Friends who kill people often know this.
Killing is easy; disposing of the body is hard.
This doesn't quite apply on a continent of swords and magic. In this world, all sorts of people are dying every day. Slavery is even permitted by various countries, so laws protecting human rights are a luxury.
Disposing of a body isn't hard, because there's no need to specifically 'dispose' of it. A body is something you can just toss away.
Whether it's a smelly ditch outside the city or a slum in a remote corner tower within the city, they are all very suitable places for an anonymous corpse.
But Alan couldn't just 'toss' them away. His original intention was to destroy the bodies and erase all traces immediately after the killing. But when he realized that the scattered body parts were difficult to handle, he gave up the idea and just planned to make a quick getaway.
And now, in this forest outside Rigate City late at night, a good helper had arrived—one who no longer gave Alan the half-lidded, indifferent look.
Thus, not only the bodies but even the camp was burned to the ground.
When a man and a woman work together on something like killing and disposing of bodies, the speed is often terrifying.
The bandit group's base outside Rigate City… was completely erased from this world.
Before long, it would probably just be a forgotten ruin, right?
That's how it should be.
But what if, from the start of the hunt to the end of the cleanup, someone had been observing the entire process from a distance?
Would this magnificent scene of hunting the Mane Wolves be recorded in their eyes, along with the memory of this now-vanished bandit base?
As the traces of the fire faded, two slender figures leaped down from the middle of a cliff on the other side of the lake, far from the edge of the camp and the forest.
The light from the burning camp licked at their bodies.
One was an old woman named Reida Lia, the pinnacle of all Water God Style swordsmen today, and Alan's master.
The other was a young girl named Isolde Cruel, Alan's childhood friend from the Water God dojo since he was four.
"I was wondering who had angered Darius so much that he would go to such great lengths to secretly set up an ambush, thinking he had provoked some master who wanted to take his life… It turns out the target was actually Alan."
"It seems he didn't flee to Sharia, but secretly stayed in the Asura Kingdom… Is it for revenge against James? This child is the same as ever, unable to tolerate even the slightest grievance…"
Reida's words had the rhythm of an elder of high standing, carrying the gravitas of a noble and a sword grandmaster. At first glance, her posture seemed like that of an ordinary old woman, but in the eyes of a high-level swordsman, her form had no openings.
Isolde followed behind her, her soft, black, straight hair, styled somewhat like a princess cut, flying in the air. The firelight flickered through the strands, revealing faint blue highlights at the tips.
Her features were completely different from Roxy's half-lidded eyes and thin lips, which tended towards a cooler beauty. Even though she hadn't fully matured, she already possessed strong, defined features, with large, round eyes that drooped slightly at the corners, giving her a gentle aura. A high-bridged nose sat between her eyes, adding a touch of stubbornness to her gentle base.
She was tall for her age, almost as tall as Reida beside her. Perhaps due to years of sword practice, her leg-to-body ratio was excellent.
Hearing Reida mention Alan, Isolde's eyes curved into a gentle smile.
"Yes… I haven't seen him in almost half a year, and Senior Brother is as sharp-edged as ever. But his features have softened quite a bit… and his swordsmanship…"
At this, her expression changed, and she frowned.
"…is still as genius as ever. I knew he was holding back with the North God Style, but Sword God Style… he can actually use the Soundless Tachi? And he's also solved the biggest problem with the Rock secret technique."
A playful smile appeared on Reida's wrinkled face as she turned to look at Isolde.
"He has already touched the threshold of 'Sense Flow.' He is undoubtedly a Water Saint. Don't blame me for stopping you just now; in that situation, even if you had gone down, you wouldn't have been able to bring him back to the capital."
Isolde's gaze lowered.
"If you had acted personally, Master, it would surely have been no problem… Do you not want him to return to the capital? Last year, you said that the position of Water God would be his sooner or later…"
Reida looked at the burning remains on the ground, her face expressionless.
"We've discussed this several times over the past few months. James couldn't have deployed so many experts to ambush Alan at the Red Dragon's Upper Jaw. Now it seems that Darius's shadow was also behind last year's assassination attempt…"
Isolde was still a young girl. Even with the excellent upbringing of the capital's nobility, she couldn't maintain her composure and showed a panicked expression.
"…Are you saying you're going to kill him for Darius? But…"
Reida glanced helplessly at her granddaughter and held up a hand in the air to stop Isolde's words.
"I've looked into it. The reason Alan often took care of you was supposedly because he felt you were orphaned and alone, and that boy Dantris wasn't fulfilling his role as an older brother, always wearing a sullen face. That's why he befriended you, not because he had feelings for you… On your fifth birthday, you spent days picking out a sword hilt to give him, and didn't he just give you a few pastries in return?"
The image of Roxy beside Alan from earlier involuntarily appeared in Isolde's mind. Her bangs covered her eyes, and in the flickering firelight, her expression was dark and unreadable.
"…Master, I asked if you would kill him… What are you talking about? I don't understand…"
Reida squinted at her student's hand, which was tightly gripping her sword hilt.
"What am I talking about? Just look at your reaction! Hehe, you child. If Alan weren't good-looking, would you really have…"
"!! Grandmother!!"
Reida pursed her lips in resignation.
"You don't have to worry. We were master and student, after all. I won't kill him… Although Darius is my savior, Alan doesn't know that Darius is the mastermind yet, so he doesn't pose a threat to Darius's life."
"Then why not bring him back to the dojo…"
"Although I don't know the reason, it's a fact that Darius wants to kill him. Even if we bring him back to the main dojo, it would be difficult for him to establish himself in the capital. For his safety, I could only lock him away in the depths of the dojo and train him secretly as a hidden swordsman, only letting him out when he is strong enough to protect himself. But do you think he has the personality to live in obscurity until his swordsmanship is perfected?"
Isolde looked at Reida with narrowed eyes and asked cautiously.
"Then I just have to convince him, right… If that doesn't work, can't I just forcefully bring him back?"
Reida sighed and placed a hand on Isolde's black hair.
"…You rely on him too much. Is that really good for him?"
"…I… I don't know. But if it's really possible… would you agree?"
"I would."
"Then I'll go after him right now!"
Reida held out the golden sword from her waist, blocking Isolde's path, a look of successful manipulation in her eyes.
"It is without a doubt that you should be the one to bring back your childhood friend. But is your current level of swordsmanship enough?"
Isolde had just taken a step, the flying strands of her hair proclaiming her joy. But after that sentence, her bright expression froze.
"…It's not enough."
Reida smiled and clasped her hands behind her back.
"Come back to the dojo with me and hone your swordsmanship. The day you reach the rank of Water Saint, I will let you out. Whether you can bring back your beloved then will depend on your own abilities."
"Okay! …Wait! What beloved! Grandmother!!!"
Isolde, who was usually polite on the surface but proud on the inside in the capital, would instantly lose her composure every time Reida teased her about Alan.
Reida dropped the intentional teasing, but the moment she turned her head, her smile vanished.
'If that day really comes, and Alan is willing to train hard in the dojo after he returns… the day he realizes Darius is the mastermind and seeks revenge will be the day we face each other… I won't kill him, but if he really wants to kill Darius… then he will have to step over my dead body.'
'If he can't kill me, he can't have his revenge. If he can kill me, he will be the new Water God.'
Reida had no intention of reminding Isolde of this cruel future. Although Darius had completely fallen, he was once her salvation.
Repaying kindness with kindness, even if it meant bearing a notorious reputation—that was Reida's resolve.
"Let's go. Back to the capital."
"Okay… Wait! Please wait a moment!"
Isolde strode over to a piece of charred wreckage nearby. Under Reida's slightly helpless gaze, she bent down and began to search through it with the blade of her sword.
The charred remains of the corpse gave off a foul smell, and the smoke and dust stained her face black.
Time passed as she searched. Finally, Isolde's eyes lit up. She picked up a sword hilt from the debris, held it carefully in her palm, and examined it closely.
The hilt was broken, and the dried blood stuck to it crumbled in Isolde's palm.
In the night wind, her eyes were bright.
"I will definitely bring him back to the dojo!"
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