Star-Embracing Swordmaster – 14



What do you want (2)

Mornings are painful.

It’s painful to wake up painful to open your eyes and even more so if the air outside is cold.

“Goat. “What’s for breakfast today?”

“Stew with strange meat.”

“…I feel bad.”

Vlad woke up looking groggy from not sleeping properly and realized that even his morning diet wasn’t helping him.

“I’m not eating breakfast this morning.”

“Are you going to the priest again?”

Goth who was about to go to the food service area with this empty bowl looked at Vlad with envious eyes.

“Should I pray too?”

“You are already done with the word prayer.”

When Vlad pulled back the tent the faint morning sunlight was visible.

“cold.”

It was a wonderful sight but it also seemed to be getting boring after camping in the winter field for about a month.

“I came first!”

“Why isn’t our pot boiling yet?”

It was a strange salty taste but the fact that the employer provided the meal also meant that this place had a great working environment.

“Hmm.”

Vlad passed the mercenaries who were yelling at him for a bowl of stew and stood in front of a tent.

The tent was smaller than the tent where the commander of the punitive force Josef Bayezid was located but it had a neat and tidy feel.

“Priest. “I’m here.”

When Vlad pulled back the tent warm heat came from inside.

“Ohh. Riemann! Welcome. “I was just about to eat breakfast.”

Priest Andrea the owner of the tent saw Vlad and welcomed him with a bright smile.

“Priest were you at peace last night?”

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“I am always at peace.”

Priest Andrea personally led the man who came in with the cold winter wind and made him sit in front of the table.

“Please sit here.”

Priest Andrew told the young deacon following him to prepare more breakfast for each person.

“I heard you went to pray last night too?”

“I did it because I couldn’t sleep.”

“It must have been cold.”

“What does the cold have to do with being held in the arms of the Lord?”

“haha! “You seem more like a priest than me.”

Although they were exchanging greetings with Priest Andrea Vlad’s eyes remained on what the young boy was carrying.

‘Wheat bread!’

It was also soft white wheat bread not hard black bread.

Josef the commander of the punitive force was said to be a faithful believer but the devotion he gave to the priest was indeed admirable.

“Pray.”

“I didn’t come to eat just to say good morning to the priest…”

“Today we are thankful to God for giving us our daily bread….”

Although he was saying no on the outside Priest Andrea who was over 50 years old had already figured out Vlad’s shallow details.

Even though he knew he just pretended not to know and took care of Vlad’s pride.

“Eat this food and gain strength so that you can exert even more effort in doing good work…”

Andrea slowly opened her eyes and looked at the blond man praying in front of her.

‘He is truly a wonderful young man.’

Priest Andrew was so prestigious that Joseph bowed his head and brought him to him.

His reputation came not from preaching or connections but from his own actions.

Even though he was over 50 years old he was widely known not only to nobles but also to commoners as he followed the monster battles unfolding everywhere defeating evil beings and blessing the soldiers.

‘What a beautiful sight it is to see that faithfulness has not been lost even in the most humble places.’

To Father Andrea the existence of a man named Lehman came as a small shock.

A young man who always seeks God’s will despite being a mercenary living a difficult life.

For Andrea the existence of Riemann who takes care of himself and always bows to God even among those who have failed him was like a revelation.

‘This too must be a fate given by God.’

In the meantime there were people who put their heads up in prayer but they were just people who wanted something for themselves.

“Eat it.”

“Yes priest.”

However the man in front of me named Lehman was a man who prayed and tried to approach God even in places where he was not present.

I prayed while eating prayed while sleeping and even prayed while fighting monsters.

Anyone could see that he was a truthful person.

What a person like that wanted for himself was just a warm breakfast.

‘You’re such a wasteful young man to be here.’

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So you have to lead it yourself.

This young man who will search for bloody battlefields until he dies.

“Wheat bread…this precious thing.”

“It costs a lot.”

“yes.”

Priest Andrea smiled as he saw the humble young man with tears in his eyes grateful for even a piece of bread.

“By the way.”

“yes. “Priest.”

Vlad was soaking bread in the soup laughing at the mercenaries who were eating strange stew outside.

“I knew that your sword skills were good and it seems that this also reached Josef’s ears.”

“yes?”

Father Andrea who was smiling happily while looking at Vlad spoke brightly.

“Lord Xayar came to me yesterday and asked me various things about you. So I am a truly faithful young man. “I told him I was looking forward to the future.”

“….”

Vlad who was stuffing wheat bread into his cheeks stopped for a moment at the words of Priest Andrea.

“okay. “I recommended you.”

“Oh oh….”

It was truly a strange reaction but Priest Andrea mistook it for Vlad’s happiness.

Even now there were noble sons and daughters who contacted him asking to recommend him but Andrea did not write letters of recommendation easily.

He was a strong priest who did not confide in the world and he sought only God’s will to the point where he refused the position of bishop of a certain city.

“The Bayezid family that Josef belongs to is a prestigious noble family in the north. “Just being able to work there would be a much better environment than it is now.”

“Thank you. “Priest.”

Father Andrea narrowed his eyes at Vlad and said.

But Vlad just smiled awkwardly.

Gulp-

The sound of pieces of bread being passed over that were stuffed in both cheeks was strangely loud.

※※※※

Some time after breakfast with Priest Andrea Vlad was praying again.

“I guess I was doing something too conspicuous.”

[There was no choice. My swordsmanship can only be learned through actual combat.]

The reason why Vlad volunteered for the monster suppression team in the city of Varna was not only because he had no place to rely on immediately but also because his voice recommended that there was no better place to practice swordsmanship.

[Wasn’t being close to the priest the problem?]

“I had to check.”

Although it wasn’t his intention Vlad had a relationship with Priest Andrea and wanted to experiment with him.

[okay. Are you sure now that I am not an evil being?]

A being that resides in Vlad’s soul along with the black thunderbolt.

If the voice that says you don’t know who you are really comes from evil then this is something you need to keep in mind when deciding your future course of action.

“It was said that Priest Andrea was so renowned and strong in divine power that he was recommended for the position of bishop.”

The fact that such a person could not recognize the identity of the voice in his soul at least means that the voice within Vlad did not originate from evil.

“It’s okay because I didn’t get caught.”

It was a sound of evil so noble that even a bishop-level priest could not recognize it.

Anyway I was lucky in many ways to meet Priest Andrew here.

“Should I have just hit it and run away? Should I run away now?”

[Hmm… But if your skills are as good as yours wouldn’t they turn a blind eye to counterfeiting mercenary badges?]

“If I don’t close my eyes I’ll cut my throat?”

A relationship with a renowned priest.

And then face to face with a scion of the Count family.

These were all benefits that a mere mercenary could not dream of but the problem was that they were all built on a false name.

“If you ask about this and that it will eventually be revealed that you killed someone. “Then you are guilty of identity forgery and even murder.”

[Now I see that you are quite vicious.]

“You’re an accomplice too.”

[hmm. It would be better to run away.]

It was so noticeable.

You may not have known it because he always lived quietly in the back alleys but Vlad was attracting more attention from others than he had intended.

“Then let’s go out sometime this evening.”

This monster-slaying mission was supposed to be paid once a month.

Fortunately I received a month’s salary a few days ago so I didn’t have to regret leaving.

And if you run away with Goth who is eager to trick you you will be able to create a properly forged identity card.

If that happens something like this will never happen again.

It’s a shame because the working conditions are good but now it’s time to leave.

[But it would be difficult to escape.]

“why?”

A voice spoke to Vlad who was pretending to pray for a while and planning to run away as if he was in trouble.

[Something is approaching from behind. Judging from his strength he is at least a high-level knight.]

“huh?”

Hearing the voice’s warning I quickly turned around to see Vlad.

There was a middle-aged man coming towards where he was.

“Did you read my presence? “It’s much more useful than I thought.”

A one-eyed knight with a shining breastplate and a small shield on his back.

“Joseph wants to see you.”

“….”

Vlad could tell when he saw Xayar’s heavily sunken eyes.

You won’t be able to control the flow from now on.

‘It should have just popped up yesterday.’

Although he was feeling devastated inside Vlad stood up with a resolute expression and spoke.

“I am honored that Josef came to visit me.”

“Did you know I was coming?”

No matter how cornered you are you have to at least pretend to have something.

Jorge said that an unwavering facial expression is one of the most important skills in a card game.

“I heard that Priest Andrea recommended me. “Actually I was looking forward to it.”

“Hmm.”

Xayar narrowed his only one eye as he watched the pale young mercenary treat him with a resolute attitude.

“Follow me.”

And I wondered how long that confident appearance would remain.

Vlad was lost in thought as he watched Xayar ahead of him.

‘Even now?’

However Vlad soon heard a voice and decided to follow.

[Don’t even think about running away. If you are a knight of that level your struggle will be nothing more than a futile struggle.]

‘…Damn.’

Having your mind read by a voice also meant that the actions you were about to take were within a predictable range.

And Zayar who is ahead may also have predicted that much.

No I had already predicted it.

Because his left hand naturally rested on the sword handle.

‘There’s nothing I can do.’

Vlad looked imposing on the outside but with the feelings of a dog on a leash he stood in front of the largest tent among the tents erected in the garrison.

“Bow your head as soon as you see Joseph.”

“How long will you bow down?”

“Until given permission.”

After hearing a brief warning before seeing Josef Vlad took a deep breath and followed Zayar inside.

‘That’s unexpected.’

It looked big and flashy on the outside so I thought it would be that way on the inside but in reality it wasn’t like that at all.

A space that has everything you need and is arranged in such a way that it is not excessive.

It was a sight that gave us a glimpse of what kind of person Josef was.

“Joseph.”

“okay. “Are you here Lord Xayar?”

When Josef’s voice was heard from inside the tent Vlad lowered his head as he had been taught.

I thought it would be better to just lower my head.

Because honestly I was nervous.

‘He’s so big.’

He was a person I would never have seen in my life if I had been in a back alley.

Joseph Bayezid the second son of Count Bayezid.

Although he had no title he had the same status as a prince in the County of Bayezid.

“I finally get to see it. “Nice to meet you.”

“It’s an honor to meet you. Josef.”

Josef’s voice came from in front of me.

Although it did not have the strong power of a man it was a voice that conveyed a strange sense of pressure.

“So are there any inconveniences during the mission?”

“Everyone here is grateful for Josef’s consideration.”

Josef smiled as he saw the mercenary answering without hesitation even though he was very nervous.

‘You look bold.’

But whether he was really a bold person would have to be tested now to find out.

“Your name is Lehman?”

“…yes.”

“Is there no last name?”

“Yes.”

“He had blond hair and blue eyes so I thought he was the son of a fallen noble family.”

Since Vlad had lived with such misunderstandings his entire life he was able to answer this question without much agitation.

“Okay let’s see. “I’m getting older this year…”

However when Joseph asked the next question I had no choice but to close my eyes.

In the strange silence created by Vlad the atmosphere in the tent became increasingly heavy.

“I’m 31 years old this year.”

Although it felt like drinking poison Vlad had no choice but to answer like that.

Because it was written that way on the mercenary badge.

The mercenary named Leeman whom he poisoned to death was 31 years old.

Of the three mercenaries lying around he was the youngest man.

“Ohh?”

Vlad raised his head without realizing it at the strange exclamation that Josef made.

A black-haired man with dark eye shadow.

“This is such a baby face!”

Although he looked sickly he had a beautiful glow hidden behind his dark eyes.

And the light in his eyes was pointed directly at him.

With a cold sneer.