Chapter 19
Kendrick made up his mind.
“It’s her birthday today. I’ll talk to her tomorrow.”
He didn’t want to bring up something heavy—like magical beasts—on a birthday.
“Since Maya trains at dawn, I’ll sleep early and talk to her when she wakes up.”
Kendrick, who was always extremely considerate when it came to Maya, thought this way.
But thanks to that very consideration, Kendrick didn’t even realize Maya was no longer in the castle until she left that evening to head into the mountains.
Whether seen from afar or up close, it was a tragedy.
“It was a good birthday.”
As evening approached, Maya bundled up in thick cotton pants and a warm fur vest.
It had been a gift from Alec. Other than being a bit loose, it fit surprisingly well.
The dress that had helped make this her best birthday yet was carefully hung in her closet, and she packed light.
“There are monsters out there I can cook and eat.”
She would be on the move constantly, so the lighter, the better.
The thought of fighting monsters again after so long gave her a slight thrill.
Maya tied her hair back tightly and packed an extra set of thick down clothes, along with the cloak Kendrick had recently given her.
When she stepped outside, she saw Tristan leaning against a wall, waving at her.
“Did you come to see me off?”
That wasn’t really necessary!
“No, I came to accompany you.”
Maya frowned.
“Wouldn’t it be a much bigger problem if the Duke got injured?”
“I won’t be getting injured.”
So he was that confident in his skills.
Maya tilted her head at Tristan’s strange response.
Honestly, she didn’t want to bring anyone along.
She hadn’t even brought Kendrick because she didn’t want to risk putting him in danger, and Tristan, cursed as he was, was an even bigger concern.
“He could turn into a child at any moment.”
Perhaps sensing her thoughts, Tristan offered an explanation right away.
“It’ll be better if I go with you.”
Maya sighed inwardly and spoke gently.
“I know you’re an excellent swordsman. That’s not the issue.”
Wasn’t he the one who led a revolution at the forefront?
That level of skill didn’t just come from nowhere.
Tristan was a bit surprised by her confident assessment, considering he had never shown her his sword skills before.
“I’m not worthy of boasting in front of a Pendragon.”
“It’s not your swordsmanship I’m worried about… It’s that I tend to lose all sense of self when I fight.”
Maya confessed her concern honestly.
Whenever she drew her sword, she risked her life.
Just like when she fought Alec, she didn’t hesitate to put herself in danger if necessary.
But it was different with someone accompanying her.
She would have to care about someone else.
Their eyes met.
“That woman is seriously insane!”
Tristan’s resolve had only strengthened after learning from Alec just how reckless Maya had been during their duel.
“That’s why I must go with you even more.”
He couldn’t take her place in awakening.
“But the power of the House of Beiadon might help.”
He could help ease the pain that came with the awakening.
“I was planning to go out on reconnaissance with Alec anyway—this works out perfectly.”
The Pendragon family wasn’t the only one with special powers.
“The power of the House of Beiadon?”
“Yes, you probably didn’t know since it’s kept a secret.”
If Pendragons were the power of force, then Beiadon was the power of healing.
Unlike the well-known Pendragon line, the healing powers of Beiadon were kept hidden.
Healing was rare, and once known, the public would never stop watching. Beiadon’s secluded lifestyle would be impossible.
But that didn’t mean they turned their backs on people.
The Beiadon family quietly protected people behind the scenes.
One of the reasons the northern lands remained habitable despite the rare support from the emperor and the influx of monsters was due to the Beiadons’ secret assistance.
“You can heal?”
It was a fact Maya had never known, even in her previous life.
“Yes, though it takes quite a bit of energy.”
Maya was speechless. She hadn’t expected this at all.
“That feels a bit unfair.”
She pouted.
“Unfair?”
“You can fight and heal, while I can only fight. If you’re handing out powers, shouldn’t you at least keep it balanced?”
Tristan chuckled quietly, keeping to himself the fact that she was already assuming he knew she was a skilled swordsman.
“Maybe all your power is just focused into your swordsmanship.”
“Hmm…”
Maya nodded. On second thought, maybe that was better than splitting power into healing.
“Then please make a promise with me.”
“What kind of promise?”
“When I fight, no matter how I do it—don’t interfere. It’s my choice and my battlefield.”
The bright and cheerful tone she usually had was gone. Her red eyes were dark, like blood soaked deep into fabric.
She was undoubtedly of Pendragon blood.
“Understood.”
Tristan agreed without hesitation. If he didn’t, she wouldn’t let him come with her.
At the same time, Kendrick’s face flashed through his mind.
“I told Alec to go on reconnaissance with a mage, so it should be fine.”
They needed someone to routinely check on the estate while they were deep in the mountains.
There had been a troubling increase in minor monster appearances lately, even if there weren’t any giant ones.
“By the way… what’s in that pack of yours?”
Maya pointed to Tristan’s pack, which was about twice as full as her own.
“Ah, clothes and food. I figured you probably didn’t bring any.”
Maya flinched.
“Food, huh…”
“Jerky that lasts a long time, dried fruit, and a basic magic tool for purifying water.”
“…You seem to know exactly what’s needed.”
“Yes, reconnaissance is routine in the North.”
Maya felt awkward. It was impressive how quickly Tristan had figured her out.
She still felt like she didn’t know much about him.
This kind yet mysterious Duke…
“Well, shall we go?”
Trying to shake off the awkwardness, Maya fastened her cloak and took the lead.
Tristan, admiring the smooth flow of her fluttering cloak, asked:
“Where did you get that cloak? It’s the first time I’ve seen it.”
“Ah, Kendrick gave it to me as a birthday present.”
“Now that I look again, the stitching’s a bit sloppy.”
“Really?”
Startled, Maya quickly examined the cloak. It was a precious gift from Kendrick—she’d hate for it to be flawed before even using it.
“Maybe it’s just my eyes.”
But to her, it looked perfect.
“I just won’t tell Kendrick.”
Having decided that, Maya briskly resumed walking.
Tristan followed behind.
As they crossed the castle walls and climbed into the mountains, the air turned even colder.
Winter that seeped into the bones.
Snowfall had piled up above knee height. Moving at all was a struggle.
Nothing was easy—not even crossing the rugged mountain range. But there was no time to dawdle.
Their skin turned blue from the biting cold, and they had to keep moving until their limbs were numb.
Eventually, they reached an area completely untouched by humans—the monsters’ domain.
Maya eliminated every beast without so much as flinching.
The only time her expression changed was when she ate.
After two days of fighting, they finally arrived at Lake Urðr.
Even the imperial forces and northern knights had taken ages to locate this place because the snake monster was so far away.
Fighting a giant beast to trigger awakening was good, but there was a logistical step first.
“Lake Urðr.”
The largest lake in the mountain range, deep beneath its surface, lay a slumbering wyvern.
Or rather, it was more accurate to say it was frozen beneath the ice.
Maya knew about the wyvern.
The imperial knights had once tried to capture it, but failed and had to kill it.
The hunt had ended successfully, but the survivors only boasted of their achievements instead of mourning the fallen.
“I’m telling you, I was the one who got that beast!”
She’d heard it so many times it was etched into her mind.
“All that just for slaying a wyvern…”
But now, she was glad for their bragging.
“Because I’m here to catch the wyvern myself!”
Lake Urðr, usually frozen solid all year round and keeping the wyvern sealed safely, had thawed this year.
A sudden shift in climate had made the temperatures across the mountains wildly inconsistent.
The ice had melted—naturally, the wyvern had awakened.
“This is it.”
Finally arriving at the lake, Maya exhaled.
She needed to catch the wyvern and ride it to track down the snake beast.
That was the fastest path to accelerating her awakening.
