I could hear the sounds of the children fighting in the darkness. I tried to get a count of our attackers—ten, eleven, twelve...
“Saint Nevissa! Please, don’t worry! I’ll keep you safe!”
My attendant, Sister Loria, held my hand, but her own hand was trembling.
I’d brought along the devil-touched children as guards, and there were a few priests accompanying us as well, but...
“There are too many of them...”
I stopped counting once I passed twenty. The children were fighting their hardest, and the priests were more cooperative than they’d been in the past, but it was still only a matter of time before the attackers reached this carriage. If I could end the violence by stepping forward myself, then I had a duty to do so.
“I’m sorry, Loria. Please, take the children and—”
I made it that far before I felt Loria’s grip on my hand tighten, and I realized that a third person had slipped into the carriage with us.
“Self-sacrifice is a noble impulse, but I can’t recommend it, Miss Vernalia.”
“Y-You—!” Loria cried out. It sounded like she’d taken out the knife she carried for self-defense.
“Wait,” I said to her as I tried to recall the intruder’s voice. These irritating, mocking tones belonged to... “High Cardinal Salamanrius. It’s a relief to find you well, but what are you doing here? This commotion isn’t your handiwork, is it?”
“Would you believe me if I told you I’m here to rescue you?”
“You sound more as though you’ve come to abduct me.”
I could still hear the sounds of fighting outside the carriage. I’d heard he’d gone missing after being targeted by a mysterious attacker, but had he staged the entire thing?
“Sorry to disappoint, but the people outside aren’t mine. They’re after me as well, so I’ve come here hoping we can join forces.”
He didn’t seem to be lying. In which case...
“Aaah?!”
“Eeek?!”
I let out a yelp involuntarily—it really was completely unintentional—and Loria screamed as well in response.
“Wh-Wh-What’s this fluffy thing in my lap?!”
“Oh, that’s Atalanta—Alicia’s pet cat.”
“Atalanta...?”
If memory served, that was the name of a goddess of the hunt in some country or other. That aside...
“Why is there a cat out here...?”
“Because I’m looking after him for Alicia, of course. She’s in even worse danger than we are right now.”
I felt my body tense in response to his deliberately suspenseful words, but I restrained myself and gently picked up the fluffy presence. It did make me feel a little calmer, actually.
✦ ✦ ✦
“How much do you know?” I asked him.
“More than you, at any rate. My glasses are quite good; I’d love to lend them to you if your eyes were intact.”
I was beginning to understand. He hadn’t been keeping that girl just for show.
“You’ve also felt the possibilities she holds, haven’t you, Miss Vernalia? If you continue heading north, there won’t be much you can do. Our enemy knows all about your true identity and your history. He’s prepared countermeasures accordingly, and he’ll be ready and waiting for you. You’ll only get in her way.”
Regardless, aether was scarce in the north, and my current mana capacity was even less than an average human’s. Knowing that, I’d resolved to set out there nevertheless, but...
“It sounds as though you have some idea of our enemy and their goals, then?”
He gave no answer to my question. He merely put on a self-important smile and held out his hand to me.
“Please, lend me your assistance, Saint Nevissa Vernalia. I need to outmaneuver him and foil his plans.”
With Alicia’s cat still held in one arm, I slowly reached out to touch his hand...
“I see.” I nodded back to him. “So our opponent is Raven, right hand of the Demon Lord... I imagine changing his name from Slaven to Raven was our Lord’s idea. He always did have a fondness for wordplay.”
The man in front of me was only human after all, it seemed. As I spoke aloud the information I’d read from his mind, I felt a slight tremor in his fingertips.
“Very well. I shall trust you, High Cardinal Salamanrius. Sister Loria, please tell Schnoë to go send word of the attack, and set fire to the carriage. Be sure to untie the horses first, of course.”
“Y-Yes, Your Sagacity!”
The clamor grew louder as the carriage door opened. Outside, the children were fighting with everything they had. I hated to deceive them, but I had no choice. Our enemy was a man who had attacked the capital unaided and held his own against a legendary champion. We wouldn’t be able to defeat him by fighting fair.
“May the protection of the Gods be with her...”
I gave a brief prayer for that girl’s safety in whatever trials lay ahead of her. I had my own path to follow, and I would entrust myself to it.