Musou Knight: Crow of Cinders-Chapter 29: Interlude - Bickar Nusus, the Investigator

Chapter 29 - Interlude - Bickar Nusus, the Investigator

Following the trail, Bickar and his cavalry team reached an abandoned campsite in a few hours. His eyes scanned the surrounding area. Then he froze and stared at the ground.

In the direction of sight, there were footprints. Bickar stopped his men and dismounted. He inspected the ground, where multiple deep footprints looked new.

Two of Bickar’s subordinates also dismounted and checked the soil. He commented.

"It’s about a day old. We can still catch up to them."

Bickar’s expression turned dark. He glanced at his men. "Don’t you notice something odd?"

"Oh, come to think of it... Aren’t these... horses?"

"Yes, and a lot of them. Our precious fire knight either has friends or... is in trouble."

Bickar stood and began to investigate for more information regarding the strange soldiers present. He returned to the extinguished campfire.

Nearby, a shallow cave piqued his interest. He crawled inside and touched the ground.

Somehow, his chest tightened. He was uncomfortable staying inside the cave. Thus, he hurried outside and took a deep breath.

"Sir! We’ve found a grave!"

A report from his subordinate startled him. He coughed and turned to the soldier. "A grave?"

"A weird one, sir."

Bickar frowned and glanced at the cave. He fell deep in thought while his legs followed his subordinate to the mentioned grave.

Upon arrival at the grave, Bickar crouched and inspected a cracked jar with withered flowers inside. Next to it was a large rock with engraved letters that he could not read.

"What’s this language?" Bickar asked his men.

"We don’t know, sir. We hope that you knew, actually."

"Well, I guess I have no choice."

Bickar touched the stone and closed his eyes, injecting his Musou energy into it. Although his eyelids were shut, a vision entered his mind.

He observed a young man, dressed as an Invidia footman, excavate a grave and lay an old man’s corpse to rest within it. By his side, people in black armor with a wolf banner came to the youth’s aid. However, it was the young man who engraved the letters onto the stone.

The vision ended. Bickar couldn’t see further.

When Bickar opened his eyes, the rock crumbled into dust. He smiled bitterly. Redeeming himself, he gathered small stones in the area and piled them into a mini-pyramid. He then put a large stick on the ground and ordered his men.

"Are there any flowers in the area? Collect some and put them in the pot here."

"Sir?" His soldiers didn’t understand Bickar’s sentiment.

"Just do it."

"...Yes, sir."

Because of Bickar’s order, the unit halted the pursuit. By the time Bickar’s men managed to gather a handful of flowers, the sun escaped through the horizon, and the sky turned orange.

Bickar put the flowers into the pot and stood straight. He raised his chin and faced the twilight sky with his eyes closed. He prayed to the nameless elder.

White musou energy gathered around him. A wisp of light emerged from Studium’s grave and circled around Bickar, becoming one with him.

A portion of Studium’s memory entered Bickar’s mind. Bickar also muttered, reciting the regrets of Studium.

"I didn’t get to teach the kid everything."

"Huh?"

Bickar’s men gazed at their boss and blinked, confused about what their boss was talking about. Fortunately, some of the men had seen Bickar’s power before and warned the newcomers.

"Don’t mind the ritual. Sir Bickar does that often when he investigates graves and dead bodies."

"What do you mean?" A young soldier asked.

"We have no idea. Just wait."

"...Is this normal?"

"Get used to it. Don’t question our lord’s power."

"..."

Bickar opened his eyes. He let out a long sigh of regret as Studium had died a day ago. Had he arrived before a day had passed, he would have inherited 80 to 90% of Studium’s memory.

However, Bickar secured enough information. He turned to his men and ordered them.

"Make camp. We rest here for the night. We’ll pursue the fire knight at sunrise."

The soldiers were relieved. They had already rested their horses, so they started making campfires for the night.

As for Bickar, he sat by Studium’s grave, meditating all night, digesting new information.

The night was peaceful. By dawn, Bickar opened his eyes after he had sorted all of Studium’s memories into his own. He managed to figure out the reason why Crow and Studium left their shacks. The rest was incomprehensible.

Bickar massaged his brow, wishing he could learn more details about the fire knight’s deal with the artisan. The absorbed memory was too hazy and fragmented to understand. He sighed and summoned his men for a new briefing.

His subordinates finished their breakfast and gathered around Bickar. When everyone was present, he explained.

"The fire knight is a vagabond by the name ’Crow’. He is a disciple of the artisan who died here. Our soldiers treated them unfairly, and they fled Invidia in fear. Therefore, our mission has become complicated! If we run into him in the future, remember not to provoke him! Be nice to him, get it?!"

The men still looked confused as they glanced at each other. Bickar saw it and reminded them.

"Remember. DO. NOT. HARM. OR. PROVOKE. OUR. FIRE. KNIGHT! Lord Louis wants him to join us, get it?!"

"Y-Yes, sir!"

"Good. Move out! We will follow their trails!"

The troops packed their luggage and returned to their horses. They resumed the pursuit, heading west.

.

Because of the cart’s trail and Lenitia’s horsemen, Bickar had it easy tracking their movements. They soon arrived at a battlefield ruin, where Invidia and Avaritia had fought a month ago.

Unlike Lenitia, the troops were unfazed by the sight. They bypassed the land of the dead. Before noon, they arrived at the entrance of an abandoned Caerulex mine.

Chaotic footprints of horses and footmen mixed together, making it impossible to read.

Bickar clicked his tongue, as he was familiar with some of the footprints. Most of them were sandal footprints, which only the Avaritia’s conscripted foot soldiers wore.

"Avaritia Forces."

His gaze followed the road toward the north, where the men had come from. He frowned for a moment and shifted his gaze to the southwest road, where the men were heading.

The tracks were brand new, less than 12 hours old.

Something happened around here, and it did not look good for the fire knight. Bickar gritted his teeth and reminded his men.

"Lord Louis has ordered us to bring the fire knight back, no matter what the cost! Be ready for combat! We might encounter the Avaritia scum on the way!"

Hearing the cursed country’s name, all horsemen exuded killing intent. They tightened their weapon grips. Some of them pulled out their spears and halberds from their horses’ side holders, readying for combat.

Bickar gazed ahead. A faint white smoke was on the horizon.

"WE FOLLOW THE SOUTHWEST ROAD!"