After navigating through the eerie forest filled with emaciated, self-moving trees, we finally emerged from the rickety carriage into a vast meadow where short violet flowers stretched beyond the horizon.
“Ah, this is Erika Meadow. We really don’t have much further to go. If we sleep tonight, we’ll arrive by morning. Our journey will be over tomorrow.”
Though the journey had only been five days, for the carriage driver, it was an eventful one. From the sudden appearance of monsters in the village to the strangers who saved the village from them, and now escorting these strangers while selling high-quality magic stones for the first time in his life—these were certainly not everyday occurrences.
Indeed, it wasn’t something ordinary. Alterra sat on my right, holding a large sack full of magic stones, fast asleep.
I deliberately placed her on my right so I could see her without turning my head. Since my left eye can only see language, if she were on my left, I’d have to keep turning my head every time I wanted to look at her or talk to her, which might make her realize something was wrong with my left eye.
…It’s still not causing me much inconvenience, so as long as I’m careful about small things, I won’t get caught. The issue with distance perception will probably resolve itself once I adapt.
She would surely tell me to stop if she knew I was involved with dark magic or making deals with demons.
And she’d say it with that tone of hers: “Once you grow stronger, you can stop.” “You don’t need to push yourself.”
…I didn’t want that. After committing countless acts, I’ve finally earned the right to stand by her side. I didn’t want her to charge ahead alone while I was left sitting in the audience.
Looking over, I watched her sleeping soundly despite what should have been an uncomfortable position. I felt the urge to poke her cheek or side with my finger, just to see her reaction.
But I shouldn’t do that; she’d wake up startled. Let her rest.
We fought dragons, endured painful realizations, killed Alteena, who was both mother and enemy, and thought we could rest—but then we were manipulated by the Demon Tribe and faced a literal wave of monsters.
On top of that, we kept watch for three days straight. It was no wonder everyone was exhausted. Yuna had run out of arrows, and Akashi was still complaining of a headache, so neither was in any condition to fight.
When I offered to help, Alterra said, “I can stay awake easily, but you can’t, so just rest.”
Thinking back, maybe we didn’t need to keep watch. After all, we wiped out all the monsters in the area that night, and we hadn’t seen a single one since.
“Well then,” I said to the driver, “could you bear with us for one more day?”
“Ah, this isn’t hard work at all. Compared to what the heroes have done, this hardly counts as work. You chased away the Demon Tribe and took care of all the monsters. Of course, we should return the favor.”
Of course…? While I didn’t think our treatment was unwarranted, helping people isn’t something heroes are obligated to do.
Even though we’ve helped many people, we rarely received anything in return. But now, I thought it might be okay to accept a little compensation.
The warm spring breeze carried flower pollen, tickling my nose and making me want to sneeze. Suppressing the urge, I used my left eye to examine the words inscribed on her body.
I saw the witch’s runes on her back and neck, protecting her mind, the runes I had drawn on her with a brush, and the golden runes on her stomach.
The witch’s runes were doing their job well, guarding her mind from anything unusual, so there was no need to erase them. The problem lay with the ones on her stomach.
The golden letters etched on her abdomen hadn’t done anything yet. They remained eerily quiet, as if unsure whether they should bring trials or not.
Then, I shifted my gaze to Akashi. His body was covered densely with runes, visible even to the point of causing a headache, but I couldn’t find the slave mark among them.
This was a fact I discovered accidentally after gaining the ability to see language when looking at him. Unsure of when to bring it up, I kept postponing the conversation until now, when both Yuna and Alterra were asleep.
Seizing the moment, I casually asked him, “Akashi, when did you remove it?”
“What? I didn’t do anything! Seriously, why are you picking on me when I’m sick? Leave me alone!”
Akashi glared at me, clearly annoyed and upset. As I stared at him, I nonchalantly pointed to the small tattoo on his neck.
“I’m asking when you removed the brand. Don’t try to lie.”
Upon hearing this, Akashi’s expression stiffened. He asked how I knew, then looked directly into my left eye, smacking his forehead in exasperation and laughing bitterly. “For a moment, I thought some god had spoken to you. A week after it was branded. It was annoying.”
“So, you followed my commands well until then?” I teased. “Do you want me to put another leash on you?”
“No way. I just wanted to know when you removed it,” I replied. “Forget it. Carry the spellbook from now on.”
“Are you serious? How do you know I won’t cause trouble?” he laughed sarcastically, flipping through the pages of the spellbook as if searching for a spell.
“You wouldn’t anyway. Even if you planned to, Alterra and I could handle it. Besides, you know I can’t use much magic.”
“Boring answers. Still, I’m more curious about how you’ll fall apart than satisfying your curiosity.”
I extended my middle finger silently. He snorted derisively and pointed at my sword, demanding the soul of a witch.
“That? I used it all fighting the Demon Tribe. And if you’re interested in the results of the experiments the witch conducted on Alterra, forget it. Even if I had it, I wouldn’t give it to you.”
“Did you burn through that vast soul like an idiot? Well, guess there’s nothing to see here. Get lost.”
With nothing more to say, the carriage fell silent again. As we continued down the road lined with blooming flowers, smoke rising in the distance came into view.
“Where… is there a burning smell… Hot! Everyone! Are you alright… Ah? What is this? It seemed peaceful enough…”
Alterra woke up startled by the smell, asking if everyone was okay before realizing the tranquil scenery around her.
“You’re partly right, Alterra. Something is burning far away, but we’re safe.”
Alterra looked at my fingertips, accepting the explanation while still wondering what caused the fire.
“Is someone fighting? Or was a spell misfired?”
“That’s not it. Those flowers you see for the first time are called Erika. Though pretty, if other plants grow nearby, they burn themselves and everything else. According to legend, they do this because they adore the sun so much that they can’t tolerate sunlight touching other plants.”
“They set themselves on fire… Yeah, that makes sense… So that’s why only these flowers grow around here.”
“That’s right. And that’s also why they share the name with the Goddess of Jealousy. Fitting, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know about that…”
Alterra glanced at the burning flowers, seemingly unimpressed, then turned her head back inside the carriage. She looked more refreshed today, having slept well, which made her appear even better.
“How much longer?”
“Just under a day. We’ll still have to sleep outside, though.”
“Hmm. So we’re heading straight to Koluscia where you were summoned? Or should we linger a bit?”
There didn’t seem to be much reason to stay. Though going to Koluscia wasn’t pleasant, I didn’t want to deny Alterra’s wishes.
“We might stay if there’s something worth lingering for, but I think we’ll go straight. Yuna plans to return to her mercenary group anyway, so unless she stays to rescue allies, we’ll proceed.”
“But…” Yuna hesitated, looking concerned. “I might stay a little longer with you guys. At least until I confirm Mari is safe. She must be terrified after being kidnapped by the Demon Tribe…”
Yuna seemed worried about Mari.
There’s no need to stay for allies. It seems we can head straight to Koluscia. Just as I thought this, Alterra suddenly grabbed her lower abdomen and winced.
“Alterra? Are you alright?”
“It’s… it can’t be… Ow… Oh! Uh… uh. I’m fine! Um… Excuse me, sir! Could you stop for a moment? I need to use the restroom…”
Clearly, it wasn’t a bathroom break. Alterra was clutching her abdomen, sweating profusely in pain. Had she sustained an injury without noticing, or was it due to the black liquid she drank yesterday?
“Sorry, Myungho. I’ll be right back. I’m really fine. Yes… I’m fine…”
But she pushed me away and hurried off.
As I watched her retreat, I noticed the golden heart-shaped tattoo fading between her fingers.
And I heard what those words whispered to her.
—
