Side Story: Edgar Back Then (2)

Around the time the midday sun shone straight down.

Edgar was atop a very high mountain. Pure-white permanent snow had piled up underfoot.

Even though the sunlight poured down like it was scorching, the air against his skin was cold enough to freeze him.

He was just about to jump again with the technique after waiting out about thirty seconds of cooldown.

From his back, Princess Nobara spoke as she breathed out white mist.

“Is it noon already?”

“Morning, Princess. We’re moving east, so the day’s passing faster than usual. Back at the house in the Royal Capital, it’s still around morning.”

“So it is… ah!”

“Hm? What is it, Princess?”

“If Azuma ran west at this speed, it would be daytime all day long!?”

Princess Nobara raised her voice as if she had just made a great discovery.

Edgar narrowed the eyes hidden behind his hair and gave a wry smile.

“If I pushed hard enough, maybe… but even for me, that’d be rough.”

“So it is. What a shame.”

“Only Light Release users could outrun light.”

“There are people like that!? How amazing… mmm?”

“What is it this time?”

In response to Edgar’s question, Princess Nobara stretched out her slender arm and pointed south.

“There is a big town along the sea. What is it?”

“Uh… this area is basically the middle of the continent, so it’s probably Neru, the capital of the Nemurachanda Kingdom.”

“Oho! The land of black tea and spices!”

“You know your stuff, Princess.”

When Edgar sounded impressed, Princess Nobara grinned.

“Let us stop by!”

“Seriously… alright. I’m jumping, so hold on tight.”

“Mm!”

Princess Nobara wrapped her arms around Edgar and hugged him tightly.

Edgar glared at the port city with eyes hidden behind his messy hair, then spoke the technique.

“Wind Release—Wind Traversal Technique.”

Edgar vanished from the mountaintop at once.

Neru, the capital, where fierce sunlight poured down from directly overhead like it was scorching.

Edgar walked through the cluttered streets with Princess Nobara on his back.

On unpaved dirt roads, crowds flowed past, and cattle wandered through.

People walked around in vivid, primary-colored clothing.

Princess Nobara, having removed her thick outerwear and hood, looked around with curiosity from Edgar’s back.

She spotted a street stall and pointed from behind him.

“Azuma, look!”

“Hm? What is it?”

“It carries a fragrant smell!”

“What is that… looks like they’re deep-frying it.”

Edgar stepped closer and peered into the stall.

The bearded vendor grinned wide, showing white teeth.

“How about it, kid? Want some samosas?”

“Samosas…? Then, we’ll take one each.”

“Coming right up!”

He handed them fried triangular pastries wrapped in paper.

Edgar held out silver coins.

“I don’t have this country’s money on me—would silver from another country work?”

“Hmm, that’s Fortis coinage. All good!”

The vendor gave a big thumbs-up and winked.

Edgar thanked him and walked off.

Then the two of them took a bite each of the fresh-fried samosas. They were about the size of a palm.

Edgar let out a satisfied breath.

“It’s hot, but it’s crispy, and the inside is full of meat juices. It’s delicious.”

“Mm! It is like a huge dumpling, freshly fried! —And above all, the rich spice fragrance is irresistible.”

Princess Nobara held the samosa in both hands and bit into it enthusiastically.

Edgar smiled softly and took another bite.

“And it isn’t spicy. —I’m glad you like it.”

“Mm! Proceed as you see fit!”

After finishing the samosas, the two stopped by another stall.

It sold drinks.

Edgar ordered steaming milk tea—chai.

Princess Nobara chose a cold, white juice.

She took one sip, and her dark eyes sparkled.

“Mmph! This drink called ‘lassi’ is sweet-and-tart and delicious!”

“This chai has spices in it too—feels like a grown-up flavor.”

“Heh-heh. This is fun.”

From Edgar’s back, the Princess smiled brightly.

After filling their stomachs at the stalls, they wandered the city.

Shops selling silk, shops selling crafts, shops selling gemstones.

Princess Nobara’s eyes shone as she enjoyed the everyday life of a foreign land.

From Edgar’s back, her smile kept bursting out.

—And then.

Princess Nobara found something again and pointed from Edgar’s back.

It was a large building with an onion-shaped dome.

“There is something over there!”

“A castle… no, it looks like a mausoleum.”

“I wish to go inside.”

“Hm—let’s at least get closer first.”

“Let us do so!”

With Princess Nobara on his back, Edgar headed that way.

Near the entrance to the mausoleum, people were paying money to someone standing by the gate and going inside.

“Looks like you can tour it if you pay an admission fee.”

“Then we shall go in!”

“Got it.”

Edgar approached the gate and paid.

And they went inside.

Right after entering, there was a garden.

The meticulously kept grounds were full of vivid flowers blooming in a riot of colors.

Farther in, a pure-white mausoleum towered.

From Edgar’s back, Princess Nobara let out a breath of awe.

“Oh… what a splendid garden.”

“They put a lot of work into it.”

The two looked around as they walked deeper in.

And then they reached the mausoleum.

A building so tall you had to crane your neck to see the top, and above it sat an onion-shaped dome.

Princess Nobara stared upward as if looking straight overhead.

“Such magnificent decoration, and so lofty… it must be the tomb of a king who boasted great power, yes?”

“Hmm… doesn’t seem like it.”

Edgar spoke while reading a plaque near the building.

Princess Nobara tilted her head; her blunt-cut black hair swayed softly.

“Then whose tomb is it?”

“Seems it was the tomb of the king’s beloved daughter. They say she was a beauty rarely seen across the ages, adored by the king—but she fell ill with an incurable disease and died young. The king grieved deeply, and he built this splendid mausoleum.”

“I see… we shall look inside.”

“Got it.”

With Princess Nobara on his back, Edgar entered the building.

Inside was cool and pleasantly chilly.

Paintings were drawn in flashy blues and yellows.

Delicate decorative patterns covered the ceiling and pillars—beautiful everywhere you looked.

Everything was filled with compassionate art and ornamentation meant to soothe the hearts of the dead.

Princess Nobara opened her small mouth slightly and looked around at the wide hall’s walls, thick pillars, and high ceiling.

“What a lavish tomb… it is gaudy, yet it feels as though the heart is cleansed…”

“Apparently the king spent decades building it. In the end, he couldn’t even spare the effort for his own tomb, so his ended up extremely plain.”

“So it is. That too is proof of love… this daughter was loved by her father… I envy her.”

Princess Nobara spoke with a lonely tone, her brows slanting sadly.

A shadow fell across Edgar’s face.

Princess Nobara was one of dozens of children.

And because her mother’s status was low, her father rarely paid attention to her.

She was always only able to watch her father from afar.

So she imitated him, acting grandiose.

Like playing at being a great lord.

If she did not do that, she could not ease the loneliness of being ignored.

The one who played along with Princess Nobara’s pretend games was Edgar.

To the Princess, Edgar was neither servant nor romantic interest—she liked him as a playmate.

—Her only friend.

A princess treated carelessly and dismissed, and a servant who was excellent yet worn down by his work, supported each other through their make-believe games.

For Edgar as well, the Princess must have been a precious friend.

Princess Nobara gripped Edgar’s clothes with her tiny hand.

In a deeply gentle voice, Edgar said,

“Alright then, shall we get going soon, Princess?”

“Mm… very well.”

Princess Nobara nodded as if she had resigned herself to it.

Edgar adjusted her securely on his back again and left the mausoleum behind.

When they reached an alley where the mountain range rising to the north was visible, Edgar softly spoke the technique.

“Wind Release—Wind Traversal Technique.”

And Edgar vanished from the city of Neru.