Chapter 19: Back To North

“My journey’s finally come to an end.”

I muttered under my breath, leaning my head against the carriage window as the northern winds howled outside. The landscape beyond was cold and distant—white fields stretching endlessly, the sky a dull gray that matched my mood.

After leaving the dungeon, I barely had time to process everything before my knights found me. They’d been scouring the desert, practically tearing it apart in search of me. The moment I reunited with them, I didn’t even get a moment to rest.

Straight back to them.

The very place I’d been trying to escape.

And now, here I was again.

I closed my eyes briefly, letting the carriage rock gently beneath me. Truthfully, I hadn’t planned to come back. Not like this. Not with all the secrets I now carried—the hidden profession, Doran’s teachings, the relics tucked away in my ring.

But I couldn’t run.

If I even tried, it wouldn’t just be my head on the line. The Duke would see it as betrayal—a personal insult. He’d send men across the entire continent if he had to. And my family? They’d be the first to pay the price for my disappearance.

So no, there was no choice.

Returning wasn’t bravery.

It was survival.

And yet, that didn’t mean I was going back the same way I left.

I glanced down at the worn manual tucked inside my coat. Assassination footwork. I’d practiced it every night under the stars, even while the others slept. The motions were starting to feel familiar—like a second skin.

And the relics—each one more powerful than they had any right to be—were hidden safely, waiting for the right moment.

This wasn’t the same Julies who left the north.

This time, I had tools.

I had knowledge.

I had options.

So yes, I was going back.

But not as some powerless nobody.

“The evaluation for Alice Draken’s attendant ends tonight.”

That single sentence had been echoing in my head the entire way here. I came back in a rush because I couldn’t afford to miss it—not after I gave my word to the head butler that I’d return before the deadline.

I wasn’t about to break that promise. Not now.

’I wonder if anyone’s passed the evaluation yet…’

If someone had made it through, that meant I’d be disqualified by default. No chances left. Game over.

There were about twenty to twenty-five candidates competing for the role, and most of them were definitely stronger than I was before I left.

…But Aleck? He was on a different level.

The duel against him was the real test to secure the position, and I couldn’t imagine anyone among the applicants standing a chance.

That guy—Aleck—was a mystery. A knight, supposedly around my age, yet always fully armored. I’d only spoken to him once—when I needed his signature to leave the Duke’s estate.

Even then, the conversation was awkward. I did most of the talking while he just… stared. Or maybe glared. I couldn’t tell, with that helmet on. Not once did I get a glimpse of his face.

But strength? That much was clear. The way he moved, the way he stood—it screamed discipline. Experience. Power.

He didn’t strike me as someone who would lose. Especially not to a group of noble hopefuls trying to curry favor.

And now I was racing against the clock, trying to make it back before the final hour.

Midnight.

That was my deadline.

Thankfully, this time, I didn’t have to wrestle with any northern beasts or stumble into cursed ruins. No monsters, no traps—just a straight shot back.

For once, the road was merciful.

“Young Master, there’s the castle.”

The coachman who was driving the carriage shouted and pointed ahead.

I lifted my head and peered out through the frosted window.

There it was.

The silhouette of the Duke’s castle loomed in the distance, its spires piercing the overcast sky like the teeth of some ancient beast. Even from this far, I could make out the flicker of torches lining the outer walls, tiny flames dancing in defiance of the biting cold.

A knot formed in my stomach.

No matter how many times I saw it, the castle never stopped feeling oppressive.

Tall. Grand. Imposing.

And utterly suffocating.

“I made it…” I whispered, breath fogging the glass. “Barely.”

The sun was about dipped below the horizo,

That meant I had maybe an hour—at best—before the deadline struck.

The carriage wheels crunched over snow-covered gravel as we passed the outer gate.

I opened the carriage gate and step outside.

“Stop there, You westerner.”

And immediately somone shouted and since I’m only westerner here it was obviously point towards me.

I turned my head towards source of sound and saw Aleck.

Aleck stood there like a statue of iron and silence, half-shrouded by the falling dusk and torchlight. His armor gleamed faintly, catching the flickers of firelight with a kind of eerie stillness, and that same damned helmet concealed his face.

I hadn’t seen him since the day I left.

“You’re late,” he said, voice flat, mechanical, as if carved from stone.

“I still have time.”

I tried to keep my tone even, calm. But I could already feel the cold sweat forming beneath my collar.

Aleck didn’t move. He just stared—or at least I thought he did. For all I knew, his eyes could be closed under that helmet. Could be glaring. Could be anything.

“Midnight was the cutoff.” He took a single step forward, boots thudding against the frozen stone. “And yet you’re just arriving.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“You going to disqualify me over a few minutes?” I asked. “I told the head butler I’d be back before the deadline. I am back.”

He paused.

Then tilted his head slightly. “You think the Duke’s estate runs on favors? On personal promises?”

“…No,” I admitted.

But it didn’t matter.

“But it’s still didn’t change the fact I still have some time left,” I said. “And unless someone else has already passed your trial…”

I stepped forward, closing the distance between us.

“I’m not leaving.”

Silence.

The wind howled through the courtyard, whipping my cloak around my legs. For a long, tense moment, Aleck didn’t speak. Didn’t move.

Then, at last, he turned his body fully toward me and drew his blade.

A single motion. Clean. Fluid.

The steel glinted beneath the torches, humming faintly in the cold air.

“Good,” he said. “Because no one’s passed yet.”

I blinked.

“…What?”

“I’ve rejected every single one of them.” His voice was low, steady. “Not a single applicant made it through the duel.”

He raised his sword, pointing it directly at me.

“That means you’re the last one.”

My pulse kicked up, heart thudding in my chest like a war drum.

The last one.

Which meant this was it—everything I’d learned, everything I’d suffered, everything I’d brought back from the desert… It all came down to this moment.

“Lady Alice doesn’t like an outsider and as her knight I will not let you pass this duel. By defeating me is only way for you to pass.”

That I’m sure of.

“If you wish to enter the duke’s residence, you must defeat my sword first.”

[Quest initiated!]

[Face Knight Aleck to prove your worth.]

[Condition: Defeat him in combat to gain entry into the Duke’s estate.]

[Reward: ?]

I couldn’t help but laugh.

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