Chapter 24
Creak.
After opening the Jaybarsh castle gates, he opened the doors to the chapel.
Though it was late at night, a man bathed in moonlight was seated inside the chapel.
"The chapel doors were open even at this late hour."
Swish.
The man turned around, revealing his appearance.
A face brimming with a benevolent smile and dressed in aristocratic attire, yet possessing a solid musculature that even those clothes could not hide.
Bernard's brow twitched in displeasure for a moment, but it was fleeting.
"God's embrace is always open, no matter the time. But what brings the future head of Zervan here at such a late hour?"
He was an adoptive son who came from the collateral line of Zervan, and the man spoken of as the next head.
Killavan von Zervan.
He was effectively the real power of Zervan, second only to the current head.
"Lord Bernard. I would like you to join the Wheel with me."
He was asking him to participate together in the hunting tournament. Fatalite's Wheel.
A war against the magical beasts that surge like a tide as their breeding season approaches.
A hunt before that comes to pass.
"Didn't I tell you before, Killavan? The Head asked me to protect Jaybarsh."
"The Father is truly mischievous. To keep a Paladin like you confined to a castle."
"How long can an old man swing a sword anyway? It'll be a relief if he isn't swept away by the Wheel."
Bernard waved his hand and laughed heartily.
However, Killavan didn't seem willing to give up easily, wearing a bitter expression.
"Lord Bernard. As you know, I must prove my existence in this Fatalite's Wheel. Furthermore, I must show my sons and daughters a father they need not be ashamed of."
"That should be well within your capabilities."
"No. It is not."
Killavan declared firmly.
"This Fatalite's Wheel will be quite different from before."
"...What makes you so certain?"
At Bernard's question, Killavan only offered a meaningful smile.
"I heard you've been spending a lot of time with Emily."
"A lovely child."
"Zervan is quite cruel to its own bloodline. They say a lion drops its cubs off a cliff, don't they?"
"What are you trying to say?"
"Join me. Otherwise, Emily might... be crushed to death under the Wheel."
"...Are you threatening me right now?!"
"Oh, what are you saying. How could I threaten you, Lord Bernard? I merely spoke the truth. You know it, don't you? Emily is of the direct line. If the collateral line is like that, the direct line is even more ruthless to its own children."
Emily von Zervan.
That child, who inherited the blood of the direct line, will participate in Fatalite's Wheel.
All alone.
"A pitiful child. With neither mother nor father, she has no one on her side, does she? In that state, with her Holy Blood blocked, she still has to endure the Wheel as a Zervan... It's heartbreaking."
Bernard swallowed a groan.
Killavan's words were all true.
Emily.
That child was of Zervan's direct line, but an orphan without mother or father.
Therefore, the envy and jealousy surrounding her within the family were unbearable, and in the ever-turning power struggles, Emily was in a situation where she could be torn apart at any moment.
'If only she lacked talent.'
Unlike her blocked Holy Blood, her talent for swordsmanship was outstanding.
The Zervan family, renowned as a famous swordsmanship household, could not easily give up on Emily despite her blocked Holy Blood.
Her talent was so exceptional that it could be considered unrivaled.
"But if you join me, Lord Bernard, I will keep Emily under my wing and not let her be swept away by the Wheel."
Killavan, who would become the next head.
He had the power and ability to do so.
After a moment's hesitation, Bernard shook his head.
"This too must be God's will."
"Hmm... What a pity. But there is still plenty of time. If you change your mind in the meantime, please let me know at any time."
Creak, thud.
Only after Killavan disappeared did Bernard click his tongue.
"What a snake-like man."
Rather than someone like him.
Bernard thought of someone who was particularly obsessed with his sword.
* * *
A few days later.
[Fatalite's Wheel]
-A fate of death flowing from destiny looms over you.
-Survive.
"Hmm... So it begins."
Looking at the quest that appeared in my quarters, my gaze lingered on the reward for a moment.
Fatalite's Wheel.
[Main Quest]
It had begun just as I expected.
"I've been continuously preparing. I just need to face it calmly."
It was dotted with question marks, but I knew the general reward.
If a quest appears on the Pilgrim's Path and the reward is a question mark, it implies one thing.
'Variable.'
The reward is variable depending on the situation.
There is a quest completion rank.
From S-rank to F-rank.
The reward changes according to that rank.
Thanks to that, I couldn't know exactly what situation would unfold, but...
I had already conceived the general outline of the story.
There wasn't much to keep in mind.
"Make Roas into a Spirit Sword quickly, and..."
Become stronger than I am now and take over Rakan from Bernard.
Then, if I enhance Rakan and go to Dexter to unlock my latent potential, I wouldn't fear most enemies.
"As for Fatalite's Wheel, well..."
It's a quest where packs of magical beasts appear to replenish the nutrients lacking due to their breeding season.
It's a simple quest where you just have to enter the White Forest in advance and hunt the magical beasts, but... how nice would it be if everything in the world worked so simply.
This quest is the starting point.
Only after the North collapses with a crash do the high nobles of Carpe all scramble to sell out their country and flee to the Empire.
It becomes the catalyst for those who were hesitating to firmly decide to attach themselves to the Empire the moment the North falls.
Carpe was already declining, but the fall of the North meant the disappearance of Carpe's pillar of support.
The collapse of the northern Zervan, which was like the symbol of Carpe, was tantamount to providing the seed of their ruin.
Because the situation that creates that seed occurs when this quest is failed.
Knock knock.
At the sound of knocking disturbing my thoughts, I grabbed Roas, which I had placed beside my bed.
The sword was cut off halfway, leaving only half of the blade, but even so, if fed blood, Roas grows back like a lizard's tail.
That point alone, I'm not sure if I should call it quite useful or creepy.
"Who is it?"
"It's Brans, my lord."
"Come in."
Creak.
The door opened, but I didn't let go of my sword. It had been a long time since I learned Manhwabongyuk and my qi sense had developed sensitively.
There was a hidden presence behind Brans as he entered through the open door. There was no way I wouldn't have caught that.
"M-m-my lord..."
"You pathetic fool."
Brans was sniffling with both hands raised.
I was well aware that a young girl was pointing a sword at his back.
"What brings a daughter of Zervan to such a shabby place?"
Emily von Zervan.
A young girl with short black hair and ash-gray eyes. A child holding an antique rapier that seemed tailored to her size.
Emily looked at me with unwavering eyes and opened her mouth.
"Grandfather said so. He said a good-for-nothing would be hunting with me."
"...So. What does that have to do with threatening my squire?"
"It's a test. Of course, a squire who looks like a mashed potato is disqualified."
"W-who's a mashed potato! *Hic!*"
Brans, about to retort, raised his hands even higher at the sharpness poking his back.
"To see you being threatened by a kid like that... You're truly useless."
"M-my lord...! Please save me!"
I couldn't help but shake my head.
"So. Am I disqualified too?"
"I'm going to test that right now."
"How are you going to te—"
Just as I was about to ask how she was going to test me, Emily's rapier thrust forward.
A lightning-fast thrust.
A fully extended arm.
A lower body solidly braced for the thrust.
All of it came together to create a thrust that a child shouldn't be able to perform.
Swish!
Snap.
"How presumptuous."
I caught Emily's rapier between my index finger and thumb. At this level, she could probably handle bandits at least. If only her Holy Blood wasn't blocked, it would have been a thrust impossible for her age.
'She has talent.'
I thought she was smart for a child, and sure enough, she has deep talent in swordsmanship.
She wouldn't fare badly even compared to ordinary knights who don't possess divine power.
"You're just a good-for-nothing!"
At the same time, Emily's figure disappeared.
"She's better than Brans."
As soon as her sword was caught, Emily let go of it and launched a spinning kick toward my temple.
An astonishing jumping power and agility.
Smack!
But a body with blocked Holy Blood is, no matter how trained, still that of a child.
The power behind it was only at that level.
Lightly catching Emily's foot with my left hand, I tossed aside the child who was huffing with a bright red face.
Thud!
"How presumptuous!"
"The presumptuous one isn't me, it's you. You said you were testing me with that meager level of skill?"
Was I too harsh? Big, fat tears were welling up in her eyes as if she were deeply saddened.
"...Did I do something wrong?"
"I-I suppose so, my lord."
No, that's not right.
This is not my fault.
"It's your fault."
"How is it my fault!?"
"You're the one who brought her."
"...Then I will take my leave. I'll bring you some tea."
He's running away.
Brans fled, and silence fell over the room. Kids are definitely a hassle.
The suffocating silence continued.
After a while.
Wiping her eyes, Emily sat on the bed and spoke, pretending to be nonchalant.
"Fine. You're not bad for a good-for-nothing. I'll allow you to accompany me."
"...I was going to do that even without your permission. I'm doing this at Bernard's request, not because I like you."
"Hmph, I don't want a good-for-nothing's protection either."
"Then tell Bernard yourself. Tell him you don't need my protection."
"...."
But Emily, for some reason, didn't open her mouth any further. Why did Bernard specifically ask me to participate in Fatalite's Wheel together with Emily?
'Should I say I don't want to even now?'
No.
He's not someone those words would work on.
Then what could be the reason?
Pondering it slowly, the answer was surprisingly close by.
"Are you being ostracized within your family?"
Children of Zervan are considered adults once they pass the age of twelve.
They don't truly consider them adults, but hunting the magical beasts of the North announces that they have come of age.
Those who inherit Zervan's blood must know how to hunt magical beasts once they turn twelve.
That is how they prove themselves.
For Zervan, hunting magical beasts is such a crucial matter that it could be called a lifelong pursuit.
It must be the same for Emily.
But Zervan isn't crazy enough to push a twelve-year-old child alone into the White Forest.
With the sheer number of magical beasts, why would they do something so dangerous?
It's a rule to attach family knights and act by forming a sort of party.
Of course, it's only natural that there are differences in the size of factions within the family, so if you have no power, your faction is small.
The number of vassals assigned.
The number of knights is bound to be small.
And perhaps Emily... clearly has very few of even those knights.
Otherwise, Bernard, who clearly knows my identity, wouldn't have asked me to do this.
As if her weak point was struck, Emily glanced at me rather sharply.
"Everyone is just afraid of me. Because I'm pretty, smart, and good at swordsmanship."
It seemed that was the correct answer.
"Do you not have parents?"
"...I must prove my existence in this hunting tournament no matter what. Otherwise... I'll be killed."
What in the world is she talking about?
"Killed? What do you mean?"
"The man who will become the next head. I'll be killed by Killavan von Zervan."
"...You mean the adoptive son from the collateral line?"
"Yeah."
"Why would the man who will be the next head kill you? It's not like you carry the blood of the direct line."
At those words, Emily clamped her mouth shut.
"...Are you of the direct line?"
Emily nodded.
Kalias's brow furrowed.
As far as I know, the current head has two direct descendants.
Kalias, who was driven out of the family.
There's no one else but me here, and Kalias's younger sister, Elise von Zervan.
'Elise's daughter?'
But that can't be.
Kalias's younger sister, Elise, isn't even in Zervan anymore, and it's even less likely that she had a child.
Then the only one left is Kalias, but there's no way he could have a twelve-year-old child.
'I'm twenty-six, after all.'
If so, I would have had to mess up and have a child at the mere age of fourteen.
That makes little sense.
"No way."
If so, there's only one possibility left.
"Are you the Count's child?"
Emily, turning her head as if sullen, quietly nodded.