Chapter 30.1

To this very important question, Bertram gave a sad answer.

He shook his head.

“Mr. Dieter came and found me before I began eating. I haven’t had anything yet.”

“Goodness. Anna packed all kinds of things to get you a meal, but it looks like you two missed each other.”

Bertram immediately made to run back to the dorms. Carla swiftly delivered a kick to his shin.

“That’s enough! As soon as you miss someone, you’re bound to keep missing each other every time you move from then on. Just have a seat here for now.”

“I understand.”

“…And there’s something I need to say to you.”

“I am listening.”

It looked as if Bertram already knew what his fate was to be.

As Bertram sat there looking prim and proper, Carla brought out the hefty words she had tried to foist onto her daughter earlier with a heavy heart.

“Please leave our village. Even if you’re not a criminal, it’s a burden having sword-wielding mercenaries around town.”

“…I understand.”

“Your pursuers will be going near the farm before noon to chase out the wolves. If you don’t want to stumble across them, you should leave now.”

“Yes. Thank you very much for everything up until now. I wish you good health.”

Seeing Bertram standing up abruptly from his seat, it was rather Carla’s chest that felt achingly empty.

Was it truly going to end like this…? Without a single plea from him to stay longer, or to at least see Anna before he left….

However, Bertram did not even leave a parting glance before he left. His silhouette soon disappeared into the light.

“…Hah, really. He leaves just as ridiculously as the way he came.”

Dieter also sneakily poked his head outside the kitchen.

“Did he leave?”

“He lef-…. Dear me, what am I thinking?!”

“What is it! Did that b*st*rd steal something?”

“I sent him off without breakfast! What do I do now?”

“Please don’t take fright at something like that!”

“I literally sent off someone who explicitly told me that he’s been starving his poor stomach out this entire morning, okay? What now, I regret it so much!”

Dieter was rendered speechless for a moment before he belatedly devised a plan.

“Mother. If you pack me some food, I’ll catch up to him real quick and give it to him.”

“Yeah right. I can see you thinking of something else entirely, you know. You’re thinking of going to straight to his pursuers to tattle, aren’t you?”

“…Not… not at all?”

“Enough of that BS, go peel your potatoes. I’m saving your life here, you know.”

“Huh?”

“Mr. Bertram is a soldier. He would’ve seen right through your petty designs. If I was him, I would’ve waited right out the backyard and chopped off your neck the moment you appeared.”

“Geh….”

“If you understand, then start peeling potatoes where I can see you.”

Dieter obediently picked up a potato.

In the meantime, Bertram’s feet headed to a certain location.

Although he’d replied “Yes” to Carla, he had not a single intention to leave this village.

After all, he hadn’t heard who he was to Anna yet.

Sorry as he might be to Franz and his soldiers, who’d come to such a faraway land for him, Bertram headed straight to the refuge with all intentions to hide until they were tired of looking for him.

Halfway up the mountain, to the cursed castle.

***

When Anna reached the sleeping quarters, bringing with her the smell of meat, there was nothing waiting for her.

Seeing how a shirt and his cloak were fluttering with the breeze on the laundry lines, she could be sure that Bertram had at least been there.

Anna grabbed a worker to ask.

“Where did Mr. Bertram go?”

“I think I saw him go down with Dieter earlier.”

“….argh, that fool. Alright, thank you!”

“It’s nothing. Did you come to give Bertram breakfast? Looks like you brought a lot of great stuff.”

The worker’s nostrils flared. The smell of meat had gotten to him, it seemed.

Getting Bertram to eat this right away was nigh impossible now. Anna spread all the things she’d brought on the dorm table.

“Eat this with everyone.”

“Didn’t you prepare this to feed Bertram? Is it okay for us to eat this?”

“Of course. I’ll whip up something else for him to eat.”

If she had the chance to feed him anything, that was.

Her bag now empty, Anna shoved all of Bertram’s remaining things into it and began running.

‘Dieter that dimwit, where’d he take Mr. Bertram! Don’t tell me he brought him to his house to make him work or something, would he?’

She dropped by at Dieter’s, but all she got was Collie asking, ‘Didn’t see him, but did that dolt do something idiotic again?’

Fruitless, Anna ran off again. Her breath catches in her throat.

After roaming all around the village, in the end the place she returned to was the restaurant, on time to begin preparing for the lunchtime rush.

Someone in the corner was peeling potatoes.

With an ecstatic smile, Anna sprinted in, but the person who came out with his two arms held wide open was none other than—

“Anna!”

Dieter, he of a big smile and a half-peeled potato in his hand.

After delivering a hefty punch to his solar plexus to shut him up, Anna went up to Carla to ask.

“Mom!”

“I sent him away. The pursuers won’t have seen him.”

No names were mentioned.

After finishing their talk with a single phrase, Carla threw her daughter an apron as if nothing had happened.

It felt as if she had been grabbed by the collar and thrown back into everyday life by force.

“Start getting ready for business. Nothing happened here. Understand?”

“…Yes.”

At her listless answer, Carla narrowed her eyes, but there was nothing more to be said.

With her mind completely blank, Anna began going through the motions of what she usually did. Greeting customers, delivering food to the workers at the farm….

Franz and co. only returned when it was dinnertime. As if to show how much they’d roamed about, the soldiers’ hands were trembling as they spooned up soup. The only one who looked relatively fine was Franz.