[Vol 1] Chapter 1 – The Girl who Swims in the Fountain of Mists (1/2)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

1-1

Don’t go into the depths of the forest——

Even though people have told this to her time and time again, the girl still went deep into the forest.

“Let’s compete to see who can harvest the most wild strawberries!”

The children had decided on the compet.i.tion, and so they started picking nearby the town——But she got gotten separated from her friends while concentrating on harvesting the wild strawberries. When she realized, she had already gotten lost.

Due to her running around anxiously, she had no idea where she was.

Carrying the basket with a hill of wild strawberries, she surveyed her surroundings worriedly.

“Where is… everyone…?”

Her fearful voice started to tremble.

Since they had left in the early morning, it wasn’t even noon yet. Yet, no matter how high the sun rose in the sky, the depths of the forest was still filled with danger. This danger didn’t change regardless of day or night.

There was a certain radius around the town where wild beasts would not approach due to the “Belfry of Beast Avoidance” within. But the effective range of it did not cover the deepest parts of the forest.

The confused girl raised her volume.

“… Everyone! Where are you!?”

Nearby, someone heard her voice.

Sadly, this was very unfortunate for her —— the being wasn’t a “human”, but a ferocious beast that inhabited the area. Even more unfortunate, it had an empty stomach.

Noticing the roar of the beast from behind, the girl’s body stiffened.

A huge wolf appeared from the shades of the trees. It had a physique comparable to that of a bear.

The girl held her breath.

That was the black wolf that stood at the top of the foodchain. Even though the black pelt of this ferocious beast could sell for a very high price, hunters rarely attempted to hunt it.

The black wolf pressed its paws into the ground.

The girl twitched her body due to a bone-chilling fear, she couldn’t even utter a sound.

The scene perfectly portrayed the natural law of survival of the fittest.

Following that, the black wolf prepared to pounce onto the pitiful girl.

At this moment, an unforeseen obstructor appeared.

“Ahhhh —— I was planning to nap till the evening.”

A very calm voice without tension came down from the trees.

Hearing this, the girl couldn’t help but look up.

The black wolf also noticed that it had missed a prey, and became more vigilant.

However, they were unable to see the figure due to the overgrown branches.

The owner of the voice went “En” without showing his face.

“A starving black wolf and a cute girl carrying wild strawberries —— Then, for a gentleman, who should I support as a companion?”

The black wolf let out a low growl.

The terrified girl collapsed onto the floor.

The voice let out a snicker.

It wasn’t a sneer, nor was it a laughter.

It would be better described as a bit lonely —— the voice once again calmly laughed.

“My lady, your luck is pretty good. It looks like I have no room for hesitation, it has already recognized me as an enemy. Since it has become like this, there is nothing left to talk about —— being a ‘sorcerer’, I can only accept a challenge.”

After the cool voice resounded —— a black shadow jumped down from the trees.

The paralysed girl stared blankly at the shadow.

In an instant, her vision was obstructed by a “shadow”.

1-2

There was a beautiful fountain beside the town of Misthound.

From ancient times, it had been called the “Fountain of Rising Mists”, it had become famous as a summer resort for the royalty.

Their visits stopped since a certain time. Now it had become a rural area whose population is no longer increasing, but at least the beautiful scenario faced no destruction.

The clear underground water gus.h.i.+ng out of the fountain was covered by small particles of white sand. As the morning sun rose high up into the sky, the sand would emit a dazzling light under the reflection of the spring water.

The morning sunlight caused the white sand and the clear water to stand out; at dawn, the water will be dyed red by the setting sun; and at night, the water will s.h.i.+ne blue under the glow of the moon.

A hundred years ago, a poet once praised this fountain, ever shaped by the movement of time, describing it was “the happiness and sorrows of an enchanting young woman”, and because of the refres.h.i.+ng taste of the water, it was called “moon drops”.

(… But not matter how you think about it, these metaphors were far too exaggerated.)

It was now noon.

Apprentice pharmacist Selo sat idly by the lake, silently judging the deceased poet.

The fountain reflected in his eyes had no difference compared to before.

Selo grew up staring at the fountain, and it has always just been an ordinary fountain. It was only a slightly larger pool, changing its color along with the light. The taste of the water wasn’t anything special either.

It was rather convenient to treat the water here as drinking water, but everyone usually just draw the underground water from the well. Even though the water here was exaggeratedly called moondrops, it was still the same water as any other. It wasn’t as if this fountain had heaven’s blessing.

Moreover, despite how this huge fountain was about a hundred meters away from the opposite sh.o.r.e, it was not a suitable fis.h.i.+ng ground, since the water is too clear for the fish to inhabit here. This was a disadvantage which he had paid heed to.

He never wanted to complain about the deceased poet, but, travelers and locals would always differ in views.

“ —— Ahhh, there’s no helping it. After you get used to it, even beautiful things will seem normal…”

Selo’s mutterings as he gazed at the fountain did not hold any special meaning.

A girl is currently leisurely taking a bath there.

Her tender and beautiful body floated on the clear water, she stretched her limbs delightfully while closing her eyes.

Her wet, light colored hair glistened on the surface of the water.

The girl wore shorts and a bathrobe which covered her chest, but only a thin cloth was tied on her waist, leaving her shoulders and legs exposed.

Selo tried hard not to stare, but she had an extremely strong sense of presence.

Although it was disrespectful to stare, putting the girl at the back of his mind would make him a failure a guard.

The girl enjoying the bath was the n.o.ble which Selo served —— Ordoba·Misthound·Doriarudo’s adopted daughter. To be more precise, the relations.h.i.+p between the n.o.ble and her is that of an uncle and a niece.

After losing her parents at a young age —— Firiano·Misthound·Doriarudo was adopted by her uncle and grew up in this area.

She was 16, older than the 14 years old Selo by 2 years.

Since “Firiano” was too long of a name, and she didn’t like it much, everyone that lived in the town called her “Lady Fino”.

Suddenly, Fino who was in the fountain waved towards Selo with her slender arms.

“Nee, c’mon Selo, it feels great to be unrestrained.”

The girl’s invitation was filled with a carefree atmosphere.

Selo continued to avert his eyes and answered.

“I’m good, I don’t want to get my sword wet.”

“Can’t you just put the sword on the side?”

Fino asked surprisingly. This caused Selo, who came as a guard, to feel a bit helpless.

“Then I have no idea why I came as a guard. I also didn’t bring a change of clothes, nor a towel to wipe myself dry…”

It’s fine, Selo is a boy. Even if you’re topless it would be fine. As for the towel, I’ll lend you mine.”

Hearing Fino say that natural, it made Selo quite troubled. It seems like she didn’t have the self-conscious that she was the daughter of a n.o.ble.

Recently, Fino had matured very quickly. After turning sixteen, not only had her body grown, her bearings and facial expressions became more feminine.

However, to Selo who she grew up with, she didn’t change how she acted. In fact, she became even more caring.

(To Fino, I must feel like a worrisome little brother——)

Being younger than her, Selo felt like that quite often.

The people in the mansion told him, “You’re not a child anymore, you have to be aware of your own status”, Fino should have also been warned by the adoptive father Ordoba.

Even so, she still stubbornly wanted to keep her original relations.h.i.+p with Selo.

To Selo, this made him feel very happy, and at the same time uneasy.

Fino looked up towards the sky and closed her eyes, slowly drifting on the water surface.

It was by chance that there were only the two of them left today. Normally, this was a great location where the local children played with water.

The deepest part of the water was only up to the waist, and there was also a sandy sh.o.r.e at the edge of the fountain. That was where Selo was sitting. Even though this wasn’t the sea, it still possess such a unique geographical feature.

This geographical feature had been here since the ancient times.

This place used to be a barren land without a water source. A sorcerer that came here must had recreated it based on his ideal paradise.

It was said that the fountain was the first thing he made.

He used magic tools to scoop out the land, covered it with white sand, then drew out the water from the underground.

Because of this, the forest started to grow around the fountain, and people began to inhabit here, eventually developing into the town of Misthound.

The descendants of the sorcerer once ruled the town, but his bloodline had long died out.

The mayor was a n.o.ble sent by the government, who also controlled the Belfry of Beast Avoidance.

Fino’s adoptive father Ordoba·Misthound·Doriarudo was the n.o.ble who came here at a young age and became the mayor.

Even though he had a peerage, but because he was from a branch family, he didn’t inherit any territory.

His middle name “Misthound” was also named after the city. A sorcerer’s middle name was usually their territory, birthplace or organization name. It wasn’t unusual to have it change multiple times in a lifetime. Most n.o.ble sorcerers followed this tradition.

There were also some strange people who chose to use names of non-existent places, or used a name that they fancied.

Both the adopted daughter Fino, and the adoptive father of the Doriarudo family were the same, using the name “Misthound” as their middle name.

Fino had a considerable amount of strength as a sorcerer. She didn’t need Selo as a guard to protect her —— But her careless and defenceless att.i.tude made Selo rather anxious.

Fino didn’t seem to notice this, every time she went out, she was sure to make Selo tag along.

The morning light was slowly fading away, the sun rose higher into the sky. Noon was already nigh.

Selo called Fino who was always submerged in the water.

“Fino, it’s about time to get back to the mansion. Don’t you have guests in the afternoon?”

“Ahhh… Then… let’s escape from it.”

She muttered annoyingly.

Selo wasn’t unable to understand her feelings, although he didn’t know who the guest was, he understood that Fino disliked socializing with other n.o.bles.

But she was still Ordoba’s adoptive daughter, Doriarudo family’s ojou-sama, this is the unwavering truth.

“Escaping wouldn’t solve the issue. If Fino doesn’t go home on time, I would become the primary suspect.”

“That isn’t too bad! Let’s elope together!”Fino said in a laughing manner, splas.h.i.+ng water everywhere as she stood up in the water.

The droplets of water on her body dazzled under the sunlight. Selo was mesmerized seeing the scene before him.

“Never mind, making Selo become the primary suspect is too pitiful—— It can’t be helped, I’ll return.”

Fino closed one eye and spoke condescendingly.

Selo lightly hung his head. In a certain way, his fate was within her grasp.

Stretching herself as she swam to the sh.o.r.e, Fino took the towel from Selo’s side and began to wipe her body.

“Selo, can you wipe my body for me?”

“… Recently Fino’s jokes have stopped being funny.”

She giggled.

Perhaps having enough fun, Fino put on her clothes. Meanwhile, Selo gazed towards the forest.

The forest on the other side of the fountain was thick and wide.

The Belfry of Beast Avoidance became ineffective further on from here.

Selo gazed alarmingly towards the front, a rustling sound from someone stepping on a dry branch was heard.

He quickly placed his hand on the sword that was attached to his waist in surprise.

He didn’t have much confidence in the sword. But unable to use any magic tools, it was one of the few things that could protect himself from the hara.s.sment of wild beasts.

Fino also heard the sound. Not long later, a small figure come out from the shadows of the trees.

Seeing the figure, Selo relaxed his grip.

“… Ehhh? What happened, isn’t this Marill?”

It looks like it was one of the local children. The girl was very young and always chased after those older than herself, but today she was all alone.

“Ahh! Selo! And Fino-ane!”The girl’s face instantly gleamed up, she rushed over quickly. In her hands was a basket that had a small mountain of wild strawberries.

“Marill? Why are you all alone here? It’s very dangerous!”

Fino, who had just finished dressing up, immediately hugged Marill. Even though she was a n.o.ble, the worrisome Fino is loved by the local children in town, and was treated as an older sister, she is very well-received in their hearts.

Marill who was tightly hugged by Fino excitedly said.

“That. That! Just now…!”

She suddenly stopped.

“Ahh… I promised I wouldn’t say anything. Sorry, but I’m alright!”

Hearing this blatant lie, Selo raised his eyebrows. Marill wasn’t a lying child, so someone must have stopped her from speaking the truth.

“No, that’s impossible. Did you go into the forest by yourself?”

“Noo, I get separated with everyone else. Then.. it’s a secret!”

Facing Marill, who was all smiles, Selo and Fino looked at each other.

She who got lost in the forest was helped by “someone” —— it looks like that’s what happened.

“… Who do you think it is?”

To the whispering Fino, Selo vaguely answered.

“Saying it would only cause trouble. That must be someone who was skipping work…”

“Or maybe a couple that was on a secret rendezvous——? Never mind, it doesn’t matter who it is. Follow me, Marill. Everyone must be worried about you.”

Fino held Marill’s hand and let out a concerning smile.

Selo didn’t know any n.o.ble ladies apart from Fino. But, he still understood that she had a unique personality among n.o.bles.

The children in the city also noticed this, so they naturally got close with her.

Selo gazed into the basket that Marill is carrying.

“Speaking of which, Marill, there are a lot of wild strawberries here, did you harvest all of them by yourself?”

“Yeah, while I was harvesting, I didn’t pay attention and went deep into the forest…”

Fino sighed, and lightly stroked Marill’s hair.

“That’s scary… Marill, don’t go into the forest so casually. If you were caught by the goblins or black wolves, you could even lose your life. The Belfry of Beast Avoidance’s effective range doesn’t cover this far.

She scolded Marill lightly, Fino then retrieved a small wooden horse that could fit within her palm from the pouch that Selo was guarding.

Fino named this cute black horse with a red saddle “Liquorice”.

“Awaken——“

The small wooden horse glowed with a pale light, accepting her will.

She lightly tossed it towards the sand, the wooden horse remained exactly the same, but its size had become equivalent to that of a real horse.

Its rounds legs floated in the air.

The horse-shaped magic tool was the “Celestial Wooden Horse” made by Selo’s grandfather, it was given to Fino as a birthday present.

Although the creator Zerdonato pa.s.sed away three years ago, the wooden horse could still move. Although it wasn’t as strong as a real horse, but it could still transport people and fly at low alt.i.tudes. It was a true masterpiece that allowed the rider not to worry about the geographical features underneath oneself.

Fino always cherished this wooden horse.

If not used properly, the magic tool was unable to last long.

By pouring mana into the magic tools, they could develop just like a living thing. Even if it was an excellent magic tool, whether or not its full potential could be brought out also depended on the sorcerer themselves.

Seeing Fino treasuring his grandfather’s wooden horse, it made Selo very happy.

They first let Marill climb on, then Fino sat behind her.

“Selo could sit too, we have to send Marill back to everyone before we go back home, so we’re a bit rushed.”

Selo calmly shook his head.

“I’ll pa.s.s, its too dangerous riding with three people. Since we came all the way here, I should pick some herbs as I walk back.”

Fino revealed a disappointed expression after hearing his reply.

“Is that so? Then see you later.”

Selo’s refusal wasn’t by chance. Just two days ago, they were seen riding together by the people at the mansion and he was scolded a lot.

Gazing at the fleeting wooden horse, Selo began to walk.

After taking a few steps, he noticed something behind him and turned back to look.

From where deepest parts of the forest where Marill had come out from——

Selo felt the presence of “something”.

“… Is someone there?”

At that moment —— several birds flew out from there.

Selo relaxed a little and laughed bitterly by himself. It seems like his instincts were wrong.

He turned his back to the fountain once more and started to head back to the town.

——Selo didn’t notice.

From the depths of the forest, the pair of eyes that gazed at his back——

Saving Marill from the wild beast, the miraculous existence that sent her here——

The meeting between the owner of the gaze, it’ll have to wait a little longer——

1-3

After dropping off Marill with the other children that were harvesting wild strawberries, Fino immediately returned to the mansion.

This mansion was not the property of the Doriarudo family, but rather the official living quarters for “generations of the mayors of Misthound”. In other words, this was essentially rented. But after staying here for so long, Fino felt like it was no different from her own home.

To Fino who had moved here at a young age, this was also where she first met Selo. Back then his grandfather —— magic tool craftsman Zerdonato was still alive.

Selo was only six back then, and Fino was eight. But thinking back, Selo already had a mature atmosphere surrounding him.

His black hair and deep blue eyes, and his slightly pale skin. These were very different to the locals of this area.

Fino had nearly mistaken him for a girl the first time she met Selo.

Back then, his face was cute like a little girl’s, and had a hint of loneliness on his face, but his clear eyes always looked forward.

Although he “couldn’t use magic tools”, the calmness and intelligence already made him the centre of attention among the children.

Since their age were quite close, and could emphasize with each other about their now deceased parents, Selo and Fino quickly got to know each other.

Although their social status were different, but the status of “n.o.bles” didn’t mean anything special to the children.

However, it was possible that Selo no longer remembered about what happened long ago.

These were very important memories to Fino, but he definitely forgot. Although it was regrettable, there was no helping it.

Fino, who was older than Selo by two years, also couldn’t remember what happened when she was six —— so it was unsurprising for Selo to have forgotten what happened back then.

Furthermore, he probably forgot what happened a few years back as well. This is because when becoming an adult, people tend to gradually forget about their childhood memories.

Thinking about Selo when he was younger, Fino giggled on the wooden horse.

The once cute young boy is now becoming more valiant. Although he is still shorter than Fino, in a few years time, Selo will surely grow taller than her.

Though happy for his growth, she began to feel a little lonely.

Watching the maturing Selo, Fino always felt unease. She tried to wish numerous times so that time could stay still, but her wish was no longer able to be fulfilled.

Fino got off the horse in front of the mansion and placed her hands on the saddle.

“—— Sleep.”

The Celestial Wooden Horse reacted to her clear voice, instantly shrinking back to its original size.

Fino tucked the small wooden horse into a pouch hanging by her waist and was just about to walk through the front gate.

At this moment.

The overlapping sound of hooves could be heard slowly approaching the mansion from the street in front of it.

“Ahhh, this is bad…”

Realising that it was the guest, Fino frantically rushed through the gate and ran towards the mansion.

At the same time, the butler and servants in the mansion also walked towards the outside to receive the guests.

A maid called Kardena grabbed Fino’s wrist.

“Fino-sama, where did you go? Please get ready immediately, I will prepare a change of clothes for you.”

The maid Kardena angrily shouted. She was only twenty this year, but had been Ordoba’s maid since she was a young girl, because of this she had been in the mansion slightly longer than Fino.

Also, she was also the first maid to start taking care of Fino when Fino first moved here.

A calm brick-colored hair and neat features gave people a sense of capability. In reality, she was also deeply trusted by Ordoba.

Furthermore, although she was a maid, to Fino she was a trustworthy older sister.

“I’m sorry, Kardena. But isn’t the time earlier than expected?”

“What are you talking about, it’s already noon. Fino-sama had returned slightly later.”

It looks like they stayed a little longer in the fountain than they imagined, when she was with Selo, time seemed to pa.s.s by so much quicker.

Fino was just about to rush into her room when her adoptive father Ordoba suddenly appeared in the hallway.

Seeing Fino who just got back, he nodded.

“This clothing isn’t too terrible. You don’t have to change, just fix your hair as we walk.”

The maid Kardena obeyed his orders and took a comb from inside the room.

Ordoba·Misthound·Doriarudo was a brilliant sorcerer in his fifties.

He had a physique far larger than the common sorcerer’s, his shoulders were as tough as that of a warrior.

He looked fearless, and just by standing in place would exhibit his dignified atmosphere.

Even so, his personality was not as strict as he looked. He didn’t interfere with his adoptive daughter Fino too much, nor was he harsh towards his servants, he was a good master.

However, regardless of good and bad, he still possessed the mindset of a n.o.ble, and drew a clear distinctive line between himself and non-n.o.bles. This was the major difference between him and Fino.

As they walked side by side, the adoptive father frowned and asked.

“Speaking of which, it was good that you managed to come back on time. Did you go out with that apprentice pharmacist again?”

“No. Today I was with Marill. Selo’s not home?”

Fino held her head up and feigned ignorance.

Her tone of speech was completely different to when she was talking with Selo earlier.

Uninterested in Fino’s lie, Ordoba said quietly.

“… It’s about time you two separate. Having a n.o.ble like you by his side, it’ll cause him a lot of trouble. You know you are from different worlds right?”

“Yes I understand. Please don’t worry, I’m Ordoba’s daughter.”

Fino replied for the sake of it.

She had no interested in quarrelling with her adoptive father. Their point of views were parallel, never meeting at the same point, and from the standpoint of a n.o.ble, what her father said had its merits.

The people in the mansion thought so as well, Selo seemed to have been reminded by the other servants privately.

To Fino, she didn’t want to cause trouble for Selo. The more she argued, the worse it became for him.

That’s why she chose to remain silent.

Kardena tidied up Fino’s dry hair and brushed down her skirt.

In front of the mansion owner and the ojou-sama. The gate finally opened.

In front of everyone was a tall and handsome young knight.

To Fino who thought that all the guests would be middle-aged men, she was quite surprised. Although her expressions didn’t reveal her thoughts, these guests truly surprised her.

It was a handsome man with blond hair and amber eyes, an image that seemingly came out of a picture. If he was to go to the market, he would surely cause a lot of heads to turn.

The military uniform on his body was new and coupled with his fresh expression, it gave people a very clean and gallant impression.

Despite this, the gaze Fino used to glance at him was very cold.

From her perspective, the self-confident look that he had seemed strangely unpleasant.

Behind him were his subordinate knights.

Although they were also wearing military uniforms, but because their positions were different, the young man at the front wore a black uniform, the others wore a dark green one.

Within these people were also a few female knights.

The leading young knight swiftly bowed, and looked towards Ordoba and Fino.

“This is our first meeting. I am the Captain of the Royal Magic Knights 8th Squad, stationed at Lonbordo, Helmbekt·Sanelfowl ·Redafurio. I have come for a mission, it is a pleasure to meet you two.”

He said sincerely, with a tone full of pride that only those serving the royal would possess.

“Sanelfowl” was a middle name that only soldiers serving the “Nelfowl” royal family could have.

Fino and her adoptive father bowed to their guest.

Ordabo welcomed him in a deep voice.

“The journey must have been long. Welcome to our humble home. I am the mayor of the city, Ordoba·Misthound·Doriarudo. Speaking of which, after the journey you must be tired. I have prepared rooms for your knights, please relax and wash away your tiredness. We can do the greetings later——”

At this moment, Fino noticed that her adoptive father and the captain named Helmbekt exchanged glances.

She pretended not to notice, and used a tone befitting of an ojou-sama.

“Helmbekt-sama and fellow knights, please come this way, I shall lead the way.”

“Thank you very much, uhmm…”

“My apologies, I’m Firiano, Ordoba’s daughter.”

Fino greeted him like nothing happened, and Helmbekt only smiled while nodding his head.

“Being led by the ojou-sama is an honor. But I didn’t think you would have such a beautiful daughter… I had thought Ordaba-sama was single, so I’m a bit surprised.”

Ordabo smiled wryly.

“Actually she’s the daughter of my now deceased younger sister. I adopted her when she was little.”

Hearing this, Helmbekt raised his eyebrows.

His face showed as expression as if he “said something out of place”.

“That was very impolite of me. Please forgive me.”

“It’s okay, it’s a thing from the past.”

Fino couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable.

Father’s and Helmbekt’s speech did not seem to answer each other fully.

There was no meaning in this string of speech. Although it was no different from formal speech, it made people feel uncomfortable.

More precisely, it was as if he already knew about Fino’s circ.u.mstances and only acted like he was sorry.

{What did these people come here for——}

This question obviously appeared in her mind.

“What business do you have here today?”

Fino asked as she walked in the front. Helmbekt replied with a gentle smile.

——She didn’t know why, but his smile made gooseb.u.mps appear all over Fino.

“For a part of the mission, we hope to secure the aid of the famous Ordoba-sama… This is our wish.”

Ordoba once against smiled wryly.

“What are you saying… I know my own limits. Fino, Helmbekt-sama has come to help me with research. The following few days, we will talk more in detail.”

When their gazes crossed, Ordoba and Helmbekt seemed to be trying to pry into each other’s true intentions.

Fino felt disgusted from the depth of her heart.

Secret negotiations and arrangements between sorcerers were very weird, she couldn’t help but dislike it. Adults often seemed to act like children even in the adult world.

Having arrived in front of the room, Helmbekt once against politely bowed and naturally grabbed Fino’s hand.

“Lady Fino, it has been a pleasure. See you later ——“

Before she reacted, Helmbekt had already lightly kissed the back of her hand.

A s.h.i.+ver went down Fino’s spine.

She returned a smile and instantly left the scene.

Fino tried to use her clothes to wipe her arms, but no matter what she did, the feeling didn’t disappear.

For a n.o.ble greeting, Helmbekt’s actions were not out of place. Even understanding this, Fino still felt a strong sense of disgust.