Chapter 109 - Setting Fires Is a Habit, Too

A mage's gaze. Encrid looked into his opponent Retsha's eyes. 'Mages have eyes, too.' A nose and a mouth, too. They were human. ["Every human has reflexive behaviors."]

Jaxon's lesson came back to him. He had prepared something with that in mind. All he needed was to stop the ferocious onslaught of thorny vines for an instant. A means to that end. A hidden trick. Something he had tried several times in his previous todays. He had practiced enough. What mattered was timing. In other words, now. As he parried and dodged with his sword in his left hand alone, a thorny vine struck just above his left wrist with a thud. The outer surface of the leather gauntlet he had taken from the corpse lover in the sewers shredded. At that instant, Encrid flung his right hand up. Retsha's eyebrow twitched at the gesture. A natural reaction, after seeing him throw weapons so many times. Retsha decided that whatever he threw would pose no problem. Wasn't she surrounded by a spell barrier that could stop all but the most powerful physical blows? With her guard thus lowered, a stone flew before her eyes instead of a dagger. It was a thin orb resembling crystal. A brilliant flash erupted without warning, a light source beyond comparison with the torches. Everyone who reflexively looked at the object Encrid had thrown, Retsha included, was blinded. For the briefest instant, they lost their sight. "Hh."

Encrid sucked in a breath and moved. This was his doing, and he had been waiting for the moment with his eyes on the ground. What he had hidden in his sleeve was the glowing stone from the sewers. Figuring out how to turn it on had taken some work. He hadn't known he would use it like this, though. He had used the hidden knife technique to conceal and throw it. Showing an empty hand had been meant to lower his opponent's guard, and it had worked perfectly. All those circumstances combined to create a paper-thin opening. For Encrid, that was enough. TAP. The charging technique he had learned one day by watching an apprentice knight—a squire. He darted forward in a low crouch, took the grip in both hands, and raised his sword. Then he heaved his torso upright, stepping forward with his left foot and shifting his weight from back to front in a vertical downward cut. Retsha recovered her sight just in time to see it and scream.

"Aaaah!"

It was her death cry, her last utterance. SWISH, CRACK! Retsha's barrier shattered. It was a downward cut of the Heavy Sword Technique, a blow into which he had deliberately poured all his strength. A blow that spared no thought for what came after. It caught Retsha's head. THUNK. CRUNCH. Deflected as it broke the barrier, the blade peeled away her scalp, severed her ear, and split her collarbone before continuing down. SPLURCH. In the end, the blade emerged around her waist after shearing away some of her organs and three tenths of her upper body. A mass of flesh, including a severed arm, fell with a thud. The mage stood blankly, a half-corpse pouring blood and entrails onto the ground. What could anyone say after a cut like that? The light in her eyes dimmed in an instant. What she had tried to do in her final moment was plain: several vines behind Encrid writhed, then lost their strength and fell. "Whew."

Only then did Encrid release his held breath. He knew Retsha's protective barrier would break under an impact beyond a certain threshold. A blow with enough weight behind it, for instance, could break it easily. Hadn't Pin's axe affected it, while daggers were simply ignored? In truth, this had been a fight that used everything he had learned through repeating today. He had even used the hidden knife's method to conceal the glowing stone. "Aren't you going to finish off the rest?"

Encrid snatched the glowing stone from the air as he spoke. That light would soon alert people inside the city to the disturbance on the wall. They didn't have much time. Pin darted into motion first, with Torres following. There weren't many soldiers left. "Aaargh!"

The soldiers' dying screams rang out atop the wall. Moonlight still shone upon Encrid. Torres, Pin, and even the enemy soldiers saw it shining from behind him like a halo. He gave off an unmistakable air of something different, something other than an ordinary human. The smell of blood mingled with the scent of roses atop the wall. It was a curious smell, so distinctive that one could have believed it was a new perfume.

* * *

Once they were over the wall and down the other side, they entered Pin's domain. As though everything were already prepared, she went straight to the inner wall, dug up a patch of earth, and pulled out a bundle. "Emergency supplies."

Presumably, the spy inside—the one called Kitten—had left them there. Dirty burlap came out of the bundle. She immediately tossed it to Encrid and Torres. As the two pulled it over their heads at the edge of the slums abutting the wall, Pin twisted the necks of two beggars who had poked their heads over to investigate. Putting them to sleep without even a crack—should he say that was Pin for you? He had seen her do it countless times throughout his repeated todays. Her Ail Karaz-style martial arts were ripe fruit, the work of a seasoned practitioner. Most people in the slums took no interest in their surroundings. In other words, there were no more witnesses. The three disappeared into darkness and dirty burlap. Following behind, Encrid sank into his own world. Thoughts revisited. A Review, as always. During his repeated todays, there had been three paths before him. Was he simply supposed to choose one and break through? 'Do I need to choose just one?' Relaxing his shoulders had allowed him to see something. Rather than choose one of the three paths, he could use all three walls. It had seemed possible. In the Tunnel where the Gray Hounds waited, he could experience being surrounded by an elite unit. Fighting the pack of monsters, the Lycanthropes, let him learn how to fight and dodge in a melee. And what an excellent teaching aid Retsha of the Rose Vines was. The Gray Hounds, the Lycanthropes, Retsha. Encrid saw all three as training tools. Excellent teaching aids. That was how he had shaped this 'today.' 'I don't think that went too badly.' His wrist ached a little from the blow to his left gauntlet. He had also taken attacks he couldn't possibly block, trusting the leather armor around him. But he had no fatal wounds. "Shh. Heads down. A patrol."

At Pin's words, Encrid lowered his head and pretended to sleep. With some of their equipment hidden and dirty burlap draped over them, their disguise was complete. "The stench is killing me."

"Put up with it. Didn't you hear about the uproar on the wall? They might be hiding here."

"Then clear this place out."

"Shh. What if they all come at us?" Listening to the two patrolmen talk, Encrid opened his eyes a slit. "All clear. Let's move."

She led Encrid and Torres without hesitation, as though following a familiar route. Encrid raised his head as they walked and caught glimpses of the city. A tall bell tower in the distance, dirt streets, and mostly dark alleys, though a faint glow seeped from inside the buildings. As Encrid followed, Pin dropped beside Torres, who had been walking directly behind her. He gave her a look that asked why she wasn't getting on with her job. "Is everyone in the Border Guard like that?"

"Huh?"

"Are they all that good?" Pin jerked a thumb behind them. Toward Encrid. Torres considered her question for a moment. A swordsman that good? A swordsman who could deflect a mage's bizarre thorny vines with a blade rather than a shield, create an opening, and cut her down? A swordsman who, after just a few lessons, found an unusual use for Torres's specialty, the hidden knife? A swordsman who put half his life on the line to hold out by dodging between Lycanthropes and elite enemy soldiers? A swordsman who ultimately sliced through everyone who came at him, taking on a Lycanthrope colony and elite soldiers all by himself? Torres thought back over the Border Guard's best. Now, let's see. Eisen? Barney? Hyoun? Not a chance! Even in pure skill, Encrid felt as though he had crossed some threshold now. "You think there are?"

"Huh?"

"You think monsters like him are everywhere?" It really was a strange feeling. Until recently, Encrid had clearly been below him. During their spars on the way here, he had been a suitable partner. Yet somewhere along the way, he had changed. His proficiency had changed, and so had the way he wielded his sword. "Ha."

At Torres's response, Pin let out an admiring sigh. Look at what this soldier named Encrid had done. 'This is a platoon commander? Just a platoon commander?' What would happen when she reported this back home? Even while scanning for the coded signs Kitten had left, she worried whether anyone would believe what Encrid had done. While they relied on the moonlight and used the darkness to avoid patrols, the wall where they had wreaked havoc grew noisy, then quickly fell silent. Encrid thought the silence more ominous. Now that he had killed the mage, his instincts seemed to be working properly. But trusting them too much would get him killed again. He had finally used all three walls to get over the city wall. He wanted to make it to tomorrow like this. So he didn't let his guard down. He kept his senses on edge, ready to react the instant anything happened. Pin searched until morning. The three were tired, but nothing happened. The disturbance atop the wall had not swept through the city. If anything, it felt as though it was being hushed up. As they hid in an alley, the conversation of two patrolmen passing along the main road confirmed it. "Did something happen last night? I heard someone came over the wall."

"Shh. We've been ordered not to talk about that. Don't get your pay docked for running your mouth." The two moved away. Behind them, Pin muttered, "This isn't good." "Why?"

"The trail ends. Kitten's dead."

"So we came all this way for nothing?" Torres pressed her, but Pin shook her head.

"No. Kitten did leave a secret message. But there's a problem."

"What?" In the corner of the alley, Pin groaned before answering.

"There's an agreed spot in front of the city gate. It's buried there."

"Why there, of all places?"

"Must have been that desperate. It's the last place Kitten could have stopped if an escape attempt failed." Things had become troublesome. Torres nudged Encrid.

"Any bright ideas?"

"We retrieve it from in front of the gate and go back. Isn't that all?"

"That won't exactly be easy." 'This has them stumped?'

Encrid looked at the two of them.

'Their brains have seized up.' Understandable. They had been through so much in the night. And though Encrid himself didn't realize it, both had also been shaken by what he had shown them. His swordsmanship, and the boldness to make every situation his own. That was the yesterday Encrid had shown them. "Let's set a fire."

"... Huh?"

"Set fires under cover of night and slip out. Pick it up on our way. If they're stopping people from talking about what happened on the wall yesterday, it sounds like they're waiting for the infiltrators to cause trouble. Let's oblige them." Pin's eyes sparkled. It was a brilliant trick. At the same time, she thought:

'I should have suggested that first.' She realized her brain had seized up. That was all she needed. Pin was an excellent ranger, and excellent rangers could be terrible troublemakers. From an enemy nation's perspective, at least. The three stayed well hidden until nightfall, then set fire to hay piled in front of an inn. WHOOSH. Six locations in all. They split up and set the fires simultaneously. Pin was the most excited. Quick on her feet and nimble with her hands, she put her mouth to enthusiastic use as well, becoming the first to shout that there was a fire. It stirred confusion among the people. Moving through the darkness with the flames at his back, Encrid thought:

'I seem to set fires at every opportunity.' At this rate, he would become an arsonist rather than a knight. Setting fires seemed to be becoming a habit, too. Of course, that wasn't a concern right now. He grabbed a torch stand, walked nearly at a run, and threw it onto some hay. He added a bottle of oil pilfered from the inn. WHOOOOSH. It burned beautifully. He seemed to be becoming not merely an arsonist but an expert arsonist, yet the results were outstanding. "Fire! Fiiire!" The sky had been dark since daytime, suggesting spring rain would come soon. But not today. So the piles of hay and straw burned well. So did the wooden buildings beside them. Knocking over a few torch stands sent fierce flames soaring. While every eye was on the flames, Pin, Torres, and Encrid slipped out unhurriedly. It was just before the city gate closed. Naturally, Pin dug up the secret message and took it with her. "I suppose we can go back now?" Torres said.

Pin and Encrid nodded. It was time to return. "How did you know the mage's name?"

Torres asked on the way back, after they had left the gate. Encrid had been wondering why he hadn't asked. He offered his prepared excuse. "Luck. It was the name of a female mage who killed countless comrades of mine when I was a mercenary. I just blurted it out." Was he supposed to believe that? It made so little sense that it almost sounded plausible. Torres's thoughts tangled, and he soon stopped worrying about it. 'Who cares?'

Everything had ended well. That was enough. An exemplary soldier's attitude.

* * *

Abnaire couldn't help laughing. Sitting in his office inside Cross Guard, he kept breaking into incredulous laughter.

"Ha." 'They broke through everything? In a single night?' He had captured the enemy's spy and extracted information. On that basis, he had laid traps. He had even passed along information while posing as the spy. Whoever came in, he had intended to kill them. Even so, he hadn't really expected anyone to infiltrate Cross Guard. And yet. 'The elite soldiers in the Tunnel were almost wiped out.' Retsha was dead. She was not someone who should have died here. Retsha of the Thorny Vines was a mage of renown. "I could understand it if a knight had appeared."

But that wasn't it, either. He had first hushed up the disturbance, then tried to catch the intruders when they made a move. He had been willing to use the troops under his direct command. While he waited, fires had broken out. He had left every possibility open, including an assassination attempt. But there had only been fires. Afterward, no trace of the infiltrators remained. 'They just set fires and leave?' Abnaire kept laughing. It was absurd. Unbelievable. His mouth laughed, but his eyes did not—a strange expression. Aspen's genius strategist. That was what people called him. And he had been utterly outplayed. How could he not laugh?

* * *

"Achoo!" On the way back to their unit, Encrid suggested sparring again. Pin decided he was definitely a crazy bastard. Torres declined in gentle tones.

"Aren't you tired? I am." And so they arrived at Border Guard. In front of the barracks, Encrid saw a curious sight. A bald man in such shabby clothes that he could have passed for a beggar was pleading with a soldier. Encrid couldn't help tilting his head.