Chapter 14
Chapter 14
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: An Inescapable Past
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Young Master Allen, may fortune favor you in battle.”
“Young Master, I want to go with you, even now…”
*Flick!*
“Be quiet.”
“Ouch… My forehead…”
Linbelle clutched her reddened forehead, her face scrunching up.
Allen gave a faint smile and turned away. Watching the mother and daughter bicker would have been amusing, but…
*‘I have things to do.’*
Within the day.
I will kill the chimera user.
He lifted his head.
Sturdy walls and a thick gate stood before him, surrounded by a hundred soldiers from the mansion, waiting in orderly formation.
—Murmur, murmur.
The townspeople had gathered around them, observing the soldiers.
“I’ll handle this within a few days and be back, so be ready to depart.”
“Yes…”
Linbelle, who had been watching him with a look of longing, nodded.
He glanced at Inellia, who seemed to have something to say, repeatedly opening and closing her mouth in hesitation.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Young Master, well, it’s just…”
She kept looking back and forth between the soldiers and Allen before finally shaking her head and answering quietly.
“…Please be careful and return safely.”
“How dull.”
He knew she was hiding something, but he had no desire to pry.
Becoming one of his people was entirely different from revealing all one’s secrets. As long as it didn’t harm him, there was no reason to dig into it.
He turned his head to Francisca, who had been quietly watching them off.
“Please look after these two while I’m away.”
“Don’t worry, Young Master.”
Francisca smiled elegantly and nodded.
She had remained in the city as a precaution.
Unexpected variables could arise, so it was necessary to be prepared for the worst.
A 4th-Circle mage would be more than enough to resolve any problems that might occur in the city.
“Well then…”
He took a step forward.
*Creeeak—*
The city gate opened, and a breeze blew through the gap.
The wide plain before the north gate and the forest that stretched beyond it. Allen felt the wind on his face and made a silent vow.
*‘This time.’*
Without fail.
“We’re moving out!”
His gaze, fixed ahead, was icy.
* * *
Thirty minutes after Allen and his soldiers left the city, Linbelle and Inellia were waiting back in their room at the mansion.
“Mom… Don’t you think it would be okay if I followed them, even now?”
Linbelle pouted, clearly disappointed that she couldn’t go with them.
“No.”
“From a distance! I’ll just watch from the city walls. Still no? Huh? Mooooom!”
“Absolutely not. The Young Master has likely already entered the forest. How would you even find him when you don't know where he is?”
“Hmph…”
She kicked at the floor with the tip of her toe. Inellia sighed at the sight of her.
“Linbelle, a battle isn’t a game.”
“But…”
As she continued to pester, Inellia let out a faint sigh and said.
“…You’re weak. If you went, you’d only be a burden.”
“I guess so… Aww. I wanted to see the Young Master fight…”
Linbelle replied gloomily. After all, she had almost gotten into big trouble because of the soldiers just a few days ago.
It would be a lie to say she didn’t want to see him defeat the villain like a scene from a story, but what could she do if she would only get in the way?
“…Alright. I’ll stop being stubborn.”
She had no choice but to immediately accept her mother’s words.
Though Linbelle’s face fell into a sulk, Inellia didn’t change her mind.
*‘Any other time, maybe, but…’*
If the one he was fighting was *him*, then they must never cross paths.
*‘I don’t care if I die. But Linbelle… I can’t let that happen.’*
They were so close to finding a safe haven where she could live in peace.
A major reason Inellia had so readily accepted Allen’s offer was the chance to escape *his* sight and leave this place.
She could never escape from here on her own.
*‘…And he seemed like a decent person.’*
At first, she thought he was genuinely after her body, but after spending a short time with him, she saw that he showed no ill intentions.
He could have at least made a move on her, if not her daughter, but he truly hadn’t laid a single finger on either of them.
*‘Maybe he really is impotent.’*
She shook off the absurd thought and comforted the pouting Linbelle.
“Linbelle, let’s ask the Young Master for a favor when we return to the county.”
“…For what?”
Though she was now fifteen and could be considered an adult, her daughter was still so young.
“Ask him to help you grow stronger, okay? Then, you can join him next time, right?”
“Really…? But do you think the Young Master will agree?”
“Of course. You’re his personal handmaiden, after all.”
Inellia couldn’t know for sure if Allen would do so. But from what she had observed of his character, she thought he would probably agree.
“Hmm, in that case… I’m definitely going with him next time.”
“Of course, dear.”
Inellia smiled, imagining a bright future ahead.
**CRASH!**
At least, that was the case until one of the mansion’s walls was obliterated.
“Haha, it was quite a struggle to find you, wasn’t it, Inellia?”
Inellia’s smile froze instantly.
A greasy, spine-chilling voice.
The horrible sensation, like someone licking her ear, made her shudder.
“A noble’s mansion… No wonder it was so hard to find you.”
The being that had smashed through the mansion wall was a colossal monster.
It stood three meters tall with two curved horns. Sharp claws glinted on its hands, and its red eyes invoked terror.
The monster, whose body was packed with muscles that radiated overwhelming danger, spoke in a refined tone that contrasted with its appearance.
“Do you have any idea how many of my brethren are dying to divert attention and buy time, all to bring you back?”
Her expression hardened, and his voice snapped her back to reality.
*‘Where is Lady Francisca?’*
Inellia quickly looked around, but despite the loud commotion, Francisca was nowhere to be seen. The monster, Regnol, raised the corners of his mouth and shook his head.
“Ah, are you looking for that mage? Unfortunately…”
**—BOOM!**
As he spoke, a tremendous roar echoed from behind him, followed by people’s screams and terrified voices.
—Aah, it’s a monster!
—Wh-Why is there suddenly a monster…!
Regnol closed his eyes for a moment as if savoring the sounds, then continued.
“She won’t be able to come anytime soon. One monster wouldn’t have been enough to stall her… but what about ten? Or a hundred?”
“Don’t tell me…”
“And since they’ve infiltrated the city, it will take quite some time to deal with them all. If it weren’t for that ‘variable,’ we would have waited three more days to attack… but there’s no need to discuss that.”
As Regnol bared his sharp teeth in a grin, Inellia’s face contorted.
“You’re insane.”
“Not as much as you.”
No one dared to approach the area, likely due to the sheer pressure the creature exuded. Inellia bit her lip, regretting her decision.
*‘If only I had told Young Master Allen everything and gone with him…’*
But it was too late for regrets.
Regnol, seemingly uninterested in her thoughts, shrugged his shoulders and spoke.
“To think you’re still playing with dolls… How can anyone believe you’re a denizen of the other side? Kicking away the glory of becoming the master’s hands and feet, only to do… this.”
“Shut your mouth, Regnol. I’ll be the one to decide whether this is playing with dolls or not.”
“In that case…”
The chimera’s mouth split into a grin that reached its ears. Regnol let out a cackle.
“What if that thing you cherish so dearly were to disappear?”
“What?”
“I may have failed last time… but do you really think you can stop me now while protecting that little burden?”
He pointed at Linbelle, who was sitting collapsed on the floor.
“M-Mom…? Do you know that monster?”
At Linbelle’s call, Inellia snapped back to her senses.
“Don’t you touch her! If you try to touch Linbelle one more time…”
Inellia’s rounded ears sharpened to a point, and a second pupil appeared inside each of her eyes. Her skin turned a murky gray as twelve pairs of wings burst from her back.
“I won’t just stand by.”
In her current state, she looked too different to be called human.
If one had to find a resemblance, she looked like the fae, a race said to have vanished from the continent.
“M-Mom? What is this form? What is that monster…?”
“Linbelle, I’ll explain everything later. So just wait, just for a moment.”
Once their conversation ended, the chimera burst into laughter and spoke.
“And what if I were to touch her anyway?”
Regnol’s red pupils curved into crescents.
Inellia bit her lip and said to him.
“…What do you want?”
“Haha. As expected, you’re quick on the uptake, Inellia.”
At her response, Regnol reined in his menacing aura.
However, Inellia knew that if she hadn’t given him the answer he wanted, he would have targeted Linbelle without hesitation.
“It’s time you came back. If you return, I will not touch that child.”
“…Are you serious?”
“Mom!”
“If you agree to become a stepping stone for His glory… I will keep my promise.”
Linbelle cried out, but Inellia only looked at her with sorrowful eyes.
“Linbelle…”
She thought she could escape freely. That she could live a new life as the handmaiden to the eldest son of a county, that they could be together.
*‘I was too complacent…’*
To think she could just wait quietly until he was subjugated—what a naive thought. If only she had offered to guide them to the enemy’s base herself…
“Don’t even think about stalling for time. That rather skilled mage seems to be in a hurry, but…”
He cut off Inellia’s thoughts and turned his head toward Linbelle.
The corners of his mouth curled upward.
“I’m not quite sure how I’ll act before she arrives.”
Urged on by Regnol, her face contorted. She leaned down, kissed Linbelle’s forehead, and stood up.
“…I’ll go.”
“A wise choice, Inellia. Hold onto my body. We will move quickly.”
As he revealed his sharp teeth in a smile, Inellia looked back at Linbelle, who was staring at her blankly with a confused expression.
“…Mom?”
Inellia gave a faint smile at her daughter’s call and climbed onto Regnol’s back.
“Mom, Mom! Mom!”
Linbelle, finally coming to her senses, called out for her mother, but…
“…”
Naturally, no answer came.
All she could do was stare blankly as their figures became a small dot in the distance and disappeared.