Chapter 24

Chapter 24 - The Magician's Invitation

The eagle-owl took flight and soared elsewhere a moment later.

"And what of you, Karas?"

"Indeed, there are many places calling for this body. I shall depart for Roman soon. It is a land I have long wished to visit."

Though Karas had not been the star of the duel, he was already a famous knight. Even if disowned, he was still of the Cruz bloodline. There were plenty of nobles who wished to share even a single meal with him.

"Already? You must have earned quite a sum this time. It wouldn't be bad to stay and enjoy the city a bit longer before you leave."

"The world is too vast to see in a lifetime, after all. While others are tied to one place clearing pig manure, I was lucky enough to be born a noble. Shouldn't I travel while I am young, in gratitude for that freedom?"

Hearing him call his own lineage merely a stroke of luck, it was clear Karas was quite the eccentric.

"Then it shall be farewell soon. It's a pity. They say people part just as they grow fond of one another."

"You have grown fond of me?"

Karas turned back with a look of genuine surprise.

"Laddie, are you speaking sincerely? Or has the drink finally gone to your head?"

"I am quite sober. I can feel a sense of mourning even for a man like Cressy, so surely a friendship can sprout with a man like you. Your skills are excellent, and we happen to get along unexpectedly well."

"Ai, ai! Why the talk that makes my skin crawl!"

Contrary to his words of dismissal, Karas looked truly delighted.

"I've seen nothing but deserts and jungles in Samur, so now I must gallop across plains and climb snow-capped peaks. I also wish to see the underground kingdom of the dwarves."

"The last place is one I, too, wish to visit."

If Bonyard was a city born from a quarry, the underground kingdom of the dwarves was a city born from a mine. The difference was that the latter was much larger and vẫn còn hoạt động as a mine.

"Count Benjamin said many letters would arrive. I hope there is a worthy invitation among them."

"Do not hold too much expectation. They will be filled with honeyed words asking you to fight for free. Collect every letter from those below the rank of Viscount and burn them. It's the advice of an experienced man."

Karas wore a look of disgust, as if he had experienced it many times.

Afterward, both remained silent, taking in the night view and the cool breeze. Only the sound of Karas whistling a song of his homeland echoed through the air.

* * *

The following day, Eugene saw off Benjamin, who had a face like crumpled paper from a hangover.

"Pray, take this."

Eugene handed him a pill.

"Ugh! What is this?"

"It's' a medicine to reduce dizziness and nausea. Take it with plenty of water. You will feel much improved."

"I shall... take it with gratitude."

Benjamin found even speaking to be a labor.

"I... I am not usually a man with so little self-restraint."

He was worried that his reputation might suffer in the eyes of the knight he favored.

"I understand. I shall consider it as you being that delighted by my victory. Indeed, I feel proud of myself."

"If you ever have occasion to come near the Morad fief, you must find me! It's' a promise!"

Benjamin held Eugene's hand firmly and did not let go until his servant assisted him into the carriage.

"Of course. I shall drink the wines you gave as a gift with gratitude."

Whether truly smitten with the knight or simply feeling he couldn't drink until he reached home, he had handed over all the Morad family wine he had brought.

"Urp!"

Or perhaps he simply felt he couldn't bear the sight of alcohol until he reached home.

Eugene waved his hand and saw Benjamin off until the carriage vanished around the corner.

* * *

A few days later, when Panis visited, Eugene and Homi were sorting through the letters. They were proposals that had flown in from all directions for the man who had risen as a Victorious Knight.

"Welcome, Chief."

"Aiyoo, it's starting to feel uncomfortable when you use honorifics with me, Sir Knight."

Panis wore a broad smile at the knight's unchanged demeanor despite his great fame.

"They arrived sooner than I thought."

"Indeed, how many places in this world are in need of martial power? One must naturally hurry if they aren't to be beaten to the punch by others. Ah, thank you."

Eugene poured the Morad wine for Panis.

"The reason I have come today is to assist in classifying the letters. We must weed out the leeches who seek to latch on for nothing."

Panis picked up one of the sorted letters and read it.

"For instance, this one was sent by the Baron of Garm, asking to subjugate Bugbears."

Unlike other monsters with bodies of pure muscle, Bugbears boasted a physique filled with fat, much like extreme obesity. However, weight is power! The club swung by a stature two heads taller than a human was fearsome.

"Bugbears are famous as monsters that knights despise. Neither sword nor arrow pierces well through the flesh. Even if one manages a cut, the blade becomes coated in fat and loses its sharpness."

"They are men who treat a sword like a lover, so they cannot help but avoid it. Truly, I know not why they love kissing their blades so much."

Panis laughed at the attitude of speaking as if he were not a knight himself.

"Still, the distance is quite close and the compensation is decent, so I kept it. It's better than requests appealing only to honor and asking to fight for free."

Since Eugene could simply beat them to death with his flail, it wasn't particularly troublesome for him.

"Pray, do not go. The Baron of Garm is of a family with many debts that are never paid on time. They've had their village plundered several times by mercenaries who were denied their pay."

"....It must be discarded, then."

Homi tossed the request for the Bugbear hunt into the wastebasket.

To be denied pay! Eugene had heard it was a common occurrence from Godfrey, but being on the verge of experiencing it himself, he was flabbergasted.

"I know much of such matters. I shall pick out only the substantial letters for you."

"I know not how to thank you for this."

Gulp.

Panis downed the wine and laughed pleasantly.

"Is there anything I wouldn't do for you, sir? Besides, this wine tastes truly excellent. This alone is enough."

While filtering through the letters that were mere empty husks, they discovered a sender they had not expected.

"Count Andar? Isn't he the instigator of this duel?"

"What a man who knows not his place!"

Panis's hands trembled as he held the letter's seal. He wished to tear it to shreds, but he dared not do so before Eugene could read it.

"If you wish, Chief, you may tear it or burn it as you like."

"Whew. I shall take only the sentiment with gratitude."

To think he would have the nerve to send an invitation to the opposing knight after starting a fight. Panis was deeply grateful that the knight considered his feelings in the midst of it.

When Eugene broke the seal, the contents were as expected. It was a request to invite the great warrior to his manor and host him.

"He must certainly be laying some trap."

"He did not seem like the type of gentleman who would do so, however."

The image of the noble warrior who had laughed heartily and offered a toast even after losing. As a fellow warrior, Eugene had a hunch. Rather than plotting a petty conspiracy, he was a man who would curse to one's face and pick up an axe.

"I, too, have no intention of going for now."

For now, it was better to firmly solidify Bonyard as his ally.

'He doesn't seem like the type of man to pout and hold a grudge if I visit later, either.'

Count Andar was a simple and jovial figure, so he would surely welcome them whenever they visited.

"But Count Andar showed no sign of displeasure even after losing."

"The tribute we send is but pocket change to him. Thanks to the rivers flowing through his fief, he is raking in massive sums through trade. It was the other minor noble coalition that was anxious over the interests."

This was also the reason why the sea raiders of old had focused their gaze on Gord's territory more than Barcia. It was because large and small rivers leading to the sea spread out like the veins of a leaf. Thanks to that, trade using ships was active.

These rivers also functioned as a barrier to prevent Barcia, their neighbor, from charging in with their powerful cavalry. There was even a joke that if one scoured the bottom of any river in Gord, they would find at least one skull with protruding fangs.

The letters continued to be sorted. Invitations that held value beyond a one-time payment... invitations that offered a fief or something equivalent in return.

"Hmm."

"O-Oh?"

However, when sorted by that standard, not a single letter remained.

"Surely an influential family shall call for you soon! I am certain of it!"

To think there wasn't a single invitation from a noble of Count rank. Panis's gaze turned toward Count Andar's letter. He looked as if he were debating whether to switch stances even now.

"It can happen. Besides, since this is a matter tied to the defeat of the Gord Warden, wouldn't many nobles be wary?"

"Q-Quite so. He is a man of great influence in this region, whether in wealth or power."

The party involved, Count Andar, did not care at all, but others might misunderstand that the Count was in a rage.

Eugene patted Panis and sent him on his way. There was plenty of time, and with his capabilities, he would find another opportunity, so there was no need to hurry.

"Was my expectation too high? I thought they would be scrambling to host me from every direction."

- This is but a corner of the continent. It will take time for fame to spread.

Even with Homi's comfort, he couldn't help but feel a bitter taste.

Perhaps to comfort Eugene? As the night deepened, an additional letter arrived.

However, the messenger was most unique.

Hoooooo-!

An eagle-owl sat on the windowsill with a letter tied to its ankle.

"Are you that same one from before?"

It was the fellow who had been gliding above the balcony on the night of the banquet. He had never heard of sending letters with a bird of prey, let alone an eagle-owl, rather than a pigeon or a crow.

The creature entered the room nonchalantly and stood upon the table.

Tap, tap.

And he tapped the table with his talons as if telling him to take the letter.

"What on earth is this fellow?"

There was no hint of caution in his yellow eyes, only a glimpse of a will that said 'hurry up, I'm already annoyed'.

- Watch your talons. They are strong enough to crush a fox in an instant.

Homi warned through sign language. Having lived the life of a cabin, she knew well the danger of eagle-owls. Moreover, this fellow was much larger than a typical one.

"He seems to have no intent to strike."

Eugene approached slowly with both hands raised, as if to show he had no intent to harm.

The creature then stared at Eugene with a pathetic gaze, half-closing its eyes.

Tap, tap.

Again, he tapped the table with the foot bound with the letter. It was an arrogant gesture, telling him to hurry and take it without being afraid, as he wouldn't claw him.

"I get it, I get it."

When he reached out his hand, the creature even lifted its foot to make it easy to untie. Who on earth had trained it so well?

The answer became clear soon enough.

"A peculiar seal."

Letters of this era are finished by dropping red wax on the envelope and pressing a seal. However, this letter's seal was in the shape of lips. As if someone had pressed a kiss upon it.

When the finger touched the seal, the lips moved.

- O Knight who cradles mystery -

A voice like a whisper of the wind.

"!!!"

Homi was startled and came running over.

"It's fine. Calm yourself."

It's a distorted voice, as it was not produced by vibrating vocal cords. Yet, it was clear that it belonged to a young woman.

After the brief greeting, the seal drifted away like dandelion seeds and vanished.

"Was it sent by a magician? How curious."

Hoooooo-!

The eagle-owl, its delivery complete, departed. To melt silently into the darkness without the sound of flapping wings... he was indeed the king of the night.

Eugene sat on the edge of the bed and unfolded the letter. The contents, written in the continental common script, were as follows:

'I, Valda of the Emerald Forest, send this.

I have heard your name, which the city extols. I express my respect for your splendid victory and honor.

However, this is but half of your true visage. I am certain that the one who prayed at the remote village not long ago was you.

The majestic Holy Communion that seemed to encapsulate the flesh and blood of God in our world...

One dear to me is extremely frail. No medicine or magic has any effect, but perhaps your blessing shall be different.

Thus, seeking a straw of hope, I invite you. Find the mansion located at the center of the Emerald Forest.

I, too, shall reciprocate with a reward befitting your assistance.

I look forward to meeting you soon. There is little time left for the one dear to me. '

The letter ended there.

With a straightforward tone and elegant handwriting, she seemed like a lady who had been strictly educated.

The 'Great Holy Communion' mentioned in the letter must refer to the act of blessing the blood of field mice and giving it to Maria.

However, the only ones who knew of it were Eugene and Homi, who had heard the story directly.

- How did the magician living in the forest know of that?

"I know not, either. At any rate, I can certainly see she is an outstanding magician."

Eugene's heart throbbed with excitement.

The magician had not come to the city, but she had invited him to her abode. Eugene's wish had been fulfilled in an even better form.