The Unicorn Legion

Mage Academy - Chapter 14

After having his advance team annihilated, Archduke Crane realized that the Golden Capital’s garrison wasn’t to be underestimated, and decided to suspend the siege until all his forces were gathered. As a result, he neglected to watch his own back, and a surprise attack by the church wiped out a quarter of his forces. More than that, the attack sent a message to the Archduke; the Pope had decided to stand with the new Queen.

Faced with the doubled strength of their opponents, the Archduke’s army retreated quickly. Then, about ten days later, Archduke Crane was a.s.sa.s.sinated by his subordinates as proof of their surrender. Since the king’s death and Crane’s subsequent coup, three months had pa.s.sed. Peace had finally returned to Sistare.

After this battle, Aemelian Grecia’s regime finally stabilized.

Although she was only sixteen, a lifetime of training to follow in her father’s footsteps earned her the trust of the people.

As for the mercenaries, although they had lost a chance to earn money, they kept their lives, and naturally had no complaints. Not to mention, the chaos after the war still offered many opportunities for them.

The church was much too busy to be chasing after a fugitive, so Cain let himself relax a bit. When Ellen invited him to partic.i.p.ate in another task, he nodded in acceptance.

One day, Ellen didn’t arrive for breakfast at “The Mercenary’s Home.”

He’s meeting with the Queen, the mercenaries gossiped. Half envious and half cheerful, the gathered mercenaries nicknamed Ellen “Young Master.”(1) After all, if Ellen really were awarded a t.i.tle, they may actually have to call him that!

The elf still stayed at “The Mercenary’s Home,” but only to sleep. He did not take on any tasks, and spent most of his time in the city, only coming back late at night. The Young Master had certainly been keeping busy, and the mercenaries had many, many theories as to why.

“I heard that several n.o.blemen want him to marry their daughters.”

“Well, I heard that he’s received so many invitations to tea parties and dances that even though he goes out every night, he can only make it to half of them!”

Those who were eager to get close to the Queen’s favorite sent their servants out to “The Mercenary’s Home” with invitations. When they couldn’t find the recipient, they would throw the perfumed letters to Old Man Jake with a sneer.(2) They always rushed out afterwards, as though afraid that they would be tainted by the ruffians hanging out in “The Mercenary’s Home.”

Cain silently listened to the mercenary’s chatter, and suddenly realized that this was the sixth day in a row that he hadn’t seen Ellen.

On the morning of the seventh day, he still didn’t hear that soft greeting; instead, Old Man Jake called him over.

“Here,” Old Man Jake pa.s.sed him a sack. “Payment.”

Inside the sack was a pile of gold coins- far more than what he was expecting. It was closer to a hundred than the twenty he had earned. Without saying a word, the knight took twenty coins from the sack and pushed the rest back to the innkeeper.

“What’s yer problem?”

“It’s too much.”

“O’ course,” Old Man Jake looked surprised. “The elf said ye did good, so ye got extra.”

How can that be? I couldn’t even heal him properly! “I don’t need it.” Cain coldly replied. He knew refusing the gold wouldn’t change anything, but accepting left a sour taste in his mouth.

“Are ye sure?” Old Man Jake peered at him. “‘E said that if ye didn’t want it, I could use it fer the inn.”

That sounds like his style. Cain hadn’t known the elf for long, but he could guess that his soft-hearted nature had gotten the best of him again.

“Go ahead,” the knight nodded. “You should use it soon, or your patrons may die of the plague.”

“Yer crazy,” Old Man Jake shook his head. “All these years I’ve been handlin’ mercenaries, and this is the first time I’ve seen someone say no t’ gold.”

“Maybe,” the knight said, turning away.

It was twilight when Cain opened the doors of the inn again, and he stopped in surprise when he spotted a familiar figure in the corner. Ellen sat alone, his bow and arrows absent, the table empty. He was wearing aristocratic clothing that emphasized his elegance, enough to put other so-called n.o.bles to shame. He was beautiful- but he didn’t even seem to notice, looking dazed and disappointed.

Cain wanted to call out to him from the bottom of his heart, but ignored the urge. Suddenly, the elf looked up, and Cain followed his gaze to a woman holding a child as she wandered through the crowded inn.

Despite her stained face, her hands were white and delicate, as though she had never done any physical labor. She held the child in a strange way; she did not hold him close, but instead held him away from her, as though to show off his fever-pained face. The child’s clothing was decorated with a small cross- the mark of the church.

Although Ellen possessed the incredible vision of an elf, his powers of observation were much weaker, and Cain was certain he would miss these details. He could see the elf take out a silver coin, gaze following the woman as she came near his table.

Don’t be so naive. This world isn’t as bright as the one you remember. You can believe in the good of human nature, but don’t be so unprepared.

Kindness will not be your shield.

The knight sighed and ducked through the crowd to sit beside the elf, plucking the coin from his fingers.

“Two cups of Dawn Manor Wine,” he called.

Kindness will not be your shield, so let me protect you.

The pressure on his chest forced Cain awake, and he reluctantly opened his eyes. Large eyes with thin pupils filled his vision. A cat crouched on his chest, slowly tapping her tail. The knight smiled.

“Good morning, Mewlice.” The cat whacked him impatiently with her tail and stalked over to the closed door. Cain got up to open it and the cat shot out into the hall. The air outside the room was chilled and drove away Cain’s residual sleepiness. He stood in the silence for a moment, then turned back and closed the door. He tweaked open the curtains and judged that it was about seven o’clock in the morning. He hesitated when he looked at the still-sleeping elf.

Should I wake him up?

As though he had felt the knight’s gaze, Ellen opened his eyes.

“Good morning, Ellen,” the knight spoke quietly. “Mrs. Cavendish mentioned that she would drop by at half past seven.”

Unexpectedly, the elf didn’t respond to his greeting, but instead looked directly at Cain’s face and made an unrelated statement.

“Cain … you have a beard.”

The knight touched his chin; indeed, a fair amount of stubble had grown overnight. “Yeah, I haven’t shaved yet.”

“So, while you shave,” Ellen rolled over and tucked the quilt over his head. “Let me sleep in a little.”

Cain couldn’t help but laugh. To see the elf’s selfish side, could be considered a privilege of his knight.