Chapter 159: The young man and Yarandorara Part 1
Translator: Tseirp
I was 9 years old at that time .
I had just entered the Bahamut Knight Order and I was still a page, lowest in the rankings .
It was during a cold winter evening .
Heavy snow was falling from the grey skies .
There was still some leeway to feel joy from the heavy snowfall but most of the Imperial Capital people were soaked by the snow and walked with dampened spirits .
The streets were crowded with people returning from work so there was even more discomfort .
On that gloomy day, I was requested by Flores-san who was the knight I served under to buy something so I was walking through the crowd while shaking my cloak .
(Would anybody actually sell the cosmos flower in the middle of winter?)
In my heart, I wondered if this hard work would end in wasted effort and was a little dissatisfied .
But as a page, I had no choice but to obey the orders of the knight I served .
At the very least, I probably had to visit at least five florists and bear with the large snowflakes before he would be convinced .
(It would have been better if he could have at least told me in the morning . )
The empty stomach of my growing body growled but dinner that night was likely to be late .
I joined the Knight Order because I wanted to become stronger to protect Ruti but if I do not promote to squire, I would not have the opportunity to grow my divine protection .
Most of the pages who worked with me did not want to do chores such as these .
In particular, the eldest son of an Earl, Neville, often pushed his chores onto others .
Although he was using that spare time well by training with the spear .
This time the search for flowers was originally Neville’s task but he pressed the chore to me as I was a commoner .
(Well, this is a good chance to gather knowledge on being a knight since I grew up in the countryside . )
Strength alone was insufficient to protect Ruti .
The ability to negotiate with people of power, the ability to maintain a party’s journey, the ability to lead and fight as a commander … the first step necessary in obtaining those would be to acquire appropriate manners and ways of thinking as a knight .
As such, although I was dissatisfied, I accepted being in the lowest position and took my tasks seriously .
Besides, our superiors, Flores-san, was an elite knight from the Bahamut Knight Order of the Avalonian Kingdom .
He looked closely at our work although it seemed like he was tossing menial tasks for us to perform .
Regarding Neville .
Yesterday, I overheard Flores telling his knight colleague that he was going to expel Neville from the Knight Order .
(A person can’t be a knight just by relying on strong martial prowess . )
I thought about that as I walked among the snow and crowds .
I heard creaking sounds from above my head .
“The sound of a drawn bow?”
I jumped on the shoulder of the man in front of me and jumped into the air .
“Sorry about that!”
“Uwa!? This brat! What are you doing!!”
With the +30 level from 『Guide』 that made my level way above that of an ordinary child, I could perform such feats with the light body of a child .
While stepping on the heads of the people I passed by, I drew the short sword on my waist and cut down the arrow that was shot .
“That man was the target . ”
At the location where the arrow would have hit was a man dressed in fine silk with a shocked and bewildered look .
If I remember correctly, he should be the owner of a large company that deals with salt and is an executive of the Merchant Guild . His name should be Bran・Robinson .
A man with enough wealth and position to be targeted .
“And the person that aimed for his life is there!”
The second floor of the house on the side of the street .
Two eyes shined in the dark room where not a single candle was lit .
“I’ll apologize later!”
“Kya!”
I leaped high up by lending the shoulder of an Elf woman near me .
“ … !?”
I could see surprise showing on the face peeking through under the hood of the man dressed entirely in black holding a bow .
I grabbed the window sill, kicked the wall, jumped into the window, and slashed with my sword without missing a beat .
“Ah!?”
The moan of pain came from me .
A sharp pain ran down my right arm .
It was supposed to be a surprise attack but my sword did not connect and scraped the chain shirt my opponent was wearing under his clothes .
The man quickly leaped backward to gain distance . I couldn’t chase after him .
After all, an arrow was stuck in my right arm and I couldn’t move .
The man stabbed me with the arrow he was holding in his right hand as he dodged my attack .
(He’s strong . )
Born with a divine protection level of 31, that was the first time I fought against somebody stronger .
I held my sword with my left hand and controlled my breathing .
“That attack gave me the chills . That didn’t match your appearance, kid . Sorry but I will kill you here . ”
“You too, I did not expect you to dodge my sword with that timing . I’ll give up on capturing you without killing you . ”
“That crest should belong to the Bahamut Knight Order . A page huh … you might become a hero who leaves their name in history if you grow up but since you stuck your head into unnecessary matters … pitiful kid . ”
His killing intent was first-class as well .
I was hit by intimidation that was incomparable to what I felt when I fought against an Owl Bear .
The man drew his bow and aimed for my heart .
(His divine protection is 『Shooter』, no, 『Bow Master』!)
The divine protection of 『Bow Master』is one that does not use the bow as a tool for fighting but finds meaning in the training of bow techniques .
It is one of the unique martial artist-type divine protection that utilizes weapons .
Their impulse to use the bow is strong but it should still be very much stronger than the ordinary 『Shooter』 .
It will be difficult to survive without suffering any wounds .
The thought that if only I had my armor ran through my mind but I dispelled that thought since it was pointless at the moment .
I resolved myself as I used my wounded right arm to cover my face and pulled one leg back to turn my body sideward to protect my heart with my left shoulder .
“That’s not a bad strategy . You will have a chance of winning if you live even though you will have to sacrifice your arm . ”
The man said without a change in his expression … he had a look of composure .
He probably had confidence in piercing through my arm to reach my vital points .
My heartbeat quickened with the prospect of death looming .
At that moment, a strong and warm wind, a spring-like wind, blew through the window .
White petals mixed with the snow passed between us .
Two petals danced and blocked the man’s eyes as though they were attracted to them .
The next instant, he released the arrow .
It tore through the petals flying in the air and pierced the wall behind me .
At the same time, I felt the sensation of the sword I held with my left hand slice through flesh .
The petals that blocked the man’s eyes fell to the ground .
“ … . !”
The bleeding man glared at me with a terrifying gaze .
His throat was pierced and he leaked strange noises .
He was muttering something but I couldn’t understand what he was saying .
I put more strength behind my left arm and pushed the sword deeper in .
The man’s body trembled and collapsed to the floor as though a puppet with broken strings .
“Haaa haaa …”
I verified that the man was dead and sat on the floor .
The arrow on my right shoulder was stabbed by hand so the wound was not deep .
I held my breath and clenched my teeth before pulling the arrow out .
The bloody arrow clattered on the floor .
My right shoulder hurt but I felt the tingling sensation coming from my divine protection for the first time in a long time .
(I leveled up . )
Born with level 31, I had exterminated monsters every day from when I was 6 years old to level up .
However, defeating lower-level opponents had very poor efficiency for nurturing divine protection .
Until yesterday I was only able to raise my level by two, to reach divine protection level 33 .
But today, just one battle made my level rise to 34 .
“So this is the Imperial Capital . ”
I was worried about leaving Ruti’s side but it was the right choice to be scouted by the Knight Order to become stronger .
After sitting for a while, I heard rustling noises rushing through the building .
I quickly put my hand on the sword handle of the sword which I had sheathed .
“Are you all right!?”
It was a High-Elf female that rushed in .
Following behind her were guards with their long swords drawn .
They seemed to be allies .
“I’m glad you are all right . ”
The High-Elf whom I met for the first time held my wounded right arm .
Flowers drifted around the wound and the wound disappeared without a trace .
“Thank you very much, High-Elf Onee-san … erm, sorry but have we met before?”
“No, this is the first time we’ve met . I am Yarandorara . ”
“Ah, were you perhaps the person I stepped on to reach the second floor?”
“Yes, I was shocked . ”
Yarandorarsan said and smiled gently .
“Sorry, I was in a rush and thought that I didn’t have any other choice . ”
“It’s okay, like you said, that was the only option . ”
That was the first time I spoke with a High-Elf .
There were High-Elves living in the Imperial Capital but they usually build communities around High-Elves and lived by building invisible walls to the human race .
It was in the nature of the High-Elf race to dislike other races .
“Hey, this guy is Visha!”
“Visha, the Archipelago mercenary?”
The guard examined the man’s corpse and muttered something .
“I have seen Visha before, I’m sure of it . ”
“It’s probably somebody who looks like Visha . After all, it was a kid who killed this guy so it can’t be that Visha, famed for killing three kings . ”
“ … That’s true . He does look very much like him though . ”
It seemed that the man was a famous mercenary .
No wonder his level was high if he had been active in the Archipelago Kingdom with its never-ending wars .
“Young master . ”
The guard looked at me and said .
“I would like to have an explanation as to what transpired here so could you come with me to the military station?”
“Understood . ”
But before I could go to the guard, Yarandorara stepped in front of me and stopped me .
“Wait, this child has just gone through a life and death fight . He doesn’t seem to know anything apart from the battle here so it should be okay to hear a description of the events tomorrow . ”
“Mu, but Yarandorarsan . ”
“Look at the boy’s sword . ”
My sword?
“ … I see . Sorry about that young master, I’ll listen to your description tomorrow . Please let me know your name and affiliation . ”
The guard quickly gave up and said to me in a gentle voice .
I tilted my neck in confusion in my mind but I was relieved that I would still have time for Flores-san’s errand .
“I am a page serving Flores-dono, Gideon・Lugnason . ”
“Lugnason-kun huh? I take it you live in Lord Flores’s residence . I will visit tomorrow morning . ”
Yarandorara and I nodded to the guard and left outside .