The Lion King of the Valley (2)
The groans of the wounded never ceased inside Nemea Fortress. Thanks to that, the atmosphere within the fortress was at its absolute worst. It was so bad that even the merchants who made money the longer they stayed were reluctant to linger. The soldiers with severed limbs produced horrific noises like broken instruments. At least they were the lucky ones. Compared to the corpses silently rotting away, anyway. Or was it the other way around?
It was a scene straight out of the original novel, without a single exaggeration. The wounded, and the corpses silently dying and decaying among them. Zeek did not turn her eyes away from any of it. She took in every last detail.
At first, Isaac had tried to cover her eyes, but Zeek refused. She had to witness every horror. She must not look away. That was what a hero did, in her mind.
'What on earth is she thinking about so hard?'
Zeek was lost in deep thought. Quite some time had passed, yet Isaac said nothing. He simply watched over her. She's the protagonist. She'll figure it out on her own.
'Something feels off.'
Thanks to that, Zeek was able to notice the strangeness. No matter how she looked at it, Nemea Fortress wouldn't have been strange if it had already fallen to the lions. There were simply that many wounded. If the two sides had been evenly matched or if the fortress held the advantage, morale wouldn't have sunk this low. Yet the soldiers' morale was in the gutter. Some were even trembling in terror. Nevertheless, the fortress had not yet been overrun.
Zeek instinctively felt that this was the point she needed to focus on.
Soon, she snapped out of her thoughts and spoke with a flustered expression.
"I-I'm sorry, Master!"
"No, it's fine. More importantly, what were you thinking about so deeply?"
"I was thinking about how we should resolve this request."
"And? Did you reach a conclusion?"
"I think we need to meet both sides in person first."
"That's the correct answer."
After much deliberation, the answer Zeek chose was the most ideal one. Of course, it would be easier to listen to only one side and act accordingly, but that could not be called the right answer. Not if one aspired to be a hero.
Zeek looked at Isaac with renewed respect. He made her think for herself and reach her own realizations. She had finally understood what those words truly meant. Yes, this is exactly it. If you only ever receive from others, you can never become truly independent. But Isaac had taught her to think on her own while staying right by her side. As if telling her it was okay to make mistakes.
Thanks to that, Zeek felt confidence surging up like molten lava.
Without losing momentum, Zeek first headed for the fortress command barracks. It was just as shabby as the soldiers' quarters.
"Is anyone inside?"
"Who are you people?"
"Isaac Silvertehr. We've come from Gideon after accepting a request."
"M-my name is Zeek!"
The man had tied back his uncommon pale brownish hair. His eyes behind the glasses were narrowed in clear displeasure. At that, Zeek flinched and reflexively grabbed Isaac's hand.
"A request? Ah, so you're the ones from Gideon."
Only after hearing their introduction did he relax his furrowed brow. A smile finally appeared on his lips, but for some reason Zeek felt a strange sense of unease from it.
"Nice to meet you. I am Staff Officer Mac Clinton."
"Where is the fortress commander?"
"Do you have business with the commander?"
"We intend to meet him directly and hear the full story."
"In that case, I can handle it. Would you care for some tea first?"
His words flowed like a gentle stream, naturally guiding them to sit down. A short while later, the tea Mac had personally prepared was placed before them. A fragrant aroma soon filled the entire barracks.
"The scent is incredible!"
"Isn't it? This is tea brewed from the leaves of the Red Fever Tree, which is quite difficult to obtain even in the Mikas Kingdom."
"Red Fever Tree?"
"It's a tree known as the one that holds the sun within it. They say that if you harvest its leaves and use them as medicine, it can cure any illness."
"Brewing it as tea like this works just as well."
Despite Mac going through the trouble of bringing out the teacups, neither Isaac nor Zeek reached for them. Mac didn't seem to mind. And Zeek was watching his every move with keen attention.
"Where should I begin?"
"From the beginning to the end."
"Honestly, there's not much to tell. They suddenly attacked the fortress, and we're barely holding them off."
"There's truly no reason behind it?"
"If I had to guess, it would be the abolition of the appeasement policy."
Mac launched into a long explanation. To summarize: the previous commander of Nemea Fortress had pursued an appeasement policy toward the lions. The newly appointed commander had abolished that policy, and the accumulated resentment had finally erupted into war. It was a plausible enough story, but Isaac openly cut him off midway and stood up.
"I've heard enough."
"Are you heading out to subjugate them right away?"
"That's right. That's why we came."
"Impressive. If you handle this properly, I will make sure the reward is paid in full."
Isaac, who disliked dragging out conversations unnecessarily, left the barracks with Zeek. Outside, the sun was already beginning to set. Isaac clicked his tongue. Just how long were we in there?
"You don't look convinced."
"To be honest… something feels off."
"What exactly felt strange?"
"I don't know exactly, but… it's just weird!"
That was the best explanation Zeek could manage right now. She couldn't fully trust him. But she couldn't put the reason into words. Or more accurately, her knowledge wasn't enough to express it.
"So you've realized that much on your own. Well done."
"Th-thank you."
"But for now, I'll tell you the reason."
'She's still young. I need to score as many points as possible.'
He had worried she might notice first again, but it seemed that concern had been unfounded. Isaac felt relieved inside while maintaining a perfectly calm expression on the outside as he explained.
"What you sensed as strange is the difference in atmosphere."
"Yes! That's exactly the feeling!"
"You can tell just by looking around here. Outside, the wounded are screaming and dying, yet that man is using medicinal herbs to brew tea for himself."
Indeed. If the leaves of the Red Fever Tree were used as medicine, they could save hundreds of lives at the very least. Yet that guy was drinking it all by himself as tea. Wasn't that suspicious enough?
"And most of his story kept insisting that everything was the commander's fault."
"That's right. I unconsciously started wondering if the commander was the problem."
"Exactly. Without even having met him."
Zeek kept nodding with a satisfied expression. It felt like having an itch scratched perfectly. The frustration of wanting to speak but being unable to because her knowledge was too shallow. As expected of Master! He saw through everything from the very beginning!
But Isaac didn't just relieve Zeek's frustration. He even explained the parts she hadn't thought of. How could Zeek not respect her Master after that?
'Phew, did I manage to pull it off? It didn't seem too obvious, right?'
Of course, Isaac wasn't actually that sharp-eyed. He had simply recited the descriptions straight from the novel. That was why he was secretly sweating bullets, carefully watching her reaction.
"Then let's go find the commander right away!"
"There's no need."
"Huh?"
"He's right in front of us."
At Isaac's words, Zeek lifted her head. There stood a man covered head to toe in blood. He was a middle-aged man of small stature with gray hair that was nearly white. He must have endured unimaginable hardship—his face was so wrinkled that one might mistake him for an old man at first glance. The shabby armor he wore made him look more like a defeated soldier than a commander.
"I don't recognize your faces. New recruits?"
"Isaac Silvertehr. We've come from the Iron Shield after accepting a request."
"At least I won't have to personally dispose of your corpses."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I have nothing more to say. If you don't want to die, leave immediately."
"How dare you speak so rudely to Master…!!"
Zeek, who held feelings far beyond mere respect for her Master, grew furious at the perceived slight. But Isaac simply placed a light hand on her shoulder, easily calming her rage.
The man stared at Zeek for a moment before abruptly turning his head and entering the barracks. Zeek glared at his retreating back with burning eyes, then turned that furious gaze toward Isaac.
"Master! A rude bastard like that deserves to have all his limbs severed!"
"Where exactly did you learn such violent language?"
"I learned it from Dig."
"When we get back, I'm going to properly beat that guy up this time. Anyway, that man's rudeness has more than enough justification."
"What do you mean?"
Zeek pressed Isaac strongly. To her, any rudeness directed at her Master was absolutely unforgivable.
"The blood on that man's armor and hands wasn't his own."
"That means…"
"And think carefully about what he just said."
Only then did Zeek realize. The clarity that had been clouded by anger finally returned. The reason the commander hadn't been in the barracks. The reason he was covered in blood.
"That man is the highest-ranking commander here, yet he personally tends to the wounded and even buries the dead with his own hands."
"……"
"How could anyone blame a man like that?"
"……I'm sorry, Master."
"It's good that you realized it now."
Zeek obediently lowered her head. Isaac nodded in satisfaction, but that wasn't what Zeek truly meant. No matter how much she tried to convince herself, she simply could not accept it.
'How dare he act that way toward my Master…!!'
No, it would be more accurate to say she could not forgive it. A pitch-black flame, dark as obsidian, was gnawing away at Zeek's heart. She herself still didn't know what that feeling was.
"Anyway, all that's left now are the lions."
"How do you plan to meet them?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
Zeek momentarily set that emotion aside and focused on her Master. Surely he would have a plan. However, that faith didn't last long.
Isaac declared confidently.
"A frontal breakthrough."
"What? A frontal breakthrough?"
He nodded.
"That's not something you just nod about!! A frontal breakthrough against the lions! That's practically suicide!!"
Zeek desperately tried to dissuade Isaac, who was solemnly nodding his head. Just looking at the fortress's current state, even a three-year-old would know a frontal assault was not the answer.
"Sometimes you have to follow what your heart tells you, not your head."
"……"
"That's what it means to be a man."
Zeek stared at Isaac with cold eyes. But Isaac did not retract his words. No hiding. No running. No turning back. Like a man. Straight ahead.