The next day, the front of the Blue Wolf Corps' main building was noisy from the early morning.
"Hey, you worked hard all this time."
"Don't die over there either."
"Send at least one letter. If someone bullies you, tell us. Got it?"
Someone threw a crude joke, someone silently bumped fists, and someone reddened their eyes.
Brock raised his voice and laughed for no reason, then patted his shoulder hard at the end.
Dantel bowed playfully and made an exaggerated greeting, then turned his back and waved his hand.
The Captain didn't speak long.
He just nodded once.
In that one movement, 2 years of trust were contained.
Celina approached last.
She hesitated for a moment, then lightly hugged Iden.
It was an arm trained on the battlefield, but there was almost no strength in it.
Short body warmth, short breath.
She soon separated and smiled.
"Goodbye."
"Yes. Everyone, please stay healthy."
Before Iden got on the carriage, he proudly tapped the Blue Wolf insignia pinned on his new uniform and said,
"I will not forget that my roots are the Blue Wolf."
At those words, some members burst into laughter or smiled with pleasure.
18 years old.
Although he grew into a proper man, in their eyes, the image of a 16-year-old greenhorn boy was still drawn clearly.
The members, making their own faces, tap the Blue Wolf insignia on their chests twice with their fists.
That was enough.
Iden immediately loaded his body onto the carriage.
The 2 years were too short.
Although the lifestyle carved into tight schedules played a big part, he lived busily to the point where he didn't know when the 2 years had passed.
Nevertheless, the difficulty in taking his eyes off the members beyond the carriage window must be because of the memories of roaming the battlefield where life and death came and went together.
"Look forward to when we meet again, Iden! Let's definitely meet again!!"
A short while later.
Words unaware of his situation helplessly announced the departure, and the figures of the affectionate members gradually become smaller.
The second opportunity.
The sortie to the border city of Hamelon was beginning.
A week later, the carriage arrived at Hamelon, a border city in the west of the Northern Territory.
For a mercenary corps, a carriage was a luxury and an obstacle.
A single horse was the entirety of transportation for agile mobility and active response, and for such an Iden, the carriage with thick cushions provided a ride comfort no less than a high-end foreign car.
Since he almost fell into a sweet sleep throughout the week.
"As expected, money is the best."
At the mutter he made while stopping reading a book, the attendant sitting opposite asked back.
It was a boy with a face full of playfulness.
"Yes? Should I give you some money?"
"That would be good."
"Ah, haha, your greed is excessive. Why would the great Summoner of the Dark Night want pocket change..."
"..."
Iden, who smirked, looked at the scenery outside the window.
The reward money paid by the Wintel Grand Duke family was enormous.
If he spent it a bit sparingly, it was money he could play and eat with for the rest of his life, and thanks to that, he could enjoy a shake-free luxury carriage, an attendant to guide the way, and time undisturbed even while moving.
Iden closed the book he had placed on his lap.
On the cover, the letters [Discipline and Military Law] were written excessively thickly.
It seemed to mean to treat the weight of the letters, not the weight of the book, heavily and seriously.
Sentences about a soldier's order and command, responsibility and punishment settled calmly in his head.
For 2 years, whenever there was an opportunity, he studied war such as military law, strategy, supply, resources, tactics, etc.
Since he didn't have the spare energy to keep books close, he mainly learned sparsely in a Q&A format from seniors by following knights or soldiers he happened to accompany, or as the Captain's attendant going for mission reports.
But, coming to this Hamelon border city and reading only books for a week...
'It's... fun?'
Is it because he lived swallowing blood instead of water, slaughter instead of agreement, and gambling instead of safety for 2 years?
Sitting in a comfortable carriage and reading books leisurely, Iden didn't know how time passed.
Moreover, [Discipline and Military Law] is a book that can be called a chunk of printed type that can't even fit into the self-improvement book category.
If looking at the densely packed letters, even speed readers would likely spit out curses and escape quickly, but fortunately, it seemed Iden had a natural talent for keeping his butt attached for a long time.
Anyway, thanks to that, Iden, who grasped the military's discipline and law even a little for a week, stretched long as soon as he got off the carriage.
"Huaaaam~"
The attendant who followed him out also lightly loosened his stiff body, and Iden sent the coachman back.
And wiping the teardrop formed at the corner of his eye, he looked around the panoramic view of the Hamelon border city.
'Oh... they said the west is warm, it's certainly different.'
The scenery was different.
Unlike the North which was all snowy landscapes, Hamelon was alive with five colors.
Red roofs, ochre walls, and bronze signs sparkled receiving the sunlight, and the smell of spices and the scent of baking bread mixed and flowed in the streets.
Merchants' shouts, soldiers' footsteps, and carriage wheels scratching gravel layered on top of each other.
It is definitely a place that smells thickly of human living compared to the central Northern Territory.
As befitting a border, people's attire was also varied.
Iden catches his breath while looking at that panoramic view for a moment. A dazzling but not light city.
This place is where the Northern War starts, and the land of the second opportunity.
Suppressing the faint tension and excitement, Iden looked at the attendant.
"Guide me."
"Where to, sir? Summoner of the Dark Night?"
"...I told you not to call me that."
"Please understand my heart that is honored to serve you."
"Ha..."
At the attendant's banter who inevitably became close due to the one-week accompaniment, Iden throws his gaze far away as if annoyed.
It was a place where the main castle of the border city soared as if to pierce the sky.
As border cities usually are, Hamelon was also always a noisy city.
At the edge of the territory, the point where law and law touch, a trivial argument easily spread into a sword fight.
Jurisdiction was ambiguous, and responsibility always arrived late.
So small disputes and fights never ceased at Hamelon's gates and streets.
Quarrels in taverns, contract breaches between merchant guilds, and even resource problems crossing the border could all become sparks.
At the same time, this was a place where various races and origins mixed.
Northern natives, Southern merchants, mercenaries who flowed in from the West, and even strangers from beyond the border and heterogeneous races like Elves or Dwarves.
Collisions were frequent because languages, customs, and values were entangled, but the border city was also a place where information and opportunities gathered just as quickly.
That's why Hamelon was dangerous but attractive.
The place where opportunity and crisis arrive first.
If you think about it, Iden also came here following opportunity, so the border city was definitely a place overflowing with opportunity and information.
"Thief!! Catch that bastard—!!"
"Waaaah! Mom! Buy me that—!"
"Here~ Selling information. Information~ If proven fake, we compensate 10 times the purchase amount~!"
Vitality fills every corner of the street.
Laughing and chatting, or troubled by a child's whining, or growing a mustache stylishly, or if not that, enjoying sunbathing with a bulging belly exposed.
Various kinds of vitality circulated, and Iden, watching that, had to feel a strange emotion.
Until now, he moved for his success and ambition.
Knowing where and how the Northern War starts, and also knowing the rough war situation afterward, he tried to use that as a weapon to shed the shell of the despised Count's youngest son and fly high.
A thought solely for himself.
However, the moment he saw the people here, for the first time, a sense of alarm that 'if I fail, a great sacrifice occurs' arose.
Even in the original work, the Northern War begins with various tribes of the North forming an alliance and launching a preemptive attack on this place, Hamelon.
Not to mention the sacrifice of the military, the sacrifice of civilians also occurred on a large scale, and it was described in a way that it was practically no different from a defeat.
'...In other words, if I fail, a great sacrifice inevitably occurs.'
For the first time, he felt responsibility for knowing the future.
Because the only one who could prevent a great sacrifice was eventually himself.
As the pressure wrapped around his heart, Iden wanted to run to Grand Duke Eldmonde right now holding the [Official Wintel Recommendation Letter] and shout, "The Northern War will happen in 1 year, so we must devote all our efforts to building Hamelon border city's defense line and reinforcing troops right now!"
But clearly, it wouldn't work at all, and he would be lucky if the recommendation letter wasn't taken away.
'I have no choice but to do it myself.'
Iden vowed so with a hardened face.
There is still 1 year left.
Right now, rather than being crushed by burden and worry, fulfilling what he planned for 2 years safely would be the way for the people and the way for everyone.
"We're here."
Iden, who was walking lost in thought, raised his head.
Hamelon's main castle, which looked small like a distant mountain, had come close enough that he had to tilt his head back fully to see the flag on the spire.
It was easy to think that a border city's castle would usually be practical, but Hamelon was an exception.
Even the walls were different.
It wasn't simple defensive stone, but a structure built by trimming and stacking glossy grey-white stones layer by layer.
When receiving sunlight, the entire wall shone softly, and the patterns and reliefs engraved everywhere clearly revealed that this place was not a simple fortress but a display of wealth and power.
The road to the main gate was wide and straight.
A width enough for two carriages to cross sufficiently, uniformly trimmed stone slabs were laid on the floor, and in the center, the crest symbolizing Hamelon was embedded with metal inlay.
Passing through the inner castle gate, the inside was even more blatant.
The courtyard was close to a small square.
Clear water flowed endlessly from the fountain, and expensive-looking landscaping trees were arranged regularly around it.
The floor was marble, and it sparkled dazzlingly every time the sunlight reflected.
Making the words 'forefront of the border' meaningless, this place felt like a space closer to money and power than war.
Iden naturally understood looking at that scene.
The saying that money gathers where people gather.
And that the Northern Alliance Tribes deciding this border city as the first attack point was also in the same context.
Because where money gathers, bluff and gaps are bound to arise.
Hamelon Main Castle was no different from the North's safe where trade and ambition crossed, and in front of that safe's door, one person was just stepping in.
"Who are you."
"Ahem, are you saying you don't know the Summoner of the Dark Night!? If I were to speak about our Summoner of the Dark Night, he is the North's greatest enemy! The one who defeated the Northern Barbarian Chief single-handedly..."
Ha.
Iden, touching his forehead, cut off the attendant's words and answered the guard.
"I wish to see the Lord."
In his hand was the Official Wintel Recommendation Letter.
One week ago, Capital Castle Helon.
Vivienne, who finished the competition registration in Snom City, moved her location to the Capital Castle Helon and prepared accommodation.
It was because there were still 6 months left until the competition started, and it was easier to obtain alchemy ingredients and practice in Capital Castle Helon than Snom.
Vivienne quickly scanned the shops on the central road.
Glass bottles and powders, catalyst metals and refined magic stone fragments. The paper bag in her arms became heavier, but her steps didn't stop.
The street was crowded.
While connecting from the central road to the alley, people bumped into each other and chatted.
Excited voices, laughter, smell of alcohol.
However, Vivienne lowered her gaze and passed by.
Although there was a lot of time left until the competition, there were many things she wanted to learn along with practice, so there was no time to waste on entertainment.
The North is a place difficult to enter and leave easily.
Since she was granted a stay until the competition ended after a long time, she was going to do her best to win the Alchemy Competition.
It was then.
One shout penetrated clearly into such Vivienne's ears.
"It's the Summoner of the Dark Night—!!"
"Wooooow—!!"
Surrounding gazes focused on one side, and people's steps naturally moved in that direction.
Vivienne's steps also slowed unconsciously.
Summoner of the Dark Night.
At those words, one old memory she had forgotten suddenly popped up.
The rumor she heard in the Rivan Count territory.
A summoner with blue-grey hair; the story that someone whispered it might be Edom Rivan and someone said it was nonsense came to mind.
Summoning Arts was not common magic.
Even more so, if it was a lineage despised in a noble family, it had to remain in memory.
'Ay, no way.'
Vivienne stopped walking while thinking so. Even knowing she was one of those who belonged to 'someone considering it nonsense', she carefully dug into the people as if possessed.
She happened to be passing by, and thought she just needed to verify briefly.
"Kyaa—! Summoner of the Dark Night-nim, look over here~!!"
"Look at that dignified figure. Crazy, crazy! Kyaat!!"
A short while later, Vivienne, sandwiched between women making a fuss, could see the owner of the rumor circulating in the Rivan Count territory.
Blue-grey hair like Edom's.
Pure white skin like Edom's.
For a moment, her heart sank with a thud.
However, that didn't last long.
Vivienne smirked as if absurd and shook her head.
It was a laugh reproaching herself.
That man was different.
A sturdy physique, a back held straight, wide shoulders and a thick neck line, and even dignity like a manly man.
Starting from the posture sitting on the horse saddle was different, and he was a man with an aura that naturally dominated the surrounding air.
The features might look similar at a glance, but that was it.
Edom Rivan of 2 years ago was a child who always groveled, was gloomy, and hunched.
Because he was a child for whom comparison itself with that man wearing the Blue Wolf insignia on his firmly widened chest was rude, Vivienne had no choice but to smile hollowly.
'Me too, really...'
What on earth was I thinking.
Vivienne turned her head, came out from among the people, and headed to the alley again.
Right now, she had to focus on alchemy.
That was enough.
Glance.
Before entering the accommodation, Vivienne looked back once, then opened the door and went in.