Estella burst out laughing the moment the Long-Eared Rabbit spat out the sandwich. Just how awful must Lydia’s sandwich be, if even a monster rejected it like that? Its appearance had seemed passable enough. She even found herself curious—maybe she did want to try it.

“Hahahaha!”

Clutching her stomach, Estella laughed aloud like she’d die from it, and Ciel, who had been staring blankly at her, ended up snorting with laughter too. Whatever the setup or the story’s conclusion, if the ending was Estella laughing, then everything was fine. Even if it made him look ridiculous.

Then it happened.

The Long-Eared Rabbit, now staring directly at Estella with its head snapped sharply her way, unfurled its long ears like umbrellas. Inside those dragging, floppy ears—previously hidden—was a layer of densely packed, needle-sharp spikes, like pressure points on a torture pad. The once-cute rabbit’s appearance turned instantly grotesque.

Shiver...

Its fully extended ears trembled, sending out a strange vibration.

The Squirrel Mercenaries, who had briefly let their guard down, immediately re-armed themselves. Despite the ominous display, the rabbit didn’t raise its ears toward anyone else—it kept them pointed tightly at Estella, unblinking.

It was then that the rabbit’s eyes, which had been a deep blood-red, began to slowly shift yellow.

Estella, sensing something, locked eyes with it.

Flap!

The Long-Eared Rabbit twitched its ears again and took a step forward—no hop like a typical rabbit, but a human-like stride that gave Estella a strange, uncanny feeling. For some reason, it didn’t feel like the rabbit was looking at Estella.

It felt like it was looking at Yoon Seo-yi.

Shing!

Ciel, sensing danger, stepped in front of her, sword drawn. Lily had already drawn her bow, and Airi had completed a magic circle in her palm. The others were ready too. Normally, the Squirrels would have attacked already, but none of them made a move.

“It's okay. I don’t think it’s going to attack me.”

Estella quickly raised her hand to halt them. She wasn’t sure why she was so confident, but she trusted her instinct.

Rustle!

The Long-Eared Rabbit stepped closer, again in that disconcertingly human way. Its yellow eyes, now the size of fists, were clearly visible.

At that moment, Estella knew she’d been right.

Reflected in those golden eyes—not unlike a polished brass mirror—was not Estella’s face.

It was Yoon Seo-yi’s.

“Ah…”

Tears streamed silently down Estella’s cheeks. She hadn’t realized until that moment how much she missed being Yoon Seo-yi. That life, lived with such relentless focus, felt achingly precious.

Days spent training, operations carried out with precision, the indescribable fulfillment of completing missions...

Comrades who’d risked their lives beside her. Seniors who truly supported her. Juniors she had genuinely cared for.

Should she be thankful there were no family left behind in that world?

To think a day would come when she’d be grateful her parents died early...

Was Yoon Seo-yi still lingering there at the moment of death? Or had she become a handful of ashes, drifting somewhere unknown?

If she could live this new life, given like homework, in the way that person had wished... would she finally understand then?

“Estella! What’s wrong?!”

Startled, Ciel hurried over to Estella, who was quietly crying, and studied her face in alarm. Even without a single sob, the sight of her silent tears felt like something was squeezing his heart.

Only then, looking at Ciel’s shocked expression, did Estella realize she was crying.

“No, it’s okay.”

She wiped her face quickly and forced a smile.

The Long-Eared Rabbit, watching her smile, raised its long forepaw—clawed in black—and scratched violently at the nearby tree trunk.

Estella flinched, wondering if it was threatening them. But there was no hostility in the rabbit’s movement—if anything, it seemed more like it didn’t want to scare them. An emotion almost impossible to attribute to a monster, yet everyone present slowly lowered their weapons, as if they’d felt the same.

Ciel was the only one who kept his sword up.

The rabbit scratched again. The tree bark, peeled away like citrus skin, revealed pale, glistening inner wood. A thick, translucent resin began oozing from the gash with a strong, familiar scent.

Where had she smelled that before?

Estella sniffed unconsciously—then her eyes lit up.

Gorosoe?

But this was thicker and far more pungent.

The Long-Eared Rabbit glanced at her again, let out a small sigh, then leaned its body against the bleeding resin.

“You want me to... apply that?”

Estella asked uncertainly.

The rabbit stared at her a moment longer, then turned its head. When it looked back again, its eyes had returned to blood-red.

And just like that, it turned and vanished back into the forest it had come from.

Estella watched until it disappeared from sight, then stepped forward and dipped her finger into the sap still flowing from the tree.

“It’s... warm?”

Warm tree sap. That was strange.

“That’s a Tersana tree.”

The one who spoke unexpectedly was Haru.

Estella blinked, surprised. He’d never spoken first before. Her curious gaze seemed to fluster him, and he looked away, then began explaining again—even without being asked.

“It’s a tree humans barely know about. At first glance, it looks like an oak, so most people miss it. And its scent—humans can’t smell it.”

Haru’s eyes lingered on her.

Estella noticed, but pretended not to.

“Elves sometimes apply Tersana sap to wounds, but I’m not sure it actually heals anything. At least, I’ve never felt any effect. Maybe it’s because I have human blood too. But what it does do is mask human scent.”

“Our Haru doesn’t talk much,” Lily chimed in proudly, “but when it comes to plants, he knows everything. Herbs, poisons—you name it. He’s saved my life a few times. Our amazing Haru.”

Blushing at Lily’s praise, Haru clammed up again.

Then, as if on cue, everyone began smearing the sap all over themselves.

“But, Lady Estella—”

As he carefully applied the sap to his face and neck, Haru leaned closer and spoke just loud enough for her to hear.

Estella blinked again. It was the first time Haru had ever directly addressed her.

Up close, he was beautiful—almost delicate—with the kind of refined features only someone of elven blood could have. Estella thought he might even be prettier than Katrin.

“What is it?”

Haru paused as if to say something, then shook his head.

“Nothing. Just… be sure to apply it thoroughly on your wrists.”

Estella could tell he was hiding something.

But she didn’t press.

A short while later—

“Shall we get moving?”

Now covered in sticky resin along with the rest of the Squirrels, Estella looked around and spoke brightly.

“Hey.”

Kyle’s whisper made the group freeze and quietly slip behind a nearby tree.

They had reached a place known as the Throat of Serka, named after the ancient goddess of destruction—a deadly ravine where the temperature shifted wildly, from desert heat to glacial chill within hours, even in winter.

The weather was so extreme that not even monsters could endure it easily. For humans, it was pure hell.

The temperature was already beginning to drop. The Squirrel Mercenaries, who had been sweating just moments before, now exhaled clouds of visible breath. The sap coating them had dried into a shiny gloss.

Their skin gleamed like they’d just gotten luxury facials—Ciel’s, the mercenaries’, and Estella’s included.

They tried not to look at one another. Every time their eyes met, they had to stifle laughter. Bruno was the worst. Having slathered on extra sap for his “big face,” he looked like a human candied fruit. Lily, standing beside him, picked up a hardened chunk of sap that had dropped from his cheek and reattached it like a puzzle piece.

Ciel, ever cautious, wrapped a scarf around Estella’s neck.

Already chilled, Estella felt warm inside from his kindness.

Thank you, she mouthed.

Ciel grinned like an idiot—until the Squirrels’ eyes met his. Their unimpressed expressions made him quickly stiffen his face into something more “serious.” But it was too late. They’d all seen him go soft.

Screeeee!

Cawwww! Cawwwk!

Under a sky like gray canvas, Crimson Eagles circled like drifting kites. A few flew close overhead, then soared away again.

Estella’s eyes traced the ravine upward. Her usual confident gaze now wavered with anxiety. The cliffs loomed, steep and jagged. One false step, and a body would shatter on impact.

The rocks glowed faintly red—likely due to high Flame Stone content.

“Are you sure this is it?”

Ciel whispered.

Estella gave a reluctant nod. The pebble-sized Flame Stone on her finger gleamed red whenever she pointed toward the ravine—and atop the cliff, hundreds of red sparks flickered back in reply, as if in communion.

Like a ritual calling to its kin.

Lily had seen them too.

“We need to find a way up without provoking the Crimson Eagles.”

All playfulness gone, Lily’s tone was tight, her face serious. Even with all her battle experience, dozens of Crimson Eagles were no joke. If not for the Nevrion steel arrows Estella had given them, this would’ve been suicide.

Fortunately, thanks to the Tersana sap, the birds couldn’t smell them.

Ciel pointed silently at a path.

Estella and the Squirrels began to move.

The Flame Stone on her finger glowed brighter still.

Chapter 123

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