I'm A Sucker For Extras - Chapter 57

Chapter 57

-Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
 
“What’s that? Is it a wolf?”
 
The knights ruffled their hair and rolled their eyes.
 
At almost the same time as the howl, Aidan pushed himself to his feet.
 
His eyes darted left and right, shadows deepening on his brow.
 
Everyone was frozen in place, breathless, watching Aidan’s every move.
 
Suddenly, the tips of his ears twitched lightly, and his eyes widened.
 
He called out low and fast.
 
“Put out the bonfire! Hide as best you can! Don’t make a sound!”
 
“What? Put out the bonfire?”
 
Teddy asked, rolling his eyes. Fire was useful when it came to dealing with wild beasts, not useless, so he was puzzled.
 
“Shut up, Teddy! Listen to the Duke!”
 
Someone who looked like the leader of the knights pressed Teddy’s head and briskly stood up. As a result, the root Teddy was holding fell to the ground with a thud.
 
Thud!
 
That sound was the signal. At Aidan’s command, the other knights rushed over and extinguished the campfire, moving in unison.
 
Brody, holding a blanket halfway up, couldn’t move or react.
 
“Excuse me.”
 
Before she could figure it out, Brody was wrapped head to toe in the blanket.
 
With that, Aidan lifted her up.
 
“Ah!”
 
“Quiet.”
 
Through the slightly open space in the blanket, a tense voice could be heard.
 
Before she could ask what was going on or even acknowledge that she understood, Aidan picked her up and started running.
 
The muscles in his arms were tense as he held her, ready to burst.
 
She didn’t know what it was, but it was clear that there was a sudden emergency.
 
Aidan’s breakneck speed caught Brody off guard.
 
She instinctively clung to his neck and squeezed his shoulders to keep him from falling.
 
Thump! Thump!
 
The hug around his neck forced Brody’s gaze to shift over his shoulder.
 
So she could see.
 
“That, that, that, that……that…….”
 
Brody pressed her mouth against Aidan’s neck to keep from screaming.
 
But the screams were already coming from elsewhere.
 
“Aah!”
 
“That, what is that!”
 
Aidan said, chewing on his lip at the commotion behind him.
 
“Bastards, I told you not to make noise.”
 
Thwack. Aidan slid down a shallow slope covered in snow, but definitely not a human path.
 
In an instant, they reached a spot where they could hide, with a small hill forming behind them.
 
Brody looked up, her lips quivering.
 
She could see the ‘creature’, even though there was a structure in front of them that blocked their view.
 
Thump. Thud.
 
Beyond the tops of dense pine trees, a massive head appeared. The wolf head wasn’t just casually visible above the treetops; it was positioned about twice the height of the trees.
 
Under its white head, its muscular, toned body was all black, like the shadow of a great mountain.
 
But the great mountain had a pair of mighty wings. Each fine feather could be as tall as a man.
 
‘No matter how you look at it’
 
Kalihiel, or……, was the minion of the ice spirit Hildieta.
 
‘Is this a dream? It must be a dream. Or how else…’
 
Is this the legendary animal from the old tale she just heard—not just any old tale, but a legend?
 
She couldn’t believe it; it was just there in front of her.
 
‘No, it looks just like how he described it, but no one told me it was that big.’
 
Brody jerked her head away, clinging to Aidan.
 
Despite the intimidating size and unfamiliar appearance, the sense of awe outweighed fear. There was a certain majesty and mystery in the unknown creature that made it more intriguing than terrifying. Somehow, she couldn’t take her eyes off it.
 
Kalihiel’s wolf-head was scanning the area urgently. What was he looking for? Prey?
 
His dark, glacier-colored pupils darted and darted until they finally landed on Brody.
 
“……!”
 
Just as their eyes met, Aidan pulled Brody’s body. He firmly held her head, pressing it against his shoulder.
 
“Huh?
 
A warm body temperature mixed with a slightly sweaty, wild scent like a winter night in the forest engulfed Brody’s senses.
 
Aidan covered both of them with the blanket.
 
Only the sound of their breathing filled the small enclosure.
 
Aidan’s lips moved cautiously. As his jaw touched Brody’s forehead, a soft and moist sensation seeped through her skin.
 
“Don’t look. There’s nothing good about locking eyes with it.”
 
Aidan whispered, barely above a breath, because he had to be wary of Kalihiel.
 
To match the tone, Brody asked in a low voice.
 
“Why?”
 
“…….”
 
The warmth and scent of Brody’s breath made Aidan’s head spin for a moment. He furrowed his brow, taking a moment to calm his senses before answering.
 
“Hildieta is insane, and his steed can’t have come out of nowhere. And it’s not like he’s out for a leisurely stroll. If he goes on a rampage, he’ll be hard to handle.”
 
“Hmm…….”
 
He certainly seemed urgent, but he didn’t seem crazy. It was more like…… desperation than madness.
 
‘Hmm, ……. What is he thinking?’
 
Aidan felt uneasy, as she sometimes had unpredictable and surprising thoughts. How could she not be scared of such a large creature?
 
Should he trust her sense of danger?
 
She could be taken prisoner, assassinated, or simply disappear south of the border. At the very least, she had a high threshold for danger.
 
Thud.
 
Meanwhile, the footsteps grew closer. The vibration of the ground and the loudness of the sound confirmed it.
 
‘Damn, is it coming this way?’
 
Brody fixed her gaze through the blanket Aidan had left slightly open to see through the netting. Part of her wanted to get a closer look, but Aidan’s hold on her made it impossible to squirm.
 
Thump.
 
A leg the size of a tree appeared out of nowhere. Soon after, a second leg appeared.
 
A third and then a fourth leg appeared, staggering her, and it was time to pass. However, the other two legs didn’t appear right away.
 
Instead, Kalihiel moved his sleek black neck to lower the wolf’s white-furred face close to the ground.
 
The ground and sky half disappeared from Brody and Aidan’s view, replaced by a stark white side face.
 
The beast sniffed and scanned the ground.
 
It was only sniffing, but the snow on the ground and the dead leaves hidden beneath it were pushed up and out of the air by its breath.
 
Aidan and Brody held their breath.
 
Even Brody, curious as she was, felt a chill run down her spine at the sight of the giant creature almost in front of her.
 
Aidan held her tighter in his arms.
 
She could feel the tension in his muscles, as if they were ready to move if anything happened. Brody bit her lip and gripped Aidan even tighter.
 
‘What is it searching for?’
 
Aidan looked at Kalihiel, convinced. This thing was searching for something right now. Its movements were greedy and relentless.
 
Its large nose began to probe the hillside near where they were.
 
It was only a matter of time before they were spotted.
 
‘Shit. What the hell.’
 
Aidan chewed his lip in frustration.
 
Aidan bit his lips with a sense of impending doom. Of all the places, why did it come here? It wasn’t that he wished for the creature to head towards where the other knights were. If he were alone, he might have willingly become bait to protect them.
 
But what about Brody?
 
Brody entered this dangerous northern land because of him!
 
And to have her face such an unreal, ancient, and dangerous creature.
 
Anger rose, and his heart leapt.
 
He pressed his lips against Brody’s ear.
 
“I’m sorry. Just hang in there.”
 
“What?”
 
Surprised by the gentle movement tickling her ear, Brody was even more surprised by what she heard. Hold on for what?
 
The question didn’t last long.
 
Soon a chill began to run down Brody’s spine.
 
“……!”
 
But it wasn’t like before; when she’d faced the princess, it hadn’t penetrated her body and coursed through her veins.
 
Instead, it felt like a cold, tight-fitting suit—like a layer around Brody’s body.
 
Either way, it was painful.
 
Brody slowly froze, feeling her breath burn her throat. Then she realized she couldn’t move at all.
 
Aidan draped the blanket over Brody and gently set her down on the ground behind him.
 
With that, Aidan was fully exposed before Kalihiel, and Brody was in a state where not even a single hair was visible.
 
Brody shuddered in terror.
 
‘My lord, what on earth are you trying to do? Surely, you’re not planning to lure Kallihel or something?’
 
It was cold, but the most unsettling part was not being able to see or move at all.
 
It was terrifying to be so completely removed from the situation and unable to move at will.
 
Of course, Kalihiel soon found Aidan.
 
Aidan stood up straight and tall, blocking the view of Brody’s hiding place.
 
Kalihiel’s glacier-colored eyes flickered lightly, scanning Aidan up and down and side to side.
 
The humming air began to speak to him.
 
“Are you……?”
 
Aidan recognized the echo in the air.
 
He nodded, confirming Kalihiel’s guess.
 
Then Kalihiel moved the air again and spoke.
 
“This aura is the child of Hildieta. A Mason, perhaps, but not the one I knew. What year is it now?”
 
“Imperial year 771.”
 
“Ha, imperial power. I can’t believe I had to listen to that damn history.”
 
The hum intensified to the point where he could feel it slap his flesh. Kalihiel’s anger was palpable on his skin.
 
It was a different amplitude and intensity for a human, a harder emotion to handle, but Aidan was the closest thing he had to a Hildieta, so he could handle the sensation.
 
Aidan realized that he was rather glad.
 
Kalihiel looked better than he’d expected.
 
So nearly eight hundred years had passed……. So much was unfamiliar.
 
Afterward, Kalihiel muttered to himself, then turned back to Aidan.
 
“If you are his child, I can get some real help. I’m looking for Cloria. If you have any information, let me know.”
 
“Cloria……?”
 
Despite Aidan’s expressionless face, a cold sweat trickled down his back.
 
Not all crazy beings look crazy.
 
In other words, they can be just as crazy as they seem.
 
“Don’t you know? He is Hieldieta’s only lover. She had beautiful horns. her… … . No matter how much time has passed, How could Hildieta’s child not remember Cloria… …”
 
Aidan bit his lip.
 
She with the horns, Hildieta’s one and only lover, Cloria……. No matter how he looked at it, ‘that Cloria’ was correct. Aidan’s thoughts of wondering if he was referring to a person of the same name were completely discarded.
 
Cloria. She was already history. She had turned to ash and returned to the bosom of Mother Nature…….
 
‘As expected, he’s gone mad, unable to recognize her death?  ’
 
Aidan’s heart trembled. He seemed to know.
 
If Brody were to die like that because of him, could he not go crazy himself?
 
He understood Hildieta.
 
And all the more, he realized that he had to protect Brody now with his life, and he moved his hand slowly to the hilt of his sword.