Ch.44Chapter 44

It had already been a week since Isaac was kidnapped, no, detained in the village.

Wendigo thought that by now, Skadi and Isaac would have become quite friendly with each other.

After all, Skadi was fundamentally kind-hearted, and while Isaac tended to be overly flattering, he wasn’t completely lacking in conversational skills.

Savoring a baked apple soaked in honey, Wendigo asked Geron.

“Geron. Are Skadi and Isaac getting along well?”

“Actually, I wanted to speak with you about that matter.”

“Huh?”

Wendigo gave Geron a puzzled look. Normally, Geron would have answered that Skadi was doing fine…

But now, Geron was looking at Wendigo with an unusually serious expression.

“Don’t tell me you’re worried Isaac might do something bad to Skadi? If he had, he would have been beaten to death by now.”

“Ahem. Of course, I had such concerns initially.”

Geron cleared his throat, having been hit right on the mark. Wendigo stared at him with cold eyes.

Even so, how could he still doubt after Wendigo had personally verified things?

Geron noticed the meaning behind Wendigo’s gaze but skillfully moved past it. Serving such a unique master had naturally thickened his skin.

“More than that, I’m concerned about what the workers at Skadi’s cabin have been saying.”

“…Can that place really be called a cabin? I think it’s closer to a mansion.”

A two-story building with a slaughterhouse, kitchen, tannery, carpentry workshop, herb garden, and rooms for guests and workers was by no means a cabin.

Geron couldn’t deny this fact, but he tried to defend Skadi’s choice of words.

“Well, perhaps it’s called a cabin because a Summoner lives there. Just as a blacksmith’s workplace is called a forge.”

“Hmm, that comparison doesn’t seem quite right… but if Skadi wants to call it that, we should respect her wishes.”

Wendigo didn’t particularly mind. If she thought of it as a cabin, then a cabin it was.

‘In fantasy novels I read in my previous life, there were wizards who insisted on calling hotels “magic towers.”‘

There were comics where luxury hotels were built and called magic towers, and novels where places teeming with monsters, beasts, and ancient beings were called academies.

Compared to such grand scales, Skadi’s claim was merely childish.

“Oh dear, I’ve let the conversation drift. So what did the workers say?”

“It’s hard to believe, but… it seems Lady Skadi is bullying that wandering Summoner.”

“…Skadi is?”

Wendigo tried to imagine Skadi bullying someone.

The image of Skadi wielding a whip while staring with an expressionless or contemptuous gaze seemed plausible, but recalling her usual demeanor made it strange.

It would be more like her to apply herbs to the wounds of someone who had been whipped and kindly explain precautions.

Skadi, who was fundamentally kind to everyone, couldn’t possibly…

‘Did he actually sexually harass her?’

At this point, Wendigo had to admit something was off.

“Bring Isaac here. I think I need to interrogate him.”

“Yes! I’ll bring him in thoroughly restrained so he can’t escape!”

“…No. Don’t go that far when we don’t even know if he’s guilty yet.”

* * *

“You look… very tired.”

“No, I’m fine.”

As soon as Wendigo faced Isaac, he immediately realized it wasn’t Isaac’s fault.

What Wendigo sensed from Isaac wasn’t guilt but fear and a slight sense of resignation.

In fact, his mental suffering seemed to have been so severe that his cheeks had hollowed somewhat, making him look pitiful.

“Answer me honestly. Is Skadi bullying you?”

“Well…”

Isaac couldn’t easily answer Wendigo’s question.

Setting aside the death threat during their first meeting, if asked whether it was difficult, it certainly was.

It wasn’t easy to dig through his subconscious every day to answer her questions.

However… as time passed, Isaac realized something was strange.

“She’s not bullying me. It’s just that Lady Skadi seems to be trying to acquire knowledge and experience as if she’s being chased by something…”

“As if being chased by something…”

Wendigo could smell that there was no lie in Isaac’s words, but it was difficult to accept what he was saying.

Wendigo had only met three Summoners so far—Skadi, Ryujik, and Isaac—but knew that Skadi was quite skilled.

Why would someone like her show impatience while learning from Isaac?

Isaac carefully observed Wendigo’s reaction before speaking cautiously.

“Spirit, if I may, could I share my speculation with you?”

“Go ahead.”

“This is just my personal opinion, but… I think Lady Skadi is feeling burdened for various reasons.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Wendigo questioned Isaac, surprised by this unexpected statement. Isaac lowered his posture even more, afraid that Wendigo might become angry.

“At first, I thought she was being harsh because of my rudeness… but the more I stayed here, the more I felt something was off.”

“What kind of strangeness are you talking about?”

“While she showed the appearance of a fearsome Summoner when dealing with me, she displayed the image of a most benevolent Summoner when interacting with the forest people.”

Isaac analyzed which of these two faces—the fierce one shown to him or the caring one shown to the forest people—was her true nature.

After about three days, he realized that the latter was closer to her true character.

No one spoke ill of her, and thinking back, the herbs she used to treat him were quite rare.

“…Maybe she just used those because your injuries were severe?”

“No. My limbs were merely scraped, and while my head was slightly torn, it wasn’t critically dangerous.”

Someone else might not know, but a Summoner of Skadi’s caliber would have recognized that the injuries weren’t severe.

If her true nature had been that of a vicious, evil Summoner, she wouldn’t have used precious herbs on him.

So why did she use rare herbs to treat him?

Searching his memories, Isaac guessed the reason was guilt. Though her eyes were cold during treatment, her fingertips were filled with care.

“For someone like that to show such harshness, to the point of losing control of her emotions… though it may be an exaggeration, I think she might be afraid because of the appearance of a Summoner like me.”

“Afraid, you say?”

“Lady Skadi seemed afraid of another Summoner appearing—specifically, one more capable than herself. She is talented but… still young, isn’t she?”

“…If she believes I accepted the contract because of her talent, she might think a more capable Summoner could appear and replace her.”

Surely she must know intellectually that there are few Summoners her age who match her abilities.

And even among those older than her, few surpass her.

However, humans cannot control their emotions based on objective indicators alone. Emotions aren’t so conveniently managed by mere fulfillment.

‘If she were more mature… or at least had faced the wider world, such anxiety might have been less.’

But most of her childhood was spent in her mother’s cabin, and since becoming an adult, she had always been with Wendigo.

For Skadi, the fear of possibly being separated from Wendigo might have been quite significant.

…No. It must have been significant.

‘…I should have a conversation with her.’

Wendigo gathered his thoughts and looked at Isaac. Initially brought to help Skadi learn more, Isaac had accomplished even more than expected.

Wendigo expressed gratitude with genuine goodwill.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I’m reflecting on whether I’ve been inattentive to Skadi.”

“Oh, no. Please just consider it the delusions of a wandering Summoner.”

“Even if it’s a delusion, I should express gratitude when I’ve received help. I’ll make sure to properly compensate you when you leave the forest. You may go now… and would you deliver a message to Skadi for me?”

“What message should I convey?”

“Hmm… yes. Tell her I’d like to stroll through the forest with her tonight, and I hope she can make time. Please.”

“My goodness. There’s no need for such politeness. I merely follow your commands.”

Wendigo chuckled at Isaac’s flustered humility and gestured for him to leave.

Isaac withdrew with his head bowed, certain that his face must look a mess.

‘Even setting aside being a spirit, he’s no ordinary benevolent being. To care so much about the problems of those beneath him…’

Isaac understood why the forest people worshipped Wendigo.

The world was full of spirits, nobles, and others who wanted to rule over people, but few tried to care for those beneath them.

Isaac hoped that Skadi would find peace through her conversation with Wendigo.

…That way, he could finally rest easy.

No more question-hell, please.

* * *

Late at night.

Skadi walked the night path with a sigh. The chilly night air made her heart feel even heavier.

‘I should apologize to Isaac… but I just can’t find the courage.’

From their first meeting, she had felt an inexplicable hostility, and when placed in a situation that could justify it, her actions had unconsciously become rough.

On top of that, she had even threatened him for breaking an unwritten rule that outsiders naturally wouldn’t know.

‘…Isaac was also summoned by Wendigo. Perhaps he told Wendigo about my shameful behavior. No… he must have.’

Skadi sighed again.

She knew well that her inner self was a mess lately. How could she not know when behavior so unlike her kept emerging?

But she couldn’t understand why it was happening or how to fix it.

She felt self-loathing and depression, as if struggling in an endless swamp.

Perhaps because of this?

Skadi belatedly realized she had passed the shrine. She was about to sigh again when…

“You’ve been sighing a lot. That’s not a very good habit.”

“W-Wendigo!”

Waiting for Skadi as she turned around was Wendigo.

Skadi was surprised to find Wendigo following her and felt embarrassed that he had been watching her.

Though she had made mistakes before… lately, she especially didn’t want to show her inadequacies to Wendigo.

“Skadi. You remember why I called for you, right?”

“Yes. Isaac said you wanted to take me to the forest…!?”

When Skadi began to hesitate, Wendigo promptly lifted her up and placed her on his shoulder.

Skadi blushed and floundered at Wendigo’s sudden action. Wendigo watched her reaction and burst into laughter.

“W-Wendigo! Put me down!”

“I’m afraid I can’t allow that. From now on, you’ll have to go around with me in this state.”

“What?!”

At Wendigo’s tyranny(?), Skadi shrieked in shock.

And Wendigo, satisfied with her reaction, carried her toward the forest.

Their destination was the forest mansion where they had once lived together.