Sword Saint's Reincarnation

Book 3 Chapter 38: The Shaded Catacombs (1)

Tordar raised his eyes from the report he had been reading, his expression one of pure shock. He stared at the messenger who had just spoken to him. The man was standing perfectly straight in front of the desk, his breathing hurried enough that it was obvious he’d rushed here.

“…Already? He’s already here?” Tordar asked in disbelief.

The messenger nodded, bowing slightly.

“Yes, sir. And he’s looking for a Dungeon to raid. Apparently, the guards have already told him about the Shaded Catacombs,” the man replied.

Tordar leaned back in his chair, letting out a breath.

I can’t believe it. How is he here?

He’d had no idea Rylan had even left Caer Rhelon. Of course, because the town he was responsible for was so far away from the capital city, he’d harbored no hopes of the news reaching him quickly. Still, he should’ve been informed about it within fifteen days. How had Rylan already crossed the distance between Caer Rhelon and the town, Durn? Why was he even here?

Is he traveling alone? No, that can’t be it.

No matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn’t figure out how Rylan had reached the kingdom’s border so quickly. In the end, it didn’t matter. He was already here. The question of ‘why’ was also pointless. For some reason, Ceotha’s hero was in Durn. The least he could do was prepare a welcome, even though it was already too late for a proper one. Tordar stood up and stared severely at the messenger.

“If he’s going to raid the Shaded Catacombs, he’ll probably do it tomorrow. We need to welcome him today, still. Talk to all the cooks and tell them to prepare a feast, then to all the officials. I’ll talk to my family and invite him to my manor. Tell everyone to treat it as if the king himself has arrived. Go.”

The messenger nodded, then hurriedly turned around and walked out of the room, almost running. Tordar let out a breath and turned around to look through the study’s window. Durn’s humble scenery spread out before him. All houses were made of wood and stone, not taller than two stories, except for the town hall itself, where he was, and his own manor, which was nothing compared to other noble families’. Tordar sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

The Shaded Catacombs, huh?

In essence, it was a difficult Dungeon to raid. Thanks to his noble house’s wealth and connections formed through dealing in commerce with the families from the kingdom’s closest to the border, they’d managed to raid it enough to keep it under control. While it hadn’t turned into an Open Dungeon, it had been at the cost of much manpower.

But if Rylan raids it, it might be enough to keep the Dungeon under control for months on end.

Still, that was for later. For now, he needed to welcome Rylan properly. Tordar turned around and left the room. He needed to talk to his family and inform every worker in the manor to keep everything pristine.

***

Rylan walked inside the bedroom, looking around. It was entirely made of wood, but it was tidy. The two beds’ covers were clean, and the pleasant smell of oak wood permeated the room. There was a table on the far end, as well as three chairs. The windows showed the town beyond, and the white curtains were neat. He nodded to himself.

“This will do,” he said, then turned around to face a very nervous-looking middle-aged man. Behind the man were his family, Sarah and her siblings, and the four Mages from Mar. The man quickly glanced over his shoulder, then shivered before looking back at Rylan.

The man bowed twice.

“I’m glad you’re satisfied with it, Master Rylan,” the innkeeper replied. “I’m sorry that there weren’t many rooms left. If I had known you were coming with your family, I would have never—”

“Don’t worry about it,” Rylan interrupted him with a dismissive wave and smile. “There were enough rooms for everyone. That’s enough. Still, I was a bit surprised. I hadn’t expected there to be Mages from the nearby kingdom.”

The innkeeper nodded nervously, clearly trying to keep himself from glancing over his shoulder again.

“They’re here to raid the town’s Dungeon. It’s a high-level Dungeon for a town like ours, you see. We always need help, and they manage to earn good XP.”

Rylan smiled at him.

“I see. Well, I’ll participate. Thank you for the rooms.”

The innkeeper nodded nervously, then turned around, bowed at everyone else, and hurriedly left the hallway, walking down the stairs as if running away from something.

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“So, what do you guys think?” Rylan asked as his gaze moved from left to right over the group.

Gerard frowned.

“The outsider Mages might prove to be a hassle,” he said. “They might get in the way or create dangerous situations through sheer carelessness.”

Rylan readily nodded.

“It’s possible. Still, I’m here. I’ll try my best to keep anything from happening to us.”

Gerard grinned, and Rylan looked at Elliot, Laura, and Andy. The two young ones were stretching their necks to look inside the room, specifically the beds, while Elliot was staring at Rylan with a nervous look.

“Will I have to kill anything?” the boy asked as Rylan’s gaze met his.

Rylan lowered his body and shook his head with a calm expression.

“Not if you don’t want to,” he replied. “I would like to help you Level up, but I’m not planning to force you to do anything. While you would have to go through it eventually, it doesn’t mean you have to do it now.”

Elliot gritted his teeth, looking down at the floor.

“Just think about it for a bit. As I said, I won’t force you,” Rylan continued, then looked at Sarah. “One of the rooms will be for you guys, but it will be best if either Krysta or Cecilia stay with you, for safety’s sake. I’ll be in the next room, so I’ll be able to react to anything, too.”

Sarah nodded at him with a smile.

“Thank you, young master,” she replied, making him smile at her as well.

He looked at Gerard and Elizabeth, who were standing next to Regis, Lillia, and Aelfric.

“How do you guys want to do this?” he asked.

“I’ll stay in your room,” Aelfric replied almost immediately. “There’s something I want to talk about.”

Rylan smiled at him. He had an idea of what it could be.

It’s probably about Luna.

Part of him knew he wouldn’t be of much help since he hadn’t experienced much in either of his lives, but he would try.

Regis and Lillia traded a look and nodded.

“We’ll stay with you, too,” Lillia said as Regis nodded again.

Rylan blinked at them, then smiled widely.

“Alright,” he replied, then turned to look at Gerard and Elizabeth. “So, one of the remaining rooms will be for you guys. The last one will be for Philip, Melvin, and whichever of the two girls doesn’t go to Sarah’s room.”

Mar’s Mages nodded.

“Fine by me,” Melvin said. “I’m glad there was enough room for everyone.”

The others nodded before Krysta raised her hand.

“I can stay with Sarah and her siblings,” she said.

Rylan grinned.

“That settles it, then. Let’s all get some rest. Tomorrow, we’ll head into the Dungeon,” he stated.

The others nodded, making Rylan turn around and enter his room, followed by Aelfric, Regis, and Lillia. The others also spread out, each going to their own rooms, all on the same floor. As promised, Rylan’s room was right next to Sarah’s. Once his three siblings were inside, Rylan shut the door and looked at Aelfric.

“Alright, spill it. What’s going on?” he asked.

Aelfric let out a deep sigh as Regis and Lillia looked at him.

“It’s about Luna,” Aelfric said. “I don’t know if she’ll find someone else now that I’m gone. We haven’t even really started dating yet.”

Rylan resisted the urge to grin.

As expected.

Thankfully, there was someone who could offer a different perspective from his inexperienced one. He looked at Lillia, who had furrowed her brow.

“I think you’ll be of more help at this than I, to be honest.”

She sighed as she looked at him, then looked back at Aelfric.

“Why do you think that?” she said, her tone a bit different from usual.

Meanwhile, Regis only alternated looking between them with the expression of someone who had just heard an interesting piece of news. A hint of childlike wonder. Rylan walked over to the nearest bed and sat down on it, then looked back at Aelfric. The boy was sighing again, rubbing the back of his head.

“…I don’t know. I just feel like she’ll go to someone else, you know? I’m no longer there to be with her,” Aelfric said.

Lillia rubbed her chin.

“I mean, it’s possible, and I don’t know her enough to seriously say that you’re wrong.”

Aelfric almost shrank in place and looked at the floor, while Rylan threw a glare at Lillia, who met his gaze with a glance, then looked back at Aelfric.

“However,” she continued. “From what I’ve gotten to know her, I don’t think she would do it. She appreciates every second she spends with you, and she was even crying back when we left. Hopefully, everything will be solved soon and you’ll be able to return to her. Either way, I don’t think she would go behind your back and meet someone else.”

Aelfric looked at her.

“Really?” he asked hopefully, his eyes almost shining.

Rylan stared at him with a dumbfounded expression before catching himself.

Sometimes, I forget he’s just a teenager. One that spent too much time in my mire to mature as he should have.

Part of the fault was his. Rylan gritted his teeth.

“Aelfric,” he started, making the three of them look at him. “We’ve known Luna for a while, now. I agree with Lillia. Honestly, I think she’s in love with you and just waiting for you to ask her out.”

Aelfric blinked, his face flushing up a bit. Lillia raised an eyebrow at Rylan.

“Actually, how would you even know? Wasn’t Moonlight Roland’s only ally?” she asked. “Or did you have girlfriends and stuff?”

Rylan flinched, making her furrow her brow.

“…My relationship with Yue was… complicated. I’m not even sure what to call it. I guess it goes deeper than just being my wife. We were together for decades. But you’re right, Roland had no lovers throughout his life. The sword was all he knew.”

“And that included Moonlight.”

“Yeah.”

Lillia frowned.

“That’s a bit weird.”

Rylan shrugged.

“She could take on a physical form whenever she wished. Everything about her appearance was tailor-made to my preferences, for some reason.”

Regis raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, I really wonder why that was the case,” he said, making Rylan blink.

Aelfric started chuckling, interrupting their conversation and making everyone look at him.

“Thanks, guys. I think this has made it a bit easier. I’ll just have to believe in Luna, for now. You guys will hear me talk about this again, though,” he looked at Rylan with a smile. “And I hope you find Yue again.”

Rylan grinned.

“Maybe we’ll find each other again. Anyway, you guys should have some rest now. Tomorrow will be a busy day. Though I don’t think it’ll take long before we need to leave the inn.”

Regis tilted his head.

“What do you mean? Do you think the town head will prepare something?” he asked.

Rylan nodded, then looked through the window, judging the sun’s position.

“It’ll happen today still,” he replied. “But don’t worry about it. Just rest for now.”

The other three nodded and walked toward their own beds. Regis and Lillia lay down on one of them, while Aelfric lay down next to Rylan.

Tomorrow, we’ll raid the Dungeon.

He just needed to help everyone become stronger.