"The smell of blood... has faded." He stood up and looked through the window toward the lands beyond Kazimierz. "Maybe it's because it's too far away."
"I can't smell it anymore."
Several hundred kilometers from the Great Knight Territory.
By the time Gerald returned to the place where he was temporarily staying, the sky had gradually darkened. Spring nights came neither early nor late, giving him just enough time to travel from Kazimierz's city to the countryside.
As he entered the village, he suddenly looked up at a tree near its entrance.
"What are you doing up there?"
The moment he spoke, a white figure sprang down from the tree.
"...Nothing. It's nothing. I just wanted to stay up there."
Xintelya trembled as she approached Gerald, silently plucking the leaves from her hair. "Um, do you need me to carry your luggage? Um—"
Gerald shook his head, casually suspending the documents and files carried by the wind in midair. "No need. Though I don't know why you didn't go into the village, at least you don't need to worry about your former boss, 'Darksteel,' suddenly appearing out of nowhere and shooting you dead with an arrow."
"Your two Azurite colleagues are probably thinking about how to escape Kazimierz right now. They won't have time to deal with a 'traitor' like you anytime soon."
"Oh... oh."
Xintelya said nothing, only nodded over and over.
Though it was difficult to admit, she had only arrived not long ago herself.
She had set out in the morning, running until she needed rest, then running again after resting. Along the way, she had also needed to avoid dangers lurking in the wilderness. As a result, the moment she reached Gerald's planned meeting point, she felt a sense of crisis and hurriedly hid in