Chapter 3
The beast’s flashing purple eyes glared at Marcella before shifting to look behind her.
“Isn’t it about time you stopped?”
Startled by the voice of a man pushing through the brush behind her, Marcella turned her head. It was a boy who looked about her age.
The boy, brushing leaves off his jet-black hair, spotted Marcella fallen on the ground and silently looked down at her for a moment.
– Shut up! You mere human!
As the monster shrieked, the boy’s gaze shifted from Marcella to the monster. He strode unhesitatingly toward it, and with each step, bright red blood dripped from the sword he held.
Marcella felt her chest grow colder than when she’d seen the monster. To think she found a human scarier than a monster.
Marcella couldn’t gauge the boy’s identity. Her sister was an excellent mage, so powerful that Marcella, an Inferior, wouldn’t dare dream of such strength. But this person was different even from her sister. Shivering before the overwhelming difference in power, Marcella trembled all over.
A large shadow fell over Marcella as she trembled in fear. When her eyes slowly identified the source of the shadow, a scream burst from her mouth.
“Kyaaaah…! Ahh…!”
But before that scream could finish, the boy’s sword severed the monster’s foreleg. Marcella was so shocked no more sound came out. It was hard to fully comprehend what was happening before her eyes.
With each swing of the boy’s sword, the wind it created whipped her hair around as if caught in a whirlwind.
– Uwaaak!
Only then did Marcella realize the owner of the scream she’d heard was the monster, not a person. A person, a villager, wasn’t being attacked by the monster. Relieved it wasn’t the worst situation she’d imagined, Marcella nonetheless realized she was still in danger of being caught up in it.
Slowly regaining her composure and senses, Marcella thought the boy must be a monster hunter. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be fighting the monster so unhesitatingly.
Not wanting to die caught in a fight between a monster and a monster hunter, Marcella staggered to her feet to survive.
The wind churned up by the boy and the monster made it hard for Marcella to even open her eyes properly. Squinting with difficulty, any guilt she felt about leaving the boy and running vanished.
Seeing blood dripping from the monster’s mane, it even looked pitiful. The fear she’d felt toward the monster moments ago now felt like a lie.
*Poor thing.* The instant she thought that, the beast’s eyes turned to look at her. Thinking her thoughts had escaped her lips, Marcella gasped, and the monster charged at her.
Startled, Marcella stumbled and fell again. Instinctively thinking she was going to die, she covered her head with her arms and squeezed her eyes shut.
A damp, cold sensation touched her skin. Marcella squeezed her eyes shut even tighter. But no matter how long she waited, she didn’t feel the monster’s teeth or the pain of being crushed.
Peeking with one eye, the monster was nowhere to be seen, and the clear weather from moments ago was suddenly shrouded in fog.
Blinking, Marcella looked around. It felt like she was in the mountains, yet not.
“Are you running away like that again?”
The boy’s voice came from not far away. *Is he talking to me?*
Flustered, Marcella nearly seriously protested that it wasn’t the case. Fortunately, she realized he wasn’t asking her and quickly shut her mouth. The monster’s cries weren’t audible, but it could be hiding somewhere.
Perhaps from the tension, sweat beaded on Marcella’s forehead.
Marcella got up very slowly. She needed to go down the mountain and quickly warn about the monster, but it was hard to tell which way was down. Even though this was a mountain she’d frequented since childhood, it felt like a place she was visiting for the first time. That way? Lacking confidence, Marcella cautiously took a step.
“If you don’t want to be lost for a lifetime, it’s better not to go that way.”
The boy emerged through the fog. Marcella screamed a small scream in her heart, startled.
Ignoring Marcella, the boy stared intently in the direction she was about to go. His serious eyes seemed to see something there.
Marcella looked at the fog again. She saw nothing. Just as she thought that, something squirmed in the distance.
“Hup!”
As Marcella flinched, the boy looked back at her. Meeting his eyes, Marcella nervously swallowed dryly. The monster was scary, and this fog was scary. But the scariest was this boy. Clearly in human form, he didn’t seem human. Oppressed by the magical power he emitted, she could hardly breathe.
Still, she didn’t run from his side. She didn’t want to betray his advice and go deeper in there. To survive, Marcella thought rationally, not instinctively. She didn’t know when the monster hiding in the fog might attack. If so, being near the boy gave her a higher chance of survival than being alone. She wanted to believe that.
“Are you a resident of this place?”
The boy, who had been silently staring ahead, spoke to Marcella. Startled by the sudden question, Marcella jumped.
The boy still had an indifferent face, staring beyond the fog. It felt like she’d heard an auditory hallucination rather than him speaking.
As Marcella hesitated, the boy turned his head and looked at her.
“Where is this? Is it the land of Dorus?”
Meeting his eyes, Marcella reflexively shook her head.
Under his gaze that seemed to ask, *Then where?* Marcella opened her mouth, but seeing his golden pupils, her words stuck in her throat.
“Where is this?”
“Th-this is Morris Territory.”
As Marcella barely managed to answer, the boy nodded as if satisfied.
When his gaze moved away, Marcella let out a sigh of relief. Why was she so tense when he hadn’t said he’d hurt her?
Marcella kept swallowing nervously, as tense as when she was about to be scolded by her sister.
Marcella glanced sideways at the sword he held and moved her lips. If she didn’t say something, the fear would be unbearable.
“My name is Marcella. Marcella Morris.”
“I see.”
“Um…”
Marcella, about to ask for his name, closed her mouth. Usually, when one gives their name, the other reciprocates, doesn’t they? But him not doing so might mean he didn’t want to give his name. Trying to converse with someone who wouldn’t even give their name was probably pointless. Marcella closed her mouth.
“You must not be the daughter of Count Morris. You’re too old for that.”
“I’m the younger sister.”
Not expecting him to continue the conversation, Marcella answered instantly, feeling oddly uplifted. His tone sounded as if he knew her sister. But how? Marcella racked her brain.
Perhaps her sister had already heard the report about the monster appearing in the mountains. Of course, it was her sister. Yes, that must be it! So she called him, a monster hunter, even if this hunter who called people ‘you’ was a bit strange.
“Did my sister call you here?”
“No.”
Convinced that was the case, Marcella was surprised by his firm denial and closed her mouth. Conversing with him was as difficult as being trapped in this fog. Marcella felt it was better to give up trying to talk to him.
She wanted to escape this fog quickly. He said going that way would get her lost. Was it true? Did she have to stay here until this fog lifted?
As Marcella glared at the fog, it undulated heavily. It was as if it was swallowing saliva to devour her.
“Th-then, wh-where are you from? Are you a traveler?”
Trying to divert her eyes from the fear of the fog, Marcella deliberately spoke loudly. The thought that the monster might notice their location and attack only occurred to her after she’d already spoken up.
“The West.”
But the boy didn’t care whether Marcella spoke softly or loudly. Marcella’s mouth went dry, and cold sweat began to form on her forehead. She wanted to talk to him, to distract herself from the fear, but it wasn’t going as she wanted.
“When will the fog lift?”
“It will lift when the fog gives up.”
*When the fog gives up?* He spoke as if the fog were alive. Marcella’s mouth went dry, and cold sweat broke out. The fog grew thicker. Marcella found it hard to breathe. Feeling a creeping, suffocating sensation, her breathing grew labored.
“You look pale.”
“I-Is that so? I am sweating a bit. Is it hot?”
Marcella answered with unsteady breath. Suddenly, a warm touch met her forehead. Startled, Marcella opened her eyes wide and saw the boy’s face, his hand on her forehead.
“Is it hot?”
The boy looked at Marcella, then tilted his head slightly to the right. Then, removing the glove he was wearing, he pressed the back of his hand against Marcella’s forehead again. He slowly lowered his eyes and took Marcella’s hand. Her fingertips were icy cold.
“My, my words came out wrong. I think I’m cold.”
“You think you’re cold?”
“I’m c-cold…”
The boy gathered Marcella’s two hands together and enclosed them in his own. As his warmth transferred to her, Marcella’s unsteady breathing gradually returned.
Looking at him, Marcella had the slightly rude thought that he was, after all, a human with warmth.
Too scared to think properly before, she could tell up close. He was youthful but handsome. Much more so than someone like Donner, who thought he was handsome and acted arrogant every time they met.
The moment she thought he was handsome, her eyes met the boy’s. Feeling unnecessarily guilty, Marcella flinched. Did he read her thoughts? Did her thoughts escape her lips?
Marcella racked her brain for an excuse.
“Marcella.”
His softly calling voice felt strangely ticklish and embarrassing for some reason. The boy tilted his head slightly, staring intently at Marcella.
“Are you scared?”
*How could I not be scared?! Right now, it’s not so much fear as feeling strangely shy because of you!*
