Cave King – 279

Chapter 279 – Brothers!

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We took our seats on the opposite side of the table, and then Balpas began to speak.

“There are a mountain of questions I want to ask you… But first, I will answer your question.”

Balpas glanced to the side. There was a man sitting on a chair in the corner of the first floor. A hood was pulled deep over his face, and he was crossing his arms. It was Oren.

“Oren was supposed to be executed as the monster who killed the real Oren and took his place. Oren himself accepted this punishment… But father prevented it.”

“Was he showing mercy to his son?”

Rienna had a conflicted expression, but Balpas shook his head.

“He is not the kind of man who would do that. He only saw value in using him for something else. Recently, we’ve had a need for people we can use.”

Breaking laws and agreements for your own personal gain… It wasn’t just our father, but past kings of Sanfaris had worked like this in order to expand the country. So this was not the least bit strange.

Oren was no longer able to use magic. But he was still part of the royal family. That meant above average knowledge and skill with the sword. Well, he probably could not use a sword in that body now…

“Well, regardless, he does not have much longer to live. He is constantly bleeding and in pain. Could you see this as atonement, and be lenient?”

Things had been settled between me and Oren. It did not concern me what my father wanted to do with him now. And so I did not feel any anger.

“I have no objections. But…”

“You’re not going to say you feel sorry for him, are you? He is not the kind of person you should pity. Even his saving of the monsters earlier. It was not from a sense of justice.”

Rienna turned to Balpas.

“Then…why?”

“Because he doesn’t know anyone would help the weak. He was taught to always be strong. And that the weak are nothing but tools. That is, until he went to that island and became weak himself.”

Balpas turned to me.

“And yet you offered your hand. Welcomed him to the island. He had never experienced such kindness before.”

Kindnes… Oren had always been surrounded by his followers. But now that I thought about it, I had never seen him being helped by anyone. And even if someone did something, it would be considered normal for Oren.

Balpas answered as he exhaled a puff of cigar smoke.

“It’s ironic that he should realize his own foolishness after losing everything. But he still does not understand why you helped him.”

It wasn’t something that I could explain either. It seemed natural to me, and was how I had treated others up until now, when I could.

“And so he was copying what Lord Heal was doing. As a way of trying to understand…”

“I don’t know if he will ever learn… Still, we share the same blood, so I will watch him until his final moments.”

Balpas said as he lit another cigar.

“Well, I have no right to talk, as my hands are much less clean than his.”

Balpas had the Twilight crest, which allowed him to be silent and invisible. And he had assassinated many people according to our father’s orders. Both good and bad people were killed, merely for the gain of this country.

Though, I wondered what Balpas meant when he said they lacked people to use.

“The kingdom seems very peaceful now, brother… Is there something happening that requires help?”

“If there was, I wouldn’t be telling you. It’s a state secret.”

As Balpas said, he had no duty to tell me about Sanfaris. Every country had its own problems, and it wasn’t as if there was anything that I could do.

“Now it’s my turn to ask a question. What are you trying to do? Suddenly leaving your southern island and coming to Leodor, defeating the Nostor bandits… And now you are here in the capital.”

“There is no deep meaning behind it. We were just traveling through Leodor, when they needed help. And so we took down the bandits.”
“Well, you never were able to leave people alone… And I’m sure it was an easy task for you.”

Balpas has seen our power on the island, and so he knew that bandits wouldn’t stand a chance against us.

“And did you stop by the capital before going to Leodor?”
“No, we did not. While it may seem like we were taking the longer route, we went around the east coast of the continent directly to Leodor.”

“Hmmm. But why to Leodor of all places… Ah, I think I know why.”

Balpas looked like he remembered something.

“You used to be close with that Rish! I saw her not long ago, and she has become quite beautiful…. Though, I did hear that she is to be engaged. Elserd…of house Bessel.”

Balpas seemed to know everything. Perhaps he knew about the Arubal Company as well?

I wondered, but then Balpas looked at me with a grin.

“Too bad for you. But you won’t be able to win against Elserd when it comes to the ladies.”

“I am not trying to do anything in regards to Rish…”
“Really? Well, even if he is handsome, his personality is another thing. I am sure you are much better. Maybe you have a small chance?”

Balpas said teasingly. While it was annoying, it did seem like he had no connection with Elserd. And it seemed unlikely that he knew about the teleportation device or the Arubal Company.

As the Leodor matter was not important, Balpas quickly moved onto the next question.

“Leaving such jokes aside… Why are you here in the capital? For fun? I can see that you do not lack the company of pretty women, but I can still recommend some establishments.”

Rienna blushed a little.

“I just want to speak to our father.”
“…Don’t tell me that you miss him?”
“Never… It is something important. Though, not necessarily urgent.”

“I see. Unfortunately, father is not in the city right now.”
“Is he out on an inspection?”

“No. Officially, he is still somewhere inside of the palace. He went out in secret. And so even I do not know where he is. As you know, he is the kind of person to secretly sail away to a southern island.”

I had wanted to tell him about the black miasma.

After seeing the situation in Arancia, I had felt that the danger of the prophecy was getting close. We had to work together in order to face it. Even if he didn’t agree, he at least had to know about the threat.

“I suppose you don’t know when he will return either?”

“Indeed. Sometimes he returns the next day, sometimes he is gone for months before suddenly appearing behind my back.”

“If only I knew where he was going… But I doubt he would tell anyone.”

Balpas nodded.

“Aye. And so you have no choice but to wait here. Of course, if I see him, I’ll let him know that you wish to speak to him. Ah…you don’t have to tell me why. I don’t want to get involved in any more trouble.”

Balpas said with a tired sigh. He said that they were in need of help, so he was likely dealing with a lot of trouble. Perhaps that was why my father had acted.

“You must be very busy. And father is also busy. Would he really agree to meet me now?”

“Don’t worry about that. He will definitely want to meet you if I mention your name. After all, he knows about how much power Sheorl has.”

“Very well… I will stay here and wait then.”
“Aye. You should do that. Should I recommend you an inn?”

It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him, but Balpas worked behind the scenes. It was likely that he had great influence over any inn he would recommend. And that someone would be spying on us.

“Thank you. But I think we’ll look for one on our own. Besides, I want to show my friends the city.”

“I see. Well, do as you wish. I am often in this tavern, so you can come here if you want to find me. And if I’m not, just leave a message with the owner.”

“Thank you, brother.”

I wondered if I should ask him about the Arubal Company and Elserd, but I decided not to.

And so we stood up and bowed.

But just as we were about to leave the tavern, Balpas called out to us.

“Wait. I just remembered. I would avoid going to the palace if I were you.”

“I don’t intend on going unless I can meet father…but is there a reason?”

“Our other brothers and sisters know about the island. They will be sure to try to draw you into something.”

The various competing factions of royals. Before Sheorl, I had been considered to be too useless, and so I was mostly left alone.

But things would be different now.

“Thank you for the warning, brother.”

“Aye. If something happens, you should come to me. While I don’t want to get involved either, I can listen. And don’t worry, I won’t pull you into anything as well. Now, goodbye.”

Balpas waved his hand. I didn’t know what his true intentions were. Still, he knew about Sheorl, and so he was easy to talk to.

Just then, I heard a strange ringing sound coming from the first floor of the tavern.

“Hmm? Is that a bell? Hey, you’re all drinking too much!!”

Balpas said as he looked down.

However, everyone on the first floor was looking at a single man.

“Ah, it’s Mappa.”

As Fule said, Mappa was banging a hammer. With metal and wood, he crafted something that looked like a thick leg.

And when it was finished, he carried it towards…Oren.

Oren looked up at him.

“…What do you want?”

Mappa looked at Oren’s prosthetic leg. Due to the thugs earlier, it was broken.

“I don’t need that… This is enough.”

Oren said as he looked away.

However, Mappa removed the false leg and attached the new one.

With his arms still folded, Oren raised the new leg.

“It is lighter…and looks durable… Are you sure?”

Mappa nodded with a satisfied expression.

“I see… You have my thanks.”

Said Oren, and then Mappa patted the leg with a somewhat sad expression.

“What’s with that old man…”
“How dashing…”

As the others murmured around him, Mappa put some money on the bar counter and headed to the exit.

“That kid is showing off…”

Balpas said as he turned to me.

“…Well, at least I won’t have to carry him to a workshop now. From now on, any meals or drinks here are on me, alright?”
“Thank you. But…Mappa does eat a lot.”
“If it’s not drink, then it’s cheap. Besides, he looks like someone you shouldn’t get angry…”

Balpas said with a chuckle. Though, he was probably thinking more about Macha than Mappa.

After that, we reunited with Mappa and left the tavern.

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