Hero's Coffin Chapter 73

Chapter 73

It was Isaph's voice, unknown even to the Isaph follower group. Originally, he had only kept familiars with him, and after his arrest, he hadn't resisted at all, with his only public statement being his testimony about the reason for the massacre in the courtroom.

Even Harenir had said he 'heard it secondhand', so those who knew Isaph's voice in the empire must be extremely rare. Though this entire party was said to be people who shouldn't be discovered, in the situation just now, he had stepped forward because he was relatively the least risky. He hadn't wanted to do it either.

–...nyaa.

It was even more shameful as En was shooting a look of contempt from far away. Why did that meow sound like "Are you crazy?"

As he quietly lowered his head, Harenir laughed dryly.

"Right. I was just wondering how to get past this, so thanks to you, it's been resolved."

He was surprised to hear what sounded like an acknowledgment of his help. He had thought he would be scolded for doing something strange. Perhaps the standard had been raised due to the commotion he caused at the festival last time. Of course, this wasn't a positive standard, but a 'foolish act standard'. In other words, compared to what happened at the venue, this might seem trivial now.

Moreover, at Harenir's statement that he had been pondering, the companions' focus turned elsewhere. Kalterik flinched and explained his earlier behavior.

"T-those guys were being so disrespectful that I couldn't stand it..."

"I know. I'm not trying to point out that you were rash."

Harenir shook his head. Saying he understood their feelings, he quietly looked in the direction the holy knights had moved. He muttered in a slightly lowered voice.

"Is this because I've been away...?"

"What? Absolutely not!"

"No, it isn't!"

Not just Kalterik, but even Mela, rarely, raised her voice to deny it immediately. They hurriedly exclaimed that if they were to point out a problem with the vacancy, it should rather be the absence of the two vice commanders, and Noi quickly added his opinion.

"They're not even from the headquarters where you are, Commander! They must be knights from the Nadael branch..."

As the Holy Empire was very large, the Holy Knight Order seemed to be divided into several units. Though Harenir was said to be the overall commander, he couldn't know everyone, and it was natural for there to be crazy people in large groups. No matter how devout a group the holy knights were, it would be difficult to escape the law of crazy person preservation.

Noi said, biting his lips,

"I've heard sometimes that holy knights dispatched from other branches cause problems, but I believed it was a misunderstanding. Even for cases where complaints were actually filed, I heard they were concluded as simple mistakes because the investigations found no problems, so I never thought such things were really happening..."

Though discipline might be maintained in the holy city where Harenir could be encountered right in front of them, other branches seemed to have various problems. Moreover, since the Order's power had strengthened after sealing Dedium, reports of holy knights' misconduct probably weren't properly handled.

The three looked at Harenir's expression. They seemed to be reflecting on whether the commander was disheartened by the recent incident, or if they had missed clues of misconduct all this time. Kalterik quietly grumbled that he should have taken down the leader of that group.

Harenir shook his head slightly again.

"No, we can't do anything about them now. Holy knights are important personnel for monster subjugation."

"But..."

"So, names."

"...Pardon?"

"Just bring me their names."

It was an order delivered in such a gentle tone with a smile, but the three's faces turned pale. They all flinched, their shoulders shaking, then immediately bowed their heads and scattered.

He inwardly prayed for those holy knights' souls.

***

Information on the holy knights invited to this subjugation team was all reported to Harenir in less than half a day. Not just the names of all ten members, but when they joined, where they trained, which unit of which branch they belonged to, and even who their superiors were, were all reported.

Though Harenir had clearly said to just bring their names, Kalterik and Mela had busily gathered information, which professional aide Noi had compiled and submitted in report form. Harenir praised everyone for their hard work.

The lord had given each mercenary group a large room, so they could check comfortably there. After looking through the report, Harenir tapped the very top part with his index finger. The name of the holy knight who had first collided with him was written there.

"Sir Samuel, is it..."

Though he just recited it calmly, somehow it sent chills down his spine. He tapped that name particularly often with his index finger, probably marking it as the starting point of the incident.

Kalterik, Mela, and Noi discussed how to discipline those guys after returning to the holy city. Noi said they should properly review all the reported cases again, Kalterik said they should first gather them at the training ground, and Mela polished her rapier more carefully than usual.

As it was a scene he wanted to distance himself from, he sat quietly in the corner of the room, when suddenly he heard a small sound in his ear. "It's a cat!" It was a shout from outside the window, so he glanced over and was startled.

In the dusky evening, mercenaries had gathered in a circle in the backyard, and En was in the center. Though he was usually good at running away, now he was pressed against the wall, perhaps because too many people had surrounded him. The mercenaries showed curiosity towards the cat, each waving strings at him.

En's ears were slightly tilted back as if very annoyed. Thinking that only he could bother that cat, he stood up. On the other hand, he also wondered if there was some problem, as En wasn't the type to stay so docile.

He quietly slipped out of the room and headed straight for the wall.

"Excuse me, just a moment..."

He looked for a gap to squeeze through among the gathered mercenaries. However, without him needing to make much effort, as soon as someone spotted him, they shouted "Oh!"

"It's that Saiph!"

Why was there a 'that' modifier?

It was very embarrassing as all the mercenaries turned to look at him. He had hoped the incident from earlier would be forgotten as a funny anecdote, but it seemed to have left a strong impression on everyone as they whispered, "Oh, it's really that guy."

Whoosh, just then, En leaped towards him. As he reflexively caught him in his arms, the mercenaries' reactions intensified.

"Wow, even a black cat. He must be serious..."

"It must be hard to go around like that these days, this level of dedication is really admirable."

Don't admire it.

It became increasingly difficult to manage his expression, so he pressed his hood down deeper with one hand. Should he be grateful that due to his ridiculous behavior earlier, the equation 'black robe + black cat = Isaph' wasn't established? Because Isaph would absolutely never act like that. It was a guarantee obtained by selling his dignity.

Most retreated reluctantly, saying that cat belonged to that guy, following the wise principle that they shouldn't associate with someone imitating him, but unfortunately, some showed interest in him.

As he was trying to quietly step back, the gray-haired man who had first called out "that Saiph" approached him.

"My name is Jade. Wow, I really wanted to talk to you!"

Of course, he tried to pretend he hadn't heard and turn back. Given that he had already become famous, he considered firmly sticking to the concept and ignoring him with an attitude of 'How dare you speak to me', but unexpectedly, his gaze was caught by the man's face. Large eyes, round and gentle eye shape. Somehow that impression was familiar.

After pondering, he answered.

"...For what reason?"

"My younger brother plays just like you! Ah, is it rude to say 'play'? Umm, that's right! My brother also habitually says he has hidden power, so hearing your words made me so happy."

It was a voice full of pure curiosity, not a mocking tone at all. Gradually, the face of a certain being he had seen in the past overlapped with Jade's face.

"My brother's name is Sile, and he's living with our parents in Rus now. Since I'm active as a mercenary, I can't see him often, so I miss him..."

He barely held back a sigh. Sile, it was the name of the boy who had dragged him to the Isaph follower meeting. The bewildering being who had grabbed him after bumping into him in an alley, mistaking him for one of their kind and asking him to join the meeting together.

And the Jade in front of him now seemed to be his older brother. He resembled Sai, but his impression was more affable, with the sociability gained from mercenary life.

"He wears a black robe like you and hangs out with similar friends..."

"Jade, Jade! It's rude to suddenly block someone's path and pour out words like this!"

"Ow! That hurts, Serena!"

A mercenary carrying a bow hurriedly approached and hit Jade's back. They seemed to be from the same mercenary group. Jade groaned and tried to avoid her, but Serena quickly grabbed his ear and whispered,

"That person might really have 'something'. Did you see the size of those mercenaries? They all stopped at his word..."

Though she spoke in a hushed voice, unfortunately, he heard it all. He tried his best to manage his expression as her deductions continued: the two robed mercenaries who stepped forward were so fast they couldn't even be seen with the eyes, but they all quietly retreated at Saiph's words, and it seemed the reason they had stepped forward in the first place was for his sake.

He was used to disgusted reactions when he acted like the 「real thing」, but this was the first time he was taken so seriously, and it was bewildering. Neither was welcome.