MTM 32

Early morning. There were no guests in the first-floor dining hall except Harto and Zed. The two sat facing each other and ate quietly. On the table were a large baguette with strawberry jam and cheese, and a steaming tomato meat stew that Zed had ordered as an extra dish.

“It’s delicious…”

Harto had a slightly blank look on his face. He looked much better than yesterday, but he still seemed drowsy.

Even so, he ate well. He tore a large bite of the hard baguette crust and chewed it thoroughly. Maybe he was afraid someone might take it away, because he held the baguette tightly in both hands like a squirrel.

At some point, Zed forgot about eating and only watched Harto eat.

“…Hm? Zed, aren’t you eating?”

Harto, who noticed it late, asked him carefully.

“Is the bread too hard, maybe…?”

“Hard?”

Zed had not even touched the baguette, so he asked Harto in return.

“Yes. A little. Give it to me, I’ll tear it for you.”

Harto brushed the crumbs off his hands and reached toward Zed’s baguette.

Tap.

It was at that moment, two wooden cups came down between them. It was Jackson. He set the cups on the table and spoke in a calm tone.

“Drink. It’s fresh milk, just brought from the farm we trade with.”

“Really?”

Harto’s eyes widened. In this world, dairy products were considered precious, so he picked up the cup without hesitation.

Jackson looked at Harto with satisfaction and almost put his hand on his messy hair, but he froze. He felt cold air blowing from somewhere.

When he turned his head because, his eyes met Zed’s. His whole body stiffened and a shiver ran down his spine.

“E-enjoy your meal.”

After those words, Jackson quickly disappeared toward the kitchen.

“Wow. It’s so rich and creamy…!”

Harto licked the trace of milk from his lips and exclaimed. Zed immediately changed his expression and showed the kindest smile in the world.

“Then you can drink mine too.”

“Ah, no…! That one’s yours, so you should drink it. But why aren’t you eating? You’re not feeling sick, right?”

Harto’s large eyes, filled with concern, turned toward Zed. Just seeing that made Zed feel as if he were full.

“Harto. We have somewhere to go early today.”

Zed spoke about today’s plan instead of answering.

“Really? Where?”

Harto didn’t seem to mind much, and he dipped a piece of baguette into the milk. It must have tasted good, because he clenched both fists and shuddered.

“The cathedral. I don’t know if I can get inside, but there’s someone I need to meet.”

“The Bellancia Cathedral? Hmm…”

Harto chewed the bread in his mouth and covered his lips with his hand so others couldn’t see as he whispered.

“Is it a mercenary comrade, maybe?”

“Probably not.”

“Probably not?”

The answer sounded suspicious. What did that mean?

Harto, curious, still dipped another piece of bread into the stew. The meat was already gone, but there was leftover sauce in the bowl and he wiped it with bread.

He didn’t know why Zed had to go to the cathedral, but he thought anywhere Zed went would be fine.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

Before heading to the Bellancia Cathedral, Zed stopped at the Norbel Market and bought a dagger. It was small enough to be used for peeling fruit or carving wood.

“Can you take that to such a place?”

It wasn’t just anywhere, it was a sacred cathedral, and Harto wondered if carrying a weapon there was fine.

At his question, Zed led him into a narrow alley and called him.

“Stand facing the wall for a moment.”

“Okay.”

When Harto stood facing the wall as Zed told him, his cloak lifted slightly. Before he could even wonder why, Zed’s hand touched his backside under the cloak.

“Huh…?”

Before Harto could react, Zed pulled his hand back and covered him again with the cloak.

“It’s done.”

“What was that?”

Harto rubbed his hip with his hand, embarrassed. He felt the dagger Zed had slipped into his back pocket.

“What’s this for?”

“It’s nothing special. They’ll search bodies at the cathedral, that’s why.”

“Search bodies? Then shouldn’t I not bring this kind of thing?”

“You’re fine.”

“……?”

Even when Harto looked confused, Zed didn’t explain and just walked ahead.

Harto followed and nudged him to tell, but Zed only teased him to guess.

Tap, tap, tap.

The road to the cathedral widened, and carriages and carts loaded with goods moved in confusion. Unlike yesterday, there were few people, so they walked freely, but Zed pulled Harto’s shoulder.

“It’s dangerous. Walk this way.”

Zed pushed Harto to the side where no carriages passed, and they walked side by side. Harto smiled softly as he looked at him because he knew that even though Zed’s tone sounded harsh, he was actually very gentle.

Maybe that was why. Harto suddenly thought of last night and opened his mouth.

“Zed… but you know.”

He was about to bring up what Jackson had said about Ares Carseon’s disappearance, but he stopped for a moment.

‘Why would a monster care about that?’

He remembered Zed’s reaction when he had asked that question back in the cabin. But that was before they were close like now. Zed didn’t call him a monster anymore and used his name instead. If he asked Zed about Ares Carseon now, maybe Zed would tell him kindly.

“What is it? Is it uncomfortable because you put something in your pants?”

“Ah! No. It’s just that… yesterday, I fell asleep before I even noticed that you came back… so, I felt sorry about that…”

In the end, Harto didn’t ask what he originally wanted to and gave another reason.

“Oh, that’s all? You were tired yesterday. It made sense that you’d immediately fall asleep.”

“Yes… I was really tired…”

When Zed spoke with a gentle smile, Harto nodded. Even he didn’t know why he had stopped himself from asking.

‘I feel like I shouldn’t ask Zed about Ares Carseon…’

Maybe it was because he hadn’t slept well last night and couldn’t think clearly.

But Harto hadn’t slept soundly the night before, unlike what Zed thought.

‘D-disappearance…?’

Ares Carseon, the main character of the novel and the one fated to take his life as the villain, had been missing for three years. Who could sleep peacefully after hearing that?

When Harto heard from Jackson that Ares Carseon had disappeared, he couldn’t believe it at first. He only thought, ‘Why?’ No matter how often Ares was threatened by assassins, it was certain that he wasn’t someone who would die so easily.

Ares Carseon had so much holy power that he had to make offerings at the cathedral, and he was also a prophet with the ability of foresight.

Maybe something had happened to the protagonist that he didn’t know about, because the novel only covered up to three months before the world’s destruction.

But no matter how much he recalled the contents of the story, there was nothing like that in the protagonist’s past. There had been a few mentions of the past, but they were only about Carseon, his late mother’s homeland.

There could be something else he was missing. It was impossible to remember every single sentence of such a long novel.

‘No way… did he die…?’

Harto started to feel anxious. If that was really true, then what would happen to him, the villain? Could he escape his doomed fate like this? Then how would the story continue?

His head became a complete mess. Because of that, Harto kept waking up through the night until morning came. He wanted to rest at the inn, but he didn’t want Zed to notice.

“We’re here.”

While Harto walked lost in thought, Zed suddenly stopped.

“This is it.”

When Harto lifted his head, the entrance of the Bellancia Cathedral, radiating solemn majesty, stood before them.