At the break of dawn, Keldric had set out on his journey, and as a result of his diligent trekking, he finally reached the foothills of the mountain range leading to Spitzenberg.
It was just before the sun reached its zenith. From early morning until just before midday, he had spent nearly half a day walking continuously.
“Let’s take a short break here.”
“Understood.”
Keldric granted the Iron Claw mercenaries a moment of rest and a chance to eat.
Walking non-stop for an hour or two was already grueling, and the mercenaries had drained their energy lugging around weapons and the spoils of their conquests.
“Ugh, did we carry too much?”
“You idiot. I told you to leave some behind.”
As Keldric watched the mercenaries divvying up the loot, he chewed on some dried meat. Most of the salted and dried meat was tough, almost like chewing on bark.
However, for both long and short journeys, dried or compactly packed food was the standard. Carrying fresh meat around was simply inefficient in terms of weight.
As he mindlessly chewed the meat and tilted his head back, he saw an enormous curtain of land rising skyward. Among the towering peaks, a relatively low path was carved out.
Relatively low compared to the other surrounding peaks, but still daunting enough for Keldric and his party to cross.
“Do we have to go through there?”
The question, more to himself than anyone else, prompted Alyssa—who had been nibbling on a piece of bread beside him—to follow his gaze.
“Yes. If we follow that path, we’ll enter the mountain range and eventually find the way to Spitzenberg.”
“It looks… much more rugged than I imagined.”
“Because it’s a mountain range.”
The succinctness and clarity of her response left little room for argument. Rugged terrain was simply a given when it came to mountain ranges.
As Alyssa pointed out, the range was notoriously difficult to traverse. It wasn’t a place for your average adventurer or wandering mercenary to casually pass through.
Crossing such a mountain range required preparation. However, Keldric’s goal wasn’t to cross the entire range.
His destination was somewhere in the middle a legendary stone city said to exist in the midst of those steep, towering peaks. The rumors surrounding it had certainly piqued Keldric’s curiosity.
Having lived his whole life in the village of Carlton, Keldric naturally knew little about such places. Even Alyssa, with her wealth of knowledge across various fields, had never been to Spitzenberg, deepening their sense of intrigue.
As the northern wind grew colder near the edge of the range, Keldric felt the chill of the mountain winds swirling around them, stronger and sharper than those of the plains.
By the time their bellies were roughly filled and they prepared to move again, the sun had reached its zenith.
“Sir Keldric.”
Just as Keldric was getting ready to set out, Radomar approached him, having completed his own preparations to depart.
“There’s someone ahead.”
“Someone?”
“Yes. They appear to be travelers… Shall we go check?”
Keldric carefully studied the direction Radomar was pointing. Indeed, at the entrance to the mountain path, he could make out a solitary figure walking toward them.
“A merchant, perhaps?”
The mountain paths were so rugged that even pulling a cart would be difficult.
While a caravan with multiple donkeys might manage, that level of organization was something only sizable trade companies could afford.
Smaller-scale merchants usually relied on one or two donkeys to carry their goods when attempting to cross the mountains.
“He doesn’t seem to be a merchant… no donkey in sight.”
“Hmm.”
Indeed, the figure up ahead had no sign of a donkey or any other mount. It seemed more fitting to assume he was just a passing traveler. Keldric clicked his tongue in mild disappointment.
If it had been a merchant, he could have asked about rumors from beyond the mountain range or gleaned some insight into the situation in Spitzenberg.
“Let’s move out.”
“Yes, sir. Let’s go! Time to head out!”
The mercenaries swiftly packed up their belongings and got to their feet. Keldric did the same, securing his weapon and mounting Boreas.
“Looks like you’ve rested well, Boreas.”
During breaks, Helga always tended to the horses, and it was clear that having her around made things smoother for the animals compared to when it was just Keldric handling them.
Keldric scratched Boreas’s mane affectionately, and the horse gave a satisfied shake of its head.
As the Iron Claw mercenaries marched in a line ahead, Keldric rode Boreas at the rear as usual.
The traveler they had spotted earlier was now sitting on a rock by the side of the path, taking a break. As they drew closer, Keldric could make out the figure’s appearance in greater detail.
A wide-brimmed hat stood out first, along with practical clothing suited for extensive travel, a cloak-like robe, and a staff leaning against the rock they were seated on.
“A pilgrim.”
“Oh…”
The wide-brimmed hat and the staff, likely used to ward off wild animals, were unmistakable hallmarks of a pilgrim. Seeing one for the first time, Keldric watched the figure with quiet admiration as they came closer.
During this era, it wasn’t uncommon to encounter pilgrims, especially clergy, clergy-in-training, or devout believers embarking on spiritual journeys.
While some traveled in groups from churches, those journeying alone typically sought solitude to commune more intimately with their god.
As Keldric nudged Boreas closer, the pilgrim slowly stood and bowed respectfully in greeting.
“May the blessings of the divine be with you, noble knight.”
“And may the blessings of the divine be with you, devout pilgrim. I wish you peace on your journey.”
Keldric responded with equal courtesy. He had no reason to show hostility toward a pilgrim. They were merely travelers on their way to a sacred site or the papal city.
“Do you require anything?”
“If it’s not too much trouble, might I request some water to quench my thirst?”
“Of course, that’s no problem at all.”
Keldric found himself favorably impressed by the pilgrim’s polite demeanor. In this wretched world, encounters with respectful, soft-spoken individuals were a rarity.
The bandits they had fought off earlier that morning hadn’t even bothered with words, attacking with arrows from the outset.
In contrast, devout believers like this pilgrim tended to be excellent conversationalists. Keldric handed over a waterskin filled with water without hesitation.
“Thank you. This kindness will surely be repaid by the divine.”
“It’s only right to help when one can.”
“I am Vernot, journeying to Antica in hopes of hearing the words of the divine more closely. Might I ask your esteemed name, noble knight?”
“By the grace of the divine, I am Keldric of House Bellaf.”
“The honorable Keldric of the noble House Bellaf. I see.”
Pilgrims came from all walks of life, each with their own unique stories and backgrounds.
However, knights could not treat pilgrims poorly, driven as they were by sheer dedication and piety to reach sacred lands on foot. In fact, few knights ever harbored such thoughts.
Even the most brutish and strong among them still longed for the favor of the divine.
Even bandits often refrained from harming pilgrims. After all, pilgrims carried neither wealth nor valuables, making them poor targets not even worth the effort of an ambush.
Furthermore, there was a widespread superstition that robbing a pilgrim would invite divine wrath, a curse upon those who dared to harm someone on such a noble journey.
Religious beliefs often served as a safeguard for pilgrims, ensuring their safety. However, in times of chaos, even pilgrims weren’t spared.
There were always bandits who killed them indiscriminately, stripping them of their clothes and leaving nothing behind.
“In fact, we were just attacked by bandits at dawn on the path we traveled earlier. Be cautious.”
“Ah! Thank you. These are tumultuous times, indeed. I’ll be sure to stay vigilant.”
Pilgrim Vernot responded with a warm, heartfelt smile, expressing his gratitude repeatedly.
His gratitude extended beyond words as he pulled a small palm branch and a cross from a pouch on his belt. He even recited a short blessing for Keldric.
“Oh…! A blessing for me…”
“Perhaps I’ll visit a church once we reach Spitzenberg… it’s been a while.”
“Do you think the gods will forgive us for killing people?”
“Do those bandit scum even count as people?”
The mercenaries, buoyed by the blessing, felt their morale rise. Religious faith, regardless of status or rank, seemed to resonate in everyone’s heart.
Keldric made the sign of the cross and closed his eyes. While he could dismiss the blessing as mere words, in a world where magic existed, it was possible that blessings might hold some real power.
“Meeting the honorable Sir Keldric has been a great fortune for me. Truly, it feels like a gift bestowed by the divine.”
“Indeed, it does.”
“In gratitude for your advice, I would like to share a bit of news about the road ahead, though it may be modest.”
Vernot informed them that wolves had been appearing frequently near the mountain pass and urged caution.
With that, Pilgrim Vernot took his leave. Keldric watched his figure for a long time as he walked away, leaning heavily on his staff.
“Sir Keldric?”
“…Ah, yes. Let’s move out.”
Though the world was turbulent and chaotic, many still yearned for order and peace. Keldric silently wished Vernot a safe and successful pilgrimage.
☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩
To cross the mountain range, one might have to dismount, but Keldric, who followed a fork in the path near a relatively flat passage, found no such need.
No matter how secluded a place might be in the middle of the mountain range, a city like Spitzenberg still carried some semblance of civilization.
The idea that such a place wouldn’t have properly paved roads was simply absurd.
“We seem to be getting close to Spitzenberg now.”
Radomar, who had visited Spitzenberg several times, seemed to have a good grasp of the path leading there.
Thanks to this, Keldric was enjoying a journey far more comfortable than he had anticipated. The road was fairly well-maintained, and the weather in the mountains was not particularly harsh, making travel easier.
When they set out after cleaning up the bandits’ corpses, the dawn sky was a pale bluish hue. By the time they neared Spitzenberg, the sky had turned a golden-yellow shade of evening.
Beyond the mountain ridge, the sun was already sinking.
While it might still seem like early evening outside the mountains, here, where the sun disappeared early, that was far from the case.
Keldric briefly considered setting up camp around this point but decided to press on after Radomar assured him they were close.
He drove Abel Lin onward with diligence. Boreas, who had carried them the previous day and the better part of the morning, followed slowly from behind.
Having two horses had its advantages it allowed them to pace the animals and conserve their strength.
“The sky here is incredibly clear. The starlight is so bright.”
“Indeed…”
Keldric gazed in admiration at the sky Alyssa was pointing to.
As the evening glow faded into the horizon, dyeing one part of the sky crimson, the darkness crept in from beyond.
Between the moonlight and the oncoming night, countless stars sparkled like scattered jewels.
The crisp, unpolluted air of the mountain midsection made the stars even more visible. Alyssa retrieved something from her pouch.
“What’s that?”
“A shard of truth that returns to the starry skies.”
It was a small piece of parchment. Alyssa carefully kissed the parchment and released it into the air.
Keldric watched, mesmerized, as it floated upwards, glittering like the starlight itself, before vanishing. The way it dissolved into the night sky as if it had spontaneously combusted was nothing short of magical.
“A shard of truth?”
“It’s a prayer to draw upon the power of a rising constellation. Right now, it’s Aries, so I offered something derived from the ram.”
“And what happens when you do that?”
“They say it enhances the success of magic. It’s only a rumor, though…”
Still, witnessing something seemingly so mystical unfold before his eyes, it didn’t feel like just an idle tale.
Keldric found himself in an unexpectedly good mood after witnessing such a curious sight.
Alyssa, too, took a deep breath of the refreshing air and gazed at the stars above.
By the time the last traces of crimson had disappeared from the sky, the mountain path had opened up to reveal a broad, expansive view.
“There… that’s…”
“That’s Spitzenberg.”
Once again, Keldric found himself awestruck by the breathtaking sight before him.
Amid towering peaks and sharp ridges stood a natural fortress a city cradled in a deep valley surrounded by mountains.
Under the blanket of the night sky and cushioned by the awe-inspiring scenery below, the small fortress city of Spitzenberg sparkled like a jewel.
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