We decided to gather in the carriage to hear the information Xenon and Samuel had brought.
Depending on the content, we would decide whether to secure lodging in this city or not.
According to the two, the eyewitness who claimed to have seen a Dullahan was a hunter.
“……A hunter.”
He was one who hunted beyond the Lindea River and the forest, venturing even further. And the place where he saw the Dullahan was precisely at the foot of the mountain located beyond that forest.
Xenon spoke.
“There is a small rocky mountain there.”
“I know, Mount Ior.”
I recalled that the imperial palace had once promoted a project to carve a sculpture directly into the rock face on that mountainside. The rock’s color was unique and its patterns were beautiful.
Which founding anniversary was it aimed for?
Anyway, it was canceled because the working conditions were too dangerous and the budget turned out to be much higher than expected.
Pointlessly, I also remembered that upon hearing that news back then, I had given Maxel a statue as a consolation gift.
‘Ah, that was expensive.’
It was a precious item, so he must have stored it carefully somewhere. I should have broken it when I was staying at the imperial palace.
While I was lost in belated regret, Xenon nodded and continued his explanation.
“Yes, he saw it at Mount Ior.”
One day, as usual, he was setting traps, releasing hunting dogs, and loading his bow.
When he tried to capture an animal caught in a net, it suddenly transformed into a Dullahan along with black smoke.
Naturally, he fled in terror and reported to the guards that a Monster had appeared.
However, when the soldiers arrived fully armed at the location he described, there was, of course, nothing there.
“At first, everyone said he was talking nonsense. And rightly so, as no one would seriously listen to a story about an animal transforming into a Dullahan.”
“So, he was treated like a madman at first.”
When I muttered indifferently, Samuel nodded and took over.
“Yes. But then the incident of Her Majesty the Empress being attacked by Monsters occurred.”
The hunter, convinced that the Dullahan he had seen was undoubtedly responsible, repeatedly reported it to the Temple and the guards, he said.
So, it seems rumors got mixed up and spread in the early stages. However, the story of a Monster that transforms from an animal was so fantastical that it gradually died down.
I asked.
“So, what was the animal he said he saw?”
“He said it was a hawk.”
“A hawk?”
[Finally, a proper bird has appeared.]
Minte, who had been sitting quietly, remarked bluntly.
At that, Zigore, who had been curled up like a round ball of fur in the corner of the seat, suddenly flapped his wings.
[What do you mean, a proper bird! What kind of talk is that, Minte!]
[What kind of talk? To anyone looking, a hawk is much more plausible than a sparrow, isn't it?]
Tristan, perched in the corner of the carriage ceiling, laughed loudly and shouted. Mori also poked his head out, wriggling from the silk pouch.
[It, it's really cool……!]
[Come to think of it, Mori is a snake, right? Stay well hidden so you don't get eaten!]
[D-don't say scary things, Tristan!]
Mori, who had only peeked his head out, retorted in a frail voice. Tristan flew noisily around the inside of the carriage and replied.
[That depends on who that fellow is. If it's Soana, it's fine, but if it's Dasha, she'll definitely torment you terribly!]
[Ugh…….]
So the remaining Dullahans' names were Soana and Dasha.
Judging by the reaction, it seemed the Dullahan named Dasha had a rather fierce personality.
Seeing Mori tremble and retreat into the pouch, Xenon made a subtle expression.
“Do you really have to carry a snake around in your pouch like that?”
“No venom.”
Mori was a snake but had a very harmless appearance. To put it a bit roughly, he even looked insignificant.
So much so that it was hard to tell if he was really a snake or just an earthworm that looked like a snake. Back at the Roam estate, I even looked it up in an animal encyclopedia.
“A snake whose staple food is ants.”
[Cruel Mori! Do you live by eating ants?]
Of course, Mori wouldn't eat ants. In the first place, his true form was a Dullahan, so he had no need for meals.
In that sense, Tristan's accusation was just meant to tease.
Mori stuck his head out again to counter Tristan. Even Zigore took Mori's side, and the carriage became very noisy.
Though the sound of the Dullahans chattering wouldn't be audible to Xenon.
Xenon, who had been alternately watching the suddenly noisy sparrow, bumblebee, and snake, muttered awkwardly.
“It does look non-venomous. But wouldn't it be more convenient to put it in the bracelet?”
“He gets lonely.”
I could force him in if I had to, but there was no reason to make him cry by doing so.
“You've got all sorts……”
Xenon probably wanted to say 'you've got all sorts of quirks.' But after making eye contact with Mori, he quietly closed his mouth.
Samuel clicked his tongue briefly at his obvious reaction, conscious that Mori was a Dullahan. Then he spoke in a sighing voice.
“Let's continue with the eyewitness story. She has already reported the related content multiple times. And after the relevant agencies stopped responding, she has now taken to searching directly herself.”
Samuel said with a stiff face.
“……She's going out to catch the Dullahan herself?”
After seeing with her own eyes an animal transforming into a Monster? What kind of confidence is that?
As I was about to fall silent with a baffled expression, Xenon pressed his forehead, groaned, and explained.
“That's the thing. I found it strange too, so I observed a bit, and that person is a little…… odd.”
“Odd?”
“She says that since she discovered the evil that God commanded her to confront, she has been appointed as God's apostle. And also…… no, let's drop it.”
Xenon, who seemed about to say more, shook his head and stopped. Even Samuel wore a weary expression.
Watching their reactions, an instinctive realization dawned on me.
An ominous realization that retrieving this Dullahan would not be easy.
* * *
The Resurrected One was publicly missing.
And Roam was being heavily criticized for failing to properly protect the Resurrected One.
In such a situation, if I revealed my identity as the Resurrected One to even a few people……
‘It seems the secret wouldn't be kept.’
Moreover, if it's a hunter who calls herself God's apostle, she might, in her pride, slip up and tell someone.
So we decided to exclude that hunter and quietly search the rocky mountain.
After all, if it's Zigore, he should recognize it immediately, so I thought it would be over quickly.
That was before I knew there would be so many traps on the way there.
[Ah!]
Nadav lifted his front leg. Perhaps conscious that he was carrying me, he didn't thrash about wildly, but it was enough to startle the rider.
If I weren't skilled at riding, I would have lost my balance long ago.
“Are you all right, Lady Anelli?”
Xenon approached in surprise.
“A trap. I almost lost an ankle. Please step back a bit further.”
Samuel, who had examined the area around Nadav's hoof, warned in a low voice.
Even without his warning, I had just discovered the iron trap with its sharply bared teeth.
Much larger and more menacing than a typical animal trap, it looked like it could snap off the leg of any Monster in an instant.
“It seems dangerous to continue advancing. If we keep going, someone will get hurt.”
“For once, I agree with this mage.”
I've lost count of how many traps like that we've encountered already.
And it wasn't just traps. There were nets and pitfalls. All sorts of obstacles were laid out, making it cautious to even take a step, let alone pick up speed.
“It seems there has been no entry by ordinary people to this area since Monsters appeared from the Lindea River. Otherwise, they couldn't have set traps all around as if it were their own front yard.”
If they were magical traps, Xenon could have dismantled them all, but unfortunately, what lay before us were items meticulously crafted by a hunter.
Things not detectable by divine power or magical power.
Literally, things only an expert would know.
“There's no help for it.”
In the end, the attempt to quietly approach the rocky mountain ended in glorious failure. It was a regrettable time, having only confirmed just how seriously the hunter wanted to catch the Dullahan before turning back.
* * *
Since we failed to break through the traps on our own, we decided on a second plan: to hire a professional hunter.
The thought was that a professional, if not entirely, could at least clear the path enough for us to pass.
“I'm sorry. I've never seen traps like these in my life……”
He, who had boldly claimed to be the best hunter in Halley, finally shed blood and declared surrender.
“Looking at it, this is ‘Cheche’s’ handiwork. Only Cheche can dismantle Cheche's traps.”
Whether it's Cheche or Chacha, I don't know, but the point was he couldn't do it.
We let him go with gloomy faces.
The second attempt had also failed.
* * *
“There must be another route.”
If the path marked on the map is full of traps and pitfalls, then we can just go around using a different route, right?
We decided to try making a path not marked on the map. The goal was to reach the destination, not to walk along a specific path.
And so we set off ambitiously once more.
And we realized why no path had been made in that direction.
“It's a swamp.”
“This way is no good either.”
Swamp, thorny thickets, cliffs…….
There were reasons why paths were chosen as paths. They became paths because they could be made.
“I'm going to retrieve my subordinate, and it has to be this difficult?”
Feeling wronged, anger welled up. But no miracle occurred where impassable terrain became passable just because I got angry.
I humbly accepted that the third attempt had failed.
* * *
“Tristan, you mustn't transform into your true form. You might just get caught in troublesome traps.”
Transforming into your true form on a path where arrows fly and large holes are dug is never a good choice.
In response to my admonition, Tristan answered spiritedly.
[I'll go and return as quickly as possible.]
In the end, I decided to send off Tristan, the bumblebee, who among the Dullahans seemed least likely to be affected by traps.
The thought was that once Tristan made contact with the new Dullahan and conveyed my message, we could meet somehow.
Since the new Dullahan could transform into a hawk, if it knew I was here, it could fly over swamps or cliffs to reach me.
Tristan set off vigorously, cheered on by everyone.