Spice and Wolf Volume 17 by Hasekura Isuna

Author:Hasekura Isuna [Isuna, Hasekura]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, Fantasy, Economics, Drama, Middle Ages
Publisher: Drunken Wolf Translations
Published: 2013-08-02T08:33:02+00:00

Fred was too weighed down with his armor to keep up with the wild ram, so he was leaning too far back and Lawrence was able to score a hit. Of course, the spearhead harmlessly fell off as he did, even if Fred did collapse onto the ground. Lawrence couldn’t believe what had happened, and cast aside his broken spear to run to Fred.

“Mr. Fred!”

Lawrence saw Fred staring straight up at the sky, though he was impressed to find that the old man was still clutching his sword. Lawrence instinctively worried that Fred’s back had given out, but soon remembered that he couldn’t possibly get up with that set of armor on his body. Fred stared straight up and spoke in a booming voice.

“So God has finally given up on me.”

He slowly turned his head to stare at Lawrence.

“But will you show mercy?”

Fred struggled to search for his dagger with his left hand, and lifted it up to Lawrence.

“If so, then finish me off with one quick, clean stab.”

Lawrence was like any other traveler who used a dagger as a tool for everything from carving to eating, but the dagger being handed to him was a weapon of war. Fred was offering the hilt to Lawrence, holding the blade in his gauntlet. Lawrence felt like he was staring at a fellow merchant handing him a blank check.

Knights had a rigid code of honor, and their own ways of ending such battles. Such armor could only be defeated with a lucky decapitating blow from a broadsword or a powerful thrust from a strong spear, skewing their opponent’s chest. Neither was a particularly pleasant way to die, so their killing blows were usually more merciful stabs between the helmet and breastplate.

Fred was staring at Lawrence, fully prepared to die. He was deadly serious, and it made Lawrence hesitate. The pressure of the situation ultimately won out, but Lawrence could only swallow as he realized how much longer this dagger was compared to the ones he was used to. Fred was being far too serious.. didn’t he just want a symbolic death?

The Count was dead, and not even thieves honored him with their presence. Once his term of service was over, the monastery wouldn’t support him. All too soon, this place would be forgotten, along with the treasure vault this old knight had shown him. Committing suicide was a grave sin, but being killed in battle was honorable. Lawrence stared back at Fred, gripping the dagger tightly to keep his hand from trembling. He took a deep breath, and finally realized there was writing etched onto the dagger.

“God is merciful.”

Lawrence was awestruck. Knights were supposed to stoically accept their defeat, but that didn’t mean they wanted to die. They couldn’t say that out loud, so they carved their sentiments onto their weapons instead. They really did have a culture as heroic as the legends stated. Fred relaxed his neck and looked back up at the sky.. but he felt more than relaxed, he felt like a free man.

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