A Perilous Path, Part 7
In this world, there were bloodlines that possessed extraordinary power. And the Grand Duchy of Ilencia was counted among the premier families of these "special bloodlines," alongside the Imperial Family itself. In fact, in some respects, the Ilencia bloodline was so renowned that it was said to surpass even that of the empire's rulers.
Jigojisun—the supreme and purest bloodline. If the Imperial Family had inherited the greatest blood, then Ilencia had received the purest. In a world where gods and mana truly existed, a pure bloodline was akin to a blank white canvas.
From the perspective of mana, every human was stained. Because of those blemishes, some found it difficult to channel divinity into their bodies, while others suffered from unstable mana flowing through their veins. There were even those whose mana manifested in bizarre ways, granting them strange, anomalous abilities.
A distortion of mana present from the very moment of birth. Like a river winding its way through a mountain, this flow, inherent to everyone, was the blemish of mana. And I was no exception to its influence.
I was born with a talent so optimal for knighthood that it could be called a blessing of mana. Though I had yet to test it, judging by the descriptions in the novel, my ability to accept holy power wouldn't be lacking either. Yet, no matter what I did, I could never cast magic. My compatibility with it was catastrophically poor. Even though the theoretical aspects were simple compared to modern mathematics, I couldn't manage even a basic light spell.
The Ilencia bloodline, however, possessed no such blemishes. They were a pristine white canvas, untouched by any color. The moment a single hue was introduced, the paper of Ilencia transformed into a beautifully vivid, clear colored sheet.
Had Therion grown up safely, he would have become a swordsman wielding an incredibly pure, dense aura. If Sirien had walked the path of a mage, she would have been able to master every single element.
At Leheim Castle, Sirien had studied theology, though she had never formally gone to the temple to receive baptism. Part of the reason was that she hadn't yet decided to join the priesthood, but another factor was the fear that she might instantly be designated a Saintess candidate. After all, a priest's power hinged entirely on how well they could absorb holy energy, and the Ilencia bloodline was perfectly compatible with it. In fact, if a direct descendant of Ilencia received formal baptism, they were practically guaranteed a position of at least a bishop.
"Looking at it that way, the mana in my body right now is in its absolute purest form."
Ahem. Sirien puffed out her chest with grand dignity. Her expression was so smug it practically begged for a tease. It was hard to resist the urge to flick her forehead.
"Healing someone's wounds is ultimately the power of mana, too. Since my bodily fluids contain a tiny bit of mana, doing this is supposed to help!"
"Where on earth did you hear that, and from whom?"
"Huh? My mom told me on my bedroom balcony!"
I had wondered who the culprit was behind filling Sirien's head with such bizarre knowledge, and to my shock, it was the Duchess of Ilencia. I remembered her as a strict, dignified woman, yet she had taught her daughter this? It felt like a shattering blow to my common sense.
"Did she say anything else along with that?"
"She said I shouldn't do it to just anyone. But she also said it was fine to do it for someone precious to me. And Rajen, you're my precious friend. She said if I did it quietly where others couldn't see, anyone would like it. Well? Do you like it, Rajen?"
"Uh... y-yeah. Thanks."
"Hehe. This will make it heal at least a little faster. Should I blow on it too?"
"No, that won't be necessary. This is already more than enough."
"Okay."
Was it a final gesture of sincerity? Sirien's tongue swept over the wound one last time before pulling away. Though it had only touched me for a fleeting second, the sensation of her soft, pale pink flesh seemed to linger. It was squishy and tender. I found it hard to look at her beaming, smiling face. My own face was burning hot. Forcing myself to act casual, I pushed myself up and spoke.
"We've rested enough. Let's get moving again."
As our journey dragged on, one thought kept circling my mind. It seemed we were heading deep into the heart of the forest. No, heading there wasn't the issue—we were likely already deep inside. And we were experiencing firsthand how the danger of this forest escalated the deeper we went.
Before we knew it, the trees surrounding us had grown uniformly tall and thick. I couldn't even begin to imagine how many centuries these ancient giants had lived. Trying to peer up at their crowns made my neck ache. To make matters worse, a thick fog had begun to roll in. The further we advanced, the more frequently we encountered threats.
The pack of massive wolves I had faced on watch during our first night, the self-destructing magic beasts we had fought once before... Beasts I had never heard of in my life and colossal monsters frequently made appearances. I couldn't afford to draw my sword against every single one of them. If I did, my body wouldn't hold out. Even now, I was covered in wounds. While I didn't hesitate to engage in battles that were absolutely unavoidable, I did everything in my power to steer clear of conflict.
I didn't know if I should call it a stroke of luck, but the larger creatures tended to be less aggressive. Perhaps they only hunted when necessary? Because of their immense size, we could spot them first and hide. Most of our fights broke out with creatures small enough to eye us as viable prey. However, there was one exception.
In the fog-shrouded forest. Thud. Thud. A heavy, dull sound shook the earth like a localized earthquake. The branch of an ancient tree snapped with a sharp, screaming crack. The fallen branches on the forest floor were pulverized under a massive force.
"Rajen..."
"Shh. It's going to be okay."
Sirien and I held our breath in unison. She was so terrified that I pulled her into my chest, wrapping my arm around her to gently cover her mouth. I didn't apply too much pressure—just enough to let her know I was protecting her. Even this small gesture was enough to keep her from screaming. Huddled between a boulder and a tree, we peered upward. What met our eyes was unmistakably humanoid.
A dark shadow-like figure was lumbering slowly through the white fog. Judging by its silhouette, it didn't possess the bloated upper body or razor-sharp claws of the previous monster. Red veins showed through its skin in patches, but it looked remarkably human. However, it was far too massive. I couldn't even begin to gauge its height. At a rough estimate, it had to be well over ten meters tall.
I traced letters onto Sirien's palm with my finger to communicate. I wrote slowly and deliberately, ensuring there would be no misunderstanding. Sirien focused intently, reading my touch.
• Its eyesight seems poor. A few birds just flew right past the giant. It should have seen them, but it didn't react at all.
• The problem is its hearing. We must be extremely quiet.
Yes. The real issue was that the giant's hearing was incredibly sharp. I could tell by the way its head jerked around at even the slightest rustle of the wind. Just then, a beast was prowling nearby, looking tense. It was a creature that resembled a bear. It seemed to have spotted the giant first and was trying to retreat, just as I had, but it lacked caution.
Crunch! Something snapped beneath the beast's paw. I couldn't tell what it had stepped on. The only thing that was certain was that the giant reacted instantly to the sound, turning incredibly aggressive.
"GRAAAAAAAAH!"Thud! Thud!
The giant charged straight toward the beast that had made the noise. Despite its lumbering frame, its speed was terrifying. Because of its sheer size, it closed the distance in just a few massive strides. Before long, the giant snatched up the beast in its colossal grip. I made sure Sirien didn't see what happened next. There was absolutely no benefit in her watching a living creature get crunched and devoured alive.
We had to hold our breath for a long time until the giant completely vanished from our sight. Because the dense fog made it impossible to trust our eyes, we waited even longer. By the time we resolved to set off again, both of our faces were grim.
"Do you think there are more things like that in this forest?"
"We'll only know once we keep going."
"I never want to see that again... I want to get out of this forest as fast as possible."
"Yeah. We can't fight a monster like that."
Sirien's response was cold, as if I had just stated the obvious.
"Would you have fought it if you could?"
"If we get caught, we won't have a choice. In a situation like that, you have to run, even if it's just you."
"Don't ever say that again. I'll get really mad."
"Then what would you do?"
"We run together, of course."
My point was that since running together might be impossible, I would draw my sword to buy her time. But there was no need to bicker over something that hadn't happened, so I simply nodded. Only then did Sirien raise the corners of her mouth, looking satisfied.
"Ah, there it is again. The smell of incense. Can you really not smell it, Rajen?"
"I told you, I don't smell anything. I don't think my nose is bad, either. Are you sure you aren't just imagining it?"
"That's strange. It feels like it's getting stronger."
"Does it bother you a lot?"
"No, not really. It's just the same scent I smelled when we visited the cenotaph."
Come to think of it, Sirien had mentioned smelling incense occasionally ever since we first entered this forest. I had never caught even a whiff of it, and besides, incense was something burned at funerals—it didn't belong in a forest like this. Well, her senses were sharper than mine, so perhaps she was smelling some kind of wild plant? After all, funeral incense was ultimately made from burning plants.
Though she kept tilting her head in confusion, we continued our march. And the following day.
We reached the Boundary.