Chapter : 137
Anita’s expression stiffened.
“W-what do you mean…? I—I don’t have anything like that.”
“Don’t play innocent. I already know everything you’re hiding.”
At Rosetin’s words, Anita flinched. He took a step closer to her.
“Take it out. Selenea’s item.”
Anita’s pupils widened. Yet, she retorted defiantly.
“What do you mean I have something?! Do you have proof? Suddenly dragging someone here like this… what is this…!!”
Rosetin laughed as if amused by the absurdity. Estellein, who had been observing quietly, let out a small sigh.
Then, as if there was no other choice, she called someone over.
“Miss Naila. This way.”
Among the soldiers, a young lady with a quiet demeanor stepped forward.
It was Naila Merin, one of Anita’s squad members.
“Miss Naila, could you tell us again what you mentioned earlier?”
Naila hesitated, then nodded.
“Um, my ability is a tracking skill. Basically, I can sense the magical power of living beings, but sometimes I can even feel faint magic left on objects.”
She raised her index finger and pointed toward Anita’s robe pocket.
“But… since a moment ago, I’ve been sensing something from Miss Anita’s pocket after she returned from the forest…”
Anita’s eyes widened. Naila glanced around nervously before adding,
“…I think there’s an item imbued with Selenea’s magic in there.”
“…”
“Judging by how the magic is concentrated, it looks like some kind of necklace.”
Anita Solb froze, her mouth half-open.
She had no idea what was happening.
Her trembling eyes instinctively glanced at Selenea Tigeris across from her.
Despite some scratches and bruises on her skin, Selenea Tigeris looked perfectly fine.
‘The monsters… didn’t do anything to her?’
During the fight in the forest, they had faced monsters that had rendered all of Anita’s squad unconscious.
They had copied human abilities to counterattack—it had been terrifying.
The thought of it alone made her shiver.
‘But how is she completely fine? I saw her surrounded by monsters with my own eyes…’
It had seemed like a suicide attempt, or at least an action that would lead to permanent injury.
And yet…
“Stop trying to be clever.”
Rosetin Grimaldi said coldly.
The sharpness of his words snapped Anita to attention, and she stumbled backward on her knees.
The gazes fixed on her made her feel suffocated.
She had said she had discarded it, yet the relic she had secretly kept felt heavy in her pocket.
“What… what did I do…?”
Anita managed to speak, though her trembling voice betrayed her.
One of Rosetin’s eyebrows quirked up.
Anita hid her shaking hands under the sleeve of her robe.
A few hours earlier.
She and her squad had been chased by the Deermant.
They had tried to hunt a young one but failed, and then countless adults had begun pursuing them.
Their combat power was immense.
Hanod’s telekinesis had been useless, and Joseph’s poison ability had been completely countered, turning against them instead.
At the brink of despair, it had been Estellein and Selenea’s squad who saved them.
She remembered seeing it—
The pendant on Selenea Tigeris’s robe, which she had often noticed, swinging as she ran.
And then… something strange had echoed in her mind.
“Get it. Take that item and bring it to the temple.”
By the time she regained her senses, the relic was already in her pocket.
‘…Have I lost my mind?’
Anita swallowed hard and chewed the inside of her mouth nervously.
‘It’s true I suspected Selenea Tigeris’s relic was suspicious…’
And she had thought, just once, to secretly take it to confirm with her own eyes. But under the ongoing exam, while being chased by monsters, she had no intention of doing so.
She had originally planned to send someone to Selenea Tigeris’s quarters or wait for another opportunity, minimizing the risk of being discovered.
But the moment she saw the pendant, she inexplicably felt she had to have it immediately—and acted.
Anita looked around with trembling eyes. Everyone’s gaze was on her.
It felt strange.
‘Why did I do that?’
No matter how much she disliked Selenea Tigeris, she shouldn’t have done such a thing.
It was sloppy, foolish, and completely uncharacteristic of someone as clever and smart as herself.
At that moment, Rosetin approached decisively from across the room.
Without hesitation, he grabbed Anita’s wrist.
Anita’s face went pale as she tried to pull away.
“W-what?!”
“I won’t repeat myself. Give it here, now.”
“Then what do you mean by that?! Let go of my hand!”
Their voices were rising, the tension escalating.
“Enough.”
Duke Halen, who had been silent, stepped forward with a stern expression.
“That’s enough, Rosetin.”
Rosetin’s eyes widened, and a hint of indignation crossed her face.
Estellein, standing beside him, spoke in a worried voice.
“Your Grace…! Considering that Anita Solb said Selenea ran away, this would need investigation…”
“I know.”
Estellein fell silent.
“But the truth of that incident could be determined elsewhere, not necessarily here.”
He surveyed the people around them.
“Dawn is approaching. Everyone hasn’t had a proper rest after the night-long commotion.”
Estellein, speechless, finally nodded. Duke Halen spoke in a soothing tone.
“I’m not saying we should dismiss this lightly. Those involved will come with me to the central tower, and the rest should disperse here.”
Sadina, standing nearby, asked Duke Halen.
“And what about the monsters? You said we would contact the authorities tomorrow for verification.”
Duke Halen’s expression grew complicated. He stroked his chin and glanced back.
Beside Selenea, dozens of monsters were still watching.
“…For now, we leave them be and return to the tower.”
Sadina’s eyes widened.
“The monsters… you mean they won’t attack us? We’ve all seen that, haven’t we?”
He was right.
It had already been over an hour since they faced the Deermant here.
Yet the Deermant hadn’t attacked any humans.
This contrasted sharply with humans indiscriminately killing Deermants and obtaining magic stones.
“But…”
Sadina frowned, trailing off. Duke Halen placed a hand on her shoulder.
“There’s no choice. Nothing has been confirmed yet.”
“…”
“Whatever it is, verification will reveal the truth.”
Sadina reluctantly nodded. But as she was about to move, she paused.
She had just remembered something important.
“But verification must be done immediately, right? Deermants only appear on the night of the Yanan Moon.”
The ‘Yanan Moon’ referred to the second moon, which only appeared eight times a year.
“Tomorrow, the Yanan Moon will vanish, and until it rises again, we’d have to wait over a month. How can we verify…?”
“Ah, don’t worry about that.”
Selenea, who had been silent all along, spoke. Duke Halen and Sadina looked at her.
She looked tired, but her expression was resolutely serious.
“Even on days when the Yanan Moon doesn’t rise, Deermants can appear anytime.”
Sadina’s eyes widened.
“Humans can only see them when the Yanan Moon rises.”
“…”
“On nights when the Yanan Moon rises, the Deermants’ power weakens due to the yin energy. Then their invisibility effect disappears, and humans can see them.”
Professor Sadina stared at Selenea, wide-eyed.
Even more than being shocked by the information, she was curious how Selenea knew it.
From a distance, Naila murmured.
“Th-that means their power… is normally much stronger.”
Her shoulders shook involuntarily.
Whether the Deermant was a holy or demonic creature, thinking about having survived such beings made goosebumps rise on her neck.
Selenea’s voice spoke again.
“So there’s no need to worry about timing verification with the Yanan Moon. They will gladly appear anytime. They want to prove that they aren’t monsters. Very desperately.”
Duke Halen’s expression grew serious again. Sadina let out a short sigh.
Amidst everyone’s awkward stillness, Duke Halen spoke.
“Very well. Everyone, let’s return to the central tower first.”
People nodded and moved busily.
Meanwhile, the forest, which had been tinged with deep blue dawn light, gradually brightened.
As the light increased, the two moons hanging precariously over the mountains slowly faded.
When the moons disappeared completely, everyone instinctively looked toward where Selenea had been standing.
“C-could this be…”
“Really… astonishing…”
All the Deermants that had been present had vanished.
“…Just as the princess said. With the Yanan Moon gone, they can hide again.”
Duke Halen murmured.
“Selenea—!!”
Estellein shouted urgently. Duke Halen flinched, raising his head.
Selenea, standing there moments ago, had collapsed unconscious to the side.
