DAR Vol. 6 Chapter 21 Part 2

Dawn broke, and Roa and the others began moving again. Roa stacked stones into a makeshift stove and set about preparing breakfast.

It had already been three months since their journey to investigate the Citadel Dungeon.

The season, too, was sliding toward autumn. The fields glittered gold with ripened wheat, and the farming villages had grown restless at the harvest soon to begin.

Amid all that, Roa and his companions had left the Kingdom of Perdu and set out on the road.

Their destination was the Kingdom of Nereus, the homeland of the adventurer party  “Nostalgia”.

“Good morning, Roa.”

“Yes! Good morning!”

The one who greeted him was the merchant Coralde. The stated purpose of this trip was to serve as Coralde’s bodyguards. They were heading for the royal capital of the Kingdom of Nereus alongside him, so he could conduct business there.

Three months ago, thanks to his achievements in successfully investigating the Citadel Dungeon, Roa graduated from the apprentice class “all-rounder” and became a true adventurer.

Since then, he had continued taking requests for subjugation and gathering with remarkable frequency, and his rank had already reached D-rank.

Normally, someone who becomes an adventurer starts at E-rank. In other words, in only three months, Roa had risen an entire rank.

Reaching D-rank in just three months was highly unusual.

One reason was surely that Roa had an exhaustive knowledge of magic beast lairs and gathering sites for plants and the like in “Magic Beast Forest”.

Even if a target for subjugation or a rare material would normally take a week, or longer, of searching to find, Roa could locate it almost immediately. More than that, there were plenty of cases where he seemed to know the place before he even began looking.

And when it came to subjugation, no matter the magic beast, Roa’s familiars dispatched it in an instant. It was only natural that he completed any request at an absurd speed.

As a result, Roa handled in three months what would take a normal adventurer party over a year to accomplish.

As word spread about his abnormal pace, urgent jobs began to funnel toward him, and with that came an increase in named requests.

Because named requests could be accepted regardless of rank, they were often valued more highly than requests restricted by rank. That, too, became a factor in his rapid advancement.

Roa also frequently accepted joint requests with members of Nostalgia, entering high-rank-only Magic Beast Forests that his own rank normally wouldn’t permit.

Naturally, requests in forests barred to anyone below a certain rank were difficult, and completing them earned substantial praise.

With joint requests, most of that praise would typically go to the higher-ranked adventurer party. In Roa’s case, however, the strength of his familiars was evaluated, and the credit was distributed almost evenly.

With all those factors overlapping, Roa had become D-rank with an evaluation anyone could recognize as fair and legitimate.

Once his rank rose, some voices began saying he should gain experience beyond subjugation and gathering.

Among adventurer work, the most common assignments besides those two were escort requests.

Many adventurers, convinced that fighting magic beasts was their true calling, tended to dislike them, yet there was still steady demand. It wasn’t experience that would hurt to have.

So, as a trial run, Coralde, who thoroughly understood Roa and the others’ circumstances, became the first escort client, and this journey was decided.

“Here, have some tea.”

“Thank you.”

Roa held out two cups filled with tea.

Behind Coralde, a silent guard stood watch. Though he was serving as escort muscle for this trip, he was also the leader of Coralde’s spies.

This time, the only people Coralde brought from his company were that man and Chuck, the head coachman.

Coralde’s reason for heading to the Kingdom of Nereus was solely business negotiations, and he hadn’t brought any wagons loaded with goods. Unlike a peddling caravan, he didn’t need numbers.

That was why he had selected the best fighters his company could offer and pared the group down to the minimum.

Still, the very fact that the spymaster was present strongly suggested that many more spies were likely accompanying them without ever showing themselves.

“Roa, can I have some tea too?”

“Yes!”

The voice belonged to Dietrich, Nostalgia’s leader.

Naturally, Nostalgia’s members were traveling with them as well. Coralde’s escort request had been set up as a joint contract with Roa.

Partly because their destination was the Kingdom of Nereus, Nostalgia’s homeland, and partly because on paper it was framed as training for Roa, a rookie adventurer.

Not that he needed instruction in combat, of course. With Uncle Gry and the twin magic wolves Roo and Phi, traveling while protecting humans was effortless. If anything, it was excessive firepower, and the Adventurers’ Guild was aware of that.

What Nostalgia had agreed to provide was guidance outside of combat.

Because escort work meant dealing with people, you had to act without displeasing the one you were protecting. Sometimes you would handle arrangements for lodging and meals on the road, or take on the role of negotiator if trouble arose. There were countless other small tasks besides.

Under the pretext of teaching those practicalities, Nostalgia had accepted Coralde’s request jointly with Roa.

Of course, Roa could already handle such chores flawlessly, even without being taught. Back when he belonged to the former hero party “Crack of Dawn”, he’d been worked like a servant, and if there was one thing he had in abundance, it was experience with menial tasks.

It was simply the justification Nostalgia used for taking the job.

“If we keep going for about another half day, we’ll reach the border. From there, I figure we can make it to the royal capital in two days.”

As Dietrich accepted his cup, he spoke to Roa.

“So that’s how it is! I can’t wait to see the sea!”

Roa answered with a beaming grin. He had hardly ever left his own country. It would be his first time seeing the ocean.

Pulled along by that carefree smile, Dietrich smiled back, but his expression carried a faint, awkward strain.

Then he quietly stole a glance at Coralde. Coralde seemed to be listening, but he simply sipped the tea Roa had poured for him while watching the scenery. Only after confirming that did Dietrich turn his smile back to Roa.

“I’ll even get you on a ship when we reach the sea! Look forward to it!”

“Yes! I’m also excited for the Sea Dragon Festival!”

“It’s a huge festival that comes once every four years. There are tons of stalls, and even regular shops sell things they usually don’t. It’s a lot of fun.”

“Really?”

“Everyone dresses up and goes out into the streets, so the whole royal capital feels bright and festive. You’ll have a blast!”

As if to drive away the awkward atmosphere from earlier, Dietrich spoke with almost exaggerated cheer.

In truth, this journey was tangled up in multiple agendas.

No one knew how much Coralde understood about Nostalgia’s circumstances, but he surely had motives of his own.

This trip existed because the intentions of Nostalgia, the royal family of the Kingdom of Nereus, and Coralde were all interwoven.

Three months ago, while handling the paperwork needed to head for the Citadel Dungeon, Dietrich and the others had forced the Kingdom of Nereus to grant them a significant concession. As the price of that concession, they had been given a royal command to bring Roa to the Kingdom of Nereus at least once.

Dietrich didn’t want to bring Roa there.

The royal family’s goal was obvious: to poach Roa, a rare alchemist and an unusual adventurer who even kept powerful magic beasts as familiars. Dietrich didn’t want to drag Roa into that mess.

But it was a command from the homeland itself, and worse, a royal command. Defying it wasn’t permitted.

If it were only Dietrich, he would have gladly ignored it, accepted punishment, and abandoned the country. But he wanted to avoid the other members of Nostalgia, not to mention other involved parties, being dragged in and punished as well.

It had been a truly bitter decision.

And in the three months after learning of that command, Nostalgia’s members had negotiated with Uncle Gry to obtain permission to go to the Kingdom of Nereus, and they’d talked about their homeland in ways meant to pique Roa’s interest.

They had planned to make him curious, invite him without it seeming unnatural, and, if fortune smiled on them, have Roa himself say he wanted to visit the Kingdom of Nereus.

And yet, somehow, by the time they realized it, the trip to the Kingdom of Nereus had been decided under Coralde’s leadership.

Coralde said nothing to Dietrich and the others.

He maintained, without wavering, the stance that he had requested an escort simply so Roa could gain experience.

Even so, he must have noticed what they were trying to do.

Otherwise, there was no reason he would take Roa’s very first escort assignment and deliberately bring him beyond the country’s borders, and having the destination be the Kingdom of Nereus was even more unbelievable.

Still, it was hard to believe Coralde had thoughtfully arranged everything out of concern for Nostalgia. Without a doubt, he had his own purpose in choosing to bring Roa along.

Yet since Coralde had never said a word about it, Dietrich couldn’t exactly ask outright, and an awkward tension lingered between them.

Between the guilt of pulling Roa into their circumstances and the discomfort of realizing Coralde had seen through what was practically a conspiracy, Dietrich couldn’t shake the feeling of unease.

Then Roa asked them, bright-eyed,

“Do you think we’ll be able to see a sea dragon?”

Oblivious to Dietrich’s turmoil, Roa continued in an excited tone.

“Who knows? It’s not like you can see it every time. But it didn’t come to the Sea Dragon Festival four years ago, so the odds are good.”

The Sea Dragon Festival was a celebration of the visit of the “sea dragon,” which appeared near the royal capital of the Kingdom of Nereus on a four-year cycle.

The sea dragon was a magic beast, yet it was treated as the guardian deity of the sea.

It was worshiped especially by sailors, and because the Kingdom of Nereus lived in close communion with the ocean, it had become the kingdom’s largest festival.

Apparently, Coralde’s trading partner was coming to the Kingdom of Nereus to see the Sea Dragon Festival as well.

Roa and Nostalgia were only responsible for escorting him along the road, and once they arrived, they would be free to do as they pleased, so Roa and the others planned to enjoy the festival.

“I’m so excited!”

Knowing nothing of Dietrich’s and Coralde’s intentions, Roa was practically skipping with anticipation for the sea and the festival.

𑁋

As Roa and the others neared the border of the Kingdom of Nereus, there was a ship far out on the sea, gliding as if it were sliding across the water.

“Blue ocean! White clouds! Magnificent!!”

At the prow, almost at the very tip, a single man stood with his arms folded. He grinned broadly, letting the spray from the bursting whitecaps wash over him.

Chestnut hair threaded with white marked him as no longer young, though not quite an old man. Even so, the solid frame wrapped in travel gear showed no sign of decline. He looked every inch a veteran hero.

The open ocean stretched blue to the horizon, sunlight pouring down and scattering into glittering shards across the waves.

“Sword Saint, sir! If you stand in a place like that, you’ll fall into the sea!”

“Stop fussing over trifles!”

Without even looking back, the man known as the Sword Saint dismissed the worried warning out of hand.

The prow was unstable. With the ship running at speed, one sudden swell could kick the bow upward and easily fling someone into the water.

Yet the Sword Saint didn’t seem concerned in the slightest.

“…So then, Sword Saint. The reason you’re in such a hurry that you’d even board a pirate ship like this is…?”

The vessel they rode was, indeed, a pirate ship.

The Kingdom of Nereus had secretly granted them a license and set them to the task of sinking merchant ships that offered Nereus no benefit, all to sap the strength of other nations. Even so, in public they were nothing more than a band of criminals.

And yet someone with enough stature to be called the Sword Saint had abruptly come aboard.

Then he had pressured them to hurry home.

Thanks to that, the ship was currently tearing toward the Kingdom of Nereus at full speed.

“…My disciple is coming back.”

“Yes?”

The Sword Saint answered without turning around.

“I got word that my disciple, who’s been out on a warrior’s pilgrimage, is returning to Nereus. In that case, I have to go see for myself!”

“…Ah, I see. So you’re going to measure how much stronger he’s become…?”

“What are you talking about!”

The moment the man started to nod along, the Sword Saint spun around and glared at him.

The captain stiffened under the harsh expression and the prickly, irritated pressure bearing down on him. Had he said something wrong?

“Just training in some other land isn’t going to make him strong overnight!”

“Then…when you say you have to see for yourself…?”

“It’s obviously about the woman!”

“…Huh?”

What was he even saying?

The captain’s confusion only deepened. Where, in anything they’d just discussed, was there room for “a woman”?

“A man comes home after traveling, doesn’t he? That means he’s bringing a woman back with him. You’re a pirate, and you can’t even figure that out?”

“…”

Lectured as if it were common sense, the captain had nothing to say.

Sure, a man might meet a woman during his travels. He might return to introduce her to his family.

But coming home didn’t automatically mean that was the purpose. If anything, there were more reasons besides that.

Ignoring the captain’s silence, the Sword Saint barreled on.

“I have to judge whether she’s a good woman! My disciple’s a grown man, but he’s like a child at heart, you see. He’ll get tricked by a woman in no time… North!!”

“Wha?!”

The Sword Saint suddenly shouted.

With such force it looked like it ought to make a snapping sound, he threw up an arm and stabbed a finger toward a single point on the horizon.

“A merchant ship! We’re hitting it!!”

Startled, the captain followed the direction of the Sword Saint’s finger. A large ship’s silhouette was visible in the distance.

“Wait! It does look like a merchant ship, but…”

“This is a pirate ship, isn’t it?! Then merchant ships are what we attack!”

“…That’s true, but it might be a Nereus ship. We should confirm first…”

“If we can see it from here, then they’ve noticed this ship too! If we don’t move, it’ll get away! Immediate decision, immediate action!!”

“No, there’s a procedure for this…”

“Captain!”

As they argued, a young man who looked like a messenger came running up to them to deliver a report. The watch had already spotted the ship and sent him down with their confirmation.

And from the way he called out, the man arguing with the Sword Saint really was the captain.

“Report! The ship ahead is a valid target. The dolphins’ confirmation says it appears to be an Adad ship. What are your orders?”

“Good!! We attack!! You lot, get ready for battle!! Take it! Sink it!!”

Before the captain could say a word, the Sword Saint bellowed the commands.

In response, cries of “Aye aye!!” erupted from all over, and the ship abruptly surged with energy.

“…No, Sword Saint, you’re just a passenger… I’m the captain…”

“Follow me!!”

The captain’s mutter was effortlessly ignored.

With the Sword Saint forcibly commandeering the ship’s momentum, the only one left standing there, utterly at a loss, was the captain himself.