Chapter 31

The identity of the guard they had defeated was determined by the guild card he possessed. It was something he carried with him diligently.

There were two A-rank adventurers from the "Purple Scorpion Inn" on 5th Street. The guild was famous for having many assassins and guards. Given its nature, it was often filled with unsavory characters.

Raug and his companions were indeed under the command of Vinsbruck, but their past did not seem entirely fitting for the role of a noble's retainer. It was well-known that some nobles were involved in the darker side of the capital, but that was a different matter.

"Even if they're from another guild, we should detain them for now, right?"

"Well, that's true. Since they were acting on a request from Raug and his group, there's no choice. Guilds complete the jobs they take on, but they have the freedom to choose whether to accept them."

"Dick always listens carefully to the client's story before making a decision. He usually ends up taking the job, though."

Guilds are not jack-of-all-trades, and they must carefully examine the client's background and the content of the request. Making a judgment error in this process can be fatal.

However, by the time someone is given the information to contact our guild, they have already passed a preliminary review by a guild member. Thanks to this, we rarely had to deal with requests that mistook the guild for a place to handle dirty work.

◆◇◆

I called a few male guild members with sufficient strength and had them transport Raug and his six companions to one of the nearby properties the guild owned. I also paid the innkeeper through Aileen, covering the cost of repairs to the room. I would collect the money from Raug and his group later, but I didn't consider it absolutely necessary.

The reward is not the peace of this country or any such noble cause. Considering the benefits of preventing a civil war and avoiding a conflict, the return on this job is already sufficient.

"Then, I'll go to Cody's place. Are you going back to the guild, Dick?"

When Aileen asked, I hesitated a bit. My main body was fine, but Milarca and Riko were probably getting impatient.

Milarca and I were invited to a banquet at the elder's house, where we were treated to a grand welcome by a large group of tiger people. As the evening progressed, the tiger people, who had been drinking, became more cheerful and started performing various acts—Milarca, who was watching, was bored and sought me out for conversation. The tiger people were enjoying themselves with their familiar companions, which was understandable.

My main body was being poured drinks by Milarca—she was saying it was boring because I wasn't giving proper responses.

Perhaps I should go back. However, as long as the magic script on Aileen's chest doesn't disappear, the effect of the "Small Soul" will—

"Dick, are you listening?"

"Ah, yeah. I understand, I'll go back to the guild."

"Okay, say hello to Milarca for me. If you come back, will it be tomorrow? ...That would be coming back in the morning, right?"

"Does he think I'll do something to me? I'm not that reckless."

"You're saying things you don't even think. Dick is so cute sometimes."

"What do you mean by 'you don't even think'? I'm..."

"Okay, okay, go back soon. Milarca gets lonely, so she's probably waiting for you?"

That's probably true, as Aileen said. Of course, if I were to ask Milarca if she was lonely, her mood would plummet for a while.

"Aileen, thank you. I appreciate your help this time."

"Ah... Yeah, no need to thank me. I'm free, but I'm part of Dick's guild, after all."

Aileen touched the end of her long braid. Her hair, a mix of white and red due to her half-demon and human heritage, was a color close to peach.

"See you later. When the job is done, let's all gather for a 'good job' party. Yuma might be sad if we don't invite her this time."

"Sure. Sometimes, it's nice to just empty your mind and drink without thinking."

Aileen smiled, put on her tattered cloak, and pulled up the hood before leaving through the inn's window. She climbed onto the balcony, then from roof to roof, a method she used to avoid drawing attention—her cat-like movements made no sound, allowing her to move through the area without being noticed by the residents.

◆◇◆

The area where Cody lived was where the families of the knight corps' officers resided. It was on the opposite side of the noble district, in the northeast of the capital.

Aileen moved at a speed much faster than a carriage, flying to the front of Cody's house.

"That's Cody's room, right... Hey!"

Instead of entering through the front door, Aileen used a tree in the garden to jump onto the balcony of Cody's room.

"Phew... Cody, are you there?"

When Aileen lightly knocked on the window, Cody approached.

"Aileen, good evening. You're still the same, coming in from here. You could have used the back door, you know."

"Hehe, sorry. I have something urgent to tell you."

"I had a feeling. I thought Dick might call me soon."

Cody opened the window and invited Aileen into the room. Inside, a cloth was spread on the floor, and armor and a sword were placed on it, shining without a single fingerprint in the light after being polished.

The silver armor and the long sword with the royal crest on the hilt were given to him by the king when he was appointed as the head of the knight corps. He never used the sword in battle but always carried it when wearing the armor.

"Your hair is wet. Did you clean your body before going into battle?"

"Something like that. Actually, I was sweating all day from training the troops."

Cody was wearing a bandage around his upper body and short pants, a rather inappropriate outfit for the head of the knight corps.

After polishing his equipment, he would take a bath—this was his daily routine as a swordsman. This habit remained unchanged even after he was recognized as an SSS-rank adventurer and joined the demon king extermination team.

There was one thing, however, that had changed from when he was traveling as an adventurer.

"You wrap it up right after getting out of the bath. Do you always do this at home, Cody? You should relax sometimes, you're still growing."

"Not as much as Aileen. But recently, it's become difficult to wrap it myself... When you did it for me, it was always tight and secure."

"I was really surprised back then. But I had a feeling, you know. Women's intuition."

"Haha... That's not very Aileen-like, though. I mean, I'm the one saying it, but..."

"Ah, you're saying that? But I can't rephrase it. Cody, you've been through so much... ever since you met Dick five years ago. If I were in your shoes, I would have given up halfway and told Dick the truth."

Aileen approached Cody and pointed to the bandage wrapped around his body. Despite the bandage, his movements were not restricted, but his upper body was tightly bound.

"It's not that difficult once you get used to it. Archers always do this, you know."

"To prevent the bowstring from touching the chest... But Cody looks more uncomfortable."

"It's not a big deal. I decided to do this myself. By adjusting the wrapping, it adds constant tension to my body, which helps with training."

Cody wiped the remaining moisture from his hair with a cloth. When he finished, his white neck was exposed, and Aileen sighed.

"Why doesn't Dick notice? Milarca and I didn't realize it right away, but he's always with Cody."

"That's because he trusts me. I trust him in the same way."

Cody offered Aileen a chair and put on the undershirt that goes under the armor. The bandage was no longer visible.

"...Sorry, Cody. I almost said something unnecessary to Dick. I almost said that you care about him a lot..."

"What's the problem with that? Don't worry, Aileen. I care about Dick, and I feel the same way about you, the king, and everyone in this country."

"You sound like a model student. But if I say it bluntly, you really like Dick, right? Wouldn't that shock you?"

Cody did not answer Aileen's question. After a moment, he smiled faintly and closed his eyes.

"He wouldn't notice even if I told him. It's always been that way."

"That's true... So, Cody, are you going to keep hiding the truth from Dick forever?"

"It's the first lie I believed was necessary. So, I will stick to it until the end."

"But you know it's not necessary anymore, right? You said you trust Dick."

"...Yes. That's why I never want to betray his trust."

Aileen was still searching for words, but eventually gave up and took off her cloak, draping it over the back of the chair. She asked Cody for permission and poured water from a pitcher on the table into a glass, taking a sip.

She poured water for both of them, and Cody took the glass, drinking half of it in one go, just like when he ordered a cold ale at the "Silver Water Jug Inn" and drank it.

"Why did you do that? I wanted to ask you about it, but five years have passed... Don't say it's too late, please tell me."

"...It was a trivial reason. I was too immature in my thinking."

"I don't think it was trivial. You're serious, so you must have thought it through before deciding."

Cody drank the remaining water and looked back at Aileen, who was staring at him.

"...I had an older brother named Leon. He was a famous SSS-rank adventurer in the town where I grew up."

"Leon... I think I've heard of him. There are only about twenty SSS-rank adventurers in this country."

"He belonged to a branch of the 'White Goat Inn,' so you might have heard of him in the capital. But it might be a bad reputation. My brother had the skills but lacked integrity."

As he said this, Cody's expression darkened. He held the empty glass and continued.

"My brother was the type who would easily take advantage of female adventurers in his party and women in the town. Maybe it was a family bias, but he was good-looking and undeniably skilled."

"Ah... If your brother did that, the younger sibling would have to be careful in the town, right?"

"That's exactly what happened. One of the older sisters in the neighborhood, who had taken care of me since I was a child, was one of the women my brother took advantage of... He had no intention of staying with her. After they broke up, he vented his anger on me and moved to a different town."

Aileen was speechless. Cody looked up and smiled softly at her.

"It's an old story now. But I learned from my brother... If you're going to be an adventurer, it's better to have a party of the same gender or an equal number of each. Having one man and all women, or vice versa, would likely cause trouble. I know it sounds silly, but I was stubbornly convinced of this. I never thought that many men in the world had different views from my brother."

"...So, when you saw the members of the demon king extermination team...?"

"I only feel ashamed of myself now. I didn't trust Dick when I first met him. Maybe it was because I could feel his strength. I was intensely aware of him in a way I couldn't believe."

Cody placed his hand on his chest, as if the memory made his heart race.

"Four people with strength close to mine... Among them, I couldn't understand why Dick was as strong as me. I was amazed by the kind of strength he had."

"Yeah, I felt the same. Dick's strength is still a mystery... It's not just physical strength. His strength is the kind that makes you feel safe when you rely on him."

Cody smiled in response to Aileen's praise and poured water into two glasses.

"As I fought alongside him, I began to regret doubting him... But I also think it was for the best. If I hadn't lied to him, we might not have the relationship we have now."

"...You lied and became the head of the knight corps. And now, you can't turn back..."

"You hit a sore spot... Of course, that's part of it. I'm simple-minded, and the only role I could think of to protect this country was the head of the knight corps."

"You're doing a great job, keeping busy and performing well. Milarca, Yuma, and I all say that. But we're also worried about you."

"...Thank you. I'm fine. I don't feel stressed, and I almost forget that I'm lying."

Aileen muttered, "That's a lie itself."

Cody either didn't hear it or pretended not to. He stood up and raised his hand, the stance he used to summon his "Light Sword"—but now he only showed the stance without summoning the sword.

"I will continue to be his sword. I will go wherever he tells me to go."

"...You really like him. Dick was also concerned that you wouldn't let him touch your stomach."

"...If he saw, I would have to make him unconscious and erase his memory. He must never know. I..."

Cody's voice trailed off, and I could no longer hear anything. The scene in Cody's room faded away.

—Dick, you're really... not just distracted, but your consciousness is completely elsewhere.

I heard someone calling my name. The magic was running out—against my will, my consciousness was being pulled back to my main body.

◆◇◆

"...Hmm... It's so soft..."

"What are you talking about... I was pouring you a drink, and you suddenly fell over. Get up quickly, you're heavy, and my legs are going numb."

"Legs... M, Milarca, I'm sorry...!"

In the large tent where the tiger people's celebration was being held, I was resting my head on Milarca's lap at the main guest seat. The unique elasticity, comparable to but distinct from Velraine's, comfortably supported the back of my head.

However, I couldn't continue to enjoy the headrest, so I sat up.

The magic script on Aileen's chest, which served as the medium for the "Small Soul," allowed me to hear Aileen and Cody's conversation until it lost its effect. The magic script could only be erased with time or special chemicals, which would require Velraine's help.

Thus, even though I knew it was eavesdropping, I couldn't help but focus on the conversation between my two companions. Cody had an older brother, and as I listened to their conversation, I felt like I was missing something significant.

Cody, due to his brother Leon's bad habits with women, was wary of men and didn't trust me when we first met.

Because of this, Cody lied. I wondered what kind of lie was necessary.

More importantly, seeing Cody's bandaged upper body and the way he wiped his hair, I felt a deep sense of guilt for the emotions I realized I had.

Cody is a man. Despite his beautiful hair and fine skin, he is not someone I should have such feelings for. I was just drinking the alcohol Milarca poured for me and was a bit drunk.

"...You seem shaken. Riko, prepare a drink to revive him."

"Got it. This is fire wine, a recipe I learned from a dwarf. It will make your body warm and help