Chapter 410
Chapter 410
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 410
Chapter Title: Task Force (2)
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A two-hour carriage ride from the city of Creas leads to the small port town of Sanperos.
Though Galliante was a world-renowned resort, this place, outside the holiday season, was nothing more than a quiet fishing village.
Shirone, arriving around noon, bought a handful of dried fish from a street stall.
The dried fish, said to be best when slightly aged, was chewy like jelly and steeped in the deep flavor of the sea.
There were no regular ferries, so it seemed he would have to hire a captain separately.
The fare would be expensive, but with the money he had saved up, it shouldn't be a problem.
He asked a villager and was told it would be about an hour before the boats that left at dawn returned with their catch.
With nowhere in particular to go, Shirone walked to the breakwater and gazed out at the distant sea.
This wasn't his first time traveling, and his teammates were waiting on the island, yet he felt as if he were alone in the world.
‘It’s probably lunchtime at the academy right now.’
Shirone didn't dwell on it.
He had no place to return to. He couldn't.
“Are you Shirone Arian?”
A woman dressed in attire completely foreign to the Tormia Kingdom stood behind Shirone.
Despite the warm weather, her sleeves extended past her wrists, and the hood hanging down her back was thicker than a winter coat.
The sight of her with a pacifier in her mouth was profoundly strange, yet her deep, mysterious eyes created an aura that prevented anyone from looking at her oddly.
Shirone's gaze shifted to the bizarre creature floating above the woman's head.
It was a squishy, transparent monster, and an orb contained within it was rotating, generating an electric field.
An Autoprism, which scattered light to create an invisibility effect within a specific area.
It had virtually no combat power, but its incredible utility had earned it a place as a Tier 4 summoned monster.
Shirone watched her warily.
In a worst-case scenario, he would draw Arman and fight, but a mage capable of summoning a Tier 4 monster was likely superior to him in terms of raw ability.
“Who are you? How do you know my name…?”
“I am Zulu, so it is. Gaold sent me to bring you, so it is.”
“Huh? So it is?”
Confused for a moment by her strange way of speaking, Shirone's eyes widened as he stared directly at the woman's face.
“What? Zulu?”
It was impossible not to know the name of the world's only and strongest summoner, capable of commanding a Tier 1 Lich.
In disbelief, Shirone pointed a finger at her and asked for confirmation once more.
“…Zulu?”
“Yes, Zulu.”
Zulu nodded nonchalantly and said.
“We don't have much time, so it is. We must cross the border before dark, so follow me.”
“Where is the Association President?”
“He has already arrived in Galliante and is preparing with Gangnan, so it is. Are you coming or not?”
“I'm coming.”
Giving up his tedious search, Shirone approached Zulu, who then dispelled the Autoprism and cast Mass Teleport.
The scenery seemed to contract into a single point before expanding into a new landscape.
They were on the mountainside behind the port.
The breakwater where they had been stood as a small speck at the edge of his vision, and below, the fishing village was clustered at the foot of the mountain.
There, Zulu summoned the monstrous bird, Kydra.
Its skin was smooth and featherless, its beak was long like an awl, and its massive talons, supporting its body, seemed to be gripping the very mountain.
Despite its menacing appearance, the Kydra rubbed its beak against Zulu like a child before kneeling and lowering one wing.
Shirone followed Zulu, stepping onto the wing to climb up.
The Kydra's spine protruded from its skin like a shark's fin, providing a shield against air resistance, and the hollows along it offered stable seating.
“Be careful. We're going to fly high.”
Flapping its wings and pushing off the ground with its two legs, the Kydra shot straight up into the air.
Shirone, pale and terrified, could only stare at the rapidly approaching sky.
By the time it began its normal flight path, the ground was nothing but a distant speck.
“Kydras are lift-based monstrous birds. They don't need much oxygen, so they can fly at higher altitudes than muscle-based creatures. This increases our chances of avoiding the algorithms of search-type Zoners, so it is.”
For Zoners with a Spirit Zone of a basic two-kilometer diameter, searching the skies wouldn't be particularly difficult.
However, the higher the altitude, the more they would have to modify their Spirit Zone into a target or sniper mode, which naturally reduced their search range.
It was only then that reality began to sink in for Shirone.
The person before him was truly Zulu.
“Thank you for coming to get me in person. Honestly, I never expected someone so renowned to come and pick me up.”
“Gaold said the Association will make a move soon, so it is. It seems there are political enemies within. We decided to prepare as quickly as possible and head for Heaven, so it is. That's why I'm in charge of transport. Right now, we are on our way to pick up a woman named Shina, so it is.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Of course, I would have come even if it wasn't urgent, so it is. Sain said he would use anything and everything available to get results, so it is. I'll be in charge of utility for the team, so you can tell me if you need anything for the mission, so it is.”
Shirone understood what she was saying.
From now on, they had to move organically as a single team. Seniority didn't matter; everyone had to do their best in their assigned roles.
“Yes! I look forward to working with you!”
Shirone bowed his head briskly.
* * *
Kentra City.
The meat produced in Kentra, a famous livestock region in Tormia, was of such high quality that it was designated as a tribute to the royal castle.
The restaurant business was also booming, with entire streets lined with nothing but restaurants.
People in cowboy hats were a common sight, leather clothes were in fashion, and whips sold like hotcakes.
But Shina hadn't chosen this place for their meeting because the meat was delicious or because she wanted to buy Kentra's specialty goods.
It was because this was the exact midpoint between Creas and Bashuka.
Shina checked the restaurant's sign and opened the door.
The atmosphere was more conventional than in Creas, and though she had made a reservation, there were scattered empty tables.
After downing the glass of water a waiter had poured for her, she waited anxiously for the person she was supposed to meet.
There were still about twenty minutes until the appointed time, but she couldn't be sure he would show up.
No, if he were in his right mind, there was no way he would come.
To arrange a lunch meeting just because she'd received a letter congratulating her on becoming a Certified Grade 5—after not hearing from him once since their arranged meeting.
And by express telegram, no less.
No one would receive a telegram at dawn, hastily get ready, and travel all the way to Kentra City just for a meal.
‘Nothing to lose, I suppose.’
The door opened with the chime of a bell, and a man walked in.
Parka Kuan, an instructor at the Kaizen Sword Academy.
His cold eyes, surveying the restaurant's atmosphere, were the same as ever, but unlike at their last meeting, he was dressed with considerable care.
Kuan's icy gaze softened slightly only after he spotted Shina sitting at a table.
As he moved with a limp, the eyes of all the nobles turned to him.
He had never tried to hide the fact that his leg was impaired, but at times like these, he couldn't shake the feeling of being an outcast in the crowd.
Especially when their gazes shifted from him to Shina, he felt the urge to cut down everyone in the room.
Shina stood up and raised her hand.
True to her personality, she couldn't muster a friendly smile, but her attitude showed she didn't care in the slightest about the onlookers' stares.
There was Armin, who had sacrificed his eyes for her.
The fact that Kuan's leg was impaired didn't bother Shina at all.
A prejudiced gaze wasn't something one could hide just by being conscious of it, so Kuan could sense Shina's sincerity.
Perhaps that was why he had presumptuously come all this way.
“You came. I apologize for the rude request.”
“I figured an urgent telegram must have a reason. For now, please sit.”
The food arrived, but the two remained silent, focusing only on cutting their meat and bringing it to their mouths.
Neither of them had any immunity to this kind of situation.
Still, Kuan, being the man, mustered the courage to speak first.
“Congratulations. A Certified Grade 5 Mage. That's truly impressive at your age.”
Shina couldn't put it off any longer.
She didn't have much time, and if Kuan refused, she would have to leave for Galliante immediately.
“I sent the telegram because I have a favor to ask.”
It was a strange response to his congratulations, and Kuan blinked, his utensils still in hand.
Then he nodded obediently and said.
“Yes, please go on.”
Shina explained the project.
She withheld any information that could endanger the team, but since worrying about the world's opinion would be over by tomorrow anyway, her explanation was direct and to the point.
“…So, we need a hitman on the team. I believe you are the right person for the job.”
Kuan, who had been motionless throughout her story, dropped his utensils onto his plate with a clatter. Then, as if he'd lost his appetite, he gulped down his water.
Shina waited calmly.
It was no different from asking him to go die. He would leave a stain on history.
Persuasion was impossible anyway.
From here on, it was entirely up to his judgment.
Kuan stared at the restaurant floor, lost in thought. Then he looked back at Shina and spoke.
“May I ask one thing?”
“Anything. As long as it's information I can disclose.”
“Why me?”
Shina's gaze turned cold.
“As you can see, my leg is not whole. And I am a swordsman, for whom legs are crucial. Why does it have to be me?”
“It's because your skill is…”
Shina swallowed the empty praise that was on the tip of her tongue.
She knew full well what had brought Kuan here. No man would travel so far to have lunch with a woman he didn't even like.
She had let Armin go in her heart, but she knew she shouldn't take advantage of Kuan's feelings.
She could only tell him the truth and wait for his decision.
“Because, Mr. Kuan, it wouldn't matter if you died.”
Shina said with a resolute expression.
“I heard you have no parents, no siblings, no connections. If you were to die, there is no power that would make a move. I thought that even if things went wrong, there would be no repercussions to deal with.”
Kuan stared at Shina with a blank expression.
To say such a thing to someone's face.
He'd thought things were going uncharacteristically well ever since he received that urgent telegram.
“But I'm not overlooking your skill. Your swordsmanship is…”
“Khkh. Khkhkhkh!”
As Kuan lowered his head, his shoulders shaking with laughter, Shina stopped talking, her expression tense.
“No repercussions if I die? If you truly believe that…”
Kuan's lips twisted into a grin, his eyes gleaming chillingly.
“Then you've come to the right place.”
Now he understood why it had to be this woman.
As free of prejudice as she was of pity.
For him, who was sick of the pretense of human life, it was a refreshingly honest self-deprecation.
Kuan retracted his earlier thought.
It seemed God was still watching over his life after all.
Heaven, huh.
Could there be a more fitting grave for a sword demon?
Kuan pushed himself up from the table.
“Let's go. It seems urgent. I have nothing to prepare. I settled my affairs ten years ago.”
“I'd appreciate that, but at least a word to someone…”
“Do not worry. This is a decision I've made as a swordsman. It's too late to find your resolve at the moment of death. There is no need to look back on the way to the battlefield.”
His resolve was a bit extreme, but it would be hard to find a more suitable person for the role of hitman.
Regardless of their motives, they were a suicide squad, shouldering the future of humanity and leaping into the fire.
Shina sincerely respected his resolve.
“Thank you.”
Kuan, in turn, gripped the hilt of his sword as if swearing an oath and bowed his head.
“The thanks are mine.”