Editor 105

North of the Mountain Range (2)

“Let’s stop and eat now. The food will get cold.”

“Oh no, it’d be a waste if it gets cold.”

“We’d better eat quickly.”

Isiel, who calmed down the twins, took the last empty seat. She seemed to be checking if Kleio, who arrived late, was injured or unwell.

Arthur, who had been devouring his share of lamb meatballs, finally stopped laughing.

“Anyway, don’t worry too much about being late, Ray. With all this snow, no carriage could get to the manor today anyway.”

“At noon tomorrow, when the guards come down from the manor, a caravan with food and daily necessities will set out together for the manor. According to the locals, since wild animals appear and the road is rough, there’s a rule in winter to travel together.”

“They won’t even rent you a carriage if you go alone. They made me swear I wouldn’t, as if sending a kid out alone on icy roads. The carriage owner was so worried.”

“Even though they know we’re from the Capital Guard School?”

“This place is so remote, it seems they’re getting interns for the first time.”

“Ah…”

Kleio looked around at the kids at the table. He could understand the carriage owner’s feelings.

Not even teenagers, but near-children like the Angelium twins, Chel and Isiel whose faces still looked young, a blond kid, and one feeble-looking boy—any reasonable adult would consider it dangerous to send such a group up the mountain path.

‘They’d never imagine these kids’ combined levels are already double digits.’

Chel, munching on fries with her hands, grumbled.

“Jeez. Even without monsters, this place isn’t easy to get through winter. It’s hard to get supplies up and people in or out, so why is the manor out here?”

Even as she spoke, Isiel, neatly cutting her meatballs, answered like a Siri.

“The Tristan ducal manor, like the King’s Hall, was rebuilt during the reign of Leonid I. There’s a legend that the first Duke Tristan, a knight of the Conquering King, built the manor on the spot where he defeated the monster Morolt.”

“As expected of our Isiel! That’s a top-student explanation! But if the monster was already killed, why didn’t they move the manor?”

“The first Duke Tristan was ordered to guard the northern territory, and since the fortress had already been blessed by Queen Isolde, they’ve kept its position for a thousand years to renew that vow.”

“And with such a good excuse, they also run a uniquely structured knight order. There are almost no graduates from the Capital Guard School there. They usually pick squires from among commoners and train knights in a very traditional way.”

Arthur added a sharp analysis. If he hadn’t had beer foam on his lips, he might have sounded more serious, but by now no one at the table would bother to point it out.

“So… compared to the school knights, they must be pretty exclusive?”

“Well, what can we do? We’re already here! The Tristan duke gave us permission, so they won’t kick us out.”

In the previous manuscript, the Tristan knights were also coldly hostile to Arthur’s group from the capital. They deeply resented the central nobles who neglected the knight order and domain of a founding hero’s house.

‘But they end up becoming friendly, moved by Arthur’s protagonist power. It’s a shame they’re not Melchior’s sword, but unless you can persuade Thaethurn Tristan, that can’t be changed.’

Even in this manuscript, Thaethurn seemed to offer passionate and blind loyalty to Melchior.

‘Even if they’re not on Arthur’s side at first, they’ll become strong defenders of the north as the story progresses, so I have to get along with them.’

After the meatballs came roast beef, and then two kitchen assistants brought out the whole roast piglet.

“Here’s the roast you ordered!”

“Yes!”

“Oh, is that the whole roast piglet? Amazing!”

“The skin looks so crispy.”

“Looks delicious!”

The surface of the roast, browned perfectly, was still sizzling with oil, filling the air with a savory aroma.

“But didn’t they say the roast would take over an hour when we ordered?”

“Yeah, it came out fast, didn’t it?”

Whoosh—

It happened then.

The pub’s door slid open.

Warm air from the fireplace was swept away by cold wind and a blizzard from the night.

A man in a worn, dirty robe approached the kids’ table. Under the robe, a strong square jaw and mouth showed through black-and-white-streaked hair, and he radiated an unusual presence.

Despite his tall, large build, the man’s steps made no sound, and his voluminous robe cleverly hid his sword.

Kleio tensed, ready to open a circle at any moment.

‘This man is strong.’

Snow was melting on the man’s robe. Standing with his back to the fire, he was a dark silhouette and spoke in a low voice.

“Hey, students, that roast piglet looks like the one I ordered earlier. Maybe they brought it to you by mistake while I was out.”

Kleio’s jaw dropped in disbelief.

‘Seriously, after all that ominous buildup… he’s talking about roast piglet… what the…’

“Oh, is that so?”

Quick-witted Chel was about to call a staff member to check, when clatter.

Arthur, still half-turned with his back to the door, dropped his fork.

The boy’s eyes went wide as saucers in shock. The robed man, seeing Arthur, hurriedly pushed back his hood.

Their eyes met.

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

“Arthur?”

“Yes…”

A burly middle-aged man and a well-groomed young man stared at each other in shock, mouths open. It was one of those moments when you’re too surprised to think straight.

A beat later, Arthur yelled loudly.

“What, you disappeared without a word, and now you show up in a place like this?!”

“And what are you doing here? Did you quit school?”

“Quit? No, I’m doing just fine! I’m here for fieldwork.”

“Sending kids like this to a monster-infested place—Capital Guard School’s really lost it!”

Kleio also blinked in confusion.

‘So who is this guy?’

Meanwhile, the twins chimed in, prickly as always, but at the oddest point.

“Hey, our fieldwork assignment was before the monsters showed up. Capital Guard School never cancels the academic schedule, even for natural disasters.”

“And if we can help hunt monsters, that’s great!”

Hearing Lippi and Letitia, the man scowled fiercely, thumping his chest with his fist as if suffocating.

“They still do that at that school? Damn bastards. What are little kids like you doing fighting monsters? You should be eating well at home and going to bed early, not out here in this cold!”

Getting treated like kids by a total stranger, the twins—who had their pride as swordsmen—immediately stood up.

“We’re not kids.”

“We don’t have baby hands.”

“Arthur, who is this guy? Someone you know?”

“Ugh… everyone calm down. So… this is my fencing master. Mr. Mietz, these are my friends. They’re classmates, and the two I mentioned before—Lippi Angelium and Letitia Angelium.”

“So you’re the Angelium twins. I thought you’d be older, jeez. Arthur, you really should write more clearly in your letters.”

“I did write everything! You just didn’t read properly, sir!”

Amid the commotion, Isiel—who had remained calm—stepped up and bowed to Mr. Mietz.

“How have you been? It’s good to see you, master.”

With her right hand over her heart and her left on her sword hilt, Isiel’s posture was flawlessly elegant—a gesture of respect.

Mietz, scratching his spiky hair, quickly waved her off.

“Hey, hey, don’t do that. Why so formal, Isiel!”

By this point, Kleio realized something important.

‘So that’s where Arthur’s cocky way of talking comes from—he’s a copy of that master guy.’

.

.

.

The table, now littered with the remains of two roast piglets, was so covered in plates there was barely room for a glass.

“So, you left the Kishion barony with just a note and wandered the continent? For half a year?”

“Come on, I’m not some runaway son. What kind of disciple scolds his master like that?”

“Arthur’s only worried for you, sir. I was too. I’m glad you look well…”

“You two are both intermediate swordsmen now. At the capital school, there are teachers better than me, so why are you both so attached?”

Mr. Mietz was a swordsman invited to the Kishion barony to teach Isiel.

‘Schliemann Kishion was a fine border lord but only an average knight. He hired a new master for his talented daughter.’

Nothing about Mietz’s past or background was in the manuscript.

‘I didn’t even know his name until now. In the manuscript, he’s always just “master,” “master.”’

He took pity on young Arthur and made him a student. From the way the two disciples remembered him so fondly in the manuscript, Kleio had never imagined he’d be this kind of character.

‘Judging by how he acts, he’s no different from a local thug.’

Given how he first met Arthur, there might be some twist to this Mietz guy. Kleio still didn’t let his guard down.

‘Guys who try hard to look strong are usually nothing, but those who are strong yet try to hide it have complicated reasons.’

“Promise”’s “Understanding” only let him gauge the level of someone who had drawn ether, so Kleio couldn’t tell Mietz’s level yet. But even without a clear message, the determination Mietz carried was extraordinary.

‘Anyway, he’s the master who raised the two who’ll become the greatest knights of this age.’

For what lay ahead, the more powerful knights, the better. And if he was friendly to Arthur, all the better.

“Father is still waiting for you, master. The cabin is kept clean. You can return anytime.”

“Jeez, why would I go back to a place I spent ten years in? I’m old now, got to prepare for retirement. Came here hoping for a big score, and what do you know, ran into you kids.”

“A big score, sir? Was your pay too low when you stayed at our estate? Father always worried about that.”

As Isiel bowed her head gloomily, red hair fell softly across her forehead. Seeing that, Arthur downed his glass and blurted out words in a rush.

“What’s he talking about? Isiel’s father offered him money, land, and even an orchard, but he always refused!”

“Hey Arthur, your father’s the commander of the Kishion garrison, a baron who wears old armor and patches his clothes. Wouldn’t it be shameless to take big money from him as a man?”

“So where are you going to make money in this mountain backwater?”

“Monsters are showing up.”

“There are monsters in the south, too, so why here? Not criticizing, just saying—it’s good for us you’re here. Why not go to Duke Cruel’s place?”

Whack.

Mietz, who had just drained his ale, smacked Arthur on the head. It was lightning fast.

“What kind of nonsense is that? No matter how much I like money, I wouldn’t work for someone like that. And the Cruel knights, with all their fancy support and that black-haired prince—why would they need a mercenary?”

“Then does this place need mercenaries? They’ve got the Tristan knights.”

“Yeah, but the Duke of Tristan put out a notice recruiting unaffiliated knights. I heard the news the day I got back from the Krater Principality. In a few days, the square in front of the station will be packed.”

“Where’s the money to pay all those people? The central government won’t support it.”

“Arthur, I thought you’d grown up, but you’re still clueless. This is a rich estate. They support the knight order without needing any central funds.”

Mietz’s tone was rough, but the insight was anything but shallow.

Kleio, who had been listening carefully to the three, unconsciously turned his head toward Mietz.

‘…Yes, of course. Arthur’s master couldn’t be an ordinary person.’