I will raise the baby tiger as a squirrel.
Wearing a faint smile for some reason, Gale walked over and asked.
Embarrassed that I had slammed the doll down so forcefully, my face flushed hot.
Slinking my hand back toward the toppled doll, I stammered on.
I stood the doll upright and forced an awkward chuckle.
Without losing the slight smirk tugging at his lips, Gale narrowed his eyes and pressed me.
I waved both hands vigorously in denial.
Right on cue, the shopkeeper presented another set of toys to me.
I hurriedly accepted the wares the shopkeeper offered.
Jackjack hummed as he browsed the toys.
As I pretended to be engrossed in picking toys beside Jackjack, Gale pursed his lips and gradually ambled away.
‘Phew…. Looking at it again, the Duke doll does seem rather cute in its own way…. As a northern souvenir, wouldn’t it be best to buy the most popular item?’
In the end, I paid for the children’s toys alongside the wooden doll sculpted in the Duke’s likeness.
***
The journey back toward the capital was far smoother than our ascent north, at least until we reached the edge of the territory.
Listening to Rina chatter until my ears practically grew calluses, we had cleared Blanders territory before I knew it and soon arrived at the inn on the northern threshold.
After returning the carriage we had rented there, I mounted the Duke’s warhorse once more as we entered the forest trail.
Because Rina and the knights transporting her luggage had to keep traveling by carriage, they decided to proceed at an easy pace along the road passing through the villages.
Perhaps because riding through the woods was no longer unfamiliar, it was nowhere near as grueling as the trek up north had been.
Sharing a saddle with the Duke felt less awkward now, and I was able to adapt to Baltan’s strides much faster.
As we reached the halfway point along the Mount Reverse trail, the Duke slowed the horse’s pace and asked.
Breathing a deep sigh of relief, I nodded enthusiastically.
How much further had we ridden after that?
Without warning, the Duke tugged slightly on the reins to bring Baltan to a halt.
He then flashed an open palm toward the rear before raising a single index finger.
It seemed to be a signal telling the knights to hold their positions.
Tension gripped me as well, and I held my breath.
From somewhere faint, the metallic clinking of steel striking steel chimed softly.
It sounded just like a blacksmith’s forge operating in the far distance.
Huh? A panacon? My eyes widened at the unfamiliar name.
It was not the first time I had heard it.
Yet because I had not encountered the word since graduating from the academy, it felt remarkably alien.
Even during my time at the academy, I had only seen it mentioned a few times in a freshman text titled Living Curses: Beasts of the Forest.
When I murmured without thinking, the Duke cut me off with a stern warning.
I clamped my mouth shut, tightening my grip on the Duke’s forearm.
According to the book, a panacon was ten times the size of an ordinary serpent, and its dark blue scales were as impenetrable as steel armor.
Some were even born two-headed, and they were monstrous creatures harboring deadly venom that could kill upon a single bite….
Gale rode up, brought his mount alongside the Duke’s, and leaned over to whisper.
The Duke raised an open hand before Gale’s face.
It meant to speak no further.
Dismounting lightly from Baltan’s back, he advanced toward the cave alone.
From that moment, my heart began to thud so violently it felt like a drum.
Lowering my voice as much as possible, I whispered to Gale.
Gale’s words were proven instantly.
Without letting a single footstep be heard, the Duke reached the cave entrance in the blink of an eye.
He carefully drew his sword from its scabbard, crouched low, and slipped quietly inside the mouth of the cavern.
Peering into the interior with his back turned to us, the Duke lifted one arm overhead.
He raised his index finger high and stabbed it sideways twice.
It seemed to be a hand signal directed at Gale.
Gale closed the distance to the indicated spot in an instant.
The children and I were helped down from the horse and ushered before a massive tree.
A knight named Halo gestured for us to sit down.
Knights formed a protective ring around us, standing shoulder to shoulder.
Though rising terror made my heart feel ready to burst, I could not let the children see my fear.
Clasping Jackjack and Hokan’s hands tightly and quieting my very breaths, I prayed fervently that Gale and the Duke would return unharmed.
***
Taking up a position to the left of the cave entrance, Gale waited for Kuhn’s signal.
After trading a glance with Gale, Kuhn picked up a desiccated twig from the ground.
Drawing a small flint from the pouch at his waist, Kuhn struck the stones with deft, practiced flicks until a spark caught the tip of the twig.
He withdrew a piece of dried meat kept as emergency rations and skewered it over the burning twig from below.
Placing it just inside the cave, Kuhn crouched low once more near the entrance.
Soon, the aroma of fire-seared meat drifted into the surroundings.
Touched by the flames, the jerky gradually charred.
It was an enticing scent capable of drawing in any starving beast—be it man or monster.
Yet unexpectedly, the cave remained dead quiet.
Either no living creature dwelled within, or whatever lay inside was cunning enough to see through the intruders’ ploy.
Assuming the latter, Kuhn exercised patient vigilance.
How much time slipped by?
Ch-ch, shhk, shhk—ching, ching, ching.
A grating sound like a blade being ground against a whetstone began to echo outward.
It had to be the friction of the panacon’s steel scales scraping against stone.
Kuhn and Gale gripped their hilts tighter, holding their breaths.
Kuhn produced another strip of jerky and tossed it lightly toward the cave’s entrance.
Hiss-skraaa!
In an instant, the monster thrust its head out with jaws gaping wide, and at the same moment, Kuhn’s greatsword cleaved through the air.
Slash—cleave!
Kuhn brought his blade down without mercy, striking the panacon’s head in brutal succession.
Gale swung his sword as well, plunging it straight toward the monster’s thrashing torso.
The writhing bulk of the beast soon settled into stillness.
Before anyone realized, twilight was settling into dusk.
***
‘To—to think I’ve been treating men like that…’
I kept my eyes trained forward, clutching each child securely in an arm.
Gazing back and forth between the Duke and Gale, who still held their blades while scanning the cave drenched in beast blood, awe and horror seized me all at once.
To think I failed to recognize just how terrifyingly formidable they were….
I found myself reflexively retracing whether I had ever spoken out of turn before them.
I had a distinct, creeping sensation that there were quite a few instances….
In the brief instant my eyes flickered upward, a booming shout suddenly rang out.
My head snapped down to look ahead.
A panacon darted out of the cave like an arrow, slithering straight toward us.
Fortunately, the Duke and Gale seized the beast by its tail and held fast, but the creature thrashed with such savage strength that it seemed their grip might slip at any second.
My entire body froze, rendering me momentarily incapable of movement.
I could feel every shiver of the children trembling against my chest.
‘Pull yourself together, Lulubell! You have to protect the children!’
Screaming internally, I steeled my resolve.
Leaping to my feet, I stood before the children and hoisted my wide skirts outward.
Enfolding the children beneath my skirts, I curled myself tightly into a ball, turning my back toward the cave.
If by some dreadful chance the knights could not hold it back, even if my back had to be torn to shreds, I would keep these children safe.
