Sleeping with the Enemy? (2)
"We are the Crimson Flame Dragon Knights. State your identities and explain where you are coming from."
For a knight order with a name that reeked of pure chuunibyou, the aura they gave off was no joke. Restrained mana leaked from beneath their gleaming gochujang-red armor—a strength on an entirely different level from the Iron Lobster Knights.
The captain of this formidable band of (presumed) old-maid knights was the Yu Sword King. She had created the samurai Aileen, so the odds were high that she was a samurai herself. Had she tracked me down for revenge? Two weeks was more than enough time for rumors to spread. With Muka around, better to settle this peacefully for now.
"Just adventurers passing through. We're coming from Goldon."
Orphe and I held out our adventurer badges.
"Goldon? What business did you have there?"
I also showed them the letter of guarantee I'd received from the lord of Goldon—a parchment signed in elegant script that looked like a purebred dog pedigree. Proof that I was a righteous adventurer, if you will.
"This is the kind of person I am."
"Stay right where you are."
One of them approached and read the guarantee.
"...And what business do you have entering the village?"
The knight who had lowered her guard took her hand off her sword hilt. See? You need proper ID.
"We are currently escorting a client to the city. Walking the entire way is impossible, so we intend to wait in Evergreen Village until a carriage arrives."
Orphe spoke clearly and precisely in my place. We had reached the point where we could communicate with nothing but a glance.
"I see. There's something you should know. Did you encounter any Wildfolk on the way here?"
Wildfolk? What now? Had any of the yokai I'd killed on the road gone by that name?
"We have not. Don't the Wildfolk live deep in the mountains?"
Orphe clearly knew something. Great—another thing I'd have to ask about later. Like a matryoshka doll: peel back one layer of ignorance and another appears. A cruel world for orphan 567. This was exactly why compulsory education existed.
"Normally, yes. A few days ago they came down from the mountains and tried to attack Evergreen Village. The Yu Sword King and we are holding them off, but there's always the chance of trouble, so be careful."
"Understood."
Strange. Samurai didn't usually care about the safety of commoners. Unless they were diligent salarymen like Bonita, they never bothered explaining things this kindly. And they were guarding a village? Samurai? Their eyes were far too serious for it to be a lie.
"...Why is that man wearing a mask? Show your face."
Tribo, who had been standing quietly, got caught red-handed.
...Hmm.
He waved his hands around as if searching for a decent excuse. You're only making yourself look more suspicious, you know.
I was about to dust off the old "group beating" story when Orphe stepped in.
"This gentleman suffers from a condition in which the skin of his entire body hardens and cracks like stone. It is a syndrome that was once prevalent in Datiman. Many people feel extreme revulsion at the sight of his bare face, so he wears a mask. Tribo, please remove your glove."
Understood.
After a moment's hesitation, Tribo peeled the glove from his left hand.
"Hmm..."
There were cracks from age, but the exterior was composed of something like prosthetics, so the unnaturalness of machinery was barely noticeable. Looking at it this way, it resembled the cracked hand of a dark-skinned man.
"You may examine his face if you wish. However, I doubt that would be the preferable choice for either party."
Orphe was pushing hard. If these people were samurai, they would start ranting about defamation and try to take her head.
"...Very well. You may go."
They actually let it slide. So they really weren't samurai? Confusing. Still too early to relax—they might come back later for payback the way Aileen had.
"Thank you for your hard work."
I offered a half-hearted greeting and we slipped away. I'd look into them properly later.
Once we reached Evergreen Village, the first order of business was securing an inn. Tribo, Orphe, Diana, and I would share a room. Muka had wandered off, declaring she would greet the villagers with a song instead of words, and said she would find her own lodging. Honestly, I was relieved. Sharing an inn with Muka meant waking every morning to the "Scream of Hell." Hell was just a word; the reality was far worse. Could Evergreen Village even withstand the sonic assault of Goldon's ultimate weapon of destruction, "Death-Siren" Muka?
Chomp chomp chomp.
Forget it for now. We were all eating together.
The sun is so bright. How pleasant.
Tribo, born into a body that could not eat, turned toward the window. Orphe, never one to start conversations, quietly focused on her meal, while Diana kept shooting me sidelong glares—probably still sore about earlier.
"Orphe. What are the Wildfolk?"
With our usual mood-maker Satton gone, I had to take the lead. Thinking of Satton brought Martolan to mind. Were Bonita, Jina, and Jina's father doing well? I hoped nothing bad had happened to them.
"Wildfolk is the term for tribes that live in the mountains. Their traits... exceptional physical abilities, facial tattoos as a rite of adulthood, and a reputation for being violent, I suppose?"
Like nature people or barbarians? They wouldn't actually eat things like "fish-head curry" or "raw water-deer liver," right? If they did, we'd have to classify them as yokai.
I would like to add to that explanation. The Wildfolk are tribes that worship spirits. It is said they contracted with mountain spirits and thereby gained the right to live in harmony with nature. The tattoos are the mark of that covenant.
"That information does not appear in the historical records of the Iregal Kingdom. Are they suppressing it...?"
Either way, if they were trying to raid a village, they needed dealing with.
"Orphe. Tell me everything you know about the Yu Sword King."
Last time I'd only heard she was one of the Seven Sword Kings and Aileen's master. Now that I might actually clash with her, I needed details.
"I don't remember the information on the Yu Sword King in great detail. Still, I'll tell you what comes to mind. She is currently the youngest and most active of the Seven Sword Kings."
"..."
"She has a strong reputation among the people for being just. However, she has a lone-wolf streak, so her relationship with the members of the Sword Saint Society is poor. I've even heard she is quietly ostracized..."
Why was this explanation so long?
"The Crimson Flame Dragon Knights she leads operate as an elite few and are famous for recruiting only the strong, regardless of status. Being an all-female order, they do care about gender, of course."
"..."
"She is said to wield a sword that reaps the souls of those she kills, though I don't know if that's true. These things are usually exaggerated. She also owns a spirit horse. I have never seen it myself, so that information is uncertain as well."
How could someone who claimed not to remember the details still talk this much? I couldn't understand it.
"Tribo. You got all that?"
Saved.
Entered into the wiki for now.
"I think avoiding a clash would be best. The Seven Sword Kings are powerhouses on another level entirely. It isn't even confirmed that the Yu Sword King is your enemy. We should slip away first and—"
"If the Yu Sword King is definitely a samurai, I'm fighting."
Strategic retreats like the one at the yakuza tent were fine, but outright running away was not. A coward who fled just because the enemy was strong was no Runaway Ninja. If I left under the excuse of growing stronger, Yasayo would go around slaughtering the people like rats. I would rather die than watch that.
"This is non-negotiable. Get that through your head."
"...If that is your will."
Orphe backed down without further argument. She had probably spoken out of concern for me. I placed a few pieces of meat on her plate.
"Eat. You've done well so far."
I still didn't know why she had volunteered to be my lackey all the way out here. Had she followed me for something as simple and pure as wanting to grow stronger? A gloomy, nitpicky kid like Orphe? There had to be a reason I didn't know yet.
"Are you doing this because you feel sorry? I'm fine, really."
"When someone's giving you food, just eat quietly."
Still, I had no intention of prying. The fact remained that Orphe had struggled alongside me to protect the people. She wouldn't suddenly stab me with a spear at the critical moment... right?
"...Looks delicious."
Diana, who had been watching, smacked her lips beside me. Right—because of that "little bit" earlier, I had promised to look after her.
"Haa... Student Diana? Just this once."
I passed more meat over.
"Nin?"
Fuck. At this rate I wouldn't have anything left to eat myself.
"I'm really fine, so eat. Here."
"Orphe. Don't make me look like the bad guy."
Giving something and then snatching it back was uncool, so I held back. Just as the atmosphere was softening—
—Carriage carriage carriage carriage carriage~! Carriage~! Carriage~! Carriage~! Carriage~! Carriage~!
"Ah, what the hell."
Muka's voice, ten times louder than usual, reached all the way into the restaurant. Had she seriously planned to serenade the entire village?
"Eat fast and get back to the inn."
I had wanted to examine Diana's doll after the meal, but that was off the table now. The sparks wouldn't fly our way... right? We were planning to operate at night; the last thing we needed was more trouble.