Chapter 123: Departure to the South (2)
As someone with a public position, Heint’s attitude was perfect.
‘You’re here too fast.’
Lucion gripped his brow, which was about to crumple.
The estimated duration of the trip was about three weeks.
Of course, there were variables, so he had about four weeks to spare.
He was already sighing at the thought of having to stay with Heint for a short time and for a long time.
“Yes. Please take care of me in the meantime.”
But Lucion smiled broadly at Heint.
“Are your injuries okay? Your complexion… you don’t look fine.”
Heint took a step closer and whispered quietly.
Even if he covered it with makeup, anyone could see that Lucion didn’t look fine.
“Yes, thank you. It’s because of the fever that soared until yesterday.”
Lucion said, conscious of the bandages wrapped thickly around his stomach.
It was fine as long as he didn’t move sharply enough to burst out the fabrics.
“I will escort you with caution.”
Heint stepped back, fixed his expression, and bowed to Lucion again.
“Well, then, I’ll go down first and stand by.”
“Thank you.”
Lucion sat down, looking at Heint going back first.
“You’ve worked hard since dawn.”
He smiled at the maids and waited for them to leave his room. He dozed off with the tension in his body released and a heavy weight pressing on his eyelids.
Beep!
Lucion was startled by the sound of Ratta’s ball and looked around.
He made eye contact with the maid who was the last to leave.
She hurriedly bowed her head and walked out cautiously without making the sound of footsteps.
After confirming that everyone had left, Lucion let out a long yawn and asked.
“…Teacher. Is Broson still missing?”
[I can’t even see the slightest hint of his presence. Either a warlock has appeared again, or he’s avoiding me.]
Russell lightly clicked his tongue.
[If Lord Lucion wants to, I will catch him. As Lord Lucion’s darkness increased, I also become stronger.]
As if her hands were itchy, Bethel fiddled with the handle of her sword.
“No, I can ask him next time. Leave it alone for now.”
Broson also had a black orb.
Lucion wanted to ask if he could have the orb now, but it couldn’t be helped if he was being avoided.
Lucion tried to hold back from squiggling his eyes, but he ended up closing his eyes again.
* * *
“…Lucion.”
With a heavy expression on his face, Carson called Lucion, who had come to ride the carriage.
He hadn’t seen Carson for almost three days.
Perhaps he had just returned from the end of the border, his clothes were uncharacteristically messy.
“Did you just come back?”
“I had to see you off, so I came here in a hurry.”
Carson’s eyes briefly turned to Heint.
Even with the untrusting gaze, Heint didn’t change his expression at all.
“What about the injury? I think you should have a cane.”
“As long as I don’t move too much, it’s fine. Why would I move around?”
[You never know.]
Russell slipped in.
Lucion’s official schedule in the South was only in one auction house, but his unofficial schedule was full.
“To you… I wonder if the end of the border will remain a bad memory.”
Carson spoke through parched lips.
He should have killed the warlock somehow.
If he had done that, Lucion wouldn’t have gotten the black magic that the warlock spread.
“Not quite, brother.”
Lucion’s eyes arched.
“It was fun to see with my own eyes how big the world is. I hope I can go again next time.”
“Next time… You said?”
Carson stammered, flustered.
Why does the word ‘next’ sound so new?
“Yes. Can I?”
“Of course. Come whenever you want to go, no, except on dangerous days.”
Puha.
Lucion laughed.
“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll go except on dangerous days.”
The corners of Carson’s mouth slowly rose.
“Thank you, Lucion.”
Lucion had become strong.
And he was overcoming the past.
The younger brother was exerting his strength like that, so shouldn’t he set an example for Lucion as the older brother?
Carson gave Heint a slightly fierce look.
“You will have to protect my brother Lucion properly.”
“Of course. I will protect him with my life.”
“Yes. Value him more than your life.”
Carson emphasized as he took a step closer to Heint.
“I got it. I understand even if you only say it once, so that’s enough.”
Heint also took a step closer to Carson and showed his irritation.
However, Carson and Heint were smiling and shaking hands naturally in a friendly manner, so that Lucion wouldn’t notice it unless he was nearby.
Ratta’s eyes widened and she squeezed the hem of Lucion’s trousers.
―Are they fighting?
[No, it’s because they’re close, so you have to be surprised.]
Bethel smiled and patted Ratta.
“My Lord.”
As the knights bowed their heads at Novio, the two let go of the handshake and bowed to him as if they hadn’t growled at each other.
Novio nodded lightly and walked straight to Lucion.
Inwardly, he wanted to run at once.
Perhaps noticing his feeling, Lucion came up with quick steps and hugged him.
He wanted to hug him tightly, but Novio patted Lucion carefully and cautiously, in case the wound open up.
“Take care and come back safely.”
“Yes. I’ll be back safely.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll always be your shield.”
Lucion already knew that those words were by no means a lie.
Didn’t Novio smash all the assassins who came to kill him, the nobles who hired them, and even the Stepping Stone that served as intermediate bridges?
“Your words alone are reassuring.”
Lucion stepped back with a smile and bowed to Novio.
Lucion climbed into the carriage, and Heint and Hume got on together.
Then the carriage set out.
As the Cronia Mansion was getting farther away, Heint spoke up.
“It’s still a long way to go to the place where the gate is, so you can take a quick nap. Hume, you too.”
“I’m fine.”
Hume shook his head.
He was fine without sleeping.
“How have you been?”
Lucion asked.
“Well… Saying that I’ve been doing well is a bit…”
Heint couldn’t stop the sigh that suddenly leaked out.
Because he suddenly recalled that he was chasing after Gartio Menn, who was a member of the Imperial Knights and possibly related to the warlocks.
He didn’t know how long it had been since he last put his butt on a chair.
“How are things going these days?”
Lucion asked, patting Ratta under her chin.
His expression and tone were gentle, but at the strange pressure, Bethel stopped wiping her sword and looked at Lucion.
“…What are you talking about?”
Heint asked, flustered.
“No one is telling me what’s going on. It wasn’t until after I was attacked by a warlock a while ago that I found out that the Neubra Kingdom is teaming up with the warlocks to attack me.”
It sounded close to a complaint, but Heint’s mouth was strangely dry.
“Brother Heint won’t do the same.”
At the words that were driving the nails in the coffin, Heint felt as if he was wrapped around by a snake.
[What are you preparing?]
Russell looked at Lucion with curious eyes.
―What? Lucion isn’t doing anything though?
Ratta, who happily received Lucion’s pats, blinked at Russell.
“No, uh, if Carson didn’t talk, maybe he has a reason?”
Heint replied, slightly avoiding his gaze.
“Then, please tell me what Brother is doing as an Imperial knight among the things related to me. Shouldn’t that be fine?”
While talking to Carson, Lucion heard a report from the ghost in the mansion that Heint was chasing someone.
He had to know if Heint was chasing the Hand of the Void or another villain so that he could prepare himself.
“… Mmm.”
At Lucion’s serious gaze, Heint busily dragged his words.
Lucion was not wrong.
It must have been frustrating to not hear anything even though it was related to him.
“There’s a guy I’ve been chasing lately.”
So Heint spoke out, albeit in a vague way.
“Because he hasn’t attacked yet, it’s unclear who he is.”
Hainte fiddled with the back of his hand.
How could he tell Lucion that there were other groups besides Luminos that were after him?
“In any case, Lucion, it’s not a big problem for you to worry about.”
Heint spoke gently and took care of the situation.
If the information on the enemy was accurate, Heint would have told Lucion, but he didn’t want Lucion to fall into a panic after knowing the truth in such an unclear situation.
“That’s good.”
It was a bit disappointing that Heint wouldn’t tell him the person he was chasing, but Lucion smiled.
“What do you mean good?”
“Father and Brother didn’t tell me, so I assumed that a big problem have occurred. But thank you for telling me so clearly.”
Lucion swept down his chest and put on a relieved expression.
[Wow. Lucion, you…]
Russell now noticed what Lucion was trying to do.
He was trying to use all of Heint’s words.
“No, it’s not like that…”
“When I attended the Divine Beast’s birth banquet, it was my first trip to the Central.”
As Lucion spoke up, Haint struggled to hide his flustered expression.
His first trip.
“As I am going on my second trip like this, on one hand, I was anxious, but on the other hand, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to have my own time since I am surrounded by escorts, but now thanks to Brother, my worries are gone.”
Lucion has a voice overflowing with happiness and an expression of deep gratitude.
And he decorated the end of his speech by returning the words Heint had uttered.
What Lucion himself was most worried about was Heint’s close safeguarding, since he was different from Carson.
Hadn’t he felt it once when coming to the border before?
However, when Haint said that it was fine, Lucion didn’t let it slip unnoticed.
[…I’ll help you, Lord Lucion. I didn’t know Lord Lucion was looking forward to the trip so much.]
Bethel clasped the hands she hid behind her back to hide her pity.
“I’ll serve you better.”
Hume moved his heavy lips and looked at Lucion with eyes filled with determination.
―Ratta will help you, too!
Only Russell covered his itchy mouth with his hands and stuck his face out of the carriage.
Puhahaha.
But he couldn’t stop the sound of laughter.
‘Ha…’
Heint was at a loss for words at Lucion’s indirect request to have alone time.
He felt like he had dug his own grave.
‘It’s true, but it feels strange.’
In addition to Luminos, which was a group of wizards, another group appeared, but the level of alert was not higher than expected because they hadn’t done anything to Lucion yet.
-Lucion has good intuition. More than you think. If you put unnecessary surveillance on him, he will catch onto it right away, so it would be better to say it to him outright.
Suddenly, he remembered what Carson had said through a contact item yesterday.
“Lucion.”
“Speak, please.”
“If you move quietly, Hume will accompany you, right?”
Heint threw these words for now.
But it didn’t sound like that to Lucion.
He could feel a hole in Heint’s tightly woven safeguarding.
[Successful.]
Russell grinned, and Lucion opened his mouth, pleased.
“Yes, of course. Even in the Central, I’ve never been separated from Hume.”
“This is true.”
Hume strained his neck and add strength to Lucion’s words.
“All right. Then, on the condition that you will be accompanied by Hume, I’ll put up with it for a half-hour radius. Is that okay?”
“Why half an hour?”
“Because if I move, I can get there in five minutes.”
‘…That quickly?’
He had heard from Russell that light was the fastest between mana and darkness.
[5 minutes? Even if you’re blessed with light, isn’t that too fast?]
Lucion took notice of Bethel’s reaction.
Heint’s remark was more of a cheat.
Lucion felt that it was unfair and soon realized that Heint was the main character.
Even though he hadn’t gotten anything close to a holy relic yet, he was filled with light.
“Honestly, I was going to make it a 20-minutes radius, but I held back. So I’m sorry if you ask for more, I can’t listen to it.”
Heint drew a clear line, and Lucion didn’t have any intention to ask for more.
To be honest, being able to get this much was a great harvest.
For now, he got the time to shake Heint off, so he let it be.
He patted Ratta leisurely, pressing the corners of his mouth that were about to twitch.
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