Volume 2 - CH 63

It was a little after Falk left the ice cream shop that the Luorio army was urgently summoned.

An urgent bell rang, different from the peaceful bells that told the time. People looked up at the blue sky where the sound echoed.

Falk heard this bell ringing at the carriage stop on his way home.

He was going to return to the temple, but he changed his destination. As he climbed into the carriage, he hurriedly told the driver where he was going.

“To the Luorio army garrison. Please be as quick as possible.”

The carriage made a noise as it lurched forward, while the sound of bells still lingered in the air.

The military garrison is located northwest of the city.

Outside the city, in the northwest direction, is a forest of spirits, so when the army sets out on an expedition, it takes a course that avoids this forest.

Marching down the main street from the garrison, once in the center of the city, changing course to the east, west, south or north – that is the usual marching course of the Luorio army.

When he first arrived, he was surprised that the road had turned into a lively bustling crowd as if it were a parade.

Falk was impressed by the cheerful vibrancy of the city, something he had never experienced in his hometown of Bereslena, a city in the far north.

Following the course of the march in reverse, Falk arrived at the garrison.

He left the carriage at the gate and proceeded into the grounds. As he walked, he broke the spell of disguise.

He proceeded to the entrance, where a large statue of the God of war, Gladius, was placed, and entered the stone building.

Heading for the conference room in the back while passing some guards in the corridor. When he reached the front of the room, the guard opened the door.

“I’m Raltoze. I’m here.”

The captains of the various units were gathered in the room around a large, carved table. Falk entered the circle.

They were waiting for a few more people and then the meeting would begin.

A map is spread out on the table. It is a map of the city of Luorio and its surroundings. A black stone was placed in the southern part of the city.

This stone is a stone that represents demons. To be exact, it’s a stone that indicates where demons can spawn.

While looking at the map, people gathered and a meeting with a dozen or so people began.

The Commander-in-chief, with a stern expression, immediately started talking. A large man with a beard speaks in a loud voice that matches his physique.

“Everyone is here. Let’s get started. As you can imagine, this time the army will be dispatched quickly. The spirit observer caught a sign of a large demon fog south of the city.”

Demonic fog is the black fog that gives birth to demons. The fog is generated, gathers together, and moves in the form of demons – this is how demons are created.

Just like when clouds gather and it starts to rain…But since monsters move around freely, they are much more troublesome than raindrops.

It’s the spirit observer’s job to find the harbingers of that troublesome fog. They have special eyes that see spirits, and can predict the occurrence of magical fog from the movements of nature spirits.

“According to the observer’s spirit vision, the spirits are afraid of the sky and flee underground. Based on the evacuation behavior of the spirits, the demon is predicted to be the one that controls the sky.”

“Controlling the sky…a demon with wings…how troublesome.”

“It’s been a while. I hope it’s small, like a bird.”

“Unfortunately, the magic fog this time is extremely thick. High-ranking demons are predicted. What will appear will be a great eagle, a dragon, or a winged chimera.”

All the captains let out a big sigh.

Demons with wings are especially hard to wipe out. It needs to be shot down to the ground, and if it flies away, there’s nothing that can be done about it.

Besides, the demons that attack from the sky are a threat to the combatants. People have no choice but to run on the ground, so they are at a disadvantage…it seems there will be many casualties.

If a good weapon exists it might be easier, but even still it’s a difficult battle.

It is said that in the past, there was a weapon that launched explosives in the days of war, but now the production is taboo. It is said that the army surprised the spirits and received terrible retribution.

The spirits’ retaliation was a great calamity that ended the war between humans. That is the extent of this world’s history.

The commander-in-chief sighed once more, corrected his posture, and gave his orders.

“The request for support has already been sent to neighboring armies, but be prepared to fight your own battles alone without waiting for reinforcements to arrive. The location of the magical fog is bad, and reinforcements will probably not arrive in time. We will bring in all of our archers, and the five elite units will be deployed in full force. Two reserve units will be brought with them. The reserve units should also be made up of those who have experience in actual combat. How many military priests do you think you can gather?”

“Two per squad, ten men and I will take about five more with me.”

“Hmm, I would like to increase it a little more… Is it possible to have three priests per squad? With fewer priests, some of the soldiers might get frightened.”

Combatants move better when they have a younger body, but the younger they are, the less experienced they are, and they tend to get scared of unknown demons.

It seems that the more priests there are behind them, the more confident they can face the demons.

However, Falk shook his head at the Commander’s request.

“I am sorry to say this, but taking so many priests who are useless on the battlefield will only slow you down. We will select the best of the best, so please accept this number of priests.”

“…I understand. Then, I will leave the personnel affairs of the military priests to you.”

“I accept it.”

When he saluted, the commander nodded with a grim look on his face.

Falk was glad he laughed as hard as he could at the ice cream shop earlier. He won’t have time to relax his expression for a while.

After the meeting was over, Falk rode the carriage back to the temple.

Along the way, he heard the sound of the city bells again.

The next bell is the bell that announces the departure of the army the next morning. The merchants in the city will be busy from now on for the marching event.

This time, the army and the temple were very busy because of the urgent need for battle. Usually, there are a few days to spare between the call to arms and departure, but this time there was not even time to greet their families.

(…Really, I’m glad I went to the ice cream shop today. I think I can do my best even on the battlefield.)

In the carriage, Falk put on the bracelet he received on his left hand. Blue leather with iridescent beads, it’s beautiful like a rainbow in the sky.

He was irresistibly happy when he thought that Alme had chosen the parts one by one.

Also the poem she had chosen, although he had laughed just to hide his embarrassment.

The leather bracelet should have no temperature, yet it feels strangely warm. In addition to that, he felt her heat still lingering on his pinky finger that he had just entwined with hers.

A left hand wrapped in a bracelet and a right hand that had made a promise, he gently crossed both over his heart.

He took a prayer-like posture and cast healing magic on himself…Healing magic for the heart and mind that shouldn’t work.

When Falk was a child, Lou once told him that he has some emotional wounds.

His mother died giving birth to him, and his father died because of him. And because of his own medical bills, which were because he was sickly and weak, the family fell into debt.

His older brother and sister always told him this:

“If it weren’t for you, none of this would have happened. If only you hadn’t been born, we wouldn’t be in this mess. It’s not too late for you to die.”

He was told the same thing over and over again, and his young self believed every word of it.

So one day, he asked Lou who was in charge of the treatment while clinging to his white priest’s clothes, crying helplessly.

“Please, let me die.”

Since priests can revive people from the brink of death, he thought it would be easy to do the opposite.

That’s why he begged him, but Lou didn’t listen to his wish…he wouldn’t let Falk die.

He just hugged Falk gently and suggested treatment, saying, ‘Let’s take it easy and heal your mental injuries slowly.’

That’s how Lou’s treatment – and support – was received, but it didn’t quite heal the emotional injuries and such.

He was laughed at as ‘coming from a foolish family whose father had become indebted in favor of the youngest son,’ and pointed the finger at him as the culprit for ruining the family, and was treated with scathing contempt…

Before he became the ‘white falcon’, nobody looked at him except Lou.

…and even after he had attained the status of Shirotaka, there was no one to look at him for who he really was.

After he started to make a name for himself, people were drawn to him by his fame, money, and good looks, but their eyes full of ulterior motives only saw ‘the outside of the white falcon.’

There was no one who looked at him with affection like his father once did. There was only Lou.

Even though there was only one, he has found another such person in this city. A beloved friend who shared her affectionate warmth with him.

Alme made a pinky promise with the real Falkert, not ‘Shirotaka’.

He felt a tightness in his chest, a comforting irresistible feeling.

He wondered what his past self, who was crying because he was told to die, would have thought if he knew that someday a friend would genuinely desire for him to live and come back quickly from the battlefield.

The carriage stopped and Falk quickly dismounted. Without stopping, he walked to the temple.

The healing magic for the heart is perfect. He felt like he can fight with all his might now.

With the courage that wells up in his heart, he’ll fulfill the role of the guardian deity of soldiers.

The white falcon, wearing a sky blue bracelet, prepared to fly off to war.