Two carriages, with over thirty people.
The procession looked peculiar to anyone watching, with more swordsmen than porters carrying luggage.
If one were to add the ominous glares of the knights seen here and there, it would seem as if they were marching into battle rather than merely traveling.
"Is this why you brought me here?"
"······Whatever this is, let's do it together."
Stefan, who was scratching the stinging back of his head, smiled helplessly at Vlad's insincere answer.
No wonder they had offered such a large sum for the job; there was a trap hidden somewhere.
"It's only been a month since we settled in this city, and already we seem to be outcasts."
"The Count assured me that he would take special care of us."
"Even so, there are areas that those above us do not oversee."
With those words, Stefan glanced slightly back.
There, the knights of Bitskaya were eyeing him and Vlad with suspicion.
"Just make a big deal and go somewhere else. Aren't mercenaries supposed to be like that anyway?"
"······I have nothing to say since you said the right thing in the wrong situation."
Stefan knew well that there was no use in complaining now.
This clumsy knight, who was lost in the forest, had already had a big fight with the knights of Bitskaya, and they had been hired by Vlad without knowing the truth of the matter.
In other words, they were unwittingly becoming pawns in Vlad's grudge.
"I'll give you a little bit of my share later, so let's do our best. There won't be many opportunities like this in the future."
"....Driving me crazy."
Vlad pretended not to hear Stefan's final words.
He was willing to tolerate Stefan's grumbling to a certain extent.
Stefan was more than worth his pay.
'It's a good thing I brought them here.'
The Thornwood Mercenary Group skillfully controls the uphill movement as expected from skilled mercenaries.
Thanks to them moving quickly like soldiers, Vlad was able to easily take the initiative.
Indeed, hiring mercenaries seemed a better choice than dealing forcibly with the uncooperative knights of Bitskaya.
"At this rate, we should arrive within three days."
"Good."
Vlad listened to Stefan's words and caressed Alicia's amber stone as a habit.
It was the only clue his voice left behind.
Only elves deeply connected to spirits could recognize the landscapes engraved within.
'...Three days from now.'
Elves, shrouded in mystery and admired by some, were a race Vlad might encounter in three days.
The thought of meeting them soon made Vlad's heart race a little. Though it was a sensation he had never felt before, the fluttering in his chest wasn't entirely unpleasant.
While his journey initially began to find the voice's name, it was undoubtedly expanding Vlad's world.
※※※※
On the final day of the three-day journey, the smell of the dense trees made the air taste different.
The creaking of the carriage grew louder as the road became increasingly narrow.
"Sir Vlad, from now on, we'll be leading the way."
"Very well."
It wasn't because of the knight's sharp gaze that Vlad stepped back.
Having escorted the procession safely thus far to prevent unknown looters, Vlad had already successfully completed half of his mission.
"It seems they're only targeting the carriages carrying goods, as rumored."
"Hmm."
Vlad, naturally slipping to the rear of the procession, nodded at Gott's words coming from beside him.
As Gott had said, there hadn't been a single attack throughout the journey so far.
Even though it was a carriage loaded with silver bars to pay for the tea.
'Are they on alert?'
Perhaps the presence of many armed personnel had deterred any potential threats.
However, it is said that the unknown looter only appears when there is a carriage with tea on it, so they need to remain vigilant until they return.
"We've arrived. It's visible up ahead."
Finishing his thoughts, Vlad looked to where Stefan was pointing.
In a dense forest, there were several small buildings built as if they were making their way through the thick forest.
It looked like a camp for loggers, but the fences surrounding it seemed quite sturdy.
"That seems to be the trading post."
"It appears so."
While trade was permitted, they couldn't enter the elves' forest.
Elves didn't easily relinquish their territory to humans, and the Count Bitskaya had to find a way to deal with the exclusive attitude of the elves.
Although the buildings appeared small, they likely represented the Count's painstaking efforts.
"It seems the elves have arrived first. Sir Vlad, will you watch over the cargo for a moment?"
"Understood."
While the knights of Bitskaya were openly trying to disrupt Vlad's meeting with the elves, it was also an understandable action.
Connections with the elves were practically the lifeline of the Bitskaya family.
It would be only natural not to involve outsiders in such a precious matter.
Of course, there might also be some resentment towards Vlad.
"I've always wanted to see the elves once..."
Vlad quietly nodded to Gott's words and climbed onto the roof of the carriage.
The air wasn't so much cold as it was refreshing, tousling Vlad's hair.
"Is there any way out? Gotta stay alert. Everyone, be on guard."
The good thing about being a knight was the ability to give orders.
After issuing instructions to Gott and the mercenaries, Vlad crossed his legs and lay on the roof, gazing up at the sky.
For Vlad, who had lived in bustling cities all his life, this refreshing air was a first.
It was a sensation he had never experienced, not even on the plains of the north or the Kanoor family ranch.
※※※※
Inside a small log cabin, men sat across from each other with a long table between them.
"...So, for now, this is all we can offer."
A box is pushed around with a jingling sound.
The man's ears perked sharply as he noticed the contents of the box.
"Quite different from what was promised."
A small but loud voice.
The knight of Bitskaya involuntarily swallowed his saliva.
There was an indescribable depth to that voice.
"Making tea from the leaves of the Tujon tree is a laborious process. It's not just a matter of one or two workers."
"I understand that, Lord Baradis. But..."
Despite a chair being placed directly in front of them, the elves stood obstinately.
Under the silent pressure of wanting to end the current conversation as quickly as possible, the knight of Bitskaya had to talk about the unidentified raider who was currently blocking their trade route.
As a result, there is also the inevitable delay in payment.
".....Is the tea selling well?"
Negotiations could collapse.
Since they were very picky elves, they were thinking of the worst case scenario, but the only question that came back was whether the tea was selling well.
"Yes, it is. So, if you could give us a little more time, we can surely make the payment in full."
"What about other regions besides the central? Do nobles there also favor our tea?"
"It's already become quite popular among the nobles in the central region, so surely those in other regions will also appreciate it. Trends tend to spread, after all."
The elf known as Baradis nodded quietly as he listened to the knight's explanation.
Despite expecting some resentment due to the delayed payment, it seemed that the elves also had high expectations for the current business.
"Please don't make us go through the trouble of finding another lord."
"....Thank you."
They could easily find another lord to trade with.
With Baradis's last words, almost a threat, the box on the table was passed over to the elves.
Though it was only a fraction of the usual payment, they accepted it.
"But there's something I'd like to mention."
"Please, go ahead."
The knight, who had been silently sighing with relief, thinking the negotiation was finally over, suddenly noticed Baradis squinting outside as if trying to see beyond the wooden wall.
Though obstructed by a wooden wall, the way he tilted his head seemed as if he could see outside.
"What's with the fellow who came with you?"
"Who are you referring to?"
"The one lying on the carriage."
"······Who is currently lying on the carriage?"
Baradis, who turned his gaze coldly on the person he could not communicate with, stood still and felt the strange energy coming from outside.
A dizzying energy that was hard to pinpoint was clearly disturbing his senses.
"Since you've come all this way, I'll treat you to a drink."
"Pardon?"
"I won't demand separate payment for it, so."
The knight of Bitskaya was taken aback by Baradis's sudden kindness.
However, the elf's gaze was fixed not on the knight in front of him, but on someone far away.
"Call the others outside and let's all have a drink together."
A familiar yet unfamiliar energy.
As the guardian of the forest, Baradis felt obligated to investigate the suspicious energy mixed with something else.
※※※※
He wasn't asleep, yet he dreamed.
In that dream, stood a maple tree, a sight he hadn't seen in a long time.
The colors of the falling leaves were vivid.
"....What is this?"
Vlad closed his eyes in the cold winter, but woke up on a hill where he could feel the gentle breath of autumn, and was confused.
In a scene too vivid to be considered a dream, Vlad hurriedly looked around.
In the distance, beyond the horizon, the setting sun painted the swaying wheat fields red.
"This doesn't feel like a dream."
Vlad was acutely aware of where he was now.
It was a scene from within the amber stone, a landscape he could now only rely on his memories to recall.
Vlad hastily turned around.
There, standing steadfast as if it had been there from the beginning, was the maple tree.
"Flowers?"
The tree bore flowers.
Though a maple tree typically doesn't bloom, it was adorned with various flowers.
Amidst the falling leaves, flowers of various colors hid their forms.
One of the flowers, carried by the swaying wind, descended towards Vlad among the falling leaves.
It was a white flower with a platinum hue.
".....I must be losing my mind."
When it fell, it was a flower, but when it came down, it became a butterfly.
The sight of the butterfly fluttering down from the sky, amidst the fading landscape, was surreal.
Amidst everything fading away, only one butterfly, with its iridescent glow, landed gently on Vlad's nose.
Vlad quietly closed his right eye as he watched the butterfly slowly folding its wings.
When drawing images, use your left eye.
When thinking about reality, use your right eye.
No one had told him, but Vlad, understanding the engraved rules of the world, slowly recalled the landscape he had closed his eyes to, through his closed eyes.
"Captain... Captain!"
Gott's voice sounds vaguely as if in a dream.
Vlad finally steps into reality in the afterimage that still shakes like a wave.
"..."
Vlad, opening his closed eyes, could still see a butterfly fluttering in front of him.
The last breath of the twilight passing over the mountains was resting on the girl's platinum-colored hair.
"What is this?"
An armor adorned with the blessing of a white snake,
"And this."
An amber stone adorned with the blessing of a mole.
"And this."
And a white finger pressing gently on his nose.
With pointed ears and golden eyes, someone was looking at Vlad.
Even here when Vlad opened his eyes, a butterfly was flying around.