Translator: Nox

Chapter 30

"I saw you take the cadet selection exam myself. And I know the results of the ranking battles. You are exceptional."

It's ambiguous, like the story of the birthday banquet. It seems like he has memories, but even if I assume he doesn't, there are plausible reasons for each of his strange behaviors.

Or maybe, because she wants him to have no memories, she's giving more weight to that possibility. Maybe she's desperately searching for evidence that he doesn't have his memories without even realizing it.

I really don't know. It was confusing. Eki slowly closed and opened her eyes.

"...Thank you for the high praise."

"Still, be careful. Monsters are different from humans."

"Yes, I will be careful."

She bowed her head slightly in response. He stared at her intently, then stepped back.

"Then, go back and rest comfortably."

"But, Captain."

He stopped as he was retreating and gave her a look as if to say, 'Speak.' Eki hesitated, bit her lip slightly, and finally asked the question.

"Why didn't you turn on the lights when you came back to the barracks?"

"......"

"Did I perhaps disturb you when you were trying to sleep?"

"...I wasn't trying to sleep, so you don't need to worry about it."

He answered with a strange expression and turned away completely. It was a sign for her to leave. Eki hesitated, bowed to his back, and then left the barracks.

As soon as she returned to her barracks, she collapsed onto the cot. The lamplight flickered, creating strange shadows on the ceiling of the barracks. The shadows, swaying erratically, were so vague that it was difficult to tell what was creating them.

What is creating the ambiguous attitude Yuriene is showing?

Her head was so complicated that she closed her eyes, and the Demon Sword, which had been keeping its mouth shut to read the room, chattered away.

[To tell you to be careful of Monsters, when they're weaker than you. If they knew you completely wiped out a Node all by yourself, they'd be terrified, right? He's so pathetic. Right?]

"Don't speak carelessly about Yuriene. No, don't even mention his name."

[It's true, though! You mean human!]

"Shut up, Bal."

[My Master always tells me to shut up. I'm so sad.]

"If you stop whining about killing people all the time, I might be a little nicer to you."

[......Hey, if you were nice to me, it would be even weirder. Let's just stay like this.]

"......Pervert."

The Demon Sword grumbled at her rebuke. Eki wriggled around while lying down and threw off her clothes. It was so annoying to remove her makeup. Why don't mages invent magical tools for removing makeup? It might be more profitable than Mana telegrams.

She got up unsteadily and removed her makeup. She put on her pajamas, changed her gloves to plain silk ones, and lay down on the cot again. Before falling asleep, she casually asked the Demon Sword.

"The bloodlust I've accumulated, I guess it can't be resolved with Monsters?"

[It's much better than not killing anything at all... But you know? The bloodlust that makes me up is fundamentally the emotion that humans have towards humans. That's why when my shell controlled you, it only sought out humans. Why are you asking when you know?]

"Just because."

[Let's just kill Ian cleanly, huh? He deserves to die! Let's just do it, easy! You'll feel relieved once you kill him!]

"That's enough, go to sleep."

[Tch.]

Eki closed her eyes. She was worried that she would have vivid dreams like before, but that night's dream was very hazy. It was a dream of dancing with someone in a banquet hall full of colorful colors.

Hopes that had never been realized but were desired to be realized bloomed secretly only in dreams where reason had fallen asleep.

* * *

The state of White Raven Gorge was not good. An ominous energy emanated from before entering the gorge's entrance. Inside, a grotesque sound mixed with the sound of scraping metal and the howling of beasts could be heard intermittently. Even though it was daytime, the fog was thick. A foul odor flowed with the fog.

"The war must have been quite rough."

"I heard they poured boiling oil. Many died painfully, so it's likely that Monsters will be rampant. There will probably be a lot of Ghouls and Skeletons. I wonder if Redcaps will come out too?"

Baraha replied to Eki's words. They soon stopped at the entrance of the gorge. Baraha lightly tapped Eki's shoulder.

"Be careful. Stay close to the Captain."

"Yes, Senior."

The subjugation force was divided in half, with Captain Yuriene taking the right side and Giosa Owner Teresa taking the left. Vice-Captain Baron remained to guard the camp with a small number of Associate Knights. As a result, his Squire, Baraha, also remained at the barracks.

'Will it be okay...?'

Originally, Baraha dies in this Monster subjugation. But Eki couldn't know exactly what incident caused his death. All she knew was that it happened on a night when it was raining and lightning.

If I return to the camp before nightfall, it will be fine. Eki greeted Baraha and joined the knights gathered on the right.

She was wearing a black dress and a hat with a wide brim and feather decorations. It wasn't funeral black, but a smooth material with a slight purplish tint. She deliberately chose a dress that wouldn't show even if Monster blood splattered on it.

Since the schedule wasn't expected to be long, her luggage consisted of only a small bag containing some jerky, water, and miscellaneous tools. It was usually attached to the belt, but it would look ridiculous to attach it to the dress. So, Eki wore a belt around her thigh under her petticoat and attached the bag.

She wore a secondary dagger on the opposite leg. It was normal for it to be difficult to balance because the weight on both legs was very different, but she was far beyond being bothered by such trivial things, so it didn't bother her.

Since she was just holding the sword in that state, she looked like a noble young lady who had come out to play with a sword as an accessory. Although the sword was too cheap to be an accessory. Eki ignored the clinging gazes and headed forward.

At the very front of the procession, Yuriene was discussing something with the other knights. Eki stood a little away and waited.

Yuriene, who had finished the discussion, turned around, and the knights scattered and returned to the procession. Unlike the sullen gazes of the Associate Knights and cadets, the knights were either not interested in Eki's attire or just laughed as if it was funny.

Yuriene's gaze was on her face, not her attire. He whispered as he passed her.

"Don't stray too far."

It wasn't a word that wanted an answer. Yuriene, who had passed her, stood in front of the knights, Associate Knights, and cadets who were lined up. Blue eyes quietly scanned between them. The small commotion that had been going on subsided at that gaze. Yuriene opened his mouth.

"It is expected that Ghouls and Skeletons will make up the majority of the Monsters inside the gorge. However, Redcaps may appear, so always pay attention to what's under your feet. Also, if you spot a Dullahan, Associate Knights and cadets should not engage and report to their direct knight. If the supplied silver powder runs out, receive supplies from the temporary Squire of your direct knight, and if injuries occur, report to your direct knight and withdraw to the camp. We will not have any deaths. That's all, any questions?"

His voice wasn't very loud, but it was filled with Mana and echoed to the end of the procession. It was a stiff and cold voice. An atmosphere like a well-honed blade.

Even without raising his voice, the knights were all focused on him. Respect, reverence, obedience, expectation, such things flowed between them. Yuriene dryly accepted those gazes.

Eki stood behind Yuriene and looked at him as if seeing something unfamiliar. Come to think of it, the Azure Knights captain who had come to subjugate the Demon of the Demon Sword, whom she originally knew, had this kind of atmosphere. Because at that time, she felt the sensation of a cold blade being aimed at her as she watched him approach. Not a man who smiles defenselessly like yesterday.

When no one raised any objections or asked any questions, Yuriene stretched out his right hand. There was a golden pattern on the palm. The emblem of the Holy Sword. A pure white sword rose above it.

A pure white sword with a hilt and blade made of a single metal, wrapped in a subtle golden pattern. The sword that the blacksmith of old made by making the blade with human justice as the material and engraving the pattern with human mission. The Holy Sword, Rangiosa.

Yuriene gripped the sword. He didn't shout slogans or cheer. The captain of the royal guard holding the Holy Sword walked ahead and quietly commanded.

"From now on, we will begin the subjugation of White Raven Gorge."

The command was heard in everyone's ears as if whispering right next to their ears. The Azure Knights, divided into two, began to pour into both sides of the gorge.

As soon as they cut through the fog, the stench rushed into their noses. In the world inside the fog, rotting corpses rose and walked, and dirty white bones with flesh attached wandered around. Monsters called Ghouls and Skeletons. As soon as they smelled the living, they screamed and rushed in.

Here and there, swords covered in Mana cut through the air. When a Master knight swept through, the Associate Knights belonging to them cut off their breath, and the cadets chased after and finished them off. That was the basic unit of the Azure Knights, consisting of one knight at the center.

The number of Ghouls and Skeletons was enormous, but in front of the Master, they were just walking scarecrows. The advance was stable, and there was no crisis anywhere. It was truly a 'subjugation.'

The gray wave was being erased by the knights. It was a scene that proved why the Azure Knights were called the strongest royal guard.

Among them, Yuriene was by far the most noticeable. Yuriene had no follow-up unit. Because there was no need. The general of the army is a commander who is guarded, but the captain of the Azure Knights was not a commander but a one-man unit.

White Mana lingered above the white Holy Sword. White Mana remained like a halo along the trajectory of the sword's movement. It looked very beautiful, but the result was destructive. The Monsters that touched the white Mana were almost reduced to powder.

Amplification of Mana, and exorcism, power that becomes stronger when dealing with evil things.'

Eki followed behind Yuriene and recalled the Holy Sword's ability. Rangiosa was one of the Giosa that Eki couldn't use because she didn't meet the Owner's conditions. Still, it was a famous sword, so she knew its ability.

It was natural that Eki couldn't become the owner of Rangiosa. The Holy Sword does not give its body to those who have committed evil deeds. At that time, Ekinesia was a slaughterer, so she couldn't even hold Rangiosa.

When you become an Owner, you can store and summon Giosa through the pattern engraved, but Giosa that does not meet the Owner's conditions must be carried directly.

A white and beautiful but unusable sword. The only person who believed in her, and Yuriene's sword, who died at her hands. What was she thinking as she carried that Holy Sword that would never accept her as its owner?

'He's an unreachable person. Like Rangiosa, who never allowed me to have him.'

Eki followed behind Yuriene with a bitter smile. She was the only one behind him, who had no follow-up unit. Because Yuriene was sweeping so overwhelmingly, she was extremely idle behind him.

Of course, being idle was based on her standards. Most of the Azure Knights members chasing after the captain of the royal guard, who was charging forward at the forefront, were looking at Eki, not the captain of the royal guard. They had seen the captain of the royal guard often, but they were seeing Ekinesia for the first time today. And they all had similar thoughts.

'The Monster found a Monster like himself and made her his Squire...'