God of Knight

Chapter 16 - The Wind Blade’s Trap

Kenzou immediately picked up and unrolled the scroll while Masaki finished the tea in his small cup.

“Kenzou, thank you for the tea. Next time, come to my house—I just bought some sake from the Fengrui merchant!” said Masaki.

Kenzou stopped at the first line of the letter. “Sake?”

Kazan looked up too.

“Are you kidding, Sect Leader? Fengrui sake is incredibly expensive!” said Kenzou.

“It’s true that Fengrui sake is very expensive, but the taste doesn’t disappoint, especially the aroma…!” said Masaki as he took a deep breath through his nose while closing his eyes.

Kenzou swallowed. Beside him, Kazan had to swallow as well; his old taste for good wine had not vanished with his Ki.

“All right, I’ll stop by sometime, so save a little for me!” said Kenzou.

“Of course, Kenzou. Well then, I’ll be going now!” Masaki didn’t even glance at or greet Kazan after saying goodbye to Kenzou.

Kazan lowered his eyes to the book again, offering no farewell either.

Only Kenzou’s presence kept the words he wanted to say behind his teeth.

“Master, what did Dad say in the message?” asked Kazan.

“Ah, I completely forgot!” said Kenzou; then he went back to reading the letter aloud.

“Kenzou-sensei, forgive me for sending only a letter! Last night, Kazane gave birth to a daughter. Please bring Kazan home to meet his little sister.”

“Huh? So Kaz— I mean, Mom has given birth?” Kazan asked, startled.

Kenzou smiled as he ruffled Kazan’s hair.

“That’s right—you have a little sister!” Kenzou glanced at the letter the messenger had delivered yesterday. “She was born the night before this arrived. We expected her four days ago; let’s not delay any longer.”

“Just the two of us, Master?” asked Kazan.

“Huh? Yeah, just the two of us! Do you really want to bring all the students there?” asked Kenzou.

“No!” replied Kazan. Then he immediately got up and gathered a few essential items.

Kenzou readied a horse-drawn carriage. Once Kazan had brought his things, they set off for Kasen.

***

Deep within the forest, a middle-aged man stood twirling a blade in his hand.

“Water Blade! Have you found the name of the knight who attacked our men in Tsukihara?” he asked.

“I’ve investigated it and found out the name of that knight from the Golden Lion Sect! His name is Kenzou Arata, one of the most skilled knights in the Golden Lion Sect,” replied the figure known as Water Blade.

The Blood Blade Circle had four knights nicknamed the Four Killing Blades: Water Blade, who was giving the report, and Fire Blade, Wind Blade, and Earth Blade.

The Four Killing Blades stood above the ordinary members in both rank and skill. Reports reached their Leader through them.

The middle-aged man standing before Water Blade was their Leader, Sky Blade.

“Kenzou? Why have I never heard that name?” Sky Blade asked.

“He teaches at the small Golden Lion Sect. He rarely travels except on assignments, and he often protects the Haruki family.”

Sky Blade stopped turning the weapon in his hand and looked toward the training dummy below his hut.

He flicked his wrist. The blade buried itself in the dummy’s forehead.

The handle quivered a dozen meters away, precisely in the dummy’s forehead.

“So it’s that sycophantic knight! How dare he meddle in our affairs,” said Sky Blade in a furious tone, then turned his gaze back to Water Blade.

“Then what about the knight who captured two of our people in the forest before Kenzou? Do we know who that knight is yet?” asked Sky Blade again.

“As for that, I haven’t been able to find any information yet, but according to one of our members who survived, that knight seemed to be drunk, yet he was extremely difficult to defeat even in that state,” said Water Blade.

“It’s impossible for a drunk knight to fight so flawlessly, right? Could it be that he’s actually that skilled, or were our members just too weak?” said Sky Blade.

“I’m not sure about that! But I’m still going to find out about that old knight. If I ever run into him, I’ll teach him a lesson—or kill him if necessary!” said Water Blade.

The Blood Blade Circle was only ten years old. Its men knew the routes of merchants and the places to hide stolen goods; the names of powerful knights beyond the forest were another matter.

Water Blade could list Kenzou’s duties now, but he still had no name for the drunken man.

“Water Blade, tell Wind Blade to watch Kenzou—he might leave his sect!” said Sky Blade.

Before Water Blade could answer, a blade whistled past the edge of the hut toward his hand.

He caught it between two fingers. The white handle marked it as Wind Blade’s.

Water Blade twisted the end of the white handle, revealing a small roll of paper inside.

“What message did Wind Blade send?” asked Sky Blade.

“Kenzou is currently on his way to Kasen City with a little boy!” replied Water Blade.

“Just the two of them? Then let Wind Blade take his thirteen men and capture him. No need to send anyone else.” Sky Blade smiled.

***

“Kazan, let’s stop by that inn for a bit! I have some business there,” said Kenzou.

“That’s the inn owned by that hunchbacked old woman, right? Are we going to stay there?” said Kazan.

“We’re not staying the night! By the way, you have a pretty excellent memory!” said Kenzou, and then he and Kazan headed toward the inn.

Kenzou checked the inn’s door before stepping down from the driver’s seat. Kazan wondered why this stop mattered enough to delay their visit home.

“Just wait here, Kazan. I’ll go inside first,” said Kenzou.

After Kenzou had gone inside the inn, Kazan could only stand outside alone, looking around.

Three men nearby watched their carriage a little too closely. Kazan marked their faces and kept his back to the inn.

“He should have brought Kanezawa or Daigo.” Kazan checked the road behind them.

Shortly after that, Kenzou came out with the hunchbacked grandmother who owned the inn.

“Kazan, Grandma Chiyo is coming with us!” said Kenzou.

Kazan looked from her bent back to the carriage step.

“Hehehe…! What’s the matter, young man?” the old woman asked with a laugh.

“Kazan! Grandma Chiyo wants to visit her relatives in Kasen City, so she’s coming with us!” explained Kenzou.

“Uh… y-yes, Master!” Kazan was at a loss for words and could only nod in agreement.

“What are we waiting for? Let’s get going!” said Grandma Chiyo.

He glanced again at the three watchers. Now Kenzou had two passengers to protect.

“Master! Why did you agree to let that old woman come with us?” asked Kazan in a soft voice.

Kenzou smiled gently as he ruffled Kazan’s hair.

“Kazan, that old lady is all alone here—there’s no way anyone would take her to Kasen City! Besides, it’s part of our duty to help those in need!”

Kazan climbed into the carriage and kept the men in sight until a bend hid them.