Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Guest #4 (1)
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A week after the harvest festival, the dropping temperatures had finally started to bring on a chill.
Winter had arrived in earnest, quietly blanketing the world in pale frost.
Frost blurred the view outside the windows, and people's clothing grew thicker.
In one corner of the study, the fireplace crackled as it consumed the logs.
Yet even as the shift in seasons became starkly pronounced, one thing remained unchanged.
"Let's move on to the next item."
"Understood."
It was the distance between him and Tiria.
Ever since the incident at the harvest festival, an indescribable awkwardness had lingered between the two.
For some reason, it was hard to meet each other's eyes, and even holding a long conversation felt difficult.
Whenever their fingertips brushed by accident, the spot burned as if scorched.
Memories of that day's heated embarrassment resurfaced.
Today, too, they were carrying out their duties while trembling in that awkwardness.
Elric, who had never enjoyed such discomfort, had been searching for a way to resolve it—and now, an opportunity had presented itself.
Tiria was reading a newspaper.
Not just any newspaper, but a monthly publication carrying news from the western front.
"It's the western paper."
A hint of quiet pleasure colored Elric's voice.
Beyond serving as a mere excuse to shift the conversation, news from the west was more than enough to pique his interest.
Tiria nodded.
"Yes, the western front is one of our major trading partners."
"True enough. No place demands as much food supply as that one."
War required vast amounts of food. Feeding thousands upon thousands of grown men for every meal was no small task.
Local production alone couldn't meet the quotas.
Supply was thus crucial, and the western front frequently relied on external grain shipments.
Elric knew this from his days as a war mercenary, when he had escorted supply convoys.
Lost in nostalgic memories of the past, he was startled when Tiria suddenly asked,
"...Have you ever been to the west?"
Elric flinched.
The words tumbled out in excuse.
"Haha... It's been ten years. I've been nowhere on the continent."
He brushed it off vaguely, unwilling to reveal his past as a war mercenary.
Fortunately, Tiria showed no great suspicion.
"I see."
She turned her gaze back to the newspaper.
Elric glanced at the front page she had been reading.
『One Month Since Sword Ghost Kasha's Disappearance: Chevor Kingdom Falls.』
A bitter smile tugged at Elric's lips.
'In the end, that's how it turned out.'
Among the nations embroiled in the western war for over twenty years, Chevor had been the weakest—so the outcome was no surprise.
What mildly concerned him was that Elric himself wasn't entirely uninvolved in their downfall. Chevor had been the country that hired him most frequently.
His final campaign before retiring due to injury had been the defense of Chevor's capital, after all.
Unlike the others, Chevor had failed to produce one of the Continent's Seven Strongest.
They had no choice but to fill the gap with outside talent, and with their key force—Elric—out due to injury, their collapse was inevitable.
Of course, Elric felt no fresh regret or guilt over it.
He and they had been mere business associates, bound by transaction.
"Chevor has fallen."
Tiria said.
"After twenty years, one kingdom down. Who knows how much longer the war will drag on."
Was she tossing out a topic?
Elric nodded in response.
"It could be the opposite."
"Why is that?"
"The balance has broken. Once a tower starts to wobble, it falls all the faster, doesn't it?"
"...."
Elric chuckled at Tiria's unconvinced expression.
This time, he was certain he was right.
"In truth, a kingdom should have fallen five years ago. Do you know why the balance held until now?"
"What is it?"
"Because Sword Ghost Kasha was there."
It felt embarrassing to praise himself, but it was an unavoidable fact.
Among the nations he'd fought for, the weaker ones had survived solely due to Sword Ghost Kasha's presence.
One of the Continent's Seven Strongest who moved for money—no matter how exorbitant the price, it couldn't exceed the value of life itself.
As Elric recalled, the four nations without a Seven Strongest had competed to outbid each other for his services.
'And he had earned every coin.'
The number of times he'd saved a nation from ruin could fill more than ten fingers.
With his absence, it was only natural their fragile balance shattered.
So he was certain.
In this situation where he'd left the battlefield, at least the three remaining kingdoms without a Seven Strongest would fall next.
"...If the Family Head is right, then another nation will fall in the next war."
Tiria held out the next page of the newspaper.
The bold headline confirmed it.
『Bildion's Flame Witch Igret Declares Intent to Deploy.』
Elric answered immediately.
"If she deploys, it won't even take three days."
Igret the Flame Witch was a battle mage among the Seven Strongest.
Elric had faced her on the battlefield only twice, as she rarely participated in wars—but once she stepped in, no other Seven Strongest could stop her advance.
She was the most terrifying siege weapon Elric had ever known.
"Hmm...."
Tiria's brow furrowed.
"Hm? What's wrong?"
"There were movements to buy up large quantities of this year's wheat harvest from the west. I thought it was just due to the war intensifying, but with this... shouldn't we adjust our policy? We need to choose our buyers carefully."
Her thoughts had leaped there in an instant.
Elric let out a small sound of admiration.
It might be rude to say, but she calculated with the speed of her father.
Especially her ability to pluck only the relevant bits from external information.
"In any case, we'll need to prepare accordingly."
"Is there anything I can help with?"
Tiria’s eyes turned directly to Elric.
In that moment, he felt his body tremble with that subtle awkwardness again.
They had just been conversing smoothly, but suddenly locking eyes made his insides heat up.
Amid it all, Tiria spoke.
"Would you be willing to receive the guests?"
"Uh, hm?"
Guests out of nowhere—what did she mean?
As he tilted his head in confusion,
"Someone's coming from the west."
Elric felt his heart drop with a thud.
*
To sum up Tiria's words:
-There was never a supply officer who came all the way to Weibin to buy wheat. Transactions were always handled through merchant guilds. But this year, they notified us that the officers themselves would visit Weibin to finalize the deals.
Supply officers from the western front were coming.
From three armies, no less.
"Urgh...."
It was a major crisis.
If any of them recognized Elric, his identity would be exposed in an instant.
If they carried the news back to the front, this peaceful Weibin could descend into chaos with soldiers pouring in.
Given his rampant days as a war mercenary, it was practically guaranteed.
He had to find a way.
'Should I make myself scarce?'
That would look unnatural. Clearing out precisely on the day the officers arrived, with no real business, might plant seeds of suspicion.
'What about a disguise...?'
No, that would be even more suspicious.
Tearing at his hair in thought, Elric soon hit on one solution.
'What if...'
He could go to the officers first and ensure any who knew him kept quiet.
He wasn't uncertain.
He had handled similar situations multiple times during his battlefield days.
'They're coming from the Empire, Armin, and Disa, respectively.'
Fortunately, they were major powers with little overlap.
If he stayed cautious against surprises, he could quietly weather this.
Elric left the room at once.
"Aldio."
"Yes?"
"Do you know the arrival schedules for the guests from the west?"
"Yes, we received advance notice...."
"Good. Bring them to my room."
Having issued the order, Elric headed back to the study where Tiria was.
"Did you forget something?"
Tiria asked, and Elric replied,
"I'll handle greeting the guests alone."
"...Alone?"
"Yes. Alone."
"No."
She refused flat out.
Elric's eyes widened.
"Why...?"
"How could we not properly welcome guests who've come from afar? We'll need at least ten people."
It was sound logic.
But for Elric, it was the worst possible news.
Urgency surged.
Perhaps that's why.
Snap—!
Without thinking, Elric grabbed Tiria's hand tightly.
Her body flinched, but Elric had no attention to spare for that.
"Please. I have a compelling reason to do this."
Of course, he couldn't tell her the reason.
After a brief standoff, Elric noticed panic in Tiria's eyes—followed by some inexplicable stiffness.
It wasn't important.
"...If you're that insistent."
In the end, she consented, which was all that mattered in this situation.
"Thank you!"
Elric expressed his gratitude and returned to his room.
He pulled out the longsword hidden under the bed.
'Let's do this.'
Just in case.
To prepare for the worst possible scenario.
'If they really recognize me...'
Then he'd have to become Sword Ghost Kasha again.
Shing—
Elric's eyes gleamed coldly.