Mysterious Pain

Getting past the guards wasn’t exactly difficult.

All they had to do was flash the medallion that Eirlys had given them, proving that they were on an imperially sanctioned mission in the duchy. The real problem was having revealed their presence so early on. This wasn’t exactly a clandestine mission, nor did anyone even consider the fact that the duchy might be planning a rebellion.

Had it not been for Marilyn’s letter, this would’ve just been a simple routine check-up to confirm Duke Revelo’s supposed health issues and to requisition a number of knights in his duchy’s employ to serve on the front lines.

It didn’t take long for Medrauta and Viviane to figure out that something had indeed gone awry within the duchy’s territory though. After following the road from the gate, the carriage passed through another checkpoint, though this time much more relaxed.

Viviane cast a troubled gaze out the window of the carriage as the vehicle continued down the paved road. The road was paved and smooth, preventing the carriage from rattling too much. For a small town built on the duchy border, the buildings and public facilities were well-maintained.

In other words, the Revelo duchy was prosperous and its people were happy.

Had she just been visiting, Viviane probably would’ve believed that and not thought too much about her surroundings. However, she couldn’t overlook the fact that this was all nothing more than a facade. Despite the town’s beauty, its most important element was missing completely.

“Medrauta... Where are all the people?” Viviane asked as she continued staring out the window. No matter how many buildings the carriage passed by, there wasn’t a single person in sight other than the odd patrolling guard or two.

“You know, I’ve been wondering the same thing myself...”

“This is strange. We’ve passed by an entire block of houses, a shopping district, and even market stalls, but we still haven’t seen anyone. Well, anyone but soldiers.”

Medrauta simply nodded in response, a heavy frown creasing her brow. Could it be...? Is that bastard rounding up his citizens for use in Amelia’s damned ritual!?

She shook her head, dismissing the very idea. That couldn’t possibly be the case. Betraying his country and killing his own father was one thing, but to sacrifice the citizens of his own realm for a witch? Surely he couldn’t do something so utterly cruel and wicked.

Ironically, the more she tried to convince herself that Bastiche couldn’t have done something so evil, the less she was inclined to believe he hadn’t.

Medrauta turned to Viviane. The noblewoman’s eyes were darting to and fro, probably in the hopes of spotting a wandering citizen or perhaps even a clue to Sakura and Riku’s whereabouts. “Viviane,” she said. “Let’s make a brief stop.”

“Did you see something?”

“No, but... There’s something I need to confirm for myself, otherwise I’m going to have nightmares for days.”

Viviane nodded. “That’s fine, but before that, do you mind telling me what it is?”

“...Alright.”

Medrauta wasn’t exactly keen on adding another burden to Viviane’s already growing list, but she had no other choice here. In any case, she would’ve needed to have this discussion with Viviane eventually, especially with the current state of the duchy.

“Do you remember what Dame Marilyn said in the letter?” Medrauta asked. “The part where Bastiche first commanded Ritya to attack her while Lady Sakura and Sir Riku were being captured.

Viviane frowned, sifting through her memories. “Something about a promise?”

Medrauta nodded. “That’s right. He said he needed to fulfill a promise and prepare a ‘circle.’ Whether that means a witch’s circle or a ritual circle, I don’t know.”

“What’s the difference?” Viviane asked. Most people weren’t exactly familiar with witches and their practices, especially since information regarding them had been systematically destroyed and censored over the years ever since Emperor Soleil slew the Witch Queen.

Viviane was no different. Her knowledge of witches came from history books and stories she’d read as a child, all of them depicting witches as malevolent creatures who sowed death wherever they went.

In truth, Medrauta’s knowledge should have been just as limited, but she was a knight, and Viviane never thought to question where that knowledge came from. After all, it was only natural for a knight to know about the old threats that once plagued the world.

“A witch’s circle refers to their kin or their sworn, like the knights that we encountered on our journey here. Hopefully, Krista managed to help them renounce their pact. A ritual circle is a tool used to cast magic. Drawn by a witch, once the requisite reagents for whatever spell they’re trying to cast are gathered, they can create some abominable effects.”

“...I see.” Viviane took a moment to observe her knight’s face. Medrauta had a haunted look in her eyes and an almost distant stare. Her lips were pressed into a thin line, and it looked almost as if she was struggling against... something. “You... wouldn’t have happened to witness this with your own eyes, right?”

Medrauta turned to Viviane, surprised. Her lady’s voice was laced with worry, but she couldn’t tell why. Of course, there was no way she’d have seen something like that personally.

“No, of course not.” Medrauta answered. After all, the last witch was— “Urgh! A-Aaagh!”

It happened so suddenly.

“M-Medrauta! Medrauta, what’s wrong!?” Viviane lurched forward, wrapping her arms around Medrauta and pulling the knight into an embrace. It was the only thing she could do as Medrauta’s hands clutched her head, trembling in pain with her eyes wrenched shut.

“I don’t... I don’t know...!” Medrauta forced the words through her teeth as she fought to stay conscious, countless waves of splitting pain washing over her head. “It hurts! It hurts so much...!”

“I-It’s okay! It’s okay, Medrauta! I’m here!” Viviane said frantically. She wasn’t sure what to do, but she knew that the carriage had to stop. It wouldn’t do for them to reach the next checkpoint with Medrauta in this condition. With a hand still wrapped around her knight, Viviane opened the door slightly. “Coachman! Stop the carriage!”

“H-Huh!?” The coachman turned in surprise, reining in the horses in response to Viviane’s command. “R-Right away, my lady!”

Even as the carriage slowly rolled to a stop, Medrauta’s condition showed no signs of improving. Instead, it looked as though it was continuing to deteriorate rapidly.

Viviane bit her lip, feeling her eyes moisten and tears beginning to form as she looked upon her knight helplessly. It’d been a while since she’d felt a sensation like this, but she refused to be swallowed up by it when her knight was in pain. Especially when her knight was in pain.

It’s a long shot, but I’ll have to try it... Viviane placed her hands on Medrauta’s, wriggling her fingers in between the knight’s. It was an awkward position given that Medrauta was still clutching her head in pain, but it was the best she could do for now.

“Breathe, Medrauta... Just keep breathing,” Viviane said in the most soothing voice she could manage. She closed her eyes and focused on the vast sea of energy that dwelt within her.

It’d been a while since she’d last practiced the cultivation techniques that Sakura taught her, finding the enormous wealth of ki that she absorbed from the forest to be more than enough despite most of it being returned to the earth. Even so, the few times that she did go out of her way to cultivate brought her immense yields thanks to her prodigal efficiency and constitution.

...Sakura said that I was one in a billion to have such an impressive affinity for this, so please... Please, just work!

During the mishap when Sakura first taught her the secret of ki, Viviane had learned that the true source of its energy was life itself. By practicing in seclusion, a cultivator was capable of drawing upon the life energy of nature without adversely impacting too much of their surroundings.

In theory, using ki merely meant that the practitioner burnt excess life energy accumulated during their cultivation sessions, but in practice, it was actually quite dangerous as a careless cultivator could easily burn through their reserves and begin draining their own life away, turning into nothing more than a husk within mere seconds.

That was why Viviane had managed to devise this solution. If ki is just life energy... Then it should be able to heal, right!? If I transfer some of my life to Medrauta will it take away her pain...?

There was only one way to find out.

Viviane took a deep breath and allowed her natural talent and instincts to take over, recalling how Sakura had extracted the excess ki from her body during their first session together and attempted to emulate that process in reverse. Slowly but surely, ki flowed from Viviane’s body and into Medrauta’s.

“N-Nngh!” Viviane winced as she felt her reserves drain precipitously. She still possessed an enormous amount of ki within her body, but if it kept being drained at this rate, she would soon be in danger. Despite that, she continued to pour her accumulated life energy into Medrauta, hoping that it would work.

Seconds ticked by, and Viviane’s ki was getting increasingly low, but she refused to give up. She watched helplessly as Medrauta continued to struggle with the pain, continuing to channel ki into her knight until...

“U-Ugh... Viviane...?” Medrauta looked up, seeing her lady in deep focus. Her vision was blurry, and she panted violently as beads of sweat rolled down her face.

At last, the incessantly throbbing pain in her head had begun to fade away, being replaced by nothing more but a dull ache.

During that time, she had seen flashes of imagery rush through her mind, but she couldn’t exactly make out what they were. Everything had been blurred from the agony that she had endured.

“Medrauta!” Viviane ceased transferring her ki the moment she saw that Medrauta had recovered. Losing any more would put herself in danger, and as it stood, she had barely a tenth of what she possessed before. But that didn’t matter. The only thing she cared about was the fact that her knight was finally safe. “Thank Aluvsha you’re alright!”

Medrauta smiled weakly in response. She leaned back into the seat as she slowly recuperated her bearings.

“I’m sorry...” Medrauta murmured, patting Viviane’s head. The relief had been evident in Viviane’s voice as the noblewoman threw herself forward immediately, wrapping her arms around the knight.

Now that the headache had largely disappeared, Medrauta began wondering what had even triggered it. Though the agonizing waves of pain had passed, the sensation was still fresh in her memory and she certainly didn’t want to go through that anytime soon.

“What happened, Medrauta? Why were you suddenly in so much pain?” Viviane asked, staring up at Medrauta with an almost desperate gaze. She definitely didn’t want to see that happen ever again.

“Honestly, I... I’m not too sure myself,” Medrauta frowned. Now that her head was clear again, she attempted to recall what exactly triggered such a splitting headache, but she couldn’t think of a single thing. She’d been having a perfectly normal discussion with Viviane, and then it had struck from out of nowhere.

“...I see. Well, don’t worry about it too much, okay?” In truth, Viviane wanted to ask a bit more, but she feared somehow triggering yet another sudden headache once again.

Medrauta nodded, seeing the consideration in her lady’s eyes. It was probably best to discuss this at a later date, preferably in the presence of a medical professional. “In any case, I see that we’ve stopped.”

“Ah! So we have. So what is it that you wanted to check earlier?”

Medrauta stepped out of the carriage.

“I want to see if Bastiche has been kidnapping citizens for a ritual.”