Retired Hero Wants To Sleep

Mission No.1 Magic Swordsman’s Return (19)

Marcus, who broke the emperor’s seal with a brisk motion, took out a thick stack of papers and raised them up.

And he crossed the cover and read the bright red seal written on the first page in a clear voice.

“Ineligible for battlefield deployment.”

Cold water poured over.

Marcus, who had read the text, and Ewald, who had heard the story, stopped in their seats.

“What is the battlefield?”

“… They are ineligible for battlefield deployment.”

“Hey, hey, Marcus. What are you talking about? Ineligible for battlefield deployment?”

“… Hi, my God.”

Like a moan, Marcus let out a long sigh.

“You’re ineligible for field assignment.”

“What is that!”

“I mean, even if you die, don’t send them to the battlefield.”

I tried to explain it, but Ewald couldn’t understand it at all.

“Do you have that skill? Hey Marcus. You should have seen Did you mix knives once and it was amazing? I don’t have the confidence to win within the 20th. Does it make sense to say that a kid like that is ineligible to enter the battlefield? Commanders, are your eyes rotten?”

“… Hold on a minute. I also find this very strange.”

Marcus quickly checked the registers. Then he spoke to himself with a serious expression.

“Level 9? Is the ineligibility level 9?”

“Tell me so I can understand!”

“So, what is a 9th grade?”

Marcus looked at Ewald with that serious expression.

“Those who killed the commander and deserted are roughly grade 9.”

Ewald’s face frowned mercilessly.

“What is the reason!”

Did you say it was a fallout payment? Kasper’s face, which looked like he was about to die from hatred, passed by Ewald’s eyes. I just wanted to jump into the office or bedroom right away and grab hold of the collar.

However, Marcus’ face hardened as if he knew Ewald’s feelings.

“… It won’t be dangerous though.”

“Speak quickly, Marcus. Because I’m excited.”

“I’ll be thrilled too.”

With those words, Marcus held the page he was reading in front of Ewald.

Significant.

In Ewald’s eyes, Elif’s record book unfolded, and among them, the part surrounded by the red box caught Ewald’s eye.

At the top of it was written a brief word.

1. Cannot raise a knife to living things.

“… What?”

Ewald’s hair turned white.

But there was another peculiarity.

2. Extremely cowardly.

That’s not the end either. It runs all the way down there.

3. Impossible to engage in night operations due to morbid fear of the dark.

4. She is the only female among white people, so management is a serious problem.

5. Her tremor is extremely severe.

6. Transferred to the Seventh Knights and changed position with the power held hostage by prisoners.

“Have you been held hostage by prisoners?”

“… Do you have a history like that?”

7. She doesn’t fit in with her unit and is shy.

8. Severe lack of spatial perception.

“Lack of spatial perception?”

“… Maybe it’s called Gilchi?”

Orientation will also be included.

And the highlight was the ninth item.

9. Desertion.

“Departure?”

Amazing, Great. Desertion? Marcus put on a look of disbelief.

“… Can a deserter be in the Knights? It would be a summary execution.”

Ewald read the remarks under item 9.

“A senior soldier found me crying in the supply depot in the barracks… Dog.”

“Isn’t that a bit like desertion?”

“Discovered after troop movement.”

“… Uh heh heh heh heh heh.”

Oops, I don’t know Marcus had to laugh like that.

“It must be the fault of those who didn’t move the supply depot after the unit was moved. You’ll be fine. You were surprised to hear that I was deserting again.”

“When the 5th Knights moved to the barracks, the abandoned house was used as a supply warehouse. Found in the hidden basement of an abandoned house after ten days of searching.”

“… Why did you go in there?”

“… Do I know?”

The more I read, the more I feel that Balt has a rat in his head.

“Is that the end?”

“There are nine more, but…”

Ewald passed his parchment to Marcus.

“Hey. Leave it, leave it.”

“… 18 items… Is it a 9th grade with 0.5 points for each item?”

“I don’t know. I hate to know. Know what?”

Ewald was denying reality.

However, Marcus’ expression hardened even more when he checked Elif’s medical record until the last page.

Upon discovering it, Ewald yelled out loud, barely stopping the irritation from welling up in his brain.

“Oh, why? What? What country did I sell out? Why are you doing this to me?”

Marcus shook his head. Then he took out his last piece of parchment and turned it in front of Balt.

There, the word paid was crookedly written.

Ewald, who checked the emperor’s meandering writing stroke by stroke to see if he shuddered while writing, laughed for a long time, or couldn’t help laughing while writing, spit out abusive language with a red-hot face.

I sent it knowing everything. Once it was pulled out, it was made sure that it could never be undone, and it was sent down with a seal on it.

Eventually, Ewald exploded.

“You bastard! Hey! Hey, Marcus, get out of the way! You crazy Kasper, I’m going to rip your sphincter! You have to eat your age with your mouth. Why are you eating it with your sphincter? You bastard, you’ll get younger if you poop. Crazy human! Hey, get out of the way! Get out of the way! Get Casper out!”

“Whoa whoa, whoa whoa, calm down, Ewald.”

“Would you calm down?

“Of course not.”

Marcus held onto Ewald, who was ready to run to the emperor’s office at any moment, and opened his mouth with a cautious expression.

“Look, Ewald.”

“… Why?”

To Ewald, who was depressed, Marcus held out his right hand.

“Cheer me up.”

“Go away!”

* * *

The next morning, when the shock of Elif’s medical records hadn’t even gone away, Ebalt, who was quietly sitting cross-legged, was trying hard to calm his mind.

Balt took a deep breath as he calmly operated his mana, strengthened his mana core, which had been weakened by being locked up for nearly 30 years, and sought peace of mind and body.

‘Elf-related words’ such as desertion, tremor, and lack of spatial perception skills that had been floating around in his head for a long time gradually disappeared.

And a new word popped into his head.

“Ode to Curses.”

Thoughts on Adele Meles.

‘I want to bring you…’

It’s Elif Gunn, the cowardly swordsman.

But Adele is a little different.

The first thing you need to exert your power as a bard is to charm your opponent. However, the problem with Adele, who is beyond tone deaf and emits a murderous high-pitched tone, is that her opponent grabs her ear before the bard’s power is applied.

Should we call it a sonic weapon?

Still, Ewald couldn’t stop Adele from wandering around in his head.

‘It’s a waste.’

Ebalt, whose greed was close to greed, continued his meditation while biting his tongue.

And the meditation was broken in an instant.

“Hey, Marcus.”

“… Why are you widening your eyes anxiously?”

“As for the Meles family, can you let go of their legs?”

“Leg?”

Ewald stood up from his seat as if he had made up his mind.

“I don’t know your family, so please let go of your legs. What is your title?”

“I have to find out now.”

“Or, let’s say hello in advance. Is the time okay? If you don’t have it, make it.”

“… Hey, man, even if my time is not enough, shouldn’t I at least give a word to the Meles family?”

Ewald, wearing a cloak for going out, quickly turned around.

“If possible, I should ask Kasper. I don’t think you can do that much.”

“… Do you intend to make His Majesty a pimp?”

“I’m only asking for a connection, but he’s even a pimp.”

A rather evil smile crept over Ewald’s lips.

“We should also hold the responsibility for making the Elif Gun that way…”

“It’s up to the question.”

A very familiar voice. Emperor Casper Elgenor.

Kasper’s words that appeared out of nowhere moved the gazes of Ewald and Marcus at the same time.

“Hey, you…”

Even though he was about to spit curses in his face right away, Balt stopped talking when he saw someone he had never seen before standing behind Kasper.

A middle-aged man with strangely drooping eyes. Somehow, it looks very similar to someone…

“Is this Mr. Ewald Kitska?”

Kasper nodded his head with a generous smile like an emperor, and opened his palm to Ewald, moving his lips as if introducing himself.

“Yes, Marquis Brantly Melles.”

“… Aha.”

That sound came out of Ewald’s mouth. There was only one piece of information I could get from a man named Brandtley ‘Meles’ and whose eyes were oddly similar to Adele’s.

He is Adele’s relative.

Can you save me the trouble of finding it? However, Ewald noticed that Marquis Brantly Meles’ expression was very dark.

“My name is Brantly Meles. He is the father of Adele.”

“Oh, yes, nice to meet you. Let’s say Ewald Kitska…”

“Please dry our daughter off.”

“… Yes?”

What development is this again? Ewald moved his gaze from Brantly to Kasper with a bewildered expression. However, Kasper, who has a complicated expression on his face, just tilts his head sideways without saying anything.

“Please, hero!”

“… I am retired.”

Did you even know that you are a warrior? But asking her to dry her daughter, what else is that…

“Please refuse to allow our daughter to join the hero’s unit…”

“Father!”

A familiar voice heard again. Ewald turned his attention to the voice that must have belonged to Adele. She seemed to be running from the other side of her hallway, breathing rather heavily, then clenched her fists and stood proudly in front of Brandtley.

“Why do you want to destroy the opportunity given to me?”

“A chance? What does adventure have to do with you paving the way for the bard!”

“Yes. Didn’t Pinja Meles also get a good note during the National War?”

“It was a war then, wasn’t it? Why would you go on an adventure where you don’t know when and how you’ll die!”

“Because I don’t want to be treated like a bob bug anymore!”

Suddenly, something broke inside Adele. At the same time, a bitter smile appeared on Ewald’s lips.

The tone-deaf bard came down to the dungeon saying she didn’t want it in the house, and the image of her practicing singing alone came to Ewald’s head.

‘… The picture is roughly drawn.’

“What are you talking about? Aren’t Gooner so immature that he can’t be called a bard?”

“Because you are at least tone deaf and you never lost her voice. He will be much more helpful to our family than me, who only has the ability but cannot manifest it.”

“You mean to drive her daughter to her limbs?”

“What… Although it is a place with a high risk of death.”

Ewald intentionally interrupted the conversation with a hiss.

“Why don’t you listen first?”

With everyone’s eyes on Ewald, Kasper cautiously opened his mouth.

“… You’re not trying to overturn the game, are you, Ewald?”

“Do you have a plate to knock over? I just want to hear from you.”

Marquess is the second most powerful title next to dukes. Ewald was in a position where he could have issued an unholy order just by suddenly intervening in the conversation, but in front of the former ‘warrior who saved the world’ who was talking to the emperor without hesitation, Brantley couldn’t open his mouth recklessly.

“Adele Meles.”

Despite the fact that the Marquis Ttukhani was by her side, Ewald called her by her first name instead of the title of ‘Daughter of the Marquis of Brantly Melles’.

“What is the purpose of joining my unit?”

She is meant to be the voice of Adele Meles, not as the daughter of the Marquis. Having pinpointed that, Adele nodded her head resolutely.

“Because you were the first person to say it was a great song.”

“Ah, an ode to curses?”

As she shuddered at the memory of the song that had scratched her brain, Balt drew an even more sinister smile on her lips.

“Is that all?”

“As you commanded, the song I sang as you directed expressed my will.”

Brandtley’s eyes widened.

“No, the song appeared?!”

Brandtley, whose expression was full of astonishment, was staring at Adele’s face, but Adele only met Ewald’s eyes with her.

“So?”

“When I am with you… I will be able to express more songs.”

“Will you use me?”

That’s good too. Ewald, who did not hide his intentions in the slightest, grinned and moved her gaze to Brantly.

“I don’t think you have to express it that way, but… The meaning won’t change much.”

A determined will flashed in Adele’s eyes.

“Yes. I need you.”

“Then, the interests are aligned, and we only need to confirm the will.”

Fangs showed through Ewald’s lips.

“I warn you in advance that you will suffer to death. But I promise to protect you from dying.”

Ewald’s calloused hand reached out to Adele.

“Are you ready?”

Brantly looked at Adele and Ewald alternately with anxious eyes, but Adele, who pushed Brantly’s existence into the background, confidently grabbed Ewald’s rough hand.

“I look forward to.”

January 31, 252 IC.

The ‘strongest swordsman’ and ‘legendary bard’ joined the Continentaler Speer, the empire’s best ‘special’ unit led by the continent’s best magic swordsman.