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As I run, I can see white and gray smoke drifting from the end of the hallway.

Just what is happening?

I jump out of the hallway.

The entrance, which looks like a large hall, grows closer and larger in my field of view.

I’m standing on a hallway that circles around the outer periphery of the wall and is one floor above the ground. Covering one side of the hallway are wooden railings.

I run to the railing in front of me and look down.

“Huh…?!”

The entrance is in a completely different state compared to when I first came.

The walls are burnt, the floors are destroyed in some places, the pillars are cracked, and the windows are broken.

A lot of areas are on fire, which is what caused the smoke. The wind and the rain are blowing in through the windows. Some of the saint portraits lined up on the left and right side of the walls near the entrance have also been partially damaged.

The entrance, which used to be beautiful and like a museum or art gallery, has been destroyed. Just seeing the state of ruin makes me understand that something terrible must have happened here.

Near the center of the destroyed entrance, many people are fighting.

As far as I can see, there are around six knights, around eight guards armed with a spear, and around four monks clad in hoods.

With weapons in their hands, they all have an awfully tense expression as they confront what seems to be the assailant. Some of them look frightened and hesitant to make a move. Their faces look like they’re facing a madman.

All of their eyes are focused on one spot. On a man they have surrounded at a safely far distance.

On a young man draped in a black jacket and holding a large sword that’s almost as tall as he is in one hand.

His hair is of the color gold, and his eyes are blue, which are unusual in this area.

“Alfred!”

I lean over the railing and call out his name. Alfred starts to look around, surprise apparent in his expression.

When I call his name again with a loud voice, he finally figures my location and turns around, looking straight at me.

The moment he catches sight of me, he widens his eyes. Then he scrunches his eyebrows, and his face distorts. He looks like he’s going to cry anytime soon, which is unusual.

“Lian… Finally… I finally found you…”

Alfred loosens his grip. The tip of his large sword hits the floor, making a small clunking noise.

Even though I’m quite far away from him, it’s apparent that he’s drenched. His black jacket is also scorched and contains many tears. He looks tattered overall. Moving my gaze to his temple, I finally notice something red flowing down from his temple… I tremble. I shift my gaze downward and scrutinize his left arm. It’s somewhat dark red too.

Is he injured? There’s blood on him.

Ahh, I have to heal him immediately—

…It’s shameful, but I’m too shaken and upset by his injury and bloody state. I can only stand still in a fluster.

Alfred walks towards me, his footsteps light.

“Al, you’re hurt—”

“When I came back, Cheddar-san’s wife told me that you collapsed from illness due to an epidemic. I heard that they brought you here… Then, when I came here to meet you, those guys told me they can’t let me do that. Even if I just want to see you for a glance, even after I begged, they told me to go home…”

I swallow down my quivering breaths. So he heard it.

The lies that bastard spewed out.

He was definitely very surprised when he heard that story. He must’ve noticed it immediately too.

That I was lying.

When he asked me about my schedule before, I only replied, “Nothing special going on.”

Even when he’s departing, I send him off with a wave as usual, wishing him a safe trip.

I…

“Alfred, I… I’m sorry! Sorry… I didn’t say anything to you…”　

“…They told me… you would never come back to the village…”

“No! They’re all Schwede’s lies! I’m not sick at all! Look, I’m really healthy!”

“Really…?”

“Yeah! You can tell just by looking at me, right?”

Alfred smiles in relief, looking like he doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“Actually, I should be more concerned about you. Why are you in this state?! What’s going on here?” I exclaim.

This place looks exactly like a battleground on the front-lines.

“It’s these guys… they tried to chase me away by force. I told them I wouldn’t go home until I met you, and the guards began to hit me. So I hit them back, and they hit me back too. They even pulled out their swords, so I did the same. Then the number of people attacking me kept increasing for some reason… Since they attacked me fully armed, I didn’t hold back. I still didn’t understand the situation, but I just decided to give anyone who’s targeting me a beating.”

What?

I press a hand against my forehead. My head hurts.

Right. He may have grown up lately, but… he used to be a rough brat who starts fights left and right.

Basically… he’ll accept every quarrel people start on him, retaliating against anyone who hits him. In a sense, it’s not an exaggeration to call him aggressive. He doesn’t give mercy to anyone who attacks him. What a glittering blonde guy.

Ahh, really…

Just as I’m about to scold him, I swallow my words and take a breath.

Because out of the corner of my eyes, I see a knight, who’s standing a short distance from Alfred, chanting with his palm on the blade of his sword.

The knight next to him is also chanting in the same posture.

Upon seeing that, I recognize what the knights are trying to do in an instant.

The knights’ movements are very similar to what Teacher Granza did when he casted a magic technique that created a shock wave with his sword.

No good. It seems that just like my teacher, these knights aren’t only specialized in swords but also in magic.

I also notice several monks standing behind the knights, hiding behind the pillars. The moment my eyes land on the short cross-like staff in their hands, my heart pounds.

The beating of my heart echoes in my ears, and my hands that are holding the handrails are damp with cold sweat.

The monks, whose hems are slightly scorched, keep chanting as they grip their staffs.

With the tips of their staffs aimed at Alfred.

The knights and the monks exchange glances, signaling something with their eyes. Then they nod at the same time.

Then, I see white frost slowly begin to spread across the floor, centering on Alfred’s feet.

That’s—

“Al! Move away! Quick!”