Margrave’s Bastard Son Was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 117

“Berik.”

“…Kuhuk!”

At Ian’s call, Berik jumped up. His eyes shone brightly, without a hint of disarray, but the drool mark on his cheek clearly indicated he’d had a sound sleep. Berik nonchalantly frowned and muttered.

“Ah. I’m so tired from staying up all night. I need to go out and eat some meat today, right?”

“Berik. I heard you snoring just now.”

“Must have misheard?”

Cough. Berik rubbed his philtrum, glancing at Ian. He had definitely been on guard until dawn, but as soon as he heard Mini cough, he had lost consciousness. Berik kept glancing at Ian, circling around, worried he would be scolded.

“Nothing unusual happened during the night?”

“Nope. Absolutely nothing happened.”

“Then, go wash up before we eat. You look a bit rough.”

“Food! Let’s eat!”

Thump! Thump! Berik quickly ran upstairs at Ian’s permission. Mini, who was bringing warm soup, stopped in her tracks.

“Did he already go up? He said he wanted soup in the early morning, so I brought it. He has no patience.”

“You can just put it with the meal.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Mini said that when she came out at dawn, he was standing in front of the main gate with his eyes wide open. It seemed he was good at doing what he was told, so Ian entered the dining room with satisfaction. Mrs. Vivianna and Romandro were also there, dressed in light clothing.

“Good morning, Sir Ian.”

“Thanks to you, madam. I slept very comfortably.”

“We have a lot to do today, so let’s get ready and go out quickly.”

Vivianna seemed to have meticulously written out a shopping list overnight. She slowly read out the route of the commercial district they would be going through for the day, reading from a neatly folded piece of paper.

Under the warm sunlight that pierced through the cold air, along with the smell of melting butter, Ian felt a sense of peace for the first time in a while. Hasha seemed to feel the same, as he sat on a chair and quietly sipped his milk.

“Hasha. How’s the smell? Is it much different from yesterday?”

-It doesn’t seem to be. More than anything, the smell of butter is too strong right now.

Hasha was sniffing with his nose, his eyes lost in bliss.

‘Was I worrying for nothing?’

It was like making an enemy in the borderlands and then entering their den. On top of that, he had become sensitive after facing Marib and Gale one after another.

“Food! Food, food!”

…It was just poor Berik who got caught.

Ian felt a little sorry for him and personally poured him some black tea. Whether he knew it or not, Berik began to devour the food on the table.

“Kuhuh! Delicious!”

“I’m sorry, madam. I don’t think it’s good for your prenatal care.”

“Oh my, no. I saw him once when you two went out yesterday. It’s nice to see him eating so heartily.”

“Mini! Prepare the carriage to be warm inside.”

“Yes, Sir Romandro!”

Even a little outside the upscale residential area, the roads became complicated. Not only was there a large flow of people, but the traffic would get worse due to illegal messenger pigeons and children on bicycles flying quickly between the carriages. If they didn’t want to shiver in the cold weather, they had to warm up the carriage in advance.

“So, where are we going first?”

As Berik asked, chewing on bread, Vivianna answered instead.

“We’re going to take the escort knight’s sword to be sharpened. There’s a very old blacksmith nearby. They’re amazing at sharpening blades. We’ll leave it there, buy clothes, and then pick it up after lunch.”

Berik nodded, finishing his meal. His sword was so dull that it was better to use it for bludgeoning than cutting.

“Okay! Let’s go! Burp.”

“Oh my goodness, Berik!”

“…Sorry.”

Hasha growled, looking extremely annoyed. And so, their peaceful morning began.

* * *

“This is the blacksmith.”

“Ian, Vivianna and I will wait here, so please hurry back.”

“Very well. Berik, come with me.”

“Yes, sir. Let’s go sharpen our sword!”

The blacksmith was not far from Romandro’s mansion. Ian and Berik entered with the sword. The stuffy smell of sweat and the sound of metal clanging, which seemed like it would burst their eardrums, echoed continuously.

Weeeeng!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Berik was right next to him, covering his ears and shouting something, but even that couldn’t be heard. Ian looked around and found a yellow bell.

Click.

When he pressed the button, all the lanterns in the area where the blacksmiths could see lit up. It was a kind of doorbell to let them know a customer had arrived. They immediately stopped hammering and turned towards the entrance.

“Boss! We have a customer!”

“Okay, okay. What brings you here? Sir?”

Sir, right? The blacksmith, who was looking at Ian, trailed off, glancing at Berik.

“The blade of my sword is too dull, I would like to have it sharpened.”

“Just a moment. Hmm? Is this a sword?”

“Yes, it is. What’s the price?”

“Five copper coins should be enough, but that’s not the problem. Do you know what this is made of?”

“I don’t. I’m not an expert.”

He had just thought the color was a bit dark. As the blacksmith examined the sword with an unusual expression, others gathered around to take a look.

“What is it? Why is the color like this?”

“Was it post-treated with Mementum?”

“It’s darker than that. Could it be a demon stone?”

“Don’t say such unlucky things! Where would you find a demon stone?”

“Sir, if you don’t know what this is, we won’t be responsible if it breaks while we’re sharpening it.”

At the blacksmith’s question, Ian looked at Berik. It was a question of what to do. But he just scratched his ear and nodded nonchalantly.

“It can’t get any more broken than it already is. Even if it breaks in half, it’ll be better. At least it’ll go in easier when I stab.”

“Do as you wish. Please take good care of it.”

Even while Ian was paying, the blacksmiths kept examining Berik’s sword. It seemed the thieves had stolen something very valuable.

“Then I’ll come pick it up by tonight.”

“Yes! Thank you! We’ll sharpen it with all our heart!”

Squeak! Bang!

When they came outside, Berik’s face was already red from the heat of the blacksmith. Ian probably wasn’t much different.

Swoosh.

Ian stopped as he was about to get into the carriage. It was because he heard the sound of someone stepping on snow behind him. Berik tilted his head as if asking why he wasn’t getting in, and Vivianna turned the handle, wondering if the door was locked. Ian lightly tapped on the window to tell her not to.

Taptap.

“Sir Romandro. Please go to the clothing store first.”

“Huh? Ian, what about you?”

“I’ll walk to cool off from the heat of the blacksmith. I’ve memorized the way, so you don’t have to worry. It’s right after the crosswalk, on the left, right?”

Had he ever been here before? He knew the central area so well it was surprising. Although it was strange, Romandro urged the coachman without another word.

Hee-heeing!

As the carriage left, Berik opened his mouth wide and made a dumbfounded expression.

“Ian! What about me? Sir Ro-mandro! Take me too!”

“You have to come with me.”

“No, I’m really cold!”

“Let’s go. Follow me slowly.”

Ian turned into an alley in the opposite direction of the carriage. Even though he was grumbling, Berik had no choice but to follow since he didn’t know the way. The two continued to enter quiet and complicated back alleys. Even though it was midday, the sun didn’t reach them due to the shadows of the buildings, down to the bottom of the city.

Tap tap!

By that time, Berik also realized that someone was following them from behind. He rubbed his bare hands on his shirt and muttered.

“I should have bought a new one while leaving the sword.”

“Looks like you have some money, Berik.”

“Isn’t the master going to buy it for me?”

“This way.”

Tap! Tap tap tap!

A strange chase continued. The mysterious pursuer moved quickly, not losing sight of Ian and Berik. No, they were trying not to lose sight of them. But…

Taat!

“Ah.”

The two had vanished as soon as they turned the corner. The pursuer gasped for breath, looking around. But there was no place to slip away. It was the moment she turned around, grinding her teeth.

“Hi~?”

Paak!

Berik jumped out and threw a punch. It was a sudden attack, but the pursuer stably received Berik’s punch. Not only that, but she also used the recoil of the force to counterattack. The robe the pursuer was wearing fluttered like a wave.

Thwack!

“Whoa.”

Berik, who barely managed to block it, blinked as if he was genuinely flustered. But that was only for a moment, as his eyes lit up and he smiled brightly as if he had found prey.

“Hey! You’re pretty good!”

“Shut up! Are you Ian?”

“Yep. I’m Ian~.”

Thwack! Thud!

Paak!

A flawless exchange of blows took place.

Judging by the voice, it seemed to be a woman, but her fighting stance was unusual. Unlike the raw Berik, she had the stance of a well-trained warrior. Her strength was also not lacking, and the word ‘amazing’ was all that was going through his head.

“Berik. The woman seems to be left-handed.”

She was mainly using her left fist. That meant the woman’s right side was relatively open. As Ian subtly informed him, Berik immediately went for the right side and smashed his head into the woman’s jaw.

Paak!

“Agh!”

There was a sound of something breaking properly. Berik rubbed his forehead, poking the pursuer’s side as if telling her to get up.

“Hey, hey. Get up. I haven’t even properly…”

Zzzing.

The woman’s face was visible as she lifted her head. Her dark navy, medium-length bob, neat and beautiful without layers, told him that she lived in a fairly wealthy family.

And above all, her eyes shone brightly. A sharp blue aura swirled in her natural black pupils.

“…A magic swordsman?”

“You must be Berik! Die!”

Fwoosh!

Perhaps because of Berik’s headbutt, the woman’s lower face was a mess with blood from her nose. She released her magic power and reached out her hand. A blue dagger flickering in the air. She reached out her hand towards Berik as if throwing the dagger.

Swoosh!

“Whoa! What the hell is that!”

“Berik!”

It was too fast to even dodge. As Berik flinched in surprise, Ian explosively released a wave of magic power.

Boom!

With a roar that shook the back alley, muddy dust flew everywhere. It was impossible to see. Ian waved his hand to clear the dust. The pursuer was lying on the ground, panting.

“What is it? Why did she attack and then fall down?”

“…Shut up! Huff, huff…”

“It seems that was her one shot. Berik.”

“Ah, so it’s one and done?”

At Ian and Berik’s words, the woman bit her lip and glared at them. But she couldn’t argue. It was true. She had never expected to use her final blow like this.

“Alright, alright. Now it’s our turn. Do you have any weapons? No?”

“It is shameful and extravagant for one who is unarmed to wield a weapon.”

As Berik approached, cracking his knuckles, the woman also staggered to her feet. She took a fighting stance again and spat on the ground. A broken tooth fell out with the blood.

“Ah, you’ve got guts. Shall we introduce ourselves?”

“I-am!”

The woman screamed like a shrill shout. She then rushed at Berik, throwing a punch.

“The daughter of Petreio, the proud commander of the Imperial Guard!”

Petreio.

Ian immediately remembered the familiar name.

The man who had tried to kill Ian under Molin’s orders, and who had eventually committed suicide to keep his faith.

“Barsabe Brutheda!”

“Oh, okay! Nice to meet you! I don’t have proud parents! I’m just Berik!”

“My father’s enemy!”

“What are you talking about, you’ve got the wrong address!”

Paak!