"Philip, can you create a suitable backstory for her? You’re great at making up stories."
"Of course. Don’t worry. The hardest part is over, so the rest should be easy. This is a clever plan. We no longer need to avoid inspections."
Philip smiled, then lowered his voice cautiously. “But are you really sure about this? I’m asking again because I’m concerned. Given your conditions, this journey will be very tough for both of you and Charlotte.”
“I’m fine, Philip,” said v.
“ too. This is just a minor injury,” Charlotte said, clicking her tongue.
Ian looked down at his own hand instead of replying. In truth, his condition was far from good. He could barely move and felt as if he would fall asleep if he closed his eyes. Ideally, he needed a few more days to recuperate.
“My lord...?” Philip prompted.
“I can rest while we travel,” Ian said nonchalantly, withdrawing his gaze. “I noticed that the roof of the carriage looks comfortable.”
“I’ll take charge of the guard duty for now. I’ll ride the horse, so you can focus on resting, Ian,” v added resolutely.
Charlotte, holding her glass, looked at her. “We’ll take turns. Sitting in the carriage all the ti would drive crazy.”
As v t her eyes and faintly smiled, Thesaya suddenly leaned forward. “What about ?”
“Don’t even think about riding a horse, you pointy ear. Especially since you can’t fight anymore,” Charlotte replied firmly, gesturing toward Philip with her chin. “Your place is on the coachman’s seat, so discuss it with him.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Charlotte,” Thesaya said sweetly, her tone refined like a noblewoman’s. She t Charlotte’s frown with a leisurely smile. “How can I, an elder of the Aynas family, sit in the coachman’s seat?”
“...Damn it,” Charlotte sighed, bringing her glass to her lips.
Satisfied, Thesaya nodded and stood up.
“The coachman’s seat is yours. I’ll ride in the carriage or on a horse. Now, I’m going to bed. Wake when it’s ti.”
Thesaya gave a slight bow to Ian and walked over to lie down on the bed.
She’s in high spirits.
While Ian was thinking this, Charlotte, having set down her glass, stood up to pull Thesaya out of the bed.
Ignoring the commotion, Ian took off the ring from his finger and handed it forward.
“Get everything ready for departure, Philip. Load plenty of drinks for the journey. Ones that won’t spoil.”
“As you command,” Philip took the ring and stood up, adding, “Do you have any ssages for the residents of Glumir? They’ll be heartbroken if they wake up to find us all gone. I can leave a ssage with the stable keeper if you like.”
"Of all things..." Ian scoffed, pausing briefly before grabbing the glass in front of him and saying, "We haven’t saved Lu Sard. It just overca one hurdle, but a greater darkness is coming."
Charlotte and Thesaya’s voices suddenly fell silent. The smile disappeared from Philip’s face as he alternated his gaze between Ian and v’s stoic expressions. Finally, he bowed his head deeply.
“I will convey every word.”
The next day, the group left the city as planned. They departed quietly, just as they had entered, before dawn had even broken.
***
The carriage carrying the group veered off the main road and headed south to avoid being seen as much as possible until they crossed the border. The imperial carriage offered a decent ride, even on unpaved paths, comparable to the wagons of the Libra Trading Company or those built with the utmost care by the northern folks.
Of course, the ride quality wouldn’t have made much difference to Ian, who had fallen asleep the mont they left the city. Everyone insisted he rest inside the carriage rather than on the roof, making the carriage interior his domain. Instead, Thesaya, Philip, and Charlotte took turns on the roof.
Ian did not wake up for an entire day. He briefly opened his eyes for one al, only to climb back into the carriage and cover himself with a blanket right after eating. He did not wake even when the group fought off a goblin horde in the middle of the night, resembling a bear in hibernation.
During this ti, the rest of the group carried out their roles with no issues. After about a day and a half, they began conversing freely, confident that the noise wouldn’t wake Ian.
“There’s sothing I’ve been curious about.”
“Go ahead. What is it?”
“What’s it like living as a vampire? Is it very different from how it is now?”
“It’s very different. It’s hard to describe exactly. One thing I can say for sure is that now is much better, especially in terms of not being hungry.”
Most of the chatter was between Philip and Thesaya.
“You an the hunger for blood?”
“Yes. I was always hungry and thirsty. Drinking blood only kept from starving, but never made feel full. Now it’s clear that what I thought was fullness was just not being thirsty.”
“Always hungry and thirsty... That must have been an unbearable urge. It’s amazing you endured it.”
“If your life depended on it, you’d endure it too, freckles. Anyway, I have no regrets. I got to taste Ian’s blood in the end.”
“You drank… lord Ian’s blood?”
“Yes. It was the best taste of my life. at and wine are good, but they don’t compare. I’ll never forget it. Why are you looking at like that?”
“...You don’t still have the urge to drink blood, do you?”
“Caught . You’re sharper than you look, Philip.”
“....”
“I’m kidding, so don’t point that ring at .”
Thesaya was naturally growing closer to the new mbers of the group. She was bonding not only with Philip but even with v. She was learning to read and write from v and even getting beaten up by her during nightti training sessions.
“Just wait...! I’ll repay everything you’ve done to one day.”
Thesaya, after v’s rapier disard her, rubbed her sore wrist and spat out. Though she no longer got hit in the face, the irritation was clear in the blood vessels popping around her eyes. Sliding her rapier back into its scabbard, v smiled.
“You’re a quick learner. Maybe in five years, you’ll actually land a hit on .”
“Five years? You’re joking, right? That’s not a complint!”
“No, I’m serious.”
“But we’ll part ways before then.”
“Yes.”
“....”
“That’s unfortunate, pointy ears. But if I help, you might shorten that ti.” Charlotte, who was stoking the campfire, chid in. She smiled, showing a hint of her fangs.
“Just let know anyti. I’ll help you with all I’ve got.”
Thesaya scoffed. "Dream on, cat. Do you think I don’t know you’ll use that as an excuse to beat up? I’ll just run away if you co after . That’s what I do best."
"...." While Charlotte clicked her tongue, Philip interjected with a curious smile.
"Then what about ? After my arm heals, of course."
"No offense, freckles, but I don’t think I’d lose to you either."
"You never know until you try, right?"
"You’re confident. Fine. Once you’re fully healed, challenge . I’ll accept it."
"It’s not exactly a challenge..."
"Philip is skilled in both swordsmanship and shield techniques," v comnted, nodding, then turned to Thesaya.
"There’s definitely sothing to learn, Thesa."
"But I’m not really interested in shields."
"Why not?" Philip frowned.
Thesaya shrugged. "No one uses them except you."
"No… That’s only because these people are exceptional. Shields are excellent for both offense and defense—"
"They look weak."
"—in so ways, they’re the best— What did you say?"
"But if you beat , I’ll let you teach ."
"...." Philip, who had been gaping, finally turned to Charlotte.
"Now I understand why you always said that. She really has a knack for turning people inside out."
"It’s a fairy nature," Charlotte added nonchalantly.
"That’s right. And I’m the fairy among fairies."
"And also an ex-demon."
"Indeed. As Ian would say..."
Suddenly, Thesaya’s gaze snapped to the darkness beyond. For a mont, her eyes filled with blood vessels and her pupils dilated.
"Monsters."
"Again?" Philip frowned at the whisper.
"Yes. Similar to yesterday. Small and cute ones."
"You’re the only one who’d think they’re cute," said Charlotte, clicking her tongue.
Charlotte and v rose to their feet simultaneously.
Philip, climbing onto the carriage with Thesaya, muttered, "An attack two nights in a row. Even though we left the main road... This is definitely abnormal. It might be the Vampire Queen’s curse, as Ian suggested. Otherwise, maybe the monsters are gathering now that the vampires’ influence is gone."
"What does it matter? Redhead and the kitty will take care of everything."
Thesaya lightly jumped onto the edge of the carriage roof and perched there.
"We just need to guard the carriage. Make sure Ian doesn’t wake up."
Soon, various sounds emanated from the darkness beyond. The clashing of tal and the distinctive screams of monsters followed. Philip, sitting in the coachman’s seat, murmured nonchalantly.
"Looks like that won’t be an issue."
As he said, not a single monster reached the vicinity of the carriage.
***
“By the way, Charlotte.”
It was already the third day. Thesaya, sprawled out on the roof of the carriage, suddenly spoke up.
Charlotte replied without even turning around, “Don’t call by na. Go play with the guy next to you.”
Thesaya glanced at Philip, who was dozing off while sitting, and shook her head.
“I’ve heard everything I wanted from freckles by now.”
“So, you want to entertain you?”
“I didn’t notice before, but you seem to have gotten bigger.”
“...What nonsense is that now?”
"It’s true. Of course, you looked a bit stupidly muscular even before."
“Hmm....”
Finally, Charlotte looked down at her own body and growled.
“I don’t feel any different.”
“Well, I can see it clearly.”
“...!” A voice from inside the carriage caught Charlotte’s attention, making her turn her head. Thesaya, dangling her upper body over the side of the roof, peeked into the window on the carriage door.
“When did you wake up, Ian?”
“Just now.” Ian, still lying down, replied briefly, looking at Charlotte sitting in the coachman’s seat.
“You’ve gained a lot more muscle in the past few months. Your body might have been trained to the extre.”
“There were tis when my ax felt lighter than before....” Charlotte mumbled, looking at her large hands. Ian chuckled softly.
“That’s good. When you return ho, you’ll need to take control of your tribe.”
“...!”
“From what I know, you guys don’t listen to the weak. Is that not true among your kind?”
“Of course not. It’s only natural that the strong one holds all the rights. Yes... Maybe I really can beco the leader of my clan....”
While Charlotte was lost in thought, v approached the carriage on her horse and asked, “How are you feeling, Ian?”
Ian, who had sat up and leaned against the backrest, replied, “Sowhat better.”
He felt no dizziness or headaches, and his body no longer ached. He finally felt like himself again. Philip, who had poked his head through the window opposite Thesaya, smiled upside down at Ian.
“That’s a relief. Please rest. The journey has been uneventful.”
“If you want it to stay that way, stop saying it’s uneventful. Every ti you say that, sothing happens.”
“Yes, sir.”
“On that note....” Ian glanced around at the eyes staring at him from all directions and finished his sentence in a lazy tone. “I’d like to continue resting now.”
v and Charlotte turned their gazes away, and Thesaya and Philip quickly disappeared back onto the roof of the carriage.
Finally, the scenery outside the carriage ca into view. As he pulled out jerky and a bottle of alcohol from the bag on the floor, Ian took in the surroundings. Though they had traveled quite far south, the sky was still overcast. The trees hung lifeless with drooping leaves, and the air, though warm, felt heavy.
It seems the end of Chapter Two is near.
Ian’s eyes dimd as mories of the ga flashed through his mind. Though he had caused significant changes, the main course of events likely hadn’t shifted.
With the Empress carving new rifts into the world, the tiline might have even sped up. He had no expectations that the nobles of Glumir and Lu Sard would heed his warnings. Even if they did, any changes would be confined to Lu Sard. The war would continue until the madness of the Black Wall engulfed the entire frontier.
What can’t be helped, can’t be helped.
Thinking this, Ian took a swig from the bottle and leaned his head against the backrest. He kept his eyes fixed outside the window, but his gaze remained locked on sothing only he could see: the status window.
Resignedly, he skimd over his stats, which hardly resembled those of a mage, and finally, his gaze landed on the skill window. This was the main point.
...I’ve managed to hold out for quite a while.
He intended to use his skill points. Staring at the sprawling skill tree, various deferred conflicts played out in his mind: the increasingly clear strengths and weaknesses of each attribute, the limited points, and his already chronic lack of Mana.
“....”
After pondering these unresolved issues, Ian learned a few new spells. He didn’t touch any common skills or Vision skills, yet nearly half of the points he had accumulated were gone.
“Whew....”
He sighed softly as he closed the status window. He couldn’t shake the feeling that his character was even more ruined now. It wasn’t entirely wrong; he had once again spread his points across various attributes. But there was no turning back. He was already too far gone to be considered a proper mage, so he had no choice but to see this path through to the end.
Stopping halfway is worse than not starting at all...
Taking a few more sips of alcohol, he reached into his pocket dinsion. Soon, a sinister-looking sword in an ill-fitting scabbard appeared.
As his hand gripped the middle of the scabbard, the black sword’s malevolent thoughts transmitted through to him: hatred and anger. But unlike before, it didn’t imdiately bear its fangs at him.
It seed to have learned sothing.
With a slight smirk, Ian finally opened the information window.
[The Black Sword of the Third Apostle]
It had been a long ti since such a unique-grade weapon had appeared.
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