Chapter 116: (Self Edited) Return

The reconnaissance stayed on the horse at the entrance of the village.‘Why?’

The question mark filled my head.

‘Why isn’t he running away? Is he an idiot? Were they not reconnaissance in the first place, but are they a different unit? I don’t know.’

‘Certainly, if you’re looking from the standpoint of the enemy, this is an unusual situation. Even if allies are killed, they should be supposed to be killed by being exposed to the rain of arrows all at once, or a group of enemies appearing from the houses all at once, being thrown a net, and being killed by blows.’

‘But then, the number of enemies is only two, and the allies are missing because the house has collapsed. If it were me, I think that regardless of the abnormalities of the situation, I will immediately decide to escape. He is supposed to complete his mission, but his idea is probably different.’

‘In other words, he was wondering if he should search for an ally if there are only two of us. There is such a possibility. Or is it a trap? Is he going to pull and lure us in? No, I don’t know the reason for such trouble, and it’s strange that he let four people come to me easily.’

‘This may be unexpected, but he is probably refraining himself from unreliable, undecided, and incompetence young people… Even when I try to think, I don’t know why he didn’t escape…’

‘No, it doesn’t matter… Whatever the reason is, if we miss this opportunity, we have no way to deal with the situation.’

‘I’ve used all of the precious gunpowder, so I can’t defeat the next one. In other words, the only option is to break through.’

‘The question is whether to kill him and annihilate the reconnaissance unit. I have decided that it is better not to allow him to make a report.’

I pulled out the spear that stabbed in the ground, and turned around.

“It may be a trap, but we have no choice but to go.” (Yuri)

“Yes.” (Carol)

Carol also seemed to have noticed that the reconnaissance remained.

“If my horse falls, ignore me and cut through.” (Yuri)

“No.” (Carol)

Carol immediately replied.

“Since this is an order, no questions asked. Follow me.” (Yuri)

I signaled the horse without waiting for her reply.

I loosened the reins, and hit the side of the horse with the heel part of the shoes. The horse began to trot very naturally.

Then, I was aware that the shoes didn’t have a spur. sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ NʘvᴇlFirᴇ.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

‘The spur is attached to the heel of the shoe and has the function of strengthening the signal by pressing it against the belly of the horse. Birds are sensitive, so spurs aren’t necessary. Even though they aren’t essential for horseback riding, it is still a necessary tool. I forgot, but there’s no help for something that isn’t there.’

When I ran with a spear in one hand and finally approached, the last remaining reconnaissance finally made a late decision. At last, he directed his horse and started running back the way he came. I followed him.

I kicked the horse’s belly even stronger. The horse got even faster.

Rhythmic running swung my hips up and down. I could feel the sensation of the cheeks sprinting through the wind. It was a refreshing feeling after a long time.

However, as I passed through the village, the horse loosened its legs and returned to trot.

‘Damn, it’s not going well. True equestrian is the same as a riding bird, but it’s important to keep in mind. Unlike a machine, if you give a command with a bridle or a while, it will not work as you want.’

‘Perhaps, the training method is slightly different from that of the Shaalta horse. Thus, there is an incoherent feeling, and there will be no unity of rider and horse. However, if this happens, there’s no choice but to force it to run even if it’s tactless.’

I took the plunge and hit the side of the horse with the heel part of my shoes. Somehow, I made it running. The horse increased its speed by another level and started sprinting again.

I missed out that guy only for a while, but it had separated us greatly.

‘It seems that his horseback riding skill is much better than mine. He is an expert.’

While running, we were further separated. There was a fundamental difference in skill, and it seemed his run could run a few steps faster. I couldn’t catch something that I couldn’t win in this race.

After competing for a few minutes, I could finally see his back on the other side of the forest road which extended in a straight line.

‘This is no good. There’s no way I can kill him.’

But, there was something wrong at that time. Further ahead of the reconnaissance who I was chasing, a horse the size of my fingertips appeared.

It didn’t catch up with the horse that was running leisurely, but it seemed that it was running at full speed toward my direction. The distance was getting shorter.

‘Was it still a trap?’

When I looked back, Carol was following me a bit late.

‘She probably thought that we should be pushing as it was. Even if there is a trap, there is no choice but to break through.’

I put my strength into the hand holding the spear while keeping the speed of the horse.

In front of me, the reconnaissance and the horse passed each other.

At that moment, the reconnaissance fell as if something had collided.

With the ride in place, only the horse went forward, and the reconnaissance crashed from the back to the ground. A spear-like stick extended from that rider’s chest.

‘This guy…?’

Shortly after thinking, the mysterious cavalryman pulled the reins and made the horse come to a sharp halt quite roughly. The distance between me and the new rider was reduced from the size of my fingertips to the size of the palm of my hand.

When I saw that the rider was wearing Kuran’s clothes, I rushed it without reducing my speed.

‘It’s more advantageous to have more kinetic energy in the cavalry battle. I don’t know what happened, but if I’m not sure whether it’s an enemy or ally, I should go for the kill. There is no risk of stopping in this situation.’

The mysterious cavalry quickly took out something when the intention to pierce my spear matched.

“Stop! I’m on your side!” (??)

The object raised while yelling in the Shan language was a black stick in appearance, and it was slightly warped. I had seen it before.

I immediately shifted the spear, and at the same time, pull the reins to stop the horse. I stopped beside the fallen reconnaissance.

It was the Queen’s Sword.

—

When Carol and I stopped, the Queen’s Sword immediately got off the horse.

When I looked at the face, she was certainly the Queen’s Sword.

‘She might be rushing when she heard the sound of blasting the house since she was nearby. Her clothes are… it seems she is wearing armor that stole from the Kuran. Since she’s wearing a surcoat that looks very well tailored, she probably stole it from a fairly high-ranking noble.’

The Queen’s Sword knelt at Carol and hung her head.

“Her Highness… You’re safe!” (Queen’s Sword)

She completely ignored me and bowed to Carol. It didn’t matter to me at all, but Carol looked at me and looked like she was asking for an opinion.

‘Since it is a tiresome established routine when it comes to an army, she probably dislikes the act of ignoring the superior.’

I nodded back to Carol.

“You did well. Tilet.” (Carol)

‘Her name is Tilet? This is the first time I hear it.’

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t come to save you as soon as possible.” (Tilet)

‘Obviously, she wouldn’t care about me. Perhaps, even if I hold my chests and die suddenly, she would say ‘let’s return immediately’.’

“Aah, that’s thanks to Yuri.” (Carol)

Carol praised me and the Queen’s Sword saw me for the first time.

She was looking… or rather, glaring.

It seemed that she wanted to say something. However, it was probably difficult to say it in front of Carol.

‘Well, it could be eight or nine… out of 10 that is a grudge. I want to give one or two excuses but there’s no doubt that the cause for this incident is Carol. It doesn’t hurt that she has a grudge, so it’s fine. As long as Carol’s parents have no grudge on me.’

“Oi, are you done?” (Carol)

I opened my mouth for the first time here.

“What?” (Tilet)

“Let me tell you. You may think that we’re all good, but both of us have leg injuries and we can’t even walk without a cane. It’s fine to have a reunion, but…” (Yuri)

Carol and I were still straddling the horse because getting on and off the horse was a burden.

With the arrival of the Queen’s Sword, the situation had improved significantly, but it wasn’t optimistic enough to be distracted.

“Your Highness… are you injured?” (Tilet)

The Queen’s Sword looked up at Carol with concerned eyes.

“Yes. I was injured when I crashed, and… Yuri walked up with me on her back to this point. But just before we got here, Yuri was injured. He’s having a hard time, but I would like to ask you to guard us along the way.” (Carol)

“From there to here…?” (Tilet)

The Queen’s Sword seemed to be feeling something. I supposed she thought that it was this late because we were lost. For her, this was something unthinkable.

“I know most of the situation by the letters Myaro left behind, but I don’t think this is a very safe area. Especially for people who can’t escape or walk because their legs are injured.” (Yuri)

‘There are horses, but horses can be easily stopped if the road is blocked by arrows sticking from the ground or carts installed.’

“You’re right… Now that Her Highness has returned… Let’s return to Reform as soon as possible.” (Tilet)

“Hmm, I leave this to you.” (Carol)

“Leave it to me. Your Highness.” (Tilet)

When she said that, the Queen’s Sword stood up and straddled the horse.

—

TLN:

This chapter is the last chapter of Volume 8.