NOVEL NEXT Chapter 33
033.
At the foot of Hiart Mountain, armored knights had gathered.
“Perhaps… they are higher up.”
The silence was broken by Crathus.
His words, accompanied by a deep sigh, made the atmosphere even more somber.
The monster cleaning operation had been ongoing since the early morning.
No matter how vast Hiart Mountain was, there were nearly a hundred skilled knights.
If they had set their minds to it, they could have scoured it thoroughly.
The reason they had not left the mountain by this late hour was one—Serasie Hiart had yet to emerge from the mountain.
“Damn it, I should have been closer.”
Crathus muttered in frustration.
The strange fog was noticed during the midst of hunting monsters.
That fog stood like a wall dividing the other cities of Claire Empire from the Northern region.
There were no forewarnings, and by the time they realized, it was already too late.
Trying to ascend past the middle of the mountain only resulted in them retracing their steps back to where they had started.
After gathering the knights and taking a headcount, it seemed certain that the young mistress was trapped above the fog.
“…Don’t worry too much. Isn’t that boy with her?”
“That’s precisely what worries us. He’s not from the North, yet in a crisis moment, will he prioritize Lady Serasie?”
“That is true.”
Makbel nodded quietly upon hearing Crathus’s words.
His gaze lingered somewhere beyond the fog.
In truth, none of them had planned for such an event.
No one could cast such a spell.
More than that, it wasn’t even clear if this phenomenon was magic at all.
Could something that repels and prevents passage without any physical force truly be called magic?
Initially, they had planned to ambush them during the gaps in the monster hunting operation.
Taking advantage of their focus on monsters and their numerical superiority, forcing them into surrender should have been easy.
However, all their plans had crumbled with the sudden appearance of the fog.
Midst this chaos, Toren had even tried to foolishly make his presence known.
Makbel adjusted his short mustache while falling into deep thought.
The first thing that came to mind was the abnormal monsters of Hiart Mountain.
While it was unheard of for monsters to use magic, for now, this was the only relevant clue they had.
“It would be best to set up temporary quarters nearby and take turns keeping watch until the young lady returns.”
It was too late.
It would be best to not act further tonight.
Makbel mumbled this and gave the knights their orders.
The old man was dreaming of a new plan.
*
Her trembling was severe.
Her captured arm was held so tightly that the blood flow was almost cut off.
Simultaneously, a serious level of shaking was also felt.
“Miss…”
“…”
Fleeing from the monsters and heading upwards had ultimately been the right choice.
It was unclear if the fog was moving.
However, the fog that had persisted at the middle of the mountain began to expand upward, as if encouraging them to ascend.
The number of monsters correspondingly increased until Kalen alone could no longer handle them.
Eventually, he had resorted to using the second-tier Nature attribute magic, Frost Wind, as Flame alone became insufficient.
Though Kalen remembered Blamia’s advice, standing still would’ve meant becoming prey for the monsters.
Moreover, revealing Serasie’s talent was the most critical concern.
But that, perhaps, didn’t matter much now.
The state was serious enough to create other problems beyond the monsters.
“Huff… haa…”
The girl who had always been ahead now stood slightly behind Kalen.
She clung desperately to his left arm, trembling pitifully.
Her harsh breathing could be felt through his upper arm.
As the fog grew thicker,
As more monsters poured from all sides,
Everything pointed to a single truth—that the “monster cleaning” was a trap orchestrated by Makbel.
That alone was enough to rattle Serasie’s world.
Had Kalen not been angry that day, what might have become of her?
Serasie could not answer that question, as she clung on desperately.
Despite thinking she could do otherwise, she admitted silently to herself—she was a liar.
Without realizing it, she had come to rely on him.
A fragile person needs something to lean on.
Even though she had vowed to herself to become strong,
Serasie was still nothing more than a frail girl.
She feared she might lose her grip on his arm if she let go, even as it grew dark from the lack of blood circulation.
Her body wouldn’t obey the knowledge that she should let go, so the boy could fight more comfortably.
She knew that continuing like this served no useful purpose and merely hindered his movement.
Still, she could not bring herself to do it.
And the more she tried, the tighter her grip became.
“Sorry… snif…”
Unable to release her hold on the boy’s arm, tears streamed down her cheeks to her chin.
She still kept her head bowed out of shame, though she could not see Kalen’s expression from this angle.
Serasie stood like that, shaking and clinging to Kalen’s arm endlessly.
‘Was Makbel’s betrayal shocking enough to affect her so?’
Kalen observed the situation calmly.
Judging from how her trembling grew worse, it appeared that the betrayal by Makbel was starting to hit home.
Given how upset she had been earlier, it was unsurprising.
However, continuing like this would make movement difficult, forcing him to fight using only one arm.
Handling the situation inadequately would inevitably follow.
With a guttural noise, Kalen obliterated a charging monster, covering himself in blood.
He carefully wiped the blood that splattered on Serasie.
As before, the blood was more akin to wine in color.
“Miss…”
“Hic…”
“Miss…”
“Sob…”
To escape this situation, either the fog needed to dissipate or all the monsters must be eliminated.
However, judging by the sheer number of monsters they’d already taken down, wiping them all out was impossible.
The only option left was to remove the fog.
At least, finding the source of the fog might provide some solutions.
However, Kalen’s stamina was nearing its limit.
Carrying one person while engaging in combat was undoubtedly a heavy burden.
Calling out to Serasie in an attempt to snap her back to reality was futile, as she remained unfocused and unable to respond.
Puuk—
“Ack…”
Just as his attention wandered for a moment, a searing pain shot through his arm.
A grotesque monster’s hand had pierced through Kalen’s right arm.
Reacting swiftly, Kalen conjured Frost Wind and killed the creature.
“Huff…”
No matter how he thought about it, this situation offered no solution.
With that thought lingering, Kalen glanced towards the peak, gathering his remaining strength.
Draining nearly all his remaining strength was a bold gamble.
If he reached the top and yet nothing changed, then death awaited him.
However, staying put would deliver the same result.
Wouldn’t it be natural to bet on even a small chance for success?
Indeed.
That’s why Kalen couldn’t resist taking gambles.
Smiling faintly, Kalen once again picked Serasie up.
“Call yourself my sister and stop crying, would you, Miss.”
Taking a deep breath, Kalen bolted forward.
The Serasie who initially struggled and demanded to be let down had now desperately clung to Kalen tightly.
*
“Found it.”
Given its size, the peak of Hiart Mountain was high.
Climbing it alone was already tough, but carrying someone while doing so was even harder.
Kalen’s gamble seemed doomed to fail.
As he pushed through the exhaustion near the summit, something caught his eye.
It appeared to be a cave entrance.
While caves deep in the mountains were not uncommon, this warranted caution under these circumstances.
Especially since the cave entrance was emitting the strange fog.
There were no monsters nearby.
It was an eerily calm, separate world.
Kalen chuckled wryly at the absurdity of it all.
His clothes were tattered, his right arm and torso were riddled with puncture wounds and slashes.
After breaking through such a hellish environment, this place was so eerily calm.
The stark contrast made Kalen feel disgust, and his anger rose.
If this was a trap set by Makbel, for which Toren presumably gave his consent, against Serasie, how could anyone be so cruel towards their blood relations?
Kalen began to understand the loneliness Serasie had spoken of.
The gods change their minds whenever their interests shift.
The person called ‘older brother’ is a human waste, not hesitating to even murder him.
Their father favors that older brother.
Even the long-trusted relationship with Makbel turned out to be false.
As Kalen walked silently towards the cave entrance, he looked down at the Serasie cradled in his arms.
He needed to assess whether her loneliness was self-induced or not.
Kalen was certain that whatever the origins were, Serasie had fought to survive.
Inside her, he was sure, all her hopes were undoubtedly blackened.
This is why she now trembled from the betrayal of the most precious trust she sought.
“Miss…”
“…”
“I will not betray you.”
At the cave entrance was a symbol, slightly different from the one he recognized from Sinnat’s wrist.
Kalen committed the sight to his retina and continued speaking.
“…”
Serasie tightened her grip around Kalen’s body, and her voice was far from the usual gentle and soft tone it bore.
“Liar.”
Showing distrust while holding on to him, Kalen thought this was Serasie’s heart speaking.
Abandoned by Makbel, she could no longer trust anyone.
Simultaneously, her last and only promise made at the final moment was with him.
She wished for him to deny her statement—her belief that he would betray her.
If calming her heart required it, then he would do just that.
Kalen whispered quietly.
“I will not betray you.”
Thus the form of the boy who embraced the girl faded into the mist of the cave.