MTM 92

As night fell, Reina regained consciousness. She had a dazed expression like someone who had just woken from sleep, completely unable to understand what had happened. Ser and Harto explained to her everything that had occurred without missing a single detail.

The mansion servant brought dinner, and the long story only ended around the time dessert was served.

Reina, who had been quietly listening to the two’s tale, directed a gaze filled with interest toward Harto.

“But I don’t find it strange at all that you’re a monster.”

“Really?”

Normally, when someone hears “monster,” prejudice comes first, so but Harto’s eyes widened and he showed curiosity at the unexpected reaction.

“A soul that should’ve long crumbled now clings to life, wearing the shell of a monster!”

“……!”

But Reina suddenly exclaimed. Harto froze, just like he had in the Feast District.

“Hey, what are you doing? Why are you scaring the kid like that?”

Ser immediately scolded Reina. But Reina didn’t seem to care. Instead, a sinister smile played on her lips, and her purple eyes sparkled.

“I didn’t say it to scare you. That’s just what being a fortune-teller is. We simply convey the fate bestowed by the gods as is, without any personal feelings.”

With that, Reina abruptly stood up from her seat.

“Hmm… What would be good?”

She began to stroll through the annex, taking in the delicate arrangements of pink roses, the vivid portrait of Isadora as a child, the heavy brass candlesticks, the shelves crammed with old books…

Reina, who was looking through each item, picked something up and smiled.

“Why that…?”

What Reina held in her hand was a palm-sized bronze mirror.

“Mirrors are originally tools that reflect fate.”

She sat back down, as if nothing had happened. She placed the mirror on the table, closed her eyes, and gently moved her hands, rubbing the round object. Seeing her intense concentration, the two men couldn’t interfere.

“Ah, I see it!”

Reina, who had been carefully stroking the mirror, suddenly stopped with a shout. She slowly opened her eyes, looked into the mirror, then raised her head and cast a piercing gaze at Harto.

“Harto, do you remember what I said after that?”

“…I remember.”

Reina gave a subtle signal with her chin to suggest that he speak directly if he remembered. Harto, still aware of Ser’s uneasy gaze, cautiously opened his mouth.

“You said… that a sprout was growing in my heart… and told me not to go against fate….”

As Harto muttered in a hoarse voice, Ser glared at Reina. It was a silent scolding, telling her to stop tormenting the poor monster. But Reina didn’t even blink.

“That’s it.”

Reina said, leaning towards Harto instead.

“When that sprout fully grows and takes root, even the fate given to you will not be able to shake you.”

Harto blinked and stared at her, unsure if what he’d just heard was a true divination or just Reina’s words.

Reina smiled and continued speaking.

“So, don’t be too scared. You’re much stronger than you think.”

“……!”

Harto’s eyes widened in surprise. He hadn’t noticed it before, but when he met Reina’s eyes, he felt a warmth.

“…Hey, now that I look at you. Aren’t you just a fraud?”

As a strange air flowed between them, See couldn’t help but blurt out. Reina shrugged and stepped back, letting him think as he pleased.

“Believe it or not. Fortune-telling is something that only those who want to believe in it tend to believe in.”

“Give me that mirror. You just made that up. What exactly do you see?”

Ser picked up the bronze mirror in front of Reina and examined it. As expected, it looked no different from any other mirror. Turning it over and shaking it didn’t yield the same result.

Knock. Knock.

“I’m sorry to interrupt the conversation. It’s getting late, so I’ve prepared a light dessert.”

At that moment, the dining room door opened, and the butler cautiously entered. On the tray he pushed were an adorable tea set intricately painted with flowers and butterflies, and a chocolate cake topped with fresh cherries.

“Wow…”

Ser and Reina’s mouths gaped open. Ser carelessly set down the bronze mirror and eyed the cake greedily, while Reina, admiring the ornate patterns on the tea set, exchanged a few words with the butler.

“This scent…”

Harto also couldn’t take his eyes off the sweet dessert, but suddenly stopped his movements at the familiar fragrance tickling his nose.

“It’s tea brewed from elm tree bark. Even though it’s tree bark, the flavor and aroma deepen as it steeps, making it an excellent tea.”

Seeing Harto’s interest, the butler explained and poured the warm tea into a cup for him. At that instant, Harto felt a surge of emotion.

‘Harto.’

The memory of drinking elm tree bark tea with Zed in the cabin resurfaced. And not just that. Even Zed’s dislike of chocolate, something he hadn’t remembered until just a moment ago, came back vividly.

‘But don’t even think about eating it alone.’

‘W-why…?’

‘…Just. Eat it when you’re with me.’

‘When I’m with Zed?’

‘Yes. I’ll drink tea, and you can eat chocolate.’

Plop, plop…

“Hic…”

Tears dripped from Harto’s eyes. The startled butler quickly withdrew his hand from pouring the tea and stepped back.

“Hey…”

Ser also looked surprised and glared at Reina, finally turning the arrow of blame toward her. Reina, too, flushed red at Harto’s unexpected reaction and flusteredly made excuses.

“I-I mean, that’s what the prophecy showed… What do you want me to do… Didn’t it sound like good words…?”

While Reina rattled off her lame excuses, the butler took out a clean handkerchief and handed it to Harto.

“Th-thank… hic, you…! Waaah…”

Taking the handkerchief, Harto burst into even more sorrowful sobs.

‘I miss you… I miss you so much, Zed…’

That night Harto soaked the handkerchief thoroughly with his tears as he whispered the words he couldn’t say aloud in his heart.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

“That can’t be, how are we supposed to cross the desert in the middle of the night like this?”

Allen grumbled continuously while packing at the inn. It was fine that they had to cross the desert on the way to the Regnovar Empire with the Royal Knights. But crossing the desert at night, when even compasses are useless and it’s hard to navigate by the stars, made no sense no matter how he thought about it.

“They gave me this?”

“What is it?”

Zed, who was loading luggage first into the cargo hold of the modified camel-drawn carriage, handed something to Allen. It looked like a compass, but its surface was engraved with sun and moon patterns, and a long arrow turned in the center.

“They said we can find the way with this.”

“What? No way… Does it tell the sun’s position?”

“Yes.”

“Ha… All that suffering for nothing…”

Allen laughed in disbelief. He hadn’t thought of a magic tool that could track the sun. And since the price was ridiculously cheap compared to what he imagined, realizing he’d sweated buckets chasing the sun during the day without knowing about it was absurd.

Moreover, hadn’t Harto risked his life alone fighting the monster flower to protect them?

‘Come to think of it, Harto suffered the most…’

Allen’s gaze naturally turned to Zed as he thought of Harto. He looked no different from usual. His condition had improved significantly.

‘…I think we’ll be able to find Harto.’

Zed’s eyes had changed now that he had hope of finding Harto. His wounds hadn’t healed, but the bleeding had stopped, and his festering knee had regained function.

In his view, rather than Zed completely losing his power, it seemed like his abilities were temporarily sealed due to the shock of losing Harto.

“Allen! Hurry up and get on, they’re saying we’re leaving!”

“Uh, yes! Got it!”

Snapped out of his daze by Leon’s urging, Allen hurriedly boarded the carriage. As soon as the door closed, the carriages carrying the Royal Knights and the party immediately set off. The procession of carriages sliced through the darkened desert in a line.

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“Captain! The communication orb repair is complete!”

The vice-captain approached the captain, who was watching the departing carriages from Saela, and handed him the mana-infused communication orb. It had broken during the move through the desert and been sent for repair, but it seemed just fixed.

Crackle-.

A violet wave spread from the communication orb in his hand, vibrating. The knight captain immediately activated it. Then, a familiar voice flowed out.

-…Who is it? Can you hear me?

“Huh, yes! It’s me, Commander Isadora! This is Jaron!”

Jaron exclaimed in a slightly trembling voice from tension.

-Ah, Jaron? You’ve worked hard. I received a scroll a bit ago, and it said the communication orb was broken, so you couldn’t contact us.

“Yes, that’s right! Fortunately, it was just repaired, so we can communicate now!”

-Good. You spotted a blond man there, right?

“Yes! That’s correct!”

-What’s his name?

“It’s Zed Shaden! He just left for the Regnovar Empire!”

-Is that so? Then we’ll see him soon.