We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Be careful of drunks.
A man with stubble looked down at me from his horse.
He wore more impressive armor than the surrounding patrol soldiers and carried a thick straight sword at his waist. Jewels were set in the crossguard, so it was probably a Curse Power Sword.
He had gray hair. His handsome features and stubble gave him the appearance of a playboy, but he also had an air of refinement.
His physique wasn’t gigantic, but his solid build was evident even through his armor.
He seemed tall.
“W-What are you talking about?”
I asked the man on the horse.
Someone who was looking for us, with patrol soldiers surrounding him, must have been looking for us because of what happened during the day. But if I admitted that so easily, what would be the point of running away? I intended to play dumb for as long as possible. Fortunately, this was the main road, and it was a little far from the inn where I was staying, so they probably hadn’t found my lodging yet. And when it came to running, I was confident. After all, I had acquired a new way of running. I was confident I could escape alone. Oh, Nimia was still on my shoulder, but she didn’t feel like a burden.
Nimia quietly watched the situation from my shoulder. I’ve had her pretend to be a cat in public. If she started talking, it would be a disaster.
The man on the horse glanced at Nimia for a moment, then gave me a wry smile at my feigned ignorance and dismounted. He was indeed tall. I only reached up to his chest. And, subtly, the patrol soldiers moved to surround me. I noticed.
The passersby on the road were a mix of people fleeing in alarm and curious onlookers. I didn’t want to stand out. I wondered if I should have just stayed quietly at the inn. But if I had stayed, what would the women have done to me after they came out of the bath…
The stubble-faced man, unaware of my inner turmoil, pointed at me.
“You’re that guy. Come on… what was it?”
“The disturbance with the Dragonkin during the day, Commander.”
“Right, right, that. You’re an important witness, aren’t you? Oh, wait. Didn’t you say it was a beautiful woman?”
“No, I said that the cute boy with chestnut hair by her side was him.”
“Ah, yes, that’s right.”
The stubble-faced man seemed unmotivated, and the patrol soldier assisted him with a sigh. There was no tension at all.
“I recognized you as soon as I saw you. You were involved in the day’s… what was it?”
The stubble-faced man scratched his head with a laugh, and the surrounding patrol soldiers sighed again. He seemed to be an unreliable superior.
I wondered how someone who didn’t even know about the day’s disturbance could have found me in the crowd on the road. It felt like he came straight towards me without hesitation after seeing me.
Regardless, I used this lack of tension to plan my escape. It was fine to be surrounded. The surrounding net was meaningless to my new escape skills. I tried to gather power within my body.
Suddenly, my left arm was grabbed.
“It’s not good to just stand and talk, why don’t we go to a bar around here and grab something to eat and drink?”
The man who grabbed me was the stubble-faced man. He was holding me lightly, but for some reason, I felt I couldn’t break free. By the way, I’m underage, so I’d prefer a restaurant to a bar. This is no time to be thinking so casually.
“Ah, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Rudoriado, commander of the patrol soldiers.”
Rudoriado said with a smile, and there was no hint of carelessness in his eyes. I wondered if this person was actually highly skilled.
“Let’s shake hands, first.”
Rudoriado, who had bent down to my eye level, extended his free hand and smelled of alcohol. Ugh, I winced reflexively.
“Oh my, did I smell of alcohol?”
Rudoriado laughed cheerfully and forcibly took my right hand for a handshake. He released my left arm, but he firmly held my right hand.
“I can’t work after dark unless I’ve had some drinks.”
“You’ve been drinking all day.”
Rudoriado laughed heartily at the patrol soldier’s retort. Why was someone who drank during working hours a commander just because it was night? Moreover, the surrounding soldiers didn’t seem to mind. It seemed that the patrol soldiers and Commander Rudoriado were on good terms. There was an atmosphere of everyone happily working together. But that had nothing to do with me. I had to find a way to break free from Rudoriado’s grasp. I could escape as I was, but I couldn’t guarantee Rudoriado’s safety.
“Oh, are you still planning to escape even in this situation? Or do you have some foolproof escape plan?”
The sharp glint in Rudoriado’s eyes, which had been smiling with his patrol soldiers, was now steely. As expected, this person was no ordinary man. His words and actions were relaxed, but he always grasped the key points.
“I don’t dislike tag, but I’d prefer to finish my business quickly and get some drinks.”
“You’re already drinking.”
“Well, you got me there.”
Rudoriado gave a wry smile at my retort.
“You’re quite good at retorting.”
“I have an acquaintance who plays dumb.”
“Oh, I’d love to meet him.”
“That’s impossible. That old man is reclusive and lives in seclusion.”
“Ah, we’d get along. I actually want to live a quiet life in the countryside, truly.”
“You don’t seem like it at all.”
Rudoriado and I engaged in casual conversation. However, a battle was being waged beneath the surface. It wasn’t a major one, though. I was trying to break free from his handshake, and Rudoriado was preventing me. It felt like an easy grip, but I couldn’t break free. What kind of handshake expert is this?
“Good grief. This is troublesome in many ways.”
Rudoriado chuckled wryly, though it was unclear what “many ways” referred to.
“I thought we could talk over drinks. How about we talk privately over there?”
Rudoriado pointed beyond the row of buildings to a secluded area. There were no lights there. I recalled that apart from the buildings along the road, the area was mostly wheat fields.
“You guys, disperse the nosy onlookers and wait here.”
When Rudoriado gave the order, the cheerful atmosphere among the patrol soldiers vanished in an instant, and they skillfully got to work.
“Now, let’s go solve these various problems.”
Various problems? He certainly wanted to know more about the daytime incident, but what other problems could there be? Holding my hand, still in a handshake, Rudoriado led me towards the dark wheat fields. He was still holding my hand lightly, but I couldn’t break free. In fact, I was being led by Rudoriado without resistance. What kind of person is he? His appearance, demeanor, and actions didn’t match at all. There was some deception, but with my limited life experience, I couldn’t see through it.
“Alright, is this far enough?”
Rudoriado stopped after heading a little down a path in the wheat field. All around us, the wheat, which had grown to about my height before harvest, rustled gently in the breeze. Stars were already twinkling in the sky, and the moonlight provided just enough light to see our surroundings.
What was “far enough”? Coming this far, I finally realized. My body tensed with anticipation of what was to come.
“Even at night, it’s strange if you’re not noticed with such clumsy hiding. Come out already.”
Rudoriado shouted into the darkness.
“Kukuku. I was deliberately letting you notice us. For you to send the soldiers away despite knowing we were here, you are a fool.”
Emerging from the darkness with ominous words were over twenty men. All of them appeared from the wheat fields beyond the path. There were probably no one lurking in the fields to the rear or sides. My training had somewhat improved my ability to sense presences. I had realized partway through that someone was directing killing intent towards us. But I never expected there to be so many of them. I was surprised, my eyes wide.
“Or, what is it? Did you signal everyone away to hand this kid over to us?”
A man with a creepy grin said. Huh? Is that right? I looked up at Rudoriado hesitantly.
“No, no, no. There’s no way I’d hand over such a cute boy to you rough guys.”
Rudoriado laughed heartily and without tension. I breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn’t this person’s lack of tension be fixed? Seeing Rudoriado laughing cheerfully, the newcomers’ anger surged.
I looked at the people who had appeared again. They all looked like ruffians. Their equipment was not uniform, ranging from leather armor to full plate. Their weapons also varied, from daggers to great axes. However, what they all had in common was that their weapons looked of high quality. The disparity between their armor and weapons was jarring, creating an unsettling atmosphere.
“We have no business with you. We want the boy and the woman with him.”
A man holding a curved sword spoke. If they were looking for me and Mistral…
“Hahaha, is he your companion, boy?”
Rudoriado looked down at me. No, no, that’s not possible. I shook my head vigorously in denial.
“Tch. What an idiot.”
A man with a war hammer clicked his tongue.
“We’ve come for revenge for the incident during the day.”
Over twenty men simultaneously drew their weapons.
“Regret picking a fight with the Dragonkin.”
At the words of the man wielding a great axe, I shuddered. Did those men from the day have companions? And they called themselves Dragonkin again. I wondered if this many Dragonkin were descending from Dragon Peak. I surreptitiously looked at Nimia, who was still on my shoulder. If those people were truly Dragonkin, I thought, please chirp. Nimia, like old Sleigsta, could read my mind. However, Nimia looked up at me and shook her head. I see, they’re fakes after all. For some reason, I had learned briefly during the daytime escape that Nimia and Mistral could tell a person’s race just by looking at them. Demons and divine races also have the same ability, but it’s amazing to be able to discern a person’s race just by sight. Now that I knew they were fakes, what should I do? I looked up at Rudoriado this time. Rudoriado noticed my gaze and smiled.
“Alright, this is your problem. You should solve it yourself. I’ll just watch.”
“Whaaaat?”
Abandoned so easily, I let out a scream. N-No way. I had expected great skill from Rudoriado, whom I thought might be a master. The fake Dragonkin also seemed surprised by Rudoriado’s statement, which was unexpected.
“Ah, hahaha. How humble. If you stay put and watch, we’ll let you off.”
“Thank you very much. After all, I don’t want to work at night. And I have to report back to headquarters.”
The fake Dragonkin, trying to regain his composure, faltered at Rudoriado’s lack of enthusiasm. This is too unexpected. Why is someone so unmotivated the commander of the patrol soldiers? I wanted to shout this out loud too. But this is no time for that. What should I do? Should I run and ask Mistral for help? No, no, that’s no good. Relying on Rudoriado or immediately asking Mistral for help isn’t manly. I will become a reliable man. And I will make Mistral and Ruiseine fall for me. With renewed determination, I faced the over twenty fake Dragonkin.
