Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Adult Ceremony and the Call to Crossing
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A few days after returning from the Karlon Mountains.
I needed to come up with a solid plan to counter Marquis Millias's schemes.
‘Two options left, huh.’
With the plan to check him through Lutger having failed, I was down to two choices.
Allying with the Salleon faction, or allying with the Crossing Republic.
Both were obviously unappealing, of course.
Even if I joined hands with the Salleon faction, I'd just end up being used all the same, and with Crossing, there was no telling how things might play out.
‘Crossing is too risky. So does that mean I have to reach out to the Salleon side?’
Fortunately, I had a connection to Salleon.
Erina.
Not long ago, a letter had arrived from Duke Salleon's estate.
They wanted to have a proper talk again.
It was probably Erina summoning me because our conversation at the party had ended so ambiguously.
At the time, I was on my way to the Karlon Mountains to recruit Lutger, so I'd sent a polite refusal with a vertical drip line saying, "Stop clinging."
But now, I might have to approach them first for a chat.
A few more days passed as I prepared to make contact with the Salleon side.
Then came the day of my birthday—and my adult ceremony.
My brother Fuji and sister Yulia had even taken leave to come home.
“Happy coming-of-age, Als. A small gift.”
Fuji gave me a command baton used by military officers. It gleamed, made from fine wood.
Max gave me a poetry collection filled with odes to courtship. Miller gave me a history book. And Yulia gave me a stylish casual outfit.
“Congrats, baby bro. Man, you've grown up so fast. You used to toddle after me calling ‘sis, sis’ nonstop.”
“I don’t remember that. And sis, please stop calling me baby bro now.”
“Hehe, like I said before, baby bro’s baby bro forever! If you hate it, go beg Mom and Dad to try harder!”
“That’s exactly what happened.”
“…Huh?”
Yulia blinked in confusion, and our parents gave awkward smiles as they explained.
They were expecting another child—the real baby of the family.
Fuji and Yulia, who hadn’t known, jumped in shock.
Father explained that ever since I’d come of age and started helping with work, Mother had had more time on her hands.
And so my adult ceremony turned even rowdier with the news of the new sibling.
My brothers guzzled down the fine liquor like water, while Yulia pressed her ear to Mother’s belly in awe.
Worried about the late pregnancy, she was already fussing about hiring a top midwife.
It was my adult ceremony, but somehow our parents had become the stars of the show.
“But….”
I glanced around.
Master Ilya hadn’t been seen for a few days.
It was disappointing, since I’d been looking forward to her gift.
“Young master.”
“Oh, Ymir. Perfect timing. I had a question.”
“Ask away. But first… please accept this.”
Ymir handed me a necklace with a peculiar blue gem.
‘This is…!’
It was the necklace Als always wore in the game. Back then, I’d thought it was just flashy art for the illustration.
‘So it was Ymir’s adult ceremony gift. Who knew it had this backstory.’
I was thrilled. Not just with the gift, but because things were unfolding like the story.
“Congratulations on your coming-of-age.”
“Thanks. But is this okay? It looks insanely expensive at a glance.”
“Yes, it’s fine. I didn’t buy it—it’s something I was holding onto.”
“If you were holding it for someone, that makes it even less okay. Doesn’t it have another owner?”
“No, the owner of that necklace is you, Young Master Als. That much is certain.”
“…?”
It seemed like there was more to it, but just then—
Rustle! A presence from my room.
“Hm…? Who’s there?”
The family was all downstairs, and Ymir—the only servant who could enter my room freely—was right here.
Suspicion crept in, but Ymir whispered.
“It’s Lady Ilya. She slipped into the mansion quietly just now.”
“Slipped in? Why….”
I’d ask once I got there.
Creak! I eased the door open, and Master flinched like a kid caught snacking, then sighed deeply upon seeing me.
From the looks of it, she’d left the gift and letter on my desk and meant to slip away.
“This is awkward. I was hoping to leave without you noticing….”
“You’re not Santa. What’re you doing, Master?”
I hurried over and checked the gift.
A finely forged sword and spear.
“Thank you so much. Mind if I read this too?”
I tore open the letter right away.
“Wait, hold on….”
Master gestured to stop, but soon gave up and fell silent.
The reason was in the letter.
“…‘Never appear before me again’? What’s this supposed to mean?”
“Just what it says. Als, I won’t show myself to you anymore. So forget about me from now on and live your life.”
“Something happened, didn’t it? Tell me.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t say….”
“Tell me.”
Grip! I seized her shoulders and pressed.
“I told you at the party before. If anything comes up, please consult me. I promised I’d steer things in the best direction possible. You promised to do that too, remember? What do you think it says about a proud warrior to toss that promise away like trash?”
“Urgh…!”
She bowed her head and explained everything.
*
*
*
A few days before I left for the Karlon Mountains, Master had received a mercenary commission.
The pay was a whopping ten million silane—half a year’s budget for our territory. Around a hundred million in modern terms.
But Master turned down the massive sum.
A clause required bringing me along.
Or rather, the request was essentially for mercenary Wade. Unable to contact the mysterious Wade directly, they’d sent it to his known associate, Master Ilya.
“A request for me…? Who from?”
“The Crossing Republic.”
“Crossing…!”
It had to be that Juras guy.
“Crossing has been mass-mobilizing troops lately. Neighboring nations sharing borders are on high alert. Main targets: Albad Kingdom and Bekavia Kingdom. Those two.”
“Albad and Bekavia… Crossing’s historic rivals.”
Sending me a request amid that meant only one thing.
“They want to use you as a military commander. The huge payout makes it clear.”
“Me, as a commander…?”
“Absurd. Handing real command of an army to a kid fresh from his adult ceremony.”
“No… It’s nonsense from the start to use a mercenary as a regular army commander. Even with my feats at the Poltik battle.”
“Yeah. So there was only one thing it could be.”
“Because I played chess against Juras….”
“Right. I felt guilty for dragging you into that weird spotlight because of me.”
I understood her worry. I’d stepped in for her in that chess match.
“So I refused, but they soon tried something low.”
Juras. That guy would do anything to get what he wanted.
He immediately grabbed Master’s mercenary underlings and threatened her.
“That’s why you tried to vanish from my sight forever.”
“Yeah. I can’t be a pathetic master who holds my disciple back.”
“Sigh, so what? What’re you gonna do alone?”
“Rescue my underlings somehow and vanish quietly to live out my days.”
“Useless.”
“What?”
Juras wouldn’t give up anyway.
“This is his way of showing consideration.”
“Consideration?”
“If he really meant harm, he’d have gone far more extreme. Grabbing your underlings as hostages is just childish showboating.”
‘Come if you know what’s good for you.’
That’s what Juras was saying.
“Grabbing them wasn’t even about leverage—it was to make you crack and come to me. So they’re probably fine.”
But how to handle this.
It was a nominal threat with the underlings, but if I refused, who knew what he’d do.
Plus, if my guess was right, this war was that war.
The great war mentioned a few times even in the game’s sparse backstory.
The Three Lions War.
‘Perfect timing.’
A chance to build a connection with Crossing.
I wasn’t thrilled about allying with Salleon anyway, so this could be my breakthrough.
“Master, mind sending a reply to Crossing? Say I’ll accept if they double it to twenty million silane, plus a share of the spoils.”
Double the pay.
Juras accepted instantly.
And so I set off on the journey to Crossing.
They’d given about a fortnight to join up.
Plenty to prepare in the meantime.
First, explain to my parents.
But to avoid worrying Mother during pregnancy, I told her I was traveling with Master for training, and gave Father the full story.
“Hmm, off to Crossing… What a twist of fate.”
Father didn’t seem too shocked—probably tipped off by Fuji ahead of time.
“I respect your decision, but aren’t you just dancing to their tune?”
“Maybe. But running won’t solve it.”
Dodging might just make him pull nastier stunts.
“Even if it means playing his game, I think facing him head-on is better.”
It was risky, honestly.
Marquis Millias and Juras Pamillion. If you asked who was truly scary, it was the latter.
“Baron Ilrain, I have no face. Because of me, your precious son is in danger. I’ll accept any blame.”
Master Ilya bowed deeply.
“Don’t blame yourself too much. In the end, it’s his choice. As his teacher, trust and watch over your disciple’s decision.”
“…Thank you. I swear on my life to bring Als back to you safe.”
“Better both of you return alive. I’ll pray for your safety.”
With Father convinced, I dove into preparations.
Arranged a carriage from the territory, and ordered a new rust-brown helmet to conceal my face.
The one Mother gave me had been dented by Gillas’s strike back then.
‘I’ll probably be wearing one most of the time there.’
So I aimed for comfort, but the territory blacksmith overdid it.
“Hahaha! How’s this, young master? Made it to suit you perfectly—modeled after the Seven Dragon Helmets said to be used by mythic dragon knights of old.”
“Hm… It’s cool, sure.”
But for war?
Too flashy—perfect target bait.
‘Well, whatever. Generals sometimes go ornate with markings for effect.’
Still, just in case, I ordered one more of the same, plus a plain one.
Right as helmet production wrapped and we were about to depart—
Eonia, fully recovered, joined us.
Seeing me, she dropped to one knee and declared loudly.
“Eonia Mirabel! I hereby enlist as of this moment!”
“No need for such pompous talk.”
It was well-known that mercenary Wade had saved Eonia Mirabel from Juras, so as Wade, she could operate openly without hiding her identity.
That’s why I’d decided to bring her along.
“We’re just comrades. Mercenary comrades.”
“I-is that so….”
She looked disappointed. Seemed obsessed with formalities.
Master Ilya, knowing her type, smirked.
“How about Als’s sworn knight, then, Eonia? Suits your style.”
“Huh…? Weren’t you his sworn knight, Ilya?”
“Nope. I’m more like his tutor.”
“Then as Young Master Als’s sworn knight…”
“He doesn’t have one yet. You’d be the first.”
“The first…!”
The word “first” set Eonia trembling as she launched into her pitch.
She touted her past as captain of Kurabel Holy Kingdom’s guard, fervently angling for the role.
‘Image is way different.’
In the game, Eonia had this world-weary vibe.
After six years living like a burned corpse, it made sense.
She’d been rescued about seven months ago. Guess that wasn’t enough to change her.
‘Impressive, though. Those severe burns fully healed.’
Eonia had regained her former splendor.
Her once-melted skin was smooth, her burned-away hair grown back to a bob.
Her features had shifted a bit during treatment, differing from her game portrait, but she was stunning regardless.
“Young Master Als, please employ me as your sworn knight!”
“Sorry, but I already have one.”
“…Pardon?”
I glanced around, then called out.
“Ymir, you here?”
Whoosh! Ymir appeared from nowhere in her tight dark brown outfit.
“Impressive, young master. I thought I’d hidden my presence perfectly.”
“Didn’t sense it. Just figured you were around. Father’s orders?”
“Yesss… Something like that….”
Ymir trailed off evasively.
“More importantly, young master. You’re not saying I’m your sworn knight, are you?”
“Exactly. Isn’t that basically your job?”
“No good. For a lowly beastkin like me, being your first sworn knight is too much. It’ll get us both in trouble later.”
Considering how beastkin faced discrimination here, her concern made sense.
“I don’t care about that. If you really hate it, I’ll reconsider.”
“I don’t hate it, but…”
She was inwardly thrilled—her tail wagging unconsciously.
“Then it’s settled. Eonia, you’ll lead the escort squad.”
“Escort squad?”
Escort knights were essentially sworn knights, but focused more on commanding guards.
For now, it was nominal with no actual squad, but Eonia beamed anyway.
“Escort Captain Eonia Mirabel! I’ll shatter my bones to serve Young Master Als!”
Eonia blended into the group in no time.
Her natural charisma even mended the awkward vibes between Ymir and Master.
And so Ymir (27), Eonia (28), Ilya (29)—the trio later dubbed the Auntie Squad—was formed.