Sleeping with the Enemy? (4)
The moment morning arrived, I summoned Orphe and the other two.
I had triumphed in a battle of wits against geniuses, after all. Bragging about it was only natural.
Diana, still young and short on patience, dozed off halfway through. Tribo gave no reaction at all, so there was no telling what he thought. The only one who offered any response was Orphe, who merely nodded lightly—though her expressionless face made it impossible to tell whether she was enjoying the story or not.
Someone who’ll say “Amazing, Robin-kun!” is sorely needed around here.
Bonita… I miss you.
Once I finished my explanation at a reasonable length, Orphe opened her mouth.
“Lucky for us. The Yugeomgyeong isn’t a clever person. We nearly had a disaster on our hands.”
What kind of outrageous nonsense was that?
“Take that back. Right now.”
Delamion, Delbanas, and the rest of those Del-bastards had already been thoroughly beaten and sent packing, so they could be insulted all day for all I cared. But badmouthing the Yugeomgyeong was the same as insulting me—the one who had fought her to a standstill.
“…Fine. That was a slip of the tongue. To cut to the chase, I don’t think the Yugeomgyeong is a samurai.”
“Why not?”
Honestly, I was confused myself.
Ordinary samurai never debate justice. They simply invoke the law of the jungle or honor and carry out tsujigiri. In the moment she asked whether I fought for the people, the Yugeomgyeong had looked every bit the honorable, righteous knight.
“Have you thought about why the Yugeomgyeong is here?”
“To catch me.”
“Then why didn’t she head straight for Goldon? There’s no reason to waste time in Evergreen Village.”
She had a point. Thinking it through piece by piece, things started to click into place.
“To protect the village from threats?”
“When conflict broke out between the village and the wild tribes, the knight order must have stopped by. The village chief would have begged them to protect the place because it was in danger. The Yugeomgyeong couldn’t refuse.”
“She prioritized justice over revenge…”
That was something a samurai could never do.
Suddenly the old saying about a tiger father and a dog son popped into my head. Even an SSS-rank father could sire an idiot child. Had the relationship between the Yugeomgyeong and Aileen been something like that—master and disciple?
“What’s certain is that knights who actually listen when commoners from a backwater village ask for help are rare. Most of them just take the money and leave.”
[Correct. I agree with her assessment.]
Tribo’s unsolicited interjection was annoying, but his confident tone always carried a certain persuasive weight. After what I had seen yesterday, I couldn’t deny it either.
“Hmm.”
If the Yugeomgyeong wasn’t a samurai, then she wasn’t my enemy, and I didn’t need to worry about her. But what about her side of things? If she ever learned I was a Runaway Ninja, she would probably flip a few dozen somersaults and then go on a rampage to avenge her disciple. With skilled knight-order members at her side, even I would have a hard time escaping.
Breaking the lunch appointment I had already made, though, would just make me look like a ninja with cold feet.
“You agreed to meet at the temporary base at lunch today. She might have changed her mind and decide to interrogate you. I’ll come along.”
“Thanks.”
Having Orphe with me was reassuring.
“Tribo. Look after Diana. Make sure she eats, too.”
[I cannot cook. I possess only knowledge.]
“Is that something to brag about? There’s money over there—go buy something.”
[Understood.]
Inside the temporary base of the Crimson Flame Dragon Knight Order—so obsessively clean it bordered on compulsive—
“—And so, I wish to hire you as Amy’s escort. Your fellow adventurer as well.”
The Yugeomgyeong made a sudden proposal.
Some distance from Evergreen Village lay farmland that fed the people, but fear of the wild tribes had left it untended of late. Unable to stand by any longer, the village chief’s daughter Amy had stepped forward as representative and asked for protection while they paid a brief visit to the fields.
The Crimson Flame Dragon Knight Order numbered only thirty. Guarding the village alone already stretched them thin. Pulling anyone away would create all sorts of problems.
“That was when you two appeared. I will go with you, so accept the request without worry.”
Apparently the plan was for the Yugeomgyeong, one knight-order member, me, and Orphe to protect Amy and five farmers.
“The Crimson Flame Dragon Knight Order is strong even without me. They will hold out fine if a fight breaks out. And when it comes to joining speed, I am the fastest, so going myself is the most efficient choice.”
It was a judgment only someone confident in their own power could make—but it could also be seen as noblesse oblige. Those with great strength taking on great responsibility was a rare thing, after all.
“Orphe. You okay with this?”
Protecting the people was my duty, so I was joining no matter what. Muka’s request wouldn’t start until the carriage arrived in the village anyway.
“I don’t mind.”
“Then let’s go. We can leave right now if you want.”
If Orphe was fine with it, preparations were complete. I had brought everything except the ninja-related gear.
This would also be a good chance to get a look at those wild-tribe bastards.
“Righteous adventurers. On behalf of the village, thank you.”
Red-haired Amy, who had been explaining the situation alongside the Yugeomgyeong, bowed her head in gratitude. She looked about my age, yet her demeanor was mature—early education, maybe? She seemed more like a noble’s daughter than a village chief’s.
“Then we leave at once.”
With that, the Yugeomgyeong strode out of the base. The kind of person who would pull an elephant’s tusk while the iron was hot.
I followed after the knight-order member who was coming with us.
“Come forth! Crimson Flash!”
The Yugeomgyeong raised both arms and shouted at the sky. Her volume rivaled Muka’s.
Pyeong-rong, pyeong-rong.
With a strange sparkle, a horse appeared.
— Hihihihihing~!
Red fur, a single horn on its forehead, and wings on its flanks. No matter how you looked at it…
“Red Hare–Unicorn–Pegasus?!”
Was this the otherworld version of mash-up cuisine?
I sensed no evil aura, so it wasn’t a yokai. Well, Earth had mules and ligers—chimeras of a sort—so this was almost cute by comparison. It didn’t even come close to the grotesque half of the Strange Tales of the Occult.
“Orphe. Is that a spirit steed?”
“I’ve never seen one that looks like this either. Spirit steeds all look different from individual to individual.”
So she had seen other spirit steeds before? Maybe they weren’t as rare as I thought.
“Crimson Flash is three times faster than an ordinary warhorse. My greatest pride. Follow me.”
Looking thoroughly pleased with herself, the Yugeomgyeong settled into the chimera’s saddle and urged the party of eight onward.
Clop, clop.
So… why were the rest of us walking?
What was this? Showing off?
I had never learned to ride, so I let it slide in silence.
“Once we pass this road, we’re there.”
About ten minutes later, Amy pointed to the right.
I decided to check the area with Ninja Radar first and clenched my sphincter.
“…?”
Nothing came out.
Suddenly?
Had I used it too much at dawn and hit a usage limit? Even so, it shouldn’t be a one-time ability.
“Tsk.”
I decided to treat it as a learning experience. For now, to protect my ninja identity, I had to perfectly play the part of the wandering swordsman Robin.
“I sense living creatures. From the rough breathing and footsteps, beasts or monsters.”
The Yugeomgyeong at the vanguard reined Crimson Flash to a halt. Her hearing was clearly sharper than mine.
“Prepare for battle. There are quite a few of them.”
— Waaaaaang!
The sound effect when she drew her crimson rapier was anything but ordinary.
“That’s the Soul Devourer. As infamous as its name. I can feel the vengeful spirits from here.”
Orphe’s eyes sharpened with what looked like fear. By my standards, that level was still pretty adorable. The screams of captured villains were a sleeping pill for me.
“This is our farmland. It was fine just a few days ago…”
The farmstead we arrived at was already overrun by a pack of yokai.
Oink oink oink oink.
Boar-like yokai were rooting up and devouring the crops. Their upper and lower canines had grown abnormally long, like elephant tusks. From the way they curved, they might eventually pierce their own skulls. Creatures that existed to commit suicide—there was no way these weren’t yokai.
“Those are Boarusa. Once they show up, the fields are ruined…”
“What do we do…”
“This year’s harvest is done for.”
Amy and the villagers’ faces darkened, as expected. The farmers’ despair was palpable.
“About fifty of them. I will draw their attention. The rest of you defend. Haaat~!”
Hihihihing~!
The Yugeomgyeong charged straight at the yokai without a second thought. So this was the tactics of an otherworld knight. Bold.
“There she goes again, alone… Hah. We’ll attack when the monsters come our way.”
Judging by the sighing knight’s reaction, only the Yugeomgyeong was the crazy one.
“High-Speed Gale Sweep!”
— Kweeeek~!
The Yugeomgyeong shouted something at the top of her lungs and swung her sword, shattering the yokai.
Wait. She was calling out her technique names?
“That’s it! Look!”
I lightly tapped Orphe’s rigid shoulder—she had been tense.
“That’s a battle cry rising from the depths of the soul!”
Train that way and of course you get stronger. The secret to the Yugeomgyeong’s power was revealed.
“Mm. Maybe you and she are just special?”
Even after my explanation, her faith was lacking. Was this how subway evangelists felt trying to convert atheists?
Hell for the unbelievers was the only answer.
“A few are heading that way! Stop them!”
Yokai fleeing the Yugeomgyeong’s slaughter charged toward us.
“Allow me to show you something!”
I dashed ahead and attacked them.
“—Stir-Fried Pork.”
Bigger than Hyner but slower. I feinted a charge, slipped past its side, and sliced through its torso. The yokai toppled at the same speed it had been running. No matter how tough the hide, it couldn’t withstand a mana-infused strike.
“—You lot are weak.”
More pig yokai closed in, so I prepared Four-Directions Linked Slash.
Yugeomgyeong, are you watching?
This is the original flavor restaurant.
“Mm…”
Feeling the air grow a little cooler, Diana opened her eyes.
Robin’s story had gone on so long that she had fallen asleep.
I was on the floor when I dozed off…
Someone must have moved her onto the bed. Could it have been Robin?
Diana knew better than anyone that was impossible.
She stretched lightly and started to get up.
“Ah?!”
A man was crouched in the corner of the room, watching her.
Startled, Diana froze with both arms raised.
[I bought food. It is in the basket. Eat when you are hungry.]
A hollow voice with no rise or fall—Tribo.
“What about the others? They’re still not back?”
[It would seem so.]
Wrapped in a brown robe, Tribo looked a little intimidating. Diana studied him as she opened the basket he had brought. Inside were vegetables and a few pieces of bread.
“Thank you for the meal.”
He might actually be a good person… no, a good spirit.
Her sister Lamina had told her that most spirits had kind hearts. Her sister’s words had never been wrong.
[Child of the dragonkin. Do you know Delamion?]
“Huh? Yes. We lived in the same village. Though the village is gone now.”
Diana was a little surprised to hear the name after so long, but she answered clearly, word by word.
Tribo, who had been listening quietly, rose from his seat.
[The village… is gone? I wish to hear the story in detail.]
Tribo’s massive frame cast a shadow over Diana.