The Forest Race Clonne

Chapter 41

The speed and timing of their sleep were excessively unnatural. It had to be the result of someone’s intervention. I couldn’t bring myself to move forward and continued assessing the situation. Shortly after, a flicker of light appeared from the other side. Someone was approaching.

“……”

I pressed myself tightly against the wall, holding my breath. If it was a patrol, that would be fortunate, but there was also the possibility that Taron had returned. Given the circumstances, the latter seemed more likely. The footsteps grew closer until they were just a few feet away.

“Ugh, it’s so dark and musty. Is Sei really imprisoned here?”

“Shh, be quiet. What if someone hears us?”

“Come on, I told you, they aren’t waking up for at least one or two hours. Don’t you trust me?”

Surprisingly, it was a pair of familiar voices. Voices that shouldn’t be here, and certainly not ones I should be hearing now.

“??”

Involuntarily, I peeked around the corner and saw two men entering. Their faces were unmistakably familiar.

“…Goodness. Sir Hamar and Lord Camille?”

Both of them opened their eyes wide in surprise.

“Sei! Is that really you?”

“Huh? How are you awake? And how did you get out of the cell?”

Their astonishment was almost tangible as they quickly closed the distance. Feeling their grasp was what finally brought the reality of the situation home to me.

“What on earth are you two doing here? Why are you…?”

“Why do you think? We came to rescue you.”

“You came to rescue me? Seriously?”

“Of course. Why else would we come to a place like this?”

Are they out of their minds? Do they not know what kind of place the royal palace dungeon is? I was so taken aback that my mind couldn’t process it properly. As I blinked in utter confusion, they cheerfully stated, “You were escaping too, huh? This worked out perfectly.”

“What exactly did you do?”

The fact that they walked this far openly suggested they had put the guards to sleep. Hamar grinned slyly.

“I used Sleeping Grass at the entrance.”

“Sleeping Grass?”

“It’s a rare herb that only grows in Namryeong. If you inhale its smoke, you fall asleep. I happened to have some at home, so I brought it along.”

“…A rare herb. One that only grows in Namryeong?”

“Yep.”

Suddenly, a headache began to throb. Few people from Namryeong have access to the royal capital. But Hamar, who seemed delightfully unbothered by his implication of being the culprit, just smiled cheerfully.

“But how are you awake? We burned enough of it to put everyone inside to sleep.”

“I’m not sure…”

“That’s strange. I’ve never seen anyone unaffected by Sleeping Grass before.”

“Does that really matter right now? This actually worked out well. Thanks to this, we don’t have to search the entire dungeon.”

Camille, who had been listening with growing frustration, interjected.

“Sei, we need to get out of here now. You’ve suffered enough being confined here. Did the guards treat you harshly?”

“I’m fine, really. But Lord Camille, why are you even—”

Before I could finish my sentence, he suddenly stepped closer.

“Wait a moment, what’s this?”

“Huh?”

I flinched and tried to step back, but he moved faster, examining my clothes intently. His eyes widened as he focused on the stains.

“This… is this a bloodstain?”

‘Damn.’

I had assumed the darkness would conceal it, underestimating the eyesight of these knights.

“What? Blood?” Hamar, now alarmed, began examining me as well.

“Whoa, this really looks like blood. Sei, where are you hurt? Why are your clothes in such a state? They’re practically rags.”

“…It’s nothing.”

“What do you mean it’s nothing? Take off your coat right now.”

Before I could respond, Camille forcibly removed my outerwear. He moved so quickly that I had no time to resist. Both of them gasped simultaneously at what they saw.

“Those… bastards…”

I could hardly believe my ears. It was a harsh curse, unimaginable coming from Camille. His expression, too, was one I had never seen before.

“I’m fine, Lord Camille. It looks worse than it is. The guards didn’t do this.”

“Then who did? Was it the knights who escorted you here?”

“No, it wasn’t them either. Just an accident.”

“An accident? Is that what you call this level of injury? What kind of accident happens in a dungeon that leaves you looking like this in half a day?”

Despite his pressing questions, I couldn’t bring myself to answer. Hamar, who had been looking at me with a complicated expression, sighed.

“Let’s get out of here first. Once outside, we can deal with your injuries or whatever else. Everyone’s waiting anxiously.”

“Everyone? You mean others are here too?”

“Of course. They’re nearby with a carriage. Oh, and your friend came too. His name is Roil or something, right?”

Even Roil was here?

I ran my hands over my face, overwhelmed by a mix of emotions I couldn’t explain.

“…Why did you all do something so reckless? What if you got caught? If this gets out, none of you will be safe.”

“It’s alright. We knew the risks and were prepared.”

Hamar winked playfully, closing one eye.

“How could we just stand by and watch a companion who shared life and death with us be unfairly dragged away? Loyalty comes before anything else in the Security Department.”

“Loyalty to the Security Department comes before loyalty to individuals. And how can you be so sure that I’m innocent?”

“Just a gut feeling.”

I looked at him in disbelief, and he tousled my hair roughly.

“What, you doubting my intuition? Someone who’s been through as much as I have in the Security Department can tell what kind of person someone is just by looking. You, swapping out medicine to assassinate His Majesty? A joke! You wouldn’t even bother with such a hassle.”

“…”

“Don’t feel burdened. We’re in this together. After you were taken, a full arrest order was issued for all of us. They said there’d be a disciplinary committee meeting tomorrow.”

My heart sank. If the disciplinary committee convened, it would likely lead to dismissals or demotions. And to have it happen the next day, no less, was unprecedented, even for severe crimes. Given that all the expedition members held key positions in the Security Department, it was even more puzzling. It was clear that neither Duke Rouster nor the Crown Prince wanted this outcome.

“What good is it to sit quietly here? We’ll all just end up screwed. We can’t let those bastards get away with this. If we’re going down, we might as well take a chance.”

Even with his playful words, I couldn’t bring myself to smile. Hamar patted my shoulder lightly as I bit my lip.

“It’s alright. If things get really bad, Camille Rouster will handle it. He’s the precious eldest grandson of the Chief. You think he can’t save a few innocent lives?”

“Why is that the conclusion we’re coming to?”

Camille, who had been listening quietly, grimaced.

“What’s this, young lord? Are you planning to save only yourself? Half of the reason we decided to take this risk was because of you.”

“Who said that? And why because of me?”

“Don’t you remember? You made a huge fuss about saving Sei. Yelling about how we can’t let this happen and how it’s a disgrace to the Security Department, crying and throwing a tantrum, wailing and lamenting…”

“When did I ever do such a thing? Don’t fabricate events!”

“No, seriously, it was totally like that. Ah, Sei, you should have seen the spectacle.”

“No, Sei! It wasn’t like that at all! Really, I’m telling the truth!”

It seemed he had indeed instigated everyone.

What on earth had they done? Did they think about the aftermath? Did Duke Rouster even know about this? I wanted to ask all these questions, but no words came out. Watching Camille anxiously try to explain himself over something so trivial after pulling off such an enormous feat left me feeling drained.

Oddly enough, laughter bubbled up. I couldn’t understand this feeling—something so complex and difficult to define. As I laughed bitterly, Hamar and Camille joined in. With red-rimmed eyes, Camille extended his hand to me.

“Let’s go, Sei.”

I nodded slowly and took his hand. I was engulfed in its warm heat.

—Are you leaving now?

The moss said their farewells behind me.

—Farewell, honored one. It was nice meeting you.

—Don’t let those vile creatures catch you.

—May you reach a safe place, where your companions are.

A safe place, where my companions are.

For some reason, this thought resonated deeply in my heart. I nodded in response and continued forward. Though my body was battered, my mind had never been clearer.

The void that had always deepened the harder I tried to grasp my life seemed to have finally stopped.

Dawn stars were spilling into the corridor.

* * *

As we stepped outside, a whistle sounded. Edmil, crouching in the bushes, waved us over. Following his lead, we reached a waiting black carriage.

“Sei!”

A familiar face on the coachman’s bench called out in a hushed voice. It was Roil.

“What? Sei?”

“Is that really Sei?”

People inside the carriage hurriedly opened the door and helped us in. Thick curtains were quickly drawn down, and a dim light illuminated the interior. As soon as I saw the familiar faces, the carriage began to move. Finally, with a sigh of relief, Hale muttered with a complicated expression,

“We actually pulled it off.”

“What did I tell you? When I say I’ll do something, I do it.”

Hamar shrugged, grinning widely.