HEO 19

This explanation was just as unconvincing, but Wolf let it slide at this point.

“I understand. Adults treated me like that a lot too. It always annoyed me. But why’d that old man do that to you?”

“Well…”

Silver frowned and held up his index finger.

“Earlier, we talked about the Spruce and Birch. Human mutants, in your terms. But Bingapsu said there’s another male mutant. Do you know about it?”

“Hmm?”

Wolf and Red Eagle looked at each other.

“I’ve only ever heard of male mutants who can bear children. What’s this other one?”

Silver didn’t answer Wolf’s question right away. He stirred the water with his finger and small ripples spread out.

“According to Bingapsu, that other male mutant… was called ‘Ash’. You really don’t know?”

“It’s my first time hearing it. Hmm, maybe the old man was mistaken about something?”

Wolf placed his chin on one hand and hummed thoughtfully.

“In Atania, human mutants from Stoll are incredibly, incredibly famous. I’ve heard there are quite a few scholars who specialize in studying them. If there were another male mutant, it would have been known long ago.”

“Wolf is right. When it comes to human mutants, you can trust the Atanians completely. Actually, Atania’s biology and ecology departments exploded in development while researching the Stoll people.”

Red Eagle chimed in with an explanation.

“When the Stolls invaded, and completely unimaginable other races appeared… well, to put it crudely, the Atanian biologists went nuts. They say Stolls warrior corpses were flying off the shelves on the black market for research. For 150 years, that entire field went completely mad. If another male mutant truly existed, it couldn’t have escaped the eyes of Atanian scholars.”

“Exactly!”

Silver slapped the water with both hands.

“That bastard Bingapsu picked up some old wives’ tales and believed them like gospel! Stupid bastard!”

“Exactly. Folklore is meant to be enjoyed for fun.”

While nodding along appropriately, Wolf realized a few things. Silver talked more than he expected. His fingers were long. His shoulders were smooth and square like a cake cross-section.

For some reason, his throat tightened. Beside Wolf, who couldn’t open his mouth, Red Eagle asked with sparkling eyes.

“What kind of mutant is Ash? Do they bear children too?”

“Hmph, they’d be lucky if they could even bear children.”

Silver snorted derisively. At the words that followed, Wolf and Red Eagle recoiled as if they were confronting a demon right before their eyes.

“They have no dick. They are monster cursed with the worst possible affliction for a man.”

“What?!”

Wolf’s eyes widened in shock. Red Eagle also screamed in horror.

“A human without genitals? How is that even possible?!”

“You don’t believe it either, right? The argument earlier started when I asked if the Ash mutant really existed, and Bingapsu just started cursing me out for no reason…”

“Wait, wait! Question!”

Wolf waved his hands.

“Pee! Where would an Ash pee from?”

“Yes. That’s what I’m most curious about too.”

Red Eagle nodded. Silver scrunched up his face.

“How should I know? It must be a mutant that doesn’t pee.”

“Didn’t the old man say how the Ash mutant pees?”

In response to Wolf’s question, Silver stared into space for a moment before shrugging.

“I don’t remember if he did. Probably pees out their nostrils or rear end, or tits. Or maybe they have a separate hole for pee.”

“You should definitely ask him. I’m curious.”

“You’re curious about that? There aren’t even any Ash mutants around.”

“Novels are fictional stories too, but I’m curious about the ending. Silver, are you the type who doesn’t care about things you think are useless?”

Wolf asked. He found it strange that Silver, who couldn’t remember people’s names well, had mastered a foreign language in just three years.

“They say many erudite scholars forget their own home addresses. Silver, I think you could do well if you set your mind to studying. If you hadn’t said you taught yourself Atania, I would’ve mistaken your mom for being Atanian. But why did you learn Atania?”

Silver glared at Wolf without a word. Then he abruptly stood up and splashed his way out of the hot spring. Wolf was unsettled by the sudden coldness. Did I get too close to Silver too fast? Silver, don’t turn your back on me. I just enjoy chatting with you…

He understood logically that he should back off now. Yet his gaze followed Silver. Against the background blurred by the hot spring steam, Silver alone stood out, as if he were dyed in primary colors. The white body wrapped in a towel at the waist was slender for a man, yet not soft. It resembled the edge of parchment paper. The kind that would slice your fingertips with just a light touch.

So back off now. If you don’t want to get hurt.

“Silver.”

But the words slipped out of his mouth against his will. He couldn’t possibly say ‘Don’t go, let’s keep playing together,’ so he was about to shut his mouth when Silver turned his head toward Wolf.

“What?”

Huh…?

Silver’s reaction left Wolf flustered instead. The atmosphere had been so cold, he thought Silver wouldn’t even pretend to hear a word he said, but now he was engaging with him?

“What is it? You called me over and now you’re not talking?”

“Uh, well… Ah, do you have a comb? I need a comb.”

Wolf blurted out whatever came to mind. Silver narrowed his eyes, grabbed a towel, and shook his hair.

“Comb? What’s that?”

“You don’t know what a comb is? It’s for combing hair. Like this, like this.”

Thinking Silver didn’t know the Atania word for ‘comb’, Wolf mimed combing hair.

[This bastard is seriously dumb!]

Silver threw the towel at Wolf.

“Who said I don’t know what a comb is? I just don’t use that crap, you idiot! There’s no comb here!”

“Oh… that’s what you meant?”

Wolf’s face burned. If Silver used a comb, he wouldn’t be walking around looking like he’d spent the night tearing his hair out.

[Idiot! Dumber than Bingsapsu!]

Silver muttered a string of Stoll words while dressing. Thanks to that, Wolf learned one Stoll word. Ditoi. It must mean idiot or moron. Yeah, maybe the dumbest Stoll person around was Wolf Bell.

Now clothed, Silver abruptly walked away.

“Where are you going?”

Even as he asked dejectedly, Wolf thought, “Here comes ‘Ditoi!’ again.” After all, it was a cave, so whether he went this way or that way…

But the answer that came back was,

“To bask in the sun.”

* * *

Silver didn’t tell them to follow, but Wolf and Red Eagle hurriedly dressed and trailed after him. After walking a long way from the hot springs, light appeared.

A hole like a well gaped in the very center of the cave ceiling, soaring impossibly high. Sunlight trickled down. It pooled on the floor like spring water. They had guessed there must be an opening somewhere, given the smooth flow of air, but they hadn’t expected such a big hole…

Wolf placed a hand on his forehead and tilted his head back. He saw an ash-gray sky. It wasn’t a blue sky with white puffy clouds drifting by, but simply an ash-gray sky, and yet, tears welled up in his eyes. Back in Atania, sunlight had been like paving stones underfoot on the way to school. That sunlight, once as insignificant as weeds or ants, now felt more beautiful and precious than anything.

“Haa.”

Silver flopped down. He propped his head on his arm. Wolf and Red Eagle slumped down awkwardly beside him. Silver propped himself up on one knee, crossed his legs, and said abruptly.

“Bingapsu won’t be here for a while.”

“Huh?”

Wolf and Red Eagle looked at Silver in unison.

“You mean… he left? When will he be back?”

Wolf asked, and Silver chuckled.

“You think I’d answer that?”

“I’m worried about the prince…”

Wolf trailed off, his head was spinning. Now that Black Weasel had vacated the hideout, wasn’t this the perfect chance to escape? By persuading Silver. No, that was reckless. A seasoned assassin wouldn’t leave without considering that possibility.

Then.

“Isn’t it dangerous? That room at the cave entrance. If pursuers search the forest, they could find us quickly. The suspension bridge makes it hard to get in too, but there’s even a large entrance here…”

“There are no pursuers.”

“What?”

Wolf looked up. Silver bounced the leg draped over his knee.

“Are you stupid? If there were pursuers, do you think Bingapsu and I would have been drinking like that?”

“But in the forest…”

“Ah. That.”

Silver glanced sideways at Wolf.

“Well, we were checking just in case. Anyway, there are no pursuers.”

“I see… Are you really sure?”

“I’m sure. Don’t ask twice.”