Chapter 98
Snowy plains.
A place completely covered in snow had also been enveloped in a quiet dawn.
Then, sounds began to break the silence of that dawn.
It was no easy feat for a large gray hand to break through the snow that had accumulated over 200 years; it took quite some time before it finally emerged.
Thump, thump!
Before long, dozens of large gray hands rose above the white snow.
The monsters, having been asleep for a long time, shook their bodies roughly and shook off the snow.
They had been buried under this cold snow for 200 years, fully aware of their surroundings. The depth of their anger was immeasurable.
And the arrows of that anger aimed towards the place where their comrades had suffered the most deaths: the northern castle.
Kieeeek!
Kieee!
The chilling cries of dozens, hundreds of creatures echoed throughout the north.
The prologue to the war that would follow 200 years later had begun.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
Kaien opened his eyes in the early dawn.
Rising from the thick darkness, he realized that it had been less than a few hours since he had parted ways with Philome.
After getting out of bed and standing in front of the window, he gazed at the solid and sturdy castle walls.
In the past few hundred years of war against the monsters, there had only been two occasions when monsters had crossed these castle walls.
Once before the second saint appeared, and once 200 years ago.
One was a crisis, and the other was an opportunity.
Kaien pondered whether this time, if the monsters were to cross over, it would be a crisis or an opportunity. He couldn’t even begin to guess.
The future was shrouded in uncertainty, yet Kaien was not as anxious as he had been before.
In fact, after ten years of seeking revenge, what Kaien disliked the most was the unpredictable.
However, everything changed after meeting Philome, whose thoughts and actions were completely unpredictable. With Philome by his side, Kaien was no longer afraid to step forward into the thick fog ahead.
It was then.
Kaien sensed that monsters were charging through the blizzard beyond.
Booouuu-!
The deafening sound of a horn echoed throughout the castle.
Kaien grabbed the sword he always kept within reach and wrapped himself in a cloak.
As Kaien made his way toward the castle walls, footprints were left behind in the snow.
When Kaien climbed to the top of the walls, the townspeople hurriedly armed themselves and moved about, searching for their positions.
Standing there, Kaien drew his sword again at the sound of the horn. After kissing the handkerchief tightly tied to the hilt, he jumped down from the castle walls.
Kieeeek-!
He swung his sword down toward the writhing monster that opened its mouth wide toward him.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
The monsters appeared in the early dawn before the sun had even risen.
Philome, who had fallen asleep late while watching the moon with Kaien, woke up only after the second horn sounded.
Having barely slept for a few hours, she could have felt dazed but instinctively sensed that the horn just sounded distinctly different from the previous ones.
With her senses sharpened, Philome quickly changed her clothes and draped a cloak over herself.
Knowing that she had to take care of herself first in order to help someone, she reminded Sophia to put plenty of heat stones inside her cloak.
Philome headed straight for Liazell’s room.
Liazell was receiving assistance from Emma, her face slightly tense.
“Philome!”
Liazell spotted Philome and greeted her with a relieved expression.
“Liazell, you’re awake too?”
“Yes, but Philome, the monsters have started coming, right?”
“That’s right.”
Philome did not hide the truth from Liazell.
She knelt down to match her eye level.
“It’s going to be quite chaotic. It might be a bit tough, but you can hold on, right, Liazell?”
“Yes, I can do it.”
“Don’t ever stray from Emma or Bear, and don’t meet anyone from the temple alone. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I can keep all of Philome’s instructions.”
Seeing Liazell respond bravely, Philome smiled and patted her head.
“You’re really reliable. Amazing, Liazell.”
“I’ll be busy digging up potatoes in the meantime.”
Not everyone from the territory could participate in the battle. Those who were young or old had to continue harvesting in the greenhouse to ensure a steady supply of food.
Realizing this, Liazell stepped forward, expressing her desire to help with that task.
The greenhouse was an important place responsible for the castle’s food supply, located far from the walls, making it one of the safest spots even if monsters were to come over.
With everyone’s permission, Liazell was able to assist with food supply in the greenhouse.
Liazell tightly grasped Philome’s hand.
“Don’t get hurt, Philome. Please tell Grandma, Grandpa, and Uncle as well.”
“Everyone would probably prefer to hear it directly from you, but given the circumstances, I’ll pass it along instead.”
Philome gave Liazell a brief kiss on the forehead before standing up.
“Sophia, Sir Jake, Sir Ken, are you ready?”
After leaving Liazell’s room, Philome was greeted by Sophia, Jake, and Ken, who were holding a first aid kit.
“Of course, Miss! We’ve been ready for a while now!”
“We’re prepared.”
Philome spoke to Natasha and decided to assign her the task of treating the injured.
Given the urgent situation, Natasha would also have to join the knights to fight the monsters, so she willingly handed Philome the key to the storage room containing bandages and medicinal herbs.
“Sir Jake is my escort, so please help me around. Sir Ken, please bring the injured to me.”
After reiterating the roles assigned to each person, Philome took a deep breath one last time before leaving the castle.
“Three monsters are trying to climb the walls from the northeast! Prepare hot water!”
“Four additional monsters have been spotted in the northwest! Requesting additional support!”
“One monster from the northeast has been taken down! Two remain!”
Those who had climbed the tower used magical tools to amplify their voices and relay the situation. While Theodore and Kaien were down below the walls facing the monsters, Natasha was in charge here.
Natasha dealt with the monsters climbing the walls and gave orders to Dale, who communicated them to everyone.
Philome was the first to approach a nearby territory resident, applying gauze to the bleeding forearm and wrapping it to stop the bleeding.
“Thank you.”
As soon as the bleeding was stopped, the resident stood up and moved the hot water.
Afterward, Ken and Sophia brought in the injured. While the number of injured was not small, there were very few with severe injuries.
As Philome’s clothes gradually became stained with red blood, a sudden burst of light occurred.
“Y-Yes, it’s truly the Saintess!”
At Johannes’s terrified shout, Philome turned her head.
Nadia had climbed the walls and was reaching down. Johannes crouched down, trembling, showering praises upon Nadia.
“The only one who can kill monsters like that in one go is the Saintess! Others need to know about this!”
In the chaotic situation, Philome had momentarily forgotten about Nadia, but knowing that she could handle the monsters in one go, she refocused on the injured.
“Sophia, go to the storage and bring more herbs and bandages!”
“Yes, Miss!”
Philome sent Sophia to the storage to gather what was needed in advance.
At that moment, Ken approached, carrying someone over his shoulder.
“Sir Ken, hurry down…”
Philome paused when she recognized the person Ken had set down.
It was Winston.
Before Philome could react, Ken spoke.
“I’ll take care of His Highness the Third Prince. I need to inform him of the situation anyway.”
Ken unceremoniously dropped Winston onto the ground, then tore off his armor with one hand and pressed gauze onto the wound.
As the unconscious Winston let out a small groan, Philome snapped back to her senses and wrapped a bandage around the injured person who had come to her.
“There are about a hundred monsters. We’ve taken down half of them. The Duke and Sir Theodore are a bit away from the castle, dealing with the monsters coming from the front, and it seems neither of them has any injuries.”
As Ken wrapped bandages around Winston’s wounded arm, he continued, “As they dealt with the approaching monsters, it seems the rest are starting to retreat. If Lady Natasha’s predictions are correct, the monsters will withdraw in about an hour.”
“You’ve worked hard. I’ll check the rest, so Sir Ken, please bring in other injured people.”
After tightly securing the bandage, Ken looked down at Winston with a displeased expression.
