Episode 7
“What… what did you just say?”
Céline stared at him in disbelief, but Leonhardt frowned as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“Our family withdrew from the Imperial Capital long ago. I had no choice but to borrow Prince Ricardo’s authority.”
As Céline fell silent, Leonhardt mistook the reason and hurried to explain.
“It’s an imperial mission anyway. So it’s only natural for the Imperial Family to support me with whatever I need.”
“You told him… you were taking a woman with you?”
“Yes. His Highness thinks you’re a lady I brought from the North. So as long as you play along—”
Céline pressed a hand to her temple.
Leonhardt Bernui, heir to the Northern Grand Duchy and clearly well past the age of marriage, would of course have a fiancée already.
“Do you realize how that sounds to someone who doesn’t know the situation?”
Leonhardt looked briefly puzzled, then his expression shifted in sudden understanding.
“Because you’re called a northern lady? Well, since you’ll soon be affiliated with the North anyway, it’s not really a lie.”
“That’s not the point! It sounds like I’m your lover! A precious lady you’ve been doting on all the way from the North!”
“Ah…”
A faint groan slipped from Leonhardt’s lips, and his pupils wavered noticeably.
“I see.”
Céline shot back triumphantly.
“Yes, exactly. And you must already be engaged!”
“I’m not.”
His reply was short and stiff.
“I don’t plan to be, either. So you can stop worrying about my poor future fiancée’s feelings.”
“What?”
Céline was even more shocked than when she’d first learned he’d told the Crown Prince he was bringing her along.
“Why not?”
Leonhardt didn’t answer. He just stared into empty space. Céline hurried to ease the tension.
“It’s fine, really. If it’s hard to talk about, you don’t have to. I was just surprised. Anyway, if anyone asks, let’s not go with ‘lover,’ okay? It’d just make things awkward.”
“…Understood.”
For a fleeting moment, Leonhardt thought “lover” would be the simplest explanation—but he swallowed the thought. Céline would hate it.
She caught the shadow that crossed his face.
“I shouldn’t have asked. Sorry.”
He let out a long, heavy sigh.
Someday, Céline would learn the truth—but for some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to tell her now, not when those bright eyes were looking up at him.
Everyone who knew the North knew the reason why Leonhardt Bernui, heir to the Grand Duchy, had never been engaged, let alone married—and never would be.
Since the age of fifteen, Leonhardt had slain countless monsters and black mages.
Monsters were corrupted spirits—mindless things. Cutting them down carried no side effects.
But black mages were different.
They had prepared countermeasures against the young wolf who wielded Lashir, and each time one of them fell, they cursed him with all their dying hatred.
Leonhardt himself, born with immense magic and strengthened by relentless training, was unaffected.
But his descendants wouldn’t be so lucky. That was what the black mages had targeted.
With every death, they spat a curse:
May the bloodline of Leonhardt Bernui rot away for generations to come.
And so Leonhardt had no intention of marrying—or having children. He had two younger brothers; a nephew could inherit instead.
—Clatter!
The carriage jolted violently to a stop. Céline, who had been leaning back, nearly went face-first onto the floor—if not for Leonhardt catching her in time.
“Thank you.”
She quickly noticed the tension in his body. He was on full alert.
He jumped out of the carriage at once and reached back a hand toward her.
“Your Grace, I’m afraid you’ll have to go the rest of the way alone,” said the knight commander Prince Ricardo had assigned to him. His voice trembled.
He wasn’t the strongest, but his experience made his opinion worth hearing.
“Why so soon?” Leonhardt frowned. Normally, monsters were dealt with alongside the knight corps. He only fought alone when the leader remained.
“Please, look at this.”
At the commander’s signal, a soldier approached, pushing a cart burdened with something unrecognizable.
Céline gasped. The cart was full of blood-soaked husks.
They looked like giant cicada shells—but each one was the size of a human, with jagged claws and teeth.
“…We’re too late.”
“Yes. It seems to have devoured its own kind and completed its metamorphosis.”
“I see. I’ll go in alone. Everyone else, wait here.”
Leonhardt’s eyes flicked briefly to Céline.
“And the lady?” the commander asked hesitantly.
“She’s coming with me.”
“What?!”
The commander and soldiers paled.
“My lord, you can’t! Bringing a lady into such danger—”
“Indeed! The sight alone could make her faint!”
Leonhardt turned to Céline.
“That could be a problem. Do you think you’ll faint?”
“No.”
Céline answered firmly.
“I don’t faint easily.”
“True. You didn’t, even in worse situations.”
Leonhardt nodded once and clasped her hand tightly.
“The lady has agreed. She’s coming.”
The commander sighed in defeat.
“…Medic, stand by at the entrance!”
“That won’t be necessary.”
“With respect, my lord, I think it will!”
Leonhardt didn’t argue further. He just guided Céline forward, ignoring the many wary stares piercing her back.
The forest path was narrow—barely wide enough for two people. Even the birds had gone silent.
“Whatever you see, stay behind me.”
Céline nodded. She knew from the game just how overpowered Leonhardt was. No matter what monster awaited them, she would be fine.
They walked on in silence.
“You’re tense,” he said quietly.
“Hard not to be…”
Then—
A shrill sound split the air, stabbing into her ears. Céline clapped her hands over them and pressed herself to his back.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Her heart pounded so hard she could hear it in her head. Tears pricked at her eyes, though nothing had even happened yet.
Whatever happens, whatever I hear, whatever I see—
Just stay behind him.
He promised.
—Fwoosh!
Flames roared to life. Céline peeked out from behind him—and froze.
Blue fire danced along Lashir, wrapping it in an ethereal blaze.
And before them, a monster as large as an oak tree writhed hideously.
Its shape was nauseating—like a gigantic maggot. Gone were the claws and fangs from the earlier husks.
“Listen carefully,” Leonhardt said. “We don’t move. It will come to us. Stay behind me, and it’ll all be over.”
Céline couldn’t speak. She simply nodded.
The monster lumbered closer, each movement shaking the ground.
Just as its foul breath brushed her face, Leonhardt stepped forward.
—Clang!
Céline’s skin prickled. When the blade struck, it rang like steel on steel—even though the creature looked like pure flesh.
“…Damn it.”
Leonhardt cursed under his breath, adjusted his stance, and murmured an incantation.
The monster shrieked.
In an instant, a metallic wall rose up around them, gleaming silver in the blue firelight.
Lashir… Céline realized.
He had turned Lashir into a shield to protect them.
“It’ll vanish soon. Be ready.”
She squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again. The sword was back in his hand.
“Crouch!”
She obeyed instinctively, curling herself as small as she could.
—Clang! Clang! Clang!
Leonhardt didn’t take a single step back. Sweat ran down his neck.
Céline’s fear grew.
Even Leonhardt had never fought a monster leader while standing in one place.
She could do nothing but pray—though she had long stopped believing in gods.
Please… please don’t let him lose because of me.
—Boom!
The ground shook with a heavy crash. Céline looked up. The monster didn’t move. It lay in a pool of black blood.
“It’s over. You did well.”
Her throat tightened. She couldn’t speak.
Leonhardt sheathed Lashir and held out a hand.
“By my calculations, it should’ve been mid-metamorphosis when we arrived. Seems we were late. Still, it wasn’t too strong yet.”
His words barely registered. Céline gripped his sleeve with trembling hands. The fabric was soaked with monster blood, but she didn’t care.
“Are you hurt?” he asked softly.
She shook her head.
“Let’s just… get out of here.”
“Wait a moment.”
He stepped toward the fallen creature. Céline couldn’t bring herself to follow.
“I need to extract its core,” he said.
“Its… core?”
“Think of it as a monster’s heart. Scholars need it for research. The lesser ones don’t matter, but a leader’s core is different.”
Leonhardt climbed onto the corpse and drove Lashir down into its chest.
—Clang!
“…What?”
He muttered in disbelief. Céline didn’t understand, so she stayed frozen in place.
“Get to me. Now!”
She ran toward him—
—but it was already too late.
Dozens of smaller monsters, shaped like the husks they’d seen before, burst out from the leader’s core, flooding the forest.
Their first target was the defenseless human among them.
“Aaah—!”
Agony exploded through Céline’s body. It felt like being torn apart.
“No!”
Leonhardt’s scream split the air as he swung his sword wildly.
This couldn’t be happening. Everything had gone perfectly.
Every calculation was flawless. Céline had always been safest at his back.
He’d even slain the leader.
Then why—why this time—!
By the time the last monster fell, Leonhardt was drenched in black blood.
Frantic, he searched the field.
Céline had never truly died before. At worst, her skull had cracked.
But if her neck had been severed—if her body had been torn to shreds—would she still return?
“…Hart.”
A faint voice rose from beneath a heap of corpses.
Leonhardt ripped them away with trembling hands—
—and froze.
Céline lay there, bleeding from every inch of her body.
Not with black monster blood, but her own bright red.
Her golden hair was matted dark with it, her dress shredded beyond repair.
Leonhardt lifted her in a panic, trying to speak—but his tongue wouldn’t move.
Céline broke the silence first.
“This one… really hurt. You’re going to have a rough night.”
Something burned in Leonhardt’s throat. The feeling was foreign. He didn’t realize what it was until Céline spoke again.
“Are you… crying?”
“…”
He couldn’t answer.
He’d been a fool.
Arrogant.
And because of it, she had suffered beyond imagination.
“…I understand now,” he whispered.
“What do you mean?”
“My strength… isn’t enough.”
Céline tried to shake her head, to deny it—but he pulled her closer, as if afraid she’d vanish if he let go.
