A Moonlit Promise
The woman’s face bloomed into a gentle smile. She was the merchant guild leader who essentially held the financial lifeline—and the very lifeblood—of Piren Village in her hands. Iselina Ribein welcomed me warmly after my long absence.
“It would have been nice if you visited more often. Or is playing indoors with Seli too dull for you?”
“No, spending time with Seli is always new and thrilling.”
“......”
It really was. Sometimes it was so new it gave me a headache.
“Hehe. Then it wouldn’t matter if you saw her at the mansion every day, would it?”
“That’s……”
Iselina’s gentle gaze settled on me. The will contained in those blue eyes was warm yet unwavering. As the head of a major merchant guild, her ability to see through people had to surpass even Selena’s. The thought made me hesitate without realizing it.
“Mother.”
“Yes, Seli.”
Selena, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke. A pair of gentle blue eyes met a languid pair of blue eyes.
“Ruines looks very tired.”
“Does he? I only offered a light greeting.”
“Mother isn’t exactly a ‘light’ presence in this village. Maybe he feels burdened.”
“Hmm. I wonder. But isn’t that the same for you, Seli? You’re a member of our family and my one and only daughter.”
“Ruines and I… we….”
Selena clutched the hem of her dress tightly. It was unlike her usual sharp, decisive self; she seemed completely at a loss.
I couldn’t stay silent any longer and stepped in front of her.
“It’s all right, Seli. I actually wanted to apologize to Auntie.”
“Ruines?”
“An apology?”
Iselina’s eyes sparkled with interest. Matching her gentle gaze, I spoke my honest feelings.
“I hurt Seli.”
“......”
“You did, Ruines?”
“Yes.”
It was the truth. I had wounded my friend both physically and mentally. And the person standing before me was that precious friend’s mother.
“I’m sorry.”
“......Pfft.”
“?”
The moment I offered a sincere apology, the reaction that came back was nothing like what I expected. Iselina simply laughed, as if the entire situation genuinely amused her.
When I glanced sideways, Selena’s face had turned beet red.
Wait, why is she reacting like that again?
“So Ruines hurt Seli, did he?”
“Y-yes, it’s true. That’s why I feel bad… uh…”
“I see. But Ruines? Children always get hurt while growing up. You don’t need to worry about something like that.”
“......”
I had no response. Her words struck me as profoundly mature.
When my expression grew troubled again, Iselina offered a radiant smile.
“Ruines, our estate has a very large garden.”
“Ah, yes…!”
“Think it over carefully. We will always welcome you.”
“Th-thank you, Auntie.”
“Good. You should wash up first, Ruines. Shall we have dinner together afterward?”
“Yes. It’s been a while since I’ve eaten with you.”
“Hehe. It has, hasn’t it?”
“......”
Leaving Selena behind—her lips pressed tightly together—Auntie and I ended our conversation in a surprisingly warm atmosphere.
“S-Seli.”
“Yes?”
“Now that I think about it, there aren’t any male servants in this mansion…?”
“There aren’t. Men have always been fewer in number than women, and they aren’t very efficient.”
“I-I see…”
“......”
Steam seemed to rise from the top of my head. I couldn’t tell whether I had washed myself or been washed; my soul felt like it had left my body. The servants casually called it “attending to the bath,” but this was my first time experiencing anything like it, so I was completely flustered. If it had been someone like Eila helping family wash, I might have understood, but this left me utterly confused.
Was this normal for children of nobles or wealthy families? I wouldn’t know. I was neither. Still, with my friend who belonged to the latter category right in front of me, I wanted to ask.
But—
“Follow me.”
“Huh? Isn’t this the dining room?”
“In this situation you’re thinking about food…? Ha, never mind. We’ll start with your grooming.”
“Why bother when we’re just eating?”
“For the child of a first-rate merchant family, cleanliness and appearance management are essential. Table manners are basic as well.”
“As expected, it’s impressive. Wait, but I’m not a child of a merchant family—”
Bang!
Selena grabbed my hand tightly and pulled me into a room. The force behind it was overwhelming.
Inside were familiar faces I had seen earlier. Even if they didn’t reach the level of Eila, Selena, or Lady Iselina, they were still incredibly beautiful women. It almost seemed a waste for them to be serving as someone else’s attendants.
“Ah, young lady…?”
“Hup!”
“Groom him. Make him look his best for Mother.”
“Y-yes!”
For some reason, they all seemed extremely mindful of Selena’s mood, as if they had committed some unspeakable offense. Not understanding any of it, I simply sat in silence among the flustered servants. Something told me I shouldn’t poke the current Selena.
I don’t know how long I sat there. When I finally looked in the mirror, the person staring back made me wonder who I was even looking at.
“H-how is it, young lady!”
“We gave it our absolute best!”
“What we did earlier was unavoidable due to formalities!”
“P-please forgive us!”
……Forgive them? Had the servants done something wrong?
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t figure it out. They had all been incredibly kind.
“Well, it’s fine. You looked good to begin with.”
“Seli?”
“......”
Selena, who had been staring at me intently, silently turned her gaze away. Then she cleared her throat.
“Mother will like it too. Now, I’ll teach you basic table manners.”
“……Is that necessary?”
“Yes.”
Then I had to learn. After all, the words were coming from none other than my childhood friend.
The meal ended on a pleasant note as well. Perhaps the table manners Selena had painstakingly taught me helped. Throughout dinner, Iselina watched with clear satisfaction as I ate beside Selena, struggling to remember everything.
Yeah, well. There was no harm in making a good impression on my friend’s mother.
Moreover—
“Seli.”
“......”
“Seli?”
“Ah, yes.”
Strange. During the meal Selena had seemed quite excited, yet now her expression was subtly complex. The changes in her face were delicate, but the differences were profound.
For example, right now—sharing her room for the night—Selena’s face seemed filled with more complicated emotions than I had ever seen.
……Huh? Why complicated? Even her mother, Iselina, had finished the meal with a satisfied smile. Was there something else weighing on her mind? I decided I would quietly ask her before we fell asleep.
“Seli.”
“Y-yes?”
Selena’s room was every bit as luxurious as the rest of the mansion. A soft carpet lay conveniently beside the bed. I sat down on it obediently and patted the floor with my palm.
“I’ll sleep here.”
“……Then where do I sleep?”
“On the bed, of course.”
“Ha.”
Ha? This was the first time I had ever heard Selena make that sound. What was going on? Had I missed something? Sleeping together in the same bed didn’t seem appropriate, so I thought it only right that the owner of the room take the bed.
“Ruines.”
“Yes?”
“If that’s how it is, then sleep on the floor with me.”
“……Uh, yes?”
Why? The question rose in my throat but sank back down just as quickly.
Moonlight streamed in through the window. It illuminated Selena’s face, which looked more serious than ever. It was the same face I always knew, yet somehow different. Even as her childhood friend, I couldn’t quite read what this subtle change meant.
“There’s only one blanket anyway.”
“Th-then we could borrow one from the next room—”
“Be quiet.”
Flutter!
She had become the forceful Selena again. She spread her own fluffy blanket on the floor, then slipped inside it as if it were a game. Lifting one edge of the blanket, she began patting the carpeted floor.
Tap! Tap!
“?”
“Why are you just standing there watching?”
“Seli, why are you on the floor…”
“It means come inside, obviously.”
“Ah.”
I had suspected as much, but hearing it directly made my cheeks burn. In the end I obediently crawled under the blanket.
“How is it?”
“It’s warm.”
“That’s not what I meant……”
Selena let out a small sigh and asked again.
“Do you still want to become a knight?”
“......”
It would be a lie to say no. The fact that I had once dreamed purely of becoming a knight was exactly why Selena was asking now. I didn’t want to lie to her in this moment.
“Yes. I still want to become a knight.”
“I see. But Ruines.”
“Yes?”
“Do you know how much knight equipment costs?”
“Ugh.”
Selena mercilessly dragged me out of my ideals and back down to harsh reality.
“Swords are expensive. Armor is even more so. Artifacts and relics would be beyond words.”
“......”
“Even for our guild, that would be a considerable expense. It’s an amount one person might work their entire life and still never save.”
“Th-that’s not what I meant, Seli. I’m not asking for—”
It seemed she had misunderstood. What I wanted from Selena was simply…
“I know.”
“?”
Selena gazed steadily into my eyes.
“If I don’t do this, you’ll just keep trying like an idiot again. You fool.”
“Ugh.”
Squeeze. Selena pinched my cheek. But only for a moment. As if a thought had occurred to her, she gently stroked the same spot.
“If you’re sorry, then work harder. You must become a knight. I’ll do anything to make you one.”
“……Why?”
“……I don’t know, idiot.”
Maybe it was because we were friends. That one and only precious childhood friend. Or perhaps—
“......”
“......”
Beneath the flowing moonlight, Selena and I simply looked at each other in silence. For a very long time.