"I''m sorry, sis. I... I broke the promise and left the village alone."

    Tamotsu clinged to Lala as his sob leaked out of his mouth.

    Lala gave a soft giggle and shook her head.

    "No need to apologise. I know you''re just worried about your big sis."

    She gave Tamotsu a tight embrace and gently rubbed his cheeks oozing with blood.

    "All that matters is you''re safe. You must''ve done your best, right? You know, you’re already doing great, Tamotsu."

    She comforted the sobbing Tamotsu, tightening her grasp on him once more, and slowly turned around. She had Tamotsu on one arm, almost hiding him behind her as she rested her on the claymore on her back.

    Just then, a second adult Ligen showed itself from the depth of forest with an agile gait, and raised its fur on the end.

    " "*Grrrrrr!!!!*" "

    "Eeek!!"

    Frightened by the intimidating scene, Tamotsu fell on his butt.

    The next moment, Lala drew her sword, and in the same breath, the two adult Ligen jumped at her.

    She narrowly dodged the incoming fang of one, while slashing at the abdomen of the second.

    However the bulky, metallic wire like fur of Ligens demonstrated an exceptional defensive property, and prevented the slash from doing any damage. Even beyond that, the recoil caused the sword to almost flip out of her hand which she barely prevented by increasing her mana output.

    "Rghh...! ...No need to fear, Tamotsu. Your sis here will definitely protect you. And just wait, help is on its way too. He''s you sis''s... absurdly strong friend..."

    Meanwhile, from beyond the curtain of trees, a third adult Ligen—this one appeared to be a size bigger than the previous two, probably the male of the pack—appeared.

    A steep expression appeared on Lala''s face as she stared at the situation and asserted herself strongly.

    "We just have to wait... help is definitely on the way!"

    ◆◆◆

    I had my wind magic spread out to its limit, and continued to search for the lost kid.

    Well, there was complete darkness with the clouds concealing the moon behind itself, but with my active sonar ability, I still had terrain in my grasp even without the presence of light.

    My detection range was spread around in the 100m area uniformly, though the curtain of trees in the forest proved to be a slight nuisance, as I tread the uneven terrain. But I didn''t catch a slight hint of them.

    Impatience was slowly getting over me. I couldn''t shake the back of Lala when she rushed toward the valley in my mind.

    I wouldn''t say with surety, but I felt that she had a vague hunch the lost kid is definitely somewhere around there.

    Hmm, maybe I should stop here and meet up with her first...? I contemplated for a moment, but eventually decided to focus on my given part.

    ''Intuition'' in my eyes was a double-edged sword.

    Of course, the vague premonition could turn out to be true, opening the path to the answer that logical thinking couldn''t. However, everything would turn into dust if it ended in a mere fragment of imagination, and such cases weren''t few to say the least, unfortunately.

    I had been often told by my master that I should never rely on my ''intuition'' and let it guide my path no matter the moment. And well, I might have said ''to the wind'' often too, but I knew where to draw the line.

    ...Lala should have logically considered the mountain road side to be the more probable area, and that''s why she left the search around to me and my mother.

    And in case the valley side turned out to be a gotcha moment, she should at least be able to hold her fort until I join her.

    Shaking away all the impromptu thoughts with this conclusion, I quietly continued my search for the lost kid.

    ◆◆◆

    "I''m sorry, sis. I''m sorry. I''m sorry."

    Tamotsu trembled behind Lala, choking on his sobs.

    The scene before him was almost too dark to make out—despite growing up in the mountains, where his eyes had adapted to the night, he couldn’t quite see what was happening to Lala.

    What he could make out was that the number of Ligen had grown exponentially. What had started as just a few had now swelled to about eight.

    And Lala, the person he admired, was being torn apart and toyed by the claws of the monsters. It was apparent she could still escape if only she abandoned him.

    Lala''s riding outfit, a fine women''s riding habit, was already in tattered state, stained with blood that seeped through the fabric. The crimson blotches spread and darkened, an unmistakable sign of how dire the situation was.

    Even with his young mind, it was clear to Tamoitsu that it wouldn’t be long before everything came to an end.

    Lala had spoken of help arriving, but he couldn''t believe that someone would dare crossing the dense forest in the dark veil of night. It was a cruel truth, one that made him realize that there was no help.

    Eventually, with great effort, he still squeezed out his next words. In fact, he had wanted to say this a while back, however he just couldn''t muster then.

    "—For the possible time to come, I must make them experience the terror of humans. So, let this Lala von Liancool—"

    The next moment, the leader of the pack, Ligen with a much more majestic physique, found its foreleg caught in Lala''s whip before she yanked it and slammed him near the cliff.

    "Graaahhh!"

    "—be the fear in their heart for a lifetime!"

    Seeing the attack, the other Ligens, too, lunged toward Lala at once.

    As the battle between Lala and Legin broke out, the cloud hanging on the sky finally parted away to allow the moonlight. And from there, the red crescent moon showed its glimpse like smiling at the scenery here.

    Within the tranquil Endless Ravine of night, only Lala''s mysterious ''hrr-hrr-hrr-hrr'' shout reverberate in the whole area.

    ◆◆◆

    After safely securing our search target, we made our way back to the mountain path.

    My mother had been just treading in the same direction we had branched off, and with Poco along with her, we also joined her soon.

    "It appears you managed to save him huh. It''s a great relief."

    My mother also let down her concern once she caught sight of Tamotsu-kun sleeping on Lala''s back.

    "And there''s no visible grave injury either. That''s great. Alright then, let''s return to the village. Everyone must have been waiting for the news."

    She gave one another node, and soon, we turned our gait in the direction of the village.

    The bonfires were burning brightly around the village, while a desperate search was underway around the grazing grounds.

    "Hey everyone!"

    Lala waved energetically, immediately pulling the anxious villagers around us.

    She promptly gave a quick rundown of the situation to the villagers, and then we turned toward the Liancool Barony for Tamotsu-kun''s nursing.

    While giving a brief explanation of the situation, we made our way straight to the Liancool family estate, prioritizing Tamoitsu’s treatment.

    Tamotsu had already bore injuries when Lala found him, and since he wasn''t proficient in using mana to expel harmful poison that may have been introduced from the monster''s claws, medical care was the call of the hour lest the wounds worsened.

    We had just passed through to enter Liancool Barony when we were immediately jumped on by who seemed to be Lala''s father.

    "Lala! Tamotsu! Good heavens, both of you''re safe! Haha, as expected of my daughter. You''re really proud—...er, who might be these two?"

    "They''re the Princess, and her son Allen granny Mu talks about. And in fact, they''d been a huge help, and the reason why we managed to safely secure Tamotsu. I was caught up by the pack of Ligen and it had been a steep situation. It would''ve been awful without Allen."

    Baron Liancool''s eyes widened in surprise when Lala introduced us. Immediately, he looked at me and my mother with a narrowed gaze but within the next moment, he broke out in a laughter.

    "Hahaha! Oh dear, aren''t you quite the same age as Lala? If you actually saved Lala from danger... you must be strong. As a father, and the governor of this place, I extend my heartfelt gratitude for your cooperation. I hope you can be friends with our Lala."

    I shook his outstretched right hand.

    "Ah, um, I’m Allen Roven. I must apologize, I didn’t even know this area was part of the Liancool Barony when I arrived. In fact, Lala and I—"

    I was about to clarify our situation when *Bang,* the front door flew open.

    "See what I mean?! They didn’t even know where they were, and by sheer coincidence, they managed to save the lost kid, and what, you''re already on you first-name basis with her?! All bogus, haa. What was it, Allen Rov—Ro...Rovenne-kun? —This is your name?"

    Breaking my words, a pompous man showed himself from the central building of barony, his face red as he shouted with an air of arrogance, but coming to my name, he paused and slowly asked back in confirmation.

    I couldn''t catch what all that was, and just nodded as it was.

    "What do you mean ''see what I mean'', eh, Count Nelson? It''s been a long while. I wonder if you remember me?"

    It appeared my mother knew the man—Count Nelson.

    A man, looking like he held a higher rank, had come rushing out of the main house, his excitement clearly growing, as he began carefully confirming my name. I, confused by the sudden shift, just nodded, unsure of what was happening.

    Like a rustic machine who had spent ages since the last oil change, his movement turned creaky as soon as he caught sight of my mother, and paused.

    I further awaited for any reaction, but seeing no further reaction, I turned to finish my introduction to Lala''s father.

    "Well, in fact, Lala and I are classmates. She''s been a huge help."

    "Oh, golly! This... this is such a marvelous coincidence that the princess''s son is actually a student of Royal Academy too!"

    "T-T-T-This calls for a feast!!!!"

    At last, Count Nelson gave a reaction, and this time, he struck a triumphant pose and shouted while facing the sky.

    ......All I just want is to hit the bed though.