Their second destination was Tyckenspail, a nondescript region located between the west and south. Previously unknown to Yuder, it was a small village that had remained obscure until now. Its only notable feature was a few ancient ruins. However, these are only ruins in name, as they have been long neglected and left in a state of disrepair."
According to Kishiar, this very place was where the first Duke of Tain had sent all his research.
"It's rare for anyone other than scholars to venture here to see the ruins... Quite unusual indeed."
An elderly man, who had provided lodging for the three mercenaries, shook his head in wonder yet smiled. He was in a particularly good mood, thanks to the several silver coins the trio had handed him.
"If there's anything you wish to ask, feel free. My granddaughter knows the area well. She can guide or assist you in any way."
"Very well," replied Kishiar, his face altered, with a light smile.
The old man soon left to prepare their meal.
"Now... let's open the letter," Kishiar suggested, waiting until the old man's footsteps faded. With a relaxed smile, he pulled a small bundle of folded paper from his pocket. It was a letter that had arrived just before they entered the village, sent by the Cavalry.
"Four for me, and the last one... for the assistant."
Yuder unfolded the small note handed to him by Kishiar.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})'Sent by Gakane, I see.'
The letter, written in the Cavalry's cipher, showed a proficiency far surpassing his previous efforts. Although Gakane had always been adept at writing, his use of ciphers had been awkward; this was a shining result of his efforts.
Yuder quickly read through the content, appreciating it for a moment.
'Hmm... after the Cavalry's public announcement, the Awakeners suspected to be Nahan's associates, frequently seen in the fifth wall district, disappeared, then reappeared in the seventh wall district. The Awakeners associated with the sage began to roam near the lodging where the sage stayed... As expected. Hinn and Finn, who were monitoring Baron Renbow, reported that he ceased frequent contact with the mercenary office... This too, is a continuation of the above matter.'
Most of the content was as he had anticipated. The cleverly worded public message from the Cavalry, about collaborating with non-member Awakeners, was showing swift effects. The insertion of the Star of Nagran was working rapidly.
By now, both the sage and Nahan's sides would be racking their brains in suspicion of each other.
'This is somewhat exciting. Under the guise of Star of Nagran, I wonder when they will realize who truly collaborated with us.'
The 'Star of Nagran', mentioned in the Cavalry's correspondence as their collaborators, were neither the sage's nor Nahan's associates. They were the Awakeners from various places who hadn't completely detached themselves from Star of Nagran and were aiding the Cavalry.
Star of Nagran wasn't a group with clear entry and exit. Gayle and Doyle in the capital, Robel and Marty in the west aiding the mentally affected victims of Nahan, and the previous western base's Awakeners interested in joining the Cavalry—all were still members of Star of Nagran as well as collaborators.
And then there were Ershi and her colleagues, and Hosanna. Ershi, on her own accord, provided useful information to Yuder, who had given medicine to a comrade. Even Hosanna, maintaining his loyalty to Nahan, couldn't remain indifferent before the human kindness offered by Kanna.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})If either the sage or Nahan had given more significance to the existence of those Awakeners, or if anyone had grasped the situation and strived to gather them, things would not have turned out as they did. However, they acted exactly as Yuder and Kishiar had predicted.
The sage, despite knowing about his captured colleagues, had neglected them all this while. In Yuder's view, the sage's sense of comradeship was even poorer than Nahan's, who had at least ventured as far as the Cavalry's entrance.
Realistically, the captured could very well have assisted the Cavalry, yet the sage, considering Nahan a greater enemy, fell right into this minor stratagem, dismissing the others as insignificant.
'This also proves the sage's inward vigilance toward Nahan.'
Yuder felt a sense of pride in his intelligence agents, who had continued to perform well in his absence. His recent efforts in training them had been worthwhile.
'But... there's an odd bit of news at the end. Kiolle coming and talking nonsense?'
The section written by Gakane went as follows:
'I hesitated whether to write this, but I'll just send it. A few days ago, Kiolle Da Diarca suddenly came looking for trouble. He sought you, and we met him, but his intentions were unclear. Eventually, Kanna used her abilities to discern that he wanted to know how to contact you. We'll respond as soon as you reply.'
A contact request. Given Kiolle had gone to the trouble of seeking him out, it seemed likely that his true aim was to convey information related to the sage's side or his father that he had picked up somewhere.
'It's probably 99% related to this affair, so nothing new. But he does bring useful information occasionally... Can't be helped.'
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})Yuder, with chilling accuracy even in Kiolle's absence, decided to briefly write in his reply that there was no need to worry about what Kiolle Da Diarca would do. If Kiolle sent a letter to his side and asked Kanna to pass it, she would handle it accordingly.
Lastly, Gakane's letter ended with a postscript, 'Please tell Sir Zuckerman that I am diligently completing all my training tasks.' Looking up, Yuder saw Kishiar, who had finished reading his four letters, smiling broadly at him.
"Any interesting news?"
"Nothing particularly amusing in the intelligence reports. Everything seems to be proceeding without notable issues."
"The reports I received from each branch said much the same."
"Ah, Gakane asked me to tell Sir Zuckerman that he's doing well with his training tasks."
Nathan Zuckerman, who had been sitting quietly, slightly raised his cold eyebrows.
"I thought I said there was no need to report that... Understood."
"Maybe he's worried you'll stop teaching him. In such cases, isn't it better to just praise him, Nathan?" Kishiar added with a smile. Nathan Zuckerman pondered for a moment before shaking his head.
"It seems he gets more anxious if I tell him he's doing well. If I have to convey something, it might be better to inform him of the next training task."
Yuder was slightly surprised. He had guessed that Nathan Zuckerman held a high regard for Gakane's character, but he hadn't realized the depth to which Nathan understood people.
'Indeed. Considering he learned from Kishiar and became a swordmaster, he wouldn't teach half-heartedly...'
Teaching inherently involves understanding each other.
One cannot teach anything without knowing something about the other person.
Yuder thought that with a mentor so dedicated to understanding his pupils, even amidst his busy schedule, Gakane would be able to focus more comfortably on his training. As Gakane's colleague and friend, Yuder felt a great sense of satisfaction.
Consequently, the reply to Gakane contained a longer list of the next training tasks relayed by Nathan Zuckerman than Yuder's original message. Yuder also added a special training menu designed specifically for Gakane, who was handling two training regimes simultaneously.
Had Gakane known this from afar, he might have shed tears of mixed emotion, whether they be of joy or sorrow.
After sending all the replies, Kishiar and the others stepped outside.
"We know the name of the ruins where the first Duke of Tain is said to have buried his research materials, but not the exact location. We'll need a guide."
Fortunately, they had the granddaughter of the elderly man at whose house they were staying. The girl, who introduced herself as Anne, agreed cheerfully to guide them to the local ruins.
"My grandfather said to answer any questions you have. I'm curious why you'd want to visit such unremarkable places... but since you said you're mercenaries, I won't ask."
Their guided tour revealed three ruins in the vicinity of the village. Each was a remnant of a building presumed to have been constructed about a thousand years ago, but their original purposes were difficult to discern.
After inspecting all the buildings, Kishiar pointed to one.
"Here. This place is the most likely candidate."
