He needs to be taught a lesson? Amelia was taken aback by Leonel’s natural response. She finally understood the strange feelings she had been experiencing.

Leonel was wary of Raphael. She didn’t know why, but he was much more cautious than she was.

“We have to hurry.”

Amelia couldn’t get used to Leonel’s anxious voice. How did he know? She hadn’t even known Raphael was leaving tonight instead of two days later. Yet Leonel had come to her the moment Raphael left.

As if he knew everything in advance.

“Leonel, how did you know?”

“Huh?”

“How did you know Raphael was leaving tonight?”

It would be a lie to say she hadn’t found it strange until now. There were moments that bothered her, but she brushed them off, thinking it would be okay. But she couldn’t ignore it any longer. There was something she didn’t know. When she first came here, she thought she knew everything because she had read the original story.

But that was all an illusion. What she knew was only a small part, and much had changed. It felt like she knew nothing.

“If you’re a Siegfried, you have to know.”

If you’re a Siegfried, you have to know. The book didn’t say much about the Siegfrieds. Like other villainous characters, they had strong powers and could control monsters. And their eyes and hair were golden. If there were important details, they would have been written.

“I’ll explain as we go. We don’t have time to waste.”

Seeing Leonel extend his hand to her again, Amelia hesitated for the first time. Since coming here, Leonel had been the first to come to her mind, and she held the deepest affection for him. She hoped Leonel wouldn’t meet a tragic end and wished for a happy conclusion for him. She empathized with and became deeply attached to Leonel more than anyone else.

“Mother?”

“No, I was just… thinking for a moment.”

Amelia finally took Leonel’s hand as he looked up at her again. She would probably do the same even if faced with the same situation again. Ignoring Leonel was impossible.

“We need to escape while Father is distracted.”

She wanted to ask how he knew such things but had to hold back. It was true that they were in a hurry, as Leonel said. Raphael would notice immediately if she made even the slightest move. Their original plan had already been disrupted, making it more dangerous.

“Oh…!”

Amelia was pulled across the boundary by Leonel’s surprisingly strong grip and strength, which were unbelievable for a five-year-old. It was her first time in the western forest at night… She had heard that monsters were stronger at night than during the day. Could they manage this with Leonel’s incomplete abilities?

“Hurry up.”

“This is…”

Her worries were unnecessary. As soon as they crossed the boundary, the monsters were lined up in formation just like before. But there were even more of them than during the day. Amelia couldn’t close her mouth at the sight of the forest filled with monsters.

“Are all the monsters in the forest out here?”

“No, only the ones I can control. I still can’t handle high-level monsters with this body.”

Wouldn’t that be dangerous? So there were even scarier monsters still in the forest?

“Don’t worry. They won’t come out.”

Should she believe Leonel’s words that they wouldn’t come out? There was no time to ponder. Their plan had already been disrupted by Raphael’s early departure. He could reappear at any moment. They needed to get out of there quickly.

“We need to go now.”

“You don’t mean… we’re going to ride this, do you?”

She spoke in a tone hoping he would say no, but Leonel mercilessly nodded. She had heard they would escape by riding a flying monster but didn’t think it would actually happen.

“We don’t have time, Mother.”

She knew they didn’t have time… The monsters looked as terrifying and grotesque as their name suggested. Even knowing Leonel’s power wouldn’t harm her, she couldn’t bring herself to approach them. It was an innate fear.

“Don’t worry, they won’t bite.”

“What?”

Even though it was opening its massive, sharp-toothed mouth… it wouldn’t bite? The monsters came in various forms. There were humanoid ones and animal-like ones. But none of them looked friendly. They were truly monstrous.

“Hurry up and get on.”

Seeing Leonel effortlessly leap onto the monster’s back, Amelia was taken aback. She had noticed before how quick his movements were. The monster they were to ride looked like a dinosaur with wings.

“A dragon…?”

“A dragon?”

She had never seen a dragon, but it seemed like it would look just like this. Huge, door-like teeth and reptilian eyes.

“It would be nice if it were a dragon, but this is a gargoyle.”

Leonel, holding the reins that were somehow tied to the monster’s body, extended his hand to her. At the same time, the gargoyle’s body lowered to let her get on. The whole situation felt surreal to Amelia. A giant full moon hung in the dark night sky, and a monster bowed its head to her.

“We’re leaving now.”

And Leonel acted as if all this was perfectly normal.

***

She never imagined her first nighttime escape would be with her son. Others might elope for love…

“Ahhh!”

She was in a desperate horror movie escape scene. As soon as she got on, the monster leaped into the air.

“Mother, are you okay?”

“I’m… okay…”

She couldn’t even tell a white lie. The speed at which they soared through the air made the wind lash against her cheeks. She didn’t want to scream, but a scream escaped her lips. The only thing she could hold onto was the rope tied around the gargoyle’s body.

“I’m sorry, we have to go fast.”

But they were going too fast. They were moving at such incredible speed that the scenery blurred past. She was sure Raphael wouldn’t be able to catch them. No matter how inhuman his skills were, he couldn’t move this fast.

By the time he realized, they would already be in the Carta Empire.

“But… how did you know Raphael was leaving tonight?”

“It was a lie from the start.”

A lie? So Raphael’s statement about leaving the castle in a week was false?

“I knew because of the full moon. I thought he would leave tonight.”

The full moon? She didn’t understand the connection. The moon rose every month. Nothing had happened last month.

“People usually know that monsters get stronger at night. That’s true but also not true.”

Leonel continued to increase their speed as if being chased.

“Monsters get stronger when the full moon rises. And today is the day of the large moon that appears once every six months.”

She remembered being surprised by the abnormally large full moon when she first arrived here. That was half a year ago. She wanted to ask what the connection was between the monsters getting stronger and Raphael leaving the castle, but she couldn’t. She clung to the rope and closed her eyes against the increasing speed.

“We’re here.”

With Leonel’s words, the gargoyle that had been flying like mad suddenly stopped. Before her eyes was the border of the Carta Empire.

“We have to walk from here.”

As soon as they dismounted, the gargoyle returned to the forest. It was amazing to see Leonel, much smaller than her, handling everything so smoothly. It was hard to believe, but he seemed skilled at all this.

“I’ve prepared identification tags too.”

“It’s a success!”

Even though she couldn’t see his face under the robe, she could tell from his voice that Leonel was very excited. She felt happy too. She couldn’t believe they were so close to successfully escaping when she thought it was impossible.

Just a few more steps and they would cross into the empire. A little further, and they would reach a checkpoint, marking a complete escape.

“Success…”

It was within reach. Just one more step. But she couldn’t move any further. It felt like something was blocking her. At the same time, she felt a chill down her spine.

“Did you enjoy the game?”

“Ra, Raphael…”

Raphael stood there with a face she had never seen before.

“Are you going to pretend this was an outing again?”

“This is… well…”

“The game ends here.”

His voice was cold and sharp enough to freeze her whole body.