The Horse Struggles to Escape the Chessboard (4)
The hero Demian seemed almost like a prophet. There was no tremor in the voice of someone who knew the future through regression, loops, or some other ability.
“Besides, Shade would never sell or dispose of the holy sword Einherjar to anyone else.”
“…How can you be so sure?”
The first to break the strange atmosphere emanating from Demian and voice doubt was the red-haired Calliope.
In the original story, she was the daughter of the barbarian who revered strength, and her father, the Mercenary King Jeffs, was someone I had crossed paths with before.
“Shade was ridiculously strong. He even stole the swordsmanship our tribe uses with his ability.”
Calliope’s voice trembled, yet it carried a note of interest.
Unlike the other hero’s companions, she had survived the harsh northern environment since childhood and had always been drawn to strong opponents.
[Calliope’s Affection: -90%]
That was exactly what the translucent status window floating before my eyes displayed.
Unlike the others, whose values had either stayed the same or dropped further.
“Watch your words. Shade didn’t steal it—he simply copied and used the technique.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?”
“Not at all. Without a proper understanding of its essence and the matching physical conditions, the ability places a tremendous burden on the body.”
Demian calmly corrected Calliope and took a sip of water.
Even though he looked overheated from the earlier battle, he didn’t remove his armor that completely covered his body.
“Shade values the greater cause over petty emotions. I can vouch for that more than anyone.”
“On what basis? It’s true there was suspicion toward you, Demian… but if you can vouch for him, shouldn’t you be able to explain why?”
“Because if Shade had gone all out, he could have killed not only me but all of you at once.”
“……!”
The atmosphere froze in an instant.
The people gathered here included a saintess, the daughter of the Mercenary King, and individuals powerful enough to be called witches.
Yet Demian stated it so matter-of-factly—that the hero’s party, assembled to personally defeat the Demon King, could be wiped out by the mere leader of the underworld.
“Demian, I really don’t understand what you’re thinking. That almost sounds like you’re saying that man is stronger than the Demon King.”
“Please wait a moment, Isabella.”
Isabella immediately objected, but to everyone’s surprise, the saintess stopped her.
“Huginn has returned. We’ll soon know whether that man is truly as trustworthy as Demian claims.”
──Flutter.
A crow that dropped black feathers landed on Lavey’s index finger, serving as the eyes and ears of the woman who had been born blind.
“Caw. The leader of Moonshadow, Shade, is regarded almost like a god by the weak—the orphans, beggars, vagrants, and the sick!”
Huginn and Muninn.
One of the pair of ravens named after Odin’s messengers in Norse mythology spoke.
“Huginn, what is the reason?”
“Caw! Ever since he took control of Hamelion Street, dirty dealings like drug and organ trafficking have vanished, and no one is left starving and begging on the streets!”
This was the change that occurred after I seized the Slums and established the thief guild.
I had completely eradicated the criminals who trafficked drugs, brothels, and organs against the weak, hired mercenaries to enforce order, and gathered every starving beggar, widow who lost her husband, orphan who lost parents, and the incurably ill—teaching them to become capable informants.
And that choice had been extremely effective.
Because people naturally valued appearances over inner qualities, it was difficult for them to suspect that someone weaker than themselves might be hiding a blade.
“…That can’t be true.”
A gasp of shock escaped the saintess Lavey’s lips. She seemed to have not expected it herself, belatedly covering her mouth with her hand.
In the medieval era known as the Dark Ages of civilization, it was perfectly normal for vagrants to flood the streets.
“That’s impossible. Even in Elysium, the Holy Kingdom blessed by the Celestial God, there are still those who starve, aren’t there?”
Yet,
the fact that this street in the Slums—the shadow of the Valtreia Empire—was more livable than the Holy Kingdom she had belonged to must have been an incredibly shocking revelation.
“There must be some mistake. Yes, unless they rounded up every vagrant on the streets and killed them all…”
“…Your words are too harsh, Saintess.”
Lavey, lost in confusion, uttered something unbecoming of a saintess, and Demian furrowed his brow, showing clear displeasure.
“Caw! I saw a group that looked like members of the thief guild taking children from the streets, but they were only guiding them as trainees!”
“Trainees? What do you mean…?”
“Shade greatly dislikes seeing people die before his eyes. He employs them as guild informants and guarantees their food, clothing, and shelter. All so he can use them as his own eyes and ears.”
“That’s right! Our entire conversation has been spied on! Caw!”
“……!!!”
At Huginn’s loud voice, the hero’s party—including Saintess Lavey—began looking around frantically.
“What are you doing? There’s no need to be scared, just sit down. This street has always been in the palm of his hand anyway.”
Only Demian calmly returned to his seat and told his companions to settle down.
“Demian, does that mean you knew everything from the beginning and still acted this way…?”
“Th-that makes sense when you think about it. Demian gathered us as if he already knew the future. To save the world.”
Judging from what the mage Luna was saying, he must have revealed that he knew the future when recruiting his companions as well.
“Yes. That’s why I deliberately never revealed my ability.”
His utterly serene demeanor lent credibility to Demian’s words.
“Ignorance is the most rational means of responding to the infinite.”
“……”
“Who knows? Maybe right now, at this very moment, he’s listening to everything we’re saying from right beside us.”
Those words sounded familiar. As I listened to Demian, a chill ran down my spine as if a cold blade had been pressed against it.
- What do we do? Have we been found out?
I shook my head at Phantom’s telepathy.
It was highly likely just a probe. If I were the one who knew the future, I would have moved my opponents in the same way.
Because in chess, you had to anticipate your opponent’s moves in advance and play accordingly.
“So, were the war hero and mercenary identities real? I’ve heard the name Ash before.”
Isabella, the count’s daughter, who had returned to her seat, looked at Demian with an even more crooked attitude than before and brought up the topic.
“In the war with the neighboring country, he single-handedly slaughtered every knight and mage, earning him the nickname Gravekeeper of the Battlefield.”
Isabella mentioned the alias I had been given during the war with the neighboring nation of Bestia.
The cringeworthy, chuunibyou-like nickname—that everyone who crossed my path ended up dead—had actually been the result of my desperate struggle to save even one more person.
I had always been the first to charge into the front lines, using pre-prepared traps to lure the enemy and minimize casualties. I had even done the insane thing of returning to dangerous terrain to recover my comrades’ bodies.
Hence, Gravekeeper of the Battlefield.
To me, it was such a dishonorable title that I had tried to erase it from memory.
“I-I’ve heard the name Gray before too. When the World Tree was about to be burned by demons, an unknown mercenary stopped it… and people guessed that only he could have done it.”
After nodding slightly at Isabella’s words, the mage Luna spoke with her body trembling violently.
This was also something I had done while hiding my identity.
Because in the original story, the elves’ forest burned and Luna’s parents died as a result, I had prevented it in advance.
“Well, the World Tree isn’t just some ordinary large tree. Isn’t it more important to the elves than their own lives?”
“Y-yes… It’s the tree where souls reside. Through it, all living beings—from our ancestors to the present—can communicate.”
The hero’s party members began murmuring among themselves about my true identity, creating a chaotic atmosphere.
Very few people knew that the war hero Ash, the mercenary Gray, and the guild leader of Moonshadow, Shade, were all the same person.
“Now, do you understand why Shade must become our companion?”
However, as if annoyed by the situation, the hero Demian glared at the women for a brief moment before relaxing his expression and cutting off the flow of conversation.
It was a micro-expression that only appeared for an instant when trying to deceive someone or extract information—something only I, trained to read such things, could catch.
‘Of course he’d be displeased if the women he likes are talking about another man.’
For the first time, seeing Demian’s emotions laid bare, I briefly wondered if he really was the kind of character who would commit NTR like in the original.
Originally, these were characters I had personally rolled for by pouring money into the mobile gacha game.
Because the status window had blocked me, they had never even been given the chance to like me—it had felt unfair.
That was why I had taken the holy sword like this, intending to watch him fall apart in the ugly way he did in the original story.
“…Starting tomorrow, let’s spar together. It would be best to clear all the goblin subjugation requests in the guild and secure some funds.”
The hero before me, despite having lost the holy sword Einherjar, was calmly guiding his companions with sharp eyes.
He was far too composed to be called a novice hero who had only just gathered his party and set out on his journey.
“Then I’ll be heading off to sleep. All of you should return to your lodgings as well. Let’s disband.”
──Rattle.
As if the situation had been planned, the hero Demian stood up and gathered his belongings before anyone could object.
“Wait, Demian…!”
“Leave him be. He seems quite distressed about losing the holy sword.”
Demian’s sudden action left the atmosphere cold, and his companions began moving toward their respective inn rooms.
It was possible that Demian was anxious about losing Einherjar.
No matter how much he knew about the future, his most powerful weapon had disappeared from his hands.
‘Right now.’
However, I didn’t let go of my suspicion and secretly followed Demian toward his lodging.
If I acted now, I might finally grasp the clue to how he knew the future and what kind of ability it was.
If he were a regressor or someone repeating loops, there would be parchment where he had written down the future; if it was something else, there would be some trace left behind.
At that moment,
According to the promise of ■□■□■, intrusion into the hero ‘Demian’s’ lodging is currently prohibited.
Thud.
Once again, a status window appeared before my eyes, and my hand was blocked in midair.
Please keep your promise. □■□-nim.
This time, it wasn’t a small window—it was a status window surrounding Demian’s lodging like a transparent barrier.
‘…Again? Wait, why?’
I couldn’t understand it.
It was as if I wasn’t supposed to know Demian’s ability at all, and it was perfectly airtight.
‘So you want me to just sit back and watch the NTR play out like in the original.’
I tried striking the status window with my dagger, but no matter how hard I tried, it didn’t even leave a scratch.
What kind of promise was this, making things so troublesome and inconvenient for me?
* * *
“Haa… Wow, I’m drenched in sweat inside this armor…”
Demian, who had returned to his lodging at a quick pace, was the first to remove his armor and let out a hot sigh.
The heat radiating from Demian’s body now was from the battle with Shade earlier.
That was how hard Demian had tried to secure victory against Shade, but in the end, he had failed and handed over the holy sword.
Swish—.
Demian unwrapped the sweat-soaked compression bandages, and once the dozens of layers disappeared, her ample chest spilled out.
It was a bust that could only be hidden by using magic to alter her physique, wearing compression bandages at the same time, and donning massive heavy armor.
“…I thought you’d go easy on me. Maybe you were jealous because I was surrounded by women.”
Having found comfort, Demian tossed the damp bandages onto the bed and whispered softly.
It had certainly been a sword filled with emotion.
But even so, it hadn’t aimed for her life.
It was as if he was warning her in advance about the dangers that would arise during the journey ahead, even revealing the weaknesses of her ability.
If it had truly been a life-or-death battlefield, she probably wouldn’t have had enough lives no matter how many she possessed.
‘Even if a dagger had been stabbed into my eye… that person would have been flustered and kept taking care of me. He would have even used expensive potions to restore me to normal. Ah, maybe I should have gone that route instead?’
Though he appeared cold and blunt on the outside, in truth he was kinder and gentler than anyone.
With her mind filled with thoughts of Shade, Demian tossed and turned restlessly under the blanket before,
“But what can I do? I don’t want to hand you over to any of my companions. Even if I know the future, I still hate that idea…”
She whispered her shameful feelings in a tiny voice toward the cute teddy bear sitting on the table.