Ethan, who had dressed If in a few thin layers of clothing and slung a rucksack over his shoulder, moved quickly.

Maybe they should’ve just left without stopping in the village.

If they’d continued on to the next town, even if it took longer, they wouldn’t have attracted so much attention.

They should have run as soon as they’d seen how few people were here.

Behind him, he heard the innkeeper chuckling happily as he tucked away the bag of coins he had received from the soldier.

Looks like they made some kind of deal.

Well, it was a village just outside an execution site – they probably had to take any second job just to survive.

Ethan clicked his tongue harshly.

“Ethan?”

‘Why is he dressing me again?’
She stayed still for now, but the question lingered in her mind.

“Later.”

At Ethan’s reply, the green eyes moved slowly down.

The cold wooden floor appeared blue, with shades of green and purple underneath.

Then yellow – the colour that indicated something close to human body temperature.

What was probably wrapped around their bodies was cold iron armour.

As only the eye area was exposed, there were more darker shades than yellow.

One, two, three, four…

Following the shapes reflected in the thermal goggles, If began to count.

Twenty-five.

All dressed the same, clustered down below – far too many to be mistaken for villagers.

“Are they after us?”

Ethan glanced down briefly at If’s question.

“They’re after me.”

If he were gone, they wouldn’t be running like this in the first place.

“Then why don’t you run away alone?”

“No.”

Ethan grabbed If quickly. Her body, light as a child’s, was easily lifted.

Tucked under his arm, If now had a clear view of her surroundings.

“This is uncomfortable.”

“Bear with it for a while.”

Ethan, so used to fights where he had to give up parts of himself, often forgot that there was someone behind him – someone he had to protect.

‘It might be easier if I only had a handicap in one hand.’

 The empty rooms they had seen on their way up –

Probably because there were hardly any guests, the rooms were completely empty.

Despite the well-maintained facilities, the locks were flimsy at best.

If there were guests, they would probably be groups of soldiers, so the locks were nothing more than useless pieces of metal.

Ethan opened the door to one of the empty rooms he had noticed earlier, walked straight through and jumped out the window.

“Hey-ugh!”

A soldier standing directly below tried to call for reinforcements, but his voice was cut off before it could rise.

A sword, drawn before anyone could notice, slipped through the gap in the soldier’s helmet.

Taking the soldier down in an instant, Ethan swung his blade again without pause.

The soldier’s body, skewered like a spit, slammed into the face of another soldier.

“Ugh!”

Without hesitation, Ethan drew his sword from the corpse and drove the blade straight into the head of the soldier who had staggered back, clutching his face.

Soldiers usually moved in pairs for efficiency and stability.

Having taken out both in an instant, Ethan stood at the back of the tavern, quietly scanning for any sign of movement.

“There’s no way he’s getting out of here with so many men around.”

“Shouldn’t he only have one arm now? Even if he is the so-called ‘Mercenary King’, what can he do without his sword arm?”

“Hah, exactly. Some mercenary scum who’s been rolling around in the dirt without even proper sword training – no match for us.”

“The captain really is underestimating us way too much.”

Unlike the soldiers inside, who were following orders, the formation outside was a complete mess.

‘Good.’

That would make it easier to escape.

From the looks of it, the only one worth worrying about was this “captain” they kept mentioning.

Among those who had stormed in was a man wearing a distinctive blue cloak –

Judging by how suspicious they were, he must have been there that day.

Most of the soldiers treated the mercenaries terribly. Discrimination was commonplace and contempt the norm. It was only natural – their ranks were completely different.

All soldiers in the Imperial Army were nobles. The real criterion for selection was noble status, without exception. If one of them happened to have combat magic skills, he’d be promoted without lifting a finger.

So it was natural for them to look down on mercenaries, who were at the bottom of the social ladder.

Of course, as much as they despised the mercenaries, the mercenaries looked down on them too. It wasn’t as if the nobles were the only ones with grievances.

Rank was, after all, the most useless thing on the battlefield.

Who would follow a superior who couldn’t even command properly, who relied solely on magic to strut around and act high and mighty?

Even if they were paid to fight, it wasn’t loyalty that brought them here – they had been dragged into battle under contracts that were more like threats backed by rank. There was not an ounce of true loyalty.

There were many soldiers and nobles on the battlefield who abandoned their comrades and fled – it just wasn’t talked about.

Unfortunately for Ethan, the commander on this side was at least somewhat competent. That’s why they were so cautious.

There were a lot of people who, even after seeing his abilities first hand, refused to acknowledge them out of pride.

Wasn’t that why even the Emperor himself had tried to kill him?

Simply because he didn’t want to admit it – all because Ethan had the mere title of “King of Mercenaries”. Normally they’d just sneer and call him a mercenary like any other.

In any case, just because a superior is a bit clever doesn’t mean that those below him will follow like limbs attached to a body. Ethan put If down and, without hesitation, struck down the two soldiers who had approached on patrol.

The sword pierced the gap in the armour and entered the soldier’s chest. Avoiding the ribs, the blade went straight for the heart. With his other arm, Ethan immediately snapped the neck of the other soldier who wasn’t wearing a helmet.

A snap.

He could feel the bones twisting in his hand.

After that, Ethan dragged the soldier’s body to the side where no one could see it, then pulled If close.

“They’re going up the stairs inside, Ethan.”

“What?”

If stared intently at the yellow figures visible behind the wooden wall. They were lined up and climbing the narrow stairs one by one.

The room Ethan and If had been in was at the end of the corridor – now empty.

As If’s eyes followed the figures slowly closing the distance, Ethan’s hand gently covered If’s eyes.

“I’ll ask about that later.”

Ethan picked If up and jumped high into the trees. The sturdy branch shook under Ethan’s weight, sending a few leaves tumbling down. Given the weather, the soldiers would probably think they were just falling leaves.

If’s eyes widened as Ethan moved swiftly along the branches as if he were walking on solid ground, like a monkey. Each time Ethan leapt in an arc, their bodies were momentarily lifted into the air. The wind whipped past, tangling If’s hair.

Although If had often been carried in Ethan’s arms while running, this was the first time he had ever moved so fast.

A clear, joyous laugh escaped If’s lips.

Hearing the sound close to his ear, Ethan couldn’t help but forget for a moment that they were on the run, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

Ethan twisted their path several times to prepare for any possible pursuit. Alternating between the ground and the treetops to confuse their trail, he finally stopped running after going a long way.

“Is it over now?”

If tilted her head, unable to hide a hint of disappointment at feeling solid ground beneath her feet again. Her hair, tossed wildly by the wind, was now a tangled mess.

“Well, they shouldn’t be able to follow us now.”

Ethan said, pulling out twigs and leaves caught in If’s long hair and throwing them to the ground.

Little bits of dirt fell away with each shake and soon If’s hair shone pale in the light.

Under the pouring moonlight, If’s hair sparkled like jewels, and just like the ripples in the sea that shimmer when sunlight or moonlight hits them, tiny fragments of light scattered and shimmered with every slight movement.

Ethan had felt it from the first time he saw her – he was truly beautiful. So much so that if anyone else had seen her, they would probably have stood there speechless, their mouths agape.

“Ethan?”

Just as he was now.

With a deep sigh, Ethan set down his rucksack under the tree. He had thought he might finally sleep in a real bed tonight, but in the end it was just another night of camping.

***

Ethan’s cloak, folded in half, was spread out on the ground to serve as both a mat and a blanket. They couldn’t even light a fire, for fear that any soldiers they hadn’t completely shaken off might still be on their trail – or that they might attract unwanted attention from others.

So If was wrapped tightly in the cloak, unable even to remove it, however uncomfortable it was.

“This is uncomfortable.”

In Belphirn, she had always been completely n*ked, except when wandering around – so it was only natural that she was beginning to reach her limit.

“Endure it.”

Ethan wanted to find a cave, but this whole area was just open grassland, without a single cliff or rock. Still, there was no way he could leave If n*ked and exposed in such an open area, so he held If close.

After fidgeting for a long time, If finally let out a deep sigh and rested the back of her head on Ethan’s chest.

*What kind of worries could she have to sigh like that? Ethan thought.

She’s the troublemaker here, yet she acts like she’s the one who has to put up with everything – it was absurd.

More importantly, now that they were being followed, moving about freely wasn’t an option. The route Ethan had carefully planned was now completely upside down.

Most likely, the commander following them was the same one they had seen back in the village – it was usually the person who spotted them that gave chase.

No matter how skilled his subordinates were, if the commander himself was capable, their tracking would be sharp.

Ethan pulled a map from his rucksack pocket and unfolded it.

Fortunately, he had bought the necessary supplies beforehand. Putting them in his rucksack right after buying them in the city had proved to be a good decision.

Supporting If’s body with one arm, Ethan unfolded the map with the other.

Unlike the old, worn map they had picked up in Belphirn, this one was much more detailed, with clear, sharp lines – a far cry from the rough sketch they had drawn on the ground before.

If’s eyes naturally wandered to the map.

There was one particular spot that stood out – a black hole-like mark. That was Belphirn.

Then that must be Pidentia over there, and Kwartz over here. And this side was Granat.

Their destination was Rigo. Its coordinates: 48°23’40.4″N 139°57’20.5″E.

In her mind, she superimposed the remains of the old map – what she now called “ancient times” – onto the current one and tried to match up the places.

With a slight tilt of her head, If stared at the map in silent contemplation.

It matched perfectly with the locations of the cities she knew.