Chapter 346 - Bwahahaha

The Queen of Naurilia had no children. In other words, she had no heir.

Who, then, should be the next monarch? Why did the Queen not have a child?

This was one reason claimants to the throne had begun appearing everywhere. The greatest reason, of course, was probably the weakness of the Queen's central authority.

Some, like Count Molsen, styled themselves King of the Frontier. Others in the capital sought to become the Queen's consort. Delegations from other countries even offered to send princes.

Countless people coveted the throne. Krang was one of them.

Krais had not met every would-be king, but a comparison with Count Molsen alone was enough. Wasn't he currently the most threatening potential usurper?

On that basis, Krais thought:

'He's a man of a different caliber.'

Encrid felt much the same, even when comparing him to Count Molsen. It was pure instinct, but what Molsen wanted was the throne. His goal ended there.

Krang was different. The royal bastard son was looking not at the throne, but beyond it.

'He's faced this country's problems squarely.'

Count Molsen would have plans for after he took the country, too. The difference lay in where they placed greater weight.

Did the throne come first, or the work that needed doing? What were they striving for? Where did their purpose lie?

In the sunlight, vines tangled over the barracks wall to their right. The green moss wedged in its cracks and the vines pulsed with life.

Spring was in full swing, and the days were gradually growing warmer, though not enough to make them sweat as they walked.

Amid that gentle sunlight, the man who had commanded everyone's attention with his words gave a wry smile.

"That's why I damn well didn't want to do it."

That last remark was almost comical.

"Is that so?"

"Haven't you felt that way? Never wanted to stop? Never grown sick of the path you're on? Never wondered whether you really had to keep walking it?"

Encrid considered Krang's words. No. He had never grown sick of it or questioned it. Not once.

He enjoyed wielding a sword. He found pleasure in the progress it brought him. Every moment of becoming a knight was a joy.

Even after that almost comical remark, Krang's distinctive air remained intact. His eyes looked straight into Encrid's.

For a moment, Encrid felt as though everything around them had vanished, leaving only the two of them.

'Can you say you've never suffered?'

Krang seemed to be asking him that.

He felt he ought to agree. It was not pressure, but an atmosphere that enveloped him, making him feel he had to say so.

It was the distinctive atmosphere Krang created. Within it, Encrid became a straight, unwavering sword.

He spoke from the resolve he had planted within himself. There was no wavering.

"Never," Encrid replied.

The smile vanished from Krang's face.

Blue eyes stared at Encrid from an expressionless face. Enough time passed to take a sip of tea, savor its flavor, and swallow.

"Bwahahaha!"

Krang laughed hard, throwing back his head in a great, unrestrained burst of laughter.

* * *

Krang's guard had never seen his lord laugh like that before. Head thrown back, laughing until tears gathered in his eyes.

The unfamiliar sight was strange, and he could not understand it. Given the life his lord had led, it was astonishing he could laugh that way at all.

Carrying separately prepared food for fear of poison was the least of it. Assassination threats were a constant plague. Merely identifying who was behind them was a struggle from day to day.

He had to evade them again and again while building his power. He had to bring what one might call good fortune over to his side.

["What about you am I supposed to trust enough to support you?"]

A noble had once said that, and the guard had agreed. What could they trust enough to offer their support?

["Faith? Trust? Is that what has guided your actions?"]

With a few words and his innate charm, his lord had changed the situation. He captivated others and turned things around.

Yet he kept to his boundaries. He must not cross the line. What must be upheld, he upheld. That was the life his lord had chosen.

It was harsh. A harsh, relentlessly harsh life. The standards he held himself to were so very high.

And that was why he shone.

To shine was to catch people's eyes, captivate them, and stand out wherever he went. Was that why stones that scattered colorful light were valued more highly than food, drink, and clothing?

The noble who had asked that question had become one of his lord's staunchest supporters.

["How can you gain what you desire by following only the right and virtuous path?"]

A man called a sage had asked him that.

His lord had answered.

["I may sometimes step in mud, and the filth on my boots may dirty the room. But I can't leave the people who live with me to frown at the sight, can I?"]

Instead, the so-called sage had fallen deep into thought at his lord's words.

["That is true, too."]

["And what you say is true."]

Krang and the sage had become the closest of friends.

The guard had watched it all. He knew the years they had lived through.

That was how he knew. Never, in any moment, had he seen his lord laugh like this. The sight of him laughing from the heart was unfamiliar.

"Ah, right. Never."

His lord wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes with a finger. He had laughed hard enough to cry.

"That's right. Never."

The other man did not even ask why he had laughed. He simply answered calmly, without so much as looking bewildered.

His lord and the black-haired man continued their conversation. After that, there was none of that distinctive, radiant air. They merely exchanged a few trivial remarks.

"Why did you charge into the enemy lines alone back then?"

"I wasn't charging. I meant to hit and run, but I got pinned down."

They were discussing the time he had fallen into the trap laid by the strategist Abnaire.

"Wouldn't it have been easier if you'd taken your troops with you?"

It was a question for the future. Not picking apart the past, but retracing the situation to reflect on what had happened and avoid repeating the same mistake.

Listening beside them, Krais thought Krang's approach wise. Just because it had happened on a battlefield did not mean there was nothing to learn.

Krang was not interrogating him. He was listening attentively. He knew how to listen to others almost as well as Encrid did.

"Then our casualties would have spiraled out of control."

Only because he was Encrid had he survived by dying again and again.

What if he had taken troops in with him? They would all have died in there. At the very least, the unit would have lost half its strength.

In hindsight, it had been the right choice.

"But you didn't know that then," Krang said.

"I thought striking the front of their lines alone would draw a lot of attention and give our troops more freedom to move."

"So, a fight for a small elite force."

An observer might have considered it a serious discussion of strategy and tactics, but to the two of them it was idle conversation. Naturally, the subject changed in an instant.

"What's that scar?" Encrid asked.

"I misjudged someone."

Krang had a long scar beneath his chin. It must have come from a wound that had nearly killed him.

Encrid said nothing in particular. His manner conveyed little more than, Ah, I see.

He merely wondered privately whether Krang was a poor judge of character.

What was a king? Someone who commanded people. If he had no eye for them, it was only natural he would suffer for it.

Sometimes meaning came across without words. Encrid's manner did exactly that now.

Some things got across without needing to be said.

A vein bulged on the guard's forehead at the sight. His lord had not misjudged someone. If Encrid knew the circumstances, he would never have said such a thing.

"I've certainly learned a great deal."

Krang chuckled as he answered.

This, too, was unfamiliar to the guard. Until now, a smile had been the most his lord ever gave.

Their meeting ended after a walk and conversation in the mild spring warmth.

"See you again, my friend."

Krais felt deflated. In the end, Krang had never asked them to take his side. Why had he prepared all those comebacks?

But wasn't there a standard thing to say at a time like this?

Normally, it would be something like: How about dreaming of such a country? Stand with me, and let us realize that dream. I'll have you swimming in gold and playing with a different beauty every day of the month!

Didn't people say things like that?

Then again, would a man like that even have made it this far?

As those stray thoughts ran through his mind, Encrid asked Krang,

"Are we friends?"

"Aren't we?"

"Let's say we are."

It was enough to make the guard's neck stiffen. Yet he could not intervene. Hadn't his lord told him to stand down?

Above all, he believed his lord had a purpose and meaning behind his actions.

That did not make it pleasant to watch.

Didn't it look as though his lord were handing the other man Krona and begging him to be his friend?

As people said, paying silver for friendship.

The guard's jaw muscles stood out. He had clenched his teeth without realizing it.

"Any more of this and I think your guard's whip will come flying at my head."

"Better dodge it."

Krang chuckled at his own joke again. Encrid gave a wry smile, too.

He had already become friends with Leona, the owner of the Roquefried trading company. Being on these terms with someone who might one day take the throne would not be so bad either.

In truth, all such reasons aside, he simply liked Krang as a person.

"Well, then."

"Right."

Encrid and Krais left. Krang quietly watched them go.

Seeing that, the guard spoke.

"You know how dangerous it is to come here, don't you?"

"I do."

Krang rested a hand on his hip and looked up.

He kept thinking it: the weather really was lovely. The sunlight was warm, the air mild. It was the sort of day for lying in a patch of grass and taking a nap.

Watching him, the guard had to ask the fundamental question.

His lord had said it countless times: if you left questions unresolved and failed to communicate, misunderstandings would eventually pile up. Never let something that a simple exchange could resolve become a reason to draw swords.

The guard did as he had been taught.

"Then why did you come?"

"I was curious."

He must mean the man who had just left. A question naturally arose, and the guard voiced it.

"About his skill?"

Should he have fought him, then? The guard wondered.

Krang shaded his eyes against the dazzling sunlight and looked up at the sky. It was clear, dotted with clouds.

Lovely, he thought, and answered.

"I wanted to know whether he'd changed."

He gave another small laugh as he spoke.

The guard tilted his head, but left it there. He could not ask about every last thing. He did not think he needed to know every thought in Krang's mind.

His lord had needed to confirm something. He had done so, and was satisfied.

That was what mattered. That answered his question. There was no misunderstanding here.

"Yes, I see."

"Mm."

Krang valued Encrid more highly than anyone else who knew him. More, in fact, than Encrid valued himself.

'If he can remain that unchanged.'

Someone who pressed forward without changing captivated those around him. He gripped them, won them over. Influenced them.

In Krang's view of the world, wielding influence was that great an accomplishment.

'If he'd gone into politics...'

A man who could have founded a great house instead wielded a sword. Dreamed of becoming a knight.

A knight stood at the pinnacle of martial power. What would happen if a man like that became one?

It was none of his concern. The man's attitude was consistent. Unchanging.

He simply walked his own path.

Krang was satisfied to have confirmed it. His friend Encrid truly had not changed.

He sought to become a knight, while Krang sought to lead a kingdom.

"Could there ever be a continent without war?"

"If you wish it, my lord."

"Easier said than done."

Krang smiled wryly and patted the guard's shoulder.

He was his usual lord again. Though was it the guard's imagination that his shoulders looked a little more relaxed than usual?

Krang began walking.

"Come on. We've still got to struggle if we want to stay alive."

The guard knew that all too well.

"Yes."

With the sunlight behind them, he followed Krang.

* * *

"The throne should go to someone who doesn't want it, rather than someone who does," Encrid said on the way back.

Krais corrected him.

"More precisely, it should go to someone who understands it. A man who doesn't know what he's doing can't even beg properly, let alone sit on a throne."

He had worked a proverb into his correction.

Even if you wish to become a beggar, you cannot unless you know what to do.

It was a proverb of the continent.

Encrid's words were his answer to Marcus's question.

It was not a path to walk out of sheer desire, but one whose weight you had to understand.

"In that respect, he's an impressive man."

"Not just stupid?"

Encrid's question carried another meaning, and Krais understood it. So he gave the answer he could.

"No. I don't believe he is."

Krais considered why Krang had come here. What else could it be?

'He came to see this fellow.'

And why had he wanted to see Encrid? Because he was advancing in the world and making a name for himself? Because he had become rather famous lately?

It was none of Krais's concern, but that was probably not it.

Then what had Krang sacrificed to see the Captain?

Time, a place to stay, information, and the secrecy of his whereabouts.

"He'll be in danger, won't he?" Encrid asked abruptly.

He had sensed the danger Krang would face by coming here. No, he had inferred it and worked it out.

The Captain really did have a quick mind.

With that thought, Krais answered.

"Yes. I don't know whether he'll get out alive. He said he was going to the royal palace, didn't he?"

He had said that, too. That he would now return to the royal palace, and expected a difficult journey.

Yet he had gone out of his way to come to Border Guard.

Whatever his reason, he had clearly taken a considerable risk.

The guard posts Krais had built for Border Guard had brought explosive growth in merchant traffic. With the involvement of the Roquefried trading company, trade had quite literally boomed.

All of this had happened in a mere month or two, yet the city was bustling. That was how many people had flocked here.

And a large crowd made it easy for people bent on mischief to slip in.

'We can't keep every spy out anyway.'

Krais had focused on securing the important facilities thoroughly. As for the rest? For now, he left it alone.

He intended to expand the information guild further and police the city from within eventually, but not yet.

What if Krang's life was still in danger? Naturally, Krais assumed it was.

Even now, Encrid was listing the things on which he had based his judgment.

"That guard changed his stance. He kept himself tensed to move at any moment."

"He wouldn't eat or drink anything except what he'd brought himself. Looks like he's had a rough time."

"And he didn't have any hidden guards with him. Doesn't look as though he has many people around him."

In that case, there could hardly be anywhere more dangerous for Krang than Border Guard right now.

Krais could well imagine assassins descending on him, carriage and all, the moment he left after his stay.

He nodded as he listened to Encrid. He also knew why his Captain was saying all this. It was simple.

"If you want to do it, why not just do it?"

Who commanded the Lunatic Company?

A black-haired, blue-eyed lunatic.

Encrid.

"I know. But I should still know why."

"I agree that it'd be a waste for him to die here."

By the time they returned to the barracks, Marcus was already there.

Encrid had already expected assassins to descend on Krang, along with every assassin's older brother, big brother, father, younger sibling, and grandfather. So he could preempt Marcus before the man said anything with those deadly serious eyes.

"I'll escort him to the royal palace. Discuss the fee with Krais."

Marcus made an unintelligible sound, "Uhh," then froze with his mouth hanging open.

Encrid's mind worked far faster than Marcus had expected.

"Huh? We going somewhere?" Rem asked from behind him.

He already looked restless.

He would have to take Rem, at least. Encrid nodded at the thought.

In that state, Rem was sure to cause trouble. Better to keep him close.