CH 101

Thanks to Lucas, Riett was able to have another experience of riding a horse on this cold day.

It wasn’t easy to ride due to not only the cold weather but also the considerable amount of snow accumulated on the road.

‘Why did he insist on going today?’

If he was so scared of his father, he could have gone earlier!

She grumbled silently and ran diligently toward the area where Lucas had fallen. 

It should have taken only an hour to reach the destination, but the continuously falling snow made it much longer. The horse seemed tired too.

In fact, before coming here, Riett had hoped that Mishan would magically transport them to this place. 

So while Evan went to get the horses, she asked Mishan but he said that although it might be possible, her spirit magic skills were still not proficient enough for teleportation.

Yes, it hadn’t been long since she made a contract with the spirit.

Moreover, since she still hadn’t revealed herself as a spirit mage, she didn’t bother using her abilities in front of Evan.

She felt embarrassed to say that she had become a spirit mage but still struggled with using Mishan’s power.

That’s why Riett abandoned the intention to reveal it for now, looking forward to the day when she would become a tremendously skilled individual.

“Here we are.”

Evan, who was leading the way, stopped and signaled that they had arrived at the edge of the cliff. The surroundings were covered in white snow, and they almost missed it.

As Riett pulled on the reins, the horse snorted and stood in place.

Riett felt sorry for the horse’s efforts to get them this far, so she promised herself to give it fresh carrots if they returned.

“Where could he be?”

Riett dismounted from the horse and looked around beneath the cliff, searching for Lucas. Although she could see the rough flow of the river, it wasn’t easy to spot the location described by the man who had accompanied Lucas.

At that moment, Evan, who was nervously pacing back and forth, pointed somewhere.

“Riett, over there, I think.”

As Riett approached where Evan was pointing, she saw a pale-haired head leaning weakly against the rocky wall below the cliff. Lucas seemed to have managed to hold on to the middle of the cliff before falling completely and sitting on a narrow ledge. 

Riett couldn’t help but think how amazing Lucas was.

‘He managed to end up in such a place.’

If he had fallen into the icy river below the cliff in this cold, he might not have stood a chance.

Riett quickly called out to Lucas.

“Lucas!”

The platinum-covered forehead slowly moved, and Lucas raised his head, meeting her gaze.

It had only been two hours since he had left the mansion, a reunion much sooner than they’d expected.

“Riett…?”

“Yeah, it’s me!”

She purposely swallowed the rest of her words. It would be embarrassing to say them out loud, even for herself.

“Oh, thank goodness. So that person went to the mansion properly.”

There was no other large mansion nearby, so it wouldn’t have been difficult to find it.

Still, Riett was relieved that Lucas had met a good person.

If he had faced such a predicament alone, he might not have been able to ask for help.

Even now, Lucas’ lips were turning pale from the cold.

“But how am I going to get up there?”

“Just wait a moment!”

When Riett turned her head to look at Evan, he nodded once and took out a rope he had prepared.

Riett took the rope and shook it so that Lucas could see it.

“Lucas! I brought a rope.”

“Uh…”

But Lucas had a dark expression.

No way…

Riett swallowed her anxiety and asked, 

“Why? Did you get hurt anywhere?”

“Well… When I fell, I hit my shoulder, making it difficult to climb up using the rope.”

Damn it. She thought they could use the rope because Lucas wasn’t seriously injured.

Riett glanced at Evan, wondering if he had any other tricks up his sleeve, but his eyes were completely indifferent.

‘……I’m an idiot for expecting it.’

Riett fell into deep thought once again.

Hmm… Maybe she should ask Mishan for help.

She’s not sure how far the power of a spirit can go, but even if teleportation is not possible, perhaps it can lift one adult man.

First, she needed to be alone to talk to Mishan. Otherwise, Evan would find it strange if she started talking to herself.

After finishing her thoughts, Riett looked at Evan.

“Evan, I’m going to see if there’s anything nearby that can be used as a tool. I’ll be back soon.”

Evan nodded without suspicion.

As Riett ventured into the forest alone, she whispered, 

“Mishan.”

〈Yes, my master.〉

Mishan responded quickly.

“Someone fell there. Is it possible to rescue him with your spirit power?”

〈It may be difficult with your current abilities… However, shall we give it a try?〉

“Yes, let’s at least give it a shot.”

Riett gave a determined answer, then asked Mishan to wait for a moment.

While attempting the rescue, there was still a chance of failure, so she needed to have a backup plan.

Riett’s gaze landed on the other side of the bridge.

A little further down from the bridge, there was a village. She wondered if she could borrow a ladder from there.

Riett thought of asking Evan to do that. In the meantime, she would try to save Lucas.

When Riett returned to where Evan was, she explained the plan.

“Evan, go to the village and bring back a ladder. I’ll clear the snow off the bridge so that it doesn’t accumulate.”

“…I understand.”

Evan seemed quite displeased with the fact that he had to go back and forth to the nearby village for Lucas’ sake, but eventually, he mounted his horse.

After Evan disappeared, Riett carefully observed where Lucas was.

Although she felt anxious, Lucas was sitting more calmly than she had expected. Riett was secretly surprised.

“Not feeling cold, Lucas?”

When Lucas heard Riett’s voice, he raised his head.

“I feel like I’m about to freeze to death.”

Despite his grim words, Lucas had a smiling face.

However, looking at his gradually paler complexion, it didn’t seem like a complete joke.

“Evan went to ask for help from the nearby village. Just wait a little longer.”

In the meantime, she planned to try using Mishan’s power.

Of course, there was a possibility of directly attempting it with Lucas and failing, so she had to try something else first.

Riett wandered around looking for a suitable target and soon found a rock of a similar size to Lucas.

‘That’s it!’

“Mishan, can I do it like last time?”

〈Yes, imagine the feeling when you lifted the flower petals during the contract ceremony and adopt the same posture.〉

“Alright.”

Approaching the rock, Riett closed her eyes and made hand gestures to concentrate. Then, she moved her hands as if lifting the rock as she did before.

‘Hmm…’

However, it didn’t feel the same as last time. It required a lot of effort, and her hands didn’t move as smoothly as before. It felt as if something was restraining her, like being caught in a tight cloth.

Riett closed her eyes again and focused.

“…”

But it was the same. It felt even more draining this time. When she opened her eyes, the oblivious rock remained motionless.

‘I guess it’s better if I lift it myself.’

Riett furrowed her brows.

〈It seems it’s still too much for me…〉

She heard Mishan’s disappointed voice, but she didn’t blame him. Dramatic improvements weren’t expected; progress had its stages.

“It’s okay.”

Evan went to seek help, so he would come back soon.

Giving up on using the spirit power to rescue Lucas, Riett walked unsteadily.

The continuous snowfall made the snow accumulate on her legs. The center part, especially, couldn’t withstand the weight of the snow and sank.

Riett concentrated once again, using spirit magic. Since Lucas couldn’t see, it didn’t matter.

The snow accumulated on her legs and slowly fell. Unlike when she tried to lift the rock, it was effortless. The snow felt significantly lighter compared to the heavy rock.

After completing the mission, Riett tried to step off her wobbly leg but noticed that the supporting line in the center had become thinner.

‘It seems dangerous…’

Fortunately, Evan had crossed the bridge safely earlier, but she couldn’t be sure of his safety when he returned.

Riett thought she should warn him to be careful when crossing the bridge.

“Riett.”

Then, a muffled voice of Lucas came from below.

When Riett looked down, she saw Lucas resting his head against the cliff.

“You see… I think I’m being punished because I didn’t give you the spirit stone compass.”

Riett blinked.

What is he talking about?

“It’s not a big deal. I just thought of giving it to you, Riett…”

“It’s not a big deal? It’s expensive and important. Plus, you won’t be able to find the spirit stone without it.”

“Just… looking back now, I was too fixated on the spirit stone even though I knew there were other paths.”

Sighing, Lucas’ breath echoed through the cliff.

“The easiest way is for me to strengthen myself and take my father down.”

“…”

“But I was afraid, so I kept avoiding it.”

Lucas threw a nearby rock into the river. Soon, a splashing sound followed.

“To be honest, I still don’t want to go back to the guild. It’s too dreadful. I used finding the spirit stone as an excuse to buy more time…”

Riett listened quietly to Lucas’ words. He always seemed energetic, and she had no idea about his inner struggles.

“I must look like a real idiot, right? On Riett’s debutante day, I gathered the courage to leave the guild once again, and now I’m crumbling like this.”

Lucas let out a weak laugh.

Riett couldn’t casually comfort Lucas. His pain was something only he knew.

Superficial consolation would only be poison.

“For now, climb up from there and take your time to rethink. Maybe what happened there will become an opportunity for you to gather courage.”

A crisis can become an opportunity.

Didn’t she experience it herself by coming here?

When she thought everything was over, everything changed.

Breaking free from the constraints of daily life and gaining a new perspective on her surroundings was a great blessing.

Thanks to that, she discovered her relationship with Evan, ways to reverse the situation, and her abilities.

She hoped the current situation would have a similar effect on Lucas.

She didn’t want it to end with a mere confession, but rather as an opportunity to understand what went wrong and fix it.

“Thank you, Riett. If I make it up there safely, I’ll give you this compass…”

A few days ago, Riett might have hesitated at Lucas’ words, but now she felt an inexplicable unease.

And soon, she understood the reason.

Speaking of regrets before dying, making promises of what to do when you get out.

‘…Isn’t this a death flag?’

Riett urgently shouted at Lucas.

“You…! Stop talking!”

Fortunately, Lucas must have been exhausted as he quickly closed his mouth.

With an anxious heart, Riett looked beyond the bridge, hoping for Evan to arrive soon.

And before long, she heard the comforting sound of familiar hoofbeats.