Chapter 21 I can believe in YOU, right?

"Where is this?"

Berthold opened his eyes slowly and he saw a bright sky. Before he trying to process where is he, sudden pain started to course over his body. Enduring the pains, he gritted his teeth and trying to sit, for a moment his memory started to come back.

The strange Alpha wolf which absorbing the blood from the surroundings, and...

"Helminna!"

Berthold trying to jump out but a sudden jolt from the room he was in makes in fall face first.

The loud smack sounded as his nose take close contact with the wooden floor.

"Berthold, don't just suddenly stand up inside the moving carriage."

Berthold's face turned red as he raised his head and found that Paul standing nearby. He starts to stand up again and noticed that this carriage was stopped outside his fort.

"Why are we not inside?"

Paul could only smile wryly as he scratched his nose after he was being questioned by Berthold, "We are also want to know, the gate was closed just as we arrived. I already send a person to inform our arrivals."

"Anyway, how is your injury?"

Berthold sigh, "It's going to be a problem without a healing spell, but I could still walk."

Paul nods, "I supposed to say that you should rest, but knowing how you are you would still rush to Helminna, huh."

Berthold could only smile, but his eyes shine with determination. He keeps clenching and opening his hand to feel the strength he could muster. And each time he does that, the injury on his shoulder would aches.

Seeing Berthold's action, Paul could only shake his head. A moment later, there could only silence as both of them sunk on their own thought.

"Hey."

Paul turned his head and saw Berthold leaning his back at the carriage edge as he looked at the sky, his expression full of worry, "What?"

"How are the others?"

Paul was confused at first before he shakes his head, "The cavalry unit of yours was all lost, sorry."

Paul then glanced at him with a raised eyebrow, "Are you going to continue?"

"I don't know, but even if I have to go alone. I will."

"I think you underestimate your units. If you go, they would come with you. Do you know how precious Helminna to your unit?"

Berthold fell into silence, as he glare at Paul. Both of them ended in a glaring contest. He knows that Paul's word was right. His soldiers would join him, and this would lead to the decrease in manpower after Mary and her units leaving for her domain. The split of priorities confused him, and this annoys him a lot with Paul's sudden inquiry.

This tense atmosphere makes the surrounding soldiers fall into palpitation, if by chance, their knight captain keeps provoking knight Berthold it's going to ends in a fight. The pressure of the incidents happening in their kingdom and the unknown enemy already put enough strain on their mind, if they were going into an internal fight, it would end in a lot of trouble.

The bloodlust that Berthold leaking was enough to scare the horses, which the soldiers trying to calm. At least the tense atmosphere changed after the sound of the gate was raised.

The soldiers start to cheers inside their hearts, they plan to hug the person who opened the gate and dispersing this tense situation.

Berthold and Paul ended their glare with Paul walked forward to lead the units. As they passed the gate, they noticed that the atmosphere turned strange. The soldiers patrolling the road was increased than before, the workers were nowhere to be seen, seeing the hardened face of the people inside influenced the people who returned.

Berthold also noticed this and almost going to jump out of the carriage, his heart leaps in worry. He wished if there not going to be another bad news, but he was sure that reality not going to be as he wishes seeing the atmosphere here.

Paul decides to ask the patrolling soldier, when he comes near, he noticed that the soldier was looking nervous.

"Don, what is the situation here?"

"A-ah, captain Paul. Thanks for your hard work." The soldier saluted at Paul.

Paul nodded, then noticed that the soldier looking around before he asked Paul to come closer.

"Sir, just a few hours ago we received troubling news inside the fort's castle."

The soldier takes a moment of silence before continuing, "We don't know much of what going on, but I hear that a foreign person suddenly appeared outside the princess's room. Commander Natasha then captured him and almost punished the soldiers guarding the castle."

"Is he a spy?"

Both of them were surprised to found that Berthold already near them and joined the conversation.

The soldier only shaking his head, "I am sorry, I don't know sir. Commander Natasha just ordered the others to increase the patrol and to close the gate, we didn't get enough information yet."

Berthold and Paul exchanged glances, and both of them have the same feeling that they should meet with Natasha as soon as possible. Before they turned around, the soldier stopped them.

"Sir, I don't know much if this going to be useful. But I was one of the soldiers guarding the castle and I believe I could hear a strange language from that person that we never know before. That's why we thought he was a foreign man."

Now, this was troubling, a foreign person who appeared at this moment could of course not a coincidence, right? The chance of him being an enemy spy was so high that commander Natasha ordered the lockdown and increased patrol.

Paul feels troubled, but he noticed that Berthold's eyes started to shine. They have their thought but they have the same goal, that was to meet the mysterious foreign person as soon as possible.

The group started to split as Paul asking one of the soldiers to leads the party of a carriage full of rock to the warehouse, he and Berthold would rush to the castle and ask Natasha about the situation.

The nearer they were to the castle, the tense the atmosphere going on. Paul, who pulled the horse rein started to increase his speed and forced Berthold who sits inside to hold the carriage edge tighter or he would be thrown out. He wanted to complain, but he wanted to know the situation so he endured the shaking and the pain that came along with the rocking carriage.

After being allowed to enter, Paul supported Berthold to stand and noticed that the old butler, start to approach them, "My lord, you are injured!"

"Don't worry about me, do you know what happened here?"

The old butler raised his eyebrow, not convinced but he sighed, "At the hour and a half ago, a sudden appearance of an unknown young man surprised the whole castle. He doesn't speak our language and was pointed with a group of spears, this lead to Commander Natasha noticed the commotion and decides to handle him by herself."

"A young man? Not a grown-up man?"

The old butler nodded, "Yes my lord, I saw him as young as our princess. He even wears unknown clothes we have never seen before."

"Unknown language and unknown attire?" Berthold frowned, he then glanced at the old butler to make him continue.

"For the moment he was found, the young man keep saying strange things again and again as he raised his hand. I believe he doesn't have any weapons to, except a quite big bag on his shoulder." The old butler then pointed both of them to follow him.

They walked inside the castle and approaching the dungeon below the castle, Paul then opened his mouth in the mids of helping Berthold walking, "Is he a refuge?"

"I don't think so, sir Paul. His shoes do look dirty but he doesn't have tattered attire or bad odor."

This statement confused both of them, but before they want to ask again, they were interrupted by a scream of a person. The scream echoed from deep inside the dungeon and sounded so miserable. The old butler stopped as if he doesn't want to continue walking, Berthold understood his servant and decide not to scold him. He glanced at Paul to let them continue.

When they were passed with the cell holding the previous refuges they noticed that the people already trembling in fear. Paul decided to ignore them and keeps walking. They then could hear a sound of hits so loud as the scream started to sound more like a groan.

A moment later, they witnessed that Natasha was inside the cell and hitting a person tied at the wall with a thin iron stick. What surprised them was the huge amount of blood at the floor cell. The floor was dyed red that they understand that Natasha was already hitting him for a long amount of time.

Paul then pointed at the floor and both of them noticed that a spell symbol was beaming for a moment each time. They then noticed that the healers from Mary's units were also here that they were channeling their magical power to heal the injuries of the person.

Before long, they saw that Natasha was stopped hitting the prisoner and stared at them. Natasha's expressionless face turned into a smile, but instead of reasuring them, it sends chills down their spine.

With a strong step, Natasha stands before them with a smile still on her face. "Y-you are returned alive, Berthold."

Berthold and Paul almost jumped in fright, they were confused about what happened to her. But it seems like she could only see Berthold, her smile then froze, "Are you injured!? Healer come here and treat him first!"

"B-but, mam. If we not finished healing this young man, his injury would not- YES! RIGHT AWAY!"

The healer who still channeling her magic planning to remind her, but was scared as Natasha turned toward them. They stopped what they were doing and rushed to heal Berthold's injury.

Berthold and Paul were also scared and unable to say anything, they then saw that Natasha glance returned at them-No, her eyes only focused on Berthold.

"There is no one we can believe, the other only slacking and doesn't do their job."

Unknown to Natasha, her eyes started to lose light and her expression distorted, "I relieved that you are here... You are the only one that knows me right? I can believe in YOU, right?"

Berthold unable to handle the pressure and closed his mouth with his hand as he throw up every content inside his stomach.