The Shadowed Legacy of the Soulless Messenger [EN]: Chapter 110

Guillaume Valt still struggled to accept reality. Count Rantark wasn’t a loving and caring father. But that’s how noble families were supposed to be, or so he thought. For Guillaume Valt, who was often subtly looked down upon for his lack of swordsmanship and his less-than-ideal appearance, his only pride was that he was a descendant of the Yaegas gods [a reference to a lineage of gods in this world] and the son of Count Rantark.

But now, the father who gave him life was revealed to be such a villain, and now he was even denying his existence, trying to pass everything on to the youngest son, Adler. And the fact that the entire retinue knew about this except for him was a bitter pill to swallow.

His efforts to somehow gain the capabilities befitting a Count of Rantark had not only gone down the drain, but the fact that he had been playing the fool in front of the retinue was unbearable. What was even more shameful in this situation was how quickly his body tired.

“Hah, I’m exhausted. Can’t we take a little break?”

Despite being a knight, Guillaume Valt couldn’t even ride a horse properly. He was so tired from absorbing the shock of the running horse bouncing off the ground with his leg muscles that he desperately wanted to rest again.

“You’re resting too often, aren’t you?” Midiam grumbled.

She was skillfully absorbing the shock even while riding a mountain goat that bounced much more than a horse. She even performed acrobatics, standing on two feet on the saddle and leaping into the air using the moment the goat bounced. Midiam, who had jumped high into the air, looked around, and landed, looked at Guillaume Valt as if he were pathetic. That was so humiliating for Guillaume Valt. This young girl was riding a mountain goat freely, while he was the one getting tired first. If it were possible, he would have wanted to grit his teeth and endure it, even if it meant biting his tongue and dying on the saddle. But it wasn’t possible.

Aza-din, knowing that Guillaume Valt was suffering inwardly, stopped Midiam.

“Don’t be too harsh on him. So, did you find anything unusual by jumping up there?”

“Ah. The road ahead is blocked.”

“The road is blocked?”

“Yes. Soldiers are setting up barricades.”

As Midiam said, soldiers setting up barricades came into view over the hill.

“What’s going on? Let’s go to the blocked area and rest there.” Aza-din took the lead and began to guide the way.

*********

Barricades were set up on the wide road of the Imperial Highway built by Emperor Yaeslat. Around it, soldiers, non-commissioned officers, and refugees were gathered, setting up tents and camping. Beyond the road, there was a thick fog, so much so that if a distance of just one wagon was created, it would disappear into the fog. It was a basin area, so fog might not be able to escape, but even so, it was unrealistic.

‘I can feel magic.’ Aza-din clicked his tongue, sensing a powerful magic emanating from the fog.

“Halt!” “Whoa!” The soldiers stopped Aza-din’s group.

“Do not pass beyond this point.”

“Go back! Go back!” Then, merchants and travelers who had arrived before Aza-din’s group began to argue.

“You should at least explain why, shouldn’t you?”

“That’s….” The soldiers looked at someone’s face. A middle-aged man with a wine bottle in his mouth, wearing armor, was wandering around, brandishing a shiny sword in the air.

“Ugh, this damn woman! How could she do this to me! You guys! Go back! If I tell you to go back, go back! Can’t you see this fog! If you go into the fog, I can’t guarantee your life!” He was blocking the road, acting violently towards the merchants and travelers.

“…Sir Brock?” “Huh?” Guillaume Valt recognized the man and was surprised.

“G, Grand Duke Guillaume Valt?!” The man called Sir Brock also recognized Guillaume Valt and was terrified. It seemed that he respected Guillaume Valt, as he straightened his body and sobered up a bit, as if the alcohol had worn off.

‘Judging by this, he seems to be a vassal knight, but isn’t he one of the treacherous vassals?’ Aza-din was puzzled by the way he treated Guillaume Valt.

“What’s going on? Now? Aren’t you a vassal of Rantark, the owner of the Saenopi Fortress and the nearby manor? But why are you out here? And why are you setting up barricades?”

“Ah, that, that is….” The knight called Sir Brock said, embarrassed.

“It’s nothing.”

“Nothing? Then why are you blocking the road? Besides, that fog doesn’t look natural at all?”

“……”

“Answer properly. What’s going on? You mentioned a woman, didn’t you? What happened to your wife?”

“That’s….” Sir Brock sighed and pursed his lips.

“I don’t know either.”

“You don’t know?” It was a lie to anyone. It was such an obvious lie that Guillaume Valt was rather shocked.

‘Is this guy looking down on me because I’ve lost my position?’ But it didn’t seem like that. The vassals who betrayed him at the bridgehead fortress didn’t send any beacon or flag signals. They might have sent a messenger, though.

“Yes. Suddenly, an evil fog appeared and swallowed the Saenopi Fortress. I escaped with the residents, but unfortunately, my wife is still inside.”

“That can’t be. This is the Royal Road, isn’t it? It’s a place where the light of the king is strong. Evil magic shouldn’t be able to reach it?”

“I don’t know much either. It happened so suddenly.” At that time, some of the merchants who were protesting because the road was blocked approached Aza-din.

“Oh?!” Among them were members of the Corasar Peddler’s Guild, the Messenger Clan.

“Ah. You are members of the Corasar Peddler’s Guild.” Aza-din recognized them and approached them.

“Shall we talk for a moment?” It seemed that the knight was hiding something from Guillaume Valt. Even when Guillaume Valt questioned him, he just shook his head like a mute, and even though he was drunk and not in his right mind, he kept his mouth shut. He would never talk like that. Judging that, Aza-din left Sir Brock to Guillaume Valt and decided to exchange information with the other Aragasa [a term for a specific group of people in this world].

*********

“But before that, let me ask you. What is that paladin?” The peddler guild members were wary of Zibeck.

“Let’s just say he’s an ally.”

“An ally? How did you manage to get a paladin as an ally?” ‘If I say here that my will is so high that I have gained an ally, they will think I’m joking, right?’ Aza-din didn’t make such a rash statement to the peddler guild members.

“Would you understand if I said he’s a paladin who is in danger of being expelled from the order for meeting the wrong superior?”

“Hmm, but such a person would always try to return to the order….”

“Are you saying that he is an ally now, but we should be careful because he might break away later?”

“Yes.”

“I agree with that. So, let’s talk a little further away.” Aza-din prepared to talk, keeping his distance from Zibeck.

“Ah, before that, one more thing. Are you from the Elder faction? Or the Ara-el faction?” The Corasar Peddler’s Guild servants suddenly asked Aza-din that.

“Ara-el faction?” Aza-din noticed that their vocabulary was quite neutral. If they weren’t friendly to Ara-el, they should have called them traitors or betrayers, but they called them the Ara-el faction.

“Hey, hey. This guy is that guy. That one. Aza-din of Muan.” “Ah, Aza-din of Muan? The younger brother of Ara-el? Then he must be from the Ara-el faction.”

“We are also thinking of switching to the Ara-el faction. From the servants’ point of view, it’s already hard enough to make money in various places, so if they lower taxes….”

“If we create a country of Aragasa, that would be good too. Hehehe.”

“……” Aza-din clicked his tongue at their words.

“Why do you think I’m from the Ara-el faction?” It disgusted him that they already thought of him as part of the Ara-el faction, and that they thought that he would side with Ara-el, who was of the same bloodline, no matter what. What did Ara-el do to Aza-din? Since he didn’t have eyeballs originally, it ended with just a scar on his face, but if he had eyeballs, and if he had actually cut out his face and gouged out his eyeballs, would he still be able to live in harmony with his brother? Yet, they regard Aza-din’s scar as a childish act. Because he didn’t have eyeballs, and because Aza-din originally had a grotesque appearance without eyeballs on his face. They probably think that such a wound can be laughed off, and that Aza-din will laugh and join hands with her later when Ara-el succeeds and gains power and status. He hated that vulgarity. He was furious that they seemed to take his determination to hate Ara-el too lightly.

“Ah.” “Ahaha. We were just testing you, testing you. We are, of course, from the Elder faction. We were worried because you are of the same bloodline as Ara-el.”

“A traitor can’t do well! No matter how powerful Ara-el is, she will only shine for a moment, and in the end, the Elder faction will win.” Those who saw Aza-din’s anger immediately changed their direction. But such a blatant conversion. ‘It seems that those who could not become messengers and are active as merchants have their own thoughts.’ In the end, they would join hands with whichever side wins, whether it’s Ara-el or the Elders. That’s how it could be seen. Whether it’s Ara-el or the Elder side, they can’t ignore the merchants who are in charge of the messenger clan’s external activities and income. It was a good thing for Aza-din.

“So, why is the road blocked here? Why is that knight drinking and swinging his sword around, while keeping his mouth shut about the truth?” When Aza-din asked the merchants, they chuckled and answered.

“It seems that the knight’s wife became a cultist and performed some kind of cult ritual.”

“If she’s a cultist, which side is she on?”

“I don’t know that much. Are you going to investigate? It looks like it would be better not to go in, since there’s fog….”

“Hmm.” Aza-din talked with the peddler guild members and returned to his group.

*********

“I can’t believe it. Sir Brock is known for his diligence and faithfulness. He was a calm and faithful person among our vassals, so I entrusted him with the tax collection of the Saenopi Fortress and its affiliated fiefdoms…. Besides, isn’t this the Continental Highway?” Aza-din called the road the Imperial Highway, which was built by Emperor Yaeslat, but the people of the King’s Church used to call it the King’s Road or the Continental Highway.

“The light of the king is weakening, I tell you.” Scott McGreene, who was sitting in a wheelchair and following the forced march without any problems, said as if to show off. It seemed like he was happy that his words were proven right, but it was nothing more than an act that turned Zibeck, the paladin, inside out.

“I am realizing that my own training is very lacking. I am angry even though I know the truth.”

“It’s okay. I understand. It’s not new to see beings with low intelligence often get caught up in their emotions. Even among the orcs, there are those who give up on their future and just decide to use their muscle power, and their brains are controlled by their muscles, so they just go wild.”

“……” What you’re saying now makes me even angrier.