Translator: Nox

I Became A Married Man in Another World

Chapter 90

Strange Patterns Began to Appear on the Bandits’ Faces

The lieutenant continued, panting heavily.

“A man is driving it alone… haa… haa… and there appear to be a woman and a child inside. I caught glimpses of them through the gaps in the driver’s seat. There don’t seem to be any other men.”

He was suggesting they raid the carriage. Just a single carriage. The Baron sighed. How had his life come to this? The more he thought about it, the more absurd it felt. A hollow laugh escaped the Baron’s lips despite himself.

“Heh, heh… ha…”

“My Lord?”

The lieutenant looked at him with a strange expression, appearing to wonder if he had finally lost his mind.

“It’s fine. I haven’t gone mad yet.”

“…My apologies.”

“So, what kind of carriage made you rush back in such a state? Is it loaded with food?”

“I’m not sure about that, but… there’s a unicorn.”

“What?”

Now it was the lieutenant who seemed to have lost it. Then again, it was more unusual to stay sane in this situation. Realizing what the Baron’s look implied, the lieutenant shook his head.

“No, really. A unicorn is pulling the carriage. I doubted my own eyes, but it was definitely a unicorn.”

The Baron didn’t think the lieutenant would lie to him. This was a man who had served him for a long time. Even if he couldn’t trust himself, he trusted the lieutenant’s word.

Still, the idea of a unicorn pulling a carriage was hard to believe. Who in the world would use a unicorn as a mere carriage horse?

“…Are you certain?”

When the Baron asked skeptically, the lieutenant grinned.

“Yes, it was definitely a unicorn. I couldn’t believe it either, so I checked twice, three times. Seeing it pull a human carriage, the driver must be a Beast Tamer.”

“A unicorn tamed by human hands…”

As the Baron muttered blankly, the lieutenant smirked.

“That one creature alone would be enough to recover all our losses and then some.”

He didn’t know much about taming magical beasts. However, if it followed one person’s orders, it could be made to follow another’s. If they could just capture it alive, they could find a way to use it later.

The Baron fell into thought for a moment before looking at the lieutenant.

“Get everyone ready. We ambush the carriage. Capture them alive if possible, but if the man tries to use the unicorn against us, just kill him.”

The Baron paused for a moment before continuing.

“No, it’s better to kill him from the start so the unicorn doesn’t go wild. Prepare the archers.”

“Shall we use poisoned arrows?”

“Yes. If he can handle a unicorn, he must be a tamer of considerable skill. It’s best to be cautious from the beginning.”

The Baron nodded grimly.

When he had first crossed the Simoni border to pillage, the Baron had prepared a small supply of poisoned arrows.

They were meant for encounters with magical beasts, but they had been useless against the Orthos. Its tough hide had deflected every single poisoned arrow; they couldn’t even pierce the skin.

But to think they would prove useful in such an unexpected way—life truly was unpredictable.

“Yes, My Lord! Understood.”

The lieutenant answered vigorously and turned away.

“Wait.”

The Baron called out to the lieutenant just as he was about to run off. The lieutenant turned back with a puzzled look.

The estate back in their home country was at its limit. There was no future even if they returned.

Until now, they had barely scraped by on loans from the state and moneylenders, but now, no one was willing to lend them a single coin.

“I know, My Lord. We all know.”

The lieutenant grinned. Watching his subordinate run toward the other men, the Baron set his jaw firmly.

A unicorn was a legendary creature, rarely seen even among rare magical beasts. Regardless of whether it could be put to work, its existence alone carried immense value. It would surely sell for a fortune. With just that one creature, he could revive the Barony. He could save his people who were starving to death.

‘I must.’

He had to catch it, no matter what.

---

Before he knew it, small buds had begun to sprout on the branches. The grey-tinted bark still looked as though it were living in winter, but it had been preparing for spring all along. Seeing that somehow made him feel like he should find more strength. He couldn’t let himself be outdone by a tree.

When he said as much, Lij, who had her face peeking through the gap behind the driver’s seat, giggled.

“Juhwan, you’re strange sometimes.”

“….”

He had thought it was a poetic expression. He thought women liked that sort of thing, but it seemed Lij was a bit different. It wasn’t the reaction he had expected.

“….”

Was he the only one who thought it was poetic? He felt a little dejected.

Lij laughed again at the sight. She seemed to know exactly what he was thinking.

It seemed Dorothy had snuggled into Lij’s lap, as the child’s hair suddenly popped into view.

“Papa, Dorothy’s going to try harder than the trees too!”

“Right, let’s do our best together.”

“Ortho! Ortho, you do your best too!”

At the sound of Dorothy’s voice, the unicorn shook its mane as if annoyed.

It still didn’t seem to like the name. Juhwan chuckled.

Because he had heard Gwen’s advice that remnants of the raiding party might still be around, Juhwan took the reins whenever they entered mountain paths, even if Lij drove on the plains.

‘Though, truthfully, I’m not doing much.’

The unicorn moved forward on its own as if it knew the way, even without Juhwan’s guidance. It was so smart he might have believed it if someone said it was a human pretending to be a horse.

Juhwan looked around.

The slightly sloped mountain path was just wide enough for a carriage to pass. Because it was winding, he could only see the immediate stretch of road. The path ahead and behind was hidden from view.

On both sides of the road, layers of dry, leafless trees stood tall. Behind them, evergreens stretched toward the sky. Between the dense trees and the uneven terrain, it was difficult to see what lay beyond.

Mana leaked from Juhwan’s hands involuntarily. Tension set in. Juhwan checked the arrows placed by the driver’s seat and the side of the carriage.

To ensure he could pull them out quickly in an emergency, he had tucked arrows in several spots on the carriage in addition to his quiver.

‘If there are bandits, this is where they’d appear.’

The thought had barely crossed his mind.

The unicorn, which had been walking calmly, suddenly let out a cry and came to a halt.

Almost simultaneously, Oz let out a pipi sound and squeezed through the gap in the driver’s seat. The rabbit quickly scrambled onto the carriage roof.

It seemed his fears were coming true.

“Don’t come out of the carriage. Keep the door locked, Lij.”

The moment Juhwan spoke, the sound of a metal bar being drawn came from inside. Hearing the long iron latch slide into place, Juhwan picked up the bow he had kept beside him.

“Please be careful.”

Lij’s voice drifted through the gap in the seat.

“Don’t worry, Lij. While I’m fighting, you must never peek out of the window or the driver’s gap.”

It was something he had already cautioned her about several times, but he said it once more.

Hearing Lij’s confirmation, Juhwan stood up on the driver’s seat. Since the carriage was heavy, it didn’t wobble much.

After finding his balance, Juhwan took a deep breath. He couldn’t use fire in the mountains. At most, he could wrap it around his arms to throw punches.

The only thing he could use right now was wind magic. He had to take down as many as possible with his bow.

However, unlike fire, which only required him to release mana, wind was tricky to handle. Using it with a bow required fine control. It was an area Juhwan was still clumsy in.

‘It’s okay. I’ve been practicing for the day this might happen.’

Juhwan glared into the dense trees. He couldn’t see anything yet. But it wasn’t just Oz; the unicorn had also sensed an impending attack, tossing its beautiful mane and scraping the ground. It was like a warning for Juhwan to be careful.

“Pipi!”

Oz let out a sharp cry. It seemed the enemy Juhwan couldn’t see was being felt by Oz.

Juhwan breathed steadily and waited in silence. He could hear the wind rustling through the trees. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the unicorn’s mane swaying gently.

“….”

Only a short time could have passed, yet it felt like an eternity.

Finally, the enemy appeared from beyond the quiet forest. Shadows of people running between the trees began to take shape.

They were definitely bandits.

Their weapons occasionally caught the sunlight, glinting through the brush.

The bandits were rushing toward the carriage in silence, without even a shout.

Juhwan took a deep breath and drew his bow toward the woods.

The bowstring pulled taut.

‘Stay calm. They’re still too far. Even if I fire now, I won’t hit them.’

Suppressing his impatience, Juhwan aimed and waited a moment longer.

The enemies gradually drew closer. There were a lot of them. At least over twenty, maybe around thirty. They split into groups, charging from several directions.

Juhwan scanned the group, but he couldn’t tell who the leader was. They were obscured by trees, and no one wore an outfit that stood out. They all seemed to be wearing tattered, ragged clothes.

‘Maybe I can tell by their weapons once they get closer.’

Regardless, now was the time. Juhwan aimed his arrow at the closest man. Gauging the speed, he aimed slightly ahead of the direction the man was running.

“….”

Now. Juhwan quietly released the string.

With a ping, the arrow was unleashed. Infused with mana, the arrow sliced through the air and flew forward with incredible speed.

The mana-infused arrow flew exactly as Juhwan intended. It felt as if a hand made of wind was gripping the arrow, guiding it precisely where he wanted it to go.

When the arrow grazed a branch, a dull thud echoed through the forest. The branch snapped, but the arrow didn’t change its course and flew straight on.

As the arrow struck, the bandit’s shadow collapsed to the ground with a scream.

Hearing the scream scatter through the trees, Juhwan reached for another arrow. Infusing it with wind mana, he let it fly again.

One, two, ten—in an instant, arrows flew and embedded themselves in the bandits’ bodies. He couldn’t kill them all, but he seemed to have hit about half of them. Even if they weren’t dead, they wouldn’t be moving anytime soon.

That was enough. This wasn’t about killing the enemy; it was a win if he could just incapacitate them.

“He’s using wind magic! He’s a wind magician!”

“Kill him! Attack!”

“Don’t give him an opening!”

“What are the archers doing? Fire already!”

Someone shouted from beyond the trees, and several men burst out onto the road where the carriage was.

Arrows wouldn’t be enough now. Juhwan grabbed his axe and leapt down from the carriage.

‘There were archers?’

If they were called archers, they must be soldiers trained professionally with the bow. Tsk, Juhwan clicked his tongue instinctively.

Juhwan swung his axe wide as he rushed in front of the carriage. With a sickening thwack, a man’s head was crushed. The axe was buried deep in his skull. Using his foot to kick the body away, Juhwan wrenched the axe free and swung again.

While keeping his eyes forward, Juhwan darted his gaze around to check his surroundings. In the right corner, there was a man holding a bow.

‘That’s the one.’

The archer already had an arrow ready. He was aiming directly at Juhwan, waiting for the right moment. The only reason he hadn’t fired yet was because Juhwan was constantly moving. Moreover, he risked hitting his own allies.

Perhaps conscious of the archer, several men moved to the side.

They were trying to clear the archer’s line of sight so he could fire.

Juhwan wrapped wind around his body. Even if the enemy fired an arrow, he could deflect it using wind mana. He had heard that most wind magicians protected themselves that way. Having tried it himself, it was indeed the easiest method.

But life never flows quite that easily. To use wind magic, he needed a certain level of concentration, but a large man among the enemies charged straight at Juhwan. Perhaps he had realized Juhwan was using wind magic.

He held a large sword. His clothes were in tatters like the others, but his boots were expensive. They looked far better than anything Juhwan had seen in the city markets. His clothes, too, must have originally been high-quality luxury items.

‘Is this the leader?’

The moment the thought crossed his mind, the man swung his sword down diagonally. The sound of the blade cutting through the air rang right in front of him.

Juhwan blocked it immediately with his axe.

The two weapons collided with a loud clang.

This man was definitely the bandit leader.

‘Is this guy a mana user too?’

Juhwan muttered and threw the axe to the ground. The wooden handle where it met the axe head was cracked. The wood hadn’t been able to withstand the man’s strength. They said people with mana were rare, but it felt like every Tom, Dick, and Harry was using it lately.

Juhwan immediately ignited fire in his hands. He could use neither the axe nor the bow.

Just then, he saw a man approaching the carriage from the rear, hidden from his view.

“!”

Juhwan turned his body instantly.

The bandit leader swung his sword down from behind.

Juhwan swung his arm toward the man’s stomach.

As brilliant flames erupted, the bandit leader’s clothes caught fire.

“My Lord!”

Someone shouted. The leader rolled on the ground, and several men lunged forward, using their own clothes to smother the flames on their leader.

A short distance away, he saw the archer drawing his bowstring.

But even that didn’t matter. Juhwan’s eyes were fixed only on the man approaching the carriage.

Lij and Dorothy were in there. An alarm blared in his head.

His hand went to the pouch at his waist that he had prepared just in case.

He had prepared resin powder, determined to burn down the entire forest if things got dire.

He had to kill that man—the one approaching the carriage.

Just as Juhwan gripped the pouch and was about to leap toward the carriage.

A pipi sound came from atop the carriage, and Oz jumped down.

The small rabbit’s body latched onto the man. A flurry of brilliant kicks immediately followed.

The bandit fell and rolled across the ground but couldn’t shake Oz off.

Just then, one of the bandits cried out.

“My God, the unicorn! The unicorn’s horn is glowing!”

“What is that?”

The bandits let out screams of terror.

Juhwan stopped his movements involuntarily. He stared blankly at the unicorn.

The unicorn’s horn was emitting a pure white light.

“Uh! You—your face!”

“My Lord! There are patterns on your face!”

“Wha—what is this?!”

The bandits screamed as they looked at each other’s faces and bodies. Patterns that first appeared on their foreheads and cheeks were gradually spreading across their entire bodies—down their necks and over their hands.