CHAPTER 18
“Geez, what kind of guy cries like that? Damn it…”
Even his cursing sounded sweet to me. I swallowed my tears while forcing down the meat.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to cry.”
“Whatever. You must’ve had a rough life too. But how do you not even have a single scar on your face?”
“Yeah… I guess I just got lucky.”
“Are you secretly strong or something? Well, of course you must be. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here. But what about your parents?”
“They died.”
“Well yeah, I figured… I mean, when did they die—ah, never mind. Doesn’t matter. Just eat slowly. Here, have this too.”
Phil kindly pushed his own plate to me. I didn’t say no and shoved all the food into my mouth.
“Wow, you eat like you haven’t eaten in days.”
“Yeah. I really haven’t.”
“Huh? Really? Well… eat up. You’re so skinny but you eat like a beast.”
I nodded and kept eating.
“Hey… your face looks better already. The food’s good, right?”
“Yeah. Really good.”
“Then come back sometimes after classes start. Buy from us once in a while.”
Phil glanced at the woman inside chopping vegetables—probably the owner.
“She—well, I call her sis, but she’s basically my mom. She’s amazing at cooking. This place needs more customers so we can open a bigger shop.”
“Like that Oak Tree Tavern?”
“Exactly! I mean, we’re broke, but still.”
“I hope it works out. I’ll come again. Whew…”
I looked at the now-empty table and sighed.
“Thanks. I really ate well.”
“Yeah, you sure did. Tell your friends in Class B about us. And be careful going back. Lately, dead bodies have been showing up around here.”
“Dead bodies?”
I lowered my voice.
“What do you mean? Tell me more.”
Could it be people killed by the Poison King’s spies? Phil sighed and shrugged.
“Yeah, bodies have been showing up in the slums. I mean, it happens… but it’s gotten worse. And the corpses look horrible.”
“You mean they were killed brutally?”
“Very brutally. Even I can tell. So watch your back at night. Someone might slit your throat from behind.”
Phil made a cutting motion across his neck. I wondered—do the Poison King’s spies use swords too?
“I’ll be careful.”
“If it keeps happening, they might shut down all the backstreet shops. Maybe even set a curfew. That would be a disaster.”
“Unless they catch the killer?”
“That’d be the best.”
Phil clenched his fist, angry.
“Whoever it is, if I catch them, I won’t let them off easy. If I weren’t busy with the academy, I’d be patrolling every night. Ugh, so annoying.”
Buzz!
Phil gave off a faint aura. Maybe 2-star level? I didn’t have any aura, so I was a bit jealous.
“How many bodies were found? Was it three?”
“Three? Nah.”
He scoffed.
“I saw five with my own eyes. Heard about twenty more.”
“Twenty?”
“Yeah. Not just any corpses—only the really brutal ones.”
That must mean the spies are on the move.
“They need to be caught soon. If your shop closes, it’ll be bad.”
“That’s what I’m saying. Anyway, since you’re done eating, you should head back. If you get caught wandering too late, you might get stopped and questioned.”
“Yeah, I will.”
I smiled and nodded.
“Thanks again. I’ll repay you somehow.”
“Jeez, don’t be so cheesy.”
Phil scratched his ear and frowned playfully.
“We gotta help each other out. We’re in the same boat.”
“Huh?”
“Huh? Don’t pretend. I can tell. I have a good eye for people. You and I—we’re the same kind.”
“Huh?”
I sniffed my sleeve. Did he mean I smelled?
“Not that kind of smell, dummy… You said your parents died, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I mean… you probably grew up in an orphanage, didn’t you? You’re an orphan too, right?”
I nodded. I was an orphan. Phil smiled like he knew it.
“Ha, I knew it. Orphans from the streets all have the same vibe.”
“So… you felt that from me?”
“Yup. Since I first saw you.”
That’s why he talked to me and helped me. It was strange. Strange and… touching. I thought I was completely alone in this world.
“So, where are you from? Klest? Dogi? Irenhalt?”
“Granble.”
“Granble? The village?”
“Yeah.”
“Wait… you mean that Granble? The one attacked by the Poison King’s army?”
“Yeah. That one.”
“Damn… You survived that? So you only recently became an orphan?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh… I’m sorry. That must’ve been rough.”
“Thanks. I’m okay now.”
“That’s unexpected…”
Phil looked confused.
“You don’t seem like someone who just lost everything…”
“I still feel similar to you?”
“Honestly, even more than me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Maybe that’s how it works? Older kids have a harder time adjusting to orphanages. They still remember their parents… Anyway, we’re grown up now.”
He lifted his glass like it was alcohol and sighed.
“Alright. Let’s be friends.”
“Huh?”
“We’re alike. Let’s be friends. You’re in Class B, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then you’re probably better at swordsmanship than me. Teach me sometime. I’m terrible with swords.”
“Swordsmanship?”
“I don’t know anything. Not even the basics. What’s ‘Basic Sword’ and ‘Training Sword’ supposed to mean? Do you know?”
“Yeah. I know.”
Of course I did.
“Basic Sword” is level 1—what we call 1-star. It’s the minimum level needed to handle real swordsmanship, made by the First Sword King.
“Training Sword” is level 2—2-star. It means you’ve mastered the basics and can use them in real fights.
“So teach me, okay? Since we’re friends. I can’t pay you, but I’ll buy you food like this.”
Kind of a cheap offer, honestly. I laughed awkwardly.
Friend…
That’s hard.
I lost everything to the Poison King’s cult. I’ve lived only for revenge.
How can I drag someone into this mess? Into this hell?
But then I heard her voice in my head.
—I want to make lots of friends. Good friends.
Ah… right.
My sister said that. She wanted friends.
So I have to make that wish come true—for her.
Even if it drags them into death and pain…
Fine.
His name is Phil, right?
Just don’t blame me later. I didn’t ask to be your friend first.
“Alright. Let’s be friends.”
I smiled and held out my hand. Phil smiled back and shook it.
“No take-backs, okay? Once friends, always friends. I’m gonna use you a lot!”
“Don’t worry. I won’t be the one to back out.”
“Oh, I like your confidence. So, what’s your full name?”
“Didn’t I say? Ray.”
“No, I mean your full name. First and last.”
“My name’s just Ray Granble.”
“Granble?”
“Yeah.”
“Wait… you said you’re from Granble Village, right? And your last name is also Granble?”
“Yeah.”
“But that means… Granble is one of the 8 main Sword King families! Are you saying…”
I sighed inside and said,
“Yeah. That’s right.”
“Wha… Wait, wait—just a second!”
Phil shouted to the woman cleaning up.
“Hey! You remember that news from a while ago?!”
“What? Oh, the wine the guest left?”
“No, the other thing! That big incident! The survivor!”
“Oh, you mean the Granble Village Massacre?”
“Yeah! That! The survivor—what was his name?”
“Oh, right. The youngest son of the Granble family. His name was… Ray!”
Phil looked like he’d swallowed a rotten fruit.
“R-R-Ray… Young master Ray?!”
He turned to me in shock.
“You… You’re from that main Sword King family?!”
“Come on. We’re friends now, remember?”
“But still… cough!”
Phil choked on water, coughing like crazy.
“I—I didn’t know! I spoke so casually to someone from the main family…”
“It’s okay. Like you said, the family’s gone. I don’t care.”
“But still… What have I done? What if I lose my orphanage funding because of this…?”
“That won’t happen. Don’t worry… huh?”
Suddenly, I saw another vision of the future.
Phil, older now, fighting desperately against the Poison King’s soldiers.
He was bleeding, shouting, but refusing to run.
“This is my home! I can’t leave it!”
Then his head exploded.
Boom!
The vision vanished. My heart raced.
“…Are you really okay with me talking casually, Ray?”
“Drop the ‘Ray.’ Just talk like before. Please.”
“Whew… I thought someone would arrest me. Is anyone watching?”
Phil nervously looked around. I remembered the future where he died in front of me.
Yeah. I knew this would happen.
Just by becoming my friend, he was pulled into the same fate as me.
Toward a future full of death.
“…Don’t joke like that.”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Nothing. It’s nothing.”
Yeah… nothing’s happened yet.
Not yet.
