Chapter 58
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: The Key and the Flower (5)
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"So, I told you I didn't want to do it, right? What kind of hardship is this?"
"It's just worth a shot. We can't keep chasing after it forever....... Ah! Liberic!"
Tasha greeted me brightly, her body precariously draped over the edge of the castle wall.
I reflexively returned the greeting with a hello.
"Hey, uh, little mage. Out for a night stroll?"
Lambert, hanging from a protruding brick midway up the wall, waved at me.
I couldn't help but let out an incredulous chuckle.
"......Are you climbing over the wall right now?"
"Nope."
Lambert and Tasha landed lightly on the ground and denied it in unison.
I was at a loss for words watching them casually dust off their hands and pat the dirt from their clothes.
"I...... I just saw you climb over the wall."
My words came out much the same as before, still jumbled.
"We didn't. We just...... came over."
Lambert shamelessly wagged a finger before sliding up and slinging an arm over my shoulder.
"The soldiers looked busy, so we slipped in quietly. What's the big deal? The important thing is it's time for a drink and bed!"
Lambert started walking with an excited grin.
I had no choice but to be dragged along under the weight of his arm on my shoulder.
"Where are you coming from?"
Come to think of it, I hadn't seen Lambert and Tasha—or the Hoff caravan leader and his workers—since midway through the banquet, right when the band switched up their music.
"Checking goods with the caravan leader and setting the schedule....... We're leaving tomorrow morning."
Tasha answered from behind Lambert.
Ah, so that's why they slipped out of the banquet hall.
"......But isn't the warehouse outside the walls?"
"Nah, not that. Truth is, we made another contract with the caravan leader."
Lambert's voice was calmer than usual.
I looked up at him in slight surprise.
Tasha looked shocked too.
"Lambert? You gonna spill it?"
"Yeah, 'coincidences are fate,' as they say."
Lambert even quoted an Arbat proverb as he looked down at me with a grin.
"This is just between us, little mage.
We're actually looking for a magic tool. It was something the caravan leader had, but he lost it after getting ambushed by Gatra.
He asked us to get it back—contract's not even signed yet, and he threw in a fat advance. So here we are, wandering the woods on this fine night."
I knew exactly what Lambert and Tasha were after. It was right in my inner pocket.
The tense conversation I'd overheard between the caravan leader and his mercenaries in the forest had been about this.
In the end, it looked like the caravan leader had agreed to pay the mercenaries extra.
I shrugged off Lambert's arm and asked as casually as I could.
"What's so important about it that you're searching in the dead of night?"
"It's a super expensive magic tool, or so the caravan leader says. Too pricey to report to the knights."
I walked a natural distance away from Lambert, keeping a comfortable gap.
"And you're telling me? Why?"
"Need your help. Who's more expert at finding magic tools than a mage?"
Ah, I see.
I tilted my head with a hum.
"I could, but I'd need permission. I'm with the delegation. Have to report to my father...... the Blue Guard Knight and the White Guard Knight."
The caravan leader wouldn't want to alert Prius about a magic tool, so he'd probably refuse.
That was my thinking when I gave that answer, but Lambert just snickered and waved it off.
"Do we need to go that far? Just a quick sha and poof, done. Tell us the rough direction. We'll handle the rest."
I frowned.
"Could you be more specific?"
"About what? Magic? That's your expertise."
"No, about that key......"
I stopped walking there.
The thought of prying info on the key had made the words slip out unwittingly.
No taking them back now.
A chill ran down my spine, my heart sinking.
Lambert, half a step ahead, stopped and turned to me.
His face, when I looked up in panic, was twisted.
"Key? How'd you know it's a key? Tasha, did I ever say that magic tool was a key?"
"No."
Tasha's low voice came from right behind my neck.
Cold sweat beaded instantly. In my fluster, I stumbled back.
The two closed in, surrounding me step by step.
"Liberic? Care to explain?"
Tasha's voice didn't sound friendly at all.
Darkness crept in at the edges of my vision. The shadow of the wall loomed overhead.
Brush leaves brushed my fingertips, off the path, and a massive tree blocked my back—no more room to retreat.
"It's......"
My mind went blank; no excuses or alibis came.
Nowhere to escape Lambert and Tasha's gazes.
"......The black Gatra had the key."
I ran a cold hand over my face and sighed.
Lying or hiding things just wasn't for me.
I'd guessed it was the caravan's item anyway, so it was something I'd have to tell them eventually.
'Call if you need help.'
A concerned voice echoed nearby.
Ash was hidden in the thick brush. Just knowing he was there gave me courage.
I pulled the key from my inner pocket. The moment they saw it, Lambert and Tasha's expressions grew complicated.
"So you had it. No wonder we couldn't find it."
"What the hell is this key?"
"It's called the 'Knot-Unbinding Key.' Supposed to nullify magic," Lambert said, his face stiffening.
His eyes were fixed on the key in my hand.
Knot-Unbinding Key.
Never heard of it.
Nullifying magic sounded like dispelling spells, but even more impressive.
"Liberic, that key's dangerous. Not something for you to have."
Tasha tried to persuade me calmly.
"I know. The black Gatra was after it. And probably the demons too."
"Then......"
"So I can't just give it back to the caravan leader. No idea how he got it."
Tasha and Lambert clamped their mouths shut and exchanged a quick, inscrutable glance.
Then Lambert took a small breath and spoke.
"Alright. The truth it is."
He straightened up, head high, face deadly serious—no jokes or lies.
"We're mercenaries hired by the Knot-Unbinding Key's original owner to recover it.
It's passed through several hands before landing with the Hoff caravan leader. That idiot knew it was stolen but took it anyway, thinking he could flip it for big money."
"So you took the escort job to get the key back?"
"Why else would we guard a guy like that? We knew the crap we'd take. Even had to knock out those Denan mercenaries for the contract."
Lambert's flushed, excited rant made it somewhat believable.
I'd wondered why he'd hire Arbat mercenaries out of all options...... They'd eliminated the alternatives.
"Plan was to finish the escort, snag the key, and bounce.
But before we even hit Veldein, fifty Gatra jump us, the black one starts slinging lightning, and then a Prius knight order shows up......"
I raised a hand to cut off Lambert's sigh.
"Then what's this new contract? You said the caravan leader asked you to find it."
"He just knows it's crazy expensive. No clue it draws magical beasts and demons.
That's why he's paying us an advance to retrieve it."
"We're pocketing the advance, recovering the key, and heading back to the real owner."
Tasha added quietly.
I secretly agreed it was a solid, efficient plan. No sympathy for the caravan leader either.
"How were you gonna find something this small?"
The metal key was smaller than my palm.
Without Ash, even I couldn't have found it.
Lambert shrugged.
"Told you. The Knot-Unbinding Key draws magical beasts and demons. With fifty Gatra and a black one, figured it was nearby."
"So you went out in the middle of the night for this? That was insanely dangerous."
"Trust us. The chain of owners chasing that key? You wouldn't believe it. We've seen some horrors."
Tasha sighed, while Lambert chuckled.
"Gatra are cute compared to that. See how dangerous it is? Hand over the key."
Lambert reached out impatiently.
Retrieving the key was the final step in their plan.
Having already decided, I took a short breath and met their eyes squarely.
"......No."
"Liberic!"
Lambert bellowed in fury.
Ash swiftly moved behind me at the shout.
I kept my expression steady, eyes locked on Lambert.
His face twisted into something sinister, like a stranger's.
"Maybe I was better off when you called me 'little mage.'"
"Not in the mood for jokes. Hand it over nicely."
Neither Lambert nor Tasha was joking; their faces said it all.
I planted my feet firmly, refusing to back down, and looked down at the key in my hand.
"This is a key made by Ragot Althur. Dangerous magic tool that can unbind spells, just like you said.
That's why I can't let it circulate outside the Prius knight order."
"......Ha. You gonna confiscate it? Even though we're taking it back to the owner?"
"How can I trust that?"
Their story was the most credible yet, but not fully trustworthy.
No guarantee this oft-stolen key would return to its true owner.
Didn't even know who that was or their motives.
"That's harsh, not trusting us."
Lambert muttered, face hard.
"Fine. Seen this plenty in mercenary work. Simple fix."
Clink. Their swords cleared sheaths.
I instinctively drew my staff too, gripping the key in my other hand.