Second Intermission (1)

The view of El Dante grew distant, and the chilly wind, which hadn't been felt in the walled city, stung against their cheeks.

I used Vittorio, who was wrapped in thick winter clothes, as a heater, pressing him against my side to shield myself from the cold. With him close, I could almost feel like I had grown a little taller.

"By the way, Sir Raul, how long are you going to stay lying back there? This wagon is for carrying luggage, not for riding. Doesn't your back hurt?"

From the back of the wagon, a groan could be heard. Since leaving the gates of El Dante, Raul had been in that state the entire time. If I listened carefully, I could hear him muttering frantically, sounding even more exhausted than when he was dealing with the monsters.

"…I can't be the only one suffering. I need to make Paulo or Dame Natalie see this too. Right now, they don't know anything, but once they knew it… Ah! Aagh!"

It felt like it would be better not to poke at him. Fine, I'll just ignore it.

I understood why Leonardo suggested ignoring Raul when dealing with him. It seemed like it would be a lot of trouble if I got involved. As I held the reins tightly, pretending not to notice, Vittorio, who had been glancing at Raul, whispered softly.

"What was that before we left the castle?"

Ah, of course, Vittorio wouldn't know about such things since he hadn't been exposed to noble culture.

"Lady Celestina told me. It's a way for comrades to wish each other good fortune. Like this."

I pressed my lips playfully against his freezing, stiff cheek, and the child smiled brightly. A moment later, the wind seemed to bite harder, and he hid his face in his scarf, but his flushed cheek looked even warmer.

"Oh, I see. I didn't know…"

"Right? I didn't know either."

Just then, Raul muttered something with his face buried in a blanket at the back of the wagon. It sounded like a complaint, but his words were so muffled I couldn't make out a single thing. The wagon jolted as it hit some small pebbles, so I thought he might have been grumbling about that.

"The road's rough, so the wagon's going to shake. If you're unhappy, Sir, the knights are riding the horse."

At that, Raul let out another unintelligible noise. He sure was making a lot of noise.

It seems like I'm not used to driving the horses, especially not just one. Even now, whenever a gap appeared, Leonardo would gently nudge the horse back on track, preventing it from veering off onto another path. If he were caught, he'd lose face, so I had to keep it quiet.

Perched atop the black horse, Leonardo smiled with his eyes when our gazes met. Despite the time that had passed since leaving El Dante, he still looked as energetic as ever.

However, since he wasn't the type to push others based on his own condition, he noticed the sun was setting early, and suggested we stop at the village just ahead for the night.

"There's a village ahead?"

Leaning forward, I saw Leonardo pull the reins and move closer to the driver's seat, showing me the map. Several small villages were marked along the way from El Dante to the Vernis Mountains. All of them were in the Count's territory. But Leonardo explained that these villages weren't supply stations or places to rest.

"The villages are too small to have landowners, so they're ruled by a village chief. So, we're not exactly guests; we're more like people going to offer help."

Apparently, Count Ertinez had asked them to stop by these small villages while on their way, to check on how the villagers were doing, as a sort of two-in-one task.

Winter was approaching, so the Count had asked them to check whether the villages were properly prepared for the cold, and if any of the storerooms were running low on supplies, to distribute food and resources to help.

"Sounds like the lord's duties," I said.

No wonder there seemed to be more food and supplies than expected. It was clear now that the Count's firm stance against splitting his resources with his family had finally crumbled.

Suddenly, Raul, his face looking pale from the back of the wagon, leaned over and rested his chin on Vittorio's head, interrupting the conversation.

"In a mountain village like this, there are bound to be beasts or monsters around. With winter coming, they'll likely start prowling for food. Should we do things like usual?"

Leonardo glanced at the knights following behind and nodded.

"It's better to run some drills before we actually engage in combat."

Vittorio and I exchanged puzzled glances at those words.

Then, about two hours later…

"Catch them!"

We witnessed the armed knights, with nets in hand, scrambling through the dirt paths to catch a wild boar in the mountains.

"Oh! Thank you so much, Lord. Those wild boars have been ruining our defences, sneaking through the gaps and allowing monsters to hide. Do you know how many cows and pigs they've devoured?"

The middle-aged man, who appeared to be the village chief, grabbed my hand with his wrinkled one and bowed repeatedly in gratitude. Since the others were busy with manual labour, I looked relatively free and was mistaken for a noble, though the real "Lord" was over there with a hammer, repairing the defences.

Thud! With a loud sound, Leonardo was quickly and efficiently carving a heavy log into sharp stakes and driving them into the ground, tying them together with strong ropes. His pace was faster than that of four or five knights combined.

It was the return of 1Dolsoe.

The elderly villagers, unable to recognize the noble air in Leonardo's attire, brought boiled eggs and fresh goat's milk to the hardworking servant. Leonardo, used to this treatment, graciously accepted everything, bowing his head with gratitude.

"…Here, take this, Isaac."

When something particularly tasty was available, he would step over and share it with me or Vittorio. Vittorio mumbled while nibbling on flatbread with cheese, dried fruits, and ham, "I don't think I'll have room for dinner."

I felt the same.

"Still, I think Leo will have dinner, right?" I murmured, and Vittorio nodded in agreement.

By the time we arrived at the village, Raul, who had left alone to scout the forest, had returned.

"What have you been up to?"

"I was looking for monster tracks. There's one loitering around, getting ready to hibernate."

Raul slung his long spear over his shoulder and rubbed his hands together, his expression dark and calculating.

"You can't just drag a rookie with no combat experience into a monster hunt. You have to toughen them up beforehand, or they'll make rookie mistakes when it matters."

He explained that practicing before facing real combat was crucial, as being unprepared could lead to major mistakes. After a pause, he added,

"Want to come along?"

Vittorio nodded thoughtfully. I decided to join in as well, grabbing my crossbow. Since the next mission was a monster hunt, I wanted to gain some experience beforehand.

While Leonardo and I had already faced monsters together several times and could easily coordinate and share ideas, I hadn't worked with these inexperienced knights yet.

Raul, who had given us special training during the selection test for the monster hunt team, didn't seem to mind our participation. He only briefly glanced at Leonardo and made a few hand signals, as if seeking permission.

Soon, Raul led the way into the forest, teaching the knights how to track monster signs. Raul, who was already familiar with this kind of work, recited the methods for detecting monster tracks, such as footprints left in the mud, broken branches, and the distinctive stench of the beasts.

"Monster hunting was one of the main tasks supporting the field army. Though, most of the time, Dame Natalie was better at it. As for Dame Natalie…"

"She's a hunter, right?"

"Tch… I knew you'd get it."

That remark brought to mind Natalie's journal. She was probably still hiding in the mountains, evading the King's trackers. The gap between the journal entries and the present time didn't seem too large, so it was likely still an ongoing situation.

Then, ahead of us, the knights spotted the tracks of the monsters and signalled Raul. Unlike the sudden ambushes I had experienced with Leonardo, this monster hunt proceeded smoothly under Raul's guidance.

Since it was important for the knights to refine their senses, I refrained from getting too involved and instead focused on occasionally firing my crossbow to disrupt the monsters' movements. After a while, with a heavy thud, the monster collapsed.

"Well, that was decent enough."

Raul glanced over the knights, who had faltered a bit during the hunt, before pulling out a large, broad-bladed sword from his sleeve, about the length of his forearm.

When I asked what it was, the answer came that the knights had made such a mess with their clumsy attempts, putting gaping holes in the leather, and it was too bloody to take as it was. As I quietly observed the scene, a thought suddenly came to me.

'Archive.'

[Accessing Archive: Loading .]

I quickly scanned the floating text in the air and recalled the details. There had definitely been a clue in Natalie's previous journal.

And finally, this:

At the time, I had focused on the fact that Natalie had safely escaped and that the monsters seemed to be fleeing from something, but upon further thought, this was also a clue that could help track Natalie's current location.

If she had been gradually approaching the source of the monsters for her observations, then perhaps she's somewhere nearby?

The reason the grand crusade is being held in the Vernis Mountain Range this year is likely because of the miasma from the dead dragon buried there, which has been creating these monsters. Although it's just a legend, there's probably some truth at its core, and the connection between the Vernis Mountain Range and the monsters is clear.

'If I could join up with Leonardo's other allies, it would be much easier and less burdensome.'

Although I was concerned by the mad scientist-like traits I'd seen in Natalie through her journal…

Come to think of it, why do all of Leonardo's subordinates seem to have such exceptional and rough edges? It could just be for character development as a supporting role. But the strange thing is that Leonardo himself, who stands at the centre of it all, is so calm— well, at least in everyday life, outside of combat situations, he's always considerate and kind.

It was truly strange.