***

    “Ruel-nim.”

    At Cassion’s voice, Ruel opened his heavy eyelids.

    It was still dark outside the tent, suggesting the sun hadn’t risen yet.

    “There’s an urgent message.”

    Ruel stared at Cassion with half-closed eyes.

    “Treitol Kran is currently heading towards the delegation’s procession.”

    “What?”

    It felt like a thunderbolt waking him from sleep; he couldn’t comprehend the words.

    Ruel blinked.

    He placed his palm on his forehead and felt heat radiating from it.

    “Treitol Kran... you say?”

    His mind was still sluggish from sleep, making it difficult to think.

    “Treitol Kran is approaching the procession of the delegation.”

    “Right now?”

    “Yes. We’ve been monitoring Treitol’s movements. He’s taking a different route than usual, which confirmed our predictions that he’s heading toward the delegation.”

    Ruel quickly sat up, urgency washing over him.

    Leo, who had been sleeping beside him, rolled over with a groggy sound.

    “When?”

    “The message just came in.”

    “Contact Aris.”

    “Understood.”

    ‘Why now, of all times?’

    The timing felt all too perfect.

    -Cassi... Ruel-nim!

    Aris stopped mid-sentence, startled by Ruel’s pale complexion.

    He could sense something was wrong.

    What else has happened?

    Aris couldn’t hide his anxious expression.

    -Go, good morning! I hope you’ve been well...

    “Aris.”

    It wasn’t the time to exchange pleasantries.

    -Yes.

    “Treitol Kran is heading toward the delegation. The shadows will provide the location, so buy as much time as you can.”

    -Understood.

    “I’ll be there soon.”

    Ruel maintained a firm smile at Aris before confirming the communication had ended.

    He then looked around and realized Ganien and Hikars were missing.

    “What about Ganien?”

    “Ganien went for his morning training, and Hikars went out to deal with the lingering dead.”

    Cassion paused before calling out to Ruel.

    “Ruel-nim.”

    “Speak.”

    “Don’t we need to hurry? Will we meet within an hour, even if we rush?”

    “There’s a way.” When Ruel smiled, Cassion didn’t ask any more questions.

    “What’s the situation right now?”

    Ruel asked, placing Leo, who had rolled off, back on his lap.

    “The remaining soldiers are searching for Glen Setiria. They’ll probably never find him, though.”

    “And?”

    “We’ve spread the rumor that Glen Syria is dead, so the adventurers will soon leave this place in a hurry. Some adventurers who have already noticed the situation are already leaving.”

    It was a good decision.

    Rumors have a tendency to spread uncontrollably, and it was only a matter of time before news of Glen’s death became public.

    What mattered here wasn’t just the spreading rumor but the fact that Glen was a noble.

    The disappearance of Glen in the midst of the assembled adventurers meant that everyone would soon find themselves as suspects.

    Since Glen was a lower-ranking noble, the investigation would likely fizzle out with time, but it was wiser to escape before getting entangled in troublesome matters.

    “Have you erased any record of our presence?”

    “Of course.”

    —Is it hard to say?

    “Yeah. I think so.”

    Slowly, Leo approached and rubbed his head against Ruel.

    —This body can listen to anything. So say whatever you want when you’re ready.

    “Okay.”

    Ruel smiled as he stroked Leo’s soft fur.

    He almost blurted out the scary truth, forgetting that Leo’s mouth was so loose, but it was okay to hold off for now.

    “Later. When I really can’t take it anymore, I’ll definitely tell you.”

    Ruel spoke again as if making a promise.

    Leo smiled.

    —Alright. This body can wait anytime!

    Seeing Leo head back to his food bowl, Ruel also took a sip of his cocoa.

    “...Ha.”

    It was sweet.

    Thank goodness.

    It seemed his sense of taste had returned.

    Ruel closed his eyes for a moment to savor the sweetness filling his mouth before swallowing.

    Treitol Kran was heading towards the delegation.

    According to previous investigations, he was a kind prince who didn’t crave power and cared about his brother.

    But unlike when the delegation was sent from Kran, this time he was coming under the pretext of a farewell.

    ‘There are two possibilities.’

    Either Treitol Kran was the Great Man or he was not.

    If he was not the Great Man, it meant he had something urgent to convey.

    ‘Conversely, if he is the Great Man... then it’s to verify whether or not I’ve been involved in this matter.’

    A smile crept onto Ruel’s lips.

    The current position of the delegation and his own location had more than a day’s difference.

    Since they probably already knew that there was no wizard in the delegation who was good enough to use teleportation magic, they probably decided that they couldn’t travel long distances.

    That left one clear fact:

    Ruel Setiria wasn’t in the carriage!

    ‘What should I do?’

    Ruel happily took a bite of the meat stew, the juices bursting in his mouth, finally making him feel alive.

    ‘They likely don’t know that one can move without a mage.’

    The existence of a door that could open anywhere was probably unknown to them.

    Ruel synchronized his mana flow and opened his mouth.

    “Jan.”

    ***

    ‘I hear a sound.’

    Aris fidgeted with his hands at the sound of horse hooves.

    Had Treitol arrived sooner than expected?

    The carriage was still empty inside.

    Torto, who had escorted Ruel on the way to Cyronian, was again in charge of this journey.

    Knowing that Ruel wasn’t inside the carriage, he cast a glance at Aris.

    ‘He hasn’t arrived yet.’

    Aris shook his head, growing anxious as he repeatedly peeked into the carriage.

    As the dust kicked up by the horses drew closer, the knights unsheathed their swords and formed a protective stance around the carriage.

    Torto stepped forward and called out to those dismounting from their horses.

    “Please identify yourselves first.”

    “I apologize for coming without prior notice.”

    As a man dismounted, those who had accompanied him followed suit.

    The knights scrutinized them sharply.

    One of the men who dismounted approached Torto and presented a token.

    “This is His Highness Treitol Kran, the second prince of the Kran Kingdom.”

    Torto carefully examined the token before bowing deeply, “My apologies for not recognizing you, Your Highness.”

    The other knights followed suit and bowed their heads to Treitol.

    “No need to apologize. I did not give any prior notice,” Treitol Kran replied, turning his gaze towards the carriage, “Please convey my apologies to Lord Setiria.”

    “As you wish.”