abcnovels
Chapter 70: Free Addition (1)
Chapter 70: Free Addition (1)
Chapter 70: Free Addition (1)
Now that Henry had reacquainted himself with Eisen and handed Munke over, it was all up to Eisen now. However, he felt a strange regret.
‘I’m going to use him in future, but still… It’s a pity to leave like this.’
Although it was possible for yesterday’s enemy to become today’s ally, the alliance was only temporary. One day, Eisen would also face the guillotine along with Aubert. Eisen was a disgrace; even though he’d been given so many advantages, he had rewarded Henry only because he wanted to show off his wealth.
“This just won’t do. Klever.”
-Yes, my lord?
“Do you remember the treasure room?”
- You mean the place full of gold and silver treasures?
“Yes. You remember the location, right?”
- Of course.
“Empty it out.”
- Alright!
Since the treasure room was just there for show, emptying it out wouldn’t even leave a dent in Eisen’s wealth. However, Eisen would reprimand Vedican or at least grow suspicious of the other servants, which is what Henry wanted to accomplish. Eisen would be more infuriated that a thief could access his fortress-like mansion than by the loss of his treasures.
Klever transformed into white mist and then later gathered in one spot in the shape of a cat.
- Meow!
“How’d it go?”
- I didn’t leave a single thing behind.
“Good job. This is your reward for doing me a favor.”
- Th-this is!
Henry threw a fresh cucumber as a reward to the clever cat. As Klever enjoyed the treat, Henry opened the Chest and checked the treasures that Klever had stolen.
Clank.
“Now it’s confirmed.”
The treasures were probably worth tens of thousands of gold. Henry nodded, finally feeling satisfied. He could now depart for Vivaldi.
* * *
After taking the fatigue recovery medicine, Von boosted his Sword Master-like stamina and arrived at Slan Gorge sooner than expected.
“Phew…”
His breath turned white in the air. He would enter Salgeara after passing the gorge, but something was not quite right. Even though he had followed the main road that merchants used, he still hadn’t run in to Henry,
‘Am I on the wrong road?’
Von continued to move forward, driven by curiosity and the expectation of encountering Henry. However, even after reaching Slan Gorge, Von didn’t see him at all. He decided to ask the guards about Henry’s whereabouts when he got to the Slan Gorge checkpoint.
* * *
The soldier was dozing as he stood because he didn’t expect anyone else to arrive after the merchants. However, when the soldier glimpsed a person on horseback approaching him, he rushed out with a raised spear and said, “Stop, stop. This place is off-limits to the public.”
Only then did Von dismount his horse and hold out his identity tag.
‘A gold tag?’
The soldier’s eyes widened when he saw Von’s identity tag.
Commoners had bronze identity tags, baronets all the way to counts had silver, marquis to dukes had gold, and the Patrician Families and Grand Masters had platinum. The soldier straightened his back and greeted Von properly. “I-I apologize! I didn’t recognize a person of such high status! Hey you, hurry and bring the chief down!”
He was a well-trained soldier. Soon, Vhant showed up, reeking of alcohol. “What is it now? Who’s here that’s making you so excited… huh?”
Vhant was still drinking while on the job and he walked out with wobbly steps. When his eyes met those of Von, who was standing in front of his horse…
“Sir Vhant?”
“Sir Von?”
It was an unexpected encounter. The soldier quietly took a few steps back.
“Sir Von, it’s been quite a while since I last saw you.” Vhant greeted Von first because Von had outranked him during their time at the imperial palace.
However, this didn’t mean that Von looked down on Vhant. In fact, Von thought of Vhant as a good person, because Vhant’s integrity and role model behaviors were well known within the imperial palace.
The two approached each other and exchanged brief greetings. Then, they stayed silent for a while. Von spoke first. “...I’m sure you’ve been through a lot.”
“Your face looks so thin now too, Sir Von.”
They exchanged wry smiles and a light handshake. The moment of silence had given them a chance to imagine the hardships that the other must have gone through.
“Why don’t we go inside and continue our conversation?” Vhant suggested.
“Thank you for the offer, but I’m urgently looking for someone.”
“In Salgaera?”
“By any chance, did the Painted Merchants come by?”
“Of course, they’re our regular supply line.”
“I actually have business with one of the members of a mercenary group accompanying them.”
“Mercenary group? Are you talking about Sir Henry by any chance?”
“You know Henry?”
“Of course I know him, but why would you come all the way to Salgaera to look for him?”
“This… I can’t tell you the details, but I’m the vice-captain of Henry’s mercenary corps.”
“Vice-captain? Wow, no wonder. He looks like an extraordinary man. I think we really should talk inside, I have a lot to tell you about Sir Henry. Now, why don’t you come in?”
An unexpected encounter and an unexpected story. Vhant guided Von past the checkpoint and Von followed without any feelings of suspicion.
Vhant asked, “Sir Von, do you like to drink?”
* * *
The empire entered a state of peace after the reunification of the continent and the end of the war. However, that didn’t mean that there was no need for the military, and the empire had to figure out a way to cultivate talented people efficiently.
As a result, various academies, including the Swordsmanship Academy, became imperial institutions and many citizens began to develop their strength in order to achieve their dreams and not just survive.
The empire entered a golden age of power and thanks to all the talented people, the bar for the level of power increased.
As the bar rose, the real difference in true power was determined not by skill in wielding a weapon, but by the aura that came with inner power.
Canye was the commander of the third unit of the Viper Knights. He had graduated from the Swordsmanship Academy with excellent skills and completed his military service on three major battlefields. He never neglected his training and could handle more than two types of weapons, becoming an elite among elites.
In addition, he had the ability to handle aura from an early age and grew at a much faster rate than others. Thus, even though he was still in his twenties, Canye served as the third unit’s commander.
Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
Canye entered the room and gave Salmora a short bow. The imperial knights had up to five subordinate units each. Most of the leaders favored the commanders of the third, fourth, and fifth commanders and taught them whatever they could to prepare them as successors. Thus, this made the third unit commander a real disciple of the leader and Canye was a man who certainly did play the role of a smart, youngest disciple.
“Canye.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m going to need you to visit Salgaera.”
“By Salgaera… Do you mean the place in the north?”
“Yes, and this is a strictly confidential mission, so you can’t disclose this to anybody.”
Canye nodded dutifully. “Yes, sir.”
Salmora began to explain the reason for the mission. “I will assign you the entire third unit. Go and get rid of everything that’s in Salgaera and don’t leave a single trace behind.”
“By ‘everything,’ do you mean the exiles?”
“I mean everything. There will probably be a checkpoint with imperial soldiers. Kill all of them and burn down the checkpoint as well.”
“...Alright.” Canye was confused about his orders, but he was not stupid enough to ask for a reason out of curiosity. Soon after, Canye led 20 men to Salgaera.
“Giddyup!”
Their goal was the complete annihilation of Salgaera. Canye couldn’t comprehend why Salmora would give such a command. The only ones who knew about the Salgaera incident were Salmora, Hiram, and Hiram’s subordinates, the fifth unit of the Viper Knights.
However, Canye did not harbor any suspicions around Salmora at all, even though it was against military law to kill the members of the imperial army. Salmora was the tenth strongest knight in the empire and Canye would serve him for the rest of his life. Canye’s chivalry was defined by absolute obedience to Salmora.
Canye hid all traces of his identity and left for Salgaera. The deadline was tight, but Canye couldn’t disappoint his leader and he pushed himself onward with little sleep until he reached Salgaera two days sooner than he’d expected.
‘Finally…!’
The long journey from the capital in the center of the continent to Salgaera left his buttocks chafed from the saddle, and his buttocks were in a great deal of pain. Canye and his men intended to relieve the stress of the terrible journey with ruthless slaughter.
“Since there’s so much firewood here, we’ll have a warm sleep tonight,” said Canye in a murderous tone.
Shiiing!
At Canye’s order, the men unsheathed their swords with venomous looks in their eyes. The men started to pour their auras onto their sharp, well-forged swords.
Czzz!
It was evening, and during mealtimes, there was no one guarding the checkpoint since the lack of manpower meant that everyone had to pitch in with meal preparation. Canye frowned when he saw the entrance unmanned.
‘Soldiers who fail a mission can be forgiven, but soldiers who fail to guard are not!’
He’d heard that the checkpoint chief of the Slan Gorge was called the gatekeeper. However, even though a man like that was present, the guards were still careless. It made Canye even angrier.
“Kill them,” he ordered.