BXBX NOVEL Chapter 53 – Escort Request (3)
Chapter 53 – Escort Request (3)
Chapter 53: Escort Request (3)
A week had passed.
The journey towards the Denian Kingdom continued.
Elene chewed on jerky with a grimace on her face.
The jerky was so dry and tough that it was hard to tell if it was meat or stone.
Chewing it was enough to make her jaw ache.
She moistened it with saliva as she slowly chewed.
As Elene chewed on the jerky, a pleasant smell wafted from beside her. Ketal was cooking again.
The enticing smell made it hard to resist hunger.
Eventually, Elene stood up unsteadily.
“I’ll step aside for a moment. It’ll take a bit of time.”
“Going to the restroom?”
Her casual remark made Elene’s face flush red.
“T-that’s rude!”
“Oh. My apologies. It wasn’t something to say to a young lady, I realize now.”
Surprisingly, Ketal readily apologized.
This caught Elene off guard.
“N-no, it’s fine.”
Apologizing like that.
He certainly wasn’t your typical barbarian.
Still, that didn’t mean he could be trusted.
Elene went to a nearby stream and moistened the jerky in the flowing water, making it more edible.
Now it was somewhat palatable.
Sitting down like a squirrel, she chewed on the jerky.
At one point, she made a soft sob.
“Hungry…”
She had been chewing on jerky for over a week.
It wasn’t nutritious, and its toughness made it impossible to eat enough.
She was always hungry.
‘It’s tough…’
And the journey itself was too much.
She had received education from the royal family, not just in knowledge but also in physical training.
The intensity of that training was undoubtedly significant, but it was not enough to endure such hardship.
The current journey was too difficult for a girl who hadn’t even become an adult yet.
But Elene endured.
Because it was necessary.
And because Aaron suffered more.
Aaron.
Her loyal guardian.
He had gone through all sorts of hardships for her sake.
He volunteered for tasks she couldn’t handle.
As long as he was there, she couldn’t complain about this level of difficulty.
Above all, recently, the light in Aaron’s eyes had grown stronger.
Elene knew it was guilt. His gaze had become even more intense lately.
‘He doesn’t need to feel guilty.’
In the end, this was the path she had chosen.
Aaron didn’t need to feel guilty.
She planned to talk properly about it later when the opportunity arose.
‘Let’s endure. Aaron is having a tougher time.’
As his master, she couldn’t speak words of hardship.
Elene made up her mind.
After drinking enough water, she cautiously returned.
Soft voices could be heard.
“Oh, is that how you cook?”
“Is it okay?”
“It’s rough but not bad. It’s good for when you can’t measure precisely.”
“Hmm?”
She was momentarily surprised.
The voice she heard was very calm.
It sounded like she was talking to a close friend.
She cautiously looked towards the source of the voice.
And she saw it.
Aaron was sitting right next to Ketal, eating and enjoying the food.
“…Aaron.”
“Oh, no!”
Aaron’s expression changed.
He quickly stood up and distanced himself from Ketal.
“No, it’s not! Princess! It’s a misunderstanding!”
“Hmm?”
Aaron and Elene were preoccupied with each other, so they didn’t notice Ketal’s reaction to the word ‘princess.’
“…What do you mean it’s not?”
Betrayal colored Elene’s face.
They had agreed to be cautious around the barbarian and protect each other.
But here they were, chatting amicably and eating together.
What was this?
“…Ah. Lately, you seemed unusually healthy. It was because you were secretly eating barbarian food, wasn’t it? Was it delicious? I bet it was. That’s why that smell was lingering.”
Aaron stammered with a pale face.
“No, it’s not that… It’s just hard to find the right timing….”
“What timing? The timing to say, ‘I’ve become friends with the barbarian alone’? Is that the timing you’re talking about?”
“Uh, no, that’s not it. That, uh, this barbarian isn’t such a bad person. There’s no need to be so guarded….”
“Are you saying that now?”
Elene gritted her teeth.
Aaron tried to explain, but it didn’t come out smoothly.
“I hope you calm down.”
And in that moment, Ketal intervened.
“Why didn’t you eat the food? Was it because you didn’t trust me? Well… one can’t easily put something made by an untrustworthy person in their mouth. Was that also the reason for the precautions?”
“Oh.”
And then Elene finally realized.
What she had just said was no different from directly expressing her lack of trust in Ketal.
The situation changed again.
Elene spoke hesitantly to Ketal.
“No. That’s not it….”
“It doesn’t matter. Trust is not something easily built.”
Ketal stroked his chin.
He had expected this.
In this world, distrust towards others was much stronger than on Earth.
And there were prejudices against barbarians as well.
Even if he said he wasn’t a barbarian, there was no reason for them to believe it.
Elene and Aaron had no choice but to accept it.
They didn’t trust him.
He wasn’t so foolish as to not notice.
How to resolve this?
He pondered.
And he reached a conclusion.
Ketal spoke up.
“We need to clear up this misunderstanding first. I am not a barbarian.”
“I see.”
Elene replied, but there was no sign of belief in her tone.
Ketal spoke again.
“Let me be clear. I was born as a barbarian child, but I wasn’t raised as one.”
“What?”
Elene’s eyes widened at this revelation.
A clear difference in reaction.
“I was born as a barbarian. But my tribe was destroyed a week after my birth. A lone adventurer found me crying amidst the ruins. I was raised by that adventurer.”
Nothing but lies without a trace of truth.
But so what?
Didn’t the glimmer of belief start to show in Elene’s eyes, despite her previous doubts and suspicions of everything he said and did?
Ketal continued.
“The adventurer who took me in also left on a journey and died. As a child, I had to grow up alone. But there was a problem.”
He was born as a barbarian.
But he grew up as a civilized person.
Yet, everyone still saw him as a barbarian.
“No one trusted me and everyone feared me. I couldn’t find a companion who would trust me. After countless journeys, I finally found a place that accepted me.”
“The Barkan Territory…?”
“Yes.”
Ketal nodded.
“I am undeniably a barbarian. But I am also civilized. Of course, you can’t believe it, but I hope you understand that fact.”
All falsehoods.
But it didn’t matter.
Elene’s expression began to show sympathy rather than doubt.
And it couldn’t be entirely dismissed as a perfect lie.
He clearly had a barbarian’s physique but possessed the intellect of a civilized person.
“I see. I understand.”
Elene nodded.
It was someone else’s words.
She couldn’t completely believe them.
But if she considered Ketal’s words as truth, she could understand why Ketal had treated them well all this time.
No, it was more like she could understand Ketal’s actions only by considering them true.
Suddenly, Elene felt ashamed.
Despite being taught not to judge people by their appearance, she had let herself be frightened by the barbarian’s exterior and couldn’t trust a mercenary.
She had even doubted the food he made for them was dirty.
How foolish she was.
And how great a person Ketal was.
Elene felt admiration in her eyes.
Ketal must have faced much persecution and suspicion as a barbarian.
But he didn’t lose himself, he cared for and respected others.
He was truly like an adult.
‘To doubt such a person.’
Elene felt extremely ashamed. She bowed her head deeply.
“…I’m sorry, Ketal. I didn’t trust you.”
It was done.
Ketal let out a sigh of relief.
But he kept his emotions in check and raised his head as if it were nothing.
“It doesn’t matter. It’s not strange to have such misconceptions.”
“I see.”
Elene was moved again by his attitude.
To speak so calmly, as if it were nothing.
He was truly an impressive person.
Of course, Ketal secretly wanted to dance with joy, claiming victory.
If there had been no eyes watching, he might have done so.
But Elene, unaware of this, admired Ketal.
“Then, I’ll count on you from now on.”
“Yes, yes.”
Elene nodded.
Aaron breathed a sigh of relief.
He no longer had to be reprimanded by the princess.
And that night.
For the first time since leaving her kingdom, Elene had a delicious meal and slept peacefully.
* * *
After that, the journey became much easier.
Accepting Ketal’s kindness, Elene let Ketal handle everything.
The meals were simple but sufficient, and Ketal took care of all the cooking, providing dishes that could fill their stomachs adequately.
“Hehe. Is this how you cook?”
Elene watched Ketal cook from nearby.
She was right next to him.
“It’s fascinating. Who did you learn from?”
“No one. I tried various things on my own to survive. After many trials and errors, I came up with something decent.”
“Hehe. Is that so?”
“Would you like to try? It’s quite fun.”
“Well, then I’ll accept your kindness.”
Elene cautiously picked up a dagger and started cutting vegetables.
Ketal watched her with satisfaction.
This.
This was the distance that should exist between the employer and a mercenary.
He had succeeded once again.
Ketal felt deeply satisfied.
When such a pleasing scene unfolded, far away in the forest from where they were, there was a human.
“They’ve suddenly become close. It’s a shame I can’t understand their speech.”
The man was young, with an ordinary face that could be seen anywhere.
But that was just an external issue.
In reality, he was one of the oldest beings in human history.
He was the Master of the Magic Tower.
A lich.
He had disguised himself in human skin and came to see Ketal.
As soon as the conversation with Cain ended, the Tower Master acted.
He had been observing with surveillance eyes but wanted to meet Ketal in person.
Without telling anyone, he came to the Barkan Territory.
Despite the physical and magical devices including the border, they meant nothing to the Tower Master.
He arrived in the Barkan Territory in an instant.
And at that moment, Ketal had just left on a guard mission.
The Tower Master immediately followed Ketal, continuing to observe his journey.
“Cain. It seems what he said is true.”
A barbarian cooking.
He had never seen anything like it in his life.
Even the escort targets who used to despise him as a barbarian seemed to be becoming friendly with him.
It was indeed unique.
If it weren’t for his appearance, one might even believe he wasn’t a barbarian.
The Tower Master narrowed his eyes.
Long ago.
In a mysterious world unconquered by humans, even by the emperor who failed at conquest.
The White Snow Plains.
The barbarians of that place.
But Ketal was clearly civilized.
A barbarian from the White Snow Plains who knows how to cook.
Judging by his skill in handling tools, he seemed quite accustomed to it.
A barbarian from the White Snow Plains who knows how to have a conversation enough to end distrust and suspicion.
A barbarian from the White Snow Plains who cares enough to handle everything alone.
‘What’s going on?’
What could possibly be in the White Snow Plains to have such a barbarian exist?
It was too strange.
Ironically, he seemed more socialized than the ordinary barbarians of this world.
The magician’s curiosity and desire for knowledge slowly crept in.
‘Should I get closer?’
The distance was far.
He was only using minimal magic to listen to the conversation.
He wanted to know what they were talking about.
The Tower Master decided to get closer.
He had made up his mind.
The magician moved slowly toward Ketal.
And then, at a moment.
“Hmm?”
Ketal stood up.
Elene, who was awkwardly handling the dagger, was slightly surprised.
“Why are you doing that?”
At that moment, the Tower Master saw it.
Ketal’s gaze looking at him.
‘What?’
He’s looking at him?
No.
That’s ridiculous.
He was at least 1km apart from Ketal here.
The area was completely obscured by dense forest, making it impossible for visual contact.
There were many animals and insects in the forest, so it wasn’t a situation where he could sense any presence.
Ketal muttered.
“There’s someone here.”
“What?”
“Just hold on for a moment. I’ll be back soon.”
Before his words finished, Ketal’s body disappeared.
The Tower Master’s pupils dilated.
Expand the senses.
Mana spread quickly towards the forest, forming a detection area.
That’s how the Tower Master could know.
That Ketal was right in front of him at this moment.
The Tower Master waved his hand in astonishment.
Mana moved turbulently according to the owner’s will.
The forest burst open, and Ketal appeared in front of the Tower Master.