Published: August 25, 2025
I silently praised Filine, thinking, "Well done!" for successfully getting Roderich on board. Once Filine got off, we would depart. I averted my gaze from the back seat and fastened my seatbelt.
At that moment, Roderich, with a worried, almost pleading voice, stopped Filine as she was about to get off the mini bus.
"Filine..."
"Um, Roderich. If you don’t let go, I can’t get off."
Peeking through the rearview mirror, I saw Roderich gripping Filine’s hand. Filine looked back and forth between Roderich holding her hand and me, who had ordered her to stay behind, wearing an extremely troubled expression.
I let out a light sigh. Roderich must feel more secure with Filine, who had pulled him up and helped him onto the Mount. If that’s the case, Filine can ride along.
"Filine, it’s fine for you to ride along. Please teach Roderich how to fasten his seatbelt."
"Huh? May I accompany you?"
Filine’s eyes widened, and I lightly nodded. I was worried about leaving anxious Roderich alone in the back seat. It’s better if someone stays with him.
"Roderich is not my attendant yet. Although he’s not a knight, he’s a watcher. However, do not ever leave this Mount."
"Understood."
Watching Filine smile happily through the rearview mirror, I began channeling mana into the steering wheel. Since I was holding a water gun in one hand, one-handed driving seemed a bit risky.
"Um, Lady Rosemine, I..."
"Roderich, we’re leaving!"
I cut off Roderich’s words, as if he was about to say he was about to get off, and followed Brother Cornelius, who was the first to leap out, dashing into the air.
We sped toward the glowing yellow ochre gathering spot. It wasn’t far from the dormitory, so through the snowy forest, the cylindrical glowing spot came into view quickly. From the air, I could see the black streak left behind where Tarnis Befaren had passed through the gathering area.
However, I couldn’t see the knights who should have been fighting there. They were probably inside the gathering spot, which seemed to function like a magic mirror.
"We’re breaching!"
Brother Cornelius shouted as he charged into the gathering area. Following the yellow ochre cloak billowing in the wind, I also flew into the gathering spot aboard the mini bus.
In the brief moment of passing through the barrier, the scenery shifted from snowy to completely snowless. But unlike what I remembered, the once lush gathering area filled with medicinal herbs and trees was ravaged by Tarnis Befaren, with roughly a quarter of it decayed. Instead of green plants and brown trees or just bare earth, there was a black, muddy pool.
"...Terrible."
"No one’s here!? Where are they!?"
Brother Cornelius’s voice, full of urgency, startled me. Tarnis Befaren, who had devastated this place, was nowhere to be seen. The knight apprentices were also missing.
"To protect the gathering spot, they must have lured Tarnis Befaren somewhere else. Let’s leave and look for it."
Nodding at Leonore’s words, Brother Cornelius charged out of the gathering spot. I followed him, bitterly thinking about the devastation here.
...We’ll need the healing of Flutlene later. At this rate, the Ehrenfest students won’t be able to gather anything properly.
As I thought this and stepped out of the gathering spot, a rumbling echoed from within the forest.
"Eek!?"
"Ahh!"
"Whoa!"
Surprised voices rose inside the mini bus, and the thunderous sound was so loud I instinctively flinched. I could feel the air trembling against my skin.
"Where is it!?"
Rising high on the Mount, I saw traces of Tarnis Befaren’s movement deep in the forest. A few trees were falling in the distance. From between those trees, the Mount burst out and then descended. Its cloak was bright yellow ochre.
"There it is!"
Rushing deeper into the forest on the Mount, I spotted the massive Tarnis Befaren. As Roderich had described, it resembled a huge dog or wolf. Although it was said to be about the size of an adult on all fours, it appeared two or three times larger.
"It wasn’t this big before!"