A Dangerous Journey, Part II
In the depths of the forest, the blue light of dawn was gradually fading. It was the hour when the half-asleep sun proudly reared its head. As if embarrassed by its sleep-muddled face, the early morning light put up a petulant struggle.
The wind was unusually harsh today. The steadfast trees swayed, whispering mischievous jokes among themselves. A silent, phantom laughter seemed to ring in my ears. The forest opened its massive maw toward us, as if ready to swallow us whole at any moment.
"I think it's still following us."
"It's okay. It's still far enough away. More importantly, watch your step over there. Give me your hand. I'll help you up."
"Thank you."
It had been less than an hour since we entered the forest when something began to tail us from a distance. I didn't sense any immediate hostility. There was enough space between us to react even if it suddenly lunged, and it didn't display any particularly aggressive behavior. I had even pretended not to notice to give it an opening, but it kept its distance strictly. It seemed more interested in observing us than attacking.
"Ah!"
"I told you to be careful. Are you hurt?"
"Thanks to you, I'm fine."
Sirien, who had been walking fine, lost her footing. Because I had been keeping a close eye on her, I was able to catch her in time. We were walking along a path that hadn't been used in a very long time. It was a stroke of luck we encountered shortly after starting our journey. Though we didn't know where it led, the direction didn't seem to deviate much from our destination. We decided to follow it blindly, figuring that once we met someone, things would get easier. The only problem was the abundance of uneven rocks and fallen trees. Still, it was better than trekking through the trackless heart of the forest.
"I thought it would be a quiet forest, but I guess not."
"Yeah. It's much more lively than it looks."
"Oh, look, there's a fox over there. I want to pet it."
Sirien looked around. We hadn't realized it when we were at the cabin, but this forest was home to far more creatures than we had thought. There were plenty of small animals like birds and rodents, and foxes and snakes made occasional appearances. Fortunately, we hadn't encountered anything that could threaten a human yet. We wouldn't know how many of those existed until night fell. What surprised me, though, was that Sirien's senses were far sharper than I had expected.
"You can see all of that?"
"Should I say I see them? Some I see, some I hear. But you're still better at spotting them than me, Rajen."
"I've had training since I was young. For you to do this much is already amazing."
"Really? Hearing that it's amazing makes me feel pretty good."
Sirien giggled. The compliment wasn't empty praise. My body benefited from mana, and on top of that, I had received the training of the knighthood, making me highly alert to my surroundings. In contrast, Sirien was just an ordinary girl of her age. This meant she possessed all those sharp senses naturally from birth.
"Are you tired?"
"I'm fine. I can push through. We have to get as far away as possible, right?"
"Right. Then let's move a bit more before we rest."
Sirien offered a faint smile. Since she said she could endure it, we could walk a little further before taking a break. How much time did we have before Count Roxen sent a pursuit party? The time it would take for him to realize he had failed. The time to organize a new pursuit party and have them reach the cabin. And finally, the time it would take for them to track us from the cabin. Even adding it all up, we didn't have much of a margin. The pursuit party would undoubtedly be on horseback. At most, they would be right on our heels within a week. And a battle with the pursuit party meant certain death. We hated Count Roxen to death, but we didn't think he was incompetent. Our survival now was purely a stroke of luck. To kill mere four children, he would have sent disposable thugs who were easy to clean up after. Yet even those thugs had been difficult to handle. If Therion hadn't burned his very life force to help us at the end, I wouldn't have made it out alive either.
'If only we could erase our tracks...'
But that was asking too much. No matter how careful we were, we couldn't move while worrying about every snapped twig in the brush or footprint in the dirt. We couldn't accomplish what even experienced Rangers found difficult. It was better to just hurry. This forest wouldn't last forever. Once we reached a village, any village, things would get better.
"This is the first time in my life I've walked this long."
"Are you doing okay?"
"It's still bearable. I can keep going."
We walked and walked. The tall conifers receded endlessly behind us. Occasionally, birds flitted past, and wild beasts lingered nearby before scurrying away. Whenever she saw a pretty flower, Sirien would pluck a single stem. She smiled softly, saying it was her first time seeing such a flower. But at some point, Sirien began to pant heavily. We had been moving for a long time. It seemed impossible to go any further.
"Haa... haa..."
"Are you exhausted? Let's rest here for a bit."
"Yes, let's. I am a bit tired."
"You look pale. Are you hurting somewhere? You have to be honest with me."
"Umm. My feet just hurt a little."
Her feet hurt? A sudden chill ran down my spine.
"Let me see."
"Ah. It hurts when you touch it."
I sat Sirien down on a suitable rock and took off her shoes and woolen socks. Sure enough, her delicate feet were covered in blisters. She squeezed her eyes shut in pain at the slightest touch. How on earth had she endured this? Had she not felt it while walking? The thought of her foolishly bearing the pain made my heart ache.
"I told you to tell me if it was hard. If your feet were getting like this, you should have told me sooner. Let's apply some herbs while we rest."
"Is... is it that bad? I didn't really know either."
"It might not hurt much now, but it'll get infected if we leave it. Stretch out both your feet."
As expected, both her feet were swollen red. A sigh escaped my lips. At this rate, would she even be able to walk properly tomorrow? No, this was my mistake. If I had paid just a little more attention, I would have noticed. Saying I didn't know she would endure it to this extent? That was a narrow-minded excuse. Sirien was surprisingly mature, and she never whined in situations like this. She must have tried to endure it until the very moment she absolutely couldn't anymore. It was all because of my carelessness.
"It's going to sting a bit."
"Will it hurt a lot?"
"I'm not sure. But you have to bear it even if it does."
"Ah!"
I soaked a cloth in water and wiped her feet. Seeing her toes wiggle, it seemed to hurt quite a bit. Sirien whimpered every time the cloth touched her soft soles. Until I ground up the herbs and wrapped them in bandages, her shallow breaths escaped in ragged, trembling gasps.
"I'll massage your legs while we're at it. Lie down and get comfortable."
"Lie down? Here?"
"It's better than lying on the bare ground."
"That's true, but... Okay. Do I lie down like this?"
"Yes. Stay like that."
I lifted Sirien's legs onto my thighs. I suppose you could say I gave her legs a lap pillow instead of her head. In that position, I firmly pressed her calves to knead out the knotted muscles. The moment I pressed down on her calf, Sirien flinched as if she had been electrocuted.
"Hieee!"
"Does it hurt a lot?"
"Yes, it hurts... though not enough to make me cry."
Taking that as a sign she could endure it, I continued to massage her calves. Sirien's legs were thinner and softer than those of most girls. Every time I applied pressure, her soft skin yielded perfectly to my hands. The sensation was quite pleasant. I'd get scolded if I ever said this aloud, but watching her twitch and shiver was secretly amusing. I felt like I was developing a bad habit. In any case, today's journey must have been incredibly harsh for a young lady who had lived her entire life in a greenhouse. If I didn't loosen her muscles now, she would surely groan in pain from muscle aches for days. Her small hand clutched my collar.
"Rajen. Please be a little gentler."
"Does it still hurt?"
"No. It feels about right. It doesn't hurt much anymore."
Sirien quickly turned her head away. She seemed to be avoiding my gaze out of embarrassment, but she couldn't hide her flushed cheeks. Well, I could understand. A place like the calf wasn't somewhere other people usually touched. It was even more so for a lady raised with such care like Sirien. Especially the hands of a man like me—they would never have had a reason to touch her. Visiting a lady late at night, touching her body carelessly—these were all things strictly forbidden by the women of the Grand Ducal house. Even the Grand Duke of Ilencia had to walk on eggshells. The Duchess of Ilencia's views on relations between men and women were highly conservative, and the maids of the Grand Ducal house were dead serious about protecting Sirien.
"Ah. Ahh! There, it feels a bit strange."
"Does it feel good?"
"Does it feel good? Ah! Now that you mention it, I suppose it does."
Sirien's toes curled tightly. Did she realize her face had turned bright red? Before I knew it, Sirien had covered her face with her hands. Her ears, which she couldn't quite hide, twitched.
"Rajen."
"Yeah?"
"Don't stare so much..."
"Ah, sorry."