A One-Line Character
He had been nothing more than a one-line character.
In a romance fantasy, the older brother of the Northern Grand Duke. An extra whose only role was to be murdered by her hand. That was the whole of Keter von Nordberg, the character I had come to inhabit.
Twenty-six years had passed since I began living under the name Keter, and even the identity of a transmigrator had worn thin. These days I could no longer recall the name I had borne in my previous life.
So today, as on any other day, I stood atop the Wall that cleaved the border of Nordberg, humanity's northernmost land, and looked out over the realm beyond—the Permafrost, domain of the demonic beasts.
An endless snowfield. Wind blowing in off the Permafrost tossed my black hair across my eyes.
"Your Grace. Here again, are you?"
At the old man's voice calling up from below the Wall, I turned my head toward its foot. A butler's suit showed in glimpses between the folds of a fur coat, and above it an old man whose hair had gone white.
"......Head Butler."
"Are you not cold?"
"Not really."
"This old servant's knees are aching. Shall we head back?"
The exaggerated pantomime of a man pleading his pain. It was always like this.
"Then you can go back first."
"If I return ahead of you, the young lady will not leave me in peace."
"......She wouldn't."
Whether the words were true hardly mattered. There was only the reality that he would not stop until I agreed to return. In the end, unable to withstand the fuss, I threw myself off the Wall.
I cut through the rough wind as the pure white snowfield rushed up to meet me. I twisted, set my feet, and struck; a boom tore the air, and snow burst outward like dust.
"Fine. Let's go back."
The Head Butler let out a long breath.
"Your Grace. The stairs are not decoration."
"This is faster."
At my answer he shook his head and held out the fur coat clutched in his hand.
"The day is still cold. A poor offering, but please put this on, at least."
The pitch-black fur coat in his hands caught my eye.
"It's a nuisance."
"No less a nuisance for this old servant to carry about."
"Then you wear it."
"Your Grace's clothes are far too large for me."
"Then throw it away."
He answered with a sly smile.
"If the young lady were to see Your Grace as you are now, she would worry."
I looked down at what I was wearing. A single silk robe, thrown on light. However little the cold touched this body, it was hardly fit for a snowfield.
"......Fair enough."
I took the fur coat from his hand and drew it over my shoulders, and the Head Butler bent at the waist in formal courtesy.
"That you have granted this old servant's earnest plea—I am moved beyond words."
"You really never change."
"Please, say no such thing. Every time I face a mirror these days the wrinkles have multiplied, and my worries stand like a mountain."
We crossed the vast snowfield and reached the gate, where the soldiers on duty went stiff and saluted. Past them, through the gate, the snow-laden city of Nordberg opened before us.
People haggling over prices. A drunk already making a scene in broad daylight. A sturdy man hauling firewood. And among them, children at play in thick furs and fur mittens.
"Hehe, bet you can't catch me!"
"Hey! If I catch you, you're dead!"
One of the running children bumped my leg and sat down hard.
"Ow—."
The small body that looked up at me went rigid. The Head Butler bent, set the child back on his feet, and spoke.
"Little one, running is well and good, but have a care. One wrong step, and you may come to real harm."
"Th......"
The child stole a glance at me. Eyes like a fawn with a predator before it.
"It's fine."
At that single word he broke into a bright smile, bowed, and ran off.
"Once, even the gardens of the Grand Ducal Castle were never without the sound of children's laughter."
"Were they...."
We left the laughter behind and walked on. Before long the great iron gate of the Grand Ducal Castle came into view.
"We have arrived."
No sooner had he finished than the knights drawn up in formation caught sight of us and drew the swords at their waists.
"Hail!"
The great iron gate swung open with a sharp cry of metal.
"Let's go."
"As you were."
We passed through the garden where the servants stood in ranks, opened the great door, and stepped inside.
The hinges shrieked.
"At last, a little rest."
"It's your workplace."
I shrugged the fur coat from my shoulders and handed it to him.
"Ho ho. These days the Grand Ducal Castle sits easier with this old servant than home does."
"Then don't clock out. Live here."
"That would not do."
Click. Click. A cool rhythm of heels rang through the castle. I turned toward the sound.
Hair black as the night sky. Red eyes gleaming like rubies. A woman of the same blood as mine.
"Adelheid."
The original work had no shortage of words for her. The Empire's strongest. The Iron Queen. The Grand Duchess of the North. And her own older brother—the villainess who murdered her own kin.
"—Your Grace."
The butler addressed her as she came down the stairs.
"My lady, so you were within the castle."
"Head Butler, you always work so hard."
"Ho ho. That my lady should acknowledge this old servant's labors—I am moved beyond words."
His eyes went to the pure white fur coat, the sort one would not wear indoors.
"Are you on your way out?"
"Yes. I have a small matter to see to outside."
"Yes, my lady. Go safely."
Adelheid's red eyes turned to me.
"I'll be going, Your Grace."
"Right."
At the short reply, her brow twitched, ever so slightly.
"......You aren't going to ask where?"
"Is it dangerous?"
Her head shook slowly from side to side.
"Then that's fine."
"I thought I might stop by the forge."
"Suit yourself."
I had just moved to pass her and climb the stairs when a voice came from behind.
"......I mean to collect the sword I left there, before I leave for the Imperial Capital tomorrow."
"The Imperial Capital?"
"Yes. The victory banquet for the Western Front."
I recalled the report I had seen not long ago, the one about the young hero risen on the Western Front. A banquet to honor his merits, no doubt.
"I see."
"Your Grace, I know how shameless this is, but... might I ask one favor?"
"What favor?"
Her voice shrank in on itself.
"......Would you come to the Imperial Capital with me?"
"Do I have to?"
"No. I knew it was shameless of me to ask... Forgive me, Your Grace."
The front door creaked open behind me. I left the sound where it was and made for the office.
"You might as well go with her."
I had sat down and was looking over the papers when the Head Butler spoke.
"And why would I?"
"If Your Grace, one of the Five Pillars of the Empire, were present, it would be a meaningful thing for a young hero only just come into bloom."
Five houses that had founded the Empire together. Their masters were called, in reverence, the Five Pillars of the Empire. To someone who prized honor, it might mean something....
"Wasn't Adelheid already set to attend as Nordberg's representative?"
With her there, Nordberg had shown all the courtesy it owed. I had no reason to go.
"If Your Grace were at her side, it would surely hearten Lady Adelheid. A palace banquet will be her first."
"......You do love putting me on the spot."
But if he framed it as seeing her through her first imperial banquet, I had no grounds of my own for refusing.
"......I'll attend."
A smile touched the corner of his mouth.
"A wise decision."
"The luggage—"
"Knowing you would say so, I prepared it in advance."
I set the papers down. The Head Butler, standing before the desk, made a show of dabbing at his eyes.
"I am overcome by the magnanimity of Your Grace, who has resolved to grace the victory banquet for the sake of a young hero."
"Sliding past it like that again."
"The trouble with growing old is that these little strokes of luck only multiply."
I reached for the papers once more, and he spoke.
"Would it not be best to retire and rest? The road to the capital will be a long one. You ought to husband your strength."
"If I run, it's nothing."
"That is true of Your Grace alone. Do you mean to put Lady Adelheid in the carriage and send her off by herself?"
He took the documents from my hand and set them in order.
"This old servant will see to the paperwork. Your Grace, go and rest."
"......Fine."
The next day, the gardens of the Grand Ducal Castle. An endless procession, centered on a black carriage, filled my view.
"Does it have to be all this?"
"For them, to attend Your Grace and Lady Adelheid is the highest of honors."
I indicated the knights on horseback.
"Can we make it smaller?"
"We can make it larger."
"......Forget it."
Any bigger, and I doubted I could stand it.
"Now that I think of it—you aren't taking a sword?"
The Head Butler's gaze had fixed on my waist.
"Do I need one?"
"You will have no cause to use it. Still, there is such a thing as a symbol."
He considered a moment, then smiled crookedly.
"Well. Were Your Grace to bring a sword, the soft lords of the capital would lose their sleep."
"Look at you, backing down without a fight."
"Is Lady Adelheid not traveling with you? She will certainly bring a sword.... And here she comes."
I turned. Adelheid, in a pure white fur coat, was walking toward us with a sword held modestly in both hands.
"...Your Grace?"
"You're here."
The eyes on me wavered, just barely.
"What's the matter?"
"......Nothing."
Her gaze shifted to the butler, and he smiled.
"You needed someone to escort you at the victory banquet, did you not, my lady?"
"......Thank you, Head Butler."
"Ho ho. What did this old servant do? The choice was His Grace's."
The maid who had followed her opened the door of the black carriage, and Adelheid stepped in. I was about to climb up after her when the butler's voice came from behind.
"Return safely, Your Grace."
"I will."
"You must sleep."
"......I'll think about it."
I took my seat, and the maid who had come with Adelheid shut the door.
Silence settled.
"...Your Grace."
A voice breaking it. Adelheid lowered her head.
"Thank you...."
"Yeah."
Her eyes turned to the window, and the quiet came down over the carriage again.
A horn sounded, low and heavy, rolling across the whole of the Grand Ducal Castle.
"......Loud."
"It is."
The standard-bearer at the head took up the reins, and Nordberg's banner snapped in the wind, announcing the departure.
"......It's been a long time since I went to the Imperial Capital with Your Grace."
The slight lift at the corner of her mouth caught my eye.
"Yeah. A long time."
The Imperial Capital, main stage of the original work. It had been a very long time indeed since I had gone into the heart of that storm.