Back in the cave, Forresten and Ed sat by the fire. Forresten had already returned and was resting with his eyes closed, while Ed was still flipping through his book.
The sound of their footsteps made Forresten open his eyes. "Did you find anything, Wickel?"
"I gathered some information for you. It might come in handy." Wickel pulled off his cloak and tossed it aside, then plopped down on the ground. His movements kicked up a cloud of dust. He then opened one side of his leather coat and tossed a stack of folded papers to Forresten.
"Thank you, old friend," Forresten said. His hands were like dry branches, and one trembled slightly as he held the papers. With the other, he reached into his cloak and took out a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles, which he perched on his nose. In the quiet cave, Fatenai could hear the papers rustling open over the crackling fire.
Everything seemed peaceful, yet Fatenai could detect a hint of urgency in the old man's movements. She couldn't see how Forresten's expression changed as he read, not until she and Helise had settled in a corner beside the fire.
"Your information came at just the right time," Forresten said after reading what Wickel had brought back. He tucked his spectacles into his cloak, stood up as he spoke, and shook himself out haphazardly. "Old friend, I need you to go to Bredalin."
"Want me to pass a message to Atwood?" Wickel asked. Leaning against the wall, he stretched out his long legs. He seemed more relaxed than Forresten.
"Exactly. Tell Atwood to come to Starshine in Mist Month... No, before Birth Month," Forresten said.
Wickel couldn't help tapping the ground. "My goodness... I was hoping to go to Starshine and have a cup of their special strong tea. You're really making things difficult for me... But fine, I'll go now. Do you want me to bring him anything?"
"Just finding him will be enough. Rose Month is here, and that gnome is always disappearing," Forresten said. "Thank you, old friend."
"If you think of me as an old friend, bring me a couple more bottles of Magic Potion next time we meet. Hey, Atwood will fall out with you if you keep calling him that. He prefers to call his gnomish stature dwarvish." Wickel picked up his cloak, the heavy garment rustling as he lifted it, then strode quickly toward the exit.
Fatenai was surprised by how hurriedly Wickel left, but Helise was used to it. Seeing Fatenai's expression, she said, "Adventurers are always like that. They never stay in one place for long. When they get a job, they set off—provided the pay is good enough that they have no reason to refuse."
"Let's go back tomorrow morning. There's no need to stay in the forest any longer," Forresten said next. Helise was delighted, but his next words made her expression change completely. "Go find Hubert. He should still be outside working on his project. If I remember correctly, you two are in the same group."
If anyone else had brought it up, Helise would have argued. But how could she refuse the headmaster? Then she glanced at the injured Fatenai and could only sigh in resignation.
"You can pretend none of this ever happened." Perhaps she felt a little guilty, since she had been the one to change the nature of their relationship. So Fatenai said it.
"This has nothing to do with you. It's my fault," Helise sighed, then draped the cloak from her knees over her shoulders.
Fatenai often said things like "This has nothing to do with you," too, but the words meant something entirely different coming from each of them.
Fatenai said nothing. When Helise's figure disappeared at the cave entrance, Forresten asked her, "Have you always been a Forest Hunter, Fatenai?"
"Of course. I was one with my parents." Fatenai couldn't help thinking Forresten had sent Helise away on purpose, so she answered that way.
"That's quite interesting." Forresten said nothing more. As he spoke to Fatenai, he slipped the papers Wickel had given him into his cloak. "I hope you'll be able to adjust to what comes next."
"I think I can help her," Ed said, speaking for the first time. He read at an astonishing speed. When Fatenai had left the cave, he had been less than halfway through his book, but now only a few pages remained—or perhaps he had already finished it.
Fatenai looked at his sincere smile, feeling nothing. In the end, she stood and walked over to him. "Thank you for your help."
As she spoke, she returned the coat she had kept for so long, then went back to her corner, wrapped herself in her cloak, and closed her eyes, turning her back to them. She seemed to have fallen asleep.
"I remember you have another remarkable magic user for a companion." Ed took his coat, shook out his sleeves, and set it aside. Then he said to Fatenai, "Isn't he with you? I think the teacher is very interested in that magic user."
Fatenai herself had no idea how powerful Merlin was. Forresten hadn't noticed, but Ed had sensed it.
"He went home. Rose Month is when people most need to reunite with their families," Fatenai said, brushing Ed off.
Where had Merlin gone? Fatenai didn't know, either. In the legends of King Arthur, that magician had, in a sense, helped bring Arthur into the world and lived alongside him until he brought the Sword in the Stone back to Britain, then helped him ascend the throne...
So where might he have gone?
Fatenai didn't want to think about it any further, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
Why had she suddenly mentioned reuniting with family? Fatenai had been thinking about Merlin the whole time and hadn't given that detail much thought. So she had no idea why familiar figures appeared one after another in her dream.
While everyone rested in the cave, Helise lay down beside Fatenai. Hubert and Forresten were in another corner. Though Forresten was an old man, he sat leaning against the wall, his staff swaying precariously in his hand as his head moved.
The black-haired boy walked out of the cave. The wind blew straight into his face, making his pale features seem frozen, but his blue eyes stared straight ahead, and he said nothing.
"Master, I've found out," a figure emerged from the forest and handed Ed a sealed scroll. "It's about Fatenai Wisdom."
"Oh? And who else were you planning to give this to? Let me guess, that fool Morton?" Ed took the scroll. His voice remained unhurried, but the air around them gradually grew tense as he spoke. "The word 'loyalty' does suit you—but the person you're loyal to isn't me."
Before you continue