Join our separate discord server now: The Imperial Of BL
132
Several exchanges took place. Dein quietly gritted his teeth. Although there was not a trace of killing intent in the sword strikes that seemed conscious of it being a sparring match, he still felt as if he was being driven to the edge of a cliff. His hand, which had been frantically deflecting the sword, was now trembling.
He thought Arpel was strong, but not to this extent. If this was just sparring, what would it be like on a battlefield where life hung in the balance? A frivolous thought suddenly crossed his mind.
In fact, it was only natural that Arpel, a sword disguised as a human, would be more proficient with a sword than anyone else, but Dein, unaware of this fact, could only endlessly marvel. Perhaps it wasn’t a bad misunderstanding, as it reignited his will to train with the sword again.
“That’s enough.”
“I can do a little more!”
After a while, Arpel withdrew his sword. Or rather, he tried to. He would have if it weren’t for Dein, who kept requesting more sparring with eyes still full of enthusiasm.
Expressionless eyes blinked as they observed the opponent. Although the verification was already complete, the other party didn’t seem to want to end it. Arpel calculated in his head. Since he had arbitrarily requested the sparring, it wouldn’t be difficult to fight a little more if the opponent wanted to.
There was also a desire to stop seeing the middle-aged man’s sparkling eyes. Arpel belatedly realized that this was a slight discomfort.
Tak, tadak. A few more exchanges followed. Due to the silence all around, for a while, only the loud clashing of wooden swords echoed through the guild.
“…I’ve lost.”
The outcome was decided sooner than expected. It was natural. The previous sparring had lasted longer because Arpel had been adjusting the power in his sword to gauge Dein’s skills.
The cleanly deflected sword clattered as it rolled across the floor. Dein, rubbing his tingling wrist, gracefully accepted the result. It was partly because he hadn’t thought he could win in the first place.
“But why did you suddenly start sparring?”
Dein asked as he gathered up the fallen sword, his face looking rather refreshed. Arpel, handing him the sword, answered without much thought.
“I wanted to confirm whether you were an executive of the Salvation Church or not.”
“…Pardon?”
Thud thud thud. The wooden swords in Dein’s hands fell to the floor again, negating his effort in picking them up.
Arpel, who had dropped this bombshell, remained calm. He continued his actions as naturally as if he had just exchanged a simple greeting. Dein could only be momentarily dumbfounded as Arpel casually returned to the sofa where Rohan was sitting and took a seat.
His wavering eyes turned slightly. It was to check on Rohan, who was still maintaining silence. Although Rohan’s reactions had been strange today, Dein thought he would be better than Arpel, who had thrown out such an incomprehensibly shocking statement without even being aware of it. Of course, this was all Dein’s misunderstanding.
Although he had looked at Rohan to confirm if he had heard correctly, Rohan’s reaction was similar to his own. His dazed eyes were widened, staring at Arpel.
Perhaps feeling that intense gaze, Arpel turned his head a beat later and asked.
“What? Are you feeling unwell?”
…With an attitude that seemed not to understand what the problem was at all. What was more absurd was that his voice was full of concern for Rohan.
Dein quietly rubbed his forehead. Although he had met countless types of people before, Arpel was still difficult to understand.
“What… exactly do you mean by that…?”
Finally, Dein struggled to organize his thoughts… no, not organize. Unable to hide his confusion, he voiced his question. His barely squeezed-out voice trembled.
“Ah.”
Arpel then realized that his explanation had been insufficient. Glancing at Rohan, he slowly began to speak.
“Among the executives of the Salvation Church, there is one who can perfectly mimic the appearance of others. Their combat ability is significantly lower, so it’s easy to distinguish them through sparring.”
Dein was at a loss for words. He mulled over the words that were supposed to be an explanation several times. It was the explanation he wanted, but with everything cut short and stated abruptly, his brain was overloading trying to make sense of the cause and effect. The situation teetered on the edge of understanding and confusion.
“…So, you’re saying that one of the Salvation Church executives is hiding in this village?”
“Yes.”
Dein, who had barely organized his thoughts, blinked vacantly at Arpel’s firm answer.
He had heard that the green-skinned giant they had encountered earlier was also one of the Salvation Church executives. If it weren’t for Rohan and Arpel, the village would surely have faced a great calamity. If one was already this much trouble, to think there was another one.
That ability was also extraordinary. Isn’t it said that internal enemies are more frightening? He suddenly found himself in a situation where he had to constantly suspect everyone around him.
As he listened, several questions arose. How did they know about the executive’s existence and abilities? How did they know about their weakness…? But he couldn’t immediately voice these doubts.
When dealing with people, one sometimes senses a line that shouldn’t be crossed. Right now, facing Arpel’s unwavering eyes, was exactly such a moment. He instinctively felt that even if he asked, he wouldn’t get a proper answer.
“I understand. Thank you for telling me.”
So he was left with only one choice. To not ask anything, not doubt anything, and to constantly be on guard as Arpel had said.
Only then did the unsettling feeling lingering in a corner of his mind dissipate. He had somewhat unraveled the clue about the unnaturally poor relationship between the mercenary guild and the temple. If that ‘executive’ had been staying in this village for a long time, they could have easily instigated conflict between the two factions.
Dein, who even added that he would immediately detain and hand over any suspicious individuals, awkwardly rolled his eyes. Despite the neatly concluded conversation, he was constantly bothered by Rohan, who was still maintaining silence.
“We’ll be going now.”
“Well, you could stay at the guild if you like…”
“It’s fine.”
A firm refusal came back. As the two prepared to leave, Dein followed them to the door to see them off.
Arpel, leaving a final word of caution, left the guild with Rohan. Even after their backs were no longer visible, Dein stood still for a while before finally letting out a sigh of relief.
He had been so tense when he carelessly said they could stay longer, worried that they might accept. Being caught between the two, with their strangely different atmosphere from usual, had been unbearably difficult.
Dein slowly closed the guild door and shook his head, shaking off his complex thoughts. Now, it was time to turn the guild upside down.
***
There was no way Arpel couldn’t have noticed the strangeness that Dein had felt. Even while talking, hadn’t he quietly endured the numerous emotions pouring out from Rohan?
Although he had been concerned during the sparring, he couldn’t ask in front of others, so Arpel firmly rejected Dein’s offer and came outside. There was also a need to check on Casia’s condition, but for now, gauging Rohan’s mood was the priority.
“Rohan.”
Once they had moved sufficiently far from the mercenary guild, Arpel quietly called Rohan’s name. The pitch-black sky, the quiet street devoid of people, and the cool moonlight settling over it all. It wasn’t a bad atmosphere for a serious conversation.
“What is it?”
Although his expression had been unable to hide its complexity when leaving the guild, his voice answering now seemed no different from usual. If it weren’t for the faint hint of upset emotions, Arpel would have thought so too.
He didn’t provide an answer to the questioning voice. Instead, Arpel chose to quietly reach out and hold Rohan’s hand. The warm body temperature heated his fingertips.
“Are you… upset because I’m keeping a lot of secrets?”
After a few minutes of this, Arpel stumbled through his words. It was a concern that had been constantly popping up in his mind since Rohan’s mood had turned sour.
He had never told Rohan about the imperial experiments or about the ‘novel’. In the case of the former, he had no memories himself, so there was nothing to tell, but the latter was different.
Even the existence of ‘another executive’ was merely an inference based on a similar incident mentioned in the novel. However, he thought that to Rohan, bringing up the story of the executive might have seemed quite sudden. Then a small worry blossomed.
What if he blamed himself for not trusting Arpel? Or conversely, what if he was disappointed because Arpel was keeping so many secrets?
It was in the same vein that he cautiously asked Rohan the question. Even while waiting for an answer, his thoughts continued endlessly. If Rohan said he was too upset and distressed and asked him to reveal what he was hiding, how much should he disclose? Arpel probably wouldn’t be able to ignore Rohan’s eyes filled with earnestness. The future after that was predictable.
In the end, he would end up spilling everything about the secrets of this world and the existence of the ‘novel’. Arpel’s eyes sank as he envisioned the not-too-distant future. Perhaps Rohan would even accuse him, saying that his initial approach was also deception. For a moment, his heart ached.
“…Arpel?”
Rohan, who was about to answer Arpel’s question, read the clear anxiety etched on his face. It wasn’t just anxiety. Fear, self-blame, confusion… Arpel’s expression, stained with such emotions, was something unfamiliar to Rohan as well.
Rohan stopped in his tracks and quickly grabbed Arpel. He firmly held both of Arpel’s hands, the one he was already holding and the other one, and quietly observed his state. He continued to meet Arpel’s eyes silently while gently tapping the back of his hand with his fingertips as if to soothe him.
Perhaps it was because he saw the eyes still showing love. Slowly but surely, the shadows that had filled Arpel’s face were lifting.
“That’s not possible.”
Rohan whispered, facing the now calmed Arpel.
It didn’t matter when Arpel told him, as long as he just stayed with him, there was nothing more he could wish for. Arpel’s expression crumbled at the sincerity that poured out softly.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
