Water Magician-Chapter 556: The Bard

Editor: Tseirp

The group led by Wei Fon—including Ryo and Abel—left the waiting area and returned to the Ryusen Residence.

“They were tailing us after all, weren’t they?”

“Yeah. Those four Ryo mentioned earlier—if they move to follow us, it’s easy enough to keep track of them.”

“Abel, how did you know that even though you can’t use magic?!”

“I could sense all twelve of them, including those four.”

Abel said this with a small, pleased nod.

He seemed to be feeling that he wasn’t entirely useless after all.

Seeing that, for some reason, Ryo looked frustrated.

“You’re a swordsman! How dare you trespass into a magician’s domain! Aren’t you ashamed of yourself?!”

“Not at all.”

The Ryusen Residence welcomed them back as usual.

Even with their lord being detained, there was no sign of persecution or being turned away.

“As expected of a first-class inn.”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

Abel replied as Ryo praised it.

“What are you talking about? In the typical story pattern, they’d say something like ‘Pack your bags and get out!’ and kick you out of the inn. Then, as soon as you step outside, the enemy is waiting, encircling you. And they say, ‘Foolish retainers. I’ll snuff out your lives along with your lord’s!’”

Ryo began to enthusiastically describe a classic light novel storyline.

Abel shook his head slightly.

“I always wonder about this, Ryo—how do you keep coming up with these story ideas, one after another? That imagination of yours is seriously something else.”

“Aw, you flatter me.”

“Yeah, that wasn’t a compliment.”

Ryo blushed, while Abel corrected his misunderstanding.

The world is built on misunderstandings.

The group returned to their rooms for the time being, took baths, and then reconvened in front of the dining hall.

“A bath really is the best. It washes away the day’s fatigue.”

“True, though there’s some fatigue that can’t be washed away.”

Abel said, glancing at the group, still visibly worn out.

Though they had gathered, everyone looked pale.

It was no surprise—after all.

Their lord had drawn a sword in the palace and been restrained and arrested.

Even though they had been told he was being treated fairly at the Censorate, the anxiety was understandable.

“I don’t have an appetite…”

That quiet murmur came from Nuan, the second-in-command.

“I understand. But in my homeland, we have a saying: ‘You can’t fight on an empty stomach’. We must always be prepared to fight, no matter the time or situation. If we have to rescue Lord Von Debout and we’re too hungry to act, we’ll be in trouble. Being ready for that moment is part of our duty as retainers.”

Ryo spoke gently, not sternly.

He wasn’t just speaking to Nuan, but to all ten of the retainers gathered there.

“He’s right. I agree with Ryo-san.”

Wei Fon nodded as he spoke.

“For the lord’s sake, we should always be ready to give our all. Fortunately, the Censorate is at least considering the possibility that he was under someone’s control. He may not be fully cleared…but there’s a chance he’ll return to us alive.”

The other retainers nodded at Wei Fon’s words.

Ryo and Abel also gave small nods as they watched.

Hope was essential.

Without it, reckless desperation might erupt.

And no one wanted that.

“Alright, let’s head into the dining hall.”

“Yes!”

The nine others replied to Wei Fon, and Ryo and Abel nodded as well.

First, they needed to fill their stomachs!

The twelve were led to two six-person tables.

Tonight, there was no piano performance.

“No piano today, huh?”

Ryo commented with mild disappointment.

“There was a notice at the entrance. Said a bard named Wang A-Shi would be singing.”

Abel replied.

Sure enough, a tall chair had been set up at the front.

“Oh! That sounds fun!”

Ryo smiled with excitement.

Back in the kingdom, he’d heard bards sing while playing lutes, narrating their songs.

Even at his regular spot, the ‘Cafe de Chocolat – Capital Branch’, he’d heard such performances.

The lutes played by bards from the Central Countries were like small guitars.

Just like Abel’s violin, stringed instruments exist in all times and cultures.

So, Ryo was curious about what kind of instrument tonight’s bard would use.

Incidentally, the piano hidden in the back also uses strings to produce sound…

As their meal progressed and dessert was served, the bard appeared.

He had light brown hair and eyes of the same color, with strikingly handsome features that would certainly appeal to women.

He looked to be in his mid-twenties.

He exuded both youthful charm and mature confidence…

If used skillfully, it could easily captivate women.

The instrument he held was…

“A harp?”

What came to Ryo’s mind was the Burmese harp.

It looked like the one from an old movie shot long before Ryo was born.

Sha-la-lan.

Just a single strum.

That one note stole the attention of everyone in the dining hall.

“The royal capital has fallen. Into the hands of the prince and the Empire. The cries of the people cloud the skies of the kingdom. The people’s anger runs through the land. Their hope…will give birth to a new king. His name—King Abel. He shall rise from a remote town. The adventurer king who will blow away the kingdom’s dark clouds. He shall gather the people’s tears, and rise against the invaders!”

The bard sang, speaking the lyrics.

His beautiful voice, the harp’s tone, and the content of the song captivated the audience.

Except for two people.

“Abel, this is…”

“Yeah… it’s about our country…”

Ryo checked, and Abel confirmed.

Naturally, Abel’s face was beet red.

He was clearly embarrassed to be sung about.

The song progressed, moving into a battle scene where the invaders were driven back.

The audience seemed to already know the song.

Everyone but Ryo and Abel.

They listened, enraptured and excited.

It was clearly a rare sight.

“And with King Abel stands a lone magician. His magic dims the heavens, shatters the earth, and freezes the world—the great water magician. With a single blow, he scattered an army of a hundred thousand—no illusion, but truth. They praise him: Icefall. Or, they sing of him as the Silver Duke.”

“Wooah!”

“Brilliant!”

“As expected of Wang A-Shi!”

“The finest bard of our age!”

Cheers erupted.

Von Debout’s retainers were clapping with tears in their eyes.

With the lights dimmed, no one noticed—but two people had faces as red as beets.

The King and the Duke.

“That last part…it was you, wasn’t it, Ryo…”

“W-Well, it only said ‘a magician’, so maybe it’s someone else?”

Then, a voice from the audience rang out.

“The ending ‘Song of Duke Rondo’ really is the best!”

“King Abel and Duke Rondo. What a perfect king and retainer combo!”

The two turned an even deeper shade of red.

“They’re calling it ‘The Song of Duke Rondo’.”

“I never imagined being sung about would be this embarrassing…”

Neither Abel nor Ryo were used to this kind of attention.

They clapped politely while looking down.

So they didn’t notice.

The bard, having finished the song, was staring directly at them.

“That was amazing! Songs of the Kingdom of Knightley really lift your spirits! I feel fired up now!”

Nuan, who’d seemed down earlier, was now beaming.

Perhaps she was projecting the retaking of their country and their lord onto the song’s tale.

“By the way, Abel, your name is the same as King Abel’s in the song. Is that a common name in your homeland?”

“Ah, yeah, well, it’s pretty common.”

Abel replied to Wei Fon, cold sweat trickling down his back.

Maybe it wasn’t necessary to hide it… but at the very least, that wasn’t the time to make it public.

Because it was just too embarrassing.

“Isn’t there some way to ban this song…?”

“Totally agree…”

If they ever did that, Abel and Ryo would surely go down in history—for the wrong reasons.

But luckily for the people, no such ban was ever issued…

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