Chapter 225: The Shackles that bind the Heart

Returning to the fortress city and reporting the subjugation of the bandits to the Count, Josel immediately headed to Lutz’s forge.

This time, he had business with Claudia, not Lutz. As Claudia greeted him at the door, she said.

“It seems you’ve successfully subjugated the bandits.”

Despite having just reported to the Count moments ago, Josel wondered how she knew. However, Claudia simply evaded the question by saying.

“Rumors spread quickly.”

He wanted to ask how exactly she gathered information, but he knew she wouldn’t tell him. It was her trade secret, after all. Claudia was not as carefree as Lutz, but neither was she as strict.

Led to the second-floor living room, Josel decided to get straight to the point without further ado. 

“How is Naval-san doing?”

Naval was the elderly survivor of the bandit attack on a carriage. Claudia had promised to check on him before Josel went out to eradicate the bandits.

Claudia is cold towards knights, nobles, or anyone who tries to harm Lutz, but she’s basically a kind woman, so there’s no way she’ll forget her promise and leave her alone.

“That is…”

Claudia’s expression darkened as she began to speak. 

“What is that expression! I wasn’t expecting…”

Startled by her reaction, Josel stood up involuntarily. Claudia hurriedly denied.

“Wait. Naval-san is alive, he’s not dead. That’s the main point.”

“Is that so…” 

Josel sighed with relief and sat back down. He had genuinely worried that something might have happened to Naval based on Claudia’s initial reaction.

“Let me explain step by step. First, I went to Naval’s shop to investigate…”

Running her fingers through her slightly wavy hair, Claudia continued. She scratched her head when she had something difficult to say, a habit that seemed to resemble Lutz’s.

“It was like a slightly larger general store, and the shop was open. There was one employee managing the store, a woman in her forties. But she seemed unaware that the owner’s family had been attacked by bandits.”

“I see…” 

Josel muttered bitterly. In an era with limited means of communication, the murder of commoners wouldn’t make much news. It was Josel’s oversight not to inform them, but honestly, he was too preoccupied to do so. There were limits to handling everything alone.

For instance, if there had been a competent team like the Second Knights composed of only capable individuals, they could have shared information at the rendezvous point, with subordinates investigating Naval’s shop and reporting back.

Ideally, he wanted to recruit Claudia, a woman skilled in finance and information gathering, but unfortunately, she had the worst attribute possible: a dislike for knights. And Josel had himself to blame for her antipathy, given his negligent supervision.

“The woman was worried about the owner not returning for a long time, so I informed her that he might be in a village along the highway. She was quite shocked by the news.”

Josel had given Naval some money and told him to return home by shared carriage or something similar, but apparently, Naval had never made the attempt to return on his own.

Josel had expected as much. Even knowing that, he had simply parted ways with Naval after giving him the money. Naval’s face, resigned to everything, seemed to accuse Josel of his abandonment. He had fled, in a way.

“Wait, Claudia, I stopped by that village to leave my horse before going to deal with the bandits. I even checked the inn, but Naval wasn’t there.”

“Maybe you just missed each other. I rented a carriage, brought the woman and Lutz as escorts, and went to the village to explain the situation to the innkeeper and bring Naval-san back.”

Claudia and her companions arrived at the inn around the time Josel and the others had entered the baron’s domain and were recruiting Samurai Mask.

“As for Naval’s condition, he could converse normally and even walk on his own. But still, he seemed lifeless, as if his soul had left him.”

“Did Naval return home?”

“Yes, but…”

However, every time “but” slipped from Claudia’s lips, Josel felt a tightness in his chest. But he couldn’t ignore it; the bandit attack wasn’t just about defeating the villains and calling it a day.

He had done what he could, but it would have been easier to say that supporting the bereaved families wasn’t a knight’s duty. However, Josel couldn’t do that. He was a man who believed in protecting the people, and with that belief came arrogance.

He felt he had to protect the people, and with that conviction, he was also a noble knight.

“The house is built with the shop on the first floor and the residence on the second floor. Naval spends all day sitting upstairs, lost in thought. Even when the employee prepares meals, he only takes a sip or two of the soup. I heard that when she tried to force him to eat once, he vomited right there.”

“…Does he want to starve himself?”

“It seems he has the intention to eat, but his body just can’t accept it. After vomiting, he apologized to the woman. He understands, but his body won’t cooperate.”

Was it because he had abandoned his beloved family, brutally murdered, and tried to flee? Did his guilt prevent him from allowing himself to survive?

“Thank you for your help. I’d like to repay you somehow, but…”

Josel shook his head, indicating he didn’t have anything to offer. Claudia hadn’t expected anything in the first place, but she teasingly flashed a mischievous yet charming smile.

“I’ll consider it a favor.”

Josel grimaced, knowing she had no intention of collecting on it. She just wanted to see Josel’s displeased expression.

Afterward, Josel asked for Naval’s address and left the forge.

He had to meet that old man. He didn’t know what he could do at this point, but he had no choice but to confront the situation head-on.

Previous chapter | TOC | Next chapter