The Shadowed Legacy of the Soulless Messenger [EN]: Chapter 84

#85. The Brass Knight 5

“Hmm, do you know me?”

Sir Zekt asked, a smile playing on his lips. Yet, a chilling cold emanated from him. Though his face was smiling, he felt a distinct displeasure towards the bandit.

The paladins accompanying Zekt, and even Donear, the bandit king meeting him for the first time, sensed Zekt’s shift in mood. Donear quickly interjected.

“I am Donear, an operative of Count Rantaric. I’m not just a simple bandit; this was part of a covert operation.”

“Oh…”

“Sir Zekt, I clearly saw the Messenger Clan you are looking for.”

“Is that so? That’s good. Please guide me.”

Sir Zekt’s smile remained.

‘Good. I’m alive. For now…’ Donear felt a wave of relief as Zekt’s murderous intent seemed to dissipate. Just moments ago, Zekt had harbored the desire to kill him simply for being present.

But if he was an operative of Count Rantaric? Killing him would surely bring the Count’s wrath. The news of the bandits’ subjugation was bound to spread.

“Please guide me quickly.”

“Ah, yes. But this…”

Donear staggered as he stood, blood flowing from his thigh.

“Ah, you’re injured. Hmm. I suppose I should help you a bit.”

Sir Zekt’s smile widened.

“Ah, yes. Thank… Huh?!”

Donear was shocked. From Sir Zekt’s hand, a dark red blood worm, no, something that had grown as large as a small venomous snake, was approaching.

“Rest assured. It’s nothing much. It will just heal your wound and give your body some strength.”

“Ah, aah.”

The dark red blood snake burrowed into Donear’s thigh. Paladin Jibek frowned at the sight.

“Kkyaaaaak!”

Donear’s scream echoed horribly through the air.

*********

Naga agent Shati was locked in the underground prison, a sword secured around her neck. The bandits had placed it there before they left.

‘I can’t move at all. Why is this so sturdy?’

The Naga possessed more strength than ordinary humans, but using her strength with a sword around her neck would result in tearing her own neck. At that moment, the sound of footsteps echoed in the prison.

“Hey, is it okay? The boss cherishes the slaves here, right?”

“That’s why we should touch them while the boss isn’t here.”

“What if they tell the boss?”

“We’re going to get rid of them all this week anyway.”

It seemed the bandits had come to satisfy their desires while the boss was away. But they were going to get rid of them all this week?

At that moment, a commotion arose among the bandits. Another set of footsteps descended into the prison.

In the basement of the bandit king Donear, in the prison prepared there, was Brand, Donear’s clown.

“Huh? What is it?”

“Isn’t that the old geezer? What? Why are you here…”

The bandits laughed as they spoke, but their expressions changed when they saw the old man holding a crowbar.

“Hey, old geezer, put that down.”

“No, it is you who should put down your weapons.”

“What?”

The next moment, the bandits realized they had fallen into a trap. The basement corridor was narrow, offering no escape, and this old man, wearing cloth armor with brass utensils attached for mockery, looked formidable.

“No!”

The bandits tried to draw their swords, but the old man’s crowbar cut through the air first.

‘What’s going on?’

Shati listened to the sounds outside. With limited information, her imagination ran wild, mostly in a bad direction.

Well, in her current situation, having good thoughts would likely be delusional. Her mission had failed, her colleague had been killed, and she had a restraint around her neck. At that moment, the door opened.

“Come out, miss.”

The clown old man, wearing a brass washbasin instead of a helmet, opened the prison door. Behind him were other women, half of whom looked as bewildered as she was, and half of whom clearly understood the situation.

‘A prepared rebellion. Some members have prepared meticulously. Those who didn’t realize it must be newcomers?’

Shati noticed and came out of the prison. Among the calm women, a woman who seemed to be the leader walked out. Wearing rags that were hardly clothes, she took out a key and released the restraint around her neck.

“Now, let’s escape. Gather food, water, clothes, and shoes. After that, we’ll set this place on fire.”

“Where are we escaping to?”

“We’ll leave this den and head towards the Rantaric territory. If we follow the water to the west, we can reach Count Rantaric’s land.”

“It’s a straight path. But there doesn’t seem to be another way. Ah, by any chance, do you have my luggage? There’s something very important inside…”

“Are you looking for this?”

The woman in rags held up Shati’s briefcase.

“Ah!”

“I’ll keep this with me.”

She said that and picked up a short sword from the body of a slain bandit.

“……”

She slightly drew the blade, then put it back in its sheath and fastened it to her waist, looking like she was used to handling weapons.

“I heard the bandits say you were a Naga. Is that true?”

The woman’s gaze was sharp as she questioned her. Judging by her sword handling and gaze, she seemed like a formidable person.

“That’s right. I am a confidante of the great Cobra Queen Debislin. But I had an important item stolen by those bandits, so please return it. If it’s not resealed…”

“If it’s not resealed, what?”

When Shati was captured by the bandits, she had broken the seal of the Divine King’s Scripture copy to be tracked again. If it wasn’t resealed, she would eventually be tracked.

‘But if I ask for it now, I’ll have to fight these people.’

Shati chose her words after seeing the woman glaring at her.

“If you cooperate with us, I’ll return it to you then. Until then, I’ll keep it.”

The runaway slave woman, knowing that Shati was interested in the bag, kept it as collateral to control her.

“Now, let’s go.”

The old man with the crowbar led the way. The women gathered the necessary items from the den and set it on fire.

‘Is there really a need for this? Isn’t it just attracting the bandits?’

Shati thought so, but soon understood why they had set the fire.

On the path leading from the bandits’ den to the Rantaric territory, there was a rugged valley, and a suspension bridge made of wood and rope was hanging over it.

It wasn’t a makeshift suspension bridge; the hemp ropes were thicker than an arm, and even had wire wrapped around them, so if you tried to cut it with a sword, the blade would bend and bounce off.

The old man with the brass washbasin poured oil on the bridge and set it on fire, destroying it. If they were going to cut the bridge anyway, there was no reason to fear the smoke, as long as they escaped silently.

But as they were burning the bridge, a group arrived at the bandits’ den. It was Azadin’s group, leading three Kerim mountain goats.

“Greetings, everyone.”

“Ugh. That, that guy…”

Shati, the Naga agent, frowned as she saw Azadin, who had tracked them all the way here.

“We have come to capture that woman who has an important item of ours. We would be very grateful if you would hand her over.”

“Ha, that’s ridiculous! It wasn’t yours in the first place, was it?”

“It’s originally ours! It belongs to our Aragas!” [Aragas is a term referring to the Messenger Clan’s people]

Midiam, unable to hold back, said that, and people looked puzzled.

“Aragas? What’s that?”

“They’re talking about the Messenger Clan!”

Shati exposed that Azadin’s group were members of the Messenger Clan.

“Then at least they’re not in league with the bandits.”

Brand was relieved to hear that Azadin’s group were members of the Messenger Clan.

“Since we’ve cut the bridge, they’ll probably just attack with arrows, right? It’s dangerous, but the distance is quite far, and there are civilians… Huh?”

At that moment, Azadin’s group started running on the mountain goats. They ran down the slope and then easily climbed the cliff. Mountain goats were much better at traversing rough terrain than horses, and they could climb cliffs that were impossible for horses.

“Oh!”

Shati was bewildered as she saw Azadin’s group rushing towards her. The way they easily climbed the rugged cliff as if it were flat ground added credibility to the rumors about the Messenger Clan that were already widely known.

But Brand, the old man with the brass washbasin, pointed his crowbar at Azadin.

“Stop!”

“Hahaha. What’s with this old man? Why is he wearing a washbasin on his head?”

Midiam laughed and tried to draw her sword from the mountain goat, but Azadin spread his hand to stop her and stopped himself as well.

“Huh?”

“We’re not trying to harm you, but to get back the item she stole.”

“I understand that you are not in league with the bandits, but I will not forgive you if you try to forcefully take an item from a woman in distress.”

“Why? She doesn’t have a deep connection with you, so why do you trust her so much?”

Azadin suddenly became curious. These old men and the runaway slave group were definitely not in a relaxed state.

“Why would you bother to take in a suspicious Naga woman?”

“We are just the elderly and weak. There are even pregnant women among us. If we start abandoning those we don’t need, we will all end up scattered.”

The old man pointed his crowbar at Azadin.

“So, rather than abandoning someone to ensure our safety, I’d rather fight and die. Even if you’re right and she’s a thief, won’t you back down now?”

“Haha. You’re being unreasonable. You’re going to protect her even though you know it’s foolish?”

“Because even now, my knees are trembling so much that they feel like they’re about to buckle. If I don’t stand up to it with stubbornness, with unreasonable force, I’m afraid I’ll succumb to evil again.”

“You’re being stubborn to avoid being cowardly? Very well.”

Azadin jumped off the Kerim mountain goat and landed.

Was he going to fight?

Everyone took a step back in fear, but Azadin bowed after landing.

“It is the duty of the Emperor’s messenger to answer the voices of the people, so I will help you.”

“Are you serious?”

This time, the old man was surprised. Ismail grumbled from behind.

“There’s no gold, so why bother…”

“Wait a minute!”

The Naga woman, Shati, objected. From what Azadin was saying, wasn’t he going to accompany this group of runaway slaves?

“It’s obviously a lie! That Messenger Clan is just trying to say anything to act together to get my item!”

It was she who was panicking and saying anything. Azadin began to subtly pressure Shati, who was making mistakes.