Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 229

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 229.
Choose the Dawn (41)
Navigator,
I who run along the path you have opened
am the warrior you have born
the warrior to whom you gave wings

Never lingering,
always pointing toward some new verdant cape,
you who cannot help but follow
you who cannot help but advance together

The young boy’s voice, now past the change of adolescence, had grown as deep and blue as the sea itself.
The navigator could be none other than Nauplion. Within that chant lay all of Boris’s heart toward Nauplion—reverence, affection, and gratitude alike.
When Boris finished his song, Isolet suddenly startled, as though awakening from a trance.
Boris smiled slightly and spoke.
“I have no great talent—this is all I can offer.”
“A beautiful chant I would not wish to alter. I shall convey it as it is.”
After that, the two hesitated for a moment, as though each harbored words they dared not speak aloud.
Yet it was Isolet who turned away first, and soon her golden hair vanished from the entrance.
Boris walked toward the place where the sea could be seen. That Boris could enter Ebb Tide Island at all was because Hector still honored an oath he had made long ago—to aid him three times.
Upon the sea where a ship bound for Moon Island would sail, ripples sang out with a splash. Save for the narrow strip of earth beneath his feet, as it had been when he first came with Nauplion, this place stretched in all directions beyond the reach of sight—truly strange.
It teaches that one can stand alone in this vast world, and that only a single person can be seen.
Shortly after, Boris watched a white-sailed ship begin to move.
The wind was not swift, yet it pushed gently enough. Boris walked to the cliff’s edge and stood precariously, watching Isolet’s ship. No—watching Isolet herself.
Soon after, Isolet also turned to look this way. Her black cloak billowed, making her conspicuous.
It was not so far. Isolet’s expression was unreadable as she could not tear her eyes from Boris upon the fortress. The same was true for Boris. At a distance where no word could reach, meaningful only to birds, fervent gazes passed between them unseen—and yet, in this place where no one could blame either of them for such a look.
Boris slowly raised his hand.
Isolet saw it. Boris forming a great circle with both his arms. The hand signal she had taught him long ago—the one created by the Ilios Priest.
There was only one person in this world who could understand its meaning: Isolet alone.

‘Look here.’

Ah, she was looking. Looking as intently as one could possibly look. She saw the young boy in the distance extend his right arm. Then bend his left arm and cross it over—that was….

‘I wish to be by your side.’

Upon the sea where no one watched, a single tear traced down Isolet’s cheek. She, too, could bear it no longer and raised her hand. And drew the same shape.

‘I want to be by your side….’

Even they, who had never dared express it in words, were utterly honest in this moment. I felt my throat tighten. How desperately I had wanted to be near her.
Those days of gazing upon Isolet’s eyes and hair, listening to her voice—they had vanished like a season’s light, fleeting and irretrievable.
I crossed my wrists again, forming my elbows into a diamond shape, and raised them high. The meaning was unmistakable….

‘I promise you.’

The silent conversation was stronger than any words could be. It was sincerity beyond sincerity itself.
A tempestuous wind whipped my hair about wildly, but I raised my arm in silence and spoke the vow into my own heart.

‘I will live…for you.’

I saw Isolet’s response. My vision blurred, and I hastily wiped my eyes, only for them to blur again as I read her words.

‘I will not forget.’

The wind scattered even my tears. Why had we only now confirmed what lay in each other’s hearts? Had I told her sooner, I could have said anything, done anything with this overwhelming feeling.
Yet in this moment, with only the brief hand signals we possessed, there could be no pretense, no hesitation. As Isolet had first taught me, it was a silent chant. A prayer all the more fervent for being unspoken.
The ship was drifting away, time could not be grasped, and we were seeing into each other’s hearts. We were sending an inaudible chant across the distance.
If only I could run to her side and pour out all the words I had held back in this single moment. I want to speak. I truly want to speak.
Yet the low tide of Ebb Tide Island had ended, and Isolet had to hurry back. We both understood how grave that necessity was.
Even so, it was enough. To know that our hearts were the same. A brilliant azure light, almost too vivid for the eyes to bear, poured down from both sky and sea. Because of that one certainty—that I could wait for her—the entire world seemed transformed.
Even if separated by sea and continent for decades, even if we never met again…I had gained a heart that would never change, and so the future held no fear.
The ship drifted so far that even the hand signals vanished from sight. I lowered my arm and gazed upon Isolet’s figure, committing her to memory for a long time.
Until she grew distant, ever more distant, until even the smallest point of her disappeared.
On a December morning, so much snow had accumulated over several days that a single branch in the garden snapped under the weight.
A servant emerged with a broom, muttering about having to clear the snow again after all the effort of sweeping it before, when suddenly snowballs came flying from somewhere and fell to the ground.
Blinking at the white snow, another one flew and this time left a mark on the wall. It seemed to be coming from beyond the wall, so the servant hurried over to look.
And found myself at a loss for words, stammering.
“Ah, no, I….”
The person who had thrown the snowball raised a finger to their lips, then pointed it toward Jineman Manor.
“Call the young master for me. Don’t mention me—just slip him outside quietly. Over there, that way.”
Lucian, who had been intently studying a thick book down to its final pages, stretched a short while later, yawned, and tapped his own cheeks lightly.
He had risen so early to study before even breakfast because the entrance examination was drawing near. He had planned to depart in five days, arriving two days before the test date.
The teachers all said he had worked hard enough and would surely pass, but how could he be certain when he didn’t know the abilities of the other students? Despite his naturally easygoing temperament, he had never taken an examination before, so honestly, he was worried.
Yet he had never delved into any book this thoroughly before. He had been somewhat surprised to see Boris, who seemed far removed from studying, reading books quite well. But now, when that fellow returned, Lucian would confidently tell him: perhaps I’ve read fewer books than you, but if I’ve read one volume dozens of times, I’ll never lose.
Yet Boris had not returned. He had promised firmly that they would go to school together, and even now, with the examination just around the corner, there was no word from him.
He had left in late summer, and now winter had already arrived…. Where was he? What was he doing? Had something terrible happened to him? Had his task gone well?
As proud as I was of how much I had changed thanks to my friend, I hoped he would return and see who I had become. With that expression, with that gaze—surely someone who had promised and departed would not fail to return.
Whenever such thoughts crossed my mind, anxiety would inevitably follow—the fear that he might be doing something dangerous. I would shake my head and insist it wasn’t so, burying myself in my studies, but as winter deepened, my thoughts of my friend grew equally profound.
Yes, he was a creature of winter itself.
Recently, I had even entertained the absurd notion that perhaps he didn’t want to return to school and was deliberately staying away until after the exams ended.
Once the thought took hold, it seemed plausible enough that I decided to cling to it until the exams were over. That’s why today my mood was relatively bright.
It felt as though something good was about to happen.
“Young Master! Young Master Lucian!”
A servant came rushing over, stopping at the entrance to the parlor before suddenly changing his expression and clearing his throat.
“Young Master, please step out onto the terrace for a moment.”
“The terrace? It’s freezing out there.”
“Even so… just go out for a moment. There’s something wonderful waiting for you.”
“I’m studying right now.”
After giving this answer, I felt rather proud of myself, but the servant, far from praising me, shook his head and kept urging me forward.
“It will only take a moment. You’ll regret it if you don’t go.”
“What on earth is this about?”
At last, I closed my book and headed toward the terrace. It was the same place where I had sat with Boris during the summer, playing dice games and sharing stories. When winter arrived, the green plants withered and the cold wind swept in relentlessly, so I had kept the doors shut ever since.
The servant opened the door and ushered me inside, but he did not enter himself and tried to close the door again.
“Wait? Aren’t you coming in?”
“You’re alone, Young Master!”
As if playing a prank, the servant stubbornly shut the door and fled. Bewildered, I scratched my head and tried to open the door again when suddenly something flew through the air and struck my head.
“Ow!”
As I turned around rubbing my head, another snowball flew at me, hitting my forehead squarely. Brushing the snow from my eyes with both hands, I peered out onto the terrace to see who could possibly be throwing with such brutal force.
“Catch!”
A snowball came flying in an arc this time. I instinctively raised my hand to catch it, and that’s when I spotted the person who had thrown it from below the terrace. I stood frozen.
“What are you doing? The snow’s melting.”
I hadn’t even noticed the water dripping from the snowball in my hand. When I saw the dark-haired boy standing there—the one I thought had vanished forever—tears suddenly welled up in my eyes. Like this, in this way…
“You…”
But another snowball came flying. It seemed he had prepared several in advance, and two or three came at once, hitting my face, arms, and chest without a single miss.
Finally snapping back to my senses, I vaulted over the terrace railing and jumped down outside.
“Ah, so you’re coming out to fight?”
He was right. The moment I reached Boris, I didn’t give him a chance to dodge—I threw my arms around him. His waist buckled under the impact, and his long hair and cloak tumbled down. Boris looked slightly taken aback but didn’t push me away.
“I’m so glad to see you again, you terrible bastard.”
But Lucian was not an easy opponent. Following those words, I shoved the snowball I was holding directly into Boris’s neck.
“That’s a reunion gift! And punishment for not sending word!”
As Boris flinched and pushed me away, I kicked up several more snowballs from the ground.
Snow scattered everywhere, but Boris didn’t back down—he kicked at the pile of snow the servant had swept aside. I leaped up onto it, and in that moment, Boris grabbed the remaining snowballs and took aim while speaking.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t send word.”
“If you’re sorry, surrender.”
“I can’t surrender, but instead…”
A smile spread across his face—the smile of someone who had left yesterday and returned today.
“I came to keep my promise.”
The sky is clear.
Spring had begun in Western Anomarad since the end of February. The mountain ridge that descended in a gentle slope toward the southwest had turned green without anyone noticing. At its far end stood the Nenyafel Magic School.
The most striking buildings at the school were four tall stone towers standing opposite each other. Three of them were connected by bridges, but the northern tower stood isolated. The ancient ivy-covered stone walls of that tower had taken on a yellowish hue. Around it, lower buildings were scattered sparsely.
A short distance away lay a forest that resembled a crouching green rabbit. It was, of course, the people living in the towers who had discovered that the forest had such a shape. They had no choice but to be quite skilled at such observations given their environment.
On the opposite slope lay a valley. Beyond it, a steep descent led down to quite a large river. The school had built a dock on the river, so people coming from the north primarily arrived by boat and disembarked here.
Those coming from the south or east followed the road called Yaplia Road. The Yaplia Road ended at a nearby village, and from there to the school, one had to pass through a broad plain called Cat’s Back Plain and a sloping footpath.
At the point where the footpath began stood a stone arch. On its pillar was a notice stating, in essence, that only those with the school’s permission could enter from here.
Though it was merely a simple notice written on a wooden plaque, no one dared to ignore it. Cat’s Back Plain belonged to Nenyafel School and was protected by a magical barrier. One could not know what might happen if they rashly entered within it. There was nothing good about incurring the wrath of the Magic School’s professors.
Yet on this day, Cat’s Back Plain was filled with people, and its usual tranquility was nowhere to be found.
When the bell rang three times, the scattered children gathered into the garden surrounded by four towers. The roughly hundred chairs arranged in rows were quickly filled.
Behind the rows of children sat the current students, and behind them were arranged in a semicircle the seats for those who had come to celebrate the entrance ceremony.
“It’s starting, it seems.”
Lucian, sitting beside me, whispered before quickly straightening his posture. The professors had begun to take their seats on the platform ahead. I also looked toward the front. It took a little time for all the seats to be arranged.
I was thinking about the strange box that had been delivered that morning to the lodging where Lucian and I were staying.
Inside were a premium quill pen set and an expensive crystal ink bottle, but the sender’s name was nowhere to be found. I had only discovered a square gold plate engraved with the initial ‘P’. Who on earth could have sent it?
“Ah, what if I really did get in last place?”
Lucian had been repeating the same words all morning. According to him, he had been so nervous during the exam that he made a terrible number of mistakes, and his swordsmanship was also a complete disaster. Yet despite this, he had received an acceptance letter, so he was convinced he must have placed last.
I shrugged and spoke.
“If you talk like that, then I, who prepared and took the exam in just five days, must be some mysterious rank below last place.”
“Below last place? I heard there’s something called waitlist admission if an admitted student withdraws midway.”
“…I’ll choose to believe you’re not being serious.”
At that moment, someone on the platform spoke with a magically amplified voice.
“Everyone, please be quiet. We will now begin the entrance ceremony.”
The sky is brilliantly clear. It was eleven in the morning on a day with such fine sunlight, as if winter had completely passed.
As I listened to a professor speaking from the front, I kept glancing around with some inexplicable premonition. There was no one here who would come looking for me. Except for Lady Kaltz and the servants, I knew no one at all.
Yet I kept looking toward the guest seating where the families of the new students sat. Once, twice, and then suddenly, remembering something, I looked up at the sky.
Ah… there it was.
I saw wings descending, cradling the shining sun. A large, white bird. A bird I knew all too well.
The white birds from the island that had once guided Isolet to the Magical Staircase—one of them was circling through the blue sky. I could see an ornament around its neck, though it was not easily visible. I immediately recognized who it was.
The princess of the white birds, Yozrel.
“Boris? What are you looking at?”
Lucian noticed my expression and looked up as well. But he did not understand what I was seeing and merely tilted his head in confusion.
Sitting among the many people gazing at the platform, I alone saw the clear sky and the wind. And I saw the beautiful bird. I could not take my eyes away. From a bird that could fly freely, endlessly, reaching the place where that person was…
For the first time in a long while, a genuine smile rose from my heart.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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