C676
"Thinking that I ate a dish cooked by Jin... Ah! I just want to live here in Tikan forever. Right, Hedo?"
"Not at all, my lady."
"Why are you always so negative? I'm starting to dislike what you do lately."
"If you continue like this, there's a chance that news of the young lady's exploits will reach the clan. If that happens, you might not be able to see the Twelfth Flagbearer even if you have the opportunity, like today."
"Wow, there's no shortage of trash here, huh? Do you think a brute like you fits that size?"
"It seems like a good match. No one would think I'm a brute just by looking at my appearance, so it has an unexpected charm."
It's been a day since Hedo and Sandra arrived in Tikan.
And the others who observed them, like Jin, felt that the two were like a well-matched father and daughter (but the daughter is quite a troublemaker).
"Hmm, no matter how much I think about it, this Jet can't understand it. What's the reason why this incredible guy can't even move against Sandra Zipple? It doesn't seem like he has any weaknesses.""It's indeed a strange relationship."
"Firstly, the existence of this person named Hedo is strange, Sir Valkas. We have no information about him in our Phantom mercenaries, and the same goes for the Black King mercenaries, isn't that right? Moreover, our lord only learned of his existence after encountering him in the Sota Desert. Does it make sense that we know so little about someone of that caliber?"
"I think Sir Cyron, Runcandel, as well as the high command of Zipple, seem to know about him, but... He's definitely a person shrouded in mystery."
Tikan still knows very little about Hedo.
He is the exclusive butler and second-in-command of Sandra Zipple, yet he receives the highest treatment within the clan.
Hedo has the position to request vacations based on the vague reason of "personal matters" in these times.
"The words written on the sword that Miss Valeria is examining are also mysterious."
Since yesterday, Valeria has been staying up all night examining the records of Hedo's sword, "Bale."
Since the Bale Sword is related to the ancient Runcandel, the history of the sword has been manipulated as expected.
"Sir Hedo."
Valkas called Hedo on behalf of everyone.
"You can simply call me Tower Guardian, Black King Leader."
"It's more convenient to refer to you as sir. I called you because I had a question."
"What is it?"
"I'm curious about the relationship between you and Sandra Zipple."
"What's curious about a butler serving his master?"
"Because you don't seem like ordinary butler and master. According to what I've heard from Jin-nim, sir, you are loyal to Sandra Zipple, not Zipple. If you have any special story, I'll prepare good drinks and cigarettes."
Valkas was subtly good at socializing. Hedo didn't show any signs of feeling uncomfortable with Valkas's sudden approach.
"Good wine and cigarettes are always welcome, but there's no particular story."
"Don't be like that, tell me. The curiosity about you and Sandra Zipple is paralyzing Tikan."
Valkas took out high-quality pine smoke from Mila Mountain from his pocket and offered it to Hedo.
Hedo smiled satisfactorily after enjoying the aroma once.
"This quality is so good that it might be the only box to come out of the Mila tobacco plantation in a year. I'll tell you."
The group perked up their ears, but Hedo gave a very disappointing answer the next moment.
"There are often people who care more about their dog or cat than their own body. The reason I serve the lady is no different from that. I've been by my lady's side since she was young, so now it's natural."
"Compared to a pet?"
"To put it bluntly, it's the lady. Anyway, compared to the cigarettes I received, it's a trivial matter. I hope you're not disappointed."
"Then...! How did you come to be by Zipple's side?"
Jet glanced and intervened.
He also took out the best pine from Mila, a different type from Valkas's, and offered it to Hedo.
He had stolen it from Qwaul's drawer.
"You don't have to be so scared. It so happened that I belonged to Zipple while wandering in my youth. Um, this is also a very refined aroma."
"It seems you enjoy taking people's actions in Tikan, Tower Guardian."
Jin shrugged and spoke.
"If you have any doubts, feel free to ask if you have something that might pique my interest."
"No need for that, we'll naturally know everything when you become one of us."
If Jin asks Sandra, he could find out Hedo's past.
But Jin didn't do that.
There was no need to make the giant uncomfortable by uncovering his hidden past, which wasn't that important anyway.
The important thing was to enter the Sixth Tomb through Bale.
"More than your past, I'm curious about the story of your sword. It's believed that the word 'Bale' written on the sword is the name of one of the ten great knights of the ancient Runcandel."
"Like the guy we saw in the snowfield? I can guess to some extent."
"It's a very bitter story for me that the sword of a ten great knight is possessed by Zipple's servant. Well, Tower Guardian, you're qualified enough to possess an equally good sword if we exclude the fact that you're from Zipple."
"I thought you'd be scared."
"I'm just stating the facts. When I met you, I thought: 'Are there really monsters like this in the world?'"
"That won't change my mind."
"One of the reasons I have to show myself well to you is also related to the matter of Elder Sister Yona."
Jin had asked for help to find Yona as soon as Sandra and Hedo arrived.
"If that's the case, didn't the lady agree yesterday?"
"Hoho, don't worry. Darling, I'll save my sister-in-law somehow."
"I believe in Sandra. But I have a feeling you might report to the higher-ups."
"You're treating me like a snake in the grass twice. You can bring the Truth Contractor and confirm it."
"I'll trust you."
"It's not that you trust me, but you'll think I won't report even if Yona Runcandel goes wrong because lady Sandra will persuade me."
"I'm not that cunning. But if the other party acts deceitfully first, then there's nothing we can do."
"I don't mind being kidnapped."
As the conversation continued, Valeria came out of the laboratory.
She had the same dazed expression as usual at those times, but there was one different thing.
"Her eyes are quite shining..."
It was a look Valeria only showed when she made a particularly significant discovery.
Jin smiled inwardly, thinking about his past life, seeing her like that.
"Jin."
"Have you finished analyzing the records?"
"Yes, come with me. I'll explain."
When Jin left, Sandra looked at Valeria's back as if she wanted to kill her, and Hedo let out a sigh and calmed her down.
"You seem excited. The harvest seems to be greater than expected, right?"
"Of all the items we've found related to the ancient Runcandel, this is the one that retains a record most intact."
"Didn't you say the history of this sword was heavily manipulated?"
"Yes, I did. At first, it was really like that. But this is the first time I've encountered something like this. As soon as my magic touched the sword, its history started to recover on its own."
"Recover its own history?"
Like a dry forest drinking rainwater, Valeria's record magic slowly revived the records contained within the sword as soon as she touched it.
Valeria only maintained that state throughout the night without taking any special measures to restore the records.
"Yes. It's safe to say that this sword perfectly contains a fragment of Runcandel from a thousand years ago. It's in an incomparably better state than the records we saw in the Wantaramo Forest."
Jin had never seen an "intact record" of the ancient Runcandel.
The records Jin had seen were always partially or mostly damaged.
"Then it will show us more than the recording devices left by Solderet."
"Of course. And maybe..."
Valeria paused and met Jin's gaze.
"We might even meet an old Runcandel alive. Inside the tomb of this sword."
"What... did you say?"
Jin's pupils dilated.
"I thought about why the manipulated history recovered so easily. It might have weakened naturally over time, but that alone wasn't enough explanation. And it wasn't because my Record Magic was exceptional."
While Valeria cast Record Magic on Hedo's sword, she clearly felt that a certain living force within it began to resist the manipulation of history.
"Do you mean a living ten great knight is resisting the manipulation of history and reacting to your Record Magic inside the sword?"
"There's no guarantee that it's one of the ten great knights, but it's very likely that someone still survives within the sword. Not as a guardian, but as a true living entity. And if their mind is intact and they show you favor, you'll be able to hear stories from that time directly from them."
Jin's heartbeats quickened.
The many doubts he had harbored could have been resolved if he could just directly hear the story of the mysterious old Runcandel.
The background of Sylderay calling Solderet a traitor in the first tomb, the reality of the manipulated history, Temar's death and the end of Runcandel at that time.
And the reason why Solderet hid the fact that he had already foreseen himself as the contractor a thousand years ago.
"It's an amazing story. I didn't expect to find such a clue in Zipple's Tower Guardian's sword. Without that sword, we couldn't have entered the fifth tomb."
"Are you going to inform the Tower Guardian about this?"
"It would be a good idea to let him know. He's a meticulous person, and he'll probably ask us to verify it through Euria when we finish the story. We've mentioned Euria before, so if we're caught in a lie, he won't cooperate with us."
It wasn't a matter of refusal.
Hedo is the Sword Master, so it would be better to be honest unless Jin plans to take it by force.
Of course, Hedo is a person from Zipple.
It was difficult to inform him of the existence of "an old Runcandel who might be alive," but there was no other way.
"Killing the tower guardian or taking the sword now would be madness, so it's better this way. When are you going to enter the Tomb?"
"We should prepare now and try it outside, since we don't know what might happen during the opening process."
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