It didn't take long for her to reach the borter.
R : (How will I answer for this?)
It didn't take long for her to reach Bilkenstury.
R : (How should I explain my loss? I haven't really been gone for that long, have I? It's only been three weeks.)
It didn't take long for her to reach the fortress.
R : (What should I cover it up with, an expedition to find a creature that was already slain?)
But, that was precisely the problem.
It didn't take long to reach where she wanted to go.
It didn't take long enough.
Even after hitching a ride on one of the carpenter guild carriages conveniently making a pit stop between Rulid and Eliasbury which gave her a straight way home, Roberia had no real answer to mask that humiliating defeat.
To be knocked down by a Segus follower, who even spared her life... It was the ultimate insult.
She antagonized the Segus follower by attacking him.
She humiliated herself by losing to him.
And now, two problems surfaced - The possible enmity of the child, and the impression the knights had of their princess losing to said child.
She didn't want to think about it.
No, even if she did want to think about it, time was not on her side.
Before she even realized, she had returned to the throne room once more, with the knights about greeting her in a stale, orderly fashion.
T : "Knight Tionno greets Her Highness Roberia."
P : "Knight Persche greets Her Highness Roberia."
It was too sudden. In that blind obedience to the victor's words, Roberia had marched her sorry ass back to the fortress, with nothing to show - No accomplishments, no successful victories... Nothing.
R : "Arise. There is no such need for formalities. Remember that I, too, am a knight as much as you are, and I do not wish to acknowledge such belittlement of yourselves."
T : "Thank you, Your Highness."
P : "Thank you, Your Highness."
She could only try to avoid the questions about her journey that lasted for slightly under three weeks.
But, something was rather off.
R : (Their eyes are more cloudy than usual... ?)
As a warrior, Roberia was sensitive to such changes. Mannerisms of others which included going the extra effort to bow more than usual, or the slight change in the pupils of others as well as their body language were among the things they were trained to perceive at an accurate and extreme detail.
And she had noticed how they were looking at her with their eyebrows slightly furled more than usual, as though...
R : (As though they were looking at me in spite, or belittling me...)
What could have caused such a reaction from the knights who served her?
Unless...
*** ***
The moonlit road was anything but 'lit'. It was so dark that seeing anything ahead of two meters proved to be a big problem, and one could only make out the shadowy figure that was their own hand when held before their face.
Yet, in the guise of night, Katachi proceeded.
K : (I have to get away for now.)
The urge and temptation of staying at the church was a strong one. In Mother Rin's arms, he would surely be bathed in that warmth, in that assurance that everything would be alright as long as he tried his best.
But that was precisely why he had to go.
He couldn't let those who would suffer the same fate as he would rot away any longer.
He couldn't let that kind of injustice where the people who mocked and hated the Scholars continue.
The thought that others may be suffering as much as he had pushed him onward, with an unnatural tenacity.
So, with his goal set in mind, he proceeded.
The bumpy road, however, did not aid him in the journey.
K : (It's dark. But that's not really a bad thing.)
Indeed, the darkness proved useful, given the amount of attention he drew from the skirmishes with the red-haired warrior.
But he was clearly not the only one with that idea.
Further ahead in the abysmal darkness, he could make out two incredibly irregular sounds.
Sounds that would otherwise suggest their intimacy with each other, if they were not conversing information of utmost importance.
"And? What of their patrols?"
"They are underhanded currently, so they- Uhh! They wouldn't be able to keep up a pursuit through the mountains if we flee that way! Oh, yes! That angle just now, oh yeah~ Oh yeah~!"
He could hear the sound of something wet being slapped and the primal grunts and groans that suggested an act he was close to witnessing a week before.
Two people - A man, and a woman, were hiding among the trees in the deep of the night, going at it where no others would be about to hear of their scandalous deed.
The woman was, presumably, being knocked up while they spoke and conveyed important strategic information as she was being pleasured.
K : (Who... Who are they?)
"The mountains, huh? That wouldn't work against Jevleich. Axia favored mountains in his life because they gave the advantage of altitude, so most of his spells are comparably powerful high up."
"Hah! Hah! That's the spot! Oohhhhhhhhhhhh!!! Over there!"
The slapping sounds seemed to stop for a moment, while the conversation continued.
"How about we run to Western Anik? If we find a Bhast or a Carasi Spider inhabiting the region, we would surely have a better chance of escape, right?"
"Don't stop... Don't stop! I want it, I want it, I want it! Pound it into me harder!"
"Not until you answer me first. What are the odds of Tchevit defeating the creatures in Western Anik?"
From here, Katachi fully understood what the act had been for, though he would have preferred not to know.
K : (Coughing up information all for the sake of pleasure... This hedonism...!)
The broken child's mind accepted the harsh truth easily, without so much as a flinch. If others were in his position, they would either be gagged with revolt, or be overwhelmed in lust if they were in estrus.
But was it a good thing for Katachi to be insensitive?
Was it acceptable? Or did it only show the amount of pain and torment he experienced to show such indifference towards that banal act?
"Nnh, it's very likely he will tear through them. Unless we find one of Hraxiif's shrines or a Yynbi Rhegian in Western Anik, we won't stand a chance against him."
K : (He's coercing information out of her through her whims and carnal desires...)
He did not like the sound of that. In fact, he did not even want to know that disgusting act in the first place.
"That's what I wanted to hear!"
"Nuooooohhhhhhhhhh!!! That- That's the spot! Yes! OH, PHRONIA!! Haaaaahh!"
That act they were performing right now, as far as he knew, created him. It created new life, a child to be cradled upon their parents' arms.
And yet there they were, discussing plans and tactics to 'stand a chance' against people whose names he had never heard before.
"Hah, hah! I bet he's never even gave a second glance at this first-rate hole of yours! Enjoy your reward, you lewd swine!"
"Guohohoh!! Not that hole, not there~! ♥ Oh! Oh! AaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAHHH~!!!"
*Cozy's Notes : Obligatory heart shape is obligatory. Also, I don't really know what nasty, kinky stuff people are supposed to shout during sex, so forgive me.*
K : (...)
*** ***
The leader of the political police approached Roberia with a rather hastened pace. Normally, it would bring joy to her, had his opening sentence been more welcoming.
"Your Highness, Roberia, I've received quite a few disturbing rumors from my sources."
R : (Duke Harlot! That doesn't sound good at all... His network of eyes supposedly spreads really far and wide. Does he know already?) "What rumors are they?"
H : "One of my spies reported that you fought against an Ohdean with a weapon made by Pybuit and lost. Thrice, even."
Of course.
She had let her guard down.
Surely, the man known as Rugnud's Pride, Pybuit, would have an observer following him such that his health may be reported back to Duke Harlot at all times.
It made sense for her to be noticed by his network of eyes.
It made sense for her defeats to be publicized and widely-known across the country.
It made sense for whatever plan and ploy she thought up to be worthless since the truth was already out before she could begin to explain herself.
And from the looks of it, it was going to get ugly really fast.
After all, anyone could simply bribe the observer for the information, days before it even reached Duke Harlot. A country filled with the illiterate brought great focus to hearsay, and leaks were offered exorbitant prices.
H : "Honestly, Roberia, I never really expected you to be the type that went easy against children."
R : "I... I did not hold back, Duke Harlot. I truly went all-out against the child, but the magic he used was far too strong."
H : "I would love to hear of your adventure, Roberia, but there are more pressing matters at hand. The king expects you to be in the throne room in two hours to explain yourself."
R : (Curses! It figures. All this time, I've done so well with my training and skirmishing and all, but the one time I disgrace myself, everyone roars and talks about it. Michael's not kidding about how annoying the gossips were for him.)
She could only steel herself for what was to come.
*Cozy's Notes : They did not call him McGregor the bar builder, nor McGregor the stone wall builder, nor McGregor the pier builder. They called him McGregor the Goat F**ker. If you know where that came from, you're awesome.*
*** ***
Katachi felt a curious mixture of anger, sadness and fear.
They were doing what he had stopped Dante and Sherayal from doing - The gift of life.
The process that would give birth to life, just like himself.
A child would be born from that act, and they did it not for love, but for lust.
K : (...)
The emotions within him were quite curious indeed.
He had every intention of stopping them, of punishing them, but he also felt a strange emptiness.
They were doing it, and Dante was doing it with Sherayal.
It was an act people would do as many times as they wished for it, and his intervention did little to stop others.
What of the child with unloving parents? What of the agony of struggling for their life just as he had? Was there a point to do anything about it?
... It honestly felt futile.
Matterless of what he did, that was not an act that could be abolished by an individual alone.
People would indulge in their desires as they pleased, without considering for the consequences to come.
... Just as he had when he removed the 安 from the untouched Sealed Room to fulfil his own desire to destroy all the Words of Power.
... Was he... Already stained deep in that darkness from a long time ago?
Was it right to continue this journey of his?
Katachi didn't know.
But, if there were any one thing he knew, it was what he should do.
Katachi stood up from where he stood, and crinkled the leaves beneath his feet.
He could hear sudden gasps as the two tried to hide themselves frantically. But what good would that do?
K : (固定! Fixate position - Man! Fixate position - Woman!)
Two golden words formed on their heads, slightly above where their white eyes were. In the darkness, their sclera was a dead giveaway to their position, no matter how pitch-black it could have been.
... Katachi ransacked the pouches next to theirs, and took a couple of minutes fumbling through the dark and trying to determine which were useful. Giving up, he simply took a couple of vials and a pouch for coin before he left the two in the dark.
K ; (Repent for your sins. If you two chance upon someone with a Word of Power strong enough to dispel my own, then perhaps it's not of your fate to die here.)
Katachi continued on his journey, the darkness engulfing him deeper both outside and within.
K : (... I probably shouldn't have ransacked their items.)
*** ***
"This court is now in session."
The knights and leaders assembled before the king. In order of rank and importance, they stood in two neat lines across the row of red stone on the floor, from the highest in hierarchy to the leaders of the support roles.
Roberia walked forward and greeted her father with a slight bow.
R : "I have returned from my journey, Father."
The king released a rather unpleasant frown upon seeing his daughter once more.
"Roberia. Your sudden and unannounced disappearance has caused much trouble."
R : "I am aware, Father."
"Not only that, what of this peculiar rumour I've heard? Have you truly lost to an Ohdean three times?"
The words stabbed at her like a dash of salt over an open wound.
"I did not think of you as a person who would foolishly challenge their foe repeatedly knowing you would lose. And to top it all off, that was a child who followed Segus, no?"
The king stood up silently, with a seething gaze in his eyes.
"You have been spared three times, and three times too many, Roberia. A real foe would have had his way with you, not unless he held the dignity of a chivalrous Knight."
He raised his arm, and clenched his fist hard - Hard enough for the joint cracking to send slight, but harrowing ripples along the floor. Roberia felt the floor undulating to the mere stretch of his finger joints, the frightful and absolute strength that his people relied upon.
"Perhaps I should finish what he lacked myself."
H : "Mercy, my lord. There is no need to rush."
"No, our king is right."
From behind him, a bold knight with a shield stood defiant to Duke Harlot's belief.
H : "Count Anders. Do you know the weight of those words you bear?"
A : "You have to understand, Duke Harlot, that this is not fitting behaviour for a knight. Young as she may be, Roberia has proved her swordplay before us repeatedly."
As he spoke, Count Anders turned to speak and announce his speech to everyone in the throne room.
A : "But, if that skill of hers can not be displayed before her opponents when it truly counts, then what have we cultivated her skills for? What good is it if she fails to become a symbol that protects and watches over Rugnud properly?"
"Who are we to decide that she is the one who failed?"
Rebutting his argument was another knight wielding a stave.
"Perhaps it is not Roberia's fault entirely that resulted in her defeat so many times. Have you not considered the possibility that the Ohdean could have used some tactic to counteract her skill? Or have you already forgotten the outcome of our previous spar?"
The chatters in the background resounded clearly, and it seemed even King Fastiel himself was displeased at the mention of that event.
F : "Duke Marcyn, it is not ethical to pick at the Count's weaknesses."
Hell was going to be raised soon. The stronger of the knights were already in a heated discussion to determine Roberia's fate. Though she had been trying to keep her composure, Roberia felt an incredible tension that was almost haunting.
If she had slipped up or slackened even a bit, she would feel that tension gnawing her back into shape. It was intense enough for even the maids outside to stop their idle gossip and stare in awe.
M : "I speak only the truth, Your Majesty. It is entirely possible that the Ohdean devised a wicked tactic to overturn Her Highness. It would be doing us knights a great injustice to dismiss her like so, given her victories over ourselves."
A : "That does little to disprove my standpoint-"
A stomp on the floor from atop the steps towards the throne jolted everyone out of that hellish atmosphere. Once more, King Fastiel took centre stage and drew the attention of everyone else.
F : "Milos Nazkova. What do you make of this?"
From the side of the hall stepped forth a Great Sorceror Roberia recognized clearly.
One of the three people in Rugnud's history to have achieved the status as a Great Sorceror and the first to ever obtain the title Grande, he was a muscular, strong figure who was distinct in that he held no weapons. But among them all, the title he was most known for was King Fastiel's right hand man.
He gave a hard look at Roberia, and presented his answer in a manner that was quite informal.
N : "... I see nothing like weakness in her eyes. In fact, I see injustice - It seems Her Highness Roberia clearly knows how to defeat her opponent, but he was unexpectedly difficult."
As he spoke, the Great Sorceror approached Roberia, and put his hand on her shoulder.
N : "It's no surprise, my king. There are indeed spells that make some magi resilient towards physical trauma, but only when they are in 'battle'. They may be incredibly frail outside of battle, which would explain Her Highness' frustration over the problem at hand."
F : "... Such spells existed?"
N : "They do, my king. When you interpret one of Ilpoh's battles into a spell, in specific the time he battled the Vralasi, it is possible for a magi to show his level of competence and prowess, but only when one is considered 'in combat'. It is entirely possible, though I don't think anything short of a Sorceror could interpret a tale that far."
The news was enlightening for most, but astonishing for Roberia.
R : (But... That child did not use any spell of that sort, did he?)
N : "It is nothing to worry about, my king. This failure was resulted from her inability to play against a spell's rules, and by extension her ineptitude towards the tricks of the magi. If she simply learns how to counter those tricks, I think this problem to be trivial in our later years."
His wisdom began to release most of the persistent tension from before. However...
"But, Your Majesty..."
A young and familiar voice.
It was very unusual for a young knight to speak up, especially since they mostly held no power at all. However, this was an exception.
"I have the records which states her transactions for a multitude of things. But the two I would like everyone to pay attention to the most would be these."
He held the papers forward for one of the nearby barons to read.
Roberia turned and her face immediately twisted into one of a scowl, as though in reflex.
Pierre Marillin.
One of the merchant families' sons, who had become an esquire to cement his family's position in the guilds.
P : "Notice how she generously gave five Regal coins to Pybuit, and ten for a magic sword from Demaelus. A magic sword, even - Those foul weapons that imbued the history of magi into corporeal form and defile the purity of battle."
Just as she thought she could take a breath of air on the surface, Pierre's facts rained down on her like a hand shoving her head down with every intent to suffocate.
P : "I don't know about you, but that is hardly a display of 'skill' to me."
She had failed.
Roberia had splendidly failed.
Both in defending herself, and in heeding her brother's advice.
R : (Michael... I'm sorry. I can't believe acting on impulse could actually cause that big a damage... !)
Where she would have been completely safe, Pierre's accusations were like killing a fly with a thick and heavy book - Intentional, and painfully crushing.
The court was buzzing again at this point, and the eyes pierced Roberia once more as she became the centre of the topic.
F : "... Have you any explanations, Roberia?"
R : "I have no excuse for my weakness, Father. I can only say that I have failed in interpreting the Nature of his magic. I bought the magic sword on impulse, thinking that he would be incapable of shrugging it off, yet he did."
The only thing left was to explain herself humbly.
She could only apologize for her lack of experience and power to otherwise avert this twisted fate.
F : "... I've seen enough, then. I shall now officially renounce Roberia as a candidate for the throne. See to the preparations of her marriage."
...
That was the absolute worst outcome for her.
*** ***
She recalled that horrible dream.
She recalled the reason she set foot on her journey - She did not wish to become a tool others could use to claim kingship.
She did not wish for her beloved Rugnud, the country she spent most of her life in, to succumb because of their incompetence.
But what had become of this?
Not only had she failed to prove herself, but she had also worsened her own position through her failure. With that, her father was even more likely to use 'her hand in marriage' to select Rugnud's new king.
...
None of this would have happened if she had not met Katachi.
None of this would have happened had she chosen to look carefully at who she threw the pebble at.
None of this would have happened if she simply chose to walk South towards Dermesten instead of going through Rulid.
...
Yet, she did not regret the encounter with the Ohdean who claimed to be Findeli.
In fact, more than anything, the child ignited a powerful drive within her.
A child younger than her was pushing so hard, forging onward alone in the world where many would have chosen the company of others.
It made her even more motivated than ever to prove herself before her father.
*** ***
R : "... No."
Her defiant voice rang out in the court, and everyone's attention was focused on her once more.
But now, she no longer feared those piercing glares.
In fact, she needed those piercing glares to testify her declaration right here.
R : "I refuse the marriage with Prince Gaza. In fact, I thoroughly refuse the marriages of everyone who I have defeated."
The king paid no heed to her claim, and simply sat on his throne quietly.
R : "If you want to be king, you'll have to defeat me in a best of three."
Though she had claimed so, Roberia had no intention of letting the sorry sap who believed her a second chance to battle. She would thoroughly cripple, and at worst paralyze the opponent if necessary.
Her aggressive voice hinted at the snarling danger behind that proclamation, and only a few murmurs of the younger and more foolish knights could be heard.
F : "... Stand down, Roberia. The court is still in session."
With her piece finished, Roberia returned to her position in obedience.
She didn't dislike her father a lot. but his mulish attitude was something she could only surpass by proving herself. It would also be rude to the people with matters to report after her if she refused to retreat.
...
Many would have frozen solid in her place, knowing their position was in danger and everything was going to fall apart, making a wild ruckus.
Honestly, up until a while ago, she had almost forgotten her brother's advice over that bone-chilling atmosphere from before.
Yet it did not frighten her, surprisingly enough.
In fact, that episode was such a close resemblance to one of Ilpoh's stories that she felt as though she were living the legend before her eyes.
*** ***
For the first time in his life, Katachi was truly alone.
The darkness that wrapped him elucidated what it meant to be weak.
*** ***
Now, she had a reason to truly fight and become stronger.
Her drive rekindled, proving once more that she was no longer weak.
