GRP Chapter 14

Mariaeks turned her gaze toward the darkened window. Snow clouds obscured the mountain range. The master of Heimdrykze was buried somewhere in that darkness. The black canvas of the window sparked her imagination. She could picture him waking at any moment, calling out, 'Mariaeks.'

But the master of Heimdrykze had been asleep for a hundred years. There were no signs of him waking. Even though she had spent the night in a strange land and greeted the morning, nothing had happened. Yet that fact alone couldn't quiet her unease. This was her first time leaving Heimdrykze, so she couldn't be certain of anything. Mariaeks knew well that the worst situations arrived without warning.

"This is... remarkable."

Garthe's voice rumbled low. He had kept his mouth shut throughout, only listening to their conversation. Mariaeks's fingers twitched.

"You speak so nicely, she seem to think she have the right to refuse."

The cynical, icy words sliced past Mariaeks. Goosebumps rose along the back of her neck.

"Mariaeks."

Despite the gentle resonance, his gaze was colder than the knife-wind blowing outside.

"What do you think will happen if you say no?"

Mariaeks recalled the man's power that had swept through so sharply. That pressure that tried to crush the opponent viciously. As Garthe said, the answer was already decided.

Garthe rose from his seat and approached Mariaeks, circling the bed. Her eyelids trembled.

"Still, you're an honored guest, so I should let you keep your pride. You don't have to answer. So,"

Garthe drew close until he was right in front of Mariaeks's face. A deep shadow fell over her. The man's eyes narrowed as he smiled.

"Just nod your head."

In that moment, an invisible force erupted from Garthe and poured down. Under the crushing pressure, Mariaeks couldn't even breathe. Before she could think to resist, she collapsed forward as if being crushed by the fierce pressure.

The instant Mariaeks bowed her head, the room that had been filled with a gale became quiet. The sharp, whirling force that seemed ready to tear apart body and soul evaporated in an instant. Mariaeks leaned her forehead against the bed, taking ragged breaths.

A rough, large hand lifted Mariaeks's face. Breaking out in cold sweat, unable to properly open her eyes, she had no choice but to lean her face into the man's hand.

Garthe bent down. Mariaeks looked at the man's face as it drew close, but could only let out labored breaths. Garthe laughed shortly and tilted his head. Soon, hot breath and slightly rough lips touched lightly against Mariaeks's cheek. The sound of a small kiss rang out. Mariaeks had seen humans perform similar acts with each other before. It was a greeting of welcome.

"Welcome to this fortress, Mariaeks."

The greeting, which sounded almost affectionate, settled by her ear.

Outside, bells rang at regular intervals. The sound was urgent and sharp enough to put even Mariaeks, who knew nothing, on alert.

"Five times?"

"Yes. It's a large one. And it's been a while since we've had a nocturnal... Anyway, you should go."

"Quite the grand welcome."

Garthe turned and left the room. Samthyeon followed behind him. Thud. The door closed. Mariaeks looked at the closed door, barely supporting her trembling body with her arms.

'What?'

They hadn't tied her up anywhere or threatened her not to escape. They just left. Sitting there alone, Mariaeks stood up when strength returned to her body. The moment she pushed the window slightly open, a cold gust rushed in. Against the dark night, a fierce blizzard was raging. The wind blowing from afar carried a familiar scent. The smell of blood.

Mariaeks's eyes pierced through the night's veil and accurately captured the scene on the streets. People were running about busily. Some were coming out of buildings while others were rushing inside. Large, rough-looking humans crossed the streets carrying weapons as large and rough as themselves.

Among that crowd, Mariaeks found Garthe. She didn't know how she'd spotted him so easily. Garthe, who had been talking to someone else, suddenly turned his head. Their gazes met exactly. Though the distance was very far, in that moment they clearly recognized each other.

She couldn't even think to close the window or roll her eyes to avoid his gaze. There was a strange power in the man's eyes. Whenever those gray pupils turned toward her, Mariaeks felt like prey caught in a trap.

Garthe, who had been staring at Mariaeks without blinking once despite the blizzard, soon turned his head. Then he walked away with the humans. Mariaeks let out a long breath mixed with relief, then closed the window.

Mariaeks moved to approach the door. After staring at the doorknob for a long while, she pressed her ear close against the door. Though she couldn't grasp the details, she could tell the interior of the castle had become unsettled. The bell rang, and the smell of blood lingered in the wind. A battle must have occurred.

Mariaeks recalled the conversation they'd had.

'Large, nocturnal, been a while...'

It meant an enemy of great size, an unfamiliar type. The battle didn't seem likely to end quickly.

'Is now my chance?'

Mariaeks cautiously grasped the doorknob. The cold seeping into her fingertips brought to mind a certain man. The human hero Garthe, who held cold swords in his pupils. Even if he wasn't in the room, the fear she'd felt from him didn't disappear. After hesitating and wavering for a long time, Mariaeks finally removed her hand from the doorknob and returned to sit on the bed.

Swallowing hard from the tension, Mariaeks only then realized her throat was parched dry. Come to think of it, she hadn't drunk any water since entering the human village. Mariaeks fiddled with her roughened lips and looked around.

Garthe's room, which carried a cool atmosphere, was about the same size as Mariaeks's temple. But compared to her space that was quite practical with its food storage, kitchen, prayer room, and miscellaneous storage, Garthe's room had only a bed and nightstand, a table and sofa. There were no bags containing food or jars to quench one's thirst visible anywhere.

As her thirst burned, Mariaeks's sense of crisis gradually deepened. Before dying at Garthe's hands, the possibility of dying from thirst or starvation had emerged.

She couldn't ask the humans for food and water. It wasn't a matter of pride. She thought she had survived entirely because they needed her. If they proposed research thinking she was a perfect goddess, but it was revealed she had an imperfect body...

Mariaeks shuddered. If she became unnecessary, she would die. She had to hide it without fail.

'The longest I've gone hungry was about 30 days, wasn't it?'

Mariaeks counted on her fingers how many days she'd been starving. Roughly eight days. Since Ullri and Baen had taken on the role of bringing offerings, Mariaeks had never starved for more than three days. The stomach-burning hunger she was feeling after so long was painful, so Mariaeks rubbed her belly with her hand.

'I can still endure.'

It seemed she could last at least another week. If she cooperated obediently as the humans wished in the meantime, they might let her wander the castle interior. Since humans lived here, there would be food somewhere, and if she stole a little at a time, it wouldn't be noticed. Mariaeks made plans step by step in her mind.

The problem was water. Having lived in a place covered with snow, she'd never lacked water. Because of that, she didn't even know how long she could endure thirst. One more troublesome point: water couldn't be secretly stolen and tucked into an inner coat pocket. If only there was a protruding section outside the window where snow might accumulate in a gap. When she'd briefly opened the window, she hadn't seen any such place.

Looking around, Mariaeks discovered a welcome object. On the table sat a vase that didn't match the man. It was evidence of someone trying to make this desolate room even slightly cheerful. The colorful flowers weren't real. They were elaborate sculptures carved from wood and painted, but perhaps to preserve liveliness, the vase contained water.

Mariaeks carefully removed the wooden flower sculptures one by one and placed them on the table, then drank a very small amount of water from the vase. Sweet rain fell on a thirst that seemed to parch her entire body. She closed her eyes and exhaled a long breath. She felt like she could live now. It couldn't compare to clear water melted from snow, but it wasn't so terrible she couldn't drink it. It tasted slightly fishy, but it was tolerable enough.

Mariaeks set down the vase and examined it at eye level.

'This much should be... fine.'

The water level showed almost no difference from before. Should she drink just one more sip? The thirst not yet quenched tempted Mariaeks. She barely shook off the temptation by recalling the room's owner's face. That man didn't seem like he'd have any interest in flowers or vases, but in any case, he was a hero who transcended humanity. All his senses, thoughts, and memory would surely be more excellent than expected. It would be better to drink another sip tomorrow or the day after instead.

Mariaeks gazed at the vase with lingering eyes, then replaced the flower sculptures one by one on the table. The arrangement of five flowers and seven plants looked no different than before. Mariaeks wiped away the moisture the flower sculptures had left on the table with her sleeve. Feeling strangely like water stains remained, she wiped harder once more. Still unsatisfied, she wiped again.