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207. Beggar Siblings – The Whereabouts of the Necklace

Leo, riding Kus, crossed the plains. Clippity-clop, clippity-clop. Reb’s powerful black horse galloped, giving its master a refreshing breeze in the crisp early autumn air; however, Leo’s eyes were bloodshot. He struggled to avoid falling, occasionally gripping his thigh tightly, battling with his steed.

I want to sleep.

He hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in weeks. On the night he met Reb, he found the sticky gaze unsettling and, after wandering outside for a stroll in the late hours, ended up getting back to bed and ultimately rising to tilt back a drink.

Just then, Reb, who was wandering about in distress, made for a good drinking companion. In the village chief’s house, the two young men filled each other’s cups in a quiet guest room.

Reb’s palms had returned to normal. There were no trumpet patterns of Barbatos or prints of Oriax’s footsteps, just ordinary bare hands, like Leo’s.

Although he had expected it, it was now clear.

Oriax must have marked Minseo, not Leo. So even though the first person to receive the debuff was Leo de Yeriel, Reb had had footprints in his hands during the next childhood friend session.

He thought that becoming an Apostle of Barbatos would resolve the issue. He had assumed those trumpet patterns had vanished for good…

‘What happened with Barbatos?’

The answer lay within the {History of Ashin} information.

The Ashins, born from the yearnings of creatures, naturally vanished if there was no one to serve them. If that brat was the last believer of Barbatos, then it all made sense. Reb’s father, Dop Bijan, had not believed in Barbatos since being freed from his shackles.

That was perhaps the most realistic way for a human to kill a god. Because of that, the ancient Acaian Empire exterminated those races, and the modern Cross Church slaughtered the unconverted barbarians.

Yet his capturing of Barbatos was like a cow stepping back and stepping on a mouse. That lad hadn’t even known he was a believer of Barbatos, and Leo’s reason for passing through this Taamun village was nothing more than a vague destination where he had once stayed with Kasia. So it really was just a coincidence, Leo thought.

“What do we do now?”

Reb asked quietly. If the owner of the gaze you’re feeling is Oriax, would it even be possible to regain {bloodline}?

Leo exhaled deeply, not hiding his sigh.

“There’s no helping it.”

He couldn’t give up the bloodline. Whether making Lena a princess was the way to clear this game was still unclear, but regaining the {bloodline} of the beggar siblings was almost the only answer. While Leo and Minseo disagreed on many points, he thought there was merit in this matter.

“I’ll at least try.”

“…Yeah.”

The two young men clinked their cups weakly. Since both had different reasons for wanting to sleep, they discussed what to do moving forward throughout the night.

– Hee-hee-haw!

Startled, Leo pulled on the reins. He drifted off momentarily and lost his course. Had Kus not given him a nudge, he would have ended up stuck in a muddy patch.

He muttered to himself, rambling.

“Phew. Get a grip. Can’t fall asleep. Just a little longer.”

But in fact, despite the discussion, there wasn’t much for the two to argue about. This was partly because they shared many memories and experiences, but mainly because Reb didn’t comment on Leo’s plans.

However, he raised one question.

“What exactly is Hirie’s necklace?”

– Hee-hee-haw!

“Wah!”

He suddenly realized he was in the woods. He almost crashed into a tree trunk but managed to avoid it, though he got caught in some branches.

Having tumbled down, Leo, thankfully, didn’t suffer any serious injuries except for a scratch from the branches.

Smack!

He slapped his cheeks hard and got back on Kus. Using {Tracking Skill} to judge Bart’s location, he charged forth but ended up dozing off again.

As he chatted with Reb, dawn broke. Leo realized the unsettling feeling had vanished with the morning sun.

Somewhat relieved, Leo visited his younger sister, who must have been very surprised the night before, along with Ksenia and Tian, who were all bruised up.

He spent some time chatting to ease their feelings. Since he hadn’t been able to talk yesterday, they had a moment to introduce their suddenly appeared friend (Reb) over breakfast.

[ Achievement: First Meeting with Lena – Lena has a high affection for Leo. ]

Lena stared at Reb with a strange glance for a moment. However, she soon turned her head and served side dishes into Tian’s bowl, and Leo brought up the main topic just after that.

“I have to go somewhere for a bit.”

He confessed that a few of the royal knights who had followed him were still alive. He intended to bring them, so the gist was for them to go to Baron Monarch’s house first.

He felt guilty about leaving again after what had happened yesterday.

Yet, riding in a carriage with Lena, Ksenia, and Tian would mean they wouldn’t arrive by the Irotashi River on time. Since I had that strange gaze on me, perhaps it would be better to part ways for a bit.

They didn’t have to worry about the group’s safety. Although the cycle hadn’t turned yet, Reb was skilled enough to match the commander of any decent kingdom’s knights.

“I’ll be back soon. Please rest first at Baron Monarch’s. Count Peter has probably already sent word, and there’s also this letter for you to be treated as guests here.”

Leo handed over Count Gustave Peter’s letter. Ksenia accepted it with a bright smile, full of meaningful intent.

“Yes, Your Highness. Don’t worry about us. We’ll wait for you. Very… much looking forward to it.”

What is it? Just as he was about to ask, his younger sister jumped in. “How long will it take? You need to come back quickly.” With big eyes like marbles urging him, Leo couldn’t bring himself to say it would take about four months going back and forth and stammered instead. The Irotashi River was, after all, quite far from here.

And with that, Leo parted ways with his party. Riding on the Kus that Reb had snatched, he headed ahead towards Conrad Kingdom.

Crossing the border was not difficult.

With the signet of Baron Monarch received from Count Peter, he easily passed through the gate, but after entering the Conrad Kingdom, he couldn’t sleep at all.

An unsettling feeling touched his skin.

Every night, Leo drove his horse as if chased by something, and on a rainy day, he figured out what was after him.

The overcast sky. Despite it being daytime, it was dark and gloomy. Avoiding the pouring rain, Leo briefly entered the woods, but soon Kus’s nudging stifled his breath.

Figures walking on two legs—pale shapes appeared between the rain.

Those with massive horns sat and rose, as if searching for something, sniffing the ground before taking a couple of steps closer to Leo, occasionally turning their heads his way, unsure, perhaps due to poor eyesight or damaged markings, wandering around.

But even as they made foolish movements, they were steadily getting closer to Leo. Swallowing hard, Leo carefully led Kus out of the forest.

– Whoosh!

Rainwater streamed down Leo’s brows. Thick raindrops poured down, weighing him down, yet Leo gritted his teeth and held on to the reins.

Oriax is a deity sensitive to its territory. Much like the Minotaur that had believed in him, he remembered every small mistake for a long time and retaliated with persistence.

Since coming under Prince Eric’s service, Oriax seemed to have taken this Conrad Kingdom as his territory.

However, a strange fellow, someone he didn’t remember marking, had invaded that territory, prompting him to personally seek the intruder.

If caught, he might do anything. And if word got to Prince Eric that he was still alive through Oriax, it would all be over. Regaining the {bloodline} wouldn’t be the problem then, rather it would be about running to the continent’s edge to survive.

Even if it’s a Swordmaster, getting hit by a sword still means death, and no individual could rival a kingdom that commanded hundreds of thousands of soldiers. I need… time.

Thus began Leo’s painful journey.

At night, in a situation where he had to run away, he cautiously held onto Kus’s reins. It was fine for him, but if Kus stumbled while he was riding at night, it could lead to a disaster.

As dawn broke, he began running on Kus. He soothed the creature, which was quite unhappy with the night and day reversal, pushing him to his fastest. Taking a moment to close his eyes at noon in the blaring sunlight, Kus was finally able to enjoy some feed and rest. As the sun began to set, he would run a little more again, and when darkness fell, he would dismount and walk…

– Stumble.

“Ugh!?”

Leo jolted awake.

W-where am I? What’s going on? Confused, he soon realized he had dozed off again while riding. Having let go of the reins, Kus could no longer bear the weight, leaning over to signal to dismount.

Seeing that evening was already creeping in, Leo grew anxious. Even though time was of the essence, wasting a day meant he needed to hurry to make up for it, but first and foremost, he had to let Kus rest. Apparently tired, Kus flattened as soon as Leo dismounted.

“Sorry, Kus.”

– Plop.

“Here, have some carrots and get some rest.”

– Hee-haw! Plop.

“And let’s push through a bit further. If we keep this pace, we should only have to run for about… three more weeks.”

– Crunch, crunch.

Kus didn’t hear Leo as he munched on the carrots. He probably didn’t understand either, but that was probably for the best.

*

“…I’m late.”

Despite all his struggles, when Leo finally reached the Irotashi River, Bart had just attacked Prince Palace Tertan. The stone bridge was filled with corpses made by Bart and his companions.

From the condition of the bodies, it was clear that quite some time had passed. After confirming with {Tracking Skill}, it was evident that Bart had fled downstream, making pursuit highly unfeasible. They would probably have set sail to the sea.

Recalling unpleasant memories, Leo stepped over the corpses. He briefly glanced at the riverbank where Reb and Leah had died, then approached the carriage in the middle of the stone bridge.

The shattered door lay fallen. It belonged to Duke Tertan’s carriage, which bore a red shield. Taking a deep breath, Leo peered inside. Just as he had suspected, Hirie Gaidan was there.

“Palace. P-please, get up.”

She was wailing so much it sounded like she was begging in a hoarse voice, hugging her lover whose throat had been pierced.

That woman would likely spend several days and nights wailing away. People didn’t know what to do with the grieving great noble’s lady and pretended they hadn’t seen anything.

Sigh.

If it were left like this, she’d be losing her mind just like last time.

Leo grabbed Hirie’s wrist. “P-Palace! L-let go!” He pulled her from the carriage, grasping her shoulders as they locked eyes.

“Hirie.”

“L-let go of this. Palace… Palace is…”

[ Achievement: The Man Who Melted Hirie Gaidan’s Heart – Gained slight affection from Hirie Gaidan. ]

Hirie thrashed about. Yet Leo held onto her, repeatedly locking eyes, grounding her so she would not escape into the realm of denial.

He couldn’t find the words.

He didn’t know how to comfort her and doubted there was a way. All he could do was silently take the blows to his chest…

After a long time of struggling against Leo’s hold, Hirie collapsed. She wept sadly, clutching him until her cries slowly faded away.

“…Are you okay?”

“…”

“If you’ve calmed down, I’ll help you carry Palace out of the carriage.”

“…Okay.”

Trembling but trying to stand on her own, he felt this was good enough and released Hirie.

As Leo took Palace’s lifeless body out to lay it down, Hirie collapsed again. However, she didn’t act like before, talking to the dead. She held onto his cold hand, making a vow.

“I will never marry anyone. And I will never forgive the knight who killed you. I will definitely take revenge and retrieve the necklace he stole. So please, close your eyes peacefully. My love.”

Bart took the necklace?

Hirie’s fierce vow enveloped him in confusion. Bart had no reason to do that, plus the necklace possessed special qualities.

Barbatos had coveted that necklace considerably. He had completely forgotten, but it was Reb, who had recently been an apostle of Barbatos, who reminded him of this.