Chapter 25The season was now completely winter, and snow could be seen falling on the mountain from Kaina Village.
It is a plateau, but the precipitation from the taller mountains that surrounded the village was little, he understood that the rain and snow that fell from the surrounding mountain was damp.
ăThe snow wonât fall if it piles up like thată
Because Jin more or less grew up in the city, he especially yearned to make a snow hut, but it was impossible in this village.
ăCome to think of it, Roland-san hasnât show latelyâŠă
Though the merchant Roland promised to come once every month and a half, the time to come had long passed, but he did not show up.
Itâs hard to believe that an honest in nature merchant would break a promise.
One day, a person that was not Roland visited Kaina Village.
ăJin-oniichan, Obaa-chan is calling for you!ă
Jin who was making a stove using ăMagic Stoneă in the workshop stopped his hands, and went to the house.
ăJin-san, itâs been a whileă
There stood the Tax Collector, it was Lithia Fahlheit.
ăLithia-san, itâs been a while. You seem to be wellă
When Jin greeted her, Lithia,
ăS-Sorry!ă
she said bowing her head. Not understanding what was going on, Jin,
ăWa-, Lithia-san, please raise your head for now. I donât understand what youâre talking aboută
Then Lithia raised her head with a remorseful look on her face,
ăFor the matter regarding the Golems, I was unable to keep it hushedâŠă
ăEh?ă
ăOne of the soldiers who was stationed at Toka Village seems to have talked about it upon returning to the capitalâŠă
This was bad for Jin. At the time he was transporting the wheat, the Golem that Jin reconstructed was seen by the villagers and soldiers of Toka Village.
Lithia could not stop one mouth, and that personâs mouth was not closed. The rumours quickly circulated to the capital.
According to Lithiaâs story,
The rumour was that a Golem appeared near Toka Village, and the rumours that the person who used that Golem was there reached the king. The king decided to order the prime minister to verify the authenticity of it.
The prime minister careful investigated the rumour, determining that the person who used the Golem was Jin who lived in Kaina Village.
And also that Jin was the developer of the pump that was spreading around the capital in addition to creating the stove that is popular with the commoners.
The king seemed to feel that Jin was a threat when he heard that, ordering the lord that governed the area that included Kaina Village and Toka Village, Earl Walter to bring Jin to him.
ăNow aiming for this village, 50 troops of the Earl are heading here, so please quickly run away!ă
Lithia concluded.
ăJinâŠă
To Martha who had a worried look,
ăItâs okay. It doesnât mean itâs a particularly bad thingă
ăJin-san, saying such a thing in this situationâŠă
ăWouldnât running away seem rather suspicious?ă
Jin said to reassure them, but he was secretly a little anxious. Lithia gave up on convincing him,
ăJin-san, being a ăMagic Craftsmană who can control and create a Golem is precious, but it is regarded as a danger if they are not affiliated with the country. So please be carefulă
ăThank you Lithia-san. Iâll be carefulă
Although with that said, he did not know what to be careful of.
For now, he decided to go back to the workshop to consult with Reiko.
ăIn the worst case, we may need to run awayă
ăIf thatâs the case, itâs probably better if we do not use the ăWarp Gateă. We better make the one here unusableă
ăUn, regrettablyă
Immediately, they covered the basement where the ăWarp G
ateă is, to the extent they could not return even if they know the entrance.
ăYou are Jin right?ă
An oppressive voice sounded from the entrance of the workshop. He could see a troop of soldiers covered in armour standing. It was faster than he thought.
ăEe, I am Jin, so?ă
When Jin answered, the man who seemed to be the commander,
ăFu-n, weâre here to take you bastard. I will show no mercy if you resistă
He said thrusting out a spear. Jin gently held it down,
ăWhat are you talking about so suddenly?ă
Saying that, the man who seemed to be the commander,
ăBastard, do you intend to defy the lord that governs this area, me Earl Walter?ă
ăNo, therefore, why exactly am I being taken?ă
To this point, Jin finally understood why Lithia said it was too late to escape.
ăFu-n, the kingâs orders. Obediently obeyă
This country seemed to be different from what he thought from what he determined when he talked to Lithia about the tax rates. The man in front of him was the type of man to misuse the authority he is given.
ăIâm not a person particularly from this country. So I donât have the obligation to obey do I?ă
Gradually Jinâs anger rose. Jin wasnât particular a noble character, rather he could be said to be short tempered. He may be sweet to relatives and friends, but he would not forgive those who harm those relatives and friends.
ăOnii-chan!ă
Hanna tries to run over, but her small body is intercepted by a soldier. No, she was pushed away, falling onto her back.
ăKyaa!ă
ăHanna!ă
A spear was thrust out before Jin to obstruct him, however.
ăOut of my wayă
Jin grabbed the spear and used ăFormingă. The spear quickly deformed into a âUâ.
ăNa! The spear!ă
ăBastard! You dare disobey!?ă
A further 3 spears were thrust out. The one to stop them was the Golem Gon. It came rushing back from its patrol of the village when it felt its ăMasteră Jin in danger.
ăNa! This golem! You bastard, so you were the culprit after all!ă
ăCulprit?ă
Holding Hanna in his arms, Jin asked back with a puzzled face.
ăDonât pretend you donât know! Golems have been making attacks all over the kingdom right now, youâre the cause of it you bastard!ă
ăHaa?ă
It was a bad thing, as the appearance of Gon and Gen had not changed much from the time they attacked Jin and the others. Although the colour was changed, the design was mostly the same.
ăYou still plan on pretending? Iâve seen it once before, there should be those among the soldiers who have too. Though the colour is different, its the same form of Golem that has been attacking people and materials all over the placeă
ăWhat?ă
Jin recognised that the situation here had become the worst possible. Someone, or something, was using Golems to attack all over Cline Kingdom. The Golem before Gon also seem to be one of them.
ăGround, I should have investigated it a little more that timeâŠă
Although it may be too late, if he examined the core of the Golem, he might have an idea of who the culprit is.
ăItâs no use making anymore excuses!ă
The soldiers surrounded Jin. Towards Hanna who was held in Jinâs arms,
ăHanna, I have not done anything bad. However, it seems I canât stay here anymore nowă
ăOnii-chanâŠă
ăUntil Spring, was the promise, Iâm sorry I couldnât keep it. Someday, Iâll come back to see you. Until then, take careă
Once he finished saying that, he secretly slipped a ruby(?) into the pocket of Hannaâs skirt.
And then a single word,
ăReiko!ă
ăYes, Fatheră
Hearing Jinâs voice, the loyal and unmatched ăAutomataă Reiko blew away the 10 soldiers that surrounded Jin in the blink of an eye.
ăNa! Bastard, so youâre disobeying!?ă
Towards the flustered Earl Walter, Jin,
ăListen, I have not done things like attacking with my Golems. However, I will take my leave here as I do not intend to be charged with a crime I did not commită
Saying that he handed Hanna over to Martha calling over the Golem Horse ăKomaă, and mounted it. Reiko had got on ahead of Jin.
ăAlso another word of warning. Dare to even touch a single finger of the people of Kaina Village. Iâll crush Cline Kingdomă
And then twisting the handle,
ăMartha-san, Iâm indebted to you, take care!ă
After saying that, Earl Walter and the soldiers were taken aback and glanced back, when he then began to run towards the mountain to the north. Gon and Gen also followed after.
ăW-What are you bastards doing! Chase! Chase him!ă
However the feet of the Golem was quick and they grew smaller into the distance. Even so, the soldiers chased after them. Earl Walter also chased with an ordinary horse.
ăOnii-chanâŠă
ăJinâŠă
ăJin-sanâŠă
Hanna, Martha, and Lithia remained, each praying for Jinâs safety.\n