26 – Yakuzades Beam (1)
There is a main branch of “Hall of Artists” where every artist passes through at least once, called Lenghel.
– The city of art and romance, Lenghel.
Under the signboard bearing the name of the city, a man was sleeping, using a large piece of paper as a blanket.
The sight of artists sleeping on the streets is one of the most common scenes in Lenghel, so pedestrians ignored him as they passed by.
“Hmm…”
His unkempt beard, frozen in the cold of the night, trembled.
Exhaling white breath, the failed artist named Saiten woke up.
“Why do I have this paper…?”
He couldn’t remember covering himself with the paper.
Did someone leave it behind?
Muttering to himself, Saiten took off his ragged coat-like overcoat and pulled out a pair of glasses from the pocket, then read the puzzling paper.
It was a flyer full of conspiracy theories that could only be found in cheap, unsold novels.
“What on earth is this…”
Baffled, Saiten tore the paper to shreds.
Unsellable trash.
Suddenly, that sentence struck Saiten’s heart.
– This is amazing!
Inspired by a great idea in Martolan, he had rushed to Lenghel as soon as he finished writing “The Bird That Drinks Steel.”
– This is not your typical fantasy novel!
And so, they were chased out of the “Hall of Artists”.
– Mr. Saiten? What do you think people read novels for these days? For enlightenment and moral lessons? Have you ever thought about it before speaking? No, it’s just because they need to pass the time when they’re alone. Sweaty stories of serious warriors? Who would read that? Are you crazy?
They were also chased out of the “Chocolate Parchment” that they had humbled themselves to find.
“Tsk…”
Tears like chicken droppings fell from Saiten’s eyes.
It was difficult for him to bear this treatment, as he was somewhat recognized in the romantic (erotic) novel industry.
Now, even the emergency funds had run out.
“Even if you give me just one orchard. Don’t disgrace the family name, and come back.”
Today, his brother’s words were particularly painful.
But if he withdrew from here, the name of a great writer would be ruined.
“…It’s okay to shed tears. Just don’t shed tears from the heart.”
People looked at him like a retard as he muttered to himself and walked away.
Sniff.
“…I should try to find some work at the guild.”
Saiten wiped away his tears with his sleeve and stood up from his seat.
He had to survive another day.
***
Three days had passed since the Yakuzas & Yokai Agar Incident.
Whenever they had free time, they went outside and searched for places where the Yakuzas might be, but they didn’t make much profit.
“-So it would be good for Tren to take command of the wall.”
“Understood.”
The Yakuzas were starting to move, and the war would begin in at least three days.
A meeting was held in a large tent to prepare for the upcoming siege.
“I will guard the gate with my soldiers.”
“It would be reassuring if we had Saelin.”
And so, four hours passed.
I’m going crazy, seriously.
It’s my fault for getting involved in something that seems important.
Even pinching my thigh to stay awake is starting to have no effect.
“Delbanas is the commander, so he won’t be at the forefront of the battle. The person we need to be most cautious of in combat is Doren. My comrade lost his life at his hands.”
Tren clenched his teeth tightly.
If he keeps grinding his teeth like that at such a young age, he’ll end up needing dentures.
Excessive hatred is harmful.
By the way, Doren?
I feel like I’ve heard that name before. Who was it?
Was he the owner of the axe?
Orphe nodded when he saw me, confirming my suspicion.
I want to tell him not to worry because I’ve already taken care of it, but it has to remain a secret.
I hope I didn’t do any unnecessary shadowboxing before the siege.
“Today, let’s stop here.”
Finally, it’s over.
Orpheus is still holding onto others, asking them questions as if he’s so curious about something.
It feels like seeing a child who keeps asking questions even after class is over.
“Nin-nin.”
I quickly left the tent, thinking that someone might approach me and ask me to do something or question me.
Luckily, just a few steps away is the outside.
Thump, thump.
As I walked a little, I saw a familiar face.
“Hey, Shark.”
“S-Sir.”
From Noble mtl dot com
He’s the one among the delinquents who has been ‘reformed’ the most.
His body seems even more robust than when I first met him, showing signs of daily training without a break.
Looking around, I saw the other guys too.
Agyui had developed presbyopia, and Unicorn seemed to be in a better condition than Shark, with no apparent problems.
Cojubu was losing hair, but it’s probably not balding no matter what.
It seems like a temporary condition due to malnutrition.
It’s not my responsibility.
“You’re doing well. Keep living like that in the future.”
“hahahaha…”
What a fascinatingly ridiculous laughing shark. Suddenly, the guy clenched his hands tightly around the wooden spear.
“…Boss. Actually, I’ve wanted to be a knight since a long time ago.”
Ah, he’s pretending to know for no reason.
Now, he’ll probably start telling a story that no one will be curious about anymore.
I have to firmly refuse this.
“I want to go home and sleep now.”
“I understand too. With my status and abilities, it’s impossible. But still, these past few days have been really enjoyable. Even if I don’t become a knight, even if I just become an ordinary soldier, I can still protect someone. That’s what I think right now…”
You keep talking, I’m leaving.
Leaving behind the chattering shark, I descended the castle wall alone.
There’s nothing more boring than listening to someone else’s petty affairs.
The only ones who like that are either voyeuristic patients or monsters digging up personal information to disguise themselves as that person.
“The last one to come is the seeker!”
“Diana! You’re going too fast by yourself!”
As I descended the stairs, Diana was playing and running around with the kids.
It annoys me a little that she seems happier than when she was receiving her human lessons.
Although in a state of emergency, I strongly insisted that all the children should not be confined to their rooms, including the children of the poor lord.
I did promise to evacuate the children to a safe place when the war starts.
I sent a warning with my eyes to Diana, who was laughing like crazy, and headed towards the square.
The road home is so far.
“…Tree Spirit.”
Arrived at the square.
A boy driven mad by the frenzy of war (loves the spirit of trees) sat with sharp eyes in the spot where there used to be a tree.
It’s a bit pitiful to see him holding onto just a piece of wood in that spot for several days.
Since I’m not very good at comforting, I decided to ignore it.
That’s when it happened.
“Emergency! Emergency!”
A private ran frantically and appeared on the lookout, shouting loudly as if everyone needed to hear.
“They, they’re here!”
As always, the worst possible timing.
***
“What’s the number of enemy forces?!”
Clad in plate armor, Trent stood on the city wall with his soldiers.
The mounted scouts and numerous bands of thieves were galloping across the plain.
“W-well, if it’s a small force, around 500. If it’s a large force, maybe 700!”
“It seems the local thieves have gathered.”
Trent nodded.
The city gate was complete, and there were hundreds of young men on the city wall who could throw even stones.
The thieves wouldn’t have any special siege weapons.
“No matter how many there are, they’re still just a band of thieves.”
But for some reason, the vanguard leader was nowhere to be seen.
Tren, who was observing the situation, shouted loudly.
“It’s war! Those who haven’t received training, evacuate the children and the elderly. Those who have, head to your positions!”
The chaotic crowd began to organize themselves.
A few archers took their positions, and those holding catapults headed towards the castle walls.
As soon as the soldiers with wooden spears took their places inside the gate, all preparations were complete.
Thunk.
And the enemies also appeared in front of Goldon.
Delbanas, who dismounted from his horse, took a deep breath and shouted loudly.
“Open the gate and leave everything behind! If you run now, you might not die!”
Empty words meant to dampen the soldiers’ morale and create a crack in their determination.
Tren stood against the obvious manipulation.
“You lot are nothing but looters! You’ve plundered the surrounding villages and brought your swords to Goldon, now you’ll pay the price!”
“That’s right!”
“Make me your leader!”
The thieves also joined in, hurling insults without hesitation.
“You really tangled with the Lord of Goldon?”
“The future of Goldon looks bright indeed!”
At a suitable distance, both sides unleashed furious shouts to gain the upper hand and intensify the atmosphere.
Suddenly, Delbanas took off his coat and extended his right hand towards the Goldon castle walls.
“…?”
Tren felt a change and didn’t even have time to think.
Delbanas’ body began to glow green.
Phew-
He shot a green projectile with his outstretched right hand.
“Take cover!”
People hurriedly evacuated at the slightly delayed command, and Tren, who judged that it was impossible to avoid on the street, raised his shield.
The projectile hit the city wall.
Kwaang-!
The center of Goldon’s city wall was destroyed and collapsed.
“Cough~!”
Tren, along with his broken shield, fell to the ground.
“Ah…!”
“This can’t be…”
Goldon was engulfed in chaos even before the siege began.
“We should have run away.”
Delbanas laughed and raised his right hand again, pointing towards the gate.
Another projectile was launched.
Thud!
And just like that, the gate was destroyed too.
“Hmm…”
Delbanus, who had fired the beam twice, collapsed as if overwhelmed, emitting green smoke from his body.
“Charge!”
In place of Delbanus, Smith, the closest subordinate, gave the attack order.
“Wowww!”
In a situation where the defeat of Goldon was certain, the thieves who coveted the Masked Bandits advanced.