LMOFSF 08

Episode 8 – The Hunt

Bang!

“Damn it! That cursed young lady dares to mock me?!”

Baron Upton sat inside the carriage on his way back, boiling with rage.

Dagon Chepelli, the Border Marquis.

By nature, border marquises usually remain neutral,
but he was practically Tindalos’s only remaining ally.

Not just that—he was the Empire’s best swordsman and an Aura Master,
famous for being able to match even the Tower Master, Grand Duke Randolph von Nightgon.

Tsk.

Upton had only backed off earlier because he couldn’t take on such a man alone.

“That brazen lie…”

The scouts he sent to the Erus relay station confirmed there had been no news of the Border Marquis visiting today.

He considered going back with his waiting men to pressure them again.

“…No, not yet. If I can’t get the seal, it’s meaningless.”

That seal, said to have been bestowed by the first emperor, was the true symbol of Tindalos’s legitimacy.

Without it, no one could rightfully become the ruler of Tindalos.

And the only person who knew its location was Lady Sigrá.

“To think she even made a magical subjugation contract… The first Tindalos must have been quite favored.”

The seal couldn’t be copied or stolen.

It could only be passed on to someone formally recognized in the contract.

If he acted rashly and the young lady gave up the title along with the seal…

After all these years of work, I can’t let that happen.

The rules stated that the succession ceremony would be held when Haun reached adulthood.
If the title was given up before then, the Tindalos duchy would be absorbed into the imperial family.

Five years ago, his plan failed when the emperor himself intervened.

Not that His Majesty had anything to lose.

Even his plan to disguise Haun’s murder as an accident and install a puppet heir had failed.

“If it weren’t for that Border Marquis, I’d have taken someone hostage long ago.”

But the marquis still held firm to their alliance, limiting his options.

Five years ago, that man’s knight commander ruined things by letting the girl meet the emperor.

Still, over the past five years he had won over nearly all other allied houses—
he thought he was close to victory.

“Why the sudden change?”

Before, the young lady had been worn out, tired, and too weak to resist.

She endured his rudeness without fighting back—nothing like today.

The only difference…

Haun, who used to shut himself away, had changed.

“He should be dead… even his way of speaking has changed.”

His build hadn’t changed much, but he had put on enough muscle to pass for a knight’s squire.
There was a dangerous aura and a killing look in his eyes.

Can someone really change that much in barely a month?

He still couldn’t use mana—his cursed constitution was the same.

“Did that give her hope? Either way, I should take care of him first.”

Even if Haun had trained a little, without mana it meant nothing.

“I’ll make it look like an accident again—without the marquis finding out—and replace him with a puppet…”

“Baron.”

“What is it?! I told you not to interrupt!”

“My apologies, but this is a letter you must see.”

The guard passed a letter through the carriage window.

After reading it, Upton laughed loudly.

“Hah! The heavens favor me!”

He burned the letter in his hand and shouted to the coachman.

“Haun is coming out on his own. Go, all of you—take care of him quietly.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Make it look like he died along with the mercenaries. Easier to cut ties at the guild level that way.”

“What about the puppet?”

“The puppet? I don’t need him anymore. Kill him too.”

“Yes, sir.”

A bird took flight above the carriage as it disappeared down the forest path.

“Why the long face, Barus? Do you hate being assigned as my guard that much?”

“…No, sir.”

His face said otherwise.

He’s just a big kid.

After getting permission from my sister, I left the annex with Barus as my guard.

The nearest village—the Erus relay station—was about a half-day’s walk.

Looks like the ones hiding are following me well enough.

Seems I was the target, not my sister.

I had even seen a bird flying off before I left, so news should have reached them by now.

We walked in silence, the wolves on our tail, until the village came into view.

“Barus, do you know where the blacksmith is?”

“…I’ll guide you.”

For the first time since we left, he took the lead.

I followed, scanning the village.

[It’s quiet.]

Yeah.

Only a few guards moved about the streets.

A relay village this far out wouldn’t see many travelers—
maybe the occasional merchant.

It reminded me of when I first picked a hideout with the old gang.

Inside the blacksmith’s shop, sparks flew as an old man worked.

“I’m looking to buy a sword. Do you have any already made?”

The old man looked me up and down—my worn robe didn’t scream “noble.”

Another traveler had recently passed through, buying up all his stock—
seven outsiders, in fact.

So the wolves stopped here too.

They weren’t assassins—just mercenaries, probably connected to the guild.

When I asked if he could make a new sword, he agreed, using leftover materials.
I’d come back in three days to pick it up.

As we left, I noticed the sun dipping below the mountains.

“If we hurry, we can get back before it’s fully dark,” Barus said.

“…You?”

He’d barely spoken all day—suddenly he wanted to lead.

[You’re right about him.]

Don’t read my mind—just explain.

[There’s a trace of indirect mental manipulation on him.]

So someone had been subtly guiding his actions—similar to the influence I’d felt before.

Interesting.

And judging by the new group tailing us—eight fresh faces in addition to the earlier stalkers—
the baron’s men had regrouped.

The hunt’s ready.

We walked until the sun set, and Barus led us onto a different forest path.

Soon, the gap between us and the pursuers began to close.

[What will you do?]

End the farce.

Breaking twigs in my hands, I spoke to Barus about his past with my father.
He spoke warmly, sincerely—he truly had admired the man.

Then I asked:

“So why did you betray us?”

He froze.

When he didn’t answer, I warned I could just ask the friends tailing us.

Barus finally turned to face me.

“When did you know?”

“I suspected from the start. Confirmed it today.”

We didn’t have long—about ten steps before the others arrived.

I gathered the twigs in my hand.

[Want me to guide you through this one?]

Soon, the mercenaries emerged—led by a scarred man about Hector’s age.

The scarred man laughed about the price on my head—30,000 gold coins—
enough to make the guild turn a blind eye.

They had taken all the blacksmith’s weapons to ensure I’d be unarmed.

“You think I have no sword? This is my sword.”

I raised the bundle of twigs.

He laughed—until I poured mana into them.

The basic creation magic, Transmutation,
pulls an object from the caster’s strongest memory.

For me, that was the worn blade I’d carried until my last breath in my previous life.

The cold, heavy weight returned to my hand.

I’ve always preferred a real sword over a wooden one.

“…What is that? What did you just do?!”

“Information’s not free.”