Harbinger of a New Path

Things were resolved unexpectedly. When Fatenai was discovered, she understood that struggling was useless and had already begun considering how to escape next time and deal with the other troubles. Yet Wickel merely said one casual sentence, and the knights who had been so proud a moment ago changed expression and fled in disgrace the next second.

Even as they fled, they deliberately maintained their composure.

"Pfft!" Fatenai ignored the red marks left on her hand from being gripped. Watching the knights ride away, perhaps because the scene had changed too quickly, she couldn't help laughing out loud.

At that moment, she could even see the backs of the knights sitting straight on horseback tremble.

This was too funny!

"Hahaha..." Fatenai felt that this was the first time in a long while—perhaps even since becoming a noble—that she had laughed so freely. Just like the knights' sudden departure, her laughter had come suddenly.

This time, it was Wickel who was surprised. He looked at the girl who had abruptly gone from panicked to laughing so hard she could barely stand straight, then blinked.

Fatenai finally laughed enough. Seeing Wickel staring at her, she couldn't help coughing softly. Rather than simply being in a good mood, it felt more like all the frustration in her heart had finally vanished.

"Thank you," Fatenai said sincerely. It was no longer the reserved smile of a noble, but the bright smile a twelve-year-old girl should have—her platinum-blonde hair glittered in the sunlight.

"You're welcome." Wickel seemed to spend considerable effort pulling his gaze away. He turned to look at the sky, and after a long silence, suddenly said, "There used to be a village here, but it was destroyed... It was the territory of some lord, though that was a long time ago. I was the only survivor, but I couldn't do anything back then. Later, when I was alone, I nearly died."

Surprise appeared in Fatenai's eyes.

She had calmed down by then and began considering these matters. She had always believed that every choice a person made had a reason behind it. Wickel's earlier hesitation over whether to send her back to the "place she belonged" clearly stemmed from the memories he had mentioned.

Now, she believed Wickel would let her stay, and that was clearly related to his past.

But Fatenai also developed other doubts. Eisole Forest was an ancient forest. If a village had once existed within it and had been destroyed, how could such a forest have formed in merely a few decades?

Moreover, Cachey had never mentioned anything like this in history class. Mages existed in this world, but they were rare. Most people lived ordinary lives, much like in the world she had once lived in. The destruction of an entire village should have left some trace in the history books.

Yet there was none.

And then there was Auston, another point of suspicion—Auston, the key reason those knights had fled in panic... Fatenai had never heard that surname before. But just as she had known nothing about mages when she was a noble, it was normal for her to be ignorant of certain things.

There were too many doubts, but Fatenai wasn't in a hurry to uncover every truth at once.

"You can't use magic, can you?" Fatenai suddenly remembered something and looked at Wickel.

"Mm." A flicker of surprise passed through Wickel's eyes before he admitted it.

Fatenai understood. She could tell that this Forest Hunter was a highly experienced hunter, but like her, he didn't have the ability to use Mana.

For some reason, that gave her a sense of closeness.

"Then please take care of me," Fatenai said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Wickel asked strangely, watching Fatenai's emotions rise again after they had just settled down.

Fatenai said, "Um... it's a little noble custom. I suppose it means we should get along well from now on?"

Though she found it hard to imagine living in the forest forever, until she found a new way forward, Fatenai had decided to rely on this hunter—especially after encountering those mages in the forest.

"Oh, right..." Thinking of those mages made Fatenai uneasy, and she wanted to ask Wickel about them.

"Don't you nobles despise people who can't use Mana?" Wickel unexpectedly interrupted her, leaving her unable to ask.

The Kingdom of Luther worshipped the goddess Allentia. According to her teachings, Allentia, who created the world, had filled it with Mana. Only humans could wield Mana, making them the leaders of all living things—but among humans, only those favored by the goddess could use this power. Thus, people were divided into noble and lowly.

Within the Kingdom of Luther, if a noble or commoner claimed not to agree with such beliefs, it effectively meant going against their faith—and was tantamount to betraying one's status as a noble.

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sp; However, Fatenai didn't care—not only because she had never officially received recognition as a follower from The Holy See.

"Isn't the inability to use Mana just a matter of one's constitution? I've heard that some commoners can use Mana too," Fatenai said. "Nobles enjoy more convenient lives because of Mana, which only widens the gap between nobles and commoners, making class divisions greater and more unfair. But Mana fills the world. If it can be used, it should benefit everyone—Mana belongs to all people."

Fatenai actually thought of the new energy sources from the world she had once lived in. This world didn't have as many energy problems, yet Mana alone had already made the atmosphere rife with conflict.

Perhaps because she felt relaxed, she let down her guard around her hunter friend. She no longer considered the consequences of her words as she had when she was a noble—of course, she didn't know that Wickel was staring at her with blazing eyes.

She didn't even know that the words she had spoken unintentionally would change her future.

"I'm grateful that you can say such things." With her back to Wickel, Fatenai heard no response from him for some time, so she continued, "If there's anything you need help with, I'll do my best."

Her presence wasn't important to Wickel. Perhaps he had merely softened because of his memories and chosen to help her—she couldn't offer him much benefit. Fatenai didn't like this kind of one-sided arrangement.

Wickel paid no attention to her words, instead thinking about something else. He stared absentmindedly at the forest, and by the time he came back to himself, Fatenai had finished speaking.

"If you want to help, don't leave this place for the next few days," Wickel said casually, heading toward the cabin as he spoke. "If you've got time, you'd be better off fixing that mess of swordsmanship of yours."

Fatenai's face reddened slightly. Though she knew that in Wickel's eyes, perhaps no swordsmanship was worthy of praise, hearing him put it so bluntly still embarrassed her.

Still, she agreed rather happily this time—being able to improve herself in peace was certainly something to be glad about.

"What are you going to do? Hunt?" The brief conversation had swept away the fear the knights had left her with. Fatenai went to retrieve her iron sword and curiously watched Wickel change into leather armor.

"Mm." Wickel took the bow hanging on the wall and started walking. Just as he was about to disappear through the doorway, he paused and said, "I'm also going to investigate the Berserk Boar... There have been some clues lately, but it has nothing to do with you."

Fatenai blinked, feeling like laughing again. Was he worried she would run off into the forest alone again?

"Actually... that Berserk Boar..." It was good to be able to speak openly, and Fatenai wanted to tell him about Hermes.

After all, the Berserk Boar had something to do with Hermes...

Come to think of it, she hadn't seen that guy in a while. Since coming to Wickel's cabin, he had rarely appeared—perhaps because the two of them had argued.

"Miss, can I talk to you?" She had been thinking about Hermes when he appeared—interrupting Fatenai's words. Following the voice, she saw the boy.

Fatenai was in a good mood and, unusually, wanted to greet him. But after turning around, she found herself unable to speak. Surprise filled her eyes, and she raised a hand to cover her mouth—Hermes, who had suddenly appeared behind her, was somewhat transparent. She could faintly see the tree behind him through his usual smile.

She suddenly remembered that Hermes had been summoned—one month had passed in the blink of an eye, and he would soon disappear.

"That's wonderful! Miss can finally show her expressions so freely now!" Hermes completely missed the point of Fatenai's expression.

"What is it?" Wickel caught the sound from Fatenai and stopped to listen, but her voice suddenly cut off, leaving him puzzled. He couldn't hear Hermes speaking and had no idea what was happening.

"Huh? Oh... it's... it's nothing. Be careful on the way," Fatenai hurriedly said after Wickel's reminder, having been too startled to think of him at first.

Wickel didn't suspect anything. He glanced at Fatenai again, then unconsciously brought a hand to his neck. Beneath his collar was a chain, seemingly holding a pendant.

In the end, Wickel disappeared into the forest—the hunting dog followed him. Though it ran slowly, it insisted on following its master every time.

"Hermes?" Fatenai didn't notice Wickel's small movement. Instead, she stared intently at the boy before her and couldn't help saying, "You..."

"That's right, I'm going to disappear. We may very well never see each other again." Hermes wore a bright smile. Most of the time, that smile made him seem like a mischievous child, exasperating yet lovable.

Now, he simply stood in the sunlight and smiled, without a trace of shadow in that smile.