Sir Monde, having been defeated by me as a knight, stood there blankly for a moment before quickening his pace to match mine.

"Are you from the Blake Kingdom?"

"I'm not from there."

"Then?"

"I was born here in the Maia Kingdom. A true Maia man."

"But why were you in Blake..."

"Let's just say I went on an unexpected trip."

"A trip?"

"Yes. Do you know how surprised I was to find Sherwood disbanded when I got back?"

Sir Monde looked at me with a surprised face.

"You were in Sherwood?"

"Of course. You could almost call me a founding member."

"Didn't you say your name was Ashuban?"

"That's right?"

"I've never heard of you."

"That's understandable. It's because I was Sherwood's secret weapon. The mercenary corps guys went to great lengths to keep me hidden. Only a few knew my true identity."

Of course, it was a lie, but Sir Monde seemed to believe it seriously.

"A secret weapon..."

Sir Monde crossed his arms and silently stroked his lips for a moment, then spoke to me as if he had realized something.

"So that's why you revived Sherwood? To gather the scattered members back together."

"Something like that. How can I just stand by and watch when walking disasters have been unleashed?"

"Indeed...!"

Sir Monde nodded, stroking his chin as if he understood.

I had answered his questions, so now it was my turn.

"Sir Monde."

"Hmm?"

"I heard you and Sir Lyle-Lye were in the same class of knights."

Monde nodded.

"That guy got kicked out of the Royal Knights before I did."

"The reason?"

"He was embroiled in a scandal with the daughters of noble families. It wasn't just one or two."

"Hmm. I see."

"Are you going to call him back too?"

"I have to."

"Hmm... I personally don't recommend it.

“It's for the public good. That sex fiend needs to be detained for the sake of all the women in Maia."

Sir Monde's eyes widened slightly.

"I didn't know Sherwood was such a moral place."

"The captain has changed, so the mercenary corps must change too. It's like letting a wolf loose in a pasture where sheep are playing. I can't just stand by and watch that."

"Oh...!"

"As the captain of the Sherwood Mercenary Corps, I will definitely take down that perverted knight in heat with my own hands. I will gladly dirty my hands for the sake of all the women in Maia."

Sir Monde looked at me with a slightly impressed gaze, then placed a hand on his chest and showed me the respect of a knight.

"I pay my respects to that noble will."

"It's only natural. But to put that guy behind bars, I need information. Have you heard anything?"

Sir Monde scratched the side of his head.

"I wonder. He's probably off seducing women somewhere again."

"I can guess that much myself. I need specific information. Anything? Even something trivial would be good."

"Hmm..."

Sir Monde crossed his arms and fell into thought for a moment.

"During his time as a royal knight, he did used to mutter about how there were many beauties in the north."

"He told me there were many open-minded beauties in the south."

"Ah, is that so? Well. That guy is crazy for women regardless of the region."

"..."

I had asked just in case, but as expected, there was no significant result.

Sir Monde, who had been deep in thought for a moment, suddenly spoke as if he had remembered something.

"Ah!"

"What is it?"

"It's not news about that guy Lyle, but. I think I heard something about one of the Sherwood members in the north beating down every magical beast he can find. Was it the Two-Faced Demonic Swordsman?"

"...There's no one who doesn't know about this."

I shook my head.

How much of a ruckus was he causing that there was no one who didn't know.

"Ah, you knew?"

"How could I not? Reports are flooding in from everywhere. Of course, I have to go catch him first."

Actually, I was planning to go find him after he had calmed down a bit, but things got complicated.

It seemed I would have to administer the sedative myself.

Of course, the sedative was my iron fist.

From ancient times, this was the medicine for a madman.

Sir Monde suggested a possibility.

"That guy Lyle-Lye might be in the north too."

"At a time like this?"

A madman seducing women in the north at a time when the worst monster wave in history is predicted?

"...That's entirely possible."

"Yep. That guy would do that and more."

"Perverted bastard."

"Trash bastard."

"A disgrace to the Royal Knights."

"A disgrace to Sherwood, too."

"Go die."

We amicably bad-mouthed the debauched knight Sir Lyle-Lye as we followed Princess Lily, who was hopping over the snow.

After bad-mouthing the pervert, seeing the girl hopping over the white snow like a mountain rabbit seemed to calm my mind and body.

"Has the princess learned the sword? Her movements are light."

"She neglected her magic to learn the sword. If she had loved magic as much as the sword, she could have become the second Red Witch."

"Is that so?"

"Of course. It's no exaggeration. The Mage Tower even tried to recruit her."

I followed Princess Lily, who was hopping ahead, listening to Sir Monde praise his master.

At the end of our path, a deer lay bleeding, its neck cleanly pierced.

The Night Sky Spear that had pierced its neck had already dissipated into the air.

"Wow! You pierced its neck cleanly from that far away?"

The princess, unafraid, was observing the deer that lay on the snow-covered ground, staining it crimson, with sparkling eyes.

I examined the fallen deer.

It was a rather plump one.

"Good. We can have a feast for the first time in a while."

Then, I tapped the shoulder of Sir Monde, who was just watching blankly.

"What are you doing? Aren't you going to carry it?"

"Me?"

"Then should I? The one who hunted it has to carry it too?"

"Uh..."

"Haven't you heard the saying, 'He who does not work, neither shall he eat'? So you were planning to just eat the meat without lifting a finger? If you don't want to, then don't. I'll carry it. Brother Dofang's cooking skills are amazing. If you don't want to eat, then don't. Get out of here, you freeloader. You're just like your classmate, Sir Lyle, you don't disappoint my expectations."

Princess Lily stepped forward.

"Don't worry, Ashuban. I'll carry it. I want to eat deer meat."

Sir Monde watched as Lily grabbed the deer's antlers and struggled to pull it, then sighed and approached.

"Step aside, Princess. You might get hurt."

Monde lifted the plump deer onto his shoulder and turned back the way we came.

Lily trotted after him.

"Sir Monde. Is it heavy?"

"Not really. It's about the same as you, Princess."

"Hmph. I'm not that heavy, you know?"

"Ouch. Don't pinch me. I'm carrying a deer right now."

I followed them leisurely, organizing my thoughts.

To be honest, the possibility of the debauched knight who loved women being in the north was not high. Meaning, he could be there, or he could not.

The probability of him not being there was high.

In that case, my goal remained unchanged.

I did not forget my priorities.

The pursuit of the debauched knight could be postponed.

Monster wave or whatever.

First, let's beat down the rampaging multiple-personality disorder.

The sound of that guy's laughter when he teased me after I came back from being beaten by the noble's son was still vivid in my ears.

He had laughed the loudest, I think.

That bastard.

"Alright. First, I'll beat up the wishy-washy multiple-personality disorder. The perverted knight is next."

Sir Monde, who was walking ahead, glanced back and cheered me on.

"It's a good thing to have a goal."

The curious princess looked at us and tilted her head.

"Huh? What is?"

It wasn't something to tell the innocent princess, so Sir Monde avoided answering as he walked ahead.

"It's just something."

"Hmph. What is it? Tell me too."

"Ouch, I told you not to pinch me."

I followed behind, watching the cute display of the friendly princess and her guardian knight.

The Heavenly Demon spoke. His voice was slightly excited.

[Are we finally meeting him? The Two-Faced Demonic Swordsman.]

"The time has come."

[I have heard of him many times through the mouths of others. But did you say he has multiple personalities?]

"Basically, two guys share one body. One is a swordsman, and the other is a mage."

[...Is that possible?]

"That's why he's a madman. He's what you could call a real madman."

The Heavenly Demon laughed lowly.

[He doesn't seem like an ordinary madman. Can you win?]

"Of course. Because I'm not an ordinary madman either."

[That is true.]

The Heavenly Demon acknowledged.

"Why do you think I was so engrossed in training? It was all for this day."

I smiled, pulling one corner of my mouth up at an angle like a vile villain.

"I'm going to kick his ass so hard. So he won't be able to sit on a chair for a while."

[That guy's ass.]

"Ah, since the Duke there is one of the Eight-Bladed Masters, it would be good to get my hands on a great sword while I'm at it."

[Hmm. There is much to do. We have to beat up the magical beasts too.]

"I've rested enough in Milgard, so it's time to move my body a bit."

The Heavenly Demon laughed lowly.

[I'm looking forward to it.]

"You too, Master? Me too."

[Hehe.]

"Hehe."

* * *

We headed north, and north, in the carriage.

The temperature dropped, and the wind grew colder.

No matter how much I tightened my collar, the cold northern wind would slip through the gaps in my clothes and prick my skin.

Of course, I was immune to heat and cold, so it wasn't a problem for me.

We took turns holding the reins.

Even the idler Sir Monde, who had adamantly refused to be the driver, saying he had to stay by the princess's side, eventually had to take his turn due to the princess's strict orders.

Serves him right.

We ran day and night.

We only rested when the horses were tired.

When I wasn't holding the reins, I mostly spent my time training.

In fact, I often went into training even when I was holding the reins.

This was because the horses drove themselves well along the road.

Anyway, when I wasn't the driver, I would mostly go up on the carriage roof and train while facing the whipping cold wind.

It was a new experience, but I was the master of the wind's martial art, the Fleeting Shadow Steps.

The wind and I were close friends.

When I treated the fierce north wind like a friend, they too played with my collar and hair and acted friendly.

I deliberately didn't bundle up my collar and willingly played along with their pranks with an open attitude.

As I did, I felt like I was getting a step closer to the wind.

Was it just a feeling?

Probably not.

While I was spending time on the carriage roof like that, I often received visits from other guests who must have felt stuffy staying inside the carriage all the time.

Linda would suddenly open the roof door and come up, sitting next to me shivering and with a runny nose.

Schmidt would also sit next to me silently, enjoying the wind and the scenery.

There were times when Dofang came up and chattered away next to me, and even the bored princess would peek her head out from the carriage roof and then clamber up to face the cold wind with me.

Every time that happened, afraid she would catch a cold, I would take Sir Monde's outer coat and wrap the princess up tightly with my own.

"Aren't you cold, Ashuban?"

"The cold is for the weak."

"Woooow..."

Later, they started coming up so often that it interfered with my training, so I had no choice but to take action.

I sat on the door on the roof and began my training.

When I blocked the entrance with my butt, the others accepted my refusal of their company, but Linda made my butt bounce several times, and then finally tried to climb up through the carriage window, only to be pushed by the strong north wind and almost fall off, but I caught her.

"Why do you keep climbing up? Do you want to die?"

Linda, despite almost falling from the carriage, smiled foolishly.

"Hehe. I was worried the Devil would be cold. I was going to keep you company."

"I don't need it."

"Mmmph..."

I pressed her numbing points, stuffed her back into the carriage, and put Schmidt in charge of her.

The road to the north was not entirely peaceful.

Naturally, because this was the Maia Kingdom.

There were attacks from bandits along the way, and large magical beasts also lurked around.

But they couldn't even lay a finger on the carriage before their souls and spirits were separated by the Sherwood members who happened to be bored.

Schmidt showed with his own body what would happen if you approached the carriage without permission.

Without a word, he brutally beat up both bandits and magical beasts and chased them away.

Dofang would chatter away while flicking his butterfly knife and slitting their throats.

Especially at night, only the glittering blade of the butterfly knife could be seen.

Linda, as if everything was a bother, just yawned and threw poison-coated needles to chase them away.

It was, of course, effective.

All the attackers, whether bandits or magical beasts, rolled on the ground.

Even Sir Monde, who had been cooped up in the carriage, was sometimes kicked out by the princess, who told him not to just watch but to help. Every time, he would grumble and take care of the approaching enemies.

Even at a glance, his skills were sharp.

On the outside, he just looked like an idler who was bothered by everything, but as Dofang said, his skills were certain.

I couldn't be sure, but it was to the point where I wondered if he could be compared to the royal knights of Blake.

As for me... I greeted the visiting guests by experimenting with the various techniques I had been training in.

For some reason, whenever I stepped up, the screams of the enemies were particularly loud.

I didn't know why.

And so, we eliminated all who stood in our way and headed north.

Along the way, we often witnessed a procession of refugees heading south, in the opposite direction of us.

They were presumed to be those who had heeded the rumors that the barrier would fall in the worst monster wave in history.

In fact, these were powerless peasants, and since their own lives and the lives of their families were at stake, it wasn't a situation where we could blame them.

Every time, the princess would personally get out of the carriage and press silver coins into their hands.

The refugees would bow their heads repeatedly, not knowing that the person who gave them money was the princess of a nation.

They probably thought she was the daughter of some noble family.

Also, we would often stop at nearby villages to rest.

The weather was getting colder, making it difficult to spend the night outdoors, and we also had the princess with us.

Every time, we could naturally get a feel for the atmosphere of the village, and it was generally gloomy or filled with anxiety.

An unexplainable anxiety was spreading like a disease.

I could feel the air of impending war.

We could also frequently see people packing their belongings in a hurry and leaving the village.

Every time we saw such a sight, the princess's once-bright expression grew darker.

I too began to feel the seriousness of the situation firsthand.

That the Maia Kingdom was facing its greatest crisis in history.

That we were now heading to stop the worst disaster in history, descending from the north.

This could lead to the downfall of the Maia Kingdom.

A wave of disaster made of magical beasts was about to crash against the barrier.

Was this the trial the old king had spoken of?

Was this the fate Ketel had spoken of?

I don't know.

I will simply cut down everything that stands in my way.

Whether it's a wave of magical beasts, an S-rank magical beast, a trial, or fate, there are no exceptions.

[A good resolve. A disciple of mine should naturally be so.]

The carriage cut through the darkness of the night, and received the cold sunlight of the day.

Finally, we arrived at the great northern city of Tundra, where the barrier stood tall.

(End of Chapter)