Day 4. He fell while climbing the cliff and injured his leg, but thanks to Sabelli’s healing magic, he was able to climb again. However, he could only finish climbing after the sun passed its zenith.
Day 5. He barely climbed the cliff. But he was thoroughly defeated in sword sparring.
Day 6. While climbing the cliff, he got frostbite and owed a debt to Sabelli’s healing magic again. During sword sparring, he rolled on the floor more than a hundred times. His back was riddled with bruises.
Day 7. His whole body burned so intensely in the morning that he couldn’t open his eyes. But he got up and crawled up the cliff. Later, after climbing, his lips were so bloody and raw from how hard he’d bitten them.
Day 8, Day 9, Day 10…. Time flew like an arrow.
* * *
On the slope below the cliff, there existed an ownerless cave. Since no four-legged creatures lived in Tildyen’s Nameless Forest, there was no need to worry that the cave’s owner might be a beast that had momentarily left its place. When dawn broke, Anya was the first to rise and drew a slash mark on his palm. Before he knew it, 15 slash marks had filled his palm densely. It was the 15th day since entering the forest.
Now less than half of three weeks remained.
When he rose from his spot, dead leaves that had stuck to his collar during the night fell rustling onto the floor. Anya jumped lightly a couple of times from his spot, then cracked his neck to the side to loosen his body. Though his whole body was still covered in bruises and wounds, he didn’t particularly care.
“…….”
Sabelli wasn’t there. The old man had been frequently leaving his spot lately, saying he had to prepare something. Instead, he would return leisurely around noon, eat with Anya, and become a strict sword training instructor.
‘If you cannot defeat me, you cannot go to the Dragcals.’
Yesterday too, Anya had rolled in the snowfield. After being struck squarely in the chest by Sabelli, Anya drooled while looking at him, shadowed black against the backlight, through narrowly slitted eyes.
‘Are you not desperate, boy?’
Sabelli crouched beside Anya and tapped his forehead with the scabbard.
‘This is not the time to act leisurely like a docile princeling.’
Crack. The snow piled on the ground beneath Anya’s grip was roughly crushed. Momentarily, brown eyes filled with rage glared fiercely at Sabelli. When he hastily rose to grab Haebing again, one step away, Sabelli struck down on Anya’s head. Anya rolled unsightly in the snowfield again.
“Ha….”
Thinking of yesterday’s events made him sigh automatically. He seemed to understand why Sisou had avoided Sabelli so much. Separate from his great gratitude to the old man, it was also true that he felt very frustrated and annoyed.
But his words were right. Anya still hadn’t defeated Sabelli. Though his anxiety was slowly reaching its peak, Anya went outside the cave with a softer heart than yesterday.
Anya stood beneath the cliff familiar to his eyes. Because he hadn’t been able to wash or take care of himself for several days, his appearance was a mess. However, here there was no one to give him wordless looks telling him to maintain dignity as Tildyen’s mistress. He liked that. When he breathed in deeply, winter’s morning air filled his lungs completely.
“…….”
All around was quiet. That quietness stabilized Anya’s heart to an odd degree.
One protruding stone below the cliff was peculiarly smooth without accumulated snow. It was because for several days, Anya had grabbed and climbed up using that stone as his reference point every morning. Today too, the boy began silently climbing the cliff, starting with grabbing that stone.
Now he could arrive at the top before the sun rose to the center of the valley. Anya grabbed the edge of the cliff and lightly pulled his body up. Compared to just a few days ago when he’d barely hung on the edge and climbed to the top with his arms trembling violently, this was remarkable progress.
His arms, which had been scrawny like twigs, had become firm, and his heart beat more vigorously than ever before.
* * *
Day 16. The boy’s face was no longer soft.
“To-, today let’s use real swords.”
The blade of Haebing, which Ban had carefully sharpened with a whetstone, was smooth yet sharp, and the handle wrapped in soft leather now fit Anya’s grip perfectly. Haebing had begun to take its master’s touch.
“…….”
Haebing’s sharp tip was aimed at Sabelli. Where the sword’s tip pointed was precisely at Sabelli’s neck.
“Shall we?”
Sabelli smiled kindly while drawing a longsword from its scabbard. As any sword would be, but it was easily 2-3 times thicker than Haebing. A dry winter wind passed between the two.
‘Now 5 days remain. I need to see the end soon.’
After a brief standoff, Anya rose on his tiptoes forcefully and rushed at Sabelli. His light body swiftly flew through the air and swung the sword at Sabelli. Sabelli’s sword received Haebing with a leisurely posture as if to provoke.
As sword clashed with sword, the characteristic scraping sound of metal rang out in the clearing. The two faced each other and engaged in a contest of strength.
“The boy’s… arm strength has become strong.”
Sabelli’s feet were pushed back, making a long path on the snowfield. Anya answered.
“…Tha-, thanks to you.”
Clang!
Sabelli deflected Haebing. Anya immediately rotated his body halfway, then used the recoil to spring forward. Soon a fierce attack followed. Anya poured out attacks with speed befitting the owner of a one-handed sword. Breath burst out from between his lips, which had become ragged from all kinds of hardships over several days.
“With just this… you cannot win.”
Sabelli’s eyes became fierce. He held the longsword supported with both hands and began to counterattack. From then on, Anya had to stake his life on blocking his sword. A tingling sensation rushed through the back of his hand. Sabelli finally struck Anya’s side with the sword blade. Then he lifted his foot and kicked Anya’s chest.
Anya, who rolled on the snowfield with a thud, immediately got up and spat blood-mixed saliva on the ground.
“You are dead, boy. The opportunity has passed to tomorrow.”
Sabelli straightened his posture and picked up the pipe loosely tied to his waist with rope. Just as he was about to light the pipe. Anya wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and extended the arm holding Haebing to the side.
“…No. Today is the end.”
Anya’s two eyes slowly closed. The wind caressed and passed by his sweat-soaked bangs. It smelled of cold winter air. And he heard the bare branches swaying in the wind, his pounding heartbeat, the opponent’s ragged breathing heard from far away… Soon, blue magical power began to ripple and wrap around Haebing’s translucent blade.
“Oho.”
Sabelli exclaimed in admiration with the pipe in his mouth. His eyes sparkled like an adventurer exploring the unknown and truth.
“Magnificent.”
The energy of blue magical power resembled Anya, being very warm while simultaneously seeming to cleanly purify the sullied hearts of people. And above all, the somewhat unrefined energy of magical power was fierce enough to make the surrounding forest rustle.
‘Perhaps… he has even more… overflowing magical springs than I do.’
“…….”
Sabelli wordlessly stuck the pipe into his waist. That was a signal. That he would begin sparring again.
Anya leaped high. Excitement rose. He couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from constantly rising.
Incomparably more fiercely than before, Haebing attacked Sabelli. The blue magical power blazed up even more valiantly each time the swords clashed.
‘Magnificent magical power manipulation…. I’ll need to additionally teach him how to control his magical springs.’
“Don’t… think about… o-, other things.”
Anya said while grimacing. Sabelli swung the longsword widely to deflect the attack. Anya stepped back one step, then raised Haebing’s handle upright near his chest. The blue energy spread across Anya’s face. Since he couldn’t use magical power infinitely, he had to end it around now.
The blue energy blazed fiercely like a dragon breathing fire. Finally, as if delivering the final blow, Anya struck not Sabelli….
But Sabelli’s sword.
“…….”
Crack.
A small crack appeared in the longsword’s blade. Soon the small line spread throughout the entire sword, and finally the blade shattered into pieces and scattered on the ground.
“…….”
The sharp tip of Haebing touched below the neck of Sabelli, whose hands had become empty.
“I… have won.”
Before he knew it, the red sunset glow of dusk was illuminating the boy who had grown substantially, as if devouring him from behind.
* * *
The servants of Tildyen Rock greatly despised yet feared Mibar Veil and Raniel Crom, who had visited from Maneregia. Every morning when visiting the bedrooms where they stayed, a silent war broke out among the maids.
“You go in.”
“I went in yesterday. This time it’s your turn.”
In front of Mibar Veil’s bedroom, one could frequently see two rather young-looking maids bickering in dispute. Because to them, the Emperor’s Master was both an object of anger and simultaneously an object of fear accumulated layer upon layer over a long time.
“Step aside.”
“Gregos-nim!”
The two maids were startled and bowed their waists because of the butler who appeared soundlessly from behind. The always fastidious butler of Tildyen Rock, close to expressionless, took the washing water one maid was holding.
“From now on, I will take care of Sir Mibar’s morning routine.”
At those words, the faces of the two still-young maids brightened. Soon realizing they were in front of Gregos, they composed their expressions and disappeared beyond the corridor, then Gregos knocked on the bedroom door.
“…I will bring washing water. Will you have breakfast in the dining room?”
Mibar Veil was standing by the window with his back to the door. He was looking at the gray walls of Tildyen Rock outside the window.
“Though old here and there, it’s a well-maintained castle.”
Mibar turned his body and looked at Gregos.
“The 12th Prince… no, I can see that Tildyen’s mistress has made efforts for the household within the castle.”
Gregos wordlessly placed the washing water on top of a low dresser. Tildyen’s mistress… since coming here, rather than taking charge of the household, he had instead won an honor duel, obtained the position of Tildyen knight, and left again.
‘E-, every time I go outside the castle, I’m s-, sorry.’
About two weeks ago, the young mistress offered a sincere apology to Gregos, who was packing for a short journey.
‘It’s fine. Duke Evernight has permitted it. You have absolutely no need to be sorry to me, my lady.’
Gregos answered rather gruffly.
‘Wh-, when I return, I’ll study hard.’
As if suddenly remembering the wedding, Mibar’s cloying voice overlapped and echoed over Anya’s voice, which spoke haltingly while blushing.
“Isn’t that right?”
“…Yes. He is a very diligent person.”
Gregos put away the rising recollection and arranged the soap full of rose scent, dry cloth, fragrant oil, and such beside the washing water. He could tell lies anytime, even before the highly powerful Mibar, if Anya was a chess piece absolutely necessary for Tildyen. It was entirely for Tildyen’s sake.
