Sacred Forest (4)

The Lady of the Lake.

In the original legend of King Arthur, this enigmatic lady, whose name varies with the region and adapted stories, is known by many names.

Woman, fairy, lady, and so on.

However, the gamers of Etius all referred to her as this:

"The Witch of the Lake."

[Excuse me. A witch, you say? I am a fairy, you know? And my name is Nimue.]

Ah, Nimue. That was her name. I had forgotten it, having only heard and spoken of her as a witch.

Nimue said this with a slight smile. Her pure appearance and smile certainly didn't suit the nickname "witch."

Or perhaps that's why she is considered a witch. There are quite a few among the gamers who were deceived by her appearance.

And so, believing that her true nature must be kind, they poked around here and there.

But I, who have clung to this game the longest, can assertively say,

Nimue is indeed a witch.

"Yes, Miss Nimue. I have come with a matter concerning the lake."

[What matter?]

"I've come to seek a sword that lies within it."

Nimue's expression faltered slightly.

[Indeed... You really do know something.]

Nimue spread her arms. It was as if she was welcoming me.

[If you can find it, then try to find it.]

[Nimue!]

Merlin called out to Nimue as if to chastise her.

Nimue smiled lightly and said to me,

[The sword is in the lake. If you can take it, then by all means.]

"What do you mean by that?"

[Have you forgotten where you are? This place is even farther north than your territories, a land of extremes. This lake is colder than a glacier. It exists merely as a 'lake,' not freezing only because.]

I looked down at the lake. The water of the lake was clear and transparent, but as Nimue said, I felt a chilling cold.

Water colder than ice. It's impossible for this still lake to maintain such a low temperature, yet under the name of "mystery," it perpetually retains its appearance.

Simple cold cannot freeze this lake. It just continues to get colder.

To put it extremely, even if humanity were to perish, this place would forever remain as it is.

The cold is absurd, no matter how you look at it.

Nimue, observing me, chuckled softly.

Even her laughter seemed genuinely kind, which was strangely eerie in its own way.

[Would you go in? What's the point if you can't come back alive even after finding the sword?]

"Don't worry. I came prepared."

I turned around and walked towards Cassian. I picked up the cloth of Penelope and tied it around my hand. The chill that had been lingering around me vanished as if washed away. It was the effect of the cloth.

[...Hmm.]

Nimue's smile faded a bit from her face, but she still seemed to be at ease.

[Well, anyway.]

Nimue spoke again. She still didn't stop me.

I glanced at Merlin for a moment. He too was looking at me with a stern expression, but he didn't seem to be moving to stop me.

"Are you really going to jump in?"

Selena asked, her tone sounding worried for some reason.

I wondered if it was natural for her to worry about me since she was my escort, but then again, maybe not.

"I have to."

"Something seems suspicious. It's too easy for you to just go."

"Yeah, I feel the same."

"Really?"

I smiled. I waved my hand as if I was just running a quick errand.

"I'll be back then."

With that, I jumped into the lake.

* * *

Selena watched the lake into which Frondier had jumped for a moment.

If she jumped in there under the guise of an escort, she'd surely freeze to death in less than 5 seconds.

Even just dipping a hand in now felt like it would lead to frostbite, feeling the chill from this distance.

Sigh, Nimue exhaled a sigh of pity from beside her.

[So another greedy life ends.]

"...What do you mean?"

Selena asked.

Whether Frondier was doing something or where he was wasn't really her concern, but dying was a different matter. After all, guarding Frondier was her duty.

Of course, even if he died, it's not like they would kill her for it back in the mainland, but there would certainly be severe repercussions.

"Lord Frondier won't be affected by the cold. Bringing back the sword should be an easy task for him."

Selena had noticed from Tyburn that Frondier didn't feel the cold, probably because of the cloth. Who would have thought the tie he usually wore had such a function?

But Nimue shook her head.

[It's not because of that. Merely blocking the cold won't enable him to bring back the sword.]

"...It's not because of the cold?"

Nimue covered her mouth with one hand. That smile was compassionate.

[The lake is deep, you know. It's impossible for a normal person to reach the bottom.]

"...Even so, I don't think he'd die."

[That's only if it ends there. That man seems stronger than he looks, so it's possible he could reach the bottom. But in fact, according to legend,]

Nimue, who had been speaking happily, suddenly looked at Merlin as if checking his reaction. It was a strange thing to do, but soon Nimue looked back at Selena and said,

[...It's embedded. Deep in the bottom.]

"......!"