The Louth Empire...
Tycon Territory...
"Hey, you idiot, hurry up!!!" a young man ran in a rush.
'Damn it... why did we agree to her request, anyway?'
'Even so, that strange person is still my childhood friend.'
A group of people in strange masks continuously chased them.
While running, Charles pulled out a letter with an annoyed expression.
"If only I hadn't agreed to that foolish girl's request...."
"Goodness, do you want me to stuff your mouth with a sandal, huh?" A young man interrupted him.
The strange people were still chasing them. Until an old woman, who appeared out of nowhere, hid them.
The old person brought them to her place. There was nothing special about the place. Just a small, rickety shack.
"Hey, grandma, where are we now?" out of curiosity, Ian immediately asked without hesitation.
The old woman smiled, looking at him, and said, "I apologize, this place is bad, but this is all I have."
The place instantly fell silent. Not a single word came out of their mouths for quite some time.
"..."
"Grandma, thank you."
The old woman paused. While walking, she picked up a feather duster that was lying on a small table.
"Yes."
"For now, you must hide in this place."
There was something strange about the woman's words, as if she knew something.
.... Ding... ding~
The sound of the clock tower in the city center chimed loudly, echoing even in this rather desolate edge of the city.
"Ah... You must be hungry, I'll bring you something."
The old woman changed the subject and left, abandoning the two of them.
It had been about 40 minutes since the grandmother left the house.
Knock... knock.....
Someone was knocking on the door.
Creeaak...
The door slowly opened.
"Grandma? Is she not home?"
The two of them continued to observe the person until he turned around and they made eye contact.
"The woman you're looking for is out," Charles answered without preamble.
"Who are you?"
They introduced themselves.
"Tch... It's been almost an hour, where did that old woman actually go?" Ian remarked with a click of his tongue.
The three of them fell silent again due to the awkwardness.
"You're quite close, aren't you?" Ian reflexively jumped in surprise.
'Since when was he here? I didn't even hear a single one of his footsteps.'
It was indeed strange. Charles had super sensitive hearing; it was impossible for someone's footsteps to escape his ears.
"I apologize, but I think we have to leave."
They exited the old house.
The grandmother and the young man with a small stature watched them, waving their hands.
"Be careful."
Damian Residence...
Nighttime....
A woman in her 40s paced non-stop while showing an expression of confusion.
There was also a girl, about 15 years old, sitting in a chair.
"Mother, please calm down! Why are you so worked up? Brother isn't a child anymore; maybe he's at his friend's house."
The child approached her mother and held her hand.
"Erica, I'm truly worried, I can't even think straight anymore."
Just then, a head butler arrived to convey something.
The woman went downstairs and opened her front door.
"I apologize for disturbing your rest, but... is my son here? It's been almost 4 days and he hasn't returned home."
A middle-aged man stood in front of the door with a look of deep worry.
"I'm sorry, but big brother hasn't returned either. I thought he was at your residence." Erica immediately replied. Without further ado, Aliyah left, passing Viscount Rigel.
"...."
"Sir, aren't you going to look for your son?" Ian's mother was already on horseback. Both of them were so surprised their eyes widened.
"Uh... Mother needs to rest."
"Duchess, let me look for them instead," the Viscount interjected.
Not long after, a knight ran in a hurry towards them.
"My Ladyyyyy... The young master has returned!" taking a kneeling stance, the knight reported what he saw.
They immediately went to see Ian.
Erica clenched her fists, extremely annoyed with her brother, as if ready to throw a punch at any moment. She was indeed a somewhat temperamental child. It wasn't uncommon for her to scold her brother or parents if she thought their actions were wrong. But all of that was out of worry.
Without uttering a single word, Erica just glanced at her brother's eyes with an exasperated look. "Tch." The child walked out with both hands still clenched, followed by a sour expression. At the same time, a middle-aged man passed through the same corridor.
He quickly grabbed the girl's hand. "What happened?!" The man looked at Erica with a worried gaze. "Hmm... ask big brother," Erica immediately let go of the man's hand.
There were still many people in the place, and the man entered without saying a word.
"Father.....?" Ian's hand, which had been calm, suddenly trembled.
'It's understandable that the boy is trembling like that, considering how harsh this Francis is.'
"It seems my son has also returned home."
"My Lady, I will take my leave now."
'I wish you luck, son~ fight on.' Cedric smiled as he waved his hand in their direction.
"Damian Courtesy, after this conversation is over, come straight to the library!" He left with a rather grim expression.
Meanwhile, in a large forest in the Rosselle territory.
"AGHHHHH...!!!" An adventurer screamed in pain after being attacked by a monster.
"You, step back and quickly join them!" a young man grabbed the adventurer's collar and dragged him to retreat.
The adventurer's condition was very poor, with drops of blood flowing from his chest and hand.
"But, Sir..."
"Don't waste time, all of you! Beatrix and I will handle this monster." While drawing the sword from its sheath, he prepared to...
"This is the report, Your Excellency." A Courtesy family servant handed over neatly arranged sheets of paper.
At his desk, Francis tried to understand the meaning of the servant's report.
"A monster that can't be killed? This is the first time I've heard of it." While examining the paper, Francis wore a grim face.
"Some time ago, a group of adventurers was attacked by one of the monsters in that report."
"Almost all members of that adventurer group died."
"Even their bodies were found incomplete. On average, the organs of the deceased victims were scattered everywhere."
A look of distress still enveloped his face. From the report, Francis knew exactly where that place was.
"Miss, please call Lucas here!" The servant bowed and immediately left the room.
...
Many dishes were served on the dining table. From heavy meals to desserts. However, not a single one had been eaten yet.
"Uh? Are we going to have dinner or not?" Ian looked at all his family members.
"Look at the situation, you idiot," Erica replied curtly.
"The large forest in the Rosselle territory is right on the west side of this area. Even if the Empire helps, it might not be enough, right?"