โ
โLady Luria! Lady Luria!โ
In the middle of the night, I was gently shaken awake by Kuro while I was fast asleep.
Today had been a busy day, so I was really tired. I had written a letter, moved a giant stone, and then played a game with Sara called โThe Spirit Carrying Gameโ and doll play.
โIs it stillโฆ night?โ
โLady Luria. If you donโt wake up, you will regret it.โ
โHmmโฆโ
The first thing I thought when I woke up was,
โEven though Kuro is a spirit, he can shake Luriaโฆโ
It was strange because spirits are not physical beings, yet Kuro could shake my body.
It was a mysterious thing. The mechanism was a mystery.
By the way, even the Spirit King Roa from my previous life couldnโt shake my body.
โSorry for waking you up in such a drowsy state.โ
โWhatโs the matter? Well, Kuro, you should sleep too.โ
I grabbed Kuro and pulled him into the bed with me.
โNo, I canโt. Itโs urgent!โ
Kuro seemed very frantic. He was shouting very loudly.
โEh? What happened?โ
I rubbed my sleepy eyes and glanced at Sara.
Sara was hugging Kolko and sleeping peacefully, looking very comfortable.
โMake sure to keep it quiet so you donโt wake up Sara, okay?โ
โSara canโt hear Kuroโs voice!โ
โโฆThatโs true?โ
Logically, that was correct, but it still felt strange.
โThe owls told me that there is a child who is about to die.โ
โEh? Is there an injured child? Or is it illness?โ
โItโs a curseโฆ But going to help is dangerous.โ
Kuro hadnโt told me about Marionโs curse.
That was because he was concerned about my safety.
I told Kuro that even if it was dangerous, if something happened, he should properly tell me and we would discuss it together.
And he kept that promise.
โThank you, Kuro.โ
โItโs dangerousโฆ Butโฆ what should I do?โ
Kuro was clearly troubled.
โOf course, we will go and help. Where is the place?โ
I asked while gently waking up Daru, who was sleeping soundly.
โโฆAh?โ
โDaru, sorry for waking you up.โ
โโฆAh~โ
Daru stretched out broadly.
Then, as if saying โdonโt worry,โ he licked my cheek after getting off the bed.
โUh, from this mansion, itโs about thirty minutes on foot along the lake.โ
โThatโs far, huh? But Daru could probably do it in about five minutes?โ
โAh-uh!โ
Daru said he could go faster.
He had been mewing in a small voice so as not to wake Sara.
โGot it. Letโs go.โ
โBut itโs dangerous.โ
โWhat kind of danger?โ
I had promised to consult with Kuro about things like this.
If he told me the truth, and then I rushed in without thinking, that wouldnโt be called consulting.
โThere are curse bearers around the cursed childโฆ Even Lady Luria could get hurt.โ
โWhich is stronger, those curse bearers or Daru?โ
Daru puffed out his chest as if saying โLeave it to meโ with his eyes.
โI think Daru is strongerโฆ but there are a lot of them, so it wonโt be easy.โ
โThen how about I carry the cursed child and escape?โ
โThatโs not possible. The cursed child has become like half a curse bearer.โ
โHmmโฆ So we canโt help without breaking the curse, huh?โ
โYeah. Lady Luria could break the curse, but the child would struggle and the curse bearers would attackโฆโ
Dodging attacks from the curse bearers while breaking the childโs curse seemed like a very difficult task.
โHmmโฆ After defeating the curse bearers, weโll have to undo the curse, right?โ
โโฆBut Iโm worried.โ
โIf it gets too dangerous, weโll escape. How about that?โ
โโฆYeah.โ
Though Kuro seemed anxious, he reluctantly agreed.
I got out of bed and grabbed my usual training clothes from the wardrobe.
The maid had already prepared them for me yesterday.
They were easy to move in, just the kind of outfit for swordsmanship training.
โLetโs take Cario too. Itโs part of the expedition, after all.โ
โKyu.โ
Cario climbed onto Daruโs back.
โHow about Kolko?โ
Kolko was being hugged by Sara.
If I took Kolko, Sara would probably feel lonely when she woke up.
โItโs better for Kolko to stay behind, right?โ
โNo.โ
Kolko firmly said, โIโm going too.โ
After quietly and gently leaving Saraโs arms, Kolko softly stroked Saraโs hair with his beak.
โKo.โ
โKuro, do you think Sara will be okay?โ
โShe will be fine. The curse bearers prioritize attacking spirits, so they wonโt target Sara.โ
โI see.โ
โAlso, the bird guardians from the main mansion are here, so this house is safe.โ
That made me feel reassured.
โThen letโs take Kolko too.โ
โKo.โ
I, Cario, and Kolko mounted Daruโs back and moved to the window.
โHuh?โ
From the window, I could see the building with the guards.
โThis isnโt good.โ
The guards, that is, the dukeโs servants, were very strong.
If we escaped through the window, we might get caught.
โLetโs go to a different window.โ
โThis way!โ
Kuro flew ahead and led the way.
Daru, with me and Cario on his back and Kolko following, followed Kuro.
โDaru, be quiet.โ
โโฆโฆโฆโฆโ
Daru was fast but ran almost silently.
โThereโs a blind spot over here.โ
Kuro led us to a place hidden by the building and trees, where we were out of sight from the guards.
โI didnโt know such a place existed.โ
I spoke in a very small voice.
โIf we left it alone, it would probably be dangerous.โ
โThatโs true.โ
When I quietly opened the window, Daru silently leaped outside.
The rain was still falling, now in a heavy downpour.
โPlease follow me.โ
โโฆ.โ
Kuro, who was leading us, ran silently, with Daru following closely behind.
Cario and Kolko clung tightly to the fur on Daruโs back.
The surroundings were dark since the moon wasnโt out.
However, there were likely people among the guards who could use night vision magic.
So, to avoid being spotted, we veered away from the lake and ran through the forest.
The forest was even darker.
However, with Kuro shining brightly, it was bright enough for me, Daru, and Cario to see.
As for Kolko, who couldnโt see well in the dark, I wasnโt sure if it was bright enough for him.
But Kolko was still staring ahead with determination.
After running for a while, once I judged that we were far enough from the guard building, I spoke to Kuro.
โThis is pretty far, huh?โ
โYeah. Itโll take a little longer.โ
I looked up at the sky. The thick rain clouds blocked the stars, and the usual birds werenโt flying above me.
A few minutes after leaving the hut, a strong sense of curse began to fill the air.
โThis presenceโฆ This is bad.โ
As Kuro muttered that,
โMeeeee!โ
โMooo!โ
โBo-bo-bo-bo-bo!โ
โFlap-flap!
โHo-ho!โ
โKyuui!โ
The sounds of goats, cows, and boars crying, and the sounds of owls and hawks flapping their wings, could be heard.