Chapter 395: Captain Barbarian (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 395: Captain Barbarian (5)
His head hurt. He felt nauseous, his lips were chapped, and his throat felt dry from a lack of moisture. But before all that discomfort, the first thing that registered in his mind was a question.
Why do I feel like this?
The vice captain of the Sawtooth Clan, James Calla, gasped like a man coming up for air and opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was an unfamiliar ceiling. A beautiful pattern was carved into the luxurious wood, and in the center was a dazzling chandelier hanging from a chain.
While he was trying to figure out where he was, a man's face appeared in his line of sight. "Looks like you're awake now." It was the paladin, Jun. When Calla first saw this man, he wondered how such a handsome paladin could be at this meeting.
"Ah...!" Recalling his last memory before losing consciousness, Calla sprang up. He turned to the paladin, who had thankfully moved just in time to avoid getting hit in the face. "The fight... how did the fight end?"
The paladin awkwardly raised the corners of his lips. "You already know that."
"Then..."
"Yes, we lost. That man was strong in many ways."
Unlike the paladin, who didn't sound disappointed at all, Calla found himself sighing.
"Is it difficult for you to admit defeat, Mr. Calla?"
"That's... not it. I just... don't know what to say to the Alminus Company and Adventurers' Guild after they believed in and supported me."
"You can just tell them the truth."
"That four people fought and lost against one barbaric man and ended up having to yield the position to him? How can I say—Why are you smiling?"
"Oh, excuse me. It's just that your use of the word 'barbaric' left an impression."
At that, Calla admitted to himself that he was in the wrong. He realized how he must have looked, saying such slanderous things after losing. It must have sounded like he was trying to put Schuitz down, just like the countless vile hangers-on he encountered when he ascended to the position of vice captain.
"Is it still difficult for you to accept him, Mr. Calla?"
"That's..." The man trailed off, then begrudgingly admitted, "No, it's not." That was the honest truth, not a lie. Though he may have said 'barbaric' at first, that was only because the first impression the man had left on Calla had been very strong. "That man... is smart."
The paladin agreed. "Yes, he is."
"Looking back, we were playing into his hands from the beginning. I thought he was looking down on us. But in reality, that wasn't the case at all."
"You're right. I'm embarrassed to say so, but I did not think we would lose until the very end, either. I must still lack training."
Calla completely agreed. If he hadn't laughed the first time he heard the nickname "Blood Spirit's Man" and instead investigated further, things might not have ended this way.
"The problem is, I don't know how the others will take it. Ah, where are Sir Kaislan and Ms. Akurava?"
"They are in another room. They were unconscious earlier, but I don't know about now. Their injuries were more severe than yours."
"...It would be best to go see for myself."
The two of them got up and headed to the other room. Apparently, the others had been healed by a priest, and all that was left was to wait for them to wake up.
As Calla sat by her bedside, Titana Akurava soon opened her eyes. "Judging by the look on your face... I'm guessing we lost?" Unlike Calla, she didn't ask too many questions, nor did she seem to expect an answer. She remained silent for a short while, an unreadable look in her eyes, before asking where the others were.
"I see you're awake as well, Ms. Akurava," said Jun. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine, fortunately. But... where is that man?"
"Well, I'm not sure about that, either. Perhaps he is giving us time to wake up and collect ourselves."
"No way that man is that considerate." At Akurava's blunt statement, the gloomy atmosphere in the room lifted a little.
As their conversation continued, Kaislan soon woke up. "...That man! What happened to that man?!"
It was time to discuss what had happened in earnest.
"I see. We lost..." he murmured, his voice full of deep regret, and anger for no apparent reason. Kaislan the knight balled up his fists. "I cannot accept this."
"That we lost?" asked Akurava.
"No, I am not foolish enough to deny that. However, us losing the battle and him winning the position of commander are two different matters."
"Oh my, then are you saying you plan to break a promise made in front of the marquess?"
When the marquess was brought up, Kaislan flinched slightly, but it wasn't enough to break him of his stubbornness. "Then are you all going to willingly accept this? We're talking about thirty people! Not just thirty people, but the top talents who carry the future of this city on their backs! You want to entrust their lives to someone who has nothing but power? For the sake of the greater good, I cannot sit by and watch that happen!"
Calla found himself gripping his throbbing head at that sharp shout. He didn't realize this man was such a lost cause. "Mr. Kaislan, are you claiming you're better than Mr. Schuitz in areas other than power?"
"I'm not just talking about myself here; I'm talking about all of us. Aren't we better than someone who just appeared out of nowhere?"
"I see. Then can you explain why you think that way?"
"I don't understand why you're giving me that look. Didn't we all just have an in-depth conversation about what an ideal commander was earlier? Aside from that man, not a single one of us spoke of power."
"That's true."
"Aren't we all in agreement? When it comes to leadership, power is the last quality that should be taken into account."
Even Calla thought the knight was right about that. A commander wielded a great sword—they didn't necessarily have to be a master swordsman.
But as long as we have the marquess as our witness, we can't change the terms now. It's best to call it here.
Calla finished his political calculations and opened his mouth. "I don't think that man is inferior to us in terms of his other qualities."
"...What?"
"This might sound strange coming from one of the people who lost, but he wasn't significantly stronger than the four of us." Calla truly thought this. If they had time to establish some teamwork beforehand and had fought that man seriously from the start, the battle would have had a different outcome.
But none of that matters now.
"We lost the only match we had, and he won. Do you know what made the biggest difference?" The knight just glared at him mulishly and did not reply. Calla didn't bother waiting for him before continuing. "We lacked information. As soon as I saw him fight, I knew. He already knew too much about us. What essences we have, and even what equipment we use."
As Calla sat by her bedside, Titana Akurava soon opened her eyes. "Judging by the look on your face... I'm guessing we lost?" Unlike Calla, she didn't ask too many questions, nor did she seem to expect an answer. She remained silent for a short while, an unreadable look in her eyes, before asking where the others were.
"I see you're awake as well, Ms. Akurava," said Jun. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine, fortunately. But... where is that man?"
"Well, I'm not sure about that, either. Perhaps he is giving us time to wake up and collect ourselves."
"No way that man is that considerate." At Akurava's blunt statement, the gloomy atmosphere in the room lifted a little.
As their conversation continued, Kaislan soon woke up. "...That man! What happened to that man?!"
It was time to discuss what had happened in earnest.
"I see. We lost..." he murmured, his voice full of deep regret, and anger for no apparent reason. Kaislan the knight balled up his fists. "I cannot accept this."
"That we lost?" asked Akurava.
"No, I am not foolish enough to deny that. However, us losing the battle and him winning the position of commander are two different matters."
"Oh my, then are you saying you plan to break a promise made in front of the marquess?"
When the marquess was brought up, Kaislan flinched slightly, but it wasn't enough to break him of his stubbornness. "Then are you all going to willingly accept this? We're talking about thirty people! Not just thirty people, but the top talents who carry the future of this city on their backs! You want to entrust their lives to someone who has nothing but power? For the sake of the greater good, I cannot sit by and watch that happen!"
Calla found himself gripping his throbbing head at that sharp shout. He didn't realize this man was such a lost cause. "Mr. Kaislan, are you claiming you're better than Mr. Schuitz in areas other than power?"
"I'm not just talking about myself here; I'm talking about all of us. Aren't we better than someone who just appeared out of nowhere?"
"I see. Then can you explain why you think that way?"
"I don't understand why you're giving me that look. Didn't we all just have an in-depth conversation about what an ideal commander was earlier? Aside from that man, not a single one of us spoke of power."
"That's true."
"Aren't we all in agreement? When it comes to leadership, power is the last quality that should be taken into account."
Even Calla thought the knight was right about that. A commander wielded a great sword—they didn't necessarily have to be a master swordsman.
But as long as we have the marquess as our witness, we can't change the terms now. It's best to call it here.
Calla finished his political calculations and opened his mouth. "I don't think that man is inferior to us in terms of his other qualities."
"...What?"
"This might sound strange coming from one of the people who lost, but he wasn't significantly stronger than the four of us." Calla truly thought this. If they had time to establish some teamwork beforehand and had fought that man seriously from the start, the battle would have had a different outcome.
But none of that matters now.
"We lost the only match we had, and he won. Do you know what made the biggest difference?" The knight just glared at him mulishly and did not reply. Calla didn't bother waiting for him before continuing. "We lacked information. As soon as I saw him fight, I knew. He already knew too much about us. What essences we have, and even what equipment we use."
"So are you saying he fits the description of the ideal commander you were talking about? Wake up! He only obtained that information from the marquess!"
"Isn't that the scariest part? While we didn't know anything until we got here, the marquess was different."
Kaislan didn't waste any more words on Calla. "Okay, I see what you mean. You're just going to watch that man stand above us. Are the rest of you of the same opinion?" Kaislan's eyes then shifted to the ninth-floor adventurer, Titana Akurava.
Unfortunately, he didn't get the supporting fire he was hoping for. "Even if you look at me like that, that won't change the fact that I'm of a similar opinion."
"...Why? Is it because you are afraid of the marquess?"
"I wouldn't say that's not a contributing factor at all. But, there's an even bigger reason than that."
"A bigger reason?"
"Yes. I don't think that man will be worse at it than us." Kaislan narrowed his eyes, clearly lost. Akurava shrugged her shoulders. "What impressed me was not who's backing him but how innately meticulous he is."
"Meticulousness...?" Kaislan huffed like he found that ridiculous.
"Yes. Meticulousness. For example, what was he like during lunch? He already knew everything about us but acted like he didn't, and he made a big show of being arrogant to get us to take his bait."
That wasn't all, either. He did the same during the battle, hiding various essences and abilities until the end and only pulling them out when they would give him the best bang for his buck. Take Calla, for example. When he got knocked out at the start, that put more of a burden on the three who remained.
"And this... can't exactly be attributed to good judgment, but his senses, at least during the battle, were almost godlike."
"...He was a natural," said Calla.
Though that man had looked like he was burning himself out, by the time they came to their senses, they were the ones actually engulfed in flames. And after all that, the man had smiled in contentment.
"At the time, I thought his battle strategy was based solely on instinct, but now that I'm looking back on it, he made decisions based on thoroughly rational deductions," said Jun.
"If that's true, that truly is amazing. To think giving up an eye and taking down Sir Kaislan with a hammer was a rational decision."
"Since that's when our battle line started to collapse, he benefited a lot from doing so."
As Calla and the paladin exchanged words of praise, Kaislan gritted his teeth. He couldn't understand them at all.
What's wrong with these people? They should know how important the position of Commander is, yet they're still acting like this?
He was almost starting to wonder whether they made a secret pact with the marquess while he was unconscious. But despite his concerns, the conversation continued.
"To be honest... the thing I find the most praiseworthy is his determination to achieve his goals."
Ha, now it's resolve?
Kaislan snorted but the paladin continued without acknowledging him at all. "As Mr. Calla said, he was not significantly stronger than the four of us. But despite that, he provoked us to the point of arrogance."
His bones were shattered countless times, his intestines cooked, and he even ended up with an arrow embedded in one eye, but he never went down. He let his skin burn to cross through walls of fire and spat out blood after biting his tongue. Even when his shoulder blades caved in and his arm was left hanging, he kept swinging his hammer.
"Is there anyone else here who could go that far?"
"I'm embarrassed to say that I've never seen anyone fight in such a state without any hesitation."
Even a man like that couldn't have enjoyed that slog. It must have been painful. All of them would have understood if he had chosen to give up. That was how obvious it was that he had reached his limit.
"A normal person is bound to start faltering in a situation like that. 'Yes, this is enough. I've done enough.' They'll start making compromises and excuses to convince themselves that they tried their best." But that man didn't do that. How was that possible? As a follower of god, the paladin found the answer to be faith. "He has a faith that he will never fall. And because he has such a strong faith in himself, he was able to avoid breaking down, and overcame the trials in front of him to achieve victory."
"I guess that means you also agree that that man should become commander, Sir Jun," Kaislan grumbled, his tone almost scornful.
The paladin responded without a hint of hesitation. "Yes. If I must follow anyone here, he is the one I trust the most. Even at a time when anyone else would give in, that man will stand strong."
It seemed the paladin had properly fallen for the man. Calla, meanwhile, was worried about the marquess, and Akurava didn't seem to want to renege on their agreement with Schuitz out of pride.
"Just admit it," said Akurava. "We lost. He never complained even when one of us healed and returned to the front lines after going down. At the time, we were too busy fighting to think about it, but that's really no different from cheating."
"The reason he kept quiet was probably that he figured we'd need something like that to accept he won."
As long as the other three agreed, there was nothing Kaislan could do anymore.
That's a relief, Calla thought. If that man protested the outcome and requested a rematch, there's no way a man like the marquess would take that lying down.
Crisis averted, Calla let out a sigh as he looked at Kaislan, whose lips were pursed. Of course, that didn't mean there wasn't still friction.
"Since you are all in agreement, I won't speak on this anymore. Just know that this is a mistake. As I said before, only discipline and strong control can create a strong group. I refuse to believe he has that level of control." His stubborn attitude made it impossible for him to acknowledge his opponent to the bitter end. It was clear he'd use whatever excuse he could to challenge the status quo if the opportunity arose. If that happened to be inside the labyrinth, it could turn into a big problem.
Knock, knock.
They heard a knock from outside the door.
"Ah, I guess everyone is awake." The man entered the room without even waiting for permission, and Calla rid himself of even the slightest hint of anxiety. "Since you're my subordinates now, I'll speak casually," the man muttered, even though he never used honorifics with them in the first place. His eyes shifted to the side and he tilted his head. "Knight, why are you blinking like that? Did that hit you took earlier mess up your head?"
It was truly an incredible thing. Calla didn't know when exactly it happened, but the knight who had just been shouting about the importance of control at the top of his lungs had all of a sudden lowered his eyes.
"Answer me. I'm asking you."
"N-No..." It looked like a very natural thing to do.
"So are you saying he fits the description of the ideal commander you were talking about? Wake up! He only obtained that information from the marquess!"
"Isn't that the scariest part? While we didn't know anything until we got here, the marquess was different."
Kaislan didn't waste any more words on Calla. "Okay, I see what you mean. You're just going to watch that man stand above us. Are the rest of you of the same opinion?" Kaislan's eyes then shifted to the ninth-floor adventurer, Titana Akurava.
Unfortunately, he didn't get the supporting fire he was hoping for. "Even if you look at me like that, that won't change the fact that I'm of a similar opinion."
"...Why? Is it because you are afraid of the marquess?"
"I wouldn't say that's not a contributing factor at all. But, there's an even bigger reason than that."
"A bigger reason?"
"Yes. I don't think that man will be worse at it than us." Kaislan narrowed his eyes, clearly lost. Akurava shrugged her shoulders. "What impressed me was not who's backing him but how innately meticulous he is."
"Meticulousness...?" Kaislan huffed like he found that ridiculous.
"Yes. Meticulousness. For example, what was he like during lunch? He already knew everything about us but acted like he didn't, and he made a big show of being arrogant to get us to take his bait."
That wasn't all, either. He did the same during the battle, hiding various essences and abilities until the end and only pulling them out when they would give him the best bang for his buck. Take Calla, for example. When he got knocked out at the start, that put more of a burden on the three who remained.
"And this... can't exactly be attributed to good judgment, but his senses, at least during the battle, were almost godlike."
"...He was a natural," said Calla.
Though that man had looked like he was burning himself out, by the time they came to their senses, they were the ones actually engulfed in flames. And after all that, the man had smiled in contentment.
"At the time, I thought his battle strategy was based solely on instinct, but now that I'm looking back on it, he made decisions based on thoroughly rational deductions," said Jun.
"If that's true, that truly is amazing. To think giving up an eye and taking down Sir Kaislan with a hammer was a rational decision."
"Since that's when our battle line started to collapse, he benefited a lot from doing so."
As Calla and the paladin exchanged words of praise, Kaislan gritted his teeth. He couldn't understand them at all.
What's wrong with these people? They should know how important the position of Commander is, yet they're still acting like this?
He was almost starting to wonder whether they made a secret pact with the marquess while he was unconscious. But despite his concerns, the conversation continued.
"To be honest... the thing I find the most praiseworthy is his determination to achieve his goals."
Ha, now it's resolve?
Kaislan snorted but the paladin continued without acknowledging him at all. "As Mr. Calla said, he was not significantly stronger than the four of us. But despite that, he provoked us to the point of arrogance."
His bones were shattered countless times, his intestines cooked, and he even ended up with an arrow embedded in one eye, but he never went down. He let his skin burn to cross through walls of fire and spat out blood after biting his tongue. Even when his shoulder blades caved in and his arm was left hanging, he kept swinging his hammer.
"Is there anyone else here who could go that far?"
"I'm embarrassed to say that I've never seen anyone fight in such a state without any hesitation."
Even a man like that couldn't have enjoyed that slog. It must have been painful. All of them would have understood if he had chosen to give up. That was how obvious it was that he had reached his limit.
"A normal person is bound to start faltering in a situation like that. 'Yes, this is enough. I've done enough.' They'll start making compromises and excuses to convince themselves that they tried their best." But that man didn't do that. How was that possible? As a follower of god, the paladin found the answer to be faith. "He has a faith that he will never fall. And because he has such a strong faith in himself, he was able to avoid breaking down, and overcame the trials in front of him to achieve victory."
"I guess that means you also agree that that man should become commander, Sir Jun," Kaislan grumbled, his tone almost scornful.
The paladin responded without a hint of hesitation. "Yes. If I must follow anyone here, he is the one I trust the most. Even at a time when anyone else would give in, that man will stand strong."
It seemed the paladin had properly fallen for the man. Calla, meanwhile, was worried about the marquess, and Akurava didn't seem to want to renege on their agreement with Schuitz out of pride.
"Just admit it," said Akurava. "We lost. He never complained even when one of us healed and returned to the front lines after going down. At the time, we were too busy fighting to think about it, but that's really no different from cheating."
"The reason he kept quiet was probably that he figured we'd need something like that to accept he won."
As long as the other three agreed, there was nothing Kaislan could do anymore.
That's a relief, Calla thought. If that man protested the outcome and requested a rematch, there's no way a man like the marquess would take that lying down.
Crisis averted, Calla let out a sigh as he looked at Kaislan, whose lips were pursed. Of course, that didn't mean there wasn't still friction.
"Since you are all in agreement, I won't speak on this anymore. Just know that this is a mistake. As I said before, only discipline and strong control can create a strong group. I refuse to believe he has that level of control." His stubborn attitude made it impossible for him to acknowledge his opponent to the bitter end. It was clear he'd use whatever excuse he could to challenge the status quo if the opportunity arose. If that happened to be inside the labyrinth, it could turn into a big problem.
Knock, knock.
They heard a knock from outside the door.
"Ah, I guess everyone is awake." The man entered the room without even waiting for permission, and Calla rid himself of even the slightest hint of anxiety. "Since you're my subordinates now, I'll speak casually," the man muttered, even though he never used honorifics with them in the first place. His eyes shifted to the side and he tilted his head. "Knight, why are you blinking like that? Did that hit you took earlier mess up your head?"
It was truly an incredible thing. Calla didn't know when exactly it happened, but the knight who had just been shouting about the importance of control at the top of his lungs had all of a sudden lowered his eyes.
"Answer me. I'm asking you."
"N-No..." It looked like a very natural thing to do.