A convent in the stillness of the morning.
The sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating the gray stone floor of the refectory.
"There's a squire who made a name for himself in House Bayezid."
"I heard he was able to use Aura in Deirmar."
Although the convent was made of gloomy gray stone, the atmosphere wasn't as heavy as it could have been with the chattering of young girls who had not yet become nuns.
Moreover, the rumors circulating at that time in the convent were enough to lighten the mood.
"But have you heard that the squire is incredibly handsome?"
"Blond hair, blue eyes. Maybe he's from a noble family?"
There was a lot of talk about someone who sparked the rosy imagination of the young girls.
"Blond?"
The red-haired girl, crouching and brushing the floor, heard the nostalgic word from the girls beside her.
"He must be a knight since he managed to use Aura at such a young age."
"Maybe someday he'll be a knight representing the North."
"...He surely will be."
Zemina strained to listen, just in case, but at this point, she had lost interest in the fanciful tale.
Blond hair, blue eyes. And a boy dreaming of becoming a knight.
There were indeed words that sounded like Vlad, but the combination of all of them made it much less probable.
It was impossible for the boy who had barely left the alley to be already so accomplished.
I hope he's still alive and well.
Thud.
Zemina smiled for a moment, thinking of the blond boy.
Something fell next to the girl.
"Hey, redhead."
"......"
One of the girls who had been chatting for a while approached Zemina and dropped the brush she had in her hand.
"Do everything else, we've done enough for you, haven't we?"
"Yeah, sure, you don't even pay your share and eat for free."
"You should be working your whole life to pay us back for what we gave you that day. You should be thanking us for giving you a chance."
The girls laughed as if they had just punched her in the face.
But Zemina didn't react, she stayed silent and did her work.
"You're right."
The girls were right.
It was true that she had no one to sponsor her so she could live comfortably here, and it was true that she didn't know what would have happened if the convent hadn't taken her in that day.
At least it wouldn't have been as good as it was.
"Well, anyway, you're going to be here for the rest of your life, there's nothing to do, and no one will take you out, so you better get used to things here in advance, right?"
"..."
She was right, too.
Zemina had nowhere to go if she ever left here.
The boy wasn't the only one whose home had been destroyed.
The girl who had survived in the alleys as well as anyone wasn't one to take this kind of harassment and intimidation lightly, but she decided to endure it for now.
"Here we go."
"Do it before lunch!"
If she acted as usual, they would kick her out of the convent.
They couldn't stand up to Madame Marcella, who had sacrificed herself for them that night.
"I'm glad you learned your lesson..."
Zemina, who had also done her share of household chores in the storeroom, was alone squatting in the dining room, scrubbing the floor as if she didn't care.
But no matter how much she scrubbed, she couldn't erase the memory of that day.
It was the image of the woman who had slipped between the walls of the convent and was dragged by her hair into the darkness.
She shouldn't have let her go like that.
"Ah..."
Then the girl pushed the brush harder.
She wanted to push away the memories she couldn't erase.
The girl gritted her teeth and swallowed the tears in her eyes.
The girl's unruly red hair clumsily trembled over her shoulders.
***
"Are you sure you've really used Aura?"
"..."
It was a cheerful but not very pleasant voice for the listener, especially if one constantly beat themselves up over it.
"Are you tired?"
Vlad barely held on to the swaying of the mongoose.
Beside him was a woman, riding a horse and talking non-stop.
"Why can't you ride a horse if you've used Aura? Doesn't that change things too much?"
"Well, that's just how life works..."
Vlad turned his head to look at the woman talking to him.
Black hair, black eyes, and black ears that moved.
"What are you looking at?"
A pair of white fangs showed between her stretched lips.
Too sharp to be human fangs.
Vlad didn't like those fangs.
Beside him, Rutiger's knights laughed heartily as they listened to the banter.
Perhaps he had been marked by them after the peanut incident.
"Let's go."
So be patient.
It wasn't your intention, but you brought it on yourself.
The boy had endured this teasing his whole life.
"I'm here for a vacation that never happened."
But he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Now, Vlad and Portly were following Rutiger.
Vlad had said he was on vacation, and Rutiger had suggested they go hawking together.
"If you don't come with me this time, I'll send two boxes of peanuts to Joseph."
'...'
It wasn't even a threat, but Vlad had no choice but to agree, given his previous history.
He looked up to see the head of the Kannor House, the man who had given him so much meat, looking at him with eager eyes.
For him, it was a golden opportunity to forge ties between Portly and Rutiger.
"Are Sioux always so talkative?"
"Is that racism?"
A normal person would have calmly told her to be quiet, but she wasn't that kind of person.
Next to Fether, the head of the Bayezid family, was Ragmus, the mage and advisor.
And beside Rutiger, there she was.
With her black ears perked up, she was a mage.
"Don't pay too much attention to her. Dorothea, she's just messing around."
"Every time she looks at me, she gives me that chewed-up shit look."
"They all do when you intimidate them like that."
The way Rutiger responded to her, she with a flick of her black tail, was exactly the opposite of how Vlad treated her. From Vlad's perspective, it was far from flattering.
"Cat bitch."
Vlad could only furrow his brow at the cat, acting and looking exactly like the cat he hated.
"That should be enough."
"I think we can see everything around us."
"Sure, we can."
Having apparently reached their destination, Rutiger looked around, surveying his surroundings.
"...?"
Vlad looked around.
He hadn't even taken the hawk out of its cage.
"There it is."
"I see."
Rutiger and his knights, who had been probing as if searching for something, finally found what they were looking for, and he raised his finger and pointed.
"Hmm."
Vlad casually looked in the direction they were pointing.
There were people walking across the meadow, albeit in the distance.
People dressed entirely in white, from head to toe.
They were pilgrims.
"You're lucky to see a group of pilgrims."
"Yes, this must be destiny too."
"I think they're around here..."
While listening to the chatter between Rutiger and the knights, Vlad realized that this hawking outing had another purpose.
"Raise the banner," he says, "show them our intentions and make them feel safe."
"Understood, Lord Rutiger."
As soon as Rutiger made the gesture, as if they had been waiting for it, one of the knights beside him pulled out a flag and hung it from the hawk's perch.
It seemed as natural as if the mast had been brought for that purpose.
"Let's take our time and find our prey."
Even though they were talking about hunting, no one here was prepared for it. They simply walked along the dark ridge as if protecting the pilgrims below.
The pilgrims below must have seen Rutiger’s banner and started moving too, with one of their own hanging from a post. A glyph hung high on a post. It was the same emblem as Vlad’s identification card.
When the group began to move slowly, Vlad quickly jumped off the post and moved away from Dorothea’s immediate vicinity. If you can’t fight against him, it’s better to avoid him.
“Ugh. I’m dizzy.”
“Are you okay, Vlad?”
His heart was pounding in his chest, probably because he had traveled in a swaying dalguzi that wasn’t even a carriage.
“Do you think you’re going to vomit?”
“Honestly, no.”
Vlad, who still didn’t feel well, did what the voice told him, ripped a blade of grass nearby, and put it in his mouth.
[Remember this herb; it has a mild stimulating effect.]
I wonder what he’s been up to. Every time he heard the voice, Vlad was amazed. The man’s knowledge and insight surpassed even Joseph or Jager.
Even more than the most educated nobles and experienced knights.
‘We’ll find out someday.’
Deciding that the identity of the voice was a matter to be resolved over time, Vlad chewed the bitter herb and looked out over the open meadow stretching out before him.
Things might not be going well, but at least he liked the scenery. An extensive meadow that reached the horizon. Vlad took a deep breath, feeling refreshed just by looking at the landscape.
“Eh?”
Suddenly, while looking into the distance, a group of figures appeared, moving fast.
They moved very quickly.
Galloping.
“A herd of wild horses.”
Rutiger had also seen them and frowned, his eyes fixed on the herd of wild horses galloping toward them.
It was a spectacular sight, but not very pleasant for Rutiger.
There’s nothing like a surprise when you’re escorting something.
“But why are they traveling south?”
“…Yes, a herd of wild horses at this time of year would head north instead.”
The man was right. At this time of year, when it’s warmer and the grass is fuller, prairie animals would head north, not south.
The young shoots that had just popped up would be there. But the herd of wild horses was coming from the south, not the north, where the party and the pilgrims were.
And galloping, too.
Galloping.
Vlad’s heart pounded as the herd of wild horses came closer and closer.
“Hmmm…”
Vlad thought it sounded like a sensation he had felt before and stood on the hill like Rutiger, watching the herd of wild horses run.
They were so full of life.
The sight of wild horses galloping through the meadows, their muscles burning, was something that inspired admiration in those who saw it.
“…”
Here and now, there wasn’t a single person admiring the wild horses. They only watched them with concern to see where they were going.
“They’re getting closer and closer to where the pilgrims are.”
“Their movements are strangely urgent. It’s as if they’re being chased by something…”
Galloping - Galloping - Galloping
Vlad pressed his chest to calm his tumultuous heart.
“…?”
Their gazes met.
Although he was so far away that he couldn’t even distinguish the shape, Vlad felt as if he were eye to eye with the leader of the herd, the one running in front.
All black.
It was impossible that their gazes had met, but they had surely exchanged glances.
“…..”
He couldn’t explain it, but Vlad felt as if it were talking to him. He felt that way.
“Lord Rutiger!”
One of the knights, feeling that something was wrong with the wild horses, hurried to the ground and searched for Rutiger.
“What’s happening?”
“The ground is shaking!”
Galloping
The boy who met his gaze could tell.
that the wild horses were scared.
Neighing.
The knight’s scream is horrible to the end, and the earth trembles like an earthquake.
In front of me, a group of pilgrims, startled by the vibration, step back.
Kaaaahhhhhhhhhhh.
A huge roar echoed in the middle of the meadow with the earthquake.
The ground cracks.
From it emerged a huge thing with its mouth open.
Hiiiiing-.
The jet-black that had been running at the forefront of reality, only to be slowly caught up, let out a pitiful cry.
“Deathworms!”
Wild horses being torn apart by fierce teeth.
The poor ones’ blood fell like rain.
“…!”
The boy’s heart pounded relentlessly, but it wasn’t hot blood coursing through his body but a chilling sensation.
The herd of wild horses was fleeing.
They were asking for help.
A convent in the stillness of the morning.
The sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating the gray stone floor of the refectory.
"There's a squire who made a name for himself in House Bayezid."
"I heard he was able to use Aura in Deirmar."
Although the convent was made of gloomy gray stone, the atmosphere wasn't as heavy as it could have been with the chattering of young girls who had not yet become nuns.
Moreover, the rumors circulating at that time in the convent were enough to lighten the mood.
"But have you heard that the squire is incredibly handsome?"
"Blond hair, blue eyes. Maybe he's from a noble family?"
There was a lot of talk about someone who sparked the rosy imagination of the young girls.
"Blond?"
The red-haired girl, crouching and brushing the floor, heard the nostalgic word from the girls beside her.
"He must be a knight since he managed to use Aura at such a young age."
"Maybe someday he'll be a knight representing the North."
"...He surely will be."
Zemina strained to listen, just in case, but at this point, she had lost interest in the fanciful tale.
Blond hair, blue eyes. And a boy dreaming of becoming a knight.
There were indeed words that sounded like Vlad, but the combination of all of them made it much less probable.
It was impossible for the boy who had barely left the alley to be already so accomplished.
I hope he's still alive and well.
Thud.
Zemina smiled for a moment, thinking of the blond boy.
Something fell next to the girl.
"Hey, redhead."
"......"
One of the girls who had been chatting for a while approached Zemina and dropped the brush she had in her hand.
"Do everything else, we've done enough for you, haven't we?"
"Yeah, sure, you don't even pay your share and eat for free."
"You should be working your whole life to pay us back for what we gave you that day. You should be thanking us for giving you a chance."
The girls laughed as if they had just punched her in the face.
But Zemina didn't react, she stayed silent and did her work.
"You're right."
The girls were right.
It was true that she had no one to sponsor her so she could live comfortably here, and it was true that she didn't know what would have happened if the convent hadn't taken her in that day.
At least it wouldn't have been as good as it was.
"Well, anyway, you're going to be here for the rest of your life, there's nothing to do, and no one will take you out, so you better get used to things here in advance, right?"
"..."
She was right, too.
Zemina had nowhere to go if she ever left here.
The boy wasn't the only one whose home had been destroyed.
The girl who had survived in the alleys as well as anyone wasn't one to take this kind of harassment and intimidation lightly, but she decided to endure it for now.
"Here we go."
"Do it before lunch!"
If she acted as usual, they would kick her out of the convent.
They couldn't stand up to Madame Marcella, who had sacrificed herself for them that night.
"I'm glad you learned your lesson..."
Zemina, who had also done her share of household chores in the storeroom, was alone squatting in the dining room, scrubbing the floor as if she didn't care.
But no matter how much she scrubbed, she couldn't erase the memory of that day.
It was the image of the woman who had slipped between the walls of the convent and was dragged by her hair into the darkness.
She shouldn't have let her go like that.
"Ah..."
Then the girl pushed the brush harder.
She wanted to push away the memories she couldn't erase.
The girl gritted her teeth and swallowed the tears in her eyes.
The girl's unruly red hair clumsily trembled over her shoulders.
***
"Are you sure you've really used Aura?"
"..."
It was a cheerful but not very pleasant voice for the listener, especially if one constantly beat themselves up over it.
"Are you tired?"
Vlad barely held on to the swaying of the mongoose.
Beside him was a woman, riding a horse and talking non-stop.
"Why can't you ride a horse if you've used Aura? Doesn't that change things too much?"
"Well, that's just how life works..."
Vlad turned his head to look at the woman talking to him.
Black hair, black eyes, and black ears that moved.
"What are you looking at?"
A pair of white fangs showed between her stretched lips.
Too sharp to be human fangs.
Vlad didn't like those fangs.
Beside him, Rutiger's knights laughed heartily as they listened to the banter.
Perhaps he had been marked by them after the peanut incident.
"Let's go."
So be patient.
It wasn't your intention, but you brought it on yourself.
The boy had endured this teasing his whole life.
"I'm here for a vacation that never happened."
But he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Now, Vlad and Portly were following Rutiger.
Vlad had said he was on vacation, and Rutiger had suggested they go hawking together.
"If you don't come with me this time, I'll send two boxes of peanuts to Joseph."
'...'
It wasn't even a threat, but Vlad had no choice but to agree, given his previous history.
He looked up to see the head of the Kannor House, the man who had given him so much meat, looking at him with eager eyes.
For him, it was a golden opportunity to forge ties between Portly and Rutiger.
"Are Sioux always so talkative?"
"Is that racism?"
A normal person would have calmly told her to be quiet, but she wasn't that kind of person.
Next to Fether, the head of the Bayezid family, was Ragmus, the mage and advisor.
And beside Rutiger, there she was.
With her black ears perked up, she was a mage.
"Don't pay too much attention to her. Dorothea, she's just messing around."
"Every time she looks at me, she gives me that chewed-up shit look."
"They all do when you intimidate them like that."
The way Rutiger responded to her, she with a flick of her black tail, was exactly the opposite of how Vlad treated her. From Vlad's perspective, it was far from flattering.
"Cat bitch."
Vlad could only furrow his brow at the cat, acting and looking exactly like the cat he hated.
"That should be enough."
"I think we can see everything around us."
"Sure, we can."
Having apparently reached their destination, Rutiger looked around, surveying his surroundings.
"...?"
Vlad looked around.
He hadn't even taken the hawk out of its cage.
"There it is."
"I see."
Rutiger and his knights, who had been probing as if searching for something, finally found what they were looking for, and he raised his finger and pointed.
"Hmm."
Vlad casually looked in the direction they were pointing.
There were people walking across the meadow, albeit in the distance.
People dressed entirely in white, from head to toe.
They were pilgrims.
"You're lucky to see a group of pilgrims."
"Yes, this must be destiny too."
"I think they're around here..."
While listening to the chatter between Rutiger and the knights, Vlad realized that this hawking outing had another purpose.
"Raise the banner," he says, "show them our intentions and make them feel safe."
"Understood, Lord Rutiger."
As soon as Rutiger made the gesture, as if they had been waiting for it, one of the knights beside him pulled out a flag and hung it from the hawk's perch.
It seemed as natural as if the mast had been brought for that purpose.
"Let's take our time and find our prey."
Even though they were talking about hunting, no one here was prepared for it. They simply walked along the dark ridge as if protecting the pilgrims below.
The pilgrims below must have seen Rutiger’s banner and started moving too, with one of their own hanging from a post. A glyph hung high on a post. It was the same emblem as Vlad’s identification card.
When the group began to move slowly, Vlad quickly jumped off the post and moved away from Dorothea’s immediate vicinity. If you can’t fight against him, it’s better to avoid him.
“Ugh. I’m dizzy.”
“Are you okay, Vlad?”
His heart was pounding in his chest, probably because he had traveled in a swaying dalguzi that wasn’t even a carriage.
“Do you think you’re going to vomit?”
“Honestly, no.”
Vlad, who still didn’t feel well, did what the voice told him, ripped a blade of grass nearby, and put it in his mouth.
[Remember this herb; it has a mild stimulating effect.]
I wonder what he’s been up to. Every time he heard the voice, Vlad was amazed. The man’s knowledge and insight surpassed even Joseph or Jager.
Even more than the most educated nobles and experienced knights.
‘We’ll find out someday.’
Deciding that the identity of the voice was a matter to be resolved over time, Vlad chewed the bitter herb and looked out over the open meadow stretching out before him.
Things might not be going well, but at least he liked the scenery. An extensive meadow that reached the horizon. Vlad took a deep breath, feeling refreshed just by looking at the landscape.
“Eh?”
Suddenly, while looking into the distance, a group of figures appeared, moving fast.
They moved very quickly.
Galloping.
“A herd of wild horses.”
Rutiger had also seen them and frowned, his eyes fixed on the herd of wild horses galloping toward them.
It was a spectacular sight, but not very pleasant for Rutiger.
There’s nothing like a surprise when you’re escorting something.
“But why are they traveling south?”
“…Yes, a herd of wild horses at this time of year would head north instead.”
The man was right. At this time of year, when it’s warmer and the grass is fuller, prairie animals would head north, not south.
The young shoots that had just popped up would be there. But the herd of wild horses was coming from the south, not the north, where the party and the pilgrims were.
And galloping, too.
Galloping.
Vlad’s heart pounded as the herd of wild horses came closer and closer.
“Hmmm…”
Vlad thought it sounded like a sensation he had felt before and stood on the hill like Rutiger, watching the herd of wild horses run.
They were so full of life.
The sight of wild horses galloping through the meadows, their muscles burning, was something that inspired admiration in those who saw it.
“…”
Here and now, there wasn’t a single person admiring the wild horses. They only watched them with concern to see where they were going.
“They’re getting closer and closer to where the pilgrims are.”
“Their movements are strangely urgent. It’s as if they’re being chased by something…”
Galloping - Galloping - Galloping
Vlad pressed his chest to calm his tumultuous heart.
“…?”
Their gazes met.
Although he was so far away that he couldn’t even distinguish the shape, Vlad felt as if he were eye to eye with the leader of the herd, the one running in front.
All black.
It was impossible that their gazes had met, but they had surely exchanged glances.
“…..”
He couldn’t explain it, but Vlad felt as if it were talking to him. He felt that way.
“Lord Rutiger!”
One of the knights, feeling that something was wrong with the wild horses, hurried to the ground and searched for Rutiger.
“What’s happening?”
“The ground is shaking!”
Galloping
The boy who met his gaze could tell.
that the wild horses were scared.
Neighing.
The knight’s scream is horrible to the end, and the earth trembles like an earthquake.
In front of me, a group of pilgrims, startled by the vibration, step back.
Kaaaahhhhhhhhhhh.
A huge roar echoed in the middle of the meadow with the earthquake.
The ground cracks.
From it emerged a huge thing with its mouth open.
Hiiiiing-.
The jet-black that had been running at the forefront of reality, only to be slowly caught up, let out a pitiful cry.
“Deathworms!”
Wild horses being torn apart by fierce teeth.
The poor ones’ blood fell like rain.
“…!”
The boy’s heart pounded relentlessly, but it wasn’t hot blood coursing through his body but a chilling sensation.
The herd of wild horses was fleeing.
They were asking for help.
