Chapter 64
Up until then, the standing of spirit callers had been ambiguous.
Compared to mages, they had virtually no casting time, while their utility was far greater.
They might have been somewhat lacking in combat power, but they could make themselves useful in many different ways.
Yet they were never the main force anywhere.
Then Jade appeared and smashed all those preconceptions to pieces.
He had proven that spirit callers alone could turn the tide of battle.
“That’s one thing, but they all flocked to the capital. Even the ones considered somewhat capable.”
“The crown prince certainly drew his sword properly.”
“Because he’s the acting king right now. He’ll become the real king before long.”
The deputy captain said it as though he were talking about another world.
The royal family was impossibly distant to him, the deputy captain of a small mercenary band.
“It would be nice if we had a spirit caller too. A capable one, of course.”
“Why not sound them out? I hear ten of them are training alongside the brats selected by the marquis. They supposedly haven’t learned the mana cultivation method, a secret technique, yet, but surely they’ve at least built a solid foundation by now?”
“Hmm.”
The middle-aged man looked intrigued.
It was obvious that a spirit caller who had received even a little instruction from the kingdom’s greatest spirit caller would be far better than a random amateur.
“The best option would be the brats who learned the mana cultivation method, but they’re blindly loyal to the lord, so wouldn’t they be hard to sway? The ten who joined later, though, might be persuadable if we offer them the right terms.”
“Let’s take a look first. They might be even more pathetic than we’ve heard.”
“Yes.”
Even among D-rank mercenaries, the difference in skill could be enormous.
Spirit callers were just as sharply divided by ability, so the middle-aged man did not make a hasty decision.
In the first place, a spirit caller was not his objective.
‘For now, I’ll focus on reconnaissance while pretending to be carrying out a commission.’
The commission registered with the Mercenary Guild was to capture hobgoblins alive.
Hobgoblins were one of the common research materials for mages and one of the monsters most frequently hunted in the Great Forest.
Which also meant it was unlikely to arouse anyone’s suspicions.
‘Still, it won’t be easy to determine how many beastfolk there are. They all look human.’
The middle-aged man smacked his lips.
His mission was to accurately assess the marquisate’s military strength, but no matter how intently he looked, only a few appeared to be beastfolk.
That was because they all looked like ordinary people.
Swish.
But he did not know.
That eyes were watching him and his mercenary band from various places.
He had thought the large number of mercenaries would let them blend in naturally, but he was mistaken.
“Guh!”
“Ugh!”
Along with the regular sound of hooves, strange groans could be heard here and there.
They came from the children and spirit callers, who were making their first long journey on horseback.
Among them was Farzali, who had looked like an elite throughout training.
“Mmph!”
Farzali had quite a bit of experience fighting monsters as a member of the local militia, but this was his first time on horseback.
Of course, he had practiced before setting out, but practice and the real thing were different.
Every time the horse moved, pain starting in his groin shot up his spine and spread through his entire body.
In particular, because he remained tense the whole time he was riding, the pain in his lower back was beyond imagination.
“Ugh, I’m dying!”
“Why can’t I get used to this…?”
“This isn’t fun anymore….”
At the groans coming from all around, Farzali wore a faint smile.
If he had been the only one suffering, it would have been even more painful, but having companions sharing the same misery was somewhat comforting.
“Looks like we’ll be suffering for a few more days.”
“That’s all experience, too.”
“Jade hasn’t ridden a horse before either, has he? Since he gets around on Silaphe.”
“That’s true.”
Unlike the twenty traveling on horseback, Jade was traveling in the finest carriage gifted by the royal family, and he nodded.
But once he actually mounted a horse, he was confident he could ride well.
For one thing, his physique itself was incomparable to that of the other twenty.
“I’m curious. Jade will probably suffer too.”
“I doubt it. My body is too sturdy to feel pain over something that minor.”
“Tch! How boring.”
“Moikan is showing you how easy it is.”
“Why can’t you do something this simple?”
Jade rested one arm against the window and pointed at Moikan with the tip of his chin.
Moikan, who had ridden a horse without a care from the very first day and was now even performing tricks.
Aruellia pouted.
“You’re the abnormal one.”
“Abnormal? What a harsh thing to say!”
“Everyone finds new things difficult. Do you think it’s easy to adapt to something new?”
“Humans really are weak.”
At Farzali’s words, Moikan shook his head.
He simply could not understand it.
“You do realize that was a disparaging remark about humans, right? The lord is human too.”
“Ah, sorry! That just slipped out!”
Moikan’s usually sly face turned pale in an instant.
He hurriedly apologized and looked toward the carriage.
Because he wondered if Jade had heard him.
“Too late.”
“Ugh!”
Moikan looked dejected.
Jade happened to be looking over at them just then.
“I can see Kallong Village.”
Alfredo came to Moikan’s rescue.
Alfredo, who had volunteered to act as coachman, reported to Jade after spotting the village in the distance.
“Kkyu!”
At those words, Whid, who was nestled in Jade’s arms and watching the scenery outside, reacted first.
At first, riding in the carriage had been fascinating and fun simply because it was new, but doing it every day had inevitably grown tiresome.
So when Whid heard they had arrived at a village, the creature began swishing its tail.
“I’ll be able to sleep comfortably in a bed tonight.”
“Haven’t you become too steeped in human culture?”
“Good things should be shared and enjoyed together. And elves have beds, too.”
“Hmm.”
“Come visit sometime. You’re welcome anytime, Jade.”
Jade’s eyes lit up.
It was a sudden invitation, but the moment he heard Aruellia’s words, an idea flashed through Jade’s mind.
“Could I meet a high elf, by any chance?”
“Huh? How did you know? That there’s a high elf in my tribe?”
“I’ll definitely come.”
Seeing Aruellia’s pupils widen in surprise, Jade grinned.
Since elves were a people who loved nature and forests, they were unlikely to know much about dimensional travel—but Aruellia was still a high elf.
A being who had lived longer than elves and possessed broad, profound knowledge.
So meeting one at least once would not be a bad idea.
“What’s this? The Jade I know wasn’t this easy. You’re after something, aren’t you?”
Aruellia, sensing something odd, narrowed her eyes at Jade.
As if she intended to see straight through his innermost thoughts.
But even under that gaze, Jade wore a relaxed smile.
“I’m curious, that’s all. Curious. High elves are legendary to humans.”
“Hmmmm, I don’t think that’s it.”
“Personally, I’m also curious about the forest where the war elves live.”
“Sounds like a lie.”
Her transparent, glasslike eyes turned toward Jade.
They felt almost like the rumored Eyes of Truth.
But Jade was not flustered by that gaze.
That was because he had beings by his side who knew the truth rather than rumors.
-She doesn’t have the Eyes of Truth.
-Not every elf is born with them. Even among high elves, only a few are born with the Eyes of Truth.
-Besides, her personality is far too worldly.
Jade chuckled inwardly at the voices chattering from both shoulders.
But outwardly, he answered as though nothing was wrong.
“I’m telling the truth.”
“You seem to be getting more sly by the day. You were so innocent when I first met you.”
“Time moves differently for humans and elves. There’s a huge gap between us.”
“Jade, you’re not an ordinary human.”
Aruellia snorted in disbelief.
The absurd nonsense he was spouting had left her speechless.
“I may live quite a long time, but not as long as an elf.”
“There are ways to live even longer than that. Some beings have actually lived as long as elves have.”
“I’ll have to try, at least.”
“If it’s you, Jade, I feel like you could do it somehow. You should think about Whid, too.”
Whid, who had understood everything Aruellia said, looked up at Jade with eyes brimming with tears.
Though it was still a distant prospect, the thought that parting from Jade might one day happen caused tears to well up in Whid’s eyes.
“Why make someone who was minding their own business cry?”
“Oh, uh. I didn’t expect this to happen.”
Aruellia was flustered too at the sight of Whid’s tearful face.
She had never expected things to turn out this way.
“Not yet, so don’t cry already. There, there!”
“Kkyuuu…….”
Jade soothed and comforted the whimpering Whid.
But Whid seemed unable to forget the word ‘parting,’ so the creature covered its face with its forepaws and continued crying.
“……Sorry, Whid. Want a snack? I brought some very special jerky!”
Aruellia did not know what to do in the face of Whid’s muffled sobbing—not a full-blown wail, but a cry that seemed swallowed back.
She truly had never dreamed things would become this serious.
But despite all her efforts, Whid did not stop crying.
“Here, you take responsibility. You reap what you sow.”
“Can’t you help a little?”
“Yeah.”
“Tch!”
Aruellia shot Jade a sidelong glance, then shifted her gaze back to Whid.
She focused on Whid, who was crying with its shoulders heaving.
“The atmosphere seems a little strange.”
“Why?”
“Even though it’s harvest season, the farmers look gloomy.”
“Are they being heavily taxed?”
Gedd, who had joined the group as Jade’s escort knight after entrusting the apprentice knights’ and soldiers’ training to Illait and Kevin, looked around with a grim expression.
He had the impression that the village as a whole was subdued.
Jade had sensed it as well, so he asked Alfredo, who was driving the carriage.
“Absolutely not. In fact, we’re collecting less than the former Madraine Marquisate did.”
“Really?”
“Yes. At least, that’s what I’ve been told in the reports. I’ll check again once we reach Drain Village.”
Alfredo’s eyes gleamed coldly as he drove the four-horse carriage.
The reports were being submitted properly, but he was keeping in mind that someone might be tampering with them along the way.
“Well, let’s go there first. We should be able to hear all sorts of things at the inn.”
“I’ll hurry.”
“You can take it slowly. We’re not in a rush.”
“Yes.”
Though he answered that he understood, Alfredo sped up slightly.
He wanted to arrive quickly so Jade and the others could rest.
Even so, Alfredo did not forget to keep an eye on their surroundings.
“W-Welcome!”
“Welcome to Drain Castle!”
Thanks to Alfredo’s haste, Jade arrived at Drain Castle sooner than expected.
It had once been the lord’s castle of the Madraine Marquisate.
Perhaps because of that, it was much larger, more imposing, and more splendid than the lord’s castle Jade currently used.
As though it were declaring that this was what a lord’s castle ought to be.
“I believe I said there was no need to hold a welcoming ceremony like this.”
“E-Even so, I thought it would be discourteous to make it too modest….”
The administrators, standing awkwardly between the soldiers lined up on either side, answered hesitantly.
At the sight of the administrators, Jade entered the inner keep with a wry smile.
Before long, they arrived at the still lavishly decorated grand hall.
“Kkyu!”