novelraw Chapter 36 : Home Sweet Home (1)
Chapter 36 : Home Sweet Home (1)
Home Sweet Home (1)
Compared to the walls of Grey Fortress, this was an utterly shabby wooden fence.
It showed just how hastily Granfen village had been put together.
And yet—
'Why does it feel like I've come home?'
Even though I'd only spent a little over half a year here, I found myself feeling glad to be back.
The emotion that surged up was just right for the word "returning."
But it seemed the security guards stationed at the entrance to the village didn't feel the same.
"Stop right there."
They aimed their weapons at us with wary eyes.
Grey Fortress might have looked superior on the surface,
but when it came to the discipline of its soldiers, Granfen was the clear winner.
"State your purpose for coming to the village, and tell us what's loaded on the cart."
I couldn't help but think that Jeros was probably the only crooked guard in this village,
but, on the other hand, the security guard glaring at us was actually someone I knew well, which was a relief.
"It's me, Ian."
Saying that, I pulled back the hood that had been covering my face.
Ralph, with his jutting chin, widened his eyes and shouted.
"Huh?! Hey, you, Ian! Why did you take so long to come back?"
His reaction was more intense than I'd expected, leaving me a bit awkward.
Did he miss our shop's food that much—?
"The company commander said to bring you in as soon as you showed up."
Ah, so much for that idea.
"For what reason?"
"There have been rumors, but I can't be the one to tell you."
Ralph expertly tied my hands with a rope.
"Ow, that hurts. Please go easy on me."
Squeeze.
"Don't whine. Considering the mood the day you left, this is me going easy on you."
"Isn't this welcome a little too intense after so long?"
"Take it easy, Ian. I'm letting you off because it's me. If it was anyone else, you'd have been beaten already."
Just as Ralph said, the other guards were glaring at me with outright hostility.
Hmph.
Guess I just had to quietly go along for now.
Even so, I had to say my piece.
"Not just me, these people came from the stonemason guild in Grey Fortress. The things loaded on the cart are repair materials."
At Ralph's signal, another guard pulled aside the tarp covering the cart.
"Eek!"
The guard jumped back in shock, immediately drawing his sword.
Quick reflexes—truly, the soldiers of disciplined Granfen.
"Ice Bear?!"
The guard who saw the Ice Bear carcass on the cart was horrified, and Ralph, flustered as well, asked me,
"What is this, Ian? Don't tell me... an Ice Bear isn't a repair material for the shop, is it?"
"We caught it on the way here."
"What? Who did?"
"I did."
Strictly speaking, it was thanks to Plerine's support and the strength buff from cooked rice,
but there was no need for that kind of detailed explanation.
"You? You caught it?"
"Yes."
Ralph snorted.
"That's ridiculous. You've gotten cheekier with your jokes."
He then looked at Plerine and asked,
"Was it you?"
Apparently, he'd recognized Plerine's strength and was subtly fishing for confirmation.
Even though I'd asked her to keep it hidden before we entered the village...
'At this level, I suppose perception would get sharper.'
"You don't mean you're also with the stonemason guild, miss?"
Plerine shook her head side to side.
Ralph looked at her suspiciously then spoke.
"Are you blind and mute too? Tsk. Only the stonemason guild passes. Detain the woman as well."
We'd deviated slightly from the ideal scenario.
The best outcome would have been for Plerine to pass with them,
but at least it wasn't the worst.
I'd worried about the stonemason guild getting detained with me.
The old man from the guild exchanged a quick eye greeting with me, then entered the village with the workers.
Plerine, like me, was tied with rope.
We were led away by the guards for quite some time,
and soon, we were thrown into a jail cell in the corner of the main village headquarters building.
Once the sound of footsteps faded, Plerine grumbled quietly.
"I kept still because boss told me to behave, but honestly, I'm not happy about this, you know?"
"For here, this is pretty respectful treatment."
"This is?"
During the procession, they hadn't insulted or struck us, not even spoken to us.
Surely, the battalion commander had given special instructions.
But what did that bald guy want so badly that he's searching for me like this?
'I'll find out soon enough.'
It was while I was lost in thought—
A clink as the cell door unlocked.
In came the green-eyed man.
The guy who'd led the search for me the day I left the village—if I remembered right, company commander Hank.
He was glaring at me.
"You filthy outsider bastard."
He started with an insult.
That's a marker of someone unhinged.
"Because of you, I lost face with the battalion commander."
He shot a menacing aura at me,
and his subordinate, behind him, cut in.
"Company commander. The battalion commander said to bring him straight away."
"Shut up. I heard."
He strode up to me—
Wham!
With a thud, I was sent sprawling backward.
The madman's kick had landed squarely on my stomach.
'Damn it!'
I barely managed to tense my abs with mana in time—if not, my guts might have been twisted.
"Ptooey."
I spat out the metallic taste rising in my mouth, blood mixed in.
Looking up at the green-eyed dog,
he curled up one side of his mouth and muttered,
"Mana? An outsider, and you use mana?"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Plerine shot to her feet, ready to cast a spell at any moment.
She's going to go crazy.
"Stop, Plerine!"
Even at my shout, the green-eyed bastard fixed his gaze on Plerine and said,
"What's this, woman? You want to try something?"
Thud, thud.
He walked up to Plerine.
"... Woman. You're strong."
He grinned with interest.
Yes, this was the north.
The northerners were obsessed with strength—
people starving for power and fighting,
madmen who would spar just because someone seemed stronger than them.
"What rank are you? At least 3rd-rank, I'd say."
I answered in her stead.
"Company commander! Didn't you say the battalion commander was looking for me? If you waste any more time here, you'll only lose more face with him."
Reluctantly, he tore his gaze from Plerine and fixed it on me.
"..."
Just then, his subordinate broke the silence again.
"Company commander. The battalion commander is waiting—"
"I KNOW!!"
The green-eyed bastard's outburst made his subordinate flinch,
and I heard him grinding his teeth, gnashing.
"Take the outsider. Lock up the woman."
It finally started to feel real.
I was back in the frontline village, Granfen,
where madmen prowled everywhere.
*
The green-eyed bastard led,
and his subordinate dragged me to a room like a conference room.
A large map was spread across the table,
with wooden pieces on top—this must be the operations room.
Anyway, people who looked like officers were all gathered there,
and at the head sat the bald battalion commander.
His mouth was smiling, but his eyes weren't, making me uneasy.
Even with my arms tied, it's best to salute with words to stay alive longer.
"Upon my steel, I swear."
"Loyalty will illuminate you. It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"I apologize for not being able to give you a proper military greeting given the circumstances."
"Heh heh. Looking at you, it seems my subordinates went a bit overboard. I never wanted you treated that way."
At the battalion commander's words, the green-eyed bastard naturally shouted at his subordinate.
"What did I say? I told you to bring him politely, didn't I?"
"... I-I'm sorry."
The subordinate hurried to untie me.
'This bastard's just a dog.'
He just cursed me out, kicked me,
now shifts the blame to his underling.
This isn't just a crazy guy—he really is a dog.
'Why are you glaring at me?'
He stared at me like he wanted to kill me,
and it wasn't hard to read the intent in his eyes.
'If you say a word about earlier, I'll kill you. That kind of thing.'
What would happen if the battalion commander found out?
I curled my lips in a subtle grin and met the green-eyed bastard's eyes.
"..."
His jaw clenched even tighter, his eyes narrowing.
Cute, how quickly he reacted.
"Heh heh. Hank, you've done well, now take your seat."
"... Yes."
The green-eyed bastard sat next to the battalion commander,
across from him was another company commander, a blond man.
Was his name Lantz?
Only the green-eyed bastard kept darting his eyes at the bald commander and the blond guy.
'I get the dynamic now.'
It's the same in the Middle Ages or modern times.
Powerful battalion commander and his right hand Lantz,
plus Hank, full of inferiority but unable to rise.
Whatever, their inner politics wasn't really my concern.
"So, you. I hear you came back from Grey Fortress?"
Dozens of officer eyes focused on me at the bald commander's question.
"Yes. I went to contact the stonemason guild for repairs to the shop."
"Heh heh. I see. And yet..."
Suddenly, cold sweat ran all down my spine.
The battalion commander's aura pressed down on me.
"Was that more important than my 'request'?"
How could his eyes radiate such force while he was smiling?
'By "request", does he mean having me keep an eye on Jeros?'
But more than that, the glances from the other officers grew even more menacing.
Probably because the word "request" had come out of the commander's mouth.
"Heh heh heh. If you were actually in my command, you'd be dead by now."
I bowed my head slowly and replied,
"I'm sorry. It will never happen again."
"Heh heh heh. It wasn't an order, just a request. That said, I have another favor to ask you."
"What is it?"
For a moment, the gleam in the commander's eyes was terrifying.
Goosebumps broke out all over as fear swept over me.
"I want you to join the military. So I can issue you orders, not requests, in future."
"... What?"
I was so stunned I asked again.
Damn. Did I hear that wrong?
No, the thing I was half-dreading was really happening.
"You dare to question the battalion commander?" said the green-eyed bastard, jumping up,
"Calm down, Hank."
Lantz, the blond, tried to rein him in, but—
The commander spoke in a low, hard voice.
"Both of you be quiet. Don't butt in. The other officers are here, aren't they?"
"Sorry."
"Sorry."
The other officers watched the three nervously.
After a brief silence, the commander's mustache twitched again.
"Heh heh. Are you going to pretend you didn't understand? I'm telling you to become a soldier belonging to this company. In other words, my subordinate. That's my 'request'."
"..."
Damn. Of all my imagined outcomes this was the worst possible.
That was why the company commander had let the soldiers search for me.
I'd guessed all sorts of reasons, but
of all the scenarios, the worst one had come true.
'Re-enlistment.'
It had already been eight years since I left the Republic of Korea Army.
Now re-enlistment? What a bolt from the blue.
But—
'Can I really refuse here?'
Fierce.
The stares directed at me were now burning.
It was because I'd been silent too long in response to the bald commander's words.
'Damn.'
I really hate this.
If the choice was re-enlist, or die?
The officers' stares stung unbearably.
I had to make a choice, eyes tight, breath in—
"I'm honored you'd give me the chance to become a proud soldier of the Duchy, but—"
If asked, "Want to die, or re-enlist?"
I would answer:
"No, thank you."
'Now that I've actually refused, I kind of regret it.'
A phrase men often joke about.
Saying they would rather die than reenlist.
It's not like I was trying to put that saying into practice by refusing.
Of course, if someone threatened me with a sword, I'd choose reenlistment.
Survival comes first.
But I said, "I don't want to reenlist."
The officers reacted fiercely.
"That crazy outsider!"
"Is he completely insane?"
The two company commanders flanking the battalion commander were no different.
They were glaring at me as if they wanted to kill me.
Only the battalion commander wore an ambiguous smile, as if he found this interesting.
"Hoho. Everyone, quiet."
At his voice, the officers gritted their teeth and fell silent.
The murmuring faded away, and only then, as calm silence settled, did the battalion commander speak.
"So, foreigner. What's your reason for refusing my request?"
I felt a small sense of relief upon hearing the battalion commander's question.
I'd been worried that he might just sentence me to death without a word.
At least half my gamble with my life had paid off.
'Negotiations begin now.'