Chapter 91: The Trial (3)
The group gathered at early dawn.
As autumn approached, the days had noticeably shortened. And the city was still submerged in a dim shadow.
Dale, along with Harkin, Esther, and Harty, arrived at the designated meeting place.
The client and their party were already waiting there.
Upon spotting Dales group, the servant hired by Dale shouted,
Ah! Youve arrived. Weve been waiting for you.
The servant hurried over and pointed to a young man standing nearby.
This gentleman here is our young master.
He was a young nobleman. His blue eyes were sparkling with vitality and his light curly hair was neatly swept to the side.
His firmly closed lips gave him a somewhat stubborn look.
The young nobleman extended his hand to Dale.
Pleased to meet you. Ive heard much about your exploits.
Dale.
Ernst of the Thyssen family.
Dale reached out and took his hand in return.
Feeling the firmness of the handshake and noticing the sword at the young mans waist, Dale thought to himself,
He must be quite skilled.
He seemed to have undergone considerable training as a knight.
At that moment, Ernst spoke up.
I should mention beforehand that I pride myself on my broad views.
?
So whether you are a savage and cruel heretic or a lowly mercenary, it doesnt bother me in the slightest. I hope youll feel comfortable around me.
Hmm, I understand.
Dale didnt know what to say so he just nodded his head.
Did the servant say that he is a bit peculiar?
Just like the servant had mentioned, Ernst certainly seemed a bit different from the typical young nobles. Whether this was a good or bad difference remained to be seen.
Ernst then proceeded to greet Harkin as well.
Pleased to meet you. As I mentioned before, I view everyone without prejudice, even if theyre lowly mercenaries.
Ah, right. Thank you.
Harkins eyes twitched at the mention of lowly mercenary and he was quickly left behind as Ernst shifted his gaze to Esther for the last introduction.
But his eyes widened in surprise.New n0vel chapters are published on
Good heavens.
Whats wrong?
When Esther asked that, Ernsts face turned red. He hurriedly straightened his clothes and lowered his voice deliberately.
P-Pleased to meet you, Priestess. May I have the honor of knowing your name?
Taken aback by the sudden shift to formal language directed solely at her, Esther tilted her head in confusion and replied,
Its Esther.
Goodness, even the name is beautiful.
Huh?
I look forward to our time together, however short or long it may be.
Ah. Yes.
Ernst offered his hand for a handshake, but Esther pretended not to see him and looked away. For some reason, she felt uncomfortable holding his hand.
Ernst held his hand out steadfastly as if waiting for Esther to do the same, but his servant quickly approached.
Young master, we must be going. Any further delays could complicate our journey.
It cant be helped.
Ernst nodded his head and exclaimed.
Lets set off at once!
The soldiers accompanying him responded in unison.
Yes!
They divided themselves into groups of five and boarded three carriages.
Dale and his party climbed into the second carriage, finding themselves in the company of Ernst and his servant.
The role of coachman was taken up by Harkin. The servant had offered to drive, but Harkin insisted stubbornly that he would do it.
He seemed somewhat reluctant to be in Ernsts presence.
The carriage was reinforced with thick planks that seemed capable of easily deflecting arrows and it rattled forward as it went.
The walls of Irene and the slums quickly receded into the distance.
After they left the city behind and the carriage rolled onto the main road, the servant broke the silence.
Ill explain the plan once again, just in case we have differing understandings.
After pausing and looking around, the servant continued.
Our main objective is to resolve the chaos in the northwest. The northwest is currently facing two significant issues. One of them is the overflow of monsters.
The winters in the north were harsh.
Ernsts eyes wavered.
Dale asked,
Is it that surprising?
No, its just heretics, and especially dark knights, are said to be far removed from words and books
Didnt you say something about not having prejudices earlier?
Uh? Oh, right. Hahaha.
Esther chimed in,
Sir Dale is different from other heretics.
For some reason, Esther looked quite proud of herself.
Ernst could only awkwardly scratch his head.
Ignoring the reactions of the two, Dale opened his book and began to focus intently.
Watching him, Esther pulled out an old bible and asked Ernst,
Sir Ernst, dont you like reading?
Ahem. Ahem. Thats not the case. I always carry a book with me wherever I go. Books are nourishment for the soul, after all!
Ernst extended his hand to his servant.
Give it here.
What do you mean?
Just hand me a book I enjoy reading.
The servant whispered back,
What are you on about all of a sudden? Youve only ever read knightly tales and novels in your life!
Just give me any book for now!
Ignoring the twos bickering, Dale continued to read the book.
He was planning to take it easy since they had at least a weeks journey to their destination in the northwestern region.
However, Dales reading was soon interrupted.
The carriage came to an abrupt halt.
Whats the matter? Why have we stopped?
Harkin said in response to the servants question.
It seems we need to check this out ourselves.
The group got out from the carriage.
And then Esther covered her mouth with both hands in shock.
MyMy goodness.
Bodies were scattered haphazardly along the road.
At least ten people had died.
Two carriages lay wrecked, and blood was splattered everywhere.
Dale found a blood-soaked banner lying on the ground on one side.
This is
It was the same emblem they had seen on a carriage they passed on the road yesterday.
Esther murmured,
Could they have been attacked by bandits?
Dale shook his head.
No.
There were few bodies hit by arrows and most had died from deadly sword wounds.
Each wound was clean. It seemed like the result of superb swordsmanship that was far too sophisticated for common thieves.
Harty who was standing nearby circled the bodies, then turned his head towards something and growled.
Seeing this, Dale also looked up and said,
Everyone, get ready.
Before long, the culprits behind this carnage emerged from the thicket.
Twenty well-armed knights and soldiers appeared.
They didnt seem to have any intention of hiding as they confidently approached them while holding blood-stained swords.
Among them, one knight spotted Dale and his face lit up with recognition.
Ah?
It was, quite coincidentally, the same young knight who had picked a quarrel with Dale at the award ceremony.
The knight shouted with joy.
It seems the gods favor me. They actually granted me another encounter with this insolent wretch!
The other knights smiled viciously as if eager to join in, but the knight waved them off.
This one, I can handle alone.
Then he pulled out his sword and spoke to Dale.
Let me make it clear, the only reason you werent slain last time was because of the knight commanders intervention.
Dale also drew his cursed sword and muttered.
What a coincidence.
His thoughts mirrored the young knights exactly.