The Blood Knight’s Villains

My Villains Episode 163

40. The Trackers Again (7) A

narrow road meandered down a hillside overgrown with trees.

At first glance, the trail looked like an ordinary dirt road, but in fact it was a remnant of an empire that had fallen centuries ago. The evidence was the pebbles and clay ashstones left deep under the ground.

The two men were staring at the road that led south through Longville to South Harbor in Leadburn and north through the Royal Road to Earl’s Castle in Baden.

Of the two, Tobias, the man in the black cloak, opened his mouth.

“It looks like you got hit.”

It was a story about messengers. The messenger went up the road with the command, ‘The ambush is over, come down and join us.’

He left around noon and hadn’t returned until the sun was down at his shoulder. What that meant was clear.

“…I guess so. That bastard Regan must have suffered too.”

Randall, a mercenary with a long spear leaning on his shoulder, was staring at the other side of the road with his legs crossed. It is the very point where the flat hill with an open view ends and the dense forest and steep slope begin.

“How many did you say there were?”

“…how many? How about Regan’s kids?”

” yes.”

“Twenty-two or three. That should be it.”

“How are your skills?”

Randall narrowed his eyes for a moment, thinking of Regan and his men.

“Matt and Iltan are pretty good at crossbows. Unlike his looks, Regan is strong. The other guys act as people too.”

Tobias was lost in thought with both hands resting on the fur of his longsword.

‘Assuming that the ambush was discovered when the fire was lit, twenty veteran mercenaries were massacred in less than thirty minutes.’

As the young man fell silent, Randall spat on the floor and frowned.

“But what if the X-arm is wrinkling her face? Wasn’t there a solution?”

“I was just thinking about it for a second. I have a countermeasure, so don’t be afraid.”

“…Are you scared? Ha, did you say that to me now?”

Randall, who was growling, gritted his teeth as Tobias didn’t even look at him.

“Do you think I am scared? huh? I’m just reconfirming what was agreed upon.”

“…Did you say check?”

“okay. As we agreed beforehand, we have no intention of dealing with the Fire Witch. Especially in a place like this.”

Saying that, Randall stretched out his hands toward the surroundings. The low hills with few trees were virtually open. It is a perfect terrain for a mage to play an active role.

“Do you know what that means? It means that if you guys don’t do something about her, we’re going to back off right away. Because that was agreed upon.”

“If that’s the case, there’s nothing to worry about. We will take care of the fire witch.”

“I have no intention of dealing with both the bloody swordsman and the red bear at once. If that pair goes on a wild rampage at the same time, most of our kids will go crazy.”

Tobias nodded, rubbing his thick left forearm.

“Leave that too.”

“……red.”

Randall, who had been wriggling his nose at the very firm answer, threw his temper for no reason.

“But damn, these bastards are coming back, right? How long do we have to wait?”

“came.”

“what?”

“He said he had come. excuse me.”

Randall quickly turned his gaze to Tobias’ chin. A man trudged out from among the bushes on the other side of the trail.

A handsome man with a rare tall stature, broad shoulders, cold impression and sharp eyes. It was Phoenix.

He wore scaly armor lined with wolf fur and a long iron helmet with a low nose piece. In addition, he was carrying a round shield with three or four crossbow bolts and three javelins on his shoulders, and his entire body was covered in blood.

Randall, who was briefly distracted by Phoenix, quickly glanced around him. However, no matter how much I looked, there was only one Phoenix that emerged from the overgrown bush.

“…why are you alone? What about the rest of them?”

Tobias was silent while Randall muttered.

‘Are you cheating on something? It’s a headache.’ Phoenix slowly moved towards the two frowning men.

He had a smile on his face.

As I walked 5k 5k 5k, I pretended to be relaxed and smiled.

Still, he quickly glanced around.

There were only two in sight.

Two men standing in the way of a narrow road.

Randall, armed with chain mail and a long spear, and a somewhat familiar young man wearing a black cloak.

His eyes were on them both, but his nose and ears were sensing other enemies.

The strangely savory smell of body and grooming oil, small whispers, and the sound of brushing the grass fill the air everywhere. There must be quite a number of people hiding under the gentle slopes that cannot be seen here.

…It just smells like living.

I stopped about 30 meters from the two men and opened my mouth.

“Has Doyle sent you?”

“……who?”

“Is it Doyle who sent you guys? The second son of Count Tristan.”

Randall, who had been frowning for a moment, burst out laughing.

“Did you lose Chuck with Count Hat Tristan?”

…the reaction is strange?

“What are you talking about? Didn’t you get a request from Doyle?”

“This is the one who paid us.”

Randall pointed to the young man standing next to him and smiled mischievously.

“Looks like I could get an unexpected income if I cut off your head and dedicate it to Baek. Thanks for the good information.”

did i get it wrong

…Well, it’s only been two days since Doyle left Longville after being humiliated. It’s pretty tight time to contact those mercenaries and get them to kill me.

I moved my gaze towards the young man.

He was a handsome man about my age, wearing a long cloak and carrying a long sword.

Suddenly, the hilt of the sword revealed through the hem of the cloak draws attention. It was because the pale green jewel embedded in the permal was faintly emitting magic power.

It looks like a magic sword, but I’ll have to be careful.

“Are you the employer?”

“That’s right.”

“okay? So why are you targeting us?”

A young man in a black cloak shook his head.

“I think you misunderstood something, but we have never aimed at you.”

“…what bullshit?”

“It is literally. We have no intention of attacking Lord Phoenix.”

“Then why did you hide Regan or something? Do you want to throw a surprise party?”

“It was part of an effort to preoccupy the ‘high ground’ prior to negotiations.”

“……Negotiation?”

“yes.”

I laughed at the young man’s confident answer.

“Then why don’t you tell me who you are first

?”

“If you wish.”

Of the two hands he had rested on the hilt, he searched his chest with his right hand. I was a bit nervous, but what the young man took out was a roll of parchment.

“My name is the one to whom the right to pursue and arrest criminals has been entrusted to the seven judges, including Prince Kingsley, High Judge of King Tobias, and Prince Jeremiah of Marva.”

“…. .what?” “This certificate contains the details of my rights and is attested by the signatures of eight judges, including the Lord Kingsley. Accordingly, I respectfully ask the knight, Sir Phoenix, to cooperate with me in enforcing the law.” After watching the talker for a while, he opened his mouth.

“so. Are you a public official or an official?”

“If I have to say, I have a position equivalent to that.” “so? What is that position, exactly?”

“As I said, of the eight judges, including Lord Kingsley-”

“Such an asshole”

the young man was about to say something again, but Randall, who had been standing still, spat and burst into anger.

“Why are you texting me like that when you could just be a bounty hunter?”

“…a bounty hunter?”

As I crossed my arms, the young man glanced at Randall, his eyebrows twitching. Randall, who didn’t notice the gaze, smiled with an elated expression.

“okay. You’ve probably heard of ‘Black Wolves’ too, right? Human hunters led by ‘One-eyed Dirk’.”

“…I just had to stop.”

“Oh yeah. Now the captain has changed. What’s your name? ‘Ashur’?”

“Damn it, can you keep your mouth shut?”

…what are these assholes?

After a brief argument with Randall, young Tobias’ gaze turned back to me.

“Hmm. Excuse me Sir. You made me wait.”

“Stop being classy and let the bounty hunter tell me what’s going on.”

Tobias frowned in annoyance and opened his mouth in a calm tone.

“Herenaar Radakalin. Put her out.”

…Because he’s a bounty hunter, I thought he was aiming for Ellen.

“Who is that?”

“Your colleague. Fire Witch Ellen.”

“Oh Ellen? Why is he?”

“She is a heinous criminal who murdered her teacher to steal the treasure. They deserve to be judged.”

“That was framed.”

“Who are you?”

“okay. Go tell the bounty bettors. Sooner or later, I will show you proof of the false accusation, so please wait patiently in the palace.” Tobias let out a smirk.

“Sir, don’t talk nonsense. The wizards of the palace want her to return immediately and call herself.”

“Some wizards probably want it. The ones who are eating with Galnar.”

You don’t know who Galnar is. Well, there’s no way a mere bounty hunter knows the details.

The young bounty hunter was silent for a moment, then suddenly looked down at his left arm.

“Hmm, it looks like you’re ready.”

“……preparation?”

“yes.”

A very handsome face gave a sly smile.

“Actually, I didn’t consider anything like negotiations from the beginning. Instead, I prepared something else.”

I imitated his smile, feeling the magic wriggling behind me in the bushes far away.

“It’s a coincidence.”

“Coincidence? What do you mean?”

“Me too.”

“…what?”

That moment.

There was a roaring sound behind my back, and a hook and heat spread out. The faces of the two men facing me were contorted in astonishment.

“Ugh, that X-arm…

I saw myself reflected in Randall’s wide-eyed eyes. Five fireballs rising from the bushes.

“Avoid the flames!”

The ‘accumulated fireballs ①elayed Fireballs’ that Ellen must have carefully crafted over a long period of time were terrifying before he let out a tearing scream. Just as the mountain birds had pointed out, the five fireballs flew by and exploded.

Kwagwawang-!

Pillars of fire shot up from under the hillside.

“Keep!”

“Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-!”

Dozens of mercenaries burst out like locusts with their bodies on fire.

Looking closely, it seems that about 3 or 40 people survived. Considering the thinly stretched siege, that number would have been caught in the explosion and died.

“Hey hey—”

Randall, his eyes wide open, grabbed Tobias by the collar.

“You bastard-!”

“Damn it, let it go!”

By the time Tobias brushed off Randall, I was already kicking the ground after throwing the javelin.

Knock!

“B”

Tobias, who managed to twist his upper body, received the javelin with his right shoulder. It seems that only the blade of the spear was stuck in, as if he was wearing armor under the cloak.

“Ugh,

Tobias gritted his teeth and drew his longsword and aimed it at me.

“Deno!”

Along with that starter word, the green jewel embedded in the longsword’s permal flashed. Then, something like a green string flew like a beam of light.

I ran as if folding the ground and drew the second javelin, but I couldn’t even react to it. The green strings that flew faster than the speed of the arrow entangled my entire body in an instant.

It was a ‘bind’ spell.

“Such a dog-”

I was swearing and struggling at a situation where I couldn’t move, when an enraged Randall pounced on me.

“You bastard, how dare you join my mercenaries!”

Booung.

A wildly-swung long spear aimed at my head and rushed in. I tried to avoid the attack by falling on my side with my whole body tied up, but the spearhead hit my side in no way.

puck!

“Cheer.”

Apart from being sick like a dog, there was no way to resist the ensuing attack.

Randall took a couple of steps back to retrieve the spear, then took a couple of steps back and stabbed it. It was an exquisite thrust aimed between the neck and chest.

“Eww.”

I desperately threw my back and struggled. But Randall tenaciously stretched out the blade and finally succeeded in stabbing me in the throat.

Kagak!

“O ah”

Randall narrowed his brows in embarrassment as the spear blade touched his skin and sparked.

It must have felt like being stabbed with a stone rather than flesh. It was the effect of the defensive spell ‘Skin Skin’ cast by the wizard Siren while sprinkling granite powder on it.

It was fortunate that he survived, but as he blocked the stab, he felt the spell dissipate.

“Huh good. Let’s do it.”

Randall straightened his long spear and smiled coldly.

…Are you really going to die at this rate?

Sudden with a sense of danger, I squeezed even the strength I had been sucking on and shook my limbs.

“Turn it off!”

A little bit of resistance. The green cords that bound me shattered with a caang metallic sound.

Then, rolling on the ground, dodging the spear blade, flicking off his shoulder, holding the original shield in his hand, pulling out Hrunting and inserting it into Randall’s stomach.

hooked!

“Kuhh-”

Randall fell forward with a whimper.

At that moment, a faint sound could be heard among the desperate screams of dogs and people.

Tung.

A sound like plucking strings.

I instinctively lifted the original shield and lowered my posture. Unsurprisingly, the crossbow that flew by surprise was pierced into the shield.

It was shot by Tobias.

He had the sleeves of his left arm rolled up, and a small crossbow was attached to it.

“Ha, you use cute toys.”

Ignoring my ferocious growl, Tobias fell flat on the floor.

…What are you doing, bastard?

I have doubts about that erratic motion, but

I get angry

“Huh?”

In the original shield, to be precise, something like a stick tied to the short crossbow shot by Tobias emitted white light.

“…what is this.”

For a moment, even feeling anxious, as if responding to a signal, a strong light flashed from a cliff to the east. A landscape that looks like a huge white flower blooming.

…Somehow familiar. i think i saw it somewhere

“Phoenix-sama, I will join you!”

Amias’ voice came from behind. Utequai’s roaring shouts were also accompanied.

“no!”

I let out a scream that bordered on screaming as I threw down the crossbow-studded shield.

“Do not come! Back off-”

Before he could shout, the shield he threw away flew away.

Along with tinnitus, his vision went white.

After that, my eyes went dark.

Whoops!

As the northern sky flashed, a man in his early 40s brushed his short beard away.

“It is a rare thing.”

The man was wearing armor made of several curved black iron plates. At first glance, it was similar to plate armor, but it was an armor that gave a sharp impression with rough irregularities in places.

Eight men, including a bearded man, were sitting in the shade of a thick forest. It hadn’t even lit a fire.

Two of the eight were dressed like bearded men. The other five wore iron-reinforced surcoats over chain mail.

Among the men in iron surcoats, a young man with one ear cut off opened his mouth.

“It’s a sight I’ve never seen before in Ireland.”

“It would be rare even here.”

“okay.”

Each of the eight men had black hair and black eyes with a robust build.

They had an implicit air of starkness and had these neck features that were somehow out of balance.

“I want to go back soon.”

“me too.”

They were expressionless, as if they were wearing masks.

If you look closely, the faces that somehow make you feel uncomfortable are oddly similar to each other, so you might believe that all eight of them are brothers.

An even more bizarre person was added to this bizarre party.

“The princess is coming.”

Eight men stood up at once at someone’s muttering. And after a while, a woman appeared with the sound of horseshoes.

“Princess.”

A woman rode up to the eight men who bowed quietly.

she was a beautiful woman

Her hair was as black as the night sky and her skin was as white as the moon. Clear eyes with ideal proportions, small ears, straight nose and red lips.

She was as expressionless as the eight men, but somehow radiant. Unlike the men who have a somewhat twisted appearance and atmosphere, the woman

was… ‘whole’.

At least on the surface it was.

A woman called Gongnyeo ordered it.

“Follow me.”

“yes.” The eight men mounted their horses, which were tied nearby. Looking back, all nine of them, including the princess, were riding flawless black horses.

A black satin cloak over a red vest fluttered like a flag. After that, the Eight Horsemen followed.

Heavily armed men guarded the woman, whose only irons were the golden buttons on her vest and the ruby brooch that fastened her cloak.

The bearded man had a princess and a horse’s hair side by side.

“Where are you going?”

“This is where the lightning struck.”

The man was silent. The princess added her words as if they were flowing in the wind.

“I felt magical power.”

“Are you talking from lightning?”

“yes.”

“There are very few wizards who can call lightning.”

“And most of them are in palaces.”

silence again. The princess blinked a couple of times, narrowing her eyes due to the headwind.

“I saw the Palace Wizards in South Harbor. They were pickpockets and lost their cards.”

“I remember. You said that the viper of Prince Eun played a shallow trick.”

“They were after the Fire Witch.”

The bearded man fell silent again. The princess did not open her mouth again.

The sound of horses’ hooves echoed loudly. The iron-studded surcoat also cried loudly.

A crest was embroidered on the surcoat. It was a crest with a black snake and a white snake drawn on a red circle.

The two snakes were tightly entangling each other.