Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: The Knights' Ultimatum
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[What?]
[There’s a lot of them. Judging by their size, about four knights... one’s even riding a Jin. The people behind them all look like fighters too. Around thirty? They’re all on riding beasts.]
[Drop the barrier right now and get everyone inside to prepare for battle.]
As the blue barrier concealing the surroundings vanished, Arsen spotted the approaching group with his own eyes.
Arsen shouted toward the soldiers training on the other side of the grounds.
“Everyone, assemble! Battle stations!”
The soldiers grabbed their weapons and gathered in unison.
Thanks to several days of training, their movements were sharp enough to call them proper soldiers.
Arsen and Bazkal had been sparring in full armor, so they needed no additional preparation for combat.
Eyeing the oncoming horde, Arsen asked Bazkal at his side.
“Do you know who they are?”
“Oldo, Mirnan, Ishien... They’re big shots even among the central district knights. But they’re not the type to band together like this.”
After a moment’s thought, Arsen retrieved the Jin he’d hidden in the house and mounted it. Bazkal climbed aboard his massive tiger riding beast as well.
Finally, as the two groups drew near, the four knights at the front stepped forward.
The hulking figure riding a feline-shaped Jin at the very forefront spoke up.
“You must be the knight I’ve heard so much about lately. Arsen, right? A new face around here.”
Arsen and Bazkal advanced slightly to meet them, facing off.
Two on Arsen’s side, four on theirs.
It was an uneven matchup, but he couldn’t conjure knights out of thin air, nor could he demand they even the odds.
“First things first, who might you all be? Who am I talking to?”
“My apologies! I’m ‘Raging Axe’ Oldo. As for the rest... well, there are too many to bother introducing.”
The knights behind him bristled at his half-hearted words, but none spoke up in protest.
It seemed he’d been chosen to represent the group.
“Fine, Oldo. So what’s the reason for this mob?”
“Would you believe me if I said we just wanted to see the face of the hero who took down the Steel Tiger?”
Oldo grinned slyly at Bazkal beside him. Arsen tilted his head side to side in response.
“Well, you’ve seen it now. Is that all? Any other business, or are you leaving?”
Outnumbered and at a disadvantage, Arsen pressed aggressively, refusing to yield an inch of ground.
He didn’t miss the flicker of displeasure across Oldo’s face.
Fortunately, Oldo was a patient man. Though anger boiled inside him, he kept his cool.
Truth be told, Arsen’s boldness in this one-sided situation made him wonder if there was something up his sleeve, leaving him slightly unnerved.
“Very well. Straight to the point, as expected from a young man. Here’s the issue: many of us are concerned about your recent actions. Rounding up hunters, turning them into an organization, taking knights under your wing... That’s not how things work in Narvik. If you’re going to live here, follow our rules.”
Bazkal erupted at Oldo’s words.
“They’re not underlings! They just call me ‘大哥’ in exchange for teaching them swordsmanship!”
“From what I hear, they’ve handed over their organization, their wealth—everything. Sounds like underlings to me.”
The knights behind Oldo snickered, piling on with jabs.
Knight’s shame. No pride. Typical lowborn hunter.
Bazkal’s face flushed crimson, on the verge of exploding—likely harboring his own insecurities about status.
Arsen clapped a hand on his shoulder to snap him out of it.
“Bro.”
“They can’t beat you with skill, so they’re just running their mouths. Ignore them.”
Reassured, Bazkal took a few deep breaths, nodded, and stepped back.
Confirming this, Arsen turned back to Oldo.
“So?”
“Follow our rules to keep the balance. We might overlook a short stay as a guest, but building a power base right out in the open? That we can’t ignore.”
“I plan to leave the city soon anyway. No interest in Narvik’s power struggles.”
“Is that so? We’d love to believe you, but there’s a saying here: ‘Ambiguity is the conman’s virtue.’”
Arsen realized what Oldo wanted: a firm departure date.
Not vague promises like “soon” or “just wait a bit.”
“Fine. Three days from today. I won’t stay in Narvik a day longer.”
Oldo glanced back at the other knights.
They exchanged silent looks and nods, reaching some consensus. He flashed a grin.
“Wise choice! Glad we can avoid bloodshed. Oh, and for your information, over ten organizations agreed to this notice—not that we four are the only ones coming for you.”
In other words, if Arsen didn’t leave within the time limit, more than ten knights would descend on him.
Even if they were all at Bazkal’s level from days ago, the numbers alone would be overwhelming.
Not to mention the hordes of underlings they’d bring.
“That all?”
“Indeed. We’ll give you three days. After that... I trust you get the picture.”
With that warning, Oldo and his group withdrew.
Arsen sighed, watching them go, then raised a hand to signal assembly.
“Meeting time. Everyone gather up.”
* * *
“I figured something like this might happen, but Narvik’s knights... They unite against outside threats better than I thought. And they’re cowards to boot.”
“Cowards?”
Arsen nodded at Bazkal’s question.
“They brought twice as many knights and nearly three times the soldiers. Looked like they planned to jump us at first, but then they backed off bragging about ten more coming. Barking dogs that bite out of fear.”
“With your skills, bro, we could’ve taken them even if we fought.”
Arsen shook his head silently at Bazkal’s bravado.
“We’d have ended up fighting over ten knights. That Oldo guy was riding a Jin, you know?”
“It’s been passed down in his organization for generations. Even counting all of Narvik, only a handful of knights have Jins.”
Arsen recalled the Jin the axe-wielding knight had ridden.
A beast midway between lion and leopard, worn but undamaged, moving smoothly.
Without a mage for regular maintenance, that wouldn’t be possible.
“Seemed like they had a mage too.”
“Most keep it quiet to avoid thieves, but a few organizations have mages. Oldo’s probably one.”
“So he was speaking for the other knights?”
Bazkal scratched his head sheepishly.
“No idea. I thought they just snarled at each other all the time.”
Arsen sighed inwardly.
Their surprisingly united front suggested deep ties among Narvik’s knights.
Bazkal, the “rootless” one as they called him, probably wasn’t in the loop.
They fought among themselves, but joined hands behind the scenes to maintain balance.
“Anyway... we should leave this afternoon.”
“We’ve got three days. Wouldn’t it be better to wait a couple?”
Eloise asked directly during the meeting, forgoing her earring’s communication spell.
A few soldiers nodded in agreement, so Arsen scanned the group.
“If they really give us three days, sure. But on what basis do we trust them?”
“...Fair point.”
“Exactly. In a world where you can’t even trust a dying man’s last words.”
Arsen clapped his hands to quiet the murmurs and issued orders.
“Pack up. The rest of training will be live combat in the wilds. Rino, preparations for moving out are all on you.”
“Got it, boss!”
After the soldiers dispersed, Arsen turned his gaze toward the central district in the distance.
He stared at the villains’ home base for several long minutes.
* * *
That afternoon, Arsen’s group departed Narvik immediately.
They’d stocked up on ample food and water just before leaving, so the four sparrowbeasts were loaded heavy.
The spare space in the magic backpacks was stuffed full as well.
Crossing the estate’s border, they headed north to rendezvous with the Star Swarm group.
The corrupted stench unique to the outer regions assaulted their noses—something they hadn’t smelled in days.
[Can’t believe the outside air already feels foul after just a short break.]
[Same here. Wonder if anyone ever gets used to it.]
Arsen and Eloise took point, with Bazkal guarding the rear.
The soldiers clustered in the middle, protecting the laden sparrowbeasts.
A magic beast or two appeared occasionally, but with Eloise’s support, Bazkal and the soldiers repelled them handily, suffering no losses.
As twilight fell and the sun dipped low, the group reached a wide-open hilltop.
The terrain offered good visibility for spotting enemies, so Arsen ordered camp there.
“Keep a tight watch on the perimeter. Signal immediately if magic beasts show.”
Seven of the new recruits were hunters who’d hunted beasts nearby.
Weak ones suitable for food, nothing formidable—but they knew wilderness survival inside out.
Bazkal’s men were seasoned too, from tagging along on hunts.
At the mere order for vigilance, they set simple traps that would alert on magic beasts.
“Rino, soldier command is yours.”
“Yes, boss!”
Rino handled leading the men; Bazkal protected him.
With his subordinates on watch, Arsen and Eloise set up a quick spot and pulled out the crystal orb.
Infusing mana connected it northward moments later.
[What’s going on, Sir Arsen?]
“Situation’s changed.”
Arsen summarized concisely: Narvik knights uniting against him, effectively forcing them out.
Elder Latis groaned thoughtfully before replying.
[...I’ll order our detachment to head south nonstop. With luck, we might make contact by dawn.]
“Even at night?”
[Yes.]
“Aren’t they on riding beasts?”
Riding beasts were tamed magic beasts at heart—normally useless at night.
Reason Arsen halted now: nightfall meant no riding or searching for camp blindly.
Only solution was everyone on Jins, like he and Eloise crossing the wasteland.
[Desperate times call for desperate measures. We’ll fire signal flares skyward hourly at night. Respond when you see them.]
“Understood.”
After more brief talk, Arsen cut the mana.
“How do they plan to march south at midnight?”
“Who knows. If they’ve got riding beasts... we’ll see when we see.”
Sunset came. Arsen summoned Rino and ordered early beddown.
He briefed on the allies and signals.
“I’ll tell the night watch to watch the skies too.”
“Should be obvious enough. A fire in the dead of night stands out.”
The memory of the meteor that once roused magic beasts flashed by.
Unlikely to happen again, but...
“Alright, everyone but night watch—bed down! Might have to move at dawn!”