How To Live As A Third Son Of A Failure [EN]: Chapter 248

Living as the Third Son of a Failed Novel – Chapter 249

As I boarded the ship, Fleta rushed over, her eyebrows furrowed and her eyes blazing as if she wanted to devour me.

“What on earth have you done!”

Scolding me as soon as I stepped onto the ship.

I ignored Fleta’s words and called out to the crew.

“Tie him up securely.”

“Understood!”

Several crew members began to drag Alione away. Fleta approached me, blocking my path as if telling me not to ignore her.

“You said you were just scouting. Do you know how worried I was?”

“I’m sorry for breaking my promise. I deserve to die, but I couldn’t just sit still.”

“……”

“More importantly, what about Sir Jescal and Peter?”

“Thankfully, we saved them.”

Saved them? Isn’t that a good thing? But why does she still look so grim?

“What’s wrong?”

“They’re both injured.”

“Injured? How badly?”

“Investigator Peter is unconscious. He lost a hand in the ambush and lost too much blood. Sir Jescal is also seriously injured.”

Damn it.

I squeezed my eyes shut at Fleta’s words.

“Peter isn’t a knight, so I can understand, but Jescal is seriously injured too?”

“If he only had to worry about himself, Sir Jescal would have been fine. But with an injured person behind him, what could he do? He had to block the attacks with his body. He was hit by about six or seven arrows. A knight’s skin isn’t made of steel.”

“So that’s how those Unholy Knights and their cronies were able to come back? Because Jescal and Peter’s safety came first.”

“Yes. Lordain had to make a choice: provide immediate treatment or exterminate the enemies. Well, you know the result of that choice.”

“Yeah. It was a good choice.”

As long as the people are safe. I’ll kill those bastards someday, even if it’s not now.

“So where are they now?”

“In the cabin. We’ve given them both first aid, but they need proper treatment as soon as possible. That’s why Lordain went ashore alone, because of the injured.”

“If I had just scouted and waited as planned, the ambush would have been difficult.”

“We need to leave Sir Jescal and Investigator Peter on the Golden Honor [their ship’s name] and come back, but by then, this supply base will know we’re here and prepare for us.”

Thump!

At that moment, Lordain, half covered in blood, landed on the ship.

“Are the greetings over?”

Seeing Lordain board, Fleta immediately raised her hand and used magic.

A sudden gust of wind moved the ship, and the beach quickly receded into the distance.

Afterward, Lordain, receiving water and towels from some of the crew, poured water over his head and began to wipe his body.

“By the way, those guys don’t seem normal.”

“Did Lordain notice it too?”

“Yeah. After turning their eyes red, they unleashed terrifying strength, and they didn’t even die when I stabbed them in the heart. It was disconcerting.”

“What do you think it would be like if there was a whole horde of those guys going to war?”

“A disaster.”

Lordain wrapped the towel around his shoulders and clicked his tongue.

“So, is this journey over with capturing that one Unholy Knight? What good will that do?”

“It’s not just one.”

I pointed to Alione, who the crew was tying up.

Lordain scoffed at the sight of him.

“One or two.”

“No. It’s different.”

Fleta tilted her head as I denied his scoff.

“Different?”

“Yeah.”

“Who is he that makes him different?”

“Alione.”

“Alione?”

“Yeah.”

Fleta tilted her head for a moment.

Then, as if something came to mind, she frowned in disbelief.

“Could it be the person I know?”

“I don’t know how many Aliones you know, but the only Alione I know is one.”

“……”

Fleta, who seemed about to say something, realized that arguing was pointless and opened her mouth in a hollow voice.

“Good heavens.”

Lordain tilted his head, wondering about her reaction.

“Who is he?”

At Lordain’s question, Fleta closed her eyes.

“A justification.”

“A justification?”

“Yes. He is the most perfect justification for the royal family to start a war against Rodkius.”

* * *

Perhaps because Lordain had given them a thorough beating, no one was chasing us. Even if they tried, their ships were burned, so it was impossible anyway.

Afterward, I went to find Jescal and Peter first.

The floor of the passage leading to the cabin was covered in dried bloodstains. Feeling bitter, I opened the cabin door and saw Peter and Jescal wrapped in bandages.

“Sir Cain.”

Still, a knight is a knight.

Even though he had been hit by six or seven arrows, Jescal got up from the bed when he saw me. What a monstrous recovery.

“Just lie down.”

“It’s not that bad.”

“I won’t stop you if you want to make me look like a heartless person who demands formality from the injured.”

Jescal smiled wryly at my pointless joke, pulled a pillow, and leaned back against it, taking a half-lying position.

“I think we’re both satisfied with this.”

“Wise.”

I smiled and pulled up a chair, sitting in front of him.

What should I say? As I was searching for the best words of comfort to offer my injured comrade, Jescal spoke first.

“You’re worried about Investigator Peter.”

At Jescal’s words, I glanced at Peter. If it weren’t for his slowly rising and falling chest, I would have believed he was dead.

“He lost a lot of blood.”

“Yes.”

“I’m a little curious about the situation at the time.”

“The battle… are you talking about the battle?”

“Um, no. There’s plenty of time, so let’s start from the beginning. From when I divided the search into groups with Sir Taylor, Sir Jescal, and Investigator Peter.”

Jescal, who had been deep in thought for a moment at my question, slowly began to speak.

Jescal said that everything was going smoothly at first. All that could be seen on the archipelago where they started the search was forest, and days went by without a trace of humans.

So much so that he even doubted whether my information was wrong.

It was during that time. Jescal said that he discovered a strange village while searching a new island.

“A village… I saw it too. It must have been a terrible sight.”

At my question, I heard a grinding sound.

What was that? Did I mishear?

It wasn’t a hallucination. Jescal, who had his head down, was grinding his teeth.

Good heavens, is this the same person who was always so calm?

“They were killing people.”

“If they were killing people…”

“Well, I think Sir Cain knows the reason well.”

I slowly nodded my head.

“They seem to have been conducting various experiments with magic stones in this southern archipelago.”

“Experiments?”

“Yes. Controlling humans using magic stones. The sight Sir Jescal saw must have been part of that experiment.”

“So, they were killing people…”

“Disposing of experimental subjects whose usefulness had ended.”

“I see.”

“Anyway, let’s get back to the story. They were killing people, and you tried to stop them?”

“Yes. Investigator Peter was against it, but I couldn’t just stand by and watch.”

“I understand.”

The rest was simple. The enemies were stronger than I had said, and the part about not falling even after suffering fatal wounds was the same as my case.

“I was careless for a moment because of that. That’s why Investigator Peter was attacked. I’m ashamed.”

“It’s hard to imagine an opponent who was definitely dead getting up again.”

“Still… it wasn’t like we were just being beaten.”

“Um? What do you mean?”

“Do you see that pouch?”

Jescal pointed to a table. And on that table was a small pouch, and when I looked closely, I felt something ominous.

I think I know what that is without looking. I’d bet my entire fortune on it.

[Isn’t that it?]

I nodded slightly at Afien’s whisper and looked at Jescal.

“Is that a magic stone?”

“Yes. I cut out what was embedded in the middle of the village and took it. I thought it might be useful.”

I approached the table and untied the string. After confirming that a strange energy was emanating from the opened space, I immediately retied the string.

“It’s a magically treated pouch.”

“Yes, I did it.”

The answer came from Fleta, who opened the door and entered. She lightly nodded to Jescal, who was in the cabin, and pointed to the magic stone I was holding.

“Be careful. The energy that stone has affects people too.”

Following that, Fleta briefly checked Peter’s condition before approaching Jescal. Then, as she began to take out a potion and apply it to the bandage, Jescal shook his head.

“I’ll do it myself.”

“Are you being shy?”

“It’s not that.”

“Then have you sworn chastity?”

“…It’s not that either.”

“Then stop talking nonsense and take off your clothes.”

Still headstrong.

Jescal didn’t know what to refuse anymore and willingly took off his top. Fleta then slowly began to peel off the bandage, which was covered in dark red, dried bloodstains, with skillful hands.

Changing the bandage with skillful hands, Fleta spoke to me.

“What’s the plan for the future?”

“Um, first of all, the Golden Honor?”

“There doesn’t seem to be anything special. No signal has come.”

“Then there’s nothing to see. We just need to return to Capital by the shortest route.”

“We have everything we need: an Unholy Knight, a magic stone, and Alione Rodkius, who has to explain everything.”

“What’s he doing?”

“I’ve locked him up in a spare cabin for now.”

“You left him alone?”

“It’s the sea, after all.”

Well, unless he has wings, where can he escape to in the sea?

“Have you thought about what to do in Capital?”

“Roughly.”

“There are still many nobles who are reluctant to go to war with Rodkius. Of course, it won’t be difficult to persuade them with what we’re getting. Oh, what about Lordain if we go straight to Capital?”

At Fleta’s question, I shook my head.

“Lordain will go to Capital with us too.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Fleta raised her head sharply. Perhaps because strength entered her hand, the bandage was tightened tightly, and Jescal gritted his teeth in pain.

“Did I hear you wrong?”

“I think you heard correctly.”

“Do you think that makes sense? An elf in Capital? And a skilled one like Lordain?”

Jescal, who was groaning, nodded as if agreeing with Fleta’s words.

“It doesn’t make sense. For someone of that skill to roam Capital… Of course, I know he’s not the brutal other race that the world perceives him to be, but that doesn’t mean he’s allowed to enter Capital.”

“That’s why he’s going with us.”

“Yes?”

“It means he has to go with us because of that brutal perception of the world.”