As the sun slowly sank behind the ridgeline…

The Crow Guild, located in the royal capital of the Kingdom of Verona, was eerily quiet.

Unlike its usual bustle of the Dos and mercenaries coming and going…

The silence was so complete that even the sound of breathing could be heard.

The reason for that silence was on the second floor, inside the guild master’s office.

It was a room that, under normal circumstances, no one but the guild master was permitted to enter.

Today, however, was an exception.

Two outsiders occupied the office.

At the center of the room, reclining lazily on the seat of honor of a plush leather sofa, sat a broad-shouldered man with pale gray hair.

Standing beside him was a young man with dark bronze skin and short blond hair.

As silence stretched on without end, the blond youth finally spoke.

“My Lord.”

“…What.”

“Are you really going to pay those people fifty thousand gold?”

He had been wondering for days.

They had spent several days riding together in the same carriage, yet he’d never dared ask.

After all…

His lord’s mood had been foul ever since the world had been buried beneath a blanket of snow.

But now they were indoors.

Surely it would be alright to ask?

Apparently not.

“You call that a question?”

“You’re right. Even after saying it myself, I realized it was a stupid question.”

Silence settled over the room once more.

Karo stole a glance at Rajes before quietly looking away again.

Outside the window, soft flakes drifted through the air.

It hadn’t been snowing when they’d entered the guild.

Now large flakes had begun to fall.

His lord’s mood always turned glacial from even the slightest sleet.

With heavy snow falling now…

Karo found himself even more worried.

At this rate… someone’s really going to die today.

As all sorts of ridiculous scenarios ran through his mind, Rajes finally moved.

He pulled a potion from inside his coat and drank it down in one long gulp.

“My Lord… are you alright?”

“Mm.”

“You didn’t have to come all the way here yourself. You hate snow, don’t you?”

At Karo’s concerned words, Rajes closed his eyes.

Leaning back against the plush sofa, he answered,

“I do…”

His voice trailed off as he unconsciously tightened his grip.

Even after drinking the potion his strength still hadn’t fully returned.

Lately, monsters had been appearing near the border with alarming frequency.

He had already gone out on several subjugation campaigns.

Fighting high-ranking monsters had forced him to use his power repeatedly.

And now…

The snow had made his condition even worse.

Karo immediately understood.

Without another word, he fell silent.

The oppressive quiet inside the guild master’s office continued until the sun had completely disappeared.

“Karo.”

It was Rajes’ cold voice that finally broke the silence.

The deep, icy tone startled Karo.

“Yes, My Lord.”

“What time was the appointment again?”

“Five o’clock.”

“What time is it now?”

“…Six.”

Before Karo had even finished answering, Rajes was already on his feet.

The moment he stood, Karo immediately retrieved his fur coat and handed it to him.

“Lead the way.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

After making their preparations with practiced efficiency, the two left the guild master’s office.

The instant they appeared, everyone inside the guild froze.

Dos’ and Cuatros alike were overwhelmed by the oppressive presence of an Uno.

Neither Rajes nor Karo paid them any mind.

As for Karo…

He could only curse inwardly.

Damn it… this is definitely going to end badly.

Rajes and Karo climbed into the carriage that had been waiting outside the guild.

It sped out of the capital and headed toward Eden.

The closer they came to their destination, the darker Rajes’ mood became.

It was one thing to have the audacity to bargain with House Eberhardt.

But to miss the appointed time as well…

And to make matters worse…

Snow continued to fall beyond the carriage window.

Rajes’ crimson eyes flashed.

They reached the Parvane household only a few minutes later.

The small two-story house on the outskirts of Eden was pitifully cramped.

No wonder they demanded fifty thousand gold, Karo thought with obvious displeasure.

He pounded heavily on the front door.

No one answered.

He knocked again.

Still nothing.

“Don’t tell me they’ve decided not to hand her over after all?”

Rajes answered Karo’s question with nothing more than a slight tilt of his chin.

There was no choice now.

They would have to use force.

Karo clenched his fist and smashed the doorknob.

Crash!

The wood splintered apart, and the door flew open.

Just as Rajes stepped inside behind Karo…

He suddenly stopped.

A strange scent brushed against his nose.

It was an indescribably sweet fragrance.

So alluring that the words escaped him before he realized it.

“What’s that smell?”

“Huh? Smell?”

Did I imagine it?

Lightly touching the bridge of his nose, Rajes stepped into the house.

“We’ve come from House Eberhardt. Paien Parvane, are you inside?”

Karo’s voice rang loudly enough to echo throughout the house.

Yet no one answered.

No…

There were signs of life.

Faint, but unmistakable.

Karo narrowed his eyes and listened carefully.

A quiet sound of breathing reached his ears.

It was coming from the kitchen.

He headed there immediately.

Meanwhile Rajes remained rooted to the spot.

The rich fragrance that had greeted him the moment he entered the house drew him in like a spell.

His head slowly turned toward its source.

The seductive scent was drifting down from upstairs.

Taking long strides, Rajes climbed the staircase.

Without hesitation, he walked straight to the room overflowing with that sweet fragrance and pushed the door open.

The room was empty.

The small space contained only a few worn pieces of clothing…

And a tiny bed fit for a child.

This scent…

“My Lord! Come downstairs! Quickly!”

Karo’s shout snapped him out of his brief daze.

Rajes descended the stairs even faster than he had climbed them.

“Take a look at this!”

Besides Karo, there were three other people in the kitchen.

Three figures sat stiffly around the dining table, all staring in the same direction.

They were unmistakably the owners of the house.

And at the spot they were all looking toward…

was an empty chair.

The chair pulled away from the table made it clear that someone had been sitting there not long ago.

Rajes immediately realized who the empty seat had belonged to.

Just like the room upstairs, a rich fragrance lingered around the vacant chair.

This scent, however, was different.

Instead of the sweet aroma he’d smelled upstairs…

It carried a crisp, refreshing fragrance.

“Judging by this, they’ve been like this for at least a day.”

“Temporarily hypnotizing them and restricting their bodily functions…”

“This Cero is stronger than I expected.”

“She is.”

Rajes answered with a slight nod of his chin.

It was an order to release the hypnosis.

Karo gave a small nod in return before lightly tapping each of the three on the back.

The moment he did, their frozen bodies lurched back to life.

“H-Huh?! Wh-Who are you?!”

“Aah!”

“W-What?! What’s going on?!”

Just moments ago, they’d been staring at Lilliana.

Now complete strangers were standing before them.

Paien.

Sevia.

And Tartan.

All three cried out in confusion.

But with a casual wave of Karo’s hand…

Silence instantly fell over the room.

“We’re from House Eberhardt. Where is the Cero you promised us?”

At Karo’s question, the members of the Parvane family could only open and close their mouths.

They were trying to speak…

But no sound came out.

Karo lightly touched Paien, releasing only him from the silence.

“B-But… y-you said you’d arrive tomorrow…”

“Have you still not grasped the situation? The agreed date has already passed.”

“Just tell us where the Cero is.”

“S-She was here…B-But she’s gone!”

“You’re telling me you didn’t hide her yourselves?”

“It’s the truth! We were planning to sell that girl for money! Why would we hide her?!”

Judging by the way he stammered and desperately flailed…

He didn’t appear to be lying.

Rajes gave Karo a slight nod before immediately leaving the Parvane house.

A faint trail of the scent continued behind the house.

When an Uno encountered their destined Cero…

They could perceive that scent.

The moment he’d caught it…

Rajes had already decided to use it to track her down.

He had to find her…

Before the scent faded.

This Cero…

Is my destined one.

Rajes took a potion from inside his coat and drank it in one gulp.

Then he channeled mana into his legs.

With one powerful leap he launched himself into the air.

His pale gray hair scattered through the falling snow.

To think that scent would distract me enough to dull my senses…

When he had first entered the Parvane house…

The fragrance, unlike anything he had ever smelled before, had momentarily clouded his mind.

To avoid precisely this sort of situation…

To ensure he would never grow attached to his destined Cero…

He had deliberately arranged to meet at the guild.

But because she had lived in that house for so long…

Her scent had permeated every corner of it.

And the crisp fragrance he’d sensed in the kitchen…

Unlike her normal scent…

Was unmistakably the fragrance released only when she used her power.

Which meant…

She had used her ability to escape.

Did she really think House Eberhardt would simply let her go?

Rajes paused atop the snowy plain, steadying his breathing.

His ability to fly made searching vastly easier.

But it rapidly consumed his life force.

He had already expended a considerable amount of power only a few days earlier.

And with the snow his condition was already at its worst.

He could have sent Karo and the others to search as well but the wind and snow were constantly scattering the scent.

If too many people joined the search recklessly they might lose the trail altogether.

There was no choice.

He had to find her himself.

Even if it meant relying on his own power.

Rajes leapt into the air once more.

His life-force-fueled ability carried him beyond Eden in the blink of an eye.

The cold winter wind tore at his entire body.

Heavy snow relentlessly battered him.

Even so, he couldn’t afford to stop.

Rajes pressed onward through the blizzard.

Before he realized it, he had already crossed beyond the borders of the Kingdom of Verona.

Coming to a halt beside the road, Rajes drew a deep breath.

The scent was still faint…

But stronger than before.

She couldn’t have passed through here very long ago.

And the fragrance was leading him south.

“…Kartel.”

Before setting off toward Kartel, Rajes drank another potion.

His condition was already poor.

Spending so long in the snow had drained his stamina with alarming speed.

Tossing aside the empty vial, he continued forward at a rapid pace.

The lingering scent unmistakably led toward Kartel.

She’s cleverer than I expected.

Choosing neutral territory…

But it won’t make a difference.

No matter how neutral the village claimed to be, tts people were still the Dos’ and Cuatros.

On the surface, the gap between an Uno and a Dos seemed to be only a single rank.

In reality the difference between them was immeasurable.

Ten Dos’ possessed enough strength to rival a small kingdom.

Yet a single Uno could reduce a small kingdom to ruins with ease.

Even in his current condition, as long as he continued drinking potions…

Dos’ would pose little challenge.

Rajes suddenly came to a stop.

He had arrived at a small mountain on the outskirts of Kartel.

The scent of his Cero lingered all around the area.

Yet…

He couldn’t move another step.

He had exhausted too much of his power in too short a time.

It felt as though he could collapse at any moment.

Breathing heavily, Rajes reached into the inner pocket of his coat.

He intended to recover even a little stamina before securing the Cero.

But…

The small glass vial his hand expected to find…

Wasn’t there.

No matter how many times he searched…

There were no potions left.

Don’t tell me…!

He had certainly brought plenty with him.

But while racing through the blizzard and repeatedly using his abilities…

He must have dropped the remaining vials somewhere along the way.

He had been so focused on pursuing her that he’d never checked how many he had left.

It was his own mistake.

His vision blurred.

Between the excessive use of his powers and the relentless snowstorm…

It became increasingly difficult to stay conscious.

Damn it…

If only it weren’t snowing!

His legs wavered.

Even his head began to spin.

And all the while…

The fragrance drifting into his nose clouded his thoughts even further.

When an Uno pushed their life force to its absolute limit…

Their abilities would be sealed away for several days while they recovered.

During that time, their vitality slowly returned…

But their mana was reduced to almost nothing.

That was precisely why Unos kept a Cero by their side.

Of course…

Most Unos never pushed themselves that far.

Rajes was no exception.

Aside from one occasion in the past…

He had never found himself in such a state.

That day…

Just like today…

It had snowed.

And now…

My Cero is right in front of me…!

Rajes’ body finally gave way.

He fought desperately to remain standing…

But it felt as though an overwhelming force were crushing him into the earth.

His knees buckled.

He collapsed.

If I lose consciousness here…!

Not only was his condition terrible…

The location couldn’t have been worse.

No matter that he was the head of House Eberhardt…

Having exhausted his power to its limit left him completely defenseless.

And House Eberhardt had enemies lurking everywhere.

Unable to move…

There was only one thing he could do.

At the very least…

He had to conceal his identity.

Rajes forced the last remnants of his dwindling mana from deep within himself.

With great effort, he cast a spell upon himself…

And then let consciousness slip away.

A brilliant white light enveloped the tall man…

Before quietly fading.

By the time dawn finally broke…

The only thing left lying upon the snow…

Was a small bundle of gray fur.