Morning was wrapped in thick fog.

  I couldn’t see anything clearly.

  Even a few meters ahead dissolved into white haze.

  I sat beside the dying campfire, hugging my knees.

  The ground was damp, but I didn’t care.

  Compared to the cold seeping out from inside me,

  this kind of chill was nothing.

  It was a cold I’d felt ever since leaving Thiseia.

  Nael was the first to move.

  Yawning exaggeratedly, scratching his head, he wandered over toward the small ring of stones.

  「Morning, Sera. Get any sleep at all?」

  He tilted his head slightly and smiled.

  「Want some survival breakfast?」

  I brought a hand to my mouth, steadying myself before answering.

  「Yes… anything is fine. Thank you, Nael-san.」

  As he broke apart some dried meat, he chuckled softly.

  「Cut it out with the ‘san.’ We’re all the same out here.」

  He raised a piece of meat high, making a mock toast.

  「Today’s special: rock-hard meat and lukewarm water. Pretty great, right?」

  I hid my mouth with my sleeve and smiled quietly.

  It wasn’t forced.

  It wasn’t carefree either.

  But it was unmistakably my own smile.

  Even if this world tried to take everything from me,

  I was still here.

  Nael glanced sideways at my expression.

  「Still… this kind of trip probably isn’t what you imagined, right? Someone like you.」

  I shook my head slowly.

  「That’s not true. Life in the castle wasn’t as beautiful as you might imagine.」

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  Nael nodded quietly, as if setting his joke aside.

  He lowered his gaze once, then smiled gently again.

  「I see… sorry. That was careless of me.」

  He looked toward him—still sleeping.

  「But still… you’re here now. That alone is kind of amazing.」

  The embers of the fire cracked softly between us.

  「He won’t say it out loud, but I know he’s glad you’re here too.

  …Well, in his own way.」

  I adjusted the blanket over my knees and stared into the fire.

  Nael exhaled lightly through his nose, turning a stick between his fingers.

  「Still… lately, he’s been more on edge than ever. You’ve felt it too, haven’t you?」

  I nodded quietly.

  「Yes… I don’t know him very well yet, but… losing Beld-san, and then being told he’s the Staff…

  That must be very hard.」

  Nael nodded, his eyes steady.

  「…Yeah. Especially for him.」

  「Losing the only family he had… and then getting saddled with some fate he doesn’t understand.

  Didn’t want it. Can’t even make sense of it yet.」

  「Anyone else would’ve broken.」

  「But he doesn’t. He stands up. Walks on. Like nothing happened.」

  「And you’re here. In a place like this—smoke, mud, and people like us who are half-broken.

  Not a bad choice, for a princess.」

  I covered my mouth and laughed softly.

  Then I asked, quietly,

  「Nael… have you known him for a long time?」

  Nael shrugged, scratching his head with a shy smile.

  「Since we were kids. …Though he never talked much.」

  Chuckling, he looked back at the fire.

  「Honestly, there was a time I thought his native language was just grunts.」

  I laughed softly.

  The sound melted into the crackling fire.

  Nael kept his eyes on the flames and continued.

  「…But no matter what, he was always there.」

  「He made sure I wasn’t alone.」

  His voice dropped just a little.

  「Still… sometimes I wonder if he’s always been lonely himself.」

  He glanced sideways at me.

  「…What do you think, Sera? Since meeting him, have you ever felt that way?」

  I clasped my hands over my knees and thought, watching the fire.

  「…I don’t know. I don’t understand him well yet. But…」

  I lowered my gaze.

  「I think… he’s a good person.」

  When Nael heard that, he smiled with genuine relief.

  「…Yeah. That’s what matters most.」

  He offered me a piece of dried meat.

  「Here. You’ll need the energy.

  …For dealing with his silent endurance battles, too.」

  Chuckling, he lightened the mood again.

  I took the meat with both hands and thanked him quietly.

  Just then, he stirred beneath his blanket.

  Without thinking, we lowered our voices.

  He sat up without a word, brushed off his cloak.

  He didn’t look at us.

  But I knew.

  He’d heard everything.

  He always does.

  —

  After a brief breakfast, we quietly packed our things and prepared to leave.

  We started walking southeast, through the thinning fog.

  The edge of the forest stretched along our right.

  Our destination lay somewhere within the red circle my grandfather had drawn on the map.

  The sky was still gray.

  The air felt heavy.

  With every step, my body felt heavier, like lead.

  As we walked, Nael’s words stayed with me.

  About him.

  How much he carried—and still kept walking.

  How every morning, he stood up like nothing had happened.

  …How could someone do that?

  Why did it bother me this much?

  I shook my head lightly and looked down at the ground.

  Now wasn’t the time to think about it.

  And yet, deep in my chest,

  the question remained—

  like a small thorn I couldn’t pull out.

  In the fog, the weight of the air grew heavier still.

  And then—

  I saw it.