Chapter 40
“Your Highness…”
Seeing the deeply troubled expression on Mikhail’s face, Marcel instinctively sensed that things were taking a turn for the worse.
For the sake of his own safety, it would be best to distance himself from the prince’s affairs as soon as possible. If he used the prince’s health issues as an excuse and claimed he was no longer fit to serve Mikhail, everyone would simply pat him on the back, saying he’d had a hard time trying to make something of that wild colt.
But if he let go of the prince here, what was he supposed to do about the guilt he’d carried in his heart ever since that day years ago? The nightmare he’d ignored, believing it was for the good of the country, would now remain squarely as his own sin.
Marcel hesitated, unable to make a decision right away. At that moment, Mikhail lowered his head for a moment, then clenched his fists tightly.
“…Marcel.”
Unexpectedly, the voice Marcel thought would be utterly defeated held a surprising strength. Marcel, tense, listened carefully to the prince’s words.
“What’s the closest Gate to Belgorg?”
“I’ll look it up right away!”
Marcel quickly searched the Gate map and found the coordinates of a small Gate that was the closest after Parinell.
“If we set out from Torkan by horse, we should be able to reach it within two hours.”
“We’ll leave right now.”
It took Mikhail less than ten minutes to finish preparing for departure. As Marcel hurried to get ready for battle, he asked,
“How did you pack so quickly? There’s so much we have to take with us…”
As Marcel frantically gathered supplies and grumbled, Mikhail gave a wry smile.
“Monsters at the scene of a dungeon break don’t wait politely for us to get armed.”
Only then did Marcel realize that, although he’d always underestimated this young man before him, he too was someone who had survived the battlefield for a very long time.
Mercenary companies were always short-handed. If even a nine-year-old could set traps and muster the nerve to fire a crossbow from afar, it was common to fill the ranks just to claim a full day’s wage.
“So you don’t need to worry about me. Just bring whatever you need to protect yourself.”
It didn’t feel great to hear such words from a youngster barely older than half his own age. But right now, Mikhail was the only one who could lighten the heavy burden of guilt weighing on Marcel’s conscience.
“Understood. Let’s depart immediately.”
War leaves scars on everyone. That was as true for Marcel, who’d been trained in the most efficient ways to kill as an apprentice knight from his late teens, as for anyone else. Even though his daily life as an investigator was mostly peaceful, he often had nightmares, haunted by the guilt of having to stand by and watch acts that should never have been committed.
Convinced that he’d only bring unhappiness if he ever tried to start a family in this state, he still hadn’t managed to marry his fiancée, continually postponing the wedding. Today, he was going to pay for that sin. With a heavy sigh, Marcel followed after Mikhail.
* * *
And at that moment. In the place of exile on the Ice Lake, someone noticed a purple mist rising beyond the distant ridgeline and sensed that something unusual was happening.
“It… It’s probably nothing serious, right? Surely nothing could happen all the way out here… We’re right in the middle of the lake…”
The caretaker’s wife paced anxiously, her face pale with fear. The caretaker hurriedly reached for the communicator. But no matter how many times he tried to activate the direct line to the palace official, the communicator wouldn’t respond at all.
“Why is this— Why isn’t it working today?”
“What’s wrong, dear? D-Don’t joke around at a time like this, it’s scaring me!”
“I’m not joking, I swear!”
While the caretaker and his wife stomped around with pale faces, only Hyun kept a calm expression, quietly watching out the window.
Seeing the purple mist spreading, Hyun was certain this was the work of monsters. Using the knowledge left in his mind by the real duke, Hyun recalled which dungeon was located in that area.
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