---

135. Engagement – Feather

After returning from the hunt, Leo locked himself in his room. Lena asked, “Want to join the great warriors for drinks tonight?” but he declined, claiming he was tired.

‘What’s going on here?’

The monster, Old Phantom Fox, was gone.

With no tracks visible, I had to persuade Lena somehow to go down the valley.

However, in the valley where the Old Phantom Fox must have been…

– Yap! Yap!

There was a family of foxes.

In front of a smaller den, a pair of snowy white foxes growled and bared their teeth.

As the cubs peeked out from the den, wiggling their little heads, Lena clapped her hands, saying they were adorable.

“Wow—so cute. Leo, look! There are babies too!”

Leo felt breathless.

This had never happened before.

It was always Lena who discovered the tracks and alerted the hunting team for a hunt. Last time, they had caught the Old Phantom Fox together, using traps…

[ Achievement: Monster Hunt – ‘2’, weak mana imbues your body. ]

‘Could this have happened because we caught the Old Phantom Fox last time? But why? I’ve killed humans before, and they were just fine…’

Leo Dexter had no way of knowing the mechanism behind the disappearance of the Old Phantom Fox.

Unlike Minseo, he found it hard to grasp this ‘game’ affair. However, he could tell that something urgent was in play.

A war was about to break out. Lena had become a warrior after going hunting, and per the tribe’s convention, being the daughter of a great warrior, she would definitely participate in the war. Then…

Count Hermann Forte.

He would meet the Swordmaster. Minseo believed this was something called an {Event}, an occurrence that would inevitably happen.

“How many are there? One, two… three, right? Ah, they really are cute.”

Lena reached out from a distance, hoping for some interaction, although the wild foxes weren’t about to come up and lick her. Nonetheless, she smiled happily.

“Seems like there was some truth to it after all. There really are foxes.”

“…”

When Leo fell silent, Lena started to tease him.

“You fool. Who told you to believe a senile grandpa? What about those iron spears?”

“…”

“Leo!”

“Uh? Yeah. What?”

“What are you going to do?”

“What do you mean?”

“The iron spears! Bringing them… what? A monster? Grandpa Boris is quite the storyteller! Ugh, what a waste to come down here. Should we head back? Or maybe catch one of those foxes?”

Lena pointed at the fox family, but whether it was a joke or not, they soon started climbing back up the valley.

The modest fox family watched them with wary eyes before disappearing into their den with the cubs.

From then on, Leo couldn’t recall how they finished hunting and returned home. Huddled in his room with a pale complexion, he held his head in his hands.

‘Damn it. Damn it. Damn it.’

The warriors who returned from the hunt with Dehorman were pleased with the good haul, but that was nothing Leo cared about.

What to do about this situation?

This unexpected occurrence wasn’t the first time. Each time, Minseo would find a way to understand and devise a plan.

But Minseo wasn’t here now. Trapped in the memory of brutally killing hundreds of thousands of humans, he was just a shell.

Feeling lost.

As he paced anxiously in the room, Leo Dexter thought for a while and hurried outside. He dashed toward the village square.

Today, the market wasn’t open. In the square, the Ainar tribe’s warriors were industriously butchering the game they caught yesterday.

Certainly, Lena wasn’t there.

It was only natural that the hunting team that had just returned would rest for days while those who hadn’t come back would handle the butchering.

The merchant group was set up in one corner of the square.

Seven carriages lined up in a row. It had already been several weeks since they arrived, having sold all their goods, but the merchants caught in the snowstorm were postponing their activities.

Without needing to ask around, Leo was able to spot the person he was looking for with his {Tracking Skill}. He called out to the warriors lounging under a blanket in an empty carriage.

“Want to go hunt some monsters together? You’re a warrior, right?”

A rather tall female warrior (though still shorter than Leo) sized him up as she spoke.

They were adorned with flashy feather hair ties. He remembered seeing them gathering people to take on the great warriors’ trials when he visited the market previously.

With the sudden arrival of the merchant group and unfamiliar warriors, along with an increase in game… he might not have fully understood what was happening, but Leo felt he grasped one thing:

The Old Phantom Fox was gone.

Thinking back, when they caught the Old Phantom Fox last time, he had seen a long, torn wound along its side.

That healing wound was probably…

Leo noted a pair of battle axes leaning against one side of the carriage and opened his mouth.

“Does that really matter?”

“Not particularly, but… why? You don’t look like a warrior, so why are you trying to take on the trials? Do you even have the skills?”

Another female warrior asked.

With the same black hair, the one with a thicker upper lip was clearly a sister, but this one was smaller, probably a younger sister.

It was funny to judge someone’s age based just on height (since in Leo’s case, even the youngest Prince Leo was the shortest), but there was a sense to it.

“Is there a need for a reason to take on trials? Furthermore, as for skills, I’m more than enough. More than you guys.”

Leo provoked. The warriors who belittled a confident person had no need for humility, especially when skills backed it up.

However, beyond that reason, Leo found himself naturally looking down on those older than him.

“Oh? Then let’s see your skills! You’re built well, but you look so… noble-like it’s hard to believe.”

[ Quest: Noble Slayer 50/50 – {Grace} ability increases by one level. ]

[ Quest: Traitor 10/10 – {King’s Blood} ability increases by one level. ]

Even though it was building up in odd places, the younger sister chimed in.

“Sis, we agreed to test everyone together. Hey, come at noon when the ‘Blue Moon’ rises.”

“…I don’t know when that is.”

Warriors from the north often counted days based on the color of the moon.

Simply put, it was the lunar calendar.

But with just one moon, there was a unique aspect where the color changed daily.

Though it varied with phases like the new moon, waxing crescent, full moon, waning crescent, and dark moon, the colors alternated between blue and red periodically.

Since the early days of the Achaia Kingdom, after the solar calendar was established, so-called civilized people had stopped counting the days based on the moon’s shape and color.

But the barbarians, especially the northern warriors, projected their superstitions onto the moon’s color. They referred to a blue full moon specifically as the ‘Blue Moon’ and used it as their date reference.

“Looks like you’re not a warrior after all. It’s the day after tomorrow. Other warriors are gathering too, so let’s see what you got then. If nobody is impressive, it’ll just be brushed off. People can decide whether to go or not…”

I agree. I wouldn’t want to deal with their lackluster skills either. Leo nodded and asked.

“Before that, I want to ask you something. Do you know where the monsters are?”

“Of course. Isn’t that why we’re gathering people? You’re asking something obvious.”

The sister shrugged her shoulders.

“Where are they? It better not be too far.”

“Not too far. I saw it on the way here. It’s three days out, and it’s called ‘Spirit Reindeer’. Quite the sight to behold. Oh, and just to let you know in advance, we’re taking the antlers—we need credit for finding it.”

“Alright. I’ll come back the day after tomorrow. Can I bring one more person?”

“Sure. But only five can participate in the great warriors’ trial. You can only take three with you.”

Leo turned away without responding.

At least they found the monster. He assumed there would be plenty of monsters in the north and hoped to find at least one more, so it was a relief.

No, wait. There’s no time to feel relieved. If the Old Phantom Fox’s disappearance was indeed because they caught it last time…

A chill ran down Leo’s spine.

*

“What? You want to take on the great warriors’ trial?”

Lena, sprawled on her bed, blinked sleepily and asked back.

Now a respectable warrior of the Ainar tribe after her first hunt, she had drunk heavily last night.

She had been cautious around her mother before, but that was no longer necessary, and Lena celebrated her ascension as a warrior by drinking with her father, leading to her current state.

“Aww—my head. More importantly, Leo, get me some water. Why is Dad making me drink so much? Other great warrior uncles did the same. They poured two cups next to me as if just for me to drink…”

Leo was somewhat flabbergasted by her complaints. ‘Isn’t it your fault for not refusing?’ he thought to himself while going to fetch her water.

Now was not the time for games.

After drinking some cold water and regaining her senses, Lena said,

“Suddenly saying you want to take on the great warriors’ trial, what kind of nonsense is that?”

Leo explained the situation.

Not able to discuss anything about the impending {war} yet, he told her about the warriors trying to take on the trials at the merchant group, but Lena suddenly interrupted.

“Are you saying that because you couldn’t catch a monster last time? You tried to set a trap with iron spears, but traps are prohibited in the great warriors’ trial. It won’t be easy. We don’t know their skills.”

“I thought they looked okay? Let’s go catch monsters. Huh? What’s so big about the trial? If you take on the great warriors’ trial right after becoming a warrior, you’ll definitely be revered as a legendary warrior…”

Despite speaking negatively, there was a way in Lena’s tone that Leo could take advantage of.

Fortunately, Lena appeared interested in the great warriors’ trial.

Perhaps it was because of the drinking session with the great warriors of the Ainar tribe, including Dehorman, the night before.

The great warriors must have offered her encouraging words, and she must have felt quite pumped.

Of course, it was likely that her newfound confidence came from not having seen any monsters yet.

Having seen the Old Phantom Fox in the last cycle, Lena had expressed concerns even after being told how to catch it through traps.

Catching monsters is tough. Though they did it twice, Old Phantom Fox had known how to hunt, while Aboandone had two knights, making it possible. In both cases, traps were used.

So a trial without traps would be much harder.

Lena could get hurt, or I could die.

‘But…’

If we can’t catch the monster, we’ll have to go to the battlefield. There, we would surely die.

Leo Dexter’s persuasion continued.

Just like Minseo had done before, Leo weaved sweet words, and intrigued, Lena’s ears perked up.

“Alright. But first, I need to see what kind of friends you’ll be doing the trials with.”

Having successfully piqued Lena’s interest, Leo let out a sigh of relief.

Just as Minseo had often done, he let out a deep sigh filled with worries and frustration.

The constraints of the cycle.

The threat of death.

For Leo Dexter, while different, similar constraints loomed over him.

This time, perhaps he could catch the ‘Spirit Reindeer’ and avoid the {war}. But what if that monster disappears in the next cycle? What then?

Just like how the {Priest} event leading to the monastery was forced in the childhood friend scenario, it seemed unlikely to escape the war any longer.

Then what will happen to the next Lena Ainar and me…

At that moment, Lena grabbed the worried Leo Dexter’s hand. She led him to the backyard and called for a spar.

It seemed she had some insights after her hunt…

Of course, she was no match for him and was easily defeated.

Lena pouted, forgetting her hangover, and started training again.