Chapter 353

I ran faster than the wind, and everyone gathered before the moon high in the sky slanted down.

In the middle where everyone sat around, a bonfire was lit as usual. The sound of the magic firewood burning was peaceful. The children sitting inside the silence where those few Jiangshis far away couldn’t harm them repeatedly let out sighs.

Without waiting long, I immediately opened the conversation.

“The northeast is similar to the situation here. The ones sticking close to the boundary alone are over one hundred.”

“Blood Jiangshis?”

“About five… Only those sticking close to the boundary are about that many.”

Then the remaining three also obediently recited what they saw.

“The southeast too. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Here there are three red ones.”

“The northwest is at least fewer in number. There were no red guys here, only normal guys, but…. if we go out there it’s the sea anyway.”

“The southwest is swarming with seven Blood Jiangshis and normal guys. It seems they definitely gathered chasing us.”

Should we call it fortunate that we entered inside the Oasis’s domain on time, or should we lament becoming rats trapped in a jar.

If it comes to this, rather than going to Felix, it’s better to go to the holy site of the Sun and wait for Ranunculus who will come looking for us. Even if we return to the current safe zone with relatively lower temperatures again, for now, that was the case.

“What should we do with the camels?”

“It’s a bit much here, let’s leave them near the water source.”

“Near the water source?”

“There’s water and grass, and the spirits are there, so they’ll probably take care of them appropriately. Even if we come looking for them later when we have some leeway…. they won’t die if we don’t tie them up.”

We have to run tearing through groups of Iron Jiangshis, so where would we have the leeway to take care of beasts.

Even if we humans could somehow overcome it, we couldn’t force harsh things upon beasts who knew nothing. We decided to leave large luggage like tents behind with the camels, and divide and carry only rations and drinking water per person.

We sent Peter and Anne to drop the camels off at the Oasis and come back.

Today, we had no choice but to lie down looking at the stars.

Now December is also half gone. And yet, it wasn’t cold in the slightest. Even if I originally wasn’t sensitive to cold, and borrowed the power of the body temperature maintaining artifacts, it was much better than I thought. It was because the holy site of the Sun was close.

Also, because it was winter everyone was wearing thick clothes, and the sand spread around was soft. Even lying down without a sleeping bag, my back wasn’t sore or anything. Thanks to that, everyone sat sparsely with more leeway than usual.

The sound of Giselle and Leon exchanging jokes while wiping their sword and axe from a distance over there, and the sound of Marianne cutting in between them chattering useless words comfortably permeated the night wind.

I lay down opening one arm, believing Ruben would come into my embrace as always. During the first subjugation days, it was common to just spread a sleeping bag and lie down without a tent, but today, since we ended up lying on the bare floor even without a sleeping bag, I thought I should at least properly act as a pillow.

However, Ruben only hesitated and didn’t lie down right away. He just sat still and looked down at me. Because the bright moon behind the child’s head seemed exceptionally close, I held my breath, looked up, and asked.

“Are you not sleepy yet?”

“No, it’s not that…. I feel like Mika can’t sleep well because of me lately.”

“Pardon?”

What did he notice. Flustered, I stiffened while lying down. The child avoided my gaze as if embarrassed and continued his words.

“Lately, I wondered if your arm might be…. numb.”

“…Not at all. How heavy could Ruben be even if you were heavy.”

“But.”

“I would be perfectly fine even if I slept with a cow on me, so you don’t have to worry.”

Ruben didn’t refuse twice and slipped right into my embrace.

Instead of hugging the guy acting docilely back, lying with his head on my arm, I looked up at the sky. The sky was so packed with stars that the dozens of constellations the mercenaries had taught me once couldn’t even catch my eye.

The child, who had been looking up at the sky following me, turned his body toward me and lay on his side. Every time his breath touched me, the rim of my ear tickled, but I am originally a man who is sick and tired of holding back. Acting as if it was nothing, I closed my eyes.

The child whispered.

“What are you thinking about?”

“What about you, Ruben.”

“…Wesley Kiadris, I mean.”

“…Pardon?”

Why did that guy’s story suddenly come out? Puzzled, I opened my closed eyes.

However, because we were too close, I couldn’t face him. Counting the starlight far away before my eyes, I listened quietly.

“Why…. do you doubt him?”

“…Can I call it a reason.”

“…”

“That guy emitted killing intent once.”

“Huh? When…?”

“On the day of my debutante.”

I dragged out the memory of the day I first encountered him.

The year I turned fifteen, the moment I danced the first dance with Ruber. I felt his cold killing intent even before seeing Wesley Kiadris’s face. I couldn’t assert then nor now whether it was directed at me or Ruben. The child and I were sticking too close that day.

What reason would he, who had no acquaintance with me, have to harbor murderous intent towards me, or Ruber. The competition for the Imperial throne recited by Ruber’s mouth wasn’t accomplished with swords, but it was something that could be accomplished with swords too. However, was that really all?

“It was very brief, but since I felt clear malice, it bothers my mind. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] I know this and that reasons are thickly attached to his actions and disappearance, but the memory of that day is clear, so I am not comfortable with it.”

“…I see.”

“And you, Ruben, why him suddenly.”

“Well…. Didn’t I tell you before that Edwin had talked about wanting to expel Wesley Kiadris from the family.”

…Right, he did. Ruben had mentioned it once. I recalled not being able to strict ask for the reason, feeling awkward and embarrassed wondering if Edwin and Ruben were that close. The child quietly continued his next words.

“Edwin…. thinks Wesley might not be his real older brother.”

“Pardon? Does he… also doubt his mother?”

“No, not that. He said it seems he was swapped midway.”

“Swapped?”

Wilton Roberts, who was the flying dagger arts professor, tailed Wesley from the time he entered the Cieron Academy until the moment he graduated. The Duke Consort Kiadris thought Wesley Kiadris was not his son from the very moment he was born. His existence itself was a seed of doubt and anxiety.

However, what did he mean by swapped midway. I was speechless and couldn’t make any sound. Ruben explained as if reading aloud with his calm and quiet voice as always.

“…Have you heard the story that Edwin has never seen Wesley not even once since he was born?”

“Yes. Of course…”

It is famous that Wesley Kiadris and Edwin Kiadris have a thirteen-year age gap, and that Wesley Kiadris entered the Academy at the age of thirteen. Edwin, who terribly hated the Eastern brother who gave nothing but had a high name value, glared with the whites of his eyes at all the guys from the Swordsmanship Department.

It was an old story completely in the past now. I, who received an apology directly from him, had no hard feelings remaining, but it was fresh in my memory.

“But that…. I guess because they’re members of the same Ducal family after all, it wasn’t quite like that.”

“…Pardon?”

“He said that after Wesley Kiadris came down from the Unique Mountain Range, there were occasions to meet him once or twice a year.”

Wesley graduated at the age of sixteen and climbed the Unique Mountain Range. And at the age of twenty-one, he became a Grand Sword Master, descended the mountain, entered the Imperial Knight Order, and stuck right by the 1st Prince’s side.

When Wesley was twenty-one, Edwin was…. eight years old.

I recalled the brightly smiling face of my younger brother, Mikhail. I also remembered the serious gaze of the guy glaring at his plate with puffed cheeks, saying he wouldn’t take his older brother’s things.

Right, it wasn’t an age where he would know nothing.

However, it also wasn’t an age to know things properly.

Ruben continued his words.

“Have you heard the story that mages are determined from birth?”

“Yes. I know. I heard there are many cases where their eyes are open from birth…”

“Edwin Kiadris is an outstanding mage, isn’t he ?”

“…Yes.”

What story is he trying to tell to beat around the bush like this? The child hesitated. However, he didn’t stop talking. He continued speaking in a calm tone.

“Young Lord Edwin says, Wesley Kiadris’s body exploded once.”

“…Pardon?”

Is that something to say about a person? Wondering if I misheard something, I looked back at the child. Ruben, at a distance where our nose tips could barely touch, had a calm face. He blinked his eyes slowly twice, raised one hand, and swept down from his Adam’s apple to below his belly button.

“From here, to here.”

Not even the sound of insects crying could be heard. From a certain moment, everyone in the group was listening carefully to the child’s voice. Ruben didn’t lower or raise his voice. He just recited calmly.

“There are traces of explosions at least three times…. or more, remaining on his body. And he said he’s even seen the explosion directly himself.”

“…Directly? No, when.”

“Around fourteen years old. He said that Wesley Kiadris, who was still alive after that, was fascinating and strange, so he wanted to research that part…. So Edwin said he was certain Wesley wasn’t human.”

“…”

“But that is…. honestly not a believable story, right. Since the direct descendants of the Kiadris Ducal family are only Wesley and Edwin, the two of them…. I understood it as Edwin’s request to expel Wesley in exchange for supporting me instead of the 1st Prince. So I said I would.”

It was an unbelievable story. Half out of my mind, my mouth opened halfway. I couldn’t say anything just like that.

Ruben made a shallow spoiling sound, Uung, tightly closed his eyes, and opened them.

“…You heard it too. When Wesley Kiadris graduated, he was at the realm of a Supreme-grade Sword Expert. Not even a Sword Master, but a Supreme-grade Sword Expert. But in 5 years…. he returned as a Grand Sword Master.”

“…”

“It’s strange.”

That’s right. It was strange; it is an extremely strange thing.

My mind was so noisy and fussy that I couldn’t keep my senses straight.