DTBTHS Chapter 19

The worry wasn't excessive.

Ariadne would collapse in the middle of walking, or nosebleeds would suddenly stream down while she sat still.

Before winter ended, she went outside the castle once and immediately fell ill, her fever rising alarmingly.

As a result, the people of Snowstorm Castle came to treat her more carefully than fragile glassware.

The attending physician Zailyn said Ariadne was still improving, though.

The exhaustion and pain came from her body focusing on recovery, leaving little strength for anything else.

"That's why I keep saying we need a priest. The young miss is in a state where she simply lacks the stamina required for healing itself. For situations like this, divine power is the answer."

Zailyn sang the same song daily: priest, priest, priest.

Now the entire castle eagerly anticipated a priest's arrival.

At least the blizzards had stopped, so a priest should visit soon—that much was fortunate.

Ariadne ended up clutching a magically-heated hand warmer while wrapped in a blanket over her coat.

"My Lord, you know the young miss will be in serious trouble if she catches a cold wind, right?"

"You must be careful."

"It's different from when Young Master Erich was little."

Even that wasn't enough—the maids kept nagging the Margrave.

The Margrave chuckled and nodded, then gestured for everyone to step back a bit. He needed to summon his spirit beast.

Cold air rose around him like heat shimmer.

The leaked cold gathered snowflakes and whirled into the shape of a massive leopard.

"Snowstorm."

The Margrave called the spirit beast's name and extended his hand.

A leopard with a snow-white body covered in black spots rubbed its head against his hand.

This snow leopard was an ice and wind spirit beast born from the blizzards that struck near the castle, and the spirit beast 'Snowstorm' that Weaver family spirit knights had ridden for generations.

Ariadne stared at the spirit beast acting affectionately toward the Margrave with fascination.

She'd seen an ice bird-form spirit beast during the previous incident, but she'd been too distracted to examine it properly then.

Much larger than an ordinary leopard, the spirit beast's entire body glowed faintly. Light powder scattered like fairy dust with each movement.

'So this is a spirit beast. I'd never mistake it for a normal animal.'

This world's spirits were classified into three tiers.

Spirits, spirit beasts, and greater spirits.

Spirits were essentially nature itself. Collective life forms born randomly within nature, possessing neither individual ego nor specific form.

Among these spirits, occasionally a strong spirit with self-awareness was born. These had concrete forms and possessed will and emotion.

However, they lacked intelligence, so their forms generally resembled animals. These were called spirit beasts.

And spirits that possessed not only ego and form but intelligence as well, dwelling in magnificent nature—these were called greater spirits.

'Greater spirits are what I'll need to deal with going forward.'

Mages used ordinary spirits without egos to cast magic.

Spirit knights contracted with spirit beasts and wielded them like extensions of their own bodies.

Spirit mages did neither—they didn't use ordinary spirits like mages, nor did they contract with specific spirit beasts like spirit knights.

Spirit mages in this world opened 'channels'—pathways between themselves and multiple greater spirits—and borrowed the greater spirits' power.

The more greater spirits one connected with, and the larger the channels' scale, the stronger one became.

'Come to think of it, there's a greater spirit right there too.'

Ariadne looked up at the towering mountain behind Snowstorm Castle.

The world's highest mountain, Raaratschua.

That mountain was the territory and body of the greater spirit, 'Crown of Eternal Snow.'

Greater spirits' names typically derived from the territories they inhabited. Crown of Eternal Snow was named for the year-round snow covering the peak like a crown.

'If I become a spirit mage later, will that greater spirit connect to my channel too?'

Connecting with a greater spirit near Snowstorm Castle would help monitor the castle's safety.

She remembered the moment she could do nothing while watching the morning glory vines wither. She wanted to become a spirit mage quickly.

"Ariadne?"

The Margrave, already mounted on the spirit beast, called her with a questioning tone. Ariadne stopped thinking and hurried to her uncle.

"Come, let's go."

The Margrave settled her in front of him and lightly patted Snowstorm's neck.

Uuuuu. The massive leopard let out a low cry and began running as if flying.

The spirit beast's cry, mixed with wind, sounded similar to a blizzard tapping against windowpanes.

Soon they arrived at a hill overlooking the road to the castle.

On the hill stood a checkpoint and guardhouse. The guard watching from the guardhouse recognized the lord's spirit beast and saluted.

"Hold tight."

The Margrave whispered. Simultaneously, Snowstorm leaped high and landed lightly on the guardhouse's highest roof.

"They've come quite far already."

The Margrave looked down at the road. Ariadne's eyes couldn't see anything yet. Only grassland with patches of melted snow stretched endlessly.

When she craned her neck and peered about, the Margrave added with a laugh.

"It'll be a bit longer before you can see them."

"Ah, yes."

Ariadne nestled into the Margrave's embrace, fiddling with the bear-shaped hand warmer the Archmage had made while she waited.

Before long, a group glinting silver appeared at the road's end.

Knights in white armor rode spirit beasts of various forms—wolves, cattle, foxes, elephants, and more.

Some large spirit beasts pulled carriages, while flying spirit beasts circled above the knight order.

Suddenly, a horse shot forward from the knight order's vanguard.

A pitch-black, massive horse. It approached at tremendous speed, shaking the ground.

'Wow, a horse made of metal. Like a locomotive.'

When the mounted knight approached, the guard rang a bell.

"The subjugation force has returned!"

The checkpoint gates opened wide. The Margrave moved Snowstorm and leaped down in front of the horse. The horse, which had been passing through the checkpoint without hesitation, stopped short upon seeing this.

"I've returned... my lord."

The young woman sitting on the metal horse greeted him slowly. She appeared close to girlhood in age but wore a knight's armor.

The Margrave, receiving the greeting, frowned.

"Did you rampage again this time, Veronica?"

"Yes... a little."

The knight called Veronica answered half-heartedly.

Ariadne squirmed out of the Margrave's embrace and looked toward the woman.

'Oh.'

She barely swallowed the groan that nearly escaped.

The woman with jet-black hair and black eyes like her spirit beast was covered head to toe in blood. Her white armor appeared black from dried blood.

Feeling Ariadne flinch in surprise, the Margrave clicked his tongue.

"You could have washed off the blood before coming."

"Ah, this... I cut a monster wrong on the mid-slope, but it was bothersome... I'll wash at the castle..."

Veronica, who'd been scratching her head with gauntleted hands, suddenly froze.

She'd belatedly noticed Ariadne nestled against the Margrave.

Veronica's eyes, which had been half-closed as if sleepy, widened.

"Uh, um... my lord, what's that...? Is that thing alive?"

"Watch your words. She's my niece."

"You had a niece...?"

"I definitely informed you by letter. Didn't you hear?"

"Oh, oh, it's moving, wow, it's really alive..."

Veronica, who'd heard the Margrave's words with one ear, jumped down from her spirit beast.

"Cute... small..."

She fixed her gaze on Ariadne and approached with a swaying gait. Her appearance was ghostly.

'Sh-she's a bit scary.'

As she drew closer, the smell of blood stung Ariadne's nose. The Margrave furrowed his brow and waved his arms.

"Where do you think you're going in that state? Go bathe immediately."

"Ah... yes."

Veronica drooped her shoulders glumly.

Meanwhile, the main force had completely passed through the checkpoint.

An emerald eagle in the sky descended. Before it even landed, a red-haired woman jumped down from it.

A tall, middle-aged woman. She smiled broadly at the Margrave.

"Ern, it's been months. Have you been well?"

She was the Countess and commander of the Snow Leopard Knights, Seliana Quiselas.

"Seli!"

The Margrave, who'd left Ariadne on the spirit beast and jumped down, approached her.

They embraced each other, kissed lightly, then pressed their foreheads together and laughed.

"You're quite passionate the moment you see each other. Anyone watching would think you were newlyweds."

A boy in mage robes grumbled as he dismounted from the landed eagle.

The spirit knight who owned the emerald eagle that had carried them both laughed and replied.

"You're pleased though, aren't you?"

"Pleased about what?"

"Isn't it good for children when their parents get along well?"

"They should get along moderately. It's a wonder I don't have younger siblings."

The boy irritably swept back his silver hair, then noticed Ariadne sitting on Snowstorm.

"What's this tiny thing? Why is it riding Father's spirit beast?"

The boy glared at her with a fierce expression. He clearly knew nothing about her.

'Uncle said he definitely sent a letter, but it didn't get through?'

Before Ariadne could respond, Veronica, who'd been standing blankly, suddenly spoke.

"Cute."

"That's cute?"

"Small..."

"Do you think anything small is cute? Does that really look cute to you?"

Veronica nodded while staring at Ariadne with vacant eyes. The scowling boy looked Ariadne up and down and snorted.

"She's ugly. So skinny with only those hollow eyes all big—she looks like a skeleton."

Veronica turned to look at him. She spoke in a slightly angry tone.

"You're... not cute."

"Who asked to be called cute?"

"That child is cute, and you're ugly..."

"Hey! Are your eyes crooked?"

Thanks to his brilliant silver hair and delicate features, the boy was beautiful like a sculpture carved from snow. His face couldn't be called ugly even as a lie.

The boy, well aware of his own appearance, bristled and objected.

"Where exactly am I ugly!"

"Your heart..."

"What? How dare you—there's nothing you won't say to your future lord!"

"If you become lord... I'll quit. ...Anchovy gizzard."

Veronica, who'd tossed out the insult in her slow manner of speech, mounted her spirit beast and drifted away.

"What did you just say! Hey! Hey!"