By Zephyria =======
“No, that’s a land animal. One that’s skilled at hunting underwater. During winter, when food is scarce in the mountains, they hunt in rivers or lakes.”
“How fascinating! It must be an animal found only in Stohl. In Atania…!”
Before he could finish his sentence, Wolf’s face turned pale. Meanwhile, Black Weasel was glaring at Wolf with narrowed, triangular eyes. Looking like a sadistic interrogator standing before a prisoner, the sight made the back of Silver’s neck prickle.
Silver almost said something but decided against it. Given Black Weasel’s personality, he wouldn’t listen even if told to take it easy. It was better to spend time thinking of a backup plan for when the exorcism ritual failed than to try and soothe that guy. In any situation, one must secure multiple escape routes, like a rabbit.
The best way would be to cut off the Ice Armor Warrior’s interest in Wolf. He needed to make him step back at least one pace… Damn, what should I do? Threats won’t work on that vicious bastard… Wait, threats?
This is it!
Silver grinned and cast a glance at Wolf. The look, meant to signal ‘You know what to do,’ bounced right off. Only a silent question—’Why are you smiling, Silver?’—floated on Wolf’s face. Left with no choice, Silver cleared his throat loudly, subtly waving a flag to signal that he would take the lead and Wolf should just play along. However.
“Silver. Do you have a cold? Are you okay?”
Only such a clueless response came back. Fine, the two-man joint operation is scrapped. Solo advance!
Silver jerked the oar and commenced the battle.
“Hey, Attendant. You’re pretty good, aren’t you?”
“Huh? At what?”
“What do you mean ‘at what’? Fighting, obviously. The Ice Armor Warrior was praising you until his mouth went dry. Said you were like the protagonist of a legendary tale. You’re good at fighting, right?”
Wolf didn’t answer and shifted his eyes. For some reason, Red Eagle also looked tense, glancing back and forth between Wolf and Silver.
“Why aren’t you saying anything? I’m asking if you’re good at fighting. Hmph, you are, aren’t you? No matter how much you disguise yourself, you can’t fool my eyes. You’re strong—! As much as I am! Maybe even more!”
“That… actually…”
Wolf rubbed his face vigorously with both hands. A voice that sounded almost distorted leaked out.
“Actually, I… I’m not good… at fighting. I’ve never even fought anyone…”
“Ha! Not good at what?”
Silver snorted.
“You’re talking like a newborn baby born yesterday. You beat me in the race. And not on flat ground, but in that dangerous place. You even started later than me and the Ice Armor Warrior, yet you arrived first… Kyah!”
Silver let out an exclamation of admiration and stole a glance at Black Weasel. He fell for it, that bastard! There were no fewer than five wrinkles between his brows. His mouth was clamped shut. It was the kind of expression one makes when they’ve lost consecutive bets on drinks and only one glass remains.
“If you’re the one who can’t fight, then what am I? A chipmunk? You were holding back during the cave wall climbing contest, right? You conceded because you were afraid I’d get pissed off if you were too good and might harm the Prince. Impressive, to surpass me after only a few days of practice!”
“That’s…”
Wolf couldn’t find the words and lowered his gaze. Seeing this, Silver was actually the one who felt a great shock. No way! He really was holding back? I only said that for the sake of the plan…
Then, could his fighting skills be above mine too? No, no! That can’t be it.
“H-hmph… I knew it. You were… holding back for me. You’re better at fi-fighting than I am…”
His voice trembled involuntarily. Black Weasel seemed just as surprised as Silver, his eyes wide open. Everything was going exactly as intended… but damn, why does my stomach feel like it’s turning?
“Impressably so. I’m sorry for acting so arrogant without knowing you were this strong. I’ll be polite to you from now on, so please don’t retaliate. We’re friends, after all.”
“A-as I expected, Wolf…!”
Red Eagle hurriedly cut in.
“My eyes weren’t wrong! I’ve never seen a knight as agile as you in the palace martial arts tournaments! Wolf, you were a pro in the back alleys, weren’t you? Stop denying it and tell me the truth! How many people did you take down?”
“Prince, I am just an ordinary baking apprentice…”
“I won’t be fooled anymore! I trust my intuition, honed by watching countless martial arts matches! You are a genius fighter, Wolf! A legend of the back alleys—!”
Red Eagle raised his voice, clenching both fists. Thanks to the Prince acting as backup, Silver’s plan was a success. He had completely changed Wolf’s image from ‘someone with great potential’ to ‘someone hiding great power.’
Black Weasel’s eyelids were twitching, and he was gritting his teeth. The thick veins in the hand gripping the oar writhed like salted earthworms. Well, even if it was a bit irritating, the result was good, so it’s fine. Now, even the Ice Armor Warrior wouldn’t dare touch Wolf… Huh?
“No, Silver. I can explain the racing part.”
Wolf said, waving one hand.
“Back then, you and Uncle just ran in a straight line looking forward, right? I used the high rocks on the side. Remember? Those… cliffs? Pointy rocks? Anyway, they were constantly shaking a little.”
Silver’s grip on the oar tightened. Absurdly, Wolf was trying to hold back his stomach ache while tripping up the person who had just saved him. Hey, will you shut your mouth?
In front of Silver, who was screaming silently, Wolf continued to chatter uselessly, even using hand gestures.
“While looking at the shaking pointy rocks, a random thought popped into my head. I wondered if I’d gain more speed if I leaped in the direction the rock was tilting. See, like this—. When the pointy rock tilts like this—, you just take the falling force as it is. Now, you understand, right? It’s not hard, is it?”
It was fucking hard. Black Weasel also had an expression that said, ‘What kind of nonsense is this?’ Only the Prince clapped his hands in admiration.
“I see! You gained acceleration by leaping left and right in straight lines! Right, that would double the speed! Your strategic mind is amazing, Wolf!”
“Strategic mind? You flatter me.”
Wolf bowed his head. His ears were flushed red.
“At first, I just tried it blindly to avoid slipping. I was surprised by the result myself.”
Silver still didn’t understand what he was rambling about, but he knew one thing. Wolf had used his brain to overtake him back then.
To think that his head had such a use beyond eating, seeing, hearing, and speaking…
Silver was in the middle of admiring him when he suddenly realized. Is this the time for this? The intimidation plan completely flopped!
He tried to quickly check on Black Weasel but hesitated. The flow of the current touching the oar had changed minutely. It wasn’t an illusion. A presence was extending from beneath the surface, which had been calm until now.
The current was gripped in clumps somewhere and then slowly released. Before long, a heavy force weighed down on the surface. Like a very slow pulse, a pressure as if something massive was tossing and turning deep in the water constantly hit the oar. Silver lifted his head and looked straight ahead. Nothing was visible, hidden by the thick fog.
Silver carefully gauged the situation while moving the oar. His shoulder and elbow joints felt stiff. The end of the oar was being twisted. The effort required to row was five times more than usual. With this much pressure, it wasn’t just three or four fishing boats. Dozens? And…
“It’s a war fleet.”
Black Weasel spoke abruptly.
“Roughly 30 ships? Each one is teeming with warriors.”
“…Tsk.”
Silver glared at Black Weasel.
“You think I don’t know? My shoulders have been killing me for a while now.”
“Move toward the riverbank. We should politely get out of the way. Ah, wait.”
At those words, Silver stopped rowing. Black Weasel dipped his hand slightly into the river water, then gripped the oar again, frowning.
“Correction. At least 50 ships.”
“Wow, what terrible luck.”
Silver spat out a curse and resumed rowing. If he wasn’t careful, he’d end up like a rabbit swept away by dozens of galloping hooves. He ignored Wolf’s pleading eyes, which seemed to scream ‘Translate! Translate!’ I’m busy, kid!
As they approached the riverbank, black shadows lined up beyond the fog. It looked as if a lush forest had suddenly appeared. Silver and Black Weasel stopped rowing and watched the forest. Wolf and Red Eagle also fell silent, as if sensing something. The forest gradually grew larger. Accordingly, the waves surged, creating a long mountain range of water.
In the next moment, Red Eagle gasped and covered his mouth with one hand. Wolf also gripped his knees tightly.
61 – Hell Execution Order