Chapter 270 (Patreon)

Joan and Hen had both initially assumed Kana’s bold declaration inside the inn had been nothing more than an exaggerated joke, the sort of playful arrogance sometimes displayed by young people trying to appear more impressive than they truly were. Because of that assumption, neither of them had taken her words particularly seriously at the time.

If anything, Joan had briefly thought the girl was rather amusing.

Perhaps even a little cute. Still, despite the strange first impression, they had ultimately decided to travel with them anyway. Their primary mission in the Northern Kingdom was far more important than pride or minor disagreements.

If these four were truly the escorts sent to guide them to the academy, then refusing would only delay their task further.

So they followed.

Now, roughly over an hour after leaving the bustling port city behind, the wagon carrying the group rolled steadily along the quiet road that stretched deeper into the northern countryside.

The distant sounds of the harbor had long faded into silence.

The only noises left were the steady rhythm of the wagon wheels grinding against the rough road, the occasional snort from the horses pulling the wagon, and the low rustling of wind moving through the surrounding grasslands and scattered trees.

Night had already fallen.

Dark clouds drifted slowly overhead, dimming what little moonlight might have illuminated the road ahead.

Inside the wagon, the atmosphere had grown strangely quiet. Joan finally broke the silence.

She shifted slightly in her seat before glancing across the wagon toward Suri.

“Shouldn’t we wait until morning before continuing?” Joan asked calmly, though there was a faint edge of concern in her voice. “Traveling at night like this seems unnecessarily dangerous.”

Suri, who had been busy teasing Thorne with small bits of dried snacks, paused mid-motion. The small lizard leaned forward eagerly, its tiny tongue flicking out as it tried to snatch the food from her fingers.

Suri tilted her hand away at the last moment, causing Thorne to chirp in mild frustration. Then Suri glanced sideways toward Kana. Instead of answering Joan directly, she lazily tilted her chin toward the girl sitting across from them.

“She’s the leader,” Suri said casually, her voice relaxed as she resumed teasing the lizard again. “It’s her decision.”

Joan’s gaze shifted toward Kana. Kana herself looked completely unconcerned. She had been sitting quietly by the window, watching the dark road pass by outside while the cold night wind slipped through small cracks in the wagon’s frame.

When she noticed everyone looking at her, she shrugged slightly.

“Leaving sooner is better,” Kana said in a calm, almost indifferent tone. “The academy’s assessment for this year will begin soon, and we don’t have much time left if we want to arrive before it starts.”

Her reasoning sounded simple. Yet the true reason remained unspoken. Kana had intentionally chosen to travel through the night.

Those mysterious enemies who had been stalking the road earlier had only appeared under the cover of darkness. If they were still somewhere nearby, watching and waiting for another opportunity, then night would be the time they would strike again. Better to take a break in the morning then travel at night.

Her skill, [Night Awareness], quietly stretched outward into the surrounding darkness, spreading like an invisible web across a wide area around the moving wagon.

Every heartbeat. Every subtle movement. Every presence creeped too close to the road.

She would feel it.

If anyone attempted an ambush tonight, they would not catch the group unprepared. Joan, unaware of Kana’s silent preparations, simply let out a soft sigh and leaned back against the wooden wall of the wagon.

Hen, sitting beside her, seemed far more relaxed. In fact, he looked almost entertained by the situation. After a moment, he turned his attention back toward the group.

“I’m curious about something,” Hen said with a friendly smile.

His eyes moved between Kana and Suri.

“How old are you two, exactly?”

Suri answered immediately, as if she had been waiting for the question.

“We’ll all turn sixteen this year,” she said cheerfully.

For a moment, neither Joan nor Hen reacted. Then their expressions changed. Both of them widened their eyes slightly in surprise.

Hen blinked.

“Sixteen?”

He looked back and forth between the group, clearly reevaluating them.

“You two look about that age,” he admitted, gesturing toward Kana and Suri. “But I honestly thought the one over here and the one outside were older than us.”

He pointed toward Boris and Adam.

Boris instantly leaned forward with a smug grin spreading across his face. “That’s just because I’m big,” he said proudly while flexing his shoulders slightly. “But my face still looks young.”

He tilted his head at an angle, as if presenting his best side for inspection.

“See?”

Hen stared at him for a moment. Then he forced a polite smile and nodded slowly,“Yes…”

Even Joan, who clearly did not agree with Boris’s self-assessment in the slightest, quietly nodded along anyway.

The wagon continued its steady journey along the dark road, its wooden wheels turning rhythmically against the packed earth as the horses pulled the group deeper into the jungle. Outside, the night stretched wide and quiet, broken only by the distant chirping of insects and the occasional whisper of wind brushing through the tall grass beside the road.

Inside the wagon, however, the silence did not last long.

Hen had been speaking for hours.

“…and because of that,” Hen continued enthusiastically, his voice calm but unwavering as he spoke with the confidence of someone who had repeated these teachings many times before, “He is everywhere. We are all part of His creation, every single one of us. Because of that truth, we should feel gratitude toward Him every day for allowing us to live within the world He shaped.”

Hen’s hands moved slightly as he spoke, emphasizing his words as though he were delivering a sermon rather than simply having a conversation inside a moving wagon.

These were what the followers of the Holy Kingdom called the Words of God, teachings passed down through their religious institutions and taught extensively within the Army of God itself.

And Hen had been sharing them… Nonstop. For the past few hours.

Finally, after finishing another explanation about divine creation and humanity’s place within it, Hen leaned back slightly and looked toward the group with a gentle smile.

“Tell me,” he asked curiously, “do you all attend church regularly?”

Before anyone else could speak, Suri suddenly burst into a light giggle.

“Of course!” she said brightly, answering with almost suspicious speed. “I do! Almost every day!”

The wagon instantly became quiet. Kana’s head slowly turned. Boris also turned. Even Thorne, who had been comfortably resting on top of Boris’s head like a lazy crown, lifted its small head and blinked in Suri’s direction.

Three pairs of eyes stared at her. All of them wide with disbelief. The lie had been so blatant that none of them even needed to say anything.

Suri, however, remained perfectly calm under their silent scrutiny. She simply smiled sweetly, as if nothing strange had just happened.

Hen looked between them for a moment before chuckling softly.

“I see,” he said thoughtfully. “I suppose it may only be Suri, then.”

He folded his hands together in a relaxed gesture. 

“Do not worry too much,” Hen continued reassuringly. “The Almighty God is generous toward mankind. He understands that people are busy with their challenging lives but that shouldn’t stop us from showing gratitude.”

Then he leaned down toward the wooden container beside his seat and opened it. Inside were several carefully bound books. Hen selected two of them and lifted them out.

“If you have the time,” he said kindly, holding the books out toward Kana and Boris, “I would like you two to read these. They contain teachings that help people understand His greatness more clearly.”

Boris hesitated the moment the book was offered to him. He stared at it as if it were some sort of dangerous artifact. Still, with several people watching, he reluctantly reached out and accepted it.

“Uh… thanks,” Boris muttered.

Kana, meanwhile, felt the attention slowly shifting toward her.

She noticed it immediately. Everyone was looking at her now. Joan. Hen. Suri. 

Kana suddenly felt a strange pressure settling in the wagon. She cleared her throat awkwardly. Then, trying to appear composed, she reached forward and accepted the book Hen was offering.

“Thank you,” Kana said politely, though the faint stiffness in her voice betrayed her discomfort.

She held the book in her hands while feeling the weight of several curious gazes resting on her.

“How about me?” Suri asked.

…….

Hen’s voice continued to drift steadily through the interior of the wagon, calm and unwavering, like the slow tolling of a distant bell that refused to stop ringing no matter how late the hour had become. He turned another thin page of the scripture book resting in his hands and resumed speaking with the same patient conviction he had carried since the beginning of his lecture.

“…and because mankind was granted both purpose and freedom of will,” Hen continued, his tone thoughtful and composed, “we must strive to live in a way that honors the one who shaped this world and gave us the ability to walk upon it.”

The wagon rolled forward through the dark countryside with a steady rhythm, its wooden wheels creaking softly as they pressed deeper along the lonely road. Outside, the night stretched wide and silent across the fields, broken only by the faint rustling of wind moving through the grass and the occasional distant chirp of unseen insects.

Kana was forced to listen. She had no choice with her [Night Awareness] active. It was one of those days she hated getting an awareness type of skill.

But after several hours of uninterrupted preaching, Hen’s words had begun to blend together inside her mind like watercolors dissolving into one another. Her eyelids grew heavier.

Then suddenly—

Kana yawned. A long, wide yawn that forced her to raise the back of her hand to cover her mouth out of basic politeness.

The moment it happened, Kana blinked in mild surprise at herself.

She tilted her head slightly. That’s strange. She hadn’t expected to feel sleepy.

For as long as she could remember, nighttime had never made her particularly tired. In fact, thanks to her skill [Night Awareness], darkness usually sharpened her senses instead of dulling them. Night was normally the time when her mind felt clearest and most alert.

Yet here she was… yawning like someone who had spent the entire day hauling sacks of grain under the sun.

Kana slowly glanced around the wagon.

Suri, meanwhile, sat upright across from her with a strangely attentive expression on her face. Her chin rested lightly against one hand while she listened to Hen with what looked like genuine focus, occasionally nodding along as though every word he spoke was deeply fascinating.

Kana narrowed her eyes. Something is definitely wrong here.

Usually, around this time of night, Suri would already be sprawled somewhere in the wagon with her mouth slightly open, snoring loudly enough to scare away passing animals.

Yet now she looked completely awake.

Even interested. Kana wasn’t sure whether she should be impressed…

Or deeply suspicious.

Then suddenly—

“Guys!”

Adam’s voice exploded from outside the wagon.

The sudden shout sliced through the quiet interior like a blade.

“I don’t think this fog is normal!” Adam called from the coachman’s seat, his voice carrying a clear note of alarm. “I can’t see anything ahead of us!”

Kana straightened instantly.

The lingering drowsiness vanished from her mind as quickly as a candle snuffed out by wind.

Her skill [Night Awareness] in full effect feeling her surroundings. The invisible field of perception stretched quietly outward from her body, spreading across the surrounding land like an unseen web woven through the darkness.

Every movement. Every heartbeat. Every shift in the nearby environment.

Normally, she could sense it all.

At first…

Everything seemed normal.

The steady rhythm of the horses’ breathing. The wagon wheels turned over the road. The soft movement of grass stirred by the wind.

Nothing unusual.

And yet something still felt wrong. Kana reached forward and pushed open the small window beside her seat.

Cold night air rushed inside the wagon. Outside, the road had vanished.

A thick fog now blanketed the countryside. But the moment Kana saw it, she frowned.

The color was wrong. Ordinary fog should have been pale and gray, the sort that gently softened shapes and dimmed distant lights.

This fog was different.

The hue carried a strange darkness within it, almost like smoke diluted into the air itself. It was dense and heavy, swallowing the road and the surrounding landscape until everything beyond a few steps from the wagon disappeared completely from view.

Even the faint moonlight above struggled to pierce through the unnatural haze.

“I can’t see anything either,” Suri said suddenly. She had closed her eyes for a moment, quietly activating several of her illusion scouts.

“My illusion scouts can’t see past the fog.”

Her tone carried a rare hint of uncertainty.

But this fog…

Something about it interfered with them. Joan leaned slightly forward from her seat, her expression sharpening as she glanced toward Kana.

“Is this normal here?” she asked cautiously.

Kana’s voice dropped lower. “Definitely not.”

Then suddenly—

Kana froze.

Her [Night Awareness]. Something had entered the far edge of her perception. One heartbeat. Then another. Then another. Kana’s gaze slowly shifted toward the fog outside the window. Those heartbeats were wrong. Too slow. Too heavy. And most importantly…

They didn’t feel human.

Kana’s eyes narrowed as she focused on the approaching presence.

Her voice lowered to a quiet warning.

“…Something is coming.”

Beyond the wagon, deep within the unnatural fog, something large moved.

And it was getting closer.

Post note:Is Suri truly listening? 😂Hope you enjoy the chap! 🙂

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