When he was in the Central Plains, his relationship with the Guardian Demon King Corps had been no different.
During the bloody war against the orthodox murim, he cherished his subordinates and always looked after them. If even a single one of his men fell into danger, Damon spared no effort in trying to save his life. After more than ten years of that, Damon was finally able to win their heartfelt loyalty. In the final moment, the reason he had been able to survive was entirely because the soldiers of the Guardian Demon King Corps had thrown themselves forward, treating their lives as though they were blades of grass. As he recalled that time, a trace of regret passed through Damon’s eyes.
“In any case, engrave what I said deep into your minds. That is all I want. Dragons are not opponents you can carelessly take revenge on.”
Before he had even finished speaking, something came flying like an arrow and landed beside Damon.
It was Katroi, who had set out first. Frowning, he glared at Damon.
“You damned bastard. If you were going to land, you could have said something first… Anyway, what do you mean, not an opponent they can take revenge on?”
Damon smiled faintly and raised his index finger to point at Katroi.
“Except for this fellow…”
Laughter erupted all at once among the mercenaries.
Puhahaha.
They knew they should not laugh, but they simply could not hold it in. Looking at the mercenaries desperately trying to suppress their laughter, Katroi could only shake his head again and again. The only one who could resolve his question was Damon.
“What on earth did you say?”
“You don’t need to know.”
Cutting him off briefly, Damon turned around. Opening Increcia to put the Bone Dragon away, Damon looked at Kasim.
“By the way, Captain. Where is our next destination?”
Kasim took a map from his coat and examined it before beginning to explain.
“For now, I intend to pass through Tezeros, then take the main road straight to Leitona. But…”
As if he had something to say, Kasim hesitated for a moment.
“What is it? Speak.”
“Would it be possible to stop somewhere briefly on the way? Since we would have to make quite a detour, I hesitated to mention it…”
Perhaps finding it awkward to say, Kasim continued haltingly.
“Where is this place?”
“I-It is my hometown.”
Hearing Kasim’s words, Damon did not hesitate in the slightest.
“Then we shall do that.”
“W-Would that truly be all right?”
“Come now. You are the captain of the Kasim Mercenary Band, are you not? If the captain says we are going, it is not as though the subordinates can refuse. Isn’t that so?”
When he sought their agreement in passing, the mercenaries readily consented as well.
“Let’s do that. I’ve always been quite curious about where the captain’s hometown was…”
“Seeing as you never told us where it was, maybe you have some secret lover hidden away there?”
It was a joke tossed out by the chatterbox Patterson, but for an instant, a tender light passed through Kasim’s eyes. Because the look vanished so quickly, no one noticed.
“So, where is your hometown?”
“It is Arne. A beautiful territory located at the southernmost edge of Pencelut. I was born there and spent my childhood there.”
“The captain’s hometown, is it? I’m looking forward to it. How far is it?”
An apologetic look rose on Kasim’s face.
“If we walk, it will likely take more than fifteen days. Though it is a territory belonging to Pencelut, it is extremely remote.”
At the words that it would take about fifteen days, Damon closed Increcia without even needing to think.
If it was that distance, riding the Bone Dragon would be far better. Considering the Bone Dragon’s gliding speed, it would not even take a full day to arrive.
“In that case, we shall fly there. Since it is the captain’s hometown, I suppose we should stay for a few days…”
“Th-That’s all right. I think it will be enough just to look around town for a short while.”
“Do your parents not live there?”
Kasim’s face suddenly darkened.
“My parents passed away from illness long ago.”
“Tsk, tsk. That is unfortunate.”
Shaking his head, Damon silently approached Yuliana. She had been staring at him for some time.
“Stop staring, girl. You’ll wear out my face.”
As if refusing to back down, Yuliana sneered.
“Hmph. With that face, would it really matter if it got worn out? Maybe it would even be better that way.”
“You little wench.”
“Hmph. Go on, hit me. As if I’d be scared of you…”
Faced with Yuliana’s endlessly audacious attitude, Damon’s head became rather complicated.
“Let’s stop. There’s nothing to gain by arguing with you… I’ll cast magic on you, so don’t whine about being cold.”
At those words, a broad smile blossomed on Yuliana’s face.
“Really?”
It was completely different from the way she had been coldly snapping at him just moments before. Seeing that, Damon clicked his tongue and rearranged his mana.
‘She turns out like this with just the slightest bit of attention.’
Reminding himself once more that women were indeed bewitching creatures, Damon growled fiercely.
“If you start whining, I’ll throw you off the Bone Dragon without mercy, so be prepared.”
“I understand.”
Without even waiting for her answer, Damon turned around.
“Now. Let’s depart.”
The mercenaries boarded the Bone Dragon once again. Beside them, Katroi was grumbling as he cast flight magic.
“Madman. If this was what you were going to do, why did you come down?”
Kwarururu.
The Bone Dragon carrying the entire party rose into the air, beating its wings violently. When the mana he had painstakingly gathered was scattered by the gust, Katroi frowned.
“If I had my way, I’d like to feed it a Hell Fire right now.”
But Katroi knew very well that he had to leave it as nothing more than a thought.
The Bone Dragon was equipped with a powerful anti-magic defensive formation based on mana drawn from a Dragon Heart. Katroi had already discerned that fact. He vaguely guessed that one or two Hell Fires would not even make it flinch.
“I’ll have to hurry.”
Having finished casting his flight magic, Katroi immediately rose into the air. The Bone Dragon carrying the party was already receding into the distance, becoming a tiny speck.
Just as Damon had expected, it did not take a full day to reach Arne. Though they had departed around noon, they were able to arrive in Arne at dawn the next day. Of course, it went without saying that the entire party had spent the whole night on the cold back of the Bone Dragon. Damon landed the Bone Dragon near a deserted mountain slope. Because he had followed closely, Katroi did not lose the party this time.
“I’m a little tired.”
After confirming that everyone had dismounted, Damon opened Increcia and put the Bone Dragon away. The mercenaries’ faces were all blue with cold. Though they had learned qigong, enduring an entire day on the back of a Bone Dragon colder than ice had been a truly dreadful experience. Unlike last time, Damon had not deployed any shields at all, so they had been forced to receive the fierce wind with their bare bodies.
“Since ancient times, harsh environments have been said to be the best conditions for training.”
Because of Damon’s absurd logic, the party was utterly exhausted. Only Yuliana, who had been protected by magic and had slept well before waking, looked perfectly fine.
“Is this the place, Captain?”
At Damon’s question, Kasim silently nodded.
“Yes. I think we should first stay at an inn and rest, so I will guide you.”
“Do that.”
Led by Kasim, the party quietly began entering the streets of Arne.
For some reason, worry lingered on Kasim’s face as he walked at the head of the group. The way he looked around at Arne’s scenery even seemed tinged with impatience. Damon approached and spoke to him.
“Why? Does returning to your hometown stir up old feelings?”
“To be honest, I cannot say it does not.”
“But there is one thing I’m curious about.”
At Patterson’s sudden interruption, Kasim slowly turned his head.
“What are you so curious about?”
“Your past, Captain. Just what did you do here? I’ve always been most curious about that. We’ve spent nearly ten years together, but you’ve never revealed it even once, have you? I only found out now that your hometown is Arne.”
Patterson’s words made everyone in the party curious. Even Damon wore an expression showing he could hardly endure his curiosity, urging Kasim to reveal his past.
“If it is all right with you, I would like to know the truth.”
With a bitter smile, Kasim ultimately had no choice but to speak about his past.
“It is nothing much. I was originally a territorial guard here. I remember serving for about three years.”
“A territorial guard? Then the treatment must have been fairly decent, so why choose the difficult path of a mercenary?”
“Well, perhaps it was so I could meet Damon and go dragon hunting.”
He glossed over it as though it were nothing, but Damon somehow caught the look that flickered through Kasim’s eyes. It was the gaze of someone who had suffered great pain.
‘It seems the captain has a past that is hard to reveal.’
Realizing that there was some reason behind it, Damon closed his mouth. Forcing someone to reveal a secret did not suit Damon’s temperament at all. After that, Patterson threw out several more questions, but Kasim smoothly slipped past them like an old fox. It seemed he had buried his past for ten years with that very method. In the end, even the persistent Patterson had no choice but to give up completely.
“Whew. As expected, I can’t get the better of you, Captain.”
As they exchanged quiet conversation, they had already arrived near the gates of Arne.
After passing through the gates, the party took a look around the streets of Arne. Arne was quite a beautiful city. Its well-ordered streets were exceedingly elegant, and from the appearance of the buildings lining them, one could tell that it was a territory centered on agriculture and livestock. Seeing how few shops there were selling goods, commerce did not appear to be very prosperous. Damon grasped the territory’s circumstances at a glance.
“Well, since it is in such an out-of-the-way place, there would be no reason for commerce to develop. Seeing the bright expressions on the people’s faces, it seems to be a fairly good place to live.”
Indeed, Arne looked like quite an abundant territory. A fairly large river ran right beside the castle, so there was no need to worry about water, and since the weather was warm, it was a territory blessed with ideal conditions for agriculture and livestock.
“In short, it is a territory capable of self-sufficiency.”
Perhaps because outsiders rarely visited, the people looked at the party with curious expressions. In Arne, where most of the territory was plains, there was no way there would be work for mercenaries. Considering that it belonged to Pencelut, where public order was well maintained, and that monsters generally operated against a backdrop of rugged mountains, seeing mercenaries in Arne was, quite literally, like plucking stars from the sky. There was no occasion to hire them.
As a result, the party unintentionally became the focus of the people’s attention. Even Damon felt burdened by their gazes.
“Good grief, we’re not goblins in a cage… Captain. Instead of standing around like this, let’s find an inn and go inside.”
“Shall we?”
Kasim led the party into the center of town.
“As I recall, there is only one inn in Arne. Travelers visit extremely rarely, so…”
Kasim, who had been explaining based on his past memories, could not finish speaking.
Because a large inn had appeared before them. It was not quite comparable to Paradise, but it was still a considerably large inn.