“Ugh…”

Laila frowned and opened her mouth as she emerged from the portal. It felt like sticky mud had filled her throat, but when she stuck out her tongue to check, there was nothing there.

“Why are portals like this?” Laila grumbled. “Can’t they just simply transport us?”

Eustar smiled apologetically. In fact, Eustar hadn’t created the portal, so he didn’t need to apologize, but… He seemed to feel somewhat responsible since he was the one who brought Laila to Tentinella.

“That’s just how magicians prefer them, I’m afraid.”

“First the drowning experience, then becoming beach sand, and now sinking in a swamp. I don’t even want to imagine what’s next.”

“Try not to imagine it beforehand. If you do, you might want to run away.”

It wasn’t very helpful advice, but Laila decided it was better to follow his words. You never know.

Some crazy magician might have implemented the illusion of being burned alive. If she knew about that in advance, she’d insist on walking to their destination instead.

Since this was a transit portal rather than one at a branch office, the portal’s energy shut down with a whirring sound as soon as the two disembarked.

Laila patted down her uniform, which hadn’t actually gotten dirty, while looking down at the small village visible below the hill.

“The village looks a bit strange.”

When Laila pointed this out, Eustar shaded his eyes with his hand, squinted, and nodded.

“Indeed. But those two places up there… They seem to have long ceased being ‘villages,’ don’t you think?”

The village right below the hill looked like a scene you could see anywhere. It had wooden walls arranged in a circular pattern, with the entrance path extending outwards on both sides. The problem, however, was the small path leading north from the village, towards the foot of the mountain.

The path split into two, stretching east and west, and at the end of each were ruins that might once have been small villages.

The houses and buildings weren’t completely collapsed, but they appeared grayish and hazy, perhaps due to fog, giving quite an eerie impression.

“Somehow,” Laila said quietly.

“It feels a bit similar to… Rigicus.”

“You mean the village below?”

Laila shook her head. “No, the one below is fine.” Then she pointed alternately at the two distant ruins. “Those two places. They’re the ones.”

Eustar trusted Laila’s instincts. Especially in situations like this… When she said it was ‘similar to Rigicus,’ it undoubtedly meant that a sync had occurred somewhere in those two ruins.

“The sync’s influence might be making it feel stronger. Let’s find a place to stay and do some investigation. According to the report… There have actually been related rumors since ancient times.”

“Related rumors?”

When Laila asked, Eustar briefly replied as he handed her the report tucked under his arm.

“There have been persistent rumors about people disappearing or wandering around experiencing hallucinations.”

When looking down from above, the village didn’t seem that far, but once they entered the gently winding path, it became clear that had been an optical illusion. As Laila gazed at the village that now appeared even further away than when they started, she casually remarked.

“You were right.”

“About what?”

“That it was good to have breakfast.”

Eustar blinked and burst into laughter, and Laila continued.

“I’m being serious. I usually don’t eat breakfast.”

“Really? Who doesn’t eat breakfast? Was it like that even before you came to the palace?”

Laila nodded.

“Mother used to say that if you eat breakfast, you can’t focus on work all day. She said you need to feel light in the morning to manipulate mana well.”

Then she glanced at Eustar and added:

“Funny, isn’t it? A witch saying such things.”

Eustar shrugged.

“Not funny at all. Witches are people too, after all.”

Laila stared at Eustar with wide eyes. Her expression suggested she hadn’t expected him to respond that way.

Eustar continued, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

Laila seemed momentarily at a loss for words, then shrugged her shoulders, mimicking Eustar. However, it looked somewhat awkward, as if it wasn’t something she often did, which made Eustar chuckle softly once again.

“Are you imitating me now, Laila?”

“No. What do you mean?”

“You’re playing innocent.”

“I’m not imitating you.”

Laila replied with a feigned pout and quickened her pace. Eustar, following behind, had a more distinct smile on his face.

His eyes narrowed slightly as he watched her black hair swaying between her nape and shoulders. It was a gaze tinged with amusement.

Last night, just as Laila had finished drawing her sigils and was about to fall asleep, Eustar had actually woken from a light sleep.

He heard her mumble ‘wake up’ as she was drifting off, and before he could respond, he saw Laila fall asleep as if collapsing.

Eustar blew out a few more candles around them, and carefully pulled Laila’s body, curled up in deep sleep, into his arms.

After covering her with a sheet, he listened to her breathing until he fell asleep again. The scent of acacia, unsuited to the season, that had emanated from her pale, slender neck—perhaps due to some perfume—was still vivid in his nostrils.

“Let’s go together, Laila.”

As he spoke playfully, Laila whipped her head around. He thought how well the well-fitted uniform with its neat collar reaching just below her chin suited her pale, small face.

“You’re the one dawdling, Eustar.”

“Am I?”

“Yes, you are.”

Eustar smiled broadly and took long strides, catching up to her in an instant.

When they entered the outskirts of the village, Laila momentarily felt a strange chill, but the feeling disappeared in an instant. It was like a winter breeze briefly brushing the nape of her neck, a feeling of unease that vanishes as soon as you turn your head to look.

Perhaps it wasn’t a village frequently visited by travelers, as people kept glancing at the two strangers in unusual attire and whispering among themselves.

However, the village atmosphere was more lively than they had worried, and they could see children playing together, skipping and such.

“Do you think there’s an inn?” Laila asked worriedly.

Eustar made a humming sound and looked around.

“There must be somewhere to stay. Even if not an inn, maybe a spare room, or…”

“This is an inn, young ones.”

At the voice that suddenly cut in from the right, Eustar and Laila turned their heads simultaneously. In front of a shabby-looking two-story building sat a middle-aged man with a pipe in his mouth.

Eustar put on a polite expression with a friendly smile and said to the man,

“I see. We couldn’t tell because there’s no sign.”

The man, who had been staring up at him, tapped the ashes out of his pipe and stood up.

“We don’t get enough guests to need a sign. But you two are lucky to have run into me, so you’ll have to stay here.”

The man grinned, revealing yellowed front teeth. He was missing one canine tooth, and his right eye crinkled slightly when he smiled, but strangely, it didn’t give an unpleasant impression.

Eustar turned to Laila.

“What do you think, Laila? Should we do as this gentleman says? Or should we look around a bit more?”

The man interjected, waving his hand.

“Listen, there are no other inns here! If you don’t stay here, you’ll both have to sleep in a barn. Wouldn’t it be better to sleep in an old bed with a blanket than in a place that smells of horse manure, covered in straw? Especially for esteemed knights of Tentinella.”

At his words, Eustar and Laila both looked at the man simultaneously. Startled by their sudden gaze, the man flinched for a moment, then oddly looked at Laila.

“Oh, am I wrong?”

Laila answered.

“No, you’re right.”

She looked up at Eustar.

“Let’s stay here. I don’t mind either way.”

The man, looking relieved, gestured for them to come inside.

Once inside, it turned out it wasn’t actually an inn, but just an ordinary house converted into a two-story structure. However, the spaces were separated, so it seemed they could manage to stay for three or four days.

The man said,

“My daughter should be back soon, and you can have dinner with us. We have breakfast at seven, lunch at noon, and dinner at six. I could cook too, but you probably wouldn’t want to eat it.”

He grinned. Eustar nodded slightly in gratitude and was about to go upstairs with Laila.

That’s when the man spoke from behind them.

“By the way, that young lady…”

Eustar turned his head before Laila, who had stopped in her tracks. Laila then slowly looked at the man as well.

The man, staring intently at her face, said,

“Your eye color is unusual. It reminds me of stories I used to hear on my grandmother’s knee.”

After a moment of silence, Laila said,

“It was probably a story about a witch, right?”

“How did you know?”

“Because I am that witch.”

At that moment, the man’s eyes widened. Laila turned her back again to climb the stairs but then said to him,

“If you’re uncomfortable with a witch staying in your house…”

“No, no. That’s not what I meant. Actually, it’s not that…”

The man scratched his hair, looking somewhat embarrassed. Puzzled by this unexpected reaction, Eustar and Laila looked at each other’s faces for a moment.

The man glanced between them as if gauging their reactions, then said,

“If… if you really are a witch, I was wondering if you could help my daughter. I know it’s unlikely, but… as a father, it weighs on my mind that I can’t do anything for her.”

Laila stepped down one step from the fifth step she had climbed.

“What’s the problem with your daughter?”