EVHE 66

Chapter 66

Up until the morning, the weather had been perfectly clear, but in an instant, it turned gloomy. Gray clouds blanketed the sky, making it look as if it would rain any moment.

I caught a glimpse of Olivia, but only for a moment. She went straight toward Nox, leaving me no chance to speak with her.

After the whistle signaled the start of the hunt, I joined Siri and her group.

We chatted together at a refreshment table set up on the edge of the forest, but I couldn’t focus at all.

I feel uneasy.

All I could do was chew on my innocent lower lip.

There’s nothing I can do.

I had spent all my time learning protective barriers and never learned other attack magic. Even if I had, it was obvious that such shallow skills wouldn’t be of much use.

For now, all I could do was pray that Olivia would save Calix.

They had looked close back at the ball. Even if she lacked the ability, I doubted she would just sit idly by.

She has to.

I spent a long while lost in worried thoughts before shaking my head.

“Lady, are you going too?”

Siri waved her hand in front of me, snapping me out of my daze.

“Oh… I’m sorry. What were we talking about?”

I forced myself to answer, calming my anxious heart. I remembered the young ladies chatting happily, but I couldn’t recall about what.

“They said there’s a treasure hunt happening in that area over there. The points from it can be added to the participants’ final scores.”

So this must have been the special rule they mentioned—the bonus.

I looked around. Except for Siri, who was always lively, the other girls seemed content to remain at the refreshment table.

“Shall we go, then?”

Doing something—anything—seemed better than sitting still drowning in anxiety.

We changed into more comfortable clothes and headed to the treasure hunt area.

The special rule was to search for small marbles hidden within the safe zone. Each color represented different points and difficulty.

The points themselves weren’t huge, but apparently, these bonuses could affect the final winner on the last day.

I split from Siri and started searching for marbles on my own. They were hidden in the grass, inside tree holes, or buried shallowly in the soil.

Before long, my bag was so full it was heavy in one hand.

Should I give these to Sir Lake, who was aiming for victory… or to Calix, as a welcome-back gift if he returns safely…?

It was the kind of dilemma one only has when assuming the hunting festival would proceed smoothly.

Just a little more, then I’ll head back.

It didn’t feel like I had quite enough to change the rankings, and since I was already out here, I wanted to help as much as I could.

While scouring the ground, I lifted my head and noticed blue ropes strung up between branches.

“Oh. Looks like this is the boundary.”

I hadn’t realized it, but in my zeal, I’d reached the edge of the safe zone.

Squatting under a tree, I rubbed my aching legs. They hurt from overuse.

Though I wasn’t satisfied with my haul, it seemed like time to head back.

I glanced up again at the gloomy sky. The gray clouds were as dreary as ever.

Then, cutting through the still air, I heard voices carried on the wind. At first, I thought it was just the girls chatting somewhere nearby—but no, it was men’s voices.

Even though this was the safe zone, the hunting grounds lay beyond, so hearing men’s voices wasn’t odd in itself.

But there were several of them. That was strange. In competitions like this, cooperation was rare—everyone was supposed to be rivals.

I held my breath and strained to listen, but they were too far away for me to catch the conversation clearly.

It sounded like there were six or seven of them. That thought sent a chill rushing through me.

I was so focused I even forgot to blink. My whole body tensed.

The voices gradually faded, ending with the rustle of bushes… and then silence.

Did they leave?

Just as I felt relieved—

A black hand shot out before me. I had no time to scream before I was yanked out of the safe zone.

I tried to shout, but my mouth was covered. I thrashed with all my strength, but it was useless.

Purple smoke swirled up from the ground. Some sort of teleportation magic—scenes flashed past in dizzying succession.

I’d heard the safe zone had a barrier, but apparently it only kept beasts out, not people.

What the hell kind of management is this!

“Ah—ugh!”

The purple haze stopped, and I was thrown to the ground, rolling in a mess of dust and dirt.

When I came to my senses, several figures stood before me. Four or five men, all hooded and masked.

I quickly slumped to the side, feigning unconsciousness, and peeked through slitted eyes.

The… brooch.

I still felt it in my pocket. I must not have dropped it while being dragged. Clinging to that hope, I quietly cast a protective barrier around myself.

The shock of this unexpected situation made me want to scream, but I forced back the tears.

I had already been through so much—this was nothing. Nothing at all!

“What’s the meaning of this?”

The man who seemed to be the leader barked at the others. One of them snapped back sharply.

“What good is it bringing someone you can’t even kill?”

“But she overheard our plan!”

The man who had dragged me here protested.

I didn’t hear anything! Honest!

“What should we do?”

They exchanged glances through their masks.

They’re… going to kill me?

It felt like the perfect moment for it. My heart shriveled in fear.

But then—they were gone. Vanished in an instant.

“…What?”

After all that tension, nothing happened. I was left with nothing but scraped arms and bruises from the fall.

Were they remnants of Vistad, plotting to attack Calix?

They had seemed disorganized, but it made sense.

Maybe if I’d fought back, we could have reduced their numbers? So Calix would have an easier time?

No… even with the brooch, that would have been impossible.

Still, why hadn’t they killed me? What did “someone we can’t kill” mean?

“More importantly…”

I turned around. The blue ropes marking the safe zone were nowhere in sight.

I had no idea where I was.

“If you weren’t going to kill me, you could’ve at least left me where I was!”

I shouted into the forest, but only my own voice came back.

With a pale face, I sat down under a tree, hugging my knees to my chest and sighing heavily.

Crushed, drowned, assassinated… and now starved to death, lost in the woods?

I’d already been through all kinds of ordeals since falling into this world, but they just kept coming.

Positive thoughts, positive thoughts…

There were many people hunting. Someone might stumble upon me.

Or maybe, when they noticed my absence, they’d come searching.

It wasn’t impossible. If I just endured, I might survive.

As long as a wild beast doesn’t find me first…

That thought made me bury my forehead into my knees.

I didn’t know how long passed. My empty stomach ached—I hadn’t eaten properly that morning. My body cried out in fatigue from the treasure hunt, and the cloudy air was damp and chilly.

What if this isn’t even the hunting grounds?

That teleportation magic… I couldn’t be sure this was even the same forest.

Just as my thoughts spiraled—

Rustling came from nearby bushes.

I snapped to alertness and crouched low, gripping a large stone.

My heartbeat pounded louder and louder. My wide, hollow eyes trembled with fear.

Through the dark leaves, I met someone’s gaze. A chilling aura of killing intent wafted over me.

But my instincts knew instantly who it was.

Instead of throwing the stone, I hurled myself forward.

“Calix!!!”

I cried out and flung my arms around the black figure.

“Wait—!”

I’d run so hard that we both toppled over. But I didn’t get hurt—he cushioned the fall.

“Why do you always show up only at times like this? Ugh, you’re driving me crazy!”

Clinging to him, my voice cracked with tears.

“I thought I was really going to starve to death! Do you know how scared I was?”

I poured out my pent-up fear. Calix, strangely, said nothing.

I couldn’t see his face, buried against his chest, but I could picture it.

His brows furrowed tightly, maybe even looking disgusted. Or perhaps on the verge of exploding in annoyance.

The more I thought about it, the more unfair it felt. I’d only gotten into this mess because I was worried about him getting hurt. And yet here I was, dragged into trouble.

“This is all your fault! If you’d just listened to me and stayed away from the festival, none of this would’ve happened!”

Propping myself up with my hands on his shoulders, I leaned back and kept grumbling.

“If it weren’t for you…”

But he still didn’t respond, and I trailed off.

“You’re… not dead, right?”

His silence made me nervous.

He had an arm over his eyes, making it impossible to tell if he was even alive.

“…Get off.”

He mumbled the words awkwardly, unlike himself.

Did he hit his head when we fell? Oh no! He still has to fight later!

My worry spiked sky-high.

“I said get off!”

Suddenly, Calix snapped. It was too dim in the shade to see clearly, but I glimpsed his ears, flushed red.

“Did you scrape yourself when we fell?”

I fussed over him, and he clicked his tongue.

When he finally lowered his arm, his face was twisted into the exact scowl I had imagined.