「あー............」
婀娜として満ちた月光を浴びながら、大きめの岩に腰掛ける俺は脱力していた。
早いような、遅いような。
感傷に浸りながら、腰に下げる無骨な剣の柄に手を添えながらぼけっと空を眺める。
思い返される二年前の情景。
ちょうど、変異種と呼ばれるオーガと戦い、包帯グルグル巻きにされながら全治三ヶ月という重症を負いながらも、ソフィアと交わした会話がまるで昨日の事のように思い出せる。
————......あのね、おじさんからは、ユリウスが村を出たいって言い出した時は————。
「親父には世話になりっぱなしだなぁ」
—————二年だけ、村を出るのは待って欲しい。私が、生きる為の術をユリウスに可能な限り叩き込む。......その後であれば、村から出るなり好きにすれば良い。幾ら魔物を倒す力があるとはいえ、世間知らずの子供を送り出すわけにはいかない。......そう、伝えてくれって。
「あと三日でちょうど二年」
律儀にきっかり二年を待つ気など、当初はこれっぽっちもなかった。
「ソフィアは今頃何してるかな」
あのオーガの一件以降、村にやってきた三人の冒険者————ロウ。リレア。そして、もう一人、ヨシュアはたびたび、村にやって来るようになっていた。
偶々近くで用があったからといって村に寄った彼らが村から王都に帰る際、何を思ってか。
ソフィアは俺より先に王都へ行っておくと言って彼らと共に王都へ一足先に向かっていた。
俺が親父から二年待てと言われ、ならばあたしも待つと言っておきながら最後の最後になって意見を変えたソフィアの考えは分からないけれど、あいつにもあいつなりの考えがあるんだろう。
そう自分を納得させて特に深くは考えないでいた。......いたんだけど、ふと、気になった。
そのワケはきっと長年暮らした村を出る事に寂寥のような感情を俺が抱いてしまっているからなのかもしれない。それを、誤魔化すやり場を探していたからなのかもしれない。
「ま、俺も三日経てば王都に向かうし、どうせ分かるから今考えても仕方ないんだけどさ」
そう言いながら俺は上に向けていた視線を戻し、ひょいと腰を下ろしていた岩から降りる。
夜は魔物の世界。
いくら魔物を倒せるとはいえ、夜はあまり外を出歩くものでないと親父からも常々言われていた。けど、今日はどうしてか外の風に当たりたい気分だった。
「戻るか」
帰りが遅くなったとしても、今はもう二年前ほど心配されはしないだろうが、一応、心配される事には心配されるのでそろそろ戻るかと、俺は踵を返した。
加えて、見覚えのない二人が何やら口論でもしているのか、言葉を交わしていた。
だが、明かりに照らされるアレクさんや親父の表情は険しく、あまり良い話でない事は一目瞭然であった。
「......ユリウスか」
親父達と言い合っていたのは抜き身の刃のような印象を受ける女性と、兵士と思しき身格好をした男性が二人。
「この人達は?」
「............」
親父に尋ねるも、どうしてかそれに対する返答はやってこない。
ただ、気まずそうに閉口するだけであった。
と、疑念に顔を顰める俺を見てなのか。
親父ではなく、親父と向かい合っていた女性が代わりに口を開いてくれていた。
「申し遅れました。私は、ビエラ・アイルバーク。この二人は私の供回りです」
名とは別に家名を持ち、名乗る人間は決まって
「......貴族様
貴族であると。
王都にて使う機会があるだろうからと言われ、叩き込まれた慣れない敬語を使いながら、俺はどうしてアレクさんと親父があまり良い顔をしていなかったのか。
そのワケを悟った。
「貴族様がこんな辺鄙な村に、何の御用でしょうか」
親父は下手に口を開くなと俺を睨みつけていたが、恐らく先程まで話は平行線だったのだろう。
どうせ俺は三日後には村を出ていく人間。
親父からは貴族は総じて短気であると聞いている。どうせ怒りを買うのならば、村を出る俺が適任であると、そう思ったが故の問い掛けであった。
「端的に言わせて頂くと、私達は徴兵の旨を知らせに村を回っております」
あまり聴き慣れない言葉に俺は耳を疑った。
「厳密に言うならば人手が足りない、でしょうか。魔物の討伐の為の人手を必要としているのでここではあえて『徴兵』と言わせて頂きました」
起伏のない声音。
そんな奇妙な錯覚に襲われた。
「......それはつまり、冒険者や王都にいる兵士達では手に負えない問題が発生している、という事なのでしょうか」
そもそも、村で暮らす人間が一人、二人加わったところで焼け石に水もいいとこだ。
俺が言うのも何だが、恐らく何も変わりやしない。
「上からの指示ですので、これ以上は私の口からは何とも言えません。ですが、これは既に決定事項となります。村から最低でも一人、人手を出して頂きたく」
「そういう事でしたら、俺が向かいさえすれば事は済みますよね」
「此方の要求は最低でも村から一人、人手を出して頂く事。たとえそれが誰であれ、人手であるならば問題はありません。上からの命令は人手を出せ、との事でしたから」
「お、ぃッ!! ユリウス!! 勝手に話を進めるなっ!!!」
親父が俺の手を掴む。
「......これはお前が首を突っ込んでいい話じゃない」
特に————と、能面のようにピクリとも表情を変えないビエラと名乗った女性をほんの一瞬だけ見遣ってから、親父は言葉を続ける。
〟が絡んでるなら尚更、何があろうとお前を送り出すわけにはいかない。
すぐ側にいる俺にすら殆どまともに聞こえない声量で親父はひとりごちた。
......〝戦姫〟とは、恐らくビエラ・アイルバークと名乗った彼女の事なのだろう。
彼女の纏う雰囲気から、筆舌に尽くし難い不気味さを感じていた俺だけれど、その大層な名にだけはほんの少しだけ親近感がわいた。
『星斬り』というこれまた負けず劣らず大層な名を掲げる俺と良い勝負なのでは無いだろうか。
そんなどうでもいい感想が不意に浮かび上がった。
「何にせよ、ユリウスは一度家に帰れ。繰り返すが、こればかりはお前を関わらせるワケにはいかない」
"Haaah--"
I sat weakly on a large rock, basking in the alluring moonlight.
The time passed really fast, yet really slow.
I gaze blankly at the sky with my hand on the shaft of my sword that I carry at my waist.
The scene of two years ago recurred in my mind.
I remembered the conversation that I had with Sofia as if were just yesterday, back when I fought with a mutant ogre and was wrapped in bandages while suffering severe wounds-- so severe that they took three whole months to heal.
[...Hey, your father told me that when you say you want to leave the village--]
"I guess I owe my father a lot."
[--He wants you to wait for two years, and drill you with all the possible necessary skills to live. After that, you can leave the village and do as you please. He said that even if you have the strength to defeat monsters, he can't send a naive child away..."]
"Three more days and it'll be exactly two years."
At first, I had no intention of waiting for two whole years.
"I wonder what Sofia is doing now."
Three adventurers came to the village often after the ogre incident-- namely Lowe, Lilea, and Yoshua.
And just a month ago, they stopped by at the village, simply having some business nearby, and were returning to the royal capital from the village, as far as I could remember.
Sofia, though I had no idea what she was thinking, said that she would go to the capital ahead of me and left with them.
I didn't know what she was thinking when she changed her mind at the last minute after my father asked her to wait for two years as I did, but I guessed she had her own reasons.
I convinced myself to not think too much about it... but I suddenly became curious.
The reason being that I may be feeling a sense of loneliness about leaving the village where I had lived for so many years, and maybe it was because I was looking for a way to hide it.
"Well, I'll be in the capital in three days, so I'll know about it anyway. There's no point in thinking about it now."
Saying those words, I turned my gaze upward and stepped down from the rock on which I was sitting.
Night is the world of monsters.
My father always told me to not go out at night, no matter how many monsters I could defeat.
"Guess I'll head back, huh?"
Even if I were to get home late, I doubted they would be as worried about me now as they were two years ago.
They were exchanging words, as if they were having an argument or something.
It was justified by the grim expression that Alec had on his face, making it obvious that it was not a very good discussion.
"...Oh, Julius."
The one who was arguing with my father and the others was a woman who had a drawn blade, and two men dressed as soldiers.
"Who are these people?"
"......"
I asked my father, but for some reason, I heard no response.
He just closed his mouth awkwardly.
I wondered what in the hell was going on, and why they were looking at me with such a dubious face.
It was not my father, but the woman facing him answered my question for me.
"Pardon for our late introduction. I am Viera Islebark, and these two are my companions."
She had a family name other than the one I knew from my father, and as how she introduced herself, she's probably a...
"...So you are a noble, then..."
She's a noblewoman.
I wondered why Alec and my father didn't look at me in a good light as I used such informal honorifics they had taught me to use in the capital.
I realized why they told me that I would have a lot of opportunities to use them.
"What could a noble person be doing in a remote village like this?"
My father glared at me, telling me not to open my mouth any further, probably because their conversation had been somewhat heated until a few minutes ago.
I would be leaving this village in three days anyway.
My father told me that nobles are generally short-tempered, and if anyone in the village were to incur their wrath, it would be me.
"To put it simply, we are going around villages to draft people."
I couldn't believe my ears when I heard such an unfamiliar word.
"Strictly speaking, we are short of manpower. We need more men to defeat the monsters, so I'm here to 'draft' people from here."
The voice that had been shaking my eardrums since a few minutes ago contained no emotion whatsoever, and I wondered if a doll was speaking in place of a person.
I was struck by such a strange illusion.
"...So you are implying that there is a problem that cannot be handled by adventurers nor soldiers in the capital?"
An addition of one or two village people wouldn't be enough to begin with.
I didn't know what to say, except that it wouldn't help at all, and yet the woman in front of me said she was going around to villages and so on.
"All that came as an order from the higher-ups, so I can't say more than that. However, this has already been decided, so I would like you to send at least one person from your village."
"If that's the case, all I have to do is head over there and this discussion is done."
"We are asking for at least one person from this village to help us. Whoever it is, as long as he is a capable volunteer, there would be no problem. That's what the order is about."
"Hey-- Julius! Don't go on talking without permission!"
My father grabbed my hand and looked sternly at me to not say anything more than I could.
"...This is not something you want to get involved in."
After briefly glancing at the woman who called herself Viera, whose expression didn't change, my father continued his words.
"If the 'Warrior Princess' is involved, I can't send you away no matter what..."
My father whispered to himself, his voice almost inaudible even to me, who was standing right beside him.
'Warrior Princess' is probably her name, that Viera Islebark.
I've been finding her atmosphere to be indescribably creepy, but her grand name made me feel a little more familiar with her.
She was probably a good match for me, who had a name as big as being a "Star Slayer."
Such an unimportant thought came to my mind unexpectedly.
"In any case, Julius, go home. Once again, We can't let you get involved with this."
Star-Slaying Swordsman
星斬りの剣士
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/star-slaying-swordsman/
Action Fantasy Martial Arts Mature Psychological Shounen
Adapted to Manga Dark Fantasy World Male Protagonist Mature Protagonist Medieval Philosophical Romantic Subplot Sudden Strength Gain Sword And Magic Sword Wielder Transplanted Memories
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n7336gg/
アルト／遥月