CHAPTER 69………………………………….
Geetre looked at me with concern and asked.
“Are you feeling unwell?”
“No. I think I’ll feel better if I get some fresh air.”
“Shall I go with you?”
“It’s okay.”
Gurter’s pupils trembled as if struck by an earthquake.
It was Geetre Kereis, after all.
The man infamous throughout the empire as heartless, ruthless, and cold-blooded…
To think he could show such a worried expression.
The bear-like, hulking Gurter was left speechless, standing there dumbly.
The sight of a father-in-law worrying so much over his daughter-in-law was utterly unfamiliar.
*
I left the duke behind and walked out alone.
Of course I knew—
Kautz was following me from behind, keeping his distance out of worry.
I let him. I had no choice.
Since I’d poured a massive amount of mana into the teleportation, I might not be able to respond properly if danger suddenly arose.
Besides, it was my first time in the Eastern region—the roads were unfamiliar.
Still, Kautz, being considerate of my thoughts, didn’t follow too closely.
“Haa… ha.”
The crisp, cold air of dawn filled my lungs and flowed out slowly.
The tangled mess inside my head seemed to clear all at once.
Maybe it was because the thought of seeing Ron soon had tightened every muscle in my body.
I needed to calm down first.
I loosened the hood of my robe, and the breeze swept through my red hair, tickling my cheeks.
Before I realized it, the fields had given way to the forest’s edge.
A forest so dense it looked impenetrable.
I stood there without stepping inside, staring blankly as if entranced.
Then—
Kweeeek.
A grotesque sound echoed from somewhere.
“…W-What was that?”
My hesitant steps brought me past tall green grass, stopping before a large boulder.
And then—
“……!”
I couldn’t move.
I froze at the horrifying sight before me.
Kwe… ek… kuuu…
The air was thick with the metallic smell of blood.
Scarlet splatter covered the ground.
And at the center of it—
Someone stood there.
A man cloaked head to toe in black.
A black mask hid his face entirely.
He stabbed his sharp sword into something—again and again.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
A pile of shredded flesh and crushed chunks surrounded him.
“…ugh.”
A gag rose up my throat. A sound escaped before I could hold it back.
I clamped my hands over my mouth.
I had to run.
My instincts screamed it.
There was no other thought in my head.
But my body—
It wouldn’t move, as though pinned in place by the murderous aura saturating the air.
‘Please… move…!’
I grasped the magical stone around my neck.
If necessary, I would use magic.
Ever since I obtained this stone, my magic had grown at a terrifying rate—
I could even defeat high-level monsters alone.
It’s fine. I can win.
I reassured myself and forced my foot to move—
But then I realized something terrifying:
The sound of his sword had stopped.
Slowly, I lifted my gaze—
He was looking at me.
We froze, staring at each other in utter silence.
“…!”
“…!”
A man standing in a forest of shadows.
The stench of blood clinging to him.
The wind rippling through the green field behind me.
Nothing fit together, yet everything merged into one strange tableau.
But the strangest thing—
We were staring at each other for a long, long time.
“Ha… ha.”
My constricted breath finally escaped.
At my movement, he flinched too.
And then—
KUEK!
Something burst out of the monster’s corpse and stabbed into his waist.
“Kh!”
He staggered only briefly before grabbing his sword and violently shredding the monster.
I squeezed my eyes shut, unable to watch anymore.
“…Lady! …My lady!”
I turned at the voice.
Kautz was rushing toward me.
“K… Kautz.”
“My lady, what happened? Are you hurt?”
I had collapsed onto the ground—he must’ve thought I was injured.
“No. I’m not hurt.”
“Then why is your face so pale?”
“Because…”
Suddenly, my neck felt hot.
I pulled out the magical stone necklace—it was glowing brightly.
“…!”
Something happened to Ron!
Alarm shot through me.
I looked back toward where the masked man had been.
He’s gone.
He had vanished without a trace—
the man who should have been standing right there.
“My lady, where are you going!”
I shot to my feet, running to the spot like I was possessed.
But there was nothing.
No man, no monster.
Only the thick stench of blood and sticky fluid remained on the ground.
“Ugh, the smell! My lady—this is poison.”
“Poison?”
“Yes! You mustn’t stay near it.”
Kautz pulled me back.
But the image of that man—it was burned into my mind.
And come to think of it…
He was stabbed because he was looking at me.
Was he alright?
I didn’t know who he was.
But my heart… wouldn’t calm down.
As if it absolutely had to worry about him.
*
His hand trembled over his injured waist.
But to Ron, this was nothing.
He tore a strip from his sleeve and wrapped it around the red, bleeding wound.
“…ngh.”
A small groan escaped through clenched teeth.
That was all.
He covered his clothes again, calm and expressionless, and sheathed his sword.
Morning sunlight seeped through the leaves overhead.
Ron removed his mask.
His bright red eyes closed—and her face appeared vividly in his mind.
‘Lan.’
His one and only precious person.
He had always approached her wearing the face of another boy—
but Ron remembered.
He remembered Lan’s true appearance.
So the moment he saw her—
he knew. Immediately.
‘Why is she here?’
Walking slowly, he ran the thought through his mind again and again.
Lan should have been in the West.
She hadn’t sent him any letter asking to meet.
Meaning she came here for some other reason.
‘What happened?’
Ron had always been curious about Lan.
But Lan seemed to dislike such questions, so he held everything back.
Suddenly, he lifted the mask and put it back on.
He could not—
must not—let Lan see him like this again.
Even if Lan didn’t seem to recognize him.
‘…Lan would be disappointed.’
When the power inside him surged out of control, his vision went red.
He killed everything around him.
If he didn’t, he felt like he would die.
But afterward, he always thought of Lan.
He cried, thinking of his kind friend Lan.
It hurt. It tore him apart.
So he had to hide this wretched side of himself.
Always.
“Ron!”
As he approached the Dubel lodge, Gurter called out.
It was the first time his master had ever come out to greet him.
Ron hurriedly wiped his aching eyes and walked over.
“Master.”
“Ron, someone has come to see you.”
Ron’s red eyes peered up from behind the mask.
“A visitor?”
“Yes. Someone who has wanted to see you for a very long time.”
Gurter reached out and lifted the mask from Ron’s face.
Revealing a strangely gloomy expression.
“Something happened in the forest?”
“…No.”
Gurter almost asked more but stopped.
There was something far more urgent now.
“Come. Your visitor is waiting.”
*
In the quiet room, Geetre paced back and forth—he had lost count of how many times.
When he first met Gurter, he remained composed.
But the moment he heard that Ron was coming…
Everything fell apart.
His mind went blank.
His hands trembled.
His heart pounded like never before.
He sighed over and over, lips dry.
“Hoo…”
He forced himself to sit.
Then covered his rigid face with cold hands.
It had been years.
Years since he lost his son.
Ron—
the child he lost in the Trencia Forest.
The child he searched for desperately.
And now, finally—
he would see him again.
“Ha…”
He ran a hand through his blue hair, messing it up.
He was always the picture of perfection.
But now? He was simply a father.
His son would be angry.
He would rage.
He would cry over all he’d suffered—
sold as a slave, surviving in Dubel.
No matter what Ron felt—
Geetre would accept it.
Hold him.
Protect him.
His heart ached unbearably.
Thinking of what his young child had endured alone—
At that moment, a knock sounded.
The door opened, and Gurter entered with the small-framed boy.
