It seemed like she had only spaced out for a brief moment, but quite a long time had actually passed.

Lavi was calling her name, “Sel, Sel?”

“Why do you look like that?” he asked, worried as Sel suddenly looked unwell.

Snapping back to her senses, Sel quickly composed her expression, saying the first thing that came to mind.

“Um… about my romantic future? I’m curious about it.”

“Your… what?”

“You told me to ask about it.”

“Got someone you want to date already or something?”

Now it was Lavi’s turn to look unsettled. He frowned, muttering names like, “Karin? Adele? No way, Flora?”

“If you’ve got time to think about romance, why don’t you try practicing with a sword instead? With that scrawny body of yours, you won’t be able to charm any woman.”

Damn. Lavi squeezed his eyes shut, running a hand through his hair.

That mouth of his betrayed him again today, spouting whatever it pleased. Regret hit him immediately.

That wasn’t what he’d meant to say. But every time he was around Sel, he turned into an awkward kid who couldn’t control his feelings.

“Why are you provoking me all of a sudden? I heard I’m quite popular, you know.”

“Ha, listen. I’ve been more popular than you could ever dream of, and let me tell you, that’s all useless.”

“Well, from what I hear, your popularity is just a brief phase… Eek!”

Sel abruptly stopped talking. It was a sore spot Philip had secretly mentioned about Lavi: that because of spirits, no woman could endure him for long.

Sure enough, Lavi’s face puffed up, looking like an angry balloon.

“Just because you’re big doesn’t mean much. I was the same way. Think it’ll go great? No, you have to experience it to really know!”

What exactly was big? And what would go great? And what did he mean by experience? Sel was confused but offered an apology anyway.

Lavi was the one speaking roughly, yet he also looked a bit sorrowful.

“That… I… didn’t mean it that way. I’m sorry.”

“…Hopeless.”

“What?”

“You’re fated to die without ever holding a woman’s hand!”

Lavi spat out his silly words, then abruptly stood up.

Stomping off, he suddenly stopped, then started banging his head against a sturdy oak trunk.

Falling acorns startled the other members, but like a lonely male woodpecker, he continued to beat his head until the tree almost cracked.

***

Finally, it was the last day in the Black Forest.

Upon reaching the fifth campsite, the mercenary group unloaded their gear.

The cart brought in by the supply team was packed with a mountain of spoils.

“Looks like we’ll be getting a solid bonus again,” Choro said with a grin, giving Sel a pat on the shoulder.

The word “bonus” made Sel smile widely.

Sel’s tent-pitching skills had improved quite a bit. This six-day trip had turned her into someone who could survive on a deserted island.

In the center of the campsite, the sounds of Lavi and Eric arguing filled the air.

They were bickering about the campfire again, looking like a pair of close friends.

“Uh… Sel.”

Someone tapped her on the shoulder.

For some reason, the touch gave her goosebumps, and she turned around.

“Du…”

“Dwayne.”

“Ah, yes, Dwayne. Do you need something?”

“That, that handkerchief I lent you before? The one I left drying on the branch? I, I finally managed to get it back, but…”

“Ah…”

Sel remembered the smelly handkerchief he’d handed her on the second day.

“I should have returned it directly to you. My apologies.”

“You… you really got it, uh, dirty though.”

At his words, Sel furrowed her brow. She hadn’t even used it; she’d just left it hanging on the branch. Ah, maybe it fell off and got dirty. That could be it.

“If you’re planning to use it now, I can wash it thoroughly for you.”

“It, it’s dangerous to go out alone at night. I’ll go with you.”

“No, whenever I have to go somewhere, the Deputy Commander always comes along with me. I’ll ask him…”

“B-But he’s, he’s busy right now.”

Dwayne gestured to Eric and Lavi, who were caught in an intense debate. Sel sighed heavily.

“Alright, there’s a stream over that way. Let’s go there.”

Though she was wary of Dwayne’s attitude, Sel decided to avoid drawing lines prematurely.

Judging someone before knowing them, she felt, was something to be done only after gaining a better understanding.

She’d experienced the hurt of being subjected to unpleasant looks and shallow judgments from people who didn’t really know her.

Sel picked up a torch and headed toward the stream.

Typically, campsites were near water. However, tonight, the stream was a bit farther from camp than usual.

Dwayne followed closely behind her, smugly, as though she were escorting him.

The round torch illuminated the dark ground below.

The sound of water grew nearer, and as Sel carefully stepped over large stones, she handed the torch to Dwayne.

“Could you hold this for a moment while I wash it?”

“S-sure, don’t worry.”

Dwayne seemed pleased, as one corner of his mouth kept twitching upwards.

Sel carefully approached the stream.

Though she knew the water was shallow, the nighttime creek instilled a strange fear.

The once peaceful sound of the stream during the day now echoed ominously in the darkness.

Sel dipped the handkerchief into the creek.

The cold water pulled at the cloth, as if to swallow it.

For some reason, the handkerchief felt foreboding, so she only held onto one end, swirling it in the water.

After a while, the light from the torch abruptly vanished.

At the same time, an acrid smell filled the air behind her.

“…Dwayne?”

Sel tilted her head slightly, calling his name. There was no response.

She threw the handkerchief aside and quickly pulled a pistol from her belt.

Sel held her breath as much as she could.

Her instincts warned her against inhaling that smell.

Her eyes, not yet accustomed to the pitch-black darkness, could only scan the shadows. Her pistol muzzle wavered in the empty darkness.

*Thwack!*

Out of nowhere, a kick struck Sel’s hand holding the pistol, knocking it loose. *Splash*. She heard the sound of her dropped pistol landing in the creek.

“Damn it! Dwayne!”

It was too dark to tell if her opponent was Dwayne or someone else.

But Sel could tell enough.

The time spent navigating dark paths between cabins and villages had made her sense of smell especially sharp.

And the only scent she could pick up here was Dwayne’s.

Fortunately, this darkness was to Sel’s advantage, not Dwayne’s.

“What do you think you’re doing, Dwayne?”

“You nasty boy. Leaving my handkerchief like that…”

“I already apologized for that.”

“Your face looks like a girl’s… body’s small, too.”

The chilling tone of his voice sent a shiver through her shoulders.

Yet, with her guard up, Sel took a step back, retreating along the creek toward the scent of gunpowder.

*Splash, splash.*

Her foot brushed against something hard on the creekbed. It was her lost pistol.

Sel quickly grabbed it.

There was only one chance to beat Dwayne, known for his close combat skills.

She swiftly moved across the creek to put distance between them.

“W-Where do you think you’re r-running off to?”

Dwayne, on the other hand, seemed in no rush.

*Splash, splash, splash.* Dwayne made no effort to muffle his footsteps.

He was trying to pressure Sel psychologically.

He felt like a predator stalking its prey.

This thrill was exhilarating to Dwayne.

Before becoming a mercenary, Dwayne Chester had occasionally indulged in “hunting.”

Unlike regular hunting, however, his prey had been helpless commoners.

The more beautiful his target, the greater his sense of being a powerful predator.

With each hunt, his combat skills had sharpened.

Then one day, his luck had run out, and he had almost been caught.

As a precaution, he applied to the well-known Cavalry Mercenary Guild in the countryside.

That way, he’d be far from the capital and could still build a reputation—two birds with one stone.

The timing was perfect.

Unlike rookies who had never taken a life, he was at an advantage and naturally passed the entrance trials.

Although he’d been nervous about Lavirus’s sixth sense revealing his past, avoiding him around the new moon was enough to stay safe.

Dwayne had kept a low profile within the mercenary group, avoiding officers like Lavi and Eric.

After this expedition, he planned to retire from the corps.

By now, the series of murders would be forgotten.

Then Sel had caught his eye. With a face almost pretty for a man, he appealed to Dwayne.

A tempting prey.

Of course, there was the inconvenient fact that Sel had once defeated the sword master.

He had initially decided to let it go, but learning that Sel would be on the expedition had thrilled him.

Accidents always happen during expeditions, after all.

If Sel were to have such an “accident,” it would be resolved easily enough.

Dwayne was feeling incredibly pleased.

This was the first time he’d had such a beautiful prey.

He felt like a noble, powerful predator, just like his prey was elegant.

“Run, give it all you’ve got. Heh heh, hehe.”

Sel gritted her teeth and focused her attention in the direction of the sound.

That unnerving laugh was drawing closer.

Calculating his height and stride, Sel squeezed the trigger.

*Click.* The trigger clicked uselessly. Was it wet? The pistol’s mechanism seemed jammed.

‘Please, just work.’

Recalling how she had oiled it thoroughly, Sel pulled the trigger again.

The pistol’s silence filled her with disappointment.

A chill ran down her neck. Sensing the danger, Sel ducked.

*Crack!* Dwayne’s kick splintered the tree nearby.

“Was it true you took down the sword master? Guess it was, huh?”

Did he dodge that?

Muttering to himself, Dwayne threw a punch forward.

It was fast, but still slower than Lavi.

Sel’s reflexes, honed by training with Lavi, barely kept up with his movements.

*Whiz!* Dwayne’s fist grazed past her ear.

Narrowly dodging, Sel crouched down.

She scrambled away on all fours, hiding behind the densely packed trees.

Training for this expedition had proven invaluable.

Quickly, she wiped her pistol dry with her clothes, trying to remove the water.

Her soaked clothes were draining her body heat, but her shivering wasn’t from the cold; it was fear.

*Step, step.* Dwayne continued to purposefully make noise as he searched for her in the dark.

Sel gripped her pistol tightly and fixed her gaze forward.

A dark figure rapidly approached from the shadows.

She tried the trigger again, but it was no use.

The shadow lunged, yanking her hair back.

“You little rat!”

*Smack!* Dwayne slapped her across the face. Sel’s head snapped to the side.

It was different from the time Flora had slapped her. It was far rougher than any drunken scuffle.

Her senses briefly faded, only to snap back.

Fortunately, her finger was still on the trigger.

*Bang!*

After countless failed attempts, the long-awaited gunshot finally rang out.