Chapter 54
Breakfast time.
For Young Erica, mornings were a torturous affair.
Her heavy eyelids kept wanting to close, but she absolutely couldn’t let that happen.
She couldn’t even stretch at the table.
No yawning allowed either.
Saying grace before meals wasn’t just a formality; it was a time spent with the one true God Yggdrasil, so she had to present herself properly.
Not adhering to meal etiquette was simply unacceptable in the devout Portlet Family.
…Despite her solemn resolve, staying focused was far from easy. The fork she held in her tiny hands slipped from her grip as her strength waned.
Then, at that moment, words sparked life into Erica’s gradually closing eyes.
She had found out that she was to have a fiancé.
And not just any fiancé, but the renowned third son of the Schugenhartz Family.
?A letter! A letter has arrived!
She had exchanged letters with Vargan.
At a time when they didn’t even know each other’s faces.
Before the engagement ceremony.
?Wow…!
Erica, who had just turned 8, marveled at Vargan’s letter. The sophisticated vocabulary seemed unreal for her age.
The meticulously neat handwriting looked as if it had been written with a ruler.
Within it, she could sense a refined elegance and thoughtfulness.
Erica’s big eyes sparkled.
He was an adult.
A wonderful grown-up, entirely different from herself.
He probably didn’t find mornings to be difficult at all.
?Hey, Laila! What does this mean?
Erica, who absolutely hated learning difficult words, savored every single word from Vargan’s letter.
She wanted to understand what he was saying.
She wanted to know what he was thinking.
What he was interested in, what he disliked, and what he was looking at….
She wanted to know more about him.
Erica often spent time reading Vargan’s letter with her servant, Laila, composing replies in return. That was the happiest moment of her day.
“Lord Vargan. I have read your letter carefully. From your writing style, it’s clear that you are a wonderful person… I will do my best to be someone worthy of you… and I will count down to the day we meet.”
?Yes! He will surely like it!
Really.
Such a happy time.
*
“…Haa.”
Dressed elegantly in a black dress, Erica let out a deep sigh from the floor as she made her way to the designated meeting place beneath the Clock Tower.
Dressing up nicely was ‘obviously’ not just to impress Vargan.
While there wouldn’t be any during dinner, there was almost an 80% chance that one of her mother’s staff members would be lurking around during the play.
Can you imagine the report that said she showed up looking disheveled to meet Vargan? How would she take responsibility for that?
Thus, Erica wore this uncomfortable, frilly dress. At least it was modified for outings, so it didn’t drag on the floor.
She desperately wanted to go back.
She wanted to return to the dormitory, eat sweet cake, and read her magic book.
What on earth was the point of celebrating an engagement anniversary that neither of them wanted? Even while thinking such thoughts, her long-abandoned determination led her footsteps to the meeting place, clicking away.
While thinking, the footsteps that had long given up continued to click and arrived at the promised place.
“Are you here?”
A man with an unmistakably noble appearance.
Vargan had arrived at the meeting place early.
…Oh?
I didn’t expect him to come first.
Erica glared at Vargan, scanning him from head to toe. A greeting slipped from her lips.
“Well, at least you have some sense.”
Vargan was impeccably dressed in a stylish suit. Though he always wore luxurious clothes, today, it was clear he had deliberately dressed more formally.
Mother would probably be pleased to know.
“Did you choose this color for me?”
“Funny. It’s just a coincidence.”
Dressed similarly, both wore deep black outfits. It even seemed as if they were made by the same tailor, making it obvious to anyone that they looked like a pair.
“Let’s go.”
“…What are you doing right now?”
Erica tightened her crossed arms and subtly pulled back her body. She instinctively moved away from Vargan’s terrible sudden action.
“I am your fiancée.”
“And so?”
“Today is our engagement anniversary.”
“…And so?”
Vargan gently shook the hand he extended.
He spoke with an expression that said it was the most natural thing in the world.
“It means to hold hands.”
“…….”
Erica’s face turned pale, and the arms she had crossed enveloped her entire body. She trembled as if she had seen something disgusting.
She shot a chilling response at Vargan, questioning whether he was trying to torment her with his reaction.
Then, she quickly walked ahead.
Watching her scurry away like a chick, Vargan let out a suppressed chuckle. Though she thought she was creating distance, the difference in their strides was so great that she quickly got caught up.
Thus.
“…What are you staring at?”
Erica, seated in the airship, said with her legs crossed.
Inside the airship, it was just Vargan and her, completely alone.
“I was suddenly reminded of old memories.”
“Old memories?”
“Do you remember, Erica? The first time we rode an airship together?”
“Wait. I know what you mean, so don’t say it.”
Erica reached out to stop Vargan’s mouth from opening. Though she tried to appear calm, her tone was somewhat agitated.
“You were so gentle and scared back then. You barely pushed through your fear to ride the airship with me, but once we went up into the sky and the ground got distant, you burst into tears?”
“Ah, stop! I told you to stop…!”
“Why do you try to deny your past self? It’s all good memories.”
“Maybe it’s something for you to tease me about, but not for me!”
Erica shot up and stomped her foot on the floor. She rarely displayed such open anger in front of others, but she couldn’t hold back her voice in front of Vargan.
“That’s unfortunate.”
The shared memories of their childhood were something of a weakness for Erica.
She wanted to erase her past self entirely. The innocent and fragile child she used to be. And above all, she could not forgive her past self for following Vargan so purely.
“I was crazy back then.”
“Childhood is all childish and immature, isn’t it?”
“…You were the most mature when you were young.”
“Are you talking about when we first met?”
“Of course, it was all just a facade, though.”
Erica turned her head sharply and looked outside, thinking about her unpleasant memories. Through her sulky eyes, she gazed at the sky.
Thick clouds were floating beneath the airship. A sight that would have terrified her in the past, but now… no, no. What kind of sentiment is this because of Schugenharz?
“You’ve grown a lot, Erica.”
“Guh…!”
As if caught in everything, Erica’s face turned bright red, while Vargan smiled contentedly. Erica’s embarrassment grew at his expression, and that feeling lingered for a while.
The shame kept rising, and it lingered for a while.
*
The sun was beginning to hide its face as time ticked by.
Diphelia was spending her time in a small plant room near the dormitory, connecting with the plants.
Her heart was heavy.
Even when she touched the rough bark of the trees.
Even when she inhaled the fragrant scent of flowers.
The dark clouds in her chest did not dissipate.
Then, she felt someone watching her. A little chirping bird flitted around and looked outside the glass.
“Who is it…?”
It was someone she had never seen before.
Though wearing the academy’s uniform, she had never noticed them pass by. It was hard to determine if they were a man or a woman. They wore pants, but since one could change that by choice, she couldn’t assume they were male.
They walked into the plant room.
Was it just to observe the plants? But before she could think further, they approached Diphelia and spoke.
Not entirely sure why, Diphelia felt an air of mystery about them. They looked human, yet somehow not entirely human. An ambiguous sensation.
“Hello?”
Their voice was cheerful.
It was filled with curiosity.
Yet, there was something about it that seemed detached from humanity.
“Yes… it’s nice to meet you. Did you come to see the plants?”
She knew it wasn’t true, but Diphelia slightly diverted the conversation to gauge their reaction. They smiled as if to say, ‘What? No way. I wouldn’t do something as boring as that!’
Then suddenly, the atmosphere shifted.
The statement that they had come to convey someone else’s message was the turning point.
As if possessed by someone else, their demeanor changed entirely, from their gaze to their tone of voice. It gave off an aura reminiscent of some arrogant noble she was supposed to meet today.
“Diphelia. The saint trapped in a futile dream. With such a rusty sword, who could you ever kill?”
Diphelia was taken aback as even their voice changed.
It wasn’t just a mimicry. Had she not seen them loosen their throat, she would have believed it was Vargan speaking himself; the voice was completely identical.
“The future you see is the legacy of the past. It has gone by and cannot return. But you, who have never escaped that world, wouldn’t know. You don’t even understand the structure of a prophecy.”
They seemed to mock Diphelia.
Deriding her foolishness and ignoring her beliefs.
Vargan, conveying a message through Naias, found the saint, manipulated by the prophecy, foolish.
“Oh. I should mention this.”
Naias suddenly switched back to their initial bright voice while speaking. They could only partially change their form.
“Don’t misunderstand; I’m not the one continuing from here. I bear no ill will toward you. Well, no good feelings either.”
“…….”
Diphelia calmly gathered her thoughts and listened to their voice. It would be a lie to say she wasn’t uncomfortable, but as it was a reply to her letter, she had to listen until the end.
Naias’s voice shifted back to Vargan.
“Do not try to test me, saint.”
Do not try to evaluate me.
Do not try to judge me.
Do not try to understand me.
“You are ignorant. With your spineless ideals, you have neither the capability to fathom others.”
You, who merely tail behind the one called God, picking up bread crumbs, do not know the origin.
You wouldn’t have wanted to know it either.
It’s truly lamentable.
A figure who should lead the people down the right path and illuminate the way is now just a lamb, gazing down at the ground.
…However, I am a noble who genuinely loves humanity.
“And so, I want to offer you an opportunity.”
Naias took out a music box from their bosom and placed it right in front of Diphelia, making it easy for her to take.
Diphelia narrowed her eyes as she looked up at them. Her closed eyes met the soulful gaze of the spirit.
Naias conveyed their final intention.
“This music box contains a fantasy. It holds my will. I won’t force you, but if you wish to escape from here, it would be wise to open it.”
“It wouldn’t be a bad idea to open it if you want to escape from here.”
“……”
Diphelia stared at the music box with invisible eyes for a long time. With Naias gone, she was the only one left, making the presence of the music box stand out even more.
The music box rested on a small glass table.
Inside was Vargan’s curse magic.
Perhaps it was his ideal as well.
Should she open it? Or not?
The Saint pondered.
She does not believe that her thoughts or the path she has walked until now are wrong. She could only feel that Vargan’s twisted notions were trying to belittle her.
Her little threat did not work on Vargan. He would act as he pleased.
However, he left a possibility.
Perhaps by checking the music box, she could understand the structure of his thoughts and enlighten him.
As a Saint, she possesses a strong resistance to curses. If he had set a strange mechanism, she could surely break it.
In that case, wouldn’t opening it be the right choice?
Could she purify him and keep him from falling into a bad pit?
“……”
The Saint placed her delicate hand on the music box. Although she had made her decision, her hesitant hand did not move easily.
She steadies her mind again.
Slowly.
Cautiously, she grasped the top of the music box gently.
The Saint lifted the small object.
*
Erica and I had an early dinner.
It was a proper course meal.
The long intervals between the dishes allowed us to talk a lot, and Erica’s lips mentioned the Saint’s name.
“Don’t touch Diphelia.”
Her eyes sharpened like a ferocious cat as she spat out those words.
It seemed she was referring to the moment I received a letter from Diphelia.
It looks like Erica thinks I was making a move on Diphelia and that she was trembling in fear, being dragged along. Given her complete ignorance of the situation, it’s clear that her relationship with Diphelia has become awkward recently.
“I’m not interested. She wouldn’t say a word if it weren’t business.”
“…Then that’s a relief.”
Erica still couldn’t shake off her unease, but she didn’t ask for details. That was just like her.
After a relatively pleasant dinner, we arrived at the theater.
I stood in front of it, admiring the overall structure of the building.
The spacious venue was a blend of classical theater architecture and modern style, exuding a luxurious ambiance as if an orchestra was about to perform.
“……”
“Are you not going in?”
As I fell into memories of the past, Erica snapped me back to reality.
A play in this place.
What a different feeling.
“Hmm…?”
Erica timidly stretched out her hand.
She turned her head, trying not to meet my eyes.
“If I don’t do this much, it’ll seem suspicious.”
It appeared she was worried about someone planted by her family reporting back. Though, that wasn’t an incorrect assumption.
I took her hand.
A slightly cold, delicate touch was transmitted through my senses.
The sensations I had internalized through Vargan’s memories felt just as they did back then.
“……”
“Are you embarrassed?”
“…No, not at all.”
She tightened her grip on my hand to emphasize that nothing was wrong. Is her easily provoked nature simple, or is it just her?
“……”
Though I gradually immersed myself in those feelings, I must not lose focus.
Don’t forget.
This outing is not just a simple date.
*Tap tap.*
A wide stage comes into view.
Numerous seats are visible.
*Tap tap.*
This change would significantly alter the future.
There are things I want to test.
That guy will become the subject and disappear from this world.
*Clap clap clap.*
Finally, the curtain rises.
Surrounded by darkness, the only ones brightly lit are.
The actors on stage.
