Chapter 215 : Chapter 215
Chapter 215 : Outer one (2)
Crow jerked his head back.
SQUELCH—!
Joel's sword pierced right through the center of the bird beak.
Crow grabbed the blade from his stumbling posture and immediately lashed out with his foot.
Joel's body slid far back.
SHIIIIK—!
Joel's body, tracing a path along the ground as he slid, barely came to a halt right in front of Adeline.
Adeline whispered to his back.
"Jo, do not overdo it. The preparations for the retreat will be finished soon."
"Understood. But that bastard......"
"Hmm?"
"I don't know why, but he feels strangely familiar."
No matter how fleeting an exchange of blows is, a swordsman crosses the threshold of life and death multiple times within it. Another sense beyond the five senses can't help but awaken. The higher the realm, the more sharply that sense is honed.
Just a moment ago, Joel felt a powerful sense of déjà vu. Instinctively, the killing intent he had previously received from Deganelo came to mind.
Of course, Joel's skill was still a bit lacking to pinpoint it precisely.
"Hahaha! They say a brat grows so fast you will not recognize them if you do not see them for a few days, and it is certainly true."
Crow, that is, Deganelo, finally threw away his mask. It felt like a bird with an arrow stuck in its torso plopping to the ground.
"......You speak as if you know me."
Joel narrowed his eyes, drawing a fresh sword from his waist. Of course, there was no way he would recognize the face of Deganelo, who had undergone a complete metamorphosis.
*In the meantime, Jayden and Clyde closed in on both sides of Crow.
Crow, who casually glanced at them by just turning his head left and right, curled up one corner of his mouth.
"Well, it is just a figure of speech. At any rate, you have absolutely no intention of stepping aside quietly, do you?"
"State your affiliation and name precisely, stranger!"
Crow chuckled at this.
"Old knight, you should know that loyalty exceeding your capability is no different from disloyalty."
Adeline took a step forward and stood side by side with Joel. A flustered Joel tried to stop her, but Adeline did not back down.
"Even if I ask, you have no intention of revealing your identity."
Crow raised his chin ostentatiously. It meant she was correct.
"Fine. Then I shall ask something else. Why are you doing this?"
"Doing this? Look here, Duke. We are in the middle of a war. It means it would not be strange no matter what happens. Why make such a fuss over someone of my caliber shaking up the enemy lines alone?"
"You are right. If it were only up to that point, that is."
Crow tilted his head slightly. The leisurely smile that had lingered on his lips was gone.
"If that were the case, you should not have told a lie that would be exposed so easily in the first place."
"A lie?"
"I am asking why you went out of your way to deceive us by claiming to be the Great Raven Mercenary Band."
One of Crow's eyebrows twitched.
The three people surrounding him from three directions each regulated their breathing. They looked ready to rush forward the instant Adeline's order fell.
Crow, who slowly scanned them and Adeline with only his pupils, soon burst into roaring laughter. It was utterly bizarre as he laughed using only his voice and mouth while keeping his eyes wide open.
"I will admit it, Duke of Conwell. I thought you rose to that position by mere luck entirely thanks to Bihen Benkou, but looking at you now, that is not the case."
Bihen Benkou. The moment that name was heard, everyone could not help but tense up.
Adeline's brow furrowed slightly.
"Do you know about Bihen?"
"There is no way I could not know him. He is quite a celebrity, after all. Well, right now, rather than that—"
Crow shrugged his shoulders.
"It is a pity. To kill you all, that is."
"……."
"That is why being excessively smart makes things exhausting. For oneself and for the opponent alike."
Crow pointed back and forth between himself and Adeline with his finger. His tone and actions, everything was completely leisurely.
"Hoo, hoooo—"
At that moment, Clyde's breathing trembled faintly. He was visibly tense.
Seeing him, Crow curled his lips.
"Duke, it is not as if there is no way. Just hand over your life. Then I can let the rest live."
"You baaaastard!"
Jayden was appalled. Joel's body also fl인치ed. Both looked ready to spring forward immediately.
Adeline placed her hand on Joel's shoulder and spoke.
"Do you want my life?"
"Why, are you afraid?"
"Of course not. I have lived my life having offered up my life long ago."
"Ha!"
"However, no matter how much I think about it, I cannot understand. If you merely wanted my life, there would be no need to make such a grand spectacle of things. Just as you said, it would be a simple task for someone of your caliber to assassinate me quietly."
Adeline pulled back her chin. An ice-cold composure dwelt in her deep blue eyes.
"What on earth could it be? The reason you must ostentatiously stir up the Conwell camp disguised as a member of the Great Raven Mercenary Band and even take the life of the Duke of Conwell in such a loud manner."
"……."
By this point, it was difficult for Crow to maintain his sly smile. Even he was experiencing a multitude of thoughts.
Soon, Crow shook his head with irritation, as if he did not want to think any more deeply.
"Because the culprit making this war drag on sluggishly is none other than you, Duke of Conwell."
Crow raised his sword finger in front of his face.
Centering around the sword finger, the corners of his lips gradually curled up on both sides.
"Would it not be troublesome if a mercenary who came to fight just stayed quietly still? I have to receive my payment, and my body is itching to move, after all."
"You did this to instigate the war?"
"There is no reason I could not."
"What nonsense. You are saying an anonymous expert who had been hiding quietly until now revealed his presence to the world at this late hour for such a trivial reason? Do not look down on me."
Crow's face stiffened once again. He had no imperative reason to hide it, but hearing such words made resentment subtly surge within him.
And from a mere human, at that.
"……Because it defies the natural order."
"What?"
"The balance of birth and death must not tilt toward either side. Those destined to die must die, and those destined to survive must survive."
Crow, or rather, the Sword Demon, closed his eyes for a moment. He envisioned the approaching future.
The day when the descendants would come to reorganize this land was not far off. It was to prevent destruction caused by the excessive abuse of mana and aura—that is, karma.
The Empire had already experienced it once. It was a history that was now erased.
"This war must happen. Though you bastards will never understand."
One must not hold onto the scales by looking only at the cruelty before their eyes. If so, there can be no new birth.
Humans fail to accept that flimsy goodwill ruins the cycle of circulation. Of course, that is what humans are, and that is the limit of human reason.
"What we protect is not the safety of the world, but its continuation. Realize that your arrogance in trying to break that cycle of circulation is a true sin."
It was the moment a sharp spirit surged from the tip of Crow's sword finger.
"Your Grace! Everyone has retreated safely!"
At the shout heard from atop the hill, everyone's gaze shifted in that direction.
Ayan stood at the edge of the hill, panting for breath. Soon, he raised his hand as if supporting something. A cluster of light formed over his palm, and a few strands of light stretched out, tracing distinct paths.
It was the point where the Spatial Transfer Gate was kept open—namely, the retreat path for those down below.
Of course, there was no way Crow would recognize it.
"Now is the time! Everyone, scatter!"
Adeline shouted. Of course, she was curious about the stranger's true purpose and identity.
However, the ultimate reason she dragged out the time was to withdraw all the troops from the hill. From the moment she saw him subdue Linda as if handling a child, she had deemed resistance to be meaningless.
"Silly tricks."
It was when Crow let out a mocking laugh.
This time, a voice was heard from a hill in a different direction.
"Fire Field—!"
It was Bonnie. She was holding a staff taller than her own height upright.
As mana began to gather at the tip of the staff, Crow reacted convulsively.
"To dare recklessly use karma in front of me—"
He extended his left hand. It was the exact moment his Snake Belly Sword shot out.
KIIIIING—!
In an instant, Crow's eyes widened. It was a resonant sound that felt like it froze his eardrums.
"Don't touch Bonnie!"
Crow's head snapped around. He was a man who had been hunched his shoulders tightly until just a moment ago. Now, he was charging forward, completely transformed like a ferocious demonic beast.
Crow clicked his tongue. He was on the verge of letting out a hollow laugh. He had never heard of or seen a human who could cross over realms in an instant like this.
Just like when he blocked Linda's strike, he had no choice but to draw his sword this time as well.
CLANG—!
A spark flashed. It was the exact moment Clyde's figure, having brushed past Crow like a flash of lightning, landed far away.
CRASH CRASH CRASH CRASH CRASH CRASH—!
Pillars of fire erupted from all sides. The mountainside split apart in droves, and dirt and gravel poured down all at once.
Crow also barely held his ground. Even he had no way to deal with a landslide of this magnitude.
On the other hand, Adeline's group was scattering in all directions as if they were already accustomed to it.
"Haha……."
Crow laughed as if in disbelief. The manner in which they retreated in perfect order showed signs of being well-trained. It was a practiced movement at a single glance.
***
"I hope we meet Comrade Bihen again."
Hugin spoke as he set down his cup. For some reason, a wave of intoxication washed over him today of all days.
Kendrick, sitting opposite him, blinked.
"Bihen? Hmm, I don't know. Setting aside everything else, to have that guy as a friend is......"
He was about to say he was completely unfit, but the words withdrew entirely.
It was because the conversation they had shared in front of the Spirit Tree suddenly came to mind.
'Come to think of it, he did know how to joke. Though it wasn't funny.'
There had indeed been no opportunity to get close. Their first meeting hadn't been pleasant either.
As he mulled over various thoughts, his mouth grew dry. Kendrick forgot that he was about to set his cup down and took another gulp.
"My intuition happens to be quite good. There are times when things from the distant future flash before my eyes like a passing thought."
"And so?"
"I saw a scene where Comrade Bihen reclaims Partizan and lives there for generations to come."
Kendrick, who was tearing at a piece of jerky, snickered.
"Wow, it seems you have taken quite a liking to that fellow Bihen, Comrade Hugin. It almost makes me feel jealous."
"Of course, you were there together with him as well."
"Me? Oh, that sounds nice. What about you, Comrade Hugin?"
Hugin shrugged his shoulders as if it were of no consequence.
"I do not know."
"Pardon?"
"I am not predicting the future. It is simply that personality, tone, gaze, and every minor detail combine to allow me to quickly perceive what kind of person someone is. That is why their future is faintly drawn inside my head. However, since I cannot view myself objectively, it is only natural that my intuition does not work on myself."
"Hmm, hearing you say it, that makes sense."
"In that regard, a first impression becomes a very important piece of evidence. You could say he is like an unpolished gemstone."
Kendrick responded as he brought the cup to his lips.
"That must be it. The first impression that fellow Bihen made must have been incredibly intense."
"You could say that."
Kendrick ultimately emptied his cup completely. Wiping the liquor left on his philtrum with his lower lip, he asked.
"What was it like? That fellow Bihen's first impression."
"Well. That is why I wish to meet him again."
Hugin quietly brought his cup to his lips. Kendrick, who was silently watching that sight, tilted his head.
Something...... felt as though there were many contradictions in his words.
Having thought up to this point internally, Kendrick slapped his own cheeks. He had overdrank again today.
"Is there anything more you can recall about Partizan today, Comrade Hugin?"
"Partizan is as vast as Conwell. No, it is even more than that."
Kendrick let out a snort and laughed.
"Are you not joking too much? Does it make sense that a territory the size of Conwell existed inside the Northern Demonic Lands? You said before that it was an incredibly high and massive mountainous region."
"That is right. Endless ridges unfold layer upon layer."
Hugin pointed his finger into the empty air and moved it slowly to the side as if drawing a line.
"If you follow the ridges, you will greet the four seasons in sequence. Starting with fresh green leaves, passing through dry, desolate gray blades of grass and colorful autumn foliage, all the way to a snow-covered mountain that never melts……."
Kendrick swallowed his saliva. He never grew tired of hearing this part. It felt as though the majesty of mother nature was completely filling his chest.
"The peaks piercing the sky are countless, and innumerous valleys branch out between them. At the end of the valleys, a wide-open plain appears, and once you pass the plain, a river flowing from melted perennial snow reveals itself."
Hugin emptied his cup as well. Seeing that, lyrics flowed from Kendrick's mouth.
"O, Partizan, carry me away."
Hugin chuckled. Kendrick sang passionately, completely unconcerned.
"O, farewell my love—, farewell, goodbye."
The small lamp inside the barracks flickered slightly in accordance with the lyrics.
"Beyond the forgotten fields, reopen our path once more."
Hugin, who had been quietly keeping the beat, finally opened his mouth and hummed along.
"If I fall in Partizan……."
The refrain was heard from outside.
"It is the Windermere army—!"
Hugin and Kendrick sprang up simultaneously. The brass cup that had fallen to the floor rolled around noisily.