Chapter 259 : Chapter 259
Chapter 259 : The Kingdom's Legacy (2)
"You there, hold on a second."
It was the moment I was about to turn my horse's head and leave.
"Take off that robe. Let's see your face."
I turned my head slightly and looked. It was the guy who had been glancing at the wanted poster since earlier.
The atmosphere suddenly grew cold. The guards began to stealthily surround us.
Seeing them, Edard urgently raised his voice.
"Are you really going to do this! No matter what, there's no need to treat us like criminals!"
The man presumed to be the squad leader, who had first squabbled with Edard, let out a deep sigh.
"Haa, really. I don't want to do this either, but it's because of that bastard Bihen Benkou."
"......Pardon? That per—, n-no, why that person?"
I had expected it to some extent, so I wasn't greatly surprised. I watched the squad leader's mouth closely while covering my face as much as possible.
"I don't know if you've heard the rumors, but that's Bihen Benkou. Word is he died at Grimbalt Prison."
"What?! D-Died?! Bihen Benkou?"
A presence was felt beside me. Edard's head creaked as it turned toward me, then quickly returned to its original position.
"Yeah. We don't know the detailed inner workings, either. Anyway, that's why there's an order to strengthen access control."
"......W-What exactly does Bihen Benkou dying have to do with gate control?"
The squad leader clicked his tongue.
"Look at this naive friend. Bihen Benkou is no ordinary human. Do you think he got the alias Sword Fiend for nothing? The higher-ups are terrified that he might return as a ghost to exact revenge. There are even widespread rumors that some people inside the royal palace are staying up all night with their eyes wide open."
The guards standing around began to chime in one by one.
"According to floating words, they secretly pushed him off the top of the prison. Those noble bastards made up their minds and colluded to do it."
"It makes sense they're trembling in fear. Seeing as they're such cowards that they're losing sleep at night, just what kind of nerve did they have to commit such an act?"
As the petty gossip directed at a few nobles continued, the momentarily frozen atmosphere gradually loosened.
In the midst of that, the ones not smiling were me, Edard, and...... the guard holding the wanted poster.
"Hey, are my words a joke? I believe I told you to take off your robe."
As if brought to their senses by those words, the smiles on the guards' mouths completely evaporated.
The squad leader frowned as if he were in a bind.
"Ahem. Hey, hey. That's enough. Why act so strictly between us? It's not like it's been only a day or two since we've seen Solari people. You don't think this friend Edard dragged Bihen Benkou here alive, do you? Hahaha!"
The squad leader tapped Edard's shoulder and burst into hearty laughter. As if agreeing with him, the guards also read the room and revealed their teeth slightly, when—
"Take it off. If you refuse any further, I will deem it an obstruction of official duties according to the Aleos security regulations and enforce it by force."
".........."
There are occasionally that type of people. People who have good intuition, a strong sense of duty, and outstanding abilities unsuited for their position.
'The saying that the talented and beautiful die young doesn't exist for nothing.'
Originally, the more one is that kind of human, the more they are bound to gnaw away at their own lifespan. If you are excessively competent beyond your proper place, you ultimately end up sticking out alone.
'......If it were me from before.'
I definitely would have done so. That he was uselessly hastening his own death. And I would have added. To consider it bad luck.
I would have severed the bastard's windpipe like clearing away an annoying stone kicked at the tip of my toes.
'He is someone doing his duty.'
Just a person living earnestly.
It's not like he holds any particular ill feelings toward the figure named Bihen Benkou either.
'......I shouldn't do that, nor do I have the right to.'
I took a shallow breath. Well done, Bihen Benkou. You've matured.
I don't know if that man is looking at my wanted poster, but it might rather make sense to obediently get captured and plot my next moves after that.
RUSTLE.
It was the moment I raised my hand to the hem of my robe.
"KYAAAAAAAH—!"
Someone came running rapidly while letting out a bizarre scream from afar.
Everyone's gaze headed in that direction.
"HYOOP—!"
Coming close, they kicked off the ground in a single breath and soared up. With a small stature, it looked like watching a flying squirrel soaring while sprinting at full speed.
THUD—
The place he landed was behind the guards. Having stopped while facing the wide-open gate, he moved his head only slightly and looked back this way.
"As expected, they cannot stop this body. The Imperial Capital Aleos is nothing much, either."
He was wearing some rag over his face like a mask, but the moment I heard his voice, I immediately recognized who it was.
"Th-That crazy bastard......! C-Catch him at once!"
The guards swarmed over. The man who had flown in like a flying squirrel soon began to flee down a side path along the fortress wall.
In that gap, Edard and I hurriedly pulled our reins.
***
We drove our horses deep into the nearby forest. It was in preparation for a potential pursuit.
"No, how could that noble righteous act you performed at Grimbalt be misrepresented in such a way, Brother! Dead? To think a false rumor even spread that you fell by the hands of those noble bastards, I'm truly so angry I can't hold it in!"
Edard poured out his pent-up anger.
I rubbed the innocent tip of my nose. Whatever rumor spread and how, that wasn't what mattered.
'......Who is it?'
What matters is who spread the rumor.
Zisair? What benefit would he gain from spreading my death? Just to strengthen security? It's so inconsistent that it brings out a hollow laugh.
'Philinus II is excluded in the first place.'
As for the remaining bastards, since they are Zisair's limbs, they must be seen as being in the same boat in the end. Of course, they say word travels fast, but they aren't such absent-minded folks to leak a rumor like this just from a slip of the tongue.
'Someone who would gain a reflective benefit by making my death public.'
Suddenly, Adeline's face flashed by.
'..........'
It's a bit bitter, but it's the truth. This is the true reality, and politics.
If she detonated a scandal involving the King, the Chancellor, and the Imperial Capital ministers to chip away at their standing, it would be an unsurpassed favorable factor for her, who was another axis of power.
'......If I had synchronized our stories with her in advance.'
If I had, she might have exercised her wits and set the board.
Unfortunately, however, the situation was not like that. Me throwing my body at Grimbalt wasn't a planned act, but just my reckless, impulsive action.
No matter how level-headed she was, there was a high chance she was currently sitting idle, taking a huge shock from my unexpected disappearance, let alone weighing the gains and losses.
'If she isn't, I think I'd be disappointed in my own way.'
I shook off the silly thought that brushed past for a moment. Then who exactly was it?
'Ternien and Ludsilla are also excluded.'
If those two had the guts or skill to wield that level of machinations, they wouldn't have gone out of their way to send a secret envoy all the way to Conwell to ask for help. Didn't even those envoys have their tails stepped on and lose their lives to assassins?
'......Gunt?'
It was the moment strength entered the corners of my eyes. Along with a rustling sound, the thicket in front of me shook greatly.
After calming down Edard, who was startled by the sudden presence, I approached it.
"Ramba."
"Haha, Milord! I'm a bit late."
Ramba, appearing after parting the thicket, displayed his characteristic banter.
We substituted our reunion greetings by clasping hands firmly.
"What happened? Did you coincidentally see me in front of the gate?"
"There's a pretty tearful story for it to be called a coincidence. It was an opportunity I barely grasped after running around until my soles caught fire trying to find you, Milord."
Ramba shrugged his shoulders.
"When only you didn't come out from Grimbalt, Milord, I figured something terrible had happened. First, I followed His Grace the Duke of Conwell and entered the Imperial Capital, but soon after, unsettling rumors began circulating."
SKREEECH—!
I raised my head at the sharp cry. The trajectory of a Vulture crossing the sky faintly entered my vision.
Ramba, who was likewise looking up at the sky, continued his words.
"I scoured the vicinity thoroughly with the Vulture. Because I was confident that you couldn't have met with such a futile mishap like the rumors claimed, Milord."
As he said that, Ramba added. He had discovered me camping in the vicinity around yesterday evening, but due to an unfamiliar companion, namely Edard, he hadn't approached hastily and had been looking for an opportunity.
"......I see."
I was grateful. I was grateful, but...... my mouth felt bitter. In other words, it meant I had been missing the presence of the tailing Ramba and Vulture.
Even taking into account that my senses had dulled from being underground for a long time before coming up, it was an issue hard for me to tolerate myself.
'I'm really something myself.'
Well, let's leave it at this. Now is not the time to waste mental energy.
"Who is the one that spread the rumor of my death?"
Ramba was about to speak but paused. It seemed Edard was bothering him. Only when I signaled with my eyes that it was fine did Ramba carefully open his mouth.
"Milord, by chance...... have you heard of Simone?"
I pondered for a moment, then nodded. Ramba's eyes widened slightly.
"Haha, as expected, there's nothing you don't know, Milord. I dug around the background a bit, but it seems the source of this rumor is indeed that of Simone."
Simone nominally purported to be a secret social gathering for nobles, but in reality, it was a closed-off and highly secretive group where only the chosen—more accurately, those selected by the Lust Demon—could step foot into.
'Gunt was said to be a member who cared for Raven.'
Furthermore, Gunt was also royalty, and even Zisair's true face looked exactly like him.
'That much is enough to catch the Lust Demon's eye.'
Gunt had spread my death to Simone.
Alright, up to here, it's an undoubtedly perfect proposition. Even though I don't know the detailed inside story of exactly what intent or what price he wanted in return for spreading such a rumor.
"......Ramba, there is a way to get into the Imperial Capital, right?"
Ramba nodded his head vigorously.
"Of course, Milord. Would there not be a single dog hole in that wide fortress wall?"
***
After bidding farewell to Edard, I followed behind Ramba. The secret passage he guided me to was an underground waterway extending deep into the downtown of the Imperial Capital.
DRIP— DRIP—
The sound of water drops falling echoed exceptionally loudly amidst the quiet stillness.
The problem wasn't that it was underground again.
'This is driving me crazy.'
For me, who had a weak stomach, this stench was torture. The Shadow Village, partly due to its location and thanks to Nebria's magic, had somewhat less of the rotten egg smell unique to sulfur.
"Adel—, no, what news is there of His Grace?"
Thanks to having my mouth covered, I could naturally gloss over the slip of the tongue that almost popped out.
Ramba scratched his head.
"There's no way to know the news since he entered the palace. Since I'm currently not affiliated with the Wild Dogs and Sewer Rats, my hands can't reach the information deep inside the royal palace."
Let's not worry too much. Zisair isn't such a reckless fellow that he would pull nonsense after dragging the Duke of Conwell, the so-called Conqueror of the East out of everyone else, into the Imperial Capital. Joel and Henry are by his side, too.
'Above all, it's Adeline. I believe in her.'
Patting myself on the back, I looked around anew.
The underground waterway possessed a massive and elaborate design structure enough to make one click their tongue in awe. In my memory, it was a form difficult to realize with the Kingdom's level of civil engineering technology.
'I didn't personally come here in my past life, so I can't jump to conclusions.'
Walking behind Ramba, at some point, the sound of a fierce rapid surging could be heard from afar.
Just as if we had arrived, Ramba came to a stop and surveyed the surroundings. Soon, he spoke in a slightly louder voice than before.
"Milord, are you going to head right up to the surface? Or perhaps you have a plan in mind......"
"It's hard to move around while revealing my identity right now. For now, I'd like to make contact with Simone, is there a way?"
Ramba stroked his sparsely bearded chin. He had a somewhat troubled expression.
"When even someone with six knots like me barely knows their name, imagine how it is for the average Sewer Rats."
"Is that so?"
"However, Milord, it's not that there's no way at all."
For a moment, a strange gleam flashed past the corners of Ramba's eyes, only to be quickly submerged in a gloomy complexion. It seemed there was something awkward about it.
"......Perhaps the Boss here might know a way."
"Are you saying there's a separate Boss for the main branch in the Imperial Capital apart from the Leader?"
"Yes. In place of the Leader, who rarely shows himself, this person practically leads the pack. They even have eight knots, so they're virtually slated as the next Leader."
Ramba gulped down his saliva and continued speaking.
"It's a woman commonly referred to as the 'Queen of the Underground'."