Mr. Kadan in the Deep Forest - Chapter 47
Perhaps it was best to step away and calm his turbulent mind. Kadan gently set Luna down on the floor. As Luna relaxed her tightly tensed shoulders, letting out a sigh of relief, Kadan was certain his decision had been the right one.
As he had suspected, she had been afraid of him. Clicking his tongue, Kadan left the banquet hall, leaving Luna behind.
His heavy footsteps echoed as he exited, but it wasn’t until a while later that the Inut soldiers, who had been blocking their ears and eyes, realized what had happened.
They exchanged confused glances, unable to understand the Second Prince’s intentions.
On a bench in the royal garden.
Kadan leaned back arms crossed, staring at the red evening glow in the sky.
『What are you doing here, Your Highness?』
Dwabo, the leader of the Inut vanguard, approached. He was the one who had found Kadan, who was suffering from amnesia, in the northern forest and brought him to the Inut Empire.
Before Kadan’s return, Dwabo was considered the strongest warrior in the Inut Empire.
Contrary to his formidable strength, Dwabo had an unusual taste. His flamboyant hairstyle, braided with colored threads, and armor adorned with small ribbon decorations were eye-catching. The expensive ribbons were ones he had secretly imported from foreign lands. The rough-sounding Inut language sounded smooth and gentle when he spoke it.
During the war, many enemies had rushed at him first simply because they thought he looked like a woman. Only after their heads had fallen to the ground did the remaining enemies, who had watched in horror, flee with screams.
『Did you bring it?』
Kadan did not respond to Dwabo’s question but instead asked what he needed to know. Dwabo shrugged his shoulders while dragging two individuals behind him, one in each hand.
『As you requested, I’ve brought the information.』
Dwabo tossed a noble, whom he had been holding by the hair, in front of Kadan.
“Ahhh! Please, please spare me!”
The noble from the Brillan Kingdom with his forehead pressed to the ground, raised both hands toward Kadan.
『Is this the evidence?』
『He claims to know who left the mark on the shoulder of the Kingdom’s saint, Luna. When we threatened to kill him, he started talking.』
『You should have brought it more organized, Dwabo.』
『We don’t speak the common tongue of the continent. We had to rely on diplomats to help us choose the right ones. So the interrogation should be up to you, Your Highness.』
『You’re getting too cocky.』
Kadan, who had been sitting with a disdainful attitude, stretched out his legs and kicked Dwabo in the shin.
『Ahhh! My leg!』
Dwabo clutched his leg and rolled on the ground. It seemed like the mad prince, who usually handled things with his bare hands, was finally trying to kill him today.
Kadan let out a long sigh and sat up straight. Though he had scolded his subordinate in his impatience, Dwabo hadn’t been entirely wrong.
“You. You said you knew who left the mark on Luna’s shoulder.”
As soon as Kadan’s question was heard, the nobleman, who had been bowing his head, politely knelt and nodded.
“Of course, I know. The King bit the saint’s shoulder, leaving the mark. I saw it with my own eyes.”
The King? The incompetent king who had supposedly fled south and abandoned the palace? Kadan slowly stroked his chin.
“Why?”
“As soon as the King heard that the saint had a lover, he did it.”
The nobleman explained. “The King, who usually only took virgins, must have wanted the saint to remain one as well, and in his frustration, he bit her shoulder to leave a mark.”
He also mentioned that the King often referred to himself as a unicorn.
“Ha!”
Kadan’s eyes flashed. A cold smile spread across his lips. Dwabo, sensing the danger, slowly began to back away.
“You’ve answered well, so I’ll reward you.”
Kadan immediately began rummaging through his pockets.
“Th-Thank you!”
The nobleman breathed a sigh of relief, only to go pale again. What came out of Kadan’s pocket was not a reward, but a dagger.
“I’ll kill you so comfortably, you won’t even realize you’re dead. That’s your reward.”
At the same time, the nobleman saw his own body rolling on the floor. As Kadan had promised, he didn’t even have time to scream before he died swiftly.
『Ugh, your taste is truly cruel.』
It was clear only the prince could sever a person’s head with such a short dagger. Tsking, Dwabo tossed the remaining nobleman, that was still in his grip, toward Kadan. The man trembled, having just witnessed the death of his comrade.
『What’s this?』
『It’s the steward. He should know the King’s escape route.』
The escape route? Kadan tossed the bloodied dagger up and down while silently staring at the steward.
“I… I don’t know anything.”
I don’t know, I swear. The steward quickly pretended ignorance.
“Right. You might not know. But you will now. You’ll learn why the Inut people were called barbarians.”
The Inut people had earned their reputation for being barbaric because of their cruel punishments. Rumors spread about them tearing off people’s limbs and eating human flesh, hunting humans instead of animals, and other such tales.
The steward, well aware of the true nature of those rumors, turned pale. Just thinking about the barbaric punishments made him wet his pants in fear.
『Ugh, filthy Brillan humans.』
