He looked slightly worried. He clenched and unclenched his hands, took a deep breath and forced a smile.

“I know it sounds ridiculous, but I want to hear you confirm with your own mouth that it’s a stupid question.”

“What is it?”

“You… I mean, is it possible that…”

Gentian moistened his lips several times with his tongue before finally asking cautiously.

“Is it possible that you are the Great Witch who supposedly betrayed your kind?”

It felt strange to hear the title ‘Great Witch’ again after a year. Vienny, taken aback by the unexpected question, blinked slowly, missing the right moment to answer. Then she asked calmly.

“Why do you ask that all of a sudden?”

“If you really are… No, forget it. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter, just tell me one thing.”

Gentian took a deep breath and spoke with forced calm.

“About a year ago, near Rave Castle, I met a black dog. Its eyes were red… Was that animal the one that drank your blood?”

He tried to appear calm, but there was a slight tremor in his voice that he couldn’t hide.

“Was it you who found us and warned that zealot?”

So that was why McClart let Gentian go. Vienny held her breath.

She opened her mouth as if to speak, but then looked away from Gentian, lowering her gaze slightly. Gentian hated Chiron, and Chiron hated McClart.

A year ago he had come to the camp to avenge his fallen comrades. And as for the death of those comrades… Vienny found it hard to say she was uninvolved.

Back then, Vienny had seen Gentian and his comrades through the eyes of the black beast, and she had indeed told McClart what she had seen.

“Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

Even though she knew the answer, Vienny deliberately brought up their conversation a few days ago. Gentian paused, his expression a strange mixture of smile and tears. Then, ignoring her question, he pressed her for an answer.

“It wasn’t you, was it?”

Even as he asked, Gentian looked uncomfortable. And with good reason – he already knew what kind of power Vienny possessed.

That was probably why he couldn’t completely ignore McClart’s words. If he found out that Vienny had been involved in the deaths of his comrades, how would he react?

Gentian was the type who would risk his life to avenge his comrades. Vienny hadn’t expected him to treat her the same when he learned the whole truth, which was why she had refrained from giving him any personal information.

“That zealot must have been talking nonsense just to drive a wedge between us, right?”

A wedge, of all things. The word seemed completely out of character for McClart and Vienny frowned slightly.

It was surprising that McClart, who killed heretics without a second thought, had taken the time to tell Gentian about her.

If he had said so much, it meant he had plenty of opportunities to kill him, yet he hadn’t acted immediately. Instead, he seemed intent on driving them apart this way.

This wasn’t quite the McClart she remembered. Had something changed in him in the past year?

“Did he talk about me directly?”

“En, can you please just answer my question?”

Gentian urged her, his voice pained, seemingly frustrated by her constant deflection. But Vienny continued to avoid a direct answer, instead asking another unrelated question.

“Did he know about me?”

“Yes. He seemed to know you.”

She had thought it possible that he hadn’t forgotten her, but to have it confirmed in this way made her feel strangely unsettled. Gentian, growing uneasy at Vienny’s silence and subtle expression, asked again, his voice strained.

“En, aren’t you going to answer me?”

He seemed determined to get an answer, no matter what. Vienny, biting her lower lip as she thought, finally replied in a calm tone.

“It will take a while. We should cross the river first and then talk.”

“Take a while? There’s nothing to explain. Just say it’s nonsense.”

He was right – a simple denial would have sufficed. But what if telling a lie to get out of the situation now caused more trouble later?

Since McClart had already hinted to Gentian, and there was always the possibility that the two would meet again, she knew she couldn’t afford to lie any more. Vienny struggled to find a way to answer without deceiving him.

“Gentian, we’re being followed. We don’t have time to argue.”

“Is it really worth arguing about? All you have to do is say no.”

Their voices began to rise. Vienny swallowed nervously and replied in a deliberately firm tone.

“You don’t trust me.”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Yes, it is. You don’t trust me.”

“En, it’s not like that… Fine, you’re right. Let’s cross the river first. It’d be better to talk somewhere safe.”

In the end, it was Gentian who gave in first. He sighed, ran a hand roughly through his hair and turned away, saying he’d bring the hidden boat. As he turned his back, Vienny spoke to him quietly.

“I’ll see if there are any animals around. I just feel uneasy.”

“OK. Just don’t go too far.”

It would be a lie to say she didn’t feel guilty when she saw Gentian let her go without a hint of suspicion. But her hesitation didn’t last long. Vienny turned away with a calm expression on her face.

Even before the witch hunt began, the witches had prepared various hiding places throughout the land. This was especially true in Tempe, a region known for its frequent natural disasters.

As well as the shelters the witches had built themselves, there were ancient ruins that had existed for generations. If you knew their locations, it wasn’t too difficult to hide there and survive.

If Vienny hadn’t tipped off McClart early on, the witches probably wouldn’t have been driven out so quickly.

Among the various hiding places scattered around, the one in this area was an underground ruin. It had several entrances, making it an easy place to slip into.

It seemed that the other witches had assumed that Vienny had also revealed this place, which was why they had abandoned it. But Vienny had not revealed this place to anyone yet.

Once Vienny was sure that Gentian was gone, she moved quickly. Pushing her tired legs, she walked downstream for a few minutes until she came to a low rocky cliff.

It was actually more of a hill than a cliff. The surface of the rock was covered with tangled roots or branches – it was hard to tell which – and patches of bluish moss could be seen in the shady crevices. This was the entrance Vienny had been looking for.

Looking back, she didn’t see Gentian. It would take him some time to get the hidden boat to the riverbank.

Vienny brushed aside the hanging vines and felt along the surface of the rock. There must be a handle somewhere.

As she ran her fingers carelessly over the surface, her fingertips scraped against the rough rock, drawing blood, but she barely felt the pain.

“Got it.”

Finding a particularly deep crevice, Vienny’s face lit up as she grasped it firmly. Beside the wet, slippery moss, she found the solid stone handle.

Vienny grabbed the handle and tried to push it aside with all her strength, but it wouldn’t budge – she wasn’t strong enough, it seemed.

Biting her lip hard, she clung desperately to the handle, using her whole body to push against it. The moss made her hands slip, and as she grasped it roughly to maintain her grip, blood began to ooze from her palms.

The tiny wounds from the thorns opened wider, but thanks to her persistence, the solid stone door began to move, inch by inch.

As a small gap formed, stone dust fell in a fine spray. Once the gap was there, it was easier to open.

She only needed enough space to squeeze her body through, and Vienny’s frame was small enough that she quickly managed to create the opening she needed.

The entrance, hidden behind overgrown branches and leaves, was almost impossible to see at first glance – which made it perfect.

“…!”

When she heard Gentian calling in the distance, Vienny wasted no time in squeezing her body into the opening. The uneven crack was narrow, but not so narrow that she couldn’t get through.

Her shoulders, legs and arms scraped against the rough stone, but once she was through the entrance, there would be a larger space waiting for her. As she forced her body through the narrow gap, she heard a loud noise from outside.

Knowing Gentian’s keen hearing, any sound would probably give her away, so Vienny froze immediately. She tried to keep as quiet as possible, hoping he would pass by, when she suddenly realised that the sound from outside was the hooves of a horse.

Instinctively, she held her breath. An intense tension, far greater than anything she had ever felt before, enveloped her entire body. Vienny bit her lip to keep from screaming as she strained her ears.

She could hear the sound of hoofbeats mixed with several voices. They were very close.

He had arrived.

She had to move quickly, but her body felt bound, unable to move. Vienny squeezed her eyes shut, trying to calm her pounding heart.

McClart wouldn’t know she was there anyway. He would probably just pass by.

If things went as they were, McClart would meet Gentian, and while the two of them faced each other, she could quietly slip deeper into hiding. She had never told McClart about this place, so there was no chance of her being found.

After several attempts to reassure herself, Vienny cautiously began to move again. One step – she pushed her body sideways, but small pebbles crumbled and fell to the ground.

The small sound made her body freeze again. But this time she didn’t stop. She boldly pushed herself further inside.

As her body entered the larger room, her shoulder scraped against a sharp stone protruding from the wall. The burning pain spread over her skin and brought tears to her eyes.

As she hunched her shoulder, trying to bear the pain, the sound of hoofbeats outside stopped. Not fade away – stop completely.

“Hold your position.”