Kaon had just stepped out the door when he ran into Alessia. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise before she spoke first.
“You’re out early…”
Kaon didn’t wait to hear the rest of her sentence and brushed past her, heading for the stairs. His face was flushed as he descended the steps with large, purposeful strides.
“……”
“……”
At first, he couldn’t believe it. The sensation of the wind brushing against his exposed lower half was too surreal.
But the towel lying on the floor brought him back to reality. Without even thinking to cover himself with the towel in his hand, Kaon slowly picked it up.
“…I didn’t see anything.”
“What do you mean, you didn’t see anything?”
“……”
The rest… he didn’t even want to remember.
It was the first time in his life he had felt such humiliation. Kaon wished either the ground would swallow him up or he could disappear into the sky—anything to escape his existence at that moment. Of course, neither happened.
By the time he reached the entrance hall, his brisk steps had turned into a slow shuffle. Madeleine, who had just come in from outside, greeted him with a cheerful expression.
“Young Master Kaon! You’re up. Breakfast is ready; you should eat. Lady Alessia will be down soon too, so it’s perfect timing.”
“No thanks, Madeleine. I’ll eat with the knights.”
Kaon flinched at the mention of “Lady.” If there were words he wished would disappear from the world right now, they would be “Lady,” “Alessia,” and “Ingelos.” If they could all vanish, taking him along, he’d want nothing more.
“Young Master, did you have a fight with Lady Alessia?”
“A fight? No, nothing happened.”
Kaon shook his head at Madeleine’s cautious question. Even Madeleine, who was usually slow to notice such things, had picked up on it, which meant he must have been showing it quite clearly. But since they hadn’t actually fought, he couldn’t say they had. What could be the cause if this was a quarrel? An unintended exposure of his lower half? The resulting psychological damage?
Kaon let out a short breath, feeling a headache coming on. Thinking about that unpleasant memory from the morning was giving him a headache. He quickly left the mansion before the source of his headache could come down.
***
The one-sided cold war continued for some time. Meanwhile, the atmosphere in Ferdinand grew colder, and the biting wind howled through the bare trees.
The snow that began to fall in the early evening had piled up so much by the next dawn that stepping into it made one’s feet sink deeply. Unable to sleep due to memories of that night coming to him in nightmares, Kaon woke up early.
He immediately went to see Koda. With winter setting in, Koda’s house had been newly renovated. A straw pile was layered on the wooden roof, covered with old cloth, and thick blankets were laid on the walls and floor for insulation.
On particularly cold days, a soldier who liked dogs would take care of Koda in his quarters, making it a perfect setup for winter.
“You’re sleeping well.”
Thanks to this, Koda was snoring deeply, unaware that his master had come to see him. Wrapped in a cozy blanket, he looked quite content.
Kaon almost reached out to pet Koda’s fluffy fur but stopped himself. He didn’t want to wake the peacefully sleeping dog. Instead, he watched Koda for a while before standing up.
With each slow step, the crunching sound of snow underfoot echoed through the quiet surroundings. Kaon took a deep breath of the early morning air. The crisp, cool scent of winter filled his lungs.
And then, Kaon’s mood soured instantly. The biting winter wind brushing against him felt eerily similar to that day. Frowning, he headed towards the knights’ quarters.
The snow showed no signs of stopping. Despite already piling up, it continued to fall heavily. It was just fluffy snow for now, but if it kept accumulating, it would become dangerous. If the wind picked up, it would turn into a blizzard.
“I guess we won’t be able to go on patrol.”
Unlike the original monsters that saw nothing as an obstacle, the mutated ones rarely ventured out during snowstorms. On such days, it was difficult for people to be active as well, so it was actually a good thing.
“Young Master, you’re out early.”
“Is today’s patrol canceled?”
“It’s not confirmed yet, but it seems likely. If we do go out, I’ll send a soldier to inform you. For now, assume it’s canceled and please let Lady Alessia know as well.”
“Understood.”
As Kaon entered the building, he encountered a sentry. The sentry’s role included monitoring the weather and reporting to the captain, who seemed to be contemplating the unpredictable conditions. Based on past experience, they usually didn’t go on patrol on days like this, so the decision would likely be finalized soon.
There was still plenty of time to go back to bed, but Kaon picked up his sword instead. Lying in bed would only lead to unnecessary thoughts, so it was better to move his body and clear his mind.
Kaon spent the early hours practicing swordsmanship alone, returning to his room only when morning had fully arrived. Alessia’s room was still quiet, indicating she was still deeply asleep.
“Al…”
It was almost time for her to wake up anyway. Kaon had intended to wake her and inform her that the patrol was canceled, but he closed his mouth. She usually visited the training grounds before morning patrols, so someone would surely inform her.
A part of him harbored resentment, thinking, “If only she hadn’t come in at that moment…”
Though he knew it wasn’t entirely Alessia’s fault, the embarrassment and humiliation of that day were too much for him to bear alone.
So, Kaon decided to blame someone else. It was a petty act, but it was all he could do. After all, the most it would cost her was a trip to the training grounds and back to her room—not a significant inconvenience.
With that, Kaon rewarded himself for his early morning efforts with a sweet sleep.
***
Kaon woke up feeling refreshed for the first time in a while and went to the window. Although the sun had risen, the heavy snowfall made the sky look dark.
As expected, no soldier had come. The patrol was canceled. It was a relief, as going out on a day like today would surely have led to accidents.
“I’m hungry.”
Feeling his stomach growl, Kaon thought about heading downstairs. Then he realized that it was unusually quiet beyond the curtains.
“She must have gone to eat.”
But that was unlikely. He had slept in late, well past lunchtime.
“The training grounds? The library? She must be somewhere.”
Kaon tried to convince himself it was nothing. In Ferdinand, they were thoroughly educated about the dangers of patrolling in bad weather. Weather safety was a crucial part of their training. Alessia Ingelos was a model student, so she would surely remember.
Trying to reassure himself, Kaon stretched and left his room. Just then, he saw Lily, a maid close to Alessia, in the hallway.
“Lily.”
“Yes, Young Master Kaon?”
“Is Alessia in the dining room?”
Kaon tried to ask as casually as possible, expecting Lily to tell him that Alessia was spending her time well.
“Lady Alessia? I thought she was in her room… I haven’t seen her today.”
But Lily’s response only heightened his anxiety. Kaon hurried to the training grounds.
“Kaon, you’re here?”
“Niels, have you seen Alessia today?”
“Isn’t she resting? Has anyone seen Lady Alessia today?”
Kaon didn’t waste any time and directly asked about Alessia. Niels, looking puzzled, asked the same question to the other knights. Responses indicating that she was not present came from all directions.
“Damn it.”
“Kaon?”
Ignoring the voice calling him, Kaon turned on his heel. As soon as he stepped out of the building, large snowflakes began to fall heavily onto his head.
The eastern forest could only be reached through a path leading out from the back gate. Rushing towards the back gate, he saw multiple footprints in the snow. They must belong to the soldiers. They had to.
“Young Master, what brings you here?”
The gatekeeper asked, looking puzzled at Kaon’s sudden appearance. The back gate was firmly closed.
“Has Alessia come this way?”
“If you mean Lady Alessia, she hasn’t come this way.”
“Where is the other guard?”
“He was assigned to clear the snow in front of the main entrance. On a day like today, if we don’t clear it in advance, it becomes a big problem. It’s enough for me to guard this gate alone today.”
It was a reasonable explanation. The only ones who used the back gate were the knights going on patrol, so on a day like this, there was no need for extra manpower. It was more efficient to divide the tasks.
It seemed like he had worried for nothing. Kaon thought he would just check the library and that would be it. He left a word of encouragement and turned to leave but then noticed that the snow in front of the gate was thinner than in other places.
“…Have you opened the gate at all today?”
“Yes, we opened it briefly in the morning. It didn’t look like the snow would stop anytime soon, and if we left it, it would be hard to clear later. It’s easier to clear it while there’s less snow.”
The Ferdinand castle, boasting a long history, had most of its structures built in the old-fashioned way.
While the main gate had been updated decades ago to a new system using pulleys to raise iron bars, the back gate still used the old method of pushing a thick wooden door. Since only knights used the back gate and no one lived near it, there was no need to renovate it.
“Did you leave the gate unattended at any point?”
“I did go inside the castle briefly because I urgently needed to use the bathroom… but it was no longer than 10 minutes. Actually, it was probably less than 5 minutes. Did I do something wrong…?”
Kaon’s expression grew serious. The gatekeeper, seeing Kaon’s grave face, asked cautiously, but Kaon didn’t respond. He didn’t have the mental capacity to do so right now.
“Open the gate.”
“Pardon? Right now?”
“Push it, right now.”
Kaon started pushing the gate with urgency, and the gatekeeper, feeling the urgency, also put all his strength into pushing the gate.
“Hah…”
After a moment, the gate opened, and Kaon saw footprints leading towards the forest.
🍉🍉🍉
