Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: The Golden Lion
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The door creaked open.
Pedro's eyes fluttered open at the sound, and he immediately reached for the sword hidden under his bedding.
'They've come after all.'
A bitter smile tugged at his lips, but it was something he'd already steeled himself for.
He pulled the blanket over Flora, who slept beside him, and slipped out of bed.
As the assassins melted into the room's darkness like shadows, Pedro nodded to himself.
'About twelve of them.'
Far too many to believe they were just here for him alone.
As if on cue, the assassins bolted out of the annex.
They headed toward a secluded spot in the mountains.
Ironically, it was the same place where Kallias and he had clashed not long ago.
The clearing, once overgrown with weeds, now bloomed with flowers.
Pedro stared in wonder before muttering,
"Flowers have bloomed. Nothing was here before, and now flowers. Did they drink the blood of my comrades to bloom like this?"
Either way.
"At least you're leaving something behind."
"What nonsense is this? Enough—hand over your neck already, Pedro."
"You failed to assassinate me, so now you die. Why drag it out like a bat clinging to life?"
"Planning to fight to the bitter end?"
Pedro gave a wry smile at the assassins' words.
"I'll put up a struggle, at least."
"Don't bother. You can't take us alone."
"If you're going to kill me anyway, it's fine to drag a few of you along as companions to the afterlife."
"Sigh... Pedro. Your daughter and everyone around you will die anyway. The order was to kill everyone near Kallias. Bringing you here quietly was consideration enough on our part."
"What do you want me to do?"
"Give me your neck quietly. For old times' sake, I'll spare your daughter."
"Who knows where she'll end up being sold off to, heh heh heh."
The assassins laughed vilely.
It was blatant provocation, nothing more than numbers on their side, but Pedro couldn't contain the rage surging in his fists.
"You fucking bastards!!"
The moment he lunged forward—
Splash!!
"Gah!!"
"What the—!"
"Who's there!!"
The assassins whipped around in alarm.
Pedro sensed something off too and turned. A chill raced up his spine.
Darkness had spread everywhere before he knew it.
'When did it get this dark?'
Even looking at the sky, it was pitch black.
Not a sliver of moonlight.
True darkness.
Only the assassins' stumbling footsteps and panicked voices echoed through it.
Slash!
"Kaaak!"
"Who is it?! How dare you attack us!!"
"Pedro! You set a trap!!"
"......"
Pedro was just as clueless and frustrated.
But then a voice rang out, igniting a tiny spark of hope in his heart.
"One of my men made a request."
A figure slowly emerged from the darkness.
He walked leisurely, as if strolling through a park despite the assassins ahead.
"If he'd asked me to kill you, I wouldn't have taken it."
The assassins' eyes widened like saucers.
No way they wouldn't recognize the face of the man who wielded his blade in shadows.
"But it was a request to protect you. Suits me perfectly."
With that, Jenos's silhouette vanished.
"Khuk...!"
One assassin crumpled in an instant.
No sound but the victim's scream—eerie silence.
The highly trained assassins were consumed by fear at the horrifying sight.
"J-Jenos!!"
"Damn it! It's the Cat-Step Jenos!"
"Run, damn it!!"
Ssshh.
Jenos, merged with the darkness, made no sound at all.
Screams of agony echoed sporadically, and before long, moonlight pierced through.
Only Jenos stood in the clearing.
"You survived."
Pedro let out a hollow laugh, gazing at the bloodstained petals.
* * *
The next day.
I spent the night in the count's territory.
When my men grumbled about what if they suddenly turned hostile and tried to kill me, I shut them down.
No chance of that.
Even if it somehow happened, I had backups.
"The Golden Lion is a knight with a strong competitive spirit and his own unique sense of justice."
He wouldn't stand for that.
I'd also made a few other arrangements. Not that the Golden Lion would necessitate them.
He wasn't like Luteon at all—just a guy named Luidren.
That's why Luteon hated being compared to his brother.
Is that why he betrayed them?
Honestly, I didn't know the exact reason for his betrayal. There were multiple routes for it, so even I wasn't sure.
Knock knock.
"Come in."
"Boss, the Golden Lion wants a word."
"Let's go."
That was the reason I'd risked staying in enemy territory from the start.
He was someone I wanted to meet and talk to at least once.
Someone so close to master level might give me a hint to break through my wall.
"Oh, Count Jervan. You've come."
"Yes, Golden Lion. But what are you doing here...?"
"Golden Lion still feels too formal. Call me Luen."
"...Captain Luen. What are you doing here?"
"Having a spar."
"That's obvious just looking at it."
Luen had brought the Golden Lion Knights all the way to where the Sixth Unit was stationed. He seemed to share my mindset.
"Brans."
"Yes, my lord."
"Explain briefly."
"The Golden Lion Knights—no, their knights—picked a fight."
"What?"
"They said something like, 'Are all northerners this scrawny?'..."
"We're not northerners?"
"Right. When we looked dumbfounded, they said, 'What're you staring at?' and came at us."
Such blatant provocation left no room for retort. The Golden Lion scratched his head awkwardly.
"They're not great with words. They should've just said they wanted to spar honestly instead of that lame trash talk, so I let it slide."
"Some have already gone down."
Several lay sprawled around, evidence of multiple bouts already.
Of course, the fallen ones were from the Sixth Unit.
"Haha, isn't this a good opportunity?"
"Indeed. If you're going to do it, do it right."
One of the empire's top five knight orders.
Nothing bad about letting the men experience their prowess firsthand.
Suitable pairs drew blades for spars.
Even at a glance, the skill gap was vast.
A few held out a bit, but most couldn't last ten exchanges before dropping.
Their rolling on the ground was an utter embarrassment to the Sixth Unit.
"......"
I hadn't expected much anyway.
Among the Heretic Inquisitions, the Sixth was on the weaker side.
Unlike knight orders roaming battlefields, their duties mostly involved hunting traitors and interrogations.
"Have you been training them?"
"Just the ones who wanted it."
"I see. I heard you've only been in command a few months... but they're already shaping up nicely."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
Not everyone got trounced, though.
The vice-captain put up a decent fight, and a few who'd trained hard under me were gaining the upper hand.
"Brans, what's that guy's name?"
"Joseph, sir."
Diego and Joseph.
Only a handful kept sparring.
The rest rolled on the dirt with losers' stares. But most seemed to have gleaned insights from witnessing the Golden Lion Knights' strength.
The skill gap was clear from the start.
"Captain."
"Yes?"
"Why provoke a fight?"
"It's good experience. Nothing boosts skill like spars and real combat."
"True enough. But I doubt that's the only reason."
The disparity was obvious.
What they called spars bordered on bullying.
Given the Golden Lion's temperament, he wouldn't bother with this otherwise.
There had to be another motive.
"Truth is, I had a few questions for you, Count."
As expected—he'd created this excuse to approach without noble eyes watching.
"About Luteon?"
"...Yes."
I'd figured as much.
I'd have done the same.
"Rumors have spread already, I see."
"It's Luidren's shame."
Luen's expression hardened subtly with veiled anger. A man who'd abandoned his parents, his siblings, his country.
The apostate Luteon, who betrayed even the gods.
How agonizing to have a traitor's brother.
"I heard you faced him yourself. Forgive my impudence in asking."
"You deserve to know."
I recounted the northern events.
How he aided the orcs and fought alongside Crasion's Ramatu.
His duel as he plummeted into the abyss, battling the troll—all of it.
And how I'd left him behind.
"Why didn't you finish him?"
"It wasn't by my strength alone. I'm a knight, not an assassin."
"Surprised a troll still lives, but your knighthood impresses me too."
"......"
I said nothing.
The troll part wasn't necessary, but I'd shared it anyway.
Luen was worthy of the details. He wasn't one to blab.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"I wanted to end Luteon myself. Not sure if I can, but he's alive, isn't he?"
"No one dies in that pit. He's alive. Probably reached the empire by now, gathering strength."
Luen closed his eyes and nodded deeply.
"Do you know why he betrayed?"
"...Didn't expect you'd ask me that. I thought you knew, Count. I heard you two were close, but maybe not that close."
"Not interested in other men."
"Haha..."
Lost in thought, we watched the spars.
Cheers erupted as Joseph won, raising his sword high.
The vice-captain lost.
'Useless.'
Frustrated, he punched the dirt.
Then he looked my way.
As spars ended, eyes naturally turned to Luen and me—like, aren't you two sparring?
"Shall we?"
"I'll learn a thing or two."
I reached for the vice-captain's offered steel sword but pulled back, wary of foul play.
"Not taking it?"
"Joseph, hand yours over."
"Yes."
"Outrageous. Really."
Brushing past scoffing Diego, I faced Luen.
"Captain Luen. Why here, though? I thought the Golden Lion Knights held the southern front."
"As you said, we were on the southern front, but a man piqued my interest, so we're heading north and borrowing your territory en route."
Interest?
"Southern front must be quiet."
"Had to head up anyway on His Majesty's summons. This was just a detour."
"Not your average guy to evade the Golden Lion Knights. Empire spy, maybe?"
Clang—! Pure steel clashed without sword aura, ringing sharply.
As if by agreement, we fought bare-handed, no holy power—just raw bodies and blades.
"Yes, quite mysterious attire, but his skill was impressive."
Whish, clang!
We gradually upped the pace, pouring power into our swords.
What started as visibly slow clashes now sparked fiercely with speed.
Yet we calmly continued questioning.
"For the Golden Lion Luen to say that."
"We didn't fully clash, but his dodges made him jaguar-like. Chased him due to some oddities."
I feinted an overhead slash, flicking low instead.
But Luen countered as if he'd read it ages ago, shoving my blade up with a grind.
Then he struck down ferociously.
One swing, yet it looked like three blades descending.
The power matched.
I shifted from blocking—loosened my grip, fingers fixed, flowing like water.
But I couldn't deflect it all.
Such formidable swordsmanship.
Soon, words faded.
We conversed through blades.
As if signaling enough, Luen's sword suddenly gleamed.
Sword aura rose like a lion's mane wrapping his form—befitting the Golden Lion moniker.
That was Luidren's Golden Lion.
"You'll know him at a glance. His beastly presence stands out. With your skill, Count, you'll sense it instantly."
To escape the Golden Lion meant no ordinary foe.
I unleashed my sword aura too.
At first glance, messy scales or petals—Silver Flower Sword Wave aura.
"Who do you think it was?"
"No sword or spear. Hard to say."
"Describe his clothes."
"Rags. Or more formally dressed than that, perhaps."
"I see."
Someone came to mind, but not intriguing enough now.
All I saw was the unfolding spar with the Golden Lion.
Boom—!!
Full aura clash boomed earth-shakingly.
The shockwave whipped the watching knights' hair.
My style: swift sword.
His: heavy blade.
Not fast, but each strike weighed heavy, piercing gaps precisely.
Kaaang—!
Luidren's sword arts and aura flow, like a spreading mane, caught my eye.
For a moment, I forgot the Sixth Unit.
Forgot the empire spy.
Erased everything one by one.
Only the sword in my grip and Luen's snarling lion blade before me.
Each clash revealed his experience, habits, power.
We gripped one-handed; sensing the probe's end, we switched to two-handed and swung with all might.
Kwaaang—!!
"......"
Whish, thunk.
The snapped steel sword spun skyward before stabbing the training ground.
Kallias's blade was broken.
The Golden Lion's remained intact.
"Tch."
Kallias eyed the fractured edge, then tossed it aside carelessly.
"See you next time, Captain Luen."
"Yes, take care, Count."
As he and the Sixth Unit left.
The Golden Lion Knights approached their captain.
"As you said, impressive. Is that Saint Stella's sword art?"
"Yes. Silver Flower Sword Wave. Battle-honed."
"But his mastery isn't peak yet. Since you won, Captain..."
At his subordinate's words, the captain silently raised his steel sword. And.
"Look."
The Golden Lion smirked, eyeing his blade.
He flicked it with a finger—crack. A fracture spiderwebbed.
"A spar's just a spar."