Capitulo 68
Chapter 68: Reunion
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Under the soothing moonlight, the four adventurers shared an eerie silence.
Crackle-.
Only the sound of burning embers echoed across the desolate land.
Gathered around the campfire, the now four gourmands were speechless as they stared at the figure lying by the campfire.
A frail woman with disheveled white hair, a smeared face and a skeletal body.
Tap, Tap-.
Rendler, having completed the first aid, wiped his hands and got up.
He disinfected the wounds to prevent infection, applied an ointment and then warmed her frozen body.
The old man even used a healing scroll we had saved for emergencies on her.
Although immediate recovery might be difficult, she was stable for now.
Ariel, who had remained silent until now, approached with a puzzled expression.
«So… Let me get this straight….Did you go upstairs because you heard someone crying…. And then you discovered Lermian Winterfell…? Is that what you’re saying…? T-That doesn’t make sense…»
Indeed.
Even after seeing it, everyone, myself included, still found the situation hard to believe.
The Lord of Winter, the great ruler of the Northern Provinces.
The Grand Duke.
A man whose authority is surpassed only by the King himself.
Who in their right mind would believe that his youngest daughter was dying alone in this forsaken land?
If someone were to utter such nonsense, it would not be uncommon for the Grand Duke’s loyalists to rip his head off his neck.
But after witnessing such absurdity, we had no choice but to remain silent for a long while.
«What the hell happened here?»
Rendler asked me as he tied the bag with emergency supplies; however, like everyone else, I had no answers to give.
It was the first time I had seen her since the Grand Ducal Betrothal.
I had not expected this reunion here.
What has happened these past six months?
Also,
It didn’t make sense that this land, a short distance from the Grand Duchy would be left in ruins for 20 years with no one in sight.
This place should have been noisy enough.
The Grand Duke should have been looking everywhere for his youngest daughter.
Rumors should also have been spreading about the failed betrothal of the Third Duchess of the North.
The whole kingdom should have been agitated by this.
It would have been normal.
But the state of Lermian ….
It was strange, even abnormal.
Her death alone in such forsaken lands was a completely absurd event.
Yet when we traveled there was not a single rumor about Lermian Winterfell.
People were simply busy with preparations for winter.
«Has anyone heard any rumors about Lady Lermian?».
I looked around at the members, but in return the expected silence was heard.
«How could this have happened….?»
«I don’t know. But something is clearly not right.»
Rachel answered Ariel’s question with her usual stern tone.
Something is not right….
Indeed, this was clearly too strange, as Rachel said.
And probably, this abnormal occurrence had something to do with the blood-stained handkerchief she was still clutching, despite being unconscious.
They had also seen her crying over that handkerchief.
Since she was in this place and not in her palace, there are two likely reasons for her tears.
Either Lermian had been cast out of the Winterfell family, or she had fled.
If it was the former, she must have committed a grave sin.
While I don’t know what kind of mistake it could have been, if her father really did exile her, then it must have been something grave.
If it was the latter, it implies that someone else made a grave mistake.
And that someone is probably Deron Caelid.
There would be no one else inside the Great Castle who could bring Lermian, the protagonist, to the brink of death, if not him.
If this is true, then I was a fool to believe that he wouldn’t have the courage to wave something under the watchful eye of the Grand Duke.
What the hell were you thinking, Deron, what have you done?
Besides,
The consequences of Deron’s actions must have been colossal to leave Lermian in such a sorry state.
Something beyond my wildest assumptions.
I looked at Rendler.
«Will he wake up?»
«It’s hard to say, my lord. His condition is quite serious.»
«I see.»
«The healing spell contained in the scroll is working, so we should keep an eye on her until tomorrow.»
I found her within moments of her death.
Looking at her frail form beside the campfire my heart filled with trepidation.
It seems my actions may have played a part in this.
I didn’t know how the original story had progressed, but surely, no matter how far the plot progressed, the protagonist would not have committed suicide in this forsaken land, without a single person by her side.
Hmm…
However, even if I went back in time, I would not change my decisions, but still, the fact that my actions taken with the intention of avoiding a tragic ending ironically triggered the Lermian tragedy… weighs heavy on my heart.
As I sighed softly, Rendler asked me a question.
At this moment, there was something more crucial than conjecturing the reasons for this crisis.
«My Lord… What do you wish to do?»
There were two possible answers to such a question.
On the one hand, we could simply offer him help, and go on our merry way.
Or, we could try to understand the situation and involve ourselves in this imbroglio, walking the same path together.
Having witnessed Lermian’s collapse, it was impossible to close my eyes and ignore the situation.
Nor could I blindly offer help without understanding the clear reasons for the situation.
Since my decisions could lead my companions into harmful situations, I took a moment to consider my options.
Under normal circumstances, the right thing to do would be to return her safely to the Grand Duchy, but Lermian’s actions, which seemed to distance her from both her family and the Grand Duchy, were not «normal,» making it difficult to proceed as usual.
«Hmm…»
I stroked my chin as I thought, receiving the full attention of my companions as I pondered.
But the lack of information made this decision difficult.
Therefore,
«Let’s wait for him to wake up.»
I had no choice but to postpone the decision.
After all, moving Lermian a great distance in his current state would be unreasonable.
And our next destination required passing through the Grand Duchy.
Rushing Lermian to the Grand Duchy might do more harm than good, so waiting for him to wake up seemed best.
In any case,
The answer to this mess would probably be in his possession.
Therefore, we decided to stay in this forsaken land until Lermian woke up.
**
«How is he?»
«His pulse is getting stronger, but he’s still unconscious.»
Three days had passed since we arrived at Strenger’s Barony, but Lermian was still in a coma.
Fortunately, signs of his recovery were visible.
His breathing was steady, and his heartbeat, once slow, was quickening.
I wondered if there were pursuers, but no trace appeared in these three days.
‘If anyone was chasing her, they would have caught up with her by now.’
A noblewoman with no experience in fighting, pushed to the limit, she was an easy target.
She even left many clear footprints in her wake, as if saying ‘Look at me~ I’m going this way~’.
This meant that the Grand Duchy was not looking for her.
It was disconcerting, to say the least.
Even if Logan Winterfell were a man who valued the honor and prestige of his house above his own family, surely news of the disappearance of the Third Duchess of the North would spread like wildfire throughout the Kingdom.
And that would be a disgrace to the name of Winterfell.
He would be seen as a father who cruelly abandoned his daughter, and the house of Winterfell as a family that failed to protect its own.
Or perhaps, he chose the stigma of abandoning his daughter to avoid further disgrace.
Whether this was something he had planned or a forced deal, it was certainly a peculiar situation.
Of course,
it is a strange thing to marry your daughter off to the mastermind of her suffering just because of family traditions.
Whether it was medieval sentimentality that I, as a modern person, could not understand, or whether the situation was too bizarre for a mere salaryman like me to comprehend, the only way to unravel all these questions was for Lermian to wake up.
And so came the fourth day.
While Ariel and Rachel went out to gather some vegetables and herbs for cooking, and Rendler had gone to gather firewood, I was left alone in the camp next to Lermian.
«……»
«……»
Under the clear sky and warm sunlight, I faced Lermian, whose eyes had suddenly opened.
They were the same eyes she had when we first encountered her.
Full of bewilderment.
Full of disbelief.
I handed her some basic necessities, but Lermian, who had awakened after four days in a coma, just looked at me blankly.