Eve of the Festival – Part 01
[previous_page]
[next_page]
Translator: Kell | Editor: Ryunakama
Interlude: Undelivered Message
In the middle of the continent lay Wenias, a kingdom that prospered as a transport hub. A civil war between the government and witches caused havoc in recent years, which ended with the kingdom deciding to coexist with the witches. In other words, it was a kingdom that had broken away from the Church. A nation frequented by travelers from all over had separated itself from the very organization that dominated the whole world.
Wenias, however, didn’t massacre priests. It simply banned witch hunts and publicly acknowledged the existence of witches. Acceptance, tolerance, and the resulting peace. That was the strength of the kingdom of Wenias. Save for its approval of witches, there was nothing worth criticizing the nation for.
The witches of Wenias were peaceful, disseminating a useful ability to the citizens. The kingdom was showing remarkable progress through new discoveries.
While the Church vehemently condemned Wenias, it lacked the nerve to launch any attack for fear of the unknown—the great number of witches backed by the kingdom itself. A lone witch already possessed formidable power, but what would happen if they gathered together, conspired, and built a whole nation?
For now, the kingdom of Wenias was quiet. Every nation was afraid to poke the sleeping lion. They feared that some country might invade Wenias, plunging the transport hub into a state of war.
One country said no other nation in the world had decided to coexist with witches, so they should wait and observe. Another said Wenias was a den of sickening evil that must be destroyed at all costs. While one said Wenias was the ideal nation. It wanted to form an alliance and learn Magic from the kingdom.
“They’re all so selfish,” Albus said as she plopped down on the desk where a massive stack of letters sat.
A Mooncaller witch, she was the head of the Mages in Wenias. Her short, golden hair that glistened under the sun, her outfit, and her tone of speech made her seem boyish, but a closer look would tell you she was a girl.
Albus reached for a parchment and slowly dragged it towards her. She sighed as she saw the contents.
“No reply today, either.”
The parchment was known as a Witch’s Letter, a valuable tool that allowed her to communicate in writing with distant people instantaneously. Its matching pair was with Zero and Mercenary, who were out investigating cases involving Magic. She hadn’t heard back from them for days now.
“Hurry up and read it already, you idiot. Dummy! Moron!”
“Now, now, young lady,” came a voice from behind. “They might be too busy. Just be patient.”
It was Holdem, a white wolf Beastfallen and a servant of the great Solena, Albus’ grandmother. With Solena now gone, he currently served Albus.
“I want a reply now! How dare they go on a trip while I stay at my desk all day doing work! All I’m getting are neighboring countries sucking up to us and threats from the Church’s followers. I wanna go on a trip too!”
Here we go again, Holdem thought as he turned his gaze at the ceiling. It looked like he was begging the late Sorena to scold his moody, short-tempered, and young master.
“What will happen to this kingdom if you leave?” Holdem said. “You’re doing great! The new Mages are improving, and they haven’t caused any problem at all.” He was trying to convince that she was needed in Wenias.
Albus puffed her cheeks. “I know that! You don’t have to tell me. That’s why I’m here on my desk working!”
“R-Right… My bad.” Holdem’s ears drooped.
Glaring at the Beastfallen, Albus plopped down on the desk again. She frowned as she stared at the last two lines of the letter.
Why don’t you come back here for now? I really miss you both.
The text on the Witch’s Letter could be erased by blowing on it a little. Erasing from this side would mean the words on the other pair would vanish as well.
“I know they’re not coming back. They’ve forgotten about me. They’re not even responding to my letters. I’m sure they’re having fun in their trip.”
Albus blew out the last line in anger. I will not show weakness. I’m never going to write “come back” again.
“I can do everything on my own even without those two!”
“First, have this.” Gouda held out a a goblet filled with a cloudy, orange-colored drink. While I was hesitating to accept it, Zero snatched the cup from me.
“Hey!”
Zero gulped down an unidentified drink that could potentially be poisonous and breathed a sigh of contentment.
“Hmm, a familiar sweetness and a fresh aroma,” Zero said. “A rich yet refreshing taste. Yes, this is an extremely delicious cow’s milk. Am I wrong?” She shot Gouda a provoking look.
The man nodded, shrinking back a little. He didn’t expect Zero to just drink it all without hesitation.
“It’s fruit-flavored cow’s milk,” he said. “Drinking this chilled beverage after taking a bath is common practice here in our kingdom.”
“Y-You mix fruit juice with cow milk? ” I asked. “I’ve never heard of that before.”
Gouda picked up another goblet and held it out to me. I inched my nose closer. It smelled like fruit and milk mixed together. Mustering my courage, I put the cup to my mouth. The milk slid down my throat so easily that I found it hard to believe it was even milk. The sweetness of the fruit and the mild flavor of cow’s milk were perfectly balanced. I couldn’t help but drink it all down in one gulp.
Still wearing a frown, Gouda nodded a few times. “Come with me,” he said, as though some kind of ritual had just ended.
Zero and I exchanged glances, then followed the man.
“So the princess asked you to be our guide,” I said. “But aren’t you a big-shot? You know, being the captain of the Magic Corps and all. You should let your subordinates do it.”
“The others have their own work to do.”
“And you don’t have one?”
“My job is to follow orders from the princess.” Gouda looked away grumpily.
Wow. He really doesn’t like me. It was like he got a stick up his ass. He should take it a little easier. He was still young, yet he always wore a frown on his face. He keeps that up and his face might never return to normal.
“I mean, I’m honored to have a bigshot as our guide. So when am I getting my stuff back?”
“We’re gathering them at the moment.”
“What?”
Gouda let out a huge sigh of annoyance. “The prison guard took them all,” he said. “Here in Nordis, the jailer is free to do whatever they want with a prisoner’s belongings. And he either sold or traded your things. We are in the process of retrieving them all.”
“A-Are you serious?! How can you do that to other people’s stuff?! I wasn’t even a prisoner!”
“To the prison guard, everyone thrown into jail are prisoners!”
“I mean, I get that, but still.”
It was too outrageous. Why was he even yelling at me when they were the ones who took my stuff? It didn’t make any sense. My thoughts might’ve shown on my face—of course Gouda couldn’t possibly read my expression when I had the face of an animal—because he awkwardly softened his tone.
“This is all that was left.” Gouda held out a somewhat big, familiar knife to me.
“It’s Theo’s knife!” I shouted despite myself.
I grabbed it and pulled it from its sheath to check for chips on its blade. It was in good condition as always, neither chipped nor dulled.
I felt relieved. Just having the knife returned to me decreased my antagonism towards the princess and Gouda by about eighty percent.
“All of your gear was too big for a normal person, but this was normal-sized, so the guard didn’t sell it, opting to keep it for himself. I asked him and found it easily. If I didn’t, a blacksmith could’ve melted it already.”
A chill went down my spine.
“You must be glad to have it back.”
“Huh?”
“It’s a memento of a close friend, isn’t it? The princess told me.” Gouda resumed walking down a path that led to who-knows-where.
“Intriguing,” Zero murmured.
“Agreed,” I said.
He could’ve easily ignored my demand, like how the princess feigned ignorance when I asked for my stuff back in the underground cell. But Gouda said he prioritized the search for the knife.
“I might not dislike that man as much as I first thought,” Zero said.
“But we don’t know how he feels about us. First impressions are definitely the worst.”
After all, Zero wiped the floor with the captain of the Magic Corps in front of the public eye. Zero, not caring about such complicated human relationship matters, quickened her pace and walked alongside Gouda.
“I thought you were going to show us around?” Zero said. “You have been walking in silence for a while now.”
Gouda gave a jerk, and distanced himself from Zero, as if an animal he hated just approached him.
“We’re simply walking towards our destination. I have nothing to talk about, and please stay away from me.”
“Then answer my question. I am interested in this kingdom.”
“Why?”
“There was a magical warfare, was there not?”
Gouda’s expression hardened. His frown deepened even further.
[previous_page]
[next_page]
Comment (0)