Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: A Choice by Coin
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[…The carcass of a Jewel Beast holds immense value. Not a single drop of its blood or shred of its flesh goes to waste.
As you brothers are well aware, the dreadful and loathsome head of the Bednicker family established his house using the spoils from slaying three Jewel Beasts in the past.
If we can secure a Jewel Beast carcass intact, it will serve as a great foundation for the revival of our cult.
Of course, we must not underestimate the danger of a Jewel Beast, but the reason no one has succeeded in hunting one in the seventeen years since the Iron-Blooded Duke is not merely due to their strength.
It is because no one has been able to pinpoint the whereabouts of these elusive creatures.
However, thanks to the brilliant efforts of our brothers, our cult has succeeded in locating the habitat of a Jewel Beast.
This particular Jewel Beast is characterized by its size, reminiscent of a small mountain, its bluish scales, and a bone-chilling frost.
Considering its appearance and traits, the cult has named this Jewel Beast the [Sapphire Snake].
We postponed our initial objective and used our base in the mountains to gather information on the Sapphire Snake.
During this time, we discovered a rare spirit herb called the Extreme Flame Herb and began experiments to mass-produce it, achieving significant results before soon hitting a snag.
This was due to the appearance of a meddler well-known to our brothers.
We have determined this meddler to be one of Bednicker's hounds, a white knight from Goodspring, or an elite ranger of the Empire—]
At that point, I cut Arjan off.
“Butler.”
“Yes.”
“Can you give me the short version?”
It wasn't even that big a note, yet it was so wordy.
At my request, Arjan said with a troubled expression.
“…So, it seems the Dark Cult has been staying in the Jewel Mountains for a very long time. To hunt a Jewel Beast.”
“Hmm?”
“Is something wrong?”
“No.”
I felt a momentary sense of unease, but I nodded for now.
It wasn't entirely wrong, after all.
The Jewel Mountains are a forbidden zone to begin with, making them the perfect place to avoid the Empire's eyes.
Judging by the circumstances, it seems their experiments with the Extreme Flame Herb were also conducted at a base they established in the mountains…
*Wait a minute. Then could the Flame Demon also be...?*
Could the Flame Demon, who went berserk after eating the Extreme Flame Herb, have been one of the results of their human experiments?
It occurred to me that the cult might be the masterminds, and that releasing it into the world was part of their experiment.
If so, their base somewhere around here might be larger than I thought.
“Then why did these bastards drag me here?”
“This is just speculation, but I believe they intended to use you as bait.”
“Bait?”
“The note mentions a meddler. If that person is from the Bednicker family, they must have thought they could lure them out using you as bait, Young Master.”
“Hmm. Using someone like me as bait…”
At first, it seemed like a stupid idea, but then again, it wasn't complete nonsense.
Regardless of how pathetic I was at this point in time, the fact that I was the Iron-Blooded Duke's flesh and blood was undeniable.
Of course, that great Family Head of ours didn't show me an ounce of interest even when I was on the brink of death…
But that's a difficult fact for a third party to confirm.
I tore my gaze from the note and looked at the map.
The map of the mountains was covered in markings and symbols I'd never seen before, and they had an ominous look to them.
“This is… it's that, isn't it?”
“Yes. It's the symbol of the Demon King.”
A symbol that looked like a crimson moon.
The symbol of Hadenaihar, the Demon King of the Blood Moon.
The problem was that there were more symbols than I expected…
The bigger problem was their placement.
I stared intently at the map for a long while before letting out a sigh.
“These… they seem to be nearby, don't they?”
“Yes.”
“Mm.”
A similar conversation unfolded, but this time with a groan added.
We were surrounded on all sides by the Demon King's symbol.
At this point, it was no different from being thrown into the middle of enemy territory.
*Osel, that son of a bitch…*
It seems he planned to take care of us here and then either stop by the base or rendezvous with his comrades.
And there was another problem.
“There are symbols in the direction we came from, too.”
They wouldn't have marked the symbols' locations by mistake, which naturally left only one possibility.
We hadn't noticed, but Osel had already communicated with his comrades in some discreet way.
In other words, even our escape route was completely cut off.
If that were all, it would almost be a relief.
“Butler, can you move?”
“Yes.”
Arjan still looked exhausted and weary, but I didn't point it out.
Even if she was on the verge of collapse, we had to move now.
Because Hadenaihar's followers nearby would soon sense something was amiss and begin their pursuit.
***
It's a good thing it's nighttime.
Naturally, the dark environment favors the escapee over the pursuer.
Even if we moved a bit noisily, the cloak of night would sufficiently cover our tracks.
Conversely, it also meant we had to find a safe place before dawn.
I unfolded the map once more.
Looking at the Demon King's symbols encircling us on all sides made my head spin.
I'd gained internal energy through a stroke of luck, but even so, facing this many cultists was impossible.
This meant the best course of action was to avoid combat somehow and escape the mountains…
*Fwit-!*
Damn it, already?
Arjan and I ducked our heads at the same time.
A cold projectile grazed the top of my head.
Immediately after, three assassins dressed in black appeared before us.
From their positions, it looked like I'd have to take on two of them.
I kicked off the ground and slammed my fist straight into the nearest assassin's face.
“Kuh…”
As the assassin staggered back, clutching his face, I prepared a follow-up attack. I grabbed his head firmly and drove my knee into it.
The moment I felt the crunch of his skull shattering, the one behind him threw another dagger.
Is throwing daggers the only way these bastards know how to attack?
I used the limp assassin as a temporary shield, then threw him aside the moment the attack ended.
“…!”
The assassin hastily dodged his comrade's corpse, and in that opening, I unleashed a palm strike.
*Fwoosh!*
The wheel of fire I shot out exploded against the assassin.
Since it was a hastily used technique, it wasn't very powerful. The flames were barely strong enough to cause a burn, let alone incinerate him.
But it was enough to distract the assassin for a moment.
While the assassin was patting out the flames, I closed the distance and struck him in the abdomen.
*KABOOM!*
With the sound of an exploding cannonball, the assassin's body flew in a straight line.
I wondered if I'd been too loud.
But I decided that dealing with them quickly was the higher priority.
“Have we been discovered already?”
Arjan asked with a grave expression, having approached me at some point.
There was blood on her pale face, so I gently tapped my own cheek.
Arjan froze for a moment, then, a beat later, understood and wiped her face.
“Not exactly. They were probably scouts.”
If they were real pursuers, they would have sent stronger men.
They would have known that Osel was dead.
“We should hurry, Young Master. That wasn't a quiet fight, so more enemies will be coming soon.”
“…”
“Young Master?”
Arjan looked at me quizzically as I suddenly stopped walking.
I decided now was the time to make a decision.
I took the map from my coat, unfolded it, and showed it to Arjan.
“There's exactly one opening.”
“There is?”
“Look closely.”
Arjan stared at the spot I was pointing to, and her expression brightened slightly.
“Indeed, if we take this route, we can escape the cult's encirclement.”
“Right. But there's one problem.”
I moved my finger to show her what lay at the end of this path.
“Butler, what does this symbol look like to you?”
“A lizard? Or a snake… Ah.”
Arjan's expression hardened as well.
Only then did she realize why there was no encirclement in this direction.
A snake.
The Sapphire Snake.
In other words, the Jewel Beast.
“Let's make a choice, Butler.”
I said, looking at Arjan.
“Whether to see things through with the cult, or to fight the Jewel Beast.”
If we choose this path, we'll run into the Jewel Beast.
***
Was it really the right decision to run into a Jewel Beast while trying to avoid the cult?
Wouldn't it be like fleeing a wolf only to fight a lion?
To be honest, I thought the risk was about the same either way.
In truth, this kind of choice should be made after careful deliberation, but unfortunately, we didn't have the time.
Meaning, we had to decide right now.
It was then that Arjan showed a strange reaction.
“A choice…”
The moment I said the word 'choice,' her face turned pale.
“I… have to choose…”
“Butler?”
“The Jewel Beast and the cult… we haven't assessed the strength of either yet. What if we gather just a little more information on the cult? But time…”
“Hey.”
“Once again, because of my choice—”
“Snap out of it.”
I clapped my hands and spoke to her, and a flicker of light returned to Arjan's unfocused eyes.
Still, she didn't look well.
Somehow, it felt like my thoughtless words had been a trigger.
“It's fine. I was just asking for your opinion, Butler. I was going to make the decision anyway.”
I took a gold coin from my pocket.
It was one of the twelve gold coins I'd taken from Osel.
“…?”
As Arjan gave me a questioning look, I flipped the coin into the air…
*Ting—.*
Just before it landed, I covered it with my palm.
Arjan looked at the back of my hand and asked.
“What are you doing?”
“Lion for the cult, old man for the Jewel Beast.”
I named the images engraved on the coin.
In truth, I didn't know which side was heads or tails, so I had to use the images on the gold coin as an example.
“That's not what I mean. Surely you're not suggesting we decide something so important with a coin toss?”
“Why do you say it like that? It just means that since racking our brains won't give us an answer, we should leave it to fate.”
“That's the same thing—”
“Well, do you have a better idea?”
When I retorted, Arjan fell silent.
“At this point, we have no way of knowing whether the cult or the Jewel Beast is more dangerous. And just going with the flow isn't my style.”
“But this method is…”
“Butler, let me teach you something. Sometimes, relying on luck like this isn't so bad.”
“…”
“Alright, then. Let's see the result.”
Ignoring Arjan's gaze, I lifted my hand to reveal the coin.
I saw the profile of an old man with a magnificent beard.
“The old man.”
*So, the Jewel Beast it is?*
I acted confident, but I wasn't at ease either.
This choice could very well get us killed, after all.
As I was thinking that, Arjan spoke.
“Xenus I.”
“Huh?”
“The image engraved on the face of the coin isn't an old man. It's the founding king, Xenus I.”
“…I see.”
The more you know.