NB Chapter 9

'I'll look for it while packing.'

Magnolia finished off a chunk of bread and spooned up the remaining soup. When Magnolia's meal ended, Gale cleared the empty bowl and spoon to the edge of the table and sat back down across from her.

"Which inn are you moving to?"

"Well, I'm thinking of going up a bit higher."

Gale, who had been watching Magnolia pack, brought over the sword he had been keeping by his bed and examined the blade.

"Let's buy some oil if we stop by the weapons forge again. I used up what was left today."

"Really?"

Magnolia, who had been struggling to fit everything into one bag, finally succeeded in closing it.

Rosemary's letter was folded inside the bag. The thorough Gale, unlike herself, must have packed it away. Magnolia folded the letter once more, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and placed it with her clothes.

After checking that the dagger in her breast was secure, Magnolia turned to look at Gale.

"We might get to use our swords for once in a while."

Magnolia muttered as she looked down at the floor.

Like most inns, the soundproofing wasn't particularly good, and thanks to the innkeeper's excellent cooking, the first floor was always bustling during meal times.

Today Magnolia had slept in, but there were quite a few people leisurely eating breakfast at the inn. It meant it should still be busy with people having their morning meal. But she couldn't feel the usual commotion from beyond the floor.

In the unusually quiet tension, Magnolia heard heavy footsteps echoing.

Multiple sets of them.

"...Will we need to use them?"

Gale, who had also noticed the suspicious sounds from downstairs, asked quietly while adjusting his grip on his sword.

"If they came for their own business that has nothing to do with us, then we won't need to..."

Several people were climbing the stairs in an orderly fashion. The regular footsteps of well-trained knights.

Those footsteps stopped in front of the door to the room where Magnolia and Gale were staying.

"It seems they have business with us, so it'll depend on what that business is."

Three people. Magnolia held up three fingers. Gale handed his sword to Magnolia.

Gale could fight without a sword, but Magnolia was weak at hand-to-hand combat. Since she was much better with a sword, it was better for Magnolia to have it.

Knock knock. The sound of knocking seeped into the room where tense silence had settled.

Gale pointed toward the window with his finger as he approached the door. Magnolia quickly moved to the window and peered outside. A large carriage was parked in front of the inn, and about seven or eight armed knights were standing guard around it.

'It looks like a noble's carriage.'

Magnolia looked puzzled at the large, luxurious carriage, but when she saw the crest carved on it, she drew in a sharp breath.

It was a coat of arms with a wolf depicted on it. Anyone from the Titania Empire, even commoners, would know who the coat of arms with the wolf represented.

Aster of the Northwest.

Magnolia's mind raced.

'That' Aster ducal house had come looking for them! Magnolia was silently horrified.

Aster was the oldest and most noble family among the aristocracy. They were founding contributors and the family that protected the empire from the beasts, the only threat currently menacing the Titania Empire.

They were the emperor's most cherished loyal subjects, whom no one dared treat carelessly, aristocrats who even appeared in the founding mythology.

What business could Aster have with them?

Then suddenly, a thought flashed through Magnolia's mind.

'...No way.'

Magnolia recalled several words from the conversation she'd had with Gale at the inn's dining room yesterday evening. Coward, weakling...

She doubted it, but Magnolia and Gale had no connection to Duke Aster that would warrant such suspicion.

'Just because we talked behind his back a little... No, how would they even know about that? Was there an Aster knight in the dining room?'

Besides, there was someone else who had insulted Aster at the time!

'Nobles have their petty sides.' The words Zycklint had once grumbled came to mind. Magnolia shuddered and shook her head. In the sudden situation, her thoughts had gone in a strange direction.

Knock knock knock. The knocking sound came again.

"We were told you are in your room."

It was a deep, mature voice that showed his age.

When Magnolia, who had been looking out the window, shook her head with a grim expression, Gale clicked his tongue quietly.

"...Who is it?"

"Excuse me. Would you please open the door for a moment?"

"State your business."

"We've come to see Miss Magia."

At those words, Gale and Magnolia froze instantly. Their eyes met, mixing slight fear and bewilderment. Magia was the false name Magnolia had given to the owner of Schmidt's shop.

If they had come with knights bringing up that name...

"Could they be people sent by Clark?"

Magnolia whispered. Gale glared beyond the door.

They had been careful both when sneaking into Ivy Academy and when escaping, but they hadn't expected to be able to completely fool the nobility. There was a possibility that their descriptions were known.

Magnolia glanced at Gale's face. Gale, who was staring straight ahead, had a cold expression.

'He must be cursing up a storm inside.' Once this situation passed, Gale would definitely grab Magnolia and lecture her for half a day.

Finally, as if he had organized his thoughts, Gale nodded to Magnolia and grabbed the door handle. Magnolia moved stealthily to stand by the door hinges.

Magnolia, gripping the sword handle, gave Gale a quiet look. Gale slowly opened the door.

"What do you want?"

Gale spoke with the door slightly open, showing only half his body. Behind an elderly man dressed in a neat suit, two armed knights stood with their hands behind their backs. The corridor was so narrow that with just the three of them standing there, there was no gap to spare.

The old man scanned Gale's face and then moved his gaze as if examining the inside of the room beyond Gale. Magnolia, who had been hiding behind the open door, tightened her grip on the sword.

After briefly looking around, the old man met Gale's eyes and smiled gently.

"We heard from the innkeeper that two people would be in the room. Where might Miss Magia be..."

"Why are you looking for that girl?"

Gale interrupted the old man and asked back. Displeased with that impudent attitude, one of the knights behind the old man frowned and glared at Gale. Gale boldly met that menacing gaze. So what.

The old man himself didn't seem particularly bothered by Gale's attitude.

"We understand you visited Schmidt's shop yesterday afternoon."

"So?"

"We came at this early hour, taking the liberty of confirming the contents of the telegram the owner sent."

"You said you'd send a telegram to the craftsman, but are you the craftsman?"

Gale looked over the old man's neat suit and spoke sarcastically.

"You said it would take about a week, but you came rushing here personally in just one day. I'm overwhelmed."

The knight's patience reached its limit.

Knight Atelman shifted his body weight slightly forward and spoke through gritted teeth.

"We just want to confirm what needs to be confirmed and leave. I don't know why you're being so sharp."

A skilled knight gives off an intimidating presence just by standing with force.

While Atelman's subtle threat might have made someone cower, Gale's face was even nonchalant.

"After bringing knights?"

Gale's eyes, which had been examining Atelman's armor, stopped at one point. He could see the crest on the pendant fastening the cloak draped around Atelman's shoulders.

Rose vines and a sword. The same crest as on the dagger.

For a moment, his mind lurched. Gale held his breath shallowly to keep his breathing from becoming rough.

Clark? Had they come from the Clark family?

Gale's bleak eyes quietly stared at Atelman. Atelman glowered.

He was showing hostility toward Gale. But that was all. His animosity came from Gale's attitude. It was far too light to be directed at the killer of his young mistress.

If they had found out the descriptions of Rosemary Clark's killer and suspected that they were the culprits, they would have drawn their swords immediately upon seeing Gale without saying anything.

Whether these people were from the Clark family or not, at least their descriptions weren't known.

Relieved, Gale's wariness subsided a little. He reflexively looked at the knight next to Atelman. The uniform and cloak fastening method he wore was slightly different from Atelman's. A wolf crest was visible near the center of his collarbone.

A gray wolf. It was a famous crest. Wasn't Duke Aster the best-known noble in the empire?

...Duke Aster's house? Gale unconsciously frowned slightly.

An Aster knight had come with a knight presumed to be from Clark to look for Magnolia. Why?

Gale examined the old man's expression. The wrinkled face was only peaceful, with nothing readable.

Veins stood out on Gale's hand gripping the door handle.

"What exactly do you need to confirm that requires bringing knights?"

"We would like to confirm directly with Miss Magia."

"Tell me."

"Since it's an important matter, we'd like Miss Magia to confirm it directly."

"That girl is shy. Don't make a big deal out of it. What do you need to confirm?"

The old man looked at Gale quietly.

The wary eyes that had been examining him since he opened the door. The attitude that seemed to be hiding something.

Gale was being overly cautious and careful. Like someone who had done something wrong.

If Magia was the person he was looking for, the old man had to prioritize her safety above all else.

Gale's behavior in not wanting to show her didn't seem positive at all. The old man changed the direction of the matter toward subduing Gale.

The old man cleared his throat with a ahem.

At his signal, when the knights were about to draw their swords, the sound of steel rang out first from inside the room. The old man looked down at the sword blade pointed at his throat.

White hands gripping a sword were visible around Gale's waist area.

Magnolia had drawn her sword one step ahead and pointed it at the old man between Gale's body and the open door.