CHAPTER 56……………………………..
. Why Are You Looking at Me Like That?
A woman came gliding toward me, soft as if she were sliding across ice.
She wore a wide, lace-trimmed dress — the kind that didn’t belong in a place like this.
Her face, framed beneath a deep navy hood, shone even brighter against her pale skin.
And she was of the same Ice Maker bloodline as Cedric — the one I killed.
“……?!”
She came straight up to me.
Under her long lashes, white, pure eyes fixed on mine —
So intently that it almost made me uncomfortable.
“L–Lady Sirina?! What’s the matter…?”
The soldier following behind her asked cautiously.
But Sirina didn’t answer.
She didn’t even seem to hear him.
“You.”
Still staring straight at me, she spoke.
“What are you?”
A question, pure and innocent as a child’s.
And then — those white eyes staring at me…
“Hmm?”
“……?!”
A sudden split — her pupil tore vertically, another sharp, serpentlike eye gleaming in its place.
“What the—?!”
“Lady Sirina!”
At some point, Günther had hurried down to us.
When he spoke, Sirina’s eyes returned to normal.
…A hallucination?
No. It had been brief, but I was sure of what I saw.
Günther seemed unaware, bowing his head repeatedly as he spoke.
“T–This man is a mercenary employed by House Beinhelm… a member of Three Coins, codename Gold.”
“Three Coins? Gold? You mean—like gold coins?”
Sirina tilted her head, still not taking her eyes off me.
“Unusual name.”
“We’ve been expecting you, Lady Sirina.”
The other lords followed Günther’s lead, approaching her.
Hartmund bowed slightly, and the others followed suit.
“The night air is chilly. Please, come inside.”
Roger, who’d been frowning moments before, now wore a smooth, practiced smile as he stepped forward.
The soldiers accompanying them cleared a path for the lords.
Sirina stood still for a moment, then turned toward them.
She glided into the fortress as gracefully as she had approached me —
Though this time, her pace was slower.
“…What on earth did you do?”
“…Nothing at all.”
Günther whispered in a bewildered tone, but honestly, I hadn’t done a thing.
It was her who had acted strangely.
“For now, just stay put. No more fighting, understood? No, even if you don’t understand—just do it!”
After barking the order, Günther rushed back into the fortress with the others.
“Do you know her?”
“Of course not. First time I’ve seen her.”
“Maybe love at first sight, then?”
Ronan joked without smiling.
I grimaced.
“The one who fell in love…”
I couldn’t shake the image of that snake-like second eye flashing in Sirina’s gaze.
“…wouldn’t look at someone like that.”
* * *
Günther didn’t leave the fortress until almost midnight.
By then, under the command of his aide, the Beinhelm encampment had been set up, and we were resting in our tents.
Günther entered our tent with his aide.
“My head’s spinning.”
“Then you should get some rest. Why come here?”
“I came to tell you tomorrow’s schedule—and to explain a few things you probably don’t know.”
“Things we don’t know?”
“Yes. About our… situation.”
He clasped his hands, sighed deeply, and spoke.
“To be honest… I don’t even want to attend the banquet.”
His voice was low, heavy.
“I’m only going to avoid drawing Valhar’s suspicion. If we fall out of his favor up here in the North, we won’t survive. I just… want to return safely to my lands. The rebellion can go to hell for all I care. All that matters to me is Myla and my people’s safety. Hiring you was merely a gesture—a token of sincerity…”
He glanced at Ronan, who sat with his arms crossed.
“…But I didn’t expect you to defeat the North’s strongest swordsman.”
His gaze turned back to me.
“Nor did I expect you to catch Sirina Ice Maker’s eye.”
“That’s hardly our fault…”
“I know, I know.”
Günther quickly replied, sighing again.
“In any case, other lords will keep a closer eye on us now. They’ve seen what you’re capable of, so try not to stand out any more than you already have. Especially—don’t cross paths with Sirina Ice Maker. She’s Valhar’s only daughter, you understand?”
“Only daughter? He has no other children?”
“He has a son—Cedric Ice Maker. He’s in charge of Fort Icerock. Some say he’ll be the next heir, but… I don’t think so. Sirina’s the real power.”
“Still, wouldn’t it usually pass to the son?”
Ronan tilted his head.
“Her mother’s family is the Mordis clan—the richest house in the North. Most of the mercenaries roaming the North now were hired with Mordis money. Honestly, you’d have been paid more if you’d signed with them.”
“What a pity.”
“Cedric’s maternal line, House Eyrbalt, has lent Valhar some troops too, but the one truly at his side is Sully Mordis.”
“And who’s that?”
“Sirina Ice Maker’s mother.”
“Ah.”
“Anyway, once we leave for Icecrown tomorrow, stay quiet. Got it? That’s an order from your employer!”
With that threat, Günther stormed out of the tent.
Watching his retreating back, I let out a small laugh.
Sorry, but I already had plans to move tonight.
* * *
The dark hours before dawn.
Ronan was sleeping like the dead.
Hog was snoring like thunder.
Leaving them both be, I lay still on my bed and whispered:
“<Body stands still, mind flows on—walk the unseen path.>”
I chanted the spell.
“”
A mind-based spell that manifests consciousness into mana.
Whoom.
A mist of mana escaped my lips, taking form in the shape of myself.
In this state, anyone with low mana sensitivity couldn’t see or sense me at all — as if I were air itself.
Only those with exceptional sensitivity, or with detection magic, could perceive me.
And even then, if my mastery was higher than theirs, I’d remain unseen.
Meaning—no one here could possibly see me.
Those tattooed spell-users who relied on runes instead of study didn’t have mana senses worth mentioning.
Confident, I drifted through the air and slipped out of the tent.
Fabric, stone — none of it mattered to a spirit form.
I passed through walls and entered the fortress.
Like most spirit magic, Astral Walk drained mana rapidly over time.
So I had to find Sirina quickly.
Whoosh.
Moving through walls, I scanned the people inside.
The lords were in their tents with their men; only Ice Maker soldiers remained within the keep.
Passing through their quarters—
…Found her!
Sirina lay in the largest chamber of the fortress.
I floated through the door to her bedside.
With her eyes closed, she looked like an ordinary girl.
But I hadn’t used this magic just to look at her.
『Contractor casts magic.』
『Contractor’s will: Appraisal activated.』
Whoom.
I raised a translucent hand above her face, letting mana flow to sense what was behind those eyes…
Then—
Sirina’s hand shot up and gripped my wrist.
…?!
She could grab a spirit form?!
Her eyes — when had they opened?
“You. What are you?”
That serpent’s gaze gleamed again.
“How did you get in here?”
Maybe it was natural she could see me if she could touch me…
Still, she squinted, as if trying to focus her sight.
So did I.
I narrowed my eyes and studied those strange pupils.
“Reveal yourself.”
Her voice turned cold as the air itself froze around us.
Even in spirit form, I felt the chill.
And then it hit me — I realized what her eyes were.
Whoosh—
I dispelled Astral Walk instantly.
My spirit body scattered like smoke, and my mind snapped back into my flesh.
Ronan still slept quietly, Hog’s snores booming as ever.
I opened my eyes and sat up slowly.
“Ha… damn…”
I covered my mouth, letting out a breathless laugh.
“Dragon’s Eyes… seriously?”
* * *
“…It disappeared?”
Sirina frowned, scanning the room.
Nothing there.
“How strange…”
She tilted her head, blinking.
The slit pupils merged together, returning to round, milky-white eyes.
“But it was there…”
There was no way she’d imagined it.
Not with these eyes.
Dragon’s Eyes.
They let her see things others could not—
How many runes a person carried,
What magic was inscribed within them,
Sometimes even their thoughts, emotions, desires.
Just like before—
She had seen light no one else could see.
A blue radiance, glittering like jewels.
“Three Coins… Gold…”
She recalled the man whose chest had glowed with that light.
It wasn’t ordinary mana.
Inscribed mana never shone so vividly.
The blue light within him had sparkled like sunlight shattered upon the waves.
Drawn to it, she had found herself standing before him.
“…?”
Why was he on her mind now?
Could it be that the intruder just now… was him?
Sirina slowly shook her head.
Whoever—or whatever—it had been, it wasn’t human.
If it had been, she would never have missed it.
…What was that thing?
Maybe a ghost—or a spirit.
After a while, Sirina exhaled softly and lay back down.
She didn’t want to stay awake.
Her Dragon’s Eyes had sensed danger and opened on their own again.
It wasn’t the first time.
After so many assassination attempts, she knew the signs.
…Sometimes, she thought dying might be easier.
Biting her lip to keep from trembling, she thought:
She had never once wanted the Dragon’s Eyes.
Nor life itself.
Those things were all—
“You have to accept it, Sirina.”
Her mother’s voice.
“It’s the only way you’ll survive.”
The will of Sully Mordis.
