[You looked at the man before you, an odd expression creeping into your eyes.]
["Blade" Yaven noticed your look. He raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile whether you had heard of him.]
[You honestly told him what you had learned. Who hadn't heard of the famous Red Brotherhood agent?]
[The people in the room burst out laughing. One of them told you mockingly that "Blade" Yaven was merely one of the Red Brotherhood's agents in Marleons. The other was Lady Sophia, the proprietress of the Green Vine Tavern, and she was the one who ran most of their business here.]
[You looked at Lady Sophia in astonishment. You couldn't understand how such a beautiful woman could be so venomous, because you knew the Red Brotherhood didn't just sell elves. They would do anything for money, and there was nothing they wouldn't sell.]
[Lady Sophia smiled gracefully at your surprise and said that, since you already knew a few things, you were practically halfway to being one of them. She could tell you about the assignment ahead of time.]
[As it turned out, you had caused all of this. The elven woman you had rescued from the Beard Gang was merchandise the Red Brotherhood had intended to present to Governor Justus. Now that you had rescued her, the goods had never reached his hands, so the deal remained incomplete. To make up for this mistake and protect the Red Brotherhood's business in Marleons, Sophia and her associates had to find two more elven women and deliver them to Governor Justus.]
[In fact, they had moved quickly. Within half a month, they had already contacted a seller: the Ebony Gauntlet, which hunted and killed elves year-round. Your task was simple. You only had to travel to Emel near Shieldstorm Fortress and bring back the elven women they had ordered.]
[You wondered why they couldn't have the Ebony Gauntlet deliver them. Sophia chided you, saying that elves were highly sought-after merchandise. It was a seller's market, so you weren't in any position to be picky. Their scarcity also made them tempting targets for others, which was why only the five of you would make the trip. You were to go quietly and return quietly, as quickly as possible.]
[You nodded in understanding. Sophia soon arranged a room for you and told you mysteriously that you could come to her with any need. Any need at all.]
[Two days passed in a blink. After dutifully staying in your room for those two days, you set out under Sophia's faintly reproachful gaze, carrying your own crossguard sword with its nobleman's hand guard, along with the composite bow and arrows she had prepared for you. You mounted up and followed "Blade" Yaven, who was leading the group.]
[Marleons was only a day's hard ride from Emel. Setting out in the morning with two horses apiece, you rode hard and reached the village of Emel the following afternoon.]
[The village was very close to the Noldor Forest. Many villagers had been shot dead by elves while hunting or gathering firewood along its edges. The grievances between elves and humans here were too numerous to count. You didn't concern yourself with them. You knew this was a matter of survival, not right or wrong. You rested there for a night, then left the next day for the meeting place arranged with the Ebony Gauntlet.]
[The Ebony Gauntlet knights were already waiting there. In fact, your group wasn't their only buyer, and elven slaves weren't their only merchandise. They also sold plenty of elven weapons and goods.]
[While "Blade" Yaven negotiated with the leader of the Ebony Gauntlet over the elven slaves, a Noldor Composite Bow caught your eye. You asked its price and took out a small bag of diamonds, but the merchant dealing with you didn't immediately accept it. Instead, he gave you an exceptionally radiant smile and said that, if you were willing to offer another identical bag of diamonds, he would throw in a quiver of Noldor Arrows and sell you the Noldor Elves Horse behind him as well.]
[Clearly, this shrewd, sharp-eyed merchant had spotted the other bag of diamonds tucked against your chest. Without hesitation, you handed over all your diamonds, believing you had gotten quite a bargain.]
[What you didn't know was that Noldor elven horses were far harder to sell than elven slaves. These horses were so difficult to tame that many buyers could only look at them, not ride them.]
[Unaware of this, you mounted the elven horse. Your tremendous strength and superb riding skills tamed it outright. As you rode around, you drew the Noldor Composite Bow without an arrow and eased the string back into place.]
[Your actions drew plenty of attention, especially from "Blade" Yaven, who had finished negotiating with the Ebony Gauntlet's leader over the elven slaves. He watched you with a deep frown but didn't confront you there. Instead, he took the elven slaves and called everyone together to leave.]
[The atmosphere was tense on the road back to Marleons. You noticed the other four men surrounding you, seemingly casually. They had realized something was wrong. Of course, even an idiot would have noticed. A young man hoping to make his name in the wealthy district had just spent a fortune on a considerable amount of elven equipment. If they couldn't see something wrong with that, they hardly deserved to be core members of the Red Brotherhood. Still, they hadn't made any overt moves against you yet, perhaps because they didn't understand your intentions.]
[Of course you knew they would notice something was wrong. In fact, you had been getting used to the elven horse's speed while letting it grow accustomed to its new master. Now, you felt you were familiar enough with each other. You no longer needed to restrain your killing intent.]
[Under the terrified gazes of the two men behind you, you nocked Noldor Arrows to the Noldor Composite Bow, aimed at them, and shot each of them once.]
[Just two arrows took their lives before they could flee. Then you loosed another at the Brotherhood member on your right, who had drawn his weapon and was closing in on you, ending another wicked life. Only "Blade" Yaven remained.]
[Hearing the screams, "Blade" Yaven reined in his horse. He knew he couldn't escape. No horse bred by humans could ever beat an elven horse for speed.]
[He watched you warily and asked whether there had been some misunderstanding.]
[Keeping the Noldor Composite Bow raised without relaxing your guard, you ordered him to dismount. Otherwise, you wouldn't mind shooting his horse dead, then shooting him.]
["Blade" Yaven dismounted with an ashen face and stood on the ground. He still couldn't understand what grievance you, the child of a neighbor of Paul's relative, could possibly have against them.]
[Once "Blade" Yaven obediently dismounted, you slowly put away the Noldor Composite Bow and drew the crossguard sword with its nobleman's hand guard from your waist. You told him he had better not resist, or even a quick death would be difficult to come by.]
[Then you asked your question: why had they put a bounty on a young man who had only recently arrived from elsewhere? Looking thoroughly miserable, "Blade" Yaven answered while repeatedly insisting it was a misunderstanding.]
[It wasn't just the Red Brotherhood in Marleons that had received the notice. Every hunter, assassin, intelligence organization, and slave trader across the Pendor Continent had received the bounty. It came from King Ulric, and the reward was a noble title and a village-sized fief. Countless people had gone mad for it.]
[The main organizer within the Red Brotherhood was its agent in Sarleon. "Blade" Yaven had recently had a minor business dispute with Sarleon's agent, "Moonshadow" Sfort. He had only been casually lending a hand in Marleons, never expecting to run into someone as formidable as you.]
[Everyone knew that Red Brotherhood members from different regions looked down on one another. Sending assassins to kill each other over business disputes was commonplace. They answered to no shared authority and had no common ideal. They had only one creed: money.]
[As for why Ulric had issued a bounty on you, "Blade" Yaven didn't know. All he knew was that King Ulric wanted a young man who had recently arrived on the Pendor Continent, dead or alive.]
[He didn't know, but you certainly understood. As a descendant of the Pendor Royal Family, the continent's former rulers, you were inherently an object of Ulric's hatred. Hundreds of years ago, his family had been vassals of yours. By bloodline and lawful succession, your claim inherently superseded his.]
[Before the Red Plague, his ancestor Alfred had merely been a duke serving your family. During the Baccus Empire's invasion, he had raised the banner of resistance against the invaders. Afterward, however, at the urging of the Order of the Lion, he had shamefully usurped the kingdom, becoming the first king of what was now the Kingdom of Sarleon. You didn't need to dwell on the reasons. From the moment you were born, you had been Ulric's sworn enemy.]
[Watching the shifting expressions on your face, "Blade" Yaven slowly slid a gleaming dagger from his right sleeve. Its blade bore an unnatural hue. It was a poisoned blade.]
[Many people might assume that "Blade" referred to the ornate saber at Yaven's waist. In truth, this poisoned blade was the real face of "Blade."]
[You hadn't let your guard down while recalling the past. You saw the dagger's strange gleam and gave Yaven no chance. Just as his fingers closed around its hilt, your sword swept across his neck. "Why bother?" you murmured. Then you searched his body. Unfortunately, he had little money left, but you found a map on him. Judging by the terrain, it seemed to depict mountains near Sarleon. You thought little of it and put it away.]
[You approached the two bound elven women and removed their gags. After waiting for them to finish venting their hysteria, you untied their ropes and told them that, besides the two of them, you had rescued another elf. You now had to go and fetch her.]
[You gave them two choices. First, they could ride back to their forest themselves. You couldn't escort them because you had something more important to do: the lives of Paul's family and Freya still rested in your hands. Second, you could find them somewhere safe to stay near Ahuen. You would return for them in a day, or two at most.]
[You were already some distance from the Noldor elves' forest. If the two elven women tried to return on their own, their chances of survival would be slim, so they chose to trust you.]
[Then you pieced together two sets of clothing from the men you had shot for the elven women. Their beauty, after all, went far beyond anything that could simply be called dangerously alluring. You also gave them two weapons.]
[They clearly trusted you more once they had weapons. You picked out a few horses at random and left, paying no attention to the bodies on the ground.]
[Ahuen was a village half a day's journey from Marleons. It was also very close to the Noldor elves' forest, but it stood along the forest's edge, an area that wasn't safe for elves.]
[In a small grove near Ahuen, you found a large tree with dense foliage for the two women. You left plenty of supplies and hid them there, warning them never to come down during the day. Anything they needed to do had to wait until late at night. You emphasized that you meant anything. Meanwhile, you boarded the spare horses at Ahuen's inn. You knew you would still have a use for these lovely horses.]
[It was already noon when you returned alone to Marleons. Rather than enter the city, you disguised yourself and found a child at the gates who made a living guiding visitors. You took out a silver coin and a Denar, then told the child to find Mr. Paul at the Bountiful Tavern. He was to say that Paul's shareholder was waiting at the city gates and hoped he would bring out the younger sister staying in his care. You handed the child the silver coin and told him that, once he brought Mr. Paul out, the gold coin would be his.]
[The child had never encountered such a lucrative job in his life. He deftly snatched the silver coin you offered and raced into the city.]
[Soon, a fully enclosed, covered carriage stopped beside you. The driver was the guard who had been sleeping soundly in the tavern. He was Paul's younger brother. Compared with Paul, he wasn't particularly bright, though he knew a few rather mediocre sword moves. Paul was simply supporting him.]
[You heard Paul's voice from inside the carriage and gave the Denar to the child who had come with them. The child left happily, and you followed the carriage away from Marleons' gates.]
[Paul had brought the elven woman out along with his wife and children. He knew that if you had summoned him this way, something must have happened. Shrewd as he was, he had gathered all his assets, closed the Bountiful Tavern, and "rented" a carriage to flee.]
[You looked at him and his entire family and smiled. You were really beginning to like this clever man.]
[You briefly explained what had happened on the road and told him that, if he wished, he could wait for you at the entrance to Ahuen. If not, he could leave after letting Freya stay with you. He could also take the bag of diamonds in Freya's arms. Freya no longer needed that bag of diamonds to trust you. In truth, it had only been a way to coax a child. Wherever that bag was, it remained under your control.]
[After hearing you out, Paul considered it for a while, then said he would wait at Ahuen's entrance. Freya anxiously asked from inside the carriage why you weren't leaving with them. You gently told her that you still had some matters to handle. There was no need to worry; you would catch up soon. Freya didn't quite understand, but she nodded and said she would wait for you in Ahuen too.]
[You watched Paul and the others drive away. Two hours later, you returned to Marleons' gates. You took out a document prepared beforehand and the small bag of Denars you had found on Yaven, then handed them to the officer commanding the gate guards.]
[You told him you worked for Lady Sophia of the Green Vine Tavern and that the document would verify your identity. It wasn't convenient for you to enter the city right now, but you had urgent news for Lady Sophia and needed his help delivering a message.]
[Of course he knew Lady Sophia. He examined the document and confirmed your identity. The document was genuine, naturally. Lady Sophia had specifically obtained it from the governor's office to make it easier for you to bring the elves into the city. He asked why you had returned alone.]
[You told him you had been attacked on the road. Yaven had said the attackers had considerable influence in the city, so you couldn't enter. If Lady Sophia wanted more information, she would need to come to the inn in Ahuen, where you would be waiting for her.]
[The officer thought it over, then weighed the money pouch in his hand again. He told you he would do this favor and that you should go back and wait for news. With that, he took two men and headed into the city.]
[You didn't go to Ahuen. Instead, you waited for Lady Sophia five hundred meters from Marleons' gates.]
[An hour later, the familiar guard from the Green Vine Tavern drove a carriage out of Marleons, followed by a dozen or so lightly equipped cavalrymen, and headed toward Ahuen.]
[You knew Sophia would most likely come out. However clever she was, she couldn't possibly guess that she and her associates were your targets. Besides, the two elves were still in your hands. She had to come and confirm that the merchandise was safe.]
[You followed them on your elven horse. You didn't want to start a massacre near Marleons. Unlike last time, this wasn't at night. In daylight, you could easily attract attention. However strong you were, you couldn't slaughter an entire army alone, and the strongest fighters here weren't necessarily weaker than you.]
[Soon, you felt the time was right. You took out the Noldor Composite Bow again and urged your elven horse forward to catch Sophia's convoy.]
[To you, this battle was nothing more than a simple slaughter. The elven horse's speed ensured you could catch anyone here. Combined with your extraordinary archery, the Noldor Composite Bow allowed you to shoot enemies accurately from horseback at over a hundred meters. On foot, that range increased to three hundred meters. You were already growing somewhat tired of this kind of slaughter. Killing humans, after all, wasn't the same as killing half-orcs.]
[After killing everyone, you approached the carriage and heard Lady Sophia's voice. Her sweet, enticing tone held a trace of panic as she asked why you were doing this when she had been helping you all along.]
[You told her the truth, and she fell silent. After a long while, she begged you to spare her. She said she could serve you. She had powerful connections in Marleons and considerable funds. If you wanted to restore your kingdom, she would be very useful.]
[Lady Sophia clearly had far more information than Yaven. You ignored her pleas and simply raised the Noldor Composite Bow, saying softly once more, "I can't spare you." You shot an arrow through the carriage's door curtain, killing Lady Sophia inside.]
[After waiting a moment, you lifted the carriage curtain and saw Lady Sophia's lifeless body, a light crossbow still in her hand. You sighed, lowered the curtain, mounted your elven horse, and left.]
[It was nearly evening when you reached Ahuen. Paul's family and Freya were all waiting for you in the carriage.]
[You asked Paul what he planned to do. He said his business was utterly ruined. Even if you had killed Lady Sophia, it wouldn't stop the Red Brotherhood's frenzied retaliation. He asked whether he could follow you and work for you.]
[You had already grown fond of this clever man. You took out the bag of diamonds after all and told him that, if he wished to follow you, he could open a tavern in Long River Town in the Kingdom of Sarleon. Unless something unexpected happened, you would be heading there soon. The proprietor accepted the diamonds and left. In fact, that bag was worth a little more than his entire fortune, but he hadn't dared accept it before.]
[You and Freya watched Paul's family leave. You knew this clever man would look after himself and reach Long River Town safely. Now you and Freya needed to find the two elven women and head to the Noldor elves' forest together.]
[It was already night when you and Freya found the two elven women with several horses in tow. To your surprise, they knew one another and chattered for quite a while. Helplessly, you had to interrupt their reunion and tell them what you planned to do next.]
[You planned to enter the forest from its edge near Wolven. With two horses apiece, you could easily reach it before dawn. Then you would head deeper into the forest and hand the women over to any elven patrol you encountered.]
[At this point, you joked that you hoped you would be able to leave the forest safely after taking them home, rather than ending up as fertilizer with arrows sticking out all over your body.]
[Hearing this, Freya patted her trembling chest and declared that she would guarantee your safety. You glanced at the silly girl, wondering where she got her confidence. Was she Ardalia and Israndir's daughter or something? Even if she was, the hatred between humans and elves wasn't something that could be settled by saving one or two lives.]
[It wasn't as though you had never considered improving relations with the elves. But from what you remembered, doing so was extraordinarily difficult, far beyond anything that could be accomplished by rescuing a few elven captives.]
[Though you didn't believe the girl's words in the slightest, you still thanked Freya. Then you set off toward Wolven.]