Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: Once Again, to the North (2)
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"……Was it really like that?"
"Were you expecting it?"
"I figured you wouldn't give up on the Kalsmori Library so easily with that temperament of yours, but even so, I couldn't believe you'd still be right in the middle of it during that night."
"In the end, the only one who stayed with the library was someone who wields a sword rather than pursuing scholarship."
"Ironic, isn't it?"
Juwon smiled wryly. He looked at Ban with heavy eyes.
"The realm of the night holds more unknowns than knowns. I know you're strong, but there will come a moment when even that strength becomes meaningless. You must be careful. I don't want to see you get hurt."
"Is it because I'm a precious guardian?"
"……You're teasing me to the end."
Ban’s heart felt heavy. Though he pretended it was just a mischievous joke, Juwon knew that Ban’s attitude stemmed from anxiety. It was a family that had never called upon him his entire life. Even if it was because Jensen had asked them to let Ban live a normal life unrelated to the clan, to Ban, that would just sound like an excuse.
No, it was an excuse. In truth, they had intended to give Ban the right to a normal life. The name Seonwoo had become nothing but a burden now.
Even if he carried the clan's regrets on his shoulders, all that would return was misfortune.
Whether Ban was a guardian or not, the Seonwoo Clan could only "ask" him for help in the end. Just like they did with all the other Seonwoos.
"……Once, the name Seonwoo was a source of pride for all of us. But now, I wonder how many of us would think of that pride first when we hear the name."
Juwon gazed at Ban. It was the gaze of an adult. No matter how many years Ban had lived through, no matter how much he had learned to grow stronger without swinging a sword, no matter if he could even make apple trees bear fine fruit—no amount of time he had lived could yet imitate that look.
"The Seonwoo Clan has almost nothing to give you."
"Please don't say that. I didn't come here expecting anything."
Juwon spoke.
"We didn't call you because we didn't know you were the guardian."
"……"
"But I want you to understand that even now, it feels like calling you here—supposedly for your sake—is actually a crueler act toward you, and for that, I'm sorry."
Ban held back his response. Saying he understood right away would mean admitting he didn't truly comprehend him yet.
Instead, as always, he asked a question.
"What were my parents like?"
It was a question he had never dared to ask until now. Out of fear that longing might soften his heart. Out of fear that it might make him want to grant every wish this Seonwoo Clan had.
Juwon smiled bitterly.
"When the night assaulted the Kalsmori Library, we were all in a panic. We couldn't decide what to take, whether to flee or stand our ground—nothing was easy. Your mother was the first; she smashed every single one of her ceramics without leaving a piece behind. Your father doused the charcoals with water. They were the pioneers. The ones who so readily discarded what they had built up."
"……"
"They were courageous people. Unlike the Seonwoo Clan, bound by the past, they knew how to give up everything for the future. Perhaps it's thanks to their resolve that the Seonwoo Clan has managed to survive this long."
"Do you wish for that kind of resolve from me too?"
"As I said, I'm trying my best not to expect anything from you."
Juwon patted Ban's shoulder once more.
"Even so, I can't help this greed of mine to seek traces of your parents in you."
§
"I want to come with you."
As Ban was leaving the Seonwoo residence, Hwan appeared out of nowhere and asked to accompany him. It reminded Ban of the scene with Quint as he shrugged and asked,
"I don't mind if you follow, but I won't be protecting you. I'm heading to a place where even taking care of myself will be a struggle."
"I can take care of myself. And even if something goes wrong, I won't blame you, Guardian."
"Fine. Then come along. But on one condition."
"……What condition?"
Hwan looked at Ban with a tense expression. Ban replied in a flat tone.
"Stop calling me Guardian. Unless you plan to shout from the rooftops that we're from the Seonwoo Clan."
After that, they briefly sorted out how Hwan would address Ban. In the end, he settled on calling him "hyungnim."
"By the way, Yujin didn't even come to see us off in the end."
"That's understandable, isn't it?"
"Why?"
"……If you're asking even though you know, then you're really being mean, hyungnim."
"I knew you liked Yujin to some extent."
"W-W-W-What nonsense is that!"
Hwan stammered in panic, his tongue twisting.
But that very night, he cleanly admitted his feelings for Yujin.
"I've liked her since we were young. But she always went on and on like a habit about becoming the guardian's bride."
"So that's why you wanted to become the guardian?"
"W-Well…… sort of."
"I must have been pretty annoying to you."
"……Are you going to keep teasing me like this?"
Hwan glared at Ban with an exasperated look. Ban chuckled.
"Don't worry. What you're afraid of won't happen. I like someone else. Not sure if it's something worth calling 'like,' though."
"……Who is it? Is she pretty?"
"She exists, you punk."
Their journey was filled with such trivial conversations, more than expected. For Hwan, who had anticipated deep discussions about martial arts, it was a bit deflating, but not bad. It let him feel that Ban, who had seemed like some otherworldly being, was actually just human like him.
'Come to think of it, our ages are…… pretty close.'
Legally an adult, but still at an age where traces of youth lingered inevitably.
Thinking that way made Ban seem even more impressive. It was natural for an apple sapling to grow into an apple tree, but for red beans to sprout from planted soybeans? That was a miracle. Ban, grown from the seed of an ordinary boy, had become a mighty tree with vast leaves and thick branches that blotted out the sky—far beyond what was expected.
It was amusing. Treating that great guardian not as a guardian, but as a hyungnim, actually made him respect him more.
Shionel Village was the same as always. Adequately filthy, adequately chaotic, adequately peaceful. Hwan looked around with a strange expression.
"It's an unusual village."
"You think so? I grew up here since I was little, so I don't really notice."
"People who clearly don't look like they lived in the light are baking bread and selling candy—it's far from ordinary."
"If someone has the heart, they can bake bread, right? Just like how I went from gathering herbs to wielding a sword."
Like how Ropo had taken up apple farming.
In a way, Ban might have been receiving teachings from his hometown all along. Even if he hadn't realized it.
Ban headed straight to Jensen's house. The neighborhood kids who spotted him cheered like they'd met a hero and trailed after him. Even without Ban handing out candy or anything, just following in his footsteps made them feel like heroes from a story.
"……You seem more popular here than with the Seonwoo Clan."
"I do get a lot of love. Grateful for it."
Ban grinned.
Upon entering Jensen's house, the first thing Ban encountered was Quint, who was busily grinding herbs. He glanced at Ban, then naturally turned back to the herbs and said,
"Oh, you're here?"
"You've made yourself right at home. Looking good, Quint."
"I haven't been coming around much, so yeah. Now I even know all the herb names by heart. Got a companion?"
"You know him. Hwan. Say hi. This is Quint. My friend."
"……Pleased to meet you."
Hwan put on a serious air as he greeted him. Ban didn't pay it much mind. He already knew Hwan wasn't the type with that much patience to keep up the pretense.
Ban turned his head.
"Master?"
"He stepped out for a bit. Want some tea?"
"……Why do you keep acting like it's your house?"
Ban grumbled as he personally brewed the tea. Jensen returned only as the sun was setting. He looked at Ban, nodded with an indifferent expression.
"Good. How was the house?"
"Fine."
"Nothing out of the ordinary?"
"Nothing. Just gained a place I might visit now and then."
"With so many people wandering without even a spot to plant their feet, having such a place is a great blessing."
"I know."
"Eaten yet?"
"……Got any?"
"Sweet potatoes, if that's okay."
"A feast."
Ban smiled gently in response.
It was a night of eating sweet potatoes. Amid the rambling, disjointed chatter, Quint spoke up quietly.
"I'm thinking of staying here for a while."
"……Here?"
"Working with the herbs got me thinking. I realized I've been staring straight ahead without ever looking back or to the sides. The problem is, that 'ahead' wasn't really forward at all. I thought not turning my head meant going straight, but…… now it feels like time to turn it."
If you never turn your head, you might not even realize you're lost. Ban nodded with a silent smile at Quint's words.
"If you've made up your mind, then there's no helping it."
The place Ban was headed was little more than a death trap anyway. He had no desire to drag Quint along. It wasn't a place where he could casually invite someone.
"You said it once before. That you were training without drawing your sword. Now I think I get what that means."
Ban smiled without a word. In truth, he swallowed the embarrassing admission that he still didn't fully understand it himself.
For a week, Ban and Hwan rested from their journey. Heading north would mean days of relentless busyness. As they departed, Jensen gave no special farewell.
He just nodded indifferently, as if it were a given they'd return, same as always.
Standing before the Lighthouse Wall that barred the north, Ban felt a strange sentiment. When he'd faced his first training session here, how young and weak he'd been. Same when facing Yucheong in the Tolzberry Mine. Back then, he'd thought himself much stronger, but he was just a greenhorn with a fierce shell.
What about now? In the future, looking back, would he think, "I was so young back then"? Maybe even having such thoughts was proof of youth.
"Civilians can't enter the lighthouse. State your affiliation."
The northern guards blocked Ban. Hwan stared at him blankly, fully expecting Ban to handle it.
But Ban had no affiliation to declare either. He was a Free Knight from Citadel Academy, but the problem was……
'I left the cloak in the apple orchard.'
No way to prove his identity. Did he really have to go all the way back to the orchard, weeks away? Ban looked at the guards with a slightly troubled expression. Thinking they had no special status, the guards' faces grew more coercive. And then.
"Verification's done. Let them in."
A calm, clear voice rang out. Slightly chilling, yet somehow warm. Ban slowly raised his head. Atop the Lighthouse Wall, a woman in all-white robes, as white as snow, looked down at him.
"L-Lady Anya. But if their identities aren't confirmed……"
"They're my friends. Is there surer proof than that?"
The woman smiled quietly at Ban.
"Sold your knight's cloak or what?"
"Left it in the apple orchard."
"……Apple orchard?"
"I'll explain slowly. By the way, you planning to make me keep looking up from down here forever? It's been a while—shouldn't you at least hug an old friend?"
"……You've gotten bold with the embarrassing lines. Doesn't feel like it's been that long."
Anya grumbled. Ban smiled.
"Missed you, Anya."
"Ugh."
Anya recoiled in horror. She had never even imagined Ban saying such a thing, making it an even greater surprise attack.
"What'd you eat wrong?"
"Can't I tell you inside whether it was something bad or good? It's definitely chillier up north. Freezing my butt off."
Despite enduring ice water training without complaint, Ban bantered on. Anya glared at him like she couldn't decide whether to hate him or not, then finally signaled the guards. Ban entered the lighthouse with a quiet smile.
Though Anya kept up her displeased act, her all-white figure had her right ear flushed red.
Why was that ear red?