Volume 2, Chapter 10: Feudal Lord, Earl Mondo ②
While traversing through 『Lost Folk’s Great Forest』, Lambert finally decided to call the headless horse “Nightmare.”
Since Lambert’s abysmal naming sense was exposed the more he talked with Alvana, he finally used Alvana’s suggestion to name his horse.
The main reason was because Alvana insisted on “Nightmare” to the point that Lambert’s opinion didn’t matter to her anymore.
Although they were attacked every once in a while as they walked, such threats were trivial matters for Lambert.
Nightmare trampled on the head of a giant spider who blocked their way, and annihilated a flock of forest wights—which were most likely bandits when they were alive—within 10 seconds.
Even the largest forest wight was beheaded and sent flying, crashing into a big tree due to the combined effects of Lambert’s swordcraft and Nightmare’s charge. All of that happened in a flash, and they returned to where Alvana was waiting and talking to herself for a while.
Soon, they arrived at the edge of the forest that was closest to the city, and he decided to part ways with Nightmare for the time being.
He could not take Nightmare along with him to the city since his horse was simply too eye-catching.
Even when they were still in the forest, Lambert tried his best to hide Nightmare from others. Lambert gave strict orders to Nightmare to escape, even when attacked, and to return as soon as he called the horse’s name again.
By then, Nightmare was completely attached to Lambert. It nodded its headless neck to show that it understood Lambert’s order, and then strolled into the darkness of the forest.
After arriving at Barreira City, Lambert parted ways with Alvana.
After all, since the very beginning, they just traveled together and would part ways once they reached the city.
「Thank you very much, Swordsman-sama. It’s thanks to you that I’ve experienced such a rare experience. This Alvana won’t forget this journey ever. However, I’ll only be able to tell half the story, since I don’t think anyone will believe me. Even if I tell them the entirety of what transpired today, almost everything is simply unbelievable.」
After saying those words with her usual light-hearted tone, Alvana left, waving behind her,「Let us meet again if fate dictates it so. I’ll be looking forward to our next meeting, Swordsman-sama.」
Since Barreira City was said to be the capital of adventurers, there were far more adventurers here than any other city.
The sight of people carrying large weapons on their backs or those walking alongside their hunting partners (demon subordinates) wasn’t a rarity in this city.
Even amongst those people, the figure of Lambert—who was already taller than everyone else and covered from head to toe with showy Organ—was already extremely conspicuous.
It was only natural.
The people who saw Lambert’s figure from afar stopped walking, dropped whatever they were carrying with them, and looked at him with dumbfounded looks on their faces.
The trio of people who were leaning on the wall didn’t even try to hide the scornful looks on their faces as they gazed at lambert.
「What a huge statue.」
「Can you even move properly when you’re wearing all that? Mark, tease him a bit.」
The youngest girl of the trio named Mark was the one who ridiculed Lambert.
「Leave it to me, Senpai.」
The trio were members of the adventurer guild 『Toxic Rat』.
At a glance, it was a normal guild, but as the capital of adventurers, Barreira City lacked the resources to oversee the numerous guilds. Thus, many were no different from ruffian gangs.
『Toxic Rat』 was one such guild.
There were many rules in the city established by the city lord, but they broke them left and right. For instance, they used magic to pickpocket, sold information to dark guilds, accepted banned commissions, and blackmailed the commissioner.
Mark’s parents, who were also working as adventurers like many other citizens in Barreira, lost their lives in the fight against monsters. Ever since then, Mark only survived by stealing.
Since she had imprisonment in her personal history, proper guilds didn’t want to take her, in spite of her talent in magic. Thus, she entered 『Toxic Rat.』
「O’ darkness, hide my figure.」
After Mark muttered, a magic circle appeared with her at its center.
It was a spell that weakened her presence.
Although it was a spell that was most suited to ambush her opponent or flee from monsters if used properly, it was reduced to a mere spell for stealing in the hands of 『Toxic Rat.』
The one who taught this spell to Mark was from none other than 『Toxic Rat.』
「Hahahaha… that kind of weak magic is the most suited for you.」
「You really are part of us now, huh.」
Mark sneered upon hearing the others’ remarks.
‘I have no intention of rotting in your guild. If I can polish and perfect my mastery over this spell, I’ll use it to slip out and cut all ties with you bastards.’
She didn’t show her inner feelings toward the two and just accepted their words with a courteous smile on her face.
「Please take a look. I’m gonna hit that huge walking statue from behind and topple him down. I’m pretty sure that he’s going to yell and try to stand up.」
She then slipped into the crowd, skillfully maneuvering her way toward Lambert.
She could already imagine herself standing right behind Lambert, using wind magic to push him forward and then ramming herself toward him to topple him down.
When she arrived at the appropriate distance, Lambert suddenly came to a complete stop.
The distance between them was around six hein (six meters), around three times the length of Lambert’s greatsword.
Nonetheless, there were so many people around them.
But that didn’t mean that he couldn’t sense Mark, who diluted her presence with magic outside of a six-hein radius and mixed in amongst so many people in the crowd.
The reason he stopped walking wasn’t because he sensed Mark’s presence, since she originally had nothing to do with him. It was due to another reason.
Otherwise, she would have already been choked to death by Lambert’s killing intent.
In battle, the act of interfering with another’s fight to take the enemy’s head from behind was a legal act.
That kind of person existed—the type who polished their craft to near mastery just to take the enemy general’s head.
As one of the Four Demon Generals, Lambert experienced this occurrence countless times in the middle of battle.
In addition, the assassins also came for him outside of battle.
As a warrior from the era of the Eight Countries Unification War, he learned the method to sense someone’s intent toward him, even outside of the battle. After all, anyone who neglected such a skill during that era was doomed to die young, even if they were an extremely talented swordsman.
For Lambert—who survived the ambushes of countless top-class assassins during the era of Eight Countries Unification War and turned the table against them—Mark’s half-assed camouflage was no different from exposing herself while barking loudly in front of Lambert.
But she was lucky.
If she was more talented, Lambert wouldn’t stop at just radiating killing intent toward her; he would kill her right on the spot.
Even if Mark had talent in magic, she was nothing more than a girl born in a peaceful era, trained by ruffians to use magic.
Her act looked like nothing more than a child’s prank to Lambert. Thus, he didn’t even care about retaliation.
There was plenty of opportunity to force her back with little threat.
But Lambert chose to walk again as if nothing happened. He wanted to make her give up.
‘Such a lively city. I guess the first thing to do to track the movements of 『Devil’s Piper』 is visit the headquarters of 『Dancing Sword.』’
Lambert, who could repel Mark almost automatically, didn’t pay special attention to her.
But Mark didn’t seem to give up.
「Urgh… burp…」
Mark, who was exposed to Lambert’s pure killing intent, fell on her rear, unable to stand up.
She desperately held back from throwing up the gastric juice in her stomach and swallowed it back down.
Right after that, she became the center of attention.
「Hey, what’s wrong, Miss?」
「What happened to her?」
「Who knows, she just suddenly fell on her rear…」
‘What’s happening to me? Why did I suddenly spasm and collapse for no reason?’
As for Lambert, he had turned around and left that place like everyone else, as if that incident had nothing to do with him. He mixed into the crowd, looking for the headquarters of 『Dancing Sword.』
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺