Seirei Gensouki's
Chapter 195: Encounter pt2

"What's the problem? Do you have something inside that you don't want me to see? 」

Lucius asked playfully, a smile still engraved on his face, however, he resisted the urge to laugh out loud.

「Uhm, as you say. The girl was indeed in this place …………. . 」

Finally, the village chief admitted defeat and confessed with a haggard face. After that, while preparing for the punishment that might befall him and his village, he heard something that was completely beyond his expectations.

「Ha ~, contrary to my expectations, you gave up quickly. 」

Lucius said, scratching his head while making a disappointed expression, confusing the village chief.

「He is indeed in this village. This bet. Mine . 」

Smiling, Duran finally opened his mouth and spoke to Lucius.

「………………」

The village head looked at their exchange with a dumbfounded face.

「You're not bad, village chief. However, do you really think that you can hide that fact from us? It seems obvious that you are trying to hide something from first sight, but the suspicious activity of your village does not hide it, you know. Since that's the case, Your Majesty and I decided to bet on what you're hiding from us. 」

Sighing, Lucius then moved to the village chief's room and opened it.

"No way…………"

Meanwhile, the village chief was at a loss for words. However, before he could gather his wits,

「Where is princess Flora now? What the hell happened to him? Don't try to hide anything from us and be brief. If you lie, you die. Do you understand? Now, answer me. 」

Duran spoke in a piercing cold voice.

「B-At the time he arrived in our village, it seemed like he contracted some kind of illness and decided to take a short rest in our village! When he still hasn't improved after a while, I advise him to rely on our master. However, before I could do that, he had already left his room this morning! 」

In haste, the village chief began to divulge the exact situation, not setting aside any details so that the village could survive.

「……………. . Huh So that's the reason for the commotion that happened when we just arrived in this village 」

「Yeah, maybe it is, but ……………. From your tone of speech, you haven't found it yet, Village Chief? 」

Lucius agreed with Duran's words, then turned to the village chief and asked another question.

「Eh, no........ We found him, but we judged that he could not be saved, so .................」

The village chief averted his gaze, not speaking any further.

「KUH-HAHAHAHA, YOU LEAVE HIM! OK! ? 」

Lucius raised a carefree laugh.

「…………………. . Aye . 」

The village chief replied in a faint voice as his complexion turned pale.

「............. There's still your son right? 」

Duran asked, his dangerous intentions clear in his tone of speech.

"Hi Me"

The village chief trembled in fear.

「Ha ~, it looks like Your Majesty is upset. So, what do you think, village chief? …… . Do you think he's still alive? 」

Lucius asked awkwardly as if he did not know what to do, scratching his head.

「M-Maybe .......... I-This is just my assumption but when I found it, I noticed that his deteriorating physical condition may be due to poisonous spiders. He was probably bitten before he arrived at my village. 」

The village chief replied with a trembling voice.

「Toxic spiders? 」

「There is a spider whose bite will leave a dark mark on its victim. It should have never appeared in the village, but somehow Flora-sama was bitten by it. We never noticed him being poisoned because the effects took a while before they were seen and as far as we know there was no antidote to the poison…. 」

「A ~ h, spider it yes. Their numbers should be rare. However, they were somewhat troublesome those friends ……. So, how many days since he was bitten by that spider? And where's the bitten place? 」

Lucius went out of his way to ask for more details about Flora's situation. It seemed like he had knowledge of the spider and its poison, and how to cure it.

「I-It has been six days since he came to this village! That mark is right on his neck! 」

「………. Neck yes. That would make it harder because the poison worked faster when he moved, however, it was not impossible to cure him. We might be able to finish with the antidote we have. 」

After the village chief finished explaining, Lucius looked pensive before he spoke to Duran about how to solve the problem of Flora poisoning.

"I saw . Then lead us to where you left it. 」

「Well, you heard His Majesty's orders. If you can't do it, I guess you've prepared yourself for the worst, right, Village Chief? Maybe with your head .. No, it's not enough. Maybe you can only pay the price of every life in this village ……

Listening to Duran's unspoken words, Lucius threatened the village chief to obey him.

「Y-Yes！ Just soon! 」

The village chief nodded excitedly. However, right at that moment the call of a person stopped all activities.

「Your Majesty, Lucius-sama. 」

A soldier came in from the entrance and called out to Lucius.

「Hm, what's up? 」

「There were two villagers sneaking out of the village towards the southern highway, we are chasing them now. One of them was the son of the village chief and he seemed to be panicking for some reason, but ………. . 」

After Lucius received the soldier's report, he turned to the village chief and spoke in a mocking tone.

「Hahaha, well you heard the village chief's report, what do you think about this matter? 」

With a big smile, Lucius asked the village chief.

「Do not say ……… .I'll guide you soon! 」

The village chief muttered to himself before his skin took an earth-shattering change as he moved, losing his composure.

◇ ◇ ◇

Meanwhile, a few minutes later, two young men could be seen. It was clear that they were out of breath as they ran along the main road that stretched south from the village, but they still continued to run. Will and Donner.

「Donners. You ! Since you said such things, we are in a lot of trouble right now! Never mind, saving Flora is our top priority right now! 」

Will talks to Donner, whom he meets along the way, though he is angry with her.

"I know that! Even so, are you telling the truth about Flora-sama? Will he be a hostage? 」

「Yes, Flora-sama is an enemy royal princess! 」

"A princess………… . But how? Flora-sama is sick right? We can— ...... 」.

Donner's face darkened as he lost his composure.

「Shut up! We have no choice but to do this right ?! If this continues, Flora-sama will really become their hostage! 」

「Urgh …………………. . 」

Hearing Will's roar, Donner covered his mouth. And they keep running.

「………. . Actually, we had no choice but to hide Flora-sama in a different place while looking for a way to save her during that time. The noble might know something about his illness, or better yet, know the cure. Let's ask them about it, or if push comes to shove, let's steal from them 」

However, before the long silence came down, Will muttered his idea impatiently to Donner. It was an idea that came up purely because it spurred the moment. And maybe because both Will and Donner understood that time was running out, they ran silently to the place where they left Flora. Unfortunately, when they got there, they couldn't find it.

「I'm sure he's there! 」

The two reached the place where they left Flora after leaving the main road leading to the forest entrance. Not looking at it, they looked around the forest entrance, and—, he said,

"WHAT! ? FLORA-SAMA! 」

Donner found Flora.

Will soon follows Donner and they both call Flora's name to wake him up.

「U ~ h …………. Ha ~, ha ~ ............. 」.. <TAG1>....

Flora's response was weak; she was already in a state where she could barely maintain her consciousness. His face reddened, his breathing grew rougher, and his clothes were already drenched in sweat. But still, he is alive.

"Fuck up! My apologies, Flora-sama ………. 」

Will apologizes to Flora, the embarrassment showing clearly on his face.

「M-Move him quickly to a warmer place. 」

Donner urged Will with an impatient voice. They are fighting against time now.

"………… . We have no choice but to go back to the village. 」

Will frowned as he said those words. However, he was confident that the knights would wait for them if they returned to the village now that they did not go through the main entrance of the village. They go through the farm fields, only to save Flora.

「Let's go to my house from agriculture. My house was right on the edge of the village, so it was easier to move it there. 」

"good . I'll bring this side, you hold his leg from that side. 」

Saying so, Will lifted Flora's upper body from behind.

"Like this? 」

While Donner held Flora's leg from the front.

"Fast right . Stand and ………. Yup, let's go. You are leading. 」

The two stood while holding on to Flora's legs and chest. So, they went to the road leading to the village. After leaving the forest and getting closer to the main road――,

「Tu-Wait a minute！ I heard horses! Someone is coming! Get off! 」

They heard the sound of horse hooves coming from the main road so they hid in panic.

They hoped the voices would not approach them, but their hopes were dashed as the sound of horses got closer and closer before actually stopping right in front of them. Right in front of them was a knight on their horse with Lucius in front of—,

「Halo, are you trying to secure our daughter in front of us? I've got you in big trouble, huh? 」

Lucius said, with the same smile he had shown earlier, but they felt the beginning was unpleasant seeing his smile.

「Urgh …………………. . 」

Will and Donner froze when they heard that. Before they could speak, the village chief who had come with the knights behind Lucius' lead came down and spoke rudely to Will.

「…………. . Will be! You are a fool constantly! 」

With a sour expression as if he was eating a bitter insect, he shouted at Will.

「Yes, as you said village chief. Both of them just voluntarily brought them to us. They're so nice. From the looks of it, they would also take him to the village. And then, after confirming his condition, the two of you will also look for the antidote, right? 」

Lucius calmed the village chief in an indifferent voice, gave him an excuse to protect the two young men, then got off his horse in a swift motion. He walked towards Flora, who was half conscious at this moment.

「Huhm …………. 」

The first prince, Duran, followed Lucius, also down from his horse and went towards Flora. But–,

「……………. . Urghs. He stinks, huh. 」

Frowning, Duran stopped in his tracks while muttering those words.

「KUHAHHAHA. That's a right, she hasn't had a bath for days. And look at the amount of sweat. Right, princess. Are you aware? You stink, you know? 」

Lucius approached Flora and told her as he grabbed her hair violently.

「U, U ~ h …………. 」

While Flora was unconscious, her body still made a faint movement that Lucius could sense.

「O ~ h, at least he is aware for now. He might feel embarrassed now. ……… It must be at the nape. 」

Lucius spoke after confirming the poison entry point in Flora's body with an experienced gesture, but before he could do anything else, someone's voice interrupted his concentration.

「Oys. 」

The voice was calm, but strangely it sounded around him.

「................... Huh? 」

Squinting his eyes, Lucius looked towards the source of the voice. Before anyone realized it, a black-haired young man in his teens was standing there.

「…………. . You, since when did you get there? 」

Pulling out his sword, Duran asked the young man in a sharp tone. The surrounding knights also unsheathed their swords and prepared themselves for battle.

But, that young man, Rio, blatantly ignored Duran――,

「You are Lucius, I guess Lucius Orgaule? ………. No, there is no need to confirm your identity anymore. I will never forget that disgusting face of yours. Do you remember me? 」

Not giving Lucius a chance to answer, he answered his own question. Suddenly, he pointed his finger at Lucius.

"Black hair……… . Her hero? No………… . Those features ………. A yagumo? You, don't tell me ……………. . Rio's? 」

Standing up slowly, Lucius pulled the sword on his hip as he looked at Rio warily. But, a moment later, his eyes opened wide.

「. I crawled from the depths of hell into this place. 」

Rio also unsheathed his sword when saying that.

「KUHAHAHAHAHA ……. . I SEE, I SEE. THE HARD BROT IS STILL ALIVE. OR, SHOULD I SAY, YOU STAY. IT'S JUST MY PLAN! 」

Suddenly, Lucius laughed happily with a loud voice from the bottom of his heart.

「…………」

Rio did not respond. He looked at Lucius in silence. The knights and Duran also saw their exchange in silence, not interrupting.

After he finished laughing loudly, Lucius gave a slow snort and started talking.

「A ~ h, the woman. Yes, Ayame. She's a good woman. He's really good entertainment for me. 」

His sentence was aimed at provoking Rio. But–

「Is that what you want to say? 」

Rio did not take his bait and asked without interest.

「........ Yes, the way he fought me was really satisfying, wasn't it? His killing intent gave me goosebumps. I guess………… . It's been ten years since then. NOW, COME AND PLAY WITH THIS OLD MAN! 」

Lucius silently made a move with his left hand towards Duran and his knights, hinting them not to interfere with his fight. Then he continued to mock Rio, keeping his happy smile on his face.

As soon as he finished speaking, Rio was already standing behind him, the shadow of his sword was still visible.

「? 」

Almost at the same time when Lucius noticed that Rio had disappeared from his sight, he realized that something was missing from his body. To be exact, his left arm felt lighter.

Unknowingly, he looked towards the left arm that was fluttering in the air before falling on the ground. His brain still did not connect the fallen arm to his own body.

「OK, I think I'll play with you. 」

Rio said those words with a cold tone.