The sound of clashing blades had ceased two days ago. Brave Forest was deep, quiet, and merciless. The light filtering through the gaps in the trees was thin, and the ground beneath their feet was a complex tangle of roots and mud. By the time Arnoir Sophia and Milvaan Alru's food supplies had dwindled to just a few strips of dried meat, they had become almost entirely silent. There was a sense of pursuers. They hadn't confirmed it. But every time the leaves rustled, every time a branch snapped, Sophia's shoulders would flinch. They could only keep the campfire small. If the smoke became visible, it would be over. So through the nights, the two of them sat in silence, hugging their knees before the dim red glow. Every time Sophia closed her eyes, the same scene returned to her. The moment an arrow pierced Cross Rain's shoulder. The moment a second one reached his back. That back that didn't stop moving. The moment a third arrow pierced his thigh and he finally stumbled—that voice. "Run! Don't worry about me!" (You took three arrows and still screamed like that.) That voice clung to the back of her ears. She couldn't sleep. Every time she tried, the scene would replay, and Sophia would open her eyes again and again. The dark canopy of Brave Forest. Insects chirping somewhere in the distance. Milvaan's breathing as he slept. Those were the only sounds that filled the nights. But it wasn't just that. The words she had hurled at Rain wouldn't disappear no matter what. —You were hiding your true nature too, weren't you? Every time she remembered that moment, there was a pain in her chest that felt like it was shrinking inward. Rain had told her not to trust Alru, and Sophia had responded with those words. She didn't even understand why she'd said it that way. She hadn't actually thought Alru was more trustworthy than Rain. It was just that in the moment Rain tried to distance Alru from them, something in her chest had stirred. Unable to process that stirring properly, it had come out as the worst possible words. She hadn't apologized. In the end, morning came without her apologizing, they ran into the Iron Crown Brigade, and Rain had held the rear guard alone while taking arrows. She'd heard the words Gard had spat out too. "A mere executioner has fallen for a young lady?" "You're nothing but a tool for killing." And Rain's red eyes—eyes that had never wavered—had trembled for just that one moment. Only when struck by those words. The fact that she'd witnessed that kept smoldering in her chest. "[gentle]Sophia, water," Alru held out a leather pouch. There was something like concern in his water-blue eyes. Sophia took it silently and drank only a small sip. It was cold. Only then did she realize how parched her throat had been. "[gentle]You need to eat," Alru placed a fragment of dried meat in Sophia's palm. She stared at it. Put it in her mouth. It had no taste. Whether it did or didn't, it didn't matter either way. Alru tried to speak several times and stopped. It happened more than once. At first he'd said things brightly—"You'll be okay," "We should be able to get through the forest soon"—but as Sophia's responses grew shorter, Alru stopped forcing words. In a way, that was kindness. Without saying anything more to each other, the second night came. ────── It was the middle of the night. Her foot caught on a tree root. She lost her balance and fell forward. She put her hands down to catch herself, tried to stand—and couldn't. It wasn't a matter of physical strength. Her knees stayed on the ground. She couldn't move. Her hands were shaking. Something snapped. She heard it. In her chest. Something called willpower had run out with an audible sound. A voice came out. It surprised even her. She hadn't thought she would cry. She'd thought crying was weakness. But in the dark forest, kneeling alone, she broke down with a voice. The sobs wouldn't stop. Her breathing became ragged. It was a messy, shameful way of crying, and there was nothing she could do about it. There was a presence beside her. Alru sat down silently next to her. He said nothing. For a while, they just sat there side by side. Then slowly, a hand came around her back. A quiet hand, the kind that simply existed. Sophia continued crying in Alru's arms. She didn't know how much time had passed. When her crying had begun to settle, Alru opened his mouth quietly. "[serious]That person is strong. He's definitely alive," It was an assertion. She couldn't tell if he was speaking from evidence or just trying to comfort her. But there was no wavering in his voice. There was a brief pause. She could hear Alru's breathing. The sound of trees swaying in the wind. "[gentle]...I love you too. You know that already," It was calm. There was no accusation in it. No pushiness. It was simply a confession—he felt this way, so he said it. His water-blue eyes were steady even in the dark forest. Sophia froze in Alru's arms. She tried to answer—and couldn't. (Why can't I answer?) She tried to think, and immediately understood. Because she was thinking about Rain. In a moment like this. While Alru was confessing, what filled her mind was Rain's face, Rain's voice, that back screaming "Run!" while taking three arrows. This wasn't gratitude, she realized. It wasn't dependence either. She loved him. In this very moment, she understood it clearly for the first time. She slowly raised her body from Alru's arms. She looked at his face. He was serious. "[sad]...I'm sorry," That was all she could say. Alru laughed. It was close to a bitter laugh, a slightly painful smile. "[gentle]I know," He looked up at the sky. A few stars were visible through the gaps in the trees. A long silence remained between them. No words of blame, no words of comfort. Just a painful quietness. ────── On the morning of the third day, they emerged from the forest. The trees became sparse, and suddenly the sky opened up. The foothills of the Elda Mountain Range—the long range that ran between Vernard Kingdom and Miltia—spread out before them. The air changed. A drier wind, different from the forest's dampness, struck her cheek. Smoke was rising. It wasn't white. It was black. Black smoke carrying the foul smell of burning wood rose from the direction of a small settlement. They peered from behind the brush. The Iron Crown Brigade—the pursuit unit directly under Prince Vernard Lionel—a dozen or so knights were throwing torches into houses. Flames licked out from the windows. Villagers were being driven into the square. The elderly, women, children. All of them were on their knees with their heads bowed. A single man stood in the center of the square. Gard Vesper. Commander of the Iron Crown Brigade. A man in his forties with many scars on his face, broad-shouldered. The man who had surrounded Sophia in that forest clearing. The man who had told Rain he was "nothing but a tool for killing." Gard grabbed an elderly man with white hair by the collar and threw him to the ground. The sound of the old man hitting the earth reached them across the distance. A muffled, heavy sound. "[angry]Where is she? Where did that woman go? You hid her, didn't you? Speak!" The old man couldn't say anything. Even from a distance, they could see him trembling. Something ran through Sophia's entire body. She had never been to this settlement. Never stopped here. And yet houses were burning. An unrelated old man was being slammed to the ground on mere suspicion that he might have hidden Sophia. Gard's foot kicked the fallen old man's side. The old man let out a short groan. It's all my fault. Sophia tried to stand. Tried to leave the brush. Alru grabbed her arm. "[serious]No!" "[angry]Let go. If I go out there, those people will be saved," "[angry]If you do that, everything Rain risked his life for becomes meaningless!" It was an angry shout, barely suppressed. Sophia had never seen Alru make that face before. His water-blue eyes were shining with a rare, genuine anger. Sophia couldn't shake off Alru's hand. Unable to shake it off, she collapsed to her knees. Both knees hit the ground, and she slammed her fists against the earth. Once, twice. Mud flew. The backs of her hands ached. "[crying]Then what am I supposed to do? I can't protect anyone, I can't do anything—I'm just a villainess, that's all I am," Her trembling voice seeped into the edge of the forest. Alru had nothing to say. There were no words. In the square, Gard was still shouting something. The old man was kicked again. A child's crying voice could be heard. Sophia listened to those sounds while staring at the ground, unable to move. —Then. From the opposite side of the burning settlement, from the edge of the woods, something moved. It had the shape of a human. Stumbling, gripping a tree trunk with one hand, it came forward. One step, then another. One arm hung down, unmoving. His clothes were blackened. Blood. Soot and mud clung to his face. But that short black hair with red streaks running through it—Sophia knew it. The diagonal scar on his right cheek—she knew it. It was Cross Rain. Sophia froze for one second. The next moment, she was running. She fell. Her knees sank into the mud. She stood up anyway and kept running. She threw herself into Rain's chest and grabbed his arm. Rain's face twisted. Pain. The arm Sophia had grabbed was the one with the arrow wound. But Rain didn't cry out. With his other arm, he pulled her into an embrace. "[cold]...I'm late," That was all he said. That was enough. Sophia pressed her face against Rain's chest and called his name. Over and over. He didn't answer, but the strength of his arms was the answer. He was alive. He was here. That was everything. A little distance away, Alru watched the two of them. He was smiling. A painful smile. Nothing more, nothing less. A quiet smile as he turned his gaze toward the mountains. ────── Before her tears could finish, reality caught up. Rain's condition was critical. The arrow in his shoulder had been removed. But the wound was swollen, a dark red color. It was infected. When Sophia placed her hand on Rain's forehead, he was burning with fever. A serious fever. His consciousness was present for now, but he could barely stand, leaning against a tree trunk just to support his body. "[serious]He has a fever. Crossing the pass is..." "[serious]We cross or we die. I know," His voice was hoarse. But it was definitive. His tone hadn't changed. Alru looked toward the mountains. The Elda Mountain Range—if they crossed Caspar Pass at nineteen hundred meters elevation, they could reach the Miltian side. Miltia was a small nation that had signed a non-interference pact with Vernard Kingdom, and once they reached it, the Iron Crown Brigade couldn't touch them. But the problem was. "[serious]There's a settlement that deals in medicinal herbs along the Miltian border. I know the route. If we can get there, we can treat him," Sophia squeezed Rain's hand. It was hot. His fingertips burned with heat. Even without medical knowledge, she understood what that heat meant. If left untreated, he would collapse before they crossed the pass. Sophia looked up. Her tear-filled eyes were now looking forward. (This isn't the time to cry.) Rain had always protected her. On the scaffold. In the river. In the village. In the forest. Now it was her turn. She couldn't just be protected. If she didn't move, Rain would die. That was everything. "[serious]Let's go. We'll circle around the base of the mountain to avoid Gard's unit and head for the pass. Alru, lead the way," Alru looked slightly surprised. But he nodded immediately. Rain looked at Sophia. He started to say something. "[cold]...Hey, do you understand? I..." "[serious]I understand. I'll ask you later," She cut him off sharply. Rain fell silent. The three of them stepped toward the mountain's detour route. Ga