Chapter 40

Preparations were far from perfect, but time waited for no one, regardless of his growing dissatisfaction. In the end, Harold couldn't think of any countermeasure more effective than requesting cooperation from Tasuku.

Spreading rumors that the expedition was a trap would have been futile; without solid evidence, no one would believe him, even if he spoke the absolute truth. If there was anything else he could do, it was limited to urging Cody and the others to remain alert.

Not that it seemed to be doing much good.

He trudged slowly through a rocky expanse, leading a packhorse by its reins. Boulders of all sizes littered the path, and he felt as if the uneven terrain only added to the mental weight slowing his steps.

"Relax your shoulders, Harold. Your face is five times stiffer than usual."

Sid, walking alongside him, tossed the mocking remark toward Harold, who was looking visibly fed up.

The members of the Cody Squad had been telling him some variation of that nearly every day since the expedition began. They likely assumed he was high-strung because this was his first official mission.

While their interpretation was off, there was no denying his tension.

Unfortunately, Harold’s attempts to warn them—barking orders like "Don't lower your guard" or "Pay attention to your surroundings"—were being dismissed as the overreactions of a nervous recruit. Most of the experienced knights, Robinson included, viewed this mission as a low-risk, low-urgency patrol.

It wasn't that they were being negligent, but they radiated an air of relaxed composure. To put it bluntly, the atmosphere was far too loose.

"You lot are far too relaxed. If a fight breaks out, you'll be the first to die."

"A fight with who?" Sid asked.

"This is a patrol along the border. Those 'suspicious eyewitness' reports could easily be the Sarian Empire's men."

"Well, maybe. But even then, the intel says there are thirty of them at most. It's just a scouting party, right? We’ve got over two hundred men in this formation. Even if we do run into them, we’ll kick them back across the border and be done with it."

Sid had a point, rationally speaking. A thirty-man scouting party picking a fight with a well-equipped, well-supplied force in enemy territory would be a suicide mission. Because the knights understood the futility of such an act, they had concluded that combat was unlikely.

However, that logic only held if the prior intelligence was accurate. In this case, the very premise was likely a lie.

In the original story, this battle resulted in a massacre. It was safer to assume that ambushes and traps awaited them within the trees.

Harold found himself profoundly skeptical of how Sid could be so carefree, considering the man had nearly died in an encounter with an Eerie Cloud just the other day. Once we return alive, I’ll drill that composure right out of him, Harold thought darkly.

Clinging to his grim resolve, Harold delivered another warning, having lost track of how many times he’d already tried.

"If you value your life, be ready to fight at a moment's notice. Though I suppose for someone of your meager talent, it won't make much difference."

"Yeah, yeah."

To Sid, who had grown used to Harold’s acerbic tongue, it was like punching a cloud.

Harold felt the urge to simply scream the truth of the future at them, but without proof, he would only earn their suspicion or be branded a traitor.

He tried his best to instill a sense of crisis in the Cody Squad, but his efforts bore little fruit. Eventually, they arrived at the town bordering the Bertis Forest. This was to be their base of operations while they conducted patrols in and around the woods.

(Tsk... what now?)

They arrived in the evening. Once the next day's preparations were finished, Harold found himself with free time and began to wander aimlessly through the town, which was currently bathed in the orange glow of the sunset.

The streets were mostly empty given the hour. It wasn't a large town to begin with.

He walked the quiet streets, racking his brain for answers that refused to come. So much of his mental capacity was dedicated to his dilemma that he didn't realize his feet had led him into a deserted back alley.

He came to a sudden halt as he snapped back to his senses. He realized he was lost; he wasn't even sure which turns he had taken to get here.

He was appalled by his own lack of focus. Alone in the alleyway, the frustration slipped out.

"...Stop it already. How long do you intend to keep this up?"

Even when talking to himself, Harold’s voice remained haughty and high-handed.

In the next moment, figures emerged from the gloom. Clad in black, they seemed to melt out of the twilight like shadows brought to life. Their attire was strikingly reminiscent of ninjas.

Surrounded by this eerie group, Harold’s vigilance spiked to its maximum. An ambush?

Contrary to his expectations, the dozen or so figures remained motionless. Just as the standoff reached its peak, one of the black-clad figures stepped forward and lowered the cloth covering their face.

"It has been quite a while, Lord Harold~"

A slow, drawling voice broke the silence, completely out of place with the tension of the moment. Though her outfit had changed significantly from her usual apron, the woman was undoubtedly Yuno, Erika’s attendant.

The tension drained out of Harold’s body, replaced by a wave of relief.

"Tasuku’s messenger, I see."

"Yes~"

The assistance he had managed to wrest from Tasuku during their negotiations had finally arrived. He was grateful that the man had kept his word and dispatched personnel.

However, he was surprised to see Yuno among them. To put it bluntly, this kind of work seemed far too dangerous for a maid. Then again, if she had been sent, she might possess hidden talents; it would explain how she managed to serve as Erika’s bodyguard.

"I’m surprised that man actually allowed you to come here."

"Yes~ Lady Erika told me, 'Do as you please'~"

(Hmm?)

Yuno’s response felt slightly off. Harold had assumed that Erika and Yuno had been forced into this by Tasuku’s orders. But Yuno’s words implied that she had come here of her own volition.

The thought snagged in Harold's mind, but he didn't have the luxury of dwelling on it.

"Hmph, whatever. How much have you lot been told?"

"The gist of it~"

Yuno kept it vague. Even in a deserted alley, this wasn't a conversation for the open air. There was no telling who might be listening.

"We’re moving. We'll discuss the details elsewhere."

"This way, then~. We’ve already prepared a room away from prying eyes~"

They were efficient, as expected of Tasuku’s people.

At Yuno’s signal, the other figures vanished back into the shadows. Apparently, she would be his sole guide. When Harold turned back to her, he was met with that same soft, peaceful smile.

Looking at her, Harold offered a silent prayer. Please, just don't screw up the support.

---

Three days had passed since they arrived at the town nearest the Bertis Forest. While performing his duties as a support unit, Cody maintained his usual easygoing facade, but inwardly, he was troubled.

The source of his anxiety was the boy who had recently joined his squad: Harold.

Cody was monitoring the boy at the request of Vice Commander Vincent—his old friend and the number-two man in the Order—but doubting his own subordinate left a bad taste in his mouth.

The problem was that Harold provided plenty of reasons to be suspicious.

Initially, Cody had been preoccupied with the boy's overwhelming combat prowess, but his suspicions had solidified during their encounter with that mysterious red-black mist during the entrance exam.

It was an unidentified monster. Yet, Harold’s reaction had suggested he knew exactly what it was.

Though the boy claimed it was merely intuition and acted as if he were seeing it for the first time, he had effectively demonstrated to Cody and the others exactly how to defeat it. Had Cody not been tipped off by Vincent, he might have overlooked the strangeness of the act.

It wasn't an action that harmed the Knight Order, but if Harold knew something, why use such a roundabout method?

(It makes sense if he's trying to hide the fact that he knows about "that thing" at all,) Cody mused.

He had no idea why the boy would feel the need to hide it. For that matter, they didn't even know what the mist was. Perhaps if they identified the monster, Harold’s behavior would start to make sense.

But there was no time for such leisurely investigations. Whether it was fighting style or monsters, Harold clearly knew things an ordinary person shouldn't.

Furthermore, when the boy had learned he was being assigned to this expedition, he had been visibly shaken. Since the mission began, he had done nothing but repeat warnings to "prepare for an attack."

It was as if he knew something was coming.

There was also the matter of Harold disappearing during his free time in town.

Cody couldn't shake his bad premonitions. The other knights thought the boy was just nervous about his first mission, but Cody knew Harold wasn't the type to get cold feet. Even if he were terrified, he wasn't the sort of boy to show it so blatantly.

That realization only made Harold’s persistent warnings more alarming.

Should he force the boy to talk? He doubted Harold would ever confess under pressure, but if lives were at stake, Cody might have to resort to hard measures as his commanding officer.

(But then again, Harold is one of my precious subordinates, too.)

That was Cody’s unwavering belief, and the root of his conflict. Having spent several months with him, Cody knew the boy wasn't as malicious as his persona suggested. He was hiding something, certainly, but he had done nothing to betray the Order.

He wanted to believe in Harold. It was a natural impulse for a commander. But "believing because I want to" was a dangerous path. Unconditional trust was just another word for being blind. He had Vincent’s request to consider; he couldn't just let this go.

Cody let out a long, heavy sigh. Thinking about it wasn't getting him anywhere.

What if he just walked up to the boy and said, "Hey there, morning! So, Harold-kun, what are you hiding?"

Being that blunt might actually catch the boy off guard. Nah, probably not, he thought, dismissing the idea.

Still, even if it didn't suit his style, a heart-to-heart might be necessary. If something was going to happen during the patrol, they were running out of time.

He had just decided to seek Harold out when a messenger burst into the officers' room with enough force to nearly take the door off its hinges.

"R-Report! One of the patrol units is under attack! Multiple casualties! They’re requesting immediate reinforcements!"

The room erupted into movement. Cody was the fastest to react. He threw open the door to the common room where twenty of his men were stationed and barked out orders.

"It’s showtime. Grab your gear and muster outside. Robin-kun!"

"Y-Yes!"

"Where’s Harold-kun?"

"He was just here, but he slipped out a moment ago..."

Cody was too late. The boy was already heading for the front. He knew it instinctively.

"Cody Squad is to follow Malik Squad's lead. I’m going to find Harold-kun. Don't wait for me!"

"P-Platoon Leader!?"

Ignoring Robinson’s shout, Cody sprinted to the stables. The groom confirmed that no horses had been taken. Harold likely realized that a new recruit had no authority to requisition a mount during an emergency.

That meant Harold was heading for the Bertis Forest on foot. If Cody took a horse, he could catch him.

Borrowing a mount, Cody galloped toward the forest. In less than five minutes, he spotted Harold’s back.

Even so, the boy’s speed was terrifying. It had taken longer to catch him than Cody had anticipated. He galloped past, cut the boy off, and leapt from his horse to block the path.

"Where are you going in such a hurry, Harold-kun?"

"...You? What about the others?"

"Robin-kun and the boys? I left them under another squad's command."

"Go back. You’re their captain."

"So are you. Why don't we head back together?"

"I refuse."

A flat rejection. Harold intended to act alone. The boy had to know the consequences: ignoring orders and acting independently on a battlefield was a court-martial offense. It was beyond Cody’s power to protect him from that. At best, he’d be dismissed; at worst, imprisoned.

And yet, the boy clearly had a reason he couldn't turn back. Harold was a boy who would never bend his convictions. He possessed a terrifying strength of will. Persuasion would be a waste of breath.

Stubborn subordinates are such a pain, Cody thought with a wry smile.

"It’d really help me out if you just came back quietly, you know?"

"You're tedious. Get out of my way."

"I can't just say 'okay' and let you go. You don't want to end up in the brig, do you?"

Of course, that assumed they survived. Looking into Harold’s eyes, Cody saw everything he needed to know. Those were the eyes of a man who had already accepted his own death. Cody had seen that look many times before. Often, the people wearing it didn't come back.

"..."

"Silent? Then let me be clear."

He couldn't just stand by and watch a subordinate with those eyes march off to a slaughter. Vincent had his doubts, but Cody saw something else. From the moment he’d first met the boy, Cody had seen a glimpse of the future.

He saw the man who would one day lead the Knight Order.

Perhaps it was Cody’s own selfishness. An imposition of his own ideals. He was projecting a future that he and Vincent might never reach onto this boy.

And because of that, he refused to let him die.

Cody took a deep breath, planting his feet to show he wouldn't be moved. He drew his sword, fully aware that he was acting out of character.

With his usual, lighthearted grin, he made his declaration.

"If you want to pass, you'll have to go through me! ...Or something like that."