Volume 2 Chapter 6 Murder From Fifteen Years Ago
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”I am not a holy knight. I quit, along with the hero party.”
”…Huh?”
In the middle of the confusion caused by the situation, that single statement only deepened the chaos.
He had left the hero party. Why? What was he saying?
Just as Tiet had frozen up before she even made her appearance, Adelina rushed over.
The puzzled expressions of the former slave girl and the former holy knight met for a brief moment.
Tiet’s face tightened for an instant, but Adelina, acting as though she hadn’t noticed, casually leaned in close to Klock.
”…Hmm. Klock, can you stand?”
”Huh? Ah… So it’s true? You really quit the hero party? Then… why are you here?”
Tiet’s words, spoken with what sounded like concern, only stirred more confusion.
If he had already left the hero party, maybe he had given up on catching Klock altogether.
”Of course I’m here to question you. You made Anna—my friend—cry. I can’t just ignore that, can I?”
Naturally. Tiet puffed out her chest, as if that alone should explain everything.
For a brief moment, I thought that if she wasn’t just toying with me, I might’ve asked her sooner—but I kept silent. Considering our difference in strength, saying something careless could’ve been fatal.
”Even if you say that… I told you before, I don’t remember anything about… Sil…via?”
He gave the same excuse as before.
Tiet’s gaze grew a little colder. The way he acted like he should remember something only made it harder to understand. If they were close, maybe forgetting could be explained—but then, how could he forget at all?
Adelina tugged on his sleeve.
It seemed like she was urging them to move.
Seeing this, Tiet added, “Let’s move. A monster is lurking nearby.”
Realizing they’d been far too careless, Klock stood up.
”Aren’t you going to catch me?”
”Not right now. I have no obligation to.”
No obligation. The way she said it carried a subtle tone.
But her attitude had definitely changed. She didn’t seem like she intended to capture Klock by force anymore.
Klock started to walk, still unsure. Tiet followed behind.
They weren’t being caught. They weren’t being attacked.
For now, maybe that meant they were safe.
”…Ah, wait. I almost forgot.”
Just as he was about to continue walking, he remembered Ada.
If left here, the monster would definitely get her. Leaving her behind might make her condition even worse.
Klock quickly changed direction, rushed over to where Ada lay on the ground, hoisted her onto his shoulders, and started moving again.
When Adelina saw the two, she didn’t react the way she usually did. Tiet looked puzzled, as though wondering why he was taking her along.
The three of them—no, four—moved together in silence.
Adelina thought about saying something but decided it wasn’t the right moment. She walked on without a word.
Holy knight… no, former holy knight Tiet. She had planned to run the moment she saw her again, but now that her life had been saved, it was hard to respond the same way.
Tiet’s purpose seemed to be to talk with the hero. But… was that all? It was difficult to tell.
They continued walking and arrived at gently sloping terrain.
It was probably the Noirev Highlands.
The ground seemed rough enough to make carrying someone difficult, and since it was already midnight, she suggested setting up camp here.
They sat down with a small hill behind them and laid the unconscious Ada down.
Her face was swollen badly. Tiet couldn’t help but mutter, “This is awful,” before casting a self-repairing spell.
Klock was more than surprised—he was stunned.
”She can even use magic?” he thought. “What kind of blessings is God dumping on just one person?”
”Now then. Since you still seem confused, let me make things clear.”
Just as she was about to wonder what to say in this rare, quiet moment, Tiet spoke up.
”I’m alone now. I’ve got no annoying responsibilities. So I don’t plan to capture you. Not right now. However, you made my best friend cry. I will question you. Depending on your answers, depending on your attitude—I might get angry.”
”…I see.”
He didn’t fully understand what Tiet was thinking. But he understood what she wanted to say.
In short, today, Tiet wasn’t here as a hero.
She was here as a person. As a friend, standing in for someone else.
But the sheer power she carried, and how freely she’d acted in Klock the other day, made it hard to trust her words at face value.
”So, that’s it? Back then, none of you listened to my side—but now you will?”
”Hm? Ah, sure. I’ll listen. Say whatever you want.”
…What kind of response is that? Quit acting like you’re already planning to declare me guilty.
Because Tiet had always seemed like an irrational beast, Klock couldn’t help but take everything she said in the worst possible way.
Tiet hadn’t meant it that way. She had been trying to show she was open-minded.
But that feeling never reached him.
It was like a bear trying to smile at a mouse.
Suddenly, Klock noticed that Tiet kept glancing at Adelina.
Did she have something on her mind?
But with everything going on, Klock didn’t feel like explaining anything about her right now.
”…So first, tell me. What was the relationship between me and Sylvia?”
”Hm? Ah, your relationship with Sylvia?”
”Yeah. If I don’t understand that, there’s nothing I can do. Honestly, I still think there’s a chance the hero mistook someone else for me.”
”…Hmm.”
Klock immediately began asking questions.
They were all about the other person.
For Klock, the most important thing was to know—was this a misunderstanding?
If it was, then maybe clearing it up would fix everything.
If it wasn’t, then he’d have to find a reason to try remembering.
”From what I heard, you and the previous Anna were engaged. Hard to believe you’d forget your fiancée, don’t you think?”
”…Eh?”
Klock heard the words, paused, and slowly understood.
Then he froze.
Fiancée. There was a time, long ago, when he had a fiancée.
It was the first—and the last—time in his life.
That much, he remember.
However──
”I did have a fiancée when I was about ten…”
”Oh? So it wasn’t a misunderstanding—you just forgot?”
”No, I never even learned her name. We never actually met.”
”……Hm? That doesn’t make sense.”
Klock’s answer made Tiet raise an eyebrow.
According to Anna’s story, Klock had toyed with the girl. But if they never met, how could that be called toying with someone?
”Honestly, I don’t remember much, but I think our families were on bad terms from the beginning. I remember my father complaining—he couldn’t accept the engagement or something. So I had no intention of marrying her, and I was never told anything about her. I think.”
At that time, Klock had a lover named Cianie.
And with his sister being discovered as a victim of abuse in her noble household, his mind was far too burdened to care about his fiancée.
”Ah, I remember. It was a political marriage between the three feuding families—Amadei, Croce, and Livorno.”
”…Huh? What’s that?”
”…Hmm. Isn’t that your family? Did you forget because you became a thief? Or did you genuinely not know anything about your own family’s circumstances?”
”…No, I really didn’t know.”
Both of them fell silent.
Amadei. That name stirred a distant memory. It was the noble family his sister had married into. But why did Tiet know about it? Had she looked into this too?
Still, with these familiar names appearing, it was nearly certain that the person Anna spoke of was Klock. Especially with the mention of Livorno—there was little doubt left.
”Were you really that sheltered? Or did someone deliberately cut you off from information? If you didn’t even know about Croce, then it makes sense you wouldn’t recognize a name like Sylvia. But Anna definitely said she was toyed with.”
”That’s concerning, yes. But why do you know about Amadei?”
”…We went to Livorno as a group of four and conducted some research. It was a well-known incident, easy to dig up. The marriage alliance between the three noble families who bordered each other—and its collapse—was infamous. Also, Klock, I know that you killed the heir of Amadei.”
”…I see.”
Hearing that, Klock averted his gaze.
Yes. He had killed him. It was the one and only person Klock had ever killed. The man who abused his sister—Klock had struck him down with a spade. Then, he fled.
Escaping from Livorno, he turned to theft just to survive. That was the beginning of his fall—from heir of the noble Livorno family to simply Klock, the bandit.
”I should clarify though—it was an accident. Well, I hit him hard, so looking back… it’s not surprising he died.”
”I’ve heard how it began, but the important part is what happened afterward. Amadei, having lost its heir, flew into a rage and attacked Livorno. The result of the battle isn’t well recorded, but once they began skirmishing, the nation stepped in. After negotiations between the Empire, Theocracy, and Kingdom, all three families were dissolved. From what we know, Anna—your former fiancée—perished in the fire that consumed her mansion.”
”…So because I killed Amadei, Sylvia died, and that’s how this all got tangled up?”
”No, that’s too much of a stretch… no, actually, this still doesn’t make sense.”
Their conversation had veered off course, unexpectedly.
It made sense—after all, Klock wasn’t the hero himself. His version of events didn’t align with Anna’s story.
It was certain now that the person Anna referred to was Klock. That much was beyond doubt.
But the reason she resented him remained unknown.
At first, Tiet had assumed Klock must have treated Anna cruelly. But after traveling with him, even briefly, she doubted that Klock would do something so cold to someone so powerless.
”Klock. We really should meet Anna and talk this out.”
”No, no, no, no! Absolutely not! I refuse!”
”Hmm? Why are you so against it? If the misunderstanding clears, wouldn’t things become easier for you?”
”No, it won’t. If I don’t even know why she’s mad, meeting her will just get me killed. I want my peace back. Also, you people need to reconsider your ridiculous, unnatural levels of insanity.”
Klock was genuinely desperate to avoid it.
Of course, traveling with the hero and Tiet had already pushed him to his mental limit.
Tiet hadn’t witnessed it, but Klock had once been so drained he nearly chose death as an escape.
Until just moments ago, he hadn’t realized it—but now, Klock understood.
His mind had been slowly unraveling.
Day after day, running away just to stay alive had worn him down. Somewhere along the line, the simple act of surviving had become exhausting.
”Hmm. No need to rush. Well, I understand. Anna’s busy with other matters anyway. I’ll let you enjoy a little more freedom. You can run as far as you want for now.”
”…Are you serious?”
”Yes. When Anna has time, she’ll probably come to find you. Until then, maybe think of one or two lines you could say to ask for forgiveness.”
”…What about you? Aren’t you going back to the hero?”
”…I’ve become free now. I plan to enjoy that freedom.”
Tiet suddenly glanced sideways at Klock.
Sensing something off, he felt a chill creep in.
Whenever she made strange movements, he couldn’t help but grow wary.
”…Ah, I see. Did you leave the party because of me?”
Trying to change the subject, he asked.
”Haha, not really. I just didn’t like being bossed around by different countries. If Anna were to give up the hero title, I’d love to travel again with the four of us.”
”…I see. That makes sense.”
He wasn’t sure why she said it now, of all times, but he agreed with her.
Klock valued freedom. So he understood the desire to cast away all ties—even friendships—and seek one’s own path.
After their conversation settled, Klock let out a long sigh.
He hadn’t brought it up, since it was off-topic, but just now he’d learned about the fall of Livorno.
His home… was gone.
And it was because of him.
It happened fifteen years ago. He had no lingering attachment.
Even so… he found himself slightly curious—what had become of it all?
Notes:
• Adelina – The slave girl.
• Tiet – A companion and friend of Anna. A holy knight from the royal capital. She wears light armor and carries a shield adorned with a dragon holding a sword, indicating her affiliation with the National Military Police. She is concerned about Anna’s well-being and tries to support her emotionally.
• Anna – The legendary Hero, chosen to defeat the Demon Lord. Her past life is Sylvia Croce. She is described as a heavenly being with overwhelming skill and a merciless attitude.
• Ada – Female. Ada the Wild Wind. An A-rank adventurer. Her appearance is striking, with black hair mixed with fiery red, multiple earrings, and an axe spear as tall as she is. She is incredibly strong and fast, with a Unique Skill called the ‘Blessing of the Wind’ that enhances her speed and agility. Ada is ruthless in combat but shows a surprising willingness to negotiate. She is highly respected in adventurer circles and feared by criminals. Her relationship with Klock is adversarial, as he stole from her and escaped using trickery.
• Noirev Highlands – A dangerous mountainous region northeast of the Fossil Wasteland. Known as the ‘Wicked Noirev,’ it is home to exceptionally strong monsters and is best avoided unless with a high-ranking adventurer party.
• Sylvia – The hero who accuses Klock of abandoning her in her past life. She was reborn as Anna after dying in a fire and holds a grudge against Klock.
• Cianie – A noble girl with a fluffy white and light blue dress, indicating her high status. She has a hesitant and flustered personality but is kind and courteous. Her relationship with Klock begins as an accidental encounter and develops into a romantic interest. She has a fiancé but expresses feelings for Klock, complicating their relationship.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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