Chapter 103: Pursuer? (1)

After jointly striking down all the Saliva Wolves, Cayman and Dejir were only able to reach Chelon Lord’s Castle late at night.

They passed through the castle gates and arrived in front of the Adventurer’s Guild.

Inside, adventurers who had finished their day’s work were spending their evening in noisy chatter.

“Finally arrived.”

“You’ve worked hard, Sir Cayman.”

“I told you, just call me comfortably. Why do you keep doing that?”

“Shall I, then?”

The two had grown quite close on their way to Chelon.

Of course, they hadn’t talked about anything deeply personal, but even sharing recent stories had been enough to build a friendly bond.

“You can just call me by name.”

“Understood. By the way, you said your master and comrades are here?”

“They should’ve already arrived. They’ve probably been waiting for me…”

As Cayman looked around, he spotted three people chatting boisterously in the guild’s pub.

However, contrary to what he expected, they didn’t seem to be waiting for anyone — they looked like they were having a great time.

“They don’t seem to be waiting, do they?”

“Looks like that’s them.”

Cayman spotted them as well.

They perfectly matched the descriptions of the three adventurers he had gathered information on from the Praizen Adventurer’s Guild.

“Please wait here a moment.”

Saying that, Cayman approached the three.

Allen, Howard, and Aizel, who had been drinking, had rested well during the day to relieve their fatigue.

Now that their stamina had recovered a bit, they were cheerfully reminiscing.

“Remember what happened with Dolk earlier today? When Master’s aura split the axe clean in two, his face went completely blank!”

“Yeah! It was quite a sight!”

“As expected, Master’s aura is incredible.”

They were noisily reliving the events of the day when Cayman approached from the side.

“You all seem to be having quite a good time?”

At that question full of suspicion, the three froze and turned their heads.

Cayman was covered in bloodstains on his armor.

He had cleaned up as best he could in a stream, but it was impossible to remove all traces.

“Ah… Sir Cayman.”

“Right!”

“Haha… where have you been…”

Only then did they recall what they had forgotten — and realized just how much he must have suffered.

“You completely forgot about me, didn’t you?”

“Seems it just turned out that way.”

“You must’ve gone through a lot, huh?”

“Ha ha ha…”

Allen, in the end, couldn’t even think of what to say.

Meanwhile, Cayman could’ve nearly won the bet if he had managed to delay Raion a little longer.

“So, how did the bet go? You won, right? You did win, didn’t you?”

That question left the three in an awkward position.

“…”

“…”

“…”

“Why no answer?”

Their uneasy silence filled Cayman with dread.

Then Howard noticed the man standing behind Cayman.

Dejir met their gaze first and offered a polite greeting.

“I’m Dejir, an adventurer. I met Cayman in the forest, and we’ve been traveling together.”

“I’m Allen.”

“Aizel.”

“I’m Howard.”

The three introduced themselves to Dejir.

Seeing that, Dejir rejoiced inwardly.

‘Helping Cayman was definitely the right call. Now, even just meeting that man won’t go badly.’

He was referring to the S-rank adventurer and Swordmaster, Raion Dragonia.

As Dejir thought so, Cayman continued where he had left off earlier.

“Don’t tell me… you lost the bet?”

“I’m really sorry. We got caught at the castle gates.”

“Really? I barely managed to hold him off…”

Actually, it hadn’t even been close.

He’d been toyed with by Raion’s swordsmanship like a plaything and lost almost immediately.

Of course, he couldn’t exactly explain that, so Cayman just sighed helplessly.

“Because I lost that bet, I have to fight with only my staff.”

“Without using magic?”

“We’re only allowed to use our fists. Sir Cayman too, of course.”

“Ah…!”

It was all part of Raion’s planned training regimen.

But for the ones undergoing it, it was pure hell.

“Allen and Howard are both much stronger than I am. I nearly died when I ran into a pack of Saliva Wolves on the way.”

“Are you alright?”

“I survived thanks to Brother Dejir here.”

“Just luck, really. Nothing serious.”

Dejir, being modest, patted Cayman’s shoulder lightly.

Allen and Howard felt even more favorable toward him at that.

“You’re too humble. But please… I’d prefer it if our master doesn’t hear about this.”

If Raion were to find out what happened in the forest, who knew how much harsher the training would become.

Agreeing with that sentiment, the three naturally nodded.

“I’m really curious about what kind of person your master is.”

“Ah! Would you like to join us? Since you saved Sir Cayman, the least we can do is buy you a drink.”

“I’ve learned it’s polite to accept such an offer. Thank you very much.”

Howard stood up first and brought over two more chairs.

They all sat down and began chatting about various things.

Mostly, it was about what had happened in Praizen with their master, Raion.

Then, noticing that Cayman was getting a little tipsy, Dejir asked,

“Sir Cayman, where are you from? The crest on your chest looks rather unfamiliar. Of course, since your master is an S-rank adventurer, I imagine it must be quite a distinguished family.”

He asked to gather information.

But Cayman’s expression showed not a hint of suspicion.

“Our master? Hmm… to be honest, I don’t really know much myself.”

“I don’t know? Isn’t Sir Cayman your master’s knight?”

It was only natural to find it strange since he was even wearing armor adorned with the family’s crest.

The other three also tilted their heads in confusion and waited for Cayman’s reply.

“Um…… that’s…… actually, I’m Kana—”

Cayman hesitated as if he were about to reveal something.

At that moment, someone descended from the upper floor, exuding a heavy aura.

Step. Step.

At the sound echoing through the stairs, one of the adventurers lifted his head.

Then, seeing Raion descending the stairs, he muttered in a slightly louder voice.

“S-rank…… Swordmaster……”

Instantly, the mood of the drinking crowd sank to the floor.

Naturally, even Raion’s companions—who had been loud moments ago—rose to their feet as soon as they saw him.

Ignoring the atmosphere, Raion walked straight toward them.

“Cayman. If you’ve returned, shouldn’t you have come to report to me immediately?”

Perhaps it was because of the cold tension pouring from his voice.

Cayman, who had been flushed from drinking, sobered up instantly.

“M-my apologies. The journey here was quite harsh, and I thought I’d unwind a little……”

“Tsk! It seems you’ve grown far too lax.”

Then Raion’s gaze turned toward Dejir, who stood beside Cayman.

“……And who might you be?”

“I’m an adventurer named Dejir, who happened to travel with Sir Cayman to Chelon. I was originally from the Kingdom of Dolkin, but as an adventurer, I’ve been traveling through the Danas Federation and into the Canel Kingdom.”

It was quite a detailed introduction.

Listening to his words, Raion’s expression didn’t change in the slightest.

‘From the Kingdom of Dolkin? What a load of nonsense.’

Before his eyes, a Specific Analysis window floated open.

Naturally, Raion knew better than anyone who Dejir truly was.

[Target Information]

Name: Dejir Malon

Age: 38

Occupation: Knight of the Black Lion Order, Kingdom of Canel

Life: 655 / 670

Stamina: 992 / 1,160

Mana: 240 / 240

Abilities:

Swordsmanship Level 8

Archery Level 5

Dagger Technique Level 4

Horsemanship Level 6

He possessed abilities nearly equal to Calsios, the mercenary-turned-knight in charge of guarding Drak Gorge in Kanas Territory.

Raion, slightly impressed, immediately grasped Dejir’s intentions.

‘If he’s from the Black Lion Order, then he must’ve been sent by Duke Alito. But judging by his reaction, he doesn’t recognize me. So he must be one of the knights in charge of information gathering.’

Originally, the order responsible for intelligence operations in the Canel Kingdom was the Dagger of Darkness.

However, since its command authority was restricted to the royal family, Duke Alito had selected certain members of the Black Lion Order to handle intelligence and dispatched them abroad or into other territories.

Dejir was one such knight.

After casually glancing at Dejir, Raion spoke again.

“An adventurer on a journey, huh? The same as us. Anyway, everyone, have a seat.”

The five of them sat down at his words.

Raion also took a seat in the chair Cayman brought him.

“I’m Raion Dragonia. I may be a frontier noble, but I’m currently traveling.”

“I see. In fact, I heard rumors about Cayman’s master back in Praizen. That you were an S-rank adventurer.”

At Dejir’s frank tone, Raion’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“About me, you say?”

“You’re quite famous in Praizen. Though I never expected to meet you in Chelon.”

“From the looks of you, you seem to be quite a skilled adventurer yourself.”

“Only B-rank.”

He was of the same rank as the other three.

It was a rank not easily achieved, so Raion’s reaction was one of mild surprise.

“Not bad. So, what’s your destination?”

“I haven’t decided on one in particular. However……”

Dejir hesitated, unsure how to address Raion.

Raion easily understood the hesitation.

“Just call me by name.”

“Understood. I heard you were heading toward the Arenvatz Territory……”

Raion’s eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Cayman.

At the same time, Cayman realized his mistake and quickly looked away.

“Ahem! Well, yes.”

“If you don’t mind, may I accompany you? I sincerely ask this favor.”

“Why?”

“I’m an adventurer, but I also walk the path of a swordsman. And you, Raion, are a swordsman as well. I’d like to follow you for a time to gain experience.”

A Swordmaster was a realm that every swordsman aspired to reach.

It was a reasonable request, one that even the other four found easy to accept with nods.

Of course, Raion had already seen through his true purpose.

‘Judging from his reaction, he truly doesn’t recognize my face. So Duke Alito sent him to approach and test me, did he?’

Naturally, if Duke Alito had known Raion Dragonia’s true identity, it would’ve caused chaos.

And if that had been the case, Dejir wouldn’t be sitting across from him right now.

“Do as you please.”

“Truly? Thank you.”

The others seemed visibly relieved that another B-rank adventurer would be joining them.

“Just watching me won’t make for much training. If necessary, I could offer some guidance.”

“Guidance? Do you mean you’d personally train me?”

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