Chapter 13

"Is the suspension really because of that? Acting on your own in the case of the large magical beast?"

"Yes. No matter how much you achieve, breaking discipline must be punished. Otherwise, it won't set an example for others. Don't you think it's a truly lamentable custom?"

While muttering that Kariya Bardonic should have been honored for her achievements, she pouted in frustration.

If that happens, it's because people like you keep taking reckless actions, I wanted to retort, but my self-control was remarkable for not doing so.

However, there's no doubt that her actions were heroic. To slay a large magical beast alone—such a feat would have been met with astonishment rather than respect.

That's the part, the subtleties of human emotions, that someone with Kariya Bardonic's talent can't understand. She blinked and slightly lowered her gaze.

Ordinary people show respect to geniuses while also fearing them. They fear, avoid, and sometimes even persecute them. Similarly, I, an ordinary person, can understand the reaction of the knight order when they received her report. Slaying a large magical beast alone—such a ridiculous story. If, by some chance, it were true.

Then she must be something different from us, something not quite human, a monster. They must have paled at the thought.

I finished eating a red fruit, leaving the core. The red juice spread in my mouth.

"But why such reckless actions? There were other ways to test your skills, right?"

"Is it that you prefer bigger enemies?" I joked, and she replied with a disappointed voice, "Fool."

"I needed fame. You know the disgrace of the Bardonic family, right? To clear it, I can't just follow the path of an ordinary person. It's all for Father... no, for the family name. That's what it means to be a knight of nobility. Well, I suppose a commoner like you wouldn't understand."

"Not really, I don't want to understand." I shrugged and replied with a sarcastic tone.

Kariya Bardonic's sense of things is something I, an orphan, can't really grasp, let alone understand. The concept of family and parents seems very distant and intangible. If I had to say, maybe Nines and Alyuenu fit that description. Thinking about it, it doesn't seem so bad.

"Indeed, for the family and Father, huh?"

I raised an eyebrow and stared at Kariya Bardonic's silver hair with wide eyes. The words she just said—about her father. It was somewhat human, and I was a bit surprised to find such ordinary human thoughts and feelings in her.

Of course, she was head over heels for the savior, but apart from that, she rarely showed any emotional side. She always gave the impression of being somewhat detached from the world.

"No, no, I see. It's not bad, is it? Wanting to show your good side to someone is very human."

"...Hey, you, why are you talking like you know everything? I think you lack respect for me. A commoner like you and a knight like me. Even a child knows who is superior, right?"

With a slightly angry smile, Kariya Bardonic stood up. Her expression suggested she was thinking of continuing what happened in the tavern. I've never seen her smile normally.

Indeed, my attitude towards the knight class is completely off. But with her, Kariya Bardonic, because of our journey with the savior, it feels unnatural to act too formally.

"Sir, please don't cause a commotion. If you move recklessly, the wheels will break!"

"...Understood."

The driver, sensing the tense atmosphere, turned around and spoke. Kariya Bardonic bent down as if restrained by his voice, and at that moment—

*Whoosh*

A sound sliced through the air.

A split second later, a *pop*—the sound of something bursting. It wasn't the sound of the canopy or the carriage wheels breaking. It was the sound of flesh and blood exploding.

Instinctively, I looked in the direction of the sound, forward. The worst-case scenario. The target was the driver himself. The driver's head, which we had just been talking to, was cleanly pierced by an arrow and exploded. Blood spurted out, splattering the air and turning it red. The smell of iron quickly filled the surroundings.

The driver's body collapsed like a puppet, sliding off the carriage.

"Get down, you fool!"

In sync with Kariya Bardonic's voice, I lay down on the carriage floor. The horse, having lost its driver, went wild, shaking the carriage violently. The floorboards seemed to come alive, bouncing and thrashing.

*Whoosh*—*Whoosh*—!

The same sound echoed in my ears multiple times. The sound alone was enough to make me pale and tremble.

Arrows. A merciless weapon that kills from a distance, beyond our reach. A longsword would be better. Even a spear would be acceptable. But arrows are impossible to deal with. In large numbers, they can overwhelm the enemy. A simple carriage canopy is no defense against them.

I tried to make myself as small as possible, hiding behind the cargo.

All that was left was to pray. Just endure.

There was no other choice against arrows. No matter how many times Kariya Bardonic was with me, there was nothing we could do against an enemy we couldn't see or reach. We could only wait for their arrows to run out or for our lives to be taken. A grim competition.

I narrowed my eyes and lowered my voice, enduring.

*Whoosh*—

The arrow, now a ruthless killer, pierced the canopy mercilessly, destroying the floorboards. It ruthlessly tore apart the cargo, the carriage, and the horse.

*

Five horses slowly approached the carriage, which had finally stopped, pierced by arrows. Each of the five horses carried an armed man.

"Are there any survivors?"

"Probably not. We might have overdone it a bit."

Looking into the broken canopy from a distance, it was clearly painted in red. The red color was clearly visible even in the shadow of the canopy.

The horse pulling the carriage had finally collapsed, unable to move. It wasn't a pleasant sight, but the men judged it a necessary sacrifice for the greater good.

The five riders who attacked the carriage cautiously readied their weapons. They had shortened their spears for better maneuverability, ready to face any sudden threats.

The man in the helmet, likely the leader, spoke.

"Three of you guard the perimeter. One of you follow me. We'll search inside. They should be carrying the operation documents or something similar."

Three men guarded the perimeter, and the leader and one subordinate stepped into the ruined carriage.

The moment they stepped inside, they groaned.

The scene was red, red, red. Even a seasoned warrior would wince at the sight. Inside were the bodies of a man and a woman. The red color was clearly visible in the shadow of the canopy, which might have been a blessing.

"However... this might just be a decoy. It's too unprotected to be carrying operation documents. There was no resistance at all."

The subordinate said this while stepping on the floorboards.

Indeed, his words made sense. The possibility of it being a decoy was much higher from the start.

However, they couldn't ignore it. If there was even the slightest chance, they had to set up a trap. The value of the operation documents being transported this time was that high. Of course, if the information was correct.

"Is this it? It was near the man."

"Hmm... sealed with wax. It looks plausible, but we can't be sure."

The authenticity of the item would have to be judged by the priest. The man in the helmet held up the blood-stained letter, letting the sunlight shine through it.

The color is strange, he thought. The red was unusually light. Perhaps the blood had splattered weakly, but it lacked the usual darkness of blood. It was hard to see in the shadow of the broken carriage, but in the sunlight, it looked more like some kind of juice or dye—

Just as he realized this, it was too late.

Like a snake coiling around, a hand from behind covered his mouth. His eyes widened in shock, and his breathing became erratic. Enemy. Where? Who? Must stop. Too late. Help—

His thoughts ended in vain, and before he could even make a sound, his throat was slit by a knife. The unpleasant sound of flesh tearing echoed inside his body. A soundless scream. In his field of vision, his subordinate, with a silver sword protruding from his throat. The attacker was the woman, who was supposed to be a corpse, drenched in blood. The blood, when seen in the light, was surprisingly light. It wasn't blood. It was dye, or some kind of juice.

The last thing he saw was the blood gushing from his own throat. It was dark and red, the familiar color of blood.