Chapter 136
Chapter 136
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: 43. Twin Sword Mercenaries (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Dotrin's king was a straightforward man.
He spoke without mincing words, and once he started talking, he never held back or beat around the bush.
Through him, I learned about circumstances I hadn't known before.
Among them was the story about Dolosis.
Originally, the Sky Knights were never supposed to reveal themselves until the decisive moment arrived. But Doris had gone ahead and deployed that secret weapon on his own whim.
And right in the heart of enemy territory, where they might one day clash in battle, no less.
He seemed to think there was no need to worry about repercussions since there were no witnesses, but Dotrin's king made it clear he was displeased, calling it a foolish attempt to cover the sky with the palm of one's hand.
He added that with the Burgundy imperial family—ever mindful of ancient legends—watching intently for signs of the wyverns, the disappearance of Leonberger's delegation would turn the emperor's suspicions into certainties.
"Of course, you left a trail on the land route, which leaves just a sliver of plausible deniability."
I wondered what he meant, but the king apparently thought I'd deliberately sent select soldiers to escape via land as a smokescreen operation.
In truth, I'd just figured the empire's knights wouldn't pay much attention to common soldiers, so I'd chosen the safest path to send them home.
That had inadvertently sowed confusion in the empire's intelligence network.
The king praised me generously while stating he intended to punish his own delegation's blunder severely.
"That is, until I saw you with my own eyes."
The king's expression softened.
"I didn't believe it."
His gaze, deep and inscrutable, swept over me.
"That there was an ally so valuable we'd risk exposing the Sky Knights prematurely."
I leaned back leisurely in my chair and met the king's eyes.
"So, what do you think now?"
Directly asking if I was truly worth that much.
"Seems like it."
The king nodded.
"I'm deeply honored."
"No need to be overly humble. It was just compared to a secret that would've come out soon anyway. I'm not saying you're more valuable than the entire Sky Knights."
I shrugged at his pride-filled words.
Of course not. The wyvern riders who had once driven the mighty elves to cower in dense forests out of fear of the open sky.
"So, does that mean Doris and Jin's punishments are lifted?"
Dotrin's king shook his head.
He intended to use this chance to straighten out his thunderbolt of a prince.
The king's reasoning for punishment sounded quite convincing.
"Doris wouldn't have deliberated and decided to intervene. He probably cooked up the excuse of a 'reliable ally' after the fact. I know my own son best."
He wasn't my son, but I sympathized deeply.
From my brief time with him, it didn't seem like he'd weighed the pros and cons before acting. And the excuse likely came from Jin Katrin, not his own head.
"Jin's the same. Normally sharp as a tack, but whenever he meets Doris, he just gets dragged along."
The king went on grumbling about the two for quite a while after that.
Though he called it grumbling, I could feel how much he loved and trusted them.
I chuckled and nodded along appropriately before getting to the point.
"How's the war going?"
"Some fronts advancing, some falling back. No breakthroughs yet."
"Where are we falling back?"
The king started to answer casually, then his eyes widened.
I grinned at him.
Then asked again.
In the fluctuating battlefield,
where was the most disadvantaged position?
It was time to pay the price for acquiring the wyverns.
*
Instead of answering right there, the king said he'd have us and the knights attend tomorrow's war council.
And beforehand, we'd need to disguise our identities appropriately.
It was a situation I'd anticipated. I replied that posing as mercenaries from somewhere would suffice.
From the start, I'd selected only knights who'd accumulated mana in their hearts to pass as mercenaries.
In this era, Mana Hearts were seen as a low-grade technique mercenaries picked up.
"It'll be uncomfortable in many ways."
Dotrin's king voiced deep concern.
We couldn't expect the reverence and respect due to royalty, so awkward situations would arise often.
I couldn't help but laugh at that.
Reverence and respect as a royal? I'd never cared for such things, nor experienced them.
I told him not to worry and left the breakfast hall.
The corridor was still empty of servants. I followed the same path the herald had led me on back to my chambers.
My companions were gathered in front of the room, waiting for me.
"Come in."
I led them inside and relayed my conversation with the king verbatim.
"Starting tomorrow, we're mercenaries."
The knights nodded at my words.
No one showed any reluctance.
It was only natural.
They'd been chosen for this very purpose from the beginning.
The Gawain trio had never lived as knights; they'd fallen to the very bottom and lived like wrecks. Even if I told them to disguise as regular soldiers instead of mercenaries, they wouldn't balk.
Gunew and Adelia were the same.
The problem was Ilai, but fortunately, he harbored some strange romantic notion.
"Mercenaries disguised as nobles? How romantic."
I ignored Ilai chattering with flushed cheeks and sorted out our forms of address.
We couldn't go around with "Your Highness" if we were pretending to be mercenaries.
"Just call me Ian."
"Ian."
Ilai called out as if he'd been waiting for it.
Even though we'd agreed on it, and it was my order,
it irked me for some reason.
"Ian. Ian. Ian."
Ilai grinned slyly and kept calling me.
Smack.
I couldn't take it anymore and smacked the back of his head.
"Ow! You said to call you Ian!"
I lamely made excuses.
Add "-nim" to it.
"Ian-nim. Ian-nim. Ian-nim."
Ilai grumbled but kept calling me.
"You'd better avoid calling me at all if possible."
It was making me annoyed for some reason.
Seeing my expression, Ilai scurried back.
He'd seemed properly noble-like with some dignity at first, but now he was utterly hopeless.
Living with rough rangers must have rubbed off on him.
I clicked my tongue, and then Gawain called me.
"Ian-nim."
It was dry and awkward, but without discomfort. No ulterior motives like Ilai's. Just like addressing a complete stranger.
Gawain's comrades tried calling me once each in similar tones, then fell silent.
They'd practiced on their own, it seemed.
I looked at Gunew. Unable to speak, she just mouthed my name. Then gestured.
[First name.]
I asked what was first, but she didn't respond.
I shrugged it off and looked at Adelia.
She shook her head vigorously.
Unlike the others, she'd been my handmaid from the start, and with her [Slave Mentality] trait, she found even uttering my name uncomfortable.
I'd tried several times, but she never could.
"Just call him Captain or something."
Ilai suggested.
I widened my eyes.
"If we're mercenaries, someone has to be the leader, and it can't be us, so Ian-nim as captain makes sense, right?"
He was right. I'd only thought as far as being mercenaries, not forming a mercenary band.
"You didn't even think that far..."
Ilai, who'd been boasting, averted his gaze at my expression.
"C-Captain."
Taking advantage of my bickering with Ilai, Adelia whispered softly.
Her face turned bright red, and she fidgeted helplessly.
It would take time to get used to it.
"But for a mercenary band, we need a band name."
Ilai, sharper than usual today, piped up again.
"Let's decide now."
As if he'd thought of it long ago, he tossed out his idea.
"How about the Radiant Blades Mercenary Band?"
A name even ancient knights from 400 years ago, who loved poetic flourishes from heroic tales, wouldn't use. I neatly ignored it and asked for others' opinions.
They all stared blankly.
Gawain's trio and Adelia looked at me with utterly thoughtless faces.
As our eyes met, Gawain seemed to think he should say something and offered tentatively.
"What about the Resolute Mercenary Corps..."
He trailed off with a regretful face, as if sorry he'd spoken up.
I sympathized. Better to stay quiet.
I glanced at Gunew hopefully, but she showed no interest whatsoever.
"Radiant Blades is good, I say."
Ilai slyly pushed his idea again.
"If not Radiant Blades, then the Indomitable Valor Mercenary Band. How's that?"
Ignoring Ilai's ramblings entirely, I sank into thought.
Then a name suddenly came to mind.
"Bail."
Ilai frowned at me.
"From now on, we're mercenaries of the Bail Mercenary Band."
"What's this Bail out of nowhere..."
He shut his mouth mid-sentence.
His face turned solemn.
Not just Ilai. Gawain's trio and Adelia wore the same expression.
I probably did too.
To the kingdom's knights, the name of my uncle Bail held special meaning.
*
Before attending the next day's council, I met the king separately.
To coordinate and familiarize ourselves.
"Bail Mercenary Band. Good name."
After a brief comment, Dotrin's king examined my group.
A spark lit in his initially indifferent eyes.
He nodded approvingly at Bernard Ilai, tilted his head curiously at Gawain's trio as if sensing something off.
He gave Gunew a cold look.
And when he saw Adelia, he let out an exclamation.
"Impressive. Truly impressive."
His eyes, recognizing her potential, shone brighter than ever.
I stepped forward casually, blocking the space between him and Adelia.
"She's mine."
I stated firmly.
Don't covet her.
The king sighed.
He must have been quite tempted by Adelia's potential.
But he didn't let greed strain our relations. He withdrew his gaze plainly.
"When I send word, come in. I'll introduce you properly."
With that, the king left first.
After a short wait, the herald I'd seen before appeared, saying the king had summoned us.
Clank.
The knights donned their helmets.
Iron helmets that exposed only the nose bridge and mouth. They pulled their cloak hoods over the helmets and signaled me.
I nodded.
I followed suit, helmet and hood on.
Then trailed the herald.
He stopped before a large door.
I nodded, and he quietly opened it.
The council chamber had an open ceiling with the clear blue sky as its roof, a massive marble table, and dozens of men surrounding it who turned to look at us.
We were just lowly mercenary riffraff,
not worth the attention of the kingdom's top brass,
yet their reaction was strangely intense.
They focused on us intensely.
In utter silence, not a word.
In that eerie quiet, I looked to the king.
Dotrin's king was smiling mischievously.
As if enjoying a amusing spectacle.
Beside him were Dolosis, whom I hadn't seen since arriving at the palace, and Jin.
Among them, Jin mouthed at me.
Introduce yourselves.
It was a novel experience. Others had always spoken my name for me; this was the first time I'd step forward and declare it myself. But it wasn't bad.
I'd always disliked the rigid, formulaic introductions.
So I introduced myself and my group my way.
As befitted one walking the path of the sword, utterly mercenary-like.
I drew my blade and cloaked it in an aura blade to prove myself.
Hummm.
I heard gasps from behind. Dotrin's officials at the table widened their eyes.
The king looked like he might burst out laughing.
Ignoring it all, I shouted vigorously.
"The Bail Mercenary Band has arrived!"