1

In about two hours by Izumi's earthly estimate, the broken wagon wheels were replaced. Meanwhile, the wizard treated the injured soldiers the best he could and gave medicine to those he couldn't. Nothing went to waste. Of the dead horses, their meat and hides were stored, while by Yornwhal's instructions, some better cuts were left as an offering to the Divine Lord of the woods, on a small stone altar they set up by the road. Whether this sacrifice would actually appease the spirit, or if he even saw it, was anyone's guess.

Five of the woodcutters left, defying the legal repercussions, including the headman. Since they had their own horses, no one could or tried to stop them. The remaining locals were more or less of the secular opinion that spirits were myths, the unicorn just an animal, and it was money for their families that mattered the most. A man named Holms was appointed as their new chief and representative, and the journey could finally resume.

“Hey, princess, we're leaving,” Riswelze called after Yuliana, who stood a short distance away from the road, gazing quietly into the woods. Yuliana didn't immediately answer but remained still, lost in thought, her head lowered.

“Hm? Was it that sad?” the assassin asked. “The unicorn?”

“...Ah, it was certainly a tragedy, but that's not what bothers me,” the princess shook her head. “I thought I would inquire my Lord if there was any way we could communicate our will to Lord Matheus, but for some reason, she will not answer me.”

“Hmm? That winged Divine? What's up with her?”

Yuliana touched the front of her chestplate.

“She has been strangely quiet, her presence faint ever since we entered the woods. Normally, her might burns so fierce that it frightens me at times. But this is...odd. Almost as if she's hiding from something.”

“Maybe she doesn't get along with this Matheus?”

“The myths I know tell little about their relationship. I wonder, what could it be…?”

“Something up?” Brian approached the girls and asked. “The Imperials are getting ready to leave.”

“I'll be right there,” Yuliana quickly answered.

The knight turned to return to the road, but the princess soon called after him.

“Brian.”

“Your highness?” He paused and looked over his shoulder.

“Thank you,” Yuliana told him. “You saved my life. I won't forget it.”

“Just doing my job,” the man casually responded.

“Well, well.” Riswelze looked after the two as they went and grinned. “Isn't nature wonderful?”

The enterprising mood of the expedition never quite recovered from this ominous incident. The destination still stood far away and the formerly deep cerulean sky was already starting to exhibit hues of yellow and purple towards the west. Although it was spring and the days fairly long, it became soon clear that they weren’t going to reach the outpost until late at night, or perhaps early in the morning.

Which brought the leaders another headache. After a few more hours on the road, the company stopped again and the Colonel summoned the squad leaders for a strategy meeting.

“So, our options are as follows,” Vizier Attiker summarized. “One, we keep marching in the dark with no visibility, risk straying off the road and walking into whatever chasm awaits us, costing us more time and wheels, if not worse. Two, we light torches and ride comfortably, albeit slowly, in their light, simultaneously attracting whatever more monstrosities or brigands that lurk in the woods to us. Or three, we set up a camp along the way, waste hours doing nothing and burn through our supplies. Pick your poison.”

“We cannot effectively defend such a camp,” Miragrave said. “Another unicorn—no, even a pack of wolves could deal great damage to the company, never mind the worse things out there. I have to overrule this option. Even if by crawling, we must keep on the move. Until the outpost.”

“I agree with the Colonel,” Holms of the woodcutters said, pointing at the map. “No reason to stop now. It's safe terrain from hereon, easy to navigate even in the dark. We have to cross the Alams at one point, but there is a large bridge built across. We cannot miss it, so long as we stay on the road. The outpost is little more than seven miles from the river.”

“The road is not what frightens me, so much as the wrath of the spirits,” the old wizard commented. “I suppose the main question is, how do we face the perils that awaits us? In our own terms, or those of the forest?”

“Yes,” Miragrave agreed. “When the night falls, this becomes an excursion of piglets through the slaughterhouse. Shall we attempt to attune our eyes to the darkness, use it for cover, and risk being deceived by it? Or shall we boldly announce our coming with fire and challenge the hazards head on?”

“You paint devils everywhere, Miragrave,” the Vizier snorted. “I always thought my wife was the most depressing woman in the Empire, but here you outdo her by an order of a magnitude. Maybe nothing happens? Maybe there’s nothing? Maybe we'll make it just fine? One droplet doesn't make a rain, and one monster doesn't mean our graves are dug.”

“It is the duty of a leader to be a pessimist, Attiker,” the Colonel retorted. “Wishful thinking doesn’t win wars, but recognizing where your enemy fails more often than you do.”

“Well then,” the man gestured around and said. “Our enemy now is the forest. Tell me where it fails?”

Everyone's eyes were now fixed at the Imperial woman.

Touching her forehead, Miragrave brushed her curls aside, thought for a few seconds and then slowly announced,

“It fails—before the same thing everything does. Have torches lit.”

2

While the Imperials were consulting, Izumi took the chance to stretch her legs and ended up finding her way to Yuliana. The princess was following the leaders' meeting from a distance, unable to hear the contents of the conversation, but mostly guessing them anyway.

“Um, everything okay?” Izumi asked her, a bit hesitantly.

Yuliana gave her a quick look, before returning her eyes to the circle of knights on the road.

“There are no problems, thank you,” she answered. “...And you? Is the wagon uncomfortable?”

“Not really. When I complained how my butt hurt, all the knights gave me their capes to sit on, so it's been fine...”

“...You know no restraint, do you? Then, was there something you wished to talk about?”

Izumi scratched her neck, looking troubled.

“Um, should I be sorry? Though I didn’t exactly mean it, it seems things took a turn for the worse because of what I did...Again.”

Yuliana gave another glance at the awkward earthling.

“This is rare,” she said. “Are you actually reflecting on your behavior? Is something wrong? Do you feel unwell?”

“...”

Izumi’s dejected expression made Yuliana give up on her sarcasm.

“You saved our lives.” She sighed. “Though the reckless way you went about it may still prove unwise in the long run. I heard that it was killing a unicorn which made Lord Matheus destroy Emperor Yollam and his endeavor in retribution. But I'm not so unreasonable as to blame you for that. How could you have known our legends, being from another world? No, of course, I'm grateful—”

“—Then it's all right!” A bright smile immediately returned to Izumi's face.

“Your remorse faded a tad too quickly!” Yuliana exclaimed. “Aren't you worried at all? Who knows what manner of creatures lie out there, waiting to fall upon us? The Divine’s wrath? Doesn't it frighten you at all? We could die without ever seeing civilization again, you know?”

“I can’t panic now when we’re barely past the prologue, can I?” the woman tilted her head and answered. “I wanted to become a monster hunter, remember? Then isn't this just the thing? This is exactly what I was looking for all along. I think it’s only getting exciting now! Here's my chance to actually protect people like a proper hero, instead of cutting them down. I scored my first monster kill since coming to this world too. I should've taken the head for a trophy, but with the mood the way it was, it didn’t seem too appropriate...And where would I have put it, anyway? I don't have any handy magic inventory system that would let me store stuff without limit. Real life sure is inconvenient in lots of ways. Then again, no one's going to believe me if I don't have any proof to show for my deeds, so I'm starting to regret it now. How troubling. Here I had such a nice start to my legend, yet no one’s going to believe me when I get back...”

Yuliana rubbed her eyes.

“I almost forgot what kind of a person you were...Well? Did you only come here to brag about your achievement? I'm sorry, but I'm really not in the mood to listen to such right now.”

“Eh, have I made you mad again?” Izumi asked. “If there are any more sacred spirit animals you want spared, then let me know properly in advance, okay? Oh, but that reminds me, I actually had a question for you.”

“A question? What is it?”

“Mat-chan's element—what is it?”

“Pardon me…?” Yuliana frowned.

“That spirit guy who rules over the forest—I’m talking about Mat-chan. He's a Divine Lord too, isn’t he? So everyone keeps saying. Doesn't that make him colleagues with Ai-chan? Or are they siblings, even? At any rate, you told me the Lords all have an element they rule over, so I was wondering, what's Mat-chan’s element? It might be useful to know.”

“Lord Matheus?” Yuliana gasped. “You’re talking about Lord Matheus? Good heavens, you need to do something about that naming sense of yours! Speaking of which, I heard you gave Master some strange pet name too! How could you? Don't tell me your name memory really is this awful? You're going to get into trouble if you keep that up! What if you encounter the Divine in person? There's no telling what manner of a Lord he is, and he could doom us all if you offend him!”

“Eeh, who cares?” Izumi retorted. “Why would such high and mighty beings be concerned with how we little mortals call them? And it's not my fault these fantasy names are too difficult for my tongue. My jaw’s gonna fall out of place.”

“Ah, you're hopeless...”

“Never mind that. So, the element? What is it?”

“I don't know,” Yuliana had to admit. “The Divines are only myths in my land, stories my grandfather would tell me. I never delved that deep into the subject. I only know about the elements because...well, my Lord told me herself.”

“Hmm...”

——“Flowing water.”

A voice nearby suddenly joined the conversation.

One of the knights nearby, who had been brushing his horse, turned around and took off his helmet.

It happened to be Sir Leterrié, the same dark-featured man who had helped train Yuliana the day before.

“That is Lord Matheus's Authority,” he explained. “Flowing water. Rivers, streams, springs, waterfalls, underground currents, all water that is in motion. Strong beyond measure, yet at the same time transient, ever-changing, such is his power. That power extends over all land—but not to the seas. The great sea is too much for even a Divine Lord to possess. It can only ever belong to the Old God Numénn, who has left us.”

“A warrior and a scholar,” the princess noted. “You are full of surprises, Sir Leterrié.”

“No,” the knight shook his head with modesty. “In Tratovia, everyone knows this. The Divine tradition is close to our hearts, taught to us by our parents already before we go to school. After all, we have no less than three great Lords to protect our proud capital. How could we not acknowledge and revere them?”

“Ah, I have seen the Temple of the Three. It is a magnificent thing,” Yuliana politely commented.

It was true that the Divine cult was widespread in the Empire, but besides the many beautiful shrines, temples, and works of art produced in the spirits' honor, she had seen no indication of their actual presence. Although, she wouldn’t voice her skepticism in front of this knight, who looked openly convinced of the Divines’ existence.

Besides, having one such spirit inhabit her own body now, Yuliana was compelled to become more open-minded about a lot of things.

“Sounds awfully limited, doesn't it?” Izumi pondered. “I mean, we have someone who rules over all light in the world, and then another gets just the rivers. It's not really even an 'element' in the classic sense, is it? Don't you think that's pretty unfair?”

“Unfair?” Sir Leterrié smiled with disbelief at her words. “It is a tremendous power! A tremendous responsibility, fit for the servant of Hamaran. Humans are weakest among the sentient races. We are weak, and all our lives depend on clean, running water. Since water that pools and is still is not fit for drinking. To have this Authority means to have power over all human life on land; humans, who were Hamaran's created. Hamaran was a God who loved company. He created many Divines to follow him and divided his powers among them as he left. But of all his lieutenants, Hamaran loved Matheus most. As he departed, he entrusted his chosen people to Lord Matheus together with this invaluable Authority, forever. There could be no greater sign of trust.”

Yuliana was a bit moved by the story and remained silent. As the princess of a kingdom, talks about power and responsibility resonated strongly with her. As did tales of beautiful bonds between fellow men.

“Hmm...” Izumi looked thoughtful. “But if humans are his race, then why's Mat-chan hiding here in the woods, where nobody lives? Isn't that strange? Hasn't he practically abandoned us?”

“Izumi...” Yuliana gave the woman a deeply reproachful glance.

Fortunately, the knight wasn't that easily insulted.

“It's because he is humble,” Sir Leterrié said. “Even though he has the power, Lord Matheus does not wish to exert dominance over people, or dictate how we should live our lives. He has given us freedom, to choose for ourselves...or, so I would like to believe. But perhaps he is angry. Perhaps we have lost our worth in his eyes and he no longer cares for us. We indulge in selfish greed and lust in our peaceful lands, while the other races struggle alone to protect the creation. I believe we should fight side by side with the others. Against the daemons. That is why I joined the army, why I follow the commander. To death.”

Having said all he intended, the knight touched his chestplate with his fist, bowed to the princess, put his helmet back on and turned back to fasten his saddlebags.

Izumi couldn't claim to be particularly enlightened by the conversation, but there was no time to reflect on it further. The break time was over and the knights were ready to march once more. Bidding a quick farewell to the princess, she returned to the wagon.

3

It came dark. On open land, the coming of the night would not have been as significant an impediment on the journey, perhaps. But deep in the forest, the thickening foliage high over the travelers' heads blocked what little light the atmosphere reflected, making the dark that much more opaque.

Wise or not, torches were lit, and the line of riders turned into a parade surrounded by the dance and glow of lively flames. Those knights on their black mounts, in their black armors and dark capes, were like mythical wraiths themselves. Any other person witnessing their procession, unaware of its nature or purpose, would've no doubt been struck by heart-breaking terror.

Still, within their intimidating armors, the men were better than aware of their own mortality. It was probably too much asked to expect the primal denizens of Felorn to be scared by their aesthetics alone.

Whatever sleepiness the day's long journey had accumulated in the men was quickly dispelled by the anxious anticipation that nightfall brought with it. Even though the day had passed without more trouble than described, the loss of visibility gave imagination wings. The more dangerous beasts were known to hunt at night. Everyone kept restlessly gazing left and right, hoping to detect any possible monstrosities within the light's limited reach, before they would lunge at their throats—fully aware that even if they did see such things, responding in time was hopeless.

The woods sweeping past in the dark looked blurry, distant and intangible. It looked like they were riding in a narrow tunnel now, carved through the immeasurable blackness of the night by the frail light they carried. The riders could only dive onward through the void in their fleshly mining carts, even if the road were to suddenly disappear from under them, sending them plummeting into the unknown abyss.

Hours crawled by, the horses cantered on, and nothing dangerous appeared from the trees. But the constant tension and straining of vision weighed heavily not only on the riders’ bodies but also on their minds. As speedy as it felt, their progress was considerably slower than during the day.

In the dark, one's grasp of time was soon lost, and both the night and the road started to seem equally endless. Yuliana was convinced they had traveled a full day already, yet the sun showed no signs of rising again.

Eventually, they all found themselves secretly hoping that something would appear, so that they would be released from the terrible suspense and have a chance to work their hands. Sometimes even death itself may seem friendlier than the gut-wrenching wait for it.

Had they become enthralled by the Divine of the woods?

Were they cursed to ride in a perpetual, magical loop to the end of all time?

Had they, in search of a legend, turned into a legend themselves, a warning example to all who would disturb the ageless peace of the forest?

It was at moments like this that Yuliana would've appreciated a few words from the patron spirit within her, yet Aiwesh remained silent. As a Divine Lord who had lived quietly for over thirty thousand years, she sure excelled in the art of reticence.

——“COMPANY! HALT!”

The knight Captain's voice finally brought the cavalcade a moment's relief. Or, while everyone was relieved by the fact that they had stopped and could gather themselves for a moment, the actual cause for the break had the opposite effect.

They had come to a river.

The river Alams, which flowed through the southern Felorn.

It was known to be among the longest rivers on the continent, although no one had been able to fully measure it. Starting from the shores of the northern sea near Melgier, it drew across western Noertia southward, all the way to Luctretz, where it joined the sea once more in the Edrian Bay. Considering the vast distance between these two points, one could vaguely guess how long a distance the water had to travel to clear the whole route.

In places, the Alams became narrow and overgrown enough to not allow a single fishing boat through, while in others it was too wide and fierce for anyone to even think about swimming across.

Here the river drew a long, gentle curve, circling around the Varnamians’ secluded outpost and cutting across the road. The stream was only about thirty feet wide, but the current flowed strong. Not so strong that one couldn't swim against it, but it still delivered away without delay anything inanimate dropped into it. The cause was readily available; a short distance westward, the water took an abrupt dive downhill, before gushing between some dangerous-looking rocks.

Why the locals had built their outpost on the other side, instead of closer to the town—one could only guess the reasons. Either way, a bridge had been built to cross the water, bringing the two sides of the way happily together. It was a strong, wide wood bridge, which had faithfully endured the locals' heavy carts for numerous decades.

Was, indeed.

Tonight, no bridges could be seen.

Some great force had torn it away, leaving only a few broken planks sticking up on both shores to mark the place. Beneath, the dark waters ran quietly, offering no explanation to what could have caused the disaster.

“This can't be…?” The locals were in dismay over the fate of their creation.

“Lord Matheus's wrath…! We have been denied! We must turn back!”

“Lord have mercy on our souls!”

“Why am I not surprised?” Vizier Attiker sighed, inspecting the scene. “It's a bridge. If you want one to last, then make it out of stone!”

“Now isn't this a pickle,” wizard Yornwhal peered over the edge, poking the water with his staff. “It is well over six feet deep, with a muddy bed.”

“Even with less water, the banks are too steep, we can’t cross here with the wagons,” Yuliana said. “We need to look for another crossing. Would it be more shallow upstream?”

“No need for that,” the Vizier said. “The Varnamians built the bridge once, they can do it again. All it costs us is more time. Yet likely less so than trying to clear a path through that thicket.”

“In the dark?” the princess questioned. “Impossible. We need to at least wait here until sunrise.”

“Not an option,” Colonel Miragrave objected. “Whether the Divine did this or a spring flood, we can’t afford to let it hold us for long. Remain here and we stand trapped between the river and the forest, with no escape. A bridge has to be made. Even if blindfolded, it will be made. Gather the men, Captain. Show my foolish disciple what a hundred of his majesty's elite can do.”

The knights left their horses, exchanged their swords for axes and, following the woodcutters' instructions, started to chop down suitably thick and long trees around the road, to be used for the new bridge.

“Yornwhal, give them light,” the commander requested.

“As you wish.” The old wizard held up his staff and chanted, “Iota manere, lutis antea.”

A dazzlingly brilliant, slightly bluish light appeared hovering in the air, about fifteen feet above the wizard, as if he had pulled down a star from the black sky. In its radiance, everyone was able to see the immediate surroundings with the clarity not quite comparable to daylight but close enough.

The work proceeded with renewed vigor.

“How come we didn't use such a handy trick to light our path before?” Riswelze, following the hustle idly behind the wizard, asked. “Or rather, why don't you just spell the bridge back to us, Sir Court Wizard?”

“I must confess I am an utter novice in regards to bridge architecture,” Yornwhal replied with a wry smile, before adding in a lower tone, “Spirits and monsters are drawn to magic and we still have ways to go. I know the commander would not have asked me if it weren’t an emergency, but...It would be better if we didn't linger here much longer now.”

The replacement bridge was made quick and rudimentary.

Some of the men threw off their armors and swam to the other side of the river, ropes with them. The other ends of the ropes were tied to the cut logs and with brute force, the knights pulled the trunks over the stream, one by one, to align them over the remains of the old bridge.

Impressed, Yuliana witnessed a crude, but nevertheless serviceable path quickly appear across the natural obstacle. After some fifteen trunks had been felled and pulled over the water, side by side, the bridge started to look wide enough for the wagons to pass. As basic as the construct was, for a time, it seemed men had indeed attained another victory over nature.

“That's fair enough!” The commander told the woodcutters, who would've preferred to add more support structures. “Tie them together and get out of there!”

It was far from an ideal solution, but the sturdiest available ropes were retrieved from the supplies and the men got to work.

“——HYAAAAAAAUGHHHH!”

Around this point, a hair-raising scream rang through the darkness.

One of the knights had gone to urinate a distance away from the road. While about his business, his attention was caught by something on the ground reflecting the glow of the spell in a peculiar fashion.

Something round, thin and smooth, coiled amid the short shrubs covering the ground.

A snake?

Squinting his eyes, the man saw that what returned the light were indeed the sleek scales of a reptile. An adder, perhaps? The man spat in disgust and kicked the ground.

For a moment, in a completely unrelated thought—or perhaps in an epiphanous flash of higher wisdom—it occurred to the knight that he shouldn't maybe have removed his chestplate.

Barely a second after, large jaws tightened over his left shoulder with bone-breaking force, four sharp teeth piercing deep into his flesh. Simultaneously, he felt a powerful pull that lifted his feet off the ground. A scream of horror and pain was all the knight managed. He was dead long before his corpse returned to the ground.

“The Hel was that?” the knight's companions a short distance away hurried to investigate.

“AAAARGGGHH—!”

Before they reached the body, another scream sounded from the opposite side of the road.

There another knight had returned to his horse to retrieve his water bottle, when something heavy fell on him from high above. Heavy enough to crush his spine before he could feel the fangs digging into his neck. He didn't have the time to make a sound—the one to scream had been another knight, who coincidentally witnessed the grisly event.

In no time, more horrified sounds echoed around.

It was only after a lengthy period of disturbed confusion, that one enlightened individual was able to identify the threat in the night.

——“BASILIIIIIIIISKS!”

“My favorites,” hearing the shout, Colonel Miragrave muttered under her breath, before turning to the workers on the riverbank. “Is it safe to cross yet?”

“No!” the men answered. “We've only started to rope the logs, they won't hold weight yet! One careless move and they will all roll down into the stream!”

“Do you know how to tie knots, man! Hurry it up!” she urged them. “Captain! Signal the leaders, set up a defensive formation! The first wagon has the priority! The first wagon crosses before anything else, you hear me? Get it over to the other shore as soon as the path is finished! You answer for the dimeritium with your head!”

“Ma'am! Yes, ma'am!”

4

Far at the back of the caravan, near the last wagon detached from all the commotion, Izumi heard the shouting and asked a knight standing nearby,

“What is a basilisk?”

“What?” the man gasped, stupefied. “Have you never left your house before, madam!?”

“How rude, I went to the convenience store almost every day! Admitted, it was only across the street, but that still counts as 'leaving my house', technically. And I’ve heard of basilisks before, yes, but they look different in every game, I don’t know what they’re supposed to be in here.”

“Ask your countryman there! Surely he can tell you!”

“I have no idea,” Brian replied.

“Serpents, fools!” The knight lost his patience. “As deadly as they come! Basilisks can grow up to thirteen feet in length and weigh more than a hundred and fifty pounds! They bite and spit, and one drop of their venom will kill a bull in the blink of an eye! They like to slither up the trees and drop down on unsuspecting prey like wolverines. And they never hunt alone. You don't have armor, so get in the carriage and hide unless you want to die!”

“Well, at least it's not giant spiders,” Izumi shrugged. “Oh, did I jinx it?”

“Princess...” Brian gritted his teeth and left jogging towards the river.

“Hey!” the Imperial knight called after him. “Stay here, you madman! I've orders to watch you! Don't make me risk my life together with you!”

The squad leaders did their best to restore order, fend off the basilisks, and prepare everyone to cross the river. The knights working on the bridge had to look all around for their removed weapons and gear which had been kicked around amid all the chaos. A hundred people running around, blocking the light, the panicked shrieks, and the giant serpents added a fair bit of difficulty to the search. Some didn't even try but chose to fight the toxic creatures without armor at all, only their work axes for weapons.

Then again, though having armor offered protection against basilisk fangs, it was hardly foolproof. The hideous reptiles could spit their venom accurately up to thirty feet, and having even a tiny bit spill through the helmet visor proved deadly.

The horses were not fond of the new threat either.

One knight was snatched straight from the saddle and his steed flew at once into a frenzy. The panic quickly spread to the other stallions nearby, before reaching critical mass.

There was no holding back the avalanche.

Finding a solution to their distress in the incomplete bridge, the animals all rushed to it at once without waiting for a permission.

“Look out!”

The workers could only scramble out of the way.

In short order, some fifty-odd horses were surging over the logs. Traffic rules weren't obeyed. A number of mounts, knights and workers alike got knocked over the edge and cast into the chilling spring water. If they were fortunate enough. Those who got left under the stampede on solid land fared worse.

Only the outer logs on the left side had been tied so far and those bindings now took on the full stress. The ropes used weren't intended for bridgemaking, of course, and the several tons' worth of traffic tearing them left and right were truly testing the limits of hemp.

“It's breaking up!” the Colonel observed the state of the bridge and shouted. “Get the wagons across! The wagons first, men can swim!”

As the way started to clear up, the wagon riders urged their steeds onward, through the crowd. The disordered knights tried to clear the way the best they could, but not everyone had the luxury of paying attention. A few got hit by the wheels or shaken off their mounts in the rush. At least the survivors had mostly all found their own armors by now.

Izumi and the other passengers had to get off their ride to lessen the load on the bridge. After the leisurely journey so far, they now found themselves stranded on foot in the middle of a pitch black forest full of deadly creatures.

No one had the time to worry about their safety.

The first wagon crossed over the river easily enough.

The second had the mobile kitchen on board, including heavy stoves, barrels, crates, supply bags, and food. It sped over a bit too rashly for its size. The rider had to have been exceptionally skilled to get both the frenzied bulls and all the wheels of the wagon onto the sketchy bridge in the first place; finer control was probably too much asked.

Nevertheless, as a result, the left side ropes on the southern end snapped.

The haphazard bridge was rapidly coming loose.

The third wagon followed shortly after the second, but the tail part ended up skidding left. The back wheels dropped into the crack between the logs near the edge. The tall wagon tilted dangerously to the side and for a moment it seemed it would fall sideways into the river. The powerful animals harnessed before it pulled on with all their might anyhow, and managed to drag the whole load to the other side.

Regrettably, the way the wheels plowed through the crack effectively cut the remaining ropes and sent the logs rolling sideways, one by one.

Luck didn't favor the remaining wagon.

The bulls made it across, but the wagon itself was carried away by the rolling trunks and eventually slipped through them into the river, rear first. The division of mass was too one-sided and the sinking load pulled the animals back from the land. Making helpless noise, the bulls were thrown into the water, cut from their restraints. One immediately drifted downstream and tumbled down the rocky waterfall, helplessly baying, while the other got pinned under falling logs and drowned.

The bridge had been reduced to less than a half of its original width, but either way, the road was open for the remaining knights to cross. They had held their ground bravely in the dark but didn't need a separate command to direct their horses to the bridge—those in the minority, who still had retained control over theirs, that is. Most of the company had already lost their mounts and could only keep out of the way, impatiently waiting for their turn while fending off the basilisks.

Despite Yornwhal bravely continuing to show light, the horses kept slipping on the unbound, unstable logs that moved under their hooves. Every now and then a horrified shriek, followed by a heavy splash, notified the others that the river had claimed more swimmers. Though it was hardly the season.

The riders were followed by the men on foot, who fared little better. Balancing on the round trunks in their heavy armors took talent for acrobatics and a great deal of patience, which very few had, as they fled for their lives. For every three men to get across, one took a plunge.

The situation had gone beyond desperate, and on to tragicomical, a circus too pitiful to laugh at.

Finally, the chaos started to subside. Most of the company had made it across the stream, somehow. By now the bridge was practically nothing but a miscellaneous assortment of timber arbitrarily spread over the water.

As the scene cleared, Brian was able to locate Yuliana, who remained standing near the bridgehead.

“Princess! Why are you still here! You have to go!”

“Has everyone passed yet?” Yuliana asked. “Where's Izumi!?”

“She wasn't in the wagon?”

“The last one? No, don't tell me...”

“I'm right here, though,” Izumi appeared beside them from the dark.

Since all the passengers had been ordered out, she had been spared from the fall. Following so far behind all the others, she hadn't been troubled by the basilisks either.

“What are you waiting for!?” Yuliana shouted at her. “Hurry up and get over!”

“I thought I'd see you through first—oops!”

Izumi interrupted herself to swing her sword upward, right next to Brian. To Yuliana, it looked like she had cut the knight, but soon realized the woman's aim had been higher up. Following the sound of metal hitting against something tough and heavy, she saw a weird shape drop on the road at the Langorian's feet.

“I might be a little late in asking this,” Izumi said. “But is it okay to kill these things?”

Yuliana looked down and saw a long, thick body covered in green scales on the sand. It had been cut in two but the bottom half still wriggled, dark blue liquid spilling from the wound. In disgust, she stepped back—but had no time to be disgusted much longer, spotting movement in the corner of her eye,

“Behind you!” she yelled at Izumi.

A serpent at least nine feet long stood up like a cobra on the road, towering over the woman. It had two fin-like appendices a foot beneath a large, triangular head. With the length of jaws that it now displayed in full, it could have easily swallowed a small dog whole.

Reacting immediately to the warning, Izumi crouched, turned around, and swung the greatsword again, slicing diagonally through the basilisk. The decapitated head part fell on her, but expecting it, she managed to catch it with her free left hand and hold it up, as heavy as it had to have been.

“My, is it really a snake if it has limbs?” Izumi stood up and pondered, turning the head away right as a shot of venom was reflexively discharged from the glands in its mouth.

“Look out!” Yuliana warned her. “Its blood is venomous too! You get any of it on your skin, you'll be sick for a week! Put it away!”

“Oh, someone's studied,” Izumi said, not letting go of the basilisk head.

“It's common knowledge! The river! Hurry up! You have to go!”

“I will, I will. It's not like I'm here because I want to be. But can I keep this as a troph—”

“—No! Go!”

The woman cautiously put the serpent head away and went nimbly running over the logs. Thanks to her light attire and sense of balance, she made it across easily enough. Yuliana and Brian followed after her, but soon discovered that it was hardly as simple as the woman had made it look.

“Wah!” Yuliana took a bad step, lost her balance and fell. She managed to grab hold of another trunk, but still dipped half into the water. The stream was freezing cold and bit through her thighs and crotch with vicious intensity, at the same time filling her boots. How had the knights been able to swim over it earlier and endure the pain without a word of complaint? For a moment, Yuliana was vividly reminded how sheltered and painless her life until now had been—but this wasn't the time to think such things.

“Yulia!” Brian dropped to his knees and reached out to her. “Take my hand!”

From his outstretched hand, the princess's attention was turned to strange movement behind the man.

“Brian! Watch out!” she shrieked, realizing she wasn't seeing things.

One of the smaller basilisks had followed the man, coiling around the log he was on. Her warning came too late. The serpent quickly wrapped around his leg and lifted its head up, baring its fangs. He was trapped. And unarmed.

But Izumi hadn't abandoned the two.

Running back, crouched like a ninja, she hopped onto the trunk next to Brian and cut off the basilisk's head. In its dying struggle, however, the creature's body violently twisted around the tree and the knight's leg.

“Gh!” The fierce pull threw Brian off balance and he fell into the river.

“Brian!” Yuliana tried to grab the man as the current took him past her. But she couldn't keep hold of her own support one-handed with the clumsy gauntlet. Her grip slipped immediately and she ended up getting pulled away with the man, into the river.

Izumi could only helplessly watch the two drift away.

“My, I always fail the escort missions.”

Brian remained fully submerged. By his senseless, helpless spasming, it was clear he didn't know how to swim. It was a regrettably rare skill among the Langorians, as their kingdom stood mainly on vast, lakeless prairie.

In this regard, Yuliana was an exception among her people. The royal summer villa was built on a distant seashore, and a servant had taught her the basics after a near-death experience when she was little. Even so, with her orichalcum armor weighing her down, simultaneously swimming against the current and holding the grown man up were too much for her strength. The river kept pulling them both downstream, towards the treacherous rapids.

To save herself, she had to abandon the knight—but to Yuliana, it was not an option. Even had she done so, it was unlikely that she would have had the strength to swim back to the shore.

Is this our end...?

Not all was lost, however.

While Yuliana desperately tried to keep her head above the surface, she suddenly heard a voice call her.

“Hey! Princess! Catch!”

Yuliana looked up and saw Riswelze on the riverbank, throwing her a rope.

The assassin's accuracy was flawless and Yuliana was able to catch the end sent to her without too much difficulty. Several Imperial knights joined in to help pull the two Langorians out of their predicament, and in no time, they were coughing and shivering on solid land. Cold and soaked, but very much alive.

The basilisks wouldn't pursue them over the stream, it seemed. Ectotherms like their smaller relatives, the water was too cold for the reptiles to challenge and the functionality of bridges was beyond their understanding.

The travelers were safe. The company had made it through another deadly trap, some dry, some less so. But once again, no one could bring themselves to celebrate the success. For too many souls, the journey had ended here forever.

The magic light was put out in order to not attract any more dangers, and for a good hour more, everyone had their hands full gathering the panicked horses. By the time they were ready to continue on, they discovered there was no longer any need for torches. The impermeable blackness had sneakily become replaced by tones of blue and the forest around became drawn in everyone's eyes with steadily sharpening precision.

The long night was finally over.

But the quest for the forest’s secrets—far from it.