Death Can’t Sleep - Chapter 95

The weather was chilly now. It felt like winter had suddenly approached.

 

The mercenaries wrapped themselves in all the clothes they had. Even that was not enough, so they covered themselves with animal skins. Amarion tightened the collar of her cloak and looked out over the open wilderness.

 

The border was right in front of them. At their current speed, they would probably get to the gates by evening.

 

She was a little scared to set foot in the wasteland notorious for being dangerous, but these mercenaries had gained her trust. They were very skilled. Even if their swordsmanship skills were questionable, it seemed that it would not be difficult to cross the border without incident.

 

But suddenly, a dust cloud rose from behind.

 

“What is that?”

 

The mercenaries roared. She made eye contact with Victor and grabbed her sword’s hilt.

 

The sound of horseshoes pounded through the dust. They seemed to be soldiers, but for some reason she didn’t have a good feeling.

 

As they approached, they stopped the mercenary corps and cried.

 

“Hey, stop! Search them thoroughly!”

 

“What?!”

 

Mirage cried out in confusion.

 

The soldiers surrounded the mercenaries and began to search their wagons. A mercenary asked harshly.

“Hey, what are you guys doing? Under what pretense are you searching us?”

 

“We are border guards.”

 

A soldier replied bluntly.

“A report came in yesterday. Some men said that you are using strange magic and that you were going to cross the border illegally.”

 

‘Oh.’ 

 

Amarion bit her lip.

 

That must have been the bettors yesterday. As soon as they ran away, they reported them to the guards. How could there be so many rotten people in the world?

 

‘I’ll just be patient…’

 

But it was too late for regret. In the wagon, a huge amount of food and documents addressed to the mercenary king were found. It was more than enough evidence.

 

Of course, they weren’t caught crossing the border, so they wouldn’t be punished immediately… but she was sure they’d be locked up. Since the gatekeeper who led these men was a madman who liked to catch anyone he could.

 

Amarion eagerly looked at the knight standing among the soldiers. The knight wore a helmet, so his face could not be seen.

 

‘Is it really someone I know?’

 

She hesitated and looked back at Victor, but he was staring at the knight with a strange expression.

 

The knight ordered.

“Get off your horse and show your face. I have to verify your identity.”

 

Amarion opened her eyes wide.

 

She really couldn’t.

 

However, as a mercenary, there was no way she could resist the guards directly. She got off her horse and took off the hood she wore, which she hadn’t done, even when she was eating or drinking. White hair cascaded down her shoulders.

 

Mirage made a startled noise.

“Wildcat, you’re a Northerner?”

 

Amarion kept her mouth shut. Northerners stood out just by the color of their hair, so they hid it thoroughly.

 

When Victor took off his hat, the reaction was no different. The mercenaries sighed and whispered to her from all around.

 

“Where did you find that handsome guy? Let me know where you met him.”

 

Fortunately, they didn’t seem to know that they were from Morte, but was it really the time to say things like that?

 

Amarion stared at the knight pointedly. He told them to take off their hoods, but the knight didn’t even take off his helmet that completely covered his face. That’s why she didn’t know it was someone she knew. No, still, he knew Victor’s face, so why wouldn’t he let them go…?

 

The knight stopped in front of Victor.

“…”

 

Victor stared at the knight expressionlessly. That was the angry face of the ‘Grand Duke of Death’. Anyone in the Knights Templar would be appalled.

 

But to his surprise, the knight passed him without hesitation.

 

‘What?’

 

Amarion looked at him in confusion. Oddly enough, the knight looked rather pleased. She couldn’t see his expression because of the helmet, but she just had the feeling.

 

‘What’s so funny? Making your Lord angry?’

 

Even in the midst of her confusion, the knight who finished checking everyone’s identities gave an order.

“Take them all to the gate. I will interrogate them myself.”

 

‘Interrogation?!’

 

She was embarrassed, but this was also something she couldn’t resist.

 

Eventually she was dragged to the gate along with the others.

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

As soon as they reached the gate, they were split into two groups and thrown into prison.

 

“Hey, this is serious! We were so close to the gate too…”

 

“These days, the procedure has become tricky. Hold your tongue. They will release you after the investigation.”

 

Mirage spat out harsh swear words at the gatekeeper’s explanation.

 

She squatted in the corner of the prison, a little tired. The other mercenaries looked pretty familiar with it, but she was new to prison. The damp straw and the windows that did not let in much sunlight were very poor. Wasn’t it a difficult place to be confined in?

 

She had been living a good life…

 

Mirage asked.

“Wildcat, does anyone here know anything? That captain looks like a knight, too.”

 

“I don’t know. I couldn’t even see his face because of the helmet…”

 

“I’m going crazy. What a waste of time.”

 

The wizard was annoyed.

 

As she listened to him, the anxiety that she thought had disappeared rose again.

 

‘What if I’m too late?’

 

‘Even if they see Victor’s face, they will arrest him.’

 

‘What if that knight strictly obeys the law and accuses his Lord?’

 

Catalina always said that the Emperor or Capital nobles would catch any stray to keep the Grand Duke of Morte in check.

 

‘What if that happens to him on a journey that was taken because of me?’

 

It couldn’t happen.

 

‘I really, really hate it, but I have no choice but to defeat all the guards and run away with Victor…’

 

After a terrifying thought, someone entered the prison. It was the knight who led the guard. He pointed at her.

“You, follow me.”

 

The knight used a distinctive western dialect. To be honest, it was a dialect she didn’t remember at all.

 

‘Maybe he doesn’t know who I am?’

 

Amarion anxiously followed him out of the prison. But suddenly, the knight spoke softly.

“I greet my Lady, Grand Duchess of Morte.”

 

‘He knew!’

 

Amarion was stunned and looked at him.

 

The knight, as he did when he met Victor earlier, looked somewhat excited. Even though she couldn’t see his expression because of the helmet, she could feel him smiling.

 

‘What’s so funny?’

 

He assured her, sensing her worry.

“I’ve been looking forward to seeing you again, Madame.”

 

“…You’ve met me?”

 

“I have only seen you from a distance. I participated in the subjugation, in the Western Army.”

 

‘I see…’

 

Well, if she had seen him properly, there was no way she wouldn’t remember this unique pitch and accent.

 

‘Who is he?’

 

She was curious, but that wasn’t relevant right now.

 

She asked urgently.

“Do other soldiers know who Victor and I are?”

 

“No. How could I tell others about my master?”

 

Amarion breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank you for that. We are hiding our identities.”

 

“I thought so, so I pulled you aside separately. With his highness the Grand Duke, of course.”

 

“Victor too?”

 

Amarion opened her eyes wide and looked around. Victor was just emerging from the prison across the way.

 

“Victor!”

 

She ran towards him in a heartbeat.

“Are you okay? To let you enter such a messy, bug-infested place…”

 

“Marion, I’ve been there for less than an hour.”

 

Victor pointed out. His face turned red, but he persevered and brushed off the hem of his cloak.

 

The helmeted knight laughed.

“You look good, my Lord.”

 

“Shut up, Jane.”

 

Amarion opened her eyes wide.

 

Victor didn’t hide his annoyance for some reason. Anyone who knew him would probably feel embarrassed. The knight laughed casually.

“You’re so mean. To a knight who wears such a heavy helmet and works all day for his highness.”

 

“You use it because you want to.”

 

Victor said in an unusually ferocious tone.

 

‘Why are you wearing a helmet on purpose? Did you have something bad happen to you because of your appearance?’

 

Because there were still many bad people in the world who discriminated based on appearance.

 

Seeing her expression, Victor sighed and wrapped his arm around her waist.

“He’s not worth your concern, Marion.”

 

“…?”

 

“Have you ever heard of Sir Jane?”

 

Amarion tilted her head to the side.

 

She had heard of him before. Strangely, not from the knights, but from the ladies.

 

She frowned in wonder and asked.

“I don’t know how I know you. We’ve never met.”

 

“Um, maybe it’s because of ‘this’?”

 

The knight let out a laugh and click, unlocked the helmet. The hard armor was pushed up.

 

And she opened her mouth involuntarily.

 

“I will greet you properly, my Lady. I’m Sir Jane of Shaver.”

 

She had never seen such a beautiful-looking man in her life!

***