Ch.253Chapter 253: Lanos (5)

“It has begun.”

As Desire’s words broke the silence in the dark obsidian palace’s great hall.

“…My lord?”

Adorator, who stood guard by her side, tilted her head with doubt at her master’s sudden statement.

What had begun?

If she was referring to a battle, it certainly wasn’t that.

By now, Pale Sanguin should be returning, tongue-tied at the incredible resilience beyond human imagination, ready to bow his head before the lord and report his shameful defeat.

Especially considering that even she herself had repeatedly tasted bitter defeat at the hands of that man from Ranos in the eastern continent.

Even though her great lord had awakened from a long slumber…

She knew all too well that dispatching troops to human territory wouldn’t be possible for at least another year.

Adorator could only rack her brain trying to figure out what her lord meant by saying something had begun.

And as if amused by her servant’s confusion…

“Hehe…”

A dry, light laugh escaped from Desire’s lips as she sat on the obsidian throne that matched the palace itself, and then…

“You will know soon enough.”

She spoke in that same dry voice, suggesting that time would resolve this curiosity, and then fell silent.

She maintained her seated posture on the throne with her eyes closed.

Almost like taking a nap to relieve fatigue that lingered even after waking from a long, long sleep.

Since her lord had returned to silence, it was only natural that Adorator had nothing more to ask.

So she too sat beside the throne, assuming her fundamental duty of guarding her sleeping lord.

Her lord was finally beside her, awake after a long, long wait.

She held the belief that whatever curiosity had momentarily arisen in her mind would resolve itself with time.

She would certainly have continued thinking this way, had something not entered the great hall shortly after.

#

It happened in an instant.

After the sun had begun to set.

Despite the clear night sky welcoming us—unusually free of volcanic ash due to rare inactivity—

While my insides were burning black with worry about my sister who, contrary to Paphnir’s assurances, showed no signs of returning.

Unable to bear it any longer, I was pacing atop the western entrance wall of the fortress—the most likely place for my sister to return—reaching the limits of my patience.

It happened just as I was silently fighting the urge to rush out to find my sister without Lord Nighthart’s permission, with Paphnir trying to dissuade me.

“Sister!”

That wasn’t my voice.

In a sense, it came from Excel, whose insides were probably burning even more than mine. He had been pacing the wall with me when he suddenly shouted.

With his shout, his movements were more agile than anything I’d ever seen from him before.

He leapt from Nighthaven’s wall—so high that ordinary people would fear for their lives just looking down—

Landed with an admirably clean motion—

And then sprinted off somewhere as if nothing had happened. The entire sequence took barely three seconds.

[What a strong-bodied fool.]

Unlike Paphnir’s dry comment mocking Excel’s actions…

I couldn’t help but be impressed by what he’d done.

Even though I had expanded my ki sense to its limits and directed it toward where my sister might be, I hadn’t detected her presence.

Yet somehow, he had sensed my sister’s presence.

And the moment he did, he rushed out to save her by any means necessary.

[It’s just an overreaction. She’s been fine the whole way here. He’s just being impatient because he wants to see her as soon as possible.]

Unlike me, Paphnir responded critically to Excel’s behavior, calling it an overreaction.

‘So, what did you do when Ancestor Lumen was in mortal danger?’

[…]

He responded with silence to my immediate counterexample.

He shared his own blood when someone precious to him was in danger, yet he mocks others?

While I was chatting with Paphnir in my head, Excel’s body—which had started sprinting immediately after landing on the wall—had already gone so far that he was becoming blurry in my vision.

That’s technically grounds for disciplinary action for abandoning his post, but given the circumstances, it might be overlooked…right?

I was already determined to go out anyway, and now that someone had gone ahead, I had my justification.

“Should I not follow him?”

“Of course we should.”

I immediately affirmed Shizu’s question as she followed closely behind me, and then…

“Please assign me the mission to apprehend Excel Burnstein, who has abandoned his post, and to assist in the return of Vice-Captain Iriana Ranos.”

I requested a “justification” to leave the fortress from Lord Nighthart, the highest authority here aside from the Princess, who was anxiously gazing into the distance from the western wall.

Lord Nighthart, who had been listening with his arms crossed, nodded steadily throughout and said:

“Yes, let a young man like you do the hard work instead of this old man.”

He granted both permission and consideration with those warm words, assigning me the mission.

Since I needed to move quickly to catch the deserter, I immediately raised my right hand in a salute to Lord Nighthart after receiving his permission.

As soon as he returned my salute, I turned my body toward the western gate… no, there wasn’t even time for that.

So I tried to jump down from the wall.

“…Me too.”

If only Shizu hadn’t quietly grabbed my right arm as I turned to jump.

…I’d forgotten. She had been following right behind me since she saw me going after Excel.

Of course Shizu wouldn’t just stand by and watch me rush into the wasteland.

[Unlike that foolish boy who’s already far ahead, did you think this young lady would just blankly watch you leap into the wasteland?]

Even Paphnir spoke as if he had anticipated Shizu would move the moment I did.

But his reaction is much gentler than when Excel ran off…

…What’s going on?

[Whenever I try to speak honestly about that young lady, you get angry, so…]

‘I’m curious when your grumbling and complaining became “honest speech.”‘

[See, see? You’re getting defensive and ready to argue as soon as you sense something negative coming.]

‘Why would anything negative come up about someone so kind?’

[…I’m just going to sleep.]

Perhaps surrendering to my shamelessness(?), Paphnir fell silent in my mind after saying he would sleep.

“Lilianshizu Proxian requests to join Kal Ranos in the mission to secure Excel Burnstein and search for Iriana Ranos.”

Meanwhile, Shizu had approached Lord Nighthart to request the same mission assignment as mine.

Two is better than one, so Lord Nighthart would readily agree, right?

However, that thought lasted only for a moment.

“I cannot permit Lady Lilianshizu to leave the fortress.”

Unlike when I made my request, Lord Nighthart denied Shizu’s request to leave the fortress.

I could see confusion color Shizu’s expression—an expression she rarely showed to anyone but me—as her request was denied when she had expected approval.

…What’s going on? He approved me but not Shizu?

I carefully observed Lord Nighthart’s face, curious about this discrepancy.

Compared to when he readily granted my request to leave, there seemed to be no particular personal sentiment in his expression.

The more I observed, the more I felt he was simply making a fair judgment as the highest authority protecting Nighthaven.

That’s why I was curious—why was I allowed but Shizu denied?

Shizu, no less curious than I about the reason for her rejection, asked:

“…May I know the reason?”

She quickly composed herself after her momentary confusion and asked Lord Nighthart in a calm voice.

Lord Nighthart, with an expression that didn’t seem particularly serious, replied:

“All three senior knights responsible for guarding the Princess cannot leave the fortress at once. At least one person must remain, don’t you think?”

He emphasized the validity of his judgment by pointing out a fact that neither Shizu nor I had considered until now.

….

Ah. So that was it.

Now that I heard it, it was perfectly logical.

“I can’t do anything about the one who’s already run off without listening, and I can allow Sir Kal who requested first, but Lady Lilianshizu should return to her original position immediately and focus on guarding the Princess.”

His subsequent calm order was also beyond reproach.

“Under…stood.”

Shizu raised her hand in a salute to Lord Nighthart with a somewhat subdued voice, indicating her intention to carry out the order she had received.

Not only was her voice subdued, but her expression was quite downcast as well.

Others might not notice Shizu’s dejection, but I could.

Just by looking at her blue eyes, forcibly trying to appear calm but with much less of their usual sparkle.

I could tell she was expressing regret at not being able to accompany me.

But what could we do? We couldn’t report that our escort mission had ended since we hadn’t returned to the capital yet, so the mission was still ongoing.

Even though the Princess had a formidable guardian like Wibel, given the location and the current situation…

There should be at least one Imperial Knight firmly guarding the Princess’s side.

Shizu understood this too, which is why she accepted the order without insistence, but still.

“I’ll be careful and come back soon, so just wait a little.”

So I briefly paused, though I should have already been outside the fortress, and told Shizu, who was heading toward where the Princess was, that I would return soon.

Hearing those words, Shizu finally shed some of the gloom from her face and said:

“…Be careful.”

She told me to be careful.

Though she couldn’t completely shake off her disappointment at not being able to go together…

Her concern for me, who had to rush into the wasteland, was even greater than that disappointment.

“I’ll be back.”

I smiled gently as I told her I would return, then turned my body and…

Leapt outside the wall just as Excel had done.

Boom-!!

The sound of my landing was somewhat rougher than Excel’s, which had been so clean it made one wonder how he’d managed it.

But like Excel, who had begun moving immediately upon landing, my body didn’t absorb any shock from the landing.

So I quickly moved in the direction Excel had run.

It was the beginning of my first steps to find my sister, who hadn’t returned despite our long wait, and Excel, who had sensed her presence more sensitively than I had and reacted.

I didn’t know then.

Despite some worry, I had no idea that Paphnir’s assurance that nothing would happen would be broken shortly after I began moving.

I didn’t realize that this casual departure as the day was ending would lead me to spend an incredibly long time—making the day I had previously thought was my longest seem insignificant in comparison.