2.6

Does this woman never sleep in?  

Julian, groping the space beside him in a half-asleep state, furrowed his brow.  

He thought he had exhausted her completely the night before, yet she had the energy to wander around at dawn. He had hoped to finally roll around with the soft and tender Vanessa, but the virtuous lady never gave him the chance.  

Vanessa’s destination was obvious. Since he hadn’t cleaned up after her, she must have gone to wash or to the damn stable to tend to that horse again. Julian thought of Vanessa’s horse, named Pumpkin, and smirked.  

There were nobles with an extraordinary love for horses, and Vanessa seemed to be one of them. Of course, Pumpkin was a well-bred horse and her only means of transportation, so it was understandable that she cherished it. But Pumpkin’s presence felt like the specter of Sir Michael to Julian, which subtly annoyed him.  

Sir Michael was thirty years older than Vanessa. No matter how much he was her husband, she couldn’t have liked a man old enough to be her father. While he believed there was no love in the marriages of nobles, formed out of mutual interests, they had shared six years together. It was a time far longer than the few days she had known Julian.  

Damn it, who cares? I’m the one beside Vanessa now.  

Jealousy and possessiveness were feelings he had never experienced with the women who had passed through his life. They had all been fleeting pleasures, none leaving a significant memory. Vanessa was different. He kept thinking about her and wanted to spend more time with her. He was curious about her thoughts and the life she had lived.

Julian couldn’t pinpoint what made Vanessa special, but after spending a second night with her, he had to admit it. He was falling for Vanessa more and more.  

Despite being afraid of him, she acted boldly, and though she said no with words, her body was honest, which was endearing. The time spent with Vanessa was so enchanting that he never got tired of it, no matter how many times they were together, and he wanted to spend many more nights with her.  

This wouldn’t do. He had to see Vanessa right away.  

Julian stormed out of the hut, breathing heavily.  

c*ck-a-doodle-doo—  

A rooster crowed noisily from the thatched roof. Already irritated, the sound of the rooster further grated on his nerves. Julian frowned as he searched for Vanessa.  

There were signs that water had been drawn at the well. Vanessa must have been there. In that case, she would have gone to the stable next. Indeed, the latch on the stable door was undone. However, there was no trace of Vanessa inside the stable.  

Pumpkin, who should have been tied in the stall, was also nowhere to be found. 

Did she ride out on horseback? 

With bandit knights roaming nearby, she wouldn’t dare do such a thing without fear. If she hadn’t left voluntarily, someone must have kidnapped Vanessa.  

At that moment, the face of the young man who had raged against him yesterday flashed through his mind. A chill ran down his spine.

* * *

“Where did you take her!”  

“W-What are you talking about all of a sudden? Who did I take…?”  

“The woman who came with me, Vanessa!”  

Julian roared like an angry bear, grabbing the village chief who had been dragged out of bed. The village chief’s eyes, crusted with sleep, popped open at the deafening roar. He had to do something before the mercenary lord crushed his skull.  

“P-Please calm down… I’ll call the people to search for her.”  

The commotion that erupted at dawn gathered the villagers, who looked worried, at the chief’s house. Among them, the man Julian was looking for was not present.  

“Where’s the whelp who jumped at me yesterday? Get him here now!”  

“Why are you looking for that boy…?”  

“Stop talking and bring him here now!”  

“Whoa!”  

The chief, pushed by Julian, tumbled to the ground. The chief clutched his aching waist and looked around.  

“Johannes, Johannes! Where has he gone? Someone go find him!”  

At the chief’s cry, a village youth ran to search Johannes’ house. Donnie approached Julian, who was breathing heavily, half-n*ked.  

“Julian, calm down. Why are you harassing innocent people?”  

“Do I look calm to you? Vanessa is missing!”  

Pierre, seeing Julian’s serious face, refrained from joking that she must have run away because he bullied her too much. It was too late to leave now. Something must have happened.  

The young man who searched Johannes’ house reported that Johannes was nowhere to be found in the village. The chief’s wrinkled face turned pale.  

“Oh dear, I opposed it so much. He finally caused a problem.”  

“If you don’t want to die, tell me where that brat went!”  

The chief stammered, trying to speak in front of Julian, who was shouting with veins bulging in his neck.  

“H-He said yesterday that if he handed over the Madame of the Cloet Viscount family to Earl Plar, he could get military support in return. I told him it was repaying kindness with betrayal…”  

As the chief trailed off, Julian’s brow furrowed, and a blue vein bulged. His clenched fist trembled as if he might strike in anger.  

“I’ve committed a grave sin, but please spare my life!”  

Despite the chaos of yesterday, Johannes hadn’t learned his lesson and eventually caused trouble. To provoke a mercenary who could turn into a ruthless mob at any moment. The villagers sighed and begged for forgiveness.  

Though anger boiled, there was no time to waste. He turned back toward the lodging immediately. Donnie followed with a worried face.  

“Julian, wait! What are you going to do when you catch up?”  

“Don’t worry. I won’t kill him.”  

Julian meant he’d barely let him live. Though it was questionable if he could keep that promise, given his current state of mind.  

“What if the bandit knights attack while you’re gone?”  

“They should handle that much themselves.”  

“I’m not joking. If our plan worked, that’s fine, but in the worst case, we might have to face them all with just the three of us.”  

Donnie grabbed Julian’s arm as he picked up his sword. He couldn’t risk the entire group for one woman, Vanessa. A brief scuffle ensued as they pushed and pulled each other.  

“The mission comes first. Don’t forget why we came here.”  

It was hard to ignore the sincere advice of an old friend. He knew logically. They had to observe the enemy’s movements and prepare for the next battle. But he couldn’t focus on anything until he safely brought Vanessa back. Julian shook off Donnie’s arm with force.  

Having finished his preparations, Julian silently mounted his horse.  

No words could stop Julian. Donnie sighed and tossed a helmet to Julian. It was the shiny steel helmet the bandit knight wore yesterday.  

“At least wear that. No matter how urgent, you should wear armor.”  

“Thanks. I’ll be back soon.”  

“Yeah, they haven’t been gone long, so you should catch up quickly. We’ll scout the stronghold, so see you nearby later.”  

Watching Julian’s retreating figure leave the village in a cloud of dust, Pierre muttered.  

“Ugh, thanks to him, I’m wide awake now.”  

“Is Max still not up?”  

“He won’t get up until sunrise.”  

“Wake him up. Let’s check the stronghold while it’s still dark.”  

Donnie said, placing his hand on his waist.  

They climbed the slope, leading a grumbling Max. As dawn broke, the rough surface of the valley revealed its shadows. The cold, damp air gradually warmed.  

By the time they reached the middle of the slope, a small stronghold came into view in the distance. It was a fairly decent stronghold, with peeled logs haphazardly woven to form a fence and a watchtower near the entrance. For some reason, the barrier at the entrance was heavily disheveled.  

They hid under the shade of dense trees and surveyed the surroundings. There was no sign of life beyond the stronghold. They cautiously infiltrated the stronghold, quieting their steps.  

A scene of slaughter unfolded before their eyes. The ground was stained with dark blood, and corpses strewn about added to the horror. The bodies were in rigor mortis, and the purplish livor mortis on the skin touching the ground was faint, indicating they had died a few hours ago.  

There seemed to be no one alive here. There were no horses in the barn, and hoofprints were deeply embedded in the ground as if they had left in a hurry.  

“Donnie! Come here!”  

Pierre shouted after flipping over a corpse to check its face. The familiar face of the corpse, blackened as if poisoned, was recognizable. The bandit knights had retaliated against those who betrayed them and left.  

“Damn, the plan failed.”  

“Where the hell did those bastards go?”  

Max gritted his teeth as he spoke.  

If the bandit knights had headed straight for the village to retaliate, they should have encountered the group midway. If they didn’t go to the village, the only other place was Earl Plar’s territory on the opposite side. And in that path were Julian and Vanessa. Donnie’s face showed a trace of dismay.