Chapter 84
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Chapter 84
Yurien de Harden Kirie paused to consider his options.
'...Yes, let's start with that. After all, I always believed she might know about my memories, didn't I?'
It wasn't about revealing everything at once. I would move slowly, carefully, so as not to reopen her wounds. One step at a time. There were sins I needed to confess, after all. The thought of them brought that familiar pain—like a blade scraping against my insides. Yet my desire for her outweighed even that agony.
Yurien asked her to accompany him on the mission.
"I say again—you need not feel burdened by this."
He waited for her answer, acutely aware of his own tension. Was he too eager? There was a vast difference between her not disliking him and actually enjoying his company. Even knowing rejection was possible, his throat had gone dry.
"No, I'll go. It's only natural for a Squire to accompany her Lord on a mission, isn't it?"
She agreed far more readily than he'd dared hope. Because she was his Squire, accompanying him was simply her duty. Making her his Squire had been the right choice. I could feel an elated smile spreading across my face.
"Thank you."
I didn't suppress that smile. Instead, I let it shine brighter, giving it my all. She seemed to like his expression. I hoped that perhaps this moment might make her like me just a little more.
The effort paid off. Echinacea Loaz gazed at him as if entranced. Her relaxed face was breathtakingly beautiful. If her unguarded expression alone could move me this deeply, what would it feel like to see her smile at me with genuine happiness?
"I'll be waiting, Echinacea."
Fearing she might change her mind, he quickly took his leave.
[So you've decided not to give up after all?]
The Holy Sword muttered with a click of its tongue. Yurien replied as he made his way back to the Squad Leader's Office.
"I can't give up."
[...I should have known. Other humans change their minds easily enough, yet every master I've served has been single-minded about one thing or another. Truly, it was a vain hope.]
I let the Holy Sword's grumbling pass through one ear and out the other. Upon reaching the Squad Leader's Office, I retrieved the envelope I'd stored in a drawer. It contained everything about what Bred von Poum had been attempting to do with Echinacea Loaz under the guise of an "apology."
Bred von Poum and several other cadets from the Noblesse Club had rented an empty mansion in a remote area outside Agenka around that time. Additionally, evidence of black market transactions had been discovered. They'd purchased some kind of drug, but determining its exact nature proved difficult, so the report was delayed while a portion was diverted for analysis.
'An anesthetic.'
Multiple male cadets, a secretly rented empty mansion on the outskirts, an anesthetic purchased from the black market, a request for a direct meeting to apologize—all directed at Echinacea Loaz. The pieces fit together to paint a sordid trap. The paper crumpled in my grip. My vision flashed crimson for a moment before slowly returning to normal.
After taking a deep breath to regain my composure, I finished reading the rest of the report. Ian Peletro's name did not appear in the investigation.
'He must have instigated and advised them, then slipped away.'
That was typically how Ian Peletro's involvement went. Most of his crimes were difficult-to-prove instigation and manipulation. Yet despite this, the evidence left behind at the Peletro Residence—letters, documents, and more—was substantial.
He must have orchestrated this as well. An impulse to find even his remaining bones and crush them flared within me. I had to take another deep breath.
'There's no way she would have fallen for such a trap. In fact, she didn't even go.'
Echinacea Loaz had ignored Bred's request. Moreover, Ian had witnessed the Changtian Knights' commander—Yurien—hearing about this "apology." Because of that, he'd likely postponed the plan. Afterward, Ian Peletro, who had been instigating Bred during the monster subjugation and connecting him with Echinacea, died. So the entire scheme had fallen apart.
According to the report, even after all preparations were complete, Bred's group showed no further action, and the rental period for the mansion had expired. However, the drugs were still being kept in storage.
I set down the report, still with pages remaining, and rested my forehead against my clasped hands, breathing carefully. They had made their plans but never attempted to execute them, and even if they had, she would have been fine.
Still, if by some chance she had been caught up in it. The image of Echinacea Loaz wielding her sword in a poisoned state at the Merchant's Mansion surfaced in my mind, and my self-control nearly shattered. Blue veins stood out starkly along my neck.
[I understand your feelings, but don't think about killing them. This isn't a crime worthy of death.]
"As long as I don't kill them, anything else is acceptable?"
My voice carried a chilling edge. The Holy Sword fell silent for a moment before responding with reluctance.
[It's not right to take vengeance for an attempt that never even materialized—a crime that ended in mere conspiracy.]
So I should simply let those who dared scheme against her go unpunished? I fixed my pale blue eyes on the mark in my palm.
"Is that your personal judgment, or Rangiosa's judgment as a Holy Sword?"
My master's eyes had gone cold. There was no stopping him now. The Holy Sword quickly resigned itself.
[Speaking as Rangiosa, it's not quite evil—as long as you leave their limbs intact.]
So leaving them alive with all their limbs was acceptable. I picked up the report again and continued examining the remaining pages.
The back pages contained a list of related cadets. Including Bred von Poum, there were five in total. Comparing them to the Noblesse Club structure I had learned through Baraha Islaf, they were not part of the club's mainstream. And on the very last page, there was a fact attached regarding Bred von Poum—something discovered by chance during the investigation.
Military cadets were forbidden from privately keeping servants or maids. However, a small number of cadets from noble families secretly employed personal servants or maids. Bred von Poum was one of them, and it appeared that his personal maid had recently fled in the dead of night. The exact circumstances were unknown, but it was written that he was suspected of having laid hands on the maid.
[This bastard's completely rotten.]
The Holy Sword clicked its tongue. I read that section with a cold expression. A plan took shape.
I refrained from confronting those bastards directly. Until now, I had never once wielded violence in an emotional outburst, but I had no confidence in maintaining my reason if I stood before those who had attempted such filthy acts against Echinacea Loaz.
I had no intention of making this public. Echinacea Loaz, having already witnessed much ugliness, might let it pass easily, but I did not want her entangled in the rumors and gossip surrounding such a matter.
I concealed my involvement and utilized a direct informant among the administrative staff. The administrator, who called in each related cadet separately, presented the organized evidence of this matter and gave them the choice of being expelled loudly or withdrawing quietly.
The cadets initially denied it or invoked their family's influence. However, when the administrator said he would make this public and report it to the Squad Leader, they all fell silent. The evidence was too clear, and if it became known that they had attempted to touch the Changtian Knights Squad Leader's squire, their families would refuse to protect them.
In the end, all five cadets quietly withdrew, each citing different reasons.
Among them, Bred von Poum was attacked by bandits on his way home. The bandits dragged him along and threw him, blindfolded, before the maid who had been assaulted by Bred von Poum and her family, who had been waiting. They took their revenge on Bred von Poum thoroughly. He lost parts of his body other than his limbs.
Marquis Poum raged when he saw his son return in such a state, but he could not possibly find those who had done this to him. This was inevitable, as the bandits who had attacked had returned to their original business, and the maid's family had moved to Agenka under someone's protection. The reach of an Empire marquis could not extend to Agenka.
All of this had occurred while the Changtian Knights Squad Leader and his squire were away on a long-term mission.
May 23rd, 1629. Yurien de Harden Kirie and Echinacea Loaz boarded a train for a long-term mission.
The reason I kept my eyes closed on the train was nothing special. Even for a first-class cabin, the compartment was narrow. Sitting across from each other in such a space, Echinacea Loaz avoided my gaze with visible discomfort, and I, feeling tense, closed my eyes for a moment to compose myself.
With my eyes closed, her presence became noticeably more at ease, and I found myself unable to open them. I deliberated for a while on whether it would be better to pretend to sleep like this.
In the meantime, her gaze reached me. Thanks to my keen Master's senses, I could feel her eyes tracing the contours of my face. Feeling this with my eyes closed, blood seemed to rush to my face. Flustered, I quickly opened my eyes the moment she looked away.
"Oh, when did you wake up..."
"I was never asleep."
Echinacea Loaz, who had been relaxed, began to tense again. The more she tensed, the more melancholy I felt. I prayed that during this mission, her manner toward me would become even slightly more comfortable. That's why even her small questions delighted me. I answered as thoroughly as possible. I was concerned that my tone seemed stiff, but since I didn't know how to change it, I simply put in the effort.
"Can you tell me the details of the mission now?"
This question alone I could not greet with pure joy. Our mission was to rescue a young girl who was the Elgiosa Owner and a Saint from the crisis of burning to death at the place we were about to go. I was not a prophet, yet I was attempting to prevent a future event. It was a blatant revelation that I possessed memories of the past.
[It is a past you worked so hard to erase. If she learns that you remember that erased time, she may disappear and never appear before you again.]
The Holy Sword's words came to mind. My chest tightened with fear. However, since I had already resolved to tell her, I carefully broached the subject.
"The purpose of this mission is to recover Elgiosa and to rescue the Elgiosa Owner."
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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