and the knight immediately charged at Shan. Unlike ordinary warriors, his movements were well-trained and refined, as expected from someone who had devoted his life to martial skill. His technique fell short compared to Sir Darkal, but he was clearly above Sir Katra, whom Shan had met during the troll hunt.
Watching the sword rise high and come down, Shan calmly raised his own blade and received the strike. He met it with a stronger foundation, taking the strike closer to the guards of his sword, and with greater force of Spirit.
The knight’s expression showed shock when his Spirit-infused strike failed to break Shan’s worn sword. With a clear gap in skill, the outcome was obvious. Shan’s blade slid along the opponent’s magic sword and thrust through the gap in the visor of the knight’s helmet.
