How to Survive as a Genius Spy in the Game Chapter 226 - Terka (1)

“Is this perhaps the friend master mentioned?”

“That’s right! It’s that friend!”

Denif replied with a big smile, seemingly delighted that I had come to rescue him.

I first raised my sword and assessed the battlefield. There were ten corpses around the group.

Quick observation. Judging by their attire, it seemed the action leader of those who had set up this encirclement had already been beheaded.

There must be someone commanding from the outside, but with my joining in, they probably wouldn’t show themselves.

“What should we do? Should we take care of all these guys first? Or should we go up like this?”

“Go up? Didn’t you fly here? Oh, come to think of it, you didn’t wear a wingsuit?”

Denif looked up. Then he nodded, seeing the dragon carriage flying high in the distant sky.

“Did you come on that?”

“Yeah. If I had flown with a wingsuit, I wouldn’t have made it in time.”

“A dragon? Isn’t that the imperial dragon carriage?”

Mondegreen’s disciple, Terka, opened his eyes wide looking at the sky. I didn’t expect this guy to be here…

It seemed it would be difficult to hide my identity.

Well, Mondegreen might have already guessed my identity. Since he was related to Rudehrn.

Of course, judging by Terka’s reaction, even if Mondegreen had thought so, he didn’t seem to have given any hints.

“That’s right.”

“W-who are you?”

“Carl Schurtafen.”

“Wasn’t it Carlyn?”

“I’m also Carlyn.”

“No, wait a minute. Carl Schurtafen? That princess, no, the emperor’s…?”

When I nodded, Terka furrowed his brow deeply. To think that the person he thought was Carlyn turned out to be Carl Schurtafen.

It was indeed the kind of thing that could cause a brain freeze if you heard it without knowing.

“Decide quickly, these guys look like they’re about to bolt.”

After my appearance, the guys showed signs of confusion. But that was only for a moment.

I detected with winds that a retreat order had been given from behind. As expected, there was a separate brain.

“We should take care of all of them. I thought I was going to die of annoyance because of these guys.”

Denif’s eyes were burning with vengeance. Well, it must have been an exhausting chase without sleep, so he must be quite angry.

“Hmm, I’m fine with that.”

Despite the sudden change of topic, Terka agreed.

“Well then, let’s deal with them quickly.”

At my words, Denif rushed in first. Although the retreat order had been given, not everyone turned their backs and ran.

The ones at the very front actually charged towards us.

It feels like they’re sacrificial pawns. They’re buying time for others to retreat. The enemies at the back were busily distancing themselves.

I had no intention of chasing after them. It would be a waste of time, and it’s enough to just deal with the ones here.

As I stepped forward, I could feel Terka glancing at me repeatedly.

He seemed to want to see my swordsmanship. He must have already seen Denif’s during the recent battle.

I understand. In fact, I was also paying attention to see his swordsmanship. This was a natural reaction for a swordsman, regardless of personal preferences.

“Argh!”

The battle didn’t last long. The sacrificial pawns charged desperately and fell with short death cries.

Still, thanks to them, I was able to see Terka’s swordsmanship briefly.

It lived up to the reputation I knew. Should I say his footwork was different? It was obvious that he had reached a high level.

In fact, this was the difference between ordinary swordsmen and people like Denif, Terka, and me.

It’s the same movement, but it gives off a different vibe that anyone can see. It’s because the details are different.

Anyway, Terka’s swordsmanship was incredibly flashy, befitting his alias “Casanova Sword Master.”

If an ordinary swordsman were to swing a sword like that, it would seem excessive and make people frown, but it wasn’t like that at all.

“Let’s stop here. Let’s get out of here first.”

After dealing with the moths, I stopped Denif who was trying to chase after them. Denif pouted.

“It’s a bit disappointing…”

“This is as far as we should go. After separating from you, I almost died fighting a devil.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

This wasn’t a story that would end briefly if we discussed it here.

“Let’s talk about that after we go up. Don’t refuse.”

The last words were for Terka. Feeling the winds wrapping around his body, he nodded.

Using winds at full power, the bodies of the three of us flew into the air. The dragon carriage drew closer.

“Ooh, is this a dragon?”

Terka expressed pure admiration, seemingly seeing a dragon for the first time. The knight bowed his head towards me.

“My lord, have you finished?”

“Yes. Let’s depart.”

After boarding the carriage, Terka looked at the dragon carriage with surprised eyes and asked me with an incredulous face.

“Are you really Carl Schurtafen?”

“You can see for yourself, can’t you?”

I shrugged. To be honest, how should I put it, I don’t particularly like Terka.

Of course, he’s not a bad person. But he’s not exactly a good person either. It’s ambiguous.

He did seduce a high-ranking devil worshipper, but he also seduced and ran away with a major nobleman’s daughter in the allied forces. She was someone who had a fiancé.

The aftermath was significant. After all, a Sword Master suddenly ran away. In other words, Terka is a person who does whatever he wants.

And usually, it was negative in most cases. Although he never sided with the devil worshippers…

Spreading rumors of scandals mostly caused harm to me in most cases.

In fact, it was fortunate if he just seduced noblemen’s daughters; it was common for him to seduce several noblemen’s wives simultaneously.

‘On the day it was discovered, I had to weigh between a Sword Master and 20,000 soldiers.’

Although there were times when his hard fighting was helpful, people tend to remember annoying memories longer.

And even though he fought hard, it’s not like we ever gained an advantage in the war against the devil worshippers. The current situation, with me entering this world, was the most advantageous.

“Well, I guess. The only person who can freely ride a dragon carriage would be Carl Schurtafen.”

Terka tilted his head looking at me.

“But why did you lie to my master? I almost went to the west too.”

“Rather than a lie, it was unavoidable. I had to stay discreet at that time. When I reveal my true identity, it’s not like I can control what comes out of Mondegreen’s mouth.”

While I could make a request, it’s hard to imagine a swordsman controlling a Sword Master’s words.

Terka nodded, seemingly aware of the news that Erendil had restored my honor.

“Hmm, I guess so.”

“And I couldn’t suddenly summon you to the imperial palace either.”

“Well, it’s not bad. Meeting Carl Schurtafen is more interesting than doing mercenary work in the western civil war.”

“But how did you two end up meeting?”

I turned to Denif. This ridiculous situation was hard to picture in my mind.

Denif was leaning back in his chair with a tired face. He probably hadn’t rested at all for several days.

“It was by chance. Three days after separating from you? I got caught in their encirclement right away. They were faster than I thought.”

“They must have been chasing us since we fled with the scythe.”

“Scythe?”

“There’s something like that. It’s top secret.”

Terka butted in, but I changed the subject. This guy is not someone to be trusted.

In fact, the same goes for my identity.

He’s the kind of guy who might talk about me somewhere to seduce women. Of course, he probably won’t really do that.

The empire hasn’t lost its power like in the game. It would be difficult to speak about the empire’s top-secret mission anywhere.

Even for a Sword Master, dealing with the aftermath of being marked by the empire is not easy. Moreover, Terka isn’t even a Sword Master yet.

Still, I should caution him just in case. I’ll have to use Mondegreen’s name. He probably won’t tarnish his master’s face.

Denif continued speaking.

“For days, I tried to break through the encirclement like that. It was tough. It felt like it was getting tighter.”

“The east is their territory after all.”

“Anyway, while I was fighting like that, this guy showed up. Not long after, you came.”

Hmm. If I had come a little earlier, I probably wouldn’t have met this guy. I felt a bit regretful.

Maybe I shouldn’t have stopped by the armory.

“Come to think of it, how are you here? From what you said earlier, it seems like you were planning to go west.”

“I was going to, but there’s a devilish dragon in the north, right? A dragon! I came to see it from afar at least. But I heard you caught it?”

“That’s right. We did catch the devilish dragon. But you saw a dragon, didn’t you?”

Denif, who had been quiet, cut in with a smirk, and Terka nodded with a smile.

“That’s true. I did see a dragon.”

They seem to be getting along well even though they haven’t known each other for long. Of course, I didn’t like it.

Terka turned his gaze to me.

“So, are we going to the imperial palace now?”

What nonsense. I have no intention of taking this guy to the imperial palace. There’s no particular reason to either.

“No.”

“Why?”

He boldly questioned. I was dumbfounded.

“Why should I take you?”

“Uh, well…”

After pondering for a moment, Terka subtly averted his gaze.

“I heard that Her Majesty the Emperor is so beautiful… Oh, and I need to meet Lord Rudehrn too. My master asked me to send his regards.”

The latter part seemed like something he just made up on the spot.

“Don’t you think it sounds like a lie even to you?”

“No.”

“You were heading to the west, so what’s this about sending regards to Lord Rudehrn?”

How can he be so brazen? I wondered if this confidence was the secret to becoming a Casanova.

He was handsome, but his confidence was incomprehensible.

“He definitely said so.”

“Anyway, it’s not possible.”

“Then what am I supposed to do?”

“That’s for you to figure out.”

“My master told me to accompany you guys.”

“Well…”

“Why? It’s good to travel together. Your swordsmanship skills will improve too. Didn’t you see earlier?”

Denif suddenly cut in. Terka chimed in.

“That’s right. I’m even the one who helped Denif.”

I glared at Denif, trying to suppress a sigh.

“Are you trying to advertise to the whole neighborhood?”

“Hmm.”

I returned to the fundamental issue. The fact is, we’re connected to Haisen and the empire.

We can’t carelessly invite outsiders.

It’s not like we recruited him of our own will, and if something unexpected happens, this guy’s backing is too big.

Denif subtly averted his gaze. He’s usually not this tactless…

Judging by his reaction, I suspected he wasn’t just tired, but knowingly doing this.

Well, I can understand Denif’s feelings too. Since we made Erendil the emperor, it doesn’t matter.

If I didn’t know this guy’s true nature, I would have taken him along too.

“What are you advertising?”

“We’re moving secretly for the empire under the emperor’s orders.”

“I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

Terka confidently puffed out his chest at the words meant to make him leave. It’s not the kind of mouth that can be kept shut just by saying so…

I inwardly clicked my tongue. The situation had become a bit complicated.

I said these things hoping he would leave on his own, but in reality, I couldn’t be too harsh in rejecting him.

The upcoming war has been pushed forward much earlier than I thought. We might need Mondegreen’s power.

‘Honestly, it’s not bad to have this guy around.’

Setting aside personal likes and dislikes, his skills are certain. After all, it means I have another weapon at my disposal. Of course, managing it might be a bit difficult.

It can’t be helped.

“First of all, it’s not that I’m rejecting you because I dislike you. It’s just that our business is a bit complicated. If you want to travel with us, there’s something you need to promise.”

“Anything! Tell me.”

“We’re working for the empire, and there might be things that conflict with your personal moral concepts or ethics. Are you okay with that?”

“That’s fine.”

I knew he would be fine with it. Just looking at how he two-times with married women, this guy has little sense of ethics or morality.

“And there are many things you can’t talk about elsewhere.”

“I’m confident.”

“On your master’s honor.”

“…”

The guy shut his mouth. That’s more like it. He’s all talk. After contemplating for a while, he opened his mouth again.

“Tsk. This isn’t usually my style, but it seems really fun to travel with you guys?”

“So what’s your answer?”

“Alright. I swear on my master’s honor.”

Hmm. I didn’t really expect him to do it. This changes things. Even in the game, this guy never swore on his master’s honor.

Not even when seducing women.

This means I can have some degree of trust in this guy. The relationship between a Sword Master and his disciple is stronger than one might imagine.

Setting aside my personal likes and dislikes, if managed well, he might be quite useful. Of course, that management might be a bit difficult.