The Reborn Swordmaster
Chapter 30
Splash!
A stream of hot water flowed down the back of Riyan's neck.
He lowered himself deeper into the bath, enveloped by the thick steam rising around him.
His tense muscles gradually relaxed, and a strange, pleasant sensation spread through his body.
This is wonderful.
This was only his second visit, yet he was already beginning to fall in love with the idea of a bathhouse.
Simply immersing himself in warm water.
Who would have thought such a simple act could be so enjoyable?
In his previous life, from the days when he'd cut down trees and burned charcoal to the more than ten years he'd spent fighting in the war, he'd never experienced a proper bath.
Nor had he ever particularly wanted to.
After a battle, he would wash his body and equipment in a stream.
If there wasn't a stream nearby, he simply used whatever water remained after the soldiers had finished cooking.
He'd eventually become a knight and risen to a position where he received more than adequate treatment.
But habits developed over a lifetime weren't easily changed.
"Phew..."
Riyan leaned his head back slightly and closed his eyes.
Through his blurred vision, the drifting steam resembled a mirage.
The thoughts that had been cluttering his mind gradually faded.
The gentle sound of flowing water.
The fragrance of the flower petals floating on the surface.
He was enjoying the peaceful silence when someone spoke.
"Fighter Riyan."
It seemed his guest had arrived.
Riyan opened his eyes and raised his head.
Then he froze in surprise.
"..."
There was a perfectly clear reason he'd chosen this place to meet the person who had been following him.
It was a bathhouse.
An enclosed space where people couldn't carry or conceal weapons and where eavesdropping would be difficult.
But he'd never expected that the very thing that made this location ideal would become a problem.
"Are you surprised? I assumed you were expecting me."
The person standing before him spoke in a stiff tone.
Her expression was dry, and her posture was rigid.
The combination was almost impressive.
Riyan sighed softly.
He had certainly expected this meeting.
The figure standing before him had exactly the same build as the person he'd noticed in the marketplace.
It was simply the person's sex that had caught him off guard.
His pursuer was a woman.
She had brown hair arranged in braids and a scattering of freckles across her face.
Is mixed bathing allowed here?
No.
Riyan remembered telling the bathhouse manager before entering that he might be receiving a visitor.
He sighed again.
Who could he blame?
It was his own fault for failing to anticipate this possibility.
Apparently unconcerned by his reaction, the woman nodded slightly.
"Excuse me."
She slowly stepped into the same bath as Riyan.
The thick steam enveloped them, obscuring their bodies until they could barely make out each other's faces.
"My name is Petra."
"Riyan."
"This is an excellent location. We don't need to worry about anyone watching us from outside or listening to our conversation. Very impressive."
"Is that a compliment?"
Petra answered his question without the slightest change in expression.
Riyan had addressed her casually because he didn't know who she was, but she didn't appear particularly bothered by it.
That made it difficult to guess who was behind her.
"I'll get straight to the point."
Fortunately, Petra was quick to address the question troubling him.
Riyan narrowed his eyes and listened carefully.
She spoke again.
"I have a message from Her Ladyship."
Her Ladyship?
Riyan frowned.
He had no idea how many young noblewomen of such elevated status existed in the world.
But there was only one he personally knew at the moment.
"Sevanne Eisenhart?"
"How rude. I'll pretend I didn't hear that. I suggest you watch your language."
Petra raised her head, looking deliberately displeased.
Riyan nodded.
She continued.
"Her Ladyship said that what you proposed is possible. However, there are certain conditions that must be met."
Possible?
What exactly was possible?
Riyan searched his memories.
He recalled the conversation he'd had with Sevanne that day at the Arcana Sanctum.
I want to conquer every arena in the Empire, not just the one in the Imperial Capital.
He'd made that declaration almost as a desperate attempt to find a way out of the Imperial Capital.
It had been like scattering seeds in spring, hoping that something might eventually grow.
After all, meeting Sevanne that day had merely been an unexpected development during his search for Aries.
And yet she'd now sent someone to deliver a message.
She said it was possible.
That meant she'd discovered a way to make it happen.
Should I be suspicious?
For a moment, conflicting thoughts filled Riyan's mind.
But he quickly reached a decision.
She is the Military Commissioner's daughter, after all. She certainly has the resources to accomplish something like that.
There was no need to make a decision before hearing the details.
Riyan nodded and looked toward Petra.
"You mentioned conditions. Can you tell me what they are now?"
"Unfortunately, I cannot. That exceeds my authority."
"That's ridiculous. You're telling me there are conditions, but you can't explain what they are?"
"More precisely, there was no need for me to deliver them personally, so I wasn't informed of their contents. That's why I said I couldn't tell you. I can't explain something I don't know."
It was an answer that somehow made sense while simultaneously making very little sense at all.
Riyan tilted his head.
Just then, Petra spoke again.
"Please don't be alarmed."
With those words, she closed her eyes.
Whoooosh!
A strange power began circulating around her body.
The blue energy mingled with the thick steam filling the bathhouse, spreading around them like drifting clouds.
"...!"
Riyan almost lunged at her.
If Petra hadn't warned him beforehand, he undoubtedly would have attacked.
He would have reached forward, seized her slender neck, and snapped it.
Magic.
Was she a magician too?
Sevanne was a magician, so there was nothing particularly strange about her subordinates possessing magical abilities as well.
But Riyan couldn't understand why Petra was using magic in this situation.
"...Damn it."
He felt an instinctive aversion to what was happening.
A powerful urge to leap out of the bath and retreat surged through him.
Nevertheless, Riyan exercised his self-control and endured it.
And it wasn't simply because Petra had warned him.
The red circle that appeared when his unusual perception detected danger hadn't reacted.
Of course, he didn't know whether his perception, which divided threats into red and white territories, worked equally well against magicians as it did against swordsmen.
Whoooosh...
Fortunately, the fluctuating energy soon settled.
Silence returned.
Only the gentle trickling of water could be heard.
Then Petra opened her eyes.
"..."
But they were no longer the brown eyes Riyan had seen a moment earlier.
They were dark crimson, as red as blood and as deep as an abyss.
Those eyes were looking directly at him.
It was a familiar gaze.
Countless thoughts rose and tangled together in Riyan's mind.
Then a clear image emerged.
His first meeting with a particular woman at the Arcana Sanctum.
Petra, who had maintained a rigid posture and expressionless face until now, suddenly moved.
She rested her elbow against the edge of the bath and leaned back, relaxing as though she were sitting on a comfortable sofa.
Then she frowned slightly, apparently finding her tightly braided hair uncomfortable.
She raised her free hand and loosened it.
Her brown hair fell smoothly around her shoulders.
After shaking it out a few times, she finally looked more comfortable and opened her mouth.
"It's been a while."
Naturally, Riyan wasn't foolish enough to misunderstand what was happening.
He rose slightly and offered a respectful bow.
"It's a pleasure to see you again, Lady Sevanne Eisenhart."
"Please sit. The view isn't unpleasant, but it isn't something I wish to admire for an extended period. Imperial customs can be rather peculiar, after all."
"Forgive me for unintentionally offending your eyes, my lady."
"Considering the location, and the fact that I'm an uninvited guest who has interrupted your peaceful rest, I'll forgive you."
Was she being rude or generous?
Her words could be interpreted either way.
Her dark crimson eyes gleamed.
Riyan lowered himself into the bath again and nodded.
"I heard you had something to discuss with me. There were conditions, I believe?"
Petra, or rather Sevanne, raised a hand.
The movement was so light and natural that it seemed to belong entirely to her own body.
A question suddenly occurred to Riyan.
Was this an age in which magic that allowed people to enter another person's consciousness and control their body had become commonplace?
Or was Sevanne simply an exceptionally talented magician?
Just then, something caught his eye.
Petra's right hand was resting on the edge of the bath.
A constant blue glow surrounded the ring on one of her fingers.
Through the thick steam, Riyan could also make out an abstract pattern extending from her collarbone toward her neck.
It resembled a tattoo.
He hadn't noticed it earlier, but it appeared to have begun glowing when the magic was activated.
That must be the medium.
There might be other magical procedures involved as well.
After all, if controlling someone else's consciousness were truly that simple, why would anyone bother engaging in political struggles?
They could simply control their opponents directly.
"First."
As though interrupting Riyan's thoughts, Sevanne raised her index finger.
"Removing you from the Imperial Capital would weaken the Treasurer's power. After all, he controls the Imperial Arena and possesses an exceptionally valuable fighter in you. It's also a dangerous undertaking that could raise considerable concerns. Therefore, you must prove that you're a safe person to involve in this plan. Naturally, I intend to take my time observing you before making that judgment."
"You're being remarkably direct."
"That's perfectly fine. Unlike me, the Treasurer is a man who doesn't understand the value of opportunity."
Riyan laughed silently.
It was a quiet but unmistakably sharp threat.
She was essentially telling him that if he reported his meeting with the Military Commissioner's agent, he shouldn't expect to survive.
"I understand."
"Good. Then the second condition."
She extended her slender middle finger beside her index finger.
"This will be a fairly large undertaking. I can't simply arrange a tour of the frontier territories and provinces to satisfy one fighter's ambitions. That would make it appear as though I were intervening for the sake of one individual's personal advancement. It would create unnecessary obstacles and enemies. The resulting scandal would also be troublesome."
"When you say a large undertaking, what exactly do you mean?"
"The Military Commissioner's original duty is to ensure the Empire's security from a broader perspective. Therefore, your personal objective of conquering the arenas must become secondary. Our publicly stated primary objective must be connected to the Empire's security, as I mentioned earlier."
It was reasonable.
If the Military Commissioner suddenly arranged for a promising fighter to tour the Empire without explanation, there was no chance the Treasurer would simply agree.
He would interpret it as a declaration of war against his authority.
And he would have sufficient justification to oppose it.
Even for Sevanne, who had the powerful Military Commissioner behind her, that would create a considerable burden.
"So we need a reasonable justification."
Sevanne's eyes curved slightly at Riyan's answer.
"...You're just as intelligent as you were at the Arcana Sanctum. Exactly. We need a justification. And I believe there's a suitable one."
"What is it?"
"Should fighters who have been trained through gladiatorial combat that's practically indistinguishable from real warfare be used for nothing more than entertainment? The Empire's provinces and frontier territories are still suffering at the hands of outlaws and monsters. I believe those fighters should be put to better use, in a manner more befitting the Empire's ideals."
The Empire's ideals...
There was no reason the Military Commissioner, with all his authority, should be incapable of ensuring the frontier territories' security.
If that responsibility were genuinely so important, he ought to have established suitable measures long ago.
But Imperial authority was divided among the members of the Arcana Council.
Its seven permanent members were constantly wary of having knives placed against their own throats.
There was no reason for any of them to commit their full strength to something as hollow as a supposedly noble ideal.
In other words, she intends to weaken the Treasurer while ensuring that the glory gained from doing so belongs to the Military Commissioner.
Riyan had no reason to refuse.
At least for now, he and Sevanne Eisenhart were looking in the same direction.
"Understood."
"It's pleasant not having to explain everything repeatedly. Now, the third and final condition."
Sevanne extended her ring finger.
"First, you need to survive. What would be the point of all our planning and discussion if you simply died? I heard you're going to participate in the mock naval battle."
"That's correct."
"Win. And do so overwhelmingly. Would that be difficult?"
"I can do it."
"Oh?"
Sevanne pursed her lips slightly in admiration.
"Good. On the day of the mock naval battle, if you manage to prove yourself, a certain situation will be arranged as your reward."
"A situation?"
"A suitable disturbance at the appropriate moment. What matters is how you behave when that moment arrives. Shall I offer you some advice?"
Tap, tap.
Sevanne lowered her raised hand and lightly tapped the surface of the water.
A faint smile appeared on her face.
"There are quite a few theaters in the Imperial Capital. Their plays are almost universally dull, but the actors' performances possess the power to stir the hearts of an audience."
Why is she suddenly talking about theater?
As Riyan wondered what she meant, Sevanne continued.
"All you have to do is play your part well when the disturbance occurs in the Imperial Arena. That's my final condition."
Sevanne pursed her lips, placing particular emphasis on the word well.
Hearing her words, Riyan's black eyes gleamed quietly.
