Chapter 559 - The Blind Man and the Old Man

CLATTER

Plates were set on the table one after another. Encrid was not particularly picky, but who disliked good food? He was no exception.

They were in the knight order's private dining room, housed in a building separate from the barracks mess hall. Krais had built it while expanding and renovating the barracks.

They sometimes ate the same meals as the soldiers, but serving proper food whenever a guest visited was a matter of courtesy. Throughout the Empire and the surrounding kingdoms, it was a way of welcoming a visitor. In the West, showing respect meant cooking something yourself, however small, or offering food made by your family. Here on the central continent, this was the custom.

The old man had wanted an invitation, and Encrid's agreement had brought them here. Jaxon had said there was something strange about the man's faint presence. When he actually directed something akin to killing intent at him, the old man had handled it adeptly.

During that exchange, Encrid had sensed something in him reminiscent of Anu, King of the East. In other words, he was likely someone who could fight at a knight's level. Yet strangely, looking at him now, Encrid could sense no hint of it. That fascinated him.

On their previous meeting, he had not sensed even that much. An unusual but blind old man. That had been his entire impression, but now he saw him differently.

Luagarne seemed to have a similar impression. Her great eyes rolled about as she busily studied their guest. What could a Frog's discerning gaze see? Curious, Encrid glanced at her, and she spoke.

"I can't see anything."

So she couldn't see it. Even a Frog's talent-reading eyes were not all-powerful.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Sensing his gaze, Luagarne puffed out her cheeks a little.

"You look especially pretty today."

"Can you tell Frogs apart by their looks?"

He could tell them apart, though he couldn't judge their beauty. Encrid was quite observant.

Sinar turned her head at that.

"Do you prefer Frogs to Fairies?"

"Let's eat."

Answer that sort of question and the Fairy's jokes would dance across the table. Encrid was not particularly eager for that, so he changed the subject.

"Quite right. Food comes first," the blind old man said.

Aside from their guest, only Encrid, Jaxon, Sinar, and Luagarne were at the table. Ragna was asleep, and Rem had gone into the mountains to train his troops. Apparently, he had taken only a single axe, without even packing food, let alone proper equipment.

It seemed he was more focused on tormenting his men than training them. Of course, if they endured that torment, they would emerge significantly more skilled than before.

Encrid had heard that the western twins had joined him as training instructors. The twins who had joined Henri's western trading company in the West had stayed here after reaching Border Guard. That was fine, since Border Guard and the Roquefried trading company had joined forces to provide the western traders with guards.

Why had Border Guard and the Roquefried trading company stepped in? It was not simply because Encrid and Henri were friends. Put plainly, Krais and Leona had recognized the value of both the western goods and the company's route from the West to here.

They believed the path Henri had traveled could become a road linking the West to the central region, then on to the East or southeastern Naurilia. They had already named it the Stone Road. Obsidian was one of its principal commodities, along with several other valuable stones. The name also signified their intention to build basic cities at key points and lay solid stone roads, beginning with the safe roads.

Of course, this would not take a day or two, or even a year or two. However advanced construction techniques had become, laying roads and building at least a dozen cities was no easy task. Pouring Krona into building cities would not finish the job. Those cities meant nothing unless people lived in them. It was an undertaking that would require care over a very long time.

Their readiness to undertake it nonetheless was proof that the rewards were not merely considerable, but enormous. Both knew all too well that longer trading distances multiplied profits. Others had already proven as much.

Southeast of Naurilia stood the continent's foremost trading city, a city-state whose growth had been driven by its waterways. Naturally, waterways alone would never have been enough. Its shipbuilding techniques produced cargo vessels to ply the rivers crossing the continent, as well as swift boats for rapid travel. Combined with its skill in establishing cities at key points, those things had made its present prosperity possible.

In any case, Ragna and Rem were absent, and Audin had taken Teresa out for some sort of prayer. Had he said he was going to awaken her talent? Encrid had not listened closely.

Roford and Pell were around, but both were busy with their own training. They spurred each other on. When one grasped something and hurled himself into training like a madman, the other naturally began training Encrid's way. Which meant swinging a sword like a madman. Neither had any attention to spare for who might or might not visit.

Esther was in the barracks, but in panther form. Encrid had not asked why, but she had said she needed to stay a panther all week. She was also feeding herself in the wild, explaining without being asked that she needed to accumulate the power of nature.

With everyone else away, that left only Sinar, Luagarne, Encrid, and Jaxon. The cook finished setting out the plates and stepped aside.

"Hmm."

The white-haired old man raised his chin and turned his nose from side to side, as though savoring the food's aroma.

There was soup, dried fish topped with a reduced sauce, and a main dish of the tenderest cuts of pork served with steamed vegetables. Everyone but the old man could see the asparagus, carrots, green vegetables, and appetizing slices of meat. Being blind, he had no way to see them, yet he seemed to read the food with his nose.

"Pork, I see. And the fish... Hmm, it seems you've used dried fish."

He had identified the dishes fairly accurately by smell alone. An impressive talent.

"It looks quite good, too," Encrid told him.

Beside the main dish sat a plate of marinated tomato halves arranged in rows, their aroma and color a delight to nose and eye alike.

The old man tapped his fork lightly against the plate, speared some meat and vegetables, and brought them to his mouth. Naturally, a blind man had to feel his way, but nothing about it looked awkward. His movements were perfectly natural. Without watching closely, one might not even realize he was blind.

'How can he do that?'

Encrid watched him, briefly lost in thought. From his observations on the way here, he thought he understood one thing: the old man was remarkably adept at everything he did. Nothing flustered him, and he always seemed to know what was around him. Even now, no one had told him where the plate and fork were or put them in his hands, yet he had felt around for them and deftly brought food to his mouth.

After taking a bite, the white-haired old man gazed into the distance, nodded, and spoke.

"Mmm. Do you know what I consider important?"

"What?"

"How thoroughly the vegetables are cooked."

He held his thumb and forefinger slightly apart, then spread both hands and continued, his expression and tone utterly earnest.

"These are neither too firm nor too soft. Perfect. Excellent. From the way the vegetables are cut to their texture, everything is superb. Care went into that knife work. This food was made with the diner in mind. What went into the sauce? Such wonderful depth of flavor... Pork liver?"

His sense of smell was not the only sharp one. His palate had to rank among the finest on the continent. That keen sense of taste identified both the ingredients and how they had been prepared.

"Yes, that's right."

The cook answered excitedly, perhaps moved by the praise.

"Mmm. Good. Delicious."

With that, the white-haired old man devoted himself to eating. Watching him, Encrid found his own hand moving of its own accord. As the guest had said, the food was excellent, though Encrid could never have analyzed it in such painstaking detail.

The lean and fat of the perfectly cooked pork complemented each other, while the thick sauce of mashed potatoes and pork liver filled his mouth with rich flavor the moment he tasted it.

"Were you a cook?"

Once he had eaten his fill to a degree, Encrid asked. The old man smiled gently.

"Losing my sight cost me the pleasure of seeing, but gave me greater pleasure in eating."

He gestured with his fork as he spoke, and Jaxon took hold of his table knife in time with the motion, looking ready to throw it at the slightest provocation. If Encrid could sense that, the old man would be able to as well. Yet he showed no particular reaction and simply continued.

"Without pleasures like this, what joy would there be in living?"

Again, the old man was saying that blindness had sharpened his sense of taste.

Once they finished the meal, the cook went back inside and brought out dessert and tea. Marcus sent processed tea leaves from time to time. The man recently hired as an alchemist was hopeless at his profession, but knew how to dry tea leaves properly.

Tea brewed from those leaves arrived alongside crisp fried-flour pastries and bread baked with nothing but salt and butter for seasoning.

"Hmm. The bread is baked just right."

The old man enjoyed his meal.

"What an interesting fellow," Sinar said as she watched him. None of them was fully armed, but everyone had at least one weapon.

And apart from the cook, everyone present knew that the cane in the old man's hand was no ordinary cane. It concealed a blade, a type of sword called a sword stick.

It was convenient to carry, but the lack of a guard limited the techniques one could use. If the wielder's hand slipped, the blade would cut it, and techniques employing the protective guard were impossible. To take a simple example, even binding and knocking aside an opponent's blade had to be done with the blade alone. Apart from its portability, it was hardly an easy weapon to use.

With the meal finished, the old man's cane rested against the table. A servant approached to move it aside, but he stopped them.

After praising the cook for the delicious meal, the old man turned his head toward Encrid and spoke. The movement was so natural that, despite his blindness, it felt as though he had directed his gaze at him.

"An honor to see you in person. You are every bit as tall and handsome as they say."

"Hmm."

Sinar reacted to that. What was he talking about when he couldn't see? She tilted her head.

"A joke."

The old man laughed at his own words.

"In my youth, when I could still see, my wit left many a lady feverish with lovesickness."

"Did you happen to learn those jokes from a Fairy?"

Encrid's question was entirely serious. Sinar's eyebrow twitched. An irritating question.

"No, it's a natural gift. In truth, I've never been able to see. I was born blind."

He laughed heartily, but no one joined in. All they could think was that this old man was very strange indeed.

"Is your head broken?"

Luagarne questioned his mental state. Jaxon remained silent.

The old man took out a clean but worn handkerchief and wiped his mouth.

"A fine meal. Shall I earn my keep?"

A natural question. After all, they would hardly do this for anyone who asked for a meal.

"Let's spar."

Encrid answered as though he had been waiting. They had eaten well and talked. The man's affiliation? His position? His reason for coming here? Encrid didn't know. He wasn't even curious yet.

Everyone saw things differently. It was a matter of perspective. This was Encrid's second meeting with the old man, and now he saw what he had missed the first time. This old man could fight. His intuition told him so.

'And fight very well.'

Why was it so difficult to gauge his skill? Why had Jaxon called him strange? Even Luagarne couldn't judge his ability. To Encrid, at least, everything the blind old man had shown him was cause for anticipation. So why should he care about affiliations or intentions?

Blazing flames spread from his heart throughout his body. His determination rose of its own accord, conveying his desire to the other man. He wanted a bout.

He didn't know what the old man had to offer. That was what excited him. There could hardly have been any other reason for bringing him here and feeding him so well.

"Do you make a hobby of beating blind old men?" the old man asked.

"You don't look as though you'd take it lying down. Would you?"

At Encrid's immediate retort, the old man's clouded eyes curved gently.

"I can't beat you with words. You won't even laugh at my jokes."

"Someone else has already trained me for that."

"That wouldn't be me, would it, my betrothed?"

Sinar cut in.

Knowing that silence was the best answer to an awkward question, Encrid pushed his chair back.

SCRAPE

He pushed it back with his thighs, stood, and said,

"Let's go outside."

He headed straight out without waiting for an answer. Sinar watched him leave and murmured,

"We'll have to discuss this in greater depth later, my betrothed."

Quiet though she had been, her betrothed's usually keen ears would have caught every word. With that thought, the Fairy rose as well. Not as eagerly as Encrid, perhaps, but she too wanted to watch.

The old man was not one of the forest folk, yet all this time he had been using Assimilation better than her own people. Assimilation meant blending into the forest when in a forest, becoming like water when in water: concealing one's presence by matching one's energy to the surroundings.

Many trained knights who wielded Will used this art, but it had originated with the Fairies. In that regard, this old man was highly unusual. He blended so thoroughly into his surroundings that even her senses found his presence faint.

"Paying for what you've eaten is only the natural order of things."

With that, the old man rose and headed outside, tapping his cane against the floor.