Chapter 64

A long time later.

After the banquet, we exchanged gifts with Mucalinda.

To be precise, it was an exchange of compensation for rashly waking up the monster and a reward for defeating Tospol, who was a nuisance to the kingdom.

Because of that, the gift exchange took the form of trade.

We exchanged the gold and treasures and cloth collected by the pirates, and they exchanged the rare metals and food of the deep sea.

“I wish that our friendship will last for a long, long time and that we will both prosper.”

“Likewise. May Your Majesty live a long life.”

We exchanged appropriate pleasantries, but I don't know if this trade will continue next time.

Because Mucalinda didn't seem to have any intention of continuing the trade.

This underwater kingdom was completely oriented towards isolationism.

From the looks of it, if it weren't for Tospol, they wouldn't have even met with us.

It would be nice if I could persuade them to increase the trade somehow.

Because the rare metals of the deep sea are good for making weapons.

“Young Master, more importantly, is it okay to handle things like this? Randolfo will be furious that the workload has increased.”

“I thought of that too……”

A slight cold sweat broke out when I thought of being scolded by Randolfo for handling things arbitrarily when I returned.

Randolfo has also become much angrier lately.

I wonder if he isn't waiting for me in a dark place at night with a club.

Still, for now, it's a relief that there's no hole in the finances…… isn't it?

The gift exchange was over, but Mucalinda still had business.

“And one more thing, there is a gift for Sir Gryph.”

“A gift?”

“This is a personal gift from me.”

At Mucalinda's instruction, a mermaid servant brought a horse.

The glossiness of its coat made it look like a fine horse to anyone.

Mucalinda said proudly.

“It is a horse mixed with the blood of a sea spirit. It will surely be of help to Sir Gryph's endeavors.”

“A sea spirit!”

Exclamations of admiration burst out from the surroundings.

Of course, I was also surprised.

“Dare I receive such a precious thing?”

“Of course. It is a reward for defeating Tospol.”

Leaving aside the sincerity, a horse mixed with the blood of a sea spirit was a precious gift that could not be bought with money.

A horse of spirit mixed blood was superior in many ways, to the point where the fine horses of the land seemed ridiculous.

In particular, it was very useful for escaping from the battlefield because of its speed.

It was a gain to receive this.

There was no telling when this horse might save my life.

There was no reason at all to refuse for the sake of saving face.

“I will receive it with gratitude, Your Majesty Mucalinda. Is there a name you have given the horse?”

“That is not important, so please give it a name as you wish, Sir Gryph.”

I couldn't think of a name off the top of my head.

But a good one just came to mind.

“Then, to commemorate today's events, I will name him Tospol.”

“……Isn't that a very ominous name? But well, if Sir Gryph wishes it.”

Well, why.

Isn't this how you commemorate things?

Why is everyone looking at me like that?

I ignored the pouring gazes and approached Tospol.

I was a little reluctant because of the memory of being bitten by Theo's horse before, but I was not the same me as before.

I've grown in the meantime.

I shook off my fear and stroked his mane.

“Your name is now Tospol. I look forward to working with you.”

Tospol looked at me with gentle eyes, as if he liked the name.

See, he likes it too.

My relief was also brief.

Tospol suddenly opened his mouth wide and gently bit my head with his huge mouth.

Crunch.

“Huh?”

“That, that crazy horse! Save Sir Gryph at once!”

Mucalinda was flustered and didn't know what to do.

I tried to smooth things over as if nothing had happened, thinking of Mucalinda's face.

“Haha. I think this fellow feels a sense of closeness to me. He's playing a prank.”

“I think he's tasting you, not playing.”

“Isn't it a way of showing affection?”

“I swear on the king's name that I would never teach a horse such a thing!”

“……Is it a man-eating horse by any chance?”

“It's not, but is that important now?”

There is a fact that people easily overlook about horses.

Although horses are herbivores, their biting power is second to none.

In fact, an excited horse can even bite a person to death during a battle.

My spine chilled, and I tried to get away from Tospol.

Then Tospol, noticing the sign, put strength into his jaw.

CRACK!

“Uwaaaaaah!”

“What are you all doing! Save Sir Gryph!”

Mucalinda hurriedly gave an order, and people tried to pull me away from Tospol.

But it was unlikely that a living creature weighing hundreds of kilograms, and a horse with the blood of a spirit at that, would easily follow control.

I barely managed to get out of Tospol's mouth after going through a process I would rather not think about again.

I remember Theo punching Tospol, but after that, things are a blur.

“Was the name the problem? Was it because that name was unlucky?”

“That's enough, so please, just stop jumping into dangerous situations. What kind of crazy thing is this?”

“Honestly, this wasn't my problem. You admit it, right?”

“Alright. I get it, so from now on, just leave things like that to me.”

Theo grumbled and dragged me to a safe place.

Over there, Tospol (the horse), who had become docile at some point, was snorting with satisfaction.

Damn it.

「Trait Activated: Heart of Iron and Blood Overcome the fruits of ignorance with learning.」

The system is also mocking me now, right?

Why of all times is it activating now?

Anyway, the effect of the trait was amazing.

I instantly calmed down my excitement and checked my condition.

My head was a little damp and heavy, but no bones were broken.

They said the skull was the hardest bone in the human body, and it seemed to be true.

It was a relief that I wasn't seriously injured.

If I had been trampled by a horse by mistake, I could have really died instantly.

And what an absurd and miserable end that would be.

It wouldn't be strange if I remained in the history books as a fool.

“A-Are you alright?”

As I was panting, battered and bruised, Mucalinda approached.

Normally, it would have been impossible to read a snake's expression, but now I could tell that Mucalinda was surprised.

Look at how those vertical pupils have dilated.

Whether he was surprised by what just happened or by the diplomatic problem that had arisen, I didn't know.

Wait a minute.

A diplomatic problem?

Suddenly, a good idea came to mind.

A crisis is always an opportunity.

I would have to spoil the good atmosphere and put on a thick face, but considering the profit I could gain from the Mermaid's Shore, it was worth enduring that much.

I lowered my voice and spoke.

“Your Majesty Mucalinda. I believe an explanation is needed for what just happened.”

“That was an accident just now. You know that, don't you?”

“Doesn't the interpretation of a situation differ depending on the perspective? Ugh, my headache is back.”

“No……”

“But to strengthen the friendship between our two countries, it's better to forget about such a trivial injury quickly. What does Your Majesty think?”

I stopped feigning illness and looked at Mucalinda with force in my eyes.

Mucalinda rolled his eyes.

Now, hurry up and take it.

I can make what just happened a simple accident, or I can make it an assassination attempt.

Everything depends on how I say it.

If Mucalinda had even a little bit of sense, he would be able to remember that the Fasa-Levona fleet was waiting just outside.

The Levonan sailors might consider the mermaids ominous, but it's not like they have no hostility.

If I went back and said I was the target of an assassination attempt, they would gladly go out to fight.

And the mermaids wouldn't be able to close the magic passage right away either.

Magic usually takes quite some time to activate.

But I didn't want to ruin the relationship like this either.

There was no need to make an enemy of a profitable partner.

As expected, Mucalinda was not a king who lacked sense.

“Sir Gryph…… what do you want?”

“Continuous trade between our two countries. That is all.”

“Hmm.”

“I'm not trying to calculate profit or loss. Wouldn't it be nice to just meet sometimes like now and exchange what we need?”

A king is basically a political creature.

He would be able to quickly calculate that it was much cheaper to deal with it as a simple accident and pay compensation rather than the dishonor of attempting to assassinate someone he had just met today, and an honorable person who had defeated Tospol at that.

Or what.

Do you really want to go to war?

Hey, are you confident?

Mucalinda, who had received my request, nodded his head with a sigh.

“Since we made a mistake, we will accept your request.”

“Thank you for Your Majesty's consideration. We will discuss it with the working-level staff later.”

“Let's do that.”

The Kresven Archipelago would be a good place to trade.

“Is the wound on your head alright?”

“I'm fine.”

“It's bleeding.”

“I think it's because I hit a tree earlier.”

“……Well, when you ride a horse, you're bound to sweat and get hurt. I'll prepare a place for Sir Gryph to wash up immediately. And medicine and bandages for the wound.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Mucalinda quickly understood my meaning.

We agreed to make everything that had happened null and void in exchange for the trade rights.

Instead, Mucalinda found a target to vent his anger on.

The sea spirit horse, Tospol.

“If you wish, I will have that ill-tempered horse that doesn't even recognize its master executed immediately.”

“No. It was a gift, so I can't do that. I will definitely take that fellow with me.”

“……”

Even if it was out of stubbornness, I would definitely subdue that fellow.

If it really didn't work, I was thinking of using him as a stud horse.

A horse with the blood of a sea spirit would sell for a high price.

Or I could create a cavalry unit.

Both would take a long time, though.

Mucalinda let out a deep sigh and lamented.

“Our kingdom has lived without exchange with the outside world until now. I personally found it frustrating, but now I see that my ancestors did not leave warnings for their descendants for nothing.”

What are you talking about.

Then you shouldn't have given me a man-eating monster horse as a gift.

I almost had a game over here.

“I don't know what will become of today's events, but I hope it will have a good ending.”

Mucalinda left with those words.

Soon, the head chamberlain came and informed me that it would take some time to prepare the bath.

There was time left until the bath was prepared.

I looked around and my eyes met with Eleonor's.

Eleonor had already taken out a pen and paper and was recording what had just happened.

Phew.

That damn desire to record knows no place.

“Please write that Leon Gryph's head was bitten by Tospol (the horse), but it did not lead to an unfortunate accident for everyone.”

“—Sir Gryph said so while bleeding from his head, is what he asked me to write.”

“Ah. Please. Just.”

“—Sir Gryph dissuaded.”

“Are you really going to do that?”

“But I can't just let this important record pass, can I?”

Who is that important to?

Are you going to show it to someone later to embarrass me?

Are you going to be like, ‘The great reveal of Leon Gryph's dark history’?

Suddenly, Eleonor spoke.

“The way you obtained the trade rights through self-inflicted blackmail was very impressive. There was something a little disgraceful, but it's nothing compared to the profit gained from the trade. I was moved by your self-sacrificing appearance. It's not easy to turn a crisis into an opportunity.”

“No. What are you talking about? It's not like that.”

“Ah. It wasn't?”

Eleonor's reaction was one of disbelief.

No, aren't you too naturally believing that I committed fraud?

I hurriedly made an excuse.

“It was just an unfortunate accident, and I just don't get along well with horses. I've been bitten in the head by a horse before.”

“I see.”

To my ears, those words sounded like, ‘I see, right.’ No, you saw with your own two eyes that I almost died just now.

“Surely the others don't think like Sir Eleonor, do they?”

“I think everyone thinks more or less the same.”

“What comes to mind when you see me?”

“Hmm, cunningness?”

“I'm going crazy. Really.”

Eleonor's honest remark drove me crazy.

Where in my pure appearance was there such an impure thing?

In the meantime, Eleonor recorded everything I had just said.

I think I know why the kings of Joseon considered the historians such a nuisance.

I was about to dissuade Eleonor but just gave up.

Do it or don't.

I don't know either.

Let it be.

I looked up at the sky with a sense of enlightenment.

The sky seen from the Mermaid's Shore was just endlessly blue.

Then I suddenly realized something strange.

Why didn't the trait activate this time?

Usually, when I persuaded other people, the Descendant of a Demon trait would activate and interfere with the process or tell me the result.

But this time, nothing happened.

Somehow, that bothered me.

***

When Leon returned to the Kresven Archipelago with a pile of treasures, there was an uproar among the remaining sailors.

It was clear to anyone that Leon had been warmly welcomed by the mermaids.

In particular, the spirit horse Tospol, which Leon had received as a gift, became a hot topic.

Fine horses were already rare, but a horse with the blood of a spirit was much rarer.

People's reactions were split in half.

First, in the mercenary company, the reaction was that Leon Gryph had done it again.

“Under the leadership of the great leader Comrade Leon, our mercenary company always wins!”

“Leon Gryph is a god!”

It wasn't particularly strange for such a reaction to come out.

Leon Gryph had been on a continuous path of success since the founding of the mercenary company.

Among the mercenaries, he was even jokingly called Saint Leonius. (A joke that Leon would have hated if he had heard it.)

On the other hand, the Levonan dwarves were different.

Dwarves were originally a stubborn race.

And sailors who went out to sea were much more conservative.

It wasn't for nothing that there were numerous superstitions and taboos for sailors.

Therefore, Admiral Gian, who was at the pinnacle of them, could be called the king of conservatives.

“Leon Gryph has become too dangerous. To associate with those ominous mermaids and even trade with them? This is no ordinary matter. We can't just let him be.”

Mermaids are ominous.

Leon associates with them.

Therefore, Leon is also ominous.

By a simple logic, Admiral Gian decided to determine Leon Gryph's fate.

He had already forgotten the thought of being a comrade-in-arms who had fought together on the battlefield.

It was just an alliance formed to face Tospol for a while anyway.

But now that Tospol was gone from the sea, the alliance had also served its purpose.

Admiral Gian's eyes shone insidiously.

“What has served its purpose must be disposed of……”

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