The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth C.148: The Hunt (1)

"How did it go?"

It was late in the evening after the sun had set when Kromen and his party returned from Digon.

"...I'm sorry," Tiren said in a low, raspy voice. His hoarse throat was a testament to the heated debate he had endured.

"You look terrible,” Gordon observed quietly, almost with a sigh, as he scanned Tiren’s exhausted and dejected expression.

"This is all because of my incompetence,” Kromen added, bowing his head.

Of course, everyone knew that a child under ten years old couldn’t do much in such a situation.

Thud, thud, thud...

Gordon, rising from his chair and walking down with his massive frame, knelt before Kromen.

"Your Highness, diplomacy is just like war, always with victories and defeat. Do not be too disheartened."

"But..."

Gordon placed a hand on Kromen's small shoulder, his large hand seeming to engulf it.

"Even the mighty First Prince and the brilliant Second Prince failed to set foot in the south. Your Highness has already achieved what your brothers could not."

"Then... Sir Gordon, what should I do? I cannot face His Majesty like this."

"..."

At that moment, Gordon's eyes trembled. He seemed about to say something but hesitated for a moment.

"First, you should rest."

***

That brat...

After Kromen left, Gordon could only think of Karyl’s face, gnashing his teeth slightly.

"That kid really knew the negotiations would fail. Did he do something after all?"

Crack—!

As he tightened his grip, the armrest of the chair he was sitting on shattered into pieces.

"Didn't you say you were confident, Tiren?"

"I apologize..."

"An apology only highlights your incompetence. If we return to the empire like this, Prince Kromen will become a target for the other two princes."

After sending Kromen away first, Gordon asked Tiren about what had happened in Digon when they were alone.

"Despite Randol's testimony, the queen said she couldn’t provide any help in finding the real culprit."

"Hmm..."

"On top of that, she said that if we fail to uncover the truth, we would have to pay the price."

Even though he had already heard from Karyl, Gordon was still taken aback.

"But she refused to let us enter the Abyssal Rock, saying she wouldn’t allow the sacred land to be defiled any further. In the end, it means they won’t investigate or help us in any way."

"Is she hoping for war? I didn’t like her from the start, and now she’s insufferable until the end."

Gordon scowled as he mulled over Tiren's words.

"It doesn’t make sense. A conflict with the empire would be a burden for Digon as well. It must be why the queen made a secret pact with Prince Olivurn..."

For some reason, Miliana was adamant about not offering any help, shutting down any further negotiations.

"I thought it was an offer she couldn’t refuse..."

It was the Clear Distilled Water.

After the Gray Training Ground was conquered, the empire discovered a method to extract Clear Distilled Water from the Abyssal Rock. That was why the Ryeo Knights had gone there.

Tiren had offered Queen Miliana a portion of the Clear Distilled Water production in exchange for peace.

The barbarians can’t obtain Clear Distilled Water. Since Digon wasn’t directly harmed, there should be no reason for them to refuse...

It made no sense to Gordon. From his perspective, it seemed as if she was stubbornly refusing to negotiate regardless of common sense or interests. In fact, that was literally what she was doing.

The empire was confident that no one else knew how to extract Clear Distilled Water, but Miliana had already made a deal with Karyl. For her, there was nothing to lose.

Hmm...

Tiren MacGovern, who would eventually be known as an unparalleled genius, was now just a pawn lost in the game Karyl had set up.

"Queen Miliana, known as the ruler of the south, can’t possibly be as frustrating as the fools from the Three Kingdoms of Istria,” Gordon murmured, recalling her face from the tent. "There must be a reason."

Reflecting on his conversation with Tiren, he concluded that this wasn’t just an act of hostility toward central people.

"What did that kid do to make Digon listen to him, even to the point of going to such extremes...?”

Unfortunately, not even Gordon could grasp why Digon was refusing the empire so adamantly.

"Captain,” Jaygun's voice came from outside the door.

"Come in."

Creak...

As the door opened, a subordinate rushed in, staggering before kneeling to Gordon.

"I have a report, sir."

Gordon glanced at Jaygon's face, then sighed as he looked at the bowing subordinate.

"That's enough."

"...Sorry?"

"Judging by your appearance, it seems like there was quite a commotion."

Gordon clicked his tongue and waved his hand dismissively, looking at the subordinate as though he was pitiful.

"..."

"You don't look like you’ve succeeded."

"I'm sorry, sir...” the subordinate replied, hastily bowing again.

"You idiot... What the hell did you do to fail?! You said the investigation was thorough!" Jaygun snarled.

Thud!

He then kicked the subordinate in the side, knowing that Gordon was already in a foul mood due to Tiren’s failure.

“Agh!”

"The Guidance Mercenary Gang does not tolerate failure!!"

"I'm so sorry!!"

Given that it wasn’t just any request, but a direct order from the captain, the subordinate knew he could very well lose an arm, if not his life, for his failure.

"Hmm."

But even though a situation like this would’ve normally caused an uproar, Gordon seemed detached, merely gazing at the subordinate.

"Captain?"

Jaygun looked at him with anxious eyes.

At that moment, an unexpected question came from Gordon.

"Were there any casualties?"

"Oh...! Oh...! By the way, it's best to recall the mercenaries you've deployed.."

"What?"

Before leaving the airship, Karyl had stopped by Gordon’s door and said, "What sucks about the south is that it’s difficult to procure drinking water and food. While they can hunt for food, water is a whole other issue."

"..."

"Therefore, Digon's only weakness is the Oasis of Pandon, their water source. If you can seize it, you could negotiate favorably..."

Karyl gave a subtle smile.

"But it won’t be easy."

"I don’t understand what you mean."

"Given the skills of the Guidance Mercenary Gang, breaching the Oasis' defenses shouldn't be difficult. They say the Mercenary Gang has the strength of an entire country."

“You... Are you up to something?”

Though it sounded like a compliment, Gordon’s first instinct was suspicion, given the source.

But Karyl responded with an innocent-looking expression, “Of course not. But as you know, the south's Oasis isn't used only by Digon. If you attack it, the other tribes won't sit idly by, so I thought I should mention it."

That was the end of the conversation.

"Fo-Fortunately, there were no fatalities. They were more focused on preventing us from approaching the Oasis rather than fighting us..." the subordinate reported in a slightly trembling voice, not knowing what to do.

"And the Digon tribe?"

"They were there, but not in large numbers. Just as we had assessed, they were manageable if not for the interference."

"And then?"

"There was a sudden intrusion by another force. The numbers exceeded a thousand..."

"Hmm."

"But the Digons seemed just as surprised by their arrival as us.”

So they didn’t know either.

Gordon raised an eyebrow slightly.

"You figured out who the intruders were, right?"

"Y-Yes, of course."

"Good. That's a relief. If you hadn't, I would have beaten you up."

The subordinate, sweating profusely, replied, "They were clearly... from the Flying Bow and the Tu tribe."

"Ha..." Gordon scoffed at the report. The subordinate gulped nervously, fearing that Gordon’s reaction was directed at him.

Other tribes? Ridiculous. The Flying Bow and the Tu tribes dwell on the opposite side of the south, far away from Digon.

But Gordon, already ignoring the subordinate, was thinking about Karyl's cryptic warnings before he had left.

Those tribes have their own water sources. Why would they travel tens of kilometers to protect someone else's water supply?

It didn't make sense that the tribes would support Digon, the ones who had opened the gates of the south and subsequently caused this whole mess. If the subordinate's report was accurate, these tribes had intervened without prior agreement when Gordon’s mercenaries tried to seize the Oasis.

That means someone predicted my move.

How could distant tribes know of his plans? It made no sense, unless someone local had orchestrated it.

And they knew the prince would be negotiating with Digon...

Gordon couldn’t shake Karyl’s last words from his mind.

If this was all orchestrated by you... His eyes gleamed. How far ahead have you set up this game?

Gordon had no proof, but his instincts told him that Karyl was behind this. If Karyl were in front of him right then, he would seriously punch his teeth down his throat.

"It's annoyingly perfect. I don't like it... It feels like I'm playing into his hands."

Gordon's face showed a mix of frustration and grudging respect for Karyl's foresight.

"Is something wrong?" asked Jaygun, looking at him with a slightly tense expression. He had known Gordon for quite a while. As strong as he was, Gordon rarely listened to others and always enforced his own will.

What is that guy's true identity?

Jaygun thought of Karyl.

It wasn’t just that Gordon took suspicious medicine without hesitation, but also the fact that he spoke with someone he had fought to the death as though they were old friends. That wasn’t the Gordon Fabian he knew.

"Nothing."

But Gordon hadn’t shared his conversation with Karyl with anyone, not even his vice captain.

"..."

His lips twitched as he recalled Karyl's words; the boy had even seen through his assessment of Jaygun.

The Oasis plan was just a backup. The problem is that the negotiation with Digon turned out exactly as he predicted.

The last method to grasp Digon’s weakness had failed.

"I don’t like the way things are unfolding..." Gordon murmured in a low voice as he leaned back in his chair, stroking his chin. "But whatever he does, he just keeps intriguing me more and more.”

At that moment, Gordon seemed to make up his mind and looked at Jaygun.

"Haha... This means we have no choice but to do what he said."

"...?"

Jaygun looked at Gordon’s faint smile with a mix of confusion and unease.

"Bring the prince here tomorrow. Since Digon is acting this way, we’re returning."

"What? Just like that? Shouldn’t we at least deal with the barbarians we met at the Oasis?"

"For what reason? We were the ones who intruded on their territory.”

Jaygun frowned. "You always repay tenfold. Won’t the Guidance Mercenary Gang be seen as weak if we leave like this?"

"Now is not the time to start unnecessary conflicts. The prince’s matter is the top priority."

"...Understood." Jaygun bit his lip but nodded without arguing further.

"You, come with me."

The subordinate sighed softly and followed him out of the room.

"I must be crazy."

Words, once spoken, cannot be taken back.

Fine. I'll play along with your plan. Let's see how your actions affect the situation... Gordon thought as he stroked his chin.

"I must see this through."

Whoooosh—!

The wind blew through the window.

He recalled the condition Karyl MacGovern had proposed to him.

All I want is one thing. If the negotiations with Digon fail, send Kromen to Marquis Vestal’s estate.

There were many questions. Of course, for a prince to come back empty-handed after failing to fulfill an imperial mandate would be a big deal, but something felt off about sending him to the estate of the marquis.

Why there, out of all places? That’s where Luon’s people are. It has nothing to do with Kromen. If he’s to be sent back from the south, taking the airship straight to the capital would be the safest.

Gordon frowned as he thought about it.

If there's anyone connected to Kromen in that place...

There was only one person. Someone who was stuck there, waiting for reinforcements after his path had been cut off.

It was none other than Olivurn Shutean.