A Stuffed Cheonma in my Head - Chapter 113



Only Noblemtl

Episode 113. I Should Call You Sister

* * *

Silence fell on the dark alley.

The two royal knights looked at their comrades in surprise.

Ashley’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The soldiers who were capturing the assassins also stopped what they were doing and looked in that direction with surprised expressions.

In the place where everyone’s eyes were focused, a royal knight wearing neat armor and a helmet was asking a shabby blind man his name.

The name of the royal knight who asked the question was Silent Victor.

As his nickname suggests, he was a very reserved man.

Even his fellow royal knights had only heard him speak a few times.

If it was like that for fellow royal knights living together, it was even worse for outsiders.

Most people thought he was a mute who couldn’t speak at all.

The silent Victor never took the initiative or opened his mouth to say anything.

Just silently follow orders and carry out your mission.

Thoughts are expressed through words.

Few people knew what he was thinking.

He was walking up to a shabby blind man and opening his mouth to ask him a question.

But the blind swordsman who was actually asked that question was looking at the person who asked the question with an awkward posture.

As if there was something he didn’t like.

It seemed as if the silent Victor had no idea what the question meant.

No, even if he knew, he didn’t seem to care at all.

“… … .”

A moment of silence hung over the bloody alley.

The blind swordsman, who had been staring blankly at Victor, answered.

It was a rather blunt voice.

“Banshua.”

The silent Victor nodded.

“Banshua. Is it really impossible to see ahead?”

“exactly.”

“… … I see.”

That was it.

Victor stepped back, as if he had gotten something satisfying out of his curt answer.

“… … .”

For a moment, the only sound in the alley was Victor’s footsteps clanking back to his seat.

The soldiers who had been blankly staring at Victor resumed the task of capturing the assassins, flustered by Van Dyke’s stern gaze.

At this moment, a royal knight who was in the alley opposite Victor approached.

She spoke to Ashley, who was blankly staring at Victor.

“Long time no see, Ashley.”

Ashley, startled by her words, looked back at her.

Ashley’s expression darkened as she looked at Ruthie’s face.

“… … Sir Luthier.”

Ruthie replied with a grin.

“You should call me Unnie.”

“… … .”

But Ashley never called her sister again.

He just glared at Ruthie, who was smiling with her eyebrows narrowed.

Banshua looked at the two people alternately with an expression of interest.

“Sir Ashley. Was your sister a royal knight?”

Ashley answered reluctantly.

“……yes.”

Blonde Lutie looked at Banshua.

Her blonde hair, which was a bit short, barely reaching her shoulders, flowed brightly like Ashley’s.

“Did you say Sir Banshua? What is your relationship with Ashley?”

Banshua corrected it.

“I am not a knight, so there is no need to call me a knight.”

“ah?”

Banshua stared at Lutie, who let out a strange exclamation, then placed a hand on Ashley’s shoulder and added in a serious tone.

“Sir Ashley and I are lovers.”

“yes?!”

Ashley looked back at Banshua in horror.

Ruthi also looked back and forth between his sister and the unidentified blind man with wide eyes.

“Our Ashley said she wouldn’t marry anyone unless they were stronger than her… … ?”

Banshua responded indifferently.

“I guess there are exceptions. Only for good-looking people.”

“Oh, really?”

Ashley blankly stared at Ashvan, who nodded shamelessly.

‘What is this person thinking?’

Ruthie pointed to the captured assassins and spoke to them.

“When you were dealing with those guys earlier, didn’t you copy Ashley’s technique?”

Banshua nodded.

“That’s right.”

“Did you do it because you were a couple?”

“That’s right. How could you imitate such skills if you hadn’t learned them directly from her?”

Lutie smiled faintly.

“lie.”

There was an indescribable ominousness in her smile.

“You. You saw it on the spot and did it right away, right?”

Banshua looked at her with a blank expression, then smiled.

“Oh, did I get caught?”

Ruthie’s smile deepened.

“You can tell just by looking at it.”

Ashley looked back and forth between them with an anxious expression.

The two people were smiling, but their smiles looked quite dangerous.

It was an atmosphere where it seemed like a sword fight could happen in the blink of an eye.

Banshua nodded and pointed to Lutie’s waist.

“The sword is quite unusual.”

“Oh, this?”

Sling-

Luthier pulled the sword from his waist.

“It’s a sword, to be exact. It only has one side, right?”

Banshua answered calmly.

“I don’t know. I’m blind so I can’t see.”

Lutie smiled faintly.

“lie.”

Her talent flashed.

Swish!

The cloth covering Banshua’s eyes slowly flowed down.

“Lutie,” said Ruthie, smiling playfully as she cut Banshua’s blindfold in the blink of an eye with her sword.

“The devil with red eyes. He’s more mischievous than I thought.”

Banshua felt her eyes, which had become cool, and muttered softly.

“Ah… … Did you find out about that too?”

The red-eyed demon opened his eyes and raised the corners of his mouth.

In a dark alley, blood-red eyes flashed dangerously.

The devil’s red eyes stared at Luthier with an ominous glow in the darkness.

Lutie smiled brightly and did not avoid his gaze.

She spoke without taking her eyes off his blazing red eyes, which seemed ready to devour him.

“Ashley. Take your hands off the hilt. Nothing’s going to happen.”

But Ashley kept her hand on the hilt of the knife and watched Luthier closely.

Her sword was now neatly placed in its scabbard.

‘When did you put it in?’

Ashley didn’t see her sword go into its scabbard.

The Tao only moved once. It was when I swung my sword.

‘ah.’

As soon as Ashvan’s blindfold was cut off, he put it back in its sheath.

It was a skill that was hard to believe even when seen with one’s own eyes.

The two exchanged words without losing their smiles.

“I heard from Lord Sulkov.”

“… … That’s strange. He doesn’t seem like the type of person to talk much.”

“Well… he was tight-lipped with us, but he opened up a little to His Majesty.”

“I see.”

Luthi asked, observing the devil’s expression carefully.

“They say there’s a monster hiding inside. Is that true?”

In that moment, Banshua’s face hardened.

Lutie laughed.

“I guess that’s true.”

At this time, Van Dyke called her.

“Lord Ruthie.”

I had just received a report from a soldier that all the assassins had been captured.

Luthi looked up at the devil’s eyes, smiled, and stepped back with his hands behind his back.

“The Devil in Red Eyes. I’m looking forward to it. See you tomorrow.”

Luti waved his hands and turned around.

Victor, who had been standing silently at the back, also bowed his head slightly as he passed by the two people.

Van Dyke looked at the two people with a meaningless gaze for a moment, then turned around and walked away.

The three royal knights led the soldiers and captured assassins out of the alley.

The two people left behind stared blankly at the backs of the three royal knights walking away.

One man kept his hand on the sword hilt, his eyes wide with wariness.

Another one stands there askew, his lips licking with interest.

* * *

That’s enough of the exciting, twists and turns, unpredictable walk.

He had his clothes roughly torn and his eyes covered.

I returned to my lodgings where the Black Prince was eagerly waiting.

“Ashban-kong. Not you.”

“… … .”

The first time I visited a foreign city, it was quite complicated.

My head was just as cluttered with thoughts as his, so it was natural that I couldn’t memorize the directions.

I followed my guide, Sir Ashley, in silence.

“… … .”

A lot of thoughts came to mind.

First of all, the knight commander and guide who is good to walk with. Sir Ashley’s inaction.

Assuming that the skills of the royal knights are complete, and that the knights of the first prince are one step away from completion.

He expressed that his skills were still halfway to becoming a perfect knight.

Indeed, it is worth being so confident.

I could tell the moment I saw it without even having to explain it in words.

What she has built up so far.

How much I crossed the line, how much I pushed myself.

Never satisfied with the present, never frustrated, whipping yourself and how far you’ve come.

Traces of training that catch the eye in passing.

Her black eyes were dazzling.

Both metaphorically and practically.

But more impressive than that were the royal knights.

I never thought I would encounter a royal knight on this walk.

They were all extraordinary people.

They say they are perfect knights, and indeed they are.

They were unlike any other knights I had ever met.

The unique and strange atmosphere was impressive.

Victor, a silent man who wears a helmet and cannot see into his eyes.

A giant knight wielding a giant spear, Vandyke of the Iron Pike.

And, Luthier, a quick swordsman who uses a long, strangely curved sword.

I touched my eyes without realizing it.

I remember that sword strike that was drawn without any special preparation.

It was a split second.

She cut off only the blindfold, leaving the rest of the body untouched.

It was a skill that could never be done if one had no confidence in one’s own abilities.

Of course, Cheonma’s inexplicable talent was to immediately read the sword path that would be drawn the moment her sword strike entered the gap.

So that’s why I just stayed still.

The question is whether I had the ability to cope.

Usually, there is something called a preparatory movement that is shown before swinging the sword.

Tips of the feet, gaze, shoulders, waist, etc.

The sword path can be predicted in advance through complex factors.

But she had no such prior movements.

It’s fast and accurate, even though it’s swung suddenly without warning.

It was a sword that felt even faster because it didn’t have any special pre-action.

If only she had tried to cut off my head instead of blindfolding me.

Could I have avoided it?

Thinking about it gave me the creeps.

It was dizzying just to imagine.

“Hehehe.”

A smile naturally came out of my mouth.

‘It’s thrilling.’

Cheonma clicked his tongue as if he was displeased.

[It’s thrilling. Is that something to say after being ridiculed?]

‘Are you kidding me?’

[Didn’t you just let the cloth covering your eyes be torn apart? If it were me, I would have torn it to pieces and killed you on the spot.]

‘I’ll tear you to pieces.’

Sir Ashley, who was walking ahead, glanced at me and immediately apologized.

“I… am sorry, Lord Ashvan.”

I tilted my head.

“Hmm? What?”

“Lord Ruthie has been rude… … .”

I stared at her blankly for a moment.

“Why are you apologizing for that?”

“Anyway, she was my sister.”

It sounded like not now.

“hmm.”

I answered honestly.

“Not only is it rude, it’s also not something you should apologize for.”

“still…….”

“Oh my.”

“… … .”

I kicked her apology away with my foot, then asked her while I was at it.

“Sir Ashley.”

“yes.”

“What kind of person is she?”

Ashley hesitated for a moment before answering.

“He was the commander of the Knights of Grand Alder.”

“oh.”

Both sisters are knight commanders.

I don’t know where the Grand Alder family is, but I think they’ve done a good job raising their children.

“She was a genius, so to speak. There was nothing she couldn’t do. She excelled in everything, especially swordsmanship. She beat her swordsmanship teacher in a duel after only a few months of swordsmanship.”

“hmm.”

It’s not like a genius should call another genius a genius, but I just listened quietly.

“I grew up always being compared to her. I was inferior to her in every way. She didn’t let me hold a sword. She wanted me to marry into a wealthy noble family and live a quiet life. I don’t know why.”

In fact, all young women would want that kind of life.

For a moment, it occurred to me that perhaps Ruthie had wanted that kind of life herself.

No, not that.

“But I wanted to become a knight. She, who had taken over the family with her outstanding abilities, tried to hinder me in every way possible. She somehow prevented me from having my heart set on the sword. I had no choice but to leave the family to become a knight.”

“So that’s why you came to Starvanger.”

In the process, our relationship deteriorated.

“Yes. Luckily… … .”

Sir Ashley suddenly apologized.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I guess the conversation somehow ended up talking about me.”

“I have nothing to apologize for. What happened to Lord Ruthie after he left the Gyeong family?”

“I heard that she rose to the rank of Knight Commander, and soon became the youngest Royal Knight. I wasn’t surprised. That’s the kind of person she is.”

Sir Ashley smiled faintly.

Her laughter was laced with self-mockery.

“… … .”

We walked in silence for a while.

I muttered to myself as I walked down the street.

“That’s right. You seem like a suspicious bunch. You knew my true identity from the beginning. You called me Banshua for nothing.”

“Oh, I see. How did you know?”

“Does the First Prince know about it too?”

“You probably have a vague idea that there is a red-eyed demon on our side. But you probably don’t know that Lord Ashvan is the red-eyed demon.”

“I see.”

Suddenly, the sight of the assassins being quietly taken away caught my eye, but I quickly shook my head and shook them off.

“Oh, my head. Sir Ashley. Let’s go and get some chicken skewers.”

Ashley beamed.

“Oh, is that so?”

Of course, Ashley did the math.

We returned to our lodgings, happily munching on chicken skewers.

The place I returned to was in chaos.

Everything that could be thrown seemed to have been thrown against the wall or the floor.

There was no other chaos.

Shattered plates and glasses with broken corners were rolling around the floor.

I stared blankly at the Black Prince, who was banging on the table and shouting something, and then asked Walpole, who was nearby.

“What’s going on? Has the Black Prince finally returned?”

Walpole came over quickly and answered the question.

“This is a big deal!”

“what?”

“The knights who were to participate in the final battle have disappeared!”

“… … !”