kscans

1

After defeating the demonic beasts, Bard and his companions returned to the village. The village chief rushed out and prostrated himself at the feet of Krildzuka.

“Y-Your Lordship! Please, please have mercy on us! The bandits, the bandits…they will massacre the village! Please help us! We beg of you!”

Doriatessa, surprised, dismounted from Krildzuka.

“What’s going on, Village Chief? What happened? Calm down and explain.”

The village chief began to explain the situation. As he spoke, he became calmer and was able to explain in a more organized manner.

Three days after Bard and his companions left the village, Knight Heridan also left the village. He had to buy two more carts from the village because the one he originally had was not enough to carry all the wounded.

Several days later, a young man named Perjag from the northern village stumbled into the village, barely alive. He said that the bandits had attacked and wiped out the village. Furthermore, Lord Bobard was unlikely to send troops to help. The bandits were currently occupying the northern village, but if they ran out of food, they would surely target this village next.

“It’s a strange story. Both the northern village and this village have a protection contract with Lord Bobard. There is usually a patrol every ten days, but there hasn’t been one for the past thirty days. According to Perjag, when he ran to Lord Bobard’s mansion, he saw a soldier he knew. He told the soldier about the bandits, but the soldier only gave vague answers and didn’t take it seriously. Perjag thought it was hopeless and came to this village. I was also surprised and sent my son to Lord Bobard five days ago. He should have returned by now since he went on horseback, but we haven’t heard anything. If we don’t do anything, this village will be the next target. We can’t just abandon the village we’ve worked so hard to build and run away, but we don’t have enough carts to carry everyone’s belongings. Please, please, Your Lordship. It may be unreasonable to ask a knight from the distant Goriora Empire for help, but please have mercy on us and help us.”

The village chief’s plea was understandable. If it were a mercenary or a wandering knight, they could be hired with money. However, a commoner cannot hire a noble. They can only beg for mercy and help. Regardless of the actual situation, nobles are supposed to be the ones who pity and help the powerless. Moreover, this village and the Goriora Empire are not unrelated.

If you go east from the Goriora Empire, cross the Great Ova, and go a little south, you will find the territory of Lord Yadobalgi. This was originally a place where exiled nobles from the Goriora Empire settled. The exiled nobles arrived here with some wealth, retainers, or subjects. They started developing the frontier using their knowledge and tools, and people gathered there, eventually developing into the territory of Lord Yadobalgi. (t/n: Yadobalgi is daimyo->’feudal lord, below the shogun’)

Later, a faction that lost in the power struggle within the territory of Lord Yadobalgi became independent and became the Bobard territory. Bobard is located just east of the territory of Lord Yadobalgi, but the two are not on good terms.

Later, villages were established to the north and south of Bobard. These were villages created by people who had committed crimes in Bobard and were granted freedom in exchange for developing the wilderness. This village is located in the southern part of that village. Although it was an undeveloped area, there were not many wild beasts, the land was fertile, water was abundant, and the weather was mild. So, the two villages have enjoyed peace until today.

Neither the people of Bobard nor the people of the two villages have ever met nobles or commoners from the Goriora Empire. Nevertheless, they consider themselves to be people who originally came from the Goriora Empire and have a great affection and longing for it. Therefore, it seemed like fate that a knight from the Goriora Empire was present during this disaster.

Doriatessa, who was being begged, looked bewildered. It’s not surprising. The knights accompanying her were not her subordinates and she was not in a position to give orders. Moreover, they were indebted to the villagers and it would not be easy to repay that debt. Before Doriatessa could say anything, Godon Zarkos spoke up.

“Hmm, that’s troublesome, Village Chief. But don’t worry. Sir Bard Rowen, who is here, is a renowned hero who has defeated countless monsters and villains, and is called the ‘Knight of The People’ in the far southern lands, where he is highly respected by the people. Sir Rowen would never do anything wrong!”

The villagers exclaimed in awe and gratitude at the prospect of being helped by Sir Bard Rowen, the Knight of The People. Some even prostrated themselves in reverence.

Bard watched the scene with bitterness. Godon Zarkos never stopped promoting Bard’s name, no matter how many times he asked him to stop. No, perhaps Zarkos didn’t even consider it promotion. It was his way of expressing his love for the people.

Either way, Bard couldn’t let it go. He had to talk to the young man named Perjag first.

That night, they listened to the Village Chief’s story in detail and set off the next morning. Perjag said he would accompany them at night, but he slept like a log once he did. He had been running non-stop from the northern village to Bobard and then to the southern village. A young man named Kolti joined them as their guide.

As they rode towards the northern village, Bard remembered Venn Urill’s fight against the monsters.

It was a magnificent display of skill. Venn Urill jumped into the embrace of a Great Red Bear and fought it without ever leaving its side, knowing that one mistake would cost him his life. He calmly and coolly drew the monster’s attention without even unsheathing his sword, making it easier for Doriatessa and the others to fight. And when Doriatessa was in danger, he cut off the bear’s thick ankle bone with just one swing of his sword, even though it wasn’t a particularly large sword. His swordsmanship was excellent, but his skill with his arms was even better. Bard wondered if he could have defeated that monster alone if he had wanted to.

Venn Urill was a remarkable man.

Bard felt his blood boil as he watched the impressive display of skill. He felt as if he had become stronger just by being exposed to Venn Urill’s breath. He felt his heart pounding with excitement, as if he were a young boy dreaming of becoming a knight. His excitement was contagious, and sometimes he had to calm down Yueitan, who was moving too fast.

2

The group prepared for camping. They would camp twice on the way to the northern village. They could reach it in one camping trip if they pushed themselves, but tired horses and people wouldn’t be of any use.

“Phew. That was delicious. Thank you, Sir Bard.”

“You’re a good cook, my lord.”

“It was delicious.”

“It’s because I’m a glutton,” Bard replied.

“Venn Urill, please stop calling me ‘my lord.’ I’ve told you before that I didn’t buy you. I appreciate your help, but you can go wherever you want after this bandit extermination.”

“Hmm. My lord. I attacked you with three consecutive attacks.”

That was a year ago. Venn Urill had challenged Bard to a duel as an assassin hired by the Gwendell family.

“My lord dodged all three attacks without a scratch.”

Bard said it was just luck, but Venn Urill shook his head.

“My sword is not so weak that it can be dealt with by luck. Only one in a hundred people can dodge my swordsmanship three times in a row. It’s impossible for it to happen three times in a row. I realized that my lord was protected by heaven. Killing my lord would be going against the will of heaven. Those who go against heaven will perish. I didn’t want to fight my lord anymore.”

Come to think of it, after the first three consecutive attacks, Venn Urill’s attacks seemed lackluster.

“The foolish man who ordered me to do it died, so I was able to stop fighting my lord. But I lost the prospect of earning money. I decided to test heaven and sold myself in Linz. On that last day of my wish, my lord bought me. It was less than a tenth of the necessary amount, but I thought I could make do with it.”

Bard asked if Venn Urill had finished what he needed to do, and Venn Urill explained.

“Done. My sister was forced to work as a prostitute and it cost one million gales to buy her back. I had left home early, but I found out about it at some point. The deadline was approaching, so I went to the lord’s house with his money. There was a man who wanted to marry my sister and he provided the money, but it was a little short. The lord’s money was just enough to make up for the shortfall after using the money needed for the trip. My sister found happiness. It seems that if it had been a few days later, it would have been too late. I learned that the lord was truly a person favored by heaven.”

This story cannot be taken literally. Even if she was a high-class prostitute, the cost of buying her back for one million gales is outrageous. The other parts of the story also seem like a made-up plot. However, Bard thought that it was not a complete lie. There must be some reason why the truth cannot be spoken as it is. Perhaps speaking the truth would put Venn Urill in danger or Bard and his companions would be in danger. However, he did not want to remain silent in response to Bard’s question. Therefore, he answered with a made-up story. The truth was included in this made-up story as much as possible.

3

On the second day, they covered some distance. The guide, a young man named Kolti, and his horse did well and kept up without delay. They arrived at a position where they could see the northern village from the top of the pass in the evening. Bard decided to camp by the river downstream from the pass. Doriatessa was surprised and asked Bard if it was safe to light a fire.

“Isn’t there a risk of being found by the bandits?”

“It’s possible. But if we don’t light a fire, what will happen? We can’t get enough energy from cold food. It’s already autumn. If we don’t light a fire, it will be quite cold at night. Our energy will decrease, and if our bodies get cold, we won’t be able to use our usual strength. This is the time to take a leisurely meal and warm up. Then, even if we are attacked, we can fight to our fullest. Also, the smoke from the fire will show that there are only a few people here. They will probably hesitate to enter the forest at night, knowing that there are many of them. Doriatessa, once you make a decision, don’t worry about it anymore. Relax your mind and body.”

Doriatessa nodded and enjoyed the warmth of the soup in her hand.

4

In the end, there was no night attack. Jurchaga and Venn Urill said that no reconnaissance came. If these two said so, it must be true. The group set out early in the morning and approached the village while taking a detour.

Now, what should they do? Bard thought. They had come this far, but they had not yet made a plan. They didn’t even know the number or equipment of the enemy. Jurchaga spoke up when he saw Bard lost in thought.

“Hey, why are you lost in thought, boss? At Linz, you defeated twelve soldiers with spears and swords in no time, even though you didn’t have any weapons.”

Hearing that story, Godon and Doriatessa’s eyes shone with admiration. Bard smiled wryly. The situation was different from back then. It was difficult to take advantage of the difference in numbers in a room. He knew that the enemy did not have projectiles. He read that they would shrink if he assessed the enemy and showed his strength. Above all, at that time, it was most important not to scratch Julelan. Bard himself didn’t mind getting seriously injured. Therefore, he ignored the damage to his side and focused only on defeating the enemy and taking away their fighting power.

Now, there was no reason to fight recklessly like that. Besides, they had come to the north village from their side, because attacking was easier than defending. If the enemy’s numbers were large, they could be dispersed and defeated one by one. Fighting was not just about hitting head-on.

Perjag said that there were over forty bandits. That was a bit too many. The side that was suddenly attacked would feel that the enemy’s numbers were large. However, it could not be said that there was no possibility of there being over forty people. Bard asked Jurchaga to do reconnaissance.

Jurchaga replied lightly, “Sure thing,” and disappeared into the grass. He returned in a very short time and reported with a stern face.

“They split up into several houses. The largest house had about fifteen people, and about half of them were still awake. The next three largest houses had about five people each, and everyone there was asleep. In addition, there were several women locked up in a servant’s hut next to the large house, and several men were locked up in another hut. They’re doing terrible things to the women in the largest house!”

This means that there are at least thirty enemies, and there are hostages. Bard tried to come up with a plan, but he noticed that Venn Urill was not on his horse. It seemed like he had gone to the village on foot.

Bard entrusted Venn Urill’s horse to the young man named Kolti and ordered him to wait there. He ordered Godon and Doriatessa to walk their horses without making any noise. Since Venn Urill was secretly planning a surprise attack, they shouldn’t interfere.

When they had gone a little further, they heard loud noises and angry voices coming from the village. Women were screaming too. They didn’t need to move quietly anymore.

“Run!”

Bard shouted to everyone, and without even pulling the reins, Yueitan began to charge forward. This horse was always like this. It hated being ordered around, so it moved before it was commanded.

Bandits came out of the three houses and headed towards the largest house. None of them had bows and arrows, but two of them had spears. Bard cut the hand of the bandit with the spear as he charged through the group of bandits. Then he ran to the back and turned around. A warrior on horseback was a threat to those on foot. The bandits were shaken by the fact that a large man on a horse swung his sword and attacked them.

Bard was about to re-enter the fray, but he stopped when Doriatessa came running in. Her horse, Krildzuka, was quite fast. She attacked the bandit with the spear first and took away his fighting power. The bandits tried to counterattack desperately, but Doriatessa skillfully maneuvered her horse to avoid their attacks. Even if she was hit by an attack that hit her armor, she didn’t panic and steadily defeated them one by one.

“Hmm. It seems like you’ve grown a bit after fighting with the demonic beasts. You’re quite a fighter now. I can’t believe you became a knight without knowing anything about real combat. Except for killing your allies, this is probably the first time you’ve killed someone,” Bard thought.

Godon also arrived, and there was no need to take credit for Doriatessa’s achievements. Godon was also knowledgeable and had surrounded the place where the bandits’ horses were tied up. He intended to block their escape route. Bard got off his horse and headed towards the largest house.

The door had been kicked in. The moment he stepped inside, he was hit by the strong smell of blood.

They were dead. They were all dead.

Sixteen bandits were dead. Hands, feet, and necks were cut off and scattered everywhere. Five women were trembling in a pool of blood, lying on the ground in an indecent manner. They were the only survivors, and they were looking at the man standing alone.

Venn Urill, covered in blood, was standing there. He was holding a blood-stained magic sword in his hand and his eyes were vacant. He exuded a tremendous sense of emptiness from his entire body. Bard was shocked.

“What is this? Is this the same Venn Urill? The man who was so agile and enjoyed fighting so much? What happened to him? There’s no sign of any skill in his cutting. He’s just cutting them up. Did Venn Urill really do this gruesome killing? If so… If so… I completely misjudged this man. Behind his carefree appearance, he was carrying such deep despair.”

At that moment, Bard could clearly see the great red raven that had possessed Venn Urill. But now, there were more important things to do. They had to rescue the villagers. They found out that many of the women had survived, but only eight of the men had survived. They had been tied up and left alone, so they were in bad shape.

While they were doing this, officials from Bobard arrived with soldiers. They left the disposal of the corpses to them and confronted the responsible official. Bard asked him why he had neglected to patrol the area for more than thirty days, even though they had signed a protection contract every ten days. He also asked why they had ignored the reports of bandit attacks for almost ten days.

The official, who was visibly shaken, denied knowing anything about it. But when Doriatessa revealed that she was a knight of Goriora and a daughter of the Marquis of Fafarlen, he reluctantly explained that it was the work of the knights of the Vodres Marquis. They had threatened the Lord of Bobard not to interfere with them for a while, even if there were incidents in two villages. The Bobard territory was economically prosperous and had many soldiers, so their strength was high. There was no reason for them to be threatened by knights from other countries. However, the Lord of Bobard had ambitions to become a nobleman of Goriora someday. Therefore, she was forced to cooperate with them. The reason why Doriatessa made Bobard the base for hunting demonic beasts was also there. After learning the situation, Doriatessa turned pale.

Bard asked the official if there was a reward for defeating the thieves. The answer was yes, so Bard made the official promise to give all the rewards to the villagers and make the equipment left by the thieves the property of the village.

Bard instructed Doriatessa to explain to the surviving villagers. That Perjag had safely arrived at Bobard and then headed to the southern village. That the southern village had begged the knights present to defeat the thieves. That the young man Kolti dispatched by the southern village had guided Bard and his party this far, and so on. With this, the northern and southern villages would deepen their friendship and be able to work together more easily towards the reconstruction of the village.

5

They stayed overnight in the forest on the way and returned to the southern village. They reported the situation to the village chief, picked up their luggage, and left, shaking off the villagers who tried to stop them. After dinner, Doriatessa began to speak by the fire of their camp.

Doriatessa had gone to hunt demonic beasts, and Princess Elsa, the older sister of Princess Shernelia, had offered to help, and the knights of the Vodres family, her mother’s family, had agreed to lend their strength. This Princess Elsa had recently had her engagement arranged, but there were rumors about it.

Her fiancé was a young and promising heir to a count’s family, but originally the emperor had considered this young man as a marriage partner for Princess Shernelia, and when she refused, it was said that Elsa was given to him instead. Doriatessa knew this to be true. It was not unreasonable for the Vodres family to be unhappy about it.

Furthermore, there were rumors that Princess Shernelia was being sent as the country’s representative to the Frontier Martial Arts Competition this time, with the implication that she could choose her marriage partner from the knights of the Parzam Kingdom. Doriatessa knew this to be entirely true. It was also rumored that even if she married a Parzam knight, she had no intention of sending the princess away and was planning to establish a new marquis family for her and have her marry into it. She had heard that they were even planning to build a new mansion within the grounds of the imperial palace. This was an extraordinary favor, and it felt a little strange.

There is no way Elsa and her family would be happy with such special treament only to the youngest princess, who has the blood of a merchant family. Especially, it was said that Marie Scarla, Elsa’s mother, harbored intense hatred towards Princess Shernelia and her mother.

So when they were attacked by the knights of the Vodres family, Doriatessa asked Knight Heridan which flower to hate, the red or the white. Knight Heridan answered the red one. That is, Marie Scarla. The white flower referred to Elsa. In fact, the answer Doriatessa feared the most was neither. If that were the case, the mastermind was likely to be the Vodres family itself. If the Vodres family were the mastermind, the situation could escalate into a full-scale war between the two marquis families. On the other hand, if it was Marie Scarla’s unilateral decision, the Vodres family might be able to settle the matter.

After talking about that, Doriatessa fell silent. She was looking down, lost in thought. Her expression was dark. Bard felt he had a rough idea of what Doriatessa was thinking.

Doriatessa was relieved when she heard that it was the red flower. However, there were unexpected victims. A tragedy had occurred in a village where half of the population had been lost. If the knights of Vodres had not interfered inappropriately, the people would not have died. The Vodres family’s desire to kill Doriatessa had left that village defenseless. The thieves took advantage of that. The knights of Vodres also suffered a great deal, even though it was their own fault. Doriatessa’s desire for the demonic beast’s head was the cause of the whole affair. She was probably thinking about that now.

Bard thought she was a clumsy woman. There was no blame on Doriatessa’s actions themselves. She should hate the Vodres family rather than blame herself. That way, she wouldn’t suffer. No one would blame Doriatessa. Rather, it can be said that Doriatessa’s behavior was the best she could do under the circumstances.

However, this woman should stop blaming herself. That’s because she has a heart that mourns for the dead. Yes. It’s okay to suffer. You must not try to escape from that suffering. Holding onto that suffering is the only way to become a true knight.

Bard’s expression as he looked at Doriatessa was stern and tight, but there was a gentle light in his eyes.

Even so. The hatred of this Marie Scarla was extraordinary. If she had killed Doriatessa, how did she plan to report it? Doriatessa’s status was too high to simply report her death as an accident without bringing back her body. No matter how it turned out, the Vodres family could not escape dishonor and accountability. Sensing the madness in that, Bard felt a chill.