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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Bellus Barony (2)
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3.
"Ah… ah."
Leo stared at the carnage before him, unable to form proper words.
He couldn't even lift a finger.
His body was consumed by terror, and nausea welled up from within.
The one who had orchestrated this entire massacre was none other than his cousin, Karron.
He had known for a long time that Karron was a monster—a monster of unfathomable depth.
After all, his damn cousin had surpassed him long ago.
But he had thought a real battle would be different.
It was Karron's first time in a real fight, too. At the very least, they were on equal footing in that regard.
"How dull. I was actually looking forward to this."
But now, Leo realized that thought had been nothing but his own arrogance.
There wasn't even a single scream.
*Slice.*
The enemies' heads were severed and fell to the ground before they even had time to cry out.
Leo recalled the image of what Karron had just done.
The sword, emanating a terrifying, dark blue light, had reaped the enemies' necks without any fancy techniques.
There was no brilliant footwork, no dazzling swordplay.
Instead, there was only overwhelming terror.
Gripped by that terror, the enemies had frozen like training dummies, and Karron had simply walked forward like a farmer harvesting wheat, reaping their lives.
That was all there was to it.
With every flash of the dark blue blade in the air, another life vanished.
Could this even be called a battle?
No, absolutely not.
This was a one-sided slaughter.
With a trembling hand, Leo drew Sylphid from its sheath.
He was certain Karron wouldn't attack him, but the fear was a separate matter.
"Brother. I told you to keep your eyes closed."
"You never said… that…"
"Oh, really? My bad, then. I showed something a bit too intense for a minor."
The monster who had created this whole tragedy let out a faint smile, flicking the blood off his sword with a light swing.
Then he approached the one man he had intentionally left alive.
Of the thirteen bandits, he was the sole survivor.
Their leader, who had charged forward with a spirited yell, had also been beheaded in a single strike.
Escape had been impossible.
The man's legs were seized by an indescribable terror, rendering him unable to take even a single step.
"Now, it's time for us to have a nice little chat, old man."
The man trembled as he watched the boy approach.
The fact that his pants were soaked with urine was the least of his concerns.
He had witnessed with his own two eyes what the boy before him had done.
He was strong.
Unimaginably stronger than a mere deserter like himself.
If he couldn't run, there was only one option.
"I… I will answer… anything… you ask… so please, just spare my life…"
"Start with your name and origin."
"Urhan. I'm a commoner, so I have no… surname. I was in the Keas Kingdom's 3rd Infantry Division, 9th Regiment, 1st Battalion."
"Just as I thought, one of the southern kingdoms. I quite like your cooperative attitude."
The boy strode over and plunged his dark blue sword into the ground right next to the man.
He then placed a hand lightly on the man's shoulder and continued.
"Alright, Urhan. So you guys are deserters, right?"
"Yes… that's right."
"Your numbers and any notable personnel?"
"Our total number was 130, and as for notable personnel… there's one mage and his two knight escorts."
"A mage, huh… Hey, are there really 130 deserters?"
"Y-Yes, sir."
"Wow, that's impressive. Your boss must be more charismatic than I thought."
The number of bandits was far greater than Karron had anticipated.
Moreover, the presence of a mage bothered him.
Mages were extremely valuable, high-class personnel. They were expensive professionals active in a wide range of fields, including magical engineering.
A mage like that playing bandit in these mountains? And one wealthy enough to have two knight escorts?
It didn't make sense without some underlying reason.
"Is there a specific reason you all deserted?"
"The one leading us… said he'd make us rich enough to live in luxury for the rest of our lives."
"Oh? And who's that?"
"He was the operations officer of our battalion…"
"An officer? Figures. Life is tough for soldiers in any country. Still, choosing to become a bandit is a bit much, no matter how hard things get. This is why you've got to take good care of soldiers."
Karron clicked his tongue and nodded.
This was likely all the information he could get out of this man. To find out the real reason they were playing bandit here, he'd have to capture and interrogate at least one of the higher-ups.
Still, it wasn't a bad warm-up.
He decided to find meaning in the fact that he'd swung Guillotine for the first time.
'This thing is a masterpiece.'
The reason the enemies had been paralyzed with fear wasn't simply because of Karron's menacing aura.
Guillotine—this sword cast a suggestion on its enemies, an illusion that their heads were about to be cut off.
Honestly, if it weren't the sword of the first patriarch, it would have been more than worthy of being called a demonic blade.
Anyone without exceptional mental fortitude would likely lose their will to fight just by facing it.
Looking at Leo, it was a wonder he hadn't wet himself.
"Do you know why I kept you alive? Take a guess."
Karron asked, lightly tapping the balding head of the kneeling Urhan.
Urhan nodded his head frantically.
"You need someone to guide you to our main camp, don't you? I-I will lead you there myself."
"Exactly. Brother Leo. You see that guy, the youngest one? There's a rope on his corpse. Go get it for me."
"Okay."
Leo immediately found the rope on the body. He handed it to Karron with trembling hands.
Taking the rope, Karron asked casually.
"Why are you shaking so much?"
"Well… it's my first time seeing a dead body… Not everyone is like you."
"I took care of things this time, but once we go up, you'll have to get your hands dirty too, Brother. You know what I mean, right?"
"…I get it. But why the rope all of a sudden?"
"There's something I've always wanted to try. Your name was Urhan?"
"Y-Yes, that's right, Young Master."
"Tie us up with this, but not too tightly."
Stunned by the absurd suggestion, Urhan flinched and looked up at Karron.
"Why would you ask me to…"
Karron smacked his fist on the man's bald head.
"Didn't you read infiltration novels as a kid? We're going to pretend to be hostages."
"If the other members of the scout team don't show up… the higher-ups will get suspicious."
"Just make an excuse that the rest of the team died fighting our escorts, and you only managed to capture two brats as hostages for now."
Could such a crude plan actually work?
'…There's no way it will.'
The higher-ups weren't fools. They would surely sense something was off and be on their guard.
But in this situation, he had only one choice.
"…Understood."
As Urhan obediently replied, Karron nodded in satisfaction.
"I've seriously always wanted to do this. Good thinking."
Urhan swallowed hard, staring at the devil before him.
The devil was smiling, his face full of mischief.
4.
"Do you really think this will work, Karron?"
"What do you think, Brother?"
"I'm asking you because I don't think it will, obviously."
"You're older than me, Brother. Don't you have a better idea?"
"You only ever bring up my age at times like this."
With the two boys tied up, Urhan walked silently ahead.
A chill ran down his spine.
The mere fact that the devil was at his back was terrifying.
He recalled the blue light that had emanated from the boy's body earlier. He thought hard.
Blue mana.
The martial prowess to overwhelm grown men despite not yet being an adult.
Which noble family could satisfy both these conditions?
His mind, which had been sluggish until now, began to race.
In truth, it didn't take much thought.
Even a dull-witted commoner like him had heard rumors during his time as a soldier.
'Leston. The great… Leston family.'
He had to be a son of the Leston family.
This place, the Bellus Barony, was right next to the Leston Duchy.
But the mage helping their bandit operation had boasted that they wouldn't have to worry about the Leston family for a while. What could have happened?
His thoughts didn't last long.
*Thud.*
"Haaack!"
The devil walking behind him had suddenly kicked him, sending him sprawling.
Urhan scrambled to his feet, trembling. He looked at the boy and asked cautiously.
"Is… is something the matter?"
The boy replied with an indifferent expression.
"Just felt like it. Your back looked perfect for kicking. When are we going to get there?"
"Just another ten minutes up the path. Um… Young Master."
"What."
"The scout teams patrol this area regularly. If someone else sees us like this, it could be… problematic… couldn't it?"
"Hmm, you have a point. I'll restrain myself from here on out."
"…Thank you."
He must not get on the devil's bad side.
Urhan once again pictured his comrades dying.
His leader and the others, their heads severed while their faces were still twisted in sneers.
Most of them probably died without even realizing it.
Urhan tightened the large bundle on his back and nodded.
The bundle contained the young nobles' weapons.
He planned to carry them in and pass them off as spoils of war.
"Then, let's get going again."
"Alright."
Urhan once again took the lead, walking up the mountain path.
How long had they walked?
In the distance, a wooden palisade and gate reinforced with magic came into view. A little further, and they came face to face with the guard standing watch in front of the gate.
"Urhan? Who are the brats behind you?"
The guard, who wore an eyepatch, asked Urhan.
"Hostages. A couple of young masters. Said they came to subjugate the bandits."
"Kids these days, thinking bandit subjugation is some kind of child's play. Anyway, weren't you in Scout Team 2? Where are your leader and the others?"
"A few of these brats' escorts got away, so they went after them."
"Those guys can smell money from a mile away. What's that on your back?"
"My spoils. Mind your own business."
At Urhan's response, the guard waved a hand dismissively and smirked.
"Just curious, that's all. Alright, go on in. Team 2's been getting good results lately. The boss will probably give you a big reward soon."
The guard opened the gate, and Urhan led Leo and Karron inside.
Karron stuck close behind Urhan and spoke.
"Oh, you're better at improvising than I thought. I'm impressed."
"Thank you…"
"Are there other nobles here?"
Urhan looked around and slowly nodded.
"Nobles from minor domains have come a few times to try and earn some merit."
"Really?"
"Yes. Thanks to them, we've collected some hefty ransoms."
"Your boss has quite the business acumen. Drugs, slaves, hostages. He's into anything that makes money."
At this point, he was getting curious about their leaders.
To be committing such insane crimes in the heart of the Empire, and on their own?
It was practically impossible.
'Not unless someone is backing them.'
Karron was convinced the leader of this place was no simple deserter.
No matter how much the Empire's power had weakened, it wasn't so far gone as to ignore such illegal activities within its own territory.
In cases like this, there was usually a backer.
Personally, Karron was more interested in that backer.
Who would dare to pull something like this right under the Leston Duchy's nose?
Whoever it was, he had to admit they had guts.
'I can probably find out the details by grabbing one of the leaders and beating it out of them. And my great-aunt is surely aware of this situation.'
Karron nodded, thinking of Sabina, who was likely watching them from somewhere.
"…This actually worked?"
"Brother, simple is always best."
"No, there's no way people who plunder an entire domain are this stupid."
As Karron and Leo were talking, they arrived at what looked like a large plaza in the center of the spacious hideout.
Karron stopped in the middle of the plaza. Urhan, who was leading them, turned his head to look at him.
"Ahem."
Urhan cleared his throat once, then said in a swaggering voice.
"If a hostage like you doesn't follow my orders, I'll beat you half to…"
"Urhan."
"Yes!"
"Once you quit being a bandit, don't ever try acting. You're a terrible actor. I bet Mr. Gustav could act better than you."
"…Who is Mr. Gustav?"
"How should I know? Point is, even that Mr. Gustav I don't know could act better than you. So, how about you take out our swords?"
Urhan lowered the bundle from his back and untied it with trembling hands.
Soon, the terrifying sword from before was revealed.
Karron immediately drew Guillotine from its sheath. He then tossed Sylphid to Leo and said.
"You were right, Brother."
Leo caught Sylphid with a bewildered expression. He asked Karron.
"What was I right about?"
"You said there's no way people who plunder a domain are this stupid, right? You were right, Brother. They don't seem to be stupid."
*Wooooooooong—.*
From all directions, wisps of black mana began to stir.
Karron knew what that black color meant. It was impossible not to know.
The mana he had been so tormented by in his past life.
A dreadful and ferocious mana, originating from the demon race.
Black mana.
The black mana formed a massive magic circle, taking control of the entire hideout.
"No wonder Guillotine was whining this whole time. Hey, Urhan, you bastard."
"…Yes?"
"Why didn't you tell me properly? This isn't a mage, it's a black mage."
"…I'm an uneducated man, so I thought all mages were the same. I'm sorry, I'm truly sorr… Haaaaack!"
*Kkigigigik.*
*Kkigik.*
With a grotesque sound of bones grinding against each other, the dead began to rise from all around.
Wretched, terrifying beings who couldn't even find rest in death.
"Undead."
Karron watched the horde of skeletons filling the area, a slight smirk playing on his lips.
"Yeah, this is how fun a first mission ought to be."
It was the moment the genre of his stroll-like mission took a dramatic turn.