Fatenai and Darwin's brief conversation never went any further. Amid the rustling of footsteps over leaves and the hounds' frenzied barking, a group emerged from the woods and surrounded them. They seemed to be the humans who had hurt the unicorn.
Fatenai warily watched the people dressed as adventurers. There were about ten of them, all men by the look of their builds. They wore hoods over their black coats. Some held bows, others long swords, while a few carried no weapons. The hounds barking at their sides were powerfully built and loud, completely unlike Little White.
"A little girl?" The leading adventurer pulled back his hood. A scar ran beneath one eye, and surprise crossed his face. "There are little girls in the forest? Am I seeing things?"
"Who cares about some little girl? The unicorn's right there!" said an adventurer behind him.
Fatenai said nothing, her gaze still warily fixed on them. She certainly didn't want this group to take the unicorn away, but before she could stop them, the unicorn emerged from behind her. Its towering figure stood between Fatenai and the group, sternness in its crystal-like eyes.
It clearly disliked these adventurers, too. Perhaps it was only her imagination, but Fatenai felt it was deliberately watching one of them in particular.
"What's going on? Jolin, didn't you say your spear pierced it?" the scarred adventurer asked his companion.
"I wasn't lying! Its blood is still on my spear!" Jolin also found what he was seeing unbelievable, and he still hadn't recovered from the shock. "Could it be another unicorn?"
The spear in Jolin's hand was pitch-black, but a closer look revealed that it wasn't black by nature. It had been stained by the unicorn's dried blood.
The unicorn stared at Jolin and took a step forward, stamping its forehooves twice on the ground. Fatenai then saw the adventurers' expressions turn grim. Sensing something was happening, she used the Eye of Connection and saw Mana rushing into the unicorn at tremendous speed. This sacred beast seemed able to control the flow of Mana—or perhaps it even had the potential to become a mage!
In theory, only humans could control Mana, but this unicorn had clearly changed that.
Of course, not everyone could sense the flow of Mana. Some of the adventurers were still focused on Fatenai. The presence of either a unicorn or a little girl in the forest was astonishing.
"Isn't that the little girl Wickel saved?" A voice incongruously cut through the tense atmosphere. Everyone looked toward the speaker, a square-faced man with ashen skin who had removed his hood. He stared at Fatenai. "Did you save this unicorn? You can use healing magic?"
"Sir, do you know me?" Fatenai asked, frowning slightly as she looked at the man. Seeing that he had no weapon, she guessed he might be a mage.
"Marrison, you know this girl?" the scarred adventurer asked. Fatenai could hear the respect in his tone toward Marrison, which only made her more certain that he was a mage. But when had she ever crossed a mage?
Even if she had, Fatenai could only remember the female mage who had tried to kill her in the forest.
Marrison looked at Fatenai again before confirming, "That's right, I know you. Half a month ago, Wickel died trying to save you."
"Wickel's dead? That's big news," the adventurers said, equally surprised.
Fatenai's heart grew heavy.
"Hey, guys, stop staring at the little girl. That unicorn really does seem to be the same one as before! You..." Jolin suddenly raised his voice, interrupting their conversation. His reasoning made sense, but Fatenai noticed that many of them looked as if they wanted to avoid the truth.
The unicorn stamped twice where it stood, seemingly angry that these humans were ignoring it. Jolin's expression changed, and he raised his weapon, but the other adventurers only took a step back.
The unicorn suddenly lunged forward, its hoof striking the ground hard enough to leave a dent. It surged ahead and slammed into Jolin!
Fatenai saw that the unicorn hadn't attacked its enemy directly with its horn. Instead, it gathered a layer of Mana around it, making the horn even sharper and more powerful than before. As it charged, it seemed to lock onto Jolin, leaving him unable to move. Jolin had been about to drop his weapon and run, but now he couldn't budge. He stared at the unicorn in terror, his face drained of color.
No one could stop it.
The powerful Mana-charged impact drove Jolin onto the beech tree behind him. A massive wound gaped in his chest, and in an instant he stopped breathing. Surprise flashed in Fatenai's eyes, and for a moment her stomach churned. The unicorn's fighting style had far exceeded her expectations.
It was more like a battle-hardened warrior.
After doing all that, the unicorn elegantly tossed its head, not a speck of filth on its body. But its actions had filled the adventurers with fear.
"Damn it... Let's go," the leader said to his companions, realizing they had no chance of winning.
Fatenai couldn't help wondering why they were leaving so leisurely. Weren't they afraid the unicorn would attack again?
"It won't. Unicorns only attack enemies who have harmed them," Marrison said, apparently noticing her confusion. "It seems Wickel never taught you even the basics—or maybe he took a liking to a little girl. Willondoners really do have strange taste."
"I appreciate you explaining that to me, but I'd rather you didn't joke about Wickel," Fatenai said sternly.
Marrison didn't take offense. He had given up chasing the unicorn and seemed more interested in Fatenai instead. "You don't seem to know much about him. Aren't you curious? Besides, how are you going to live on your own? Why not discuss it with someone experienced?"
"Why should I trust you? I don't know what connection I have to mages. If there is one, then you're a mage hired by the Ansendil Family, aren't you? I've already made the Ansendil Family my enemy. I don't make a habit of trusting my enemies." Fatenai had no particular fondness for Marrison. What other mages had she met besides those hired by the Ansendil Family?
And Ed had cast such a deep shadow over her that even hearing the name Ansendil Family made her turn pale.
"Adventurers have their own circles. At least, I haven't heard of a little girl like you in the Eisole Forest. Month of Trekking is almost here. Do you think you can keep living on your own?"
Fatenai had no answer.
The first month of Rose Month, Month of Trekking, was less than ten days away. In truth, it was a hunting month. Animals would be busy finding suitable places to survive the five harsh months ahead, so they would be especially active. That included some rare species, which could fetch a good price if captured. Even nobles joined the hunt.
Despite the dangers, Month of Trekking would bring crowds in pursuit of profit. Who knew how many adventurers and nobles would pour in? By then, Fatenai would have an even harder time. Either the nobles would discover her, or the adventurers would treat her as an enemy.
It was difficult to get by anywhere without a place of your own.
"All right, I'll hear you out," Fatenai relented.
She was suspicious, too. Why had Marrison come to tell her about Wickel? After all, the mages had joined forces to attack Wickel. Surely he hated Wickel more than he hated her.
"Tomorrow night, north of Wickel's cabin. It will take you to the Champagne Tavern," Marrison said, then tossed her a necklace. It looked quite ordinary.
Fatenai caught the necklace and rubbed her thumb over its surface. "Wait... Aren't you taking your companion's body back?"
"People die in the forest every day... Don't be so naïve, little girl." Marrison walked away without looking back.
Fatenai didn't leave. Instead, she fell into thought, until she felt a tickling sensation on her neck. Turning around, she found that the unicorn's breath had brushed against her.
She turned to the side and reached out to pat the unicorn's head. She suddenly found the creature fascinating. It killed those who harmed it without hesitation, yet grew close to those who had saved it.
"This creature is quite interesting," Darwin said. He had been silent all this time, and Fatenai hadn't even considered where the old man was. Now he moved closer to the unicorn. "It would be even better if I could study it closely."
The unicorn seemed able to sense Darwin's presence. It raised its neck slightly, then gently rubbed against him. To these people, Darwin was nothing more than air, a phantom.
Fatenai knew the unicorn agreed.
"That's wonderful! Lonai, let's collect its blood. It might be useful for something else..." Darwin quickly came up with a plan to collect it, then immediately got to work. He was quite the workaholic.
Fatenai smiled and shook her head, then went to help Darwin. She tried not to look at Jolin's body, but still felt uneasy. Perhaps it was because, despite having lived two lives, she had never seen a real corpse. In the end, she couldn't bear it any longer. She dug a pit with a shovel and buried Jolin.
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