An Evening of Change
It was one evening when everything began to shift. I had been summoned to Doren’s house. The moment I opened the door and stepped inside, I found Taron already seated there as well.
“You’re here~ Ray.” Doren greeted me, shaking a liquor bottle with a pleased grin.
As soon as I sat down, he filled my glass and we began to drink.
“It’s been damn near impossible to see your face lately. I expect it from Taron, but to think you’ve reached the stage where you’re teaching the kids now.”
Doren looked at me with open pride. “That sniveling little brat Ray has grown up so much already. Hahaha!!”
I poured more liquor into Doren’s cup. “It’s all thanks to you, sir. You even set aside your own livelihood to take care of the two of us. Thank you. Truly.”
“Heh heh. Yeah. Back then no one in the village wanted anything to do with you two. Who would’ve imagined a lifelong bachelor like me would end up raising a pair of kids? Heh heh.”
These days he lived like a wanderer who did nothing but drink from morning till night, but when he had taken in Katia and me, Doren had been a genuinely kind and responsible man. I smiled faintly and refilled his glass once more.
“If anything’s troubling you, just say the word. I’ll help however I can.”
“Now that you mention it, I was just about to run out of drinking money. You must’ve earned a fair bit on your adventures, right? I don’t know much about swordsmanship, but since Taron acknowledged you so early, you must’ve built quite the reputation out there. Hahaha!!”
Taron, who had been quietly sipping his drink, shook his head.
“Doren. Ray is no longer at a level where the question is whether I acknowledge him or not.”
“Huh? What the hell does that mean?”
“Even I thought I’d seen a fair share of the world in my younger days, but the power he displayed back then… I had never witnessed anything like it.”
Taron’s eyes drifted to my left arm. “It’s still hard to believe. He crushed Tiar using only that left arm he’s barely begun to train.”
“Ah~ That prideful girl? She always ignored me when I tried to speak to her, so I stopped bothering.”
Taron burst into a short laugh. “Doren. That child has changed now. I left the matter to Ray thinking he would handle it, but I never imagined the transformation would happen this quickly… What kind of sorcery did you use?”
I quietly shook my head. “I didn’t do anything. She changed because she wanted to change.”
“You little rascal. Stop being so modest and just drink. It’s good liquor. Chew it properly before you swallow.”
Doren filled my cup again. We spent the pleasant drinking session exchanging all kinds of stories, and before we knew it the night had grown deep. The alcohol really was as excellent as he had claimed. After laying the heavily drunk Doren on his bed and parting ways with Taron, I made my way home, barely keeping my swaying steps under control.
Damn. I drank too much.
Whenever I secretly sipped alcohol before leaving home, Katia was always beside me. She never drank herself, but she would quietly watch my profile as I drank.
“Tasty?”
“Yeah. I think I drank too much. Sleep is hitting me hard.”
“Sleep well. I’ll give you a lap pillow.”
When I lay down, Katia would gaze at me with what looked like the faintest smile. Above her, countless stars twinkled in the night sky.
“I miss her.”
The old memories brought with them a sudden longing for Katia. What kind of bastard was I, to have wounded someone so precious to me….
I shook my head to clear the thoughts. When I reached my house and moved to open the door, something felt strange. Why was there a light on inside?
“Hmm? Did I leave a lamp burning when I left?”
The moment I opened the door, I was greeted by the sight of Tiar’s back as she cooked in my kitchen. Her black hair swayed while she ladled soup into a small dish and tasted it.
The unexpected scene left me momentarily speechless. Tiar turned her head toward me.
“You’re back? You came a little late. I heard you were out drinking, so I made mushroom soup that’s good for hangovers. Here, sit down.”
“Uh? Uhh…”
Tiar took off the cloak I was wearing and guided me to a chair. Moments later, a steaming bowl of mushroom soup was placed on the table.
I accepted the spoon she offered and took a mouthful.
“How is it?”
Tiar, who had been quietly observing me, asked with eyes full of expectation.
When she looked at me like that, I would have said it was delicious even if it tasted terrible, but the dish she had prepared was genuinely excellent.
“It’s delicious.”
“That’s a relief. It was my first time making it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I went around asking the aunts in the village who are good at cooking and looked up other recipes too. How is it? I did well, right~?”
Tiar beamed brightly.
“Mmm.”
Just as Taron had said, Tiar had changed since that day. Where she had once remained silent, tense and guarded, that atmosphere had now completely vanished. She approached people first, talked with them, laughed, and chatted freely. The villagers who had once ignored her or paid her no mind because of her originally unfriendly demeanor could now see her with her heart wide open. Tiar had finally melted into the village.
“Tomorrow after training I’m planning to learn oatmeal porridge and fruit tart. Oh, of course I’ll do extra training on top of that!”
“I-I see.”
But for me, the person who had received the brunt of her hostility, this sudden change in her still felt unfamiliar.
Tiar tilted her head with a warm gaze and rested her chin on her hand.
“Once I learn, I’ll make lots of delicious things for you, Ray!”
“Kek.”
“Cough. Cough, cough…”
“Hold on! I’ll get you some water!”
Tiar hurried to the kitchen, brought back water, and poured it into a large cup. I drank it down, calming my startled heart.
“Are you all right?”
At Tiar’s worried gaze I nodded to show I was fine.
What was this feeling? This strange sense of burden… what exactly was it?
“Um, Tiar…”
“Yes, yes!”
Tiar looked at me with sparkling eyes.
It was fortunate she had grown cute in a way that suited her age, but wasn’t this transformation a little too abrupt?
I spoke carefully.
“Well, I have no talent for cooking, so I’m truly grateful that you want to cook for me, but…”
“Yes! Then I’m glad! I’ll cook for you every day from now on!”
“T-that’s not what I meant. It feels a bit burdensome… like I’m taking up too much of your time…”
“…? What are you saying, Ray?”
The bright light in Tiar’s eyes suddenly turned serious.
“Wasn’t it you, Ray, who told me I could rely on you as much as I wanted…?”
A chill ran through me. Even someone as hopeless at communicating with women as I was instinctively knew this situation needed immediate damage control.
“Ah. O-of course! You can rely on me whenever you want! I-it’s fine! Um, what was it again. Ah, the potato soup was delicious!”
“It was mushroom soup.”
“Ah, right! You made it with frost mushrooms, didn’t you?”
“It was golden-thread mushrooms.”
“Aah. No wonder the texture felt exactly like golden thread…”
“Actually, they were silver-pine mushrooms.”
“……”
“Ray. Am I a burden to you?”
Tiar rose from her seat and sat down beside me. A soft fragrance drifted over.
“Ah, no.”
“Hehe. Ray, you really can’t lie. It shows all over your face.”
“Sigh. I’m sorry, Tiar.”
Since I had already been caught, I confessed honestly.
“It’s fine. Actually, I don’t care whether you feel burdened or not.”
“…?”
“Because you’re precious family to me now, Ray. It hasn’t been that long since you became my family, so I understand.”
Family? When I gave her a puzzled look, Tiar chuckled softly.
“Ah~ This is me acting spoiled toward you again. Sister Katia is like an older sister to me, and now you’ve become like an older brother. That’s why I’m freely asking you to pay attention to me.”
Tiar asked cautiously.
“…Do you dislike it?”
After hearing her painful family history, it was true that I had come to feel sympathy for her. If there was anything I could do to help, I was prepared to grant any request.
I carefully reached out and stroked Tiar’s head.
“Eep.”
Startled, Tiar let out a small sound.
“Ah, sorry. You didn’t like it?”
“No, it felt strangely tingly for a second…”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s fine now. What was that?”
Tiar tilted her head, then stood up.
“Anyway, thank you for accepting it, Ray. Hehe. As your little sister, I’ll definitely surpass you one day!”
“Sure.”
“Oh, and while learning the recipe today I burned a pot, but the aunt said it was all right…”
Tiar sat down again and began chatting about this and that. I listened to her trivial stories with a smile. For the first time in a long while, my once-empty house felt alive again.
In the Bartion Kingdom, inside Katia’s office.
Katia stood rigidly by the window, staring blankly at the moonlit garden beyond.
“Ray…”
How many times had that sorrowful whisper escaped her lips?
Someone knocked on the door.
Knock, knock.
Without waiting for permission, the door opened. It was the golden-haired Crown Prince, Rafael Vaster.
When Katia turned to look at him, Rafael spoke.
“Forgive me for visiting so late.”
“It is quite all right, Lord Rafael.”
“It has been some time since we dispatched the envoy to the Herban Kingdom. They should be arriving any day now.”
Rafael produced something he had been hiding behind his back. Moonlight spilled across it, revealing an expensive bottle of red wine and two glasses.
“Care to share a drink?”
“I must decline.”
“Even at my personal request?”
“Yes. I will not drink.”
“Haha. Sir Katia, you truly are ice itself. I remember the day you first entered the kingdom. Your demeanor was exactly the same then as it is now. Everyone looks up to you, reveres you, and sometimes even fears you. I am no exception.”
“……”
“When will you finally drink with me? I am waiting.”
“Your Highness Rafael.”
Katia looked directly at him. Her cold eyes carried an overwhelming pressure.
Clink.
Overwhelmed by that suffocating force, Rafael dropped the wine glass he had been holding.
“I no longer have any leisure to spare.”
“I cannot predict what impulses might overtake me once I return home.”
“It is possible I may never come back here.”
“…What?”
At the grave tone, Rafael asked again, but Katia had already turned away.
“It is nothing. I spoke out of turn. Thank you for your help that day, Your Highness.”
Katia’s gaze returned to the scene outside the window. Rafael stared at her with a stunned expression for a long moment before quietly leaving the room.
“Ray…”
The suffocating whisper quietly filled the empty office.