“So what’s our destination? You’re not planning to search the entire world blindly, are you?”
“Audrit.”
“What’s your basis for thinking the Hero’s Sword is in Audrit?”
“I’m assuming that the previous Hero from 500 years ago disappeared along with the Hero’s Sword after defeating the Demon King. And the last traces of the previous Hero were found on the road heading to Audrit.”
“That’s insufficient as a basis. They could have been heading to another city near there instead of Audrit.”
“The city of Audrit was established right after the previous Hero disappeared. And it grew at an enormous rate in just a few hundred years. Cities aren’t created that easily, Klad.”
“So you thought that if a city flourished in just a few hundred years, it must be connected to someone great like the ‘Hero’?”
“Exactly! I’m glad you understand my words precisely.”
Setting aside everything else, he understood well that Jake considered the ‘Hero’ to be an extremely great, sacred, and excellent being.
Was this what self-praise looked like?
“Right after I was appointed as the Hero, I visited Audrit but couldn’t find the sword’s whereabouts. But I know, Klad. The Hero’s Sword is definitely there.”
“If there are no other candidates, it does seem wise to go there first.”
“Then everything is settled now!”
Jake stood up as if he would escape the capital right away. Watching Jake like this, Klad extended his hand as if to escort him.
Though he didn’t need an escort, Jake didn’t want to disappoint Klad who had bothered to offer his hand, so he placed his right hand on top of Klad’s.
“Let’s depart immediately— Huh!”
However, instead of guiding Jake outside the inn, Klad gripped Jake’s hand tightly and pulled him forcefully.
Jake, who could barely stand, was dragged along like a paper doll wherever Klad pulled him and fell.
Onto the bed.
*Flop—*
“We have about three hours to spare. Sleep.”
“If we have spare time, we should prepare more—”
“I said sleep.”
Klad semi-forcibly laid down Jake, who tried to get up as soon as he fell onto the bed, and threw the blanket over him.
“If you collapse from exhaustion because you were being stubborn, I’m the one who’ll be troubled. I won’t tell you to prepare anything else, not even as a joke, so just prepare enough stamina to walk and run.”
“……”
“Are you listening?”
Jake wasn’t listening.
To be precise, he couldn’t listen. He had fallen asleep before Klad even finished speaking.
“…Hah.”
Klad couldn’t decide whether to be annoyed at Jake for falling asleep on his own while someone was talking, or relieved that he fell asleep right away without making a fuss about not wanting to sleep.
***
“Wake up.”
Klad woke Jake up exactly three hours later.
Jake, who had been closer to unconscious than asleep, lay sprawled out like a corpse without even making a groan.
Well, he must have been unable to sleep properly due to hunger and cold throughout his imprisonment in the underground dungeon, so of course he was tired. If he forcibly woke him up now and dragged him out, he would be limp like laundry soaking wet. It was the type of baggage Klad found most troublesome among all kinds of baggage.
But what could he do? If he didn’t wake him up and take him out now, he would have to listen to nagging starting with “Why didn’t you wake me, Klad” for days on end. Klad grabbed the sleeping Jake’s shoulders and shook him vigorously.
“Wake up. Right now.”
“Ugh, ughhh… The world is shaking, the world…”
“It’s not the world that’s shaking, it’s you.”
In the end, Jake was semi-forcibly awakened and got up.
“Klad. My shoulders hurt like they’re broken.”
“Don’t be dramatic.”
“I’m sleepy…”
“We need to go catch the Demon King.”
“Right, the Demon King…”
Jake couldn’t even open his eyes properly, but he immediately responded to the mention of the Demon King. Klad confirmed Jake crawling out of the bed and left the room first.
“Wait for me, Klad.”
Worried that Klad might leave him behind, Jake hurriedly ran and grabbed Klad’s arm.
The innkeeper, who had been dozing on the first floor, jumped when he saw Jake and Klad coming down at such an unexpected hour.
“Oh my, what a surprise.”
Without a word, Klad tossed the key to the innkeeper and quickly left the inn.
With Jake, who was staggering either because he was too tired to control his body properly or because his legs still hurt from running around the day before, hanging on one arm.
“It’s uncomfortable not being able to wash up.”
“Don’t forget that you’re an escaped prisoner. What kind of escaped prisoner in this world washes up and sleeps comfortably while on the run?”
“It’s a shame but there’s nothing I can do. I’ll have to be satisfied with having washed up the day before.”
As they left the inn, cold air wrapped around their bodies. However, despite feeling the chill, it wasn’t cold at all.
*’Strange. Why isn’t it cold like this?’*
It was dawn in the middle of winter. No matter how much he had endured the cold of the underground dungeon with his bare body, there was no way he had become accustomed enough to the cold to withstand weather like this unscathed.
“Klad, did you do something?”
“What.”
“The road is frozen solid, yet I’m not cold at all.”
Klad walked away at a fast pace instead of answering. In the end, Jake had to hurry his steps, almost half-running, to follow behind him.
“Klad, where can we get horses?”
“You were planning to travel on horseback while on the run?”
“That was my plan.”
“No. It leaves too many traces.”
“Then would it be better to get a carriage? It’s a shame it’s a bit slower, but we can rest inside it, so we can save time stopping at villages.”
Klad held back from saying that if he had so much leisure time to spare, he should visit every famous city and collect local specialties. He would be in trouble if he carelessly said such a thing and got a response saying it was a good idea and he would do so.
“Wait, Klad. The city gate is just ahead.”
“So what?”
“Are you thinking of leaving the capital already? Without preparing?”
“Leaving the capital was the plan from the beginning.”
“But we haven’t prepared provisions. Isn’t it common sense that provisions are essential for a long journey?”
He didn’t know which country’s common sense taught that provisions could be easily obtained in the late dawn. Did the House of Duke West only teach the heir how to deceive and be stubborn instead of actual common sense?
“Do you think someone who insisted on leaving at dawn is in any position to look for food? Let’s go quickly.”
“Very well, there’s a village we can reach in two days from here, so it should be sufficient to get provisions there.”
As expected, this bastard was clearly planning to stop by every village and city they passed.
While Klad was pondering how to drag around Jake, who pursued every comfort despite being a fugitive, without losing his mind, the two arrived in front of the city gate. Worried that the soldiers guarding the gate might recognize him and attack, Jake hid himself as much as possible behind Klad.
“Come out. That looks more suspicious.”
“I’ll try to look as unsuspicious as possible.”
“Just walk straight, it’s uncomfortable.”
One of the soldiers glanced at Jake’s direction and then turned his head away as if uninterested. Their main job was to verify the identity of those entering the capital, not to observe those leaving. Thanks to this, Klad and Jake were able to leave the capital without any problems.
“Phew, I thought my heart would burst.”
“If your heart bursts that easily, why do you carry it around?”
“One doesn’t carry around a heart—it’s there from the beginning, Klad.”
“……”
“The heart is where the mana needed for magic accumulates, yet to reach that level of mastery without having internalized such theory—impressive.”
“……”
“Did I perhaps offend you? It was my oversight for not considering that commoners have different education from us nobles. I apologize.”
Whether he knew that Klad’s irritation level was rising with every word he uttered or not, Jake spouted nonsense in an attempt to comfort him.
Each time, Klad’s pace quickened slightly.
“Wait for me.”
In the end, Jake had to run until he was gasping for breath to barely catch up to Klad.
“Wait, hoo. Just a moment.”
Jake gripped Klad’s arm tightly and caught his breath until his rapidly beating heart calmed down.
“The path we need to take isn’t that way.”
“The fastest way to Audrit should be this way.”
“You remember that I’ve visited Audrit before. The companion who accompanied me on that journey reported all my movements to my father. Father will expect me to head to Audrit, so choosing the same route is dangerous.”
It was a deduction that if Jake headed to Audrit, the Duke would station people along that path, expecting him to choose the familiar route. That didn’t mean other paths wouldn’t be tracked, but certainly, as Jake said, choosing the familiar path wasn’t a good choice.
“Then which way did you have in mind?”
“This way.”
In the direction Jake pointed, there were trees so dense it was awkward to even call it a path.
A path without traces of even wild animals, let alone people.
Would they even reach Audrit if they followed this path?
“What’s with that look?”
“I feel like if we go this direction, we’ll find a cliff instead of Audrit.”
“If we go straight this way, we’ll reach a village. I confirmed it was marked on a map before, so it’s certain. Trust only me, Klad.”
Jake declared confidently and walked ahead, leading the way.
“Ah!”
Though he couldn’t go more than a few steps before getting blocked by the dense branches and floundering.
“This is driving me crazy.”
Klad sighed deeply and followed behind him.
To clear away the branches blocking Jake’s path.
