Chapter 240
Chapter 240
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 240
Chapter Title: Rookie Holy Knight Azadin 1
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Chadra Plateau, Vermilion Fortress—it lived up to its name with a mine that dug up cinnabar.
But over the past six months, the platoon leaders assigned to this fortress had been dying one after another. The longest lasted three weeks; the shortest, just three days. Already five knights had gone to the great beyond without return.
For half a year now, the fortress had been running without a single holy knight.
The soldiers of Vermilion Fortress were rough, vicious types gathered from prisons around the world.
Their squad leaders went by the title of squad sergeant, and the most senior among Vermilion Fortress's squad sergeants was a half-elf man named Legion.
This half-elf, with teardrop tattoos under his eyes, had been sentenced to an outrageous five hundred years for cannibalism—having sex with men and women alike before devouring them.
His crimes were so heinous and flashy that from the moment he arrived, he became the fortress's de facto boss.
"Hmm."
Right now, that squad sergeant Legion was lounging at the desk in the top-floor office that originally belonged to the platoon leader, chewing on jerky and scanning a letter.
"Fire Glyph says they're sending another new platoon leader."
"What? Bunch of clowns. Five greenhorn knights already kicked the bucket one after another, and they won't even send an investigator?"
Legion's comrade, another squad sergeant named Kalan, grumbled.
Kalan hailed from the Cotton Dwarf mercenaries and suffered from berserker rage, having slaughtered countless people.
In terms of combat prowess and savagery, he outdid even Legion, but his berserk state left him vulnerable to illusions, putting him at a disadvantage against illusion-wielding Legion—which was why he'd yielded the boss spot.
"You think any knight's gonna come here scared shitless? But they need the cinnabar, so they'll keep shipping us more idiots."
"Even if a new guy's coming, he'll be a corpse soon enough. This place is cursed. Don't think those dumb holy knights can do jack about it."
"But hmm. This platoon leader might be fun."
"Why? Don't tell me it's a woman knight? Heh heh. Then we'd wanna keep her alive longer."
"Nah... apparently he's from the Herald Clan."
"What?"
Kalan couldn't believe his ears.
"A Herald becoming a holy knight? That possible? Soulless heretic and all?"
"Um. Yeah, hard to say. No way those stuck-up knight orders would accept a Herald as a holy knight. But one thing's for sure."
Legion's lips curled into a grin, revealing sharp fangs.
"Got my interest piqued. A holy knight from the Herald Clan? That's exciting already."
"Hey, hey. Don't eat him. He'll croak in a week anyway, but if you finish him off, it'll cause trouble. Curb your bad habits for once."
Kalan snorted and pulled out his pipe, sticking it in his mouth.
*********
"Uwaaaah. Lady Izmira! Why...."
MacDougal was sobbing his eyes out as he led the horse up the mountain path.
Ahead of him, Azadin swung his Seramite longsword and Aurelia Dunn, hacking through the underbrush to clear the way.
"Quit your whining, MacDougal."
"How would you know? I adored Lady Izmira! In my heart, we were already married, with a happy family. But why...."
"Hey, rein in the fantasies. She ditched you and sent the whole pilgrimage group to Chadra Plateau—what's that tell you about her status? You think a non-knight, non-noble like you had a shot? Even if not, she didn't seem interested at all."
"That's why it could've been true love, overcoming the walls of status."
"That takes both sides agreeing, doesn't it? Quit sniveling and take care of the horse. The path's rough."
Azadin sheathed his Seramite longsword after extinguishing the flames clinging to it.
"How's the rear?"
Following Azadin were herald MacDougal and peasants armed with clubs. Bringing up the rear were Camilla and her younger brother Kuntachi, keeping watch to ensure the peasants didn't bolt.
"No problems so far!"
Camilla's cheerful voice rang out.
"Good. We're almost there, so everyone take ten minutes to catch your breath."
Azadin called for a break.
"You've been saying 'almost there' since earlier...."
"Already the third break."
The group grumbled like that but sat down on the path without needing a second invitation.
Azadin smiled as he listened to their complaints about him, then focused his mind.
Arael's voice manifested above his head, surveying the surroundings. From a bird's-eye view high above, the terrain came into sharp focus.
"Hmm. That Vermilion Fortress?"
Arael's voice felt close enough to touch. But the rugged mountain path meant it would take time. Azadin alone could've arrived already, but escorting ordinary peasants slowed things down.
"Hm?"
Through Arael's voice, Azadin spotted a group approaching them. Soldiers armed with crossbows and spears were descending from Vermilion Fortress.
About ten in number. Not hugely threatening, but the steep terrain gave the attackers from above a massive edge.
'No way it's happening, but better get out of vulnerable spots.'
Vermilion Fortress was under heavy suspicion of mutiny. Platoon leaders dropping dead one by one, no command exercised for half a year—it was obvious.
Azadin eyed the terrain and decided to push to the nearest flat, safer ground.
Moments later, the armed soldiers arrived before Azadin's group.
"We're soldiers from Vermilion Fortress. You the new platoon leader?!"
"Yeah. I'm the new platoon leader, Azadin. Nice to meet you. Who might you be?"
"Soldiers from Vermilion Fortress. Heh heh."
The soldier saying that spat something out with a crunch.
The tobacco he'd been chewing. A pricey luxury, and spitting it out before a superior was rude by any standard.
"But is it true you're a soulless heretic?"
"Hmm?"
Azadin caught on that these soldiers were deliberately being rude to test him and chuckled softly.
'Judging by their antics, these aren't the platoon killer.'
Real murderers wouldn't bother with a pissing contest from the start.
Better to kill outright or subtly recruit later. Starting with this posturing just meant they were dumb, brutish fools.
"Thanks for coming to greet us. You seem full of energy—mind taking our gear? Alright, everyone, hand your packs to them!"
"Huh?"
"They'll carry the loads. Makes it easier for us."
At Azadin's words, the soldiers from Vermilion Fortress snorted.
Right in front of him, they pulled out fresh leaf tobacco, stuck it in their mouths, and chewed with grins.
"Platoon leader. We came all the way to greet you, and now you wanna turn us into porters?"
"First we should introduce ourselves, exchange greetings, and as the new platoon leader, maybe belt out a song as a talent show."
"Talent show, huh?"
A whoosh cut the air, and something zipped between the legs of the soldier who'd just spoken.
Azadin had casually flung a pebble, slicing through the man's pants.
-Snap!
The pants tore, ripping underwear too, and his privates flopped out.
"...."
The soldier panicked as his vital parts hit the open air.
"My talent's quick eunuch surgery. Wanna see?"
"Uh, hey, boss? What do we do?"
The soldier glanced back in a fluster.
As expected, the real boss had been lurking among the regular soldiers, watching without picking a fight himself.
A giant towering a head above the rest shoved forward from the ranks.
"Such rude punks. Sorry about that, platoon leader. The boys got carried away with their high spirits."
"Nothing tames high spirits like castration and abstinence. Cut 'em off, and they mellow right out later."
"Hahaha. Good one."
"So, squad sergeant. Your name?"
"I'm Komek, platoon leader. Welcome aboard."
"Then you'll carry the gear? Folks are beat."
"Of course. No question."
Komek nodded to his soldiers, who grumbled inwardly but started hauling the loads.
*********
"This platoon leader's got some tricks, huh?"
"He's a Herald, they say."
"They sent this guy 'cause they suspect us?"
"Damn it. Send supplies and women for once. They ignore our requests every time, then dump a soulless heretic on us as platoon leader?"
The soldiers vented their gripes under their breath but quietly shouldered the packs.
Thanks to that, Azadin's group reached Vermilion Fortress a bit faster than expected.
"Hmm."
Azadin scanned the fortress. A small brick watchtower—god knows where they got the bricks—stood there.
Around it sprawled soldiers' barracks and buildings, with about ten farmsteads nearby and another ten or so lodgings by the mine. A modest village.
As Azadin reached the fortress courtyard, a half-elf with teardrop face tattoos and a close-cropped dwarf emerged from the main building.
"Welcome, new platoon leader. I'm squad sergeant one, Legion."
"Squad sergeant two, Kalan."
"Squad sergeant three, Komek."
"I'm Squire Knight Azadin, newly assigned as platoon leader here. Looking forward to working with you."
"Squire Knight... you say."
Legion smirked. A Herald as a knight order squire knight. The sheer absurdity was hard to stifle a laugh at.
"First off, assign quarters for the peasants and workers I brought, and billet the main force too."
Azadin dove straight into duties. His orders were swift and precise, wrapping most tasks up in a flash.
The fortress soldiers, primed to nitpick every move, found themselves done before they could blink.
"I noticed some ruined buildings at the entrance on the way up. Fix those if housing's short. Bear with the squeeze till then. Water supply good? Mine water's often toxic, so you'll want clean sources separate."
"Oh, we have a sand reservoir for rainwater."
"Sand reservoir? Angels' wisdom. Excellent."