Token of Bond (2)
We sat at the tavern Agnes had recommended, plates of food and drinks spread out before us as we talked.
"So this is what she put that ring on you for?"
"Half right. I barely escaped Prosek, but she tracked me all the way to the Forest Hideout and lured me into a trap. That's when she bound me. Agnes showed up right then—if only she'd beaten some sense into her."
"What a persistent girl. This Agnes harbored similar feelings but thought not binding you was for your own good. Sometimes, I envy the children's fearless boldness, unburdened by such considerations."
"You two. It's rare we get together like this—please hold off on the trash-talking while I'm here."
The three of us—Agnes, Ashu, and me—were sharing a meal at the tavern Agnes had introduced. At first, it had just been Agnes and me, but Ashu had borrowed Parania's carriage and come straight here after learning I'd left my inn.
The moment Ashu sat beside me, she turned to Agnes across the table and asked point-blank:
"So, Teacher Agnes... how was last night?"
"Wh-wh-what... what are you talking about?"
Her words said one thing, but she clearly understood the implication. Her face flushed crimson as she turned away, glancing nervously at me.
Was this her way of shutting down Agnes's gossip? Or was she genuinely curious?
Come to think of it, this world's sexual ethics were throwing me for a loop again.
Was girls' talk like this normal with a man right there? Or was Ashu just unusual?
And she was a saintess, no less... Though maybe that doesn't matter.
Whatever the case, Ashu and Agnes seemed comfortable enough—thanks to their shared past—to chat casually and tease each other freely.
Or so I thought.
"I have a few more outfits I'd love to see you in, Agnes. I'll tailor them soon. This time, too..."
"Hm. You're quite tense, aren't you?"
"Tense? Who?"
I asked, and...
"......"
For some reason, Ashu fell silent in an instant.
What the hell? Why the sudden mood shift?
Are they starting round two after last night?
Besides, I hadn't even noticed Ashu was tense, so how did Agnes know? Experience? Or some womanly intuition men couldn't grasp?
"......"
"......"
Scary! I don't know why, but it's terrifying!!
This heavy silence felt like a covert battle of attrition between grandmasters, each preparing a one-strike kill. It was way too scary!!
"Ashushikara, don't take this the wrong way."
"Yes, please speak."
"Among your wretched mother's children, you resemble her the most."
Ashushikara bowed her head deeply. Her silence suggested agreement.
She meant the queen, right? That Ashu resembled her most?
It didn't seem to be just about looks.
"Your wretched mother became queen, but her power base was unstable. As her throne shook, anxiety drove her to cling to anything—sometimes strength, sometimes money, even foreign powers at times. That's why she's so wretched.
Ashushikara, you could be called the result of her clinging to strength."
Inario must have been that "strength."
This feels like a fat-shaming fest. But the mood's too heavy to interrupt.
Agnes's explanation was clearly meant for me, who knew nothing of Ashu's family history.
Ugh, my throat's parched even without a word. I downed a glass without thinking.
"But even that wretched mother has found stability through her current consort.
In the end, she chose love—neither strength nor money.
Astonishing. The least helpful option for her base.
Yet it became the turning point that changed her heart.
Finally, she had someone to emotionally support her, granting her peace of mind.
She became a queen who spoke her own thoughts, feelings, and intentions, unbound by others.
So, wretched as she is, I think that choice was right.
Still a wretched mother, though.
She began seeing her past actions as mistakes.
And you know how this girl was treated afterward, Kirgil.
Ashushikara became her living mistake."
It clicked.
With her mom and new stepdad getting close, Ashu suddenly became the discarded daughter.
But why say Ashu resembled the queen most?
"Kirgil, I once told you this Agnes needs someone to lean on for courage, too.
Ashushikara needs more than that—far more than the spare courage I can stockpile.
She needs a sturdy pillar, like her wretched mother has, to support and entrust everything to."
The more I heard, the heavier it got. Just as the queen needed a husband to truly become herself, Ashu needed me to become herself.
Heavy. Scary. Both the queen and Ashu.
I get why Ashu fears her mom now.
"Before, I was her pillar. That's why she endured your wretched mother's lashings—even fainting from it.
This I... didn't want to add scars to that tiny body, so I confessed to a crime I didn't commit and left.
Her pillar now is you, Kirgil.
She'll throw everything away to keep from losing you."
I glanced at Ashu beside me. She trembled with her head down, like a naked child shivering in the cold.
So...
"!?"
I took her hand. She startled briefly, but her shaking eased.
In this heavy family drama, this was all I could do right now.
"Yes, take her hand. This Agnes is glad you've become Ashushikara's pillar. You won't turn her into a wretched mother."
Agnes finally emptied her glass. I'd never seen her drink before today.
"The food here's blander than before, but the liquor tastes better. This Agnes wants to toast for the first time in ages."
Good, she holds it well. She'd mentioned once drowning in drink back in the day.
We raised our glasses for a toast, but Ashu wouldn't let go of my right hand.
She's throwing a tantrum again.
No choice—I lifted my glass with my left.
"Phew! Now, Ashushikara, time to explain why you're so tense."
Oh, right—lost in the heavy talk, I'd forgotten.
The booze was kicking in now.
That was just the prelude to round two?
"......Ughhh."
Even I could see Ashu was tense now.
The match was over before it started. Her eyes darted unfocused, shaking.
And her grip on my hand tightened hard.
Ashu. That hurts.
"Kirgil, she's terrified this Agnes might steal you away or take you. Like a child afraid of losing her doll."
Even without fight left in her foe, Agnes landed that blow and downed another hearty glass.
What a bold one.
"One more thing. She's worried she won't be special to you anymore. She wants your eyes always on her.
Dressing this Agnes in cute outfits while fretting like that... Isn't her hidden side just adorable?"
She even laughed heartily.
Ashu, pierced right in the heart, trembled with a flushed face.
...My hand hurts.
"Ashushikara, most adventurers lose themselves to the unknown and treasure, forgetting lovers, children, even home. But Kirgil—you're an adventurer who steadily writes to this Agnes, Prosek's third daughter, my assistant Reshi, and others.
Think on that meaning."
Agnes's words shed light on adventurers' reputation. Settled ones aside, wandering ones must feel like deaths to their hometowns.
To me, letters were like check-in calls or texts. Apparently, normal adventurers don't bother. Makes sense—without merchant connections like Piterio's, sending them's tough.
Huh? Ashu's grip loosened a bit.
"......"
"If you're still anxious, go back with Kirgil tonight. This Agnes loved hearing him call my name in a daze. His caressing touch was so soothing. The bare skin against me when I held him—cool yet warm.
Thanks to you, yesterday and today were blissful. You need that time too, Ashushikara."
Now it was my turn to blush. Felt like hearing porn details in front of my mother-in-law.
Village chief lets loose when drunk—no shame.
Remember that.
But still.
My own wishes and free will weren't factoring in at all.
I felt like spoils of war between these two women. Or was I?
I need downtime too—to rehydrate and get my lower half presentable.
But too scared to say it.
Something told me I shouldn't speak up here.
Ashu listened to Agnes's shameless tales, then finally released my hand, resolute.
"Tonight, I want to stay with Teacher Agnes."
"...I see. That's fine too. Ashushikara, I've never slept beside you grown like this. Let's check your scars and talk like old times."
Agnes set down her glass, pleased.
Then she looked at me.
"Kirgil, this Agnes is delighted you've honored your promises and advice. But from now on, Ashushikara's an exception. Doesn't she deserve to know your secrets by now?"
She probably planned to reveal my abilities and origins tonight with Ashu.
No reason to refuse.
Our lives were one now, after all.
"Of course. I've wanted to tell her for ages. I was planning to do it with you here anyway."
"This Agnes will tell her myself. We have much to discuss tonight, just us two."
With that, Ashu's tense expression finally softened, worries eased.
"Ashushikara, my sweet girl. Come here."
Agnes patted the empty seat beside her. Ashu scurried over and sat.
She pulled Ashu into her embrace.
"The little one who fit perfectly in these arms has grown so. Each time, this Agnes faces waves of emotion with the flow of time.
Ashushikara, our half-year together was short, but the memories are vivid. Your waves hit so intensely."
"...Me too, Teacher Agnes."
Ashu, briefly tense, hugged back tightly with her own arms.
Ashu was bigger, yet she looked so young—like a grown daughter embracing her mother.
Two beautiful women in an embrace—touching, picturesque.
A shabby old guy like me would ruin it. Better stay back.