“There’s a place we need to visit. Follow me.”
Sheyden told Jay.
“Where to?”
“You’ll know when we get there. You’ll like it too.”
It was the party hall of the Wolf Knights. Irine and Kassel were out on the veranda, earnestly discussing something, while the other knights were engaged in a heated debate about the black knights who might invade tomorrow. They were so excited that without someone intervening, they seemed ready to rush out at any moment. Amidst this, Sheyden approached and told Jay to follow him, and Jay, who knew nothing of fear, immediately did.
Without saying they were going far, Sheyden left the castle and walked down the stairs leading out of Nadium. The several hundred meters descent from the castle was bustling, with residents near the stairs keeping their lights on even at night.
“Hey, Sheyden! My daughter’s decided to propose to you today.”
A drunk man, holding a beer mug as big as his head, half-leaned out from a second-floor terrace and shouted. Sheyden didn’t stop walking, just looked up and replied.
“Considering I know how old your daughter is, that’s a very suspicious proposal.”
“In 10 years, she’ll be twenty!”
“By then, my son will be ten, so it would be perfect to marry her to him.”
The drunk man laughed with his friends, clinking their glasses, having been tricked again.
“Doesn’t it bother you, those kind of remarks?”
Jay asked.
“What does?”
“You’re a knight, right? The White Wolves! And yet you let people talk about you like that? Doesn’t it hurt your pride?”
“The Wolf Knights aren’t a place for career advancement. Unless you become a guardian knight, most of the Wolves step down after about five years to make room for the juniors. By then, we’ll be in the same position as those people, doing the same things. Being a Wolf Knight isn’t a job to live pompously.”
“So, are you not planning to become a guardian knight?”
Jay asked thoughtlessly, but Sheyden was careful.
“That’s what I want. But it’s not for me to decide. I’m probably going to retire and go back to Irophis, maybe do clerical work like before.”
The great place Sheyden mentioned was a forge.
Even at night, the work didn’t stop, and the clanging sounds could be heard. The red light leaking from the furnace brightly illuminated outside the wooden windows of the forge.
“Hmm, now that I think about it, it would have been nice if Kassel had come too.”
Sheyden remarked with a hint of regret.
“Would he have liked this kind of thing?”
“He would. He’d get excited talking about some living legend or something.”
“Why does he get so easily excited and happy, and then so quickly sad?”
“Is that bad?”
“No, it’s not about liking or disliking…”
Jay stumbled over his words, almost sounding angry.
“Why bother? It would have been fine if he came along.”
“Kassel probably has something to discuss with the Queen.”
Sheyden knocked on the open door of the forge, calling out loudly.
“Lergo, are you there?”
A young man, his face smeared with soot and a towel on his head, rushed out.
“The Master is busy with work. He’s in the middle of finishing, so you’ll have to wait a bit.”
“How long?”
The young man replied with an embarrassed smile.
“As you know, the Master’s working time is immeasurable.”
“Then we might not be able to greet him today. Can we get a weapon for this guy, though?”
Sheyden asked, pointing at Jay.
“A new Wolf Knight? Then should we make a custom order?”
“Just something already made will suffice.”
“I’ll guide you to the storage.”
The young man led them to an annex behind the forge. Jay peeked over Sheyden’s shoulder at the closed workshop. The rhythmic sound of metal striking metal continued endlessly, pausing only briefly.
Below the stairs, contrary to its external appearance, was a rather spacious basement. Various kinds of weapons were packed tightly in the organizers on the floor, and the walls were lined with all sorts of weapons, each meticulously displayed.
“If it’s a request from the White Wolves, you’re always welcome to access this storeroom. Feel free to take any weapon you want.”
“Thank you. I’ll just take one, so don’t worry.”
“Then I’ll be on my way.”
The young man said cheerfully and withdrew.
Jaymer, overwhelmed by the sheer variety, browsed through the numerous weapons and said,
“Did you bring me here just for me? I already have a sword.”
“Considering the sheath doesn’t fit, it seems like someone else’s sword. Isn’t it too dangerous to go into battle with a sword that doesn’t fit you?”
“I can handle any sword just fine.”
“Just have a look around first. If nothing appeals, you can keep using your current sword. It won’t be a waste of time. Unless you were really enjoying the party.”
“It wasn’t much of a fun party anyway. It didn’t even feel like one.”
Sheyden, about to leave, asked,
“You were injured when you fought the Black Knight, right?”
Jay moved his shoulder to show,
“I’m healed now. It was tough at the time, though. I had fought a brutally strong opponent before that.”
“I see. And?”
“And what?”
“How was it? The skill of the knight called Black?”
“I couldn’t kill him. That’s all I know.”
Jay asked with a glare,
“Are you trying to say I should be thankful you saved me? I mean, are you implying that I owe you gratitude or something?”
Sheyden looked at him blankly and then replied,
“Just choose a sword.”
Sheyden went up the stairs and disappeared.
Left alone in the storeroom, Jay boredly picked a few swords, swung them around without purpose, and put them back. With so many on display, it seemed like just a random collection.
“All swords are the same…”
Jay soon forgot his own words.
He had casually taken out about ten swords at first and then put them back, but he took longer observing the next ten. Any one of these could have been displayed as a flagship product in a normal store. The sword Jay was currently wearing was one that Billy, a Excelon Knight, had. Naturally, it was a good sword, but there were plenty like it here.
‘What? Choose just one from here? Just one? That’s insane! How much? How much to take two? Why not three?’
He hadn’t even looked at half the swords in the storeroom, but he had already picked out more than ten. He couldn’t decide among the ten he liked.
‘I’ll just take these out now and choose later.’
Even this felt like a rash decision, so he decided to take more time with the remaining half.
“Even if they seem haphazardly placed, they are all organized according to a list. Don’t mix them up.”
A kid, barely looking ten, stood at the entrance of the storeroom and said. The boy, wearing an overcoat on his shoulders like an old man, was drinking tea from a large cup. The fragrance was so strong that it quickly filled the basement.
“I didn’t mix them. I just took them out.”
Jay, thinking the boy was just a neighborhood kid or a trainee from the forge, casually responded and continued looking for swords. The boy glanced over the swords Jay had taken out and chuckled.
“Oh, I thought some thug had sneaked in, but you seem to have an eye for quality. You picked only the ones made with the most care.”
Jay stopped swinging the sword he had taken out to test.
Upon closer inspection, the boy emitted an unusual aura and his manner of speaking was not child-like.
“Are you the blacksmith named Lergo?”
“Why I look like this is bothersome to explain. Have you been looking around for a long time?”
“Not for long.”
“Look at the window.”
Outside, it was already quite bright.
“Huh? Why is it morning?”
Jay was astonished. Indeed, the few candles lit inside the storeroom were almost completely burnt out.
“Wasn’t I only here for a moment?”
Jay pointed at the window as if asking Lergo to explain the situation. Lergo picked up one of the swords Jay had laid out and swung it lightly. Even a casual swing showed its sharpness.
“No matter how much you look, you won’t find ‘the one’ for you here. Unless I make it to fit you.”
Lergo casually threw the sword he had swung back to Jay. Jay caught it and asked,
“What do you mean by making it to fit me?”
“I mean adjusting the balance and length of the sword to suit your style of swordsmanship and stance. Like the spear I’m currently making for Sheyden.”
Jay hadn’t even noticed when the banging sounds he’d been hearing all night had stopped.
“When those guys said they were going to Camort, I had quite an elaborate work prepared. This time there were five of them, so it took a little longer and eventually I let them go without giving it to them. From what I hear, except for Sheyden, they all went to Lutia. Just my luck, Sheyden’s was the last one I was working on…”
Lergo patted his own shoulder, adding a weary ‘oh, my aching back’.
“Five? You mean the White Wolves.”
“Right now, the swords they have are all made when they first became Wolves. The White Wolves need weapons that match their status. Besides, their swordsmanship has changed since then, and I think the enemies they’ll face in the future might be too much for their current weapons.”
“Aren’t weapons just for stabbing enemies?”
Lergo waved his finger as if to say don’t talk nonsense. His expression was serious, but his action seemed cute.
“If it was just about stabbing and cutting, there would be no one less rewarding to make weapons for than the White Wolves. Any weapon will do as long as it doesn’t break and is sharp and well-balanced. That’s what they’re using now. But there are enemies that won’t die just by stabbing. You haven’t faced such enemies, have you?”
Jay recalled the gray wizard he had fought with Irine at night.
“The Black Bat!”
“Eh? What bat?”
“It flew at me. This way and that. When I blocked with my sword, it shattered. Like it was rusted.”
“Wow, you fought with a wizard?”
Jay nodded.
“So you understand, right? How important a weapon can be against such an enemy.”
Lergo remarked.
“So, are the weapons you make magical swords? Master Irine has one.”
Lergo choked on his tea, coughing severely. He wiped his mouth and set the cup aside.
“My goal is to make a sword that rivals ‘Vena Esarck’. But such a task requires a lot of preparation. Over 10 years ago, I made one, but that was when everything just fell into place perfectly. My creative drive, the materials, and luck. Vena Esarck, Vena Silk, and Ztokh Worg… Huh?”
Lergo asked, puzzled.
“Why am I explaining all this to you?”
“I dunno. And a weapon is just a tool.”
“You’re right, kid. But…”
Lergo stroked his chin, scrutinizing Jay from head to toe.
“From the way you talk, you’re not the Captain Wolf I’ve heard rumors about?”
“Guess not.”
Jay didn’t bother to explain further.
‘Hmm, I wasn’t supposed to talk, but I ended up speaking honestly. Well, Kassel probably didn’t expect me to be perfect at lying anyway.’
“Anyway, this! I can’t just choose one between these two swords. Just give me both.”
Jay held two swords in his hands and spoke as if threatening. Lergo shrugged.
“Such greed! To think you can’t be satisfied with just one sword made by the great Lergo.”
“Are you going to give them or not?”
“To give you two swords… The one you have now looks pretty good, though?”
“This isn’t mine. I took it from an Excelon Knight.”
“So you’re going to use three swords?”
“A hunter needs at least three swords… Well, I’d like to say that, but I have to return this one to its owner.”
Lergo laughed and picked up his teacup again.
“An interesting fellow, you are. Do as you like.”
Pleased, Jay slung the slightly shorter sword at his waist and the longer one on his back. He liked the heavy feel pulling on his body.
“Ah, and give me a sheath that fits this sword.”
Jay held out Billy’s sword. Lergo snorted.
“Ask my apprentice for that. I’ve been up all night for a week, and tonight I have to finish Sheyden’s spear, so I need some sleep.”
Lergo pushed Jay out as if trying to lock up the storeroom. Jay, regretting not having looked at all the other swords, turned back several times.
☆ ☆ ☆
He had always thought of swords as something you just buy another of if one breaks, but today was the first time he was excited to use them. He coerced the exhausted apprentice, who had been helping Lergo all night, into giving him a sheath for his swords before going out to the backyard.
‘Let’s swing them around a bit.’
Sheyden was already there in the backyard. He was swinging a large spear, poking a wooden scarecrow. Jay took out his sword from his back and lightly struck a large wooden log next to him. It was more about getting used to the balance of the sword than actual swordsmanship practice.
“Did you find something you like?”
Sheyden, already sweating from extensive movement, asked. Jay shook his head.
“I was rushed by that Lergo guy.”
“Weren’t you in the storeroom a bit too long to be rushed?”
Jay glanced over Sheyden’s spear from one end to the other.
“The new spear isn’t ready yet? That’s the old one, right?”
“It’s finished, but it needs at least a day for the magic to settle in. It might be ready tonight or tomorrow morning.”
“So the White Wolves all use different weapons?”
“Generally, anything goes. It’s a matter of preference. But such things become quite important when you’re risking your life in battle.”
Jay swung his sword vigorously and changed his stance, slicing through the air several times. The grass on the ground was swept up by the wind pressure from his sword. Not quite satisfied, he repeated the motion. Watching him, Sheyden asked,
“You’ve never learned swordsmanship?”
Jay retorted bluntly,
“No. Why? Does my stance look that bad?”
“Join the Wolf Knights.”
Sheyden suddenly suggested.
Jay stopped in his tracks.
“Is that why you gave me the sword?”
“It’s separate. I thought you’d use a more unorthodox style, but your fundamentals look surprisingly solid. You’d do quite well with formal training.”
Jay lifted his sword indignantly.
“Quite well? Are you picking a fight now?”
Sheyden got up with his spear, and Jay stepped back, ready for a confrontation. But Sheyden didn’t seem intent on fighting and simply walked towards the exit.
‘Damn, I just got intimidated.’
Jay sheathed his sword loudly, as if to make a point.
“Anyway, I have no intention of becoming a knight.”
“That’s a shame. With about three years of effort, you could become a White Wolf.”
“I can’t now?”
“No, you can’t.”
Jay, in frustration, drew his sword again. At that moment, Sheyden swiftly turned around.
The distance between them was closed in a single step. Sheyden’s reaction was so fast that even if Jay had lunged with the intention to kill, he would not have been able to land a blow. It was incomparable to any encounters with other Wolves.
‘This guy…’
When Kassel had a meeting with the Council of Elders yesterday, Jay had gone to the training grounds of the Wolves with Irine. There, he saw a gathering of skilled individuals he had never encountered before.
Standing by the fence and watching their bouts for just a moment, Jay felt his heart pounding. Even though their attacks were gentle, as to not injure each other, Jay felt he would have struggled to fend them off. He had never seen anything like it.
Irine clapped her hands and spoke to the knights.
‘Come on, everyone, gather around. Even if you’re seniors who have been loafing around, you’d come if a junior asks so earnestly, right?’
They approached Irine, laughing.
‘Here’s my apprentice, Jaymer. So, here’s the thing.’
Irine cut to the chase and made a proposition.
‘I’d like to see him fight the strongest one among you. Any takers?’
Irine understood the character of her apprentice, who had only been with her for a few days, very well. He was so excited that his muscles twitched, eager to start a fight right away.
One of the Wolves laughed and shook his head. Jay couldn’t even remember his name now.
‘I wouldn’t want to hurt him for no reason. If it’s Master Irine’s command, I can go easy…’
Hearing that in his excited state, Jay couldn’t stay still. He targeted about three people within reach of his sword and said,
‘You don’t have to. Just fight as you are.’
Jay closed the distance with them in two steps, sword in hand. Almost simultaneously, the three Wolves stepped in, reducing the distance to just one step.
Jay felt dizzy, almost vertiginous. Facing one person was startling but manageable; however, when three approached simultaneously and precisely, Jay was taken aback. But he didn’t back down.
Without drawing their swords, Jay maintained a one-step distance with the three Wolves, and they neither retreated nor advanced.
‘Stop it, both sides! Do you want to get in trouble?’
Irine shouted in anger. The three stepped back carefully, maintaining the distance of one step. Jay realized his palms were sweaty and his competitive spirit flared even more.
‘I’ll do it.’
One of them stepped forward before the atmosphere could turn more hostile.
‘Your name?’
‘Franz.’
‘Good. What do you say, Jaymer? He’s worth a try, right?’
Later, Irine said that she had arranged this match to see Jay’s real combat skills. She had never seen Jay fight with his full strength.
‘Anybody here is fine.’
Jay said, meaning he didn’t mind even if it were Sildire, who was watching from a corner. However, Franz observed Jay for a moment and then declined the match.
‘I cannot fight someone who is injured.’
He had noticed the bandages hidden under Jay’s clothes.
‘It doesn’t matter. This much injury I can bear in a fight. If you don’t like me drawing my sword, then bring a wooden one quickly.’
Realizing that he wouldn’t be able to fight in his current state, Jay raised his voice in protest. However, Irine grabbed his shoulder from behind. Jay’s scream proved Franz’s judgment correct, and the match was postponed. Jay had to settle for observing from the sidelines.
Eventually, a match with Franz did happen, but under different circumstances due to a bet made by Selina and Kassel.
Suppressing his burning desire to compete, Jay only watched. However, as someone who had always learned swordsmanship through real combat, he learned a lot just by watching. Particularly, each of the Wolves had a unique and distinct swordsmanship style.
Even before Selina and Kassel’s bet was made, Jay had struggled to calm his excitement and prepare for the match. He was careful not to use his injured shoulder so it would heal faster.
Fortunately, his condition had improved significantly since yesterday. Yet, he was unable to react to the sudden closing of distance by Sheyden.
“Do not carelessly draw your sword against a White Wolf. If you are Irine’s disciple, you will have many encounters with the White Wolves in the future, and they are not the kind to overlook such things.”
Sheyden warned as he turned back his spear.
“The same goes for me.”
Sheyden continued walking towards the forge and added,
“My mention of three years was an assessment of your potential. I heard a bit about you from Irine. You’ve never been formally trained by anyone, have you?”
His voice was low, but the surroundings were so quiet that everything he said was heard.
“Then it’s natural. Like the others, I also saw a significant difference in skill when I learned from Master Quain. Jaymer, start learning diligently from now on. And surpass the three years I mentioned.”
Jay always got angry when someone preached to him. But this time, he couldn’t object. It wasn’t anger towards Sheyden, but towards himself.
‘I can’t do anything, just listening quietly.’
He felt his face flush with heat as he recalled his words to Kassel about surviving the White Wolf’s fangs.
‘I have a weapon now, and so does he. If I charge at him, that guy would definitely fight back. He won’t show any mercy.’
Jay clenched his teeth in frustration, feeling angry even just looking at Sheyden’s back.
‘And then I’ll die.’
In just about a week, he had met too many strong people. They all were so powerful that they made Jay’s ability to gauge distance feel utterly useless. Irine, Quain, Black. But now, to Jay, Sheyden seemed even more terrifying than those three.
“One year will be enough.”
Jay growled.
“No, less than that. Yeah! Six months will do.”
Sheyden stopped briefly and turned around.
“Then so be it.”
Sheyden replied nonchalantly, then continued,
“I asked about Black because I wanted to analyze a potential opponent in advance.”
“What? I already marked him!”
Jay said sulkily, hating how childish his response sounded.
“I knew the moment our spears clashed at Alaraya’s bridge. That man is entwined with my fate.”
Sheyden’s eyes, as he stared blankly into space, were fierce and intense. His voice also sounded remarkably majestic.
“One way or another, he will be my opponent. I must prepare. The fate of Aranthia might depend on that fight.”
“Hmph, and you think you’ll win?”
“Do I look like someone who would engage in a fight I intend to lose?”
Jay felt increasingly cornered and diminished, as if shrinking in size. No, it seemed as if Sheyden was growing larger.
“Even… even Master Irine said she couldn’t beat that opponent!”
Jay screamed internally.
‘Stop it, you idiot! Shut your mouth. You can’t talk. Don’t do it. Don’t do what you can’t!’
Yet, he couldn’t stop himself from speaking.
“What about Quain? And you think you can win?”
Sheyden looked at Jay with a heavy gaze and said,
“Only a White Wolf can survive after seeing the fangs of another White Wolf. And Black is not a White Wolf. That’s all there is to it.”
Jay’s hands trembled.
Sheyden had easily made him feel insignificant. Everything Jay did felt awkward, and every word he uttered seemed childish.
‘There are four more like him in the White Wolves? And they’re not even showing their fangs right now?’
Jay’s jaw clenched tightly, his teeth grinding.
He remembered Kassel on the rooftop two days ago, suffering. He now understood why Tanya had been cynical towards Kassel. Tanya was disappointed in Kassel.
Tanya knew Sheyden before Jay did. She would have known how Sheyden’s incredible presence could overwhelm those around him, especially as a sorceress. She must have had high expectations for Kassel, whom Sheyden respected as Captain. But Kassel turned out to be a timid soul who couldn’t even accept himself. While Jay found comfort in that, Tanya was disappointed.
Thinking of Kassel, Jay regained his composure and admitted,
‘I can’t survive the fangs of a White Wolf in my current state.’
Just as a wave of defeat and gloom was about to overwhelm him, a long horn sound echoed. Jay turned towards the sound, but Sheyden was staring east, towards the mountains.
Jay followed his gaze eastward. Smoke was rising along the mountains. Faintly, from a distance, smoke tinged with red was drifting in succession.
“Alaraya’s beacon…”
Sheyden murmured.
“What’s that?”
“It’s too soon. How could it be already?”
Leaving those incomprehensible words behind, Sheyden left the forge and started up the hill. Jay quickly followed.
People in Nadium were coming out of their homes with alarmed faces. Although nobody explained it to him, Jay understood the significance of the beacon from context.
‘Has the Gold Gate been breached?’
–TL Notes–
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