Chadra’s Conqueror (4)

Sir Braham understood why Azadine had come looking for Chashan.

Among the Chadra Five Ogres, the one with the greatest organization and financial power was the Smuggling King, Chashan—so from Azadine’s perspective, he was the first target that had to be subdued.

But who would have thought he would chase them down on the very day the talks broke down?

‘To think Chashan went down in one hit.’

Chashan was as skilled in barehanded fighting as he was in magic. Until now, any malcontents had been tied wrist-to-wrist and dragged atop a barrel, then beaten into submission with fists.

A born brawler and a powerful sorcerer of crimson mana—Sir Braham had never imagined that such a Chashan would be neutralized in a single blow in a clash with Azadine.

“Amazing….”

“Hey, you.”

It got to the point that even among Chashan’s men, some looked as if they were falling under Azadine’s spell.

With his handsome features, Azadine’s martial art—unfurled in restrained, precise movements—looked like art in itself.

“Grrrrrk!”

The enraged Chashan rose.

His jaw was shattered and he was drenched in blood, yet he still bared hostility and tried to begin casting a spell.

“Alright, stop. Resist any further and I’ll kill you.”

With Azadine’s warning, Kuntachi pressed the edge of his falchion to Chashan’s Adam’s apple.

“Grrrk.”

His broken jaw leaked blood-foam from his mouth, and a cold blade was aimed at his throat. Even so, Chashan refused to bend and forced the words out.

“You think I’d tremble in fear of death?!”

“Why don’t you fear death?”

Azadine countered Chashan’s shout with a question.

“…What?”

Chashan faltered at the unexpected question. Azadine sat with his legs crossed, eyes deep, asking him in earnest.

“What is it you want to prove, beyond death, that you don’t fear it?”

“Because if I die after getting beaten by a pretty-boy like you, I’ll be a laughingstock even in death!”

At that, Azadine let out a sigh.

“Then you really shouldn’t resist. If you resist for nothing, you’ll die after getting beaten by a pretty-boy like me.”

“You bastard!”

Chashan spat murderous intent. But in that instant, Kuntachi snapped the side of the blade up into Chashan’s jaw.

Even with only a light strike, Chashan tumbled across the floor.

“Keep your eyes nice and obedient, you. I won’t forgive eyes like that in front of Captain Azadine.”

It seemed Kuntachi didn’t like Chashan’s glare. Azadine didn’t like Chashan either.

“That isn’t courage. It’s a worse kind of cowardice—choosing suicide because you fear becoming a laughingstock.”

“What?!”

“Chashan. What were you trying to achieve by building your power? What did you want so badly that you craved money enough to sell drugs? That’s what I want to hear.”

Chashan seethed, spewing blood-foam from his mouth like a crab or crayfish.

“You brat! How much do you think you know about me, acting like you understand?”

“That’s why I’m asking.”

—Chwararararak!

A Shadowsteel chain appeared from Azadine’s hand. It looked thin enough to snap at a glance, but the chill unique to Shadowsteel gave it an uncanny presence.

Azadine threw the chain to coil around Chashan and triggered a curse, and the glowing tattoos on Chashan’s body began to lose their light.

As the tattoos cooled like a dying ingot and turned cold, Chashan panicked.

“T-This… you bastard! If you get rid of me, my organization won’t stay quiet!”

When you removed a crime boss, the pack beneath him usually began fighting for power, making the chaos even worse. That was why eliminating Chashan was not a wise move.

For Azadine—who had only temporarily seized Fireglyph—such an act would be even more reckless.

“That’s something we must bear.”

Yet Azadine answered boldly. Rather than deal with Chashan, he had chosen to face his organization head-on.

“Is everyone in this place all of them? That’d be nice.”

But then Sir Braham rose.

“There’s another safehouse besides this one, Sir Azadine.”

“What?!”

Chashan, who had been watching, jolted in shock.

“Y-You traitorous—”

“Don’t force yourself to speak, Chashan. Your prognosis will worsen when you finally recover.”

Sir Braham spoke as if worrying about Chashan’s condition. But because it wasn’t the groveling tone he always used while calling him Boss, Chashan knew for certain that he had betrayed him.

“You bastard! You’re dead! My brothers will—this traitor!”

But that was as far as Chashan got. At Azadine’s gesture, Kuntachi brought rope and a gag and bound Chashan’s mouth shut.

“Your jaw’s broken—don’t run your mouth and die for nothing. Now then, shall we talk? Why are you saying you’ll cooperate with me? Even for me, this is too sudden.”

“You were seeing an illusion.”

“An illusion?”

“The coming Age of Jupiter.”

“…….”

“I was afraid of it, so I reached for indulgence and then submitted to Chashan. While I was drowning in pleasure, I could forget death and ruin.”

After saying that, Braham looked ashamed.

“And I was afraid. Of Chashan’s violence. As a knight, I failed. In the end, I’m a vile coward.”

“Then you are welcome, Sir Braham.”

Azadine accepted Sir Braham’s joining.

Chashan’s smuggling organization spread across the entire Chadra Plateau, including Fireglyph.

They were armed, and their hideouts and contact network were dense. Worse, they had bought off the Fire Guard as well, so if one tried to suppress them, they boasted a hydra-like organizational strength that could never truly be crushed, no matter how long it took.

However, because Sir Braham—the organization’s second-in-command—had come over to Azadine, at least arresting the group inside Fireglyph ended smoothly.

In the Fire Guard barracks—at the Fire Guard headquarters where Sir Timothy had originally been stationed—Azadine took the seat and was acting in that capacity.

“Sir Azadine, do you trust Sir Braham?”

Izmilla, apparently uneasy about Braham, approached Azadine as he took a brief rest and asked.

“Hm. Why do you harbor that doubt?”

“I’m worried. Sir Braham is a Hospitaller-Paladin. He’s the highest-ranking person in the Rescue Knights Order on this Chadra Plateau. If he approached you while aiming for the next Chapter Master seat…”

Izmilla feared that Sir Braham might have bowed to Azadine while hiding ambition. But Azadine shook his head.

“For now, Sir Braham has too many weaknesses. He’s guilty of consorting with Chashan, and he’s far too old. He’s not someone who’ll ever be appointed Chapter Master. Besides, he’s a drug addict himself.”

“He used drugs? Then we should trust Sir Braham even less.”

“But he’s also a courageous man.”

“Huh?”

“Most people can’t say with their own mouth that they’re cowards. Plenty would rather die than be called a coward. So someone who can say ‘I’m a coward’ is someone with the courage to confess their own weakness.”

“Ah. Ahaha.”

Izmilla burst out laughing at Azadine’s words.

“Why?”

“No, it’s just… you sound like my mentors.”

“Well, I’m a Holy Knight in name, so sometimes I have to say things befitting a Holy Knight, Sir Izmilla. My faith is deeper than you think.”

Azadine said that in a tone that could have been a joke—or not.

Just then, the door to the Fire Guard office flew open.

“Waaah! What on earth have you done, Sir Azadine?!”

Sir Pavel came rushing in himself.

“A rebellion broke out at the Southeast Rock Wall! Dwarven sorcerers—Chashan’s brothers—seized the fortress and detained the supply officer! They’re raising hell, saying they’ll kill the supply officer unless we release Chashan! For something like this to happen while I’m Acting Chapter Master!”

Sir Pavel was trembling violently. Unbefitting of his station, he had toppled the Chapter Master and taken the role of Acting Chapter Master—and then a rebellion like this had erupted. Events beyond his ability kept happening one after another, and he was nearly losing his mind.

“No, Sir Pavel. You’re the Acting Chapter Master right now. Why didn’t you send for me with a messenger instead of coming in person?”

“Send a messenger to the Messenger Clan? No, that’s not the point—this happened because you provoked those Chadra Five Ogres, didn’t it? How will you take responsibility for this? I’m—huff—my heart’s pounding so hard I can’t think straight.”

“A rebellion at the Southeast Rock Wall, you say? Good. That’s good.”

“Good?! This situation is good?!”

“Isn’t it something to be glad about, since we’ve gained a proper pretext to root out the corruption festering in this land? Besides, Sir Pavel—this will all become your achievement.”

“My achievement? What do you mean?”

“The previous Chapter Master was a criminal disloyal to the Order—so of course, rotten pus must be clogging everything. If you squeeze out that pus and remove the infected flesh, the higher-ups will value you all the more.”

“H-But… I’ve seen blood against goblins, maybe, but I’ve never shed blood against humans.”

“Oh, come now. Sir Pavel must remain to protect Fireglyph. Leave suppressing the rebellion to me, and you continue to carry out the duties of Acting Chapter Master here.”

Azadine reassured Sir Pavel as he stood.

“It won’t take even a week to put it down.”

“I-If that’s the case… then I’ll trust you with it, Sir Azadine.”

Sir Pavel felt relieved when Azadine said he would pacify the Southeast Rock Wall rebellion in only a week, but Izmilla flinched at the words.

“It takes two or three days on foot just to reach the Southeast Rock Wall. And you’re saying you’ll pacify it within a week?”

“I already prepared it and was waiting. Hehe. So don’t worry, Sir Izmilla.”

“Hm. That somehow sounds like a con.”

Izmilla showed distrust at Azadine’s smile.

When the news came in that a rebellion had broken out at the Southeast Rock Wall, Sir Braham apologized to Azadine.

“I’m sorry. It’s because I have no respect from them. And my body’s in this state, too.”

After breaking with Chashan, he suffered withdrawal, took off his armor, and joined Azadine’s expedition force wrapped in a blanket.

Even if he had to be carried on one side of a supply cart, he showed the will to take part in the suppression.

“Still, I want to go along. The Southeast Rock Wall was originally my assigned post. Any information about it, or even my empty title—whatever it is, you’ll need it.”

Azadine allowed him to accompany them.

“Of course, Sir Braham. Your company is welcome. Then shall we go?”

Azadine formed the punitive force with Squad Leader Rijen and his ten squad members, four Fire Guards, Kuntachi, Camilla, and Giacomo and Bernard.

The expedition set out to subdue the Southeast Rock Wall, bringing Chashan along, bound in Shadowsteel chains.

Since Giacomo was officially listed as already dead, he shaved off all his hair and was made to wear a helmet to hide his identity.

His tongue still hadn’t fully healed, so he had to communicate in writing, but even on the march he hung a wooden board around his neck, dipped a feather pen in water, and wrote with water to trade notes.

‘So the ones we’re dealing with are those Dwarven Arrow bastards, right? They’re the ones who kidnapped my daughter. They’re my enemies.’

“Careful. There are Fire Guards.”

Azadine was wary of the eyes of the four Fire Guards.

The other subordinates would understand even if Azadine said he had spared Giacomo and spirited him away, but those Fire Guards were the kind who would pledge loyalty to the next Chapter Master who arrived later.

If they learned that Azadine had saved and hidden Giacomo—who had been a wanted target of the Order—it wouldn’t end well.

‘It’s not spoken aloud, so it’s fine. And those idiots probably can’t even read.’

“Still, it doesn’t hurt to be careful.”

‘Got it.’

Giacomo stuck close to Azadine and wrote small enough that only Azadine could see.

‘Ah, you really talk too much.’

Azadine sighed as he watched Giacomo keep trying to exchange notes with him.