Chapter 219
Chapter 219
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 219
Chapter Title: The Blind Knight and the Enigmatic Mage, and the Mimics -5
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Originally, hymns echoed frequently through the streets.
The melody, deeply infused with reverent religious tones, had the power to soothe the soul. As such, the citizens of the holy city all greeted the morning in a quiet, serene atmosphere.
But these days were different. Was it the festival mood? With so many people crowding into Trumpet Hall, even the bards—who couldn't resist a good story—got swept up in the throng and showed up.
Two stomps, one clap. Lively tunes that shook off the morning drowsiness rang out here and there.
Apple vendors on the street hummed along, and mischievous boys scampering across the white-tiled pavement sang them too. The simple melody stuck firmly in the ears.
"......"
The knight paused for a moment, tickled by an impulse stirring within her.
Siselle Yurensuto spent most of her time in training. Aside from eating, heading to the battlefield, and sleeping, she devoted everything to honing her swordsmanship.
She had nothing else to do, nothing she wanted to do.
But when her extreme training pushed her soul to the brink, the Eastern Front army doctor prescribed "relaxing rest for body and mind."
The soul's mechanisms weren't fully understood yet, and recovery or damage remained full of mysteries. But it was accepted wisdom that calm, positive emotions aided soul recovery.
Black mages were a stark counterexample.
They squeezed mana from their souls using negative emotions. The army doctor figured there was a reason black mages didn't torment their souls with positive feelings.
As a result, Siselle Yurensuto received an order from the First Princess: "Limit training to two hours a day. Spend the rest on hobbies."
Hobbies. If that meant a soul's refuge accompanied by happiness, she had none.
No hobbies meant she couldn't follow orders. No training either. So she just sat blankly on her bed, letting time slip away. Like a pinned butterfly, stuffed and lifeless.
Even after returning with her daily bread ration (seven kinds of bread) and finishing her solitary meal, that's how she'd pass the time.
She didn't know how to fill the empty slots in her schedule.
If it was empty, veering off path for a bit should be fine. Siselle followed the music drifting through the streets, strolling leisurely along.
Follow it straight, and she'd reach a stage swarming with people.
On a simple wooden platform set up in the street, a lovely girl danced and sang. Street performance.
The spirited girl, with her red twintails tied low and swaying, skillfully commanded the stage atmosphere. She seemed used to standing before crowds.
"How was it? Fun, right? Pretty good, huh?"
"The best, Karen!"
"Cheering for you in the tournament too!"
"No tournament talk! I'm here as a performer!"
The girl giggled brightly, and her cheeky laugh spread to the crowd. Perhaps a fragment of that laughter reached Siselle too—her gaze was captivated.
Siselle slipped into the crowd like she was entranced. And pushed straight ahead doggedly.
"Hey, don't shove... Gah, what strength...?!"
"Me, pushed aside...?!"
With strength surpassing her frame, Siselle easily parted the soft crowd. She bulldozed through to the front row. Now the girl's form and voice were crystal clear.
Red hair... Born in the south, where the sun lingers long in the sky?
Her singing wasn't exceptional. But she excelled at seizing the mood. She moved as if breathing with the people, heightening the festive vibe.
By the time Siselle snapped out of it, several songs had passed. Quite some time too. The bread in her bag had gone from soft to stale.
"Alright, next song: lively? Or gentle?"
"Lively—!!"
Tut-tut.
The girl wagged her index finger side to side, pointing at an upturned bowler hat by her feet. It already held a fair amount of coins, but not full. That was the key point.
"Oh dear, but my assistant 'Hat-kun' doesn't seem lively! He's too hungry to enjoy the music. Won't some fine gentleman fill Hat-kun's belly?"
Give money.
The crowd roared with laughter, tossing coins one by one. But the girl waited leisurely, unsatisfied. She knew the vibe was good!
But in Siselle Yurensuto's mind, entranced by the song, only one notion swirled: no food for Hat-kun, no more song.
Whoosh.
Siselle upended her bread bag, dumping the cooled loaves into the hat. A savory aroma wafted up.
"Eh...?"
"......"
"Th-thanks for the thought, but I meant money...?"
"Ah."
Siselle's face flushed hot as she grasped the context too late. The girl burst into giggles at the sight, then extended a hand.
"I'm Karen! Bard, mercenary, playwright, and stage builder! Wanna grab a bite together? You just donated all your bread anyway."
"I, well... Siselle. Yes, if it's not a bother..."
The bread sacrifice was worth it.
On this naturally arisen chance, the mad mage quietly scrapped his "no interest in idols?" ploy.
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Karen talked a lot.
"So, when I was in the west, this happened. Back then, I was looking for ways to showcase my artistry—'cause objectively, my voice didn't suit singing. Too hard to recreate the melodies in my head. So—"
"Ah..."
"I'm trying to form a troupe! Gather bards from all sorts, put on shows. Of course, people say stuff like 'that's nobles' entertainment, uneducated folk won't get it.' But I see it differently. Just solve accessibility—"
Siselle, honestly, barely understood half of what she said. She vaguely got that the girl dabbled in all sorts of things.
And... she had tons of things she wanted to do.
That sparked curiosity.
Siselle had seen Karen on another stage: the Hero Selection Tournament. She'd wielded dual daggers to fell a seasoned mercenary.
Why enter the Hero Selection if she wanted a troupe?
"Promotion!"
"...Promotion?"
"Climb as high as possible. Or fight someone super famous! Then give a cool presentation. 'Dear audience, remember Karen!'"
"That's... quite a plan..."
Using this huge stage as an ad board. No interest in claiming hero's glory, apparently.
With that fame, she'd snag investors, form the troupe overnight, and perform in the imperial capital. Karen chattered on about her solid dream.
"And you?"
"Pardon?"
"I saw you compete... Heard you're a super famous knight from the east? Championship contender. Why join the tournament? To prove your strength like a wandering knight?"
"Well..."
Because she had to. That answer had disappointed the old man in the first round.
Telling that to Karen, who pinned her dreams on the tournament... felt as rude as showing up to a ball in janitor rags instead of a dress.
Siselle framed it like she had a big reason.
"I have an illness. Thought becoming a hero might cure it, so I entered."
"Gasp...! D-did I ask something rude?"
"No, it's not a big deal..."
It really wasn't. Symptoms severe, but solution simple: stop using exaltation, problem solved.
Just... thinking about life uncured was tough. Elaine wouldn't let her fight anymore. She'd need another path.
Imagining herself off the battlefield: just sitting on the bed, killing time blankly. Sinking like a corpse, clueless what to do.
Siselle only knew herself as Knight Yurensuto.
"An illness, huh."
Karen pondered briefly, then ventured carefully.
"I, uh... know a really skilled priest. Expert in medicine and pharmacology too, connected to a former cardinal. Keeps to herself, not famous."
"You mean...?"
"Dunno why you need to be a hero for it, but... maybe get a checkup if you're okay with it?"
"......"
A nameless genius recommended by a street bard? Suspicious even at best. But the former cardinal connection nagged. Only one such survivor: ex-cardinal, current field priest Dakiten Julius.
He'd diagnosed her soul illness. If true, asking him could confirm...
"Can I think it over?"
"Of course! Not like I'm scamming for fees... Take your time. Hero path's brutal anyway. Better options are great!"
Karen flashed double peace signs.
Siselle promised a reunion, then sought Dakiten Julius in the holy city, asking about the "reclusive genius."
Tipped by the mad mage, Dakiten shared freely.
"Long time, Knight Yurensuto. Yes, that's true. She far surpasses me in diagnostics, and she's here now."
"Such coincidence..."
"Indeed. She avoids contact, only sees connected folks—that's why I didn't suggest before. But the goddess provides. Visit if you're willing."
"Ah, yes. Thank you for the kind reply despite the suddenness, Priest Julius."
Thus, bouncing between mad mage's left and right hands, Siselle ended up facing the mysterious recluse with Karen.
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She needs to agonize.
"Exaltation chips my soul each use—I'll die someday, but not now."
Hard to fret with that mindset. Needs a more visceral threat. Siselle Yurensuto, trained to extreme passivity, requires massive shock to break inertia.
Only raw "one slip and you're dead" experience will spark real worry. Makjang dramas start heirs with incurables for a reason.
People don't change till death's doorstep!
So, adjusting my glasses with flair, I told Siselle:
"Three more exaltations, and you'll die."
"......Pardon?"
"Three."
The sudden soul illness threat paled her face like a terminal cancer diagnosis.
Actually, she had 23.7 left.