By Zephyria ======
After laughing for a while, Black Weasel slapped Red Eagle on the shoulder.
“Prince, there is only one way. Explain your intentions to White Deer, get the money, and go back to Atania. As for me, I just need to deliver the Prince safely to White Deer, so I don’t care either way.”
“I suppose… there is no other way.”
Red Eagle replied lifelessly. Wolf frowned. He wondered if a powerful tribal chief vying for the throne would actually abandon his ambitions just because of a son’s tears, as if he were a nanny soothing a child.
No. The moment he meets White Deer, the Prince is finished.
During the journey to Stohl, Wolf had come to genuinely like Red Eagle. He was affectionate, gentle, and refined. In this insane barbaric continent, he would wither away like a dried flower, unable to adapt.
Wolf took a step forward.
“Prince. There is a way to go back right now.”
“Huh?”
Red Eagle looked at him in disbelief.
“A way to go back right now? How?”
“Through negotiation. You should propose to Warrior Black Weasel that he escort you all the way to Levenon in Atania. Set the condition that you will pay an escort fee greater than the reward he receives from Lord White Deer. The Levenon royal family values you highly, so they will gladly pay.”
He had heard that the Stohl people rarely kept their faith. If a huge sum was offered in exchange for betraying White Deer, Black Weasel would likely accept without much hesitation.
Wolf looked directly at Black Weasel.
“Levenon is a small kingdom, but it is a wealthy nation with immense financial power. We can pay whatever price the warrior desires. Please escort Prince Red Eagle to Levenon.”
“Ha. This kid is quite bold.”
Black Weasel chuckled, scratching his cheek with his fingertip.
“I guarantee it won’t be a losing deal for you. Levenon’s gold coins are highly valued in Atania. At any exchange office…”
While speaking, Wolf inadvertently shifted his gaze toward the boy. The pale face shaded by the hood wore a somewhat stiff expression. When their eyes met, the boy gave a slight shake of his head.
Why is he doing that?
For a split second, a sharp snap echoed in Wolf’s mind.
* * *
A Black Snow Ox trudged along, pulling a large wagon. The bright sunlight scattered like hazy smoke. The summer weather had been poor this year, so this winter seemed likely to be relatively less cold than average. The snow from yesterday had mostly melted, leaving the ground where the wheels rolled exposed like raw red flesh.
Sitting on the front edge of the wagon and driving the Black Snow Ox, Black Weasel looked back. Silver was lying down next to a large chest, using his arm as a pillow. Only his lips were visible beneath the hood.
“Why did you do that?”
Black Weasel asked, turning his head. Silver remained silent.
“Did you want to go easy on him because he’s around your age? You know the food stockpiled in the hideout is only enough for three people, right?”
“…”
“I can forgive you for being lazy or slacking off while I work. But I won’t forgive you for interfering with my work. You interfered with my work earlier. You did something that deserves to be whipped until the skin on your back is peeled off.”
Black Weasel added as he pulled the reins.
“Still, I’ll give you a special pass this once. Since it’s the first time you’ve interfered with my work. But there won’t be a second time.”
The wagon wheels rolled along with a clatter. Black Weasel sank into thought.
Silver, who lacked any sociability, had exchanged words with the Prince’s attendant for quite a while as soon as they met. Moreover, the look in the attendant’s eyes as he gazed at Silver… no cliché other than ‘entranced’ came to mind.
Silver was indeed very beautiful, but to look at him with such a captivated gaze. Above all, that attendant fellow was a pureblood by all accounts. His fighting skills were impressive, too.
Black Weasel’s heart thudded, as if it had become a wheel rolling over a gravel road. Spruce, and Ash. Both traits only manifest after the age of twenty. Unless the trait is identified immediately at birth, even the person themselves doesn’t know which side they belong to until they are twenty.
A passage from a certain legend brushed past Black Weasel’s ears.
Even so, they are instinctively drawn to one another… like a lock that had been neglected and rusting for a long time finally meeting its key. Even before the magic sparked by the scent begins.
* * *
Everything around him shook and rattled. Wolf let out a groan and opened his eyes. His head was throbbing.
Where am I?
His hands were tied tightly, and he was shoved somewhere in a curled-up position. It was pitch black. Every time the floor jolted, his body bumped against the sides. It felt as if he were trapped in a large chest.
“Prince? Where are you!”
As soon as he shouted, there was a loud bang. It sounded as if someone had struck the lid of the chest with a fist.
“Shut up.”
It was the boy’s voice. There was a rustling sound next to Wolf.
“Wolf. Are you awake?”
Red Eagle whispered barely audibly.
“Prince, are you alright?”
“This is no time to worry about me, Wolf. You must be careful with your words and actions. I have political value as my mother’s puppet. But you are merely an attendant.”
Wolf’s entire body turned cold. He remembered the boy’s stiff expression and the shake of his head when he had proposed the negotiation to Black Weasel. Had that been a sign not to step forward?
“Do you know what happened after you fainted? Black Weasel tried to chop your head off with an axe. He was relentless even when I pleaded.”
The image of Black Weasel laughing loudly flashed before Wolf’s eyes. He was, after all, a murderer.
“Fortunately, that child stepped in, and you escaped death. He spoke in the Stohl language, so I couldn’t understand the meaning, but he seemed to be stopping Black Weasel. Anyway, you and I are shoved in a chest and being moved somewhere. It feels like it’s been a couple of hours.”
That child… for me?
Wolf’s heart pounded. He heard Red Eagle’s deep sigh.
“I’m truly sorry. All of this is entirely my fault. Wolf, I promise. I will make sure to send at least you back to Atania.”
“Prince. We must be together when we return. Princess Charlotte is waiting for you.”
Suddenly, the shaking stopped. The lid of the chest flew open, and the boy grabbed Wolf by the collar and flung him out of the wagon. Red Eagle was dragged out as well.
The boy cut the ropes binding Red Eagle and Wolf’s hands with a dagger. The forest, bathed in the sunset, blocked their path like a fortress wall. Looking around, Wolf’s eyes widened when he saw the pitch-black beast pulling the wagon. Is that… a cow? It looks exactly like a black bear…
His curiosity was quickly resolved. As the boy released the reins, the beast let out a short “Mooo—” and slowly turned around, disappearing into the forest. Black Weasel gestured as he climbed down from the wagon.
“Follow me. And you, attendant, if you act up again, I’ll actually kill you this time.”
Wolf bowed his head. He decided to keep his mouth shut for the time being. The saying that a person’s true nature is revealed in a crisis was correct. Only after arriving in Stohl did Wolf realize a side of himself he hadn’t known existed. To use the expression of commoner boys, he had a ‘temper.’
No, more than that… he felt as if he had discovered a part of the barbaric instinct of the Stohl people—an instinct he believed he didn’t possess while growing up as an Atanian. Feeling somewhat miserable, Wolf swallowed a curse. Dammit!
The forest was dark, with very little sunlight filtering through. Once again, Black Weasel led the way, and the boy followed behind Red Eagle and Wolf. Wolf kept feeling conscious of the back.
I want to tell him thank you for saving me.
If they walked side by side, he could at least speak in a tiny voice, but it was frustrating. After walking for a while, Wolf carefully checked Black Weasel and then glanced back. Huh?
Where did he go?
The boy was gone. Just as Wolf was about to call Black Weasel, fearing the boy had fallen victim to a stealthy pursuer, the boy slid out from behind a nearby tree.
“What.”
The boy looked at him bluntly. Wolf ended up feeling awkward. Did he just go to take care of business? Wait, hold on?
“What is that in your hand?”
“A rabbit, what else. It was passing by, so I caught it by throwing my dagger.”
“That’s a rabbit?”
“Have you never seen a rabbit before?”
The boy asked back, his eyebrows twitching. Wolf couldn’t close his agape mouth. He had found the bear-like cow fascinating, but… a rabbit with curly fur like a poodle! And its tail is so long!
10 – Hell Execution Order