WFMW 63

Chapter 63. Keep Your Promise!

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April 25, 2024

Of course, Sidor was at the very front.

Once the knights on horseback moved out, their bodies blocked my view entirely—I couldn’t even catch a glimpse of him anymore.

‘How disappointing.’

There were too many knights, and the dense forest made the view ahead impossible to see clearly.

If I’d been sitting in front of Sidor, this wouldn’t have been the case.

‘It’d be the same if a monster appeared, wouldn’t it?’

That thought made me feel even gloomier. I sulkily stared at the swaying horse tail in front of me.

As we entered deeper into the forest, the horses slowed. Then Jacques asked,

“You seem a little down today, miss. Even though we might finally get to meet the monster you’ve been waiting for.”

“Do I look that way? I’m fine.”

I tried to smile reassuringly, but the corners of my lips twitched awkwardly, so I gave up quickly.

There was no fooling Jacques anyway. I sighed.

“I don’t really know. What’s wrong with me, I mean.”

Honestly, I didn’t even have a right to feel disappointed. Sidor was leading a large group of people—of course he couldn’t pay attention to me.

And since no monster had even appeared yet, insisting on sitting in front of him just because of some “promise” would have been childish.

‘But… somehow, I just assumed Sidor would seat me in front again.’

As I examined my own feelings carefully, I realized something surprising—it wasn’t that I was upset because he broke a promise.

What truly weighed me down was the fact that Sidor had entrusted me to someone else.

The way he avoided my gaze, as if he’d done something wrong, too.

‘Why am I feeling like this?’

I blinked, confused by my own unreasonable emotions.

And just when I was about to reflect a little more deeply—

“Dark Wolf!”

A loud shout from the front shattered my thoughts. I jerked upright.

“Ah! It appeared!”

What did they just say? Dark Wolf?

‘From here I can barely see anything!’

Something was definitely happening up ahead, but I couldn’t see a thing from where I was.

All I could make out were the urgent voices exchanged between the knights.

“Fire the arrows!”

“It might have packmates nearby! Stay sharp!”

“One hit! Got one!”

Apparently, they had spotted the Dark Wolf through the trees ahead.

An arrow shot forward like it was being sucked between the trunks—

Then, a black smoke burst upward like fire.

“Black smoke…”

“That’s what we call magi,” Jacques explained.

Now that he said it, I finally linked the scene with what I’d read in books. I nodded vigorously.

“Oh, I’ve read about that! When the magic stone that holds a monster’s life force is destroyed, that dark energy leaks out.”

“Usually, when the magi drains away, the monster’s body shrinks noticeably. The corpses you saw at the Academy were much smaller than they were alive.”

“I see. There’s really no substitute for seeing things in person.”

Monsters were different from regular animals—they had a core, a magic stone, and destroying it was the only way to make sure they were dead.

Before that, even if you destroyed their heart, they could still live.

‘I wonder what kind of principle that’s based on.’

Curiosity made me lean forward unconsciously. But no matter how far I stretched my neck, all I could see from here was that black haze of magi.

As the knights advanced, I finally caught sight of the fallen Dark Wolf whose magic stone had been pierced by an arrow.

It looked like a wolf, but much larger—magi still oozing faintly from its body.

And as the magi seeped away, the creature’s size gradually shrank, like it was bleeding out invisible energy.

I watched closely, then tilted my head and spoke to Jacques.

“Magic and magi feel… really similar. Maybe it’s just my imagination.”

Jacques smiled gently.

“No one knows how monsters are born, so whether magic affects magi—no one can say. After all, even we don’t know where our own magic goes when we die.”

“That’s true.”

The process of magi condensing inside the magic stone felt oddly similar to how humans stored magic in their hearts.

“If I could just see what the stone looks like, maybe I’d get a clue…”

But the magic stone had been shattered by the arrow. I bit my lip in disappointment.

As we continued our march, monsters appeared again and again.

“Captain! Five Dark Wolves ahead!”

“They’re retreating!”

“They must be calling for others. What should we do?”

Whether this forest was their nesting ground or not, the only monsters appearing were Dark Wolves.

They would peek at the knights from afar like scouts, then flee again.

The first one that died was at least visible afterward—but the rest, we couldn’t even catch a glimpse of their fur.

I groaned inwardly.

‘Ughhh! Monsters keep showing up, but I can’t see any of them up close!’

I needed to observe a living monster to understand how its magic stone worked—but not only could I not see one alive, I couldn’t even study a proper corpse!

After about four hours, we stopped in a small clearing by a stream.

“We’ll rest here for a while!”

Everyone moved efficiently, feeding their horses and setting up for rest—they’d clearly done this many times before.

I stretched my arms and just watched them.

‘What’s the point of coming along if I have nothing to do?’

I’d brought plenty of magic stones just in case I needed them for spells, but I hadn’t had a single reason to use one.

Looking around idly, I noticed some knights had laid out the Dark Wolf’s corpse.

Without its magi, it looked no different from a regular wolf.

I crouched to inspect the forehead where the arrow had struck. But there wasn’t much to learn.

‘A broken magic stone doesn’t tell me what it was like before—or even if it really contained magic energy.’

All I could do was record its physical traits: claws, fur, size, and magic stone location—all neatly on paper.

Grisha approached and smiled warmly.

“You’re really dedicated, Nelly.”

“It’s a rare opportunity.”

“True. It’s not every day we get to see a monster this close.”

After walking a circle around the corpse, Grisha rested her chin in her hand.

“It just looks like a normal wolf. Hard to believe it’s the same black creature we saw earlier.”

“When magi drains away, they shrink. That’s what that magic stone does…”

I was explaining what Jacques had told me when something struck me like lightning.

‘That’s it! Opportunities like this don’t come twice—how can I just waste it like this?!’

“Nelly?”

Grisha called curiously, but I didn’t even hear her.

I clenched my fists and strode straight toward Sidor.

He was chatting idly with the other knights.

“Captain, you’re unusually diligent today.”

“Normally you’re like a rampaging hippo tearing through the woods.”

“Shut it.”

Their pointless chatter only fueled my irritation. I raised my voice.

“Sidor Granite!”

He couldn’t possibly have missed my approach, yet only now did he look up. I clenched my fists and yelled,

“Keep your promise! You said you’d let me see a monster up close!”

His indifferent gaze made my chest tighten painfully.

My fists loosened, and my head lowered. In a small voice, I added,

“You said carrying me wouldn’t be a big deal…”

I suddenly felt like crying. Why had I even come here to complain about something so childish? I turned to leave.

That’s when—

“…Damn it.”

A low curse slipped from him. When I turned back, Sidor was standing, pulling on the gloves he’d left loose before.

He muttered curtly to his men,

“I’ll be back.”

“Huh?”

I blinked in confusion. Be back? From where?

I didn’t understand, but the other knights chuckled knowingly and nudged his back.

“Off you go, Captain.”

“Yeah, hurry back. It’s stressful being around a captain with pent-up frustration.”

It almost sounded like he was heading off somewhere alone.

“What are you all—”

“Hold on tight.”

“Kyaa!”

Sidor strode over and, without warning, scooped me up into his arms.

Startled, I grabbed onto his shoulder.

His silver-gray eyes still looked cool and unreadable as ever. He said, completely unbothered,

“You asked me to hold you.”

“Don’t say things that can be misunderstood! I meant you promised—ack!”

Before I could finish, Sidor broke into a run.

Then, light as if gravity didn’t apply to him, he leapt upward onto a tall tree branch.

He spoke calmly.

“Best not to talk unless you want to bite your tongue.”

He could’ve said that earlier!

Too late—I’d already bitten mine and clamped my hands over my mouth.

Down below, Grisha’s face turned pale as she shouted,

“Nelly!”

Sidor glanced down briefly, then waved lazily at the knights.

“See you later. Usual rendezvous point.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Come back safe!”

Apparently, his solo actions were nothing new—no one tried to stop him.

I felt his arms tighten around me as he jumped again—

And the world blurred.

It really was like flying.