Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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"Are you alright, Krua?"
Dielo asked me as soon as I came back from the thicket.
He seemed very worried.
"I sensed a sharp killing intent."
He seemed concerned that I might have gotten hurt somewhere.
His light Blue Eyes, scanning me here and there, moved with worry.
"Of course."
I turned around.
Argenta informants, who had taken Nirua's throwing stars and other weapons as a precaution, were bringing Nirua along.
Nirua and Dielo's eyes met.
"This is Sir Nirua."
Nirua paused at my introduction. Then, he bowed his head to Dielo.
"Greetings."
Judging by his polite greeting, he didn't seem to intend to be hostile to Dielo just because he was an Argenta.
"......"
But the other Argenta informants were not the same.
Since they already knew he was an assassin from Alloze, the informants were suspicious of him.
—Clatter!
Because of that, Nirua was placed far away from the carriage Dielo and I were riding in.
It was practically the same as telling him to follow the tail end of the group.
Nirua might feel wronged since he had decided to dedicate himself to Alloze, but it couldn't be helped.
I had already told Nirua about this situation on the way here.
'Argenta has a different atmosphere than Alloze. They have much more camaraderie and solidarity among themselves. They don't welcome outsiders.'
Nirua simply replied to my words.
'Isn't it better than dying?'
It was a neat answer.
But his answer didn't end there.
'And regardless of title, I will follow someone who is more like Alloze. Someone who uses Argenta's Power in the right place.'
It was just as I had seen in the original story.
The Shadow Swordsmen Clan swore an oath to the blood of Alloze. They vowed to be loyal to the 'one they recognized as their lord' according to their beliefs.
If they didn't follow that oath, they would lose their 'disguise ability' to infuse special magic into their disguise items, and in severe cases, even their lives.
That was why I trusted Nirua.
I'm not Dielo, and I wouldn't trust people so easily, would I?
'So, no matter what kind of place this is, I will adapt and endure.'
'If that's your resolve, then you're welcome. The problem is that other people won't trust you.'
So I decided to use another method.
"Dielo, I have a favor to ask."
"Yes, Krua."
A gentle smile, as if he would grant me anything, was directed at me.
I said lightly to him.
"The Argenta contract, can I write one too?"
Dielo paused at my words.
"A contract, you mean......"
"The contract that Mirta and Dielo wrote."
Of course, that contract was a prohibition against divulging information about Argenta, so if I were to make a contract with Nirua, I would have to change the contents a bit.
Dielo's mouth opened slightly at my words. His movements, which had been stroking the back of his hand, stopped.
"......Could it be that Krua is thinking of making a contract yourself?"
I nodded at those words.
"Yes. In order to completely trust Nirua and use his abilities, and to be accepted by the other Argenta people, a contract is necessary."
Dielo had a troubled look on his face.
"......Krua, I know you know, but contracts are heavy."
Heavy and scary.
Dielo's voice was strangely subdued.
Was he thinking of the dead Mirta?
His face, holding a blood-stained sword, was cold, but his eyes, looking back at me, were trembling.
I thought of Dielo crying silently in the sunset, and then nodded.
"I know."
But Nirua's disguise ability would be really useful in our plan.
I had to bind Nirua with a contract to make him pledge absolute loyalty and keep him here.
"But the meeting is just around the corner, and after that, Alloze or Kartiel will be wondering if Dielo's Lily is disappearing."
Unless it was the Shadow Swordsmen Clan's disguise technique, there was no way to completely hide the Lily.
......Until he and I were of one mind and the Lily really disappeared.
But I wasn't Pero, so that would be a problem.
Eventually, Dielo sighed.
"Then, I'll make the contract."
Then he said something out of the blue.
"Yes?"
I blinked.
Why are you popping up here?
"This is a matter between Alloze's vassal and Alloze."
Dielo shook his head at my words.
"It's also to hide the Argenta head's Lily."
He smiled faintly.
He said contracts were heavy, but his smiling face was light.
The person who killed Mirta and made that expression was going to make another contract?
Even with someone who wasn't an Argenta, but originally from Alloze?
Of course, I knew that Nirua couldn't betray me, but Dielo had no way of knowing about the Shadow Swordsmen Clan's secret.
That's only mentioned in the original story. Even Duke Alroze wouldn't know?
In short, Dielo was throwing his body around recklessly.
I frowned at that thought.
—Slap!
And without realizing it, I tapped Dielo's hand.
"!"
Dielo blinked his watery eyes.
"Stay still, precious head."
Don't go somewhere else and make contracts!
This person really doesn't know how scary contracts are!
* * *
In the end, I was the one who proceeded with the contract with Nirua.
Nirua had already been told about the contract, and instead of being flustered, he was looking at the contract with wonder.
Alloze didn't have this kind of oath of allegiance, so it was understandable that he was curious.
"This is the Argenta contract."
Nirua muttered.
I nodded and examined the contents of the contract.
If I was the one who 'witnessed' Mirta and Dielo's contract as a witness, then Dielo was the one who witnessed this contract.
Because of that, Dielo was also carefully examining the contents of the contract.
This was because the contents were different from the original Argenta contract.
[Nirua, who affixes his blood seal to this contract, must never divulge the secrets of the contracting party, Krua, and must pledge absolute loyalty.
In return, Krua will do her best to protect Nirua from the Alloze family and take responsibility for accepting him as a member of Argenta.
If the contract is violated, the life of the violator will be taken by the Power of Alloze.]
The main point of the contract was this.
"Then, the seal."
Pielle had a solemn face as he brought out a dagger.
Pielle was the one who drew blood from his fingertips, because he couldn't give Nirua a sharp weapon until the contract was made.
But Nirua stamped his seal on the contract with a face that said it was natural to be suspected.
The next turn was mine.
"Hoo."
I took a short breath.
I knew that Nirua wouldn't betray me. But seeing blood was another matter.
How many modern people have ever cut their fingertips with a sharp knife?
But I had to do it.
"......I'll do it myself."
I took the dagger from Pielle. I thought it would be better for me to do it than for someone else to cut me.
With my mouth firmly shut and secretly gritting my teeth.
"!"
I definitely just touched it lightly?
"Krua!"
A surprised Dielo wrapped my hand with a handkerchief. Even so, some of the blood that flowed down fell onto the contract.
"Just a moment......"
I was just as surprised. A tingling pain rose from my fingertips.
But I had to do what I was going to do quickly.
I stamped my seal on the contract as it was.
—Pong!
At that moment, the contract was trapped in a huge bubble.
"!"
If Dielo and Mirta's contract had burned with the Power of Argenta, the contract that received the Power of Water would be trapped in water.
I was a little surprised by this too.
While Nirua and I were wide-eyed, the contract disappeared.
As if washed away by water.
But if either Nirua or I violated the contract, it would reappear like Mirta's contract that had burned in the air.
"I look forward to working with you."
Nirua bowed his head.
The people of Argenta, who were now more comfortable looking at him, untied his body, which had been tied to a chair.
......They were very thorough people.
—Tak.
At that moment, Dielo grabbed my hand again.
"Dielo?"
Dielo was pressing down on my hand to stop the bleeding.
His handkerchief was stained with bright red blood.
"......The dagger was sharper than I thought."
Actually, it was my first time cutting, so I had no idea how deep it would go.
I didn't know that my skin would split so quickly, like cutting tofu......
"It might leave a scar."
Dielo's worried gaze was directed at my hand.
"Let's go get it treated quickly."
He said his own wounds were nothing, but he was fussing over my wound, which was lighter than his.
I can't live!
"Then just this one thing."
I turned to Nirua.
"There's a place to use your ability."
"Yes?"
His expression seemed to be asking, 'Already?'
"There's something to use right away."
Because the meeting was soon.
As I began to explain the plan, Nirua's expression slowly changed.
"......I guess I came to Argenta at just the right time."
Yeah, it would have been very difficult if you hadn't come.
Of course, I didn't say this out loud.
"I'll give it a try."
Nirua turned to Dielo.
