The Noble Beast's Warning
Ushun, the woman who had never once flinched even when the pack of orcs rained their arrows upon her, now trembled like a leaf in a gale.
What could have shaken the iron resolve of Tamugai Ushun?
Vesta, still cradled in her powerful arms, turned his gaze over his shoulder.
“Ushun… that thing…”
The sight was too bizarre to explain in mere words.
It was dark. A storm cloud had rolled in over the hill.
But no actual clouds hung there. The hill was far too low for any cloud to settle.
Was it the blood-red sunset of night itself? The kind of color one could only mix by stealing paint from an art studio, squeezing it out until the tubes ran dry, and then smearing it across empty air? Would that ever produce such a hue?
“Dream…?”
Vesta’s voice had slipped out in a whisper, so ethereal did the apparition seem.
Ushun lifted her callused hand and placed it atop his head without thinking. She was instinctively shielding the man she had sworn to protect.
“It holds no meaning,” she answered.
Crack.
The black crows and eagles descended together.
They circled once, twice, as if issuing a warning or simply observing.
“Here it comes.”
And then the figure revealed itself.
—Real.
Ushun exhaled.
Both of them stared with wide eyes as the beast drew nearer.
It was beautiful.
Vesta felt the identity of the creature settle into his bones.
“Ekarkwidae.”
Exactly as the Khan had spoken. He had not needed to hear the explanation; he recognized it the instant he saw it.
There was no other creature like this in the world.
If he had to choose the single animal most resembling it, it would be a wolf. Even though no wolf walked on six legs existed here.
Yet the beast was enormous, and at the same time so light that it made no sound with every step.
It was an entity composed of something unknown.
“Why is the Princess here?”
The Princess. She had not yet been crowned sovereign.
“Have you come looking for me?”
Ushun thought so.
They had come to test the warrior and the madman alike.
That was why they had sought her out. Objectively, she was more than brave enough.
There were only two reasons the Ekarkwidae appeared before humans.
It either blessed the valiant or, when it chose, devoured the madman to drink their power.
In other words, the creature embodied both the strength and the fall of a warrior.
If the Ekarkwidae had come for Ushun, it was not for blessing.
Perhaps.
—Is today the day I die?
Of course she had no intention of dying quietly. Even if the opponent was half-divine, Tamugai Ushun refused to flee from a fight.
She genuinely loved battle.
But the real reason Ushun was shaking like a leaf was because someone else was there with her.
“Don’t worry, my lord.”
Even as she spoke, she could not shake off the fear.
She had suspected from the very beginning.
—He can’t possibly be the consort. This little one has come for you.
The Ekarkwidae was a wild spirit-beast.
Even if the Princess had come to meet Vesta, she could not simply hand him over.
The Ekarkwidae symbolized both blessing and trial. If Vesta received the trial instead of the blessing…
That was precisely the fate Ushun wished to spare him from the most.
Running from such a being was pointless. Spirit-beasts were like that.
Ushun tightened her grip around Vesta even more.
“Blessing? Trial?”
The Ekarkwidae gave no clear response. It seemed not even to notice Ushun.
Instead of Vesta, Ushun’s other hand lifted the slingshot.
—If the Ekarkwidae charges, I will fight without hesitation.
She had made up her mind to do exactly that.
Ushun had already promised the Khan she would protect Vesta.
Therefore, dying while protecting him was a responsibility she had to carry.
—But can I even do it?
Ushun was startled by her own thought.
—I’m still too far.
She ground her teeth. It was impossible. She was the warrior who had only ever knelt before the Khan.
“Unless you plan to give a blessing, then come here, old man, and challenge this beast.”
At that moment, the Ekarkwidae finally looked at Ushun.
It was the instant Ushun had sworn with every fiber of her being that she would not break, that she would meet death head-on.
The Ekarkwidae, however briefly, acknowledged her.
“......”
Ushun pulled Vesta even tighter against her chest and glared at the Ekarkwidae, but Vesta was staring at the creature as well.
What caught his eye was the strange object around the Ekarkwidae’s neck.
It looked like a spiked collar worn by a dog that fought wolves. The difference was that the spikes touched the beast’s own throat.
Of course it would have wounded the creature. The collar had nearly shredded its neck.
So the thing was.
A wounded beast. That was the opposite conclusion from what Ushun had reached.
Vesta was skilled at reading eyes. In the eyes of the creature he stared into, there was no trace of aggression.
“It’s fine, Ushun.”
Vesta caught her hand and said.
He began to slip from her embrace and walk toward the beast. Ushun grabbed his wrist.
“Ushun, there’s no need to worry. I’ll handle it.”
“I promised the Khan I would protect you.”
“I believe that promise too.”
Ushun released him.
—Ah, so this is how it would turn out.
High-ranking spirit-beasts were destined existences. They were wind, freedom, strength, and future all at once.
Ushun felt that sending Vesta away was as natural as breathing.
As she expected.
The one chosen was not her.
It was Vesta.
The being who could sense the seed of a warrior and grant it early had personally chosen him.
The closer Vesta moved, the nearer the Ekarkwidae approached.
She circled once around him.
“It is a blessing.”
“Indeed.”
Vesta felt no joy at receiving the blessing. All he could see was the spiked collar rotting the flesh of the great beast.
He reached out to loosen it.
Rurrr.
The Ekarkwidae’s emotions shifted abruptly. It bared its teeth at Vesta and took several steps back.
“I understand.”
Vesta had read the creature’s heart. It had taken a long time to cast off its own chains.
And chains could not be removed until one trusted the one wearing them.
“Stand back!”
Ushun rose with the slingshot. She was ready to strike even a sacred being.
Vesta moved toward the basket.
“Lord Vesta.”
“It’s all right.”
He took something from the basket and stood before the Ekarkwidae once more.
“I heard it’s customary to offer food. It’s nothing special, but they say it’s quite a delicacy.”
It was marmot. The marmot, sensing the Ekarkwidae’s gaze, froze in panic.
The Ekarkwidae cautiously accepted the marmot. The creature stared at Vesta with pitiful eyes, the marmot lodged awkwardly in its enormous mouth.
Unfortunately, Vesta paid the marmot no mind and did not hear the squeaking.
Sllrrk.
After another full circle around Vesta, the Ekarkwidae turned its back and withdrew.
As though rewinding time, it vanished, banishing all magical phenomena and darkness.
It was gone.
“Ya!”
Ushun lunged at Vesta.
“You’re insane! Completely insane!”
“Aaah.”
Ushun’s thick arm clamped down on his head. She had not even applied full strength, yet Vesta felt his skull about to explode.
“What, trying to give someone an dishonorable discharge? Wow, really.”
Ushun was laughing while glaring, an odd mix of pride and fury. She was both impressed and genuinely angry.
“Eh?”
“Save… me.”
“Hah, you’re such a drama queen.”
After a few more thumps on his arm, she released him.
“Haa. I thought you were in real trouble there.”
From Ushun’s perspective, the protected man had walked straight into the jaws of a wolf. She had been terrified.
They waited a long moment.
“Thank the spirits you’re safe. I was worried.”
Ushun’s voice returned to its lazy tone once the panic faded. Her emotions softened again.
Perhaps she had been waiting for revenge.
“…You must not tell the Khan.”
“I made a mistake, that’s all.”
Vesta had a certain boldness about him.
He had been pushed around by the tough steppe women, yet once he had been the roughest man in the Empire.
Their roughhousing had always crossed every line, and Ushun’s training was actually quite gentle.
“Still, you did well. You handled it with composure. Offering food too.”
Ushun crossed her arms and smacked her lips.
“No, thinking about it now… it’s a pity. That thing was delicious.”
Ushun spoke cheerfully.
“When I return to the clan I’ll share some with you.”
“Won’t that be difficult?”
“Eh? Why do you say that?”
“Didn’t you lie down with one marmot under you earlier?”
“Ah?”
“Didn’t it run away?”
Ushun’s eyes widened. If she went back to the spot where they had been resting, the marmot could not possibly still be there.
“…It ran? My dinner?”
Ushun scanned every direction for the marmot as though searching for a lost pet.
Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.
The distinctive marmot call drew their gaze, and the creature stood on the hilltop, mocking them.
“Come back.”
Squeak—
There was no coming back. The short, plump marmot raised its front paws in delight and vanished in an instant. Chasing it was hopeless.
Ushun stared at the hill for a long time before speaking to Vesta.
“Lord Vesta, let’s settle this between us.”
“…How do you mean?”
“Let’s say Orolbai’s share ran away.”
“Haha.”
Vesta laughed awkwardly.
Of course he had not expected Orolbai to fall for the trick.
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