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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
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Thud! Thud! Thud!
A fierce wind battered the window.
The weather, clear just the day before, had turned strangely ominous that night.
The slightly aged wooden window frame rattled precariously in the gale, and tree branches, driven by the wind, knocked noisily against the glass.
Awakened by the eerie sounds, the boy stirred from a deep sleep.
“……Mama?”
His mother, who should have been sleeping beside him, was gone.
She always fell asleep while putting him to bed.
Her absence chased away the last vestiges of sleep clinging to his mind.
Throwing back the covers, the boy climbed out of bed, opened the firmly closed door, and stepped out into the hallway.
“Mama……?”
The house was eerily silent.
As if no one lived there but him.
His father, whose presence always brought a sense of security, and his mother, his constant companion, were nowhere to be seen.
The only sounds were the wind howling outside, the branches scraping against the house, and the creaking of the wooden floorboards beneath his feet.
He walked cautiously to his parents’ bedroom and gently opened the door.
“Papa……?”
Only silence answered.
Though it was too dark to see clearly, he sensed no presence in the bed where his parents should have been sleeping.
His father, usually snoring soundly, and his mother, sleeping with her eye mask, were gone.
The blanket from their bed… lay crumpled on the floor.
Picking up the discarded blanket, the boy began to feel uneasy.
“Mama, Papa……. Where are you……?”
His pace quickened.
With each step, the creaking of the old floorboards echoed eerily through the house.
The boy began to search, room by room.
The study, the storage room, the kitchen.
In the unnervingly quiet living room, only the rocking chair swayed slightly, creaking softly.
He searched every room, the kitchen, and the living room, but his parents were nowhere to be found.
Standing alone in the living room, tears welled up in his eyes.
“Mama, Papa……. Waaah…….”
He was too young to be separated from his parents.
It was a wonder he hadn’t burst into tears already.
Overcome by fear, he rushed to the front door.
The fear gnawing at his heart propelled him forward.
Click!
He opened the door, and a fierce gust of wind slammed into the house.
Shielding his face with his hands, the boy peeked through his fingers.
The village, which should have been dotted with lights, was completely dark.
Engulfed in darkness, the village felt lifeless, except for the howling wind.
The boy slowly pushed forward against the wind.
“Waaah… Waaah……. Mamaaa…….”
His frightened cries echoed through the village, but they were quickly swallowed by the wind.
He walked on and on, his destination the village square.
It was the place his mother had always told him to wait if he ever got lost.
Desperate to find her, he struggled towards the square.
“……Huh?”
As he neared the square, a strange phenomenon occurred.
The wind, which had been raging just moments before, suddenly ceased.
The gale that had hampered his progress vanished completely.
But something even stranger… caught his eye.
“Mama…? Papa…?”
Unlike the eerily silent village, the square was filled with people.
The neighbor, the village chief, the older children.
Almost everyone in the village was there.
And among them, he saw his beloved mother and father.
“Mama! Papa!”
He ran to them, throwing his arms around his mother’s legs.
He clung to her, as if he would never let go.
But… strangely, his mother didn’t react.
Despite being reunited with her son, she remained motionless, her gaze fixed on something in the distance.
“……Mama?”
It wasn’t just his mother.
His father, the village chief, the neighbor.
They all stood still, staring at the same point.
The boy finally realized.
Like the lifeless village, the villagers, too, seemed devoid of life.
His gaze followed theirs, towards the center of the square.
A figure, barely visible in the moonlit darkness, stood there.
Twice as tall as his father, with three-fingered hands and long, spindly legs.
Where a head should have been… several tentacles writhed.
It had a human-like form, but it was not human.
“M-Mama…….”
The villagers, who had been standing like statues, began to move.
His mother and father, standing beside him, began to walk, following the others.
The boy, his face etched with fear, looked back and forth between his parents and the other villagers.
He grabbed his mother’s hand tightly and followed.
The villagers walked towards the forest, following the towering figure in the center of the square.
And just like that, the village fell silent again… as if no one had ever lived there.
The disappearance of the villagers was reported several days later.
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Nikolai’s narrowed eyes remained fixed on a single point for several minutes.
Her gaze was directed towards a group of adventurers huddled together.
Among those waiting to depart for Begalo Vegas, acquaintances had gathered, exchanging greetings.
They shook hands, high-fived, and chatted amongst themselves.
Nikolai stared intently at a dark-haired young man among them.
“Aren’t you staring a bit too intensely?”
“……What?”
“They say the Blind Swordsman, Iyerpol, can sense people’s gazes. If you stare that hard, he’s bound to notice, even if he doesn’t want to.”
A young man approached Nikolai.
He had the appearance of an ordinary villager, but he wore a crisp knight’s uniform.
A sword with the Feiler family crest hung at his hip.
Müller Brenner, a newly appointed knight, still in training.
He was assigned to accompany Nikolai on the expedition to Begalo Vegas.
‘This feels a lot like being given the grunt work…’
Müller smiled outwardly, but his inner thoughts were less than enthusiastic.
Nikolai was known for her diligence, but also for her demanding nature.
No one had volunteered to accompany her.
So, it was only natural that Müller, the youngest and newest knight, had been chosen.
The only consolation was Müller’s generally agreeable nature and confidence in his social skills.
“……Doesn’t he seem… ordinary?”
“Iyerpol? I think he’s quite unusual.”
“I’m not talking about his appearance. His demeanor.”
A blind adventurer who specialized in extermination.
Skilled enough to defeat a Goblin King.
Highly regarded by his peers.
The Iyerpol Nikolai had imagined possessed a more… distinctive aura.
A quiet, mysterious presence… a stoic, blind adventurer.
But the young man she observed now seemed like any other amiable twenty-something.
Nothing more, nothing less.
“……I don’t understand.”
‘Could this man truly be that strong?’
Walking around as if he could see, despite being blind, was certainly remarkable.
But did that translate to strength?
She wasn’t convinced.
Iyerpol, laughing and chatting with his fellow adventurers, seemed utterly ordinary.
As Nikolai continued to observe him, two figures approached Iyerpol.
Two teenage girls, too young to be considered seasoned adventurers.
One, perhaps in her late teens, looked like a novice adventurer, but the other, much shorter, seemed too young to even be an aspiring adventurer.
Noticing their approach, Iyerpol brought the two girls over to introduce them to the other adventurers.
“Ah, those are the two girls Iyerpol’s been mentoring lately.”
“……Mentoring?”
“Aspiring adventurers, apparently. Iyerpol’s taken them under his wing as their sponsor and teacher.”
“His disciples, you mean.”
Nikolai’s gaze shifted to the taller girl.
She couldn’t tell about the smaller one, but the taller girl possessed a distinct presence.
Sitting calmly amidst the boisterous adventurers, she seemed almost regal.
To Nikolai, this girl seemed the most remarkable of the three.
But if Iyerpol was mentoring such a promising individual, it implied he possessed even greater abilities.
“……I’ll be right back.”
“Yes, ma’am. See you later.”
Müller playfully saluted as Nikolai strode towards the group of adventurers.
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“Iyerpol.”
“Hmm?”
As I was introducing Belle and Zeta to the other adventurers, a voice called out behind me.
A husky voice, at least for a woman.
I turned towards the sound and saw a knight standing behind me, her hair neatly tied back.
She was tall for a woman, with a sturdy build.
The Feiler family crest on the scabbard of her sword… she was a knight of the Feiler family.
Had she come to greet me?
“Ah, greetings. I’m Iyerpol, representing the adventurers.”
“Nikolai Tobias.”
Nikolai extended her hand.
I reached out and shook it, and she suddenly squeezed tightly.
“……?”
“…….”
It didn’t hurt, though.
Was this how knights greeted each other?
I wouldn’t know, having never interacted with a knight before.
I wondered if I should reciprocate the firm grip, but Nikolai released my hand.
“Not bad.”
“……? Ah, thank you?”
I smiled politely, and Nikolai’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Had I done something wrong?
Perhaps this was normal behavior among knights.
“I look forward to working with you on this expedition. I expect great things from the adventurers.”
With that, Nikolai turned and walked away.
She had appeared and disappeared like the wind.
I stared after her, bewildered, and the adventurers around me nudged me with their elbows.
“She put you in your place, Iyer.”
“……What?”
I had no idea what they meant.
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[Iyerpol finna get pegged by a dommy mommy]
