Chapter 24

Witch’s Sacrament

Before the rain falls, there is always a distinct scent in the air.

Roberta was riding across a wide plain when she suddenly looked up at the sky. It was a perfectly clear sky with only a few scattered clouds, yet the wind carried the smell of damp earth. Her instincts told her—rain was coming soon.

“It’s going to rain.”

At the same moment, Ulrich, riding beside her, said the same thing.

“Look, rain clouds are coming. We should pick up the pace.”

Roberta turned back with Fritz. Far in the distance, dark clouds had gathered. Like dipping a brush of ink along the rim of a water bowl, the sky was being stained black. They were moving fast—soon they would reach the three of them.

This wasn’t Dithmarschen, and it was summer. Getting caught in the rain wouldn’t put their lives at risk. Still, that didn’t mean they could just ride on soaked to the bone, so they urged their horses forward.

Fortunately, there was a hill nearby. It was thick with trees, perfect for taking shelter. As they reached the hill, the clouds arrived overhead as well.

Shaa—

With a heavy sound, the rain poured down.

“It doesn’t seem like it’ll last long.”

“Hmm.”

Roberta shook the water from her hair and looked toward the edge of the clouds. Though the rain clouds were dense, the distant sky was still blue. It was a passing shower. She let out a short sigh and leaned her back against a tree as she sat down.

Fritz, unconcerned about getting wet, stepped out from under the tree’s cover and tended to the horses. The rain was loud enough to startle them, but as he stroked them gently, murmuring “Easy… easy…,” they gradually calmed down.

“……”

Shifting her gaze, she looked at Ulrich. He stood with his back against an old tree, arms crossed, silently staring out over the plains. He wasn’t someone who showed his emotions easily, so she couldn’t tell whether he was simply looking at the scenery or lost in thought.

“My lord, where are we heading next?”

After watching him for a moment, Roberta asked.

Their final destination was Iselburg. They were on their way to attend a royal wedding in the capital of the Kingdom of Osnover.

However, she couldn’t quite figure out their route. Just like the village of Luman where they had spent a day earlier—this journey, for him, wasn’t simply about reaching Iselburg.

“We’ll stop by Meyer.”

Fritz, who had been stroking his horse’s head, turned around in surprise.

“To my family?”

“That’s what I’m thinking, for now.”

Meyer referred to the House of Count Meyer.

Previously, Ulrich had mentioned that his wife, Hilde, had been unable to bear children and had adopted several. Among them, Hohenlohe was the eldest, and the Meyer family were his direct descendants.

“Since I’ve left my territory, I thought I should at least show my face once.”

But Fritz’s reaction was hesitant.

“If we go there, we’ll have to take quite a long detour…”

Trailing off, he glanced at Ulrich cautiously. He didn’t seem particularly pleased about visiting his main house—if anything, he appeared subtly opposed to it.

‘Does he have bad memories there?’

Roberta tilted her head slightly.

Otherwise, why react like that?

Was there some conflict she didn’t know about—something related to why he had come to Dithmarschen? Come to think of it, it was strange. Fritz was the fourth son, but Bernhard had been the eldest. Normally, the eldest inherits the family, yet for some reason, he had become the steward of the Duke of Dithmarschen.

She observed Ulrich’s reaction, but he remained as composed as ever. Calmly, he waited for the rain to weaken, and just as expected, it soon stopped.

The sky, swept clean by the rain clouds, was nothing but a deep blue. The sun poured its rays down unhindered onto the wet plains.

Rather than feeling refreshed, Roberta fanned herself a few times against the now humid summer air, then stood up and mounted her horse.

The city of Tenov belonged to a territory situated between the County of Goeten and the County of Meyer. Its size was ambiguous—barely enough to be called a city—but still, it was lively enough to be considered one, with people bustling about.

After passing through the eastern gate, Roberta dismounted and felt the chaotic atmosphere for the first time in a long while. Near the market, the sharp sounds of vendors calling out, bargaining, and occasional quarrels rang through the air.

Back when she had served as an ordinary priest at the Great Temple of Nua, she had once told Bishop Alonso that she disliked this kind of atmosphere. That hadn’t changed. She still disliked the scattered noise of crowds.

And yet—perhaps because she had spent a year in the north, or because she had experienced solitude in a land devoid of people—for a brief moment, the atmosphere felt strangely comforting.

‘Alonso said this was a sign of getting older…’

She let out a small, inward chuckle and asked Ulrich,

“We’re not staying the night, right?”

Walking ahead, Ulrich replied that they weren’t.

“It’s not even noon yet, so there’s no need to stay. We’ll just have a light meal and move on.”

“Then, before that, may I take a look around the market?”

She mentioned that it seemed a market was being held.

“Go ahead. Just don’t spend too much time. We need to reach the next stop before nightfall to avoid camping, so we should leave before noon.”

After finishing her meal at the inn’s dining area, Roberta headed to the market with Fritz. Ulrich remained behind at the inn, saying he had letters to write.

Since Tenov was a small city, its “market” was little more than a space lined with several stalls. Roberta planned to look for some travel supplies, including dried food.

“Do you need anything, Fritz?”

At her question, Fritz waved his hands.

“No, I’m fine. Just think of me as your porter.”

“A porter? You’re undervaluing yourself.”

Fritz gave an awkward smile.

“Well… it’s my first time traveling, so… there’s not much I can do.”

“That’s only natural. Everyone has a first time.”

With a gentle smile, she reached out and ruffled his hair. To her, the boy felt like a younger sibling, and she understood how he felt.

Sixteen is not a young age. It is an age when one must carry their own share of responsibility. Especially in a remote place like Dithmarschen, people are forced to shoulder such burdens at an even younger age.

But Fritz had originally been a young master, hadn’t he? Even though he had spent several years in Dithmarschen as a lord’s attendant, the place where he was born and raised was the County of Meyer. In other words, he had gone from being the son of a prestigious noble family to a mere attendant.

“When I was your age, I just followed the adults around, busy running errands. Well… though that was less than ten years ago.”

“You, Sister?”

His tone was one of disbelief. She smiled inwardly, thinking that perhaps she really had grown into an adult. It had only been a few years since she had been busy trailing after Alonso.

“For now, just watch what I and Lord Ulrich do and learn. Then, whenever you get the chance later, try doing things yourself, one by one.”

“Yes…”

Fritz hesitated before nodding. Though he seemed to accept her words, there was also a sense that he wanted to say something else but swallowed it instead. She noticed, but chose not to press him.

He must have his own circumstances. If it was something that could be resolved by talking to her, he would say it. If not, what right did she have to pry? Instead, she continued chatting about lighter topics as they walked through the market.

“Damn it, stay still!”

At that moment, a commotion broke out.

The two stopped their conversation and turned their heads. At one corner of the market, a horse reared up on its hind legs and neighed loudly. Beside it stood a man who appeared to be its owner, yanking on the reins in irritation.

“I told you to stay still!”

Pulled by the reins, the horse’s head turned helplessly. It was small—so small that it seemed like a mere foal. The young creature cried out pitifully as it struggled, and each time it did, its owner didn’t try to calm it but instead lashed it with a whip.

Seeing the whip strike the young horse’s back, Fritz frowned and turned his face away. It was obvious—the man didn’t know how to handle horses.

What could possibly be gained by treating it so roughly? Fritz muttered to himself with a sigh. Even though he felt sympathy, there was nothing he could do.

A horse was property. One couldn’t interfere with someone else’s property. The only thing Fritz could do was leave and avoid the unpleasant sight.

“Let’s go somewhere else, Sister Roberta.”

But she didn’t move.

“Sister?”

“Just a moment.”

She frowned as she watched the young horse.

“……”

There was something Fritz hadn’t noticed—but Roberta had.

The moment she saw the young horse, she felt a sense of incongruity. It wasn’t something she could clearly define—just a vague, fleeting sensation that others might have dismissed as imagination.

But Roberta did not dismiss it. She focused carefully and observed the horse. And then—she felt the flow of mana.

All living beings have mana flowing through them. Normally, the flow of mana is difficult to sense. The amount is so small and calm that even stepping a short distance away makes it impossible to perceive. Usually.

For example, even if someone has a fever, you cannot feel their heat unless you touch their body.

But from the young horse, she could sense the flow of mana—even from dozens of steps away. As she approached step by step, it became clearer.

‘This isn’t a mistake.’

Hiding her thoughts behind a gentle smile, she spoke to the horse’s owner.

“Are you alright? The horse seems quite aggressive.”

“Ah, Sister. I’m sorry you had to see such an unpleasant sight. For such a young one, it’s unusually wild.”

The owner irritably slapped the horse’s cheek. The horse cried out again, but when the man raised his hand as if to strike it once more, it swallowed its cry.

Roberta forced her expression to remain composed despite the owner’s behavior. Using the excuse that it might be acting out due to illness, she approached the horse.

The frightened animal recoiled even more as she reached out her hand. But when the owner pulled the reins, it could no longer retreat. In that moment, Roberta placed her hand on the horse’s head.

‘The amount and flow of mana are abnormal.’

Through her fingertips, she sensed the mana coursing through the horse’s body. The flow was unmistakably strange. Unlike any horse she had ridden before, the quantity of mana was considerable, and its movement was violent.

It wasn’t a natural flow of mana. It was like when she infused mana into a blade to sharpen it—the kind of change that occurred when mana was artificially inserted into something.

“Fritz, bring Lord Ulrich. Tell him his confirmation is needed.”

“Yes.”

After Fritz left, she asked the owner,

“Did you raise this horse yourself?”

“No. I caught it wandering in the mountains not long ago.”

“Then you don’t know who its owner is?”

“No, I asked around, but…”

From what the man said, he had no experience raising horses, nor the means to do so. His only plan was to find the original owner for a reward—or sell it for a reasonable price.

The young horse listened to their conversation, then let out a small sound toward Roberta. It wasn’t the sorrowful cry it had made toward its owner. It was something strange—opening and closing its mouth like a human as it made the sound.

It also scraped the ground with its hoof. Though the road was well-packed and left no marks, the young horse continued its odd gestures, trying to draw Roberta’s attention.

Not only its mana, but its behavior itself was peculiar.

‘Could it be…?’

Just as her suspicion became clear, Ulrich arrived.

He did not ask Roberta for an explanation. Though he likely hadn’t heard much from Fritz, he simply approached the young horse and gently stroked its long head.

“You’re fortunate.”

What did he mean by fortunate? Ulrich handed a gold coin to the horse’s owner. The man, who had been standing there blankly, gaped as a handful of gold coins was placed in his palm. Then, afraid they might be taken back, he quickly stuffed them into his pocket and hurried away.

Ulrich paid him no further attention after that. As he stroked the trembling young horse, he gave a soft smile.

“There’s nothing to fear, child. I understand your situation.”

At that, the young horse nodded its head and let out a sorrowful cry.

“My lord… this is indeed…”

“Yes. This child was originally human.”