Chapter 101
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 101
Chapter Title: The Warrior's New Path
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An old cabin, warm milk, and a small espresso cup.
That evening was a truly complex and calm tangle. As we drank, starlight blanketed the sky.
I took out a gold coin, placed it on the table, and left the shop with Rireu. The night had deepened considerably, but the square was, if anything, even more boisterous.
Rireu and I walked to our prearranged meeting spot and soon found a plain, unadorned carriage waiting for us around the corner. The young servant descended from the carriage as if he had been waiting and greeted us.
Before boarding the carriage, I glanced one more time at the center of the bustling square.
…I still couldn't help but let out a pathetic laugh at the sight of those with white-dyed hair, but at least I no longer felt disgusted by them.
“Rex will wake up soon.”
I said, sitting down and gazing out the window at the noisy street.
“Of course.”
Rireu was still holding my hand.
“Alter will be walking on his own two feet before long, too.”
In the square, nobles were still delivering loud speeches.
“Naturally. You're mostly all right, Master.”
There, in the corner of an alley, a young boy sat strumming a guitar.
“...And my hand will heal, too.”
The glittering lights gradually receded into the distance.
“I believe you.”
And so, the day passes.
It was an evening that was somewhat awkward, yet splendid.
* * *
The next morning, even the faint trace of the cold that had been bothering me until last night was completely gone.
It's a bit much to say it myself, but with the cold gone, my voice was clear and pure, and my body felt as light as a feather.
...Strictly speaking, my body was already as light as a feather to begin with. It was just that emaciated.
“Ah. Ah.”
Don't people often compare a beautiful voice to that of a 'nightingale'?
But in truth, a nightingale's voice isn't as pure as one might think. It's more like the sound of a slightly inept flutist.
The... peculiar and clumsy sound made by a musician who's just learned to play, attempting to read a new score for the first time, is perhaps the closest comparison.
“Ahhh—”
However, my voice now was on another level entirely. It was like the sound produced by a skilled flutist majoring in music at a university.
Clatter!
Just as I was admiring the state of my own throat for a few minutes, a sudden clattering sound of furniture came from outside my door.
“...?”
Wondering if someone was moving, I opened the door and peeked into the hallway. At that moment, a large shadow loomed over me.
“Whoa, watch out! You'll get hurt!”
came the urgent voice of the young servant.
I brushed my messy bangs aside and moved away from the entrance, just as the wooden leg of a piece of furniture entered the room.
...What are those people putting in my room right now?
“What is this?”
“It's a piano! Sir Bin ordered it.”
“Ah.”
Holy crap, I ordered this before we left for Vellaland, and it's only arriving now. Hasn't it been over a month?
And it wasn't even a custom order; it was ready-made. Just what kind of logistics system does this world have...?
Did my piano take a detour through the Bermuda Triangle of shipping hubs after crossing dimensions or something?
Thud—
As the piano's legs touched the floor, the strings vibrated, letting out a small chorus of notes. At the same time, the faint groans of the old and young servants were an added bonus.
“...Um, would you like some tea?”
I carefully offered the steaming black tea to the servants.
Unsurprisingly, they waved their hands and refused.
After the hard labor of moving a piano from the main gate to my room, it seemed they had no desire to endure the additional trial of drinking a hot beverage.
“Ah, by the way... General.”
“Yes?”
While the servants who had brought the piano caught their breath and straightened their wrinkled clothes, the young servant spoke to me.
“General Rex has woken up.”
“...”
I immediately put down the cup in my hand and slung my cardigan over my shoulders.
“Please lead the way.”
* * *
Rex's hospital room was one of the many spare rooms in the castle, converted into a private room for him.
Normally, Rex should have been lying in an intensive care unit at a church or hospital, not inside the castle. However, I exercised a ‘bit of authority’ to create a private ICU within the castle, placing him there and asking the court physicians and priests to look after him.
Rex was more than deserving.
No matter what anyone said, he was the hero of the continent who had finished off Maltiel.
When one achieves great deeds, a fitting reward must follow.
With a joyful heart, I swung open the door to the ICU.
Ah, I forgot to knock.
Just as that thought belatedly crossed my mind, a large orc, wrapped head to toe in bandages, was standing before me. Rex’s face was wet, as if he had just washed it, and water was sprinkled on the floor.
“...Why are you standing?”
I asked in a bewildered tone, looking at Rex who was casually going about his day as if nothing had happened.
From what I heard, it hadn't even been thirty minutes since he regained consciousness, so why was this orc standing on his own two feet so matter-of-factly?
Shouldn't someone who just woke up from a coma be lying in bed, greeting their visitor with half-asleep eyes?
“...Is there a problem, General?”
“Uh...”
Hmm.
“No, I'm just glad you're back.”
This wasn't quite the scene I had expected.
“Uh, some black tea...?”
“Ah, yes. Black tea. Black tea is good.”
“...”
“...”
Wasn't this supposed to be a reunion steeped in emotion? How could it be this awkward?
“Hey, I'm going to close the door and come back in. So...”
“Ah yes, I shall lie down like a proper patient.”
Thankfully, Rex understood my abbreviated words perfectly.
Click.
Hearing his reply, I left the room and closed the door.
Then I took a quiet, deep breath.
After staring at the door for about three seconds to compose myself, I prepared my heart and pulled the handle.
Unlike before, Rex was now lying in bed with eyes like a dead fish. He was even drooling like someone who had taken three punches to the jaw and lost consciousness...
“Pfft...!”
Ah, you're really breaking the immersion.
“The drool is a bit much, really. You don't know when to stop.”
“Ah, is that so? I thought this was exactly the image you were hoping for, General.”
Whoa? Look at this guy. A trip to the underworld seems to have given him a sly side.
“What nonsense are you... Ah, forget it. I was just trying to create a touching scene. Tsk.”
Though I grumbled, I could feel a smile spreading across my face.
“Why are you wrapped in so many bandages? You're not a mummy.”
“Would you like a look under the bandages? It's no joke. My flesh is caved in like I was hit by a meteor...”
“Ugh, no thanks.”
“Haha! Don't be like that, at least give it a touch. I've never seen a body twisted like this in my entire life.”
Rex and I spent a long while talking about such nonsense.
At one point, Rex's hearty orcish laughter filled the room. Since there was no furniture aside from a bed and a small table, the sound echoed so loudly it almost hurt my ears.
“Welcome back.”
I said, gently patting Rex's shoulder. Even though he had just regained consciousness, his skin was incomparably tough and hard compared to mine.
“...Strictly speaking, I'm not completely back.”
Rex said, then paused for a moment. He probably didn't just mean that he wasn't fully healed.
“General. There is something I must tell you.”
He started like that, then watched my reaction for a while. I swallowed nervously and waited for him to continue.
“...I will probably never be able to lift an axe again.”
Rex looked as if he couldn't believe he was saying such words himself. I could only watch with pity as he continued to speak through his pain.
“I haven't heard the opinion of a doctor or a priest yet... but I know my own body. A large hole was torn in my abdomen, and I've lost a significant amount of muscle. A severed arm can be replaced with a prosthesis, but a ruined torso... there's no way to restore that...”
His torso, the area where what is commonly called the 'core muscles' are located, had a large hole in it.
If the torso that supports the human body is damaged, even simple actions like standing up become difficult, let alone running or doing light push-ups. The pressure that the core muscles should absorb is transferred entirely to the spine, and the strained spine can develop a disc or, in severe cases, suffer injuries like fractures.
The core muscles are like the rebar used to construct the building that is the body; no matter how well-developed other muscles are, if the core is ruined, it becomes difficult to move the body freely.
“Thanks to the Saintess, the hole in my abdomen was sealed and my torn organs were somewhat mended... but that's all. My torso is completely ruined, and even a little strenuous exercise will cause my organs to shift out of place.”
Considering the amount of blood he lost and the size of the wound at the time... it would be stranger if there were no aftereffects.
In fact, Rex opening his eyes and walking around is a miracle in itself.
“Now, even if I hold a shield, I'll be thrown back by enemy attacks, and if I swing an axe, it won't reach their necks. The foundation of all my movements is broken, so it can't be helped.”
Rex gritted his teeth, his expression devastated.
He seemed utterly ashamed as a warrior to have to say such things himself.
“To continue wielding an axe would be a disgrace to myself. I have enjoyed a greater glory than I ever dreamed of, so now I must yield my place by the General's side to others more talented. To you, General, who trusted me with a position far beyond my station, I am nothing but grateful and apologetic.”
To my eyes, Rex seemed far too strict with himself.
I already owed my life to Rex three times over. He was my one and only vanguard, a shield I could trust.
He could have proudly declared, 'This is as far as I go,' and no one would have said a word.
“Then... when are you planning your retirement ceremony?”
“That's not to say I'm retiring.”
“...Then?”
“My role as a warrior is over, so now it is time to fulfill my duty as a soldier.”
“You don't know how to rest.”
“The war is not completely over yet. Besides, there were a few commanders who recommended me for a position long ago. I suppose I'll start by leading a small company under one of them.”
“A company commander... Given your accomplishments, Rex, no one would complain even if you were promoted straight to battalion commander.”
“I appreciate the thought, but the work of a warrior and that of a military officer are very different. If I don't learn from the ground up, I don't know when or where a major problem might arise.”
“...Well, it's possible, is what I'm saying.”
Rex gently patted my back as I grumbled like a child.
I could never get used to this massive hand. Why did the thought that he could easily crush a person's head like tofu if he wanted to keep popping into my mind?
“Anytime you need help, just send a single letter. My men and I will come running.”
It seemed Rex had found his next duty the moment he opened his eyes.