The Forgotten Field - Chapter 206

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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 206
I grabbed my coat and turned to leave the chamber, but the woman, who had been standing frozen in shock, suddenly seized my sleeve with a harsh grip.
“Khan did nothing wrong. It was I who… I ordered Khan to attack Lucas. Khan merely obeyed my command. So if you must punish someone, punish me…!”
A cry of anguish escaped her lips.
Only then did I realize I was gripping her arm with enough force to break it. I released the pressure, yet my fingers remained rigid around her wrist for a long moment.
I fixed her with a gaze as cold as ice.
The memory of all the efforts I had endured throughout the past summer to prevent this woman from mounting the scaffold flashed through my mind.
I had destroyed evidence that would have condemned her, coerced my retainers into silence, and bribed the High Priests to prevent her trial.
Her actions now rendered all of that effort meaningless, and a violent fury surged within me.
“Suppose that were true. Why on earth did you do it?”
The woman, her expression trembling with fear, looked down at me with eyes averted, her lips—crusted with dried blood—quivering.
I pressed forward with relentless interrogation.
“Did Lucas commit such a grave offense against you to deserve such a fate?”
The sound of her swallowing hard echoed in the silence.
After a long moment of hesitation, staring only at the floor, the woman finally spoke in a strangled voice.
“…We were arguing, and in my excitement, the words just… escaped me. I never thought Khan would actually attack Lucas…”
Her fragmented words trailed off entirely.
I pressed my throbbing temples and let out a hollow laugh.
“You call that an excuse…?”
At my hollow murmur, her shoulders flinched.
Looking down at her with cold indifference, I continued in a voice stripped of all emotion.
“Even if that were true, nothing changes. I made it clear before—if that creature harms anyone, there is nothing I can do about it.”
Her hauntingly beautiful face crumbled into devastation.
Staring directly at that face consumed by despair, I spoke each word with deliberate force.
“A direct blood relative of the Grand Duke’s House has suffered grievous injury. This is not a situation that can be dismissed as an unfortunate accident. More than that, I cannot allow a creature that has tasted human blood to roam freely through my domain.”
A thin whimper escaped her throat.
I stepped back.
If I remained facing her any longer, I would lose all restraint.
I walked immediately toward the door and grasped the handle.
In that instant, a sharp impact struck me as slender arms wrapped tightly around my waist.
I went rigid, as though paralyzed.
The woman clung to me desperately, lifting her tear-ravaged face upward and cried out with anguished urgency.
“No! Please, don’t kill Khan. Khan is our child!”
My gaze froze upon her.
As though she had completely abandoned reason, she began pouring out disjointed words.
“Tiuran said so. A child who dies without baptism is reborn as a beast… Khan… Khan is our child reborn. Reborn as a wolf and returned to me!”
My face contorted in horror. Something within my chest collapsed, and I could not breathe. Before I could even process this, the woman continued in a torrent of words.
“It’s true! If you look into Khan’s eyes, you’ll see it too. Khan is our son. Our son who never drew a single breath—he’s been brought back to life! So please, don’t harm our child…!”
“Enough!”
My roar exploded from me, and the woman flinched, releasing her grip from my waist.
Barcas leaned his nearly collapsing body against the doorframe, his face buried in his hands.
Tremors wracked his entire frame. Through his quivering fingers, I gazed down at my wife—devastated beyond recognition.
Her deep blue eyes, glistening with tears, tore mercilessly through my heart. Overwhelmed by an indescribable despair that pressed heavily upon me, I squeezed my eyes shut.
How long I stood there, struggling to steady my breathing, I could not say.
At last, regaining my composure, I straightened and spoke through gritted teeth.
“I’ve heard enough of your lies.”
Her eyes grew distant and hollow—all hope extinguished. I turned away from that vacant gaze and gripped the door handle.
“Confine yourself to your chamber until Lucas awakens. Your punishment will be decided upon my return.”
I then threw the door open wide and gestured to the Soldiers standing in the Corridor.
“Take her away.”
The Soldiers immediately surrounded her.
Talia offered no resistance. Her ashen face remained vacant, her gaze fixed numbly upon the floor.
I stepped into the Corridor, where twilight was deepening, leaving behind that hollow visage—tears now dried upon her cheeks.
The sound of my own footsteps echoed unnaturally sharp in the silence.
I quickened my pace, as though shaking off the suffocating weight of emotion that pressed upon my chest. My shadow stretched long as I descended the Staircase, dissolving into the gathering darkness below.
* * *
The punitive expedition was assembled at once.
During those ten days when Lucas had hovered at death’s door, the mounted warriors had been preparing with fierce determination, and now they gathered before the Castle Gate.
I selected thirty men and rode out beyond the North Gate.
The sun had already sunk below the horizon. As I gazed up at the sky—shifting from violet to deep indigo—my attention soon turned to the Birch Forest, where the last rays of twilight lingered.
That Wolf Beast possessed above-average intelligence. It would not be wandering carelessly across open fields or near hillsides.
Yet it seemed unlikely to have fled far from Kalmor. Given its fierce attachment to its master, it would be prowling near the Castle.
I led my men across the Field toward the Armund Forest.
Before long, we reached the forest’s edge, where the deepening blue darkness had begun to settle.
“From here, spread out and search. Move in groups of three and signal immediately upon finding the beast.”
The moment my order fell, Knights bearing torches scattered throughout the Forest.
I gestured to Beirov and Rogen.
“I am sufficient alone. Search the Northern Region.”
“But—”
Beirov, his face troubled, began to protest but soon fell silent.
The man who had fought beside me on countless battlefields over the past years and knew better than anyone that I required no protection released a quiet sigh and turned his horse away.
“Should any trouble arise, send a signal.”
Barcas offered no reply, spurring his horse forward instead.
Between the densely packed trees, the torches held by the Soldiers flickered and spread in all directions.
I rode through the darkness where a cold wind howled, leaving behind the sounds of neighing horses and trampled leaves. Before long, a faint, acrid stench mingled with the air.
Soon I found its source—the remains of a beast, stripped of all flesh, lay buried beneath fallen leaves, emanating the reek of decay.
‘A wild boar?’
No. The abnormally large skull suggested it was a Dire Boar.
As I examined the bones, crushed as though chewed by teeth, I lifted my head and scanned the darkness.
The blood scent had not yet faded, suggesting the kill was recent.
I vaulted from the saddle and scrutinized the ground with meticulous care.
The traces had been deliberately obscured—no prints remained upon the damp earth path. Yet Barcas caught a peculiar scent drifting through the air with unmistakable clarity.
My senses snapped taut with an inexplicable tension. Drawn by some instinct I could not articulate, I strode swiftly into the shadowed depths of the ominous forest.
Then, from somewhere, came the rustle of movement.
I drew the bow from my back and, in a flash, nocked an arrow from the quiver at my hip, drawing the string taut.
Nearly in the same instant, a massive silhouette emerged from the dense undergrowth.
I released the arrow without hesitation. The beast vanished between the trees in a heartbeat, but my arrow—swift as wind—had already pierced its hind leg.
A low, guttural cry tore through the night air. The enormous body staggered visibly from the impact, yet the creature quickly steadied itself and bolted deeper into the forest.
I mounted my horse at once and wove through the trees with acrobatic precision.
Countless obstacles obscured my vision, yet striking a beast the size of a calf was far easier than hunting rabbits or small birds.
I unleashed a barrage of arrows at the creature as it fled with desperate speed.
Several shafts found their mark in its chest and flank. This time I seemed to have struck a vital point, yet the Wolf Beast’s movements through the forest grew only more ferocious.

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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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