Chapter 156: Blame
On a frigid night, the icy winds howled like a banshee, cutting across faces and ears with a chilling “whoosh.” The clattering of iron hooves trudged over the frozen river, gradually slowed by thick layers of snow, making every step feel like wading through deep mud.
“How’s it going—”
“Is someone coming after us?”
Not far from the back of the riding party, a hunter dismounted from their beast and climbed up a steep slope, squinting at Baihao City, which lay far behind them. Hoover, his cheeks reddened from the cold, called up from below the slope.
After a moment, the hunter shook his head, “Not for now; I don’t see any figures.”
“Eh? No way…” Hoover’s surprise was palpable as he mumbled, “Are they seriously just giving up? Have they truly been scared stiff?”
“Ha, no way!”
The only female hunter trotting beside her mother turned around and shouted back at the two. “If they were afraid, they should have been terrified back at the church… Don’t underestimate those lunatic fanatics. I’ve seen it firsthand; most of those gold-armored folks don’t fear d*ath. But being reckless doesn’t just mean they’re all idiots.”
She glanced at me casually as she said this.
Unlike Hoover, who had grown up by my side, this woman had only joined the hunters in recent years. I’d never seen her before, but she seemed to have earned my mother’s trust. Our brief interactions gave off a vibe of someone who tends to take things too seriously—definitely a decent person, but she was clearly wary of me. I could see that in her slightly apprehensive eyes.
“In the city, they dared to bite at us like rabid dogs because there were countless eyes watching. They called us villains out of necessity… But they know very well that once we’re out of the city, who’s prey and who’s predator is up in the air… Without a new command, what idiot would lead the charge to their d*ath?”
“…That’s a good point.”
Hearing the woman, Hoover rubbed his head sheepishly, grinning. “Their vice captain bit the dust! Haha! All that’s left in the city are scattered, brainless thugs. Without a d*ath command, only an idiot would chase us out of the city… They’re probably concocting excuses to cover this whole mess.”
The rough man said this while pulling the hunter down the slope, the group continuing south. Hunters on either side remained vigilant, not daring to strike a light, relying solely on their familiarity with the terrain to move onward in the dark.
“That guy, Tarlasya, the Pope Knight.” After a moment, Hoover spoke again, “Honestly, he seems like a quirky fellow. At this point, I can’t figure out which side he’s really on… He helped us, but if you say he’s with Queen Elizabeth, he doesn’t really seem like it either…”
“Isn’t he supposed to be catching up soon?” someone inquired.
“If he does come, it’s probably just for show…” someone else chimed in. “I think that guy’s alright, sensible and trustworthy.”
“Tsk…”
“This damned weather…”
Amidst the scattered murmurs, I maneuvered my beast to my mother’s side, noticing she seemed slightly out of breath on her beast, looking a bit unwell and under the weather. She had been rather quiet since earlier, as if lost in thought.
“Mom.”
I called her softly, making a brief pause before forcing a smile, “Are you cold?”
“Pepé…”
My interruption caught her off guard. She blinked, turning toward me, hesitating for half a second before gradually returning my smile. “I’m alright; don’t worry. It’s just that I haven’t been sleeping well lately, and right now, I feel a little tired…”
“Well…”
I tilted my head, thinking for a moment before saying, “Let’s find a place to take a short break.”
“Rest?”
My suggestion left her a bit bewildered. “We just escaped the city! We might encounter enemies nearby at any moment. How can we rest—”
“It’s fine.”
I looked her in the eyes, speaking slowly and earnestly, “Mom, we’re outside the city. It doesn’t matter how many come or who they are.”
That statement was dripping with confidence.
Yes…
We were already outside the city.
Being outside…
Meant I didn’t have to worry about innocent civilians cowering in nearby houses or streets anymore. I could let loose without any second thoughts.
And once that’s done—
Among humans, I wouldn’t have any rivals.
No matter how many came, it wouldn’t matter.
That’s what I wanted to convey.
Not out of a desire to flaunt my strength or anything; I just wanted my mother to feel at ease.
Yet, clearly, she didn’t feel reassured.
Instead, her eyes, dark and lively like mine, seemed to express a complex mix of emotions.
“…Pepé.”
After a brief moment, she whispered my name, her voice like a dream, revealing a flicker of pain in her gaze that suddenly made me feel uneasy.
“Can you tell me what you’ve been through in the past two years?”
Above us, the night sky stretched into a deep, abyssal black.
The snow had long stopped falling.
A biting cold wind brushed against my face, chilling me.
“Mom…”
The sudden question left me at a loss for words, not knowing how to respond.
Did my mother…
Already sense something?
Was she…
Beginning to doubt if I was still me?
At that moment, I felt a surge of chaos and sadness within—though, to be honest, it was simply what I felt.
“What’s wrong?”
Seeing I hadn’t spoken for a while, my mother asked again, “Is it that you don’t want to tell me?”
Her gaze was intense, but then she smiled again. “I still feel a bit like I’m dreaming… Everything happening right now feels so unreal… I’m afraid if I close my eyes and open them again, I’ll suddenly find myself back in that church, just having a nice dream, and you’re still not back. We haven’t escaped Baihao City…”
“Mom.”
“But this bone-chilling wind…? It’s slowly waking me up.”
She said, lifting her head to gaze at the silent night sky.
“My daughter is back, how wonderful.”
Her voice was calm.
Calm, yet heartfelt, as if she was earnestly giving thanks for something.
“If your father and brother knew, I wonder what expressions they would have on their faces…”
“Mom, as soon as I know you’re safe, I’ll go find them.”
“……”
After that, my mother didn’t speak for a while.
She didn’t directly respond to my intention to rescue my father. Instead, after a long sigh, she brought up something else. “You know, two years ago, the Holy City held a grand funeral for you.”
“…Mom, I know.” I replied softly.
“I attended that funeral with Pasifal.”
“Uh-huh…” I nodded.
“So you already knew.”
She looked at me again, “You know why you didn’t come to see me?”
At that moment, I realized she was on the verge of tears again.
Her tone was slightly forlorn, and it felt as if she were blaming me.
