kscans

Chapter 28 - The Pre-Pilgrimage and the Little One, Part Three

"Countess… Thank you so much."

In the Western Forest, where they had come to see Joker off, a man stood with his shoulders trembling, backed by a line of soldiers. The tips of his magnificent Kaiser mustache were also shaking furu furu, drawing the Little One’s eyes.

This might be the first time I’ve seen one in this country.

She didn’t know what they were called here, but it was an interesting style of mustache, famous from things like the designs on playing cards.

"My name is Samuel La Roullelia. I have been granted the territory of the former Border Count and am scheduled to become the new Border Count in due time."

He was, for all intents and purposes, the current Border Count, but since he had no children yet, there was a possibility of adopting an heir, so his peerage was on hold, he explained. The man, who had a simple and warm air about him, bowed his head deeply.

"I am Chihiro la Jourdain. This is my brother, Chihaya la Jourdain. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Roullelia watched the two children greet him politely, his eyes curving into arcs. For their age, around the time of their baptism, their etiquette was excellent. They must have been loved by those around them and properly educated. They were not timid, and their straightforward, honest upbringing was very endearing. His cheeks rose in a smile as he shifted his gaze to Joker.

"Lord, we are so glad to have you back safely."

His voice exuded with sincere relief, and Roullelia’s shoulders shook again.

"We didn’t know what had happened… We feared you might have abandoned this forest and moved on. Thank goodness, truly…"

Roullelia’s eyes welled with moisture, and he bit his upper lip. A grown man’s pouting mouth. His round eyes quivered with tears. Chihiro fought to stifle the laughter that rose to her throat. Her mouth twitched monyoru unconsciously, but surely that much could be forgiven.

She must not laugh. From Count Roullelia’s perspective, this was a very serious matter.

Though the golden magic had been lost, the influence of the Lords’ forests was still great. The green lands spreading from the forests were revitalized by the Lords’ magic. This was a blessing born of the completed Golden Ring. The Lords who had formed the pact resonated with the Little One’s magic just by being there. This brought immense bounty within the ring.

One can only imagine how shocked Roullelia was to receive a report that the Lord had bolted from the forest. He mobilized all his knights and soldiers for the search, looking for the Lord with bloodshot eyes.

Even now, the memory sent a chill down his spine. He hadn't felt alive.

Roullelia poured out his feelings.

"Truly… I am so very grateful!"

Being spoken to so earnestly by a grown man with teary eyes, the Little One couldn’t help but give a wry smile.

"I am on good terms with the Queen. Joker will never abandon Frontier. I promise you that."

The border knights’ eyes widened at the little girl’s words.

But as they looked at the monsters clinging to her shoulders and arms, and the ones pulling and milling about the carriage, their expressions of shock turned to nods of understanding. Roullelia, too, stared at the twins with an expression of disbelief, but the reality was right before his eyes. He had no choice but to believe.

Politely declining Roullelia’s invitation to his mansion, the Little One and her group headed toward the Western Forest. The area around the forest was under heavy guard. She heard that there had been a previous incident where the Lord had bolted from the forest and charged toward the royal capital, so they had made security even tighter than before.

"It’s not as if we could stop the Lord, but we can at least send a fast horse in the direction he is heading to give warning."

As Roullelia said this with a wry smile, Chihiro mentally pressed her hands together in prayer.

Ah. That must be the incident Romel told me about. The one where the Lords stormed the royal palace and gave everyone a lecture.

Her gaze drifted into the distance, and the Little One let her uncertain eyes wander through the air. Dorfen and the others gave a dry smile at this and moved the carriage to the outer wall of the Western Forest. The honeybees worked briskly. The back of the carriage had a built-in folding joint. Adonis, having chosen a spot, pulled it out from the inside and secured the carriage. Watching the support lock into place with a gashon at the four corners of the carriage, Count Roullelia tilted his head in wonder.

"What a well-made mechanism. With this, there is no tilting or shaking. If you plan to pitch a tent, I will have my knights assist you."

"Please do not trouble yourself. This box serves as our tent. His Highness the Prince Regent devised a magic tool that can also be used on his own traveling carriage."

"What!"

His eyes wide with surprise, Count Roullelia looked at the box carriage anew.

The box carriage, larger than a normal one, had the same shape as what would be called a stagecoach on Earth. She had longed for a covered wagon, too, but the Little One had prioritized practicality and chosen this design.

They’re essential in Westerns, you know. These kinds of wild carriages. If I was going to have one made, I wanted to make it to my own liking.

Not a fancy accessory like the nobility rode in, but a carriage based on practicality, serving as a home. The Little One had wanted a mobile secret base that could go anywhere.

For now, the interior is minimal, but eventually I want to get all sorts of things and make it my own kind of room. Country style, or maybe Japanese style? Personally, I can’t rule out steampunk.

My dreams expand, on and on.

The little girl let out a kufu kufu chuckle at her own imagination. Unaware that Dorfen and the others were staring at her intently.

When the Little One made that face, she was plotting something. Dorfen and Adonis, knowing this, exchanged glances and sighed.

After seeing Count Roullelia off, leaving behind the knights on guard, the Little One relaxed her shoulders. Both Chihiro and Chihaya unconsciously adapted to the time, place, and occasion, but dealing with a Border Count was still a bit tiring. Especially since they usually lived a life no different from commoners. For a toddler, it was incredibly stiffening.

Dorfen cast a gentle gaze on the two of them, then cracked a sealing orb and set up a stove and workbench for the night’s camp. He then placed a storage case with ingredients on the workbench. While inspecting it, Adonis rolled up his sleeves and began arranging the cooking utensils.

"Any requests? I can make most anything."

Adonis called out to the twins as he filled a pot with water and put it on the fire.

"We need to feed the girl inside, too, so maybe a hearty soup would be good."

"Oh, then I want stew."

Adonis nodded at the smiling twins who said, "That sounds good," and began preparing the meal. Leaving Chihaya, who was happily helping him, the Little One returned inside the carriage.

"Well then… Have you settled down a bit now?"

Taking off her shoes on the mat at the entrance, the Little One spoke to the girl sitting and hugging a large cushion. With silver hair that cascaded down to the middle of her back in waves and eyes the color of violets, the girl looked at the Little One with a wary expression.

"What… has become of me?"

"You had collapsed in the wilderness. Along with two people, your attendants, perhaps. …I’m sorry about those two."

The Little One’s eyes narrowed with pity.

When she was revived by Dorfen’s healing, she had seen her attendants, now silent corpses, and had begun to cry soundlessly, her tears falling harahara. No one could bring themselves to speak to the girl who wept in silence.

After calming down a flustered Chihaya, the Little One decided to leave her be and drew a curtain over the place where the bodies lay. The lack of prying eyes must have broken the thread of her tension. From beyond the curtain, she could hear stifled sobs. With the air filled with an indescribable atmosphere, the Little One’s carriage had made its way to the Western Forest.

The girl clutching the cushion stared at the Little One with eyes swollen from crying. Her gaze was suspicious. And no wonder. From her perspective, she must have no idea how she ended up here.

"I am Chihiro la Jourdain. I hold a humble position among the Frontier nobility. And you are?"

Sitting across from the girl, the Little One offered a charming smile. Pushed by the innocent, carefree smile, the silver-haired girl answered in a faint voice.

"I am Hyrulia. …I was driven from my home and exiled, so I have no status or family name."

Exiled? That’s not a peaceful word.

The Little One’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she asked to hear the details, telling her she only needed to share what she was comfortable with.

Apparently, she was a noble from Castrato and had been a candidate to be the Crown Prince’s fiancée. There were six candidates in total, each given a room in the inner palace, where they spent a selection period receiving education to become a consort. But one day, one of the candidates was found dead. Within the inner palace. A violent act had occurred in a place that should have been under the strictest security, deep within the royal palace. A thorough investigation was ordered by the king, but they couldn't find the culprit, let alone the cause of death or the means of the crime. The body was badly damaged, but the scene had little blood, so they could only surmise that she had been killed elsewhere and her body dumped. Though the body was severely damaged, none of the wounds were deep enough to be fatal. Was it blood loss, or shock from the assault? With no leads, time passed, and a few days later, another victim was discovered.

If I stay here, I’ll be killed.

A chill ran through the candidates, and one by one, they withdrew from the fiancée selection and left the inner palace.

Hyrulia was no exception. Terrified and feeling like she was walking on eggshells, she pleaded with her parents to let her come home, but her parents, seeing this as a chance, refused. On the contrary, they rejoiced at the dwindling number of rivals and showed no sympathy for the other young ladies’ misfortune.

Frightened by an unknown terror, Hyrulia was left behind in the inner palace until she was the last one remaining.

As a result, an unwelcome rumor began to rise.

That Hyrulia might have been the one who killed the victims.

While everyone else fled in fear, she remained calmly in the inner palace, which meant she was certain she was in no danger of being killed. Therefore, she must be the culprit. This groundless speculation spread, and before she knew it, the heartless rumor was taken as circumstantial evidence, and Hyrulia was imprisoned. She was subjected to a merciless interrogation, but she knew nothing of the matter. As she continued to plead her innocence and cried her days away, her own parents disowned her.

She was a disgrace to the family, they said.

Whatever the truth, the fact that such a rumor had spread and that she had been imprisoned was due to Hyrulia’s poor conduct, and it was her own fault, her father sneered. Why couldn’t you have handled it better? He berated Hyrulia as a fool who had thrown away a once in a lifetime opportunity, abandoned her, and declared that she was never to have anything to do with their family again.

This was the final blow, and Hyrulia’s guilt was sealed.

To be disowned by one’s parents, something terrible must have happened. That is what the world gossiped, and with neither a confession nor physical evidence, Hyrulia was cast out of the royal palace with nothing but the clothes on her back. If she did not leave the country by the end of the day, she would be executed on the spot. Granting her a day’s grace was an act of mercy, they said.

Having just come of age, thrown penniless into a world she knew nothing about, what could she do? Thinking she had to escape at all costs, Hyrulia, though confused, asked the townspeople for the way to the border and ran for her life. The ones who followed Hyrulia were the attendants who had died. The two were Hyrulia’s foster brothers. Believing in her innocence and learning she had been exiled under a false accusation, they had dropped everything to escape the country with her and save her.

Worried for Hyrulia, who had been abandoned even by her parents, their wet nurse had given her sons all the money she had and sent them after her. If those in power say something is black, it is black. There was no overturning it. The day of grace was just for show. It was a pretense of mercy, to make them seem benevolent. Tomorrow, they would likely execute her under some pretext, like claiming she had scorned the mercy they had offered. The royal palace intended to make Hyrulia a sacrifice to bring the situation to a close.

Sensing this, the foster brothers took the money and horse entrusted to them by their mother and rushed to help her escape the country. The nearest border from here was on the Frontier side. It would take more than a full day to ride a horse there. The palace’s agents would likely be waiting near the border. They were determined to pin the crime on Hyrulia and execute her, no matter what.

After some thought, they used the money from their mother to hire adventurers and had them ride horses in three different directions, dressed in similar attire. They planned to cross the border themselves, hidden among the adventurers.

But in the end, they were hounded by pursuers, and though they somehow made it to the wilderness, they lost their way, and the three of them became stranded. Their horses gave out, and they continued toward Frontier on foot, but it was impossible to cross the wilderness, which was twice the size of their own country. They gave most of the food and water they had prepared to Hyrulia, but she was still more exhausted than her foster brothers, and she collapsed in the middle of the wilderness. Having had almost nothing to eat or drink, the foster brothers lacked the strength to carry her. The older brother supported the unconscious Hyrulia while the younger decided to head for Frontier alone. To save Hyrulia, to call for help, no matter what. But both of them ran out of strength, and the three of them collapsed.

What a tale…

She knew Frontier was a country in a unique position, but she had not realized that other countries were so undeveloped. The Little One was at a loss for words. A medieval period where the king’s tyranny was absolute. A precarious world where a small mistake could cost you your life. A world of unenlightened values where superstition was rampant, people dragged each other down, and one wrong step could mire you in bloody sludge.

Chihiro was once again thankful from the bottom of her heart that she had been born in Frontier.

And so, welcoming a new member, the night of the pilgrimage wore on.

It was an incident fraught with turmoil, as if pointing to the fate that lay ahead, and the Little One clutched her small head.

As expected, the word "peace" did not exist on the Little One’s path.