Those in the vanguard looked to each other in uncertainty before looking back in the direction of the guildmaster. They parted as Wyatt emerged from behind them, still on horseback and with a hand on his sword hilt.
“My name is Wyatt, guildmaster of the Ryburgh Adventurers’ Guild and commander of this expedition. What business do you...have...here...”
Wyatt’s voice petered out as he came face to face with the intruder, and from the furrowed brows on both sides, their surprise and confusion were mutual.
“Sir Wyatt...?”
“Lord Beldarus?!”
Wyatt, however, was far more shaken by the chance encounter. He rushed to dismount his horse and walked up to Gaius Beldarus.
“So it was you coming all this way...” nodded Gaius. “I suppose I should have considered that possibility.”
“Y-Yes...I organized this unit to cull some monsters. But more importantly, Lord Beldarus, what are you doing out here?!”
Unlike Wyatt, it seemed Gaius had already accepted this latest development; his demeanor and speech were as calm as usual. What struck Wyatt as even more strange than his calmness, or even his presence in the Greatwood, was an unexplainable...pressure.
His eyes, his aura, the deliberate weight behind each word—even though he was unarmed, a terrifying intent to kill radiated off of Gaius’s entire body. What was more, Wyatt only began to feel this once Gaius had seen his face.
“At the end of this path lies a village of kobolds under my care. As long as you’re armed, I would appreciate it if you went no further,” Gaius declared, addressing not only the guildmaster, but the entire group.
“Kobolds?”
“What are those?” The adventurers murmured to one another, clearly confused—except for Wyatt.
“Kobolds...so that’s what those ‘dogs’ truly are. I’d read about them in a monster encyclopedia.”
“Indeed. They’ve made a home for themselves here, farming and hunting. They’re simple folk that take only what they need from the forest, and they aren’t very used to humans. Would you kindly turn back? And we would appreciate it if you didn’t come back.”
“I can’t agree to that, milord. Those beasts...those kobolds have attacked and killed humans—my guild members, no less.”
In all honesty, Wyatt could not have cared less about who attacked whom. Exterminating the kobolds was only an incidental part of his plans, but he had to at least pretend to care in front of the others.
More importantly, he did not want to do as Gaius had asked. The sludgy black resentment and pride that had seeped into his heart would not allow him to. Wyatt could not deny it: he was objecting out of emotion, not because a retreat would thwart his plans. While he acknowledged that, he barely wanted to admit it to himself because he realized how petty his reasons really were.
Instead, he replied, “As one who serves House Zigan, I can’t abide the presence of any monsters that would pose harm to the people of this domain.”
For a split second, Gaius’s brow twitched at the word “people,” but Wyatt could not fathom why.
“You’re wrong, Sir Wyatt. Your people attacked the village. That’s why there have been deaths on both sides. Those adventurers were only killed out of self-defense because they initiated the violence.”
“And do you have proof of that?”
“I witnessed it myself. I swear it on my life.”
“Oh, do you?! Now the Black Rose of Igris makes a solemn oath on his illustrious life! Of course, you can’t get more certain than that!” Wyatt burst into bitter laughter.
Hearing that moniker caused a stir among most of the adventurers behind Wyatt. The younger members of the group did not seem to understand the impact of that name, which was only natural. Fifteen years had passed since the Five-Year War; they belonged to a different generation entirely.
Wyatt regained his composure and continued. “That isn’t good enough, Lord Beldarus. It doesn’t matter why it happened. Think about it: humans have the right to slay monsters by law, but under no circumstances is a monster justified in killing humans. How could they be? In the eyes of the law, they’re in the wrong, and now we are obliged to wipe them out.”
Of course, this was a twisted interpretation—most of the time, even man-eating magical beasts were left alone if they stayed away from human settlements.
“Sir Wyatt! Those rules may apply to the human world, but this is the Greatwood. Right now, we are no longer within the borders of the kingdom of Igris, let alone in Northplain.”
“Then consider us in pursuit of fleeing criminals. No one would object to that.”
At this point, Wyatt was pressing the issue out of pure spite. He wanted to rebel, to deny Lord Beldarus at every turn, to take everything from the man who had once exemplified everything Wyatt had ever dreamed of, only to throw it all away. Just as Gaius had trampled all over every principle he held dear, Wyatt now wanted to take away whatever it is the man was protecting and crush it entirely.
No, he had to. It was the only way to quell this terrible darkness that had overtaken him inside. If he could not do that, he was convinced he wouldn’t be able to go on. His heart, the ground beneath his feet—everything would crumble away.
“So you aim to exterminate the kobolds? Just like that?”
“Correct. And you’d do well to leave here soon too, Lord Beldarus,” Wyatt gloated, his expression warped with self-satisfaction. For a moment, Gaius looked at him in silence, a hard glint in his eyes. It was then replaced by a flicker of realization as something dawned on him. His next words came slowly, thoughtfully.
“...There’s no reason for you to harm them. I killed those adventurers. If you arrest me, that should settle the matter.”
Another ripple of murmurs ran through the group. Wyatt held up a hand to silence them. “Is that so...?”