Chapter 101: CH 101

“Hah… haah…!”

With one knee on the ground, Rose holds the deep cut on her chest and scratches at the grass to try and stand up.

“You shouldn’t force it,” I said. “The bleeding won’t stop.”

Rose seemed to be maintaining full consciousness, but no matter who or how you look at her, she is gravely injured. If she doesn’t receive specialized treatment as soon as possible, her life is at risk.

I slashed her so she wouldn’t die of blood loss, but I can’t be sure she would eventually succumb anyway.

However, even though I was the one that attacked her, my emotions concerning my former disciple have yet to cleanly settle down. Is it selfish of me to want her to live, if she can?

“Hmm… hm-hmm…” Rose chuckled. “I, I lost, haven’t I~…”

Eventually, she gave up trying to stand up, and with a rattling noise, she laid on her back.

She has a smile on her face but her complexion is awful. She’s clearly bleeding too much.

“What was, with that sword…?” Rose asked. “It’s so, sneaky~…”

“… This is my best,” I said.

It’s a little unexpected for me to cut straight through a shield and crush armor.

Well, I did swing my sword with that much force. Moreover, even with all this carnage, this sword’s edge hasn’t lost a bit of sharpness. It’s a ridiculous business.

“I can’t become any stronger anymore, but this is also one of my strengths,” I said.

“… After all, it was, sly…” Rose wheezed.

“Hahaha,” I laughed.

This isn’t a situation where I could laugh even if I hadn’t made any mistakes but somehow, I did. No, it’s not like I wanted to make fun of Rose. 1

As I said, my foundational physical abilities have almost leveled off. After that, it will only decline due to age.

However, I just realize that my body’s strength is just one of my advantages. Since I’m teaching the Knights how to leverage their physical abilities, I feel like a cowardly old man.

Well, I want them to forgive this kind of cheating. I think it’s a sword that’s too much for me, but if I already have it for whatever reason, it’s a waste if I don’t use it.

In the South District of Baltrain, there are no people walking by, only the faint sound of the wind and Rose’s breathing.

For a while, we were at a loss if we should speak to each other, an awkward silence dominated the place.

“… Norad,” Rose whispered.

“… Hmm?” I asked as I looked down at the fallen Rose.

""

“Eline, Sandra, Harvis, Gil, Kenneth, Chilcott, Murray, and Horzon…” she said. “They’re all, dead.”

“…”

I don’t know any of them. Even Henblitz or Alexia probably wouldn’t, either. Maybe Gatoga knows.

Maybe all these people had the same ideals as Rose. They must have had the same amount of enthusiasm, regardless of whether their brand of justice was right or wrong.

How many of them did I kill? Or Alexia stabbed or Henblitz cut down?

Perhaps because of the mortal sin of attempted assassinations of the royal families, but I don’t feel that personally guilty. The only thing that remains in me is the emptiness, from all these people whose lives I just took from them.

“… Cough! Gagh…!”

“! Rose, are you alright?!” I yelled.

Rose was finally coughing up blood, her skin paled even more. It seems I had damaged her lungs, after all.

This might be rich considering I was the one that gravely wounded her in the first place, but what can I do? If I leave her as is, Rose will die, but I have no medical skills. It might have been a different story if I had was a potion, but I don’t like them don’t bother carrying them around.

“Ma-Master,” Rose whispered between labored breaths and constantly spitting up blood. “Kill me, please. By, your hand, Master.”

Her eyes were wet, but probably not from the pain. They were tears welling up in them.

“… I can’t do that,” I said.

“Master…?” Rose asked.

Regardless of her request, my answer was fixed.

It’s undeniable, that she’s sinned. It’s a mortal sin, too. It’s not something she could just apologize for. She is one of many responsible for staging a coup d’etat of grave proportions.

I don’t know what the final charges will be, but it won’t end with an acquittal. Death sentences were well within possibility.

However, those words that Rose said before my final slash.

I simply realized that there was a reason, why I couldn’t just punish Rose and be done with it.

Well, even without all that, I don’t want to end the life of my former apprentice. Let me show my selfishness here.

“You should live, atone for your sins, and face your reckoning. And…”

There is also a psychological denial. A denial that I’m the one who could finish the job.

Rose had a sense of duty and responsibility to get things done. However, if she dies after having failed, it’s a bit unacceptable to just leave it there.

There are also those child hostages. As long as I’ve heard that, it’s probably not a good idea just to consider them lost. For me and Rose both.

“I’m sure that there are things I haven’t taught you yet,” I said.

“… Hm-hmm, I, see~,” Rose whispered.

For fuck’s sake, I should have just taught swordsmanship to protect yourself and others, but what would have caused someone to help a bloody revolution? I can only mourn my lack of leadership skills.

She probably won’t have a chance to learn under me again. However, she was deeply, keenly aware that her Master’s role wasn’t just teaching swordsmanship.

“Goh!” Rose went, vomiting blood again.

“… Woah, there,” I said. “What’s wrong…?”

I’ve decided not to finish her off but I can’t do anything about this. I cut deeper than I expected. Even if I just wait like this, Rose is going to die. What should I do?”

“Hey, Gardenant!” Gatoga interrupted, his loud footsteps coming closer. “Wait… what the hell is going on here?”

“Oh, Sir Gatoga…” I said.

His plate armor seems full of scratches and is covered in blood, but he himself seems to be fine.

Apparently, he’s taken care of all the archers. And, he has a man on his shoulder.

“Where did Prince Glen go? For that matter, was Rose killed, too? Who’s that on the ground?”

“Aah, yeah, the thing is…” I said.

I can’t answer the questions coming rapid-fire.

If I think about it calmly, it’s heavy news that the Special Instructor of the Knights of Rebelio killed the Vice-Captain of the Knights of the Faith.

It would be fine if Rose decided to confess and tell the truth, but if she were to blame me as a last-ditch effort, it’d be difficult for me to resist.

Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to happen. Regardless, explaining things to Gatoga is going to be a problem.

“Cough…! Captain~,” Rose whispered. “I, screwed up~…”

“… If joking around like this, you’re fine,” Gatoga said. “Wait… hold up a minute.”

A screw-up?

From Rose’s perspective, that’s probably what it was. She’s not lying.

Gatoga tosses the man he’s carrying on his shoulder and runs up to the fallen Rose.

I mean, who is this guy? He seems to be rough on him but it seems he’s already unconscious.

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He’s a rather thin man with short brown hair. He looks younger than me.

He’s probably one of the royal’s assailants because he’s dressed in black, but could this be Hinnis?

“… It’s deep,” Gatoga said, putting his hand on Rose’s wound. “I can only give her relief.”

After a few moments, faint, pale light surrounds Rose’s body.

“Is that a miracle?” I asked.

“Yes,” Gatoga said. “I’m not very skilled at it, though.”

I remember that the Knights of the Faith could use miracles. The knights who guarded Bishop Lebios also used body strengthening magic on themselves.

“… Can you use it, Rose?” I asked.

“I… can’t use, magic, so…~” Rose whispered.

“Don’t talk,” Gatoga said. “I can’t properly close the wound.”

“Oh… sorry, I was just talking to myself,” I said.

I’m certain I’ve never seen Rose using any spells. Even when she was at my dojo, she was just calling herself a swordsman.

So, it seems that not everyone in the Knights of the Faith can use magic. Or is Rose just an exception?

“… Huh, come to think of it, aren’t you supposed to chant something?” I asked.

Things have gotten out of hand, so I’m not sure what to do, exactly.

The Knights of the Faith I fought were chanting something like a spell and then strengthening themselves. Gatoga, on the other hand, didn’t say any such words, he just put his hand on Rose’s body.

“… It’s just like prayer,” Gatoga said. “You can perform miracles without saying it out loud. Even though the most ardent believers still do.”

I see, it seems that miracles can be used even if they are silent.

Lucy says that miracles are part of magic and Lucy herself didn’t bother to chant when firing off her spells. It’s not surprising, isn’t it?

“Fuuh…” Gatoga sighed, taking a breath and wiping off his sweat, “I managed to stop the bleeding, somehow…”

However, as I’m not very knowledgeable about magic or medicine, I do not know what kind of condition she’s in now that the blood loss is staunched. I know she’s in critical condition right now, but I don’t know by how much Gatoga’s miracle has healed.

“Now then, what happened, Gardenant?” Gatoga asked.

Still, is it safe to assume that this situation with Rose is over? As if providing evidence, Gatoga’s gaze goes from Rose and sharply to me.

“… The royals escaped with Alexia,” I said. “Rose… in the end, I had to cut her down.”

“What…?” Gatoga asked.

""

The air turned hostile in an instant.

“Because I suspect that Rose is involved with the attempted assassinations of the royal families,” I said.

“… Honestly, Rose?” Gatoga asked.

But, my next line changed Gatoga’s opinion.

Obviously, when you talk about how long someone has known Gatoga, Rose has known him for much longer. However, the Knights of the Faith have a precedent in Hinnis. And he should know about the civil war between the Papal Faction and the Royal Faction. He can’t be ignorant of it.

It was a bit of a bad time to dismiss my words as a bad joke.

“… Hm-hmm,” Rose giggled. “Yes, it’s true.”

“… I, see…” Gatoga said.

Perhaps Rose realized she couldn’t escape, she confessed.

In response to her confession, Gatoga collects himself for a few seconds and only manages those two words.

“The thing was,” I said, “she was conflicted… all the way to the end,” I said.

“… I think you know this guy’s patriotism as well,” Gatoga said, picking up Rose and the man from earlier.

""

It’s a bit of a rough way to carry a lady, but if he wants to carry them together, he had to put them on his shoulders.

“Umm, about Rose–” I started.

“If things were normal, they won’t be spared capital punishment,” Gatoga said. “That’s how grave their actions are.”

“…”

I tried to make a defense for Rose but Gatoga stopped me.

Well, that’s right.

I don’t think you can be acquitted for the attempted assassination of the royal families. As Gatoga says, if you think about it normally, it’s a straight shot to capital punishment. There is no reason to keep alive the dangerous elements that threaten the nation. Especially if the domestic situation is already unstable.

The method was the worst, but it is also true that they were concerned about their country. I’d like to ask for the range of mitigating circumstances, but is it really so severe?

However, punishing Rose and the other rebels doesn’t mean everything is over.

“Rose seemed to have been forced to obey the Pope,” I said. “It seems he’s holding child hostages…”

“What the hell…?” Gatoga whispered.

If you were blackmailed, that would change the story again. I don’t want to think that Rose told a lie at that last minute.

Of course, she may not be innocent, but considering the investigation and hearings, it should not be an immediate death penalty.

“Rose, what the hell is he saying?” Gatoga asked.

“… I’d prefer to keep quiet~, is what I’d like to say, but, now that I’ve lost…. he’s holding the children from the orphanage.”

“… Tch, so is that what you meant,” Gatgo said, the venom dripping from his tongue.

But how much does Gatoga know, really? He knows that Supheniardvania is in a civil war, but what moves are the Papal Faction and the Royal Faction doing?

The information I have came from Ibroix via Lucy, but it’s hard to imagine that the Captain of the Knights of the Faith knows less than Ibroix.

“… We’d have to do some investigations first,” Gatoga said. “As for Rose’s fate, well, I’ll see what I can do.”

“That’s…” I started.

Personally, I’m grateful, but from the standpoint of the Captain of the Knights of the Faith, I think it’s a bad move.

If you cover it up badly, perceptions toward Gatoga may worsen. The worst pattern is that Gatoga is suspected of collaborating with Rose and he shares her punishment.

“Of course, I can’t make any promises,” Gatoga said.

“I know…” I said.

Anyway, everything beyond here is not something I can be involved in. The investigation and judgment will be made at the higher echelons of another nation.

What kind of result does that really lead to?

The sins they have committed are not light. However, Rose is my former disciple. Complex emotions came up in my chest.

“Would you like to go back for now?” Gatoga asked. “However, for you to beat Rose in a single slash, you really are a master swordsman, aren’t you?”

“Well, the thing is, I had a little hidden trick,” I said.

“That’s a hell of a trick, isn’t it?” Gatoga said.

The South District of Baltrain has quickly transformed into a bloody battlefield.

After this, it would be difficult to just move past it, and we returned to the Central District feeling awfully out of place.

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