Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 345 (Part 1):

Riding their horses to the village and then traveling from there to the royal capital did not take long.

Although the demonic beast’s core Alea had obtained was rightfully hers, she had to present it to the King of Basor as proof that the monster had been vanquished.

Inside the carriage heading to the royal capital, Luke Yeager gave a slight nod.

Only he, Helmut, Alea, and the two demonic beasts were on board.

“Now explain.”

“Explain what?”

“About the talking cat and bird.”

Luke Yeager’s finger swept over Elaga and Igrelle.

As if they were divided by gender, Elaga was perched on Helmut’s lap while Igrelle took a spot on Alea’s shoulder.

It looked almost as though they were being used as mounts. Igrelle immediately bristled.

[You insolent human! How dare you point your finger at me!]

[Why are you getting so worked up? He’s a man— a man. Didn’t you say that’s what you wanted? He looks pretty decent, doesn’t he?]

[I’ve given up on that game. Besides, I’m not human right now, am I?]

There was a time when Igrelle had briefly decided it was better to be a bird than a flightless human.

Since there had been plenty of time to prepare an explanation, Helmut responded nonchalantly.

“They were cursed by an Archmage and turned into a cat and a bird.”

It wasn’t a lie. Though, strictly speaking, it was magic rather than a curse, and they were originally demonic beasts rather than humans.

Thanks to Igrelle’s remark, Luke Yeager interpreted it as Helmut intended.

“Huh? So you’re saying they were originally human? Wait, hold on—An Archmage’s curse? What’s that about?”

“I’ve had an adventure no one could possibly imagine.”

“Ad…venture?”

“I even went to the Forest of Roots.”

Though he had been stuck there for quite some time, it wasn’t a lie. Luke Yeager’s face grew serious.

He immediately latched onto this new piece of information.

“The Forest of Roots? What do you mean by that?”

“Four years ago, I was sent there because of the Temple’s conspiracy. You remember how they sent Darien— your grandfather, the Sword Saint— to the Forest of Roots?”

“Y-yeah, I do.”

Because of that, plans to establish a Temple in Basor had fallen through, and the relationship between the Temple and Basor had continued to worsen.

Before long, the second prince, who would inherit the throne, was likely to be even more antagonistic toward the Temple than the current King of Basor.

They might openly come into conflict.

“But… hold on. The Forest of Roots, you say? What excuse did they have for sending you there? Was it because you were the Sword Saint’s disciple? How would they have known that?”

Anger welled up in Luke Yeager’s eyes. Helmut hesitated briefly, torn over whether or not this was the right time to reveal everything.

“I’m still not entirely sure.”

“What led you to suspect it? Did Renosa say something? What’s your connection with them?”

Luke Yeager hadn’t been completely idle about Helmut’s disappearance. He had felt something was off from the start.

Renosa and the Temple were in collusion. Luke Yeager’s thoughts quickly jumped to suspecting a conspiracy between Renosa and the Temple.

Helmut stared at Luke Yeager for a moment.

“What?”

“…I was just realizing I underestimated you.”

Luke Yeager was not as simple as Helmut had once thought. Years had passed, he had become the Palma Knights’ commander, and he had indeed grown.

Luke Yeager wore a stern expression.

“What do you take me for?”

“We’ll get to that in time. Any other questions?”

Another question came flying immediately.

“How did you manage to get out of the Forest of Roots?”

“The greatest reason people can’t escape the Forest of Roots is that it’s swarming with demonic beasts— surviving there is nearly impossible. But I’m different.”

This was partly true. Helmut was strong. So long as he could get past the sacred barrier, he certainly had enough power to survive in the Forest of Roots.

“But it took a while— four years, to be exact.”

Luke Yeager appeared to grasp it at last and said,

“So that’s why you got so strong.”

“It helped a lot.”

Luke Yeager eyed Helmut up and down, looking slightly envious.

He was the type of swordsman addict who would gladly endure four years trapped in the Forest of Roots if it meant he could grow stronger.

In fact, Luke Yeager participated in nearly every demonic beast subjugation in Basor.

Sitting in the royal capital, buried in paperwork, did not suit his nature at all.

“But these people….”

Luke Yeager frowned as he looked back and forth between Elaga and Igrelle.

A cat and a bird— calling them ‘people’ felt downright awkward.

“…What are they, and why were they cursed by this Archmage? Also, who is that Archmage?”

[How rude. Those are hurtful questions!]

Igrelle suddenly poured out a wave of indignation. Luke Jaeger, startled by the shrill bird sounds, looked flustered.

“Ah, well, it’s suspicious from where I stand. I can’t just let it slide without some explanation.”

“Her name is Heike. They were her test subjects.”

A soft, mellifluous voice resonated beautifully.

Luke Jaeger focused on the speaker— Alea, who wore her hood drawn low.

“Just by your voice, I can tell you’re a beauty.”

“She is.”

When Helmut responded, Luke Jaeger made an odd face.

“You, I didn’t know you could say such things in front of your girlfriend.”

“It’s the truth.”

Helmut had to pause and think about what “such things” meant.

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