"Young master Luca, is anything the matter?" Remlend asked.

"Something is off," I muttered, looking out of the carriage.

Remlend was seated across from me, as in the previous round.

We passed dark and gnarly trees of the Humton Forest on either side of the road. It was as creepy as the previous time we rode through it, but something felt different.

"What do you mean?" Remlend asked

"It's too quiet," I replied.

The Humton Forest wasn't exactly full of life—quite the opposite, actually—but there was a sort of stillness that wasn't there in the previous round. The only sounds I could hear were the steady clip-clop of horse hooves and the rumble of the carriage wheels on the paved road.

Is the timing too different from the last round?

Even with everything that took place this morning and early afternoon, we were able to head out from the Frey manor earlier than in the previous round.

My eyes scanned the gnarly misshapen oak trees and the darkness beyond them. We had already passed the point where we were attacked in the previous round. And yet no attack came.

I felt a strange unease at this. Something had changed.

Tap. Tap.

"Young master Luca, are you doing alright?" Nirre tapped the carriage window. She was riding horseback beside me.

"Yes, I'm fine," I replied.

"That's good to hear. We're only an hour away now," she said.

I nodded.

Gazing up at the blue sky, if we continued at this pace, especially if no attack came, we would arrive at the Town of Ascot far earlier than in the previous round.

"If anything should happen, know you are in good hands." Nirre smiled.

"I know," I replied. "Thank you."

However, it wasn't my life I was concerned about. It was Henry's.

In the prior round, if Henry didn't go running off into the forest, he probably wouldn't have died. As long as he didn't do that again, I was confident he would remain alive, but I did not intend to test his fortune. It was simpler to have more guards instead; I wasn't about to risk going back on my promise to Leona to protect him in this round.

I looked at the baby phoenix tucked away in her familiar guise of a fluffy yellow chick. She lay sound asleep on a purple silk cushion positioned right beside me. I smiled, seeing her tiny yellow feathers gently rise and fall with each peaceful breath she took.

Apart from Henry, Nirre, and Blake, I had requested two additional guards at the last minute to ride with us. One was Gerald, and the other I didn't recall the name of. However, despite having the best guards that the Frey family could offer, I still couldn't shake an uneasy feeling that something was terribly amiss.

I gazed back out toward the trees, waiting for the bandits to finally come out.

SKE-EEEEEEEK!

Instead, a shriek sounded from deep within the forest and echoed out, shattering the silence of the Humton Forest.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. It sounded like nothing I had ever heard.

All the horses whinnied and pawed at the ground, clearly spooked by the noise. Our procession halted.

"Whoa there! Easy!" Henry calmed his horse, who seemed to have been especially affected.

"What was that?" I whispered. My heart pounded against my chest.

"I'm not sure," Remlend replied. Even his usual bland expression seemed to gain some semblance of alarm as his eyes widened and he looked out the carriage window.

"Everyone, get in formation!" Nirre ordered. "Call out the moment you see something."

An ominous stillness descended around us. The five guards shifted uneasily on their horses, weapons in hand. Blake, who was in charge of guarding my carriage, had out his two signature longswords, one in each hand.

Minutes felt like hours as we all seemingly held our breath, waiting for any sign of danger. However, none arrived.

"We can't just sit here," Nirre broke the silence. "We need to keep moving, but everyone stays alert."

The carriage rolled forward.

"Let's get the pace up," Nirre ordered. "Whatever it is that we heard, I don't want to meet it."

The sound of the wheels turning and hooves increased in speed. Whether it was by intention or by the horses' will to get out of potential danger themselves, the pace increased dramatically. The carriage seemed to shake from how fast it was moving.

I glanced down at Leona, worried that she would awaken from all this shaking.

However, I met a pair of wide eyes instead. She hadn't made a peep this whole time, so I had thought she was still fast asleep, even through the shriek. But that was not the case. All of her feathers were ruffled up, and her whole body was shaking.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"Leona? Are you alright?" I scooped her up into my hands.

Her lack of sound was worrisome.

Skee-eeeeeeeee!

Another shriek rang out, but to my relief, it sounded farther away than the first.

However, by Leona's wide-eyed expression, this was of little comfort. Her shaking only increased.

I pulled her close to my chest.

"Leona? What is it?" I whispered.

But she still was unresponsive. She simply continued to tremble in my hands.

It wasn't until nearly an hour later, when we finally exited the Humton Forest, that Leona seemed to gather herself finally.

"Peep." She had the tiniest peep.

Luca. That was the sound of a phoenix. But one whose eternal cycle of resurrection had been cut short.

***

"Welcome, young master Luca," Ben greeted us at the top of the hill in front of the villa. "It is a pleasure to see you again after so long. I trust your journey was uneventful?"

"Unfortunately, that wasn't the case at all," I said.

I gazed around. Half a dozen servants had come out to greet us and stood on either side of the walkway to the villa's entrance.

"There was some sort of beast in the Humton Forest." Nirre jumped off her horse and walked over to Ben. "It didn't sound like any sound I've ever heard during my previous travels."

Ben frowned at this.

"What did it look like?" he asked.

"Luckily, we didn't come across it, so I can't tell you. We only heard it. It was a shriek of some sort," Nirre said.

"It sounded like a broken violin screech," Blake wearily added.

The shriek replayed all over again in my mind, sending a shiver up my spine.

"I'm relieved to see you arrived unscathed," Ben said. "And I shall inform Madame Ruth at once."

I bit my lip.

Leona's words haunted me. However, I was still waiting to have her clarify what she meant.

Tch.

I didn't want to converse with her inside the carriage with Remlend present. Nor could I kick him out, as we had only taken one carriage this round. Besides, Leona didn't look in any shape to elaborate. She looked as fear-struck as when she described having been kidnapped by whom I presumed to be The Alchemist.

As for now, Leona was curled up and fast asleep in my jacket's inner flap pocket. The warmth seemed to help soothe her.

I pulled my jacket away to check on her and was pleased to see her in a state of peaceful sleep.

"Ben, where is my grandmother?" I asked, looking around.

"Ah, unfortunately, Madame Ruth will be occupied for another three hours," Ben explained.

He motioned for me to follow him inside.

"In the meantime, I can show you to your room if you wish to unwind after your journey," he said. "Or if you desire, you can go down into town. The Summer Festival will be held tomorrow, but a few stalls have already been set up and festivities are taking place."

I rolled my neck, stretching it out. The stressful ride had made my muscles stiffen.

"For now, take me to my room. I'll decide about going out or not later," I said.

"Certainly, sir. This way, please." Ben led me toward the west wing of the villa, where my room was located.

Remlend followed with my suitcases in hand. I was impressed with the ease he was able to carry four suitcases without seemingly breaking a sweat.

He really is the ideal attendant.

When we reached my room, Ben gestured inside.

I stepped inside and was immediately greeted by a familiar sensation of warmth and comfort. Despite the various aesthetic changes from the round prior, the room retained its inherent luxuriousness and coziness. The sunlight poured into the space, casting a warm, golden glow over everything in its path. The room seemed to come alive, illuminated by the sun's rays. I couldn't help but feel a sense of peace wash over me as I took it all in.

"Please make yourself comfortable, young master. And do let me know if you need anything." Ben pulled out a red mana stone ring and handed it to me. "This ring connects directly to me."

I took the golden ring and pulled it onto my right middle finger.

"Thank you," I said.

"I will let you be. I must go report to Madame Ruth now." Ben bowed and took off.

"Remlend, please just drop the suitcases off inside and unpack them later," I said. "I wish some time alone."

"Most certainly, young master Luca," Remlend placed them down. "I'll unpack them when you attend dinner with your grandmother."

He bowed and closed the door behind him, leaving me finally alone.

However, Leona was still sound asleep in my pocket, so I couldn't ask her about what had occurred in the forest yet.

And I don't want to wake her, given how soundly she is sleeping.

I carefully set her down on one of the giant pillows on the bed before flopping down on the bed myself.

I rubbed my temples. I couldn't shake the sound of the shriek from my mind.

Leona said it was a phoenix whose eternal cycle of resurrection had been cut short. Did that mean it was dead? But how do phoenixes normally die anyhow?

I sighed.

Then there's The Alchemist and her interest in Leona. The trouble is that I don't really know anything about phoenixes.

I turned my head and looked at the sleeping Leona.

So much for getting any rest.

My mind would have none of it, but at the very least, the artifact-induced headache seemed to have finally subsided somewhat.

I sat up and brought the communication ring to my mouth.

"Ben, do you happen to know anything about phoenixes?"

After all, my grandmother was secretly keeping a dragon below her villa. And Ben clearly knew quite a bit about it. So perhaps he knew something about phoenixes as well.

"Phoenixes, young master?" Ben's voice sounded as clear as day, but I knew it was only in my mind. "I'm afraid my knowledge of mythical creatures is limited, but Madame Ruth's library contains a great many ancient texts. Perhaps you may find what you are looking for there."

"Thank you. I'll take a look," I said.

And maybe I'll give a visit down below again.

***

I walked through the heavy doors of the library and gazed up at the library's vaulted ceiling and the tall walls of shelves lined with countless volumes of every shape and size.

One of them has to contain information about phoenixes, right?

I walked around, my eyes scanning the book titles and my hand running over their bindings.

"System, you can read what I'm seeing, correct?" I asked.

[ That is correct. ]

"Even if I don't comprehend something, you can read it, correct?"

[ Indeed, that is correct. Unlike your feeble human mind, I am capable of comprehending information in much greater detail. ]

"Good," I said, satisfied.

I rounded the library, my eyes looking and taking in the titles of the books without actually bothering to take in and understand what the text said. I walked multiple times, each time focusing on a different shelf. I did the same with the second floor.

It took quite a bit longer than I initially expected. Still, if my theory was correct, I saved myself a lot of time in the future.

"System, how many books are in my grandmother's library?" I asked.

[ There is a total of 27,238 books in this library. ]

I smiled.

"And how many of them are on the topic of phoenixes?"

[ None. ]

Tch.

I pursed my lips.

"Let's try that again," I said. "How many books are there that are on the topic of mythical creatures or might potentially include information on phoenixes? Exclude any novels and works of fiction."

[ There are a total of 72 books in this library that fit that criteria. ]

"Good." I nodded at this.

It was more books than I had ever even touched in my original life, but I wasn't about to complain about having too many sources of potential knowledge now. If I was going to ensure Leona's safety and figure out what was in the forest, I was going to need to upgrade my understanding of phoenixes.

Asking Leona questions was one way to learn about phoenixes, but it lacked the outside human perspective. Leona was hatched at a point in time when phoenixes were a thing of legends. She had no ancestral knowledge of all that occurred during the time that she was hibernating as an egg.

"Can you point out these 72 books to me?" I asked.

[ Yes. ]

A blue outline appeared in my vision, tracing the 72 books spread across the library. To no surprise, most were concentrated in a particular section.

I rubbed my hands together.

"Now we're in business."