Chapter 43
Ershan could not understand it.
What exactly was resentment?
Of course, he knew what anger was.
It was when his head grew hot, as though someone were poking near his heart over and over, heat rushing to his face.
Then, as he stared only at the tips of his shoes, it would suddenly turn icy cold.
That was anger, as Ershan understood it.
Sadness was similar, yet slightly different.
The pain when he tripped while running through the garden and scraped his knee.
The wound would disappear cleanly under the hands of the Night Priest summoned by Mother, yet the sting lingering somewhere deep in his chest would refuse to fade.
But when he hid beneath the blankets with his younger sister, Lemei, holding his breath, he would eventually fall asleep, and it would become nothing more than a memory of the night before….
That was anger, and that was sadness, as Ershan knew them.
But then, what was the conversation they had just shared?
Ershan ran across the garden, not even knowing exactly why he was running.
“Ershan, big brother…!”
At Mei’s voice, Ershan tightened his grip on his sister’s hand and ran with all his strength.
They had been hiding in the bushes ever since Aquila noticed Chelsey.
They knew he was looking for them.
When they heard that Aquila had finally woken up yesterday, they felt relieved, yet they did not want to meet him.
They had no idea what expression they should wear or what they should say in front of him.
Ten days had already passed.
But to Ershan, everything was still vivid.
Mother eating the strange mud, her body beginning to change.
The thunderous explosion as the greenhouse burst apart.
More terrifying than her furious scolding voice was the chilling wail and the sight of a monster with skin grotesquely melting away.
Aquila dodging the monster’s attacks, a creature that could have killed him at any moment.
And the three streaks of silver that split that monster apart….
Ershan did not deny it.
He had seen it all clearly with his own eyes.
Even so, it was also true that after everything had ended, he had found himself hoping to see Celsia’s figure from far away.
Not because he wanted her to say she had done nothing wrong and that it had all been a misunderstanding.
He had simply hoped that the horrifying monster had not been Celsia.
‘Mother….’
Ershan bit down hard on his lip.
There was no way he could not know.
Even to Ershan’s young eyes, Celsia’s behavior could not be called normal.
It had been that way ever since the day he met Aquila on a distant path of the garden, far from Celsia’s eyes.
‘Why does Mother treat only Brother Aquila so cruelly, and no one else?’
Ershan had never found an answer.
He had asked her directly once, but the only response he received was, “That is simply fate.”
How could that possibly be an answer?
Ershan had searched diligently through books for the word “fate,” yet even then, he could not understand it.
His heart felt as though it might burst from something as simple as running.
Clutching Mei’s hand, Ershan ran far away, farther still….
He did not stop until they reached a place where there was no one else around but the two of them.
***
“…You asked me to keep it a secret that the two of them were hiding there, so I did not say anything. I apologize.”
At Chelsey’s apology, Aquila finally shook his head.
“No. There is no need to apologize. Rather… I wondered why you asked such a question so suddenly. Shen, you knew, did you?”
“I am sorry. To you as well, Chelsey. I apologize for asking such a rude question.”
“…No. Speaking aloud what I had only been vaguely thinking about inside has actually left me feeling lighter.”
After giving a clear answer to whether she resented Martio, she felt as though she could finally cast aside the last remnants of hesitation and head toward Saintroia.
Chelsey smiled faintly.
Rather than following them, Aquila kept his eyes on the two small figures growing distant and spoke in a low voice.
“The children would not understand, even if you put it that way.”
“You are the youngest one here, yet you say that…. And you were the one who brought up the execution first, Young Master. That was not what I was asking.”
“I know, I know. You were asking whether they resent their parents. But the situation is different to begin with, so those children would not understand.”
“Children understand more than you think. However… it is different. In my case, it was someone who had been preparing to hang himself with his own hands.”
“…Why are such frightening topics being discussed? What on earth were the three of you talking about?”
Only Yujelia, who did not know the earlier conversation, looked bewildered.
Naturally, no one answered her.
Clicking his tongue softly, Aquila waved his hand.
“What I am saying is that there is no need to force reality upon them right now.”
“Why not? Even if they are young, there are things they must clearly know. It is the time to understand properly, to judge, and to choose.”
“Even if they do not want to know, they will eventually find out anyway. More importantly, right now we should be saying something like, ‘There will be no memorial service for Celsia, but if you wish, since there are priests here, we can release blessed Fairywinds for you.’”
“Fairywind” was a white flower with four large petals shaped like a fairy’s wings. When imbued with Divine Power, it floated up into the sky, which was why it was commonly used to honor the dead.
Whether the one who infused it with Divine Power was a Priest of the Sun, a Priest of the Night, or anyone else did not matter.
The use of Fairywind was the same everywhere.
“The Young Master is right. Still, it is necessary to be clear about why there will be no official memorial service. It is cruel, but it is reality. And honestly… I do not think the Young Master needs to concern himself to that extent.”
Shen spoke in a cold but unmistakably firm tone.
“If you are going to excuse everything on the basis that they are young, then you must apply that to yourself as well. No matter how young they are, it is not as though you are not young either.”
This attendant seemed unwilling to back down on this opinion.
But what Shen was worried about was the ‘true’ Aquila Reschenhardt.
The current Aquila had no part of their grief or past resentment that he could not answer.
‘If I were the real Aquila Reschenhardt, what would I be thinking right now? Perhaps it would have been simpler if I were the one directly involved, free to respond emotionally.’
I do not forgive Celsia Reschenhardt.
And I do not forgive—or perhaps do forgive—her children.
Perhaps the story could have ended simply like that.
“…Um, do they really have to acknowledge it or not acknowledge it right now?”
Yujelia asked quietly, glancing around.
“…Well, not necessarily. However, since we will be heading to the Grand Temple of Portplum, would it not be better to settle the matter while the priests are still here?”
“Then if priests are needed later… no. Even if they are not needed, I can come back to Igrail again. Would that not work?”
“Huh? Lady Yujelia, you mean you?”
“Yes. We cannot pressure them into mourning. If they are confused right now, I think it is right to leave them be. Wrongdoing is wrongdoing and should never be justified, but even so, are human hearts really so simple…?”
With complicated eyes, Yujelia turned her gaze toward the bushes where the twins had been hiding.
“If it can be delayed, then they need time that can be left untouched for as long as possible. Not much time has passed yet. And in the end, a moment will come when they cannot look away anyway….”
Once again, many emotions surfaced on Yujelia’s face.
Without needing to say it, the direction of those emotions was surely Martio.
Chelsey looked at her with concern.
“Yujelia… will you truly be all right? Coming back here.”
“Of course, sister. Igrail is right next to Portplum.”
At Chelsey’s call, Yujelia clasped her hands together as if in prayer and turned her head.
“So time will take care of it. That does not mean we should abandon them, of course. We will need to help them stand back up. It will be all right for me to come again, will it not?”
Aquila met Shen’s gaze and nodded.
“…Yes. Of course. If Lady Yujelia is willing to do so, we would be grateful.”
At the mention of a main quest, he had wanted to resolve it immediately, but this was a future that had not yet occurred.
If the twins remained with House Reschenhardt instead of being sent to Ludovika, the likelihood of them becoming monsters would be low.
All that was needed was to ensure they did not go anywhere near the Anette estate.
Having organized his thoughts, Aquila brushed his hair back.
“Then we will need someone to convey what I said earlier to the twins. I was planning to go myself, but it seems someone else would be better.”
“Huh? Why?”
“No matter that she turned into a monster, it was still us who struck down Celsia in front of them.”
“Ah….”
“Judging by how they fled without even meeting our eyes, it seems that will not work.”
“Then, if I happen to encounter them, may I deliver the message? They seemed more comfortable with someone unfamiliar than with people from the estate.”
Chelsey raised her hand.
Now it made sense why the twins had been near where she was.
Glancing briefly toward the path where Ershan and Mei had disappeared, Aquila nodded.
“Yes. Please convey what I said earlier, and also tell them that they do not need to decide immediately, and that it will be fine even after we return from the Grand Temple of Portplum. Tell them to think it over slowly.”
“Understood. I will make sure to convey it properly, without any misunderstanding.”
Chelsey replied, placing a hand over her chest as if making an oath.
***
The date to depart for the Grand Temple of Portplum was set.
Two days from now.
Originally, they needed to head to Portplum as soon as possible due to the matter of Gilesha’s transfer, but Aquila waking up after ten days complicated things.
The foremost consideration was, of course, Aquila’s physical condition.
No matter how fine he claimed to be, they insisted on observing him for several more days, opposing the idea firmly.
Moreover, since things had turned out this way, an opinion arose that they should simply wait until a full two weeks had passed before leaving.
This proposal received unanimous approval from everyone at Reschenhardt—everyone except Aquila himself.
“The weather here is truly pleasant. It is good for moving the body as well.”
“Exactly! Sir Heinen, how about another sparring match today?”
“That sounds good.”
Even Heinen, who had grown close to Cahena before anyone noticed, did not strongly object.
There was no need to mention Chelsey, who could spend time with Yujelia.
One reason this was possible was that multiple reports had already been sent through the Communication Bracelet that Heinen possessed.
Celsia’s confession had been testified to by Chelsey, who acted as mediator.
As for the rest, the Scales of Judgment had been used at the time, so once they returned to Portplum, all that was needed was to confirm the usage records to verify the truth.
In addition, the Temple Knights who had returned on the fifth day had taken with them the bodies that had died from Black Magic, the black stone, and the evidence gathered from around the exploded greenhouse.
If not for Gilesha, there would have been no need for Aquila’s group to move quickly at all.
“I confirmed that the fracture in the heart has shattered. Heinen did not say anything particular about this either. Should we simply keep her confined in the underground dungeon?”
“Yes. Leave her there.”
If Heinen had tacitly approved it, then Ianpel surely knew as well.
In any case, two days later, considering the possibility of an ambush along the way, the Portplum temple side said they would personally come out to escort them as far as Celteng.
Of course, Ianpel added in advance that something of this level could not even be considered compensation, and simply told them to wait patiently.
‘For these two days, I should probably build up some Mana while updating the map.’
Lying upside down on the bed, Aquila stared blankly at the ceiling and breathed.
Thus passed two relatively leisurely days.
And finally, morning came.
The day they would head for Portplum had dawned.