Hellfire
The final phase of the “Rebellion of the Seven Kings” one hundred and fifty years ago—the royal capital Romarikku was surrounded by the Ahmad’s army that backed Blanco.
The Ahmad’s army, which had accepted Dominas Jelena’s entreaty, kept the damage to the town area to a minimum and succeeded in cornering the usurper king Lovullo, who continued to put up resistance, to the the royal palace. At this time, only less than two thousand soldiers obeyed Lovullo, and it was said that the citizens of Romarikku raised their voices in joy when they learnt that Lovullo’s oppressive rule had come to an end together with the destruction of the royal palace.
The splendorous royal palace of Romarikku was once reputed to be comparable with the palace of Roma—a building of that degree wasn’t repaired after the civil war, and the little remaining foundation was rebuilt as a town hall. It might be because its imposing appearance would make people remember the sad memories from before the civil war.
She could hear a “churu churu” sound.
Valeria, who had sensed a slight tickle and that strange sound, inhaled a lungful of cold air and opened her eyes quietly.
Speaking of which, where was she and what was she doing—while frantically trying to dig up the memories within her muddled consciousness, Valeria casually raised her head.
「—You’ve regained consciousness, huh」
She made eye contact with Dimitar, who was bright red around the mouth.
「Hyawaaabua—!?」
「So noisy」
Forcibly suppressing the scream that Valeria had instinctively let out with his hand, Dimitar spat out saliva, which was mixed with blood, onto the ground beside him. Or rather, it was mostly blood.
「Y, you…」
Valeria rubbed her eyes many times, then propped herself up on both elbows and tried to get up.
「Hey… d, don’t tell me you have lung disease!? A, are you all right?」
「Don’t jump to conclusions」
Casually wiping his bloodstained mouth with his fist, Dimitar swiftly grabbed Valeria’s thigh.
「This is your blood. I didn’t vomit blood in particular」
While saying so, he put his mouth on the wound on Valeria’s thigh.
「Waaah!?」
「…You’re so noisy. If you’re going to be so noisy, then don’t wake up」
「B, but, that’s because—」
Valeria also understood that Dimitar had been sucking the poison out that way. Valeria also had the knowledge that one would do such a thing in an emergency treatment when one got bitten by a poisonous snake.
However, the issue here was that Valeria was a woman and Dimitar was a man; in addition to this, the wound was on her thigh.
「E, enough already! That’s sufficient! L, l-l, look, I’ll, um, do the rest by myself!」
Valeria, who never had the experience of being sucked on the thigh by anyone, hurriedly tried to push Dimitar aside, but she felt giddy and couldn’t put any strength into her body. The fact that she was feeling giddy, had no strength left and, to make matters worse, was feeling so cold that she was shivering even though it was summer, was probably due to the massive bleeding. That she lost consciousness must also be because of that.
「Keep quiet. …It’s over already」
Dimitar, who had sucked and spat out the blood, took a breath deeply and wiped the dirt off his hand, then held it up over the wound.
「…Eh?」
A warm light overflowed from Dimitar’s hand and slowly closed the open cross‐shaped wound on Valeria’s thigh.
「Y, you… can use healing magic…?」
「I’ve learnt to use it just recently. —Although I say that, it’s to the extent of closing superficial wounds and relieving the pain only. Heal it by yourself after you recover」
Dimitar said so bluntly and then untied the cord, which had been tied at the base of Valeria’s thigh. She could tell that her right leg, which had felt like a cold and heavy ice until then, was regaining heat gradually.
At the same time, the feeling in her right leg, which had been numb the whole time, gradually came back, and the wound started to ache with a prolonged dull pain.
「We’re going back」
Dimitar carried Valeria on his back and stood up.
「—Gacha Pink is probably sleeping in a carefree manner, but it’s about time for Thial to return soon. It’d be good if she doesn’t inadvertently start making noise when she finds out that we aren’t there…」
「Eh? You… didn’t tell Thial-san anything either?」
「There’s no way I can disclose the content of the top-secret mission, which I’ve even kept secret from you and Gacha Pink, to Thial only, right?」
Completely different from when he ran away until here, Dimitar descended the slope along the river slowly. Honestly, for the current Valeria, she’d be grateful as long as she wasn’t jolted.
While leaning her body firmly on Dimitar’s back, Valeria murmured.
「…Who were those guys just now?」
「I don’t know. …However, they even knew my name. They seem to be barbarian believers, so they’re in all probability people from Bigelow who are hostile to Ahmad」
「Even if that’s the case, why are they at this kind of place—」
「They might have been following us after we had slipped out of the guest house」
「…Isn’t that strange?」
The guest house of Romarikku was within the premises of the extensive town hall of Romarikku. If Dimitar’s thought was correct, then those guys would have been hiding themselves either within or close to the premises of the town hall and keeping watch on the actions of Valeria’s party.
「Um… even if it’s in the centre of Romarikku, i, is the security, so… apathetic?」
「It’s not that the security is apathetic in particular. It’s just that those men were skilled」
「W, well, that’s true…」
If one thought about it, Valeria’s party themselves slipped out of the guest house without being seen by the guards and even climbed over the rampart and then came into the mountains in the south of the town, so it wouldn’t be strange even if those men managed to do similar daring acts.
When Valeria was thinking about such a matter, she felt sick.
「Uu… I feel sick… and my head throbs—」
「It’s because of the anaemia」
「I, I feel like vomiting…」
「You can vomit if you want to. You’ll probably feel better a little」
“I’ll throw you out if you vomit on someone’s back!”; Valeria had thought Dimitar would rebuke her like this, and yet he was unexpectedly gentle, which made her feel somewhat strange.
「—Well, if you vomit, I’ll tell Lucius about it as a funny story afterwards」
「…I absolutely won’t vomit」
Closing her eyes glumly, Valeria adjusted her breathing.
As the pain in her leg increased, her cheeks and forehead became hotter. Unfortunately, she now still had neither the energy nor physical strength to respond to Dimitar’s impudent talk.
Valeria suddenly realised that even her right hand hurt somehow.
「……」
She opened her eyes slightly and looked at her own right hand. Had she been grasping something very firmly? Her nails were broken and cracked.
However, Valeria couldn’t remember well what she had been grasping. Before long, she felt faint again and lost consciousness, falling down with a plop.
♦♦♦
It was said that an unconscious person feels heavier than a conscious person.
Dimitar didn’t exactly know what the reason was, but Valeria certainly felt heavier when she was sleeping than when she was awake.
Dimitar, who had carried such a burden on his back and somehow crossed over the rampart without being noticed by anyone and then come back to the guest house, got down onto the balcony of Valeria’s room with hushed footsteps.
「—Dimitar-sama?」
Perhaps she had heard the faint sound of the window opening, Thial appeared on the balcony of the adjacent room with the bed sheet wrapped around her body.
「You’ve returned already, huh」
「I’m sorry, I was taking a nap」
「You don’t have to worry about it. …Wake Gacha Pink up after you’ve changed and then come to this room together」
「If it’s Bettina-san, she should be in Valeria-sama’s room」
「What?」
「She told me that she’ll wait for the two of you to return, so I should take a nap in the meantime—」
「That Gacha Pink is quite thoughtful for someone who urinates frequently」
Dimitar entered the room and laid Valeria down on the bed.
「Oi, Gacha Pink. …Oi?」
A pink metal mass shining with a momentary flash of light in the darkness could be seen lying down on the sofa in the spacious room.
「…Well, she’s certainly here. She just isn’t awake」
Smiling wryly at the soft snores mumbled through the armour, Dimitar mercilessly kicked Bettina down with the sole of his boot.
「Oi, wake up」
「Er… cow dung that was dried on red clay and peat moss—」
「…I’ve always wondered, but what kind of dream do you usually have?」
Dimitar left the pink girl, who had started saying strange things in her sleep, alone for the time being and returned to the bedside.
「—Dimitar-sama, what in the world happened?」
Thial, who had finished changing clothes and come along, looked at Valeria, who was lying down on the bed with a red face, and knitted her brows.
「Don’t tell me… she’s sick?」
「She was poisoned」
Dimitar took out the black needle, which had been wrapped up in several layers with a handkerchief, from his inside pocket and held it out to Thial.
「Poison?」
「It’s my mistake. Even if I have to knock her out, I shouldn’t have brought her along」
Dimitar, who had briefly explained the gist of the matter, ordered Bettina, who had finally got up, to bring plenty of clean water and then stroked the nape of his neck.
「…I thought I had studied all sorts of poisons in my chivalric order days, but as far as I know, there’s nothing that comes to mind. Thial, do you know anything?」
「What kind of symptoms appeared?」
「She has fever, perspiration, trembling of limbs and chills fairly often. —Ah, come to think of it, bluish-black spots the size of a small coin appeared around the wound. I rarely see this in other poisons」
「…Perhaps it might be an animal poison made in Bigelow」
「Do you have any idea?」
「I’m not familiar with it either」
Thial replied with a meek expression.
「—I heard that the hunters from Bigelow use such poisons to kill their game. In the case of small game, it’s not unusual for them to die due to their physical strength being exhausted considerably in the course of the poisons breaking down inside their bodies—」
The fact that she particularly spoke of the last part in a hushed tone was probably a result of her worrying that it’d reach Valeria’s ears by some chance. If anything, Thial thought it’d be good if Valeria heard it and jumped out of bed, but she was merely breathing shallowly and hurriedly over again as ever, and there was no sign of her waking up.
「Dimitar-sama」
Thial undid the button on the collar of her simple dress and then spoke, as if she had made up her mind.
「…I’ll go and search for for the antidote」
「Do you know where to search?」
「I don’t know in particular. But fortunately, I’ve already marked down the places where southern people gather, so if they’re merchants that bring in pelts and so forth, then they’ve probably done the hunting by themselves. If I ask that sort of people, setting whether I can obtain the antidote itself or not aside, I should be able to find out the way of making it at least」
「I see. Then I’ll leave it to you」
「I’ll set off immediately」
Thial then left the room at a quick pace while taking off her dress.
Bettina came back right after Thial left, carrying a large bucket in her arms.
「H, huh? Is Thial-san going out somewhere again?」
「Never mind that and close the door. …What I’m going to say from now on is a secret between us only. You absolutely can’t tell the other maids, guards and, of course, those guys from Romarikku about this, all right?」
「W, what is it?」
「Our Eminence was hit by a poison that those guys from Bigelow used. Thial went out to search for the antidote」
「Eh!? P, poison!? Is Valeria-sama all right!?」
「It’s because she’s not all right that we’re trying to prepare the antidote」
Dimitar cleansed the surrounding area of the wound on Valeria’s thigh with the water that was just drawn and then wrapped a bandage around it again. Peering at that nervously, Bettina spoke.
「…Isn’t it better to quickly ask Prefectural Governor-kakka to summon a skilled doctor?」
「We can’t do that」
「Why?」
「I… don’t trust that prefectural governor very much」
Although this wasn’t how Valeria said it, the situation where people from Bigelow, who were hostile to the Dominas, were keeping a watchful eye around the guest house was abnormal, no matter how skilled they were. Moreover, the deterioration in public order was a major problem for the Romarikku’s local government, and the prefectural governor would also tell stories of him striving for the solution to that whenever they had a meal together.
Nevertheless, in reality, they ended up being attacked by a group of thieves in the mountains right behind the town like this. Was this the negligence of the garrison, or was the prefectural governor incompetent, or—.
「…Anyway, we’ll just think of her as being confined to her bed because of a sudden fever and cancel all of tomorrow’s, or rather, today’s official functions」
「W, what do we do tomorrow?」
「I’ll make her recover by all means within today. …If she’s still in this state tomorrow, then it’s a real state of emergency already. I’ll get in touch with Roma and have them dispatch an army as guards for our return」
「A, an army? Isn’t that exaggerated…」
「We only brought less than fifty guards along. If we’re attacked by that disgusting man again, even fifty people won’t be able to stop him」
Thinking back to that man smelling of make-up who had challenged him to a fight in the mountain, Dimitar bit his lip. He most likely wouldn’t be able to defeat that man unless he fought with perfect preparations. That person was a deviant who was not only skilled but also felt not the slightest hesitation towards killing people. If possible, Dimitar didn’t want to fight against him ever again.
「Dimi-san, Valeria-sama is…」
Bettina, who had been wiping the sweat on Valeria’s face with a wet towel, looked back at Dimitar. She probably must be looking worried underneath the visor.
「Valeria-sama is moaning in her sleep. It must be painful for her, mustn’t it?」
「Even if you say that… what I can do is to relieve her pain as much as possible, though this is like pouring water on a hot stone as well」
Dimitar rotated his neck lightly and held his right hand over Valeria’s forehead.
「Fua… Dimi-san, when did you become able to use such a peaceful magic?」
Seeing a soft light being lit in the very dim light, Bettina raised a voice of admiration.
「I’m the Hiera Glaphicos of a Dominas, you know? All the magic crests of the magic that she can use are fixed in my mind as fundamental knowledge」
「B, but even if they’re fixed in your mind, it doesn’t mean that you can use all the magic, right?」
「…If you have the time to be chatting needlessly, then pray to Reduntra in my stead」
Because I don’t believe in things like gods—Dimitar held back from saying these words and focused his attention on his magic.
♦♦♦
「T, this is terrible! Your Excellency, Your Excellency~!」
Nacho noisily came back at a run along the corridor connected to the guest house, as if to scatter the quietness of the morning.
「…What is it, Puyol-kyou?」
Gavrilo Alija Dzeco, who was feeding the swans by the pond where a refreshing breeze was making the greenery rustle, looked back at the noisy houseboy and sighed.
「Calm down a little. You’re ruining this long-awaited crisp morning, don’t you think? …More importantly, how’s Her Eminence? Does she need more time?」
In the garden just outside the house where the verdant grass spread out like a carpet, a big table and chairs were lined up orderly. Plates and cutlery equal to the number of people had already been prepared there, and as long as Dzeco issued the instructions, the food could be brought here at any time.
「T, this is not the time for that!」
Nacho panted and came to Dzeco. While gasping for breath, he nevertheless lowered his voice as much as possible and whispered into his master’s ear.
「To tell you the truth, um… Her Eminence is in poor health—」
「What? Is she ill?」
「—」
Jelena, who was sitting on a seat by herself and drinking lemonade absent-mindedly, reacted to the words Dzeco had unconsciously leaked out and narrowed her eyes.
「That’s, anyway, they persisted in saying that Her Eminence doesn’t feel very well today, and though I went to the front of her room, I couldn’t even have an audience with her—」
「Was the one who said that Her Eminence doesn’t feel very well that guard official, Richternach-kyou? Did you hear Her Eminence’s voice?」
「I didn’t hear Her Eminence’s voice. Richternach-kyou said that she most likely have a fever because of the long journey and yesterday’s exhaustion, …so he want to change the schedule and let her rest well the whole day today」
Recalling the face of Dimitar Richternach with cold eyes, Nacho wiped his sweat with the cuff of his top. Despite the other party being younger than himself, he couldn’t raise any objections when that boy told him that this and that were like this. Rather than because Dimitar was from the House of Richternach, it was probably due to Nacho’s timidity more.
However, despite Nacho’s worry, Dzeco couldn’t accept the answer that the young houseboy had brought back.
「You… do you think I’m all right with that? Why didn’t you ask for her more detailed condition!? Even though it’s necessary to make arrangements for the medicine and a doctor, I’m inconvenienced by such ambiguous things!」
「I, I(僕)—no, I(私) said that repeatedly as well, but he said that it wasn’t something that requires a doctor’s aid, so he doesn’t particularly need any medicine or help, and to let Her Eminence rest quietly now at any rate since all the care will be done by the attendants they brought along from Roma only… I was told that it was Her Eminence’s will that she doesn’t want to show her sick and tired appearance to Your Excellency and the people of this region, so there’s nothing I can do about it…」
For Nacho, who had studied at the magic academy since childhood and, as a devout God believer, had been regarding himself as a servant of Reduntra, the words of the Dominas, who were God’s wives and spokespeople, were absolute. If she told him to leave her alone, then he had no choice but to leave her alone.
Dzeco wrinkled his brow and tossed all the remaining pet food he was holding into the pond, then started walking around there aimlessly like usual.
「Good grief, what a cold thing Her Eminence said…! That she doesn’t want cause us trouble—」
「Otou-sama, you don’t understand, do you?」
Picking up the muscats from the mountain of fruits that was served at the centre of the table with her fingers and putting them into her mouth, Jelena smiled slightly.
「—If I were confined to my bed with a fever, I absolutely wouldn’t want such an appearance of mine to be seen by anyone. It must be the same for Her Eminence as well」
「No, but you know… this is a very political issue」
「It started again. The political issue」
When Jelena blew the seeds of the muscats towards the pond, the swans mistook them for pet food and gathered gracefully.
「…Enough already!」
Dzeco, who had been pondering something while tapping his own temple with his finger, sighed greatly and summoned the maids, then ordered them to clean up this dining table. After that, he entered the town hall accompanied by Nacho.
「—Puyol-kyou, what are Her Eminence’s plans for today?」
「Er… from the morning till the afternoon, there’s the inspection of the magic academy」
「There’s no problem even if it’s cancelled like this」
The Romarikku’s branch of the magic academy was a stone’s throw from this town hall. In addition, it was none other than Dzeco who also held the post of branch director, so it wasn’t a particularly major problem if Dzeco himself was aware of the change of schedule.
「Afterwards, she’ll have a meal together with the principal and professors of the University of Romarikku in the evening. They have to make arrangements for tomorrow’s inspection…」
「Hmm… it’s all right to inform the magic academy orally, but a proper document is needed for the university’s side. The professors there are captious one way or another」
Dzeco, who had come to his own office at a quick pace, took out an unopened bottle of brandy inside the cabinet.
「—Puyol-kyou, write a letter to the principal with my name and send it together with this alcohol before noon. Many of the professors there like to drink, so put them in a good mood with this for the time being. I’ll go visit them and explain the situation personally afterwards」
「U, understood」
「In addition, show your face at the guest house periodically. Even if you can’t have an audience with Her Eminence, find out her detailed condition for me. That’s because I also want to know what kind of state she is in. Have a doctor be on standby as well in case of an emergency」
「I understand! Ah, and then, regarding the matter of visiting Her Eminence—」
「I’ll make some arrangements for that. I hope that she can accept it, …but in any case, you should give the highest priority to the matter of the letter」
「Y, yes!」
Nacho, who was ordered to do this task and that task by his master, received the heavy bottle and rushed out of the office.
Nine years ago, when the Dominas of that time came from Roma, Nacho’s father had also worked diligently and busily, but even so, it probably wasn’t to the extent of the current Nacho. After all, such unexpected accidents had never occurred at that time at all.
Nacho hurried towards the study that was allocated to him while almost falling down many times.
♦♦♦
「……」
Even after Nacho had rushed out, Dzeco tapped the top of the massive desk with his finger and contemplated without settling into the chair. Before long, he left the office while combing his moustache down and headed towards the private section of the town hall—the residential section of the Dezco family.
「—Galarina-dono, Fatih-dono!」
Both Galarina and Fatih were having a meal in the large living room of the Dzecos’ house.
It wasn’t unusual for these foreign guests, who disliked stiff manners, to specially have their meals not in the dining room but in the living room like this, but it was unusual that Fatih was already awake. If it were usual, this tall and thin man with make-up wouldn’t get out of bed unless it was close to noon.
Leaning her body against the sofa, Galarina, who was reading while biting into a smoked salmon baguette sandwich, glanced at Dzeco, who had arrived, fleetingly and reached for a bottle of cider.
「…Good morning, Your Excellency」
「Good morning」
Dzeco, who had bowed courteously, took the bottle that Galarina had put to her lips and was about to drink it just like that in his hand. He then personally prepared a glass and poured the cider into it.
「Even though I’ve prepared much better things… why do you only eat this sort of things that you can eat any time?」
「Such simple things suit us more」
Fatih scooped the soup, which had pork and beans stewed in it, with a spoon and brought it to his mouth. With a smile stuck on his face, where make-up had been perfectly done since the morning, he gazed at Dzeco, who had a grim expression, with amusement. Just from that thin smile, Dzeco had a feeling that he could somehow understand what happened last night.
「…How troubling」
Letting out a long sigh, Dzeco waved his hand lightly and made the maids who were taking care of their meal leave.
「What’s the matter, Your Excellency」
「I’d like you to not feign ignorance」
Dzeco joined his hands together behind his back and started going round and round the sofa set that the two people had occupied.
「…What happened last night?」
「What was it?」
「Costacurta-geika, who is in the midst of her stay at the guest house, claims to have a sudden fever and won’t come out of her room」
「My goodness… what happened to her, I wonder? Perhaps her period was serious or something?」
「Fatih-dono… what in the world did you do?」
「Huh~? How did it become like that? If something happens, then it’s all caused by me? Isn’t it bad to arbitrarily decide that something is the case like that?」
「……」
Dzeco turned his gaze away from Fatih and looked at Galarina silently. Galarina then shrugged her shoulders.
「I’m sorry, Your Excellency」
「Hey, Nee-san! Are you selling your younger brother out!?」
「Even if I sell you out, I won’t make a cent. Rather, you’re a liability, you know」
「Ah… what did you do? This has become really troubling」
Looking up at the sky exaggeratedly, Dzeco put his hand to his forehead and prayed to god.
「Why don’t you stop that sort of meaningless pose too, Your Excellency? The truth is that you’re not so troubled. It’s completely incomprehensible to me, you know」
「—」
Dzeco stopped walking suddenly and gazed at the older sister and younger brother alternately with his narrowed eyes.
「You might as well become independent with this opportunity」
Fatih placed the soup bowl on the table and spoke.
「Come on, Your Excellency. Though you pretend to be a timid person, you’re actually not, right? In reality, you’re an ambitious person, aren’t you? …This is a good chance, so let’s become independent」
「…You seem to be misunderstanding something」
Shaking his head slightly, Dzeco approached the window slowly.
「When did I ever say that I wanted to become independent from Ahmad?」
「Though I’ve never heard you say so, I can at least tell that you don’t want to stay as a part of Ahmad like this, you know. It’s as clear as day」
「I want to say that I don’t wish to have a quarrel with Ahmad」
Dzeco flipped the lace curtain over and looked down at the vast courtyard. Where in the world had she gone? The figure of Jelena, who had been snacking on fruits by the pond, was nowhere to be seen.
Dzeco closed the curtain and looked back at Galarina and Fatih.
「—Even if our Romarikku fight against the great Ahmad, we stand no chance of winning. You should know that better than I do, right? Despite having a larger territory than Ahmad, Bigelow couldn’t win against Ahmad」
「Ow-ow-ow-ouch… it’s painful when I’m told that. I have no words of reply」
Fatih clutched his chest and smiled jokingly, but Dzeco and Galarina didn’t even smile.
「 I have no intention of being taken in by that kind of cajolery and exposing Romarikku to danger. Besides, I also know that you’re not an ordinary caravan. You’re most likely Bigelow’s spies… aren’t you?」
When Dzeco began to talk so, Galarina and Fatih looked at each other, and then Galarina closed the book she was reading.
「Supposing that that was the case—you were letting us go in and out of here with the knowledge of that?」
「That’s because you’re extremely capable as a caravan, you see. You bring great wealth to this town and promote interaction with other people. That’s why southern merchants and craftsmen besides you are also accepted in this town. —However, Romarikku absolutely won’t be separated from Ahmad. It won’t side with Bigelow either」
「If that’s the case, what in the world does Your Excellency want to do? I won’t let you say that you have no ambitions at all, you know」
「Rather than ambitions… I have ideals」
「Ideals?」
「To connect Ahmad and Bigelow, if I have to state further, the God believers and the barbarian believers, by means of economic activities」
「To connect Ahmad and Bigelow by economic activities…?」
「You’re aware of it as well, right? How many people from Bigelow would break the state prohibition to come to this town for money… that being the case, it might be possible to make up for the differences in both countries’ religious principles and positions as well as the strife caused by the history of the long war by means of economic power eventually. …That’s what I think」
Dzeco patted his own chest and spoke proudly. That was the unfeigned true feelings of Dzeco who, being born and raised in Romarikku where interaction with the barbarian believers continued uninterruptedly, possessed the intuition of a merchant.
「—As one of the step towards that, there’s some possibility of becoming independent from Ahmad in the utmost peaceful manner in the future, but at least at the present stage, I don’t intend to fight and split up」
「I don’t think such a thing is possible for a merchant or a government official or the like」
Fatih gulped down his cider and gazed at Dzeco with a challenging look.
「…In the first place, do you think Ahmad will allow you to become independent in a peaceful manner?」
「That’s where careful thought is needed. —Fortunately, Romarikku’s people have a strong love for their hometown, and I’m descended from the old royal family. If I make good use of that, I don’t think it’s completely impossible though」
「Oh, really? Then, it’s not so different from what I’m thinking」
「Fatih」
The older sister tried to interrupt the younger brother’s words. Being all the more curious about it, Dzeco was intrigued.
「…What do you mean, Fatih-dono?」
「For the sake of the peaceful independence that Your Excellency speaks of, you see, a Dominas that will work for Your Excellency is needed, isn’t it? A Dominas who will help you with independence from Ahmad this time, contrary to the one who exerted herself when Romarikku was annexed by Ahmad one hundred and fifty years ago」
「—I’d like to hear it in detail, including what you did to Costacurta-geika as well」
Saying so, Dzeco sat down in a single-seater sofa.
♦♦♦
Thial put on her mantle and walked along the dim alleys which, as a result of aggressive expansion and reconstruction of buildings repeating later in places where small and shabby houses originally stood in rows, had an appearance just like a labyrinth.
Figures of dark-skinned men were noticeable on these winding roads, which were unrelated to the hustle and bustle of the busy streets and where pitch-black darkness had fallen upon here and there. The community of the southern people, who had come from the other side of the mountain range for trade and then settled down just like that, was here. The whispered conversations that could be heard from here and there were also totally different from the language of the north side of the mountain range; they had sounds unique to the south.
Thial indifferently ignored the gazes of the rude men that were fixed on herself and descended the narrow stone stairway.
If the information Thial had spent more than approximately half a day to gather since dawn was trustworthy, then the various articles from Bigelow that rarely appeared on the ordinary markets were being traded secretly at the small bar ahead. She might be able to obtain clues about the antidote to the poison tormenting Valeria there.
Taking a big deep breath in the stinking and unpleasant air, Thial pushed the door she saw at the end of the blind alley open without even knocking.
「—」
It was already the time when the sunlight wouldn’t shine into the depths of the alleys. The lights would soon be lit in the bars throughout the town.
There were only three people inside the store, which wasn’t particularly spacious: a middle-aged man, seeming to be the storekeeper, who was starting to prepare for the opening of the store, a young man who was shouldering a mop and cleaning slowly, and in addition, a drunken person who was drinking alcohol at a table in the corner. The fact that this customer was drinking before the store opened meant that he was most likely a regular customer of the store.
The middle-aged man and young man stared at Thial, who had suddenly appeared, suspiciously.
「…The signboard isn’t out yet, right? Could you wait a little longer?」
The storekeeper spoke with a strong accent. Thial lowered the hood of her mantle and talked to the storekeeper in the southern language.
「There’s something I want」
「A woman, huh… how unusual」
People who could speak the southern language shouldn’t be rare here. However, cases where a young girl like Thial would come here clandestinely weren’t so many.
Thial placed a small leather bag on the counter and continued in a low voice.
「—I don’t know what that poison is called. However, it’s a poison frequently used in hunting」
「You want that poison?」
「I want the antidote, not the poison itself」
The contents of the bag that Thial had put down were gold coins. It wasn’t an amount that one could easily see around here even if they worked honestly. Shaking the jingling bag as if to say “can you hear this?”, Thial observed the storekeeper’s expression.
「—」
After the storekeeper had looked at the leather bag and then Thial’s face several times, he looked towards the door just for an instant.
Immediately after that, the sound of the door being shut violently could be heard.
「Ruaaaaaah!」
The drunkard, who should have been tasting cheap alcohol until a short while ago, raised a chair and attacked Thial.
「—!」
Thial instantly hit the storekeeper’s face with her left palm and then slapped the drunkard with the bottom edge of her mantle just as she was turning around.
「Tsu—gua!」
In the instant when the drunkard’s field of vision was blocked by the mantle, Thial stepped into his reach and thrust a small knife, aiming at his thigh. It wasn’t a wound that he’d immediately die from, but at least he couldn’t stand up for a while.
At that moment, the young man swung the mop at her.
「……」
Thial perceived his movements clearly and calmly, and kicked the young man’s knee from the side.
「Uwa—!?」
「Go to sleep just like that」
「Gah」
Just when the young man lost his balance and stumbled, Thial struck the side of his face as hard as she could, and then he kissed the floor and fell unconscious easily.
Thial, who had knocked two men down in the twinkling of an eye, noticed the storekeeper, who was spurting a nosebleed flashily, reaching for the kitchen knife that was placed on the counter, and she approached him in a single leap. She took out a black needle from her inside pocket and stabbed it into the back of the hand of the storekeeper, who tried to grab the kitchen knife.
「Gyaa!」
「…Where’s the antidote?」
「I, I don’t know! I don’t know about such a thing!」
「If you don’t know, then think. …This needle is coated with poison, you know」
「Hii!?」
Forgetting to even scream in pain, the storekeeper stared at his hand that was pierced by the black needle.
「Bluish-black spots will soon emerge, and then you’ll have a fever and your whole body will start to tremble. …You’d better take the antidote quickly」
Thial pulled the needle out and took a step backwards. She then watched the storekeeper’s actions with cold eyes.
「D, damn it…!」
Cold sweat ran down the storekeeper’s face, and he looked back at the shelf behind him. It was a large shelf lined with liquor bottles and mugs that were too good for a small bar on the outskirts.
Thial, who was steadily watching the storekeeper trying to extend his trembling arm towards the corner of the shelf, jumped onto the counter lightly.
「Aah…!」
Snatching the small wooden box that the storekeeper was trying to take from the side, Thial narrowed her eyes.
「You have the actual antidote, huh? That saved me the trouble」
「R, return it! Return it!」
「Remake one by yourself. …You can do that, right?」
A small bottle was kept inside the box. Thial put it into her inside pocket, then threw the wooden box away and rushed out of the bar.
Although Thial didn’t know what would become of the men left behind after this, her heart didn’t ache very much. They were the kind of men who would suddenly attack a single young girl with three people; in any case, they weren’t decent people.
「…?」
However, a doubt suddenly arose, and Thial stopped halfway on the stone stairway.
Perhaps that storekeeper had some sort of connection to those people who attacked Dimitar? They also knew that Valeria was poisoned. That being the case, they could also presume that someone from Valeria’s party would probably be searching for this antidote. The fact that they attacked Thial as soon as she began to talk about wanting the antidote might be because they had perceived Thial to be a person from Valeria’s party.
If that was the case, then there was a possibility that the storekeeper knew the identity of the man with make-up.
「—」
Thial was hesitant about whether she should turn back now and severely question the storekeeper or not, but she immediately shook her head. What Thial ought to prioritise the most now was to deliver this antidote to Valeria. If necessary, she could come back again after delivering the antidote.
Dragging a long shadow in the sunset glow, Thial started running, the bottom of her mantle fluttering in the wind.
♦♦♦
The sounds of hammers were singing in chorus in the streets of Romarikku, which had sunk into the dusk. Even though the sun had set, those sounds probably wouldn’t stop for a while.
The artisans who practised blacksmithing in this Romarikku gathered together in the easternmost section of the town, which was called “Anvil Avenue”, and set up their workshops there. In order to guard against the noise of hammers, the smell of heated metals and the spread of fire in case a fire occurred by some chance, they were isolated by means of sturdy stone walls.
It wasn’t impossible to set up workshops in other places, but because there were tax incentives, most artisans gathered and lived inside the isolated section. If those walls didn’t exist, the sounds of hammers surely couldn’t be compared with the current’s, and one simply wouldn’t be able to listen to them, which were thought to be a feature of Romarikku, in a relaxed manner.
Fatih sat down on the railing of a bridge spanning a small canal and looked up at the night sky, where stars had started to flicker.
When it became twilight, the pedestrian traffic in this neighbourhood, which was remote from the busy streets, would almost peter out. Although the heat and humidity from the daytime seemed to have ridden upon the evening breezes and persistently clung to him, Fatih didn’t appear to mind it. For Fatih who would visit this town many times yearly, this was one of his few favourite places.
「—Fatih-sama」
A small boat appeared from below the arched bridge, making faint sounds of rowing oars.
Fatih looked directly below.
「How did it go?」
「It’s as Fatih-sama said, there was someone searching for the antidote and getting information on it here and there」
The boatman of small build rowing the small boat murmured without even looking up at Fatih. From an outsider’s perspective, the two people probably didn’t seem to be having a conversation.
「What kind of person was it? Was it perhaps the aforementioned boy?」
「No, it was a young girl. She seems to be a southern person…」
「Southern person?」
「Yes… she has the same skin colour as us, and spoke Bigelow’s language fluently」
「Hmm… so, what about that young girl?」
「It’s unclear where she has gone… she might have obtained the antidote somewhere by this time. This town has no lack of such things, after all…」
「Well, that’s fine」
Fatih sighed and stood up on the railing. Thrusting one hand into the inside pocket of his gaudily coloured jacket, he raised his indigo lips.
「Supposing that the young girl is Valeria Costacurta’s subordinate—the fact that she’s looking everywhere for the antidote like that means that the Dominas is still suffering from the poison. Serves her right, I feel so satisfied」
「What will you do?」
「Are there idiots who would wait for the enemy to recover even though they can’t move properly?」
「…I’m prepared to incur your wrath by saying this, but didn’t Galarina-sama forbid you to take any further action? It’s out of regard for the prefectural governor as well」
「Whether she allows or not is none of my concern」
「But—」
「Nee-san’s method is too slow. The prefectural governor with a moustache is even slower. This world is much simpler than everyone thinks; it changes greatly from the smallest things. —If you want to weaken Ahmad, you should just decrease their Dominas. And if a large civil war also occurs at the same time as that, it’ll be a huge success for me. …Gufu, fuhe, guhehehehehe!」
Fatih, who had torn out his hair and roared with laughter, somersaulted backwards lightly and jumped down from the railing, then tossed one gold coin to the man on the small boat.
「—Summon my subordinates who are lying hidden in this town. You don’t need to mind Nee-san」
「…Acknowledged」
Stuffing the small remuneration into his pocket, the man operated the squeaking oars and left, heading towards the east of the canal.
「Hahan…」
Stroking his lips, Fatih looked back to the south of the town. The thin needle-like silhouette that could be seen even from this distance was the clock tower that rose in the centre of the town hall.
「…If you can’t make up your mind, I’ll give you a push in the back for you, Your Excellency♪」
Fatih muttered so and started walking. An owl spread its black wings and flew overhead, drawing a big circle in the dark-blood-coloured evening sky.
♦♦♦
Although Valeria moaned in her sleep because of the fever and woke up occasionally, she was bedridden the whole time that day. She continued to have a slight fever as before, though the temperature was slightly lower than when she was brought back here last night.
Dimitar, who had held his hand over Valeria’s forehead and relieved her pain by means of magic, sighed deeply and stroked his neck.
That houseboy named Nacho Puyol had come to the front of their door accompanied by a doctor several times, but Dimitar persisted in declining to receive any visitors. He was able to get through today somehow, but it was probably impossible to continue using the same trick. If Valeria didn’t recover to the extent that she could appear in public by tonight, as one would expect, the citizens who couldn’t see the countenance of their Dominas might start making an uproar tomorrow.
「…Thial-san is late」
Bettina, who had drawn new water and come back, murmured uneasily.
「It’s not something that can be so easily found, after all」
No matter how much Thial could comprehend Bigelow’s language, establishing contact with their community and obtaining the antidote wasn’t an easy matter. Depending on the situation, it was also conceivable that she’d run into danger.
However, if it had seemed to be completely hopeless, Thial should have come back without delay. The fact that she still hadn’t return meant that—unless an unexpected situation happened to her—she might have discovered some kind of clue.
「As expected, isn’t it better to reveal the truth to Prefectural Governor-kakka and get him to arrange for a doctor? Valeria-sama seems to be in pain the whole time…」
「—」
If it were usual, Dimitar probably would have rejected Bettina’s words and told her to keep quiet. However, the doubt arising in his mind made him fall silent. Originally, the thing called doubt should have been alien to Dimitar; what was making him have an indescribable uneasiness was the reality that it wasn’t him but Valeria who continued to suffer.
Dimitar nibbled a loaf of bread, which he had the maids who were brought along from Roma bring to the front of their room, and sat down on the sofa.
「Gacha Pink」
「What is it, Dimi-san?」
「Do you really think that way?」
「Eh?」
「Even now, do you think it’s better to turn to the prefectural governor for help?」
「That’s…」
Bettina’s voice through the visor was muffled.
「…Not like you」
「What?」
「Dimi-san doesn’t care about other people’s opinions like that. Though giving an opinion and saying this kind of thing myself is a little inappropriate…」
「……」
「When I see Dimi-san caring about my opinion, I’ll grow uneasy」
「On the contrary, are you fine with that?」
Dimitar stuffed the bread into his stomach in a working-like manner and asked.
「—Can you completely believe everything that I tell you to do or not do? Did you not think my judgement could be wrong?」
「Dimi-san is also an insignificant human, so I think there are times when you’ll make mistakes」
Although “an insignificant human” was a rude way of putting it, now wasn’t the time to point that out. Dimitar gulped down the wine and listened carefully to Bettina’s words.
「—But um… is it called statistically? Thinking about it statistically, I think there are probably many cases where Dimi-san’s judgements are more correct than Valeria-sama’s and my judgements, so I eventually think I should just follow Dimi-san’s instructions」
「Statistically, huh」
「Oji-sama says it often. Statistically~he’d say」
「I guess so…」
Dimitar ruffled his dark grey hair roughly and laughed at himself.
The one who ultimately decided the intent of this party was Dimitar. According to the official stance, Valeria’s position was naturally at the top, but Dimitar substantially managed everything, and he had been doing so the whole time until now.
To put it simply, it was cowardly of Dimitar to start saying that he was unsure of his own judgement now. To make matters worse, the current Valeria was unconscious. Rather, it was precisely at times like this that Dimitar should believe in his own judgement and act.
「It’s certainly selfish(虫のいい) of me to take charge only when it’s convenient」
「Huh? Bug(虫)?」
「It’s nothing」
Dimitar shook his head and stood up.
「You should also eat while you can」
「Yes」
While wiping Valeria’s forehead with a wet towel in Bettina’s place, Dimitar spoke.
「Listen to me while you eat」
「Pardon?」
「To put it simply, it’s because I don’t trust the prefectural governor that I decided to resolve this situation by ourselves」
「Eh? Do you mean that he’s unreliable?」
“Gashan mogumogu, gashan mogumogu.” While opening the visor and tossing the shredded bread into her helmet, Bettina asked a question in return. Although every single action of hers was noisy, Dimitar now felt an inexpressible familiarity from that noisiness.
「Well, I also told Valeria-sama that he certainly looks like an old man who is always nervous—」
「It’s the opposite, the opposite. Though he appears to be unreliable, that prefectural governor is a rather tough man, you know?」
「Is that so?」
「Appearing to be unreliable is a mere pose」
While explaining this and that to Bettina, Dimitar was gathering his own thoughts inside his head.
「Despite also holding the post of branch director of Romarikku’s magic academy in addition to his hereditary prefectural governor position and serving as a lecturer at the university, he has never made a mistake that became a problem worth mentioning even once. …An indecisive person shouldn’t be able to do this much」
「But why does he have to adopt that kind of pose?」
「It’s not so bad when they’re relatives related by blood, but if an unrelated person who is over-excellent is appointed to an important position such as Romarikku’s “Margrave”, then you can’t tell when they’ll start things such as rebellions and independence movements. At the very least, His Majesty thought about such a matter」
That was why although Gavrilo Alija Dzeco was, if anything, capable, he was pretending to be a timid person who wasn’t too capable and was less likely to be guarded against by the central government—that was how Dimitar saw it. When Dimitar actually met the person himself and calmly observed him, he realised that Dzeco was a sort of genius who had various extraordinary talents. If King Jeffren Francesc had met Dzeco in person, he probably would have seen through his real nature accurately.
「—If it’s that capable prefectural governor, he should be able to control those audacious southern people who had dared to target the Dominas better, and yet he didn’t do that. …If so, there’s only one conceivable possibility」
「One, you say… what is it?」
「The prefectural governor deliberately didn’t control them」
「Eh!? Doesn’t that mean—Prefectural Governor-kakka is communicating clandestinely with Bigelow, or maybe that sort of thing!?」
「I don’t know if that man has the intention of rebelling. He’s an intelligent man, so it’s impossible that he’d take a dangerous gamble unless there was a chance of success—anyway, I feel that the man has some kind of ambition. I have no evidence, but that’s what I think intuitively」
If Dzeco was a double-dealer, then informing Dzeco of Valeria’s sickness was a suicidal act. There were plenty of the worst cases imaginable: him taking this opportunity to try to finish Valeria off or take her as hostage.
Therefore, Dimitar didn’t approve of telling Dzeco that Valeria had been poisoned.
「…Dimi-san’s intuition is certainly on par with an animal’s」
Bettina took a bottle of wine, then stood by the window and murmured a few rude words. She opened the curtain a little and drank the wine with her hand on her hips while gazing at the night view.
「…Huh?」
「What’s the matter?」
「Something… similar to red fireflies is flying」
「—What?」
Dimitar knitted his brows and rushed over to the window. When he opened the curtain greatly and looked outside, small red lights were certainly flitting about in the darkness of the night. However, they weren’t fireflies, no matter how one looked at it.
「Are you an idiot…!」
Dimitar returned to the sofa and hung the scabbard of Jagielka on his hips.
At that moment, someone started banging on the door violently from outside.
「Your Eminence! Hiera Glaphicos-dono!」
It was the voices of maids whom they had brought along from Roma. Dimitar moved the partitioning screen to the side of the bed and opened the door while exercising vigilance.
「…What’s the matter?」
「There’s a fire!」
Maids with restless expressions were gathered in front of the door. When he scanned the left and right of the corridor nonchalantly, the maids working here were running around while screaming.
Clicking his tongue lightly, Dimitar asked.
「Where’s the origin of the fire?」
「I don’t know the details. However, the fire seems to have originated from upstairs—」
In this guest house, the place that would become the origin of a fire could only be the drawing room besides the kitchen. However, the ones currently staying here were just Valeria’s party, who were on this floor. If one thought about it normally, it was impossible that a fire would break out in the drawing room, which was on another floor.
「…Take just the minimal luggage and seek refuge immediately. The guards we brought along from Roma have taken lodgings in this town’s barracks, so stay there with them for the time being」
「B, but, what about Her Eminence!?」
「I’ll bring Her Eminence with me. …Rather, I’ve got my hands full with just Her Eminence. You should run away quickly by yourselves」
「U, understood! Please take care of Her Eminence!」
The maids pinched the hems of their skirts and bowed to him, then temporarily returned to their own rooms.
Dimitar closed the door after confirming that and looked back at Bettina.
「They say that there’s a fire」
「T, that seems to be the case!」
Bettina, who had been sticking to the window, dropped the bottle of wine and started stamping uncomfortably, saying “Awawawa…”.
「W, what should we do!? Before I knew it, the courtyard had burst into flames too… I feel that the fire is spreading quickly somehow!」
「Of course. —This isn’t an accidental fire; it’s an arson」
「Eh?」
「If a fire broke out in the empty drawing room, you’d normally suspect arson. Someone is going around setting fire. …I don’t care, but if you don’t get away from the window, someone might suddenly aim at you from outside, you know?」
「Hawawa…!」
Perhaps Bettina had finally grasped the situation; she surveyed her surroundings hurriedly and stretched out her right hand towards the battleaxe behind her waist.
「Oi, hold this instead of that」
「Eh?」
「Shoulder our Eminence and go」
Dimitar wrapped the languid Valeria in a blanket and went around to the back of Bettina, then spoke while replacing her cartridge.
「…Listen, all right? Whatever happens, you must protect her and get away」
「R-run away, you say… eh!?」
「The guards in the barracks are people whom we had brought along from Roma, so we can probably trust them for now. First of all, link up with them」
「B, but… then, what will Dimi-san do?」
「Of course I’ll go as well. However, it’s possible that we’ll get separated on the way」
Dimitar placed Valeria on the cartridge case at the back of Bachururus, then tied the bed sheet around her to secure her to it so that she wouldn’t drop from its top. Although it was a little unsightly, Bettina could use both hands freely this way.
「…No matter how you look at it, this arson is targeted at us」
If he assumed so, then it could be expected that it was impossible that it’d end with just setting fire. Rather, after this was the main part—there was bound to be an attack in the confusion of the moment. Depending on the circumstances, Dimitar had to get Bettina to escape successfully while he held the enemy back.
「A, an enemy attack…? Does this mean that the people who attacked Dimi-san’s party last night will come here?」
「Rather, they’re probably coming already; those guys who went around setting fire」
Rolling another blanket round and round into a cylinder shape, Dimitar wrapped it in a white bed sheet again and carried it on his shoulder, then pulled out Jagielka and swung the tip.
「Gacha Pink」
「Y, yes?」
「I’m telling you this now, but I currently can’t use magic quickly」
「Eeh!? W, why?」
「To close our Eminence’s wound and relieve the pain, I erased a part of the magic crests on my right arm and redrew them into magic crests for healing magic」
Dimitar, who always put on a gauntlet on his left arm and used it as a substitute for a shield, always held Jagielka in his right hand; he carved the magic crests on his right arm on the condition that he combined those two and used them.
Of course, there were magic crests carved on his left arm as well, but because of the bitter experience in his chivalric order days, concentrating an enormous amount of magic on his left arm itself was taboo. In other words, speaking of high-grade magic alone, Dimitar had no choice but to depend on his right arm.
However, the current Dimitar had redrawn a part of the magic crests on his right arm to use healing magic. He wouldn’t be able to use magic to attack while crossing swords with the enemy with Jagielka like he always did. It’d surely take a long time.
Dimitar stared fixedly outside the window and then sprinkled water on Valeria, who was being carried on Bettina’s back, from her head.
「Listen, all right? First of all, I’ll go outside from the balcony. You wait here for three minutes. If nothing happens outside, you can come out. But if you know that I started fighting, use the staircase and escape secretly from the back door. If it looks like you’re going to be enveloped by the flames, you can mercilessly destroy any obstacles with that axe. However, you must never, ever be discovered by the prefectural governor’s subordinates. And don’t injure them either」
「U, understood!」
「…I’ll go first. Keep quiet for the time being」
Dimitar tapped on her pink head, then broke through the window glass and jumped out. Scattering shards of glass around, he got down to the courtyard, where trees were burning here and there.
Countless arrows came flying there.
「!」
Dimitar instantly jumped sideways and evaded them, then had Jagielka at the ready. When he moved his gaze around, he was able to ascertain that there were many dangerous human figures holding their specialised weapons near the top of the roof and the corridor.
With the intention of warning Bettina, Dimitar brandished Jagielka at the enemies on top of the roof.
「Uoh-!」
Taking a direct hit from the wind blade, the men fell down together with the debris.
「Good grief… how troublesome」
How much time could he buy here until the enemy found out that the lump of blanket he carried on his left shoulder wasn’t Valeria?—trampling on the solar plexuses of the men who had fallen down to stop their movements completely, Dimitar rotated his neck fed-up look.
End of Chapter 5
Luminstia 