Diana opened her eyes with difficulty.

For a while, her vision was blurry, making it hard to properly discern objects.

As she hovered between sleep and wakefulness, she felt a warm sensation next to her right arm.

Looking down, she saw a gray wolf pressed close to her side.

Raoul? Diana finally came to her senses.

“Raoul!”

Diana quickly sat up and buried her face in Raoul’s neck.

Rubbing her face against his still damp fur, it finally felt real. Diana was still alive.

“What happened? Couldn’t you climb up the cliff? Did you fall together?”

Raoul changed into his human form and urgently embraced Diana.

“Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”

There was a tremor in Raoul’s voice. Fortunately, she didn’t seem to be seriously injured.

“I’m fine.”

He let out a relieved sigh, then bit his lip and lowered his gaze.

“Diana. I’m angry right now……”

His agitated eyes trembled pitifully.

Angry? Diana looked around, trying to find the culprit that had made Raoul angry.

‘Who could it be?’

But in the dim cave, the only living beings were Raoul and Diana.

“No matter how I think about it, I can’t understand.”

“……What?”

“Why did you let go of my hand? Why?”

Raoul gripped her shoulders and raised his eyes. His gaze was fierce, but his eyes looked sad.

“Am I just someone you need to take care of and cherish? Can’t you rely on me at all?”

His voice cracked at the end, and his breathing trembled.

His face looked unstable, as if several emotions like surprise, sorrow, and anger were swirling together.

Diana’s pupils shook, and her small hand hovered near Raoul’s face.

“I’m sorry. But rather than dying together……”

“Dying together would be better!”

Raoul sobbed as he tightly embraced Diana’s waist. It was a hug with a bit more force than usual.

“Rather than seeing you like that…… dying together would be better.”

His breath echoing in her ear was unstable.

Diana stroked Raoul’s back to comfort him.

‘You were worried about me.’

Only after receiving her gentle touch for a while did Raoul finally pull away.

“How did you end up here, Raoul? You were definitely at the castle……”

“I boarded with you.”

“What if you got caught!”

“It’s fine because I’m on guard duty.”

‘Guard duty?’

He answered while looking at the gloomy sky.

“Wait a moment.”

Soon, Raoul returned after checking outside the cave and took Diana’s hand with a relieved expression.

“They’re still far away.”

“Okay……”

Raoul said that since yesterday afternoon, he had been summoned by Benjamin to receive instructions on mission execution and rules to follow.

“Why didn’t you tell me such important information?”

“My mission is to guard against possible internal spies and keep you safe. I had to move quietly.”

“……Then did Benjamin know this would happen beforehand?”

Raoul explained while wringing out the water from Diana’s dress.

“I don’t think so. He said it was just in case.”

Diana, looking like a drowned rat, tried to deduce the mastermind behind the incident.

‘I thought the princess moved to eliminate witnesses, but seeing how Benjamin knew and prepared…… Was it indeed the rebels’ doing?’

Raoul drew on the ground with the moisture on his fingers as he explained.

“We’re currently located downstream of the river. More high-level monsters gather in the downstream area compared to the fast-flowing upstream. Even if we’re lucky and avoid the assassins, we can’t avoid battle on the way back.”

“Then let’s wait here for rescue. The knights might have already dealt with the assassins and be following us.”

“It’s better not to expect that.”

“Why?”

“One of them took three arrows, and even if one survived, he’d just be a burden. Even if they were lucky enough to survive and report your situation to the castle, it would take at least a day for a search party to arrive. I don’t think the assassins will wait that long.”

It was a dilemma.

Facing them head-on was numerically disadvantageous, and venturing into the monster-infested forest was risky for their lives.

Raoul pointed to the dark sky and said.

“Fortunately, it looks like it’s going to rain heavily. Then they’ll have to stop tracking us. The mountainous terrain is quite rough, so they won’t be able to advance further.”

He massaged his left shoulder a few times and sat close to Diana.

“Let’s leave early tomorrow morning.”

Diana anxiously bit her lip. Her fear of monsters had grown since encountering the lizardmen.

“Do you remember what I said before?”

Raoul asked, pressing his arm close.

Diana shook her head slightly and leaned against his furnace-like body. The moisture from Diana transferred again to Raoul’s now-dry tunic.

“I said I’d protect you.”

“Right. I remember.”

As his hot body heat seeped between her fingers, the cold retreated.

Raoul whispered quietly, looking straight ahead.

“So this time, don’t ever let go of my hand.”

Just as he finished speaking, it started to rain. Diana closed her eyes and listened to the sound of raindrops hitting the ground.

With this much downpour, it seemed safe enough to fall asleep.

She was extremely tired. To the point where she couldn’t stay conscious…….

The two set out early in the morning.

As Raoul had said, the mountain terrain was quite rugged. It was quite challenging to climb with short legs.

They encountered monsters several times while walking along the river.

Raoul quickly dispatched monsters as large as adult men with skills that had grown considerably compared to spring.

They were walking again after dealing with a plant-type monster.

“Shh.”

Suddenly, Raoul pushed Diana behind a tree and put his finger to his lips.

At the same time, a violent vibration was heard, and mountain birds took flight.

Diana gripped her dagger tightly and tensed her trapezius muscles.

‘Is it a monster?’

Glancing sideways, she saw feet as large as fir trees.

A majestic rocky body overlooking the forest. It was a Stone Head, known as the guardian of nature.

“Raoul…… it’s okay. Stone Heads don’t harm people. We just need to avoid being stepped on.”

“……That’s not it.”

“Huh?”

Following Raoul’s gaze to the opposite side, an astonishing sight unfolded.

The people lying diagonally across were clearly the assassins who had attacked Diana and Raoul.

Among them, the woman who was unconscious without moving was unmistakably Katrina.

“……Are they dead?”

“I’m not sure.”

There were still live embers on the wooden torch that had fallen to the ground.

They must have started moving at dawn when the rain stopped.

Raoul focused on the black slime covering their clothes.

The sticky substance clinging to his index finger resembled that of marine life, but was slightly different.

It clearly smelled similar to blood, but was too dark to have just been dealt with.

Diana was about to move away from the horrific scene when she noticed a piece of paper sticking out of Katrina’s pocket.

‘What’s that?’

A square piece of paper. She carefully reached into Katrina’s dress pocket to collect evidence.

At that moment, Katrina, who was thought to be unconscious, suddenly opened her eyes.

“Sa, save me!”

“Gasp!”

Before Diana could back away, Raoul had already strangled Katrina.

Whether he had precisely struck a vital point or not, she rolled her eyes back and couldn’t gather her strength.

“Wait! Let’s hear what she has to say. She might be able to reveal who’s behind this……”

When Raoul released his hand, Katrina clutched her throat and coughed violently.

Diana asked while maintaining a safe distance.

“……What happened to these people? Were they attacked by monsters?”

“Young lady, please…… please…… save me. Please take me away from here……”

“First answer my question! Who are you? Why did you target me?”

“I, I can’t tell you. Please……”

At that moment, the light faded from Katrina’s eyes.

“Ah, no. Now we’re all……”

‘An ambush……?’

Just as Diana turned her head, the dagger Raoul threw pierced the throat of the strange creature.

A monster that had appeared from nowhere looked down at the two while grotesquely twisting its body.

Despite clearly having a dagger lodged in its throat, the creature showed no signs of damage.

I’ve never seen a monster like this before.

Its face, wrinkled like a brain, had no eyes, nose, or mouth.

It was as tall as an adult knight, and its body was unrealistically more solid than an angry bodybuilder’s.

Over the muscles that seemed about to burst, vivid blood vessels writhed disgustingly as if about to pop out.

The creature, covered in an unidentified slime, slowly closed the distance.

The fishy stench and alien sensation unlike any living being overwhelmed the two.

It was different from any monster they had encountered so far.

‘This thing…… what on earth is it……!’

Upon closer inspection, the creature’s body was like an arsenal.

The dagger Raoul had thrown and the arrows used by the assassins were lodged all over its body.

The moment the distance between them and the monster narrowed to one person’s length, Raoul bit Diana’s nape.

“Ugh!”

Her body rose into the air, and when she opened her eyes, she was riding on the wolf’s back, dashing through the forest.

The surrounding scenery changed rapidly. Raoul swiftly ran through the sloping forest, avoiding monsters that appeared intermittently.

‘Did we shake it off?’

Not a chance. The creature chased after the two at an incredible speed.

Tendons stretched and contracted as its thighs moved. It felt like being chased by a mannequin from the science lab.

“Raoul……! It’s catching up!”

At that moment, Diana realized. Raoul’s breathing was rough.

An enormous amount of blood was seeping from his arm.

“You…… Since when!”