Leave a comment

–––Bandit’s viewpoint

“Bandit! Why did you do that?!”

My sisters who had a way shorter temper than me approached me like they wanted to hit me. In a way, it was only thanks to them that I managed to keep myself calm. If they had not been there, I probably would have killed Sherpa myself.

“Calm down. Do you realize that making a scene there accomplishes nothing?”
“I know…but I’m so mad!!”

Avenis stamped her foot in annoyance. It was incredible in a way, I had never seen her so bothered before.

“I get how frustrating that was. Do you really think I’m just going to walk away without doing anything?”
“!”

They look at me with surprise, and I just grin at them. I was just as annoyed as them, so I would never step back without doing anything. Not to mention that Annero was on death row, which I could not accept. I also wanted some payback from Sherpa.

“Exactly what are you thinking of doing though?”
“Isn’t it obvious? If asking doesn’t work, we just have to sneak in.”

§　§　§

That night we secretly left our inn, and successfully infiltrated the palace. It was heavily guarded against assassins and the such, but we were more skilled than that. A few months ago it would have been impossible for us, but surviving in the Haunted Lands had taught us all sorts of skills.

“…Someone’s coming.”

We nod to Epsilon’s warning and quickly hold our breaths, completely erasing our presence. That was something we learned after being ambushed by monsters countless times. Sometimes our enemies could walk right by us and not notice us like this, making it a perfect tool for covert operations. Many guards from the palace had already passed by us like that. It also helped avoid enemy encounters, so it could even be used in battle. This skill alone made our trip to the Haunted Lands worth it.

“It should be somewhere around here.”

Each country’s palace was different, but their prison was always underground. We had been looking for stairs leading down from the moment we snuck into the palace. After wandering aimlessly for around half an hour, we finally found what we had been looking for.

We silently go down the stairs. Soon the light of the palace’s lamps faded away, replaced by the intermittent light of torches. The prison was built like a long corridor at the end of the stairs, with cells on both sides. There were only around twenty cells in total though.

We silently reached the end of the stairs. We could feel there were five prisoners there. Assuming all three members of Annero’s party were there, the other two had to be guards. I peeked inside and saw two guards sitting on chairs, dozing off. They probably would never expect to find intruders there. That, or they did not think Annero could attempt to break free. This made things easier for us, but we still needed to make sure they would not wake up no matter what.

I gave orders to my sisters with hand signals. They quickly understood their assignment and dashed into the corridor without making a single noise.

“Uh-”
“Guh…”

The two groaned slightly after being hit in the back of the head, before falling completely unconscious. We would administer them some medicine before leaving, just in case.

“…Who’s there?”
“It’s me, Annero.”
“!”

Someone asks from a dark cell, and I reply while removing my mask. Annero looked surprised at first, but he quickly collected himself.

“Bandit! Why are you here?”
“Why? It should be obvious, we came to rescue you.”

Annero stared at me silently hearing that, but after a while his gaze turned to the ground.

“…I’m sorry, but could you go back home?”
“Wha-?!”

I could barely speak after hearing that response. I really had thought he would also want to escape if he saw us. There was no other choice for him, so I had not even considered the possibility he would refuse.

“…My king ordered me to be in prison, and I will obey his orders. Even more so as a hero. I can’t allow myself to break out of prison.”
“Okay sure, I get that, but do you even know what your punishment is going to be?”

Sherpa said they would be given the death penalty. I was not familiar with Zelvis’ law, but ‘death penalty’ could only mean one thing, and it was not a light punishment. That was why I thought Annero would also be more than willing to escape… But he overturned my expectations.

“I know, I’m being charged as a traitor, and will be given the death penalty. I’ll be executed soon enough.”
“…You actually know that? Then why aren’t you trying to escape? You’re only here because Sherpa twisted your words, right? You should fight so the truth comes out! And what will happen to your party? They’ll all be killed just like you!”

I started getting angry watching Annero act that way, like he had given up on life. Where was my friend that saved my life so many times in the Haunted Lands? When did he become such a coward? I was about to shout angrily at Annero when another voice came from a different cell.

“It’s fine, Bandit. This is our fate.”

That was one of Annero’s followers, Sweelen, the only female in their party. She was completely calm and collected even though her death was so close, I could almost see her smiling.

“If Annero has chosen to carry out our country’s decision, then we’ll follow him. We vowed to stay at his side the moment we formed our party, no matter where he took us.”
“…I’m sorry for that.”

Annero apologized to her in a low voice. I really could not understand either of them, so willing to throw their lives away.

“…You guys are insane.”
“That might be so. But I’ve sworn loyalty to my king since I was born. I realize it might sound illogical, but I can’t change my way of living now.”
“…”

Annero’s will was strong. I could probably continue trying to persuade him, but he would never change. If he was less experienced I could try knocking him unconscious and forcing him out, but that would not work on Annero. There was nothing I could do if he did not desire to leave.

“…You’re really sure about this?”
“Yes. It’s my decision. But Bandit…I really appreciate that you came here for me, I really do. I’ll pray for success in all your future endeavors.”

He said that and closed his eyes. I could not find anything more to say. My sisters looked distressed, but I shook my head at them and returned through the path we came. This was Annero’s decision, and we had to respect that. I stamped on the ground, vowing to at least be with him until the end.