Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: I'm Home
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How much time had passed?
I’d spent a total of about forty-five days in the past—three sessions of fifteen days each. By my calculations, about a week should have passed here.
What in the world happened to this city in that time?
First, I needed to check on my siblings.
‘They’re not here, as I thought…’
The first places I checked were our mansion and the Ilneon Dungeon.
I had a sliver of hope, but as expected, the mansion was completely empty.
None of my family were in the dungeon either.
‘Right. Of course it’s empty. It’s not an easy place to defend in an emergency.’
Anxiety tried to rear its ugly head, but I forced it down.
‘They’re probably there, right?’
The single most defensible location in this city, second only to the lord’s castle.
I immediately shot off toward the opposite side of the city.
I was trying to stay calm… but I knew I wouldn’t be able to relax until I saw my siblings’ faces.
* * *
The Baron’s Castle.
That was the nickname the citizens of Kushan City usually used for the place.
It was located in the so-called ‘Old Town’ on the west side of Kushan City, an area that took up about a fifth of the outer city’s total area.
*Tap!*
I leaped gracefully over the ‘Old Wall’ that surrounded the Old Town.
As expected, given the tense situation, soldiers holding torches were standing guard vigilantly atop the wall.
Normally, the proper etiquette would be to announce my purpose at the wall’s gate, but I didn’t have the luxury of time right now.
After slipping past the soldiers’ watch and clearing the Old Wall, I ran in a straight line toward the Baron’s Castle in the center of the Old Town.
Before long, a crude but sturdy-looking castle appeared before me.
This was the stronghold of Rivera Pietro, the leader of the rebellion.
It was also the reason he was called ‘the Baron.’
Kushan City was established forty years ago.
But this castle had stood in this spot for three hundred years.
It was the land where the Pietro family had settled after being driven out of Gloryland three hundred years ago.
Count Ksias had subjugated Rivera’s father, the baron at the time, and absorbed this land to found Kushan City.
In a way, you could say this place was the very origin, the starting point of Kushan.
‘Sea would have come here.’
It wasn’t particularly high, but with the sturdy Old Wall surrounding the Old Town and the Baron’s Castle at its heart, this place, protected by two layers of walls, was the safest location in Kushan City.
“Hooo…”
Still, I couldn’t help but feel anxious.
They have to be here, right? Yes. They’ll all be here.
They’ll all be safe.
I was about to leap over the castle wall as I had before when I sensed a presence approaching from behind.
A low, threatening female voice spoke.
“Shh. Don’t move. Who sent you?”
Thin threads of aura slithered out, surrounding me.
If I moved even slightly, my body would be instantly shredded by the aura threads.
I couldn’t help but be impressed.
‘Expert, highest grade.’
At this level, she would rank among the top handful of fighters in Kushan City, now that Count Ksias and his confidants were all dead.
“Slowly. Turn your head. Step into the light.”
Her voice was cold, without a single crack.
*Thump.*
My heart pounded at the sound of that voice.
How long has it been…?
*Crack.*
I reached out with a hand cloaked in aura and swept away the threads surrounding me.
The orange aura threads shattered like sugar, glittering in the air.
“Wh-What the—!”
I slowly turned to face the shocked voice. Our eyes met.
“Katrina. When did you get here?”
“Ack!”
The woman, Katrina, let out a strange noise and froze stiff.
Her body was rigid, but her eyes trembled erratically. Her bright yellow eyes darted from my face to my hands to my legs.
“B-Brother? Is that you? Really?”
“Yeah. It’s been a while.”
I smiled faintly and waved.
“Aaargh! Brother!”
Katrina threw her sword aside and lunged at me.
God, she’s a handful.
She was acting like a dog that hadn’t seen its owner in ten years.
She grabbed my cheeks and peered into my eyes. She gripped my shoulders and scanned my entire body.
She kneaded my newly restored right hand.
She lifted my left pant leg to check my leg.
“Ack! It’s real! Aaargh! It’s really all healed!”
She shrieked with joy.
If I let her, she looked like she’d start sniffing me, so I held her at arm’s length and asked.
“When did you get back?”
“Two days ago! Sea sent a message. Said she was going to strike Ksias. She told me to come back, just in case something happened!”
As she spoke, Katrina held up the bracelet on her left wrist.
An ancient bracelet inscribed with message magic.
It, too, was a treasure from the subspace we brought when we escaped the kingdom.
“I see…”
A storm of emotions churned within me.
“That’s great. But when did you get so strong? You were definitely an Expert, high grade!”
Katrina Egion.
The last of the ducal House of Egion.
It had been almost half a year since I’d last seen her.
She was the leader of the siblings who had left Kushan City to find a new base of operations.
That was Katrina.
At twenty-five, exactly two years my junior, she was the oldest of the siblings.
After I lost my hand and foot, she had effectively become the one to lead our family.
So I couldn’t be happier to see her.
My siblings who were my age or a year younger had all been killed by Count Delkashu. After that, she was the one I could rely on like a friend.
“All sorts of things happened. When we were in this city, you were so overprotective that I never got to experience a real fight, you know? But once we were out there, monsters were everywhere, and in every city we visited, all sorts of bastards tried to pull something… I’d say it’s a miracle we even made it back alive.”
Wow, even so, an Expert of the highest grade at twenty-five.
That was a talent that would be recognized as genius-level anywhere.
As expected of the heir to the ducal House of Egion, one of the most renowned knightly families in the kingdom.
In any case, I was relieved.
Her bright demeanor suggested everyone was safe.
Still, just to be sure, I waited for Katrina to calm down a bit before asking seriously.
“The others… they’re all safe, right?”
Katrina beamed.
“Yep! Everyone’s safe! Hah… And now that you’re back, brother, our family is finally all together. How long has it been!”
“I know. We’re all together. Finally…”
“Ah, this is no time for that.”
Katrina spun around and shouted boisterously toward the castle.
All consideration for those already asleep in the dead of night was thrown to the wind.
“Everyone, come out! My brother’s back!”
Her voice echoed, and the torches of the startled soldiers flickered like fireflies.
A moment of silence.
And then…
*CRASH!*
*CREAK!*
Doors flew open everywhere, and the sound of frantic footsteps filled the air.
*Thud.*
The first to arrive—or rather, the first to drop from the sky after jumping out of a window—was a young man with black hair, blue eyes, and an expression that screamed he was tired of everything.
Baren Rodona.
The last of the marquis House of Rodona.
At twenty-four, he was a year younger than Katrina.
He stared at me silently, then gave a short nod.
“You’re here? Long time no see.”
“It’s been a while, Baren! Let me see… Are you a high-grade Expert too?”
“Yeah. About two months behind sis, though.”
Baren nodded with a world-weary expression.
He always was a cool character.
An Expert of the highest grade at twenty-four was enough to shock the continent.
“Brother!”
Before I could even finish greeting Baren, Daisy came running, her short red hair bouncing.
She sprinted at full speed and, from ten paces away, dove toward me.
*Thump!*
I opened my arms and caught Daisy as she flew into them. The heavy inertia of her leap conveyed just how happy she was to see me.
“…So extra.”
Baren frowned beside me.
Typical Baren. He was like a big cat.
He was the first one to jump out of a window to check on me.
But as soon as he confirmed it was me, he stepped back as if he’d lost interest, just like when we were kids.
“Brother!”
“Hyung!”
The rest of my siblings came pouring out.
“Teacher. You’ve returned.”
While my siblings from the Vanroah Kingdom crowded around me in delight, Seklan, the orphan we’d picked up from the dungeon, approached cautiously and bowed his head.
I reached out and ruffled his hair.
My gaze shifted, and I saw Rivera on the castle balcony, giving a slight bow.
I nodded back, expressing my gratitude for protecting my siblings.
“Lansen!!!!”
Then, a booming voice echoed.
Hearing it, my siblings stopped clinging to me and smilingly made way.
A bear of a man came stomping over.
A smile naturally formed on my face.
“Balseon!”
It was Balseon, our last guardian. Behind him, a line of little chicks rubbed their eyes as they followed him.
“It’s Teacher!”
“Teacher!”
Balseon ran up, wiping his reddened eyes.
The little ones chirped like baby birds.
Ah, it was finally sinking in.
I was home.
* * *
It turned out it was already past midnight.
It was a time when everyone should have been asleep, but my return naturally led to a meeting being called.
“You came back at the perfect time, brother.”
Sea, her navy hair braided to one side, said with her characteristic deadpan expression.
We were in the Baron’s Castle meeting room, seated at a round table.
Despite the massive table, the space felt cozy like a cave, and the round, domed ceiling made even quiet voices echo loudly.
“So, it’s been a week since I left?”
“Yes.”
So the time ratio was 6 to 1. It matched my rough calculation.
“Did you take care of your business…? We can talk about that later.”
Sea said, glancing at Rivera’s people.
The fact that I could travel through time was a secret known only to my family—specifically, my direct siblings and Balseon.
“As it happens, tomorrow—well, it’s past midnight, so tonight, I guess—there’s a joint assembly for all of Kushan City.”
“A joint assembly?”
“Yes. All the armed factions in Kushan City are gathering to hold a meeting regarding future governance.”
They’re doing what?
This was a very different development from what I’d expected.
“Is there someone influential enough to host such a meeting?”
Most of the armed factions in Kushan City were bastards.
The situation I’d anticipated was a chaotic free-for-all, a war of all against all.
But a joint assembly…
“Yes. He managed to pull it off.”
“Who?”
“Ashley.”
“Ashley?”
The moment I heard the name, my mood soured.
“You don’t mean Ashley from the bandit group?”
A nod.
“Ashley the human trafficker?”
A nod.
“Ashley the drug producer? Ashley of the Harem?”
A nod.
*Grind.*
My teeth clenched involuntarily.
Without hiding my rough, agitated breathing, I asked my final question.
“That slit-eyed bastard who got Knight Ipsen killed?!”
“That’s the one. That Ashley.”
“How the hell did that bastard manage it?!!”
Ashley.
A thug from a bandit group who’d come to Kushan about five years ago.
I knew he’d used his unique business acumen to rapidly expand his influence to the point where he couldn’t be ignored.
But no matter how you looked at it, he was not a big shot on the level of vying for control of Kushan City.
Sea let out a small sigh and said.
“I was surprised too. He’s smarter… than I thought. Annoyingly so.”
Sea summarized the current situation with a blank face.
“Until you showed up, brother, we were on the verge of being devoured by Ashley.”