Chapter 58

By the time we arrived at the main fortress gate, the ground trembled with the sound of pounding hooves, and the gate swung open almost immediately.

“Ah…!”

There was no need for explanation. The black horned helmet was practically the symbol of Grand Duchess Karnian.  

With two riders wearing them at the front of the group, it was clear they were Mother and Sister Elga.

“Perfect timing.”

Mother was the first to dismount, leaping off her horse with powerful energy. As she removed her helmet, a faint smile touched her face.

“I must look like a mess.”

From afar, it had been hard to tell because her cloak and armor were all black, but up close, she was splattered with blood.

But Father didn’t care—he pulled her into an embrace.

“You’ll get dirty, Hoshiel.”

“You’ve returned safely. What does a little dirt matter? You’ve done well.”

…What happened next, I’ll omit out of respect for my parents’ privacy.

Judging by the way the servants and knights paid no mind and went about their business as usual, it was clearly not the first time they’d seen the two of them like this.

Ramande had already gone to check on the injured, and Sister Elga and I smiled at each other as we made our way inside.

“You’ve worked hard, too, sister.”

“Thank you. The monster extermination is nearly complete. Especially the path you’ll be taking—it’s been thoroughly cleared.”

So that’s what Mother meant by “perfect timing.”

There was more good news.

Just as the Apostle had promised support without hesitation, the protective charms from the Plendena Temple in Sermender arrived without us even having requested them yet.

‘Somehow, I feel like things are going to go well this time.’

I took a deep breath of the frigid air and smiled confidently. Everything was falling into place like perfectly aligned gears, and I had a strong feeling that things would turn out fine.

Since preparations went smoothly, our departure date was set quickly.  

How quickly? The very next day after arriving at the fortress.

Winter was a fearsome season. Avalanches, blizzards, or even monster attacks could strike at any moment. Leaving while we had the chance was common sense, so I had no complaints and moved efficiently.

The problem was El.

“MyaaaAAAAAH!”

Somehow sensing he was being left behind, El thrashed wildly in the knight’s arms. I’d asked the knight for help because the maids kept losing hold of him, but even the knight was clearly struggling.

“Be good, El. I’ll be back soon, okay?”

“Let’s go, Minuelle. It might be easier if he doesn’t see you leave.”

“Y-you think so?”

As I turned away in a near escape, following Ramande’s advice—

“Mya!”

—El slipped out of the knight’s grasp like a stream of water, proving the liquid-cat theory true, and bolted toward me.

He leapt up just in front of me, and I instinctively opened my arms to catch him, but I hadn’t accounted for the full force of his flying energy.

Thud!

“Oof!”

A rocket-shaped cat slammed into my stomach.

“Honestly, you…” Ramande muttered, casting a spell to ease the impact.

Meanwhile, El was busy rubbing his body against my legs, going back and forth.

“Myaa… mya…”

His voice had clearly lost strength, carrying a tone of guilt. But even so, I had the strong feeling he wouldn’t quietly stay behind in the castle.

“…I didn’t expect him to be this anxious.”

If I left him in the care of the staff, he’d probably vanish in the blink of an eye. I couldn’t exactly ask my busy parents to look after him.

Bringing him with me wasn’t without its worries, but leaving him behind when he was this distressed seemed far crueler.

‘There’s no helping it…’

Maybe this had been inevitable from the moment I took El in. People always say it’s hard to travel when you have a pet.

Suppressing a sigh, I scooped El up into my arms. The moment he nestled into my embrace and began purring contentedly, all my worries seemed to melt away.

‘Well, I was planning to go in alone at the crucial moment anyway.’

I’d leave Ramande and sister behind then, and go on by myself.

So just for that moment, I’d leave El with them. He understood human words—I’d make sure to talk to him gently and clearly when the time came.

* * *

We spent the night in a village at the northernmost edge of the North.

Since our group had rented out the entire inn, I went down to the dining hall first thing in the morning without hesitation.  

There weren’t many people up yet, but I spotted a familiar face.

“You’re up early. The young lady is outside training.”

Mother had assigned one of her aides to accompany me again—just as she had with Sister Elga.  

“It’s been a while, Sir Kyung. You should be assisting Mother, but it feels like she’s always sending you to look after me.”

“Not at all. A knight follows their lords’ will.”

Smiling at his textbook answer, I turned to look out the window. Sister Elga was out there, shoveling snow that reached her knees before swinging her sword.

“They say the monsters came down early this time because of the avalanches. I didn’t expect we’d set out so soon.”

“The subjugation was finished quickly thanks to Her Grace joining the mission.”

“Wasn’t she supposed to stay behind?”

“Since Lady Elga was formally recognized as the heir, the Grand Duchess rarely leaves for the front. She believes someone must always remain to guard the castle.”

But I already understood why Mother had joined us this time—without needing to ask.

‘For me…’

Whether I was in Sermender or Roquate, the true home of our family—the root of it all—was the Karnian fortress.  

I could feel her desire to protect the place I would return to.  

It was a love I’d grown so used to, as natural as breathing, and yet sometimes it struck me unexpectedly, heavy and deep.

I gently tickled El’s forehead and let out a quiet, weighted breath.

“But I joined this mission because I personally requested it from Her Grace.”

“Why? Sister Elga’s already here, and now you, too…”

It was unlikely, but if another monster wave hit while we were away, Mother or this aide would have to take command of the troops.

“Because—”  

He hesitated, fingers brushing his cup, before speaking again.

“Ten years ago, I was there, too.”

‘There?’  

Ah.

The moment I saw his eyes, I understood without needing to ask.

‘So Mother’s aide was one of the knights guarding the spirit stone.’

But…so what? I tilted my head slightly in confusion. Then the aide began to speak.

“That spirit stone… was once stolen, ten years ago.”

“So that’s how it ended up in our home.”

“Yes. It was just before we transferred it to a new seal after reclaiming it.”

That year, an unprecedented cold snap had swept through the southern regions.

Thanks to the Emperor’s swift decision, Mother and our knights were able to mobilize quickly. The surrounding lords helped however they could, and the stone was recovered before long.  

But even in that short span of time, many lives were lost.

‘That must have been awful.’ 

Everyone must’ve been exhausted. It wasn’t hard to imagine a small child slipping through their grasp.

But this kind hearted knight hadn’t let it go so easily.

He blamed himself—if only he’d kept his eyes open a little longer, stayed a little more alert, maybe the child of his lord wouldn’t have suffered all her life.

His gaze fixed on the gloves I wore.

“I hope you’ll be at peace now, Milady.”

“I will be. So you should let your heart rest, too.”

With my gloved hand, I gently tapped the back of his.

“They say disasters, when they’ve run their course, can become blessings. I’ve lived well so far—and I will continue to.”

“Yes, Milady.”

He smiled, like a parent proud of how well a child had grown.

By then, Ramande had come down from upstairs, and Sister Elga entered, brushing the snow off her boots.

“You’re up early, Minuelle.”

Across from me sat a kind knight still haunted by a child’s pain from ten years ago.  

In my arms, I held a warm and snuggly El.  

So, the world was beautiful.

I renewed my resolve once more.

‘I’ll return the power of the spirit, no matter what—then come home.’

I would go on living well, in this beautiful world.

* * *

Up to the last village, the ground had been blanketed in snow. But about half a day after leaving that place, the snow surprisingly disappeared.

Only a cold wind swept across the land, now covered in low grass.

As we entered a region where the grass faded away and ancient mosses blanketed the rocks, the wind turned sharp—like grains of ice.

“You okay, Minuelle?”

“I’m fine.”

Even so, Sister Elga looked worriedly toward the carriage I was riding in.

‘If only I could share the heat burning inside me with the people riding outside in the cold wind…’

It was all I could do to feel regretful.

Thankfully, as we crossed the moss-covered terrain, the wind began to ease.

“This place is…”

The ground was nothing but red earth, and the air felt damp.

As I opened the window to peer outside, the ground suddenly rumbled, and a massive column of water burst skyward in the distance.

“A geyser.”

“How beautiful…”

It was like watching a dragon made of water ascend to the heavens.  

At the same time, it hit me—we were drawing ever closer to the spirit.

But even the wasteland was not the end of our journey.

At first, we saw patches of ice scattered across the ground. Then, soon after, glaciers—larger than our carriage—appeared, making the path narrow and dangerously slippery.

We could go no further by carriage.

Ramande and I put on boots with spiked soles and disembarked. Several knights remained behind to guard the carriage.

“You alright, Minuelle?”

“I’m alright.”

Ramande, just like Sister Elga, asked the same thing.

The moment I stepped outside, the skin left exposed had turned red from the cold, and frost was forming along the tips of my lashes—yet still, they worried for me first.

Thankfully, we didn’t have to walk too long. Before long, Sister Elga came to a stop.

“This is it.”

The entrance to the cave was nestled between enormous glaciers, hidden as though it were a part of them.

“They say the stone sealing the spirit rests inside that cave.”

“Somehow, I expected it to be in a volcano or something, since it’s the fire spirit…”

My belated observation, after trekking through such bitter cold, made Sister Elga chuckle softly.

“They say the hottest flame is often found inside the coldest shell.”

It was something akin to an old shamanic truth, she explained.

After giving me that brief explanation, Sister Elga immediately began giving orders to the knights.

“From here on, Minuelle and I will proceed alone. Priest Ramande, remain here with the knights and prepare for any emergency—”

“Wait, sister. Just a moment.”

I quickly grabbed Sister Elga’s arm and looked around at everyone as I spoke.