"What sort of conduct is this?!" young maid Lucy could not help herself exclaiming.
Richard glanced at the agitated young maid, fully aware of her reasons for excitement, yet refraining from excessive explanation. He lifted his gaze toward the distance, watching the last rays of the western sun fade away. His voice took on a wistful quality as he murmured, "This is… a custom of my homeland."
"Hmm?" Lucy blinked in surprise, unable to grasp the meaning behind Richard's words, yet noting the somber tone in his voice, as if he were lost in nostalgia.
"I truly do not know whether I shall ever return, nor if I shall have the chance to savor the delicacies of old," Richard continued, his thoughts clearly drifting.
Cautiously, young maid Lucy cast a glance at Richard, tentatively asking, "Master, you seem a bit unhappy?"
"Unhappy?" Richard laughed suddenly, quickly masking his innermost emotions as he replied with a half-joking tone, "Of course, I am unhappy."
"Uh, what for?"
"For instance, we brought plenty of alcohol and fine needles, did we not?"
"Yes."
"The intention was to collect plants and capture a few exceptional insects to preserve as specimens, yet not a single insect did we encounter. Thus, this alcohol and these fine needles have become meaningless baggage to carry, hence my displeasure."
"Well…" young maid Lucy faltered, unsure of what to say, and after a prolonged moment, she suggested, "Then, Master, you could try to catch a few insects on the way back tomorrow."
"True enough," Richard agreed, rising to his feet. As he did, he gave Lucy a playful pat on the rear, adding, "All right, let's be off. It's too damp by the river; staying here too long at night would lead to a chill."
"Oh, I understand." Standing, the young maid pouted, rubbing her bottom in feigned grievance. "That hurt."
"Enough, let's return."
"Okay!"
Richard and young maid Lucy, one tall, the other small, walked back toward Hughes's homestead.
Silence reigned that night.
The following morning, at the break of dawn, the First Guard, ready and prepared, awaited outside Hughes's house to return to the baron's castle.
Alyssa and her brother Hughes exchanged reluctant farewells, while the rest of the group saw no such delay. Richard called out lightly, and instantly, the horsemen reversed their mounts, galloping out of the village toward the baron's fortress.
Not long after, Hughes galloped up beside them.
Approximately half an hour later, the group arrived at the desolate patch where they had collected plants the day before, traversing through the area.
As they rode midway across the barren land, Richard suddenly halted, turning to inquire, "That female assassin appeared nearby, did she not?"
"Uh, yes," Tuku replied, also stopping his horse. Curiosity etched upon his brow, he asked, "What's the matter, my lord?"
Richard surveyed the surroundings, a wry smile gracing his lips as he observed, "Do you not find it rather quiet here?"
In that instant, thanks to his enhanced perception from meditation, Richard could distinctly sense the presence of numerous concealed individuals.
"Hmm?" Tuku initially pondered Richard's words, only to soon realize the notable silence surrounding them. Ordinarily, one would expect an abundance of insect sounds, yet there resided none now...
"Stay alert…" Tuku began to shout, but before he could finish, a group of more than ten emerged from the dense underbrush. Clad in tattered linen garments, these individuals appeared gaunt from prolonged nutritional deprivation. Yet their eyes glimmered fiercely, clutching an assortment of weapons that shone menacingly.
Upon their appearance, there was no hesitation; they clamored, wielding their blades and charging forth en masse.
The only two who remained stationary drew strained bows, awkwardly launching arrows that skewed and instead struck one of their comrades.
The wounded man let out a blood-curdling scream before cursing profusely.
The two archers shrank back in fright, casting down their wooden bows, and grabbed weapons to join the fray.
Richard observed the chaotic display from his mount, a bemused expression on his face, wholly puzzled where such courage had stemmed from. Shaking his head, he turned to young maid Lucy, still on horseback behind him, and deftly tied a cloth around her eyes.
"Master, why can't I see?" Lucy complained.
"Because things may become rather bloody soon, and you are still too young for such sights," Richard answered calmly.
"When can I take this off?" Lucy asked, sounding somewhat aggrieved.
"When I tell you to," Richard replied unyieldingly.
"Hmph!" Pouting, young maid Lucy elevated her chin defiantly, yet Richard chose to ignore her, pivoting his attention back to the assailants charging forth.
The attackers continued their reckless advance.
Tuku's anger flared, igniting his sense of honor; how dare these ragtag individuals attempt to assassinate Master Richard! Did they not recognize the First Guard caste? Were they naught but peasants wielding tools of a farmer?!
"Kill them!" they shouted in unison.
"Die, you vermin!" Tuku bellowed, his voice booming like thunder, immediately drowning out the chaos about them. In a swift motion, he unsheathed his knight's sword and spurred his horse onward, charging fiercely at the assailants before him.
"Clop, clop, clop!"
The horse surged faster, Tuku brandishing the sword high, ready to bring it down.
With a sickening "thud," a head was severed from its body, blood spraying from the decapitated corpse, shooting up like a fountain to heights of three or four meters, leaving the remaining assailants momentarily paralyzed.
The other members of the First Guard, witnessing this spectacle, immediately smirked coldly. They harbored no pity; instead, they swiftly raced to catch up with Tuku, unleashing their wrath upon the assailants. Despite the valiant efforts of those who tried to resist, they merely posed minor inconveniences to the First Guard.
What had begun as an ambush devolved into a farce. In but ten minutes, the entire group of attackers was dispatched, many of them dismembered—Tuku's handiwork.
As Richard rode closer, he found Tuku wiping the blood from his knight's sword.
"Were there any survivors?" Richard inquired.
"Uh, one, over there," Tuku gestured to a figure off to the side. Richard turned his gaze, spotting a pitiful bloody wretch lying on the ground, pale and trembling in fear.
Though the individual appeared drenched in blood, most of it was, in fact, from his deceased companions. Richard approached, but before he could utter a word, the trembling man exclaimed, "I'll tell you everything! Whatever you want to know, I'll tell you! Just don't kill me!"
Richard raised an eyebrow, then dismounted his horse, a sardonic smile gracing his features as he observed, "Hold on a moment, let me first take a guess."
"Hmm?" the man gawked, yet Richard had already begun to speak.