The Hunter of Hawk and Wolf

East of the Labyrinth Forest. Right Wing Fortress.

Sevha was sitting on a wooden barrel in the fortress courtyard.

It’s been a while, but nothing’s changed.

To the right of the courtyard rose a tower, taller than the ramparts. Conscripts kept watch from atop the walls and from within the tower.

At the fortress gate, Hunters inspected travelers, issuing passes to those who paid the toll.

These travelers were a motley crew. Large merchant caravans and humble peddlers. Mercenaries and adventurers. Nobles accompanied by beastkin slaves.

The Great Road is as busy as ever.

His survey of the fortress complete, Sevha had nothing else to occupy him. Which meant he could no longer ignore the person who had been at his side the entire time.

“Marina. How long are you going to sulk?”

With a sullen expression, Marina was sitting with her back pressed against the barrel Sevha was using as a seat.

“Stop pouting like some noble lady and just spit it out!”

“Really?”

“Just say it!”

“You son of a bitch.”

“Why you little—!”

Sevha cut himself off with a deep sigh, admitting defeat. Then he handed Marina a piece of jerky.

“You’re mad because I snapped at you, right? Because I wanted you guys to hurry, even if it was dangerous. I get it. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

Sevha's mother had died just after giving birth to him. A newborn couldn't be fed jerky, so Marina's mother, who had just given birth to her, had nursed Sevha instead.

Because of that, they grew up like brother and sister. And in Sevha's mind, they had maintained that relationship to this day.

“Marina. You're as dear to me as a si— forget it! Just eat the jerky, you wench!”

Hearing Sevha's words, Marina’s lips curved into a bittersweet smile, a mix of pleasure and disappointment.

“As dear as a sibling…” Marina muttered to herself, then snatched the jerky from his fingers with her teeth and grinned. “Well, I'll be satisfied with that for now.”

“For now?”

Just as Sevha was about to question her, a Hunter approached.

Marina quickly swallowed the jerky and stood, her demeanor shifting to one of formal politeness.

“Young Master Sevha. It seems we've found everyone from Lady Elise's party. We are preparing to return to Anse Castle.”

As if to say, get to work, Marina nudged Sevha toward the tower. Elise, her handmaidens, and her soldiers were standing in front of it.

Sevha grumbled for her to stop pushing, saying he understood, and approached Elise.

“Eli. We're leaving soon. Is this everyone the Hunters found?”

Elise looked over her soldiers and handmaidens, then nodded. “Everyone who's still alive.”

“Then let's head to Anse Castle… By the way, Eli, why did you come to Anse in the first place?”

Elise looked slightly embarrassed. “My father told me to hurry up and marry Edgar. I came to deliver the news in person.”

Hearing that Elise and Edgar were to be married soon, Sevha's mouth fell open.

“So suddenly?” he asked.

“What do you mean, suddenly? Edgar and I have been engaged for ten years.”

“Right… of course.”

“Besides, the imperial throne changed hands recently, so the Empire is unstable. Father wants to secure our alliance with the County of Anse.”

Sevha’s mouth snapped shut, his eyes sharpening. “The Empire has a new emperor?”

“The previous emperor passed away from illness not long ago. Didn't you know?”

He couldn't have known.

To put it simply, the County of Anse was like a hawk formed from arrowheads.

All its people considered themselves the individual arrowheads that made up that single hawk. That was why, despite their frequent military service, they saw it as their duty to Anse and never uttered a word of complaint.

It also meant they were perpetually on edge around outsiders, to the point of never engaging in idle chatter with anyone not from Anse.

Someone targeted Elise, and the Empire is unstable… Is there a connection?

The Empire was a great nation bordering Anse's eastern frontier. Sevha knew he had to report the situation to Edgar immediately.

“Marina! Let's move out!” he shouted.

Marina and the Hunters led the way out of the fortress. Sevha, Elise, the handmaidens, and the soldiers followed.

A short while later, they entered the forest. Even with the Hunters guiding them, the soldiers and handmaidens kept tripping over tree roots.

Elise watched them and let out a deep sigh. “The Anse domain is still too rugged for horses.”

“You could, if you had a celestial horse that could run on broken legs.”

Elise chuckled at his joke. A moment later, she gave a delicate sneeze, as if suddenly feeling the cold.

Sevha immediately took off the leather gloves he was wearing and gave them to her.

“Here, wear these.”

“Thank you.” Elise put on the gloves, which were far too big for her hands, and flapped them as she remarked, “You've grown so much, Sevha.”

“Is that your sarcastic way of calling me a runt?”

“No. You've really grown a lot compared to back then.”

“Back then?”

“When I first met you and Edgar.”

Twelve years ago, Elise had come to the County of Anse for the first time with her father, Marquis Schreier. It was to meet with the previous Count of Anse, Sevha's father, to discuss the engagement between her and Edgar.

Back then, Elise had thrown a tantrum, insisting she didn't want to marry Edgar and live in such a dreadful place. In the end, she had run away from the castle.

“My brother and I saved you when you got lost in the forest and were cornered by a wolf.”

“You did.”

“Elise? Do you remember what my brother and I told you after we saved you?”

Just then, Elise's foot caught on a tree root, and she fell flat on the ground. She lifted her head, her face smeared with dirt.

“Seeing as you're just as clumsy now as you were back then, I'd say you remember.”

Sevha chuckled and offered her his hand. Then he repeated the words he and Edgar had said to her all those years ago.

“Elise. The Hunters of Anse will always protect you. Don't worry.”

Elise pouted, as if to say, Don't laugh.

But she soon smiled and took Sevha's hand. “Just like now?”

“That's right.”

Sevha helped Elise to her feet and was about to brush the dirt from her face.

But just before his hand touched her cheek, he noticed the soldiers and handmaidens watching them with suspicious eyes. He immediately put some distance between them.

In the most composed voice he could manage, he said, “You have dirt on your face. You should wipe it off.”

“Oh, you're right. Thanks for telling me.”

“I'll take the lead so you don't fall again.”

Without waiting for her reply, Sevha began walking in front of her.

He walked on, maintaining a careful distance… not too far, not too close. He focused on the sound of her footsteps, so intently he could almost imagine they were walking side by side.

This feeling… what is it?

It was a contradictory urge: not wanting to get closer, yet wanting to be closer still. 

Sevha wondered what the name of this emotion was, but he couldn't find an answer. He only felt a frustration like a child before a wall taller than himself, and an unease like standing before a line he must not cross.

A few hours later, Sevha's party arrived before Anse Castle. Edgar, who was waiting in front of the outer gate, smiled in relief the moment he saw Elise and rushed to her side.

“Elise.”

“Edgar!”

As Edgar embraced her tightly, the Hunters snickered, muttering about beauty and the beast. But Sevha simply averted his eyes, unable to smile.

Edgar glanced at Sevha, then released Elise.

He said, “I nearly died from worry when I heard you'd been attacked. I'm so glad you're safe.”

“It's thanks to Sevha.”

Edgar immediately went to Sevha and patted his head. “Good job, Sevha.”

“Don't treat me like a kid… Never mind. We’re both tired. Let's just get inside.”

As irritated as he was, Sevha entered the castle town with the rest of the party. The townspeople were energetically hanging hawk decorations on their doors and discussing what dishes to prepare.

“Edgar, Sevha? Is there a festival?” Elise asked.

Edgar burst out laughing.

“Why are you laughing, Edgar?”

“It's not a festival, it's… pfft!”

Unable to stop laughing, Edgar gestured for Sevha to answer instead.

Sevha gave a small smirk and explained, “We’re preparing for a Hunter's Funeral.”

***

In the dining hall of Dulka Castle, within the Empire's County of Dulka bordering Anse, a long table was laden with all sorts of dishes.

A fat man in his forties, Goldas, the Count of Dulka, sat at the head of the table.

In a nearby seat sat Chaynebel, an Imperial honorary baron. He wore a monocle and had an air that was equal parts wisdom and cunning.

Chaynebel took a bite of meat from his plate and continued his explanation from earlier.

“The entirety of Anse consists of the Labyrinth Forest and the Frost Mountains. With both being counted among the continent's Eight Demonic Realms, it is a difficult place to live. However, Anse possesses one distinct advantage: its location at the center of the continent.”

The Holy Empire had once, and only once, unified the continent.

Its First Holy Emperor believed that by building a road through the Labyrinth Forest and the Frost Mountains, one could travel quickly to all corners of the continent. So he mobilized vast manpower to construct a road through the forest and mountains, leading to the continent's key strategic points.

“That road is the Great Road.”

The Great Road facilitated the flow of goods across the continent. However, the teeming beasts and monsters of the Labyrinth Forest and the Frost Mountains frequently attacked travelers.

The First Holy Emperor tried all manner of solutions, but only one proved effective: hiring the Anse Tribe, who lived in the Labyrinth Forest, to guard the Great Road as mercenaries.

Unable to find any other solution, the First Holy Emperor married his daughter to the chief of the Anse Tribe, granted him a title, and entrusted the management of the Great Road to him.

“And so, the County of Anse and the noble House of Dan Anse were born.”

After the Holy Empire fell and many nations arose, the Great Road became even more important, as the strategic points it connected had become the core regions of each new nation.

“As the Great Road became a shortcut into the heart of each country, many tried to seize it. But the County of Anse never yielded to any of them.”

In the immediate aftermath of the Holy Empire's collapse, Anse was invaded twelve times and won every war.

Travel on the Great Road became impossible during these conflicts, causing great inconvenience and resentment across the continent.

In response, the Papal See, which had become the continent's religious authority after the Holy Empire's fall, intervened to mediate the dispute.

Management of the Great Road is entrusted to the County of Anse.

The County of Anse may collect tolls from travelers on the Great Road. In return, it must prevent the armies of other nations from using the Great Road and must not take sides with any nation.

Thus, after the signing of what became known as the Great Road Treaty, the County of Anse became an independent state, living off tolls from the Great Road.

Just as Chaynebel finished his explanation, Goldas—who had been shoveling food into his mouth with his bare hands—asked a question.

“You landless bastard. Why have you come to my castle to recite the history of Anse? It isn't even part of the Empire.”

Chaynebel regarded Goldas with an unreadable expression before breaking into a brilliant smile.

“Because a certain individual wished for me to inform you. The history of Anse will soon become the history of the Empire.”