Chapter 65
Chapter 24 He Has Arrived (2)
Whid clapped its forepaws when it saw the enormous emblems of House Marquis Gang hanging in rows along both sides of the grand hall.
Its eyes shone with delight at the familiar design embroidered in gold.
“Seeing it like this, it really does have a certain presence.”
“It doesn't exactly look like Whid, though.”
“If we made it too similar, it wouldn't be dignified. Cuteness and a noble house don't really go together.”
Though merely entering the grand hall inspired solemnity, that did not apply to Jade and Aruellia.
One was its master, and the other wasn't human.
-I like it here! It's fancy! And big!
-It might not be a bad idea to renovate the lord's castle even now.
Silestin and Elestra, seemingly taken with Drain Castle, chattered nonstop.
Jade did not answer them one by one, however.
“I noticed on the way here that the overall atmosphere seemed rather subdued.”
“I believe it's because of the bandits.”
“Bandits?”
Not only Jade but everyone else wore a puzzled expression.
This was Jade's own territory, no less.
Yet when they heard that bandits were present, everyone looked as though they could not understand it.
“Recently, a bandit gang has been stirring up trouble throughout the territory. However, they are so cunning that we have been unable to catch them.”
“How many are there?”
Jade asked while sitting crookedly in the enormous chair.
He seemed to be saying that he would hear them out for now.
“According to what we have learned, there are well over a hundred of them.”
“So you haven't determined their exact number.”
“Y-Yes, my lord.”
The highest-ranking administrator answered with a pale face.
It wasn't his fault, but having to deliver such bad news seemed to have intimidated him.
At the same time, Gedd's face hardened as he listened.
The bandits were running rampant, yet he had heard nothing about them.
“Why didn't you report this from the beginning? It's not even a matter of taking action first and reporting afterward. It seems you simply failed to report it.”
“Since soldiers dispatched by the royal court were here to support us, we initially intended to resolve it ourselves. Although there are more than a hundred of them, we judged that our forces had the advantage. However, whether they were lucky or simply had good instincts, we came up empty-handed every time.”
“If that many people moved together, there should be no way they could leave no traces.”
“That was our greatest mystery as well. They left faint traces of movement, but whenever we pursued them, they disappeared without a trace. Like ghosts.”
The administrator's face was filled with frustration.
He was irritated at being thwarted time and again.
If they had only clashed properly once, it would not have been so exasperating, but strangely, the bandits avoided any confrontation.
“When did they last appear?”
“Seven days ago.”
“Hmm.”
Jade wore a doubtful expression.
It was too uncanny to be a mere coincidence.
-Sniff, sniff! I smell something! Something filthy and disgusting!
Silestin seemed to share his suspicion and glared around the hall, eyes wide.
She looked at everyone in the grand hall in turn.
“I see. You may leave.”
“What? Y-Yes!”
At Jade's dismissal, not only the administrators who had been reporting but also those lined up behind them blinked in surprise.
They had naturally expected him to unleash his anger, so when he unexpectedly told them to leave without showing any sign of anger, they exchanged glances and spoke with their eyes.
“Are you planning to make the lord repeat himself?”
Instead, Alfredo shouted sternly in his stead.
His voice rang out so loudly that the grand hall reverberated.
At the sound of his voice, five or six administrators hurriedly bowed and left the grand hall.
“I'll go out too.”
“Go ahead.”
Seeing Gedd open his mouth with a serious expression, Jade nodded perfunctorily.
He knew what Gedd was going out to do without needing an explanation.
“Then.”
“Well, shall we disperse too? Let's get some rest for now.”
Once even Gedd had left the grand hall, Jade rose from his chair.
First, he wanted to unpack and get some rest.
He also had some personal business to attend to.
“I'll escort you.”
“Do you know the layout of Drain Castle?”
“Yes. I looked around the entire castle before greeting you, my lord. I've memorized all the other castles as well.”
“You're certainly thorough.”
Alfredo's answer was so flawless that it seemed inhuman, and Jade let out a small laugh.
Even so, he followed Alfredo.
“Put me in the room next to Jade's. You can do that, right?”
“Understood.”
“Heh heh heh!”
Aruellia wore a satisfied smile at how readily Alfredo answered without hesitation.
It was convenient that he understood what she wanted without requiring an explanation.
“We'll be training.”
“All right.”
“I'll join you.”
Moikan approached Farzali.
Even while researching the mana cultivation technique, Moikan never neglected his physical training.
No, if anything, he trained his body harder than anyone else.
It was because he believed that he, too, could become stronger, just like humans.
“Go ahead.”
“Thank you.”
“Have Alfredo assign the rooms as he sees fit. Or have the castle maids do it.”
“Understood.”
Alfredo nodded and led Jade toward the lord's bedchamber.
He had shown Jade his quarters first.
Birds could be heard chirping outside the window, as if heralding the early morning.
The clear weather, too, seemed to prove that autumn had arrived.
But Jade's attention was elsewhere, not beyond the window.
“Well, well.”
Jade opened the window and stepped onto the terrace, wearing a knowing expression.
Things had turned out exactly as he expected.
-See? I told you I smelled something!
-Humans, as usual.
Kkyu? Kkyung?
At Silestin and Elestra's tongue-clicking remarks, Whid, nestled in Jade's arms, tilted its head.
Whid could not understand what they were talking about at all.
So Whid looked at Silestin with an expression that demanded an explanation.
Apparently, its mental age matched Silestin's rather well.
-It's something like that. Little Whid doesn't need to know about it yet.
-Most humans aren't worth trusting.
-There are very few humans who can be trusted. There are wicked spirit callers, too.
-That's right.
For once, the two spirits agreed.
Jade did not deny it either.
Given what he could see through the sylph, he could not deny that it was true.
-What are you going to do?
“What else? We need to pull weeds before they have a chance to grow.”
-Right! Pull them all up and stomp them flat! So they can never sprout again!
-He is practically telling us where he is himself. But does that human realize that Jade is staring at him so openly?
Elestra said, a mocking smile on her lips.
She wondered what expression he would make if he realized that he was revealing all his secrets on his own.
-He probably hasn't even imagined such a thing. Being a spirit caller doesn't mean you can do everything.
-It does require a synchronization rate like Jade's, though.
-Even if we taught them, not one of the kids could do it right now.
Silestin waggled her index finger from side to side and grinned.
Though Jade was her contractor, he was truly an extraordinary spirit caller.
He was also a hard worker like no other.
Even though Jade already possessed enough skill to go down in human history, he was not satisfied.
-Are you going right away?
“Why waste time? It's nearby, too.”
-Oh, distance doesn't matter. Even if you summon Silairon right now, we'd reach Baden Village in no time. Of course, it would be much faster if I took you there.
After a long while, Silestin said this while lifting her chin proudly.
Both her hands were already planted on her hips.
-You're definitely faster.
-Only the queen and Mother are faster than me!
-I admit it.
Elestra readily conceded.
In terms of speed alone, few spirits were faster than wind spirits.
“There seems to be one more.”
-Huh?
-Among spirits?
“Yes.”
Jade knew very well that wind spirits were fast.
It was not for nothing that he traveled by riding Silaphe.
However, he thought that even if Silestin was a top-grade spirit, there had to be clear limits imposed by her element.
-I doubt it. I've been renowned throughout the spirit realm for being fast since loooong ago!
“Still, light or lightning seem like they would be faster.”
-Huh?
-I forgot about light spirits and lightning spirits. Those spirits don't have separate ranks, but if any have reached the highest tier, then yes—they'd be faster than Silestin. Not every spirit lives in the spirit realm.
Silestin's pupils trembled for an instant.
The confident light in her eyes visibly wavered.
“Still, Silestin is the fastest for now. I haven't seen them myself, after all. Light spirits and lightning spirits are also spirits I haven't been able to contract.”
-Maybe you'll encounter one soon? They might come looking for you first, like we did.
“Or perhaps you lack affinity for those elements.”
Jade shrugged.
His affinity with the four major elements was overwhelming, but he might have no affinity whatsoever for light or lightning.
That was why he kept his expectations in check.
Knock, knock, knock.
As he stroked Whid and picked up his sword, someone knocked on the door.
Jade turned his head at the sound.
“It's me, Jade.”
“Come in.”
“I hope I didn't come too early and surprise you.”
“It's not like it's dawn or anything.”
“Huh? Where are you going?”
Aruellia entered the room, shaking out her damp hair as though she had just washed it, and her eyes widened.
It was obvious that Jade was just about to leave.
“I have something to take care of.”
“At this hour?”
“Yeah. I think I need to pull some weeds.”
“Hmm.”
Aruellia narrowed her eyes and stared at Jade.
She knew perfectly well that he was not really going to pull weeds.
“But aren't you being a little too bold, walking into a man's room like this?”
“Jade, were you a man?”
Aruellia put on a surprised expression.
She spoke as though she had never known that he was a man.
But Jade did not fall for the clumsy provocation.
“If you didn't see me as a man, that's a relief.”
“Tsk! No fun!”
“You should answer a joke with a joke. I'll be out for a while, so if Alfredo comes looking for me, cover for me.”
“So you owe me one?”
“What kind of debt is this?”
Jade wore an incredulous expression.
Aruellia, however, was serious.
“I helped you, didn't I? That makes it a debt!”
“……Maybe I shouldn't have given you that gift.”
“Or I could come with you.”
Aruellia's eyes lit up.
She did not know what was going on, but Jade was personally going out to deal with it.
There was no doubt that it would not be boring.
Moreover, he had even brought his sword, making Aruellia's eyes sparkle.
“This isn't something Master needs to get involved in. Look after the children here. Or go see the city with Alfredo.”
“All right. How long do you think it will take?”
“It won't take long. I'll be back before lunch.”
Jade said this as he pictured the map in his head.
As long as he did not dawdle, it would not take long even with the round trip.
“Have a good trip.”
“See you later.”
Kkyu!
When Jade waved, Whid, nestled in his arms, grinned and waved a forepaw back.
Aruellia smiled back before she even realized it.
“Silairon.”
Whoosh!
At the instant he called its name, Silairon, a high-grade wind spirit in the form of a phoenix, appeared.
It lay flat on the ground so Jade could mount it easily.
A moment later, Silairon carried Jade through the wide-open window and rapidly flew into the open sky.