"Young Master Eitan, you dragged me all this way just to become a glorified nanny?" Lind spoke aggrievedly to Eitan after being informed of his new duties.
Eitan's fork halted in front of his mouth as he gave Lind a look that caused him to stand perfectly erect, letting out a nervous chuckle. "Ahem, well, now that I think about it, having some extra hands will come in handy in the new territory."
Eitan held back a snort as he went back to eating his meal. He watched Lind slink off and soon finished his food, heading to his room once he did so. Once he was inside, he took out the thick pouch that had been stuffed into his pants, his eyes glittering. This was the money he had loot— righteously confiscated from Ryler's stash. It was, of course, nowhere near the amount he had obtained from Bloody Gold, but it was enough to line his pockets for the next while.
He packed it securely with the rest of his belongings before grabbing his sword. He began swinging fiercely but carefully, limited by the confines of the room. Doing such a thing with a weapon like Farrel's may still pose some difficulty, but he had no issues deftly controlling his shortsword. He grinned widely as he went through the familiar motions, his heart thumping with a mix of exhilaration and exertion. He held back from using aura because he didn't want to cause any damage to the inn, but it was okay because just being able to use his sword like in the past already pleased him greatly. The sword in his hands was like another part of him; without it, he didn't feel complete. So no matter how many times he swung, the happiness at regaining some of his past capabilities never faded.
He only stopped when the back of his clothes became drenched in sweat. He put away his sword and went over to the basin that had been prepared for him to wash up. Once he was done, he looked outside the window to see a darkening sky. I should go to sleep, since we'll be departing in the early hours. He dried himself off with a towel and was about to lie in bed when there was a knock on his door. "Who is it?"
"Noble sir— no, Young Master Eitan. It's Miles."
Eitan felt mild surprise at the boy's presence. Could there be something he wasn't satisfied with? He pondered as he sat down on the bed. "Come in."
The door creaked open, and Miles stepped in, looking somewhat tentative. "Can I- uh, may I ask you something?" Lind had apparently already begun the basic education as Miles adjusted himself to speak more properly.
"You may," Eitan gazed at the boy with a hint of amusement, along with inquisitiveness.
Miles shuffled a bit before gathering the courage to look Eitan in the eyes. "Young Master, why did you save us? I keep thinking about it, there's not much good some no-good street rats can offer a noble person like yourself." He had heard the whispers of the soldiers who questioned why Eitan would bother taking them in, and after some thought, found himself agreeing with them. There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. He may be young, but the rough life on the streets had taught him that much. But, in circumstances where one provided to someone with nothing to give, it stood to reason they had other motives. Miles couldn't figure it out by himself, so he decided to ask Eitain directly.
"Why, you ask?" Eitan chuckled a bit. This kid had quite the guts. Even knowing the vast chasm of their statuses, he mustered the courage to march up to Eitan and search for answers. "I just felt like it." It was true. There was no grand reason or meaning behind his actions, like wanting to uphold chivalry or some crap like that. He simply decided he wanted to help the boy, and once this decision was made, it was in his nature to follow it all the way through.
Miles' pupils shook, and it was unknown how he interpreted those words, but after a moment's thought, he fell to his knees. He lowered his head to the floor and spoke in a loud voice. "Young Master Eitan, you are nothing like those other snobby nobles who see us urchins as little better than the mud on the bottom of their shoes. I, Miles, might have nothing and be nothing, but I swear I'll do my best to repay this grace you've bestowed upon us." He lifted his head and gave Eitan a lopsided smile, which highlighted his young features. "A man's word is as good as his life, right? It might not be much, but if you can find value in this urchin's life, I'll be glad to be of use to you."
This was certainly beyond his expectations. Eitan looked down at the still-kneeling Miles and spoke sternly. "I believe that every life has its value, no matter who you are or where you came from." This was a firm truth instilled in him during his mercenary days, where people from all walks of life congregated. Every person had their own pasts, ideals, and goals, and for better or worse, none of them were meaningless. "If you stay true to your word for the years to come, I will gladly use that life of yours."
Miles' eyes sparkled, and he bowed his head again with an excited shout, "I will do my best!"
"Alright, enough of that. Get up." Eitan remarked, and Miles complied. "It is uncertain what the future shall bring. For now, all you have to do is follow what Lind teaches you."
"Yes, Young Master. I will become the best servant I can be." Miles nodded with a determined expression.
This cute kid. Eitan viewed his resolution fondly. "Good, be off with you now."
Miles gave Eitan a sloppy bow before making his way out of the room. The intrusion gone, Eitan finally lay back on his bed. He glanced at the door through which Miles had just departed as he settled in. A new connection, one completely unrelated to my past life. The future will definitely be an interesting thing. With a refreshing smile on his face, Eitan drifted off to sleep.
*****
"Here it is," Eitan pushed open the carriage's curtain as the convoy approached a large but dilapidated gate. This marked the entrance to the Saorise Region, the land he would soon be the lord of.
Aengus spurred his horse to reach the bottom of the gateway. "Open the gates for the new Lord of Saorise!" He shouted assertively, once, then twice, but there was no response. "These bastards, what are they doing when the young master has arrived?" He grumbled as he surveyed the ramparts.
Eitan reached outside the window to make a beckoning gesture, and Farrel soon came up alongside the carriage. "My liege?"
"Investigate. It's been too long with no movement at all; something is obviously amiss." Eitan's eyes were narrowed as he spoke.
Farrel dipped his head respectfully. "As you say, my liege." He walked over to the gate, and before Aengus could say anything, a white aura bundled under his legs, and he leaped directly on top of the ramparts.
"... Alright! Let's see why they dared keep the lord of this land waiting." Aengus looked momentarily conflicted before his feet and legs gave off an orange glow, and he followed after Farrel. He only refrained from doing this before because it would be considered an act of aggression, but if Farrel did it, it had to have been under Eitan's orders, so he gave up acting politely and followed along.
The two were gone for a while before Aengus eventually returned to the carriage with a strange expression. "So?" Eitan prompted.
"It's completely empty and appears to have been so for some time. Sir Farrel is investigating further in case we missed something in the cursory sweep." Aengus informed Eitan in a restrained tone.
"What?" Eitan's eyes widened with shock; he almost couldn't believe his ears. No matter how barren this place was, it was inconceivable for it not to have manned even the most basic of military outposts. "Something else must be going on here." He had not expected his arrival in Saorise to be a smooth one, but this was even rockier than he had anticipated. "Tell the soldiers to camp outside the gate for now. I don't want to make any moves until we get a clue about what's happened."
"Understood," Aengus bowed his head and rode off to speak to the twenty soldiers behind.
Eitan leaned back in the carriage and rubbed his forehead. In his past life, after the ordeal with the assassins, he had spent a good deal of time practically locked in his room, completely isolated from the outside world. That was why he struggled to remember what could have possibly happened to the Saorise Region at this time. Come on, think! His face scrunched up as he tried desperately to recall any scrap of news he may have come across. Oh, shit.
His eyes widened, and his hand fell from his face as he remembered one thing he had heard from an alchemist he had been commissioned to protect. It was a conversation between the alchemist and another mercenary, but it had caught his attention at the mention of Saorise because his trauma regarding the region ran deep. The ghost leaf plague. It was an illness that had been dubbed as such by physicians due to its last stage. Victims at the end of the plague's progress would be as white as a sheet with black veins visible through their skin. Due to the ghastly pallor of the victims and veins visible like those on the underside of a leaf, it had gained such a moniker.
Due to the timely discovery of a cure, the plague didn't have much impact beyond the border region, which is why Eitan didn't think much of it before. But now its deadly tendrils were strangling the land which would soon be his. He hurriedly calculated the timeline in his mind and deduced that it shouldn't have hit its peak yet. The gate was likely unmanned due to the inhabitants escaping an outbreak, but Eitan knew that the disease was transferred by person-to-person contact, so he didn't have any concerns over possible leftover contamination.
"Sir Aengus, bring Farrel back." Eitan stuck his head out of the carriage and yelled back.
"Yes, Young Master." Aengus was a bit befuddled by the seemingly random order but obeyed nonetheless. He went back over the ramparts and shortly returned with Farrel in tow.
Farrel quickly went over to the carriage and looked up at Eitan. "I deduced that the abandonment appears recent and rather sudden, but I couldn't find the reason. My apologies for my incompetence."
"That only stands to reason," Eitan pushed open the carriage door and calmly descended. "Sir Aengus, please stay with the others. Farrel and I shall go further in."
Aengus stared at Eitan for a few moments before bowing solemnly. "Young Master, please be careful."
Eitan was a bit surprised at his cooperativeness and gave a small nod. "I will." He assured, before walking over to the gate. "Farrel, open it." He was not yet skilled enough with his aura to scale the walls as the knights had done, so he had to enter the normal way.
"Yes, my liege." Farrel swiftly disappeared over the wall, and a loud creaking could soon be heard. Following this, the gates slowly began to rise.
Eitan casually strolled inside to see Farrel operating the lifting mechanism by the inner base of the gate. This was a device that required three strong men to use, so it was an impressive display of strength overall. He took his handkerchief out of his pocket and fashioned a makeshift mask that covered his mouth and nose, gesturing for Farrel to do the same as he surveyed the desolate town in front of him. Actually, town was a rather generous descriptor. If not for the impressive gate, it was little better than an ordinary village.
"My liege, do you know the reason for the state of this place?" Farrel, having tied a piece of cloth onto his face, came over to Eitan's side.
"More or less," Eitan spoke vaguely, wanting to first be one hundred percent certain that his remembrance was correct before bringing it up. The two moved deeper into the village, and the complete lifelessness of the surroundings provoked a rather eerie feeling.
Catching on that he didn't wish to speak further, Farrel made no more inquiries and merely followed Eitan through the ghost town. Eitan suddenly halted in front of a house, and his head whipped up to one of the windows. Farrel reacted not a moment slower to follow his gaze.