Chapter 309

The dwarf, Dimitri, was chained up inside Daryl's camp. He was being held in his own tent. Knights were kept on guard duty according to shifts. They could not risk the prisoner escaping.

After seeing through that Dimitri was taken care of properly, Daryl received treatment for his wounds. It was true that Daryl was wounded. As an adventurer he had endured many injuries during his time traveling over the years.

He could not allow his wounds to drag him down. Being in charge of the knights meant that his health could affect their morale. There was also the strange behavior from the dragon lately. Worried about Bredret he found no time to worry about himself.

"What is going on with you lately?" Daryl asked Bredret in a demanding tone.

Bredret, who followed Daryl to his tent to make sure he was treated, stood near the door to the tent with a still expression on his face, "Do not worry about me. You are the one who got injured."

"Yet," Daryl pressed the issue, "I am not the one who is constantly on edge lately."

"I am not.." Bredret tried to deny having a problem of his own. The thought of the others knowing his personal issues made him feel uneasy.

Daryl sat there on his bed. His wounds were freshly wrapped and the healer had already left. The healer could only clean and dress the wounds. Medicine was on the table in the center of the tent.

Does Bredret think nobody has time for his problem? Or does he simply dislike others prying into it because of his pride? Daryl sometimes could not tell what the dragon was thinking.

Not giving the dragon time to make excuses Daryl spoke up before the dragon could completely come up with one, "How long have I known you, Bredret? Do you really think I am going to believe whatever lye you decide to come up with?"

Bredret hesitated to respond. Inwardly cursing the fact that Daryl paid close attention to his every word and action lately. It was clear that the man cared about them all like family and he would be no different. It was true that they had known each other for a long time which only made it harder to lye to Daryl.

Bredret's voice shook as he admitted to what he felt so often, "... It feels like she is still here at times."

"Celeste?" Daryl was startled by the sudden comment from him.

Bredret nodded without a word. He could not think of anything further to add. Simply feeling her close to his heart was enough to bring him pain. At times it felt like he was going to suffocate by how much he missed her. The next time he turned around it would feel like there was someone else sharing his body with him. Perhaps it was the cost of his soul being fused with hers.

"I know its painful," Daryl could see the pain on Bredret's face, "Holding on to her will do you no good. The harder you cling on to her memory the more painful it will become."

Growling under his breath, Bredret shouted, "I am not crazy!"

"I never said you were," Daryl knew he had to tread carefully around the topic of Celeste, "The prisoner is waiting. We should go take care of him right now."

"What do you intend to do with him after we get the information we need?" Bredret was not one to hesitate on changing the topic when he saw the chance. He did not like talking about Celeste. It made his chest ache.

Daryl sighed, he was aware of Bredret pushing to avoid the topic as well, "That will depend on him."

"Ah," Bredret understood. They could not leave Dimitri alive carelessly. "We should have brought along Aoki. He is known as the executioner for a reason. If you left him in charge of Dimitri..."

"Bredret," Daryl stopped the dragon from talking any further, "Go deal with Dimitri. I have to go deal with the knights. I do not have time to deal with him on my own. When you are done you can come find me and inform me of what you find out."

Silence filled the tent. The two of them did not say a word further to one another. Bredret could feel that his company was no longer wanted. Turning around towards the door of the tent. The dragon left Daryl alone inside his tent.

Daryl stood up from his bed. Walking over to the table where the medicine sat. As he picked up a vile of medicine and drank it down his body flinched. The taste of the liquid was very unpleasant but it was necessary to help ease his pain while the injuries healed.

Unlike others who healed more quickly due to their heightened levels Daryl healed more slowly. If you trained in your mana enough to raise your level it meant you could gain durability. Your wounds could heal quicker and your body could even tolerate more serious injuries.

Daryl did not have that luxury since he did not train to use his mana. Unless he met a healer who could personally speed up his recovery he would have to heal slowly like the average person. It even meant that he could die much easier. He could not afford to make mistakes and that fact is what fueled him to push himself to thrive with his swordsmanship.

I could have died back there... Daryl could not stop himself from thinking back on that moment. His chest had been slashed open by a kaze beast. Then the memories of the spear piercing through his stomach flashed in his mind. He had experienced times when he was near death in the past. This was the first time that he felt like he had struggled against death with a reason to not feel regret. If Daryl died he was certain that he would die without regret because he felt he had found something worth giving his life.

As an adventurer Daryl had never had a place he could truly remain still. Traveling the continent he had gone through many things both good and bad. His heart had never felt at peace. No matter how many people he met and befriended or simply become acquainted with. It was impossible for him to feel as if his life was complete.

Now that he was fighting with everyone to protect everyone he had finally come to realize that feeling of peace was already there. Somehow he had blinded himself from the truth. That as long as he was with those that mattered to him, he was at peace. If his life was to be taken in battle in order to protect that peace he held dear to his heart then he would accept it. However he would do his best to not make it easy for the enemy.

Am I growing use to my position? Daryl thought about it. It felt strange to him how much he had come to accept the changes to his life. He had never imagined there would come a day he would work directly for a king. Even if he followed Vorbuk in order to help aid Prince Leo in getting his own throne back. Everything in his mind felt complicated.