Found You, My Baroa
“This is how we usually deal with villains.”
Lucius turned to her and grinned.
“They’re really coming out? Ice Wind!”
Pay finished her incantation while following behind Lucius and Cassel, then hurled a fifth-circle frost spell toward the door as it burst open.
At the sound of Lucius’s clear, youthful voice, the enemies rushed out carelessly and instantly slowed. Even the archer among them fumbled, and Cassel charged forward at the sight.
“Be careful!”
There was no reply from behind. Yet Pay had nothing to worry about.
Through their seamless teamwork, all seven bandits who had poured out were captured alive, and with the two they had already subdued, not a single one escaped.
Of course, none of the three who faced the bandits suffered so much as a scratch.
Pay’s first real battle ended in success.
“Hmph. Be grateful you’re being carried instead of walking on your own two feet.”
The tightly bound bandits were laid out on wooden planks Lucius had summoned, their bodies folded like candy, and swiftly transported by magic toward the lord’s manor.
They would soon be dragged to the prison attached to the estate, but Pay felt no pity for them.
The bandit at the very back twitched.
“Ugh…”
“Listen here, the others may be fine, but this old man’s joints ache from age. At least let him ride in a more comfortable position.”
At someone’s absurd plea, Lucius’s eyes flashed.
“Who’s whining now? If you lived this long by leeching off others, you should accept your end.”
“End…”
Pay had been staring blankly at the wooden planks carrying the bandits when her gaze met the old bandit’s, who was groaning in pain.
Thump. Thump.
His eyes held neither regret nor fear—only the chilling sharpness of a leopard searching for an escape.
What is this? Something feels wrong.
Even in this situation, the man refused to give up and was looking for a way out. Cassel, who noticed, barked in a low voice.
“How dare you glare like that?”
“……”
“I…”
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
Pay realized her own breath was burning hot. Her heart was racing wildly, unlike usual.
Was this a coincidence too? But… somehow, she felt she understood.
I know this man. He may not recognize me, but I’m certain. I…
Pay struggled to grasp the faint thread of memory rising from the past.
The nanny died horribly right before my eyes. I tried to run and fell, sliding across the ground before slamming my head against a rock.
At that moment, wooden debris from the broken carriage flew over and scraped my body. Blood poured from my head and elbows, but…
Terrified, I thrashed desperately to get away from them and the smell of blood.
While searching the abandoned carriage, this man… this man… this man met my eyes!
At Cassel’s shout, the man had turned his face away, but the beard along his jaw was still clearly visible.
Back then, his beard had been much longer. He strode toward me as I crawled on the ground, trembling.
I cried and clawed through the dirt until my whole body was covered in soil, and then someone came…!
Pay’s steps halted abruptly as she recalled a face completely different from the bandits’.
Ah.
“…What’s wrong? Are you all right? Should we rest a bit before continuing?”
A hand that rarely reached out. Lucius’s hand gently rested on Pay’s trembling shoulder, careful not to cause her any pain or discomfort.
That touch was like the most perfect healing magic in the world—meant only for her.
Pay placed her own hand over the back of his and murmured.
“He came…”
“What?”
“The person who came back then.”
It was truly an astonishing situation.
The moment she faced the second culprit who had changed her entire life, she finally remembered him.
“Pay?”
Cassel, who had been walking ahead, glanced back at her strange muttering.
“…It’s nothing. Let’s just go.”
Her voice had already regained its usual calm.
I remember now. Finally. It was you.
The man who, when terrifying things happened and I was so scared, lifted me up in his arms while I was covered in dirt and blood, wearing the silk robe sent from the ducal house, and drove the bandits far away.
“It’s all right now. You can relax.”
The gentle, warm voice that reached my ears as I lost consciousness.
Even if you were mixed among tens of thousands of people, I would still be able to find you.
He removed the ruby pendant from my neck, took off the soiled silk robe, and gently covered my terrified self with the white robe he had been wearing.
The hand that patted me kindly all the way to Grace Monastery lulled my sobbing self into a quiet sleep.
That was why, even after I was left at the monastery and completely forgot his existence, I was never trapped by terrible nightmares. His gentle touch had covered my sorrow.
His face had been fresher than the white robe he wore.
And… silver hair that seemed to hold the brightest, coldest moon of any color I knew in this world.
That was how you looked when you came running to save me. Exactly like someone I know.
Pay’s throat tightened.
Baroa…
It was you, Lucius. The one standing before me now. The one who tried to speak but, out of consideration for my confusion, said he would wait as long as it took.
Pay turned her head, making no effort to confirm Lucius’s appearance beside her.
Even with her eyes closed, she could clearly picture how he looked.
From now on, I will never forget you for the rest of my life.
The man who approached at the end of the festival as if nothing had happened and claimed to be Momo’s owner.
Sometimes like a friend, sometimes like the best book, answering anything I asked.
Even when trying to draw a line so we wouldn’t get too close, he would kick down the door and rush in the moment I seemed to be in danger.
Lucius, Lord Baroa, and… what identity have you been hiding?
Why? Even while saving me, why did your expression look so sorrowful? You were a wonderful person and teacher to me. There was no reason for you to hesitate in front of me…
Was that the reason you tried to tell me in front of the Origin Forest?
“We’re here.”
Cassel spoke while looking at the stone wall surrounding the small outpost.
The captured bandits groaned as death or life imprisonment loomed before them.
“Ugh… ugh…”
“Can’t you all be quiet?”
Lucius snapped coldly.
Sensing something suspicious, two soldiers hurried over. When Cassel showed them something at the front, the rest was resolved smoothly.
To think they could have resolved this so quickly yet had left it alone for so long.
After entering the outpost and returning, Cassel reported that the bandits’ crimes were sufficient and that bounties had been placed on all of them.
Most would be executed, and at the very least, they would never see sunlight again. With that, the matter was settled.
Pay felt a small knot in her heart loosen now that the bandit would face the judgment of the law.
They said he was definitely sentenced to death.
In truth, she had been troubled the entire way from the forest to here.
Should she have saved this mortal enemy and kept him alive? Hidden him somewhere and forced him to confess the past with his own mouth?
Her heart had swirled endlessly, but in the end, she decided to leave everything to the laws of Sionel Territory.
Because she suspected the Saintess had not been the one who ordered the carriage attack.
If she had, she would have at least retrieved the ruby pendant, even if nothing else. If they were people who killed for money, they would have stolen it despite any promises. Wouldn’t they have tried to coax the nanny by saying they would send it to the ducal house later?
Memories of the distant past were resurfacing one by one.
Pay resolved to permanently settle one of them.
Make him pay fully for the terrible crime he committed—with his life.
The nameless murderer.
One of the great knots that had cast a shadow over her life would soon drift far away.
Pay spoke calmly.
“I’m glad.”
“…If the innkeeper doesn’t give us a proper explanation, we shouldn’t let it slide. After putting us through all this trouble, if he only spouts nonsense, I won’t forgive him.”
Pay shook her head with a smile.
“Surely not.”
That evening, the innkeeper and his wife, who had gone to the outpost to confirm the outcome, joined them at their table.
Momo had buried his nose in a bowl of meat soup the innkeeper had served as a complimentary dish.
Chomp chomp chomp!
Momo, who had done no work, was the most enthusiastic about eating.
“My, my. As expected, you guests are truly remarkable, just as I thought.”
“Enough flattery. If Pay has questions, answer them honestly.”
Lucius grumbled while lying on a long bench and reading a book he had brought.
“Understood. The rumors haven’t spread fully yet, but since you guests finished them off, the residents will be very grateful. Come back in a few months. By then, they’ll all be holding flowers and welcoming you warmly.”
“If the chance comes, I’ll do that.”
Pay brushed it off with words.
Whether she would ever return to the distant Sionel Territory again was hard to say, so it was just empty talk.
Soon after, the innkeeper began recounting the past events.
“That day, there wasn’t even a strong wind. You guests are outsiders, so you wouldn’t know, but here in Sionel Territory, there aren’t many noble families with long-standing bloodlines.”
“Everyone knows each other, then.”
“Yes. If you mention Viscount Caris, everyone nearby knows. But one day, the entire family died in a fire. Even the maid who lived with them perished, so there were no survivors.”
“Even without wind, they didn’t notice the fire inside and died?”
Cassel’s tone was ordinary.
Human senses become terribly dull when one is off guard. If the fire broke out at night while everyone was deeply asleep, it was common for people to suffocate before the flames even spread through the house.
“Yes. Ah… Even though that house was noble, they had quite a few troubles before. Though their wealth was modest, they had two sons and one daughter. The second son had a bad leg and always limped, and the daughter, Trisha, was quite pretty. But…”
“Trisha?”
“Trisha…?”
“……”
Cassel and Pay cried out at the same time.
Trisha.
Dot Trisha…
The names were similar, weren’t they?
It was too early to jump to conclusions. But it was suspicious that the name of the viscount’s daughter in Sionel Territory—the remote border region Dot had specifically ordered investigated—matched so closely.
When Pay’s eyes shook violently, Cassel, who had also shouted, glanced at her briefly with his red eyes.
The innkeeper, whose words had been interrupted, shrugged.
“Yes, well. Anyway, a few years ago, while the two siblings were regularly visiting a doctor, the daughter went missing, and the second son fell from a cliff and was badly injured before being found three days later. Given that his leg was already bad, it must have been difficult for him to call for help.”
“Did he… die?”
If that “Trisha” was Dot Trisha, then…
You, you, you… Dot. Even before running away from home, you tried to kill your own family with your own hands? Really?
“No. He barely survived, but his health worsened afterward and he was practically bedridden. He said he couldn’t remember at all what happened to his younger sister.”