Chapter 135
Chapter 135
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 135
Chapter Title: 43. Twin Sword Mercenary (2)
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Jin Katrin circled the skies over the battlefield before veering off straight to the east.
"You don't have to help?"
"The battle doesn't seem that urgent yet, and it's not time for the Knights of the Sky to take the front lines."
To my question, Jin Katrin replied that revealing the wyverns could wait a little longer.
"The Empire rides them around without a care."
"If our Your Highness hadn't been so stubborn, we never would've taken such risks. So thank Your Highness for that."
At her untimely bragging, I shot back that wasn't that why I'd come—to settle the debt?
We bickered atop the wyvern as we passed over the battlefield several times.
Whenever we did, I fell silent and scanned the ground below.
If I listened closely, I could almost hear the clash of weapons. Furious shouts and screams echoed in my ears like hallucinations.
"Ugh, stop breathing down my ear."
Jin Katrin recoiled as she looked at me. Apparently, my breathing had grown ragged without me noticing.
Sure enough, when I snapped out of it, my butt was half off the saddle.
I sheepishly planted it back down. But against my will, it soon started bouncing again.
"You're so much like our Your Highness."
Jin Katrin shook her head.
Meanwhile, the wyvern kept flying east.
The tense battlefield air that had set my heart racing faded, then vanished entirely.
I smacked my lips in regret when the clouds suddenly parted.
Dotrin Kingdom's territory stretched endlessly below—dense thickets and rolling hills high and low.
I was impressed.
"What do you think?"
Jin Katrin's face brimmed with pride as she asked.
"Impressive."
I nodded and gave my honest impression.
"Great for defense, tough to push through. Ambushes everywhere—you couldn't cover much ground even in a full day. A natural fortress."
At my sincere praise, Jin Katrin frowned.
"Why?"
Wondering if I'd said something wrong, I asked why. She looked exasperated.
"Why is fighting and killing the only thing that comes out of your mouth?"
"We're here to fight—what else should we talk about?"
"Even so, when you see the world-famous Sea of Trees, shouldn't you at least marvel at it?"
"What's so special about a bunch of trees?"
I said it boldly, and Jin Katrin stared at me like I was some freak.
After that, she clammed up and said nothing more. Maybe she was offended that I'd been lukewarm about her kingdom's pride and joy, the Sea of Trees—or maybe it was something else. I couldn't tell.
Probably the latter.
At some point, the wyvern started circling the same spot.
Finding it odd, I poked her side, and she jumped like I'd scalded her, glaring at me.
Her face looked like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
I asked why, but she didn't answer.
She just silently tugged the reins, descending.
It made no sense.
The wyvern's wings still beat strong—it should've flown much longer—but Jin Katrin suddenly declared a rest at the foot of some nameless mountain ridge.
"Ugh."
As the wyvern touched down, the knights sprawled like corpses on the makeshift saddle atop its back bolted upright and scrambled off.
"Blech!"
"Urp!"
The ones doubled over puking were the Gerwein trio.
"Forget family honor—should've just lived out my days easy. What glory am I chasing?"
Sprawled flat and endlessly grumbling was Bernardo Ilai.
Gunef, still not fully recovered, leaned silently against a tree trunk.
Only Adelia moved briskly, unharmed, bustling to set up camp.
Flying had been rough on everyone.
I chuckled at the sight before plopping down by the campfire.
"Hm."
I grabbed a stray lock of hair tousled by the flight.
Not the familiar golden hue, but black stared back at me.
"Perfect."
I marveled anew.
Before leaving the capital, I'd taken steps to hide my identity.
Prepared an iron helmet to conceal my face, and for good measure, dyed my hair.
Gunef had shone unexpectedly there.
Half-elf or not, she was skilled in foraging and potion-making.
Not the lofty essence-of-the-forest stuff pureblood elves did, but she excelled at simple dyes and such.
The result was my current black hair.
Adelia, now stroking my hair, sported vivid red instead of her usual soft brown.
She wasn't adapting well to the intense color, but to me, it suited her so perfectly it could've been natural.
It masked her formerly gentle impression too, aligning nicely with hiding our identities.
Come to think of it, her ancestor Agnes had the exact same red hair.
I chuckled at the old memory.
Red-haired Adelia rampaging on the battlefield would bring those memories flooding back nicely.
I snickered to myself before belatedly spotting Jin Katrin.
A bit apart from the group, she was lost in her own world, sighing nonstop.
Today's the last night, might as well sleep easy today—nonsense I couldn't make heads or tails of.
I asked why, but she never answered.
The sun, high in the sky, dipped low, and night fell.
"Hm?"
The wyvern, snoring with its head drooped, suddenly snapped it up.
Thinking some beast had appeared, I scanned the forest shadows, but sensed nothing.
Then a strange feeling hit me, and I looked skyward.
There, wings spread wide, were massive wyverns—Knights of the Sky, no doubt.
I frowned.
About ten of them encircled our camp like a noose. The faint hostility emanating from the knights grated too.
The others sensed the veiled malice too, gripping their swords and glaring at the sky.
"Lower your swords. They're the kingdom's wyvern knights."
Jin Katrin gestured to us.
"If they drop their hostility first."
"They're not here to harm you. They're just..."
She bit her lip at Gerwein's words before replying.
"Here to arrest me."
"What?"
A booming shout rang from above.
"Eldest son of the Katrin ducal house, Jin! Heed the royal command!"
Shed said she'd handle it herself—my mistake for trusting her. Jin sighed and grumbled before stepping forward and dropping to one knee.
"Eldest son of the Katrin ducal house, Jin. I receive the royal command!"
"As of now, Jin Katrin is dismissed from all positions. You must appear before the disciplinary committee forthwith."
The wyvern knight delivered the decree in a stern voice, then added,
"We'll escort you straight to the capital."
No room for refusal in that tone.
**
Deep into the night, without even glimpsing the capital, my knights and I were "politely" escorted to Dotrin's royal castle.
And there, I met the man called Doris's brother.
"Pleased to meet you. Kislan Dotrin."
The man who introduced himself as the kingdom's second prince had dull brown hair just like his sibling's, though he was a bit shorter.
The difference? His brother had a lively pretty-boy vibe; this one looked intellectual, somewhat frail. After formal greetings—welcoming the Dragon Slayer's descendant, thanks for aid in tough times—he rose.
I asked why Jin had been taken.
During the mission in the Empire, his brother's judgment erred badly, earning house arrest. Jin Katrin, as attendant, shared blame for not preventing it and would face discipline soon.
I instantly knew their "error" involved me.
So I confirmed with Kislan.
He neither denied nor confirmed.
Just begged pardon—he couldn't divulge kingdom affairs to outsiders.
"Dawn will bring His Majesty's summons, so rest for now."
Doris's brother left the room, and I spent my first night in Dotrin Castle with a nagging unease.
Soon after dawn, a herald arrived.
"His Majesty invites you to breakfast."
Bernardo Ilai, killing time in the antechamber, furrowed his brow.
"They say true friends are met after sunset, casual guests at midday, and unwanted intruders sent off with a morning meal."
The centuries-old elf whispered in my ear some proverb I'd never heard.
"Informal visit, top secret, yet dragged here like criminals without rest? Dotrin's king clearly looks down on our kingdom. And we're here to help them."
That made me ask,
"And you respect royalty so much you caught me like a sucker?"
"Hey, why bring up old stuff—you know the circumstances."
He coughed awkwardly and turned away, claiming ignorance.
I laughed at his grumbling—thanks for the advice, only to get scolded?—then stood abruptly.
"Lead the way."
The herald, who'd turned away pretending not to hear, bowed and opened the door.
I followed through the castle.
Not a servant in sight along the breakfast hall corridor.
Thus, I arrived unnoticed.
"Your Majesty. The guest has arrived."
The herald announced at the door. A heavy voice came from within.
"Let him enter."
The doors opened.
A dimly lit room, long rectangular table, Dotrin's king at its head.
Broad shoulders, stubborn mouth, steely eyes.
Stoic expression laced with dignity; no overt show of authority, yet an undeniable presence none could ignore.
Less gentle, more fierce—like a battlefield general, not a king.
A giant, a superhuman.
Stronger than anyone I'd met since awakening—higher realms reached.
My neck stiffened. Aura flared instinctively.
Only then did the king turn.
His eyes lit up at the sight of me.
Swipe.
He waved a hand.
Footsteps sounded; the doors shut.
Thud.
The king stared straight at me.
Pressure that would bow most just from eye contact.
But I wasn't most.
I'd toppled one just like him, seized his throne—a usurper.
If he was king, so was I.
If he was a transcendent superhuman, so was I.
I provocatively lifted my chin, meeting his gaze.
His thick brows twitched.
He rose abruptly, striding toward me.
Standing before me, he said,
"I thought the lion who ruled the North was ancient history."
His crisp voice brimmed with genuine admiration.
"But seeing you now, not quite."
The king extended his hand.
I gripped it on reflex.
"Pleased to meet you, young lion of House Leonberger."
Crunch.
His grip like forged iron. Only then, facing him, did I realize.
The king was far shorter than expected.
He'd loomed huge at first glance,
yet barely reached my chin.
Still, he looked down on the world.
I marveled anew.
This was the ideal form I'd hoped my lion descendants would embody.
"Incredible. Unbelievable."
And as I admired him, he admired me back.
"Leonberg Kingdom has bred a monster."
I chuckled at that.
Truth was, the kingdom hadn't bred me.
I'd bred the kingdom.