Chapter 75 : Chapter 75

Chapter 075. To Us, Tomorrow (3)

Meanwhile, Bonnie and Clyde were spending a busy night.

Even though they had only stayed a few days, there was quite a bit to sort out.

Their temporary hideout was a dilapidated village tucked away in the wild hills of Ludglen.

Until recently, it had been called “Firefield Village.”

“Hey, you want this?”

Bonnie handed a book to Annil, Anderson’s daughter.

The leather binding, worn with age, was tattered and frayed, as if exhausted by the passage of time.

“What is it?”

“A basic mana studies book. I heard you’re interested in magic.”

“……”

“Hey! This is hard to come by, you know. It’s a first edition written by the founding leader of the Imperial Magic Corps. Sure, it’s old and worn, but if you put it up at an auction, people would line up to bid on it.”

“Then why don’t you sell it yourself instead of giving it to me?”

“Ha, unbelievable. I’m just saying, who would be so crass as to sell a cherished book for money? It’s enough if it goes to someone who needs it. Fine, if you don’t want it, forget it.”

“Who said I didn’t want it?”

Annil snatched the book quickly.

Bonnie, turning away as if she couldn’t care less, had a faint smile tugging at her lips.

Clyde, watching the two from a distance, quietly averted his gaze.

A soft sigh escaped him.

Of all things…

He had anticipated from the start that Anderson wouldn’t comply easily.

Their plan was to escape with the hostage and then give Anderson a deadline.

While stalling for time against the private soldiers blocking their escape, the moment Bonnie revealed the hostage she had smuggled out of the mansion, Clyde’s mind went blank.

If I’d known it was a girl her age, I wouldn’t have gone there in the first place.

Clyde swallowed his complaints silently.

In front of Bonnie, he couldn’t even open his mouth.

Trying to ignore it, he continued packing, but the sound of bickering came from behind again.

“If you’re going to give me something, why not something useful like Understanding Practical Magic or Fundamentals of Elemental Magic? This is just boring and dull.”

“Mana is the foundation of all magic. Talking about practical stuff without knowing the basics? Kid, ignorance isn’t a crime, but it’s not something to brag about either.”

“Yeah, yeah, I don’t need a lecture from a kidnapper, okay?”

Even so, the girl’s eyes remained glued to the open book.

The chirping of crickets in the distance and the sound of turning pages from the old book created a serene harmony.

In that moment, Bonnie and Clyde felt something peculiar.

If a god existed, it was as if they had closed their eyes for a brief second.

Bonnie, gazing at Annil, spoke softly.

“…Don’t become a mage.”

“What? You just gave me this book to read.”

“It’s not worth doing and do you really need to choose a hard path? Your family has deep ties with the Conwells. Unless something drastic happens, they’re not likely to strip you of your title. Just live quietly, marry the man your father picks as a son-in-law, and live happily ever after. What better life is there for a woman? I’m jealous, kid.”

Annil slammed the book shut.

Startled, Bonnie flinched.

A heavy silence settled between them.

Clyde, who had been watching cautiously from a distance, took a tentative step forward, but Annil spoke first.

“Why don’t you worry about yourself?”

“…What?”

“Let’s say you escape Conwell. Do you think Lord Theodore will meet with you? You’d be lucky if he doesn’t hunt you down and hand you over to the Archduke.”

Bonnie started to snap back but stopped, her breath catching.

Annil’s large eyes were trembling, on the verge of tears.

“Even if Bihen Benkou is there, what, is he going to fight a war alone? Look at you, being hunted like this. My father said the same thing. It’s only a matter of time before Lady Adeline gets caught. Why fight a losing battle, especially when you’re not even nobles…”

“……”

Bonnie and Clyde were overwhelmed, not by the words themselves, but by the audacity of a fourteen-year-old’s eloquence.

Annil wiped away the tears that had welled up with the back of her hand.

“Surrender. I’ll talk to my father. He’ll do anything I ask. I can say I want you both as my personal tutors. Then we could live together in our mansion. So please… okay?”

Clyde turned away, as if he couldn’t face her, and stepped outside.

The mountain air made the early winter chill all the more vivid.

A cold breeze brushed past Clyde’s reddened eyes.

Three and a half days.

More than enough time for the two of them to grow attached to a fourteen-year-old girl.

During that time, to Bonnie and Clyde, Annil wasn’t a hostage but a midsummer night’s dream.

* * *

In front of Anderson’s mansion.

A group had gathered in small clusters to punish Bonnie and Clyde.

Kiiing—!

Anderson raised his right hand, gripping Zahara, high into the air.

“Follow me!”

“……”

Ten private soldiers from the mansion and about thirty mercenaries stared up at Anderson.

Some, unsure how to react, furtively glanced around.

“Ahem, ahem! Let’s go!”

Anderson tugged the reins.

The plate armor covering his body gleamed sharply in the sunlight.

But unaccustomed to its weight, Anderson was already sweating profusely.

Clop, clop—

The sound of hooves echoed along the road.

The low, rhythmic clatter as they left Haspeld created a strangely calm atmosphere.

However, Anderson, leading the march, had a clear look of displeasure on his face.

Already on edge, he was irritated by someone who kept catching his eye.

…What’s with this guy?

The mercenary leader was riding alongside him, matching his pace and he was doing so with an infuriatingly relaxed posture.

Is this right?

Anderson glanced around discreetly.

Charles, acting as a tactical advisor, and a standard-bearer carrying the family flag rode beside him, while the rest of the soldiers and mercenaries followed on foot.

So far, so good…

He turned his head and shot a sidelong glance at the mercenary leader.

It was bad enough that he hadn’t asked permission to ride, but for a mere mercenary to act as if he were on equal footing with a knight like Anderson was utterly unacceptable.

Unable to hold back, Anderson spoke up.

“Your horse looks quite fine, doesn’t it?”

“Does it? I wouldn’t know.”

Anderson nearly let out a hollow laugh, dumbfounded.

Not only did the man miss the point of the question, but he was casually muttering ambiguous responses as if it were nothing.

Frowning, Anderson glared at Charles, signaling him to do something about this insolent fool.

Charles quickly whispered.

“He’s got a prickly personality, but it seems his skills are top-notch. He’s well-respected among the mercenaries. Apparently, he’s only here because he’s worried about his men and doesn’t even care about his own pay.”

Anderson’s eyebrow twitched.

On second thought, the man didn’t seem entirely without merit. What could he expect, anyway?

Mercenaries were crude and lacked manners.

Pointing out every flaw would only make Anderson look petty.

Calming himself, his anger subsided somewhat.

Still, the fact that the man had his face tightly wrapped in a mask, leaving only his eyes visible, was grating.

Keeping his thoughts to himself, Anderson asked,

“Are you from Conwell? What’s your name? I keep my ears open for rumors in that world, so I might have heard of you.”

“I can’t reveal that yet.”

“Right, of course. You can’t reveal… wait, what?”

“By the way, you seem quite cautious. Isn’t mobilizing this many troops just to catch two people a bit excessive?”

Anderson felt as if he’d been struck in the back of the head.

Before he could address the man’s tone, his wounded pride flared up.

“Do you not know who Bonnie and Clyde are? They’re key figures under Lady Adeline! Those vile scoundrels kidnapped my daughter! Excessive? What’s excessive?!”

“I know exactly who they are. My point is, with your daughter being held hostage, wouldn’t it be more rational to meet their demands than risk a fight?”

“What? Rational…?”

The mercenary leader’s exposed eyes rolled toward Anderson.

“I’ve heard your family has great merit from past generations. If so, do you really need to curry favor with the Archduke? From another perspective, you’ve essentially driven those two out of Conwell, so you’ve gained both profit and justification.”

“You—how dare you spout such nonsense…!”

“Just a word of caution, so let it pass. It’s important that the mercenaries don’t get hurt, but I’d also prefer to avoid a situation where a child watches their father come to harm right in front of them. Of course, I’m not planning to stand by idly either.”

Naturally, this included ensuring Bonnie and Clyde’s safety.

Bihen, adjusting his mask, nudged his horse forward with a tap of his foot.

By the time the sun was high in the sky, Anderson’s punitive force arrived at the promised hill.

Ludglen, still recovering from a lack of administrative oversight, had no significant checkpoints.

Firefield Village.

Bihen couldn’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia.

To think I’d come back here.

If Yeats hadn’t wiped out Fred’s gang that day, things might have gotten complicated.

As a result, the now-abandoned Firefield Village had become Bonnie and Clyde’s refuge, and Bihen couldn’t help but marvel at the strange twists of fate.

“Surround the cabin and spread out widely.”

At Charles’s command, the mercenaries, tense, first looked to Bihen for approval.

Bihen nodded silently.

It was okay.

Only then did the mercenaries begin to move hesitantly.

Though called mercenaries, they were former serfs who had been tilling fields until recently.

They had no combat experience to speak of.

Even with Bihen’s presence reassuring them, the tension was inevitable as the situation unfolded.

It’s nerve-wracking even now…

A boy from Canchester, who had confided in Bihen, pressed a hand to his chest, trying to calm himself.

It was overwhelming.

The others were no different.

An inexplicable pressure made their throats dry.

Every disguised serf-turned-mercenary shared the same thought: if this was the tension here, what would a real battlefield be like?

They couldn’t even imagine it.

While Bihen’s presence brought relief, it also inspired awe.

“Hey, mercenary.”

Bihen, watching the mercenaries take their positions, turned his head.

It was Anderson.

Charles and another soldier were adjusting his armor, but Anderson ignored them, staring intently at Bihen with blatant displeasure.

“I won’t argue further with a fight ahead, but we’ll settle this afterward. If you thought I’d overlook your arrogant behavior, you’re gravely mistaken. I’ll deal with it, mark my words.”

“Do as you will.”

At the curt reply, Anderson felt his blood boil. His eyelids twitched with rage.

That bastard… I’ll make him pay.

Unaware of this, Charles spoke urgently.

“Sir Anderson, please remember. With the young lady there, don’t provoke them unnecessarily…”

“Tch! Do you think I’m a child? Enough! That fellow, what’s his name, Bihen Benkou. Any sign of him?”

“We’ve checked everywhere, and it seems he hasn’t been near Haspeld. Don’t worry.”

“Hm, that’s good then. That lunatic crashed an execution to save his comrade. Who knows? He might pop up out of nowhere here.”

“Oh, Sir Anderson, making jokes like that? Looks like I can relax a bit, eh? Hahahahaha!”

“You’re something else. Hahahahaha!”

Caught between them, Bihen merely blinked.

Tip: Tap/click the left or right side of the screen to go to previous/next chapter.