Chapter 70
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Bullying, Stop! (12)
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I dedicated my entire life to my lord.
I never doubted that everything I did was for my lord's benefit. That was why she had no reservations. She truly believed her actions were just.
Conviction in one's own righteousness can sometimes be poison. If you think you're right, you lose any reason to stop—you just keep charging ahead. Just like she was doing now.
The reason she had gone berserk was simple. She had seen Yuyoung and Bayard arguing over something trivial. It was the kind of petty squabble anyone might have as a child.
But to Yana, who offered blind loyalty, it was utterly unacceptable. So she had gathered the other followers who served the same lord and relentlessly bullied Bayard.
But was it truly out of loyalty? Or was it jealousy toward Bayard, who shared an equal friendship with their lord? Now, so much time had passed that even she no longer knew.
"Die! Die!!!"
The blade sprouting from her hand screamed like a banshee. Cold metal grazed his cheek. A searing pain burned as his flesh sizzled. Bayard realized it then.
Her blade was coated in poison. Deadly venom, no less. It was a miracle Clara and Ruby had dodged it entirely. A mere graze would have turned the tide.
But Bayard was of the bear tribe. Their ridiculous physical prowess and resistances were their greatest strengths. He had endured even the venom of the Blood Tide—and the progenitor demons above them.
Yana's poison was nothing he couldn't shrug off. His body still trembled. The fear from those past torments wasn't so easily overcome. That much was true.
'But I have my captain.'
Avoiding the problem in front of him, running away—it all felt like defensive instincts born from those past experiences. Yet there was someone who held his hand to the very end.
Even if he wanted to run again, knowing someone would pull him back gave him the strength to overcome his fear and fight. Finally, Bayard's fist connected with her face.
Boom! The impact hit Yana like an iron mace crashing down. Brain matter oozed from her caved-in skull. But even that wound regenerated in an instant.
"What the hell are you even seeing?"
"My loyalty is real! Not like yours!!!"
"I see. So this is what I was afraid of."
Yana's desperate emphasis on her loyalty was pathetic. Bayard assumed his stance. The fear was gone now. All he felt was pity.
What had driven her to fall this far? He didn't know. He probably never would. But that's exactly why he could overcome the painful past and move forward.
Because Bayard had chosen to face it head-on. He had confronted those terrifying memories with his own eyes and chosen to advance.
One step forward—and with it, a fist whipped like a cannon shell, smashing into Yana's head. Crack!! Metal shattered as blood and gore sprayed everywhere.
Yana's body, stripped of will and turned into a puppet by the curse without her even realizing it, slowly crumbled. But Bayard felt no relief.
Pity welled up instead. She had been manipulated without knowing it, no different from a puppet. Still, her crimes remained unchanged. Bayard turned away.
"It's all over, Captain."
"Good work, Bayard."
"Finally done."
"You had us on the edge of our seats watching that?"
The moment Bayard downed Yana, Yuren and Cluna suddenly appeared in the courtyard, clapping and grinning. Helia stood quietly beside them.
"Nice job. Pretty impressive for you."
"Helia... everyone..."
"I was going to step in, but looks like that wasn't the right call."
"So the captain wasn't just standing around doing nothing?"
Yuren scratched his head. Dragons were a benevolent race; to them, non-dragons were merely wards to protect. He'd felt that way this time too.
But for some reason, Cluna had held her back. Even the captain hadn't intervened—despite his injuries. The captain, who had fought her on even terms, was wounded?
A strange emotion surged in her chest for a moment, but she suppressed it. There must have been a reason. And indeed, she soon realized what it was.
'Growing by overcoming pain on your own. I didn't understand that.'
The Bayard she knew was a timid subordinate. She had wanted to look after him more because of it. But that same Bayard had conquered his fear and defeated the enemy spectacularly.
Blindly solving everything for someone didn't fix it all.
Sometimes, you had to let them solve it themselves.
Of course, watching over them to make sure it worked was important too.
To Yuren, it was far too complicated a dilemma.
Holy shit, I barely survived.
I'd been watching from behind with bated breath. Especially when Bayard's cheek got nicked by Yana's blade midway through— I seriously thought he might lose.
But the real problem came after Bayard won. Out of nowhere, Yuren and Cluna pop up? And then what? Saying I wasn't just standing around?
Is this twisted arm of mine just decoration to you guys? Huh? I wasn't just standing around—I had to stand around!! It pissed me off, but what could I do? Suck it up.
Because I'm the weakest.
Fuck. I get a taste of what it's like for a weak nation now.
Cleanup afterward was a pain. Especially explaining to Yuyoung why Yana and Bayard had fought to the death.
"So, Yana bullied you? And lied to me about it?"
"Yeah."
"No way. Yana's my loyal subordinate!"
"Yuyoung, face reality. You'd understand if you thought about it."
"......"
Bayard stood firm, patiently convincing Yuyoung. There wasn't a trace of timidity in her. I crossed my arms and nodded. Finally, some growth.
Thanks to that, I got to experience my arm getting twisted in agony. But if it helped fix that timid personality even a little, it was a worthwhile sacrifice. Bullshit.
I ended up under Cluna's care again. Fixing a twisted arm hurt more than I thought. Especially resetting the bone—I thought I was going to lose my mind.
"C-Captain... I'm sorry, because of me..."
"It's fine. But why..."
"Y-Yes?"
"No, nothing."
I thought her timid streak was fixed. But when Bayard came to visit, she was peeking from behind the door. What the hell? Not fixed after all?
Our eyes met, and she flinched in surprise before ducking back inside. Then she'd poke her head out again, only to hide once more.
What the...? I went through hell for her sake, you know? I felt a little hurt. But soon I was too busy biting back screams from Cluna's treatment.
"I'm dying... gonna die."
"You endured it well, though."
"This treatment took longer than usual."
"The poison seeped in."
"......Was I in danger?"
"Yes."
We decided to keep this from everyone. Helia was already hovering, nagging me to let her nurse me. No need to worry Bayard too.
Yuyoung handled the surviving warriors. Luckily, none had life-threatening injuries. And she seemed to have learned something from the incident—she stayed quiet for a while.
During the week I was getting treated, Yuyoung visited steadily with Bayard every day. Now she was ready to leave. We saw her off.
"Didn't expect an escort all the way out here."
"We're on friendly terms, right?"
"Really? I was hoping for something more."
"S-Stop!"
Bayard quickly wedged herself between the slowly approaching Yuyoung and me. Yuyoung looked surprised for a second, then scowled and glared at me.
"Wh-what?"
"No, it's nothing. More importantly..."
"Wh-what, what!"
Bayard flailed her arms wildly. Her warriors moved to intervene, but Yuyoung held up a hand to stop them. She glanced between us, then sighed.
"I hate to say it, but... take good care of our Bayard."
"Don't worry. I don't abandon my team."
"......I hope that's sincere."
With that, Yuyoung turned and walked away. Of course, this didn't erase her past wrongs. From long ago until now, she'd committed plenty.
But when someone strays, you just set them straight again.
Maybe that's what she'd realized.
Even to my eyes, Yuyoung's steps looked lighter.