By Zephyria 
Isaac, having let the strength leave his body, felt the immense pain of his broken arm and the burning agony of his neck still being chewed. He thought that if he were going to die anyway, he would rather die quickly to lessen the pain even slightly. Death, come quickly, come now.
But how much time had passed while he pleaded for death, tasting that agony in full? Isaac endured and endured, yet his consciousness refused to fade, and he eventually opened his eyes again.
It hurts so much, why won’t I just die… As Isaac’s lips flickered, unable to form words, he suddenly realized that the Prince was no longer chewing on his neck. However, the Prince had not pulled his mouth away; he was… sucking blood!
Gulp, gulp. Realizing that the sound echoing right beside him was the sound of the Prince drinking his blood with relish, Isaac’s eyes flew open in shock. Then, he locked eyes with beasts whose eyes were far larger than his own, even without straining to look.
「It looks like he’s being sucked dry right now, doesn’t it?」
「Indeed. He’s being drained quite thoroughly.」
「Well, he is half-witch, after all… His blood must have some effect of its own.」
「Now he’ll definitely become a pain reliever.」
Shut your mouths, you damn cats!!
He wanted to scream it out, but the sound only lingered inside his mouth. In his fading mind, he suddenly recalled what those things had said earlier. That drinking the fresh blood of a witch could release one from a witch’s curse for a single night.
Which meant…
Isaac shifted his blurred gaze toward the Prince. He couldn’t see the Prince’s face as it was buried in his neck, but he could see his own nape, where blood-stained cold sweat was no longer seeping out. He could feel his body no longer convulsing in pain. He felt his shoulders, which had loosened as if he had become much more comfortable.
Please let this be a dream… damn it, but for some reason, it doesn’t feel like a dream.
The sensation of blood being sucked from his neck was still vivid. In a state of mind where he felt he might faint, Isaac wished he would just pass out. The only consolation was that if he lost a bit more blood, he might faint from blood loss.
Unfortunately, however,
“A pain reliever, is it…?”
Suddenly, the Prince stopped sucking blood. After mumbling with his lips still pressed against Isaac’s neck, he lifted his head. Unlike before, when his vision was clouded by pain, a clear and vivid pair of blue eyes looked down at Isaac.
“The blood is effective…?”
Isaac’s heart sank. He did not want to know what those narrowing blue eyes were thinking. He truly did not want to know.
Looking down at Isaac, who had gone limp as if pretending to be dead, the Prince shifted his gaze to his own body. As if amazed that the terrible pain had vanished without a trace, the Prince slowly moved his body, and a look resembling a smile flickered across his face. It was a light akin to ecstasy.
The Prince stood up and sat comfortably in a chair. After coldly surveying the luxurious room, he finally turned his gaze toward the beasts. Without any sign of fear or intimidation even when facing three giant predators, he spoke.
“You seem to know. Answer me. Is the blood of a witch effective against my pain?”
「Rather than being effective against pain, it would be more accurate to say it can offset the Curse.」
“Aha… the blood of a witch offsets a witch’s curse. It would have been better if I had known sooner. Well, fine. Then if I kill this fellow now and drink all his blood, I can finally bid farewell to this tedious Curse of the Dark Moon.”
The Prince stood up abruptly and grabbed Isaac by the collar, hoisting him up. While surprised by the monstrous strength that effortlessly lifted a grown man’s weight, Isaac simultaneously felt sorrow, fear, and relief, thinking that death was finally coming.
But once again,
「That’s not it. It only works for one night—the day the fresh blood is consumed.」
「If it were me, I’d keep him alive and suck his blood every Dark Moon.」
The cats whispered among themselves—loud enough for everyone to hear—and the Prince, who had been about to snap Isaac’s neck, paused. And Isaac thought: I swear, if I survive this, I’m going to throw those damn cats into a water bucket.
Gazing intently at Isaac, the Prince turned his attention back to the beasts.
“What are you things? Are you also of the witch’s kin?”
「No. We’re just ordinary tigers.」
「Exactly, exactly. The witch is that one you’re holding right now.」
「To be precise, he’s a witch’s child, but he’s still closer to a witch than a human. His witch blood is thicker than human blood.」
Listening to the cats whispering among themselves, Isaac felt like crying. If only his voice had worked, he would have screamed, ‘Those things are the ones from a high-born Pureblood Witch lineage!’ Frustrated that he couldn’t, Isaac gasped and panted for breath, and the Prince looked at him with narrowed eyes. Then, the Prince let go as if tossing him aside, and Isaac tumbled onto the floor.
“Then I ask you. You, witch’s child. Why did you call me?”
Isaac could not speak. The bite wound was not very deep, so the stream of blood was thinning, but his throat was so parched that no sound came out.
Noticing this, the Prince clicked his tongue shortly, picked up a water bottle from the table, and poured it over Isaac’s face. While coughing from the sudden splash of water, a few mouthfuls seeped into his throat.
“Speak.”
The Prince placed his foot on Isaac’s broken arm and pressed down without hesitation. Isaac writhed in pain, barely managing to squeeze out words in a hoarse, fragmented voice.
“I… didn’t intend… to call you… some… mistake…”
「Why! I told you to bring the most beautiful person in this country! I brought him correctly! I don’t make mistakes!」
Before Isaac could finish, the third cat shouted in anger.
…Ah… those damn cats… I don’t even have the energy to curse them anymore. Exhausted in both mind and body, Isaac collapsed.
“Aha… a beauty, is it.”
The Prince nodded as if understanding, then scanned Isaac with a look that said, ‘With a face like yours?’ Taking a deep breath as if gauging his pristine physical condition once more, he slowly moved his arm, let out a faint smile, and then looked back at Isaac.
“It may be a misfortune for you, but it is a blessing for me. I shall take you back to the palace. I’ll lock you in my palace’s dungeon and drink your blood every Dark Moon.”
Isaac was devastated. The words about becoming a pain reliever were about to become a reality. Indefinitely, for the rest of his life. And in a dungeon, no less.
But just then.
「That won’t work. Today’s magic is only valid for tonight.」
A cat spoke up abruptly.
「Since his wish is only valid on the night of the Dark Moon, everything will return to normal as soon as dawn breaks.」
「Of course, the beauty will also return to where he originally was, in the same state he was in when he arrived here.」
Isaac pricked up his ears. For the first time today, it seemed these cats were spouting something that sounded like hope or something useful.
The Prince frowned slightly. After looking coldly at the cats and then at Isaac, he walked toward the window. Faint light was leaking through the thick curtains covering the window. It seemed dawn would break soon.
Then everything would return to normal.
That Prince, the feast, and this horrific, bizarre situation would all end.
A spark of hope flickered in the chest of the limp Isaac, but it soon fizzled out.
There was no way things would go that smoothly. Who was that man? He was Kaieon. Prince Kaieon. A monster in human skin who could wipe out an entire battalion of monsters if things didn’t go his way; he was a man capable of slaughtering everyone in the room if he didn’t get what he wanted.
As the Prince went to pull back the curtains, he looked puzzled when they didn’t budge, as if they were made of iron. Behind him, the meddlesome, nosy cats continued to chatter even though he hadn’t asked.
「This room is a space under magic, so it’s currently isolated from the outside, meaning you can’t see out. This place is completely detached from the space where real-world time flows.」
“….”
The Prince strode toward the cats. Then, he grabbed the chin of one of them—the one with the largest eyes.
“Monsters are a breed that deceives people with lies. Answer by the River of the Moon, monsters. Is what you are saying now not a lie?”
Instantly, the beast whose chin was gripped let out a metallic hiss, its eyes flashing, and its fur began to bristle and flicker like flames. The Prince’s hand turned bright red and began to burn, but without blinking, he coldly asked again, “Answer.”
「You insolent human! How dare you look at us that way! We do not lie! Lying is something only low-borns do; we are honest and elegant beings who engage in fair trade!」
The beast bared its teeth in a fit of rage, and the Prince looked indifferently at the beast flicking its bright red tongue before shaking off its chin.
Isaac, staring blankly at the Prince who was lost in thought with a slight frown, lowered his gaze to the Prince’s hand, which he was rubbing casually. The burnt flesh looked horrific, yet the Prince seemed not to care, as if that level of pain was nothing to him.
“Your hand… over there, the medicine box…”
As Isaac stammered with a raspy, rattling throat, the Prince looked at him for a moment as if wondering what this was. At the same time, Isaac realized he had said something absurd. Who was worrying about whom right now…?
Looking displeased at Isaac, who bowed his head and lay on the floor, the Prince fell back into thought. Meanwhile, the Prince occasionally took deep breaths, as if savoring his restored physical state with satisfaction, before finally lifting his head.
“I need this fellow. I must take him. Even if I have to kill you things.”
The Prince spoke to the beasts, and the beasts tilted their heads, their eyes rolling.
「I told you, it won’t work. Whether we die or not, the condition of this magic from the start was ‘a night with a beautiful beauty.’ It wasn’t ‘returning together after the night’ or ‘bringing a beautiful person.’」
The Prince withdrew his glare from the beasts and looked at Isaac. Under the Prince’s cold, frowning gaze, Isaac let his body go limp, thinking he was finally going to die.
Knowing his personality, if things didn’t go as he wanted, he would declare everything useless and kill everyone, including those damn cats and Isaac. The only reason a shred of hesitation remained on the Prince’s face was likely because, due to the harsh witch hunts of the past, witches had nearly gone extinct; he was probably just regretting that if he got rid of Isaac now, he wouldn’t know when he’d find another witch-pain-reliever.
“You. Your face looks familiar… what is your name?”
Then, the Prince, gazing intently at Isaac, asked. Isaac, whose body and mind were tattered and worn, barely managed to shift his eyes to look at the Prince.
I see. He doesn’t remember. Well, that’s natural. The palace was crawling with royal guards and servants, and this man was not one to take an interest in people. Whether this was a blessing or a curse, it didn’t matter anymore. Whatever happens, happens. Facing death, Isaac became profoundly cynical.
“Would you believe me if I told you…?”
No matter what name I give, how would you even know if it’s my real name? That sullen mutter was Isaac’s final act of spite and a boldness he would never have dreamed of under normal circumstances.
The Prince arched an eyebrow. Perhaps thinking that Isaac had quite a temper for his position, he looked at him coldly and let out a chilly laugh.
“It seems you wish to die more painfully.”
“I am sorry, I have committed a mortal sin. Please just kill me mercifully.”
Looking down at Isaac, who immediately bowed his head subserviently, the Prince narrowed his eyes, but then he nodded readily.
“However, yes, you are right. As long as I cannot see outside, I cannot verify where this place is, and you can lie about who you are and where you live. Or even if you tell the truth, the moment I disappear from this room, you could run away and hide. …Yes, it doesn’t matter who you are. What matters is—”
Muttering as if to himself, the Prince fell into thought. As he rubbed his lips and licked the blood on his finger, his eyes narrowed. Isaac shivered down his spine at the gaze that looked at him as if he were the most delicious liquor in the world.
“I shall let you live, witch’s child.”
Then the Prince spoke. Isaac, unable to process those unbelievable words immediately, blankly asked, “Pardon…?”
“But swear it.”
The Prince added a condition, staring at Isaac, whose eyes widened.
“You said your wish is valid specifically on the night of the Dark Moon. It is for that reason that I am letting you live, so swear by the River of the Moon. That you shall come to find me every time the night of the Dark Moon begins.”
“—”
“Otherwise, I may have to endure the pain a bit longer every Dark Moon, but I will kill you here and find another witch to drink their blood. I have endured this for my entire life; what is a little more?”
The Prince reached out to the collapsed Isaac and gripped his neck. But it was different from before. It was not to lift him, but a firm grip intended to snap his neck depending on his answer.
“What will it be?”
The Prince asked lowly. Isaac opened his flickering, hazy eyes and looked into the Prince’s cold, deep blue eyes.
By the River of the Moon, where lies cannot be spoken.
Would he live miserably, having his blood sucked alive by the Prince every Dark Moon? Or would he meet a clean death?
This was the final mercy and opportunity the Prince was granting. If he refused, the Prince would not ask twice and would snap Isaac’s neck. With the same determination he showed now, applying a slight pressure to his grip as he watched Isaac hesitate.
Facing death, Isaac’s deliberation was not long.
“By the River of the Moon… I swear.”
A crushed sound leaked from his parched, rasping throat.
“I… will come to find you… every Dark Moon.”
Simultaneously, clank—the sensation of something locking in his heart.
Isaac had tasted this sensation before. It was when he was separated from his mother, when he had made a vow by the River of the Moon. Though there was no visible form, it was the moment a vow that could never be broken at will firmly bound him.
There was only one way to break the vow. The vow is released only when both parties agree that there is no longer a need to fulfill it.
“Good.”
The Prince nodded. Turning away as if he no longer had any interest in this place or them, the Prince looked at the beasts.
“My business here is done. I shall return now. Now, monster, take me back to my palace.”
「It’s not even dawn yet? His wish was a night with a beauty?」
“….Do I still have business here?”
The Prince’s incredulous gaze flew toward Isaac. A look that clearly said, ‘A night with a beauty, with a face like yours?’ scanned every inch of Isaac.
“It would be an impossible hope for someone with your face, but yes, I am in a very good mood today, so if you wish, I could specially fuck you once—”
“No. My business is completely finished. You should go back before it’s too late. —What are you doing, take him back, quickly!”
Isaac quickly glared at the beasts and urged them, and the beast with eyes the size of teacups carried the Prince, who turned away with a snort, on its back.
Grumbling about why he was told to bring him here only to be told to take him back immediately, the beast headed toward the window. Only then did the curtains part to reveal an open window, and outside was nothing but a pitch-black darkness, entirely different from the scenery Isaac had seen before.
As if melting into that darkness, the beast and the Prince disappeared—
In the midst of a deafening, eerie silence, Isaac, who had been staring blankly at that black window, collapsed onto his knees.
How long did he sit there, vacant and lost, as if he had completely lost consciousness?
It felt as though an eternity had passed, yet perhaps only a few seconds. Isaac, who had been sitting blankly as his consciousness vanished into a white void, finally came to his senses when he began to hear intermittent whispering.
「I think he’s sleeping with his eyes open. He’s been like this for a while.」
「People usually get sleepy when they’re warm and full. The room is warm, and he’s eaten plenty of delicious food—how could he not be drowsy?」
「Ah, so that’s why he sent that beauty away so quickly. Because he was sleepy.」
“…….”
Remaining frozen like a statue, Isaac flicked his eyes sideways. The beasts, who had been thrusting their faces right up to his, leaped back in a flurry of commotion, shrieking, 「Kyak! What a surprise!」
“You damn… ungrateful… wretched….”
Isaac stammered, unsure of which of the myriad curses surging up his throat to spill out first, and eventually burst into tears out of sheer frustration and injustice.
As Isaac collapsed onto the floor wailing, the beasts simply watched him, their large eyes rolling. They looked as if they had absolutely no idea why he was crying. One of them—the very source of all evil, the one who had carried the Prince back and forth—approached and asked, 「Why are you crying? Does it hurt?」 before beginning to lick the wounds on Isaac’s body. Because the tongue was scratchy, it hurt even more, and Isaac screamed.
“Aagh! It hurts! Get away, don’t lick me, you damn cat!!”
「It hurts? It still hurts? Why? It’s all healed!」
“Healed my—”
Wailing and flailing his arms, Isaac suddenly stopped mid-sentence as he realized the wounds on his body had vanished as if washed away. His broken arm was perfectly fine, and the bite marks from the Prince had disappeared completely. Only a few bruises and small scratches remained where the beast’s tongue hadn’t reached.
“…….”
Isaac looked down at his body in bewilderment and fell into a daze once more. He no longer knew what was a dream and what was reality. What on earth was this hellish situation…? As Isaac sat there blankly, the beasts continued to chatter endlessly beside him.
「By the way, did you hear that? He called us damn cats.」
「He did. After we went through the trouble of granting his wish and healing his wounds, he cursed at us. That insolent brat deserves to be crushed from the head down…」
「Let’s be generous, as our hearts are as wide as the ocean. He’s just someone who’ll be locked in a dungeon and have his blood sucked dry soon anyway.」
「True. If he happens to bump into the Prince while wandering around the palace for work, the Prince will lock him in the basement dungeon of the Prince’s palace immediately, regardless of any promises.」
「Indeed. No matter how wide the Royal Palace is, if he wanders around, he’s bound to run into him eventually.」
Isaac, who had been shedding tears in a trance, flinched. In his line of sight, he saw the flint stone lying quietly at the edge of the table. While still sitting limply, Isaac slowly shifted his hips and grabbed the flint stone.
“You damn cats….”
Clutching the Firesteel in one hand and the flint stone in the other, Isaac glared at the beasts. All the beasts pricked up their ears and looked at him.
“Did you think you’d get away with this? There’s still one wish left, right? You said you’d grant any wish…?”
「What… what do you want?」
Perhaps sensing the ominous look in Isaac’s eyes, the last beast—the one who hadn’t granted a wish yet—asked while nervously rolling its eyes.
“What I want is… for you lot to be hung upside down in a pepper shaker for three days and nights, struggling and sneezing non-stop—”
「Kyaaaaaang—!」
“—is what I’d like to pray for, but,”
Isaac gnashed his teeth as he watched the three beasts shudder, their fur and tails standing on end. With faces pounding in anxiety, the beasts stared only at Isaac’s lips.
“……Is it possible, with that wish, to nullify the oath sworn upon the river of the moon…?”
「No.」
To Isaac’s desperate question, the answer returned far too firm and heartless. Isaac muttered despondently, “I thought so.”
“Then… could you erase the events of tonight from the Prince’s memory?”
「That’s possible, but even if we do, you still have to go to the Prince every Dark Moon night, don’t you? What are you going to say when you suddenly appear before a Prince who has lost his memory through magic?」
It would be a miracle if he didn’t die before he even got a chance to explain.
When the stupid and useless beast pointed out the problem so sharply, Isaac clutched his head in despair once again.
The sliver of hope he had held onto vanished. Unless everything tonight was a dream, Isaac’s life was set to be miserable for the rest of his days. If so, he had to use the one remaining wish to secure at least a modicum of peace.
“In that case, my wish is….”
He didn’t have much time to think. He had to decide before the sun rose.
Think carefully. Regardless of the mess he was in, Isaac still had to make a living, and as soon as the sun rose and the day broke, he had to go to work. To the palace where that man lurked, where he might encounter him at any moment.
“Make it so the Prince doesn’t remember the version of me he saw tonight.”
So that he could at least live in peace during the day until the next Dark Moon arrived. After all, Isaac had to live as peacefully and happily as possible given the circumstances.
The beast nodded readily. And then, ……nothing changed. There was no visible change, but the beast, whose eyes had momentarily sparkled, narrowed its gaze.
「Your wish is granted.」
The tension left Isaac’s shoulders. The flint stone slipped limply from his sagging hand. Watching the flint stone roll across the floor before coming to a stop, he suddenly muttered to himself.
“Can this flint stone only be used during the Dark Moon…?”
「Yes.」
“What kind of treasure is this…. It even has a time limit….”
As Isaac muttered, the three beasts simultaneously flared up in anger and meowed loudly.
「Do you know how wonderful a treasure this is! It’s only because you don’t have a flint jar that it can’t exert even a fraction of its original power!」
“Flint jar….”
「Yes. So bring us a flint jar. Then this magic Firesteel can become perfect.」
「Once the magic Firesteel is perfect, it becomes an unparalleled treasure. It can even… turn a Half-Witch into a Pureblood Witch.」
The moment he heard the beast’s secret whisper, Isaac flinched, his body shrinking slightly. As Isaac looked at the beast with disbelief, the beast continued in a low voice.
「Yes, you too can become a Pureblood Witch. Then you can take the Moon Fragment Ship and go to the land of the new moon.」
“—.”
Isaac stared intently at the beast. As he looked at the beasts one by one with wide eyes, the beasts nodded.
「There are six months left. Six months until the Moon Fragment Ship, which comes once every seven years, reaches this place again. If you board it, you can meet Kali—your mother—again.」
「Furthermore, if you cross over to a place that is not the land of humans, the river of the moon cannot follow you there. The oath you made here will also become null and void once you cross over.」
「You can become free.」
The beasts whispered. Isaac simply stared at them, as if possessed by something.
Until the dawn approached and the sun began to rise.
The dawn sunlight pierced through the pitch-black windows and illuminated the room. All the lavish feasts, the luxurious furniture, and the items vanished, leaving only Isaac alone in his originally dilapidated room. And before him were three small, pitch-black cats.
The three cats looked at Isaac with their large eyes and let out a thin, “Meow.”
—Bring us the flint jar.
—Our treasure.
Isaac continued to stare at them indefinitely.
Hounds were barking here and there. The attendants were busy checking the condition of the horses and tying quivers and water skins to the saddles. As the dawn mist that had blurred the forest began to lift, the dew clinging to the grass sparkled in the dazzling sunlight.
It was perfect weather for a hunting competition.
Amidst the occasional sound of horn pipes as the band practiced, the nobles and knights gathered at the entrance of the forest were chatting with acquaintances, waiting for the competition to begin. Soon, once the King appeared in full attire and declared the start of the competition, this forest would transform into a hunting ground for the day.
“I just hope they don’t go too deep. It’ll be a nuisance if someone gets lost deep in the mountains.”
“Hardly. Everyone knows you might encounter a tiger if you go too deep into the mountains, so they’ll be careful. More than half of them will be satisfied after catching two or three foxes and head back anyway.”
Simon, a squad leader of the Royal Guard, looked around the area where preparations were mostly complete.
The annual hunting competition was a grand festival for the royalty and nobility. The role of the Royal Guards today was to prepare the site, arrange the seating, and handle the cleanup so that the high-borns could enjoy themselves without hesitation. Of course, they participated in the competition as a formality, but their primary duty was ‘serving the nobles.’
During this short and tedious interval, waiting for the competition to start after all the preparations were finished, Brick—who had been working tirelessly since dawn—muttered while quickly munching on a sandwich.
“I’m just worried that someone might act recklessly in a vain attempt to earn merit.”
“If they’re the kind of person to act recklessly for merit, they probably aren’t of high status, so can’t we worry a bit less?”
“I suppose so. ……Why, why are you looking at me? There are no more sandwiches.”
Brick, who swallowed after a few chews, suddenly felt a piercing gaze from beside him and flinched as he turned his head. Isaac, who had helped with the competition preparations since dawn along with Brick, was staring at him intently.
“Do you want a cookie or—”
“If one earns merit in the hunting competition, would they be allowed to see the King’s treasure vault? How much merit would one need to achieve that?”
Just as Brick opened his mouth, looking somewhat apologetic while brushing bread crumbs from his lips, Isaac asked abruptly. Simon and Brick fell silent for a moment.
“Merit? You? What’s gotten into the guy who always preaches about being content with one’s lot?”
“I wondered why he hadn’t said a word and was so deep in thought, and it turns out he was thinking about that?”
Simon and Brick asked back in unison, as if they were hearing something utterly bizarre, and Isaac closed his mouth, shifting his gaze indifferently.
In a corner of the field where the hounds and horses were waiting for the competition to start, two or three cats were playing. One was running around chasing a butterfly, and two were playing pranks on a dog. Isaac looked gloomily at those pitch-black cats.
“Wait, why are there cats wandering around? It’s dangerous; they might get stepped on by a horse once the hunt starts….”
Brick, who usually loved animals, muttered worriedly beside him. Isaac gave Brick a sidelong, skeptical glance but silently turned his head away.
As if those monsters could actually be stepped on by a horse. Even though he had slept after making sure the doors were locked, those three had somehow crawled in and were playing by his bedside at dawn. Even after he had caught all three, tied them tightly with rope, hung them from the wardrobe, and locked the door before leaving, they had arrived here before him and were playing like that.
“So, how much merit do I need to earn to at least get a glimpse of the treasure vault?”
“I don’t know. Even so, just earning merit in a hunting competition wouldn’t be nearly enough. There aren’t many opportunities to earn merit these days…. Ah, right, there was one big thing recently—the Roberni incident!”
Simon, scratching his head, snapped his fingers. Immediately, Brick grabbed his finger, saying, “Now, now.”
“The Roberni incident? You should call it the Sir Leon murder case.”
“Ah, right, yes. The Sir Leon murder case.”
Simon muttered, looking at the black ribbon hanging from the tip of a spear held by a knight of the Grand Duke’s house passing by.
Not long ago, Sir Leon, the second son of the Grand Duke, was found dead in an alley within the capital, throwing the Royal Palace and the entire city into an uproar.
As for Sir Leon, he had been close with Roberni and often hung out with Roberni’s faction. Given the circumstances of being found dead alongside Roberni’s own younger brother and the method of killing, it was presumed that Leon had been caught up in the actions of a mysterious assailant who had recently been killing members of the Roberni faction.
The Grand Duke’s rage at losing his second son reached the heavens, and he placed a massive bounty on the culprit. The King also declared that a great reward would be given to whoever captured the criminal who committed the high treason of killing royalty.
“Wasn’t Sir Leon that unlucky fellow? A degenerate human who didn’t have a shred of manners. There must be plenty of commoners who would throw a party celebrating his death.”
“Regardless, he’s royalty. He’s His Highness’s nephew. Whoever captures the culprit is guaranteed a hefty reward or a government post… and if they’re lucky, they might even get to see the treasure vault.”
“But still, Roberni was so desperate to eliminate him and yet couldn’t find a trace; do you think he’ll be caught easily now?”
“That’s true, but I wonder if there’s anything else one could do to earn enough merit to see the King’s treasure vault….”
“……. Is there actually anything like a treasure in that vault?”
Other than some dilapidated firesteel box that could hold three rude cats? Isaac muttered skeptically without thinking.
“Oh, look, someone who’s been in the treasure vault is passing by. Lieutenant!”
Just then, Brick spotted Brown passing by and called out loudly. Brown, who had been walking around checking if any preparations were lacking, approached.
“Why are you slackers hanging around here? Are the preparations done?”
“You’d know if you’d looked around. We’ve been working tirelessly since dawn; do you think we’d miss a single thing? We’ve even prepared refreshments for the superiors who might decide not to participate in the hunt and sneak back early for tea time. More importantly, Lieutenant, you’ve been inside, right? The King’s treasure vault.”
Normally, a regular guard wouldn’t be able to speak so informally to a lieutenant of the Royal Guard, but Brick was Brown’s younger brother. Moreover, while Brick was a perfectionist regarding work, his true nature was incredibly lazy and he hated working with a passion; since Brown was the one who had been hounding and driving him since dawn, the towering Lieutenant merely raised an eyebrow at the arrogant guard’s sudden question and answered readily without complaint.
“The King’s treasure vault? Yes. Was that seven years ago already….”
At that time, Brown, who had returned after eliminating Lord Hilsen, who was secretly plotting treason, had received great praise and a lavish reward along with the current Captain of the Royal Guard, Abe.
“But why the sudden question?”
“What was it like?”
To Brick, who threw the question bluntly without responding to the first part, Brown once again drifted his gaze into the air without objection.
“It was magnificent. Gold and silver treasures, all sorts of wondrous artifacts…. Beans that grow a tree reaching the sky, golden hair of a giant who lives where the sun rises, a jewel carriage that turns into a pumpkin at midnight, and so on. That vast room was simply filled with treasures with no place to step. There was so much I didn’t even know what was there. When I was told to pick whatever I wanted, it was truly dizzying.”
As Brown narrowed his eyes as if recalling the ecstasy, Isaac abruptly asked.
“What did you choose, Lieutenant?”
“A golden pig.”
“…….”
Caught off guard by the unexpectedly ordinary answer, Isaac fell silent, and Brown gave him some serious advice.
“You shouldn’t choose something too big. The King’s gaze turns harsh. You have to read the room.”
Brown muttered that Captain Abe had tactlessly chosen a golden calf, was exiled to the provinces, and only barely returned last year.
Isaac, unable to speak for a moment, muttered with a sigh.
“So, one has to eliminate something like a provincial lord plotting treason to earn enough merit to enter that place.”
“Well… but treason isn’t something that happens that often. Nor is it something that should happen. I heard that seventeen years ago, the person who wiped out a secret gathering of a dozen or so witches got in there and came out clutching a golden jar.”
“……That’s not an easy mission either.”
“It’s likely. Why else would the treasure vault be called a treasure vault? Oh, right, the Roberni incident happened not long ago. If it’s that, there might be a possibility.”
Seeing that this person mentioned it too, it seemed that the event was indeed a major affair. Beside him, Brick corrected him again, saying, “Ehey, you mean Sir Leon’s murder case.” While they called it ‘Sir Leon’s murder case,’ everyone who knew the truth knew it was an extension of the incident involving the Mysterious Assailant who had been killing off the Roberni faction.
“But would that even be easy? Anyone capable of causing such a stir isn’t an ordinary fellow. They’d be as bad as, if not worse than, Roberni in his prime. But why the sudden interest? Do you want a treasure too? What is it you want?”
Brown asked Isaac, looking at him as if it were a trivial matter, and Isaac mumbled vaguely, “No, just…”
Setting everything else aside, if the King’s gaze turned harsh over mere gold coins or gold nuggets, then choosing a truly rare treasure would likely lead not just to a demotion, but to actual imprisonment. If that were the case, even if he somehow managed to complete that difficult mission and barely make it into the treasure vault, would choosing a flint jar—despite it being a tremendous treasure—be pointless…? Then maybe he should just give up on the flint jar and find some other way… Isaac was thinking this, when—
“Ouch!!”
Suddenly, a black beast dug its claws into his calf and dashed past like lightning. The black beast, chasing after a fluttering butterfly, glanced at Isaac with rolling large eyes as it passed. Following behind, two other beasts trampled over Isaac’s instep in a frantic rush.
“Whoops, that startled me. What should we do with those cats? Those little things will be in danger once the hunt begins; we have to send them somewhere else before they get stepped on by a horse…”
“Just let them get stepped on!”
Isaac snapped instinctively at the worried Brick. In return, Isaac found himself the target of cold stares from everyone present, as if to say, ‘How utterly heartless…’ He felt incredibly wronged.
Just as Isaac was about to roll up his sleeves, declaring he would catch those things and chase them far away, a trumpet sounded in the distance. It was the signal that the King was arriving.
The people became bustling all at once, and the relaxed atmosphere turned tense. The guards lounging around, including Vice Captain Brown, quickly returned to their positions, and Isaac likewise stood stiffly by the side of the royal procession, keeping watch on the surroundings.
In the distance, a procession appeared, led by escort guards. Behind the guards, who passed by majestically while scanning the area with sharp eyes, the King and Queen Consort sat atop horses adorned with luxurious tack, sending generous smiles to the people lined up along the road.
The benevolent King, with a rounded jawline and a plump belly, was a Monarch loved by many subordinates, along with the kind and gentle Queen Consort. At the very least, as long as one didn’t choose a golden calf from the treasure vault, he was certainly a very merciful and generous man to his subordinates. Beside the King, whose face held a sense of peace unlike someone heading out to hunt, the elegantly aged Queen Consort accompanied him, followed by the direct royal family. Having given half of their day to a mage in exchange for avoiding the pain of the Curse, their faces looked languid, as if they hadn’t fully woken from sleep. Among them, one man stood out particularly.
It was Kaieon.
Following along with an indifferent face as if everything in the world were tedious, he looked languid, but it was distinctly different from the sleepiness of the others. He would rather endure the full pain of that Curse than give half of his time to a mage.
Just as Isaac forced himself to look away from the Prince passing by, a cat that had approached Isaac’s feet unnoticed nibbled on his shoelace and untied it. Isaac quickly crouched down behind the people. With his head bowed low while tying his shoelace, Isaac glanced sideways at the horse hooves carrying the Prince moving further away, and then locked eyes with three cats sitting right in front of him, staring up at him with wide eyes.
“…What are you looking at?”
「Look at this guy.」
“… … … .”
What kind of outdated slang is this that no one else can understand… Isaac thought, shaking his head and sinking into agony. Where on earth could he lock these little things up so that people would actually praise him for it?
「Doesn’t he seem to be having useless thoughts?」
「As if he’s ever had a thought that wasn’t useless.」
「True. But that handsome guy who just rode past with a face that looked bored to death—that’s the one we saw last Dark Moon night, right? Seeing him in the sunlight, his features are absolutely top-tier.」
「Of course, he’s the finest beauty in the land. There’s a reason I brought him here.」
「We certainly have an eye for people, don’t we?」
“—You damn cats, you actually have mouths…!”
You bring me a disaster, a disaster like no other in the world, and then you say what?! Unable to listen any longer, Isaac flared up in anger and reached for the cats’ scruffs, but his hand only grasped the empty air. The three cats, having stepped back and sat in a row, merely looked at Isaac with narrowed large eyes.
Isaac buried his face in his knees and waited a long time for the heat in his head to drop by just one degree before groaning.
“…Let’s just say what’s done is done. That Curse on the royals, is there any way to break it?”
「Why wouldn’t there be? There are about three ways.」
Isaac’s eyes widened upon hearing the one with the largest eyes reply nonchalantly while licking its front paw.
“What, really? What are they!”
「Either the witch who cast the Curse breaks it herself, live in a land where there are no witches, or break it with a flint jar.」
“…Which means…”
「You just need to find a flint jar. How easy is that?」
“Yeah, so easy it brings tears to my eyes.”
Isaac grabbed a handful of dirt and flung it. Perhaps having been hit by a speck of dust, the cats began hacking and pouring out curses. Regardless, Isaac slumped as if he had fallen into an abyss, burying his face in his knees again.
He didn’t know what side effect that Firesteel had, but since that day, he had begun to hear the voices of these large-eyed Monsters even when he was awake. Thanks to that, he felt he would die soon—either from boiling rage or a stress-induced illness. Either way, he was a dead man walking…
“So in the end, there’s no other way to survive than to get that damn flint jar,” Isaac muttered. He could feel the cats cheering beside him, but without looking at them, he flung another handful of dirt.
He had to get his hands on a flint jar somehow. Not only because he had to face the Prince every Dark Moon, but because he couldn’t stand these creatures. …Moreover.
—I can even turn a Half-Witch into a Pureblood Witch. You can become a Pureblood Witch too. You can ride the Moon Fragment Ship to the land of the new moon.
Those words would not leave his ears.
He had never once thought about wanting to be a witch, and even now, it wasn’t that he wanted to be a witch or go to the land of the new moon, but for some reason, those words were engraved in his heart and would not be erased. Perhaps he had been wishing for it unconsciously.
Regardless, the answer was the flint jar. If he found that, everything would be solved.
He could trade with that Prince, offering to break the Curse in exchange for his freedom. Then he could leisurely cross over to the land of the new moon… …Should he? Or should he not? He felt a bit attached to the land where he had grown up.
「Doesn’t he seem to be worrying over nothing?」
「He hasn’t even found the flint jar yet, but he’s already counting his chickens…」
Wait, what’s ‘counting chickens’? As the cats meowed, saying, You know, a food from some country far to the East, Isaac tried to firmly step on their tails, but instead, a tail slapped Isaac’s ankle and passed by.
Meanwhile, in the distance, the King was delivering a speech, saying that today’s hunting competition was the day for the lords’ bravery to shine, but to be careful as accidents could happen. Once that was over, the hunt would begin immediately.
“The Mysterious Assailant of Roberni…”
A monologue escaped Isaac’s lips like a sigh and quickly scattered.
No matter how much he thought about it, it didn’t seem like he could catch such a big fish, but that seemed to be the only straw he could cling to right now.
But that also seemed like something he’d have to risk his life for; wouldn’t it be safer to just have his blood sucked once a month? After all, it was a precious pain reliever, so surely he wouldn’t be killed. But then again…
“Ugh—why is my life so twisted…?”
It was just as Isaac was tearing at his hair again in his undecided agony.
The King’s speech ended, and the trumpet sounded loudly. Simultaneously, a thunderous cheer erupted.
The hunting competition had begun.
Nobles and knights from various families began to gallop their horses in groups large and small. Numerous fine steeds scattered into the dense forest, their hooves echoing.
The royal guards also became busy. Each went to their assigned position to fulfill their duties. Isaac, assigned to the first aid squad, walked to his position, and several colleagues in his team lined up beside him.
“I hope today ends safely.”
“Amen.”
Amen, amen—the voices chanting out of habit were all peaceful.
In an event like a hunting competition where accidents could happen at any time, the first aid squad was the position most likely to be caught in the crossfire, but on the other hand, if nothing happened, there was no position more comfortable. Since the high-born participants were accompanied by Court Mages, major disasters rarely occurred.
Isaac would follow the participants who entered the forest first from a distance, wandering slowly through the woods. If he found someone who had been scratched or bumped, he would apply medicine, and if someone seemed seriously injured, he would bring them out of the forest and hand them over to the mages. Occasionally, if he encountered a group in the middle of a hunt, he would help drive the prey or hand a spare water bottle to someone whose had run dry. He simply enjoyed a walk in the woods while playing a light supporting role.
In the meantime, quite a bit of time seemed to have passed. A long blast of a horn sounded from afar. It was the signal for lunch.
Those deep in the forest would stop for a moment and eat where they were, while those near the entrance of the forest would return to the field where giant tents were pitched, eat, and then resume their afternoon duties.
Isaac also left the shade of the forest and headed to the royal guard barracks. Several colleagues had already lined up to receive their meals.
“You’re here. Anything happen?”
“What would happen? Why, did something happen on your end?”
“Nothing except that the peas I hate the most are in both the stew and the croquettes.”
“Really? I’ll help you.”
Sitting next to a grumbling Hoden, who was holding his tray, Isaac quickly thrust his fork forward, but despite saying he hated them, Hoden quickly pulled his tray away just before the fork touched the croquette. Isaac clicked his tongue in disappointment and moved his fork to the croquettes on his own tray.
“This year will probably end without incident, just like previous years. With several mid-to-high rank mages on standby, there’s really nothing that could go wrong.”
“True. An unusually large number of them came this year. Anyway, whenever Lord Kaieon appears, they flock to him like a pack of dogs. I heard every mage wants to make a contract with him.”
“Well, I heard that the amount of Mana a mage can use depends heavily on the power of the person they contract with.”
Isaac muttered while munching on a croquette. That ‘power’ was said to be not simply physical strength, but some kind of innate energy within the person, and apparently, that Prince’s energy was so immense that it could not be found again in the past or future.
…Who cares. I shouldn’t care, shouldn’t think about it, and should stay as far, as far away as possible.
Shaking his head to drive the thought out of his mind, Isaac buried his face in his tray. His intensity must have been something, because Hoden glanced at him a few times before plopping his own croquettes onto Isaac’s tray, saying, “Were you that hungry?”
By the time Isaac had emptied his tray and succeeded in driving the ominous figure out of his head, the Captain and Vice Captain of the royal guards entered the barracks. Looking around at the guards eating, they asked the team leaders, “Derek, any issues?” and “Simon, how was your side?” while their expressions remained peaceful. They naturally assumed nothing had happened.
“Hmm. It seems the first aid squad deployed in the southern forest is relatively idle. I could have reassigned a few people elsewhere.”
“But it’s not like there’s anywhere else so short-handed, is there?”
“That is true.”
“This year’s hunting competition is relaxed and very nice.”
Listening to the pleasant conversation between the Captain and Vice Captain, Isaac, being part of the southern forest first aid squad, perked up his ears for a moment, wondering if his deployment would change in the afternoon. It seemed he could continue to hold his position leisurely.
Having completely emptied his tray, Isaac stood up, satisfyingly patting his full stomach. There was still some time left before the lunch break ended.
“Hey, Isaac. You look like you’re in a good mood. Did you enjoy your meal?”
“Yes, Captain. The food was delicious, the weather is great, and the mission is relaxed. It’s a day I couldn’t ask for more.”
After exchanging greetings with the Captain, Isaac turned to walk out of the barracks, thinking that a nap would make the day perfect.
But right then, the sound of footsteps rushing into the barracks was heard. The person who ran in, covered in dust and looking distraught, was a guard who had been deployed in the western forest.
Come to think of it, he had just noticed that the guys who went to the western forest were nowhere to be seen, and at that moment, the guard shouted with an urgent and gloomy tone.
“The Prince has disappeared from the forest. We need to start a search, so please provide emergency rations, first aid supplies, and search personnel.”
“The Prince disappeared? Which one?!”
The Captain’s expression changed instantly as he shouted. A tense energy suddenly filled the barracks.
“It is Lord Kaieon.”
And that tense energy came to a dead stop.
A strange silence flowed for a while, and then—
“…Right, no matter who it is… if he’s disappeared, we should send a search party first… Hey, hurry up and get the necessary supplies.”
The Captain gave instructions in a voice that had become languid, as if nothing had happened.
The western forest was denser and more rugged than the other nearby forests. If someone went missing there, it would naturally be a cause for concern, and especially if it were a high-born person, all available guards should be mobilized for a search immediately—but that also depended on who it was.
“No, but it’s really strange. He disappeared suddenly as if he’d been washed away. Without a single trace…”
The guard, who had looked possessed since earlier, stammered in bewilderment, but those words also scattered into the air.
“He’s a very elusive person, isn’t he? Would someone like him leave a trace while out hunting?”
“But, but… it was as if the shadows of the forest swallowed him up in an instant…”
“I get it. I’ll send plenty of reinforcements. Now, let’s see. You said the southern forest personnel were idle, right?”
The Captain looked around. In that moment, Isaac felt a chill run down his spine and quickly shrunk his neck, trying to sneak out of the barracks, but he was one step too late.
“Olsen, Lauder, Chico, Selbero, Etvas, and also… right, Isaac. This should be enough for now, right? Those called should join the western support team this afternoon.”
“I don’t wanna!”
Having just crossed the threshold of the barracks only to be grabbed firmly by the scruff of his neck by an invisible hand, Isaac replied impulsently. The response was so reflexive that his pronunciation even slipped.
Only after facing the Captain, who was staring at him with wide eyes, did he realize his mistake.
“What do you mean you don’t want to? Get going!”
He got a smack on the head and was stuck with the work.
The western forest was exceptionally dense. Great trees grew so closely together that it was dim even in broad daylight. It would be difficult to notice if a predator were crouching in the brush just a few steps ahead.
Isaac walked slowly, as if groping his way through the forest where a heavy, eerie silence hung so thick that even the footsteps of his colleagues sounded sharp to his ears, inhaling the deep scent of the woods.
It feels as though I am beneath a slender moon. Though it cannot be compared to the Dark Moon, it felt as if a non-human sensation was faintly and intermittently tapping at me. Since all things in nature possess mana, whether great or small, forests possess mana as well. Especially a forest as lush as this one.
This refreshing, calm—pleasant mana.
Isaac took a deep breath of the forest air, feeling as if he were swallowing a sweet treat, as he followed his companions. Ordinary humans seemed to like the forest air too, but likely not as much as Isaac did. In moments like this, he was reminded once again that witches are more sensitive than humans.
“It’s nice, really nice. A fine forest.”
“Mm, mm. Gloomy and nice, indeed.”
“…….”
It would have been better if he hadn’t been able to understand the speech of those Monsters.
Isaac tried his best to ignore the three cats trotting along a few paces beside him, though he kept stealing glances at them from the corner of his eye. Regardless, the cats were busy meowing among themselves.
「Not long ago, forests like this weren’t rare, but now they’re hard to find.」
「Humans must have cut them down mercilessly. When they cut ten trees for every one they plant, how could they not run out?」
「Tsk tsk. Even the spirits are leaving, saying they can’t live here anymore… things are becoming truly desolate.」
「Tell me about it. Even if humans hadn’t hunted witches like vermin, everyone would have left eventually, for sure.」
「Humans are wicked.」
「Humans are wicked, indeed.」
Isaac didn’t even want to exchange words with them, but as the conversation flowed that way, he found he had nothing particular to say and simply walked in silence. A few paces ahead, Chico looked back at the cats.
“They sure are friendly, following us around like this. How cute. Here, you little rascals.”
Unaware of what they were discussing, Chico smiled warmly and tossed them some beef jerky from his pocket. The cats, who had been spitting venom and insulting humans just a moment ago, snatched up the jerky as if nothing had happened and even rubbed their heads against Chico’s ankles. ……Those Monsters.
Isaac watched the cats’ behavior with a look of utter disbelief and eventually turned his head away, unable to bear it any longer.
“Anyway, this place is always so bleak no matter when you come…….”
“That’s why people aiming for a big catch in the hunting competition come here. It wouldn’t be strange for anything to pop out.”
As Chico muttered while scanning the forest with narrowed eyes, Lauder responded. There was tension in the way his hand unconsciously toyed with the hilt of his sword.
Still, it was better since there were several people. Along with the guards on the search, a few servants from the Prince’s palace were following. They carried food and wine to give the Prince as soon as he was found, emergency medicine just in case—though no one seemed to think it would be useful—and fresh clothes he might need to change into.
“This is where it happened? Where you lost him?”
Olsen looked back at the guard who had accompanied the Prince in the morning.
“How did you lose him?”
“No, it’s just that he spotted something over there and rode off, so I quickly chased after him, but then he suddenly vanished.”
The guard muttered uncertainly, as if it were strange even thinking about it again; this was the common claim of the squires who had been with the Prince. Though there were only three or four of them, they all tilted their heads with faces that showed they didn’t understand how it happened.
“He isn’t usually slow. But seeing as there’s no trace at all, hasn’t he gone quite far? Or perhaps he didn’t pass through this path.”
Olsen clicked his tongue. As he said, no trace that seemed definitive had caught their eye while they progressed along the path. Though, it wasn’t as if anyone was actually worried about the Prince’s safety.
“Regardless, we have to find him. It’ll take more than one or two people to drag back the beasts he’s hunted.”
“Ugh. Sounds like manual labor.”
The guards grumbled, imagining their near future of dragging a string of heavy beast carcasses. Isaac sighed in unison, praying that whatever he had to carry would be limited to a single deer. As he casually shifted his gaze, the cats seemed to quite like the beef jerky, chewing it thoroughly with their large eyes narrowed. Occasionally, their ears would twitch as if they heard something in between; though he didn’t want to admit it, they were… well, very slightly, cute.
Damn, I feel like I’ve lost somehow… Just as Isaac was frowning, feeling inwardly frustrated, a faint sound brushed against his ears.
A very faint, thin, and blurred sound that he couldn’t identify flickered for a brief instant—if one could even call that eerie and chilling sensation a ‘sound.’
“What’s wrong?”
Chico looked back curiously at Isaac, who had stopped abruptly and was staring into the distance of the forest. Only then did Isaac blink and turn his gaze toward Chico.
“No, there was a sound over there…….”
“A sound? ……. What sound?”
After listening for a moment, Chico shrugged and said, “I don’t hear anything.” Following those words, Isaac listened intently toward the silent distance.
From that place where nothing seemed to be heard—he heard it again. A very faint, slow, and inexplicably unpleasant sound.
“You can’t hear it? This sound? Like something very large… slowly… moving very slowly…….”
“……? ……. ……. I don’t get it. Hey, do you hear anything?”
Sensing that Isaac’s demeanor was unusual, Chico lowered his voice and asked their companions. The others also silenced themselves and listened, but after a while, they shook their heads.
“Isn’t it just your imagination? The forest is so gloomy that it’s easy to feel that way. Besides, the brush over there is so thick that it’s not a path anything could travel. At most, maybe some very small mountain animals.”
Imagination? Perhaps. It was a presence so faint he wasn’t sure if it was a sound or not, and it was very sporadic; just when he thought he heard it, silence returned, and just as it seemed to brush his ear, it was already quiet.
But.
“……Wait a moment.”
Isaac moved forward, staring toward the far side of the forest where thick darkness lurked. He heard a voice calling “Hey, Isaac” from behind, but he merely raised a hand lightly without looking back. He could have just ignored it, but something was gnawing at his nerves. To the point that those three Monsters hopping along behind him were less annoying by comparison.
As his companion had said, the forest path where only very small mountain animals could pass was covered in dense brush, becoming more lush with every step. Coarse grass tangled around his ankles, hindering his progress.
「Why is he coming this way, leaving that wide and empty path behind?」
「He always takes the rough road. Leaving the path everyone else goes on together.」
「It’s because he’s twisted.」
“—You things, why are you nagging when you’re just following me of your own accord?! Who told you to follow?! Go away, shoo shoo!”
No matter how much less annoying they were, annoying was still annoying. Isaac tried to kick the creatures following closely beside him, but a vine wrapped around his ankle, causing him to tumble. In the process, he must have hit a rock, as his palm was scraped and a bit of blood seeped out.
“Ah! ……Sss, it stings……. Ugh, I’m really going to just smack these things,”
「Did you just try to kick us? Heaven is not indifferent and has delivered divine punishment.」
「And look at him, still talking back to us after that.」
「See, I told you. I told you he was twisted.」
If he stayed with these things any longer, he felt his own personality would truly become twisted.
Swallowing a groan, Isaac licked the blood droplets on his palm. Fine, this wasn’t even enough to be called an injury. Maybe he should apply some medicine just in case. Remembering there was disinfectant in the medicine pouch tied to the saddle, Isaac stood up and turned back toward his companions.
At that moment.
His vision seemed to shimmer, as if a Heat haze were rising.
It was for a very brief moment, and after blinking, his vision returned to normal. However.
He could hear nothing. The sounds and presence of his companions, who weren’t even that far away, had vanished completely. He couldn’t see a few paces ahead, as if a thick fog had rolled in. As if he were trapped in the forest.
……Not ‘as if.’
Though nothing seemed to have changed, an instinctive feeling washed over his entire body that he had been trapped within some invisible fence.
「Oh my, it closed.」
One of them chattered.
「I knew this would happen. Something that isn’t a proper witch, yet isn’t a proper human either, loitering atop a barrier—this is the result.」
「I’m telling you, the phrase ‘digging one’s own grave’ was made for this kid. By the way, who cast this barrier? It’s quite well-done.」
「True, it’s flimsy, but for a magic circle drawn by a human, it’s pretty useful, right? At this level, they’d be treated as mid-rank or higher.」
“Hey…… what is this.”
As Isaac muttered, the three cats stared at him with wide, clear eyes and replied, 「What do you mean ‘what’? It’s a barrier.」
“I know that! I mean why is it here! Is this your doing?!”
It felt as though he were still in the same space, yet it was a space of a completely different dimension. He had memories of entering and exiting barriers while following his mother as a child. This strange sense of confinement was very similar to that time.
「We didn’t do it.」
「Indeed, indeed. If we had cast the barrier, it wouldn’t be this flimsy, would it?」
「Indeed, indeed. We wouldn’t have cast it so obviously visible, either.」
“If it was obviously visible, you should have told me beforehand!”
「We did! We asked why you were coming this way, leaving that wide and empty path behind!」
「And after we told you not to take the rough road, you called it nagging?」
Dear God……. Please, can’t You just take these animals away…….
Clutching his forehead, Isaac mentally wrote the character for patience (忍) three times for each of the three cats, totaling nine times, before he finally opened his clenched mouth.
“Fine, I get it, so just tell me how to get out of here—”
It was then.
A thick scent suddenly wafted over, causing Isaac to stop mid-sentence. It was a smell so unpleasant it almost stopped his breath. A fishy, foul stench, like raw meat rotting.
Along with that nose-stabbing smell came a faint presence that tickled his ears. The presence, coming from not far away, was the sound of a long breath exhaled after a violent movement. Then, a voice followed.
“Impressive. I did not expect you to finish this so easily.”
The crisp voice, tinged with admiration, was coming from the direction of the stench.
Turning his head, he saw a pitch-black shadow shimmering amidst the thick brush. A robe. A mage’s robe. The unique purple embroidery on the cuffs indicated that the shadow was a Court Mage. And standing about a dozen paces away from him was—
A tall man, drenched from head to toe in a black, watery mud to the point where it was hard to recognize who he was.
Isaac soon realized that the tar-like substance dripping viscously was not mud. That thing, vibrating with a horrific stench, could not possibly be mud. Yes, that was the blood and bits of viscera pouring out from the bull-sized beast—no, not a beast, a magical beast—lying like a giant boulder right beside him.
And the tall man, who lightly swung the massive sword that had clearly slaughtered the magical beast to shake off the sticky blood, nonchalantly wiped his blood-covered face. Behind that gesture, porcelain-smooth skin and terrifyingly deep blue eyes were revealed.
“You are…… yes, the mage contracted with Granian. Did he tell you to kill me?”
A calm, low voice, no different from usual.
Without needing to double-check those deep blue eyes, the man who had suddenly vanished from somewhere in this forest was right here. Kaieon. Drenched in the blood of a freshly killed magical beast, emitting a hot steam.
……Dear God.
Isaac unconsciously gasped and traced a cross over his chest.
「Look at this, a witch doing such hideous things in broad daylight, how scandalous,」
Grabbing the neck of the chattering cat beside him was also a reflexive action.
He must not be discovered. Isaac knew this instinctively.
It wasn’t just because the Prince, who had killed a bull-sized magical beast and remained completely unscathed, was scarier than the magical beast. What had he just said? He mentioned Granian’s mage. That the mage hired by the Prince’s uncle, Grand Duke Granian, had tried to kill the Prince—or so it seemed.
He had overheard something he shouldn’t have.
“Oh, no. This has nothing to do with Lord Granian. I, Volkan, a high-ranking Court Mage, visited Lord Kaieon privately because I had a request.”
Isaac crouched down, barely breathing, and didn’t budge an inch.
From the looks of it, this barrier was cast by the mage to draw in Kaieon and summon the magical beast. If it was Volkan, Isaac had at least heard the name of this competent Court Mage. Of course, that was why he was able to contract with someone of such noble status as a Grand Duke. Why would such a mage do this?
“A mage has a private request for me……?”
Kaieon muttered languidly. At that, Volkan let out a raspy laugh.
“I knew well that you were not one to have a single hair harmed even by the Credalaus—the Hell Bull that breathes flames—but I did not know you would finish it so easily. As expected of Lord Kaieon. You are the one who was born under the oracle that a non-human would be wrapped in a human’s husk.”
Isaac stopped breathing.
That was a taboo that everyone in the Royal Palace knew but no one spoke of.
A non-human shall be born wrapped in a human’s husk—that was the oracle delivered by the temple on the dawn of Prince Kaieon’s birth. And as if to prove that oracle, he, who had neither laughter nor tears, was born with power more formidable than anyone else, and even his own parents and siblings feared him. It was said that this was the reason he was sent to a distant and harsh frontier at such a young age.
Kaieon said nothing. As he indifferently shook the blood off his blade, he looked as though everything was boring, as usual.
“Furthermore, to say ‘kill,’ what a frightening thing to say. You know that we Court Mages make a vow of loyalty when we enter the Royal Palace. This Volkan is no different. Not only would I not even think of harming Lord Kaieon, but I cannot do so unless the vow engraved upon my heart is broken.”
Volkan bowed deeply. As he said, because Court Mages are obligated to make a vow of loyalty upon entering the Royal Palace, they cannot directly harm royalty using their mana. Since it is a vow that cannot be broken unless the heart is seared with a branding iron soaked in royal blood, he should not be able to harm the Prince directly. However, that only meant he wouldn’t harm him ‘directly.’
“This Volkan knows very well that Lord Kaieon is not one to have a single hair harmed by such things. Any beast existing in this world is merely a tedious and boring prey to Lord Kaieon. However, wasn’t this Credalaus at least somewhat useful? I saw it. The moment you slew the Credalaus, the ecstasy that flickered in your eyes. ——How was it? Was this not the gift that pleases Lord Kaieon more than any gold or silver in the world, the gift Lord Kaieon truly desired……?”
Volkan’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Kaieon with a glint that seemed almost manic.
“This Volkan knows. Lord Kaieon likes these things. The dizzying excitement and thrill hard to taste in ordinary daily life, this hot scent of blood and the writhing of dying flesh——.”
Kaieon merely faced him indifferently, his expression unreadable. Volkan lowered his voice even further.
“There are few in the entire kingdom who can summon a magical beast like the Credalaus. I, Volkan, can provide such entertainment whenever Lord Kaieon desires. Of course, without anyone knowing. Lord Kaieon will gain a loyal servant to whom he can entrust any secret matter——provided you enter into a contract with this Volkan.”
My god.
Crazy bastard.
Isaac didn’t know which thought came first. He remained huddled deep in the brush, his mouth hanging open.
I’ll let you enjoy slaughter to your heart’s content, so please contract with me.