Chương 41: The Oathrunner... Runs.

.. Runs.

"... She went into the forest alone." For a moment, the lecture hall did not make a sound. Those were the only words that repeated in Enel's mind, over and over again. Guinevere was the first to recover. She closed the book on her desk, and the sound of it was loud enough that several students flinched in their seats.

"Everyone out," she said. No one moved at first, perhaps because they did not understand what she meant, or perhaps because everyone actually just wanted to eavesdrop. But Guinevere looked at them, and that was enough.

"Now." The hall slowly emptied as the students began to move, their benches scraping against the stone. Some still bowed, taking the chance to stare at Enel one last time, then hurried toward the doors before Guinevere could open her mouth again. Tiny remained, of course. He was already beside Axe, holding the old man's shoulder with both hands.

"What happened?" Enel finally asked. Axe swallowed, his lips dry and cracking from clearly having ridden too long. His eyes were red, and the mud on his clothes had dried in frozen layers. There was blood on his sleeve, too, though Enel could not yet tell if it was his.

"The Dark Forest moved, M'lord," Axe said.

"The whole thing. Like... like it woke up. Vemons came from everywhere after that. And-and not just the old roads or the broken stones. North, south, the hill paths, even near the farms. Duke Gawen and his men are holding the wall, but there are... there are too many." Enel's fingers curled.

"What? Then why did Lamb—""A family from the far side of the town said their boy had been taken. They heard him crying from the trees, or thought they did. Baron Blackwood ordered them not to go, but... but the mother ran in before anyone could stop her. Lamb and the L—she... she went after them with some scouts." Enel was very still, listening to Axe's stuttering breaths.

"They found the mother," Axe continued.

"Lamb came out later, a-alone, covered in blood... S-She told me to ride here and get you."

"... And she went back," Enel said.

"Why...?" Axe lowered his eyes.

"I... It—you must make haste, M'lord!" Tiny's hands tightened around Axe's shoulder.

"How long ago was that?"

"I... I rode here as fast as I could, but it still took four days," Axe said.

"Changed horses twice because one died on the road. I-I am sorry, M'lord, I truly tried—""No. You did well," Enel said. Axe looked at him, but Enel was already turning toward the door. Guinevere approached him.

"Lord Enel."

"I need to go."

"I know." Guinevere's voice remained calm, though her hand was already gripping the book against her chest.

"But you cannot simply run blindly across Aldwyn. You do not know the roads well enough, and if you exhaust yourself before reaching Widow's Wall, then you will be useless to them when you arrive."

"I will not be useless."

"That is not what I meant."

"I know what you meant, My Lady." Enel bowed to her.

"But I can hear far enough to follow the roads, and I can ask for directions when I must. And My Lady... while it is true that I have been finding myself useless as of late, there is something that I will always be good for." Guinevere looked at him.

"Battle."

"M'lord, wait." Tiny quickly stepped closer.

"You would need horses, supplies, and food. You need food. Let me at least prepare—""No." Enel looked toward the windows.

"From that window, which way to Widow's Wall?"

"North... west, M'lord?" Tiny's eyes slowly narrowed.

"Are you sure... you will be alright, M'lo—" Before Tiny could even finish, Enel vanished from his sight. The benches clattered, and the very air shook as wind blasted across the hall.

"What..." Tiny looked around, then heard a clatter from the window. They all turned, only to see stone coming loose from the wall and rolling to the floor. Guinevere stared at the window for a moment. Then her eyes fell to the folded map still in her hand, one she had not even been given time to offer. Afterward, she turned her attention to Axe.

"Can you draw the route you took to get here?"

"Y-yes, M'lady."

"Good. Tiny, help him. We will meet at the foot of the mountain in an hour and leave for Widow's Wall."

"Of course, M'lady!" This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Tiny watched Guinevere leave the hall while he carefully helped Axe to the nearest bench. The old man groaned in pain, but still, he grabbed a parchment and pen left behind by one of the trainees and started sketching his route. As for Tiny, he stared back at the window where Enel had disappeared, gripping his hand tight as he walked toward it.

Tiny saw the mountain snow split in the distance, bursting from the ground in white sheets as Enel ran across the slope. Even from afar, he could see Enel's golden hair glittering, and his red cape snapping behind him. And almost right above Tiny... Tommen stood on the very top of the Crown's Guild, watching the same thing. Tommen's pale red scarf moved with the cold wind, but his eyes were as steady as the mountain as he watched Enel go.... And Roger stood behind him.

"Should we send riders after him, Marshal?"

"Oh, absolutely," Tommen said, then pointed at Enel's disappearing figure.

"As long as you can find a horse as fast as that."

"I... meant to follow him to Widow's Wall." Roger sighed.

"You are allying yourself to the boy, are you not?"

"Of course. I am not stupid." Tommen glanced at him.

"Why are you even asking that? Do you know who else has scared me the way that pretty little monster does now, Roggy?"

"... The prince?"

"No. Why are you even mentioning him?" Tommen adjusted his scarf, flicking it to the other side of his neck.

"Andur."

"... I am not familiar with that name."

"Of course you are not. I met her during one of my travels beyond the seas." Tommen looked back at the fading trail of snow.

"She is a dragon." Roger went quiet. Then he slowly turned to him.

"... What?"

"Stop asking so many questions, Roger. Ugh..." Tommen rolled his eyes before turning his focus back on Enel's disappearing shadow.

"Well, there he goes. Do you think he will come back?"

"... You met a dragon?"

"You are still on that?" Tiny, Tommen, and Roger were not the only ones who watched Enel vanish into the distance. Those who were aware of the commotion were all standing on every balcony and window they could find, their eyes reflecting the snow being blown away.

"... Oathrunner," one of them whispered.

"Ah! So that is why he is called that?!"

"What? He has long, luscious hair, but cannot afford a horse?"

"Why would he need one? Look at him!"

"I... did not think he would literally run."

"Why are you all focusing on that and not on how fast he is moving?"

"Hm." Sigrud was one of the people watching him go. He had his arms crossed, his tail lightly whipping behind him.

"Until we meet again, odd one," he whispered, then quietly walked away. The others noticed him, and all started nudging each other.

"He is trying to look all mysterious again."

"Sshh. Do not mind him." And very soon, while the trainees started to disperse along with the cloud of snow Enel left behind, the young lord continued on and on. There was only a single thought in his mind, and not even the harsh wind piercing his eyes could make him blink. Soon—no. Not soon, but after the road had already dropped far from the mountain and the Crown's Guild had long disappeared behind him, he passed the first village.

The villagers only heard a tremor and a whistle tearing past their homes, seeing nothing but gold and red. But at the second village, he stopped, scaring an old shepherd so badly that the man's sheep scattered behind him.

"What..." The shepherd took one look at Enel's long golden hair and dropped to his knees.

"A... a god."

"No." Enel crouched in front of him.

"I am Enel of House Blackwood, and I apologize for frightening you. But which way to the fields of Woldmarch?" The shepherd took another good look at him, then pointed with a shaking hand.

"That way?" Enel whispered, then bowed to thank the old man before running again.

"Enel of House Blackwood..." The old man watched him disappear.

"Old man Sheep! Old man!" One of the men who saw Enel ran toward him.

"W-who was that?!"

"... He said he was Enel of House Blackwood."

"Enel of—The Oathrunner?! The Oathrunner was here?"

"... Who?"

"The Hero of the West Camp! From the war!"

"Who...?" Enel continued to run, and soon, he reached the familiar town of Harrowhall. He met the grandmother there again, who was about to give him another quest for the flowers—but Enel only stopped to ask questions.

"Rude..." The old woman shook her head, watching as Enel ran after asking for the road.

"Young people today. No manners." By noon, Enel had passed by several small settlements and people on the road, stopping only to ask the same question.

"Do you know which way to Widow's Wall?"

"Huh...?" At one point, he even found himself in front of a group of dubious-looking men, who already had their daggers and weapons aimed at him.

"What are you even saying?!" one of them shouted, stepping closer with a knife in his hand.

"Give us all your money, young lord! Or we will kill you like we did the last—" The man lunged before finishing his words, and Enel hammered his fist through the man's mouth, and the back of his neck burst open.

"Bandits..." Enel whispered, pulling his arm free.

"I have no time for you people, but I also do not know your crimes and sins. Tell me the way to Woldmarch, and surrender yourselves after." Of course, they instinctively told Enel where to go after watching him pull his arm out of their friend's head. And of course, they did not surrender themselves after. Enel continued to run.... And run. The roads became softer, and then rougher.

He crossed streams without looking for bridges, leaped over broken fences, and when a cart blocked the road ahead of him, he moved around it so quickly that the horse pulling it reared back after he was already gone. His stomach growled, and his legs started to feel heavier than they should have. His lungs, too, were beginning to wheeze. But he was not really hearing any of it, all he could hear was Axe's words—Lamb went into the forest. And so, Enel ran, and ran... until his knees finally buckled beneath him.

"Kh..." He hit the ground hard enough to crack the road. Mud splashed over his chest and face while he rolled violently across the ground. And for a moment, he only lay there while rain began to fall over his back.

"No..." Enel whispered, his fingers digging into the mud.

"No!" His voice rippled across the wet field, blowing away the mud as he pushed himself up. His arms shook, then his legs, and the rainwater running down his face almost looked like tears.

"No!" He roared again, slamming his fist into the ground, causing the terrain around him to quake, and forced himself to stand—then he ran again. And still quite far away, Lamb stood beneath trees and roots.

"Come on..." Like Enel, she was wheezing under her breath. She leaned against a trunk, and her sword hung low in her hand, its edge already chipped. She was about to close her eyes, but then she heard a whisper coming from behind the tree.

"Ha..." Lamb spat blood into the mud and pushed herself off the trunk. Her legs shook slightly, but she gripped her sword tight as something crawled between the roots. Then she heard someone laugh behind her, and it sounded very much like Mira.

"That is not going to work on me again," Lamb whispered. She turned while swinging her sword, cutting the vemon behind her in half. But as she did, the thing crawling close lunged toward her. Lamb ducked and rolled away, then grabbed a smaller vemon's corpse and threw it at the creature's head.

"Come on!" she roared, kicking away another corpse before lightly punching herself on the cheek several times to wake herself up. The Dark Forest seemed to breathe around her. The roots shifted, and the branches bent—no. It did not just seem to breathe. It truly was alive... and it was trying to fool her. Somewhere farther between the trees, another cry whispered. Lamb smiled with blood on her teeth.

"I am the Sword of Enel of House Blackwood..." she whispered, raising her sword again.

"And none of you fuckers get to kill me!"