Chapter 230

Chapter 230

***

At the outskirts of the Ceska County territory, the place forming the boundary with the Forest of Demonic Beasts had the surrounding ground entirely dug up bizarrely. Exactly like a maze and there were obstacles and traps everywhere.

Digging up the ground this hideously was none other than because they feared the orcs might perhaps launch a large-scale invasion.

In the eyes of people accustomed to peace they might wonder if one had to go this far, but from the standpoint of people living frequently encountering monsters even this looked insufficient.

Here the decision-maker's judgment was important. Whose opinion to listen to. Rickart had listened to the words of the people of the Ceska County territory.

Outposts where soldiers lived were everywhere, and one among them was large and solid enough to be called a fortress.

That was precisely the last boundary of the Empire and also the gateway entering the Forest of Demonic Beasts.

"Actually people often come and go from the Eastern Frontier. The one the Count knows is only the person named Malcolm. They called themselves Imperials, and called us Westerners. Because we are people living in the West."

Rickart listened to the soldier's story while stroking the Crimson Comet's neck. By his side were Bori, Roy, and Maters.

If one was in the position of King reports about all sorts of things in the world come up, but there were definitely things one couldn't help but not know without personally going to the field.

For example, the fact that people often come and go from the Eastern Frontier.

"Are they coming to trade or something?"

"That's not it. At first we also wondered if they were people who got lost in the forest, but looking at their neat attire that wasn't it you see. Only later did we realize ah, they are people who came from the Eastern Frontier."

"Then for what purpose are they coming?"

Roy asked.

"At first they asked how accustomed Westerners are to handling mana. When we couldn't understand or told them to visit Beringen Academy for such things, they said they couldn't get involved that deeply. And they also asked if there are people who uphold the dying wish of the Steel Reaper."

Unable to understand what on earth they meant, Rickart and his party were bewildered. But that applied to the soldier who directly heard the questions too.

"Are they investigating preliminary information to invade?"

Bori muttered tilting his head.

"That's not it. One cannot lead a large-scale military force and pass through the forest."

Rickart said it wasn't. Actually Bori didn't think that would be possible either. It's just, he said it because he couldn't understand it so much.

"But who on earth is the Steel Reaper? Didn't Count Ceska mention him yesterday too?"

"The first Sword Master. He is the Steel Reaper."

Bori answered Roy's curiosity.

"Yes?"

"A man who burned with endless hatred and vengeance towards the world, a man who waged war against the Empire alone. I heard Helauman received inspiration from him. Those all human experiments, and disposal, and cruel and cold-hearted talent fostering methods, the birth of the Cult of Condemnation, he is in the background of all that. Returning after participating in the Eastern Frontier war, it's said he massacred and burned the hometown people then committed murders indiscriminately. Even the Emperor trembled in fear, and at the end he merely vanished suddenly. Ultimately no one killed him. According to old literature he was called the Steel Reaper in the Eastern Frontier. He is precisely him. The first Sword Master is the Steel Reaper."

Bori added an explanation. Because he researched swordsmanship and mana, he knew to some extent about the Empire's first Sword Master.

For Rickart there was nothing in particular to say. Because it was all exactly correct words. Just, things like his mood and internal suffering at the time were all removed and there were merely objective facts.

"Perhaps he wished for someone to kill him."

Maters said.

"But maybe even that was frustrated and he fell into the abyss of futility. And the people of the Eastern Frontier don't seem to have a particular purpose lingering around. You know, isn't there such a thing? Trying this at least because there is something one wants to do or has to do but there's absolutely no way. They don't seem to be particularly interested in us. The feeling of just looking around once is strong."

Rickart, Bori, Roy, and even the soldier stared blankly at Maters. Not because it was dumbfounding or ridiculous, but because unexpectedly his reasoning seemed sharp and correct.

"The reason for thinking so is?"

Roy asked.

"When a person equipped with martial force doesn't do actions accompanied by martial force it's usually when there's no particular expectation. Knights or soldiers, ordinary swordsmen or highwaymen, don't they have parts that connect in that they are professions that kill people? Seeing the people of the Eastern Frontier also wander around wearing swords at their waists, though unfamiliar they probably aren't vastly different from us."

"......Hmm, actually whatever their purpose is we have our purpose. Just that we want them to play guide a bit."

Rickart gave a tentative conclusion while agreeing. How good would it be if those people from the Eastern Frontier directly guided the way?

"Ah, if it's that they did leave these words before going. That if one goes straight north from here a river crossing the forest will appear, and if one follows the waterway a large stone statue made in the distant past will appear. They said that is a relatively safe place from monsters, so if one waits one would be able to encounter them."

Still, seeing that they left something like words it seemed they didn't just come and go meaninglessly without any intent.

"Have you ever personally been there?"

Roy asked the soldier.

"The existence of a river crossing the forest is something even we heard for the first time. How on earth deep does one have to go for it to appear, or if it's a lie how would we know? It's just that they left such words."

"It's fortunate that there's even a small clue."

"No, it's not small. It's a big clue."

Bori and Rickart said. Though an ordinary person would wonder if they were crazy to enter the Forest of Demonic Beasts, it was good news from the standpoint of people who already decided to go.

"I will leave the horse and go. Give him carrots and fruits often and give dried beanstalks for fodder. If horse feed is burdensome notify the capital."

The Crimson Comet had a high-class mouth so he didn't eat just anything.

"Understood, King."

The soldier answered. Rickart raised his head and checked the time looking at the sun in the sky. Having come after spending a night at Ceska Castle it was still morning.

Looking at each of the party members, there didn't seem to be anything like particular tension. So he said.

"Let's go."

Rickart moved his steps, and the fortress gate slowly opened making the sound of iron chains.

The soldiers inside the fortress merely quietly watched those going outside the boundary of humans. They couldn't understand why they were going, especially why the King was personally stepping forward.

There's a saying even dog poop was unavailable when you need it for medicine, though it wasn't exactly such a situation now one wouldn't immediately encounter orcs, goblins, or man-eating spiders just because one entered the Forest of Demonic Beasts.

If there was a point different from other forests it was exactly like the shade being exceptionally thick and the density of the air seeming somewhat high. Actually it was hard for ordinary people to distinguish such things.

However Rickart, Bori, and Roy who had trained mana felt it clearly. That there was a slight sense of weight every time they inhaled and exhaled breath.

Though Maters didn't train mana, perhaps due to his short hair and gaunt but tough-looking physique he looked exactly like a seasoned veteran soldier.

He observed the surroundings meticulously, and made full preparations to react immediately in case an emergency situation occurred. His left hand had a hook equipped instead of the cut hand, and it was hidden by a long sleeve.

Following the words whose authenticity was uncertain the party walked straight north continuously. Then the unique stench of orcs brushed the tips of their noses. Whether to say it's the smell of semen mixed with feces and urine, it was a disgusting smell truly hard to describe.

Even so there were none who frowned, they merely became more vigilant of the surroundings.

Moving continuously deeper with seemingly slow, seemingly fast steps, Rickart said.

"Wait a minute."

Then exactly as if they were tightly nervous even if they didn't show it outwardly the other party members stopped their steps immediately. Rickart's gaze was heading towards a certain place far away.

The party also turned their heads following that gaze and observed. To the extent they would be completely unaware if they didn't observe closely, a couple of orcs were staring this way with their figures revealed above the bushes.

Exactly as if their skin color itself was camouflage, orcs in the forest were unexpectedly hard to discover. Especially more so in a forest with thick shade.

Anyway it seemed they were caught, but Rickart merely stared quietly exactly the same without being surprised or flustered. Roy inwardly readied a combat posture, and Maters swallowed dry saliva without it showing.

A non-confrontation confrontation continued for quite a long time, and then the orcs suddenly turned their heads and headed elsewhere.

"Were they not particularly hungry?"

Bori said.

"Orcs don't judge whether it's prey or not by appearance. They judge by smell. Whether it smells of being terrified by fear or not."

Rickart said.

"It seems the saying that even if you enter a tiger's den you can live if you keep your wits about you isn't wrong."

"It is a saying that raises the possibility of living. Let's go."

Rickart and the party continuously moved north. The connecting link with the human world became increasingly faint.

Time flowed and the sun began to tilt. Even in broad daylight the shade was thick, and even though it wasn't even evening yet the forest began to become pitch dark. However simultaneously, the sound of water babbling trickling from afar was heard.

Even the soldiers of Ceska who professionally searched and scouted the Forest of Demonic Beasts couldn't enter this far, but walking looking only forward without looking back it seemed they reached the river earlier than expected.

Rickart took the lead holding a torch. When the surroundings become dark it would instinctively be scary, but Rickart and the party were people who surpassed ordinary boundaries.

Continuing to walk following the sound of flowing water, they truly reached river water crossing the forest. It was such river water where the river width wasn't that wide, and the water depth was shallow too. Actually it was closer to a stream than river water.

Now the surroundings truly became pitch black. Even the light of the torch couldn't illuminate a colleague unless they were right next to each other. So they held torches, exactly one each.

As four lanterns moved following the direction the river flowed, from afar it looked like will-o'-the-wisps floating around.

With the surroundings completely dark even the sense of time seemed to dull. 1 minute felt like an hour, and it also seemed the opposite. Spatially it became increasingly hard to distinguish whether this was the afterlife or this world.

Furthermore with river water flowing right next to them they felt exactly like walking along the riverside of the afterlife.

Then they truly discovered a stone statue. It was immensely larger than expected so at first they wondered if there was some rock.

However that was a podium supporting the stone statue, and raising the torch to examine it it was a huge stone statue in the shape of sitting while leaning on a sword. The upper part of the chest was obscured by darkness and couldn't be seen.

Exactly as the soldier had said words were written in ancient characters on the podium. Bori brought the torch close and read it.

"Civilized men shall not cross this boundary, and barbarians return to the wild. Because this will be the boundary of civilization, those who cross this place cease to be human. Augustus Rikituss......?"

Bori looked back at Rickart.

Augustus was a glorious title used by Emperors during the ancient Empire era, and taking that they attached it to the current Rickart. However the name coming after that was strangely similar to Rickart's nickname.

It could simply be a coincidence, or not. Roy said exactly as if it was nothing.

"It seems it's ruins from the ancient Empire era but bizarrely it's similar to Master's nickname. But according to the frontier person's words this place is safe right?"

Rickart crawled up onto the podium and brought the torch close to the stone statue's face. The other party members watched that sight, and as the face bowing its head exactly as if resting was revealed in the light Bori opened his eyes roundly.

Exactly as ancient sculptures usually were, it was very detailed and realistic. Exactly as if truly alive.

"What's this, isn't it Ricky?"

Surprisingly the face of the stone statue wearing a laurel wreath was very similar to Rickart.

"Eyy, Lord Bori you just attribute meaning to even trivial things because you are too immersed only in research. So I'm telling you to just do research in moderation."

At Roy's words Bori's expression soured but he didn't particularly deny it. Because it was a part he himself acknowledged to some extent.

"What's certain is that this is the boundary from the ancient Empire era."

Rickart said jumping down lightly leap from the podium. At that time a completely different person who was not of the party spoke from beyond that darkness. The distance wasn't that far.

"First visit among Westerners."

Including Rickart the party turned their torches in the direction the voice was heard. However the sound of approaching footstep was on the opposite side.

He spoke placing only his feet on the boundary of the light. Above that was obscured by darkness and hard to see.

"I am called Malcolm. O Westerners. Coming from the same root we are brothers if brothers, and unable to contact each other for a long time we are strangers if strangers. Reading the inscription you'd know but yes, are your resolves set to cross the boundary of humans?"

"......"

Rickart and the party didn't say a word. The first to open his mouth was Maters.

"The place you came from, is there salvation there?"

"Although religious folks do come through the Torveil gateway they don't reach the place we live. They built another settlement halfway. Salvation? Well, that's a matter depending on each person's belief. Please don't look for such things from us."

It was an answer that was honest if honest, and cold-hearted if cold-hearted. Nevertheless Maters was not discouraged.

"Could you perhaps guide us up to the Eastern Frontier?"

Rickart asked. Then the person named Malcolm seemed to smile faintly from beyond that darkness, speaking in a tone giving off such a feeling.

"Let's make this one thing clear. We are Imperials in the true meaning. Based on the boundary our side is the Empire, and your side is the wild meaning. The Eastern Frontier, who exactly pioneered whom? Westerners seem to have forgotten history, but we have not. About 100 years ago by the God King we became aware of what we had forgotten for a long time."

There was no need to have a historical debate on who had the legitimacy of the ancient Empire here right now. Nor was it a particularly interesting topic.

"Let's say that's that, so can you guide us or not?"

"Rest well tonight, and from tomorrow morning there will be a test. Whether you have qualification or not. I don't guarantee your lives. Danger will guide you so whether you return as morning dawns, or continue forward is your share. Since it's clearer words than the inscription carved on the podium I think you would have understood."

Saying so he turned his steps and disappeared into the darkness again. Soon when the presence completely disappeared Roy said.

"Isn't he a bit unlucky? Who's testing who."

Exactly as if it was nothing Rickart said while preparing to light a campfire near the stone statue.

"Since the ones feeling the urgency right now is our side we have no choice but to take the test. Just, right now that side might be testing us but next time we will test them. Whether they have the qualification of an Imperial or not."

Rickart and the party lit a fire under the huge stone statue. The stone statue in the shape of bowing its head while sitting seemed to look down at the party from up there.