The Soldier and The Novelist

The Most Troublesome Friend

As I got dressed and left my lodging the next morning, I debated whether or not to bring my sword. Ultimately, I decided against it since I was no longer a mercenary and didn’t expect to need it in town. It would only be an unnecessary burden.

When I walked a block inland from the commercial district of Ixlaha Bay where my lodging was situated, my eyes were drawn to a massive gray stone structure with a rocky wall. It was the Ixlaha Central Terminal, a train station that had opened two years ago and spanned the entire continent.

The area surrounding the terminal had been known as the new commercial district for some time, and numerous commercial facilities had been constructed there. It was said that the number of stores had multiplied five-fold in just two years, and the building density was the highest in Ixlaha. Additionally, due to the numerous towers managed by the church in the area since ancient times, it was an unusual sight to see both ancient and modern structures standing side by side in the city.

With the upcoming Independence Festival, the city of Ixlaha had become even more vibrant. Every shop was adorned with inconsistent artificial flowers and bright-colored flags, making the streets a sight to behold. While the festival was an annual event in Ixlaha, this year’s decorations seemed particularly extravagant. It was possibly due to the high expectations for the saintess’ attendance, as Hugh had mentioned yesterday.

As I waded through the sea of people congesting the area around the terminal, I entered the approach leading north towards First Avenue. It was then that I noticed a shift in the types of carriages passing by me. Instead of the typical stagecoaches, I saw many cabriolets, each drawn by a single horse.

Unlike the diverse commercial district, First Avenue was a quiet residential area where the upper class, such as officials of the Papal Court and corporate executives, lived. Trees lined the neatly paved stone streets, and every house had a blue lawn as if it were an unwritten rule. It was clear that this was a section of the city that people like me were unlikely to have any connection with in the future.

As I approached the end of the path, a large fountain square came into view, and at the center of it stood the central church where I was headed. The square was teeming with people, at least a hundred, all gathered for the explanation of the church knights’ selection test. I recognized many faces in the crowd, people I had seen before in town. It seemed like Hugh’s prediction was spot on.

Just as I was about to turn my feet towards the gate in front of the church to complete the registration, I heard a familiar voice.

“Well, well, well, if it ain’t you. What a surprise to find you here!” The voice was half-laughing. I inwardly rolled my eyes. I turned to look, and as expected, there was a familiar face grinning at me.

“Hey there, Sword! Long time no see. It’s been what, two weeks?”

A skinny man with short-cropped blonde hair stood before me. His mouth held the usual impish smirk, but his eyes contained a sharp light like that of a bird of prey.

“Gold…” I said with a sigh. It was my former colleague from my mercenary union days.

I felt like the wind was knocked out of me. As I slumped, feeling down, he wrapped his arm around my shoulder in a familiar way. “Hey, hey, we’re finally reunited, old buddy! Why the long face? Is it time of the month or something?”

“As if, you idiot.” I scowled at his crude joke and shrugged his arm off, but his grin stayed put.

“You’re still a buzzkill, huh?”

“You’re still the same old Gold,” I shot back, staring at him with bitterness.

Even though he always had a frivolous smile on his face, I had hardly ever seen his eyes laughing. The only thing that resided in this man’s eyes was a fierce light, like that of a predator searching for prey.

Gold Bordine.

He was a mercenary, just like me, and we were both members of the Sunset Union. He had the second highest ability in the union, just behind the union chief, Han.

I don’t remember when it all started, but for some reason, he seemed to like me. He’d always bother me every chance he got and would even drag me along on missions. Every time he did, I felt miserable.

It might not worth mentioning, but the truth was that I had never really liked him since a long time ago. There’s nothing more stressful than being with someone whose thoughts you can’t fathom. Despite my efforts to express my true feelings to him directly on numerous occasions, he seemed completely unconcerned about them. His attitude never changed.

I always wondered what he saw in me that he liked so much.

“What are you doing here?”

“Birdwatching. There are a lot of pigeons in this area,” Gold replied, with a hint of mockery in his voice. He was skilled at getting under people’s skin with his words.

“I don’t need your stupid jokes. You’re not planning to take the entrance exam too, are you?”

“Me? If you’re asking me that, then you must be planning to take it yourself, Sword.”

As he narrowed his eyes, he gave off a nasty vibe. I realized that I had made a slip of the tongue and was left chewing on the bitter herb of regret.

“Are you making fun of me?”

“That’s exactly why I’m here,” he said, smiling maliciously. His gaze scanned the other test takers in the area, he continued “I just want to see my old acquaintances sweating to get a new job.”

Gold’s twisted nature was so deeply ingrained that it almost seemed like a breath of fresh air.

“That’s why I hate you.”

“Unfortunately, I love you, Sword,” he replied, taking in my disdainful gaze with a fierce grin.

It’s futile. I was like trying to water a desert with a watering can.

Disgusted, I clicked my tongue. “You need a new job too. Instead of laughing at other people’s misfortunes, why don’t you start living seriously?”

“Life is all about perspective, Sword. Misfortune is just a matter of comparison between those who are happy and those who are not. You catch my drift?”

A beat late, I was left stunned. “So, you’ve landed yourself a new job?”

“Yes. A week before you came back to this city.”

I couldn’t help but hold back tears and bow my head. God was truly an unreasonable bastard. Why did this personality-disordered man have a job while I was on the streets?

“What kind of job is it?”

“A bloody job, not much different from our mercenary days. I coul introduce you if you want.”

I shook my head, rejecting the devil’s temptation. There was no way that job would be anything but a dead-end.

“No, thanks. I’ll decide my own path.”

“Very impressive,” he chuckled. “But you seem to be going with the flow by being here.”

I had clicked my tongue so many times today that it was becoming a bad habit. The excuse I gave was nothing more than a feeble attempt to find some solid ground.

I shrugged. “I’m just trying to make the best of things. At the end of the day, life is no bed of roses.”

I looked around at the other test-takers as I spoke. They were all faces I had seen during my days as a mercenary. Now, they were all eagerly throwing themselves at the church, the very organization that had taken away their jobs. It just confirmed my belief that this world lacked virtue.

“You seem frustrated too. How about it, Sword? Why don’t we rebel together?” Gold said, putting his arm around me once again. “Let’s start by hijacking the transcontinental railway, then storm the capital and start a coup. We’ll bring along our fellow mercenaries too. Then, we’ll…”

I sighed loudly, holding back tears. The fact that my thought process was similar to his was the most frustrating thing today.

I shook off his arm again and turned on my heel. “If you want to do it, do it alone.”

“You’re so tense. Humor is important in life, Sword,” he said as I walked away from him.

With those words from Gold behind me, I headed towards the entrance of the church. His idea of humor was not something that aligned with my values, not then, not now.

In front of the gate to the church, there was a simple table set up as the reception area. Two men, dressed in blue and white uniforms, sat behind it, looking like clerks. They were members of the church knights, as indicated by their uniforms.

Next to them was another knight in a different outfit.

Dressed in shining silver armor, she was a female knight with long silver hair that reached her shoulders. Her helmet was off, revealing her beautiful face. Despite having a slender frame, her dignified posture gave the impression that her body underneath the armor was highly trained.

As she scanned the test-takers around her, her sharp, keen eyes contrasted with Gold’s hungry and beastly gaze. Her eyes were like that of a hunter, carefully selecting her prey.

I unconsciously tensed my body as I stood before her.

The concept of strength is relative. It’s only when you have a measuring stick that you can understand someone’s skills. As someone who had wielded it for years, it wasn’t particularly difficult for me to assess the strength of the person in front of me.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed the markings of the church knight captain, a cross engraving on the chest plate of the armor and three blue stripes on the shoulders. Ah, that explains why the pressure felt different.

But then our eyes met and she glared at me fiercely. It made me feel like I had done something wrong. If it were Gold, he would have smirked and glared back, but unfortunately, I was better at socializing than him. So, I averted my eyes casually and pretended to ignore her while writing my name on the reception list.

Still, I could feel her gaze all over my body, making me uneasy. It was likely that some sort of selection process had already begun. I wondered what kind of evaluation I would receive.

After finishing the registration and receiving an envelope with instructions, I was about to enter the church when she called out to me.

“Hey, you there!”

It was the female knight who had been glaring at me. She hadn’t said anything to the person in front of me who had also finished registering. Maybe she could tell the difference in our abilities?

“What’s your name?” she asked, her tone sharp and direct, indicating that she didn’t want any unnecessary responses. I replied accordingly.

“Sword.”

“What’s your last name?”

“I don’t have one.”

“What do you mean you don’t have one?”

“I lost it ten years ago.”

My response caused a subtle emotional reaction in the female knight’s face, so small that one might miss it if they weren’t looking closely.

“I see. I apologize for prying,” she said, her moral character shining through despite her appearance. I raised my hand lightly to show her that it was okay, and that I didn’t mind her questions.

“Is there anything else?” I asked.

“No, just be careful. Your shoe lace is untied.”

Oh, I thought to myself, realizing that the lace of my left boot was untied and had been cut in half. It was a different lace from the one that broke yesterday.

Unintentionally, I let out a click of my tongue again.