Free Web NovelChapter 41: The Fastest Money Seraphina Had Ever Seen
Money.
A beautiful concept.
A noble concept.
A concept Seraphina respected deeply.
Mostly because she rarely had any.
"How much?"
She asked immediately.
Kael wasn’t surprised.
The young hunter grinned.
"A lot."
That was not a number.
Seraphina frowned.
"Define a lot."
The young hunter pointed toward the boar.
"That thing alone is worth several silver."
Then toward the bear.
"That thing is worth significantly more."
A pause.
Then:
"Especially if someone reports what happened."
Rowan’s expression shifted.
Slightly.
He didn’t like that sentence.
Kael noticed.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The young hunter didn’t.
Because he was busy imagining money.
Seraphina was also imagining money.
Dangerous.
Extremely dangerous.
"How much is significantly more?"
The young hunter thought.
"Enough to stay comfortably at an inn for a while."
Seraphina gasped.
Kael immediately disliked that reaction.
Because normal people didn’t gasp at the possibility of affording rooms.
Seraphina did.
"Kael."
"No."
"You don’t know what I was going to say."
"I do."
"You don’t."
"You were calculating how many dresses you could buy."
"...Maybe."
A correct answer.
The bear sneezed.
Nobody acknowledged it.
Mostly because they were discussing finances.
A more serious topic.
The young hunter suddenly stood straighter.
"Actually..."
Everyone looked at him.
A mistake.
Because his expression suggested an idea.
Ideas were contagious.
Particularly around Seraphina.
"My village is nearby."
Uh oh.
"We could take the monster materials there."
The situation immediately became suspicious.
Not dangerous.
Suspicious.
Kael narrowed his eyes.
"Why?"
The hunter blinked.
"Because that’s where the buyers are."
Reasonable.
Too reasonable.
Kael distrusted it immediately.
Years of experience.
Meanwhile—
Seraphina had reached a completely different conclusion
"Village means food."
"Yes."
"Food means dinner."
"Yes."
"Dinner means happiness."
The hunter stared.
"...I suppose."
Seraphina nodded.
The logic was flawless.
Kael hated that it was technically correct.
The group began moving.
Well.
Most of the group.
The bear didn’t.
Because it was still sitting there.
Existing.
Peacefully.
A very suspicious activity.
Seraphina looked back.
The bear looked back.
An emotional connection formed.
Kael saw it happen.
And immediately intervened.
"No."
"I didn’t say anything."
"You don’t need to."
"You’re profiling me."
"Years of evidence."
A fair point.
The forest gradually thinned as they followed the hunter.
His name, apparently, was Daren.
A surprisingly ordinary name.
Which felt refreshing.
No secret titles.
No mysterious aliases.
No cryptic introductions.
Just Daren.
For now.
The road wound through the hills.
The sun continued sinking.
Golden light painted the trees.
For a while—
Things were peaceful.
Almost too peaceful.
Then Seraphina noticed something.
A wagon.
Broken.
Abandoned beside the road.
Not unusual.
Except for one thing.
The side had been marked.
A symbol.
Three lines.
A twisted circle.
The same symbol.
The conversation died instantly.
Daren stopped walking.
Kael’s hand moved toward his sword.
Rowan’s expression became unreadable.
And Seraphina slowly smiled.
Not because she was happy.
Because the mystery had just followed them out of the forest.
Which meant it wasn’t staying behind.
It was moving.
Growing.
And somewhere deep inside—
A small voice whispered:
Finally.
Something interesting.
Rowan stepped toward the wagon.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Then stopped.
His expression hardened.
For the first time since meeting him—
He looked genuinely angry.
Not worried.
Not cautious.
Angry.
"Rowan?"
Kael asked.
Rowan didn’t answer immediately.
His gaze remained fixed on the symbol.
Then quietly—
Very quietly—
He said:
"I know this wagon."
Silence.
The evening wind moved through the grass.
Nobody spoke.
Because everyone suddenly understood something.
This wasn’t random anymore.
And whatever Rowan knew—
It had just become personal.
Rowan walked toward the wagon.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like someone approaching a grave.
The others followed.
Even Kael.
Especially Seraphina.
Because "I know this wagon" was exactly the kind of sentence that created plot.
And Seraphina loved plot.
The wagon had once been expensive.
That much was obvious.
Good wood.
Strong construction.
Quality craftsmanship.
Now it was ruined.
One wheel shattered.
The side cracked.
The symbol carved deeply into the wood.
The same twisted circle.
The same three crossing lines.
Except this time—
There was something beneath it.
Letters.
Half scratched away.
Rowan froze.
Then crouched.
His hand brushed the damaged wood.
Not because he was investigating.
Because he remembered.
Kael noticed immediately.
"This belonged to someone you knew."
Not a question.
A statement.
Rowan nodded once.
"My uncle."
Silence.
Daren immediately looked uncomfortable.
The mood had changed.
The mystery wasn’t abstract anymore.
It had a face.
A person.
A history.
Seraphina’s curiosity didn’t disappear.
But it shifted.
"What happened to him?"
Rowan laughed.
A small laugh.
Without humor.
"That’s the problem."
A pause.
"I don’t know."
The evening wind moved through the trees.
The answer hit harder than expected.
Not dead.
Not alive.
Not confirmed.
Missing.
Sometimes that was worse.
Rowan stood.
"He was a trader."
His eyes remained fixed on the wagon.
"He disappeared three months ago."
Three months.
Long enough to lose hope.
Too short to give up.
The worst kind of timeline.
Kael remained silent.
Because he understood that feeling.
Waiting.
Wondering.
Never knowing.
The uncertainty hurt more than answers sometimes.
Seraphina glanced at the wagon again.
Then noticed something.
Actually noticed something.
Not chaos.
Not a business opportunity.
Not a shiny object.
A detail.
"What’s that?"
She pointed underneath the wagon.
Everyone looked.
There.
Wedged between broken boards.
A small leather notebook.
Silence.
Then Daren immediately stepped backward.
"Nope."
"What?"
Seraphina asked.
"Nope."
"That isn’t a reason."
"It is for me."
Kael sighed.
A reasonable reaction.
Rowan carefully pulled the notebook free.
Dust covered the leather.
The edges were worn.
Old.
But not ancient.
His hands tightened slightly.
Then he opened it.
The first pages contained numbers.
Trade records.
Inventory lists.
Prices.
Routes.
Normal.
Then the writing changed.
Rowan’s expression changed too.
"What?"
Seraphina asked.
No answer.
"Rowan."
Still nothing.
Kael stepped closer.
And saw it.
The final pages.
The handwriting became messy.
Uneven.
Rushed.
Like someone writing while afraid.
A few lines remained readable.
The first:
«Something is following the caravans.»
The second:
«The marked beasts aren’t natural.»
The third:
«If anything happens to me—»
Then the page tore off.
Completely.
Gone.
The remaining paper fluttered in the evening breeze.
Silence filled the road.
Even Seraphina didn’t joke.
For once.
Because somebody had tried to leave a warning.
And failed.
The sun had nearly disappeared now.
The sky painted itself orange and purple.
Night approached.
And suddenly—
The road toward the village didn’t seem quite as welcoming.
Daren swallowed.
"...Maybe we should leave."
A surprisingly intelligent suggestion.
Nobody disagreed.
Not even Seraphina.
Which worried Kael more.
Because if Seraphina stopped chasing mysteries—
It usually meant she had found one worth chasing later.
As the group started walking again—
Rowan slipped the notebook into his bag.
Quietly.
Carefully.
Like he was carrying something fragile.
Not because of the paper.
Because of what it meant.
Ahead, the lights of a village finally appeared between the hills.
Warm.
Bright.
Safe.
Or at least they should have been.
Then a bell began ringing.
Not a welcoming bell.
Not an evening bell.
An alarm.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
The village gates slammed shut.
And someone shouted from the walls:
"MONSTER ATTACK!"
The group stopped.
Seraphina looked at the closed gates.
Then at Kael.
Kael looked at Seraphina.
Both of them reached the same conclusion.
Somehow. freewebnovel.cσ๓
Some way.
Their peaceful arrival had lasted less than five minutes.
A new record.
The alarm bell continued ringing.
Loud.
Urgent.
Relentless.
The peaceful image of the village shattered instantly.
People were running.
Torches appeared along the walls.
Voices echoed through the evening air.
Daren’s face drained of color.
"No."
That wasn’t fear.
That was recognition.
The worst kind.
"What?"
Kael asked.
Daren didn’t answer immediately.
Instead he looked toward the eastern forest.
Then swore.
A genuine swear.
Not a dramatic one.
Not a comedic one.
A real one.
"Again."
The single word made Rowan’s expression harden.
Again.
Meaning this wasn’t the first attack.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
And extremely bad.
The gates remained shut.
A guard appeared atop the wall.
Crossbow in hand.
Eyes sharp.
"Halt!"
The group stopped.
Mostly because they didn’t have a choice.
The guard pointed downward.
"State your business."
Daren immediately stepped forward.
"Open the gate!"
"No."
An excellent start.
"Daren?"
The guard blinked.
Then recognized him.
Relief flashed across his face.
"Daren!"
Then the relief vanished.
Because Daren wasn’t alone.
Travelers.
Strangers.
Unknown variables.
Villages rarely liked unknown variables during monster attacks.
Reasonable.
Very reasonable.
The guard’s eyes landed on the bear.
The living bear.
Sitting calmly behind Seraphina.
Silence.
A long silence.
Then:
"...Why is there a bear?"
Nobody answered
Because nobody knew where to start.
The guard pointed again.
"WHY IS THERE A BEAR?"
Seraphina raised her hand.
"I can explain."
Kael immediately interrupted.
"No."
The guard looked relieved.
A wise decision.
Daren stepped in quickly.
"Long story."
The guard stared.
Then nodded.
A surprisingly wise decision.
The village wall suddenly shook.
Everyone froze.
Another impact.
Then another.
Something hit the outer barricades.
Hard.
The villagers immediately became tense.
The atmosphere changed.
The joking vanished.
The relief vanished.
The warmth vanished.
Real danger arrived.
Kael’s hand moved toward his sword again.
Rowan’s gaze narrowed.
Even Seraphina became serious.
Because this wasn’t a festival.
This wasn’t a competition.
This wasn’t a business idea.
People were afraid.
Actually afraid.
A child cried somewhere beyond the wall.
An old woman hurried people indoors.
The fear felt real.
Then—
A scream echoed from a watchtower.
"LEFT SIDE!"
The entire village reacted.
Guards moved.
Crossbows lifted.
Orders rang out.
The gates remained shut.
Daren turned toward them.
"I need to get inside."
Reasonable.
"Open the gate!"
The guard hesitated.
Then looked toward the village chief standing farther down the wall.
An older man.
Grey beard.
Sharp eyes.
The kind of person who looked tired even when resting.
He studied the group carefully.
Especially Seraphina.
Especially Rowan.
Especially the bear.
The bear sneezed.
A terrible time to be adorable.
The chief sighed.
Then shouted:
"Open it."
The gates slowly creaked apart.
Only enough for a single person at a time.
Cautious.
Smart.
As the group entered—
Seraphina noticed something.
Everyone looked exhausted.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
The kind of exhaustion that came from weeks of worry.
Not one bad day.
Weeks.
Maybe months.
Monster attacks.
Missing traders.
Fear.
The pieces started fitting together.
Not perfectly.
Not yet.
But enough.
Someone was marking monsters.
Caravans were disappearing.
Villages were being attacked repeatedly.
And now Rowan’s uncle was involved somehow.
The mystery wasn’t a collection of random events anymore.
It was becoming a pattern.
A dangerous one.
The gates slammed shut behind them.
The chief immediately approached.
His eyes moved across the group.
Then stopped on Rowan.
For a moment—
Something flickered in his expression.
Recognition.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Then the old man spoke.
Quietly.
"You’re late."
Rowan froze.
The village chief continued.
"I thought you’d never come."
Silence.
Even Seraphina didn’t interrupt.
Because suddenly—
The village chief sounded like he’d been expecting Rowan.
For a very long time.
