Chapter 48
Chapter 48
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: The Stirrings of the Ebony Shadows
-----------------------------------------------------------------
While Alvis's group was en route to Arborness.
The city of Aldebaran, where they had stayed, was abuzz day after day with tales of the Mercenary King's exploits.
"You should've seen that light back then, I swear! Man, I thought he was some holy warrior or something! That sword flashing around—it was so damn cool."
"Not a holy warrior, obviously, but I'd love to learn a light-based spell like that myself."
"But was it really magic? It didn't look like aura, did it?"
"Sigh, if that guy were still here, we could've just asked him ourselves."
"How long are you gonna keep looking for a guy who's gone? If we slack off now, we'll lose all the rep we built up thanks to him. Alright, anyone without work today—training, all together, training!"
"Aww, our captain's just way too gung-ho sometimes."
The Steel Wolf Mercenaries chatted and laughed about the 'Mercenary King' who had stayed with them for about two weeks before leaving, just like old times.
The only change was that, spurred on by the Mercenary King, the mercenaries now trained voluntarily far more often and intensely during downtime than before.
Those who had witnessed his shining sword firsthand were captivated, harboring hopes that relentless effort might let them forge a similar aura of their own, and they trained like mad.
The rumors of the Mercenary King spread far beyond Aldebaran. Folks in other cities dismissed it as typical mercenary exaggeration and bravado, but the citizens of Aldebaran who had seen his feats up close, along with the Steel Wolf Mercenaries, knew it was all real.
At that moment, a woman and a man in deep black hoods, nursing drinks in the corner of the tavern, exchanged nods before standing and approaching the mercenaries.
"Hey, that Mercenary King guy—you said he wielded light, right?"
"What did it feel like? Tell us everything you know."
"Huh? Who are you two? Never seen you around here before."
The mercenaries fell silent at the words of the unidentified pair, turning their full attention to them.
"Does it matter? We're just curious about this Mercenary King. Man or woman? What'd he look like? Height? Any companions? And above all, that light thing—was it magic? Aura mistaken for something else? Or actual light itself? We wanna know."
The mercenaries exchanged chilly glances at the woman's words, then shifted into defensive stances.
"The only ones sniffing around personal details like that in a place like this are one thing: assassins. Looks like you're not even bothering to hide it."
The woman smirked.
"That's harsh. I'm a mercenary just like you guys. Not from around here, that's all."
"Then state your affiliation and name."
"This work?"
The badge she pulled out bore a symbol of black wings curved into a circle, top to bottom.
The mercenaries who recognized it panicked, drawing their weapons.
"Battle stations! It's the Ebony Shadow Mercenaries!"
"That scar by her eye... N-no way, that's gotta be Blood Rose Sophia?!"
"Calling people 'that one' and 'this one'? Such rude beasts."
"You should've toned down the act. Why spill everything so honestly and blow it up, Sophia?"
As the dark-skinned man rose from his seat, someone recognized him too.
"Th-that guy's Head Collector O'Brien!"
"Kill them! We can't let these bastards live!"
"You kill us? How bold, fellow pros. I was gonna make it quick and painless if you just told the truth like normal folk, but now you've pissed me off."
Saying that, Sophia drew the sword at her waist and swung it hard once.
The blade stretched out long, splitting into chain-linked fragments covered in razor-sharp thorns, resembling a rose stem in form.
"That chain blade... It's really Blood Rose Sophia. Everyone, be careful!"
"Think that'll make a difference?"
Sophia charged the mercenaries with a grin.
And two hours later.
"Gah... Gaaahhh!!!"
The Steel Wolf Mercenaries' tavern was a blood-soaked hellscape, littered with hacked and dismembered body parts.
The sole survivor inside, the mercenary captain, screamed in agony as Sophia's thorned chain blade wrapped around his body, shredding his flesh.
Sophia yanked the hilt, tightening the chain blade further. The thorns dug deeper, blood gushing out in spurts.
"Gaaah... Aaaahhh!!!"
"Now, care to talk? Everything you know about that Mercenary King."
"Urk... H-his name... Alvis... handsome young noble type, brown hair... He did wield light, but I'm no mage, so I dunno if it was magic... Probably aura, but he never explained details, so I don't... Gahk..."
Air hissed from the captain's throat amid the blood he vomited.
"H-he had one servant girl, always hooded, so no face... But she loved praise... Hah... Urk... A-and a bunnykin in the group, I think. Don't know where they went! Th-that's everything I know! Please..."
"Hmm, not satisfying, but better than nothing. Good boy."
Sophia yanked the chain blade hard once more. It constricted viciously, chopping the captain into minced meat.
She reverted her blood-drenched chain blade to its normal sword form, wiped the blood from her face, licked it once, and turned to her companion.
"That's what they said. What's your take, oh wise mage who knows everything?"
"Remember that greenhorn noble girl who stormed Libertà? There was a group that helped her escape. A blindingly strong light erupted then too. Couldn't see faces through it, but circumstances point to a high chance it's the same Mercenary King and crew from here."
"So we hunt 'em down? But they said they don't know where."
"Boss just said find leads on the guy, not capture him ourselves. This should be enough—Boss and the clients will handle the rest."
O'Brien stopped conjuring his magic, brushed off his hands, and headed for the exit amid the corpses.
"Huh? Just leaving? No heads?"
"None here fought to the bitter end. Only heads from those who die with defiance in their eyes are worth taking. This is pointless."
"What a creepy psycho, as always."
"Pot calling the kettle black?"
The two who had wrought the slaughter stepped outside.
Crowds had gathered from the shouts and screams leaking out, now shrieking at the blood seeping from the doorway.
"Lots of witnesses, huh?"
"Right, Boss mentioned the client had demands. Kill everyone in the city and burn it down."
"Who the hell is our client to love this crap so much? Long as they pay well, who cares."
"Hurry and finish up. To hit the next client request, we've gotta head straight to the Carrot Duchy borderlands."
"Ugh, so busy. But hey, been a while since we could rampage freely—kinda fun."
The thousands of elves who had trailed them to Aldebaran gazed down at the ruined city with deeply uneasy expressions.
"This is... really where we're supposed to live?"
"It's totally trashed."
"What happened to us was horrific, but this place is no better. What the hell went down?"
"Are there even any survivors?"
I exchanged looks with Ravi, Elfin, and Lenis.
Until we left, this city had been perfectly peaceful, no issues at all.
How did it end up like this in just a few days?
As we drew closer, near the utterly destroyed entrance to Aldebaran, two groups of people stood in sharp confrontation.
"Alvis, those people look like they're about to fight."
Heading toward them as Ravi said, we overheard the exchange.
"We told you to back off right now! The Empire's actions are blatant interference in internal affairs! Did you even get permission to come here in the first place? No way they let you cross the border!"
"The Empire has determined that the Kingdom can no longer handle incidents within its borders! Libertà, Vector Barony, and now Aldebaran! Three major disasters in such a short time—what are we supposed to trust in the Kingdom to wait for resolution? We won't stand by while another incident under the Kingdom's neglect threatens the Empire!"
They seemed to be investigators sent to probe why Aldebaran was in this state. Apparently, the Empire had dispatched them without Kingdom approval.
It was interference, sure, but as the Empire claimed, the Kingdom had three recent catastrophes unsolved, leaving little ground to strongly reject it.
Aldebaran saw plenty of Empire merchants; with it wrecked, they couldn't claim zero Imperial losses.
But...
Simultaneously, separate from the Eye that Pierces Truth, another ability triggered. Amid the split groups, two figures glowing an eerie red entered my vision.
Two on the Kingdom side, two on the Empire side.
'Those people are being used!'