Thanks to Ruon’s formidable strength, the group safely crossed the bridge and reached the end of their short journey at the first fork in the road.
Amella handed a bundle of herbs to departing Colin and said, “After drying these thoroughly and grinding them finely, mix them with troll’s blood. Within 2 to 3 days, you should see some viscosity forming, and from then on, it should have a similar effect to a potion. It might save your lives in times of war, so don’t sell it off thoughtlessly… No, do whatever you want with it.”
Colin responded with an appreciative expression, saying, “Oh, don’t worry. I will definitely use it for the sake of us brothers. And…”
He turned his head slightly and bowed respectfully towards Ruon, who was gazing at him indifferently.
“Thank you.”
“What?”
Ruon tilted his head in confusion, and Colin smiled while holding the bottle of troll’s blood, which shimmered.
“Forget it. What’s the big deal about a little blood?”
Colin raised his hand and waved it towards Ruon, then bowed his head once again.
“Well then, we will be on our way. I hope everything goes well for all three of you in Dumfreese.”
With those words, the three men walked away, and Kyle murmured as he watched them go.
“Enlisting in the military… Can those people survive?”
Amella replied.
“Who knows if they will be struck by a blind arrow or become war heroes? We can’t say for sure. What’s certain is that we have our own things to worry about. Once even a fragment of power seeps out, Belducius’s followers will immediately follow. Don’t think they will be more civilized than the savages.”
Kyle’s expression darkened instantly, and he gave a bitter smile.
“Haha, that’s right. We have our hands full worrying about ourselves…”
“That’s why we need to move diligently. It should only take half a day by horse to reach Dumfreese from here.”
However, contrary to Amella’s expectations, the group did not reach Dumfreese by the time the sun set. The reason was that, despite finding stability, the horses couldn’t maintain their speed. It seemed that the lingering effects of encountering the predatory troll, as they were not combat horses, lasted longer than expected.
Unable to find a suitable village, the group prepared for a camp at a suitable location.
As Amella watched Ruon move the sparks from the flint to the tinder with a blank expression, she murmured softly.
“I can’t shake off the feeling that things are starting to go awry.”
Kyle, who was alternating between putting meat and cheese on a branch, responded to her words.
“That’s just how life is. So, Amella, please help me with the cooking.”
“Do we really have to eat that?”
“You’d rather starve? Once it’s in your mouth, it’s all the same.”
“Even so, troll meat…”
While Amella frowned, she still found Kyle’s actions amusing as he inserted the meat onto the branch.
Meanwhile, as the two of them were preparing their meal, Ruon, who had started a campfire and prepared his sleeping area, settled down and began inspecting his equipment.
Most of his gear was in a state that required inevitable repairs, evidence of the consecutive battles they had endured. Paradoxically, the Holy Sword, which had been handled the most roughly, remained in its original pristine condition, shining brightly.
As Ruon gently caressed the sword, its faint silver light, almost as if in response, hummed and trembled.
‘I should offer a donation to Tibella when I have the chance…’
It was a late evening, as the sun began to set. As the twilight, like a cast net, silently covered the land, the sparkling stars started to emerge. By the crackling campfire, a pile of burnt branches had accumulated next to the group without them even realizing it.
Kyle, his face reddened by the heat, tapped the grilling skewer and said, “Wow, it tastes really good. It would have been perfect if we had some beer.”
“After suffering from a hangover all morning, you still think about alcohol?”
“Well, that’s because I overdid it yesterday. And Amella, who acted as if she couldn’t stand troll meat, ended up eating a few pieces herself…”
Amella opened her eyes and Kyle turned his head, pretending to cough.
“Anyway… since we’ll be camping, someone has to take turns keeping watch. Does anyone want to go first?”
Kyle raised his hand.
“I’ll go first, to tidy up and all.”
“Then I’ll go next.”
As soon as Ruon responded, Amella shrugged her shoulders.
“Then I’ll go last.”
Without anything more to talk about in the night, the group quickly settled down and prepared for sleep.
Ruon, who had been gazing at the sky against the backdrop of crackling sounds from the campfire, heard the soft sound of Amella’s breathing from the adjacent spot. He turned his head and noticed Amella shifting her body lightly.
‘How did she fall asleep so quickly?’
Instead of closing his eyes, Ruon rose to his feet. Kyle, who was wiping his shield in front of the campfire, looked up and raised an eyebrow.
“Aren’t you going to sleep?”
Instead of answering, Ruon took out a dagger from his pouch and extended it towards Kyle.
“It’s better than just holding a shield loosely.”
“Uhh… Th-thank you.”
With a bewildered expression, Kyle accepted the dagger from Ruon. Then Ruon took out another dagger, gripped the handle tightly with his thumb resting on top of his fist, and extended it forward.
“If you have a shield, block the attacks first, and when you see an opening, you can stab or jab like this. Don’t forget to firmly grip it, as there have been cases of people clumsily letting go while trying to withdraw their blade after it got stuck in the opponent’s bone or muscle.”
Kyle squeezed the handle tightly with his fingers, almost as if he was trying to crush it.
“Like this?”
“You won’t foolishly let go of the handle. Now…”
Afterward, Ruon continued explaining the stance and techniques of handling the dagger for a while. Although he had never received formal training in swordsmanship, his accumulated experience from various battles allowed him to teach it proficiently.
Kyle, as if determined not to miss any of the vivid instruction, opened his eyes wide and focused.
It would have been a waste to let him rot away as just a lumberjack.
Seeing Kyle imitate the throwing techniques quite convincingly, Ruon bit his tongue inwardly. Although Kyle himself seemed unaware, he definitely had talent. Given that his talent wasn’t limited to just daggers, Ruon wondered if Kyle would make a name for himself once he found a weapon that suited him.
As Ruon placed the dagger back in his pouch, he said, “That’s enough for today. You also need to get some sleep.”
“Huh? Is it already that late?”
Kyle, who checked the position of the moon, scratched his head in a perplexed expression.
“I feel like I’ve taken more than my share, so I’m really sorry…”
“If you’re sorry, then next time you can cover my portion.”
It was a joking remark, but Kyle nodded seriously.
“Of course. I’ll do that. And, as I mentioned before, can you speak a little more comfortably…”
“We’ll think about that later.”
“Oh, okay.”
Kyle wore a crestfallen expression and headed straight to his sleeping spot. Placing his shield near his head and holding the dagger to his chest, he fell asleep. Ruon raised the corners of his mouth at the sight.
The night grew deeper. Ruon, who was tossing dry firewood into the fire to keep the flames alive, suddenly turned his head at the sound of labored breathing. He saw Amella’s pale face, drenched in cold sweat. Ruon, who initially thought of leaving her be, approached her without hesitation as soon as he noticed her lips turning pale.
“Amella.”
“Uhh, yeah?”
Amella opened her weary eyes and sat up, rubbing her temples.
“I guess it’s my turn.”
“No, that’s not why I woke you up.”
Ruon handed her a waterskin, watching her hurriedly drink from it.
“It’s probably not because of what you ate… What’s wrong?”
“Nothing… Just…”
“If there’s a problem, I hope you won’t hide it. You haven’t forgotten that you’re our guide, have you?”
Ruon opened his eyes wide, cutting off Amella’s words.
Amella, wiping the moisture off her lips with the back of her hand, slowly spoke up.
“…Belducius’s power attempted to reset the space I created arbitrarily and tried to destroy me, its source.”
“What does that even mean?”
Ruon raised his palm and spoke firmly.
“Tell me in a way that’s easy to understand.”
Amella, weakly smiling, said, “I’ll keep it simple.”
She took a deep breath and continued.
“The power of the Shard is much stronger than I thought. Even though I eagerly detached most of my magical power from the essence of the Shard, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to withstand… Instead, it’s pushing me further.”
Although she tried to explain it in detail, her words still didn’t sound intuitive to Ruon. To confirm the overall context of her story, he asked again.
“In the end, does it mean that the power of the Shard is trying to emerge again? And in that process, it’s trying to destroy you?”
“That’s right.”
Amella nodded slowly. Ruon immediately took out the stone slab from his pouch. The dull gray stone only felt like a lifeless rock in his palm, and the fact that a powerful demonic force was embedded within it didn’t feel quite real.
However, the demons’ minions who threw spears the previous day and the beasts they encountered were definitely real threats and valuable experience. Keeping that in mind, Ruon spoke.
“Well then, release the seal.”
“What?”
Ruon shrugged his shoulders toward Amella, who rarely showed a puzzled expression.
“Didn’t you hear me? Release the seal.”
“Do you even know what that means?”
“The demons’ minions will come swarming.”
“Even so, you want me to release it?”
Amella looked at Ruon with a bewildered expression. Then, she stared intently into his deep, unwavering black eyes. There was no hint of unease, fear, trembling, or sadness. There was only clear conviction in himself.
With a calm voice as resolute as his gaze, Ruon said, “It doesn’t matter. We’ll just kill them all as they come.”
