Chapter 57
Chapter 57
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Homeward (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
It was hot.
Ban slowly lifted his head. Outside the window. Every time the leaves rustled, the sunlight touched his legs and then withdrew. He wanted to draw the curtains, but his body felt heavy. And Ban knew that this heaviness wasn't simply from yesterday's sparring.
Anya was sprawled across his arm. Had she been nursing him? He couldn't quite remember how badly he'd been hurt.
'........It's hot.'
Ban glanced back and forth between the window and Anya with anxious eyes, then finally gave up with a wry smile. He didn't want to wake someone who'd stayed up all night tending to him just to ask her to close the curtains.
Feeling Anya's weight, Ban recalled yesterday's duel. His sword hadn't even torn a single thread from Lucas's clothes until the very end. In terms of swordsmanship, Lucas was in a realm beyond comparison to Ban. Whether slashing, thrusting, blocking, or deflecting.
'I couldn't even draw out his full strength.'
He'd thought he was getting closer, but it was a day that confirmed how distant the seat of the world's strongest still was.
Ban looked at Anya. Snow-white face. Snow-white eyebrows. Snow-white hair. Snow-white clothes. She was entirely white, looking so pristine that he worried even a touch might soil her.
It had been a fine technique. That one.
Ban thought back to the White Flame beam Anya had unleashed. He knew well how much of a slacker she was, how averse she was to effort. For someone like her to grow that strong, how many battles must she have fought against herself?
And that fight, perhaps, had come about because of him.
"......."
Ban reached out his hand. The moment he tried to brush her hair from her face, Anya's eyes snapped open. Ban froze mid-motion, looking at her with an awkward expression.
"......What are you doing?"
"There was a spider on you."
"Sp-spider!?"
Anya bolted up and brushed at her hair. Only after seeing Ban chuckling did she glare at him with a sulky expression.
"What? You were pranking me?"
"Were you here long?"
"......Just a bit."
An awkward silence fell. They'd spent years together, yet here they were feeling awkward around each other. If it was novel, it was novel. Anya stared down at the blanket unnecessarily and spoke.
"Watch yourself during spars. You keep getting hurt like this."
"How do you sword without getting hurt?"
"Get stronger."
Anya looked at Ban. While he made a slightly dumbfounded face at her unexpected reply, she spoke in a voice tinged with some grievance.
"Get strong enough that you never have to get hurt...... Like you said, become the world's strongest swordsman, so you don't make people worry for no reason."
"......Who does this because they want to? What's with you? Suddenly?"
"Since I won't see you for a long while now, it feels like I won't get to say this otherwise."
"You'll see me soon."
"......Says you."
Anya let out a small snort. She tied up her short hair and rose.
"The lighthouse is far away. The White Flame Corps is even farther than the lighthouse. I'm not sure you'll even come looking, and even if you do...... it'll be hard to meet."
"Maybe. But if I really want to see you, I will, right?"
"...If."
Anya hesitated before opening her mouth. She knew it might be better left unsaid, but her weakness urged her lips onward.
"If your journey needs help, if you need a companion...... I....."
"Anya."
Ban cut her off.
"Guard your post."
"......."
Anya glared at him as if to say he had to put it that way. Ban met her gaze without flinching.
"I'll come find you, so you stay at your post. That's best. For you, and for me."
".......Fine."
Anya stood. She knew that after today, it would be quite some time before they met again. She knew she'd regret leaving so easily like this. Still, she grasped the door handle.
"Just in case, I'm telling you."
"What?"
"Ban. You're a real bastard."
Anya left. Ban smiled emptily, feeling the warmth of Anya still lingering on his arm.
'I know. I am.'
Asking Anya to come along on his journey wouldn't be hard. She'd probably even be happy with the offer. But he couldn't. Their journeys had different goals. Above all, Ban was certain the path ahead for him would be anything but peaceful. The White Flame Corps' life wouldn't be smooth either, but it would suit her better.
Ban rose from the bed. He tried to close the curtains he'd left open, but couldn't.
Beyond that street, he saw Anya.
Her retreating back looked like she was crying.
§
—It was a good duel?
"A terrible duel. I just got beaten."
Ban smiled wryly as he chatted with Yuri. Normally, he'd have to return the Broad Dao housing Yuri to the academy, but when he met the dean directly, he'd made a request. Could he borrow Yuri long-term?
It might have seemed suspicious, but the dean didn't doubt his claim that he was just used to it. He told Ban to return the Broad Dao by his own hand someday. Perhaps that was his way of keeping a tie to Ban.
He had returned the longsword made of short sword and ironwood, but that was unavoidable. He still had Kisin, and now unbound from the academy, his chances of acquiring an even stronger sword had improved.
Leaving Citadel was harder than expected. For others, maybe not. But for Ban, it was. The news that Citadel Academy's top graduate had become a Free Knight was known to most. And naturally, they wouldn't leave him alone.
Dozens of people visited him each day. Sometimes he ignored them, sometimes he ran. Sometimes he pretended not to notice, sometimes he turned them away politely. But among them were some he couldn't treat that way.
"I've heard much about you."
A gentle voice rang out. Gentle, but not effeminate. Ban kept his head bowed, avoiding the man's eyes.
Prince Abon.
Second prince of the royal family.
"......There isn't much to tell. It must have been a boring time."
"No. Just the stories involving my sister were quite entertaining. What do you think? Wasn't our sister lovely?"
"How dare I speak of the princess."
The words seemed exceedingly polite, but hearing the voice, no one would think so. Ban's reply was formal. Not because he meant to be rude before the prince. Even if he tried to fake it, expecting absolute respect and loyalty to the royal family from Ban was unrealistic.
He looks weak.
And Abon had that typical scholar's air, which wasn't the type to pique Ban's interest. Of course, his Word Command might still be sharper than Ban's sword.
"I'd like to hear why you summoned me."
"First time I've heard of the academy's top graduate becoming a Free Knight...... I was curious how you came to that decision."
"I didn't want to be tied down anywhere."
Light flickered in Abon's eyes at Ban's answer. Ban had just subtly said, 'If you're thinking of recruiting me, give it up.'
But it didn't matter. Abon hadn't intended to recruit him right then anyway. He nodded with a friendly smile.
"Yes. I heard you're a swordsman, not a knight. I understand that freedom. I even want to cheer you on."
"......Could my freedom be of help to Your Highness?"
"I can trust that freedom."
The prince licked his lips. He could spin a long tale if he wanted. But from this brief meeting, Ban didn't seem the type to want to hear it. The kingdom's realities. How the royal factions were divided. How far the Revolutionary Corps had infiltrated the country. What plans he had against the increasingly aggressive Seeds of the Night.
"I want to be your friend. Young swordsman."
Abon didn't call Ban a knight. From this short encounter, it was clear Ban's path was that of a swordsman, not a knight. If he'd aspired to knighthood, he'd be overwhelmed with emotion just facing the prince.
Ban had his own thoughts. What to reply. How to neither flatter nor offend.
"......How could I, a mere man, be a friend to Your Highness?"
"Well. A difficult question. So for now, I want to buy your heart."
One might wonder why go this far for a fresh academy graduate. But the academy's top wasn't to be judged by appearances alone. Consider Cho Urong, last year's graduate, now called a monster......
This meeting wasn't meaningless. Abon smiled more kindly.
"Of course, you wouldn't sell out for money. You won't sell to anything. You're a swordsman. Your life is sworn to the sword."
Listening to Abon, Ban was newly surprised. For a brief meeting, he had Ban pegged well. Had he been given info on Ban beforehand? That in itself would be shocking—the kingdom had been tracking him for a while.
And then. Abon smiled.
"So for now, I want to gift you a little of what your life is sworn to."
The moment Abon's words ended, a maid carefully set down a long box. Seeing its shape, Ban swallowed hard.
"......A sword?"
"Is there a better gift for the future great sword hero?"
Abon smiled contentedly. Ripples finally stirred on Ban's hitherto calm face. Such an easy-to-read swordsman. It was easier dealing with someone whose desires were clear. No need to guess hidden motives.
The box opened. A short tachi. A bit long, but a good length to replace the returned shortsword. Ban swallowed again. What sword was this? What sword would make a prince call it a 'gift' and present it himself?
He didn't want to gape, but it was too beautiful. Ban slowly reached out. As the short tachis weight settled in his hand, a familiar window appeared before his eyes.
[ You have gripped the Short Tachi of the 'Sword that Guards the King.' ]
How great could a short tachi be?
It was too great for such thoughts. Ban's eyes trembled as he scanned the description floating above the sword. Abon smiled.
"Do you like the gift?"
This prince really seemed intent on buying his heart.