Chapter 217: Rakshasa (3)
TL/ED – Miso
“So, the attacker is a member of the Rakshasa, and you’re saying you’ll help with the search?”
“Yes. They’re after me, aren’t they? I should be the one to handle it.”
When I stated my intent as if it were the obvious thing, Karos hesitated slightly.
“Hmm… having the target help would make contact easier, but there’s a slight problem.”
“A problem?”
“The Wax Wings Knight Order wasn’t an order that existed from the start. It was hastily assembled to deal with the Crimson Circle, so outstanding men were drawn from other knight orders. From the perspective of the Knight Commanders who originally held those knights, it was quite a bolt from the blue, and on top of that, they ended up dying at the hands of unknown assassins…”
“Ah. So some of it’s on me too.”
“No, no! I’m not saying it’s your fault, Jern. How could it be your sin that those lunatics made you their target? It’s just that even before this, there were a few Knight Commanders who questioned whether it was right for a Fallen who isn’t even a knight to hold the position of Vice Knight Commander, so if you sit in with them, the atmosphere won’t be pleasant.”
To sum it up: because knights had died on account of my being targeted, there were Knight Commanders who didn’t think well of me – that was the gist of it.
It was no big deal. Creatures whose only thought was to devour me were swimming around me right this very moment, hunting for me. What difference would adding a few more Knight Commanders make?
“It’s fine. It shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Well… if a problem does come up, please speak with Her Highness the Princess.”
Having said that, Karos suddenly seemed to realize something and glared at me as she gave her warning.
“No matter what happens, you must not be the one to provoke the Knight Commanders first. They’re our allies in the end, so if we act first, we’re the only ones who lose out.”
“Understood.”
“…”
“Really. What would I gain by making enemies of people I’ll be fighting alongside?”
I smiled with a guileless expression, but Karos kept looking at me with tremendous unease right up until the very end of her escort.
Right up until the moment I opened the door and entered the meeting hall.
‘Oh.’
An old-fashioned cathedral near the Imperial Palace.
When I went deep into it, someone who looked like a cleric guided me to a round-table room where a large number of hulking men sat.
The first thing I felt upon entering was the uncommon thickness of their wrists.
Biceps nearly as thick as a normal person’s head, and armor crafted to match them, told me at a glance that these men had spent their entire lives studying nothing but breaking and killing things.
Karos, whose face showed rather more intellect than expected, walked in with me beside her, and the Knight Commanders’ eyes widened at the sight.
“Sir Karos. Have you relayed the message to the target… hm, who is that?”
“The target.”
“…I said relay the information, not bring him.”
“He said he wanted to hear more detail, so I brought him. Now, I will go report the relevant news to Her Highness, so settle on your course of action. This must, without fail… be carried out through peaceful conversation.”
For some reason, Karos said this while looking at me rather than the Knight Commanders, then left the meeting room.
Her trust level in me really is close to zero. As I shrugged, the Knight Commanders brightened and rose to approach me.
“Are you truly Sir Jern? It’s my first time seeing you in person.”
“I heard he was a child, but I never imagined he’d be this small…”
“The rumor that Fallen don’t age may well be true. He might already be several hundred years old. Ah, I am called Jahan.”
“I’m Jern Aspandal.”
Contrary to what I’d been told, most of the Knight Commanders showed a friendly attitude toward me.
I was actually flustered at being unprepared for this kind of reception when the Knight Commanders spoke up curiously.
“But… if we’ve happened to meet, could you possibly…”
“Ahem. Sir Jahan. Isn’t that rude?”
“Oh, right?”
That?
Tilting my head, I asked the sheepish Knight Commander, who was scratching his head with a hand like a pot lid,
“What do you mean…?”
“It’s something I heard from Sir Brimdal. That man’s an unpleasant sort, but he doesn’t waste words on nonsense.”
“I heard that you, Jern… have a manifested knight’s talent, one that allows you to always see and evade any Sword Path. Is that true?”
“Ah.”
He meant Current Sense.
I shrugged and answered.
“It’s nothing special. Sir Jahan, would you grip your sword hilt?”
“Hm?”
“And then, at any moment of your choosing, try to draw it.”
Jahan, bewildered, gripped the hilt.
Under the intrigued gazes of the Knight Commanders, roughly seven seconds passed.
“Now.”
“…!”
I stopped Jahan with my words alone, before he’d so much as twitched.
“You were just about to draw, weren’t you?”
“…Hoho.”
Jahan, utterly astonished, let go of the hilt. He looked at me as if I were some kind of monster.
“Sir. Did I show some sort of tell?”
“No… I didn’t catch anything either. Reading a draw after the fact is one thing, but who could possibly recognize the very moment of drawing?”
“Truly a shame. To have such an ability and not be a knight…”
“Even now, it might not be too late…”
Hmm.
It seemed the Knight Commanders, much like Brimdal, had been drawn in by my talent as a knight of an altogether different caliber.
They also seemed to harbor favorable feelings toward me for having struck down the Upper Tier of the Crimson Circle. As we chatted in a gentle atmosphere that didn’t match their fierce faces at all, one of the Knight Commanders still seated at the round table cleared his throat and gathered everyone’s attention.
“Ahem. Sir Jern. I am called Kamelot Lavistran. Did you hear from Sir Karos that you’re being targeted by an unidentified group of assassins?”
“Yes. And that the group is the Rakshasa.”
“…How did you come to know that?”
“I received information that they’ve recently been targeting Fallen. The Crimson Circle is so shrouded in mystery that I figured they’d likely target me, since I’m the most famous Fallen who took down the Crimson Circle, and my whereabouts are known.”
Since I couldn’t bring up the Lumia kidnapping incident, I shrugged and glossed over it, and he nodded and gestured for the other knights to sit.
“Then this will go quickly. As you say, this incident involves a group of assassins called the Rakshasa.”
“…?”
Most of the Knight Commanders looked puzzled even at hearing the name Rakshasa.
A few, however, wore expressions grim enough that their complexions changed.
“And as Sir Jern said, they’ve been gathering Fallen lately. They somehow located the Fallen Villages the Empire had quarantined, abducted the entire population, and disposed of those they deemed useless on the spot. It seems they’re trying to use Fallen for something.”
“Is there a way to locate them?”
“…Ancient records state there was once a contact point where the Empire used to meet them. Their base is almost certainly somewhere in that region. The records are so old we can’t be sure, but for now this is our best lead.”
Kamelot spread a massive map across the round table.
“Given that they dared lay hands on knights of the Empire, they must pay a severe price. The moment Her Highness heard of this, she commanded their total annihilation. This is the first time she has taken such a hardline stance, so there must not be the slightest shortcoming.”
The instant Sharmia’s name came up, the Knight Commanders grew tense and visibly swallowed. Watching these hulking men tremble at the mere mention of Sharmia was quite the sight.
“We must form a Subjugation Force and move as soon as possible, so let’s take volunteers. Sir Jern will accompany those setting out immediately. Volunteers, raise your hands-”
“I object.”
At the cold voice that suddenly cut in, the knights who had been about to raise their hands lowered them awkwardly.
“I do not believe the Vice Knight Commander of the Wax Wings should accompany us.”
One of the Knight Commanders seated at the round table glared my way in a low voice. A young and strikingly handsome knight, far younger than the others, who looked no more than thirty something.
Before I could say anything, Jahan frowned and warned the man.
“What are you saying? If they have a target in mind, drawing them out becomes all the easier.”
“If that target has no ability beyond that of a hostage, he’s just dead weight. Is this not the same as delivering exactly what the enemy wants straight into their camp?”
“…That sounds as if you’re saying Sir Jern is a knight incapable of fulfilling his role.”
“That is precisely what I’m saying.”
“Morzan. Remember that you are in a position where you must take responsibility for your words.”
As Jahan slowly built up his anger, Morzan coolly struck back.
“Sir Jahan. Please don’t misunderstand. I would have said exactly the same thing if the target had been you. I’m simply saying we shouldn’t hand them what they want.”
“…”
“That’s enough. There’s reason in what Sir Morzan says as well.”
Just as the mood was about to boil over, Kamelot raised his hand to wave it down and pressed his temples.
“It’s true that placing what they most desire right into their jaws would not be a wise move. I don’t doubt Sir Jern, who subjugated the Crimson Circle, but expending him as bait would be dishonorable as well.”
“…Understood. However, bringing Sir Jern along would be of tremendous help in drawing out creatures hidden who knows where.”
“So, that’s-”
Little by little, the conversation was leaving me out and heating up on its own.
‘Let’s see… what to do.’
Calmly clasping my hands behind my back, I settled into my seat and sank into thought.
First, even setting aside my own interest in the Rakshasa, I absolutely had to join this expedition.
If it was true that they’d raided the Fallen Villages, it meant the Rakshasa had already carried off countless Fallen. They’d clearly gotten results from it, which was how something like Aksha became possible, and that in turn had led them to the idea of abducting me.
And if, as a consequence, there really was an assassin comparable to a Fallen –
That was something they could not handle without me.
In the end, this was for the Knight Commanders’ sake. I’d have preferred to just go along quietly, but since things were heading in a different direction, I had no choice but to sigh and cut into the steadily escalating discussion.
“Sir Kamelot, is that how I should address you?”
“Ah, yes. My apologies. We’ve been carrying on without including you…”
“It’s fine. It didn’t seem like something I could decide anyway.”
“…That’s sharp. But I have no intention of disregarding your wishes. It’s just that all of this is for your sake…”
I cut off what was about to become a long speech and replied.
“I see. In any case, since the two of you don’t seem to be reaching common ground, I have a compromise to offer from my side.”
“Hm, let’s hear it.”
“From this moment, I’d like to be given full authority over the Subjugation Force, and to decide personnel, policy, and plans entirely on my own. I’d appreciate it if all of you would follow my word without question.”
“?”
Kamelot, who had tilted his head for a moment, narrowed his brow and asked.
“Hm, is this some kind of joke popular among young folk these days? As I’ve gotten older, I have a hard time keeping up with these things.”
“It’s not a joke. Having looked into these Rakshasa, it seems to me that even the great knight orders of the Empire are in danger. I think all of you will need to move directly under my command. I happen to be a specialist in this sort of thing.”
At my utterly serious tone, everyone in the meeting room froze.
It should come any moment now. I counted off three seconds in my head.
3, 2, 1.
-Bang!
“I’ve held my tongue long enough, but you clearly don’t know your place!”
Morzan, his face flushed red, slammed the table and rose, muttering through clenched teeth.
“You have no decision-making power in this room. Do you not know that?!”
“I don’t know exactly what sort of room this is, but I know Fallen well. It seems all of you still don’t grasp how dangerous they are. If Assassins and Fallen are combined, they’ll be a far more dangerous presence than you imagine.”
“I’ve taken the heads of plenty of Fallen in my time. Do you mock us?!”
“I’m different from that sort.”
“Absurd. How are you different?”
“We live in different worlds.”
I looked at him calmly and raised my hand.
In my hand was a single sword.
Morzan’s sword.
“…?!”
Morzan, flustered, patted at his waist. Naturally, there was no sword strapped there.
“My apologies for borrowing it without permission. I’ll return it.”
-Clunk, rrrolll…
I rolled the sword across the round table and set it down in front of him.
Then, watching Morzan’s face turn even redder, I counted off three seconds once again.
3, 2, 1.
“…Jern Aspandal!”
“Yes.”
“I challenge you to a duel! If you win…”
“Right, I won’t join the Subjugation Force, and if I win, I’d like to be granted some related authority, though perhaps not as far as commander of the Subjugation Force.”
“Uh, huh?”
Seeing his expression as he realized something had gone wrong, I let out a sigh.
Knights really were a breed that was all too easy to manipulate.