"Huh? Why are you both so quiet?"
Matthew approached the remaining two with a gentle smile.
Lady Heckenroze stood in front of the half-destroyed carriage, with a knight positioned protectively beside her.
The knight instinctively drew his sword and pointed it at Matthew.
"Stay right there."
"Hm...?"
"That means don't approach the lady so rashly."
"Ah, sorry about that. I'm not well-versed in noble etiquette."
"...Just who the hell are you?"
A bead of cold sweat trickled down the knight's back.
This was the man who had effortlessly taken down over a dozen bandits, including their hulking leader wielding a massive greatsword.
If he wanted to, he could kill both the knight and the lady without breaking a sweat.
They absolutely could not let him get close to her.
"What are you scheming against the lady?"
"I've told you, nothing like that..."
"State your true intentions."
"I just want directions."
"I said your true purpose! What's your connection to the bandits? Why did you suddenly appear on this mountain? If you're after the lady..."
"Knight Ferris, stand down."
Lady Heckenroze brushed past the knight.
"My lady! It's dangerous!"
"The bandits are the dangerous ones, not this man."
"But..."
"What kind of disgrace is this toward the man who saved our lives?"
"!"
The knight called Ferris clamped his mouth shut.
Persecuting someone who had saved them in their hour of need went against everything chivalry stood for.
He had only just realized it.
"My knight has been rude. I apologize for his discourtesy toward our savior."
"No worries at all. I'm used to misunderstandings like this by now, haha."
"..."
Lady Heckenroze feigned a blank expression as she studied Matthew's face.
Blood droplets clung to his skin, stark against its pallor, evoking a primal fear.
His eyes were shadowed, impossible to read.
Matthew simply tilted his head, oblivious to her scrutiny.
One must first express gratitude to their lifesaver.
"My greetings are belated."
Swish.
Lady Heckenroze gathered the hem of her dress and bowed slightly.
"I am Heckenroze von Atlante of the Northern Atlante Family. Thank you for saving us from the bandits. If possible, I'd like to invite you to our territory and offer proper recompense..."
"Oh! Talk about getting lucky."
"...Pardon?"
Matthew's smile deepened.
"I was just thinking I'd met exactly the person I needed. What a stroke of fortune! Don't you think so?"
"...!"
Heckenroze instinctively stepped back at that sinister grin.
Exactly the person he needed?
'Could he be... after my ransom, like the bandits?'
Lady Heckenroze's face drained of color.
It was all too plausible.
A powerhouse stronger than most of her family's knights.
If he needed money, taking her hostage and demanding ransom was the quickest way.
Her father loved her enough to sell off part of the northern territory if needed.
As that thought flashed through her mind, Knight Ferris stepped in front of her.
"See? This guy's dangerous. He's after you!"
"Huh? After me?"
"Then spit out what you meant just now! 'Exactly the person I needed'? What the hell does that mean?!"
Ferris bellowed, sword trained on Matthew.
He too had sensed something off in Matthew's words.
The nuance was no different from the ransom-hungry bandits, different words or not.
This ominous man before them was undoubtedly an enemy of the lady—
"No, no. If you're the lady of the north, you must know the way to the northern territories, right?"
"...What?"
"That's why I need you. Whew, I got lucky. I was worried what I'd do if even you two didn't know."
Matthew scratched the back of his head with an awkward laugh.
"So, could you lower the sword? I don't like blades much."
"..."
"Knight Ferris. Sheathe your sword."
Ferris immediately lowered his blade at her sharp command.
"My apologies, my lady."
"You're apologizing to the wrong person."
Heckenroze pointed at Matthew.
"...Sorry, Mr. Matthew."
"Nah, I'm fine. This is just another common misunderstanding. Haha!"
"..."
"Still, getting back-to-back misunderstandings does make me a bit sad."
Matthew slumped his shoulders dramatically.
It was comical, but far from funny—it only heightened their tension.
The massacre that playful man had wrought was still fresh in their minds.
"...My apologies."
"Apology accepted. Now, about those directions..."
"We were originally headed to the capital, but..."
Lady Heckenroze's gaze shifted to the carriage.
The horses pulling it were long dead and cold.
They couldn't walk days of distance on foot.
"We'll head back to the territory first."
"That's what I was hoping for! Haha, I'm looking forward to it. First time in the northern territories."
"..."
Matthew strode ahead with buoyant steps, as if his gloom had been a joke.
Was this really the same man who had slaughtered the bandits moments ago...?
Lady Heckenroze glanced at the sea of blood.
Too surreal for one swordsman's handiwork.
Beyond that, an inexplicable tension made her shiver.
"Uh... Knight Matthew, this way, not that way."
"Whoops, sorry. Got too excited and went ahead. Haha."
"..."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
How long had they been trekking through the mountains?
Before they cleared them, the sun dipped low, and darkness cloaked the peaks.
Knight Ferris selected a suitable clearing.
"Unfortunately, we'll have to camp here for the night."
The northern mountains teemed with beasts at night—traveling then was suicide.
Thus, northern campsites demanded constant vigilance.
Both Heckenroze and Ferris knew this well.
Everyone except one.
"It's been ages since I camped with others—my heart's racing. I've been out of home so long, always solo. Haha."
"..."
"Oh, don't worry about firewood. I'll grab some usable branches quick."
Rustle.
Matthew departed with light steps.
Darkness had already fallen everywhere, yet he dashed off alone for firewood.
Anyone else, they'd have stopped him—but him? He might be fine.
If anything, the two left behind were the vulnerable ones.
"Just us now, so relax. Your hair must be bothering you."
"I'm fine. No need to remove the helmet and risk him figuring out who I am."
"You still suspect Knight Matthew, then."
"...Do you trust him, my lady?"
Ferris fiddled with his helmet as he asked.
A glimpse of long golden hair flashed inside before vanishing.
She tucked it deep, ensuring no stray strands escaped.
Heckenroze looked at her with pity before speaking.
"For now, I do. We have no choice but to."
"You're really planning to travel with him all the way to the territory."
"You have that shoulder wound too, Knight Ferris. Without help, we might not make it back."
"That's true, but..."
Ferris scanned their surroundings warily before whispering to Heckenroze.
"He's unreadable. Grateful as we are for the rescue... what if that's exactly what he planned?"
"What do you mean?"
Ferris proposed a hypothesis.
The bandits had targeted Heckenroze from the start.
Meaning her falling into their encirclement wasn't coincidence—it was orchestrated.
Someone had leaked her route or schedule to them.
From there, Ferris presented his deduction.
"What if this Matthew is the mastermind who hired the bandits?"
"...But they didn't know him."
"Easy enough to meet masked. Or use an intermediary to contract them."
"That's..."
"Pretend to hire bandits for an attack, 'coincidentally' intervene to build rapport, then infiltrate the territory. Plausible, no?"
Heckenroze fell silent at Ferris's reasoning.
Slaughter the bandits to gain trust, slip right into the territory.
Someone that strong could wreak havoc inside unchecked.
Vassals, knights—even her father could be at risk.
Ferris had pinpointed the danger.
Heckenroze deemed it possible too.
"...It's best not to jump to conclusions based on excessive speculation, Knight Ferris."
"You know it's not excessive."
"Well..."
"And think about his hair color."
Matthew's jet-black hair.
To any imperial citizen, it symbolized 'ill omen.'
Black hair meant witches, traitors, bringers of misfortune, and more.
Northerners knew the negative tales well.
"He reeks of bad luck. Whatever plot he's hatching."
"...I understand your concern. But in the north, there's a saying."
Heckenroze closed her eyes.
"If someone saves you from wolves, you must serve them wolf meat."
"..."
"We nearly got devoured by bandit wolves today. We can't let suspicious looks and words make us forget that."
Heckenroze agreed Matthew was suspicious.
But he had saved their lives—that was fact.
Forgetting it would make them no better than beasts.
That was northern custom and creed.
"I believe we must repay him as per our customs for saving our lives. If it brings trouble to our house... we'll deal with it then."
"..."
"I won't stop you from suspecting him. But no more pointing swords or hostile remarks like before. That's an order from your liege."
"Understood."
Ferris was Heckenroze's loyal blade.
She could offer counsel, but the decision was hers.
As a knight, Ferris resolved to obey.
Rustle.
"!"
The bushes shook with the sound of branches snapping.
Footsteps approached just as their talk ended.
Ferris leaped up, hand on his sword hilt.
'...No torchlight. This is bad.'
Hungry beasts prowled the mountains at this hour.
They'd used torches on prior camps to ward them off.
But with Matthew gone for firewood, they couldn't now.
A massive wolf silhouette flickered through the underbrush.
"!!!"
"A wolf...!"
No fire meant poor visibility, but the size and shape were unmistakable.
"My lady, behind me."
"...You sure?"
"I'll manage. One's no problem."
Ferris spoke confidently but drew his sword awkwardly.
His shoulder wound hampered his grip.
Still, she steadied her breathing and focused.
'I can take it.'
The wolf moved sluggishly for some reason.
Dawdling as if unsure whether to emerge...
Injured or starved, whatever—slow like that, she had a shot.
Its bulk was bigger than average, a drawback, but focus made it feasible, barely.
No other wolves stirred, thankfully.
With that assessment, Ferris charged like lightning.
"Haaah!"
A slash impossibly swift for her injured shoulder.
But she had to slow it abruptly.
Matthew's face poked out from under the wolf.
"Man, this thing's heavy. Wolves are no joke."
"Eek?!"
Startled, Ferris let out a girlish shriek and stumbled back.
"Hm? What's wrong? Screaming like a little girl."
"Wh-what do you mean, girl?! ...More importantly, why are you crawling out from under a wolf!?"
"Because it's the wolf I caught. Heave-ho."
Thud.
The wolf, larger than a man, flopped to the ground.
Up close, it was long dead.
Matthew had hauled the corpse here from underneath.
"This much meat means dinner's a feast. Oh, and I brought firewood too—rest easy."
"..."
"Why the stare?"
Ferris glared at him, face flushed red.