Chapter 9
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As I was saying, I then traveled to many villages and countries, moving between the corners of this strange world. This time, I stayed longer than usual in the small village of Hikuriz, a relatively quiet village located in the heart of the Kingdom of Jarthia.
After painstaking research in many ancient books and manuscripts that fell into my hands, I discovered that this vast world consists of three huge continents separated by a deadly and mysterious sea called the Sea of Emptiness.
What is interesting about this sea is not only its danger, but also its color, which resembles dark black ink, and the strange creatures that inhabit its depths. However, this is not important now compared to my ultimate goal.
As I was saying, the world has three main continents: the southern continent where I found myself, the mysterious eastern continent, and the cold northern continent.
The Kingdom of Garthia is located on the southern continent, next to the powerful Kingdom of Crothia, and below it is the Kingdom of Sitra, about which I do not yet know much.
This time, I stopped traveling for a while in this village because of the arrival of a huge trade caravan from the northern continent, which was scheduled to pass through the village of Hikuriz.
Due to the extreme difficulty of traveling between the three continents as a result of the deadly nature of the Sea of Void, the inhabitants of the continents were unable to move around freely, making every encounter between the inhabitants of the three continents a rare event.
The only ones who can cross the Sea of Void are powerful knights with extraordinary skills, and perhaps trade caravans with great wealth or high social status that allow them to hire skilled mercenaries or powerful knights to protect them during this perilous journey.
When a relatively medium-sized trade caravan, accompanied by a group of experienced knights, passed through the village, they stopped to camp outside the village for the night to rest from the hardships of their difficult journey.
Then, as you already know, I continued to visit their camp, greeting them with a fake smile and striking up conversations with the knights of the caravan, inquiring about their journey and where they were from, until I convinced them to enter the village and stay there. I also rented some simple houses in the village for them to earn their trust. And so, in the midst of these interactions, I got to know Sergia and the rest of the knights.
I looked at Sergia in surprise and said with apparent innocence:
"Didn't you like yesterday's gift?"
Sergia smiled warmly and said in a calm voice:
"My apologies, young Mr. Ruthvien, but I am already married and love my wife very much. I cannot betray her."
I smiled and said maliciously:
"But Mr. Sergia, you must relax after your long and arduous journey. Your wife is far away from here. You are in a place you don't know. Or are you afraid of your angry wife?"
Sergia's face suddenly froze, and he looked confused for a moment, then laughed loudly, trying to hide his tension:
"Of course not! I just love my wife and don't want to cheat on her with another woman, no matter how beautiful and seductive she is! That's not my style."
I looked at him silently and stopped talking about it. In fact, I had met the other guards from the caravan, and after several scattered interrogations here and there, I learned that Sergia's wife had a strong personality and was always angry with him for various reasons, which made him afraid of her or at least very cautious of her actions when she got angry.
Despite this, I was surprised by his categorical refusal to betray her with another woman, no matter what the circumstances.
However, what can I say? It seems to be a foolish love that people like me, who have known nothing but the bitterness of despair and the desire to die, cannot understand!
Sergia suddenly interrupted my thoughts:
"We're leaving this village in three days, at sunrise."
I was a little surprised by this sudden departure and said:
"So soon? Okay, fine, but I need a small favor before you leave."
Sergia looked at me in astonishment when he saw me step forward.
I took his large hand and gently pulled him toward the room behind him, closing the door quietly and carefully so that none of the knights or villagers would see us or see what we were about to do together.
...
Inside, Sergia and I stood in the closed room, and I began to think about my new plan again, a sly smile spreading across my handsome face. Meanwhile, Sergia stood in front of me waiting, frowning slightly when he saw me pacing back and forth in the small room with obvious nervousness.
...
Many strange possibilities ran through Sergia's mind about what I wanted from him. The suspicious boy with the handsome face
"Does he want me to do it with him?"
Sergia thought about this shocking possibility and his expression changed to a mixture of shock and obvious disgust. From what he had seen on his previous trips, he knew that some young masters, like the strange boy in front of him, preferred men to women, and this aroused his disgust and revulsion.
"Mr. Ruthvien, I don't..."
He stopped abruptly and interrupted him in a serious tone:
"Mr. Sergia, I want you to... kill me!"