Chapter 15

The day was beautiful.

Esdel, who had woken up at the crack of dawn, thought to herself as she felt the wind blowing in through the open window. It was too nice a day to be heading out on a sudden mission.

The maids, who had heard the news of her sudden departure the previous night, had packed her bags with utmost care. She hadn’t even had the chance to properly unpack the luggage she had brought from the Reinhardt County, so there were many difficulties, but with the help of several people, she somehow managed to finish her preparations.

Esdel checked the clock once, then pulled the bell cord to call the maids.

“Where is Theodore? I won’t be able to see him for a few weeks once I leave today, so it would be nice to at least have breakfast together.”

The maid who entered with a basin of water bowed her head politely and said.

“The master went out around midnight. He asked me to tell you, should you ask for him, that you need not worry and to have a safe trip, as you will see each other again soon.”

“A sudden trip out…. He didn’t say anything about that yesterday.”

Esdel muttered to herself and gestured for the maid to leave. She had intended to at least give him a hint of how long it would take, even if she couldn’t tell him the detailed mission content, but it couldn’t be helped now that he had already left.

She left Birchwood behind, leaving behind the well-disciplined servants and a pleading Darren who begged not to be left alone.

The meeting place with the party for this mission was at a crossroads leading out of the capital, Westford. Esdel, who had arrived a little earlier than the appointed time, got off her horse after reaching her destination.

She checked the condition of her sword and the tools packed in her luggage, letting out a small sigh.

‘I didn’t expect to get a mission this quickly.’

The mission order that Darren had received from the siblings at the gambling table the previous night briefly summarized the mission location, the mission itself, and the background knowledge required for its execution. The mission location was Tivollars, the capital of the Greedion Republic, a place that was a three-day horse ride from the capital, Westford.

The mission order was divided into an official mission and the actual mission.

The official mission for Esdel’s party was to attend the Eve of the Night of the Winter Queen festival in the Greedion Republic on behalf of the Order of Salvation. And the actual mission was to take advantage of the chaotic atmosphere of the festival to dig into the Caldea Research Institute.

The Caldea Research Institute, which produced all sorts of tools utilizing the power of The Unknown, including anti-Unknown weapons.

The mission order contained information about the suspicious movements recently occurring there. According to an anonymous informant, the institute’s products were being manufactured in unethical and illegal ways.

It wasn’t hard to guess what was happening.

They called it The Unknown because no one could properly grasp it.

But if one institution had significantly more information than others, where could that information have come from? Most likely, it was because they were using methods that others did not. Human experimentation, or other methods one would rather not think about.

Esdel let out another sigh.

The information she received did not specify the course of action after digging up information on the Caldea Research Institute. In other words, it meant to see and hear, but keep her mouth shut.

‘It feels sketchy.’

In any way one looked at it, this was not a mission to be given to a new member. Even if, giving them a hundred concessions, it was for the practical training of a new member, the party members accompanying her would need to be reliable to maintain a balance. But….

“That, the gambling table siblings, they seem to be in the same order as you, my lady… They must have seen me when I came to the workshop with you before. They knew I was your knight and gave me this mission order. They said if I did the errand, they would let me leave with my clothes on….”

The memory of Darren smiling, saying he had avoided returning home naked thanks to them, made her blood boil again. The knight who had gambled away even his clothes was a problem, but as the saying goes, the arm bends inwards, and she couldn’t help but look unfavorably on the people running the gambling table.

They were people on the complete opposite side of the virtues of diligence and hard work. It was an act of extorting money from others and putting it in their own pockets, just barely avoiding the realm of fraud, so it felt not much different from a pickpocket. She didn’t know how skilled they were, but she had no desire to be friendly with them on a personal level.

From the mission location to the party members and the content of the mission, many things were not to her liking. She could have wriggled out of it by making an excuse about not feeling well, but the manager of the Order of Salvation was by no means a pushover.

“And, if you weren’t pleased with it, my lady, she said to look at the back….”

On the back of the mission order was a short letter scribbled in ink. Judging by the handwriting, it was undoubtedly left by the manager, Jillian.

At this point, the place with the most information about The Unknown is the Caldea Research Institute. It is presumed to have a close relationship with the autonomous security force, which has its center in the Cartara Archipelago.

P.S. No need to worry about being untrained! Life is all about practical experience. Sir Esdel doesn’t even die, so isn’t learning with your body the best way?

Jillian knew exactly what Esdel wanted. Information about The Unknown, especially the movements of the Awakened within the Cartara Archipelago, was a bait Esdel could never refuse. So irresistible that she couldn’t refuse even if they paired her with someone worse than a gambling den owner.

Soon, she saw the red-haired siblings riding side by side on horseback in the distance. Esdel put the order away and turned around. The two, who had stopped a few steps ahead, looked down at her from their horses.

“Esdel Reinhardt?”

The female of the siblings spoke first. When Esdel nodded, she gave a nod as if that was enough. Then, without even a proper introduction, she started to ride ahead.

“Wait….”

The woman didn’t even pretend to hear Esdel’s words and was already far away. Esdel cursed inwardly and hastily mounted her horse. Then she began to chase after the two people who were already just a cloud of dust in the distance.

Esdel gritted her teeth and gripped the reins. They must have thought she would back down and fail to catch up if they started a race out of the blue, but that was a huge miscalculation. The only opponents she had ever lost to were Lin and Baz.

Separate from her dislike of the mission, her pride wouldn’t allow her to be left behind like this.

The first time she caught up with them was on the moat beyond the walls of Westford. The twins, seemingly not expecting Esdel to follow, had stopped to drink water. Esdel glanced at the two of them and passed by. She heard the sound of them hastily mounting their horses but didn’t look back. They probably knew the way, so she figured they would follow along somehow.

After leading and following each other a few times like that, the three of them finally stopped when their horses started to pant from exhaustion.

Esdel was sure of it.

Those bastards, they would have left her behind if she hadn’t been able to keep up.

The glance they shot her, as if surprised, made that suspicion a fact.

As she slid off her horse and was about to tie the reins to a tree, she saw the male of the siblings approaching. He spoke with an awkward expression.

“Hello! Um… Cess said to tell you that you’re pretty good. Ah, Cess is my younger sister. I’m Prince.”

“I’m Esdel Reinhardt. Though it seems you already know. You can call me Esdel.”

Prince nodded and held out his hand to Esdel. Esdel habitually extended her hand with the back facing up, but Prince grabbed her hand and shook it up and down.

‘Ah, a handshake….’

Esdel, feeling awkward at the unfamiliar greeting, subtly pulled her hand back.

She had forgotten while spending time with Theodore, but who would kiss the back of a hand other than those born and raised as nobles? Her fiancé was the strange one. If she didn’t want to be too obvious about her noble background, she would have to get used to handshakes from now on.

Prince handed her a water bottle, telling her to quench her thirst, and asked.

“I heard from Jillian that you can’t die, Esdel?”

“Yes.”

“Cess and I have the ability to know each other’s thoughts even from a distance. Not all thoughts are transmitted… it’s more like the thoughts we want to send are heard in our minds as a form of telepathy.”

Esdel listened to Prince’s explanation and nodded.

No wonder it felt like there was too little conversation even with her in the middle. It wasn’t that there was no conversation, but they were having a conversation in their minds that only Esdel didn’t know about.

She sighed inwardly at the developing situation.

This, if she wasn’t careful, she would become a complete third wheel. Even if the two of them talked, decided, and moved together, Esdel wouldn’t know a thing.

Separate from her displeasure with the two, it seemed she would have to win over at least one of them to her side if she didn’t want to be alienated from this mission. If she stood by blankly without knowing what was going on, she would miss out on all the information she could get.

Cess, who hadn’t given her a single glance so far, and Prince, who was at least smiling on the outside.

Esdel looked at the two in turn and made her decision. She didn’t know what his actual personality was like, but Prince would be easier to win over than Cess, who didn’t even acknowledge her.

Esdel asked Prince with a kind face.

“Have you ever been to the western part of Arpenta? My hometown is there.”

👑🏰

Esdel’s strategy was quite successful. Prince showed great interest in the resorts and hot springs of the Reinhardt territory. Having come from the west and mostly staying in the capital, the stories of the eastern mountain range must have been unfamiliar to him.

“Cess, did you just hear that? A hot spring. They say warm, blue water gushes out from the ground!”

“……”

“Don’t speak in your head, say it out loud, Cess. Jillian told us to only use our abilities when necessary.”

“……”

“What? You’re saying now is a necessary time?”

Watching Prince tilt his head, Esdel let out a deep breath from behind. There must be a reason for such hostility from the very first meeting, but she couldn’t figure out what it was.

‘Does she know me?’

Esdel frowned for a moment, then shook her head. That couldn’t be it. She had almost exclusively stayed in the Reinhardt County, and her visits to the capital could be counted on one hand.

Beneath the woman’s red hair, tied back messily, her brown eyes flashed. And at her waist was the expensive sword that Esdel had bought for Darren. It had been a considerable expense for her as well, so she couldn’t help but feel a pang every time she saw it.

“…Look away.”

Does she have eyes on the back of her head? A sharp voice came back as soon as Esdel had stared for a few seconds.

Esdel stealthily averted her gaze and touched her forehead. The ominous feeling she had since receiving the mission order was growing stronger.

Suppressing the desire to return to Birchwood immediately, she went over what she had to do once more.

Investigate the Caldea Research Institute and report the findings to Jillian. And in the process, create an opportunity to talk to a high-ranking official of the autonomous security force or a researcher connected to them to find out the cause of the sudden influx of The Consumed into the Reinhardt County.

That’s as far as she would think.

Once the target of her revenge was identified, she would end her revenge without dragging it out.

And she would return.

To the Reinhardt territory where she had grown up her whole life, to a peaceful daily life without The Unknown and The Consumed.

👑🏰

To cross from Arpenta to Tivollars, the capital of Greedion, one had to pass through the trade city of Verion. To avoid passing through Verion’s checkpoint, one would have to cross two mountains, which, aside from being illegal, was by no means a recommended route.

Not only was it teeming with ferocious beasts, but the hunters deployed to catch those beasts also conducted indiscriminate hunting. If an arrow shot in the dark hit a person instead of a bear, they would not be held responsible.

As Esdel approached the checkpoint, she found someone shouting curses. It wasn’t just one or two people arguing with the soldiers at the checkpoint with frustrated faces. A long line had formed behind them, but almost no one was passing through the checkpoint; they were all turning back.

Prince stopped a merchant who was walking this way and asked.

“What’s going on up ahead? The line doesn’t seem to be getting any shorter.”

“Up ahead? Damn it, those crazy bastards are telling people to strip naked if they want to pass.”

“…What?”

Prince’s eyes widened.

“They’re about to strip women and children too. Pfft, how can anyone do business in this filth!”

The merchant, his face flushed red with anger, strode away. Prince looked back and forth between Esdel and Cess with a bewildered expression.

Cess looked at the long line of people in front of her, then nodded to Prince. Prince, after making eye contact with Cess for a few seconds, opened his mouth.

“Esdel, Cess says it would be better to camp out tonight and see how things go. The checkpoint will be closing soon anyway, so there’s no point in waiting in line. Let’s try going in the morning.”

“Alright, that sounds better.”

Esdel nodded. But she couldn’t stop her face from darkening. According to the schedule, it seemed they would only be staying at inns without camping, so she hadn’t packed any proper camping gear. She had a blanket, but that was far from enough in this weather.

‘I hate being cold.’

Sighing wouldn’t change anything. She had no choice but to sleep huddled right next to the campfire.

Prince, seeing Esdel’s downcast face, added another word.

“But don’t worry too much! I’ve packed all the cooking utensils in preparation for camping.”

“Cooking?”

“Yes! I packed baguettes, and, um, also apples, and I even bought chocolate for a hefty price!”

“……”

Just hearing the ingredients made it obvious that he had no talent for cooking. If he had packed onions or salt, they could have at least made some stew, but the ingredients Prince listed definitely didn’t sound like they were for ‘cooking.’

‘I wondered what was in that big bag, and it seems it was full of bulky and impractical ingredients.’

Esdel immediately gave up any expectation for dinner. Still, there were apples, so eating one would keep her from starving.

She left Prince, who was rummaging through his bag excitedly, and followed Cess with her eyes as she searched for a campsite. She was about to look around with her. But Esdel’s eyes caught sight of someone who shouldn’t be here.

“…Theodore?”

Once she uttered the name, she could recognize him more clearly.

The man with slightly disheveled black curly hair from riding a horse and a broad frame rarely seen in Arpenta. The blue eyes, now so familiar she could draw them in her dreams, were staring blankly this way.

“Um, Esdel. Do you know him? He’s been staring this way for a while….”

Prince, who had approached her at some point, muttered. Esdel nodded and replied.

“…Yes, I know him. He’s my fiancé.”

Theodore started to approach the two of them. Esdel, not knowing how to react, clasped her hands tightly. Should she greet him happily, saying it was good to see him here? Or should she question him about why the person who left last night was here?

Before she could make a decision, he was already two steps away. The man gave a gentle smile to Esdel, who was gaping.

“What a coincidence. Isn’t it?”

Without waiting for Esdel’s reply, he immediately turned his gaze to Prince.

“I am Theodore. Esdel and I are soon to be married.”

“So you’re her fiancé! Uh, I didn’t expect to see you here like this, but it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Prince seemed taken aback for a moment, but he quickly changed his expression and welcomed Theodore. After exchanging a few pleasantries, they even shook hands.

“If you are thinking of camping, would you like to join us? As you can see, it has become difficult to pass the checkpoint, so there aren’t many camping spots left.”

Theodore suggested with a friendly face. Prince was quiet for a moment, then readily accepted. It seemed he had a conversation with Cess, who had gone to find a camping spot, during that brief silence.

“We would be grateful if you did!”

“Then let’s go together. This way.”

Theodore pointed west of the checkpoint and wrapped his arm around Esdel’s shoulder. The man, with his remaining hand, even took the horse’s reins she was holding and slowly started to walk. After taking one step with him in a fluster, she couldn’t stop after that.

As Esdel moved hesitantly, Theodore asked nonchalantly.

“Am I walking too fast?”

“…No. It’s not that.”

When she couldn’t utter the next words and closed her mouth, a small laugh was heard by her ear.

“I’m sure you have many questions. Let’s first unpack our luggage at the campsite and rest from our journey for a moment. Then ask me anything.”

“You won’t answer everything I ask.”

“Asking good questions is an ability in itself. Isn’t it?”

She felt a hand caressing her fingers. The ring on her ring finger was gently pressed and released repeatedly by the man’s playful fingers. A simple gesture sent a shiver down her spine.

Esdel, without realizing it, looked around. Prince was walking five steps ahead, and Cess was still nowhere to be seen. No one was watching them.

A rough hand slipped between her trembling fingers. It pushed in gently, and soon their palms met. Esdel flinched in surprise and turned her head. The man was smiling with a serene face. As if pretending the hand moving below was not his own.

The ring was pressed between their intertwined fingers. The sharp pain seemed to engrave the ring’s presence even more clearly.

“Esdel, I have a companion at the campsite.”

“A companion, you say.”

“Yes, she is a seventeen-year-old girl whom I helped when she was in trouble on the way here. It seems she was attacked by someone, as she was a mess, hiding under a broken cart.”

“You showed her kindness. But… is there a reason you are explaining this to me in such detail?”

“Because it is something you ought to know.”

The man replied with a gentle smile.

Esdel didn’t answer and kept her mouth firmly shut. She felt ashamed, as if her inner thoughts had been completely exposed, and at the same time, she was amazed by the man who could see through her heart so clearly.

If she had heard about another companion only after arriving at the campsite, Esdel would have surely been a little upset. Even more so if that companion was a girl on the cusp of adulthood. Regardless of their relationship, it was obvious how people would view them when they traveled together.

“We’ve arrived.”

The campsite that Theodore had claimed beforehand came into view. At the same time, she felt the grip of their intertwined hands loosen. It was a sign that it was okay to let go now.

She didn’t know why she did it. Esdel quietly squeezed the hand that was about to pull away. The finger with the ring hurt from being pressed. Theodore probably felt it too. Because a ring of a similar design to the one Esdel wore was on his ring finger as well.

Theodore said nothing. The sun was setting, and the red glow of the sunset touched the ground.

Fiancé. And the person who would soon be her husband.

‘Will this person also become a part of my daily life someday?’

Just before Esdel could open her mouth to say something. A voice calling her was heard from ahead.

“Esdel, I think we can unpack our things over here! There’s plenty of space!”

Prince was waving at her.

She flinched in surprise and threw the hand she was holding away. With her head bowed low, she snatched the horse’s reins from Theodore’s grasp and, after three attempts, managed to get the luggage off the horse’s back.

“I’m coming… Ouch!”

As she moved in a hurry, her body tripped over a stone and tumbled forward. Esdel, who had squeezed her eyes shut, felt the sensation of an arm grabbing her waist.

“Be careful.”

The face that came into view as soon as she opened her eyes was gentle and warm. Theodore helped her stand up straight, then picked up the luggage that had fallen to the floor and handed it to her. The mission order was peeking out from between the drawstring of the luggage bag.

It felt as if her mind, which had been floating on clouds, was being dragged down in an instant.

It was dangerous. When emotional distance is close, reason tends to lose its power.

The change was evident just by looking at how she was treating the man who had been an object of caution and fear when they first met. Even though she had faced a half-crazed man just a few days ago, she wasn’t wary of him.

“I, I’ll… unpack my things. See you later.”

Esdel ran towards Prince’s direction without looking back. Her two cheeks, as she ran, were undeniably red.

👑🏰

She couldn’t remember how she had managed to organize her luggage. Had she pushed away Theodore who had caught her from falling, grabbed her luggage, and run to throw it at the spot Prince had indicated?

‘What was in there? Were there any fragile items?’

Esdel, who had been blankly warming herself by the campfire, shook her head. What fragile items. Of course there weren’t any. If there had been, they would have broken long ago while riding the horse.

She shook her head and listened to the party’s conversation. They were talking about the checkpoint.

“…So, what do we do? I went around and asked, and it seems the checkpoint has been this strict for months now. I heard that desperate people only passed after actually stripping.”

Prince said with a sigh.

Theodore pushed a potato deep into the campfire and opened his mouth.

“There is no need to worry too much. I looked around, and there don’t seem to be any nobles or wealthy merchants camping nearby.”

“Come to think of it….”

“The Night of the Winter Queen is approaching, isn’t it? There will be distinguished guests invited to the eve festival, so they won’t be able to block them indefinitely. I think we can get in if we reveal our identities and add a little something to the passage fee.”

Only after hearing those words did Prince look relieved.

But Esdel’s face did not brighten up.

There must be many people crossing the border to meet their families before the end of the year. But to have difficulty passing the checkpoint even at this time. It was not a normal form of inspection.

Besides, if they were checking nudity, something immediately came to mind.

‘The mark of The Unknown….’

The sign of awakening that appears randomly on a part of the body. What if this checkpoint was trying to filter out the Awakened? It was difficult to know the reason, but it seemed certain that something was happening inside the Greedion Republic.

A red apple suddenly appeared in the vision of Esdel, who was hugging her knees with an anxious face. When she looked up, the girl who was said to be Theodore’s companion was holding out the apple.

“Um… would you like this? You don’t seem to have eaten anything….”

The girl, with long blonde hair braided and coiled into a bun, had a small frame for her age. She looked a couple of years younger than her actual age.

“Thank you.”

Esdel took the apple she offered. When she took a bite, a sour juice filled her mouth. It wasn’t sweet, but it didn’t seem bad as a palate cleanser.

“Your name is Rea, right?”

“Yes, Rea Plevin.”

She had the impression of being a person of few words, but the way she clearly stated her name made her seem smart. Esdel took another bite of the apple and asked nonchalantly.

“It must have been hard traveling alone.”