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I moved stealthily, avoiding the eyes of the knights and servants, as I thoroughly searched the Icevant Fortress.
I had only one goal.
"…Alo, that suspicious guy. Where are you hiding?"
My mission was to find Alo and watch him closely, 24/7, to uncover any clues about his true identity.
'Let's see how long you can keep up that innocent, clueless act. It won't work on me!'
Based on my instincts (and let me emphasize, my instincts are backed by years of reading countless romance fantasy novels), there were two possible scenarios for Alo's identity:
1. A scheming man pretending to be clueless or suffering memory loss, secretly targeting the heroine, Genevia.
2. An assassin or spy sent by the Grand Duchess.
My gut feeling leaned toward the first.
'If it's the first, Sion's love life is in danger. If it's the second, Sion's life itself might be at risk.'
In any case, my purpose was to uncover his true motives and drive him out.
Flapping my wings harder, I searched diligently.
Then, in the distance, I spotted a familiar figure.
With a bundle of feed on one shoulder and Enoch's reins in hand, Alo was heading somewhere.
"…Ha! Found you!"
I followed him, keeping a safe distance, my eyes sharp for anything suspicious.
At that moment, Genevia appeared.
"Alo, there you are!"
When Alo saw her, his face lit up with a bright smile, as warm and friendly as a well-trained dog greeting everyone.
"Genevia."
"How are you feeling today? I came to check on you."
"Alo, no sick now."
The two chatted casually as they walked toward the stables.
I squinted after them, muttering.
"Ha, you dare covet the heroine when you're just some stray? Genevia is Sion's destiny. Try anything funny, and I'll crush you with my fangirl skills!"
Soon after, Alo guided Enoch into the stable and then sat on a nearby bench with Genevia, chatting pleasantly.
I quietly flew into the stable and landed on Enoch's head.
Tap.
[Hmm?]
"Enoch, it's me, Lin."
Enoch shook his head with a snort.
[How dare you climb on me when you're not even my master? Get down right now.]
"I'll give you this. Help me with my investigation."
I waved a treat in front of him, and Enoch immediately calmed down.
"About that Alo guy, have you noticed anything suspicious?"
Enoch sniffed at the treat in my hand and replied.
[Well… I can tell he's terrible at his job. He sticks the hay in upside down, keeps knocking over the water buckets, and every time he cleans up my dung, he gags several times. He's hopeless as a stablehand, an absolute failure.]
"And what else?"
[Hmm… Ah! At night, he often sits alone on a tree stump, staring at the night sky. He seems to have a lot on his mind.]
"…Anything else?"
[Sometimes, he does things similar to the master.]
My eyes sparkled.
"Similar to Sion? Like what?"
Enoch stomped his front hoof and nudged something with it.
Seeing something at his feet, I noticed a rusty metal rod.
No, on closer inspection, it was an old, rusted sword, no longer usable.
[He played around with that. Just like the master.]
"…!!!"
From Enoch's point of view, "playing with a sword" meant sword training.
After all, Sion often took Enoch out to the back garden or the forest clearing to practice swordsmanship.
"Got you."
This was circumstantial evidence that Alo could wield a sword.
I tapped Enoch's snout lightly.
"Thanks. That's helpful!"
[Now hand over the treat.]
I nodded, broke the cookie in half, and popped one piece into Enoch's mouth and the other into mine.
[Hey, you little—!]
"Nom nom, see you later!"
Flapping my wings, I flew toward the bench where Genevia and Alo were sitting.
By then, their small talk seemed to be wrapping up.
"Well, Alo, I should get going. I still have to check on the other knights. If you feel unwell again, please let me know."
"Got it. Alo, sick, tell Genevia."
"Yes, good."
Genevia left.
I darted forward, appearing suddenly right in front of Alo.
Even though I popped out of thin air, Alo showed no sign of surprise, as if he already knew I was watching.
"Fairy. Came to play."
I planted my hands on my hips and spoke boldly.
"Play my foot. Now that it's just the two of us, drop the act, will you?"
"……"
"Speak. What are you really?"
Alo blinked at me, then began humming a tune while gazing up at the sky.
His deliberate, blatant disregard made me yell.
"I know you can handle a sword. So confess before things get ugly."
At that, his gaze returned to me.
His eyes shimmered with a mix of curiosity and amusement.
'See that? I knew it.'
Prepared to use my fangirl powers to knock him out if necessary, I swallowed hard.
"Are you a pervert? An assassin? A spy? Or are you after Genevia?"
"……"
"Don't tell me…! Are you here to harm my Sion? Is that it?!"
Sensing the sharpness in my tone, Alo shrugged his shoulders and let out a deep sigh.
"Fairy. You're annoying Alo."
"What, what!?"
"Alo hurts no one. Alo just wants a quiet life."
"…!?"
I furrowed my brows, unable to understand what he meant. His thick eyebrows and beard twitched slightly.
Though his face was mostly hidden by the unkempt hair and beard, it seemed like he was smiling.
Then, for the first time, Alo laughed aloud.
"Hahaha. Fairy, so interested in Alo. Do you… like Alo?"
At his ridiculous words, I momentarily lost my momentum.
"Lin?"
A voice called from above.
"…?"
When I looked up, I saw Sion and Garen gazing down at us from the fortress wall.
They must have heard our voices while passing by.
We weren't that far apart, so Sion's eyes locked onto mine immediately.
"Ah, Sion~!"
I waved my hands excitedly.
But Sion's expression as he looked down at me was strangely blank.
'Sure, he's usually expressionless, but… isn't he even more expressionless than usual right now?'
Moments later, without a word, Sion turned and walked away.
"…Huh?"
I blinked in confusion.
Garen followed him, also wearing a puzzled look.
"What's going on?"
As I mumbled in bewilderment, Alo watched the whole thing and, with a dumb, careless grin, said.
"Sion. Angry. Fairy."
I glared sharply at Alo.
"Shut up. I can see that myself."
"Hahaha."
Deciding to ignore the now blatantly cheeky Alo, I kept my gaze fixed on where Sion had disappeared.
'What was that about? Why…?'
Was he upset? His face looked somewhat displeased.
I couldn't tell.
A little while later, Alo returned to his chores, moving feed, cleaning the stable, and doing other tasks.
'…Enoch was right. He really is terrible at this.'
Though he seemed to be working earnestly, everything he did looked clumsy, like someone who had never done such tasks before.
I hovered nearby, watching him closely with hawk-like eyes.
'A man with memory loss and cognitive issues, skilled with a sword, but inexperienced at menial work, and no such character existed even as a background extra in the original story.'
I racked my brain in frustration.
Just then, I sensed movement behind me.
When I turned, I saw Sion and Garen coming out of the fortress and heading toward us.
"Ah."
I quickly darted toward Sion.
"Sion!"
Fortunately, it seemed I had been mistaken earlier about Sion being upset. When I perched on his shoulder, he didn't say anything.
"What brings you here? Did you come to see me?"
I couldn't hide my excitement as I chattered away. Sion, watching me silently, finally asked.
"I've been assigned to a mission. I'll be away from the fortress for a few hours. Are you coming with me?"
"What? Outside the fortress?"
I inhaled sharply.
Outside the fortress meant the borderlands connected to the Alketa Glacier, a dangerous area teeming with beasts.
There was no way I'd let Sion go alone, so I nodded firmly.
"Of course! I'm coming too!"
"…Alright."
At my answer, Sion's expression noticeably softened.
'As I thought, he feels reassured knowing I'll be with him.'
Just then, a woman I'd never seen before approached us. She had short, cropped hair.
"Ah, hello. I'm Shona, the wall design manager assigned to handle the barrier repairs for this mission. It's an honor to meet you, knights."
The woman, wearing round glasses, was slightly out of breath and bowed deeply, looking nervous.
Despite her petite frame, she carried an enormous backpack.
"Excuse me, but what's all that luggage?"
Garen asked.
Shona pushed up her glasses and replied seriously,
"These are the tools, equipment, and materials needed to repair the barrier. The outer wall is in a dangerous area, so I brought everything that might possibly be needed."
"…I see."
The weight of the pack was clearly more than her own body weight, and she stumbled slightly.
Garen frowned.
"We might need a porter. The young lord and I are responsible for protection, so we can't carry supplies in case of an emergency."
"…True."
At that, I suddenly had a great idea.
"A porter? I know the perfect guy."
I pointed toward Alo, who was sweeping inside the stable in the distance.
"Let's take him."
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