Chapter 117
The Second Prince’s Investigation (3)
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“Master Johan? What’s the matter?”
“…It was just an insect . ”
Leonhard sent a concerned glance when I looked preoccupied . I gave him a short reply and he didn’t pursue the issue any further .
“Hey, Johan . I have something I’d like to ask about Philipp . ”
“What about him?”
“Is he really Lord Geisster’s son?”
I was surprised by his question .
“You went straight to the point, huh . ”
“There’s no use sugar-coating my words here, is there?”
“That’s true . ”
I bitterly smiled back at Nacht whilst turning my eyes back to the thick trees ahead before I gave him a serious reply of my own .
“Philipp is the child of Lord Heinz and his wife, who died when he was young . I heard that he has had a weak constitution since birth and is rarely seen in public . In fact, this was the first time I saw him in the flesh . ”
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I knew Lord Heinz had a son, but I’ve never met him personally before .
Not only that, but he had never mentioned anything about Philipp whatsoever . The same goes for Lord Heinz’s subordinates .
It might be overthinking on my part, but I was suspicious . Lord Heinz hadn’t just avoided speaking about the topic; he had never mentioned his own son at all .
I was sure surprised to see Philipp the other day . He didn’t resemble Lord Heinz in the slightest . His delicate frame and slender body were similar to Lord Heinz’s deceased wife, but if no one had told me that, it wouldn’t have crossed my mind that they were related . It’s no wonder why Nacht had his doubts .
“I see . No wonder I never see them together… But to think that Margrave Geisster’s kid is sickly . It must’ve been hard for the child to live with that . ”
Nacht’s narrowed eyes were slightly tinged with sympathy .
I agreed with him on that point and returned a brief, ‘Yeah . ’
Grenze was a city that prospered as a military base with numerous soldiers stationed within . In a society that values utmost strength, there will definitely be folks spreading gossip about the margrave’s unhealthy heir . And precisely because Lord Heinz was a respected person, the scrutiny channelled at him will be even more intense .
As Nacht said, it could be assumed that Philipp’s surroundings weren’t kind to him .
“But, Nacht . ”
This is a different matter entirely . No matter the situation or whatever the reason, there are times where you mustn’t let feelings cloud your vision .
Before I could continue, Nacht cut in by raising his hand .
“I know . I do sympathize with his circumstances, but that’s as far as I go . If the people are suffering because of him, then forgiveness will be the last thing he gets . ”
Nacht declared without hesitation .
“I’ll make him pay twice over . ”
His voice carried such weight that I couldn’t believe it came out of a teenage boy .
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Undeniable resolution shone in his eyes as he slowly blinked . I swore I saw a brief glimpse of someone who would eventually stand on top .
A short but heavy silence followed .
As if to break it, Nacht continued, ‘Well then,’ and stood up from where he had rested .
“Let’s get going . If you sit for too long, you’ll grow roots under your heels, you know?”
Leonhard loosened his expression when Nacht cracked a small joke . I also chuckled before standing up myself .
I broke out some stretches . Despite the short break, my pained heart from before had disappeared, and my body slightly recovered its strength . I looked ahead towards the abundant greenery once again .
It was not even an hour after we started walking that the sunlight turned bright orange, piercing through the leaves .
This forest may be vast, but the village shouldn’t be too far now . It would be nice if we could get there before the sun sets .
As I pondered along, Leonhard gently called out to me . When I raised my face, a small trail of light hit my vision . He immediately told me to hide via a hand signal .
I huddled behind the shadow of a tree and Nacht soon followed suit .
“Scouts from the village . ”
Leonhard said, as quietly as possible .
Apparently, we’ve reached our destination . But it didn’t seem easy to get in . Breathing out a sigh of defeat, I glanced next to me . Nacht was clearly agitated and anxiously clicked his tongue .
Leonhard stared out towards the direction of the village from under the shadows . He was deep in thought but soon looked towards us .
“It seems that the guards have left this area . Let’s take a closer look . ”
I was surprised by his proposal . Instead of backing up, he wanted to get even closer…
I couldn’t decide whether this was a good thing to do, but then it hit me .
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It was a means to prevent escape . They probably weren’t expecting any intruders and were just there to prevent the sick from ever escaping . If you think like that, his logic was clear as day .
I felt so sick that I wanted to spit .
Laying low to the ground, we slowly approached the village . Eventually, we came across a wooden fence and a stone gate with a man standing guard .
While we couldn’t see his face, one could immediately tell he had a strong build under his leather armour . The long sword attached to his waist was definitely not mere decoration .
I tilted my head in confusion .
Philipp’s men should be wearing flashier gear . But I guess it’s a given not to wear full plate set in this warm bath-like weather .
“…Do you not think that something is slightly off?”
Leonhard, who was the lookout, called to us in a hushed voice .
Now that he said it, I’d tend to agree .
The man inclined his body and leaned on the gate . Is he sleepy or perhaps drunk? His ears are also a shade of red…
“…!”
Thinking that far, I froze on the spot . As a result of the countless thoughts flying through my head, I had come to an unpleasant possibility .
Leonhard probably reached the same conclusion . His face was stern .
“Stay here . ”
His words were short, but they carried a heavy air . He undid his scabbard from his belt and approached the guard alone .
With the way he silently stood up and quietly went off on his own, I couldn’t help but stare . With no movements wasted, it was like watching a wild beast stalk down its prey .
Leonhard easily got behind the lookout and briefly drew his sword . However, he didn’t slash the man’s throat but instead sheathed his weapon .
The man’s body slowly fell to one side . Leonhard didn’t use a technique so fast that we couldn’t see . Most likely, he had a bad feeling about this too .
Leonhard shouldered the body back towards us and rested the body against a tree .
“Both of you, please don’t come too close . ”
Leonhard ordered .
The man’s face was bright red and sweat could be seen pouring out from his forehead .
He probably had a severe fever .
“Even the guards are sick…”
Nacht bitterly whispered .
I didn’t know what to say, so I quietly listened .
“…?”
While taking a quick glance across his face, I realised it looked familiar . I’ve seen him before, but where?
He wasn’t part of Philipp’s goons, no . I had a faint memory of him from long ago . Not from the past few days . Longer than that . I’ve met him many years ago .
He had no beard, and his hair was trimmed shorter . He did have the same leather armour and plain sword by his side, though . He resembled his master so much and oftentimes would bellow hearty laughs with his sunburnt face of his .
“!!”
I’ve got it!
Indeed . He was one of Lord Heinz’s men .
So this is where you’ve been all this time!