BKSF 04

Chapter 04

In the pre-dawn before the sun had risen, darkness pervaded the Harbel estate. The only room with its lights on belonged to the Harbel family’s butler, Kurtin.

Kurtin’s day began with sorting letters received from the postal delivery. Letters to the mansion were usually divided into two types:

Debt collection notices and business investment proposals.

Debt notices went straight to the viscount’s office to show him, while the suspicious business proposals were sent to the shredder.

Kurtin, flipping through envelopes without much thought, paused at one.

It was poorly made and cheap-looking—far too shabby for a letter sent to a noble house, more like something sold at a market.

What was unusual was that the recipient wasn’t Viscount Harbel or his wife but Kurtin himself. At the bottom of the envelope was only one name:

Nia

It was the name the young lady used when hiding her identity. The handwriting was unmistakable.

It had been four days since she left the mansion.

To Kurtin
Hello, Kurtin. Everything’s fine, right? Are my parents well? Has Albio matured yet? Of course, he hasn’t.
Ah, and I know you hate beating around the bush, so I’ll get straight to the point.
I’m going to be away for a while—about half a year.
I found a job. If I serve as a forest keeper in the forest outside the estate for six months, I’ll get 20,000 gold.

The moment Kurtin saw “forest keeper” and “20,000 gold,” his brow furrowed. There was only one recent flyer offering such a high-paying forest keeper position.

You’re frowning, aren’t you? I knew what the job was and was about not to do it. But the pay is just too big.
Don’t worry, it’s not a scam. I guarantee it. There’s a way to stay safe.

That’s all! Take care of the mansion while I’m gone. You’re our family’s hope, Kurtin!
I’ll earn a lot of money and raise your salary!

See you in half a year.

P.S. Take an advance payment with you.
Stop Dad from making weird business investments, watch Mom so she doesn’t go shopping, and just lock Albio up. Better if you hit him—he needs it, doesn’t he?

Oh, and if you try to stop me, it’s too late. By the time you read this, I’ll already have arrived!

Nia

Kurtin felt the recipient of the letter seemed more direct than the content itself.

“Hah…”

He regretted reading it. The young lady’s reckless behavior had just doubled the tasks he needed to handle. Pressing his temples to ease a stress headache, the door suddenly flung open.

“Kurtin! Increase my personal expense allowance!”
“Kurtin, the dragon egg Gordon gave me just moved—come take a look!”

Seeing the viscountess complaining, unaware of her daughter’s whereabouts, and the viscount excitedly holding the egg, his sigh was audible.

Did it just feel like the heaviest burden had been dumped on him? Probably just his imagination.

‘By now, Kurtin must have seen the letter.’

With the greatest worry entrusted to Kurtin, Ponya felt a weight lift from her shoulders.

As stated in the letter, Ponya had already left the estate and was now in the Mirvan Forest.

A man who had been tasked with guiding her to her lodging was visible just ahead.

“Um, Jerome? How soon until we see the cabin?”
“Almost there now.”

That was the third time he had said it.

Jerome, who had introduced himself as such, had remained silent throughout the three-day carriage ride unless necessary.

The quiet had felt odd, so Ponya spoke.

“They say no one returns once entering the forest… but seeing you makes me think that was just a rumor.”
“I’m only responsible for guiding you to the cabin. I don’t know the other areas and have no intention of going there.”
“…Still, I’m excited to stay here while enjoying the forest’s beautiful scenery.”
“Others said the same. But now, they’re all gone.”

Alright, the stiff atmosphere was now unbearably heavy.

After walking for about thirty minutes, Jerome spoke.

“You’ll see the cabin soon. If you look over there…”

He didn’t finish.

Ponya, whose feet were starting to hurt, didn’t notice anything unusual and leaned forward eagerly to see the cabin hidden by his tall frame.

“Oh, we’ve arrived…”

Then she experienced the same sensation as Jerome.

A heavy, unprecedented silence settled between them. The sweet chirping of birds sounded unusually loud.

Ponya broke the silence.

“Where exactly is this cabin?”

The cabin where she would spend the next six months finally appeared.

“All I see is a ruin.”

The ceiling had collapsed.

Should she just go back quietly?

Judging by the collapsed roof and moss-covered cabin, it looked like it hadn’t been maintained for at least ten years. The exposed wooden beams looked old, too.

Jerome, noticing Ponya’s chill, looked unusually flustered.

“It seems lightning struck here last night.”
“…Does that happen often?”
“Absolutely not. This is the first time I’ve seen it.”

Ponya didn’t trust him.

“Is this the only place to stay?”
“…Yes. I’ll call someone to repair it. For now, we should return.”
“How long will repairs take?”
“We’ll see, but it looks like about two months. Not just the roof, the entire cabin needs work.”

Two months.

Ponya, after thinking deeply, made her decision.

“Then we’ll stay here starting today.”
“…Excuse me?”
“This counts toward the six-month period, right?”

There were only six months left until bankruptcy. She couldn’t wait until the cabin was fixed.

Rain or lightning, she would have to stay here for six months.

‘I can’t let my family vanish just to make things convenient for myself.’

“…Jerome?”

His expression looked identical to that of the employment office staff.

“…I’ll get a technician as soon as possible.”

Jerome quickly composed himself and handed over two large bags he had been carrying.

“Basic supplies. One contains long-lasting food and emergency first aid, the other has clothes suitable for movement.”

Jerome then produced a parchment.

“Now, I’ll explain what you need to do for the next six months.”

When he spread the parchment on a flat rock, it became a large map. Ponya’s eyes sparkled.

‘Found it—my means of survival!’

“The triangles mark the cabin, the circles mark safe zones. Consider right from the cabin as east.”
“And the X marks?”
“These indicate the habitats of the wild animals we’ve identified. Think of them as danger zones.”
“…Wild animals?”

Jerome’s explanation sounded plausible, but Ponya, already knowing the forest’s true nature, realized he was lying.

Caw! Caw!

Because there were no wild animals here.

In the novel, Mirvan Forest was famously known by another name:

The Forest of Monsters.

Mirvan Forest was inhabited by monsters.

All monsters in the empire were either safely controlled or exterminated by the royal family.

Contrary to public claims, the royal family could not exterminate the monsters in Mirvan Forest. There were simply too many and too diverse.

Thus, the forest was closed off, and humans were placed there to monitor the monsters’ movements.

Since the forest was dangerous, only ignorant citizens who could die without issue were recruited.

But no problem—Ponya had the map.

She studied it closely. There were multiple markings.

In the novel, Sionel used these markings to track the monsters’ range and conquer them. Ponya intended to use it differently.

‘I’ll just move exactly opposite the X marks.’

Her goal was survival. She only needed to observe the monsters’ movements from safe zones.

‘But… something seems off…’

“Are these all the markings on the map? They seem sparse.”
“That’s exactly what you’ll do.”
“Huh?”
“The map isn’t complete yet. Our goal is to finish it.”

She sensed something was wrong, but Jerome’s explanation was faster.

“You’ll patrol areas not marked on the map and leave markings.”
“…Unmarked areas?”
“Yes.”
“…If there’s nothing else to ask, let’s head to the cabin…”
“Wait! Hold on!”
“Yes?”

Jerome had replaced the word ‘monster’ with ‘wild animal.’ In other words:

“So I’m not observing already known wild animals…”
“Yes, you’re finding the habitats of previously unknown wild animals.”

The scattered puzzle pieces fit together.

Sparse markings on the large map, people who never returned, the dense markings on the map—all pointed to Sionel’s monster hunts.

Sionel’s ownership and hunting of the forest happened in the future, after becoming a duke.

Ponya realized she had completely misunderstood.

The perfectly completed map in the future… was not complete now.

The royal family didn’t need a dummy forest keeper—they needed a sacrifice for the monsters.

In short:

“I’m screwed.”