Chapter 58
Chapter 58
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Home (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
[You have gripped the Short Tachi of the 'Sword that Guards the King'.]
Material: Glass
Quality: Fine Sword
Owner: Wilrn (7-Star)
Memory Preservation Rate: Low
Note: A Short Tachi with a glass blade. It seems like it might vanish into the light at any moment. Faint traces of the swordsman who always hid behind the light remain.
"I forged it by melting glass myself. But don't worry about it being glass. This glass is hard enough to slice through steel."
"...It's a precious sword. A beautiful one, too."
"It's the sword Sir Wilrn wielded. The former National Guardian Knight... Do you know of him?"
Ban shook his head. But his eyes blazed at the mention of National Guardian Knight. And well they might, for that position rivaled even the vice commander of the Royal Knight Order. No, in terms of honor alone, it was in no way inferior to the captain.
The sword that guards the king.
A knight who vows to live his life as the king's shadow.
"Sir Wilrn rose to that position without the backing of any great family, just like you. He became a sword solely to protect His Majesty the Great King. And now, I intend to bestow that sword upon you."
"...Just to become friends, right?"
He could have overthought it if he wanted. After all, this was the second prince talking about the 'Sword that Guards the King.' Ban wasn't fool enough not to grasp the implications hidden within.
But that's why he answered simply, deliberately.
"Friends. That's all I desire. Just as the former owner of this sword was honest before loyalty, I hope you'll be pure before friendship."
"I can't say if I'm pure or not, but becoming friends with a good man is always a fine thing."
Ban gazed down at the Short Tachi as he spoke. It was beautiful enough to make pretending indifference feel like false piety. The glass blade, infused with sunlight, gleamed like a jewel, but in front of an enemy, even gauging its reach would be nearly impossible.
More than that...
[You have gripped the sword of one far superior to you.]
[The vast gap in level makes it impossible to fully comprehend even the sword's path.]
[Memory synchronization rate is set to the lowest level.]
Even swinging it now would yield poor efficiency. The low memory preservation rate was a slight disappointment, but even accounting for that, it was an invaluable treasure to Ban.
Of course, from the prince's perspective, it might just be gifting a fine sword made of glass, but to Ban...
"So, may I now expect friendship from you?"
"...We'll see."
Ban smiled faintly. He raised the Short Tachi and said,
"At the very least, you can expect as much from this sword, can't you?"
§
After receiving the gift from Abon, Ban couldn't swing the Short Tachi enough to get accustomed to it. He wanted to leave Citadel quickly, before another offer came from someone as hard to refuse as Abon.
His destination was his hometown, Shionel Village.
There were many reasons to go to Shionel. He yearned to breathe the scent of his long-un踏 homeland, and there were faces he hadn't seen. But above all, there was one face he had to see.
His master.
Jensen's face came to mind. In retrospect, Jensen was a peculiar man. He was more than just a skilled pharmacist; he had a charisma that could pin down even a guard captain like Aidan.
No one in Shionel treated Jensen lightly. No one believed he was just an ordinary pharmacist. Even Ban felt the same. When he discovered Jensen's sword, it was easier to accept than expected for that reason.
Who was Jensen, really?
Was he merely an ordinary pharmacist, and had taking him in been mere coincidence?
Or...
'...No point overthinking it.'
He'd only know by meeting and asking. Ban stopped the horse and swung the Short Tachi imbued with Wilrn's memories around.
'Too slow.'
Wilrn's memory flowed in sluggishly. Of course, even so, one swing could still absorb two or three memories... but that was only useful back in his novice days. Now, that slight difference hardly brought major changes.
It might be different once his own skill reached 6-Star. He'd sense the power of a 7-Star swordsman more finely. But for now, it was just a distant dream.
He swung the sword. He didn't bother slicing trees or rocks. Even without cutting anything, Ban could now feel the power of his own strikes. He could sense how quickly he was approaching his goals.
'At first, just holding a sword felt like enough.'
Slicing the heavens or mountains... those were empty words. His realistic dream right now was a single, thoroughly honed sword stroke.
And now he possessed three swords and had devoured memories of thousands more.
The blade moved. The leaf at its tip was pushed away instead of sliced, fluttering to the ground. If Ban willed it, he could spare anything from being cut.
'So the day I can cut anything isn't far off.'
The sun was setting. His breathing overlaid the horse's snorts. His mind followed the slow sword path.
'It's been almost five years since I last saw the villagers.'
'How many will remember me?'
'Dolbi must have had her child by now.'
'What faces will they make when they learn I've become a knight?'
Mostly anticipation rose in him. Ban had no bad memories of his hometown. The people liked him, and the nominal lord didn't abuse them.
Considering the village was made of 'outsiders,' it was quite amusing. Fugitives. Criminals. Exiles. Those who couldn't live in ordinary villages or cities gathered in Shionel. The village had its laws, but the most important was unspoken: don't pry into each other's pasts unless brought up.
That was why the guards were more properly organized than the village size warranted. They needed the strength to protect themselves. Rabble wouldn't suffice. Real soldiers. Whether a husband come to drag back a runaway wife or a man seeking his father's killer, the village protected its people.
'Probably me too.'
There must be a reason Jensen chose Shionel out of all villages. And Ban needed to know it. He wondered how much his birth secret would change his life, and he had some guesses about it, but he wanted to hear the truth from Jensen's mouth.
Above all, he just missed Jensen's face. Too long unseen. Had time alone softened that stubborn visage even a little?
'Look, Master.'
He lowered the sword. It resembled the path in Jensen's memories, but the power and intent infused were incomparable. What would Jensen think of this strike? Would he rejoice that his disciple had reached an unattainable realm? Or disapprove of him setting aside herbs for the sword?
Jensen's thoughts didn't matter much. What mattered was proving it. That his hands were truly meant for the sword. That leaving his side wasn't mere childish impulse.
Sweet thoughts flooded him. He wanted to flaunt his knight's cloak in the village. Behold, the reckless boy you scorned has become a proud knight.
But reality is never as sweet as one's thoughts.
The first thing Ban sensed entering the village was the acrid stench of blood.
§
"........"
Ban stared silently at the neatly bisected corpse. Despite the eerie scene, people loaded it onto a stretcher without much surprise. Ban quietly turned and asked,
"What happened here?"
A young man glanced at him. He noted the fine cloak but lacked the insight to recognize the sword emblem as a knight's mark.
"Traveler? Then you'd best be on your way. Things have been rough in the village lately."
"Rough incidents, you mean...?"
The man jerked his chin toward the corpse instead of answering. He shook his head in exhaustion.
"What could be rougher than that? Shouldn't have come here if you knew what kind of madman lurks around. Ugh, my luck."
The man grumbled and left. Ban narrowed his eyes, mulling the words.
Madman. If the culprit was truly mad, it wasn't ordinary madness. A single sword stroke.
Just one swing, and the cut was as smooth as slicing tofu.
At least someone who can wield Qi.
'...Why would someone with this skill play serial killer?'
As Ban pondered, men in guard uniforms approached with suspicious glares.
"Hey, you! Come here a moment."
"......."
"Didn't you hear? Over here!"
Unfamiliar faces. New recruits? Ban approached slowly. They frowned at the swords on his belt.
"New face... Where you from?"
"Born and raised here."
"...Don't give me that nonsense. Never seen anyone like you."
"You must be the latecomer. To this place."
"What?"
As the guard scowled, another bit his lip and held him back.
"Hey, hold it. Look at the cloak. Knight's seal on it."
"...K-Knight?"
He backed away in panic. Ban sighed and spoke.
"I'd like to see Captain Aidan."
"...Even if you're a knight, sir, the captain isn't some stray dog we can summon at will."
"Not summoning. I'm going myself. Just guide me. The captain will want to see me, at least."
"You're... a friend of the captain...?"
"No, less friend... more like, old subordinate?"
Ban said in a flat tone.
"Know the name Ban?"
The moment he said it, shock filled their eyes. They exchanged glances, then stared at him in disbelief.
"The monster who chews rocks?!"
"No idea what tales you've heard, but glad you recognize me anyway. Take me to Captain Aidan."
After that, it was smooth sailing. He didn't know what rumors about him had spread over the five years, but their eyes sparkled incongruously with the situation. 'Knight Ban.' He'd only become a knight recently, but the village had been insisting for years he was one.
"Like the hometown air?"
Aidan, long unseen, had aged exactly five years. White strands hid in his beard, wrinkles deepened around his eyes. Yet he seemed not wiser, but fiercer... stirring old memories. Ban shook his head.
"Mixed with blood smell. Not exactly to my liking."
"...We've been tearing our hair out over it lately. Anyway, just passing through? Or..."
"Just some faces I missed. Saw one now, off to see another."
Aidan's expression darkened at Ban's words. As Ban frowned, Aidan continued slowly.
"...There's something about him to tell you."
"About him...?"
"Jensen is missing."
The instant he said it, Aidan nearly groaned but held it back. Ban's gaze changed. An unrestrained aura spiked from him like a needle. Standing too close might really get you cut. Ban spoke. He aimed for calm, but his voice burned like a red-hot blade.
"Tell me everything. Missing...? My master? When? No, why?"
"We don't have all the details yet. But it might relate to the recent string of murders. Around when people started dying, Jensen vanished. So some think Jensen..."
"It wasn't him. You know that."
"Ban..."
"I'll find him myself."
Ban stood. Aidan swallowed hard watching him. The boy he'd seen five years ago had returned not as a man, but a monster. The five years had wrought such change; it was awe-inspiring.
"...Do that. We're desperate enough to borrow a cat's paw, no strength to refuse your help. But Ban... don't worry too much. You know what Jensen's like. He'll be fine somehow."
"Right. He better be."
Or the kidnapper would pay a price beyond imagination.
Ban ground his teeth.
His long-awaited hometown greeted him in a way utterly unforeseen.