“Young Master! I’ve returned!”

The now-loyal Caughall returned from his errand much faster than usual, in order to avoid upsetting Henry.

As he put down the sack that he had carried into Henry’s room, he said, “Young Master, I was able to get most of the things you requested, but there was one item I simply could not find.”

“One item? Which is it?”

“The green crowflower that you wrote right at the bottom of the list.”

“Why weren’t you able to find it? Were there none available?”

“The thing is… according to the herbalist, a sizable horde of bandits have appeared along the trade route. It is because of them that traders have not been able to enter this territory for over a fortnight.”

“A fortnight? Does Father not know of this?”

“He has already sent out forces to eliminate those bandits several times, but they’re so elusive…”

Henry could not help but shake his head as Caughall gave his feeble reply.

How incompetent must a Baronet be that he couldn’t even handle a bunch of bandits?

Henry sighed before speaking.

“Caughall, make the preparations for my departure,”

“Sorry? You mean, now?”

“I hate to repeat myself again. I will personally head for the trade route or whatever it is, so prepare two horses and get ready to leave, you are to ride with me.”

“Y-Young Master! That’s not okay! It is dangerous to go there alone, and besides, the number of bandits is reported to be over thirty!”

“What do you mean, going there alone? You’re coming with me.”

“Ah… huh?”

“And I don’t remember asking you for your opinion. I need the green crowflower and those bandits are in my way. So get on with the preparations.”

“Young Master…”

The loyal Caughall looked like he was on the verge of tears. How could Henry deal with a horde of bandits, when not even the Baronet himself could defeat them?

But Henry’s will was absolute, and Caughall had no choice but to prepare the horses.

Caughall brought Henry’s personal horse out of the stable. The horse was in poor condition, especially compared to the horse that Henry had ridden in his previous life. It looked nearly skeletal, and had missing patches of fur across its dusty coat.

Looking at the horse with a frown on his face, Henry asked, “Aren’t there any other horses?”

“No, there aren’t. This is Young Master’s personal horse.”

“I’ll have to punish the stable keeper as soon as I return.”

As Henry muttered to himself, Caughall prepared the saddles on the two horses.

“Caughall, go and bring me a usable sword.”

“Do you require anything else?”

“If you want to live, bring whatever you want that can help you do so.”

Henry meant it as a joke, but Caughall took his words very seriously.

When Caughall disappeared out of sight, Henry sighed and stood before his horse.

“You must have suffered a lot too.”

There was a saying that if a master was incompetent, everyone under him will suffer. Henry felt that this horse was a victim of that exact incompetence.

“From this day forward, your name will be Jade.”

Jade was the name of the horse that Henry rode in his previous life.

The horse had died a natural death in its old age. Henry had little need for a horse after learning teleportation, and had rarely ridden it. Still, he had cared for it until the very end.

Neeeeigh.

Jade neighed lowly after receiving his new name.

“I will help you be reborn.”

For this purpose, Henry had intentionally not brought a sword to the stable.

After making sure no one was around, Henry bit the tip of his right index finger to draw some blood. He then began to write runic spells on Jade’s face and body.

‘That should do it.’

Almost immediately, blood-red spells filled Jade’s body.

When Henry was done writing the spells, he softly recited an incantation.

“‘Fine Horse Restructuring’, activated.”

It was one of the numerous secret military-purpose spells that were handed down from the Magical Spire’s school of biology. This spell could transform even donkeys into war horses.

Unfortunately, it was not a perfect restructuring. Perfect restructuring spells could only be cast by 4th-Circle mages, and Henry had no choice but to reduce the spell by one level before it could be cast.

Neigh! Neigh! Neeeeigh!

“I’m sorry. This body lacks the necessary magic, so I’m unable to anesthetize you fully.”

The spell entailed some pain for its target. Of course, the side effects varied from being to being. But for Jade, who was quietly grazing just moments ago, it must have felt like a jolt of lightning.

Some time passed.

Neeeigh.

“This isn’t too bad a result.”

Henry caressed Jade, who had grown bigger and bulkier than before, and had a shiny new coat that gave him a rather majestic appearance. Now, Jade was no longer a mere mangy workhorse, but a brave and dignified warhorse.

At that moment, Caughall returned.

“Young Master, I’ve returned with a sword.”

“Ah, yes, good job. Now lead the way.”

“Huh? Young Master, did you change your horse while I was away?”

“No, this is my horse.”

“I don’t think so. I’m sure your horse wasn’t like this…”

“Are you accusing me of lying?”

“No, Young Master, that’s not what…”

“I will ask you again. Is this a different horse from the one you saw earlier?”

“...it’s the same horse.”

“Good, that’s more like it. Quickly, lead the way. There’s no time to waste.”

Even after answering, Caughall rubbed his eyes vigorously and looked at Jade again. He could not help but doubt what he was seeing with his own two eyes. But he knew that any further argument would only upset Henry; thus, he held his tongue.

“Did you take the things I mentioned earlier?”

“Yes… but if Master and Madam find out about this…”

“I’m not stealing anything. I’m simply borrowing for a while, so what’s the big deal?”

“S-still…”

“Tch.”

“Yes, understood…”

As per Henry’s instructions, Caughall had brought Hans and Madame Morris’ treasures from the estate’s treasury. Most of them were lavish accessories made of gold and jewels.

“Take good care of them. If you lose even one of them, I will hold you accountable.”

“Y-yes! Understood!”

Caughall could not believe he was privy to this madness, even as they set off towards the trade route. Going alone to fend off a group of bandits was already ridiculous, but now, he had to steal from his own master’s treasury just to lure them out.

As Caughall took the lead and started guiding Henry towards the trade route, he looked back at the Young Master with a pained look in his eyes.

But Henry appeared calm as ever, and the two continued to ride their horses for a long time.

* * *

After a while, the two men and their horses approached the trade route.

“Now, let’s slowly begin.”

“Yes… understood…”

Before crossing into the trade route, Caughall obediently listened to Henry’s orders and got off his horse, opening the bag of treasures.

He then began to decorate himself with each item in the bag.

“Hang a few more, and wear two earrings on each of your ears. If not, the bandits won’t be tempted.”

“B-but… I’ve never worn earrings before…”

“Tch.”

“Yes… understood…”

Thanks to Henry's plan, Caughall was able to enjoy a taste of the wealth and luxury he had never experienced before.

Finally, he finished adorning himself.

“That should do it. Let’s go.”

“Yes…” Caughall answered unenthusiastically.

Although his demeanor was lackluster, Caughall shone brightly in the sunlight thanks to the various gold and jewel ornaments that hung from his body.

The two then entered the trade route.

It was the so-called ‘three-way trading post’. The trade routes of each territory met at this three-way trading post, and these trade routes were each connected to a large main road that led to the capital.

The two men entered the road leading to the capital after passing the three-way trading post.

“Slow down from here on. Our goal is to be a target for the bandits.”

“Young Master! Perhaps it would be wise to head back now. There are terrifying rumors about them!”

“Well it is up to me to find out if those rumors are true. Even if I die, you, my loyal servant, should die with me.”

“Young Master…”

Caughall knew that Henry spoke the truth, and could not protest any further. And with so many valuable gold pieces on him, it was clear that even if he were to run away, the bandits would most definitely chase him down and kill him.

“Stop right there!” a voice shouted from behind them.

After walking for quite some time, the bandits began to appear one by one, just as Henry expected.

‘They sure showed up quickly.’

He had already sensed that they were being followed, and suspected that it was the bandits.

‘They’re more careful than I thought they would be.’

They only revealed themselves after some time, likely to ensure that there were no escorts tailing them. Only after determining they were safe did they finally reveal themselves.

“Gahahaha! What do you two fools think you are doing? Letting the entire empire know you wish to be robbed? ‘Please rob us!’”

Among them, a larger bandit carrying a giant sword mocked Henry.

“Are you the leader?” Henry responded coolly.

“And what if I am?”

“Seems like these trinkets here are quite tempting, seeing that even the bandit leader has personally shown himself.”

The leader chuckled. “Is there any bandit in the world that would refuse such treasure? Now, if you lay down all your possessions and clothes, leave those horses behind, and just walk away, I will spare your lives.”

He spoke in a manner that one would expect a bandit leader to speak in.

Caughall grabbed Henry by the collar with a terrified look on his face and stammered, “Y-young Master, what shall we do now? From what I can see, there must be at least twenty of them.”

“Caughall.”

“Y-yes?”

“When you wake up, this will all be over.”

“Yes? What do you mea- kurgh!”

Thud.

With the help of some magic, Henry quietly struck Caughall in the back of the neck with a swipe of his hand, knocking Caughall unconscious. Caughall fell to the ground, along with all the treasures he was wearing.

“Jade, wait here patiently.”

Neigh.

“Good.”

Having incapacitated Caughall, Henry dismounted Jade and tied the reins of Caughall’s horse to him.

This puzzled the bandit leader.

“What are you doing?”

“Can’t you see? I’m parking.”

“Parking? A horse? Something’s obviously wrong with this guy. Hey, you! Go and kill him.”

The leader gestured to his subordinates with his chin.

The bandits each drew their swords and slowly began to approach Henry.

“One, two, three, four… twenty-five of you. That’s it?”

“You’re going to die soon and you’re wondering about that? You must be truly mad.”

“Well, all I have to do to you bandits is just give you a nice good knock on your heads.”

Crack!

Having figured out how many bandits he was facing, Henry flicked his finger toward them. At that moment, large droplets of water formed on the faces of the bandits.

Bloop! Bloooop!

“I can’t get blood on myself just because of a few bandits.”

The water droplets grew steadily larger and latched onto the bandits’ heads like helmets. They engulfed the bandit’s faces, covering their noses and mouths so they could not breath. And after a while, they started to suffocate one by one.

Thud. thud.

“Die quickly. I’m in a bit of a rush.”

There were a few tenacious bandits who struggled harder to stay alive, but they were only human, and unable to hold their breath forever.

“Krrgh…”

Finally, the last of the bandits fell. Henry made sure that they were completely dead before gathering them together in one spot with magic.

“Fire.”

A fire roared to life upon the pile of bandits. Even though their heads were wet, the corpses burned quickly like dry firewood in the raging fire. The smell of roasted meat permeated the air.

Once the corpses were thoroughly burned, Henry put the fire out.

“The rest is for the wild beasts to clean up.”

Having dealt with the situation, Henry walked over to Caughall, who was still unconscious, and kicked him awake.

“Snort, snort! Y-young Master? What happened to the bandits?”

“I think they’re all dead?”

“Sorry?”

“Shut up. Anyway, now that the bandits are dead, let’s head back. Make sure you’ve not lost anything.”

Caughall once again looked stunned, as if he was still in a dream.