Chapter 9
Right next to the exile camp…
…was Mrs. Dallis’ hometown.
That’s way too suspicious.
A strong feeling told me something.
If we visit the Deste Territory…
…we might uncover more of the truth.
Maybe even the real reason why everyone in the exile camp was framed.
I already knew they had all been falsely accused.
But…
Would an entire nation really frame innocent people just to mine ore?
That doesn’t make sense.
Before leaving the primeval forest, I called Libby.
I didn’t tell her that we were heading to the Deste Territory.
I simply said we were going outside the forest to scout the area.
Libby only told us to stay safe and not worry about everyone back home.
“Please wear these.”
Verity took out three transparent cloaks.
Like everything else, these cloaks were counted as part of my wish.
It was our way of reducing the amount of my ridiculously valuable “payment” that kept making the demons work overtime.
“If you pull the hood over your head…”
“…both your appearance and your presence will disappear.”
“Wow!”
I immediately put mine on.
I wonder how much money this would sell for…!
“My lady, you’ve become completely obsessed with money.”
“I’m afraid there’s no cure for that.”
Wrapped in the cloaks, the three of us carefully observed the outside of the forest.
The area was packed with heavily armed knights.
Every one of them carried a sword.
There were even giant cannon-like weapons mounted on large wheels.
Not everyone there was a knight.
Ian glanced toward another group.
“Even the Imperial Court Mages are here.”
“What about those people in white robes?”
“Priests.”
Click.
Then…
Click.
Far more smoothly than before…
I opened the barrier.
For the first time…
We stepped outside the primeval forest.
The knights never noticed us beneath our cloaks.
Because of that…
We were able to stand nearby and secretly listen to their conversation.
“I heard the inner barrier of the forest collapsed…”
“…and the exile camp was completely destroyed.”
“They say the dead Clavis family summoned some kind of monster using their own lives.”
“To take revenge on the Emperor.”
“So that’s why His Majesty moved to the southern palace?”
“I heard only one guard’s head came flying out of the forest…”
“What’ll happen to the Clavis family’s fortune?”
“Will the Emperor and the nobles divide it?”
“There’s still no official announcement, right?”
Listening quietly…
I realized something important.
The Imperial Family was jealous of the Clavis family.
If that was true…
Then perhaps the Clavis family had been framed as well.
And somehow…
It almost feels like they knowingly walked into the trap.
Just thenā
“…”
“…”
Someone met my eyes.
Among the noisy crowd…
A single man stood silently.
He was staring directly toward where I was hiding.
W-What…?
Can he see us?
Then…
He calmly began walking toward us.
Each step was quiet…
Yet strangely heavy.
He stopped right in front of me.
Ian silently pulled me into his arms.
Beside me…
Verity watched the man with an unreadable expression.
Black hair.
A beauty mark beneath his right eye.
A dark purple coat draped over his shoulders.
His age was impossible to guess.
The knights who had been chatting only moments ago immediately straightened up and saluted.
“L-Lord Chief Chamberlain!”
“My apologies for interrupting your break.”
“N-Not at all, sir!”
“We were merely exchanging information while patrollingā”
“Then I suppose I misunderstood.”
“I thought you were simply standing around chatting during your break.”
Wow.
That was an incredibly elegant way of insulting them…
I admired him silently.
“It seems Commander Rashid has discovered something about the primeval forest.”
“I believe he’s looking for all of you.”
“Ah! Thank you for informing us!”
“Please excuse us!”
The knights hurried away as if fleeing.
The Chief Chamberlain’s gentle smile vanished instantly.
Without another word…
He turned and walked away.
“…We should leave too.”
As I followed Verity and Ian…
I couldn’t stop glancing back.
The Chief Chamberlain stood perfectly still…
Quietly staring at something again.
Outside the forest…
An endless green plain stretched all the way to the horizon.
Standing in the middle of that vast grassland…
The primeval forest looked like a gigantic mountain.
It was a breathtaking sight.
But…
I couldn’t enjoy it.
“Wow.”
Verity stared at my forehead.
“Why are you sweating so much?”
“Maybe babies really do have fast metabolisms.”
“What baby? I’m twenty-five.”
“Hebenia.”
“You’re seven.”
“But seriously…”
“You’re drenched.”
Ian wiped my forehead with the back of his hand.
It came away covered in sweat.
…I was scared.
I’m not someone who gets frightened easily.
People used to tell me I had no sense of danger.
Even when that prison guard grabbed my throat…
I had only been angry.
Not afraid.
I’d even adapted to hunting monsters surprisingly quickly.
Yet…
One glance from a single man…
And I reacted like this.
I placed a hand over my chest.
My heart was pounding so violently it felt as though it would break my ribs.
“Ian.”
I asked quietly,
“What exactly does the Chief Chamberlain do?”
“He’s the Emperor’s closest aide.”
“Hmm…”
“Think of him as the Emperor’s secretary.”
“Is he strong?”
“I’m not completely sure.”
“But according to the rumors…”
“…he’s very powerful.”
“I see.”
But Ian wasn’t finished.
“Still…”
He continued staring toward the forest.
“I don’t think those rumors even come close.”
Verity looked at him.
“You didn’t realize that before?”
“No.”
“I’d never met him.”
“So I just assumed the rumors were true.”
“But now…”
Ian’s expression became strange.
“I think the rumors fail to describe just how strong he really is.”
Cold sweat now formed on Ian’s forehead as well.
* * *
After walking for an hour from the exile camp…
We reached a small village.
From there…
We rode a carriage for another thirty minutes.
Finally…
We arrived at the Deste Territory.
It looked exactly like the magical worlds from fairy tales and fantasy novels.
So this is what people mean by paradise…
I couldn’t stop staring.
Then…
A small train running along the ground caught my attention.
It followed tracks embedded in the road…
Picking up and dropping off passengers throughout the city.
“That’s a magical-powered tram.”
“People simply call it a tram.”
“Tram…”
“The Clavis family developed it.”
“They distributed it throughout the Empire.”
“See that emblem?”
Ian pointed toward a lock-shaped symbol painted on the tram.
“Yeah.”
“A diamond-shaped padlock.”
“It represents companies owned by the Clavis family.”
“Their family symbol is a key.”
“So all of their businesses and foundations use a lock as their emblem.”
“It might have become part of your inheritance someday, my lady.”
“Ugh…”
“Mom, Dad…”
“Why did you have to do something so crazy and leave your only daughter completely broke?”
“You’re not an only child.”
“You have an older brother.”
“I had a secret sibling too?”
“That wasn’t exactly a secret…”
I kept watching the tram…
Until it disappeared around the corner.
Until the lock emblem vanished from sight.
Clavis.
Ever since arriving at the exile camp…
I’d been quietly asking people about them whenever I had the chance.
Though almost every story sounded completely insane.
The arrogant family that gave its noble title to its pet dog.
The greatest heroes in history.
A family so rich they didn’t know what to do with their money.
An evil bloodline capable of making demons work for them.
And finally…
Traitors who were wiped out after attempting to assassinate the Imperial Princess.
…I bet some of them are still alive.
Just as I possessed mysterious powers…
Surely the other members of the Clavis family had extraordinary abilities too.
Even I had survived despite awakening only recently.
I couldn’t shake the feeling…
That somewhere…
Other Clavis family members were secretly watching all of this unfold with amusement.
While Ian rented rooms at the inn…
Verity and I waited outside, quietly watching people pass by.
For the record…
Our cover story was that we were three siblings who had traveled all the way to the border looking for our father who had abandoned the family after running off with another woman.
“So…”
I looked at Verity.
“Do you know anything about the Clavis family?”
“You seem to.”
“Hmm…”
After thinking for a moment…
He answered.
“They’re a bunch of unbelievably stubborn bastards.”
“…I see.”
Even here…
My luck with family was terrible.
If even a demon spoke that badly about them…
There was probably no hope.
Well…
I wasn’t expecting much anyway.
Better to have low expectations now than get hurt later.
Just then…
Ian came back after paying for our rooms.
“…It’s been so long since I talked to strangers.”
His face was still tense.
The feeling of returning to ordinary life…
Of being free again…
Still felt unfamiliar.
The people waiting for us back in the forest probably felt exactly the same.
The Emperor…
I really can’t forgive him.
Personally…
I didn’t hate him all that much.
After all…
His actions had unexpectedly led me to a happier life.
But after seeing Ian just now…
I knew I’d never forgive him.
“…Let’s come out more often.”
I took Ian’s hand.
“We’ll travel.”
“We’ll visit your family too.”
“We can do it.”
“I’ll help.”
“…If it weren’t for you…”
Ian’s voice trembled slightly.
“I don’t know what would have happened to us.”
“We would’ve been killed by the guards.”
“Or become monster food.”
“Hahaha.”
“What’s so funny?”
Embarrassed…
I lightly kicked his leg.
“Come on.”
“We’ve got a lot to do.”
“We’re going to the herbal medicine shop first, right?”
At Verity’s question…
I nodded.
Before we’d left the forest…
Mrs. Elva had given us a single Dulcevia herb to sell if we needed money.
We’ll check the market price…
Learn more about what’s happening in the world…
And use the money to buy supplies.
“Mrs. Elva said it was an incredibly valuable herb.”
Ian muttered.
“I wonder how much it’s worth.”
“The shop owner might even propose to you.”
“Haha.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“You never know.”
I shrugged.
“It’s such an expensive herb.”
“He might want to marry you just to monopolize the supply.”
* * *
The owner of the herbal medicine shop was an old man with a long, stiff beard.
After examining the Dulcevia herb…
He looked at Ian and declared,
“Marry me.”
“…Pardon?”
“Congratulations, big brother!”
“I told you!”
“Welcome to the family, sister-in-law!”
Hearing his two crazy younger siblings celebrate…
Ian felt his vision go dark.
