The green hair was a mess, as if it had been cut in a hurry.
Even the black cloak was so big that it was dragging on the ground.
The slender wrists, desperately trying to hold onto the cloak that was still flowing, were the first thing Josef noticed.
The child looked too pathetic to be called noble.
"Hoyan."
"It's Marcus now."
"······Alright, Marcus."
Bayezid's hidden sword whose name is not even known.
He was the leader of the undercover corps that only the head of family could fully control, but it would be reasonable to question him to some extent now.
"Is the child in front of me really the last descendant of the Rabnoma family, Karl Rabnoma?"
"······."
Josef's office in Deomar, bathed in sunlight.
It was a calm place, unlike the north, but right now there was only heavy silence hanging in the air.
"I apologize."
"Fine."
It was an obvious mistake, but Josef didn't bother to blame Marcus.
As the last remaining strength of Rabnoma, everyone involved in this matter must have been desperate.
With Marcus's strength alone, it would have been impossible to pierce through all of that struggle.
'Anyway, it's probably true that they are from the Rabnoma family.'
The child who claimed to be the last Rabnoma.
Bayezid had to pay a hefty price to get this child out of the west.
But if Josef had known that this child was not Karl Rabnoma, he would not have gone to such lengths.
"Tell me your real name. Heir of Rabnoma."
In response to Josef's question, the child tried to appear composed, lifting their chin, but their eyes were filled with unmistakable anxiety.
There was no one here to stand up for them.
"I, I am."
"Just so you know, I really hate lies."
Now, the child had no one to protect them.
Even a slight warning would sound like thunder to such a child.
So, the only thing the child could rely on now was the black cloak they were wearing.
"······Char."
A voice that seemed to resign itself to something, creeping in.
To survive, they had to hide themself.
That was the first survival method the child had to learn after coming out into the world.
"Charlotte Rabnoma."
And when they finally revealed their identity, no one welcomed them with joy.
From the moment she was born to barely surviving until now, Charlotte had lived in such a world.
"······Well."
Bayezid's men looked frustrated at the answer they heard.
Listening to the countless sighs she had heard over the years, Charlotte could do nothing but hold onto the cloak with trembling hands again.
"Thank you for being honest."
Although she tried to disguise it with a rebellious gaze, Charlotte's eyes, shaking without restraint, were pitiful.
Just like the boy Josef had met on a winter day.
As Josef looked at the child who revealed herself as Charlotte, not Karl, his mind began to tangle with complexity.
※※※※
The sky was blue, and the waves were calm.
Unlike the fierce storm that had raged last night.
"······I hate Zemina."
A man with wet, black hair sprawled on the deck like wet seaweed.
A small voice flowed through the pale lips.
"Zemina is too small, too slow, and too shaky."
"Lord Rutger, please pull yourself together."
Like Rutger, Vlad brushed aside his wet hair and quickly lifted him up.
Vlad's complexion was also pale, but he seemed much better than Rutger, who was babbling nonsense.
"I hate the sea. I hate storms too."
"But we managed to survive, didn't we?"
"I'll never set foot on a ship again. I'll live my whole life on land."
The unfamiliar sea. And the storm they experienced for the first time in their lives.
Just today, after breaking through the ferocious storm last night, Redhead Zemina managed to enter the northern waters.
According to Harven, if they had been just a little slower in their response, they could have all ended up as fish bait.
'...They've all lost their minds.'
Vlad, who was continually shifting Rutger towards the railing, sighed quietly as he looked out over the deck.
The men from the north, entangled with each other here and there.
Vlad sighed as he watched the forced unification of the North brought about by the great forces of nature.
"Why isn't there even a captain's cabin on this ship?"
"It was small to begin with. We converted everything into cargo holds."
Vlad, who grumbled about Rutger's complaints, received nothing but a confident justification from Harven.
"Don't you think the name Zemina suits this ship well when you see this? They're both so tiny."
"······Fine, do as you please."
Vlad, leaving Harven enthusiastically steering the wheel behind, began to rearrange the knights and Budart warriors inward, replacing the sailors who were still bustling in the alleyways.
"We almost died for real."
Though they were now moving about as if nothing had happened, the aftermath of the storm they faced last night still vividly lingered in Vlad's mind.
It was probably a storm that would have caused the ship to sink a long time ago if the squid swarms hadn't alerted them.
'These creatures are truly fascinating.'
Vlad gripped the railing on the somewhat relaxed deck and looked down at the sea below.
Luminescent organisms drifting away one by one as the storm passed.
Observing the squids returning to the depths as if they had completed their tasks, Vlad quickly closed his left eye.
'Clearly not spirits, no matter how you look at it.'
Glowing squids that warned of an approaching storm and showed us the way through it.
But even in Vlad's world, where the remnants of the voice were absorbed, they were just ordinary ugly squids.
"······I don't know what the hell is."
Harven had explained that the squid swarms that surged last night had likely come up to escape the storm.
But Vlad knew well that the squids now drifting away were not stuck together for such natural reasons.
"What exactly did you make for me?"
Vlad quietly looked at the blue sword hanging from his waist.
The Star Sword, created by the young World Tree with the spirits.
The dust that had been gradually dispersing from the sword since last night was something only Vlad could recognize.
It was a sight reminiscent of the white snake on the hills of Hainal.
'The white snake seemed to really like this.'
Vlad, who had merely absorbed the remnants of the voice, still had yet to realize the fact that he was planting seeds right now.
Young potentials who had not yet become spirits were being led by the knight and spreading throughout the world.
Just like the old Sword Master wanted to do.
"I see it! I can see land over there!"
Vlad was awakened from his thoughts by the shout of a sailor coming from somewhere.
Traces of land begin to faintly appear in the distance.
Upon the lookout's shout of land being sighted, the knights who had been lounging around began to stir.
Whether it was due to mood or not, the scent that was already reaching their noses seemed to change.
"Good."
Harven confirmed the coastline visible in the distance through his telescope, then smiled faintly.
"Let the guests know! We've reached our destination!"
The captain, who had persevered until the very end, safely delivered the cargo through the storm to its destination.
Captain Harven's performance was so impressive that it became deeply embedded in Rutger's mind.
"Raise the flag! So they can identify us!"
Following the captain's orders, the small but sturdy Redhead Zemina's flag was once again hoisted, proudly fluttering in the sea.
The red flag, resembling someone's hair color, fluttered not only on land but also here in the sea.
※※※※
Heheheheheeng-
Noir, who moved slowly as if suffering from seasickness, seemed to be the most fortunate of all, considering the rough voyage had left no injuries.
"I'm going back to Shoara just like this."
On the modest shoreline of a coastal village, even the smallest ship like Redhead Zemina found it challenging to enter. Harven bid farewell to Vlad, standing there.
"Thanks for waiting in Nassau."
"If you're so grateful, why don't you buy me another ship?"
Harven, tapping Vlad's sleek armor, smiled.
However, as Harven looked at the armor up close, his smile hardened as he saw the scars carved all over the armor.
"I'll surely buy you another ship. But even with one more ship, would that be enough for someone like me?"
Blond hair shone like gold above his smiling face.
It looks gorgeous when seen from afar, but when seen up close, it is full of scars.
Harven couldn't help but smile bitterly as he looked at Vlad's armor, which looked exactly like its owner.
".....Don't push yourself too hard. I'm earning money now, too."
"Who are you trying to impress with that?"
Although it was a cold answer, Harven lifted the cane he was holding and opened his arms to hug Vlad.
For a moment, their balance wavered, but when they leaned on each other, they were able to maintain a perfect posture.
"Remember, Zemina is always waiting."
"....Got it."
Take care, stay healthy. Until we meet again.
Though they didn't express it in words, the sincerity contained in a single embrace conveyed fully through the warmth they shared.
"I still have some cargo left."
Harven pointed with his thumb behind him. There stood Rutger, looking at Vlad with a somber expression.
Despite the order to board having been given, the eldest son of Bayezid couldn't bring himself to step away, remaining on land as Redhead Zemina set sail back to Shoara.
He had to join Peter, who would lead the main army in the upcoming war.
"Go on."
"Got it."
After exchanging brief greetings, Harven and Vlad turned their backs to each other, heading towards their respective missions as if it were second nature.
For the men in the back alleys, saying goodbye loudly was like a taboo. They believed only silent farewells would connect them until their next meeting.
Vlad and the warriors of the Budart tribe left the village through the harbor.
Watching them from the ship, Harven quietly observed Vlad's retreating figure until it disappeared beyond the end of the telescope.
"Just as the storm clears, war approaches. You..."
Those who stood up alone had to constantly prove themselves, just like Vlad does now.
"Otar, raise the anchor."
"Sure."
Seeing his friend who had to venture into the storm of the battlefield once again, Harven could only turn his head away.
However, unlike before when he could only watch from afar, Harven now had the legs to move forward.
"Let's go! Everyone, prepare!"
Though faint now, someday they would share the same sky.
Recalling Vlad's armor, full of scars, Harven quietly held the captain's hat in his hand.
The small ship began to move slowly with the wind. Thankfully, the sea seemed calm today, unlike yesterday.
※※※※
The group, heading from the nameless coastal village towards Deomar, seemed to have some unresolved grudge from their sea voyage, as the horses of the North were pushing forward vigorously.
And finally, when the flag of Hainal began to appear from afar, an unusual group of soldiers began to enter the group's field of vision.
"Is that Gaidar?"
"...Doesn't seem to be the main army."
Gaidar's soldiers are slowly raising their heads across the small stream.
As Aage said, it was not the main army brought by Sigmund, but it was a scouting party that had already come to check the situation.
"They're blatantly showing themselves."
It was common knowledge, so there was no reason to hide.
The vanguard of Gaidar had no hesitation in revealing their presence, making their scouting mission seem almost unnecessary.
"Aage, give me the flag."
"Got it."
"Not mine, though."
If you are ignored, you must pay back.
That was the rule of life set by Vlad, a survival tactic.
"Maybe we should greet them first before war."
Seeing Vlad's fierce smile, the warriors of the Budart tribe smiled along with him.
Indeed, the choice made by the son of the grassland was not wrong.
"Let's go!"
The warriors ran down the slope of the plain, not towards the fortress of Deomar, but towards the soldiers of Gaidar.
Gaidar's soldiers began to panic at Vlad's sudden charge.
"W-What are those things!"
"They're charging at us!"
Warriors charging towards the vanguard of hundreds of lightly armored cavalry.
Vlad's impulsive actions, far beyond common sense, caused the previously relaxed Gaidar soldiers to start wavering.
"Lower your shields! They came to greet us!"
However, Vlad and his warriors simply scoffed at them, passing through the formation without a second thought.
Vlad and the warriors began to scan Gaidar's formation, boldly passing by as if they would touch it.
Yet, the Gaidar soldiers' inability to respond quickly wasn't solely due to their sudden panic.
"Is that flag real?"
"······No, that can't be possible."
The knight with the striking blonde hair held a flag that looked impressive at first glance. However, upon closer inspection, the flag was bent and stained, far from impressive.
"Tell the Count and Godin! I was grateful for the flag you gave me!"
The unfamiliar northern knight held a familiar flag.
It was the Gaidar cavalry's flag, with its wings bent and its shaft sagging.
[T/L: Read more chapters here: - https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]