novelraw Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Feyr drew his sword and examined the blade.
It was blunted, and on top of that it had taken nicks.
'As I thought, making efficient use of a plain iron sword is a stretch for now.'
If his Mana were brimming over, he could coat the sword in Aura to minimize the damage being dealt to it.
But the situation didn't allow for that.
Above all, the level of Aura he could currently produce wasn't powerful enough for that either.
'For now it's better to use something like this on a temporary basis.'
With that thought, Feyr picked up the sword of the man he had just taken down—Marek's sword.
Unlike the one he had been using, the sword he picked up had no chips or nicks in it.
It was quite a usable weapon for temporary purposes.
'Right, weapon secured.'
Now to move toward the true objective.
Feyr turned his head and looked at Myuren.
But Myuren was staring back at him with his guard fully up.
"……Did Revolt send you?"
It seemed he was under some misunderstanding.
The Red Bell men would come flooding up from below before long.
Feyr summed it up quickly to explain fast.
"No. Murk sent me."
"What? Murk……?"
"That's right. So come along quietly."
"Wait! What do you—!"
Feyr grabbed Myuren and leaped out through the window.
Feyr descended the building with practiced ease and ran in the direction of the outer area where he had first infiltrated.
Having caused this much of a commotion, pursuit was only natural.
No matter how fast he fled, Red Bell's remnants came chasing after him.
"Damn it! Catch that bastard!"
"Hey! Tell the guys from Barracks 7 to block them off!"
"What are you doing! Shoot the crossbow from the watchtower!"
For a back-alley outfit, they were not an insignificant force.
Feyr slung Myuren over one shoulder and said,
"Hold on tight or you'll fall."
"……I'm sorry I can't be of more help."
"Don't mention it."
Feyr circulated Mana and drew his sword.
Perhaps because its performance was so much higher than a plain iron sword, the weight of the blade felt considerably heavier than usual.
Ping! Clang!
Feyr deflected incoming arrows and crossbow bolts with his sword and clicked his tongue.
'If I'd known it would come to this, I should've bought some Throwing Needles.'
Wait—Throwing Needles?
Feyr smiled as though a good idea had come to him.
He then sheathed his sword and shaped Mana from the Eater of Mana into the form of small throwing blades.
Mana Solidification.
When drawing out the Mana stored in the Eater of Mana for use, it could also be applied this way.
'Of course, the Mana consumption rate is at least double compared to normal use.'
But right now he needed to be a little safer.
Running with Myuren slung over one shoulder and batting away crossbow bolts quickly with a single hand was something close to an acrobatic feat.
Feyr hurled a Mana throwing blade at the crossbow soldier in the watchtower who was taking aim at him.
Thwip!
"Ghk?!"
The crossbow soldier collapsed to the ground the moment a hole was punched through his head.
Feyr continued running and hurled another Mana throwing blade at the crossbow soldier in a different watchtower.
Myuren, watching the scene with his own 2 eyes, murmured in disbelief,
"……Just what are you."
After running a long while, he arrived at the spot where he had first crossed over the wooden palisade.
Behind them, Red Bell men were chasing after them on horseback.
Among them were a few who appeared to be the organization's officers.
'Part of me wants to sweep them all away.'
But that wasn't the objective, so retreating was the better option for now.
Feyr clicked his tongue with a hint of reluctance and set Myuren down on the ground.
He then drew his sword and cut through a section of the wooden palisade, creating a gap to escape through.
"Let's get out for now."
Myuren nodded at Feyr's words.
As the 2 stepped outside, Murk was waiting for them.
"Brother!"
"Murk! Why are you here……!"
"That doesn't matter right now! Let's get to District 3 and talk."
Saying that, Murk threw a smoke orb into the palisade enclosure the 2 had come out of.
He then ran in the opposite direction and said,
"Now run!"
Feyr watched the scene and let out a laugh of disbelief.
'Don't tell me clearing the escape route just meant something like this.'
It was absurd, but that smoke did help.
By the time the Red Bell men arrived, they had already disappeared from the area.
And so, after returning to District 3 and the Grimter Faction—
"Brother, you're really okay?"
"……Murk, I'm sorry for worrying you."
"Worrying me…… damn, just be more careful when you talk."
"I know. I'll be more careful from now on."
While the 2 were talking, Feyr checked the remaining Mana in the Eater of Mana.
'I didn't use as much as I thought.'
Mana Solidification devours a considerable amount of Mana.
But perhaps because he had kept it to the minimum—there was still plenty of Mana left.
'Still, it feels like a waste.'
Just as Feyr was clicking his tongue in mild regret, Murk and Myuren approached.
As the 2 came over, Feyr looked at them and said,
"Brotherly reunion over?"
Murk and Myuren each replied,
"Thanks to you."
"Thank you for saving me."
Murk smiled brightly and Myuren lowered his head.
Feyr waved a hand at their reactions.
"Forget it. In exchange for helping you, I have a favor to ask of you both."
At the words a favor, Myuren's body gave a start.
It was a reaction born from the worry that it might be something related to drugs.
Feyr, seeing right through Myuren's thoughts, tossed the gold coin pouch to Myuren and said,
"You 2 need to go to the Empire."
At Feyr's words telling them to go to the Empire, both their eyes went wide.
"To the…… Empire?"
"Out of nowhere?"
Feyr nodded at their reactions and continued,
"There's no point staying here anyway—Red Bell, Revolt, there are plenty of irritating people around."
At Feyr's words, the 2 wore expressions that seemed somewhat convinced.
Their position was indeed unfavorable with any faction.
Getting caught by either side would end badly.
In that case, leaving this place was the right answer.
Above all, it would benefit him more in the future if the 2 grew their influence in the Empire.
'They aren't officially recognized criminals in the Empire, so there's no reason to grow in the borderlands.'
In this life, there was no reason for Murk to grow into the king of the back alleys the way he had in his past life.
His older brother Myuren had survived, and their circumstances had improved.
All that remained was to head to the Empire and let their abilities speak for themselves.
'Though Myuren's existence is unexpected.'
A beggar who can make potions.
Potion-making was a high-level skill that only mages from the Mage Tower could manage.
That was precisely why potions were so expensive and so scarce.
'That saves me the trouble of separately looking for a Potion Maker down the line.'
Potions were ultimately something the more the better.
He would eventually come into conflict with the Family, and he'd need plenty of potions for that.
Just as Feyr was thinking about the future—
Myuren abruptly asked,
"Going to the Empire, fine. But what exactly do you get out of it?"
Feyr let out a short breath at Myuren's words.
He rolled his eyes in thought for a moment, then gave his answer.
"There's some information I need you to find."
"Information?"
"Whether there are cases where something like scales covers the Mana Rings…… for now, I'd like you to find information on that."
Beyond that, there was much information he needed—about the Dragon Jade, about Mana Rings and Circles coexisting, about Blood-Attribute Mana, and more.
But it wasn't yet time for those.
There was still plenty of time, and they wouldn't be able to find or gather that information right away.
'They probably won't be able to find even what I mentioned.'
Either way, it would take quite a long time before he crossed paths with them again.
By then, whether as a trading house head or as a guild master of an information guild, they would have carved out a position for themselves.
At least those 2 were capable of that.
"That's all the information I need right now. Just find that by the time we meet again."
"That's all you need?"
"That's right."
Myuren blinked at him as if he couldn't believe it.
What could that information possibly be worth.
Myuren folded his arms and tilted his head.
"So what's the deadline?"
"Hmm. Until we meet again?"
In other words, there was no set time.
Murk, standing beside him, also let out a loose chuckle at Feyr's words and spoke.
"……Just what are you, really?"
"Feyr…… Beilhart."
At the word Beilhart, both their bodies gave a visible flinch.
The name value of Beilhart was the kind that made people flinch just hearing the name.
It wasn't that they feared the Family.
Simply because its power was so immense.
That alone was enough to draw this kind of reaction.
"……You were receiving help from someone whose identity you didn't even know?"
"……I was in a hurry, so I had no choice."
Feyr shrugged at the 2 brothers' reactions.
What was so important about that.
Feyr turned and said,
"Anyway, I've said what I needed to say. As soon as it's light out, the 2 of you cross over to Rehilicia and take a carriage to the Empire."
The 2 nodded at Feyr's words.
There was nothing to gain from staying here any longer.
"Then I'll be off."
As Feyr said that and turned his back completely, Murk and Myuren called out one last time.
"Thanks for everything! See you later!"
"Until next time with good news."
At their farewells, Feyr simply walked on in silence toward his destination.
Feyr returned to his assigned lodging and spent the remaining time focused on recovering the Mana he had spent.
'I used more Mana than I expected.'
There was a decent amount of Mana left in the Eater of Mana, but what mattered was the remaining Mana in his body.
Even so, the gains were significant, so it was by no means a loss.
On top of that, he had even acquired a sword for temporary use.
'Heavy, but it was a sturdy sword.'
There would be no problem using it in the Forest for now.
While doing Mana cultivation, the sun slowly began to rise.
Morning had come.
Feyr stopped the Mana cultivation he had been doing and gathered his sword.
'Time to get moving.'
Assembly began in the early hours of the morning.
In front of the road past the South Gate of Rehilicia, the Black Dog Knights stood in an orderly formation.
Feyr arrived and naturally fell into line at the very back.
Once Feyr had arrived and Kara had confirmed all were present, he spoke.
"Effective immediately, this expedition departs for Felid Forest. Supply distribution and squad formation will be conducted at the forest entrance, and assigned areas will also be determined according to squad formation. Any objections?"
Naturally, no one raised an objection.
As everyone maintained their silence, Kara announced the departure.
"Good. Then now, depart."
"One moment."
Just as Kara was about to finish, Batori, who had been standing to the side, cut in abruptly.
He deferred, giving a slight bow to his master as he handed her the floor.
Batori looked at the Knights with a smile and said,
"It's no fun just going like this, is it? And it takes so long."
Her Knights nodded in agreement at her words.
At the Knights' reaction, she continued,
"So I'd like to make one interesting proposal."
Listening to the conversation, Kara asked from beside her,
"A proposal…… did you say?"
"That's right, a proposal."
‘What sort of bizarre thing is she trying to pull this time.’
Feyr thought that as he watched Batori.
But Batori turned this way instead, her eyes curving into a smile.
"You see, there's a Trainee here from the Crescent Moon Training Ground, isn't there? Anyone who arrives later than that person will be disposed of—what do you say?"
It was a truly alarming proposal.
Proposing a race with their lives at stake purely for amusement.
But looking only at the difference in ability between Feyr and the Knights, it wasn't actually that difficult a condition.
And so Batori added extra flesh to twist what would otherwise be a predictably clear-cut outcome.
"As for Feyr, if he avoids last place, he'll receive a reward. But if he comes in last……"
Batori said that and paused as if pondering for a moment, then smiled.
She tapped her own shoulder with her index finger and said,
"I'll take one of his arms, shall I?"
Her words sent a chill running down his spine in that instant.
Because he knew that was not a joke.
'……Unfortunate, but I'll have to avoid last place.'
Becoming one-armed here was not something he could allow.
"Now then, shall we depart?"
With Batori's final words, everyone finished their departure preparations.
And with a whistle signaling the start, everyone kicked off the ground and ran.