WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
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◈ The Wandering Knight and the Moving Castle ◈
Chapter 81: Entry
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Marbas stroked the castle's surface with an enraptured expression.
“I'm glad you seem satisfied.”
“Satisfied? That hardly begins to describe it.”
He sniffed it, pressed his ear against it to listen, and even licked it to taste it.
Eugene remembered something Marbas had said before.
“Ever since becoming a summoner, I've sensed the Wandering Castle's existence. It felt as though it were constantly sending me letters.”
Marbas trembled at the energy emanating from the castle, at the aura of Hell he had spent his life trying to escape, yet he could not suppress his curiosity.
At times, he sensed something and jerked back in alarm. Before long, though, he clung to the castle again as if drawn by a magnet.
“Wizards, honestly.”
The knights passing by frowned at the sight of his near-mad obsession.
The guards silently agreed. They had grown used to the dignified Varda and forgotten that wizards were half out of their minds by nature.
“Marbas.”
“What is it?”
“I thought I should tell you this, in case it gives you some peace of mind.”
To Eugene, Marbas looked as if fear and curiosity had each seized one of his arms. He was stretched taut between them like a tug-of-war rope, enough to make Eugene feel sorry for him.
“If anything goes wrong during your research, call for me at once. I'll come running and wash it off you, whether it's heat or cold.”
“...Ha ha ha.”
Marbas paused, then laughed.
“That's reassuring. Thank you. I believe I got too excited.”
Perhaps Eugene's words had given him a little room to breathe.
The summoner, who had carried an unsettling air about him, had returned to his usual kindly expression.
* * *
Varda's return took a few more hours.
She looked somewhat tired, as though she had used a major spell. The mercenary accompanying her carried empty reagent bottles and drained scrolls.
“What kind of magic did you use?”
“One type of forest magic detects heat through solid objects. It is used to find harmful animals or pests hidden beneath trees or crops.”
‘Is she detecting infrared?’
Magic truly was incredible if it could even see through objects.
“Wasn't scanning a castle that large too much?”
“I believed it was the most urgent information.”
“That's true.”
Duke Ismar and the vassal nobles wanted to know what lay inside the castle.
For now, with every side sealed shut, it was simply a mysterious relic. Still, no one knew what could be lurking within.
In the worst case, the gates could open at any moment and monsters could pour out in a swarm.
“What did you find?”
“The entire castle reminded me of a single enormous fish. Its outer walls are a shell facing cold seawater, while the inside is filled with flesh, as though warm blood runs through it.”
Eugene remembered the dream he had in The Knight's House, the warmth of the stone walls beneath his hands and feet.
It was a castle that could speak to him. It would not be strange if it were alive.
“So you couldn't tell what was inside.”
“I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help.”
“Shh... Please don't say that. It makes me sad.”
Eugene held out his arm and helped Varda down from her horse.
“I am one who runs through forests. I am accustomed to moving my body and sweating. I can do it myself, so there is no need to treat me like a lord.”
Early in their travels, Varda had hopped on and off horses like a ballerina.
These days, though, she quietly brought her legs together and waited for Eugene's escort. They both wanted it that way.
* * *
A few days later, Eugene joined the investigation.
He was not a conventional mage, so he might fall short, but he possessed a special item, the key he had received from Decimus, the Guardian of an ancient ruin.
It had finally arrived by express delivery from Northfork, which had received the homing pigeon and dispatched the key.
Brrr.
The object in Eugene's hand resonated as he approached the Wandering Castle. Varda's golden eyes gleamed with interest.
“I can feel that the power in the key and the castle are bound together. The summoner would want to see this too.”
“I'd feel bad waking him.”
Marbas was sleeping soundly in a nearby tent.
“He was investigating the castle until late last night. He said there were things only visible after sunset.”
The power connected to the key led them to a point on the Wandering Castle.
Hummm.
The closer they followed its flow, the stronger the key's vibration became.
“Here.”
They finally reached their destination. It was an unremarkable section of the outer wall.
“I don't see anything that could be called a door.”
“Should we look for somewhere to insert the key?”
At Eugene's nod, the guards spread out.
Flash!
At that moment, the key emitted an intense light, as though the bothersome intruders had finally moved away.
“Huh?”
“S-Sir Eugene?”
By the time the mercenaries searching the outer wall turned back in shock, it was already too late.
Eugene had vanished, along with Varda and Homi beside him. Only the warhorses they had been riding remained.
Snort?
Neigh!
Startled by the sudden loss of their riders' weight, the horses snorted and tossed their heads.
Clack, clack.
They inspected one another's stirrups and looked around, but despite their admirable effort, they found nothing.
* * *
Naturally, Eugene was far more startled. In an instant, not just the scenery but the temperature, smell, and everything else had changed.
The pleasant spring weather outdoors disappeared, and a broad enclosed corridor stretched out before him.
It looked exactly like the corridor from his dream, the interior of a spacious yet luxurious stone structure.
The one difference was that, unlike then, he was clothed and equipped, and he was not alone.
“That key...”
Varda pointed to Eugene's palm.
The key, now stripped of its luster, was crumbling apart and scattering like ash.
“It must have been single-use.”
“It seems it was not meant to be inserted and turned. The key itself was some sort of transporter.”
As the two wizards calmly analyzed the mystery they had just experienced, Homi stood rigid with fear.
She had a human body and intelligence, but her senses remained deeply animalistic.
There was not a single familiar scent, while unfamiliar warning signals assailed all her senses.
“Homi?”
Her tail stood straight out at an angle, every hair bristling.
Eugene had seen her like that only once, when Homi had gotten lost alone on a mountain at night and cried as a child.
Eugene firmly took Homi's hand.
“Eep!”
“Calm down. As long as I'm here, nothing will harm you.”
Squeeze.
Varda took her other hand.
The warmth of the two people she trusted most in the world, and the affection flowing through their interlocked hands, calmed her heart.
“Magical lights. They are truly precious, yet there are so many of them.”
Though the corridor was enclosed, transparent glass tubes installed overhead emitted light and drove away the darkness.
“It's been a long time since I've seen daylight-white lighting.”
“Daylight-white?”
“I mean a clean white light, not the yellowish, reddish light of a campfire or torch.”
“It is light that can only be obtained through the sun or magic. In darkness, it is a luxury even kings struggle to enjoy.”
“This place is covered in that luxury.”
Eugene looked over the glass tubes illuminating the entire long corridor.
“One detail tells you a great deal. I can only imagine how much wealth went into this castle...”
“It even caused a civil war during its construction.”
By then, Homi had released their hands.
“Are you all right now?”
Nod, nod.
In an emergency, a Squire could not become a burden to her knight.
Homi drew the air deep into her lungs and focused on grasping her surroundings.
Her lord feared nothing in battle, so it would be enough for her to serve as his eyes and nose.
“The air seems clean.”
Although this place seemed sealed off, the air was fresh without a speck of dust, as though it was constantly circulated and purified.
Varda smiled at the knight inspecting his surroundings with interest.
“I knew you had nerves of steel, but I didn't expect you to remain completely unfazed.”
“I've been here before. Not in reality, but still.”
“In that dream at The Knight's House?”
“Yes.”
Eugene clenched his fist and tapped his breastplate and sword hilt once each.
“Back then, I was naked and empty-handed. What could I possibly fear now?”
Knights were creatures whose courage rose without reason as long as they held one decent weapon in their hands.
Bzzzt!
At that moment, the lights in the corridor flickered.
A group of undead soldiers emerged from around the corner and approached Eugene's party.
“They're quick. They already noticed the intruders.”
They gave off an evil aura, but they were unlike Wights. The soldiers wore clothing from the Ancient Kingdom, yet there was not even flesh or bone within their armor. All that remained was a black, shimmering haze.
Still, they leveled their weapons and showed clear hostility.
“Living armor. Such beings are formed when a wizard's magic or a vengeful spirit inhabits equipment.”
“In this case, it must be the latter.”
“Yes. This place is both a fortress and a spiritual prison. The flowing magic is being collected without waste. It is no wonder the souls could not escape.”
If Eugene's group died here, they too would likely end up like those suits of living armor.
Bzzzt.
The magical lights blinked in time with the living armor soldiers advancing in formation.
“They seem to absorb the magic around them to maintain their existence. That must be why the lights are unstable.”
“This is bright enough. Homi, protect Varda.”
Eugene drew Last Autumn and stepped in front of the two women. Its silver blade looked especially radiant.
“Does it feel different from usual?”
“This is a place saturated with magic. The Aether-forged blade seems to be affected by it as well.”
Eugene pointed his sword at the living armor.
Clink.
Perhaps because its power to banish evil had grown stronger, they twitched for a moment. It was as though they could already feel the magic composing them beginning to scatter.
* * *
Rex had just finished reporting to the tribal council when he arrived in Rostok and flew into a rage.
“How the hell were you guarding him?!”
“We are sorry.”
The tribal warriors did not dare raise their heads.
“The only salvation lies in the cradle. Find the greatest knight. The custom of hospitality shall be upheld through him.”
Eugene had defeated countless powerful enemies to prove himself, possessed the key connected to the castle, and even dreamed of being invited inside. Then the Wandering Castle had finally appeared.
With every piece of the prophecy in place, an accident had occurred. From the circumstances, Eugene appeared to have been taken inside the castle, willingly or otherwise.
No matter how powerful a knight he was, entering that vast, unknown place without an army was far too dangerous.
“What supplies did he have?”
“Nothing beyond his personal equipment.”
“Damn it.”
Eugene had traveled with the Dark Elves and grown accustomed to their nomadic culture.
He normally kept emergency rations and a waterskin prepared for unexpected situations, but they were tied to his horse's saddle.
At least he was wearing armor and carrying an Aether-forged sword. He would be able to cut down monsters and ghosts alike.
“It isn't bad that the mage and the Squire are with him, but they have no supplies.”
Rex bit his lip.
The two women were undoubtedly excellent fighters, but without food and water, they could become burdens instead.
“What about opening the gates?”
“We have tried, but failed.”
Other investigation teams and wizards had already attempted every possible method of entry.
“It is the work of the ancients. Nothing done from outside will open it.”
As the dwarf noble who had come to see the castle had said, the tightly shut gates did not budge.
Even a battering ram would do nothing, and catapults firing rocks at them would struggle to leave a scratch.
“Set up camp in a ring around the area. Watch every place on the castle that could be a balcony or window. There may be something inside trying to send a signal.”
Eugene's mercenaries and Marbas joined in.
“I will speak with Duke Ismar and the guards controlling the area.”
“Please do, summoner.”
* * *
Thud!
Eugene watched the final suit of living armor collapse, then inspected his blade.
“Are you all right?”
“There is no problem. Even after using it roughly, the edge is undamaged.”
“I meant you, not the sword.”
“I wasn't hit even once, so don't worry.”
Eugene had defeated dozens of suits of living armor alone, yet his breathing was not even disturbed.
The corridor was wide, so a few slipped past him, but Homi sent every one of them flying with a kick.
“Once I got the hang of it, they were easy opponents.”
At first, he had hacked them apart with brute force, but he soon realized there was no need.
The Aether-forged blade purified the grudge inhabiting the armor simply by piercing the black haze.
“!!!”
After that, Eugene held his sword in both hands, darting in and out while using only swift thrusts.
Thud!
His blade pierced holes through their armor.
Whoosh!
Or it smoothly slipped into the gaps between the armor.
Either way, once stripped of spiritual energy, the living armor became nothing more than chunks of metal and collapsed onto the floor.
“We should find somewhere to stay soon. It feels like night has come.”
Eugene was still human and needed rest. They could not sleep in such an open corridor, so they needed a safe place.
But at the four-way intersection where they stood, he had no idea which direction to take.
Bzzzt.
The magical lights lining one side of the corridor flickered violently, then began going out from far away.
Clink!
Thud! Thud!
New beings approached from the darkness. Their sounds and presence were different from the living armor soldiers they had faced earlier.
“Damn it.”
The moment Eugene cursed, a whisper entered the group's ears.
[Follow my guidance.]
“...!”
Varda and Homi looked around in surprise.
Eugene, in contrast, remained calm. He had heard that voice before.
It was the voice that had asked him to sit on the throne and begged him not to leave.
A trail of magic appeared along the corridor floor, trying to guide Eugene like a signpost.
“It may be the trap of an evil elemental spirit. All kinds of things could appear in a place like this.”
“I don't think so.”
Eugene remembered the desperation in that voice as it begged him not to leave in his dream. At the very least, he believed it did not want him to die here.
“If I must move when every direction is dangerous, I will go toward the one I know even a little.”
“As you wish.”
At the knight's firm words, Varda and Homi obediently followed. Eugene was their leader.
Even as he followed the magical trail on the floor, Eugene sharpened all his senses and prepared for an ambush.
The magical trail ended before a wall. Eugene, who had expected something like a solid door, was briefly confused.
‘Was it an elemental spirit's prank, just as Varda said?’
Rumble.
Fortunately, as if to reassure him, the wall began moving on its own.
“A disguised stone door. Well, it would not be strange for a place like this to have one.”
Varda, who had seen many castles, nodded. Most castles had a few secret passages known only to their owners.
Considering the chaotic final days of the Ancient Kingdom, it would not be strange for places like this to be scattered everywhere.
When the stone door opened, a fresh scent rushed out.
Thud!
Once the three entered, the stone door closed again.
[This place is safe.]
A second whisper reached them. Unlike in the dream, it carried a note of caution.
They could smell grass and hear the sound of flowing water. Before them stretched a small, beautiful artificial garden.
Unlike the corridor, where faint hostility had seemed to lurk everywhere amid the silence, this place was filled only with pleasant sounds and peace.
Footnotes:
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