Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 029
Chapter Title: The Stairs Are Far Too High to Climb
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The Exploration Party 'Green Eyes' became a legend in Shedil City upon its disbandment.
It had brought to life the dream that every explorer visiting a city bordering the Demon Realm harbored: striking it rich with one short, explosive success and retiring.
And among its members, Shan—the legendary warrior famed for his overwhelming combat prowess, who had supposedly dueled a cockatrice one-on-one and brought it down—saw his fame soar to unimaginable heights.
"Oh, Shan! Over here, over here! Let's have a drink!"
Whenever he stopped by the Explorers' Guild, every explorer wanted to get chummy with him.
Who knew? Maybe if they built a rapport now, they could snag a spot if Green Eyes ever reformed.
He'd been popular before, back when tales spread of him beating multiple swordsmen or taking down knights.
But his status now was on another level entirely.
Explorers now addressed the Altoin boy—who hadn't even lived half their years—like he was their elder.
To fellow Altoin, he was practically an object of worship.
"Sure thing!"
Naturally, Shan just grinned and went along with it, sitting down to score free food and drinks from all the admirers.
"Here, check this out. You put these in the cup, spin it, and guess the number that comes up..."
One time, he even learned a dice game and played a few rounds.
It was proposed by explorers eyeing the big money the young kid had made, hoping to gamble it away from him.
In the midst of excitedly rolling the dice, the man who had invited Shan flashed a crescent-moon grin and spoke up.
"Shan, I heard you're working with that Roden guy?"
"Yeah. Why do you ask?"
"How do you split the profits, if you don't mind me asking?"
He blabbered on confidently, claiming Roden was just a slick con artist freeloading off Shan with his good looks, and that if Shan teamed up with him instead, he could guarantee even bigger payouts.
But the moment his eyes met Shan's, he clamped his mouth shut without realizing it.
What kind of eyes...
Those green eyes, which had seemed so gentle with their slightly drooping corners, now stared straight at him, sending an inexplicable chill down his spine.
It felt like his throat was about to be slit by a blade at any second...
The dice table, rowdy just moments ago, fell silent.
Shan jerked his chin toward the door and murmured lowly.
"Get out."
He didn't even need to add a pathetic "if you don't want to die."
The man bowed his head low and bolted out of there.
After that, Shan enjoyed a few more dice games with others, but he was soon kicked out.
His sharp eyes and fingertip sensitivity let him perfectly read the dice when it wasn't his turn, and manipulate every single face when it was—until it all came out.
While Shan leisurely passed the time like this, Roden was quite busy.
He negotiated magic stone prices with the Explorers' Guild, finalized deals, then divided and wired the shares to Vent's monastery and Jerpo's academy...
They also had to sell off unused magic tools and various potions they'd bought but never touched, since they planned to rest for a while.
Most had expiration dates, after all—leave 'em sitting, and they'd turn to trash.
Once things wrapped up and they could finally relax a bit, the two received an invitation from the count.
"Roden's coming too?"
"Yes. His Lordship summoned both of you."
Unlike last time, the guards politely used honorifics as they escorted Shan and Roden to the count's castle.
The steward was the same.
He referred to them as "Mr. Shan" and "Mr. Webers," and didn't make them wait forever in the antechamber before seeing the count.
"Oh, our territory's heroes have arrived! Come, have some tea!"
The count went even further.
Gone was the arrogant figure who had once made them kneel at the foot of the stairs and looked down on them.
The old bear acted like they were long-lost friends he hadn't seen in ages.
"We pay our respects to Count Shedil, captain of the Demon Realm Pioneering Knights and shield of the east. I am..."
"Enough with the stiff formalities! I've met your father before, so we're hardly strangers. Good to see you, Roden!"
Last time, he had growled that he was the one who chased out Callion.
Now he spoke like they were old pals—anyone would think so.
The room he led them to for tea was nothing like the grand yet crude reception hall or dining room from before.
For starters, despite having no windows, magic lamps embedded in the ceiling and walls bathed the space in light.
The overall vibe was elegant and luxurious.
The walls held self-moving paintings, and the chandelier overhead flickered in a riot of妖艶 colors.
I figured the count's tastes ran simpler.
As Shan marveled, the count took a sip of tea and fired off a question.
"I heard you disbanded the party?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Any plans to never explore the Demon Realm again?"
Why ask that all of a sudden?
Shan glanced puzzled at Roden instead of answering directly.
Catching the look, Roden replied for him.
"We're planning to rest for the time being. We need to recruit new members anyway... The last expedition was pretty grueling."
One lesson from their two expeditions: recruit companions you could truly trust.
Exploration demanded testing friendships and faith more often than you'd think.
Vent and Jerpo had been strokes of luck, even if Roden handpicked them.
Beyond that, they needed the break.
Two months in the Demon Realm had worn them down more than expected.
"Hmm, I see. Can't be helped, then. I'll tell my steward and the guild master—let them know if you need anything. Your current lodgings comfortable? I could spare a room in the castle."
"We appreciate it, but we're thinking of heading to the capital soon... We'll gladly take you up on it when we return."
"Very well. You're welcome anytime—make sure to come back."
The count frowned at the mention of the capital but nodded without argument.
Then Roden quietly asked him.
"Your Lordship."
"Yes?"
"Does your stance on not being able to knight Shan still hold?"
The count hesitated briefly, let out a small groan, and nodded.
"Fancy room, isn't it?"
"Yes."
Fitting for a Demon Realm lord, it brimmed with magic devices, making it feel like another world just standing there.
It was so flashy it bordered on tacky, actually stirring a bit of distaste.
"Nothing special about keeping a place like this alongside that shabby reception room. Sometimes, the visitors from the capital need to see me at my most pitiful. You get what I mean?"
"Understood."
He'd phrased it delicately, without losing face: impossible due to the capital nobles' cliquishness.
They exchanged a few more pleasantries before parting with promises to meet again.
On the way back, once sure no one was around, Shan asked Roden.
"But heading to the capital? Weren't we staying here a few months to offload the relics?"
"That was the plan, but something felt off. Isn't the count being too nice to us?"
"You think?"
Shan had just assumed it was normal.
Everyone had been kind and warm since he returned with the cockatrice head.
Sure, a few tried to drive a wedge between him and Roden, or jumped him in alleys for his magic stone money and ended up dead...
"Even accounting for that, it's excessive. I thought maybe he'd changed his mind and wanted to knight you to win favor, but no."
"I see."
One of Roden's worries was that the count had sniffed out their hidden relics.
They'd buried them nearby instead of bringing them to Shedil City for slow sale, which meant their haul of monster byproducts looked suspiciously light.
Either way, better to leave the count's sphere of influence now than stick around.
If politics were involved, Callion could gather intel.
Shan trusted Roden's judgment completely on such matters.
"Then let's head home!"
"Not my home."
"Don't say that—just call it home."
The next day, Shan and Roden left Shedil City and headed west.
Wary of the count sending troops after them, they rode their horses to exhaustion the first day, camping only when the beasts were on the verge of collapse.
By the second day, with no sign of pursuit, they took it easy, stopping at nearby villages.
While cleaning his sword after dispatching a few trolls they encountered, Shan voiced a sudden thought.
"We're in trouble."
"What?"
"Pendia's east already feels peaceful."
To outsiders, a land where you bumped into monster packs daily was pure hell.
But after the real Demon Realm, it felt downright cozy.
Edible tree fruits by the road, cool stream water—paradise.
Roden got it and chuckled.
Sure, Libert and other kingdoms had fewer monsters but more bandits and pirates.
Still, Pendians mocked them as soft.
His laughter didn't last—Roden glanced around as if realizing something and let out a quiet gasp.
"Come to think of it, Vent's monastery should be around here. Wanna drop by and say hi?"
"Close?"
"Probably. If the directions he gave were right, half a day over that hill."
"Sounds good!"
Vent's monastery sat beside the fairly large village of Monib, protected like a fortress by sturdy log palisades, as with most Pendian settlements.
At the mention of Green Eyes, they were welcomed as honored guests and ushered inside.
"Well, if it isn't you! Good to see you."
"Long time no see, Father!"
"Get the money alright?"
"Of course—came through clean. No worries."
Being back home seemed to agree with him; in just a few weeks, Vent had put on weight and looked healthier.
After warm welcomes, he glanced around and lowered his voice.
"Something happen?"
"Not what you're thinking... probably."
They shared plenty of secrets: killing an Ajun noble, hiding powerful magic tools.
But Roden shook his head.
"The count got too chummy, spooked us into laying low. Hear anything about him?"
"Me? Know what?"
No way a retired explorer holed up in a monastery got meaningful gossip.
Mid-conversation, Shan sensed eyes on them and whipped his head around.
A girl with hoofed feet startled and fled.
"This place has a lot of Altoin kids, huh."
"Rough lives breed orphans. If families can't manage, they bring 'em here."
Unthinkable for an Old Faith monastery, but New Faith taught Altoin were Goddess's children too.
Not that all New Faith followers shunned discrimination.
Vent hesitated, then added.
"Some kids from their group showed up recently."
"Their...?"
"That Altoin party that ambushed us."
"Ah."
"The one who just ran off was one of theirs."
The 'Swift Scouts,' who got wiped out attacking them, were skilled Altoin from nearby villages.
They'd built solid careers over years of steady exploration but hit a slump lately and vanished.
Vanish because their last desperate raid backfired.
"All their earnings went to the villages. Then deficits hit, so they borrowed from Shedil's usurers. Once death was certain, the lenders went after families—fled here with the kids. Some got dragged off before."
To usurers, kids were salvageable assets.
Pretty ones whored out regardless of gender; others sold to thugs as pickpockets or assassins.
Kids often flew under adult radar for backstabs.
"Hmm."
The robbers got what they deserved—no pity there.
But their families tugged at the heart.
Shan eyed the Altoin kids watching from afar, eyes gleaming.
"I'm their enemy, huh."
"Don't feel sorry. Can't die for pitying bandits. We didn't tell the kids, so drop it."
"Doesn't bother you, Father?"
"What?"
"Well..."
Shan couldn't put the discomfort into words.
Chest tight, vocabulary lacking.
Vent smiled warmly, nodding like he understood.
"I get it. Feels like you're the bad guy without doing wrong. Their stares unsettle you. Good and evil here—too tangled for mere mortals. I suffered young too, but I've let go. All unfolds as the Goddess wills."
Vent's words revealed the subtle barrier Shan first felt toward him.
He'd lived longer, seen friends turn foes and vice versa often.
That distanced him emotionally—betrayal from 'close' ones cut deepest.
Vent urged them to stay the day, but they refused and left.
As their horses rocked along, Shan murmured to Roden.
"Those explorers were those kids' parents and siblings, right?"
"Probably."
"Feels weird."
He'd never dwelled on his victims having intact families and friends.
To him, threats were monster-like, goblin-esque.
Not sudden guilt overwhelming him—no.
But it added weight to taking lives.
A step forward as a human, if not a warrior.
The capital Has remained grand and bustling after so long.
Crowds from everywhere passed indifferently, ignoring each other.
From Shedil celeb back to one face in the masses, Shan chuckled at no one noticing him.
Lost attention made him feel invisible.
No prior notice, so Callion was out; steward Tata greeted them.
Callion returned that evening, as they soaked in the luxurious bath and dined well.
"Letter said you'd stay longer?"
"Something came up."
"Something... I heard about the cockatrice."
Callion tsked, incredulous.
He'd invested believing in potential, but this massive feat so soon?
No faking it—the cockatrice head in the garden was vivid in memory.
Underestimated the boy's power.
After Roden's briefing, Callion frowned and nodded.
"I see. Good you came back. Staying there would've gotten messy."
"What happened?"
"His Majesty's health tanked lately. Bedridden, they say."
Pendia's King Gisel III was forty-six.
Well-cared-for royalty should be hale.
Health varies; serious illness or death not shocking.
But how did that link to Count Shedil's attitude?
Sensing the doubt, Callion elaborated.
"Court rumor: the king declared whoever heals him, by any means, gets the throne."
"That's absurd..."
He who restores the king becomes next ruler.
Roden groaned at the fairy-tale nonsense.
Shan, listening quietly, asked.
"What's Count Shedil got to do with it?"
"Healing methods: New Faith relic or curative magic tool. Relic means war with another nation. Magic tool? Demon Realm possible."
"Ah... got it!"
"Staying in Shedil would've tangled us between the count and princes. Both want top explorers; count pretends patron while lining pockets. Play it with max info and control."
Shan wasn't dumb; he grasped it now.
If a magic tool healing the king crowns the bearer, Shedil wants control over explorers like Shan.
One powerful curative hands fringe lord throne-pulling power.
"So we know something others don't: Count Shedil lacks such a tool now."
"Exactly."
Shedil house descended from Arman Empire's eastern pioneering knights.
No one knew their secret magic tools fully.
If he had one for the king, no need to grovel to Shan and Roden.
Just trade with a successor.
As Callion pondered using this, Roden groaned softly.
"More worrying: even then, knighting an Altoin breaks unwritten rules that hard."
"Not just that. The top prince heirs aren't Altoin-friendly."
Pendia's princes: firstborn Conrad, devout Old Faith; second Elvin, maternal kin to Luman royals who faced Altoin revolt.
Tying to one meant avoiding pro-Altoin image.
Tricky for Callion too.
Backing son Roden and near-blood-brother Shan was for a mighty knight's halo.
But this caps at greatest monster hunter ever.
Great network, sure—but kingdom's (maybe alliance's) top knight? Better.
Couldn't predict king's collapse.
"I'll tap all my connections. Conrad's tough; Elvin likes mingling more—start there."
Shan pictured stern Callion schmoozing, pride aside, to his 'connections'.