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62. Childhood Friend – Gem

A stone bridge with just enough width for two carriages to barely pass by. On it stood the imposing Knight of Tertan Family and a middle-aged knight with long, wild black hair who had thrown off his helmet.

Tadian Lofero, the captain of the Tertan Family’s guard knights, drew his sword and shouted.

“Bart! I knew you would come!”

He raised his sword to signal the knights escorting the carriage.

The knight named Bart turned to the others with him.

“Kill all the Duke’s lackeys.”

With a rough, growling voice, the other six knights tossed aside their disguising helmets.

Disgraced knights who weren’t allowed to wear helmets or armor, they charged forward, each filled with a frenzied madness in their eyes.

Tadian did not try to stop the six charging past him. Over there, there were already sixteen knights, including those from the Gaidan Family.

The reason there were so many knights guarding Palace Tertan was because of them. These were the ones who terrorized the Duke’s territory once or twice a year.

Confident of an easy victory, Tadian thrust his thick sword forward. His opponent pulled back a blade so badly dulled it seemed impossible to cut anything.

The blade was so battered and worn it was hardly sharp at all; only the tip retained some edge.

Tadian mocked Bart’s pitiful sword and ridiculous stance.

He held his two-handed sword with just his right hand, dragging it on the ground… Interestingly, his opponent waved his left hand as if to gauge distance.

“Looks like your swordsmanship has become as pathetic as your appearance, Bart.”

Though he tried to provoke a reaction, Bart remained silent, merely shifting his feet to close the distance.

They had once been on equal footing a decade ago. Tadian chuckled, but didn’t let his guard down.

Then, as a precaution, he launched a feint—

“Haah!”

Bart shouted a battle cry and swung his dragging sword upward like a lightning bolt.

– CLANG!

His blade struck hard near Tadian’s hilt.

Even though Tadian angled his sword to buffer the blow, the vibrating shock startled him, causing him to take a step back.

This wasn’t the skill of someone he used to know. Bart’s sword was far faster and stronger than he remembered.

Tadian quickly tried to regain his footing, steadying his vibrating sword, but Bart wasn’t giving him any chance.

Grabbing his standing sword with both hands, Bart thrust it forward.

“You bastard!”

Caught off guard by his opponent’s significantly improved strength, Tadian wasn’t the typical knight either. As a guard knight for the heir of the Tertan Family, he had long established his own style of swordsmanship.

Tadian’s swordsmanship was disciplined and respectful of fundamentals. He had practiced thousands of cuts, pouring his energy into each muscle fiber.

He grasped the vibrating sword tightly and stamped down with his left foot. Channeling the force through his foot, knee, thigh, hip, waist, back, shoulder, and arm, he brought it down.

“Ha!”

But then, Tadian’s eyes widened in shock.

His opponent maintained the thrust while pulling his left hand off the sword to push the blade off course with the back of his hand.

“Cough! This is absurd…!”

Tadian’s blade sliced through empty air while Bart’s thrust pierced through the gap in Tadian’s armor and into his abdomen.

Even in that moment, Tadian Lofero tried to recover his sword to counterattack. But Bart clung close, not giving him a moment of space.

“How… how can you…!”

Tadian bled from his mouth as he spoke, but Bart continued to slash and thrust his sword with an attitude that scarcely acknowledged Tadian’s presence. Each wound caused Tadian’s insides to become increasingly mangled.

– SCHLIK- SCHLIK-

The sound of metal scraping through armor echoed chillingly.

Tadian Lofero let out strangled cries until, at some point, he fell silent, and Bart casually pushed aside the body as he withdrew his bloodied sword.

– Revenge

With one grudge settled that must be repaid, Bart felt no joy. He had more to do, something that required his entire remaining life.

His eyes burning with frenzy, he chased after the six comrades who had run ahead, screaming for blood.

*

Upon hearing the sound of weapons being drawn as the carriage stopped, Palace Tertan opened the carriage door and asked,

“What’s going on?”

“Young Lord! You must not come out! They have attacked, and we shall handle it, so please stay inside. Just in case, make sure to close the door tightly.”

Palace was curious about the situation, but seeing the serious expressions of the knights, he reconsidered.

No matter what he saw, it wouldn’t change the situation, so it was better not to bother the knights and let them focus.

As Palace closed the door, the reporting knight kept a watchful eye ahead.

Not far away, Captain Tadian Lofero was engaged with another knight, and the six knights who had been mistaken for soldiers were charging with ominous intent.

The knight temporarily in command steadied the lines.

Since the stone bridge wasn’t that wide, he arranged the knights in a line with the soldiers positioned behind them.

The numbers were not in their favor.

Those lunatics charging in like moths to a flame had no idea, but there were already sixteen knights on this side.

“Stop those crazed bastards! It’s fine to kill them!”

Having established a simple formation, the knights and soldiers drew their weapons.

It was expected to be an easy victory for the carriage convoy.

However, once those mad knights began swinging their swords, the situation escalated.

The knights standing in formation were slowly being pushed back. Even still, their armor made it possible for them to hold on.

“Get a grip! There are only six of them!”

The knight temporarily in command shouted, but his voice did little to help the dire situation.

The mad knights were extraordinarily skilled, each one capable of matching a knight or taking down three soldiers unarmored.

They showcased their unique swordsmanship against the knights and soldiers. At this level, they would command respect in any royal knightly order.

The knights of Duke Tertan’s house were not lacking in skill.

Typically, knights owned by ordinary nobles tended to lag behind those in royal knightly orders.

But Duke Tertan’s family was no ordinary noble family.

The prominent warrior family of the Conrad Kingdom, Duke Tertan’s knights were nearly on par with royal knights.

Yet they were still being pushed back with ease, solely because these mad knights all exceeded typical knights in skill.

At that moment, Bart, having quickly dispatched Tadian Lofero, joined up with his companions. The remaining formation that had been holding on so stubbornly fell apart helplessly.

With one stroke, Bart cleaved through a knight, or three soldiers.

‘N-no way! We must get the Young Lord to safety!’

The temporary commander attempted to flee, but the soldiers stationed at the rear were in chaos, blocking his escape.

He fell victim to the blades of the mad knights.

“Yikes! Run away!”

Someone’s shout became the signal, causing some soldiers to drop their weapons and flee.

Whether noble escort duty or not, those things only mattered when you were alive. The monsters before them easily swept aside the well-armed knights, so the soldiers stood no chance.

“Chase after them and kill them all!”

With Bart’s shout, the six knights unleashed a massacre that could no longer be called a fight. Blood dropped like rain into the calm river flowing beneath the stone bridge.

As the comrades ran forward, Bart passed the first carriage.

The first carriage of the convoy was never used by nobles. Generally, it carried the everyday necessities for common nobles.

He stood beside the second carriage.

The detestable red shield of the Tertan Family hung from that carriage, and surely, the Duke’s grandchild was inside.

Bart didn’t bother to respectfully bow or even touch the carriage door.

He swung his dull sword down upon it.

– BANG! BANG! BANG!

As he swung once, the door wobbled, and the hinges above flew off; with a second swing, the door was partially destroyed, revealing the interior. By the third swing, even the lower hinge flew off, crashing the door down.

Inside, a young nobleman was desperately trying to remain calm despite his pale complexion. With a trembling voice, he proclaimed gravely,

“What is the meaning of this?! If you are a knight, you must uphold the dignity of knighthood!”

Palace Tertan did not beg for his life. He simply chastised the knight’s rudeness.

Bart scoffed.

“I’m not a knight.”

Before he even finished speaking, his dull blade pierced through Palace’s neck.

– Revenge

Only after killing the Duke’s grandchild did Bart manage a faint smile. Still far from satisfaction, he had cut off the Tertan family line.

‘Duke Tertan… I’ll be watching to see how long you remain holed up in the capital.’

He flicked away Palace’s clean blood that clung to the blade and turned away.

The revenge was not yet finished.

Just then, a young lady emerged from the third carriage adorned with the blue lion crest.

‘The daughter of Marquis Gaidan.’

The reason Bart and his comrades were able to assault the Tertan Family like this was entirely thanks to that young lady of the Gaidan Family.

There was no way the Duke’s grandson would come out here unless it was related to this engagement.

Having learned of the meeting between the two late, Bart had frantically charged north from the southern port city of Noyar, successfully confronting the returning Duke’s grandson at the last moment.

Truly lucky. Both in gathering information and in timing it perfectly.

“Palace! Palace!”

The young lady who stepped outside gasped upon seeing the fallen door from Palace’s carriage. She lifted the hem of her long skirt and ran.

It seemed she didn’t even see Bart. After all, a noble lady would typically remain free from the threat of blades.

Bart felt no need to harm the daughter of the Gaidan Family and intended to slip past her.

But as he merely glanced at the young lady as he passed, a shiver ran down his spine.

The red gem placed across the young lady’s chest captivated Bart.

– Destroy it.

It felt ominous.

That gem must be destroyed!

Caught in an endless resonance, he interposed himself and grabbed the young lady’s waist.

Hirie Gaidan, who had been running hurriedly, found herself caught by a thick arm.

Looking up, she saw a knight with sparse facial hair, small scars scattered across his face, and a gaunt frame with protruding cheekbones. Impertinently, he was fixing his dark eyes on her chest.

Hirie shouted angrily.

“How dare you lay hands on a lady without permission! What is the meaning of this?! Remove your arm at once!”

“…Where did you get that necklace?”

“What did you say? Aren’t you a knight? I’m the daughter of the Gaidan Family! If you’re a knight, you should give me a title. No, rather, take your arm away this instant!”

Bart saw no need to say more and placed his hand on Hirie’s chest. Roughly, he yanked the necklace off while saying,

“I’m not a knight.”

Then he looked closely at the gem attached to the necklace. The gem seemed to have something inside, with the direction of its light changing moment by moment.

What is this? What could it be that feels so ominous?

As he stared at the gem blankly for a moment, he shook his head to regain his focus and strode away.

With her necklace snatched away, Hirie was filled with rage over this absurd situation but then remembered Palace and ran off in haste.

That necklace was nothing compared to Palace…

The carriage door… Blood under the door…!

Inside…

In the carriage was Palace Tertan, his throat pierced, and the gentle smile gone from his face.

The scream of a young lady echoed behind the bloodied knight.