MTO C108
by berryChapter 108
“Have you figured out why the number of monsters has increased?”
“Unfortunately, not yet.”
David shook his head.
“We’ve only confirmed that searching one or two forests isn’t enough.”
“If we want to discover the true cause…”
“We’ll have to investigate the Dragon’s Waist.”
“The Dragon’s Waist?”
The Dragon’s Waist was the name given to the enormous mountain range stretching across the northernmost reaches of the North.
Its peaks were so steep and so high that snow remained year-round, even in midsummer.
The higher one climbed, the more monsters infested the mountains.
As a result…
No one knew what lay beyond them.
It was also a place that frequently appeared in children’s fairy tales as a land of great danger.
Folding his arms across his chest, David continued.
“Something is definitely happening deep within those mountains.”
“Perhaps the monsters’ food supply suddenly diminished.”
“Or maybe they’ve begun fighting among themselves over territory.”
“Or…”
“…?”
“A new apex predator has appeared.”
“One powerful enough to drive out all the monsters that originally lived there.”
Michel’s eyes widened.
He knew exactly one creature powerful enough to make every monster submit.
A dragon.
The dragon wasn’t in Valois.
It was in the Dragon’s Waist.
“Well…”
David chuckled lightly, trying to ease the atmosphere.
“These are all just theories for now.”
“It might settle down again before long.”
“So there’s no need to worry too much.”
Seeing Michel suddenly look so serious, David seemed to assume he had frightened him.
Instead of correcting the misunderstanding, Michel leaned eagerly toward him.
“Does the Dragon’s Waist have lakes?”
“Lakes?”
“Yes.”
“Very large ones.”
“Surrounded by forests.”
“There should also be an ice cave nearby.”
“Hm…”
“I’ve heard there are several lakes.”
“But I don’t know exactly how many.”
“Or where they are.”
“The Dragon’s Waist remains largely unexplored.”
Michel quietly groaned.
David’s report had strengthened his belief that the dream was real…
Yet it had also expanded the search area several times over.
Can I really find it by myself?
“H-Headmaster…”
Barbara’s quiet voice drew Michel back to reality.
She looked unusually nervous.
“Wouldn’t…”
“A picnic somewhere like that be… dangerous?”
“Huh?”
“Oh, no!”
Michel hurriedly waved both hands.
Because of the conversation they’d had during breakfast, Barbara had naturally misunderstood.
There’s no way I’d take the children somewhere that dangerous.
Scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, Michel sighed.
Keeping everything secret any longer felt equally strange.
“The truth is…”
“I had a dream last night.”
“A dream?”
“Yes.”
“Of course, it could’ve just been an ordinary dream…”
“But I can’t shake the feeling that it has something to do with all of this.”
“Haha…”
Michel laughed awkwardly.
Barbara and David exchanged glances.
Michel swallowed nervously.
Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything…
“Don’t worry about it!”
“It’s just a feeling, that’s all—”
“What exactly did you dream?”
David interrupted him.
Michel rolled his eyes upward, trying to recall it.
“Well…”
“When I woke up, I was inside an ice cave.”
“There was light shining in from somewhere.”
“So I followed it outside.”
“In front of the cave…”
“There was an enormous lake with heavy snow falling.”
“As I said earlier…”
“The lake was incredibly large.”
“It was frozen solid.”
“Solid enough to walk across.”
“And… that’s all.”
He deliberately omitted the part about the dragon.
He still wasn’t sure whether revealing the dragon’s existence to others was the right thing to do.
As a result…
His story sounded rather vague.
Michel expected the two of them to dismiss it.
Instead…
Neither laughed.
Barbara, especially, covered her mouth in astonishment.
“Headmaster…”
“You’ve experienced a divine vision!”
“A… divine vision?”
“Yes!”
“God has revealed His will to you through a dream.”
“You’ve received a revelation.”
Barbara looked so moved she nearly burst into tears.
Although Michel himself had been the one to mention the dream…
Her reaction completely caught him off guard.
Words like divine vision and revelation felt absurdly grand.
Granted…
He had been inside the chapel when he’d had the dream…
“At this time of year…”
“For a lake to still be frozen, we’d have to climb quite high into the mountains.”
David spoke thoughtfully.
“If we find the place Your Holiness described…”
“We may discover the cause of these monster incidents.”
Even David accepted the dream completely seriously.
Michel suddenly felt guilty.
It almost seemed as though he’d accidentally lied.
Then another thought occurred to him.
…This isn’t necessarily bad.
The important thing is finding the dragon.
If everyone took his dream seriously…
Then perhaps they’d actually help him.
If one harmless lie could save the world…
Becoming a liar wasn’t such a terrible thing.
Michel straightened his shoulders, trying to look more dignified—
More like a proper Saint.
Unfortunately…
His eagerness kept making him lean forward instead.
“When are you leaving for the Dragon’s Waist?”
“Don’t tell me you’re leaving tomorrow?”
“We’re certainly pressed for time.”
“But tomorrow is impossible.”
David smiled wryly.
“Even knights who’ve trained their entire lives in the North can lose their lives there in an instant.”
“If we don’t prepare properly…”
“We’ll freeze to death before we ever find the lake.”
“And besides…”
“His Grace will be leaving the castle for quite some time.”
“There are many things that must be settled before then.”
“The Duke’s going too?”
The Dragon’s Waist wasn’t a single mountain.
It was an enormous range made up of hundreds of peaks.
The journey would hardly be a short one.
Michel hadn’t expected Kaidan to leave the castle for so long.
“After all…”
“Among us, His Grace understands monsters better than anyone.”
Even David looked uncomfortable as he said it.
But he didn’t elaborate any further.
So…
All I have to do is get Kaidan’s permission?
Michel immediately decided.
He would ask to accompany the expedition.
If the dragon truly waited somewhere deep within those mountains…
Then he had to go as well.
It was actually perfect.
The Knights of House Eglance were already heading exactly where he needed to be.
How should he convince Kaidan?
After watching Barbara and David accept his dream so readily…
He doubted persuading Kaidan would be difficult.
I’ve already lied once.
I might as well commit to it.
If he claimed God had granted him a revelation regarding the monsters…
Surely Kaidan would gladly bring him along.
After all…
Nothing mattered more to Kaidan than the safety of Valois.
The sooner they solved the mystery…
The better.
Hang in there, Dragon.
I’ll feed you until you’re full.
Michel exhaled enthusiastically.
“No.”
“Thank you so mu—…Huh?”
He had already begun bowing with a broad smile.
Then he abruptly lifted his head.
It took several long moments before he could process the single word Kaidan had spoken.
The moment his conversation with David ended, Michel had immediately gone searching for Kaidan.
Preparing for such a journey would take time.
The sooner he asked…
The better.
He found Kaidan walking alone atop the castle walls.
Michel hurried over and poured out everything that had happened since breakfast before asking to accompany the expedition.
He had been utterly convinced Kaidan would agree.
Which was why…
It took him quite a while to accept the refusal.
Truthfully…
He couldn’t accept it at all.
The instant Michel opened his mouth to argue—
Kaidan repeated himself, his expression as cold as ice.
“No.”
Naturally…
Michel’s face twisted in disbelief.
“Did you even hear what I just said?”
“I received a revelation from God!”
“I did.”
“I understood every word.”
“Then why—”
“Even if that’s true…”
“Why do you have to go?”
“Anyone with functioning eyes can tell the difference between a lake and a cave.”
As though the discussion were already over…
Kaidan simply walked past him.
Michel refused to give up.
Quickly hurrying after him, he stepped into Kaidan’s path.
“But how will you know it’s my lake?”
“You said yourself you don’t even know how many lakes there are in the Dragon’s Waist!”
“And how will you know?”
Kaidan answered immediately.
“You only saw it briefly in a dream.”
“I may have only seen it briefly, but I remember it perfec—”
“And more importantly…”
“How can you be certain it wasn’t simply an ordinary dream?”
“How can you be certain it was truly a revelation from God?”
The relentless logic struck every weak point in Michel’s argument.
He found himself speechless.
Barbara and David had accepted his story without hesitation.
He had foolishly assumed Kaidan would do the same.
In truth…
Kaidan’s reaction was the far more reasonable one.
Kaidan turned once more, clearly intending to leave.
Panicking, Michel reached out.
“Wait—!”
Smack!
The instant Michel grabbed his arm…
Kaidan instinctively shook him off with more force than intended.
Michel froze.
Kaidan himself looked equally startled by what he’d done.
Without thinking…
Michel gently cradled the hand that had been brushed aside.
“Ah…”
“I’m sorry.”
“No.”
“It was my fault.”
“Are you hurt?”
“No.”
“I’m fine.”
Despite Michel’s reassurance…
Kaidan immediately caught hold of the arm he’d pushed away.
Gently rubbing Michel’s wrist, he carefully searched his face for any sign of pain.
His tightly knitted brows were filled with irritation.
Yet…
The hand examining Michel’s arm was impossibly gentle.
Watching him absentmindedly…
Michel suddenly realized something.
It had been a long time since he’d stood this close to Kaidan.
Ever since the Spring Banquet…
They hadn’t truly talked.
“Kaidan…”
“Are you avoiding me?”
“What?”
Kaidan finally looked up.
His sharply lifted eyes seemed unusually fierce.
Michel smiled reflexively.
“If not…”
“Forget I asked.”
That night…
Kaidan had talked more than ever before.
Michel had wondered whether he regretted revealing so much while drunk.
Perhaps…
He had simply been busy.
Just as he always was.
Only then did Kaidan release Michel’s arm.
He roughly brushed a hand back through his hair, clearly dissatisfied with something.
Yet…
When he looked back at Michel…
The harshness on his face had softened considerably.