Uninvited Guest
It had already been four days since Juhan was wounded by Hadley’s blade.
“Are you certain it’s all right for you to be up and about already?”
“I left some of my things behind. They’ve been weighing on my mind.”
Swoosh, rustle.
Juhan was packing up the tent he had been staying in as he answered Radro.
“Well, if you insist on leaving, I suppose I can’t stop you…”
Radro trailed off, looking at him with clear regret.
“Sir Juhan.”
“Yes?”
“We plan to leave the village at noon two days from now. If you change your mind, you’re welcome to join us at any time.”
“Haha… Understood.”
Radro’s invitation to leave for the Holy Kingdom together only made Juhan smile awkwardly and nod.
Of course, he had no intention of going anywhere with Radro and the Holy Kingdom—not until he resolved the matter of the bell, at least.
“Then take care, Sir Juhan.”
“I will. Thank you for everything.”
Juhan bowed lightly, then opened the tent flap and stepped outside.
He intended to head straight back to Anton Village.
But Radro was not the only one who tried to hold him back.
“Leaving already?”
“Is your body fully recovered?”
Without exaggeration, someone spoke to him every five steps.
“Ah, yes… I’m fine. Just about to head out.”
Juhan kept dipping his head with an awkward smile. This kind of treatment was still thoroughly unfamiliar to him.
He had only acted to survive, only for himself—yet somehow he had become something like a benefactor to them.
I need to get out of here fast.
If he lingered any longer, they would keep stopping him forever. After wrapping up the goodbyes as politely as he could, Juhan hurried toward the village entrance.
Thud, thud.
After roughly five minutes of walking past the tents the soldiers had pitched, Juhan glanced around and let out a small sigh.
“Huu.”
He cracked open a pocket of space, reached in, and brushed his fingers over the new metal plate he had obtained from the Executor.
I hope Carlton has managed to decipher at least a little of it.
Some time later, Juhan arrived near Anton Village.
Looks like the atmosphere’s back to normal.
Standing on a hill that overlooked the village, he could tell the mood had changed. The gloomy, tightly controlled air of the past few days had given way to something closer to the lively village he had first entered.
Did something happen?
Yet the number of Holy Knights stationed there did not seem to have decreased much.
“….”
After watching the village for a moment, Juhan decided it probably did not concern him and started down the slope.
The reason was simple: he had no intention of wandering the streets. He planned only to stop by Carlton’s workshop, then slip straight back out of the village.
The last few days of rubbing shoulders with Holy Knights had been more than enough.
No need to go around showing my face.
He descended the hill and immediately took the alleys and outer paths where fewer eyes would find him. He had walked this route several times already, so his steps carried no hesitation.
Pat. Thud.
Whenever a Holy Knight passed, he erased his presence. Whenever patrols appeared, he hid and waited. After about ten minutes of careful movement, he reached the entrance to Carlton’s workshop without major trouble.
Still hasn’t fixed it, I see.
The entrance Juhan privately called “the sewer” remained unrepaired. He gave the cover a light push and it lifted right open—perhaps the security measures inside were considered sufficient.
Thud, thud.
The tunnel was pitch-black, yet having walked it once before, he had little difficulty navigating.
Hope he’s inside.
Before long he stood at the door to the workshop itself. Spotting the familiar glow of light, he raised a hand and knocked.
Knock, knock.
“Carlton, you in there?”
“….”
No answer came from within.
What? Did he go out?
On instinct, Juhan leaned in to press his ear against the door the way he had before—
Flinch!
“Y-you’re here?”
“….”
The sudden presence inside left Juhan speechless. Carlton’s voice was different—tense, urgent, edged with panic.
Clack.
“…Hey.”
Carlton cracked open the small window set in the door and spoke through it.
“How about opening the door? I’d rather talk inside.”
“Just a second… Hey, wait. You didn’t—”
“What?”
“Shh.”
When Juhan asked what was going on, Carlton pressed a finger to his lips, demanding silence. Then his eyes flicked past Juhan, scanning the tunnel behind him. He was clearly watching for someone else.
“You came alone, right?”
“…What?”
“You didn’t bring anyone with you?”
“Of course not.”
Carlton studied him for a long moment, then gave a short nod.
“Fine. Come in and we’ll talk. I’ll open it for a second—get in quick.”
“Is someone after you?”
“…Just get inside.”
Click.
Rumble—
The heavy iron door swung open. As soon as Juhan stepped through, Carlton was already firing questions at him.
“Did you see anyone strange on your way here? Anyone acting suspicious?”
“Suspicious people? Hmm… not that I noticed.”
“You’re sure?”
“So what exactly is going on?”
Juhan’s tone made it clear he was done with the fuss and wanted an explanation. Carlton nodded and finally started talking.
“…For the past few days.”
“Yeah?”
“Someone’s been following me around, making a real nuisance of himself.”
“Someone’s been tailing you?”
Carlton continued without pausing.
“You noticed the village mood shifted on the way in, right?”
“I did. Is that related to this person?”
“It’s a long story, but yeah—pretty tightly connected.”
“Who is it?”
Carlton seemed unwilling even to speak the name. He gave a full-body shudder of pure revulsion before waving the subject off.
“Forget it. You’ll figure it out if you walk around the village for five minutes. Go look yourself. More importantly, hurry up and—”
“Wait. I think you’ve got the wrong idea. I’m not planning to—”
Juhan started to say he had no intention of roaming the village, but Carlton simply thrust out his hand, palm up, as if to say quit stalling and hand it over.
“Why are you just standing there? You found another metal plate, didn’t you? That’s why you came.”
“…Well, yes.”
“Exactly. No other reason you’d show up this fast.”
He was not wrong. With a resigned look, Juhan handed over the plate.
I’ll just ask again before I leave the workshop.
Right now Carlton looked like a man dying to examine the metal, nothing else on his mind.
“Here…”
Snatch!
“Ohh, you actually got one.”
“…You said you knew I would earlier.”
“That was then, this is now. Anyway, perfect.”
Thud.
Click.
Carlton was already ignoring Juhan completely, dragging a lamp over and angling it across the plate’s surface.
He’s more fired up about this than I am.
Which was fine by Juhan—if Carlton treated the work as his own obsession, so much the better.
“Ohh… just as I expected.”
“Expected what?”
“What is this section? Characters I’ve never seen before—I’ll have to cross-reference.”
“…What are you talking about?”
“Sealing? Capture? These words are completely new.”
“….”
Carlton was practically pressing his forehead to the metal in his haste. Juhan watched for a while, then shook his head and dropped into a nearby chair.
Still, it looks like he’s made some real progress.
Truthfully, Juhan had not expected much. He had been ready to accept it if Carlton simply admitted the job was beyond him. But there was no sign of surrender in the man now—only the frantic scratching of a pen.
Scratch, scratch.
Carlton remained buried in his analysis, and time slipped past quickly.
Drip, drip.
Must have been at least two hours already.
Just as that thought crossed Juhan’s mind—
BANG! BANG! BANG!
A sudden, violent pounding shook the workshop.
“…What was that? Who is it?”
The sound was coming from the iron door Juhan had entered through. Someone was hammering on it as if determined to smash it open.
“Carlton, I think that’s your visitor—”
Juhan turned to look at him and found himself speechless.
“….”
Tremble, tremble…
The man who had been poring over the metal plate only moments ago was now jammed into a corner with his head buried, shaking violently.
…What is he doing?
Juhan tilted his head in confusion—
“Hey, magic engineer!”
A woman?
BANG!
The voice outside belonged to a young woman, and though the words were rough, there was no mistaking the tone.
“Locked the door again, did you? Want me to break it down one more time?”
“….”
Carlton stayed silent, barely breathing.
“I know you’re in there!”
“Carlton, maybe you should open—”
“Shh! Shhh!”
The man crammed into the corner whipped his head toward Juhan, face drained of color, and jerked his chin frantically toward the door—as if pleading for help dealing with the woman on the other side.
“If you don’t open it, I’m really going to smash it this time!”