Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Led to one of the most secluded of the many tents, Isabella arrived at a temporary barrack where Ijef held the flap open and spoke.

“This will be your tent, my lady. Please rest comfortably. I’ll take my leave now.”

Apparently swamped with unresolved matters, Ijef turned on his heel and strode off toward a cluster of knights without waiting for a response.

Watching him go for a moment, Isabella then bent slightly to enter the tent, only to pause as a thought crossed her mind.

‘Oh, right. I never got to thank the Duke. Since this is the knights’ camp, maybe he’s still nearby?’

Recalling Cedric, who had saved her from the threat of the Undead King, Isabella straightened and glanced around. She found him much sooner than expected.

Just a few meters away, in front of a nearby tent, Cedric stood surrounded by knights, receiving reports.

“Send a carrier pigeon to His Highness with a preliminary report.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll dispatch it immediately.”

“Philip, have you informed the local lord?”

“He said he’ll send officials and recovery forces by tomorrow morning at the latest.”

“Good.”

Seeing how busy he was, Isabella hesitated to approach. Instead, she ducked behind the tent and watched him in secret.

‘Whoa… He really stands out. How can someone look like a sculpture?’

The furrow between his brows, the sharp line of his jaw, the finely sculpted nOhse – it was as if a master artisan had poured his soul into a final masterpiece.

Mesmerized, Isabella gaped as Cedric irritably brushed back his long silver hair. 

Without realizing it, she whispered, “He looks just like—oh!”

Startled by her own words, she quickly clapped her hands over her mouth.

‘What am I even thinking…! No, I mean, it’s not like people with that kind of aura are common. Maybe…’

As she mentally retraced her words, an image resurfaced overlaid atop Cedric’s face was that of a boy etched deeply in her memory.

A young boy with similar silver hair and lake-clear teal eyes.

Though bruised and battered, the boy had radiated a warmth as bright and vibrant as a forest spirit.

If that cheerful boy had grown up… wouldn’t he look just like Cedric? she wondered.

‘If my hunch is right…’

But just as she was about to lOhse herself in thought, Cedric’s eyes locked onto hers.

‘Oh no. Did he notice I was spying? Is he mad?’

His sharp gaze pinned her in place. She froze like a deer caught in the open.

Without taking his eyes off her, Cedric flicked his wrist twice to dismiss the knights and strode toward her. Backlit by the camp’s lanterns, his long shadow stretched forward, slowly engulfing her.

Then he stopped directly in front of her and asked, “Do you need something from me?”

Hic!

Overwhelmed by his towering presence and the emotionless chill in his voice, Isabella hiccuped uncontrollably. Mortified, she lowered her head, then remembering her original intent, bowed even deeper.

“Th-thank you for earlier. Hic! If you hadn’t come when you did, hic! I wouldn’t be here right now. Hic!“

‘Ugh! Please stop already!’

She wanted to crawl into a hole. The hiccups wouldn’t let her finish a single sentence properly.

“I was merely doing my duty. Think nothing of it,” he replied curtly, his tone devoid of emotion.

The bluntness of his answer sobered her instantly.

‘Seriously, what was I doing? Gawking like a fool because of a pretty face?’

Chastising herself, Isabella straightened, adjusted her posture, and forced a polite smile.

“…I see. Even so, please know that I am sincerely grateful.”

“I understand. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.”

Do all knights have to be this cold?

The moment he finished speaking, he turned away without a second thought. The abruptness stung more than she’d expected.

‘Why does he even have to resemble him in that way, too…’

As his figure receded, she again saw a glimpse of that warm-hearted boy in him, leaving her heart in turmoil.

Maybe that’s why… 

“Y-Your Grace!”

She called out before she could stop herself. When Cedric halted and turned back to face her, she continued cautiously,

“Have we… met before?”

It sounded like some cheesy pickup line from a third-rate flirt, and her face turned crimson the moment the words left her lips. But it was Cedric’s reaction that embarrassed her even more.

“…”

He said nothing. Instead, his expression grew darker, as if he might draw his sword at any second.

“N-no, that’s not what I meant. You just looked really familiar, so I thought… oh! Maybe I just mistook you for someone else! That happens all the time, right?”

Panicking under his withering glare, Isabella backpedaled frantically.

Cedric didn’t even seem to find it worth responding to. With a snap of his cloak, he turned away and answered coldly.

“We have not.”

Her flushed face burned like it might explode. Ducking her head, she rushed back to her tent and dove under the temporary bedding like she was fleeing for her life.

‘Ugh! I want to die!’

So much shame, she couldn’t even lift her face.

Thump! Thump! Flop!

She kicked at the bed and thrashed in her sleeping bag until she finally collapsed like a marionette with its strings cut.

‘Why did I have to say that…’

She wanted nothing more than to turn back time, but it was too late. The words were out there. Still, aside from the embarrassment, a shadow of sadness lingered in her heart.

“Guess I was wrong. What a fool I was, thinking we might meet again in a place like this…”

With a heavy sigh, she rolled onto her back.

From beneath her clothing, she pulled out a necklace. On it hung a single ring, simple, undecorated, but set with a gem that shimmered with waves of blue even in the dim light of the tent.

Gazing at the mysteriously glowing ring, Isabella was drawn into memories of the boy who had once worn it.

* * *

It was a summer day, the air hot enough to make even the breeze feel like a furnace.

Nine-year-old Isabella wasn’t at a playground, but trudging through the monster-infested Hides Mountains, garden shears in hand. At last, she reached a bubbling, murky swamp where blood-red water boiled and frothed. Her eyes lit up at the sight.

“Wow! I finally found it!”

Among long, slender leaves stood stalks that looked like sausages on skewers.

Cattails – this was the largest swamp in the Hides Mountains and the richest in cattails.

Turning back with excitement, she shouted, “Baal! Hurry over here! There’s tons of the herbs Grandpa Ohse told us about!”

“Oh, my lady! Herb-hunting or not, we really should head back now! It gets dark much faster in these mountains, I’m telling ya!”

Baal came running with both herb baskets in hand, gesturing urgently toward the setting sun. But Isabella, calmly snipping cattails with her shears, was completely unbothered.

“Alright, alright. Just let me gather these and we’ll go. No way I’m leaving without them today.”

Their teacher, a Lich named Ohse, had assigned her the task of collecting these herbs as homework, knowing her interest in medicinal plants. Being a fairly diligent student, Isabella was determined to earn a ‘Well Done!’ cookie sticker.

After stuffing her basket full, she dusted off her hands and began the descent with Baal. As she picked up speed on the downhill trail, Baal grew increasingly nervous.

“You’ll trip at this rate, my lady! Please slow down!”

She waved him off.

“I’ll be fine! As long as the trees don’t trip me with their roots, there’s nothing to worry about.”

“Still… don’t stray too far! It’s almost time for wild monsters to start prowling!”

“Geez, I’ll be fine. Monsters don’t come near me anyway. You’re such a worrywart, Baal.”

He opened his mouth to protest but couldn’t quite find the words.

Understandable since her intense dark magic aura was enough to scare off most monsters just from the sight of her hair. But danger always strikes when least expected.

Ukki-giik!

A pack of monkey-like beasts, teeth sharp as shark fangs, suddenly burst from the forest.

“What the… what’s with them?!”

Fortunately, or perhaps not, they weren’t after her. The monsters were fleeing, like something was chasing them.

Alarmed, Isabella exchanged glances with Baal, then turned toward the direction they had come from.

The sun had already dipped below the horizon, and the dense crimson trees blocked her view.

She couldn’t sense anything unusual.

“Hmm, no high-tier monsters around. What about you, Baal?”

Closing his eyes, Baal lifted his snout and sniffed sharply.

“I’m not sensing anything either, my lady. But that doesn’t mean we should go charging in there… wait, my lady?!”

When he opened his eyes, Isabella was already marching into the forest. Shrieking, Baal ran after her in a panic.

“Are you out of your mind?! We don’t even know what’s in there!”

But Isabella simply tapped the back of his neck and beamed.

“Aren’t you curious? If there aren’t any monsters, something else must’ve scared them off. Something’s going on in there.”

She paused for dramatic effect, then added with a confident glint in her eyes:

“Like… an intruder sneaking into a forest humans aren’t supposed to enter.”

With that, she dashed off into the trees again, arms swinging. Baal clutched his horns and groaned.

“This curiosity is going to be the death of me!”

Driven mad with worry, Baal could only follow.

Moments later, Isabella came to a sudden stop. With a grim expression, she muttered, “This smell… blood?”