By Zephyria 
“They’ll really hate me, they’ll really hate me,” the three of them cheered, clapping their paws again. “Yes, you really do hate me,” Isaac muttered, shaking himself off and standing up. At that, the three stopped clapping simultaneously and stared at Isaac with wide, blinking eyes.
「Where are you going?」
“I’m going somewhere where I don’t have to see your hateful faces.”
「Aww, why be so considerate as to go that far?」
With that, the three stretched their bodies long and trotted along right behind Isaac.
“Why are you following me?!”
「We aren’t following you. We’re just going our own way.」
“Ah, yes. Then please, go ahead.”
Isaac opened the door and stepped aside. The three stared at Isaac with wide eyes, let out a deep sigh, and then exited the room.
「Manbang really is hopeless. How can he be so dim-witted?」
「After everything they’ve been through, does he still not know us?」
「As if we wouldn’t know where he is just because he went first.」
He really is a bit lacking, so clueless about everything, the three of them chattered as they trotted out into the hallway. Behind them, Isaac contemplated for a moment whether he should just slam the door shut, but eventually gave up and followed them out. No matter how much his lower body throbbed and stung with every step, staying cooped up in the room was making him restless, so he had thought about taking a stroll nearby; he didn’t want to be stuck inside just because of those brats. Furthermore, as they had said, Isaac resigned himself to the fact that no matter where he went, he wouldn’t be able to avoid them.
The soreness and stinging that had plagued his first few steps gradually faded as he walked for a while. Since his body was overflowing with energy, he didn’t feel tired or exhausted, aside from the pain in his lower half. Even though a fairly chilly breeze was blowing, he didn’t feel particularly cold.
“I guess Hailen does get cold as winter approaches. And here I thought it was temperate year-round.”
「It’ll probably stay around this kind of weather. It’s incomparable to the capital, where the wind cuts like a knife in winter.」
Come to think of it, the maid who had brought food to his room earlier had made a fuss, saying the weather was very cold today, like winter weather. In Hailen, this level of chill was considered winter. Looking at the people on the street, no one was wearing just a thin long garment over a short-sleeved shirt like Isaac. Most wore thick outer coats. Those people would freeze to death if they went to the capital.
By now, the capital would have already entered winter. People would be slowly preparing to spend the winter and welcome the end of the year.
“The year is almost over already… …What are you doing?”
Suddenly feeling a void at his feet, he looked aside to find the cats sneaking in and out from under a flowering tree in someone’s garden. Isaac watched them for a moment before resuming his walk. After leaving the Star Palace and walking for a bit, the three had naturally started trotting by his side again. They would likely catch up in no time anyway.
Following the single path along the wide lawn of the Star Palace, he saw pretty houses scattered here and there in the fields where brooks flowed, and eventually, he came upon a small market alley. The streets were lively yet quiet. It was the perfect time for an afternoon stroll.
Suddenly, a whirlwind swept past. The sound of the wind brushing against his face sounded like a short laugh, so Isaac looked behind him, though there was nothing there. Grass blades were being pushed far away by the wind.
「Have you been getting slapped around in the meantime?」
「This is what happens the moment we leave him alone for a second.」
「I can’t even go say hello with peace of mind.」
Before he knew it, the three cats had gathered at his feet again, chattering.
“? What did I do?”
「You don’t even know you were hit. That thing hit you and passed by.」
The tip of the cat’s nose pointed toward where the wind had already vanished.
“…Is that thing a witch or a spirit too?”
「He’s really in high spirits.」
The cat tilted its head, and Isaac resumed walking wherever his feet took him.
“I know a lot of witches and spirits live here, but how is even the wind like that?”
「Because the Great Dark Moon is soon. The grand assembly is coming up too.」
「Usually, most of them are just sleeping or staying still, but it’s different around this time. Everyone is excited because their energy is peaking.」
「Just a moment ago, even a cave fairy—who would normally stay holed up and never come out—was so excited that it clung to him just to say hello.」
The moment we take our eyes off him, our Manbang is getting slapped around, the cats sighed, wrinkling their noses.
Isaac nodded, saying “Ah,” and looked up at the sky. In the blue sky transitioning into late afternoon, the moon was already faintly visible. It would soon be the full moon. After the full moon, the Dark Moon would arrive, and then would come the grand assembly of the witches.
A banquet held once every seven years, where all the witches in the human world gather. A feast for witches that takes place from midnight until dawn on the Dark Moon immediately preceding the Great Dark Moon, which occurs once every seven years. The day when all the witches of this world gather where Alikisa, the Witch of Roberny, is.
And one month after that, the Great Dark Moon arrives, when the Moon Fragment Ship comes to take them to the land of the new moon.
“Do many witches still live in the human world?”
「Not as many as before.」
「I wonder if there are enough left to fill the Moon Fragment Ship?」
Isaac suddenly recalled a scene from his childhood. A memory of sending his mother away on the Moon Fragment Ship.
It was a dazzlingly beautiful sailing ship. The smooth white hull, looking as if it were carved from the moon, had sails that shimmered softly as if made of gathered moonlight, fluttering even in the absence of wind. He remembered staring blankly, as it was so beautiful it seemed silver powder would scatter from it.
People—who he now realized must have been witches—as well as animals large and small, or strange creatures of indiscernible shape, continued to board the ship, which was the size of a small house. Even though so many had boarded that the ship seemed full, people continued to climb aboard and even comfortably find seats, leaving him tilting his head in constant bewilderment.
So, he had thought that perhaps the Moon Fragment Ship had no capacity limit, but it seemed that wasn’t the case. But if it was “enough to fill the ship,” how many would that be? He couldn’t tell if it would be a few or a great many.
“Back then, the Moon Fragment Ship was definitely floating on a lake deep in the mountains… I can’t remember how we found it.”
「A lake? Was that when the Moon Fragment Ship came to the Valhallis Mountain Range?」
「If it was a lake, then yes. That was the last time it came to a lake. During the Great Dark Moon before the last one.」
As Isaac muttered to himself, the cats managed to understand and responded.
“Does the place the ship arrives change each time? Then where is it coming to this year?”
「Who knows? It’ll come somewhere, right?」
“…You don’t know where it’s coming?”
「Nope.」
Isaac stared blankly at the cats, who answered readily and nonchalantly. The cats stared back.
“Then how will you board the ship? Didn’t you say you were going back during this Great Dark Moon? You reckless cats!”
All that singing about the flint jar, and it turns out there was no need to rush, Isaac thought, arching his eyebrows. Not to be outdone, the cats widened their eyes. …He was outmatched in terms of eye size.
「Reckless? Reckless?!」
「Are you talking to us, you who gets slapped around anywhere?!」
Look at these brats, meowing as if they were about to devour a human, despite having done nothing to earn it.
“Then how are you going to board the ship?”
「We’ll know when it comes.」
「The moment it drops anchor in the human world, witches can feel it exactly.」
「It drops anchor at sunset and sets sail at sunrise, so we can board as long as we go during that window.」
The way they tilted their heads back, answering with such smugness, was quite a sight.
However, having nothing left to say, Isaac walked on in silence. He briefly thought it was a relief that he might not need to get his hands on a flint jar urgently, but…
「Stop talking and just find the flint jar.」
「That’s right, you need to find that and quickly become a Pureblood Witch so you can take the Moon Fragment Ship to the land of the new moon.」
“…Am I going too?”
「What, you’re not going?」
The voices of the three became menacing simultaneously. They glared as if they were about to eat him alive. Isaac instinctively flinched and slid away. Then, the brats leaned their heads forward even more to follow him, meowing, 「You have to go, huh?」, 「Of course you have to go!」
“I get it, so move aside, move aside. Your fur is getting on my clothes.”
Isaac walked, trying his best not to step on the brats by gently nudging them away as they entwined themselves around his legs. He wished another witch would pop up and keep these guys occupied for a while.
But, the land of the new moon.
Isaac looked up at the hazy moon floating white in the daylight sky and let out a quiet sigh.
What should he do? It was something he had been thinking about for a long time, but he hadn’t reached a conclusion. It was because he kept delaying the decision, thinking he first had to get his hands on a flint jar. And while obtaining a flint jar still seemed like a distant dream, time had already slipped away and arrived.
The land of the new moon. He did want to go. If he went there, he could meet his mother again, and he would be able to live more freely as a mixed-blood than in the human world. He had been satisfied with the world he had lived in so far, but there was nothing to hold him back. So, if he obtained the flint jar and these brats nagged him, he might have easily shaken off his lingering attachments and crossed over to the land of the new moon. …Until recently, that was the case.
But what if, instead of a Pureblood Witch, he became a pure-blood human?
If he used the power of the flint jar to no longer be even half a witch, then he might be able to blend in with people and live with a peaceful heart. Without any obstacles, as a human.
Then he would no longer be hated by the Prince.
“…I think it would be nice to become a human and live in the human world.”
Isaac spoke after thinking for a moment. His decision had almost tilted in that direction, and the cats fell silent. They gazed at Isaac intently. Isaac bent his waist and lightly patted each of their heads before resuming his walk.
「Don’t give your heart to him, you idiot,」 one of them said heavily.
Isaac paused and looked back at the cats.
「He intends to get rid of every witch in the world.」
「To him, you are also a witch.」
The cats spoke in succession. Isaac looked into those three pairs of large eyes in silence. The cats also remained silent and stared back. Finally,
“I know. But there are things that don’t go according to my will,” Isaac answered quietly. Suddenly, the strength left his shoulders.
It was something that didn’t go according to his will. The fact that he had come to like the Prince. The fact that the Prince hated witches.
Isaac knew. He knew that the Prince wanted to eliminate all the witches living in this land. He had long since realized that the reason the Prince was searching for the Witch of Roberny—the strongest witch in the human world—was likely for that very reason. Also, he probably—since he always perfectly achieved whatever he desired in the end—would make no exceptions for anyone. Even for a witch who had stayed by his side and helped him all along.
Even if every witch in the world disappeared now, the Curse on the Prince would never be broken, but he would still achieve his goal.
And yet, it was fine.
It was the first time he had liked someone so clearly, and the first time he had recognized it. He hadn’t known that liking someone could be such a surprising change, to the point where everything in the world seemed different.
“—Ack!”
Suddenly, Isaac’s train of thought was cut short. It was because of the sharp teeth of a beast biting firmly into his ankle.
「Look at him, loving things that don’t go his way!」
「How long has it been since he ate that guy’s life force, and he’s already talking about love?! Dump him immediately!」
「What, become a human?! Whether he becomes a human or not, not that guy! Not until dirt enters my eyes!」
「I oppose this love!」
The cats clung to his ankle and chewed on it. “Hey, it hurts! It hurts! I’m bleeding!” he cried, shaking his leg, but they wouldn’t let go. Only after he grabbed them by the scruff and tore them away did they finally retreat, licking their lips with fierce expressions. 「As expected, Manbang’s blood tastes delicious, doesn’t it?」, 「Is he going to say something stupid one more time? I’d love to bite him again using that as an excuse,」 they said, flicking their tongues and eyeing Isaac with a narrow, subtly threatening gaze. Then, abruptly,
「Liking someone who hates you is a hard thing,」 one of them said, blinking its huge eyes.
「Don’t let your heart linger. Mold will grow from the inside of your heart without you knowing, and by the time you realize it, it’ll already be too late.」
Isaac looked back into those large eyes that were staring intently at him. The cat spoke.
「Just go to the land of the new moon. It’s for your own good. …You’ve suffered a lot staying here alone all this time.」
Isaac closed his lips, which had parted slightly. It was because he no longer knew how to respond. Looking at the cats in silence, Isaac let his shoulders slump and resumed walking. His steps were slow, the strength gone from them. The cats followed at a distance behind him, but they said nothing more.
Isaac walked aimlessly, looking up at the hazy daylight moon.
He didn’t feel particularly sad or depressed. He already knew that liking the Prince was a hard thing, and that living in this world was not easy. However, Isaac believed he could live quietly and calmly, even if his heart were to be hurt. Just as he had always done. He wasn’t afraid of that.
His heart had simply sunk a little. He thought it was okay to be this weak. Even if he was half witch, wasn’t the other half human?
Yes, he was half human.
Isaac took a deep breath and composed himself. In any case, there was nothing to be gained by being miserably depressed alone. It had been quite a while since he left the palace; it was time to head back.
Just as he was about to turn around.
“…―.”
Isaac paused for a very brief moment, then continued forward in the direction he was going as if nothing had happened. This is a bit troublesome, he thought.
At some point, Isaac had entered a sparsely populated alley. It was still afternoon with the sun remaining, but once he left the market area, the number of people passing by dwindled. And on that deserted road, the sound of unfamiliar footsteps following behind Isaac could be heard.
Two, no, three. They weren’t even trying to hide. Neither the sound of their steps nor the hostility that felt like it was piercing his skin. …Who could it be?
He tried to think of anyone in Hailen who would harbor enough ill will to follow him, but nothing came to mind.
Let’s see, I could probably handle two, but three might be a bit difficult.
Isaac tapped the back of his neck. He sighed because his lower body was still throbbing, but he was glad that he had plenty of energy.
Massaging the right and left sides of his neck and lightly tilting his head, Isaac nimbly jumped into a side alley with his very next step.
As if that were a signal, the footsteps following behind suddenly became rough. “Chase him!” a low shout echoed from beyond the corner.
The grid-like, straight alleys were quite long for a single block. Isaac began to run through that alley, with one block between him and his pursuers. And behind him, three men chased.
Glancing back, they were unfamiliar faces. At the very least, they weren’t people with a personal grudge against Isaac. …Though their eyes were filled with hostility despite that.
While running along one side of the block, Isaac could tell that they were fast and likely decent at fighting. It would be impossible to handle three at once. However, fortunately, they didn’t seem to be very bright. Or perhaps they had underestimated Isaac.
As Isaac circled around the block, they signaled to each other. Soon, one man broke off into a side alley. His intention was to run through the side path and corner Isaac in the middle. And that was exactly what Isaac had hoped for.
“Thank you…!”
Muttering lowly and slowing his pace slightly, Isaac turned around the moment he judged the footsteps of the man who had taken the side alley had moved far enough away. Two men were running straight toward him. When Isaac suddenly turned, they seemed to hesitate for a moment in surprise, but soon they lunged forward with fierce faces, shouting, “Got you, you brat…!”
It would take at most a minute for the man who went into the side alley to circle the block and arrive here. That was enough time to deal with the two men in front of him. At least, enough to make it difficult for them to continue the pursuit, even if he couldn’t completely knock them out.
After shaking off these two, I can just let the last one follow me for a bit, lead him far away, and then ask him. Why are you chasing me?
Having quickly finished his calculations, the moment Isaac grabbed the forearm of the man swinging a fist at him, he shifted his entire body weight and dropped straight down. The man let out a small, surprised “Uh,” and immediately following that, there was a loud crack as his shoulder dislocated, and he burst into a scream.
“Sorry. Attacking first before the opponent can prepare is my easiest specialty. I can’t help it when I’m facing two of you.”
Still, it’s not life-threatening, so don’t hold too much of a grudge, okay? Isaac said, and then he dodged the fist of the man who rushed him from behind, shouting, “You little bastard…!” with wide eyes. He considered grabbing him, but the man, having seen what happened to his colleague, was on guard and watching Isaac’s movements with tension. This wouldn’t work.
However, if he couldn’t handle one healthy man and one man who couldn’t use an arm, he wouldn’t have survived his rough life up until now. That is, unless these people were monsters like our Prince.
“Sorry,” Isaac said briefly again, and as the man extended his fist, Isaac immediately struck him in the solar plexus. Pretending to aim for the chin to lure the guard away and then hitting another vital spot was also one of Isaac’s specialties.
It’s not exactly fair and square, but I think it’s better than three people ganging up on one, Isaac muttered to himself as if making an excuse, and he immediately followed up with an upward strike to the man’s lower jaw as the man crouched, gasping for air. The punch landed squarely on the tip of the chin. It must have shaken his brain.
Sure enough, the man took an unstable step back as if his vision were spinning. Seeing this, the man clutching his dislocated shoulder tried to attack again, but his movements were already noticeably sluggish.
Just then, the sound of footsteps rounding the block and approaching was heard, and Isaac stepped back, inwardly muttering, Good. Now, as planned, he could lure that guy and separate him from the others, then catch and interrogate him. —Just as he thought that,
“—.”
The man who turned the corner paused his steps upon seeing them. Soon, as if grasping the situation, his face contorted and he drew his sword. Isaac’s eyes fixed on the tassel attached to the sword. More accurately, the emblem attached to the tassel.
He was a subordinate of Roberni.
He might not be a direct subordinate, but receiving the emblem meant he officially belonged to Roberni’s faction.
Roberni had reach not only in the capital but across the entire country. It wasn’t strange that Roberni’s faction was here in Hailen, but why were they after him?
“Isaac Raphaud, you baaaaastard!”
However, there was no time for long thoughts. The man rushed in swinging his sword, and upon hearing his name, Isaac realized they hadn’t mistaken him for someone else and didn’t hesitate any further.
With his back to the two men blocking the path, Isaac charged toward the man rushing him with the sword from the front. …Oh, he’s faster than I thought. And judging by the grip on the sword and the posture of the swing, his swordsmanship was likely more competent than expected. He couldn’t counter here. His only option was to dodge and run. …But that wouldn’t be easy.
Isaac clicked his tongue. Stripping off the shirt he was wearing, Isaac threw the shirt over the man as if to cover him the moment the distance closed to five steps. Simultaneously, he kicked off the ground and sprinted past.
He intended to slip by while the man’s vision was blocked, but the man was more agile than Isaac had calculated. Instead of brushing the shirt aside, he sliced through it with his sword, and with that single swing, he cut Isaac as well.
In that moment, Isaac had to choose. Whether to dodge and retreat, or be cut and move forward. And the choice was,
“—.”
To give up his shoulder.
Blood splattered.
The blade dug in quite deep, slashing from the shoulder down to the upper arm, and Isaac grit his teeth, putting even more power into his stride. The man, having cleared the shirt from his vision, chased after him and swung his sword once more, but the blade narrowly grazed Isaac’s back and missed.
He heard the man let out a curse-filled scream behind him, but he didn’t look back. The footsteps of the man desperately chasing him gradually grew distant, and after turning through several alleys, the sound disappeared.
His arm felt like it was on fire. He could tell blood was streaming from the deep gash. Meow! At some point, the cats running alongside him cried out. It was a sound urging him to stop so they could lick his wounds.
“No, in a bit.”
Isaac whispered low, without slowing his pace.
Roberni’s faction was targeting him. If so, those three might not be the only ones trying to attack him at this moment. Other thugs might jump out from the next alley, or the one after that. In that case, Isaac, who didn’t know the geography of the alleys well, was at a disadvantage. It was better to return to the Star Palace quickly.
Clutching his shoulder, Isaac ran relentlessly toward the Star Palace. As he did, he wondered why Roberni’s faction was targeting him.
Even searching through his memories carefully, nothing came to mind. He had never even exchanged words with Roberni’s faction. He had only occasionally seen them passing by from a distance; he had no connection to them. The only time he had seen them up close recently was when he was with the Prince in the capital—.
“You’re here!”
It was then.
Isaac, who had barely reached the Star Palace and was about to enter, slowed his pace upon seeing the gatekeeper shout the moment he saw him. He was a gatekeeper whose face had become familiar during his stay here. Even earlier, as he was leaving, they had exchanged a few smiles and jokes. Yet, he now had such a stern, urgent expression.
The gatekeeper, seeing Isaac look at him inquisitively, seemed flustered himself and stammered, “Uh, please go inside quickly. It seems some high-ranking officials are looking for you,” as he quickly opened the gate to clear the way. His colleagues standing beside him also exchanged awkward glances and stepped aside.
He felt something was strange. It felt like a premonition that wasn’t particularly good.
Under their subtle gazes as they stepped back, Isaac entered the gates of the Star Palace while clutching his shoulder. And as he walked toward the main building, he felt gazes watching him from a distance, hidden from view. As if they were monitoring him to make sure he didn’t go elsewhere.
Isaac’s pace slowed very slightly. And when he reached the front of the main building, he came to a complete halt upon seeing a group of people just stepping out through the open doors.
At the front of the group stood the Prince. Despite the people following him appearing to be in a cold sweat as they said something, he strode forward without looking back, appearing as if there were some urgent matter. Even his always expressionless face was permeated with a fierce aura. Beside him was a chilling expression, as if he would rip out someone’s throat the moment they made a single mistake.
“Prince Kaieon, you don’t need to step forward yourself, if you just wait for a moment—”
It was when the man standing beside him spoke while gauging his mood. The Prince, who had been descending the stairs relentlessly as if the surrounding voices were inaudible, stopped his gaze on Isaac, who was standing in the courtyard looking at them. Simultaneously, his steps stopped.
“—.”
His face was so fierce it made one’s spine freeze. Isaac looked up at the Prince in bewilderment. Cold, terrifyingly sunken eyes were staring at Isaac standing there. As if looking at someone who hadn’t been there until a moment ago and had suddenly appeared.
The Prince’s gaze, which had been piercing Isaac’s face, suddenly shifted to his shoulder. Both the hand clutching the shoulder and the arm hanging below it were drenched in blood. The moment he saw that, the Prince’s jaw tightened faintly.
“Isaac!”
Just then, someone standing behind the Prince shouted. Startled, Isaac shifted his gaze from the Prince to the person who had called him. However, it was someone he didn’t know. He felt he had passed them a few times while moving through the palace, but they weren’t on terms where they would shout his name in a setting like this.
But the moment that call erupted, the gazes of everyone present converged on Isaac at once, and Isaac, receiving all those looks, looked around them in confusion.
The Prince, looking down with a coldly frozen face at the front; the person standing right next to him was someone he had seen a few times at the Royal Palace in the capital. That man, an administrator who enjoyed the trust of the royals, was wearing a courier’s uniform. He had likely brought some official document from the capital.
Suddenly, Isaac recalled the lead courier who had been entering the Star Palace just as he had been leaving. It seems an urgent and important matter is about to be delivered, he had thought as he left the palace.
It seemed that administrator was the courier who had brought that urgent and important matter, and he was staring at Isaac with wide eyes. As if confirming whether it was indeed him, while beside him, a scribe who seemed to have come as his assistant shouted to the guards.
“What are you doing! Seize him at once!”
The scribe’s shout echoed loudly in the courtyard, and the guards standing around rushed toward Isaac. And watching the guards charging at him, Isaac simply stood there blankly.
He didn’t know what was happening. He didn’t know how things had suddenly turned out like this.
Isaac only looked around them in confusion, and the first guard to reach him grabbed his arm. But then.
Slash.
With a gruesome sensation, the scribe’s head fell to the ground.
Blood geysered like a fountain from the torso where the head had been severed. People nearby screamed and recoiled. Chaos and commotion broke out among the people retreating in horror.
In the midst of it, the Prince, slowly shaking his sword to flick off the blood, looked at Isaac with the same expressionless face. His gaze shifted to the guards who were holding Isaac, and the guards, their faces turning pale, let go of Isaac and took a step back. However, still surrounded by them at a distance of one step, Isaac looked up at the Prince, unable to understand what was going on.
“Why are you hurt?”
The Prince asked. His gaze was nailed to Isaac’s arm, from which blood was still dripping.
“Roberni’s…”
Isaac, answering in bewilderment, paused mid-sentence as he realized he was in a place with many eyes. The Prince’s tightly closed lips twitched.
Then, the administrator, whose face had turned white upon seeing the scribe’s severed head, seemed to snap back to his senses upon hearing the name Roberni; he lifted his head and looked at Isaac.
“Isaac Raphaud, by the Grand Duke’s Decree, you are hereby taken into custody as a suspect in the assassination of Sir Leon and will be transported to the capital immediately. Any appeals or other statements will be heard in the capital. —What are you doing, seize him at once!”
The administrator shouted sharply to the guards, and the guards, glancing back and forth between the Prince and the administrator, hesitantly reached for Isaac. And Isaac looked at the administrator in a daze. Suspect in the assassination of Sir Leon. The meaning of those words didn’t immediately enter his mind, so he chewed over the phrase in his head.
“Hands off.”
Then, the Prince, who had been looking down coldly at the stunned Isaac, spoke. The guards who had been awkwardly holding Isaac flinched, let go of him, and looked toward the administrator. The administrator clicked his tongue in frustration, then turned toward the Prince with a serious face. He glanced at Isaac, then reached out to the aide standing beside him and took the object the aide presented.
It was a document likely stamped with the Grand Duke’s seal, and a bead about the size of a fist. The black, soft-looking thing was a familiar object. He had seen it not long ago, when he had seen the witch.
As the administrator placed the bead on his palm, after a moment, it loosened like smoke and floated up into the air. The black, hazy smoke-like thing expanded little by little until it grew larger than a full embrace, becoming translucent and beginning to shimmer. And within it, a certain image began to appear.
What became clearly visible now was the image of Isaac and the Prince.
The Prince shaking off a sword drenched in blood, and Isaac kneeling before him. Then, the corpses strewn around them were visible.
That was—the time when the Prince had killed Roberni’s subordinates.
Then, the smoke within the bead swirled like a vortex and showed another image. That, too, was an image of Isaac and the Prince. It was the day they had gone to the factory site on the outskirts of the capital late at night after hearing information that Roberni’s faction was gathering.
Besides that, the bead contained more images of Roberni’s subordinates dying miserably, and amidst those cruel deaths were the Prince, and sometimes Isaac, standing with him.
“—.”
Isaac stared blankly as the hazy smoke suddenly turned pitch black, then gradually shrank back to its original form as a black, soft-looking bead and fell onto the administrator’s palm.
That was a record of the person who had been slaughtering Roberni’s faction.
The Mysterious Assailant of Roberni. The culprit who had also killed the Grand Duke’s son, Sir Leon, was captured in that record.
Everyone there was silent. No one spoke a word. Even though there were so many people in the courtyard in front of the Star Palace, it was deathly quiet.
Silent gazes shifted frantically. They glanced at the Prince, at Isaac, at the administrator, and at others. The administrator was staring only at Isaac with a solemn face, and the Prince looked down at Isaac with a face that betrayed no thought. And Isaac.
“…”
Isaac was on the quick side. His judgment was not clouded, and he knew enough about how the world worked. Therefore, he soon understood this situation.
Anyone here—including the Grand Duke, who had ordered Isaac to be taken to the capital as a suspect—could guess who the Mysterious Assailant of Roberni was. It was simply that the images didn’t clearly show the ‘Prince cutting someone’ or ‘Leon dying,’ but seeing the blood-stained sword, the blood-drenched figure of the Prince shaking off that blood, and Isaac standing beside him as if as an attendant, no one would think the Mysterious Assailant of Roberni was anyone other than Isaac.
They knew.
The Grand Duke, the administrator, the Prince, Isaac, and the other people.
However, there was no one who could definitively identify and arrest that Mysterious Assailant of Roberni as the ‘culprit.’ The enormous fallout would be something that even the Grand Duke himself, who had lost his son, would be unable to handle.
Who could arrest the hero of the age? How could they silence the deeds and scandals of Sir Leon that would be revealed in the process? How could they specify and nail down the culprit as the perpetrator even without a ‘decisive scene’—especially if the opponent was that man.
No one could handle it. No one would dare try to.
Nevertheless, the facets of the Roberni incident had been revealed before their eyes, and the culprit who assassinated a royal had to be captured. In that case, there was only one way.
To make a sacrifice of the person who appeared consistently in those records—a person others could sufficiently handle.
Even if that person had acted under the Prince’s orders, the Prince would not be able to protect him in this situation. He would have no choice but to acquiesce to this flow and cut him off. And all the sins would have to be borne and handled by him.
By him. By Isaac.
“…”
Isaac looked at the Prince. The Prince was also looking at Isaac.
At this point, Isaac could have said it wasn’t him. He could have shouted that it was the other person. Then—though he couldn’t yet guess what result that would lead to—as long as this country wasn’t completely rotten, they wouldn’t blindly try to frame Isaac for the crime. Even if it took some time, he might be able to prove his innocence.
“Seize him at once!”
Then the administrator shouted sternly again, and the guards, though hesitating, made a move to grab Isaac. They looked at the Prince’s mood with apprehension, wondering if he would tell them to let go again.
Isaac looked around at them. The guards approaching Isaac with troubled and apologetic expressions, the administrator who wore a strict face while hiding a look of pity, the people around him whose expressions were not much different—and the Prince.
The Prince’s gaze was fixed solely on Isaac’s shoulder. An arm drenched in blood, where the wound remained hideously open and bleeding. Feeling that gaze, Isaac finally realized why Roberni’s subordinates had attacked him. It was because of this. Because the Mysterious Assailant who had been harming Roberni’s faction was ‘Isaac.’
Roberni’s subordinates were scattered all over the world, and Isaac would likely no longer be able to walk the roads in peace. It might have been safer to simply be captured and detained somewhere.
Isaac looked at the Prince. He wore an expression Isaac had never seen before. An immense rage, a ferocity, as if frozen at its peak. With that ice-like, expressionless face, the Prince was staring at Isaac’s shoulder. Eventually, that gaze shifted to Isaac’s face. Their eyes met.
And right then.
“—.”
No one stopped Isaac when he suddenly moved.
Snatched a sword from the waist of the guard who had been clumsily holding him, Isaac struck the guard’s jaw to shake him off and bolted from the spot.
Because it happened so suddenly and unpredictably, the guards were a step too late. Running toward the startled, murmuring crowd, Isaac grabbed the reins of a horse waiting just below the long stairs of the main building. Threatening the groom, who had been blindsided by the theft of the reins, with his sword, Isaac forced him back and pulled the horse a few steps away.
Belatedly, the administrator glared and shouted, “You scoundrel!” but by then, Isaac had already drawn his sword, broken through the guards’ encirclement, and led the horse away.
“What are you doing! Surround him! Do not let him get away!”
As the administrator screamed, the guards looked at one another and began to form a perimeter. Some of the nearby guards rushed forward to take the horse back, but they could not get any closer once Isaac raised his sword.
“Prince Kaieon!”
The administrator called out to the Prince. It was a call suggesting that since Isaac was his escort, the Prince should say a word. Isaac clicked his tongue anxiously and quickly mounted the horse. He couldn’t. If the Prince called him, Isaac would have no choice but to return. That must not happen.
There was no time. Both the grand assembly and the Great Dark Moon were just around the corner.
He had no luxury to be captured and leisurely imprisoned in the capital right now.
Naturally, the Prince would not have let Isaac be taken away—but then, the Prince would be in a difficult position. No matter how omnipotent the Prince was, his standing would be diminished.
He couldn’t let that happen. He didn’t want to. He didn’t want to be a hindrance to him, even in the slightest.
If so, there was only one method Isaac could think of in this moment.
“Move!”
Isaac shouted, kicking the horse’s belly. The horse let out a long neigh and bolted forward; the guards who had tried to block the path hurriedly scrambled out of the way, seeing the horse charging relentlessly with Isaac gripping his sword.
The chaotic noise of the shouting people quickly faded behind him. Isaac rode without looking back. Even after narrowly slipping through the gates that the gatekeeper was rushing to close, and even after the distant commotion had completely vanished, Isaac did not stop the horse.
Without even deciding where to go, Isaac simply looked ahead and rode blindly down the endless road.
This was the only way. Perhaps there had been a better method. If he had thought it through slowly, there might have been a more unremarkable way. However, no matter the method, they would have lost time. This was the only choice Isaac could make.
“…Good grief… nothing is ever easy, nothing is ever easy.”
Isaac muttered, taking a deep breath. Only by doing so did the urgent and heavy feeling in his chest seem to lighten even a little.
The soldiers would soon be in pursuit. Roberni’s faction would also attack. Now, Isaac had to hide and move about without anyone’s help. He would have to find a way to contact the Prince in the meantime, but the Prince would not be able to provide him with any overt assistance.
A life that was already arduous had become even more so.
Isaac let out a long sigh. He no longer knew where he was riding. He didn’t know where the single road, stretching endlessly through the middle of an infinite field, led. But it wasn’t as if he had any particular destination. Isaac continued riding, only slightly slowing the horse’s pace. The relentless sound of hooves became somewhat more lighthearted.
“Good girl, good girl.”
As he lightly stroked the horse’s neck, Isaac finally looked at his blood-stained hand and was reminded of the pain in his shoulder that he had momentarily forgotten. Just as he frowned with a soft “Ouch,” the image of the Prince looking down at his shoulder suddenly came to mind.
As if the administrator’s words or the full revelation of the Roberni incident were unimportant, that terrifyingly frozen gaze had rested only on Isaac’s shoulder. …Was he perhaps worried? …Surely not.
“Still, I’d like to think he was worried…”
Isaac muttered to himself, sighed, and looked up. The sun was dipping, and the sunset was painting the sky. The moon, faintly visible on the opposite side of the sunset, had become clearer than before.
He wasn’t running away from the Prince. Since the contract of the Dark Moon was in place, he couldn’t run away entirely, nor did he intend to. Once he found a place to hide, the first thing he would do was contact him.
That being said, it would have been nice if he could have at least said a proper goodbye before leaving.
That cold, frozen expression wouldn’t leave his mind. It was a face so terrifying that no one would dare even speak to him. It would have been better if he could have left after seeing that face soften.
What is he thinking right now?
Does he find me contemptible? Is he angry? Or does he think I did the right thing?
Isaac looked up at the sunset sky for a moment and then let out a deep sigh.
“To think I’m only thinking of him even in this state… this is serious, truly serious. Isaac, hey, is this the time to be thinking about someone else?”
Clicking his tongue, Isaac tapped his head. To clear his thoughts, he deliberately spoke his immediate practical concerns aloud: “Let’s see, I have about two nyang in my pocket, the flint stone is useless unless it’s a Dark Moon, and if I sell this sword, I might get three or four nyang…”
“First, I need to figure out where I’m going. Let’s see, that way is west, so…”
Isaac checked the direction of the setting sun and looked around. A wide field stretching out below a line of mountains that seemed to surround the area, with a single road running through the center. He searched his memory for the geography of this region.
“Ah, I thought it looked familiar; this was the road from the capital. If I go a bit further this way, Atlane will appear, and there should have been a path leading to Kuslo along the way. I think there were some small villages with a few households here and there… …—.”
Muttering as he looked around, Isaac suddenly stopped. His gaze stopped toward the southwest, slightly to the left of the mountain range where the sun was just setting.
Mountains of similar height stretched out in a gentle line. Over those overlapping ridges, the setting sun cast deep shadows.
A familiar ridge, a familiar shadow. A mountain range he had seen somewhere.
Although the angle and direction were somewhat different from what Isaac had seen, there was no mistake.
“…Alikisa.”
Isaac muttered unconsciously.
The mountain ridge reflected in the mirror of the place where she stayed was right there.
The Witch of Roberny was not far away.