Betrayal

The cold wind howled past, stirring snow stained red with blood.

His subordinate's report mingled with the crackle of ice crystals against his ears, but the Tracker captain did not rush to give an order.

His gaze shifted to the hoofprints in the snow.

The prints were shallow. The horse was carrying very little weight: no supplies, no rider. The hoofprints were clearly meant to mislead them.

In other words, Renee and her unknown protector could not have fled north.

He looked at the scattered bloodstains and bodies, his gaze lingering on the knight's corpse.

The knight had died in a single blow to the back of the neck. The blood had frozen into crimson crystals, and the corpse's skin had turned a deathly blue.

A wash of red spread across the captain's eyes. As a Bloodhound who had completed the Threefold Pilgrimage, he activated his special ability, Bloodhunt. But the ability that had never failed him before found nothing.

Renee and her new protector had left no mystical connection behind.

"Sir, what are we waiting for?" the subordinate who had first spotted the hoofprints urged. "Please give the order!"

The Tracker captain licked his lips. After weighing his options, he made his decision.

But just as he was about to announce it, his nephew spoke up.

"Something's wrong. The hoofprints aren't deep enough!"

The captain's heart sank. He gave his too-clever nephew a cold look.

His nephew seemed not to notice and continued his analysis. "The wind's too strong to track them by scent, so I suggest—"

"No need," the Tracker captain cut in grimly. "We'll follow the trail north. Renee's protector is cunning. He's counting on our caution to make us second-guess the trail. So north it is."

His nephew stared at him in disbelief, only to be