Chapter 388 – Doing Something on the Way

Doing Something on the Way

People wouldn’t find a lone hut sitting among the mountains that strange. They would simply assume that an oddball was living in it. But five huts all lined up together was a different story. One would think they were built for a purpose.

The six men checking the map spread out on the table looked like bandits.

「Did you receive word from the capital?」

「Right on schedule. The progressives are moving boldly since His Majesty’s attempted assassination.」

「Damn those scum. Have they forgotten that the Empire is nothing without the Emperor? So it was the progressives who plotted His Majesty’s assassination, after all.」

Yet what they were talking about clearly had nothing to do with banditry.

「We can’t let the progressives gain momentum!」

「We should return to the capital, then. We have to tighten security around His Majesty.」

「But we haven’t been relieved from our mission. I assume His Excellency, the Minister of the Right, still wants us to continue with the operation?」

「Yes, sir. His Excellency thinks that our strategy of pretending to be bandits and attacking wagons is slowly putting pressure on the progressives.」

「All they think about is money, after all. I can picture them scratching their balding heads once they’re not getting any more funds.」

Muffled laughs filled the room.

「Hmm? Did you hear someone screaming?」

「You’re probably just imagining things, Captain. Maybe it’s just a wild dog biting someone, or bitten.」

「I think holing up in the mountains is making me hear voices that don’t belong to humans.」

「Perhaps your senses are getting better. Once you go back, maybe you’ll find that your swordsmanship has improved a notch.」

「If that happens, His Excellency would be pleased. He should be the one commanding the military.」

「We, the reserves from the Imperial City Guards, will not be outdone by His Majesty’s personal guards.」

「If we wipe out the progressives, we will be recognized for our accomplishments, increasing the chances of His Excellency getting promoted.」

「To Prime Minister?」

「Yeah. When that happens…」

Aaaaahhh!

「………」

「………」

「………」

「………」

「………」

「………」

All six men exchanged glances. They clearly heard a scream.

「I’ll go check it out.」

「I’ll go with you.」

「Go.」

「Sir.」

「Sir.」

Nodding to the captain, the two bandits—the Imperial Capital Guards—walked out of the hut.

It was late in the evening. In the depths of the forest, the only sounds were the chirping of insects and the hooting of owls. It was the usual night, nothing out of the ordinary.

Closing the door behind them, they creeped up to the other huts. It was long past bedtime. The lights were out, and it was quiet.

They approached the nearest hut and knocked at the door. No answer.

「Are they asleep?」the man at the lead mumbled, and gripped the door knob.

The door made a grating noise as he pulled it open. The layout of the room was the same as the one they were in earlier. Three bunk beds stood abreast, giving space for six people to sleep.

「What the…?!」

He saw a table on its side, scattered dishes and bed sheets, and six men in the middle of the mess, all tied up.

They looked limp. Are they dead? the man wondered. No, they wouldn’t be tied up if they were dead. But who would do this and why?

「H-Hey. Inform the captain about this right away—」

The man turned around, only to find that his companion had vanished. His hair stood on end. Whoever did this was still out there.

Only the captain heard the first scream. Then they all heard the next one. That meant the screams were gradually getting closer.

「C-Captain!」he shouted at the top of his lungs.「We have an intruder! It’s dangerous here!」

His captain’s hut was five meters away. He should’ve heard his shouts. But no matter how long he waited, there was no sign of the captain and his men coming out.

「C-Captain?」

Just then, the door to the hut opened with a creak.

「Captain! Cap—」

He couldn’t say any more than that. A body fell on its back—the very captain he was calling for. He was no longer moving.

It finally dawned on the man. He was the only one left.

「And that’s the last one.」

Hikaru tied up the soldier—he passed out on his own as soon as the door opened, foaming at his mouth—and rolled him next to his colleagues.

「Why did he black out anyway? He’s even peed his pants…」

Puzzled, Hikaru quickly stepped away from the smell of ammonia. I guess he saved me the trouble of knocking him out.

Hikaru did not actually kill any of the soldiers. What he did was simple—attack them in their sleep and tie them up. He still found it tedious, however, since there were so many of them. He used some drug to force them to sleep by making them sniff it, but it was a little tricky since it wasn’t very effective, and some of the soldiers jumped awake.

「What do I do with them?」

Hikaru, now back at the captain’s hut, looked troubled. The “bandits” wouldn’t attack empty wagons. But he thought there would be lookouts, so he kept his Mana Detection activated during the day to scan places away from the road.

Sure enough, he found the lookout. What’s more they seemed to be hiding in the mountains not far from the inn town, so he came out here at night.

「They clearly look like military men. Then again, I expected as much.」

There were only a few reasons why “bandits” would attack virtually worthless kounatsu. Either they loved the fruit so much, or to prevent its distribution in the market, causing distress.

Considering these “bandits” were so organized, Hikaru figured it was the latter.

Hikaru looked for documents or notes—any physical evidence—but couldn’t find any. A trained soldier would not break easily even when interrogated.

「What now…」

Hikaru couldn’t find evidence that he could carry. Interrogating was too much work. I could just leave them here… but I’d feel guilty if they actually died. While they attacked wagons, they actually only threw the kounatsu away; they didn’t harm anyone. Although Lavia would still probably find them guilty for wasting kounatsu.

As Hikaru pondered his options, his Mana Detection picked up something approaching his location at high speed.