A short while later.
Rellia barely managed to explain to Calix that she was not a demon.
His ankle, already twisted badly, was in even worse condition now. Because she had kicked his body.
However, Calix endured the pain and asked.
"You're Crown Prince Leo? Then you're that guy, right? The pale-faced bastard who goes around playing leader."
"...."
How could he say that to someone's face....
Rellia wanted to point that out, but given the situation, it didn't seem appropriate to argue about that right now.
Calix asked the silent her.
"So why did you come?"
"Well..."
If I say I came to save you, you definitely won't believe me.
"Let's go down for now. We need to get down the mountain quickly."
"How am I supposed to go down with this foot? We have no choice but to wait here until morning."
"You...!"
This bastard, so clueless and carefree!
'I came all the way up here and even got kicked because of you!'
Rellia fumed. Calix had already lain down and started preparing to sleep. Is this guy really crazy...? Is he really going to sleep here?
If he sleeps here, he'll be completely eaten by wild beasts.
Rellia eventually confessed half the truth.
"Hey, you might not believe me, but. A beast will appear."
"Come on, of course I don't believe that."
"...."
Rellia let out a deep sigh. After hesitating for a moment, she spoke cautiously.
"Calix Ascard. Do you trust your uncle?"
At the question she had no choice but to ask, Calix bolted upright.
And then, he grabbed her by the collar.
"Ugh...!"
"You bastard, who sent you. Who sent you!"
Calix shook Rellia's collar with tremendous force.
"Aagh! Who sent me? The Emperor of Auroria sent me, you crazy bastard!"
"Ah, right. That makes sense. But how do you know about our Majesty and spout such nonsense?"
"...."
Rellia brushed off Calix's hand and straightened the back of her neck where he had grabbed her. Her head was spinning.
"I... actually have pretty good insight. So I knew as soon as I saw you."
Rellia spouted whatever came to mind. Because Calix had grabbed her collar and shaken her wildly, she couldn't think properly before speaking. At least she didn't say she saw it in a novel.
"...It's not my uncle who sent you, is it?"
Rellia showed him her palm. So he could see clearly even in the moonlight.
"I am the Crown Prince of Auroria. How would the Emperor of Ascard send me? Are you really stupid?"
"...Ha, so what does that mean? Are you saying my uncle sent a beast after me?"
"...You might not believe it, but that's correct. You're not that stupid, I see?"
"Ha, then I'll just die."
"What?"
"Uncle, no, His Majesty wants to kill me, I know that too. So I'd rather just die, whatever."
"...."
Rellia looked at Calix who seemed resigned. He really didn't care anymore, lying down as if to say let whatever happen, happen.
"What are you doing? You said a beast is coming. Then get lost."
"...."
"Leave, you bastard."
Rellia looked at Calix's eyes reflected in the moonlight. In his eyes with their enigmatic light, a faint fear lingered.
He might act tough and confident, but in the end, this guy was also just a ten-year-old child.
Rellia stood up abruptly from her spot.
"I'm going to leave even if you don't say that."
"Good, go then."
Calix didn't try to stop her, as if he had no regrets at all.
Rellia frowned.
'What kind of child... at only ten years old...'
Knowing his uncle wants to kill him, and apparently having known for a while, how can he act so nonchalantly? How did he live to become like this?
Rellia pressed her frustrated heart and spoke.
"But I'm not going alone."
"What?"
"As I see it, we're in a hurry. Get on my back quickly."
Saying that, Rellia showed her back to Calix and crouched down.
"...Are you crazy?"
Calix asked as if he was dumbfounded.
"I said get on quickly."
"This is really a crazy bastard... Why would I get on your back? I said I'll just die? I told you to go!"
"I can't go alone. Get on quickly."
"...You're lying, right? You said a beast will appear. But you can't go alone? What kind of bastard is this?"
"If you don't believe me, do you want to just wait here together for the beast? A wolf drooling?"
"So I'm telling you to go alone! Are you close to me? We've never even talked, so what is this suddenly? You're going to die for someone you just met? Would you believe that?"
"That's..."
"Be honest. Your uncle sent you, didn't he?"
"You idiot, think about it. I'm the Crown Prince of Auroria. What reason would I have to lie to you?"
"It doesn't matter to me anyway! What does it matter to the likes of you whether I die or not! I said I'll die as my uncle wishes!"
"You're not making sense."
Rellia thought for a moment. Honestly, if she was going to go alone, she wouldn't have come up here in the first place.
According to what she knew, even if a beast appeared, she wouldn't die, but there was a possibility she might die differently from the original work.
No, even if she didn't die, Calix would suffer a major injury today. Knowing that, she couldn't just watch.
"Get lost! Damn it, I said go! Get lost, before I kill you! Go! Get lost!"
Calix shouted with sheer desperation. His voice was hoarse, perhaps because of that, Rellia felt like she could sense the sorrow contained in that voice.
It felt like he was saying don't go, I'm scared, don't leave me alone.
That's why she had no intention of going alone.
Rellia let out a breath and spoke. She needed a little determination.
"Calix, I'm sorry but."
"What! Go! Get lost! If you don't want to die, go!"
"I'm going to knock you out right now. Just bear with the pain."
"What? What did this bastard just say... ugh!"
Rellia jumped up and slammed Calix's head against a tree with all her might.
"...."
Fortunately, knocking him out succeeded on the first try.
'If I failed, I was going to smash it a few more times... At least that's a relief.'
Rellia let out a sigh of relief.
'But still, can I carry this guy?'
Calix was a bit taller than kids his age. It wasn't the height that was the problem, his frame itself was very thick and large-boned.
"I don't know, damn... if a beast appears, I'll just give him as food and leave."
Rellia mumbled words she didn't mean as she struggled. She barely managed to get Calix on her back and succeeded in standing up.
Still, Calix was a ten-year-old kid. He didn't feel that heavy. Perhaps she had gained some supernatural strength.
Rellia had a thin build, but she wasn't weak. She was sturdy enough to survive while eating dirt and snow when starving.
Besides, before being sent to the temple, the Emperor had at least given her enough food.
"By the way, how do I break through this formation?"
She started walking blindly, but she couldn't think of a way to unravel the path twisted with magic.
Still, she couldn't stop walking. Her every sense became sharp with the fear that a wolf might appear at any time, anywhere.
Rellia walked and walked, listening to the sound of leaves rustling in the wind and bird sounds.
After a while, she heard a rustling sound from far away.
Rellia's spine instantly went cold.
"...!"
Rellia, thinking a wolf had appeared, tightened her arms that were carrying Calix on her back.
But soon she let out a deep sigh of relief.
What appeared from between the bushes was not a wolf but Griffith.
"You... what are you?"
Griffith asked with a deeply furrowed expression. In his hand was something like a lantern, and looking closely, it was a lantern filled with fireflies.
It seemed he had found a lantern whose fire had gone out nearby and put them inside.
"...I am the Crown Prince of Auroria."
"...I know your face. But why are you here?"
"Well... ha, it's complicated to explain. Anyway, you might not believe it, but a beast will appear soon. So you should come with me and get out of here quickly too."
"This is a mountain that priests visit every day. There are no beasts like that."
"You'll see when you encounter a wolf later... Anyway, we need to get out quickly."
"...The path is tangled."
"I know. But there must be an exit somewhere."
"I know the way."
"Really?"
Rellia asked, brightening up. Come to think of it...
"You were going back but realized the path was strange, so you made a lantern and came back? Because you were worried about Calix Ascard?"
"...."
At Rellia's question, Griffith frowned deeply.
'I thought he was a bad guy for leaving alone... In the original work, maybe their paths just crossed differently.'
Rellia smiled while sweating profusely.
"Don't smile like that, it's unpleasant."
"No, you're really a good kid? I misunderstood, sorry."
"...."
Griffith seemed even more offended by the word 'good kid', but Rellia didn't care.
"What are you doing? Lead the way! Let's go quickly."
"But why is that guy like that?"
"...Oh, that... he, he passed out."
"Hmph. Weak guy. Acting all high and mighty."
Griffith sneered as if he knew that would happen.
'Actually, I knocked him out...'
Rellia answered the truth only in her heart and followed behind Griffith.
That's when it happened. Suddenly, Griffith turned around at tremendous speed.
"Why are you...!"
Before Rellia could even finish asking why, she reflexively turned her body. The tremendous energy she felt from behind in an instant was unmistakable.
"Aaah!"
As soon as she turned her back, Rellia screamed and stepped backward. When she lowered her head, she saw blood flowing where a beast's claw had grazed her lower abdomen.
'When did it appear?'
Grrr....
The wolf that had suddenly appeared before their eyes was watching them, drooling.
After scratching Rellia's stomach, the beast stepped back one pace.
It was contemplating when to charge to tear the throat out in one bite.
"Why is a wolf here...!"
Griffith was greatly flustered. Even if he had seen a demon, he wouldn't have been this surprised.
Even so, he reflexively scanned the surroundings for anything that could be used as a weapon.
Rellia spoke, calming her trembling vocal cords.
"Griffith, p-put the whistle around my neck to my mouth. It's a whistle used by priests."
The purpose was not to call the priests, but to make those who sent this beast retreat...
But right now, it didn't matter either way.
"...."
Griffith, watching the beast watching from afar, slowly reached his hand toward the back of Rellia's neck.
When he lowered his gaze, he saw her clothes tattered from being scratched by the beast's claw. The sight inside must be gruesome.
Yet Rellia stood upright, carrying Calix on her back without any wavering.
'Is this kid not afraid?'
Moreover, she put strength in both eyes and didn't avoid the wolf's gaze. Rather, as if not wanting to lose the staring contest, she didn't blink at all.
In reality, it was a symptom caused by extreme fear, but in Griffith's eyes, it looked as if Rellia was trying to defeat the beast.
"...."
Griffith very slowly succeeded in placing the whistle in Rellia's mouth.
And at that moment.
Whistle...!
The moment Rellia blew the whistle with all her might, the wolf that had been drooling charged.
At the same time, Griffith lifted the long branch he had spotted earlier.
Even at the moment the beast charged, Rellia did not dodge or turn her back. Calix was on her back. She absolutely could not show her back.
"Keng!"
It happened in an instant. Griffith stood in front of Rellia and swung the branch, and at the same time, a white flash shone.
"What..."
Griffith muttered, not understanding the white light coming from his hand.
And Rellia...
"Goodness, we survived! Well done, Griffith!"
Griffith had awakened his divine power.
'In the original work, he was supposed to awaken his divine power just before returning to his home country...'
They say even an ordinary person can use miraculous power when faced with a life-or-death crisis. This must have been that moment for Griffith.
"...!"
However, miracles don't come twice.
The wolf charged again, and Griffith couldn't use the divine power he had just used.
"Aaah!"
"Griffith!"
The charging wolf bit into Griffith's arm, and Griffith screamed and shook his arm.
At that moment, light again shot out from Griffith's arm. It was power that activated momentarily.
Grrr....
The wolf let go of Griffith's arm and confronted them again. Between the wolf's teeth, saliva and red blood dripped.
It was Griffith's blood.
"Ugh..."
"Griffith, are you okay?"
Rellia asked, not knowing what to do out of concern.
That's when it happened.
"...Ugh, what just... Ah, my head..."
A low voice resonated from the back of Rellia's neck. Calix had woken up.
"...Right now, what..."
As soon as he opened his eyes, Calix blinked in surprise at the situation he saw.
A wolf was growling before his eyes. A real wolf. Not an illusion made of sand.
Moreover...
"Aaah!"
Right now, he was on someone's back. In high probability, this back belonged to Crown Prince Leo.
Calix momentarily put strength and got off Rellia's back, pushing her away.
One foot was badly twisted, making it hard to put strength, but Calix stood straight and took out a small dagger from his bosom.
"No!"
It was at the same time. Rellia, pushed to the side, screamed, but what happened in an instant couldn't be stopped.
'I tried so hard to protect him...!'
Can the fate of the original work not be changed?
Rellia squeezed her eyes shut.
Somehow her heart felt like it was boiling with anger. Her own helplessness was pathetic.
It felt stupid to have stepped forward to save Calix without having any power.
Rather, she would cause Calix even greater harm. It was all her fault.
'It's all my fault...'
The brief moment when she squeezed her eyes shut felt like a very long time.
In the original work, Calix loses one entire arm to the wolf on this day.
Nevertheless, Calix becomes a great warrior who wields a large greatsword with his remaining hand and faces the mad dragon.
Moreover, he plays the biggest role and makes an irreversible sacrifice.
Although he doesn't lose his life, it was a sacrifice that no one could say was fortunate.
That's why Rellia couldn't ignore Calix.
'At least one arm...'
She thought it would be good if she could save even one arm.
She wanted to return at least one arm to Calix, who lost everything despite being one of the heroes who saved the world.
But she failed. She was trash who couldn't help at all.
'I should have thought more before acting...'
Tears flowed down from between her guilt-ridden, tightly closed eyes.
But now there was nothing she could do. At the very least, she had to help Calix so he wouldn't get hurt more.
With a hardened heart, Rellia opened her eyes again.
However, the scene Rellia saw when she opened her eyes again was a little different from what she thought.
"C-Calix...?"
Calix was trembling, having thrust the dagger he had been gripping into the wolf's neck.
Both his arms were intact. Just that fact made Rellia feel strength drain from her legs. A shiver ran through her whole body.
The wolf, which had been convulsing for a while, soon took its last breath.
"Hah... hah..."
Calix collapsed right there and pulled out the dagger stuck in the wolf's neck.
Because of his injured ankle, heat was rising throughout his body. He was breathing roughly, as if just keeping his eyes open was burdensome.
"Calix!"
Rellia, who had been standing blankly, finally came to her senses and hurriedly ran to him. Griffith also immediately checked Calix's wounds.
"Damn... if it was a real wolf... you should have told me it was real... you bastard..."
"I did tell you! You idiot!"
Rellia held back the urge to grab and shake Calix's collar even in this situation. Calix looked like he was about to pass out again.
"Griffith, is your arm okay? We need to go back quickly."
"...I can endure it. But if you blew the whistle earlier, won't the priests come?"
"No, they'll be gathered at the mountain entrance. It's a whistle meaning to gather at the mountain entrance."
"...Then why did you blow it?"
"I thought the culprits who made the wolf appear would be surprised and run away with the wolf again..."
At those words, Calix turned his head to look at the wolf's corpse.
That's when it happened. The wolf's corpse scattered like sand, unbelievably, crumbling away. Watching that scene, Calix's eye twitched.
"It was... real. My uncle really..."
Calix muttered, sobbing, with his teeth clenched.
The wolf itself wasn't sorcery made of sand, but the magic used to erase the wolf's corpse was sorcery using sand.
Magic used only in the desert country, the Ascard Empire.
"...Calix, calm down. Still..."
Your arms are intact...
But she couldn't bring herself to say those words.
Rellia swallowed those words and knelt before Calix again, offering her back.
"I'll carry you."
"You're hurt in the stomach. No."
Rellia rejected Griffith's words and urged Calix.
"Calix, get on quickly. There's no time to wait like before. I don't have the strength to knock you out either."
"...Damn it."
Calix shed hot tears but clamped his teeth and held back his sobbing.
Even so, he slowly raised his body and got on Rellia's back of his own will.
Rellia tightly secured Calix's legs, enduring the pain from her lower abdomen.
The three of them went down the mountain in tatters. Calix cried on Rellia's back for a long time, sniffling.
Before they knew it, the sun had risen and the dawn light was shining.
"...But why does my right ankle hurt so much? The injured one is the left."
"...."
While trudging down the mountain, Calix, who had stopped crying at some point, muttered.
Rellia, stung by conscience, had no choice but to confess.
"I'm sorry. When I knocked you out and carried you, I accidentally stepped on it."
"...This bastard."
"...."
Griffith looked at the two like they were strange bugs, but soon sneered.
It should have been painful from the arm that was bitten and torn by the wolf, but for some reason, it didn't hurt much.
Just this moment somehow felt like a dream, like a lie.
It was a strange feeling.
And more than that, Griffith thought these two were even stranger.