WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 118: Don Quixote’s Reverie (2)

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Morning returned after a dawn full of stars.

Whenever sunlight fell across the snow-covered North, it glittered with particular brilliance.

The sky was clear and the sun beat down, yet the air showed no sign of warming.

A deep breath.

The refreshing cold seeped into the lungs, waking the half-asleep body.

The children who had been living in dreamland only hours ago were now bundled in fur clothes, walking across the pure white snowfields.

“Wow... It’s so beautiful! I’ve never seen snowfields this majestic, this va-vast before!”

“Mm! The snow never melts in the North, no matter the season. We take pride in having the finest snowy scenery in the Empire.”

“I-I didn’t realize because we stayed in the manor all day yesterday, but... now that the sunlight’s hitting it, even the snow flowers hanging from the trees are sparkling...”

“I’m glad you’re so impressed! Do you enjoy sightseeing in unfamiliar places, Miss Alice?”

“I like traveling... Though I’ve never really been anywhere yet...”

The North resembled a field where bouquets of lilies bloomed in full.

Pure white. Blossom after blossom stretched onward and onward, eventually forming one grand spectacle. It lacked the rows of buildings and polished scenery of other major cities, but it held the dignity and grandeur of ancient nature.

The children walked through the northern streets.

“Ugh... It’s cold. Did we really have to come outside?”

“The weather’s clear! This is a fine time in the North! A blizzard is supposed to begin tomorrow morning and last for several days, so we’ll have to stay near the manor. Wouldn’t it be best to experience as much of the North as we can today?”

“Yes, stop complaining. If you really can’t bear it, why not light yourself up with electricity?”

“Can I even do that? No, more importantly, what are you doing here again?”

“How rude. To address the princess of a nation so casually. Show proper respect.”

“You said you were in hiding. Is it really okay for you to walk around so boldly in your true form instead of turning into a bat?”

“A disguise is enough here. There don’t seem to be any powerful people nearby who can see through this princess’s identity.”

“That’s a fucking vague standard...”

“Mm! As a northerner, I’m simply delighted to welcome Your Highness!”

“You’re as lively as ever. That admirable remark was a bonus.”

“Hahaha!”

Perhaps last night’s events had helped.

Ranne no longer looked so absent-minded and had returned to her usual energy.

Her voice brimmed with confidence.

The girl blended smoothly into the group.

“Miss Lua! This is for you.”

“Waa...! A rabbit made of snow! Dad, look at this!”

The group could have become awkward, but Ranne did an excellent job smoothing things over.

She had a talent for helping everyone get along.

That, too, was one of a protagonist’s qualities.

‘She seems to be feeling a little better.’

Viktor watched her with a pleased smile.

‘What a good girl.’

The boy had pushed up the mask he always wore.

Part of his face, including his smiling lower half, was exposed amid the winter scenery.

After showing Carmilla his bare face for the first time, the boy had occasionally removed his mask in front of the other children too.

-Sir Viktor’s face beneath the mask...

-Y-Yes? No! I-I just thought you looked much, much gentler than I expected...

-Sir Viktor’s bare face!

-I believe I saw it during our first meeting.

-Hm. I hadn’t noticed then, but you have a scar on the right side of your face.

-Well... You’re not bad-looking.

-No, I feel like your face doesn’t match your usual behavior.

-Why is this bastard so handsome? If it weren’t for the scar, he looks like he should be wearing priest’s robes...

Everyone had reacted differently.

Of course, it was still rare for the boy to remove his mask in front of them.

It was simply an occasional occurrence.

As he watched the children walking ahead, the boy quietly touched his bare face.

He idly ran his fingers over the burn scar on the right side of his face, then dismissed those stray thoughts and pulled his mask back down.

“Let’s go together, Miss Ranne.”

“Yes! I was waiting for you, Sir Viktor!”

That was how the children toured various places throughout Count Kihano’s domain.

They walked across the vast snowy landscape and strolled through streets lined with stalls.

“Oh, there are street stalls.”

“They’re open even in this cold? Though I suppose this counts as warm weather by northern standards.”

“Good. I should get something hot to drink...”

“Bring one for this princess too.”

“Who said you could order me around?”

The children enjoyed their bustling vacation.

They sampled northern food and had snowball fights in the white forest.

Even those who had initially seemed uninterested soon got swept up in the mood and began enjoying the sightseeing.

“Miss Alice! We’re on the same team, right? We promised to always stick together!”

“Eek... Y-yes! I can’t, can’t be enemies with Sir Viktor...”

“Exactly. Let’s summon the card soldiers right away. We’ll sweep them away with sheer firepower!”

“Hey! That’s cheating! Who uses abilities in a snowball fight?!”

“Miss Cait-Lame used hers too!”

“Haah... Stop fighting so childishly.”

It felt like enjoying a school trip twice.

During the last school trip, they had not been able to enjoy the activities apart from the first few days.

It was as though they were making up for that lost time.

“Ahaha!”

If anyone had enjoyed it most, it was undoubtedly Ranne.

Perhaps it was because she was with her friends in her hometown.

The girl’s expression was especially bright.

-Today, the sky is clear, so the stars seem especially visible!

-Until I left my family home, I used to look at the night sky here every day!

The worries that had clouded her mind the previous night were no longer easy to recall.

A smile escaped her lips without effort.

‘As I thought.’

It was probably thanks to Sir Viktor’s comfort.

Perhaps he had sensed something in Ranne, because he had stroked her head and told her she was doing well.

It felt as if he had seen through her unstable heart.

She was grateful for those words, but she also found them strange.

Ranne had never told anyone about her worries.

Not even her closest retainers, nor her father, knew of the wound festering within her.

‘Did he say that knowing everything...?’

No, probably not.

He had simply encouraged her because she looked down.

Ranne pushed aside those useless thoughts and smiled.

‘Sir Viktor feels like someone who knows everything.’

A reliable person.

Even in the most desperate situation, someone whose presence made her think that things would somehow work out.

That sense of security made her want to rely on him. It felt as if the weight on her shoulders had grown lighter.

With gratitude in her heart, Ranne crossed the pristine snowfield.

‘Sir Viktor is amazing.’

Time passed peacefully.

The problem arose when they were returning to the manor.

They had spent several hours in the snowy mountains and were about to descend for dinner.

“It’s nearly sunset. We said we’d return before dinner, so I believe it’s time to head back.”

“T-Today was... really fun.”

“Mm! I’m grateful to hear you say that. Once the sun has completely set, let’s visit the garden together as well. The night sky from there is truly beautiful. It’s also my favorite place in the family home.”

“I’m looking forward to it. I heard the northern night sky is more splendid than anywhere else on the continent.”

“Of course! You won’t be disappointed. But...”

“......”

“......”

Their chatter stopped, and all the children suddenly fell silent.

They had sensed something.

A snowy mountain, deep within a forest.

It was faint, but there was definitely an unfamiliar presence.

Ranne, who stood at the front, held her breath and asked the group.

“...Did you all feel it?”

“......”

Their silence was an affirmation.

Ranne took a few steps forward and crouched before a tree.

She cautiously reached out and brushed the nearby ground.

When fingers imbued with holiness touched the earth, the hidden trace beneath it reacted.

Sssizzle.

It smoked like a chemical reaction.

The trace darkened and extended a thin tail.

“...Demonic Energy.”

Ranne stated it with certainty.

Demonic Energy... More precisely, it was the trace left behind by something that had passed through.

The pitch-black tail stretched onward, showing where someone had gone.

“The Cult.”

Her violet eyes wavered for a moment.

Then she quickly calmed herself and followed the Cult’s trail like a thread.

“Please, someone contact the manor through a crystal ball.”

“I’m already doing it. I’m requesting emergency reinforcements.”

“Thank you, Miss Caitlin.”

“W-Why would there be traces of the Cult in a place like this...?”

Ranne thought quickly.

They had contacted the manor through a crystal ball.

Reinforcements from the family’s knights would arrive in around forty minutes.

Yet those forty minutes felt far too long to Ranne.

‘There are many homes near this mountain.’

In situations like this, speed was everything in tracking down and suppressing the target.

Considering the civilian casualties that might occur, they needed to move as soon as possible.

‘We don’t know what could be happening right now.’

Waiting for reinforcements could be too late.

But they could not recklessly follow the trail either.

Their opponents were the Cult.

There was no telling what trick might be waiting for them.

That was why the protocol in such situations was to wait for reinforcements, join up with them, and move together.

‘And I have everyone with me.’

She could take the risk, but what about the others?

What if they were hurt because of her stubbornness?

In a situation where everything was uncertain, was it right to drag them into danger?

Wouldn’t it be better to quietly wait for reinforcements?

‘What if we’re too late?’

Should they pursue them now?

Or wait for reinforcements?

The two choices clashed in the girl’s mind without giving way.

Even then, time continued to pass.

Judging by how clear the trail was, the Cult had passed through this place not long ago.

If they pursued them now, they might be able to suppress them before they did anything.

‘What should I do...?’

Tap.

As she stood there in confusion, someone’s hand rested on her head.

When she came to her senses, she saw the boy looking down at her.

He had even removed his mask for the moment, meeting Ranne’s eyes.

“Let’s go, Miss Ranne.”

“......”

“You want to go, don’t you?”

“...But.”

“You can do it. We’re all here with you.”

“Your safety is important too. I can’t let impatience push all of you into danger...”

“Miss Ranne.”

Swoosh.

A hand stroked her as if to say it was all right.

The boy was smiling with his bare face exposed.

“I believe in Miss Ranne’s choice.”

His voice was calm.

“Please believe in us too.”

“......”

The other children seemed to feel the same way.

They did not object. They simply looked at her as if asking what she intended to do.

Ranne’s breath caught for a moment.

“Phew...”

Then she voiced her decision.

There was no time to hesitate.

Grasping the thread connected to the trail, Ranne spoke.

“Then we will pursue them as quickly as possible. Please move quietly, everyone.”

“Let’s go.”

Thud.

The children formed up and crossed the snowy mountain together.

They kept their noise to a minimum while increasing their speed to the limit.

Swoooosh!

Ranne and the others reached the other side of the snowy mountain in only thirty minutes.

They had reached the end of the trail, but nothing was in sight.

“The trail definitely ends here...”

“Did they hide somewhere?”

“It appears the trace was left less than an hour ago. If that Demonic Energy truly came from the Cult, I believe its members should still be nearby.”

“Let’s search carefully.”

The snowfield was unnaturally quiet.

The children examined their surroundings as they moved forward.

As Ranne passed a tree and stepped onto the center of the trail, bright red sparks burst noisily from the ground.

Crackle!

“...?!”

A dark crimson magic circle appeared and stained the ground beneath the girl’s feet.

Ranne had been wary of this situation from the start, but the Divine Power she had deployed as a defensive measure shattered helplessly.

Crash!

Was it because of the magic circle’s immense power?

Unintelligible characters seethed in the air.

‘A trap? Or...!’

It was too late to escape.

She did not even know what effect the magic circle beneath her feet would produce.

First, she needed to surround herself with as many defensive spells as possible and prepare for any possible shock...

“Miss Ranne!”

Grab.

Someone seized Ranne’s arm.

Her body was pulled hard, and her field of vision abruptly pitched downward as she fell outside the magic circle.

Viktor, who had been closest to her, rushed over and forcibly pulled Ranne away.

“Ugh?!”

When she hurriedly raised her head, fluttering black hair entered her sight.

Viktor was being swallowed by the dark crimson magic circle in Ranne’s place.

Crack!

Bright red light swarmed across the landscape.

It surged forward as if it would devour the boy at any moment.

‘Ah.’

For an instant.

It felt as if the world had begun moving in slow motion.

It had only been a moment, but the boy’s lips moved as he looked at her.

-It’s okay.

Crackle!

The dark crimson magic circle vanished completely.

The traces were wiped away cleanly, as if nothing had happened.

The boy who had been caught in it also disappeared along with the magic circle.

“......”

He was gone.

The children stood there blankly.

Ranne had fallen into the snow, staring at the empty ground as she murmured.

“Sir Viktor...?”

No answer came.

* * *

Elsewhere.

The boy opened his eyes in a space covered in ice.

“Niiice.”

The plan had succeeded.

A broad smile spread across his lips.

The boy put on his mask and gripped a pitch-black scythe.

“Now.”

Ding!

[You have entered the nonexistent space, 'Temple of Lumiera'.]

[The apostles, 'Knights of Old Winter,' have detected you.]

[Clear the field and obtain rewards.]

“Dungeon, here I come.”

All right then.

Let’s go get ourselves a ridiculously overpowered item.

Footnotes:

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