Chapter 127: Exploration [2]

The more I stayed in the town the more apparent it became to me that what I had previously seen was just a facade.

Walking around the cobblestone streets to head for the main entrance of the town, I could feel the gloom on the people's faces.

It hadn't been obvious before, but it was clear now.

"....."

My steps halted as I spotted a figure in the distance.

He was the captain. Currently taking care of the wounded, his face was pale as he ran around.

"Someone get me some water! Heal him up!"

Even now, he was still working.

Despite his pale face and the fact that he was limping, he put it all to help those who were in need. It was a scene that would move anyone.

But there was something about him that didn't quite make sense to me. So much so that I found myself moving towards him.

"What are the injuries? Any dead? Alright, good! It seems like the reinforcements have been of help."

"Excuse me."

"Uh?"

Finally taking note of me, he paused.

"You are...?"

"I'm a cadet from Haven."

"No, I know that."

"Julien from the Evenus Barony."

"....Julien, okay."

He nodded and looked around, taking a moment to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

"Is there anything that I can do to help you?"

"Yes, actually."

"What?"

".....What's the number of the last subjugation squad?"

"Uh?"

He looked taken aback by my sudden question.

I explained to him.

"I overheard some people saying something about subjugation squads. I presume they're the squads that have been sent to fight against the necromancer. Im curious. How many have been sent so far."

"...."

The captain didn't answer immediately. Rather, he made a difficult face. Almost pained.

Eventually, lowering his head, he answered.

"....If we count your group, then it'd be subjugation squad number 255."

"...."

255...?

I drew a cold breath.

Just how many people did they send over?

"The amount of people that we've sent. I've already lost count."

He continued while I remained silent. I could hear the sadness in his voice as he spoke.

"Everyone that you see here. They've all lost someone precious. We're the last remaining people of the town."

That sadness quickly shifted to anger as his fists clenched together tightly.

"Every damn year, we have to watch as our population dwindles and our best warriors die. Every damn year, I have to watch as the young recruits of the town are trained to be sent to their death!"

"....."

I stared at him without saying a single thing. I looked deeply into his expressions and the emotions he was letting out.

At a glance, there didn't seem to be anything wrong. Rather, I somewhat was starting to believe him.

But there was something that kept nagging me at the back of my mind.

"Why?"

".....Why?"

He raised his face to meet my gaze.

"You speak as though you care so much about the people. So why? Why haven't you gone there yourself?"

"....Ah."

The captain's expression froze, and his lips trembled.

If before I could see anger and sadness, now I could see guilt. A lot of guilt.

"T-that..."

He didn't even seem to be capable of formulating his own sentences. It was as if something was eating at him.

But what...?

What exactly was that?

If that wasn't enough, there was something else that bothered me. Especially when I sorted through the memories I had looked through.

"What about the first subjugation squad?"

"....T-the first? What about them?"

The captain's reaction was all that I needed to know.

"I've heard your sister participated in it."

"Ah, yes..."

"Were they also there to fight the necromancer? From what I-"

"Captain! Captain! We need your help!"

Unfortunately, my words were cut short by a shout in the distance. The captain, who was called, found this opportunity to excuse himself.

"....I can't thank you enough for your help. If you need any help, I'd be more than willing to offer it. But as you can see, I have to go now. If you would excuse me."

Those were his last words before he left.

"....."

I stood in silence, staring at his departing back. Within the memories, I had seen him grow up. From a young boy, to a teenager, to a young male, to the middle-aged man that he was now.

Every time, he'd salute the subjugation squads as they left.

....And every time, he'd remain back in the town.

It had been a long time since he had become the strongest person in the town. And yet, people who were weaker than him had still been sent.

For what reason did he choose to remain here?

'Something doesn't add up.'

"What are you doing...?"

A sudden voice jolted me out of my thoughts. When I turned my head, I met eyes with Aoife and the rest of the members who were set to depart for the exploration.

"I was just talking to the captain."

I answered, adjusting my backpack.

While I still felt that there was something odd about the captain, I didn't have anything to work with.

'Maybe, I'll find something out when I get closer to the necromancer.'

I was rather curious about it.

....Especially since it had something to do with [Curse] magic. Although it had only been in visions, I felt a strange sense of comfort in the purple dome that the necromancer was in.

I wanted to go there to make sure that what I had felt was real.

Perhaps...

I'd be able to find something that would help me grow my strength there.

'Hopefully, I won't have to learn necromancy.'

I wasn't really a fan of zombies.

"Let's go. The Professor is waiting for us at the entrance."

"Alright."

Nodding slightly, I followed the group from behind, walking alongside Leon who looked at me strangely.

"Did you find anything?"

"....Not quite."

"Not quite?"

"I don't have much to work with. For now, I just find the captain suspicious."

"Suspicious?"

Leon frowned, turning his head to stare at the captain in the distance. As his eyes locked onto him, his brows gradually rose.

"Hmm."

"....What?"

I looked at him in surprise.

"Did you find something?"

But how could that be? He had only just looked at him.

"You're not wrong."

Leon eventually answered.

".....He is hiding something. Or more like, the events seem to be centered around him. No, rather, the entire town?"

He cocked his head.

"It's difficult to tell. But he is hiding something."

"What? How did..."

"I've got good instincts."

"...."

What the hell is this guy on about...?

Was this something that main characters were just born with?

The worst part was that I couldn't even ask him about it since he probably wouldn't answer. So for that reason, I rubbed my forehead and asked,

"How confident are you about your instincts?"

"They've never failed me before."

"....I see."

I once again turned to look at the captain.

'So even Leon thinks that there's something off about him and his story...'

Since he felt like this, chances were that there was indeed something. However, despite knowing that, I decided to leave him alone and follow the group from behind.

So far, I still didn't have a lot of information.

I couldn't just confront him without reason. More than anything, I was more intrigued by the necromancer. Or the dome that was surrounding it.

.....There was something about it that I felt resonated with me.

"Is everyone here?"

As our group arrived at the entrance, greeting us there was Professor Hollowe who rubbed his eyes.

With a large backpack behind him, he blinked his eyes and did a short head count. Once he was sure that everyone was present, he turned around to face the town's gates.

"Since everyone is here, let's prepare to depart. We don't have much time."

With light steps, he went ahead and crossed the gates.

The others followed shortly after him.

"....."

I stood in silence for a short moment before taking a step forward and following them from behind.

Thinking about the large purple dome that awaited us in the distance, I knew that it wasn't going to be an easy trip.

That being said,

'I'm surprised I still didn't receive my quest window.'

***

At the top of the town's walls.

A man stood solitary, staring at the departing group in the distance. Clenching onto the pocket watch and holding it closely to his chest, he repeatedly muttered the same words over and over again.

"Sorry... Sorry... Sorry..."

There was no one aside from him.

....And it was for this reason that he allowed the tears to stain his cheeks.

Drip. Drip.

"Sorry... I want to go... Sorry... But I have to keep my promise..."

The man was none other than the Knight's captain.

Holding onto his pocket watch, he bent over with exhaustion.

"I promised..."

And then, mustering every little bit of strength he had left, he brought his hand towards his forehead in a salute.

"Subjugation force two hundred and fifty-five. I wish you all the best of luck!"

***

The journey was a quiet one.

"...."

"...."

Besides Josephine and Kiera who would bicker from time to time, and Professor Hollowe, who would occasionally talk, nobody said a word as we tracked forward.

I preferred for it to be that way.

Staring at the familiar environment, I couldn't help but pause on certain occasions. It wasn't that I wanted to pause, but every time I would see a familiar spot, images would flash across my mind.

'....Do you think we'll be able to make it back?'

The images were followed by their conversations.

'We will. I'm sure of it. Even if we don't, we should at least try something to help out those that will come in the future.'

'Woooow! I suddenly feel energized. That sleep sure did help! Haha, now that we don't have to constantly fight the undead, we can feel energized again.'

'Let's go.'

I saw countless memories and countless people.

Walking along the familiar path, their images would appear whenever I reached a familiar spot, reminding me of the history that this path had.

'Hehe! It's my birthday today. I'm turning fifteen."

'Happy birthday! Let's celebrate your birthday now. Once we return, we will make sure to celebrate it with everyone.'

'Hehe.'

Wherever I walked, familiar faces would show up.

I had never physically crossed this path before, but it felt as if I had crossed it several dozen times. All with different people.

'I've decided. When we get back, I'm going to propose to Emily!'

'Hahaha. You only have the guts to say this now because we're on a journey. You were scared shitless the last time you even saw her.'

'Bah!'

From laughs to tears...

I had seen and experienced them all.

Immersed in the memories, I didn't realize that it was already dark.

"Let's stop here for the day."

What brought me out of the memories was the Professor's voice as he came to a stop. Within the rocky region, we found ourselves in a flat piece of land. The perfect place to set up camp.

"Let's set up our tents and start a fire. We will resume our journey tomorrow morning. We aren't far from the destination."

I turned to look back in the direction of where we came from.

'They're probably fighting against the horde by now, right?'

Given the time, it made sense. I was sort of glad that I joined the exploration group. This was especially true since it meant that I could rest even more.

"Alright."

Stretching my body, I started to help out the other cadets as we started to set up camp. Thankfully, the process wasn't hard. Within ten minutes, the tents were set up and a fire lit up in the middle.

On top of it was a pot where our food was cooking.

Crackle! Crackle!

A strange silence suddenly took over the group as all eyes fell on the fire burning in the middle.

The silence, however, was broken by the Professor who stirred the pot with a spoon.

"I keep a photo of my wife and my kids in my wallet."

Everyone looked up at him as he stared at the fire.

I did too.

Suddenly, I felt like he was going to speak about himself to break the silence, but...

"I use it as a reminder as to why I never have money."

"...."

"...."

"...."

"No? No one?...And here I was trying to liven up the mood."

Stirring the pot, Professor Hollowe muttered,

"Tough crowd."

The previous silence that took over the group returned. This time, it felt strangely tense as the expressions of all the cadets turned weird.

This was especially so for Leon who looked at me.

His face... It looked extremely strained.

"He."

Amidst the silence that took over the camp, I found myself covering my mouth.

As all eyes fell on me, my chest trembled. Leon looked at me with widened eyes as he shook his head.

It was as if he was saying, 'No, don't...!'

But it only made things worse.

Clenching onto my shirt,

"Hehe."

I burst out laughing.

And the previous tension that lingered within me vanished.