UHWKT 20

Chapter 20

“Getting into trouble day after day, I see.”
“Could you call it results instead?”
“How did you know Robert Gale was a traitor?”

Caius asked from where he was perched on the desk. I quietly averted my gaze and answered.

“…A hunch?”

What.
Why.
Don’t look at me like that.
I even helped you catch a turncoat.

Seriously, this unfilial brat never lets anything slide.

“…I told you I could track down the culprit behind that incident, didn’t I? It’s a similar principle.”
“Does your magic come with some kind of clairvoyance?”
“I know. I’m amazing.”

Suddenly exhausted, I flopped down on the desk as I replied.

I’m hungry.
The spell of truth has such a complicated formula that it consumes way too much mana.
That’s why I was planning to have him quietly dismissed with a bit of violence and insubordination and buried without anyone knowing.

Waaah, what a waste of my mana.

“Anyway, don’t be so suspicious. I did my best.”
“Fine. You did well.”

Huh?
Startled, I lifted my head.

“Did you eat something weird?”
Caius looked at me like I was the strange one.

“What’s with that reaction?”
“Why are you suddenly praising me? That’s scary.”
“Borrowing your words, you produced results. You uncovered a fact no one had noticed for eight years and expelled a traitor, so I praised you. What’s wrong with that?”
“I thought you’d start doubting me, saying it was some kind of crafty scheme.”
“My judgment hasn’t deteriorated to that extent. And didn’t you say it yourself? That you’re a ‘good black mage.’”
“Strictly speaking, I’m not a black mage.”
“I’ll admit it. This time, I benefited from your efforts.”
“What the heck, this feels so unfamiliar.”

When I shivered with goosebumps, Caius chuckled and said he wasn’t the kind of ruffian who nitpicked when someone did a good job.

“In any case, thanks to you, the position of captain of the guard is now vacant. What do you plan to do?”
“Are you… going to entrust it to me?”

You trust me that much just because I caught Robert?

“No. Dream on.”

I knew it.
He asked even though he never planned to give it to me.

But that was fine.
I already had someone in mind.

I’d hurriedly driven Robert out not only because he was a traitor, but also to bring a certain promising talent to the Lucifenia territory.

“The guard needs to be reorganized quickly. The golems may be blocking the mountain range, but an invasion by black mages is a different matter, right? If Robert’s been leaking information from inside the territory all this time, we desperately need a trustworthy successor.”
Caius frowned.

He was probably thinking of the same person I was.

“I’ll need to step out for a bit.”

After thinking for a long while, Caius stood up.

That’s it—he’s going.
You have to bring him back.
He’s someone both you and I need.

“Have a safe trip.”
I hurried back to the desk and waved my hand lightly.

Go on, hurry.
While you’re gone, I’ll eat and rest.
I haven’t eaten anything, and I poured all my mana into potions—I’m starving to death.

“What are you doing, not getting up?”
“Huh?”

[Kyuu?]

“Didn’t you hear me say I needed to step out just now?”
“…Me too?”
“You can use teleportation magic, can’t you?”

There he goes again, not listening.

“I think you could just go alone this time. I already caught Robert and… I’m hungry….”
“Then you should come with me. It’s your ‘result,’ isn’t it?”
“Usually when you produce results, they let you rest….”

[Kyuu, kyuu!]

Golsoon and I timidly protested together, but it was useless. Caius looked like he was ready to hoist me over his shoulder if I didn’t get up.

I really hate this.

In the end, unable to withstand his glare, I sluggishly stood.

“Golsoon, rest here. I’ll be back soon.”
[Kyuu?]

Caius casually swept his gaze over me and called out the coordinates to the middle of the northwestern forest—an isolated place that would take at least a month to reach by carriage from the Lucifenia territory.

I just said I was hungry.
Is this what employee benefits are supposed to look like?

“…We really have to go, right?”
I asked, clinging to a thread of hope. Caius smiled at me crookedly. His expression clearly said not a chance.

“Field work. Ever heard of it?”

So infuriating.

*****

In the middle of the western forest.

Massive broadleaf trees stretched in every direction, their tops nowhere in sight. It was so dark that I was grateful for the little light filtering through the leaves.

If you get lost here, it’s over.

As I looked around, awed and dismayed at the same time, Caius strode ahead.

“Do you know where you’re going?”
Instead of answering, he picked up speed. He cut through the trees without hesitation, as if he knew the way, so I had no choice but to trail after him.

Not long after, we spotted a small cabin in the forest.

“…So this actually works.”

I was beyond surprised—utterly dumbfounded.

What is this guy?
A human GPS?
How does he find his way without even a compass? Is this something you can do if you become a sword master?

I knew he’d come here several times before to try to persuade the man, but even considering that, his sense of direction was terrifying.

It’s troublesome when the author shows off settings even they didn’t know about.

“He’s here.”
Caius left me standing in a clearing that could hardly be called a yard and knocked on the cabin door.

Bang, bang.

No answer.

Bang, bang.
“It’s me. Open up.”

Silence.

“…Guess he’s not here?”
After a moment of thought, Caius turned the doorknob.

I swallowed a sigh at his completely casual attempt at breaking and entering.
Fortunately, the door didn’t open—it was locked.

Right. Even if you live alone in the forest, locking your door is important. You never know who might try to break in.
Like right now.
Look at him, twisting the knob.

That was when—

“Your Highness… the Crown Prince?”

Someone called out to him from behind. It was a half-gray-haired man carrying a bundle of firewood. His clothes were shabby, as if he’d lived alone in the forest for a long time, but he couldn’t hide the quiet strength and sharpness in his eyes.

“Damon.”
Caius withdrew his hand from the doorknob.

“Let’s talk for a bit.”

After a brief moment of surprise, the man looked from Caius to me standing a short distance away, and his expression hardened.

“I have nothing more to say. Please return.”
Huh?

“This forest becomes dangerous after sunset. Take His Highness and go back at once.”

He even addressed me with that request, then briskly walked past us.

“Take care.”

Damon lightly shoved aside Caius, who was standing by the door, and slipped inside.

Bang.
The door slammed shut.

Whoooosh.
The surrounding weeds swayed in the wind.

“…Is it always like this?”

*****

“He’s like your mentor, isn’t he?”
Caius tilted his head.

“You really know everything.”
“He’s famous.”

Surprisingly, Caius answered readily.

“Yes. He was the swordsmanship instructor for my brother and me. He was also the knight our late emperor trusted most.”

Damon Nielsen.
Until the former emperor’s death, he had served as the captain of the royal guard.

Right after the tragedy, he took full responsibility, resigned from all his posts, and disappeared.
Caius had come several times to persuade him, but Damon always sent him back, saying he wasn’t qualified. He was the epitome of stubborn and inflexible.

“Seems he still has no intention of returning as a knight.”
“But we have to bring him.”

Damon was a talent the Lucifenia territory needed.
He was a descendant of the Primordial Holy Knight known as the “Chosen One.” Because he was the perfect counter to black mages who wield corrupted mana, there was no one better suited to protecting the territory from them.

That wasn’t all. He could also, albeit faintly, sense the power of divine artifacts.
In short, this man would notice the moment the “Stone of Aspiration” appeared in the territory.

So for the sake of the territory—and for my sake—we had to persuade him somehow and bring him back…

“Hm… isn’t there some way?”
As I pondered seriously, I suddenly felt Caius’s gaze beside me.

“…What is it?”
“Suspicious.”

What now?