Chapter 19

"But what did you do with those people?"

"Buried them."

"You buried them with their heads sticking out, right?"

"..."

"You did bury them with their heads sticking out, right...?"

As soon as they had left the capital and gained some distance, Leandros had taken care of the knights Yurik had attached to them.

All he had done was sit by the fire and show a defenseless appearance while wrapped in a blanket.

During the night, Arndt and Leandros seemed to be discussing something, and by the time he woke up the next day, the knights were already nowhere to be seen.

How chilling it was to hear Leandros nonchalantly tell him to pack his belongings.

According to Arndt's explanation, he had lured them out under the pretext of sparring.

...Was that really what happened?

"You'll get stressed if you worry about such things, Your Grace."

"Isn't it natural to worry?"

"I wouldn't know. What I'm concerned about is Your Grace's appetite. I'm just glad I took their meals in advance."

When Arndt looked at the jerky in his hand, he felt a pang of guilt.

"No, but this is delicious. Do they always serve these at the royal palace? It's tastier than what we make."

"It's the difference between seasoned and unseasoned."

"Really? This is the most delicious thing I've ever eaten."

As he took another bite of the jerky, Arndt covered his face with both hands.

Through the gaps between his fingers, words like 'when was the last time our Duke had something delicious to eat...' could be heard.

Was that too harsh to say to Arndt?

While Arndt was floundering, steeped in past glory and memories, Leandros spread out a new map.

"If we follow alongside the King's Road and then break off downward, that should work. We should aim for the gateway to the south."

"Is the road to the east the same as the road to the south?"

"To some extent, yes. It seems better to avoid the mountain range extending from the Dikenter Mountains."

The high-quality map purchased from the capital was clean and even had a separate cover.

Moreover, the roads were drawn in detail, making it much easier to identify locations.

Thanks to this, travel seemed like it would be faster.

"Then let's do that. How many days will it take to reach the east?"

"With a good rider, it would take a little over ten days."

"And to the south?"

"About fifteen days."

"I should send a telegram to the royal palace midway. To avoid suspicion."

The reason they were heading south was nothing special.

Going north would require crossing rugged mountain ranges.

It might be effective if they were being tracked, but he had resolved to treat his body carefully after waking up at the royal palace.

That left the south as the only option.

The south, with its warm climate, was the region with the most people living in it after the capital.

The vast sea beyond was also attractive.

Above all, the south was famous for trade.

When thinking of trade, one would typically imagine expensive and rare exotic goods.

But what he thought of first was an exit to go abroad.

Even in Korea, when something happened, chaebol families always escaped overseas, didn't they?

Why hadn't he thought of this method earlier?

If they went to a foreign country, even Yurik wouldn't be able to follow.

Even if not, they could at least buy time to change names and hide.

To think that the end of the story would be as fugitives, honestly, it was a bit deflating...

But for Leandros and Arndt, it was better than serving a fallen noble or losing their lives altogether.

"I'll have to study foreign languages when we get on a ship."

"Why not start now? Won't you be busy on the ship?"

"How can I study on a journey like this?"

"If we get a carriage, you can sit inside, Young Master."

"I'll get motion sickness."

"Do you think you won't on a ship?"

Arndt was nagging incessantly, he was ignoring him, and Leandros was examining the map and adjusting the schedule.

It was a peaceful day.

They bought horses at the first village they visited after leaving the capital.

As Arndt had said, it would have been good to get a carriage, but that would have made them stand out quickly.

Being unable to ride a horse, he rode behind Leandros.

Even so, it wasn't a bad feeling.

The wind was cool, and they were free for a moment.

Anxiety lagged far behind amidst Arndt's antics.

The forests and fields visible in the distance, the clear sky.

The stars rising from the evening and the twinkling that poured from the sky made him forget this worldview for a brief moment.

Who he was,

What he needed to do.

It seemed like it would be good to wander like this forever.

But such complacent thoughts

Were evaporated by the terrible stench of rotting fish as soon as they entered the south.

* * *

Arndt wasn't a good rider, but Leandros was an excellent guide.

In the east, he had found the way even with a flimsy map, so how much better would he be with a good map?

He had said it would take more than fifteen days to reach the south, but thanks to Leandros racking his brains and using shortcuts, they were able to save two days.

They were able to enter the first southern city just a day after passing through the southern gateway.

Given the diverse people coming and going, entry wasn't difficult.

But as soon as they entered, the air felt ominous.

"Are all coastal cities like this?"

"My nose hurts."

If the sea was nearby, it would naturally smell fishy.

But this stuffy and foul odor lingering in the air was different from the sea's fishy smell.

As Leandros looked around, he stopped a passerby.

"I have something to ask. What is this smell?"

"Smell? Ah."

The man with patchy beard wrinkled his nose.

"If you're curious about the smell, go to the shore over there. By the way, my nose has become so numb I can't smell anything anymore."

The man, who had been constantly rubbing his nose, just threw those words and continued on his way.

They could only look at each other.

Go to the shore? What had happened there?

Even before finding an inn, they set out to find the beach.

They had set off without knowing exactly where it was, but it wasn't a big problem.

Naturally, their steps moved towards where the smell was strongest.

The beach they arrived at.

They looked beyond the sandbank that gently extended where the road ended.

It was an ordinary beach with waves ceaselessly breaking.

But something was constantly swaying with those waves.

Scales glistening in the sunlight.

It seemed that fish had come up to land and died.

It wasn't just one or two.

The waves that stretched along the beach were all silver.

And among those fish...

"It's merpeople, Your Grace. Merpeople!"

Following Arndt's pointing finger, an alien presence was visible.

With hair entangled in seaweed hanging down,

A person sprawled on fish that were already dead and emitting a rotten stench.

That person's legs were glistening with silver scales packed tightly, just like the fish.

This didn't appear in the original work.

It wasn't even simply mentioned like the eastern pit.

Just literally, such an incident had never appeared.

There had been no disturbances in the south.

Why now?

"Your Grace, the smell is too strong. Let's go back."

Arndt covered my mouth and nose with his sleeve.

Once the stench disappeared, only then did my stomach begin to churn.

They found a place to stay in the center of the city. Fortunately, they were able to find an inn at a good price, but that wasn't the problem.

"A ship? With that swarm of fish rushing in, how could one come? I heard that ships can't even dock until all that is cleared away."

"Then when will it all be cleared?"

"Even if it's cleared once, a school of fish rushes in after a few hours. What is this place, a death trap? Goodness."

"So are you saying ships can't come?"

"We're dying here too. Foreign customers are disappearing, so there's no revenue."

He casually inquired from the innkeeper while ordering food under the pretext of dinner.

But the stronger-than-expected complaints made his head spin.

He had come to board a ship, but was told ships weren't coming.

How could someone have such bad luck?

Leandros asked from behind.

"Is it just a problem in the south?"

"I'm not sure about that myself. I wonder about other regions. Is there anything else you'd like to order?"

"No."

"Then call me when you need something."

Once the innkeeper had gone far away, Arndt lowered his voice.

"Wouldn't it be better to go somewhere else even now? There's more than just this city in the south."

"Is that so? Will other places be okay?"

"I think that would be better. It might only be happening along this coastline. I'll find out how long it would take."

Arndt stood up, and Leandros, still feeling uneasy, was frowning.

The next day, they immediately packed their bags and headed to the neighboring city.

It was a distance that took more than half a day on horseback, but the situation in that city wasn't much different.

The stench.

The unexplained mass death of fish.

A port where docking was impossible.

They continued to move around, and eventually, after several days, they reached the southernmost tip and stopped.

The smallest village in the south.

A place with the smallest port at the same time.

With the last thread of hope, they had come this far, but...

"You've come all the way down from up there? What a situation. Seems like it's the same everywhere. Ships aren't coming in here either."

An old woman sunbathing in the village spoke as if it was natural.

It was a complete disaster.

If ships weren't coming in even here, where on earth could they go to board a ship?

Arndt muttered.

"We don't have time."

That's right.

They don't have time.

Passing through various cities had taken up time that would have been left even after arriving in the east.

By now, Yurik would probably want news as well.

They had to board a ship and leave the country today or tomorrow at the latest.

"What should we do?"

The old woman, after looking closely at them with their hoods flipped up, added a word.

"Outsiders won't live long if they worry about such things, hmm? Just think of it as bad luck and leave quickly."

"But I absolutely need to board a ship here. Isn't there any method?"

"Where would there be a method?"

"Think of it as helping young people, just once! You must have grandchildren around my age at home, don't you?"

The old woman smacked her dry lips and then opened her mouth uncomfortably.

"Oh my, I don't know much. But there's someone over there who came to solve this."

"Who is that person?"

"From what I hear, it seems to be a scholar. I don't know much. That's all I know."

Could the swarm of fish and the merpeople be related?

But if that so-called scholar could solve this problem?

Perhaps it wouldn't be such a big loss to go find him.

"Then, grandmother. Do you know where that person is?"

"Go inside there."

After giving her a copper coin as a token of gratitude, they headed in the direction she had indicated.

If they went into the village and across, they could soon exit the village fence and go outside.

Walking like that, they soon saw a small house.

When he knocked on the old door, which might have been repaired who knows when, a man with a dignified appearance carefully opened it.

"Who might you be?"

"Hello. We are..."

He almost screamed as soon as he raised his head.

A familiar person was standing at the doorway.

Graying hair, wrinkled skin, tired eyes visible through glasses.

A small body compared to the overall angular face.

"Director, why are you here?!"

The orphanage director whom he had last seen long ago.

That person was standing right there in the novel.