Elric had a dream.
It was a dream of chopping down soldiers on a soggy dirt floor, full of blood.
The smell of blood and rotting corpses mixed together paralyzes my sense of smell. My ears are deafened by the soldiers’ shouts. Vision is black and white.
As I swing my sword like crazy and barely move forward, the fireworks fired by the wizards’ flames, archers, and matchlock guns at once turn my vision pitch black.
It looked like a huge monster with its mouth wide open.
Elric stared at the scene blankly, and at the end… .
“Huh… !”
woke up from a dream
Elric suddenly got up from the bed and looked around.
A desk, a bed, a knight’s armor set, and a model sword hanging on the wall created a sense of tranquility.
It was not a battlefield. It is a quiet room without any sense of the hustle and bustle of the West. This is Elric’s childhood room, where everything is the same as he remembers.
‘… Yes, I came back to my hometown.’
Elric stammered and stretched out his hand.
This is why the tension did not ease even though I knew there was no enemy here.
My body is drenched in cold sweat. My heart was pounding like crazy, and my senses were sharp enough to sense everything, even the sounds of birds outside the window.
‘The sword, the sword… .’
It was a mental illness.
Elric, who grew up on the battlefield and was paralyzed by the maddening atmosphere, suffered from a disease that made it impossible for him to take his sword away from his arms even for a moment.
With a clattering sound, I found a dagger on the cupboard next to the bed.
Elric held the dagger in his arms and took a deep breath.
Only then did the heartbeat return.
It was that moment.
-Master, did you cough?
Rdio said outside the door.
Elric regained a complete sense of reality in his voice.
“… “Yeah, I just woke up.”
The chirping birds chirped lightly.
*
It was an undeserved luxury.
Elric, who came in too late the night before and went straight to the bedroom, felt awkward in the morning at the mansion.
When I said I wanted to wash with cold water, I was immediately filled with cold water.
When I came out after washing up, clothes were ready, but the fabric was so soft that I didn’t even think I was wearing clothes. On the battlefield, clothes are always torn, and since you wear something that looks like straw, you can’t help but experience the negative effects.
Elric buttoned his shirt and tightened his tie.
When I looked in the mirror, I couldn’t see any trace of Sword Demon Kasha.
For some reason, it felt foreign, so Elric smiled.
‘It doesn’t suit you.’
When I was young, I think I often heard that my smiling face was really pretty, but looking at it like this, it seemed so contrived. This is probably why there was no laughing on the battlefield.
My expression froze.
Elric looked away from the mirror and pointed at his cane.
When I left the room, Rdio was waiting.
“Let’s eat first.”
“Please guide me.”
Rdio smiled and walked away.
It was right after that the question came up.
“But how did your legs get like that?”
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He’s been looking at his knees since yesterday and now he seems to be asking about that.
Elric hesitated.
“I fell down a steep hill and got stuck on a rock. “I was careless.”
How can you say that there was a bullet lodged between your knees on the battlefield?
It may take time, but it is a wound that will eventually heal.
I didn’t want to cause unnecessary worry.
“Hi… “You’re still a troublemaker.”
“Please stop calling me a troublemaker. “I feel like a child.”
As we laughed and joked around, we ended up in a restaurant.
The moment the door opened, Elric’s steps stopped.
“Are you coughing?”
There were a lot of customers in the not-so-big restaurant.
She was a woman with hair reminiscent of golden wheat, drooping eyes, and red lips that stood alone among her white skin.
Elric belatedly remembered that Tyria was living here.
Even though I saw it yesterday, I couldn’t remember it, so it wasn’t like I was completely out of my mind.
“Good morning.”
Elric gave an awkward greeting and headed to the table.
Maybe it’s because I woke up with a sore knee. Even if you try to calm your expression, it doesn’t work as you wish.
It was the moment when I finally pulled up a chair and sat down with difficulty.
Elric realized that her gaze was focused on his knees.
“Oh, don’t worry. “It’s not a major injury.”
How ugly would it be if the subject came back sick and whined like a child?
Elric covered his knees with his hands and brushed away her gaze.
“… is that so.”
Tyria sat down.
The meal came out soon.
Eggs, soft bread and three slices of bacon.
It was a memorable meal. It was a simple and light meal tailored to my father’s tastes.
It’s just ironic that the owner who created this diet is not here.
With a clattering sound, Elric picked up his fork and knife.
Only then did Tyria also pick up the utensils.
Elric continued eating and watched her movements.
She was surprisingly quiet. She used glass and metal utensils without making any clattering noises, and the movements of cutting and cutting something and moving it to her mouth were elegant.
He opened his mouth small and quietly swallowed the food so that no chewing sound was made, which was also a stark contrast to Elric.
Eating dirt-covered emergency rations on the battlefield became a habit, and Elric had forgotten all the dining etiquette he had learned.
At that moment, my eyes met with Tyria.
Elric was shocked and turned his head to his plate.
Then, thinking ‘Why am I avoiding my eyes?’, I cleared my throat and raised my head.
She was still staring at Elric.
Elric smiled his signature artificial smile.
“Why are you doing that?”
“… no. nothing.”
Her gaze turned downward again.
It was an incredibly uncomfortable meal.
Still, Elric thought this might be too impersonal as they were sitting at the same table, so he cautiously opened his mouth.
“Are you going to look at the wheat fields today too?”
“… yes.”
“Hmm, I guess so.”
Tyria’s index finger curled slightly.
Perhaps because it was annoying, Elric regretted opening his mouth.
‘You stupid bastard.’
I made the same mistake again by opening my mouth.
My stomach felt bloated. If I sit like this any longer, I’m going to gorge on food.
Elric took the remaining half of the bread, a piece of bacon, and a fry in one go, then opened his mouth wide and stuffed them all in one go.
I wiped my mouth with a napkin and got up.
“It’s a bitch. “Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.”
I will go. Enjoy your meal.
It was the most everyday greeting you could say.
There was no way that meaning could have been conveyed. He didn’t even have time to think about that.
Elric grabbed his cane and hurried away.
It was only after the door closed that Tyria opened her mouth.
“… Yes, have a nice day.”
It was a very small voice.
A faint smile appeared on her lips that you couldn’t tell if you looked closely, but then disappeared without a trace.
*
The mansion we left after finishing the meal was busy.
Elric received guidance from Rdio and exchanged greetings with the users.
Among them, there were people who existed in Elric’s memories, and there were people who had been replaced by others.
Those who met after a long time welcomed Elric warmly.
As Elric, it was something I was very thankful for.
I can’t help but think how big their hearts are, that they would welcome such a shameless adulterer who left without a word and didn’t even come to his father’s funeral.
After each hug, they, without exception, expressed concern about their knees.
Elric reassured them, “You’ll get better soon,” but no one believed him.
‘Was I such an unsatisfactory child…? .’
Elric, who was looking back on the past, soon acknowledged it.
In fact, if you were to name the biggest troublemaker in Wibin, Elric Portman would be one of the names that came up, so I had no choice but to admit this part.
The maid, who was giggling at Elric’s inability to answer, continued to ask.
“Hi… Well then, master! “You’ve come back completely now, right?”
“haha… .”
Elric smiled sheepishly.
This is because the policy has not yet been clearly determined.
I have a knee injury, so I’ll be here for a while, but… How can he act like the owner of this place now?
Coming to Weibin was purely an accident caused by homesickness and a number of factors cleverly intertwined.
Even if I were to say that I learned of the news of my father’s death at a bar I stopped by on the day I had to leave the battlefield due to a knee injury, would anyone believe me?
This place was running well without me, so I didn’t want to barge in and cause trouble.
There is a high probability that it will return.
“young master?”
“Well, we’ll talk about that later. “I have a place to go.”
“Oh, no problem. Yes, once you arrive, it’s important. Ho Ho! “I’ll have to make a big dinner tonight.”
Leaving behind the maid’s hearty laughter, Elric spoke to Aldion.
“Then let’s go quickly.”
“Yes, please get in the carriage.”
In front of me was a carriage that was just the right size for me to ride alone.
Elric played with the dagger in his chest.
It was something I did out of habit whenever I felt uneasy.
Finally, he landed on the floor and limped towards the carriage.
The destination was my father’s grave.
romance, fantasy,
