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Chapter 15
Princess Jane's request was for someone to escort Prince Louise on his journey to the south.
"How could someone like me possibly serve as Prince Louise's escort?"
“…You just don’t want to do it, do you.”
Jane's face fell.
"I'm hiding my true abilities. The moment I act as Prince Louise’s escort, everyone will start suspecting me."
"Don’t worry about that. You won’t be his personal guard—you’ll be joining the desert expedition as a gravekeeper. Ren, all you need to do is do your gravekeeping duties and keep an eye out for anything suspicious. If something happens, protect Louise."
This was a problem.
Joining the desert expedition…?
That place was crawling with desert monsters.
And on top of that, the heat was so extreme that the phrase “boiled alive” was quite literal.
I had to get out of this somehow.
"But if I’m not right by Prince Louise’s side, there will be serious limitations in protecting him. No matter how much I want to protect him, I can't do it from afar."
“It’s fine. Just your presence in the expedition will be enough. It’s only a precaution. Honestly, just having a swordsman like you nearby makes me feel more secure.”
What kind of swordsman am I, anyway?
One knight shows up and I’m already half dead...
“I’ll compensate you handsomely. What is it that you want?”
“…Are you sure you can give me what I want?”
“You’re speaking in front of a princess. Such words are inappropriate—!”
“That’s enough, Sica. Don’t be angry.”
The words had slipped out before I knew it.
I knew what situation Jane was in right now.
She had nothing but her title as the First Princess.
She lacked a solid support base, and she was pushing the Third Prince, Louise, as the next king.
But Louise had just as little power compared to the First and Second Princes.
What could she possibly give me in such a situation?
“I’ll be honest with you. I don’t have much power right now. But there’s one thing I can say for sure.”
There was a determined light in her eyes.
“In the future, whatever you ask of me—I'll be able to grant it.”
It might’ve sounded like an empty promise.
But in her past life, she really had proven her ability.
She had saved Brillant and placed the Third Prince on the throne.
“I won’t ask you to become mine. But if you help me now, I will never forget your kindness.”
I sighed inwardly.
Even with all that, my resolve didn’t change.
If I went on this desert expedition, I wouldn’t be able to protect Decaine or continue training.
And I really didn’t want to suffer in that blazing heat.
“I’m sorry.”
“…I understand.”
She couldn’t hide the sadness in her expression.
Then she began to mutter as if venting her frustration.
“I thought it’d be great if Sir Ren could join the exploration of the Red Moon Desert Tribe’s grave. Louise will probably go there with his knights…”
‘The grave of the Desert Tribe?’
If it was the grave of the Red Moon Desert Tribe, then that meant the burial site of the legendary chieftain who had unified over half the southern desert tribes.
‘Wait, I’d get to see that chieftain’s grave?’
The grave of the Red Moon Tribe’s chieftain… it reeks.
Of tremendous reward.
“Your Highness.”
“Yes?”
“You really should let someone finish speaking.”
She looked at me, puzzled by my sudden words.
“What I said earlier—that was me being rude. I apologize. I’m moved by your resolve, Princess. Your request! I will accept it.”
“R-Really?”
A bright smile bloomed across her face.
Unexpected gifts are always the sweetest.
With this, I could surely gain the favor of both the First Princess and the Third Prince.
* * *
“Master, is something wrong?”
Two days later, Raymond came to Decaine and asked as he saw my haggard face.
“You’ll have to manage things here on your own for a while.”
“Huh? Why? What’s going on?”
“I’ve got business in the south.”
I let out a sigh as I said it.
To think I had to go to that hellish south…
Regret flooded me.
“The south? That scorching hot region? Why would you go there?”
Yeah, why indeed?
What was I thinking, saying all that just for some desert tribe’s grave?
“I’m being sent on assignment. Prince Louise is going on a monster subjugation expedition to the south, and it looks like I’m going with him.”
“Wait, why are you going with him?”
“Well… if soldiers die, I’m supposed to take care of the aftermath.”
That wasn’t the real reason, but since my true mission—escorting Prince Louise—was secret, I couldn’t tell Raymond.
“They can just bury them, can’t they? Why do they need a gravekeeper?”
You tell me.
The south is the pinnacle of heat.
Go bare-skinned, and you’ll burn.
Wear clothes, and you’ll cook alive.
The heat kills, literally.
And now we’re going there to deal with desert monsters.
But the real issue is that my mission is to protect Prince Louise.
He managed fine in the past, so there shouldn’t be a problem…
‘Still… something feels off.’
And recently, whenever I’ve had that feeling, my instincts have always been right.
“Haa…”
I could already see the suffering ahead.
“You really don’t want to go, huh?”
“Would you want to go?”
“Nope.”
“Then why ask?”
“Well, couldn’t you say you’re sick, or that you’ve got too much work? Plenty of excuses you could use.”
Raymond wasn’t wrong.
If I were truly just going as a gravekeeper, I could probably weasel out of it.
It’s not like I’m going as some key personnel.
But this was a direct request from Princess Jane.
And it involved protecting Prince Louise.
I absolutely couldn’t back out.
‘And I shouldn’t back out either.’
I looked like I was dreading it, but this was actually an opportunity for me.
A war with monsters.
There would inevitably be casualties, and the dead from past battles were already buried there.
As a gravekeeper, I grow stronger by honoring the spirits of those resting in their graves.
So the desert was filled with ingredients for my growth.
Especially the grave of the Red Moon Desert Tribe’s chieftain—it was something to look forward to.
‘And I don’t really need to worry too much about Prince Louise’s safety.’
Even though I felt uneasy, I tried to reassure myself.
“Well, I still have to go. Lying to get out of it would be wrong, Raymond.”
I put on a stern face and lectured him.
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“As expected… you’re truly responsible, Master!”
I couldn’t tell if he was being sincere or sarcastic.
“But why is the Third Prince going to such a dangerous place anyway?”
I almost answered without thinking—but caught myself.
It’s best not to get involved in the inner workings of the royal family.
You might get caught in their power struggles.
“Don’t be curious about things like that. And don’t ask.”
Thinking back on past events, it’s likely that the third prince, Louise, ended up being sent to the desert because of the interference from the first and second princes.
Unlike those two, he possesses exceptional talent with the sword.
While the first and second princes may be limited to the skill level of ordinary knights, the third prince’s abilities are at least that of an advanced knight, if not higher.
Having seen his prowess in the past, I can say that with confidence.
They must have made their move because they were feeling uneasy seeing him begin to reveal his potential.
“Hold things down here while I’m gone. I’ll be back.”
“Leave it to me! I’ll keep this place safe!”
Raymond’s condition had greatly improved, and his skills had grown quite a bit compared to before.
Someone like him could be trusted to handle things along with Decaine.
– That guy still doesn’t seem trustworthy to me.
The ancestor muttered disapprovingly from the side.
Guess I’ll have to hide him away in the secret shelter again.
‘It’d be nice if I could take the ancestor with me.’
But I couldn’t exactly carry a grave around with me.
This time, I’d have to go alone.
* * *
Deployment of the Brillant Kingdom to exterminate desert beasts.
Knights, soldiers, and mercenaries had gathered and were moving south.
I slipped in among the mercenaries.
At first, Princess Jane had said she could arrange for me to travel with Lord Louise, but I refused.
It would’ve been physically easier, sure—but emotionally, it would’ve been uncomfortable.
Maybe if it were just the priests from the Holy Kingdom, but there would be other nobles there too.
Most of all, someone from Arzen would be among them, and I didn’t want to be anywhere near that.
“A gravekeeper? What’s a gravekeeper doing all the way out here?”
“He’s holding a sword? Think he knows how to use it?”
“Being a gravekeeper, you must’ve seen plenty of corpses, huh.”
“You gonna be handling corpses all day out there? People die every day out there, you know.”
The mercenaries showed more interest in me than I expected.
Maybe they found it strange that a gravekeeper had come along to a place like this.
It probably helped that I had a solid build, looked strong, and carried a sword—I didn’t seem easy to mess with.
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason.
No matter where you go, there are always a few loudmouths.
“Tch, gravekeeper my ass. You just dig holes and toss in the bodies, right?”
He wasn’t wrong.
Honestly, that’s basically what graves are.
Still, regardless of whether he was right, the way he said it rubbed me the wrong way.
It’s impressive how someone can make a truthful statement sound so punchable.
Judging from the look of him, he was probably new to mercenary life.
I wasn’t sure if I should respond or just ignore him...
Judging by the other mercenaries’ faces—‘Here we go again’—it seemed like they were all just waiting for the moment he’d finally screw up and get put in his place.
“You’re not wrong. Want to give it a try sometime?”
“Hell no! Why the hell would I do that?”
“Hey, Petra. Quit bugging Ren and help get the camp ready.”
The squad leader of the mercenaries, Lloyd, stepped in to stop Petra.
“Yes, sir.”
Petra got up with a scowl and went off to set up camp.
Lloyd turned to me and gave my shoulder a couple of pats.
“He’s just upset about being dragged to the desert. Hope you can understand.”
“It’s fine.”
He was just a kid, so I let it slide.
It’s not like I could start a fight here anyway.
Guys like that are common in mercenary bands, so it didn’t really bother me.
“Still, I wonder if it’s okay for Prince Louise to be camping out like this.”
Lloyd seemed worried the prince might throw a fit and order everyone to move again out of discomfort.
He didn’t say it directly, but I could tell what he meant just from the way he spoke.
Mercenaries tend to think alike.
“No need to worry. Prince Louise isn’t that kind of person.”
“Hm... Do you know something about him?”
Yeah, probably more than anyone else here.
Prince Louise and I had shared quite a bit in the past.
“No, but from what I’ve heard, Prince Louise isn’t the type to make unreasonable demands over things like this.”
“Well, that’s a relief. Once higher-ups start throwing tantrums, there's no dealing with it.”
“Hahaha…”
If they knew I was actually the prince’s secret bodyguard, they’d be shocked.
“Let me help out as well.”
“Thanks, appreciate it.”
Even though I was here as a gravekeeper, I didn’t have much to do.
Maybe Princess Jane had said something in advance, but no one assigned me any tasks.
“I’ll take a night watch shift too.”
“There’s really no need for that.”
“Still, I can’t just sit around doing nothing.”
“You’re a stand-up guy, you know that?”
“No kidding. That’s what I’m talking about.”
“Petra! Take a leaf out of Ren’s book! He’s doing work even though he doesn’t have to—”
“What! Of course he should! He’s just mooching off us here! Why’d they even bring someone so useless? Do they have no sense or what...?”
Petra snapped and made a mistake.
The mercenaries' faces instantly turned pale with shock.
“Petra, did you just say Princess Jane has no sense?”
I hardened my expression as I spoke, and Petra’s eyes started shaking wildly as he realized what he’d just said.
Which made sense—insulting royalty was punishable by death on the spot.
“N-no, that’s not what I meant.”
“Don’t lie. You just insulted Princess Jane.”
“No! Why would I insult her?!”
He jumped up, his voice rising.
‘Why the hell is this idiot making things worse…’
I only meant to scare him a little, but he started yelling like he wanted the whole camp to hear.
“I was just—mmph!”
The mercenaries quickly covered Petra’s mouth and smacked his head.
“Ow! Why are you hitting me?!”
“You dumbass! What if the knights over there hear you? You want us all to die?”
“You say one more stupid thing and we all go down with you! You get that?!”
Lloyd pressed a finger to his lips and motioned toward the knights.
Thankfully, they seemed too caught up in their own conversation to have noticed.
“You brain-dead moron!”
One of the furious mercenaries kicked Petra, and he lunged back at the guy, forcing others to jump in and break them apart.
‘What a mess.’
I never expected them to start fighting like this with knights just a stone’s throw away.
Sure, the supply cart blocked their view, but still.
Even if we got caught, I’d be fine since I had Princess Jane backing me.
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