I still wasn’t certain. Come to think of it, it was nothing more than a hasty conclusion. Slim as it was, there remained a possibility she could be Lena’s hidden sister.

But if my conclusion was right, quite a few questions would be resolved. Why they were pulling around a large carriage in times like these. Why, despite coming to find Erika whose face was publicly known, they only spoke to me.

Why they had been so kind to us of all people.

Moreover, looking back, they had asked questions ostensibly about their children’s whereabouts while subtly slipping in inquiries to gauge Roselia’s well-being. If she was indeed Roselia’s sister, the purpose behind this series of actions was clear.

They were after the elven mark that Roselia might have brought with her.

After Duke Anbert departed with his son, the remaining children would have found themselves in the same situation as Roselia. They had two choices: quietly accept death, or somehow struggle to survive. If my guess was right, that woman was one of Roselia’s sisters who had chosen the latter.

…

If that were truly the case, I thought I might understand who Roselia took after.

No. Perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a family trait.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

While I was lost in thought, she asked in a sharp voice. I shrugged and answered casually.

“Just tired, that’s all. By the way, what will you do now? We don’t know Lena’s whereabouts either.”

“That’s none of your concern.”

“Are you coming with us?”

“What else would I do here alone?”

Even her sharp tone felt remarkably similar to Roselia’s. Once suspicion took root, it didn’t end but kept biting its own tail. Rolling various thoughts through my head, I suddenly pointed at her bandages and asked.

“Was it a dragon that did this to you?”

“How rude.”

“I apologize. But I was curious.”

“Must I really dredge up a nightmare I just experienced?”

“…I suppose it was recent. Yes.”

When I nodded meaningfully, she made a ppudeuk sound as she gritted her teeth.

“What? Something wrong?”

“No. It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing…”

She showed an unusually sensitive reaction to the bandages and glared at me. She looked ready to spit out curses. But before she could raise her voice again, the door opened from behind and Ms. Rebecca walked out.

“You were already up.”

“Ms. Rebecca.”

“Looks like you were having a conversation. Good morning. That…you’re Lena’s sister, if I recall. I’m afraid I don’t know your name yet. May I ask?”

“…”

At Ms. Rebecca’s polite request, she whipped her head around and walked off in the opposite direction. It was a cold response, but Ms. Rebecca only stared at her retreating back with an indifferent expression.

“A rather cold person, isn’t she.”

“Indeed.”

“More importantly, it’s a decent day for traveling. The temperature is warmer than expected. Around this time, the ground should normally be frozen solid, but the soil is quite soft.”

“Could it be the dragon’s influence?”

“Seems like geothermal heat is rising. This certainly isn’t normal weather.”

I fell into thought watching Ms. Rebecca poke at the ground with her shoe. Then I slowly called her name.

“Ms. Rebecca.”

“What.”

“Do you happen to know how to drive a carriage?”

“Uh…you want to drive a carriage?”

“I’d feel bad just receiving help without giving anything back. You mentioned we’d probably need to use two carriages anyway. Let me drive one of them.”

“But…handling horses isn’t easy work.”

“I have plenty of experience. There isn’t much you can do once you become a retired soldier. Before I was recommended as a security guard, I worked briefly as a coachman.”

“That’s…”

At our sudden proposal, the woman who was Miya’s aunt looked at her husband with bewildered eyes. But he shrugged as if it were nothing.

“Well, if they can do it, I suppose it doesn’t matter. Aron’s father. Wouldn’t this actually be good for you too?”

“…No reason to refuse when someone’s offering to lighten the workload.”

“Then it’s settled. They might as well take the kids in their carriage. Right, dear?”

“That’s…true. Do the rest of you agree? Camilla’s mother?”

“…”

Various reactions emerged at this sudden situation. Some were flustered, some ignored it, some just shrugged. Meanwhile, the poor horses just snorted and sent ominous glares our way. They couldn’t possibly have understood our conversation, but they seemed to sense something ominous in the air.

But it was a proposal with no particular reason to oppose, no matter how you looked at it. So eventually, signs of agreement poured in.

“If everyone’s comfortable with that, then let’s do it. It doesn’t really matter much either way.”

“I never expected my journey home to get this noisy. Well, come along then.”

“If you’ve got complaints, go alone. Come to think of it, there’s no real need for you to tag along, Yuse.”

“What did you just say?”

“Stop. Stop it, dear. If it’s decided, let’s each get in our carriages.”

“Right. Then…”

“…However, I’d like the Student Council President to ride in this carriage. I still have many questions to ask. Would that be alright?”

“Huh?”

Just as things seemed settled and we were about to board the carriages, another proposal suddenly popped up. Erika was thoroughly flustered and shook her head gingerly.

“Uh…I…”

“I understand wanting to stick with people your own age, but I have so much I want to hear about. It’s not like there’s anything else to do on the way there. Right?”

“Th-then…I suppose I could…?”

Erika turned to me, checking my reaction, but her arm was already caught. I hesitated briefly, then nodded.

“Go ahead. You must have a lot you want to hear.”

“Thank you. For understanding.”

“But that would make your group a bit too large. Then why don’t Lena’s sister ride in our carriage? I know more about Lena, after all.”

“What? That’s…”

“…Fine. As you wish.”

Resistance was about to flare up again, but before that, the sound of metal scraping rang out first. She shot a sharp glare at me through the gaps in her bandages.

“I also have much I wish to hear.”

“…”

“Right…then it’s settled. Let’s go with that arrangement.”

“Yes. Agreed.”

We nodded and looked at each other. Everyone’s gazes except Haru’s intertwined and tangled as we all struggled to uncover one another’s hidden schemes. But discerning someone’s thoughts through eye contact alone was nearly impossible.

Eventually, no more proposals emerged, and we began boarding our respective carriages. Ms. Rebecca. Haru. Saya. And that mysterious bandaged woman. After confirming they had boarded one by one, I finally stepped in.

But then someone approached from behind me. When I turned, the man who was Miya’s uncle was scowling intensely.

“…My wife keeps telling me to ride in here. Help out that Rebecca person or whatever.”

“We don’t need help.”

“Kid. I’m no fonder of this than you are. It’s my wife who wants to help you, not me. But what can I do when she tells me to? Gotta be a good husband, even right before the end of the world.”

“…”

“Damn it, why am I even telling you all this. I’ll head to the front, then.”

He grumbled as he walked toward the driver’s seat where Ms. Rebecca was. Another unexpected complication made things more complex, but there was no need to panic. What we had to do was already decided.

With everyone’s choices made, the carriages slowly began to move forward. Then they spurred on, racing with all their might toward a world about to meet its doom.

But that ride was a bit more awkward than yesterday. It wasn’t just imagination—a low conversation could be heard from the driver’s seat.

“…The horses are restless. That’s not a good sign.”

“I see.”

“I noticed earlier the ground was a bit too soft. Like it had been heated over a pot.”

“Could be the influence of that dragon from before.”

“…Damn it.”

At the word “dragon,” he flinched slightly and spat a curse. And the bandaged woman was no different. As if that word had lodged itself as some kind of trauma, she couldn’t hide her anxiety and fidgeted with her collar.

Watching this, I cleared my throat lightly. Then I casually addressed her.

“Linne. That’s what you said your name was, right? It’s a pretty name.”

“…”

“No matter how I think about it, I can’t understand why Lena never once mentioned having a sister. Were you that estranged?”

“None of your business.”

“I was merely curious. You haven’t asked a single thing about Lena, either.”

“I’d only hear bad things anyway. I’m done with that sort of thing.”

“Is that so.”

The uneasy conversation was ruthlessly cut short by her sharp attitude. But then Haru let out a long yawn and opened her mouth with her characteristic mischievous voice.

“Hmm. So this is Lena’s sister. I can’t judge the face, but the voice doesn’t sound anything alike. Are you really her sister?”

“That’s because I burned my throat. Are you mocking me?”

“Oh hey, a fellow sufferer. Nice to meet you. I’ve got a lot to say about burns myself.”

Haru grinned broadly and slightly pulled down the eye patch covering her eye. The bumpy burn scars were particularly noticeable today.

“I know exactly how it feels. Must have been incredibly painful. They say burning pain is the worst kind of pain a person can feel.”

“Yeah. I get it, so can you stop? I don’t want to hear this.”

“…So I also know how painful it is to speak when your throat is burned. For someone with that condition, you speak quite well. Curiously enough.”

“…”

“Honestly, it sounds like a put-on voice. I know it well because I’ve made that kind of voice to my mom plenty of times. When I would beg her to stop until my voice gave out, that’s when she’d finally put down the branding iron.”

At this sharp observation, she fell silent. Her hostile gaze turned toward Haru this time.

“Sisters’ voices might not always sound alike, but I’m curious why someone would scratch their throat just to hide their own voice.”

“…”

“Are you perhaps someone we know? Who exactly are you? Are you really this person named Linne? Or what, are you His Imperial Majesty?”

“…”

“You’re not going to answer?”

“…What about you.”

Only then did she open her mouth. But her gaze was directed not at Haru but at me.

“Your name isn’t Roman, either.”

“…”

“Isn’t that right?”

Just then, the carriage lurched violently with a deolkeong. We seemed to be passing over rough terrain. I glanced out the window briefly, then answered calmly.

“No, it isn’t. Just as your name isn’t Linne.”

“Then what’s your reason for hiding your identity?”

“What do you think?”

“Let’s see. If you spill your secrets first, I’ll talk too. That would be good for you too…ugh…!”

The carriage violently shook again, rattling the scenery outside the window. Something could be heard from the driver’s seat, but I ignored it and spoke again.

“Anyway, you’ve admitted you’re not Lena’s sister. Correct?”

“And what does that have to do with you?”

“People sharing a carriage should at least know who they’re traveling with.”

“That’s rich. You’re hiding your name too. And what about that girl? She’s got her face all wrapped up in a hood and gas mask. She didn’t say a word at the dinner table yesterday. What exactly is that girl?”

“That’s…”

“Hey!”

Just as I was about to answer, the carriage shook once more, and a rough voice erupted from the driver’s seat. This time I kept my mouth shut and listened.

“I said this isn’t the right direction! All you have to do is follow the carriage in front. Where are you going!”

“It’s fine. We know where we’re going. Don’t worry about it.”

“How can I not worry…”

“Don’t move. This prosthetic isn’t just for show.”

“What the…!”

Sensing something wrong from the exchange, she finally looked out the window. The carriage carrying the others had already vanished from sight.

“What is this? What are you doing!”

“Why so surprised? You had no reason to follow that carriage anyway.”

“Th-that may be true, but…!”

“We’ll catch up soon. These must be the only two carriages running in this area.”

I shrugged casually and surveyed the surroundings once more. We were still the only ones racing through this desolate landscape. The people over there probably never imagined we’d pull such an unexpected move, especially with Erika as their hostage.

After scanning the outside, I turned back to her. Then I pointed at the bandage that had slightly come loose near her jaw.

“By the way, those bandages. Shouldn’t you change them? Wrapping wounds in old cloth isn’t exactly a good idea.”

“Is this really the time to worry about that? What are you…”

“We’ve become somewhat burn experts from treating Haru’s wounds. We can at least change your bandages for you. Right, Saya?”

“Yeah. That’s right.”

“…!”

Perhaps startled by Saya’s beautiful voice that suddenly rang out, she froze with her hand still raised. Meanwhile, the bandage was coming loose again. Proof that it hadn’t been tightly wrapped to begin with.

Now it was time to uncover the secret hidden within. Without any further hesitation, I reached out to her.

“Then take off those bandages now. Or we’ll do it for you.”