CH 124

“What is it…?”

Riett looked at Kei, blinking her eyes. Kei had his head down.

“Well… It’s really hard for me to climb the mountain every day to gather herbs.”

Kei said, covering his face, and a deep sigh escaped from his lips.

“Because of my left foot, it’s difficult to climb the mountain, and the herbs are all deep in rugged places… If I make a small mistake, I might roll down the steep mountain path.”

Riett’s gaze fell on Kei’s hand. As seen before, his clenched fists were covered in scars. They were probably in other places as well, though hidden under his clothes.

Once again, Riett felt that climbing the mountain every day with an uncomfortable leg was a burdensome trial for someone of Kei’s age.

“But the most frustrating thing is that no matter how hard I try, nothing improves. When the weather gets colder, it’ll be even more difficult to find the herbs, and my grandmother’s condition is getting worse.”

Kei opened his hand and looked at his palm.

“Will I be able to escape from this helplessness when I grow up? Right now, I can’t see the way forward at all.”

Riett gently grasped the unspoken emotions deep in Kei’s heart.

In truth, Riett knew there was nothing she could say to help him. From her own experiences, finding the way forward was something one had to do on their own.

Kei didn’t seem to expect any special answers from Riett either. Just having someone who would listen seemed to be enough, and he calmly continued speaking.

“My grandmother has been suggesting that I sell the dagger.”

Riett spoke up for the first time, 

“Dagger?”

She vaguely remembered Kei’s grandmother mentioning the dagger as a family heirloom.

However, a dagger itself wouldn’t fetch much money, especially when there were plenty of daggers in the city.

“The dagger my grandmother mentioned is a family heirloom made of mithril, and it’s intricately crafted. It even has jewels embedded in the handle.”

Daggers are usually designed for practicality, so they don’t often have jewels embedded in them. Nobles who like to show off might do that with long swords, but not with daggers.

Riett found it to be a unique dagger.

“My grandmother said that if I sell that dagger, we’ll have enough money for the winter. However…”

“However…?” 

Riett leaned in, listening to Kei’s voice.

“For some reason, I have a feeling that I shouldn’t sell the dagger.”

“Why?”

“That dagger was given as a gift by a spirit when my great-grandfather, who was an herbalist, almost lost his life. The spirit saved him and gave him the dagger as a present.”

“A spirit…?”

“Yes. They say that spirits occasionally visit this mountain.”

Certainly, it wouldn’t be strange for this mountain, where Kei’s house was located, to have rumors of spirits residing due to its beautiful and serene nature.

In a place like this, there might indeed be spirits.

And Riett’s curiosity was piqued by the dagger, supposedly given by a spirit. Could it be related to the spirit stone? As soon as the spirit was mentioned, her thoughts naturally drifted in that direction.

“That’s why I don’t want to sell the dagger.”

While Riett was pondering the spirit stone’s name, Kei’s calm voice reached her ears.

“Because it’s a token given by my great-grandfather’s benefactor… I still want to cherish it.”

Riett fully understood Kei’s feelings.

“But… It will be difficult to climb the mountain for a while as my grandmother suggested. My right leg is injured. If I don’t go up the mountain, there won’t be any way to make money…”

Although the conversation had come full circle, it seemed that Kei’s thoughts were leaning towards selling the dagger after all.

Kei lifted his head, and his expression looked brighter. 

“Thank you for listening, sister. It’s the first time we’ve met, and I ended up telling you such detailed stories.”

A bitter smile appeared on the corner of his lips. 

“Besides my grandmother, there’s no one else I can talk to.”

Riett managed to correct her sinking mood and replied with her usual tone. 

“I’m glad if I could be of help.”

Kei smiled bravely and got up from his seat. 

“I should head inside now. My grandmother will worry.”

* * *

When they returned home, Kei’s grandmother greeted him as usual without showing any sign of surprise. Kei and Riett had a simple dinner with her.

“Isn’t your brother joining us?” 

Kei asked. Riett gave a vague response.

“No, he’s not hungry.”

Ever since Perante went upstairs earlier, he hadn’t come down again.

‘He’ll only be losing out if he doesn’t eat.’

Riett thought, lifting her spoon.

They had a stew for dinner, and there were only a few pieces of potatoes left in it. Despite that, Riett devoured the lukewarm stew hungrily.

After finishing their meal, everyone got up from the table to retire to their respective rooms.

“Goodnight, sister.” 

Kei said as he exchanged greetings with Riett before she climbed the stairs to the second floor.

As she reached the corridor, she noticed Perante leaning against the door frame of his room.

However, Riett paid no attention to him and placed her hand on the doorknob.

“That dagger.”

Perante spoke up as if stopping her in her tracks. Riett turned to face him.

“The one he said was given by a spirit.”

Riett raised an eyebrow. 

How does he know about the dagger? There were only Kei and her in the valley earlier.

“You, were you around?”

“Yes. I thought we might discuss something related to the spirit.”

Perante casually replied. He had a way of being audacious.

She had thought he paid no attention to the test of the spirit stone, as he maintained a firm expression throughout their time here, but it seemed that wasn’t the case after all.

“Why that dagger?”

“It seems to be related to the name of the spirit stone.”

“Why are you telling me such things?”

Perante was passing information to her, his current competitor. Since when did he start playing fair?

Riett stared at Perante with a suspicious look.

“You would have figured this out soon enough anyway.”

That was true.

Ever since Kei mentioned that the dagger was from a spirit, she thought there was a high chance it was related to the spirit stone.

“I’ve come here and firmly made up my mind. I must obtain the spirit stone and change the world.” 

Perante said. The reason for his dark expression was probably due to his determination.

She’s not sure what made her suddenly feel uneasy.

But Riett knew that Perante’s resolve wasn’t just empty words. His blue eyes carried a colder glint than usual. Even when he tried to kill her, he had the same look in his eyes.

“So, I won’t hesitate to find out the name of the spirit stone, no matter the means and methods.”

“Why are you warning me? Have you suddenly decided to be kind?” 

Riett retorted, eyeing him suspiciously.

Perante turned around as Riett teased him. His long hair swayed softly with the motion, and he spoke in a low voice, 

“Let’s call it a tiny bit of conscience.”

* * *

A tiny bit of conscience, huh?

Riett muttered, frowning, as she pondered the words Perante said before going to sleep yesterday.

Perante trying to warn her like that to alleviate his discomfort annoyed her. 

‘He’s really a sly person.’

As the sun rose, Riett heard busy footsteps downstairs and got up from her bed. When she descended, Perante had returned to his usual appearance, sitting at the dining table with a bright smile.

Seeing him with that radiant smile brought back memories of the day she first saw him at the palace.

“Ah, you’re up, sister.”

“Yeah, did you sleep well, Kei?”

“Yes!”

Thankfully, Kei seemed more energetic than last night.

Riett smiled gently and then noticed the tempting smell that stimulated her hungry stomach as she approached the dining table.

Unlike yesterday’s meager stew, there was a quite sumptuous spread of food.

“Breakfast is quite lavish.”

“Perante brother went out this morning and caught some fish. He’s quite skilled at throwing the harpoon.”

At the mention of ‘Perante-brother’ and catching fish, Riett recalled what Perante had said yesterday.

“I won’t hesitate to find out the name of the spirit stone, no matter the means and methods.”

So, he meant that he wouldn’t hesitate to use any means necessary… Well, if it was just to get Kei’s heart and discover something, she felt relieved.

As Riett looked at Perante with an admiring gaze, Kei pulled out a chair and said, 

“Please, have a seat, sister.”

“Oh? Alright.”

Riett sat down and looked around.

“Grandmother is not having her meal?”

“Oh… She said she couldn’t get up this morning, so I brought the food to her room.”

“I see…”

Riett clenched her dry throat at the weighty revelation. The dining table was filled with silence until Kei broke it first.

“I… I’ve decided to go and sell the dagger today.”

“Humph.” 

Riett spat out the water she was drinking. 

Although he had been contemplating whether to sell the dagger yesterday, she didn’t expect him to reach a decision so quickly.

“I guess being stubborn isn’t my thing.”

“Is your leg okay? It’s still uncomfortable for you to walk long distances.”

“Perante-brother said he would help.”

Riett glared at Perante, thinking, 

‘What a conniving guy.’

She knew that until they figured out the connection between the dagger and the spirit stone, Perante won’t just sit quietly and let Kei sell the dagger.

“I’ll go with you. It’ll be difficult for Perante to support you alone along the mountain path.”

Riett said, trying to sneak in her words as she looked at Perante, who seemed unresponsive, busily buttering his fish.

“I’d be grateful if you do.”

Kei replied, expressing his gratitude without knowing the situation.

Meanwhile, Riett had a lot to think about. There seemed to be some kind of clue hidden in that dagger… If she let Kei sell it, they might never get close to the answer.

But she couldn’t stop him, considering Kei’s circumstances.

Unaware of the predicament, Kei finished his meal and quickly prepared to leave for town.

“I’ll bring the dagger.”

Kei said so and entered his room.

‘Alright, maybe seeing the real thing will give us some insights.’

Riett hoped, but she felt anxious.

She anxiously waited for Kei to return with the dagger. Soon enough, he appeared with the dagger wrapped in white cloth.

As Kei was about to put it in his bag, Riett hurriedly stopped him.

“Can I take a look for a moment?”

“Huh? Sure, it’s not something extraordinary, though…”

Kei opened the cloth with a somewhat dispirited face.

Perante seemed curious as well, gazing intently at the white cloth without blinking.

When the cloth was fully unfolded, a short dagger with a blade made of light blue mithril was revealed. Its craftsmanship was undoubtedly high.

There were delicate vine-like engravings on the handle, and between them, a white gem the size of a fingernail was embedded.

The same was true for the blade. On both sides, the sharp edges exuded a cool aura.

Then, Riett noticed something peculiar.

“This is…?”