1

In about two hours, by Izumi's estimate, the broken wagon wheels were restored. The wizard treated the injured the best he could and gave medicine to those he couldn't. Nothing was wasted. The critically wounded horses were put down, their meat and hides stored. By Yornwhal's instructions, some better cuts were left as a sacrifice to the Divine of the woods, on a small stone altar they set up by the road. Whether the offerings would actually appease the spirit, or if he even recognized the gesture, was anyone's guess.

Five of the woodcutters left, defying the legal repercussions. Since they had their own horses, no one could or tried to stop them.

The remaining ones were more or less of the secular opinion that spirits were myths, the unicorn just a beast, and it was money for their families that mattered the most. A man named Holms was appointed as their new representative, and the journey was ready to resume.

“Hey, princess, we're leaving,” Riswelze called after Yuliana, who stood a short distance away from the road, gazing quietly into the woods. Yuliana didn't answer but remained still, lost in thought.

“Hm? Was it that sad?” the assassin asked. “The unicorn?”

“...Ah, it was certainly a tragedy, but that's not what bothers me,” the princess shook her head. “I thought I would ask my Lord if there was any way we could communicate our will to Lord Matheus, but for some reason, she will not answer me.”

“Hmm? That Divine? What's up with her?”

Yuliana touched the front of her chest plate.

“She has been strangely quiet, her presence faint, ever since we entered the woods. Normally I can feel her spirit clearly, and her might burns so fiercely that it frightens me at times. But this is...odd. Almost as if she's hiding from something...”

“Maybe she doesn't get along with this Matheus?”

“The myths I know tell little about their relationship...I wonder what could it be…?”

Brian approached them. “The Imperials are leaving.”

“Ah, we'll be right there,” Yuliana quickly answered.

The knight turned to return to the road, but the princess soon called after him.

“Brian.”

“Your highness?” He paused and looked over his shoulder.

“Thank you,” Yuliana told him. “You saved my life. I shan’t forget it.”

“Just doing my job,” the man lightly replied.

Riswelze looked after the two as they went and grinned.

“Well, well. Isn't nature wonderful?”

The enterprising mood of the early expedition never quite recovered from this ominous incident. The destination still stood far away and the formerly deep cerulean sky was already starting to exhibit hues of yellow and purple towards the west. Although it was spring and the days were fairly long, it already became clear they weren’t going to reach the destination until late at night.

Which brought the leaders another headache.

After a few more hours on the road, the company stopped again, and the Colonel summoned the squad leaders to a strategy meeting.

“So, our options are as follows,” Vizier Attiker summarized. “One, we keep marching in the dark with no visibility, risk straying off the road and walking into whatever chasm awaits us, costing us more time and wheels, if not worse. Two, we light torches and ride comfortably, albeit slowly, in their light, simultaneously attracting whatever more monstrosities or brigands that lurk in the woods to us. Or three, we set up a camp along the way, waste hours doing nothing and burn through our supplies. Pick your poison.”

“We cannot effectively defend such a camp,” Miragrave said. “Another unicorn—no, even a pack of wolves could wound the horses and mess up the company in their sleep. I must overrule this option. Even if by crawling, we will stay on the move. Until the outpost.”

“I have to agree with the Colonel,” Holms of the woodcutters said. “No reason to stop now. It's safe terrain from hereon, even in the dark. We have to cross the Alams at one point, but there is a large bridge. We can't miss it, so long as we stay on the road. The outpost is little more than seven miles from the river.”

“Whether we keep moving or not, countless unpredictable dangers await us,” the old wizard said. “I suppose the main difference is, how do we face them? In our own terms, or the forest's?”

“Yes,” Miragrave agreed. “When the night falls, we become an excursion of piglets through the slaughterhouse. Shall we attempt to attune our eyes to the darkness, use it for cover, and risk being deceived by it? Or shall we boldly announce our coming with fire and challenge the perils head on?”

“You paint devils everywhere, Miragrave,” the Vizier snorted. “I always thought my wife was the most depressing woman in the Empire, but here you outdo her by an order of a magnitude. Maybe nothing happens? Maybe we'll make it just fine? One droplet doesn't make a rain, and one unicorn doesn't mean our graves are made for us.”

“It is the duty of a leader to be a pessimist, Attiker,” the Colonel retorted. “Winning wars isn't based on wishful thinking, but telling where your enemy fails before you do.”

“Well then,” the man gestured around and said. “Our enemy now is the forest. Tell me where it fails?”

Everyone's eyes were now fixed on the woman.

Touching her forehead, Miragrave brushed her curls aside, thought for a few seconds and then slowly announced,

“It fails—before the same thing everything does. Have torches lit.”

2

While the Imperials were consulting, Izumi took the chance to stretch her legs and ended up finding her way to Yuliana. The princess was following the leaders' meeting from a distance, unable to hear the contents of the conversation but guessing them anyway.

“Um, everything okay?” Izumi asked her, a bit hesitant.

Yuliana gave her a quick glance, before returning her gaze to the circle of knights on the road.

“There are no problems, thank you,” she answered. “And you? Is the ride uncomfortable?”

“Not really. When I complained my butt hurt, all the knights gave me their capes, so it's been fine...”

“You show no restraint, do you? Then, was there something you wanted to talk about?”

Izumi scratched her neck, looking troubled.

“Um, should I be sorry? Though it wasn't my intention, it seems things took a turn for the worse because of what I did back there...”

Looking at the awkward earthling, Yuliana couldn’t help but sigh.

“You saved our lives,” she said. “Though the reckless way you went about it may still prove bad for us in the long run, I'm not unreasonable enough to blame you for that. No, of course, I'm grateful—”

“Then it's fine!” A smile immediately returned to Izumi's face.

“Your remorse faded a tad too quickly!” Yuliana exclaimed. “Aren't you worried at all? Who knows what manner of creatures lie out there, waiting to spring at us? Doesn't it scare you?”

“I can’t freak out when we're only getting started, can I?” the woman tilted her head. “I wanted to become a monster hunter in the first place, remember? Then isn't this just the thing? This is exactly what I was looking for all along. I think things are only getting exciting now! Here's my chance to actually protect people like a proper hero, instead of cutting them down. I scored my first monster kill since coming to this world too. I should've taken the head for a trophy, but with the mood being the way it was, it didn’t seem too appropriate...And where would I have put it, anyway? I don't have any handy magic inventory system that would let me store stuff without limit. Real life sure is inconvenient in that regard...Then again, no one's going to believe me if I don't have any proof to show for my deeds, so I'm kinda regretting it now...How troubling...”

Yuliana rubbed her eyes.

“I almost forgot you were such a person...Well? Did you only come here to brag about your achievement? I'm sorry, but I'm really not in the mood to listen to such right now.”

“Eh, have I made you mad again?” Izumi asked. “If there are any more sacred spirit animals you want spared, then let me know properly in advance, okay? Oh, but that reminds me, I actually had a question to ask you.”

“You did? What is it?”

“Macchan's element—what is it?”

“Pardon me?” Yuliana frowned.

“That spirit guy who rules over the forest. He's a Divine Lord too, right? So everyone keeps saying. Doesn't that make him colleagues with Ai-chan? Or are they siblings, even? At any rate, you told me the Lords all have an element they rule over, so I was wondering, what's Macchan's element then? It might be a handy tidbit of information.”

“Lord Matheus? You’re talking about Lord Matheus? Good heavens, you need to do something about that naming sense of yours! Speaking of which, you gave the master a strange pet name too! How could you? Don't tell me your name memory really is this bad? You're going to get into real trouble if you keep this up! What if you end up meeting the Divine in person? There's no telling what manner of a Lord he is, and he could doom us all if you're rude to him!”

“No way,” Izumi retorted. “Why would such high and mighty beings care about what we little mortals call them? And it's not my fault these fantasy names are too difficult for my tongue to pronounce.”

“Ah, you're hopeless...”

“Never mind that. So, the element? What is it?”

“I don't know,” Yuliana had to admit. “The Divines are only legends in my land, stories my grandfather would tell me. I never delved that deep into the topic. I only know about the elements because...well, my Lord taught me about them herself.”

“Hmm...”

—“Flowing water.”

“Eh?”

A voice nearby suddenly joined the conversation.

One of the knights nearby, who had been brushing his horse, turned around and took off his helmet. It happened to be Sir Leterrié, the same dark-featured man who had helped train Yuliana the day before.

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“That is Lord Matheus's authority,” he explained. “Flowing water. Rivers, streams, springs, waterfalls, underground currents, all water that is in motion. Immeasurably powerful, yet at the same time transient, ever-changing, such is his power. That power extends all over the land—but not the seas. The great sea is too much for even a Divine Lord. It can only belong to the Old God Nuenn, who has left us.”

“A warrior and a scholar,” the princess said. “You are full of surprises, Sir Leterrié.”

“No,” the knight shook his head with modesty. “In Tratovia, everyone knows this. The Divine tradition is close to our hearts, taught to us by our fathers already before we go to school. After all, we have no less than three great Lords to protect our proud capital. How could we not acknowledge and appreciate them?”

“Ah, I have seen the Temple of the Sisters. It is a magnificent thing,” Yuliana politely said. It was true that the Divine cult was widespread in the Empire, but besides the many beautiful shrines, temples, and works of art built in the spirits' honor, she had seen no indication of their actual presence. Although, she had no intention of voicing her skeptical thoughts in front of the knight, who looked openly convinced of their existence.

And having one such spirit inhabit her own body, Yuliana was naturally compelled to become more accepting about a lot of things.

“Sounds awfully limited, doesn't it?” Izumi pondered. “I mean, we have someone who rules over all light in the world, and then another gets just rivers. It's not really even an 'element' in the classic sense, is it? Don't you think that's pretty unfair?”

“Unfair?” Sir Leterrié smiled with disbelief at her words. “It is a tremendous power. A tremendous responsibility, fit for the servant of Hamaran. Human constitution is the weakest among the sentient races. We are weak, and all our lives depend on clean, running water. Since water that pools and is still is not fit for drinking. To have this authority means to have power over all human life on land. Humans, who were Hamaran's created. Hamaran was a God who loved company. He created many Divines to follow him and divided his powers among them as he left. But of all his lieutenants, Hamaran loved Matheus the most. As he departed, he entrusted his chosen people to Matheus together with this Authority, forever. There could be no greater sign of trust.”

Yuliana was a bit moved by the story and remained silent. As the princess of a kingdom, talk about power and responsibility resonated strongly within her. As did tales of beautiful bonds between fellow men.

“Hmm...” Izumi looked thoughtful. “But if humans are his race, then why's Macchan hiding here in the woods, where nobody lives? Isn't that strange? Hasn't he practically abandoned us?”

“Izumi...” Yuliana gave the woman a deeply reproachful glance.

Fortunately, the knight wasn't that easily offended.

“It's because he is humble. Even though he has the power, Lord Matheus does not wish to exert dominance over people, or dictate how we should live our lives. He has given us that freedom, to choose for ourselves...or, so I would like to believe. But, perhaps he is angry. Perhaps we have lost our worth in his eyes and he no longer cares for us. We indulge in selfish greed and lust in our peaceful lands, while the other races struggle alone to protect the creation. I believe we should fight side by side with the others. Against the daemons. That is why I joined the army, why I follow the commander. To death.”

Having said all he intended, the knight touched his chestplate with his fist, turned away, put his helmet back on and went on to fasten his saddlebags.

Izumi couldn't claim to be particularly enlightened by the conversation, but there was no time to reflect on it further. The break time was over and the knights were ready to march once more. Bidding a quick farewell to the princess, she returned to the wagon.

3

Eventually came dark. On open land, the coming of the night would not have been as severe an impediment on the journey, perhaps. But deep in the forest, the thickening foliage high over the travelers' heads blocked what little light the atmosphere reflected, making the dark that much more opaque.

Wise or not, torches were lit, and the line of riders coursing through Felorn turned into a parade surrounded by the inviting warmth and glow of flames.

Those knights on their black mounts, in their black armors and dark capes, were like mythical wraiths themselves. Any average person witnessing their ride, unaware of its nature or purpose, would've no doubt been struck by heart-breaking terror.

Still, within their intimidating armors, the men were better than aware of their own mortality. It was probably too much asked to expect the primal denizens of Felorn to be frightened by their aesthetics alone.

Whatever sleepiness the day's long journey had accumulated in the men was quickly dispelled by the anxious anticipation that nightfall brought with it. Even though the day had passed without more trouble than described, the loss of visibility gave imagination wings. The more dangerous beasts were known to hunt at night. Everyone kept restlessly gazing left and right, hoping to detect any possible monstrosities within the light's limited reach, before they would lunge at their throats.

Fully aware that even if they did see such things, responding in time was hopeless.

The woods sweeping past in the dark looked blurry, distant and intangible. It felt like they were riding in a narrow tunnel now, carved through the immeasurable darkness by the frail light they carried. The riders could only dive onward through it in their fleshly mining carts, even if the tracks were to suddenly disappear from under them.

The hours crawled by, the horses cantered on, and nothing dangerous appeared from the forest. But the constant tension and straining of vision weighed heavily not only on the riders’ bodies but also on their nerves.

As speedy as it felt, their progress was considerably slower than during the day.

In the dark, one's grasp of time was soon lost.

Both the night and the road started to seem equally endless. Yuliana was convinced they had traveled a full day already, yet the sun showed no signs of rising again.

Soon enough, everyone found themselves hoping that something would appear, so that they would be released from the terrible suspense and have work for their hands. Sometimes death itself may seem friendlier than the gut-wrenching wait for it.

Had they been cursed by the Divine of the woods?

To ride in a perpetual loop to the end of all time?

Had they, in search of a legend, turned into a legend themselves, a warning example to all who would disturb the ageless peace of the forest? It was at moments like this that Yuliana would've appreciated a few words from the patron spirit within her, yet Aiwesh remained silent. As a Divine Lord who had lived quietly for over thirty thousand years, she sure excelled in the art of reticence.

“COMPANY! HALT!”

The knight captain's voice finally brought the cavalcade a moment's relief.

Or, while everyone was relieved by the fact that they had stopped and could gather themselves for a moment, the actual cause for the break had the opposite effect.

They had come to a river.

The river Alams, which flowed through southern Felorn.

It was known to be among the longest rivers on the continent, although no one had been able to fully measure it. Starting from the shores of the northern sea near Cotlann, it drew through western Noertia towards the south, all the way to Luctretz where it joined the sea once more. Considering the vast distance between these two points, one could vaguely guess how long water had to travel to clear the whole route.

At some places, the Alams became narrow and overgrown enough to not allow a single fishing boat through, while at others it was too wide and fierce to even think about swimming across.

Here the river drew a long curve, circling around the Varnamians’ outpost and cutting across the path. The stream was only about thirty feet wide, but the spring current flowed strong. Not so strong that one couldn't swim against it, but it still delivered away without delay anything inanimate dropped into it. An explanation was readily available; A short distance westward, the water took an abrupt dive downhill, before gushing between some dangerous-looking rocks.

Why the locals had built their outpost on the other side, instead of closer to the town—one could only guess the reasons. Either way, a bridge had been built to cross the water, bringing the two sides of the path happily together. It was a strong, wide bridge, and had faithfully endured the locals' heavy carts for numerous decades.

Was, indeed.

Tonight, no bridges could be seen.

Some great force had torn it away, leaving only a few broken planks sticking up on both shores to mark the place. Beneath, the dark waters ran quietly, offering no explanation to what could have caused the disaster.

“This can't be…?” The Varnamians were in dismay over the fate of their creation.

“Lord Matheus's wrath…! We have been denied! We must turn back!”

“Divines have mercy on our souls!”

“Why am I not surprised?” Vizier Attiker sighed, inspecting the scene. “It's a bridge. If you want one to last, then make it out of stone!”

“Now isn't this a pickle,” the wizard peered over the edge, poking at the water with his staff. “It is about six feet deep, with a muddy bottom.”

“The banks are too high, we can’t cross here with the wagons,” Yuliana said. “We need to look for another way. Would there be a more shallow spot upstream?”

“No need for that,” the Vizier said. “The Varnamians built the bridge once, they can do it again. All it costs us is more time. Most likely less so than dragging the wagons and horses into that thicket.”

“In the dark?” the princess questioned. “Impossible. We need to at least wait until sunrise.”

“Not an option,” Colonel Miragrave objected. “Whether the Divine did this or a spring flood, we can’t afford to let it stop us. Remain here and we stand trapped between the river and the forest, with no escape. The bridge has to be made. Even if we must build it blindfolded. Gather the men, Captain. Show my foolish disciple what a hundred of his majesty's elite can do.”

The knights left their horses, exchanged their swords for axes and, following the woodcutters' instructions, started to chop down suitably thick and long trees around the road for the new bridge.

“Yornwhal, give them light,” the commander requested.

“As you wish.” The old wizard held up his staff and chanted, “Iota manere, lutis antea.”

A dazzlingly brilliant, slightly bluish light appeared hovering in the air, about fifteen feet above the wizard, as if he had captured a star from the black sky. In the artificial star's radiance, everyone was able to see the immediate surroundings with the clarity not quite comparable to daylight but close enough.

The work proceeded with renewed vigor.

“How come we didn't use such a handy trick to light our path before?” Riswelze, following the hustle idly behind the wizard, asked. “Or rather, why don't you just spell the bridge back to us, Sir Court Wizard?”

“In regard to bridge architecture, I confess I am a complete novice,” Yornwhal replied with a wry smile, before adding in a darker tone, “Spirits and beasts are attracted to magic, and we still have ways to go. I know the commander would not have asked me if it weren’t an emergency, but...It would be better if we didn't linger here much longer now.”

The replacement bridge was made quick and rudimentary.

Some of the men threw off their armors and swam to the other side, ropes with them. The other ends of the ropes were tied to the cut-up logs and with brute force, the knights pulled the trunks over the stream, one by one, to align them over the remains of the old bridge. Impressed, Yuliana witnessed a crude, but nevertheless serviceable path quickly appear over the natural obstacle.

After some twenty trunks had been felled and set over the water, side by side, the bridge started to look wide enough for the wagons to pass. As basic as the construct was, for a time, it seemed men had indeed won another victory over nature.

“That's fair enough!” The commander told the woodcutters, who would've preferred to add more support structures. “Take rope and tie them together!”

It was far from an ideal solution, but the sturdiest available ropes were retrieved from the supplies and the men got to work.

—“HYAAAAAAAUGHHHH!”

Around this point, a hair-raising scream rang through the darkness.

One of the knights had gone to urinate a distance away from the road. While about his business, his attention was caught by something on the ground reflecting the glow of the spell in a peculiar fashion. Something round, thin and smooth, coiled amid the short shrubs covering the ground.

A snake? Squinting his eyes, the man saw that what returned the light were indeed the shiny scales of a reptile. An adder, perhaps?

The man spat in disgust. For a moment, in a completely unrelated thought—or perhaps an epiphanic flash of wisdom—it occurred to the knight that perhaps he shouldn't have removed his chestplate.

Barely a second after, large jaws tightened over his left shoulder with bone-breaking force, four sharp teeth piercing deep into his flesh. Simultaneously, he felt a powerful pull that lifted his feet off the ground. A scream of horror and pain was all the knight managed. He was dead long before his corpse returned to the ground.

“The Hel was that?” the knight's companions a short distance away hurried to investigate.

“AAAARGGGHH!” Before they reached the body, another scream sounded from the opposite side of the road.

There another knight had returned to his horse to retrieve his water bottle, when something heavy fell on him from high above. Heavy enough to crush his spine before he could feel the fangs digging into his neck. He didn't have the time to make a sound—the one to scream had been another knight who coincidentally witnessed the grisly event. In no time, more horrified sounds echoed around. After a period of confusion, one enlightened individual was able to identify the threat in the dark.

——“BASILIIIIIIIISKS!”

“My favorites,” hearing the shout, Colonel Miragrave muttered under her breath, before turning to the workers on the riverbank. “Is it safe to cross yet?”

“No!” the men answered. “We've only started to rope the logs, they won't hold weight yet! One careless move and they will all roll down into the stream!”

“Do you know how to tie knots, man! Hurry it up!” she urged them. “Captain! Signal the leaders, set up a defensive formation! The first wagon has the priority! The first wagon before anything else, you hear me? Get it across as soon as the path is ready! You answer for the dimeritium with your head!”

“Ma'am! Yes, ma'am!”