Black Badger

When Kyle woke from sleep, he was forced to face a cruel reality.

Those who had waited for him alone while he lay in a coma for decades.

A body so wasted that he could not even walk properly. Swordsmanship, naturally, pitifully rusted. The fact that he had lost. Rei, who had rampaged while burning Earth and humanity, reduced to ash and gone.

And the one who had stabbed a sword into the rampaging Rei had not been one of their kin.

It had felt strange from the moment Hildebert began crossing blades with him. A duel where both sides were staking their lives—yet he had come holding a sword that was not his own? Just as Kyle himself had done, Hilde, too, had never wanted to let his own sword stray far from his body if at all possible.

It was odd, but he had not thought too deeply about it at the time. He had not had the luxury to do so.

And it was not a situation that made absolutely no sense. Hilde had brought Yvon’s sword with him.

Kyle had assumed he had deliberately taken a subordinate’s sword for the sake of revenge—but that was not the case.

Hilde had handed his sword over to a human.

To a swordsman, a favored blade was like a fragment of one’s own soul.

And he had placed it directly into a human’s hands, to stab Rei.

“If all three of us had died together on the same day, or if Rei had lived as well, that’d be one thing.”

At this point, there was no turning back.

“And to even kindly teach them swordsmanship just to kill a friend.”

In a situation like this, who other than him could possibly have the right or the qualifications to carry out Rei’s revenge?

Ah—but his kin dreamed of revenge as well. They had preserved those burning emotions across generations. Awakening while surrounded by people like that, it was easy for his own feelings to be fanned into flame. Those born while he slept had grown up listening to songs of vengeance sung by their parents.

‘They say children should only run and play, but everyone’s wounds were deep.’

That had been Valdez’s explanation.

That one of the Swordmasters they had looked up to and relied on had passed away, and another had fallen into a coma, did not help.

‘You do not need to bear all of those emotions alone, Commander.’

Kyle, who had grasped the major points of the situation within a single day of awakening, sighed after hearing Valdez’s words.

‘You cared for a Swordmaster who was no different from a corpse, and somehow survived without starving. You’ve all been through a lot.’

‘I never doubted for a single moment that you would open your eyes.’

The spell-knight said this while kneeling.

Seth, one of the subordinates Kyle cherished, even grabbed his hand and cried shamelessly, thanking him for coming back.

He cried so much that Kyle, who had been holding back out of consideration for the circumstances, finally snapped.

‘Stop crying already, you bastard. It’s creepy.’

‘You can’t even walk properly with all your muscles gone, but that mouth of yours still works.’

Hekate, in contrast, burst into laughter.

‘That’s a relief. At least your brain cells haven’t degenerated.’

A land inhabited only by their kin.

He had worried it might be miserable, but it was not as despairing as he had braced himself for. If anything, when Kyle stepped outside the building with support, he felt a strange sense of nostalgia.

Hadn’t he lived like this before kneeling to the Empire?

It was even more prosperous than back then. Unlike before, the land they had settled was fertile, and the remnants of human civilization left behind were quite useful.

They could not live as comfortably as they had with Earth’s modern civilization, but they were people who had been born and raised without modern civilization to begin with.

A high, clear sky.

Crops swaying with the wind.

Air made sweet by the complete disappearance of automobiles.

If humans did not exist, he might even be tempted to calm his kin’s anger and let them live this leisurely life. Of course, Kyle knew that was an absurd thought. Those nauseating Elders would never forget them.

And besides, he himself had no intention of forgetting anything.

If Rei were alive, things might have been different.

But like this, the story always circled back to Rei, who had burned to ash and died.

Rei was—

“Commander.”

Valdez suddenly appeared at the window.

“What.”

Kyle was not startled.

“You told me to rest. I am resting.”

“I have something to say.”

Kyle nodded, signaling him to continue.

Valdez pushed his glasses up and stared at Kyle’s face for a long while.

The subordinate continued standing outside the window....

“Why don’t you come in?”

“I’d rather not.”

“Well, fine. Do as you like.”

“Commander.”

Valdez called him again.

Looking at Kyle raising one eyebrow, the man spoke seriously.

“Ever since you woke up, it feels like turning points keep appearing.”

Suddenly, flattery?

Kyle snorted.

“Even if you ride me a dragon, I won’t give you anything.”

“I mean it. I realized I hadn’t said this yet. Just when we were starting to feel lost after the Archmage’s plan fell apart, another new path opened up. Until you woke up, all we really did was cling on and survive....”

“And what could be more impressive than that.”

“I have never once regretted pledging my loyalty to you.”

Ignoring Kyle’s indifferent tone, Valdez continued.

Kyle was used to Seth’s constant praise, but Valdez’s flattery was rare. He straightened his upper body, which had been leaning against a large pillow.

“Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

“...I’m asking you to help me keep being able to offer that loyalty.”

The mage’s voice suddenly grew quiet.

“The living must live on, mustn’t they.”

Kyle’s lips stretched.

Watching the mage silently with a smile, he reached out and ruffled Valdez’s hair.

“What do you think you’re doing!”

“You’ve grown a lot.” 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

“Do you even understand what I’m saying?”

Valdez glared at him as he fixed his crooked glasses.

“I’m serious!”

I know.

But Kyle had no different answer to give the mage he favored.

So he let out a small laugh and leaned back onto the bed.

Valdez, apparently having expected this sort of response, let out a heavy sigh.

“And this is a separate matter, but Pheibes is scheduled to come out of Core 5 with a collaborator.”

“No particular problems?”

“Yes.”

Good.

One small worry disappeared. They sometimes stuck straws into the Core, but at times they also sent seasoned individuals inside. That was only possible because magic could conceal one’s sixth sense.

Still, erasing one’s sixth sense did not guarantee complete safety from Black Badger or the Elders, so news of Pheibes’s safe return °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° was excellent.

Whether he had actually done proper work inside would have to be judged later.

“The collaborator coming out with him is also said to be very trustworthy.”

“Even if he isn’t, we can just put an oath on him.”

Kyle replied lightly to Valdez’s explanation.

“Cast it yourself.”

At the instruction, Valdez nodded.

“That was my intention.”

“When are they arriving?”

He received the arrival schedule.

Kyle listened to the ensuing report without interruption. As always, there was nothing in the sequence of events that required special attention.

Unless an Archmage-level mage appeared, an oath could not be broken. That was why Kyle could face collaborators with ease, or shove them into the Core without worry.

Back when he was in the Empire, he had not liked mages all that much.

After coming to Earth, Kyle came to understand perfectly why the Emperor had tried so hard to keep mages in the imperial capital.

“Lastly, since you were resting, I debated whether to report this tomorrow, but I was worried I’d get chewed out for reporting late, so I’ll report it now.”

“That’s the right call. What is it?”

“Additional menu items have arrived from the restaurant.”

Kyle straightened his back.

The restaurant was the term they used for their most treasured informant.

A presence staying in Center Core and sending higher-quality information than anyone else.

The menu naturally referred to information. Kyle was about to extend his hand out the window, then reconsidered and stood up from the bed instead.

Ignoring Valdez’s grumbling that this was exactly why he had not wanted to report it, Kyle stepped outside the building.

“Give it to me.”

After receiving the documents directly from the mage, he hammered their contents into his head.

Information transfer carried out in a rather analog manner due to the lack of communication.

The moment he finished reading, he let out a breath like a sigh.

“So it’s still not time to move.”

“Yes. Not for a while.”

“That’s a relief. Please continue resting. I’m truly afraid of Sir Seth’s retaliation—”

“Where is the Archmage right now?”

Kyle rolled the paper into a tube and held it in his hand as he craned his neck.

Valdez snapped, “Commander!” in irritation, but Kyle let it go in one ear and out the other.

Instead, he turned at once and walked across the grounds where familiar scents and sounds mingled.

There was no need to go out of his way to meet him.

“I’ll give you a ride.”

A blond mage with his eyes covered appeared before him in a rush of flame.

Despite the heat surging toward him, Kyle did not blink.

Silently, he extended the hand holding the rolled paper and looked at Meierbold’s braided hair.

Had he entered the Core on his own whim, Hilde would have cut him down with his sword.

It seemed he had grown his hair out with magic in the meantime.

Fwoosh!

The paper in Kyle’s palm ignited in an instant.

Kyle did not move his hand until it burned to ash and vanished.

“Looks like new information has come in.”

Meierbold let out a small laugh as he looked at the knight staring coldly at him.

“Is it news about that World Tree degenerate?”

“It’s more useful than that.”

Kyle answered briefly.

“Listen and engrave it into your head.”

Meierbold listened quietly.

He did not interrupt Kyle’s explanation, nor did he spew his usual arrogance-laden remarks. He simply floated in the air with his hands behind his back and listened.

Even to Kyle’s question of ‘Have you fully taken it in?’ once the briefing ended, he only gave a heavy nod.

“There will be no disruption to our plans. No matter what situation arises.”

“Thank you.”

Kyle replied with a voice filled with sincerity.

“I’ll be counting on you until that moment.”

Meierbold twisted his lips into a crooked smile.

Then he nodded once more, as if he knew exactly how much weight that request carried.

Though he did not maintain that attitude to the very end.

The moment his business was done, Kyle gave a small nod and turned away.

The mage slid along behind the knight as he strode forward.

“Unlike the two Knight Commanders, Lord Renyr was always courteous toward mages.”

Then he started spouting unnecessary chatter.

Kyle did not look back.

But neither did he stop the arrogant old noble from following along, lighting fires across the dry ground as he came. He knew that if he responded coldly with ‘I’m busy,’ the man would back off.

“The second son of House Renyr did like magic quite a lot.”

He did.

“That’s probably why Lord Rei Renyr was the knight with the deepest understanding of magic. He was a true Swordmaster. He knew the law, and he knew courtesy. Even now, I’ve never seen a knight as fine as him.”

“I know.”

“Why did he rampage?”

The mage asked.

Because Rei had to hold the point.

It had been a strategic chokehold. That was how Kyle remembered it. It was important to both the enemy and them, so both sides staked their lives on it. Rei threw away his life to secure victory, and the humans ground down dozens of units and poured out ammunition without restraint.

What would have happened if the humans had not gone out carrying Hilde’s sword at the time?

Kyle had thought about that once.

Even so, the fact that Rei would have died did not change.

“And his sword?”

Kyle let out a long sigh at the mage’s question.

“It broke. I have it in my possession.”

“It was a fine sword. A treasured blade passed down through the count’s family.”

Meierbold fell silent for a moment, as if lost in thought, then spoke again.

It seemed this was what he had wanted to say all along.

“I heard it was a sword that carried a legend of having once kindled aura long ago. That’s why it was cherished and preserved across generations.”

Kyle stopped in place and turned.

Meierbold also turned to face him.

It felt as though eyes hidden behind cloth were looking straight at him.

“Aura is not a concept that exists only in legends.”

The Archmage said.

“When I was very young—before the Emperor you served was even born—I once saw sword energy that was presumed to be aura.”

Words spoken by a being who had disregarded lifespan even before immortality was discovered.

“So if you wish to see revenge fulfilled, try to kindle aura.”

Kyle stood with his hands shoved into his pockets, looking at the mage.

He faced him while standing in the wind, wearing an unreadable expression.

Without mentioning that he already had a way to carry out revenge, regardless of how things unfolded.

Separately from his hatred toward Hildebert, Kyle thought that trying to master aura itself was not a bad idea, and he smiled.

“I’ll try.”

It was the smile of a hyena.