Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Saint, You’re So Vulgar! – Chapter 70
Desert city of Baern.
The moment he heard that name, a flood of thoughts overwhelmed Asher's mind.
It was the land where he was born and raised, where fragments of his happiest moments lingered, and at the same time, where his most painful memories were buried.
A name he'd buried deep in his heart and lived withyet fate had to drag him down such a cruel path.
Once he heard they were heading there, he couldn't calm down no matter how hard he tried.
Unaware of his inner turmoil, Halia continued.
"They say it's worse there than anywhere else. It's rotting from the inside out to a degree that's shocking we didn't notice sooner. That damn desert..."
"It's not easy to spot anomalies there. It's a city-state outside the continental alliance, after all."
He replied with a bitter smile.
The continental alliance, led by the Holy Church, was undoubtedly the absolute authority that set the rules of this land.
But even within the continent, not everyone had joined the alliance.
Baern was one such example.
A city in the middle of the desert that boldly claimed the name of a nation all on its own.
With poor accessibility and trade with other cities virtually nonexistent, it was an outlying city the alliance hadn't bothered pressing to join.
Halia's eyes widened in surprise, and she smiled.
"You know about Baern? Ah, rightyour bodyguard hails from there."
It was probably best to play it off as hearsay.
Now wasn't the time to say, "Actually, I'm Asher Terbion, and no one knows that place better than I do." That would just be ridiculous.
Asher gave an awkward laugh.
After that, Versia looked at him in astonishment.
With the conversation wrapping up like that, Halia said,
"We leave in five days. Get ready."
It was more of a notification than a request.
But there was no reason or justification to refuse here.
No one else in the entire church was from Baern, and for such a dangerous placewhere street fights could break out anywhere, anytimeno holy knight was more suited than Asher Terbion.
All he had to do was steel his mind.
Asher nodded.
And just like that, an unexpected homecoming was decided.
* * *
That afternoon, back in the garden, Versia watched Asher, who was lost in thought and staring blankly.
Worry naturally followed.
And it wasn't unfoundedVersia had never seen this expression on his face before.
Lips pressed tight, an inscrutable look as he kept falling into silence.
As strange as it sounded, this was the first time Versia had felt him as a separate person since they'd grown close.
From their first meeting in swapped bodies, they'd always been attuned to each other, judging who the other truly was.
With bodies so close they'd literally switched, their psychological distance had been as intimate as it got.
So this was the first time.
The first time she'd sensed an unknown side of Asher.
The first time he'd felt distant.
Curiosity and frustration bubbled up, but she didn't pry.
It clearly wasn't a happy past, and asking him would mean she'd have to share her own history too.
Better to let both skeletons stay buried.
She had a vague idea, at least.
Putting together the bits he'd occasionally mentioned about the mercenaries who raised him as a child or the stories from Pirate Island made some guesses possible.
Above all, the unexpected part was that those who raised Asher were "Baern mercenaries."
Versia's gaze deepened.
She knew a thing or two about Baern mercenaries because of their unique nature.
"Something about them being the nation's identity."
Mercenaries were generally swords-for-hire who worked for pay.
But Baern's were different.
Sometimes errand runners, sometimes vigilantes, sometimes acting as knightsthey stepped up for the city's security and peace.
They were warriors who ceaselessly fought according to their own rules of the strong prevailing and winners taking all.
In other words, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the city-state of Baern rose and fell by their hands.
What a peculiar nation.
Viewed through that lens, it now made sense how Asher had learned distant eastern martial arts or pirate swordsmanship within the same group.
Of course, what had happened with them...
And why Asher looked like that at the mention of his hometown... those were still mysteries.
The mood had sunk heavy.
"...Sorry."
Asher apologized out of nowhere.
Versia looked up at him.
He scratched his cheek with an embarrassed grinthe Asher she knew well.
"Guess I've got a lot on my mind. Well... it's my hometown, after all."
"...That makes sense. I get it."
"I'd better prepare. Baern's a place I know well, so yes, I'll handle the arrangements myself."
He spoke as if snapping out of it, then stoodonly to prove he hadn't at all.
Versia's brow furrowed.
"Wrong way."
Why walk into the garden when there was a perfectly good path?
Asher flinched, cheeks flushing red.
He tried to laugh it off with a sheepish smile, but Versia wouldn't let it slide.
With a sigh, she sat him back down.
Asher jolted.
Maybe even he thought it was a foolish mistake.
Selfishly, seeing him show it so openly made her wish he'd just open up about whatever it was.
Even though he clearly didn't want to talk about the past.
Her lips pursed tight.
A not-so-short silence followed, and at its end, Versia spoke.
"You okay?"
She meant it sincerely.
No matter how frustrating his unfamiliar side was, it didn't mean she wasn't worried.
On the contrary, because she loved him. She wanted him happy, and if he had troubles, she'd rather they be about her. That's why she asked.
She recalled his words next.
That you should share what the other doesn't know.
That because you're different, you have to make an effort to understand.
Rare for her, Versia tried genuine consideration.
"You've got circumstances you can't talk about, I get it. Like meI haven't told you knight everything about myself either. But if something's bothering me because of that, I'd at least say I'm struggling. I'd ask for comfort too."
"Ah..."
"Do you need my comfort?"
She took his hand.
No idea how he'd take it, but whenever Asher held her hand like this and met her eyes, Versia felt profound security and joy.
She hoped he felt the sameand luckily, her gesture seemed to work.
After holding his gaze for a long moment, waiting for an answer, he burst out laughing.
"Haha...! Some bodyguard I am."
The embarrassment lingered, but he was definitely better than before.
Versia felt relieved.
An inexplicable sense of accomplishment too.
Unlike always leaning on him emotionally, this time she'd made him able to lean on her.
"You'd be disqualified even without that. You're too girly to be a bodyguard."
"You don't have to say it like that."
"A female suits you after all."
"Enough."
"......"
"...What's with the obedience today?"
"I'm pretty good at listening."
No need to look at him like that, all incredulous.
She chuckled, and he shook his head.
Then, shaking off the gloom entirely, he stood.
"Yes, my head's clearer now. No point dwellingit's in the past, can't cling to it forever. Let's think ahead!"
"Good attitude."
Versia stood too.
That wrapped up her good deed for the day.
He seemed re-energized, so until departure, she'd just tease him.
No room for worrythe companion was Halia.
Even with swapped bodies, she and her bodyguard were both 1st Class Knights.
They could crush most threats with sheer force.
Just a trip to the land where Asher grew up.
That was her thought when
"Then let's get ready! Disguise first?"
"Pardon?"
"Even if folks there only know my child self, if our identities leak, it'll be trouble!"
"Trouble?"
Why go to such lengths hiding with disguises?
Her head tilted.
Asher laughed brightly in reply.
"Ah, I forgot to mention."
"Mention what..."
"I'm a wanted criminal in Baern."
"?"
"Haha, the mercenaries who raised me tried to overthrow the nation."
Versia's body went rigid.
For an answer delivered with a cheeky grin, the content was brutally vicious.