Chapter 208 - Lingering Scent

Ferda led Olivia outside. It was about time for her to leave.

Olivia quietly asked an attendant, "Is the Second Prince still trying out the weapons?"

"Yes, Your Highness. I informed him ten minutes ago, but..."

The delegation's representative ought to offer a formal farewell before leaving, yet he was busy with something else entirely.

'I'm glad it gives me more time with Ferda, but...'

To behave like this when he ought to be proving his worth as the emperor's proxy. Olivia swallowed her disgust.

"It seems we'll have to go and fetch my brother."

"Let us do that."

Ferda showed no sign of taking offense. Olivia walked beside him.

"Oh, I haven't seen that before. Was it added during the renovations?"

"It was."

"That's fashionable in the Empire. Have you decided to follow the trends as I suggested?"

"With more people coming here, I thought I ought to."

She asked about the changes, though she had little interest in them. Olivia thought she was beginning to understand why women became fools in front of men. Unless she found some excuse like this to speak to him, he wouldn't say anything.

Ureas emerged from the magical engineering laboratory with a most peculiar expression: satisfaction mixed with deep displeasure.

"How was it?" Ferda asked.

"I liked it very much! I'd have liked to fire that heavy magic cannon as well... but they weren't willing to let me."

Ureas shot Burnel a disgruntled glare. Burnel sidled up to Ferda and whispered in his ear.

"He kept pointing the rifle at the researchers. I had no choice. He wanted to see how powerful the cannon's explosion was. One wrong move, and..."

"..."

What an utter embarrassment of a man.

Ferda patted Burnel's shoulder in acknowledgment of his efforts, then turned to Ureas.

"I'm told the spell formula hasn't been stabilized yet, so it could explode if something goes wrong. My apologies for the confusion."

"Really? How dangerous could a little explosion be...?"

Exactly. She should have told them to let him use it, dangerous or not. Watching that body blown to pieces would have been a fine sight.

Though inwardly cursing him, Olivia leaned toward Ureas.

"Brother, please don't say such things."

"Hm?"

"What if you were hurt? Do you mean to give me another reason to worry?"

Olivia deftly summoned tears to her eyes. The loutish Ureas panicked at the sight.

"S-sister! I was only joking, of course! Would I go doing something so dangerous when I have you to think of? Well?"

He kept trying to placate her, and only relaxed when she finally smiled. Olivia glanced at Ferda. He was looking at her like a circus performer who had just tamed a lion. It wasn't a particularly pleasant feeling.

"Allow me to see you out."

Ferda led them along the carpet. In a corridor on the way to the doors, a woman stood blocking their path.

Only one person could be so rude with guests present: Valdrova.

She wore a woman's form, with two pairs of fearsome horns and a tail. Her utterly gentle face was once again hidden behind a mask.

Everyone bowed their heads as etiquette demanded.

"Greetings to Your Highness Valdrova, great Aspect of Fire."

"A-are you leaving now?"

Valdrova forced a weighty tone into her voice. Since the question was directed at Olivia, she answered.

"Yes, Your Highness. I had a fruitful conversation with the Regent."

"I see."

Valdrova seemed restless. At last, unable to contain herself, she slipped between Olivia and Ferda.

Olivia understood what this was: the jealousy of a woman unwilling to see the man she had chosen walking beside another woman. She had thought Valdrova rather slow on the uptake, but she did have a possessive streak after all. Olivia was certain of it.

That certainty proved spectacularly wrong. Something soft wriggled around her left hand. A chill ran through her at first, but she soon realized it was a hand—Valdrova's.

"Hehe..."

Valdrova's shy little laugh shattered every scenario Olivia had imagined. She wasn't building a wall out of jealousy or anything of the sort. She had simply wanted to hold Olivia's hand.

Realizing once again how innocent her intentions were, Olivia felt ashamed. She smiled and squeezed the hand in hers.

Ureas and Olivia climbed into the carriage waiting before the castle gates, and Valdrova waved them goodbye.

* * *

"Our guests have gone."

"Are you sad to see them leave?"

"No. It's only natural, isn't it? Lyudmila has to go home eventually too. Besides..."

Valdrova moved closer and took Ferda's hand.

"I can't really do things like this with them here..."

"You're welcome to do that whenever you wish."

"But I can't embarrass you in front of other people."

A hand soft as silk, nails smooth as polished jade. Holding hands had become so natural now, so why did it still make his heart flutter?

Ferda retraced their steps with Valdrova.

"Did you enjoy your time with Princess Olivia?"

"She's very clever. And so well-spoken and beautiful... I almost fell for her myself."

Ferda could not let that pass.

"One woman who loves women is quite enough for this castle."

"Couldn't there be two?"

"Then one would have to disappear."

Ferda was prepared to kill Penelope without mercy. Ignoring the murderous atmosphere, Valdrova continued.

"So we talked for a while... and I asked her to be my friend."

"Friends with the princess... What did she say?"

"She said she would."

Ferda did not miss the subtle emotion he sensed in her.

"But you sound troubled."

"Well, it's..."

"You needn't tell me if you'd rather not."

Seeing her hesitate, he gave her room. Her fingers fidgeted as she mulled it over, then spoke again.

"It's just..."

Valdrova remembered Olivia's expression. She had agreed when Valdrova asked if she could be her friend. But Valdrova had seen it clearly. The emotion behind that lovely face was one she had been on the receiving end of all too often.

"I realized... it isn't easy to be friends with everyone."

* * *

After the departure ceremony, the ceremonial court carriage passed through the main gate. Then Olivia raised a hand to stop it.

"What is it?"

Ureas had been handling the magical engineering equipment, still basking in his enjoyment.

"I'd just like to travel back alone."

"Hm, yes... All right."

He looked deeply disappointed. Olivia smiled affectionately and gently stroked his hand. He had told her that her touch resembled his mother's, which he loved.

"I have a lot on my mind, that's all."

Ureas looked sulky, but had little choice but to let her go. Olivia boarded the carriage prepared for her. Only when she felt completely alone could she finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"I'm exhausted..."

Somehow, a month's worth of fatigue seemed to have descended on her in a single day. It had certainly built up during her time with Valdrova, but she couldn't blame her. Valdrova hadn't done this to her; she had worn herself out.

Dwelling on it only exposed her own ugliness, so she decided to forget it. She made herself a place to lie down and tried to get a little sleep.

"Hm?"

Something tucked inside her clothes felt out of place. She carefully drew it out.

"Oh."

It was a red handkerchief that didn't match her clothes. Ferda had given it to her when she spilled her tea after jumping to conclusions all on her own. She had meant to return it after drying herself, but forgotten.

"..."

Olivia looked down at the handkerchief and wondered what she would have done if it belonged to another man. He would surely use this little connection as an excuse to approach her. She would have a servant return it at once, leaving him no opening. Or perhaps she would let it slip to the floor and deny ever receiving it.

She gazed silently at the handkerchief. A scent unlike the flowers filling the carriage drifted up from it. Olivia brought it to her face.

The scents lingered strongly, along with the memories: the spilled black tea and her own perfume from her hand.

This wasn't what she was looking for. She searched deeper beneath them.

There it was. Elation filled her, as though she had found a single ray of light in a pitch-black cave. The tea and perfume faded, and that scent grew distinct.

Ferda's scent. His hand took vivid shape in Olivia's mind.

"Lord Ferda..."

The handkerchief she held seemed to caress her cheek. It was a terribly vulgar, sordid fantasy, but Olivia couldn't stop. Even if only this way, she wanted to believe that she held a part of Ferda in her hands.

* * *

The torture chamber beneath the imperial palace of the Arken Empire.

They said deep darkness lay on the other side of brilliant light. This chamber was precisely that. No means were off-limits in the pursuit of information.

Five executioners skilled in torture and two mages monitoring the prisoner's condition surrounded a man. His name was Perry Yurei. As a duke of the Heinkel Kingdom, he was the last person who belonged in a place so thick with the stench of blood and filth.

His face was so badly swollen that his original features were barely recognizable.

"Did you sleep well, Duke?"

"..."

"Of course you didn't. We smashed your hands with clubs whenever you tried. Ha ha!"

"..."

"I imagine all you wish for is three hours of sleep. I could grant that wish, you know."

"..."

"Stubborn bastard. Shall we turn up the voltage?"

BZZZT!

"Aaaaagh! Aagh, aagh!"

Electricity coursed through Duke Yurei, making his body buck violently.

"Come now, speak. Tell us what you really are."

"Filthy imperial bastards... I am Perry Yurei, Duke of the Heinkel Kingdom... No matter... how you humiliate me here, do you think I would sell out my kingdom?"

"You will, whether you like it or not, Duke," the man said.

"Outside, everyone is arguing over whether to go to war. Heinkel is no different. But the kingdom seems to want peace."

"Who doesn't want peace? You talk nonsense."

"That's not what I mean. When something happens, someone has to take responsibility."

"The kingdom... means to cast me aside?"

"Precisely. Your territory is overflowing with evidence of Demon Followers. So they've decided you're a Demon Follower too, and mean to strip you of your dukedom."

"..."

"You'd be wise to speak while you're still worth something to us. One statement is all it takes."

"... What statement do you want from me?"

"Simply say there are Demon Followers within the Heinkel Kingdom as well."

"And what will you do with me?"

"Release you. If necessary, we'll even provide for you so you can spend the rest of your life in comfort."

"Even if I'm a Demon Follower?"

"We don't care whether you're a Demon or not. All we need is a pretext."

Duke Yurei closed his mouth and hung his head. He was dying here, and no one would help him. Even the news reaching him from outside offered nothing but despair. The world was turning its back on him.

Betrayal. That sense of betrayal always led to another betrayal.

Duke Yurei opened his mouth.

"Heh heh... Ha ha ha!"

He burst out laughing.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Isn't it funny? A supposed expert in torture is such a poor liar. How could I help laughing? They're casting me aside, so I should betray them? Do I look like a man who would do that to save his own skin? Fool! You know nothing of a nobleman's honor. You could never understand m—Grrrrgh!"

A surge of electricity forced him to stop speaking.

"It makes no difference. The war must happen either way."

"Cowardly... despicable imperial scum..."

"Farewell. You'll meet your end as a wretched pawn of the Demons."

Just as he called out his farewell,

CRASH!

A glass bottle shattered. Every eye turned toward the sound. One of the executioners had accidentally broken a bottle, spilling white powder across the floor.

"Sorry. My hand slipped."

"Watch what you're doing! Executioner, who is that man?"

"I don't know either."

"What? Are you playing games with me?"

"I truly don't recognize that voice. Who are you?"

The executioner raised a torture knife as he demanded an answer. The five executioners assigned here all knew one another. None had ever heard that clear, high-pitched voice before.

"Oh, me? Don't bother trying to find out."

The man remained utterly unruffled. A glass bottle filled with a clear liquid dangled precariously from his hand.

"My hand is about to slip again."

The bottle fell.

CRASH!

POOF!

The instant the liquid mixed with the powder, smoke erupted and engulfed the entire torture chamber.

"Cough, cough!"

"What... is this...?"

The executioners dropped before they could finish asking. The mages quickly raised barriers to keep out the smoke and remained unharmed.

They caught sight of the silhouette of the man responsible. The mages conjured offensive magic circles. With such a high-priority prisoner in the room, they held nothing back.

Then a red light pierced the smoke from the executioner's silhouette. The instant it reached the mages, their magic circles unraveled.

"What the...?!"

It wasn't just the circles forming at their hands. Their barriers shattered too. With their haven gone, smoke invaded their exposed airways.

"Damn... it..."

The last two slumped to the floor, and silence fell. With everyone else unconscious, only two remained: the mysterious executioner and Duke Yurei, whose mouth and nose were covered with a piece of cloth.

The duke was desperately holding his breath to keep from passing out.

"No need to hold your breath, Your Grace. The mask filters out the smoke."

Trusting his words, Duke Yurei drew a breath. Just as promised, he didn't collapse like the others.

"By the way, you look nothing like you did when we first met. You must have been eating well in captivity. Your face is positively plump..."

"Who... are you?"

Even Duke Yurei had never heard that cheeky voice before.

"You know who Ferda Valdrova is, don't you?"

He could hardly say he didn't.

"I'm his messenger. He sent me here with orders to get you out, Duke Yurei."