Chapter 181 – Ep.181 Smith, a Black Company in Another World
It has been fifteen and two days since we left Mallingta and set out for the fortress.
As we got closer to the desert, the weather suddenly got hotter, the tall trees and lush bushes disappeared, and short, thick tropical trees gradually took their place.
Even in the terrible heat, the knights rode quietly wearing thick silver armor without any complaints.
Ardella, who was standing in the lead, raised her visor and spoke to Gienna, who was riding on the horse she had brought from the previous city.
“If we just get out of here, we’ll get to the fortress in no time.”
Lebellum Fortress blocks the border between the kingdom and the desert.
Yat Forest, the last road leading to the fortress.
The moment you leave this forest, the vegetation disappears like a lie and a thin plain appears.
I answered by opening her closed eyes.
“I haven’t heard anything special so far.”
“Is it.”
Ardella nodded her head slightly.
Due to news received a few days ago, Ardella gave up the opportunity to join Smith, who came in a week, and left the city immediately after completing the minimum supply.
The news that made her give up her love and hasten her steps was the report that the monster had begun to move.
Her love was important to her, but those who devoted themselves to her family were just as important.
Therefore, she ran as hard as she could without losing her condition.
Nonetheless, it took four days from the time she received the report.
However, considering that her original arrival date was five days later, you can see how anxious she was.
Of course, just because her mind became anxious does not mean that her judgment was clouded.
Four days is enough time for monsters to invade the fortress.
As you leave the forest, a plain opens up, and if you go a little deeper, the fortress comes into view.
A fortress lying on an empty plain is a good target for monsters.
However, sometimes they ignore the fortress and cross the border into the plains.
What Ardella is wary of are some monsters that may have flowed into that plain.
Monsters in the desert have physical abilities that are five times better than regular monsters.
If the monsters that flowed in discover the procession and start screaming, their cries will echo throughout the plains, and in the worst case, a swarm of monsters attacking the fortress may rush this way.
In order to prevent such danger, Ardella, an elf with a sensitive spirit that far surpasses that of humans as well as her monsters, asked me to stand at the forefront with her.
Ardella asked Giena, who did not break a sweat even under the sunlight shining down from the extremely clear sky.
“Really… “Are you okay?”
“Yes. First of all, my body is blessed by nature, so I am not affected by heat or cold.”
“Right.”
Ardella, who was sweating from the scorching heat rising from the ground even though she was wearing armor imprinted with temperature maintenance magic, looked at me with her slightly envious eyes as she had maintained her soft and dry skin for several hours. Closed her visor.
They soon left the Yat Forest, welcomed by the strong sunlight.
As soon as we got out of the forest, the dry land spread out.
A hot haze rising from the dry land where not a single weed could be seen welcomed them.
“Is the desert a more desolate place than this?”
“The ground there is made of sand that is difficult to stand on.”
“That’s interesting.”
For Giena, who came from the great forests and spent hundreds of years in isolation, the desert was a truly unfamiliar place.
“Be on high alert.”
As soon as Ardella’s order was given, the knights lined up at the back began to spread out and form their formation.
In particular, vice-captain Bellanis was sticking around the carriage where Smith was riding under Ardella’s orders.
They began to walk along the fractured plain, wary of their surroundings with their eyes wide open.
“It looks like there’s a fortress over there.”
“… Yes.”
Ardella let out a sigh of relief as she looked at the fortress that was starting to come into view in the distance.
Fortunately, there were no signs of battle.
As I walked around cautiously, it took a lot longer than it took me to get out of the forest before I could see the fortress, but no one, including Ardella, was dissatisfied.
On the contrary, there were even people who internally breathed a sigh of relief at the seemingly peaceful appearance of the fortress.
“Fortunately, it doesn’t look like there’s any problem.”
“Right.”
At Ardella’s command, the knights returned to a straight formation and headed towards the fortress at a light pace.
**
-Put down the door!!
A loud cry heard beyond the high walls of the fortress.
Not long after, the thick gate began to slowly come down with a loud clanging sound.
Gienna was a little amazed when she saw that.
I was surprised that humans were living on this dry land where not a single blade of grass had grown, and I was twice astonished that it was of a size that could be called a metropolis based on the standards set by humans.
Wow!!
As the castle gate connected to the huge chain fell to the ground, the floor shook loudly.
“Go in.”
Ardella took the lead, and Gienna quietly followed her into the fortress.
And.
“Sister!!”
Upon entering the fortress, a human woman leapt towards Ardella at her lead.
The woman who jumped towards Ardella looked very similar to Ardella, except for her somewhat youthful appearance and short hair.
Just as expected.
“Aria.”
Ardella very skillfully caught the jumping woman with both her hands and lowered her back to the floor.
“Sister!! Long time no see!!”
“Okay. “It’s been almost three months since I last saw you.”
“It’s been three months and ten days!!”
She stroked her youngest child’s head as she waved her arms beneath the large electric hat.
Her younger sister, Aria, laughed at the rough touch of her older sister, whom she had not seen in a long time.
“By the way, Aria. “Why are you here?”
“Mom called me.”
“Aria.”
“The matriarch called.”
“… Okay. “I have to go inside first.”
Ardella sensed something was wrong with her, but she could not stop the knights, so she held the reins of the horse and held out her hand to her sister Arya.
Arya happily held her sister’s hand and deftly rode behind her.
Ardella pulled the reins, and the stopped procession began to move again.
“Sister. “You missed me too, right?”
“Okay.”
The road to inner self.
Arya smiled happily at her admired sister’s answer.
She would have hugged him tightly around the waist if it weren’t for her armor, which was hard and hot in the sunlight. Aria opened her mouth again, clicking her tongue inside her.
“I worked really hard while I was away, catching demons and monsters.”
“Good job.”
“… Just words?”
At her slightly sagging sister’s question, Ardella let out an inward sigh.
“Later. “If we have time, let’s spar.”
“Good!! “Did you promise?”
“Okay.”
Aria smiled brightly at the word sparring and bothered Ardella several times, but Ardella was not bothered at all and answered her every question.
Just as Ardella’s procession reached her sanctuary.
Ardella, who hitherto had only listened and answered, asked her sister Arya her question for the first time.
“Is the matriarch at the castle?”
“No? Arua said she was tired of waiting and went out to drink, accompanied only by her sister and a few of her knights.”
“Drinking. “Has Arua also come?”
“Huh.”
Ardella’s brow, covered by the visor, wrinkled.
‘I can’t believe you brought these two here while the administrator remains in Mallingta. Then who will protect the family?’
To be precise, who was handling the documents that were piling up every day?
‘… ‘I don’t know what you’re thinking.’
It was always his responsibility to handle the piled up documents anyway, but even for his younger siblings who liked to go out, he would take care of a few simple documents while they were resting at home before leaving.
But this time, it seemed like even those simple documents would come back to her as her own.
“Ha.”
Since the document matter was a matter for later, I decided to skip it for now and continued.
“When did you say you would come back?”
“Uh… I went out two days ago, so tomorrow? Huh. “He said he would be back by tomorrow evening.”
“Okay. I see.”
Ardella relaxed.
At the same time, a fire began to bloom from deep within her heart.
“Aria.”
“Huh?”
She answered innocently, not noticing the change in her admired older sister.
“Why did you make a false report?”
“… Uh?”
“No. You won’t be doing it alone. Arua drew the attention of the matriarch, and you must have used the communication device while the matriarch was away.”
“Uh? Oh, no, that… That is…”
Aria was more frightened than embarrassed by the sight of Ardella reciting every detail as if she had been watching the situation clearly.
“She didn’t notice until she entered the fort,” She said. But when she entered the fort and she was in a relaxed mood, she noticed something was strange.”
“Uh…”
Arya swallowed her saliva.
“Aria. I care about you. But didn’t I always say that? The problem is that your thoughts are too short and your actions speak louder than your words. “A monster wave has begun, but do you think it makes sense for the matriarch to be away?”
“…”
Aria became completely dumb.
She was so excited to meet her respected older sister for the first time in a long time that she spilled the truth.
“In the first place, Arua probably knew that things would turn out this way and followed the matriarch. Even though you always get bullied by Arua, you trust him very well. Of course, I love that about you too.”
“Uh, sister.”
“However, false reporting is a felony.”
“Ah…”
Aria, who had been briefly distracted by the sweet words from her respected older sister’s mouth, quickly came to her senses.
“Why did you lie like that? Because of you and Arua, me and my knights ran without even being able to rest properly. Even if it was a lie, if there were such circumstances, I would seriously consider withholding punishment. However, if you did this for a trivial reason, I will punish you and Arua as vassals, not as family.”
“…”
Just as Ardella got angry at her younger siblings’ false reports, Aria also got angry at Ardella’s strong pressure.
“Do you think we were just having fun? “It was all for my sister!!”
Aria’s shout drew attention to her two sisters.
“My mother, who always told me until my ears hurt to do what was good for her family, suddenly told me that she had found her sister’s match. Do you know how surprised Arua and I were?”
She was so surprised when her mother, who had rejected marriage talks from the royal family, told her that she had suddenly found a match for her respected older sister.
“Were you just surprised? “If she had known where that bastard was, she would have been so angry that she would have wanted to go and cut off her head!!”
Ardella let out a short sigh at her younger sister’s harsh remarks that she had not even thought of.
Her younger sister, Aria, didn’t seem to feel it, but a small murderous bullet was shooting out from behind her.
Aria said she didn’t even know she was being targeted by someone and she continued to talk.
“I would accept her as a helpmate for her older sister just because she knows how to make a piece of strong, sturdy cloth. How can that be? What merchants are we? If such a talented man is hungry, her mother would rather accept him as her stepdad. “Why are you doing this to my busy sister?”
Ardella felt her head throbbing.
‘How on earth did your mother go so far as to cut off her words?’
Listening to her younger sister Aria, it seemed like she had grossly misunderstood her relationship with Smith.
She seems to have mistakenly believed that by order of her head, Ardel, she had no choice but to accept Smith as her spouse.
Even as Ardella was wondering how to resolve this misunderstanding, Aria continued to speak.
“She spends only a handful of days a year in her mansion and leaves all her work to her older sister. She’s here and she’s fucking her favorite monster while leisurely slicing it and asking why she’s suddenly forcing her sister to marry her. “She has no intention of passing on the title of head of the family yet, so she wants to have a child first.”
“Aria… For a moment. I was so excited. Calm down a little…”
“I’m cool enough.”
In fact, except for when she first got upset, Arya’s voice had been reduced to the point where she couldn’t be heard by anyone other than Ardella who was right next to her.
“Why did we lie like that? It’s simple. Because if her mother was there, she would give her motherfuckin’ unconditional welcome right back there. So she deliberately urged her sister.”
“… “What difference does that make?”
“Will it change?”
Ardella realized that there was still something more to her in her sister’s remarks.
‘I don’t know what to do with these guys.’
In terms of not working in the first place, her two younger brothers were older than her mother, Ardel.
And these brats don’t seem to find it strange at all that despite their mother not taking proper care of the family, her vassals do not harbor the slightest complaint and show blind loyalty to her.
If you had questioned and investigated just a little bit about that part, you would have realized how scary and fearful your mother is.
If that were the case, something ridiculous like this wouldn’t have happened.
‘There’s no way you didn’t know in the first place.’
I can confidently say that my mother knew that her two immature younger siblings were causing this accident, but she just left it alone.
‘I don’t know why… ‘You’re only giving me trouble.’
While Ardella was suffering from an oncoming headache, the procession soon arrived in front of the temple.
My inner door is wide open.
Knights and soldiers lined up left and right.
As Ardella watched the long procession, she realized what these brats were aiming for.
“We are a family of knights, not merchants.”
I entered the inner palace following the path made by the knights and soldiers listed with stiff expressions.
As we walked along the road, the people listed behind us lined up and followed behind the carriage.
“I don’t know where you came from, but we don’t need weaklings in our family, whether male or female. Even if my mother gave permission, would I be able to not give up despite the opposition of hundreds of knights?”
“…”
Ardella did not answer.
This is because I already had an idea of what the outcome would be.
The two sisters arrived at the center of the castle, crossing the gap between countless knights and soldiers.
Arya got off her horse first, followed by Ardella.
And as if they had made an appointment, the two turned their gaze towards the carriage, the symbol of the family, coming towards them.
Soon the carriage stopped in front of the castle, and the knights and soldiers that followed began to surround the carriage.
Ardella made eye contact with Bellanis, who was next to the carriage.
Vice-captain Bella Nice raised his visor and blinked.
‘How do I do this?’
Ardella shook her head.
‘Never mind.’
At the commander’s order, Bellanis led the knights and stood behind Ardella.
As they retreated, those surrounding the carriage began glaring at it with wide, murderous eyes.
She looked somewhat displeased, but she did not step forward out of consideration for Ardella, who was higher in rank than her.
Without knowing this, Arya glared at her carriage with her burning eyes and said to Ardella:
“Take care of your sister too. “I wonder how much of an asshole that dog-bone bastard will be when he gets off there.”
Ardella did not answer this time either.
When everyone’s attention was focused on the carriage, the carriage door, which had been tightly shut, finally opened.
Everyone’s eyes turned to the wide open door.
“What are these bitches?”
A red-haired woman suddenly got off the carriage and glared at her surroundings with a sinister look.
The force was so brutal that some soldiers even seemed to lower their eyes without realizing it.
-What’s the matter?
At that time, contrary to what everyone expected, a very low and deep male voice came from the carriage.
At the same time, a strangely rough and thick hand appeared through the wide open door.
“… ?”
Questions appeared in the eyes of those who were staring at the carriage with wide-open, bloody eyes.
And it only took a moment for that question to turn into bewilderment.
“Huh? What?”
Black hair that is not commonly seen on the continent.
Height larger than that of most women.
Wide, wide shoulders.
The forearms exposed by the short shirt have solid muscles and prominent veins.
Smith got off the carriage and scratched his head as dozens or hundreds of pairs of eyes were staring at him blankly, like a person in a trance.
“Well, hello, please…” ?”
