Chapter 49
Three days had passed.
Three days, just as Maya had mentioned.
Tristan, as usual, gazed at the rope for a long time before practicing his healing powers and burning some firewood.
Just in case, he made and coiled more rope.
He also stashed plenty of meat in the snow for grilling upon Maya’s return.
Although the weather had warmed considerably, this high-altitude area still had remaining patches of snow.
Footsteps crunched.
“Who goes there?”
It was a spot hard to stumble upon unless deliberately sought out.
It was unlikely for there to be any survivors here, especially since no one had been seen for three days.
Drawing his sword, Tristan’s expression hardened.
“If you’re approaching, come out willingly. Then I’ll spare your life.”
“…I am coming out willingly.”
A figure emerged from behind a tree.
“And who might you be?”
Kendrick frowned and tilted his head.
Seeing a familiar face, Tristan internally sighed.
‘Why is this man here?’
Tristan and he looked alike, but it was a youthful face, uncertain at best.
There was only one guess.
‘Alec.’
Alec was the kind of guy who could focus on just one thing at a time.
“I believe I asked first.”
Tristan naturally turned the conversation over to Kendrick.
If he didn’t speak first, he seemed unwilling to speak at all.
Since it was time to ask about Maya anyway, Kendrick willingly stated his intentions.
“I am Kendrick. I am here looking for a friend and to hunt monsters.”
“The northern borders are not to be traversed without official permission.”
“Permission has already been granted by Alec, the captain of the Northern Knights.”
He even pushed forward a certificate stamped with Alec’s seal.
‘It really is Alec.’
Tristan thought about the potential for splitting him from Maya, but had Alec given any thought to the exposure of Tristan’s curse?
‘…Perhaps people in the North keep quiet about it.’
Maybe he hadn’t thought about it at all.
Having grown up together, sometimes it was easy to forget that Alec could be thoughtless.
‘Caught up in sentiment.’
When he returned, he would have to impose a strict punishment to clarify his stance.
Tristan pressed his temples.
His stature had shrunk so much that he now had to look up to Kendrick.
Tristan was unusually tall; the striking difference in height felt bitter.
For some reason, he didn’t want to discuss the curse with this man.
Not just because he disliked it being known to outsiders.
“I am Arthur, the hidden younger brother of Grand Duke Tristan.”
Tristan prayed inwardly, ‘Parents, please forgive this unfilial son for a while,’ as he faced Kendrick with an unabashed expression.
“…Hidden younger brother?”
He looked so much like the Grand Duke it was undeniable.
Could it really be that the Grand Duke had a brother?
“I was born frail, so I struggled between life and death from a young age. I was raised in secrecy to prevent undue attention to the Bayarden family. If not for the people of the North, no one would know about me.”
Frail, my a*s.
He was as robust as Kendrick, but since the past was unknown to Kendrick, it was easy to disguise his true identity.
“I haven’t seen him even at the castle.”
“Following the Grand Duke’s orders, I was scouting the area.”
Kendrick was caught by a strange feeling.
There was nothing wrong with the boy’s words.
However, there were many troubling points about why this boy had to be hidden and why he looked exactly like Grand Duke Tristan.
But for now, finding Maya was a priority over any discomfort towards Tristan.
“Then, where is the Grand Duke now?”
“He went into the mist with Lady Maya.”
Though he would need to align his story with Maya later, for now, this was the most fitting explanation for Tristan’s absence.
“They must have gone in to deal with a monster.”
“You know well.”
“Then I will follow them.”
“That’s not possible.”
It wasn’t yet the time Maya had promised.
Because of the promise to Maya, he had been anxiously waiting. He had no intention of letting this mage go in first.
Kendrick, frustrated by Tristan, or rather Arthur, blocking his way, furrowed his brow.
“I don’t know how great the Grand Duke’s skills are, but dealing with a monster by themselves is too much.”
“That’s merely your opinion.”
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