Chapter 129 - Epilogue 2: Selection of the Messenger
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"Is it true that a letter arrived from Aldred!?"
Barrock, who had been summoned by the King of Abalonia and arrived at the audience chamber, asked with surprise in his voice.
"Umu, Count Clark found Aldred and negotiated with him."
Seeing the King nod with satisfaction, Barrock turned his gaze toward the blond-haired, blue-eyed man in the audience chamber.
Then, as if noticing him, the other party flashed a friendly smile.
He had well-featured looks, but he was a terribly suspicious fellow.
...Just how on earth did he get a hold of Aldred's whereabouts?
Barrock had been in a frantic state due to the incident where even Kurune disappeared while searching for Aldred, so he hadn't grasped a single clue.
Yet the man in front of him had found him so easily. What kind of method did he use?
Barrock's intuition, honed by years of living as an adventurer, told him that this was a person he couldn't afford to let his guard down around.
"Nice to meet you, I am Clark Raymond."
"I am Barrock Esophia, the Master of the Adventurer's Guild."
He was an opponent Barrock couldn't bring himself to like, but since the man had introduced himself, it was common courtesy to do the same.
Barrock pushed his personal feelings deep down and gave a noble-style greeting.
After becoming the Guild Master and having various contributions recognized, Barrock had become a Baron, albeit of low rank.
At that time, he was provided with a fiancée and an educator, and the etiquette of the royal castle was thoroughly hammered into him, so his movements were quite refined.
"I have heard many rumors about you, Barrock-san. I am glad to be able to meet you."
"They were all achieved through cooperation with my companions, but as an adventurer, I am happy to hear those words."
Normally, they would continue with more cold, formal conversation, but since there was a main topic today, he cut it short.
"So, where exactly was Aldred?"
"Apparently, it's a village called Nordende at the westernmost edge of the Kingdom of Sylphide."
"...Nordende."
Barrock ruminated on the word spoken by the King.
If it were a neighboring country, it would be one thing, but he knew nothing about a country even further beyond. However, for some reason, it caught in Barrock's mind.
It was from a time long ago when Aldo had returned from completing a request. It was the name of a village that Aldred, who rarely showed emotion, had spoken about with unusual excitement.
"Ah, that rural place where the flower fields are beautiful..."
"Yes, it seems there are flower fields that bloom all year round, and the flowers and colors change depending on the season."
As Barrock muttered as if remembering, Clark supplemented with a smile.
At that time, Aldred had also said the blooming flower fields were very beautiful.
A village he had stopped by only once for a request. Barrock had thought he was simply moved by the beautiful scenery, but to think he would choose it as his place of residence.
As for Barrock, he thought Aldred had lost his goal after defeating the dragon and was feeling depressed, so he might be searching for challenging monsters in dangerous regions.
Thinking that, he had asked capable adventurers to search dangerous regions, but he was completely off the mark.
"And Kurune-san is there as well."
"Kurune too!?"
To think she chased after Aldred right after suddenly quitting her job as a teacher at the Magic Academy.
The mystery of why she knew Aldred's destination was obvious since they were in the same party.
"Setting aside Kurune who chased after him, why is Aldred in such a place...?"
"That much was not written in the letter, so I do not know. However, it seems he is strangely living as a villager now."
"H-He's a villager?"
An A-rank adventurer who could even defeat a dragon is just a villager?
Hearing the King's words, Barrock almost asked if he was joking.
Barrock couldn't even imagine him, who possessed strength that defied all standards, living as a mere villager.
Just why did he choose such a life?
Even Barrock, who had watched over him for years, couldn't understand.
"May I see Aldred's letter?"
When Barrock said that, the King handed the letter he held to a nearby knight and had it passed down to Barrock.
While confused, Barrock read through the text, and indeed, what the King said was written there.
And as he reached the latter half of the text, he confirmed the decisive words.
"Returning the sword!?"
"...Yes, it seems Aldred intends to completely sever ties with the Kingdom."
Anger was mixed in the King's voice.
Returning the sword granted by the King meant ceasing to be the King's sword and carrying the prestige of the country. From the perspective of the King who gave the sword, it must be humiliating.
However, since adventurers are not soldiers or nobles officially belonging to the country, they cannot be blamed for leaving the Kingdom.
But it was also a fact that Aldred's existence had become something that couldn't be measured within the framework of an ordinary adventurer.
Barrock could now understand what kind of life Aldred wanted to live from now on, but it seemed like a somewhat extreme response.
Aldred was a guy who didn't socialize much, but his underlying personality was gentle.
There must have been something that made him take an action like suddenly thrusting the sword back at the King during the initial contact.
Barrock couldn't help but stare at Clark, who said he had found Aldred.
Clark likely noticed the gaze, but he didn't show any particular reaction.
Since Barrock was also originally an adventurer who lived freely, he wanted to support Aldred's new path.
But now, he was also someone serving the Kingdom. He couldn't possibly say, 'Then let's just leave him be.'
"Of course, it is meaningless to let Aldred remain as a mere villager. I have no intention of letting him go like this. You understand what I desire, yes?"
To the King, Aldred was a sword he absolutely wanted to keep by his side. If so, what Barrock had to do was...
"It's to bring Aldred back to the Kingdom. I shall take a seat at the negotiations."
The King nodded with satisfaction at Barrock's words.
"Umu, but he wrote that if negotiations are to be held, he wants to do it in a nearby town, not Nordende."
"He likely has his reasons. We should send a messenger so as not to stand out."
From the Kingdom's side, it would be a pain to go all the way to a remote area anyway, so that was more convenient.
"Then, who do you think is best? Will you go?"
At the King's question, Barrock worried for a while and then shook his head.
"...No, let's send Elliot as the messenger."
"Oh, I see! They were originally in the same party. That alone will soften the other party's wariness and make him easier to win over. He is now the next head of House Elfiore. He won't do anything reckless."
What the King was worried about was him becoming like Kurune.
In that regard, Elliot was already an adopted son-in-law of a noble house in the Kingdom and was also a knight. He couldn't do anything like a betrayal.
"Today was the day the knight order was conducting maneuvers, was it not? Call Elliot here."
The knight order was practicing at the training grounds near the royal castle. The distance to the royal castle was just a stone's throw away.
When he ordered the waiting knight, the knight left the audience chamber in an instant.
And after a while, Elliot, clad in Kingdom armor, entered the audience chamber with the knight.
Upon entering the audience chamber, Elliot knelt and bowed his head.
"Aldred has been found in Nordende."
Hearing the King's words, Elliot's body twitched slightly.
"Elliot, you shall be the messenger to bring Aldred back. Is that understood?"
"If that is the King's command."
Unlike Aldred and the others, there was no path for Elliot, a knight who swore loyalty to the Kingdom, to refuse.
Elliot likely knew the reason why Aldred went outside.
Thinking about Elliot's feelings as he played a part in bringing back his former companion, Barrock felt his chest tighten.
"Bring Aldred back no matter what!"
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