In the evening as the sun went down, I was doing squats. It's good to split up my workouts, but my still-weak body required continuous, simple exercise.
"Daron, are you building your body these days?"
My barracks-mate, who had been watching me for days, looked at me curiously.
"Hamil, would you like to?"
"I'm okay."
He wasn't even a knight, but a general soldier. Soldiers only have to carry out their assigned missions. The hard work was up to the knights, so it didn't matter if soldiers only had basic skills. I took out a prepared egg while touching my firm thigh. It was some protein I got from Ray after having dinner at the restaurant. Ray grumbled, but when I asked for something to eat, she always took care of it.
Gulp.
After eating two eggs, I put on my outerwear.
"Where?"
"To the barracks next door."
The reason I wanted to go to the barracks next door was because of Tyke. It was impossible to meet Tyke in prison, so it was difficult to directly ask where the aphrodisiac came from. So I was going to find out for myself.
I went into the barracks next door and arrived in front of where Tyke had lived. After knocking on the door a few times, the person inside opened the door.
"Ah, are you here?"
"You don't have to sing my praises."
"Yeah, yes."
This soldier had been rooming with Tyke and was said to have suffered quite a bit. When I asked if I could take a look around where Tyke had been living, he asked why. At first, he was frightened. However, when I said I was looking for things that could send Tyke further down the abyss, he readily agreed.
In fact, the death penalty is practically certain, so there is no further hell to go to… How much did Tyke bully him?
"You can look around! Oh, can I go out so you can look around more easily?"
"Okay. I'll tell you first when I find something."
"Okay. Just let me know if you find anything."
Now I could look around the room alone in silence. A search had already taken place, examining all of Tyke's luggage. Still, Tyke's baggage remained. When the day comes when the garbage is all thrown out at once, all of Tyke's luggage will be thrown away. Before that, I came to find something.
Since it was a simple murder case, they wouldn't have thought that demons were involved, so they wouldn't have investigated for this kind of thing. I took out the holy artifact imbued with divine power and opened the closet. I examined the artifacts between the clothes that were hanging randomly. At this time, I focused on the sensations of my fingertips.
Uh.
"Nice."
Things were working out better than I expected. It seems that living in a harsh world has not only thickened my bones but also sharpened my wits. I didn't know that something so dubious would fit so well.
Every time I moved my hand back and forth, I felt friction on just one piece of clothing. I took out the clothes. Judging by the plain clothes, it was clear that he had been going out. I called the soldier waiting outside the door.
"Do you remember him wearing these clothes recently?"
"Recently? Umm… Was it a week ago?"
"A week ago? Did he say where he was going?"
A week ago. The timing was just right.
"He didn't say where he was going, but he went with some others."
"Together? With Tyke?"
"Not two, but four."
"Aha, Tyke and two others? Why did you go with them?"
"That… to carry the load…"
Aigoo.
Was he a porter?
"…You have suffered a lot too."
"So I am truly grateful to you."
"Yes, yes. Since you went with them anyway, can you tell me where you went?"
"May I speak…?"
Seeing a slight hesitation, I patted him on the shoulder and comforted him.
"I will make sure there is no disadvantage to you."
"Actually… I was just going to get a drink. I was just following orders! It's true that I brought alcohol into the barracks, but I was forced to do so. I didn't even drink."
That's why he hesitated. Bringing alcoholic beverages into the barracks is a violation of military law. It wasn't a big deal, but it was against the discipline and would cost him months of pay.
"I won't report what you were forced to do. And… Anything else special?"
"Something special?"
He was relieved now, trying hard to remember. After looking back at his memories for a few seconds, his face flashed as if he remembered something.
"A suspicious merchant. Yes, there was a suspicious merchant."
"A suspicious merchant?"
"Yes. I heard that there was a merchant wearing a black robe."
"Oh, that madman? I received a report that he was selling something suspicious. He apologized when the soldiers came and closed his business right away."
Fuck? Did he already leave?
"When was that?"
"Today. It happened a few hours ago."
Today, there were still possibilities. It would be very unfair if I used my pass to stay out and missed it.
"Can you tell me where he went?"
"How would I know that? Stop bothering me. If you're not going to buy anything, go away."
"Ah… Haha. Of course I'm going to buy something."
"Oh yeah? That would be a different story."
Oh, I said the wrong thing. This is a jewelry stall. Even though it's a street vendor, the prices are high. If I were going to buy anything, it would be from a food vendor for a cheaper price.
"I'll buy this. So can you tell me?"
I blindly chose an accessory in front of my eyes.
"Money first."
"Yes, yes."
If I asked if there was a cheap one, it seemed like I would only waste time arguing. I paid the price and took the necklace.
"Hmmmm, he's probably in the park next door."
"A park?"
"A guy who sells ridiculous things like that can't be making much money. There are rumors that he sleeps in the park next door at night."
A merchant who promotes items that curse or kill people. He must be starving.
"Thank you. I'll be going now."
After saying hello to the street vendor who had nothing to do with it, I ran to the park I had passed on my way here. The park, brightly illuminated by magical lights, was a popular spot for families and lovers to enjoy a night out. If he were to sleep here, he must have settled down in a place where there were not many magical lights.
While looking around the park with these thoughts in mind, a quarrel was heard in the distance. I went there and found a person quarreling with the soldiers.
"Could you please show your citizenship?"
"I've lost it?!"
"Why are you doing that when I'm just sleeping!"
"If you cannot identify yourself, you should be investigated. Can you show me your face first?"
A female voice came from inside the black-robed merchant.
"No, I do not want to! I have rights!"
"I don't know if there is a guardian who can prove that you are a citizen here, but if you really have lost your citizenship, you should go through an investigation first and get a new one issued."
I don't know what rights she has, but the soldiers accepted it.
"If you continue to do that, I will take you by force."
It would be a pain to have her get caught by the soldiers. That person, who is presumed to be a demon, has to be captured by me first.
"Even if it's a bit harsh, understand—."
The soldier who was talking stopped. The other soldiers asked why, but soon fell silent. Everyone changed with eyes possessed by something.
"Well, I'll show my citizenship, and you guys will go and say there's no problem. Understand?"
"Yes…"
After that, the soldiers took their steps one by one. They trudged along, weak as if hypnotized.
The woman in the black robes confirmed that the soldiers were completely gone and started to pack up grumblingly.
"Chi… They say it's hard to leave home… I'll have to get by here… Ahh, I was supposed to conserve my remaining mana, but I spent it on something like this…"
She's leaving here? You can't do that.
I approached her as she was eagerly packing her things. She looked up at me, halting as I stopped in front of her.
"It looks like you don't have enough money to stay at the inn. Can I lend you some money?"
Upon hearing my words, white eyes peeking through the black robe stared blankly at me. Oh, doesn't this look too deceptive? It seemed to be overtly enticing… I'll have to put some conditions on it.
"Of course, I'm not just going to give it to you."
"Thank you!"
She took this wholeheartedly.