By Zephyria 
Marianne also told me about meeting Duke Widrow at the Duke’s estate.
She said that when Elvin and Marianne went to report to the Duke’s estate, Felice Withrow immediately recognized her and asked about my well-being. The Duke had been kind enough to let her use his reception room to write letters to her acquaintances and hear various stories.
“There are reports that the number of monsters has increased by 20% to 30% across the entire Yuil Mountains region. They also mentioned that the Mana Concentration is rapidly increasing throughout the area.”
“I heard something about that from Mage Boulder before. Could it be related?”
“That’s right. Since last year, three mages from the First Magic Tower and five mages from the Third Magic Tower have been dispatched to investigate the cause of the Mana Concentration increase.”
The First Magic Tower is located in the capital, and the Third Magic Tower belongs to the Widrow Duchy. No one had as much expertise on monster types, characteristics, and the Yuil Mountains as the mages affiliated with the Third Magic Tower.
However, instead of providing a clear answer, Marianne shook her head.
“But the increased number of monsters has made it harder to identify the cause, so now all the mages from the Third Magic Tower have set out to find it.”
“When?”
“Since last June. It seems there was a day around that time when the Mana increase rate changed drastically.”
After a moment of thought, I asked again.
“Do you know anything about the whereabouts of Wesley Kiadris?”
“He never even entered the Widrow Duchy, so I wouldn’t know. I sent word to the capital via Ranunculus, but Wesley hasn’t returned to the capital since the last new year festival. The 2nd Company, which returned in June, scouted the mid-slope of the Yuil Mountains, but they didn’t see hide nor hair of the Imperial Knights.”
So, he hadn’t done anything after all.
However, I couldn’t use human laws to detain Wesley, who hadn’t even set foot in the Widrow Duchy. Even if I tried, there was no one capable of subduing Wesley Kiadris. Maelo Sanson? How could he intervene from the capital? If there were clear evidence, he might step in, but…
As I furrowed my brow in distress, Hugh Benson tossed a twig into the campfire and changed the subject.
“Anyway, now that everyone’s here, let’s go to the place we couldn’t visit last time.”
“…The place we couldn’t visit?”
“Yeah. Dunmel Canyon.”
“…Ah.”
Marianne, unaware of what had happened, pulled her knees to her chest and asked, “Why Dunmel Canyon?”
“I saw something strange near there while you were away on supply duty. Since it happened in our territory, we need to check it out. Minotaurs, despite their size, are considered medium-sized monsters, so it’s our job to deal with them.”
“Ah, Minotaurs! I’m a Minotaur specialist, you know.”
“Hmph.”
Hugh Benson chuckled as Marianne flexed her bicep.
Seeing Marianne’s boisterous antics after so long made me happy too. Hugh looked up at the sky, gauged the time, and declared, “Let’s go check it out this time. If the Mana Concentration is moderate, we’ll approach. If not, we’ll lure those bastards to the 45mp zone and annihilate them. Marianne, do you have any good electric magic besides fire? Something that can paralyze about five of them for more than six seconds.”
“Uh… Not simultaneously, but I can do it with a time lag. Using Chain Lightning.”
“Right. Keep that in mind.”
“Yes.”
After that, Hugh Benson said he would go to sleep first, so I let him. I decided to excuse Marianne from guard duty for the night, as she had returned from a long journey, but she protested again. I set Benjamin and Elvin as the first guards and lay down with Ruben’s sleeping bag beside me.
Just having two more people made me feel much more at ease.
❖ ❖ ❖
Dunmel Canyon was stable when we returned.
According to Hugh Benson, the Mana Concentration here was barely over 41mp. It was still a desolate landscape of sand and rock with not a blade of grass in sight, but the mana storm that had raged through the canyon was gone. The vast expanse between the canyon walls, once filled with ferocious mana, now seemed empty enough to see through if one got close.
There were no Minotaurs, nor were any other monsters visible. So, the group ambled around the wide open space, searching for anything suspicious. We first went to the area where the Minotaurs had been gathered, but it seemed the wind had washed away the sand, leaving not a drop of blood.
Hugh Benson clicked his tongue upon seeing this. “Ah, it’s gone. Let’s just sweep through the area. Everyone, don’t go too far, and maintain a distance of within 10 meters of each other.”
“Yes.”
The children who agreed scanned the ground with their eyes or peered around. The thin layer of dust on the hard rock made it difficult to find any place to hide or be hidden. So, I found myself glancing towards the inner depths of Dunmel Canyon. I was disappointed that the scent of the Spiritual Medicine I had smelled before was completely gone.
Just then, Ruben let out a short exclamation, “Ah,” and bent down to pick something up.
The child stood there for a long time, staring at what he held in his hand without a word. I moved closer to Ruben to see what was happening. In his hand was a half-crushed pendant. When Ruben opened the locket, I saw portraits facing each other, one in each half. A man with a friendly face and a woman with short hair and a gentle smile. The portraits, seemingly painted at the same time, showed them in wedding attire. Bloodstains had seeped into the two portraits, cut from the face down to just below the neck and placed in the locket, starting from the edges.
I immediately gestured to Hugh Benson. The other children also came closer.
“Please check if you recognize the portraits.”
“…Hmm, I don’t recognize anyone among those I know. They don’t seem to be part of the Special Imperial Knights.”
At that moment, Rubel spoke.
“…Lloyd, Denver.”
“…What?”
“Lloyd Denver was a fine knight. My father trusted him implicitly, and I… I saw him often since I was young.”
“…No way.”
“The woman opposite is his wife, Lily Denver, who was also an Imperial Knight.”
No one could speak. Everyone’s gaze was fixed on the portraits. I looked at Ruben’s face. Soon, I saw anger, sorrow, and a glint of anguish welling up in the child’s eyes, and I gritted my teeth.
Ruben took a deep breath and spat out his words. “Both of them volunteered for the expedition to the Yuil Mountains. As the first to do so.”
Many stared at Dunmel Canyon with stunned expressions. We had discussed at our gathering how the Imperial Knights had either soared into the sky or vanished into the earth, but how…
“…Did they throw themselves into the canyon?”
“No.”
As Benjamin sighed and blurted out the question, Elvin immediately shook his head and denied it. When he spoke, I couldn’t understand his words. Hugh Benson immediately translated his rapid, passionate words, which sounded like sand scraping across the ground.
“This pendant fell after its owner had already died. The way the bloodstains have soaked in suggests that. I think so too. If they had thrown themselves into the canyon, this would have disappeared with them.”
“…”
“For now, we can’t be sure of anything, so let’s take it with us. If we entrust it to mages specializing in tracking, they might find something.”
Everyone looked bewildered. I was too. I had wanted to find traces of the Imperial Knights, but not like this. We had worried about their disappearance, but none of us had thought they were in mortal danger. How could nearly four hundred Transcendent Peak individuals… And not in the depths of the Yuil Mountains, but near Dunmel Canyon.
The southern part of Dunmel Canyon was, at best, an area where medium-sized monsters appeared. Only north of this canyon could large monsters be seen. Even large monsters wouldn’t be that threatening unless they were in a horde. When I became a Sword Master, didn’t I gain the qualification to fight Ogres alone, even if only for a short time? No one thought Lloyd Denver was a knight whose skill level would be defeated by mere Minotaurs.
Hiccup, I snapped back to attention at Ruben’s sharp intake of breath. As I reached for the child’s hand, Ruben tightly gripped mine. When Ruben tried to put the pendant into his pocket, Hugh Benson sighed and extended his hand.
“I’ll hold onto it.”
“…No, I…”
“I know it’s a memento. But the Prince holding it is trembling. Give it to me, and catch your breath first.”
“…”
Ruben obediently followed his words. I held Ruben’s hand more firmly. The child didn’t lean on me; he stood ramrod straight, watching intently as Hugh Benson hid the pendant in his pocket.
After securing the pendant, Hugh Benson spoke again. “There are no signs of Minotaurs. If they’ve moved into another squad’s assigned area, there’s nothing more we can do. Let’s sweep eastward from here and return to the seventh Shelter to rest.”
“…What about reporting?” Marianne asked in a small voice. Hugh Benson twisted the corner of his mouth and shook his head.
“After we finish the rest of our assigned mission period. We might be able to secure more evidence, not just this one pendant. Until then, let’s periodically check the vicinity of Dunmel Canyon.”
“…Yes.”
It was the right thing to say. Everyone quietly agreed. We searched the surroundings thoroughly until just before sunset. However, no other traces were found. Ruben occasionally glanced towards Hugh Benson, and anyone could tell he was conscious of the pendant in his pocket, not the man himself.
That night.
Rubel, lying beside me, seemed unable to sleep, so I gently tapped his shoulder. Indeed, Rubel, who had been curled up with his eyes open, looked at me. Without a word, I opened my sleeping bag. Ruben hesitated for a brief moment, then willingly nestled into my embrace. I pulled the child into a tight hug. The single sleeping bag squeezed us snugly.