Chapter 167
Chapter 167
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 167
Chapter Title: Day and Night #8
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It wasn't until the sun had set that Narmi could finally catch her breath.
It was evening, the time when everyone had clocked out and headed home. Only then was she able to finish processing the backlog of work and have dinner.
"It's all done now!"
Narmi stretched out hugely with a long, drawn-out yawn. I almost chuckled at the sight—something Mirna never would have done.
No, even Mirna probably stretched and yawned like that when she was alone, right?
"What the heck! It's already evening! We can only rest at night. It's just like when my sister was around!"
Narmi peered out the window at the sunken sun and the dimming evening sky, her disappointment plain as day. She'd been buried in work all day, and just when she could finally relax, the sun had gone down.
Just like she said, she must have been dissatisfied with her daily routine, which was no different from back when her sister was around and she only showed up at night like the moon.
Of course, part of it was that Narmi was still clumsy at it.
Her sister Mirna was quick with her hands, handling everything swiftly and still having time for leisure and meeting people.
But Mirna had lived that way her whole life, so it would take her little sister Narmi a lot of time to reach that level.
I kept those thoughts to myself and asked,
"The work ran late today. How was it living your sister's life instead?"
"...Today was awkward because it was the first day. It'll get better starting tomorrow. I'll finish work quickly and go for walks during the day. I'll look at flowers and manta rays too...!"
I see.
As expected, the excuse that she hadn't gotten the hang of it yet since it was only the first day.
* * *
"So then I got the ball, and the adjutant Hans next to me yelled, Lady Elga, pass it over here—!"
It was a languid afternoon lunch hour.
Elga was excitedly recounting her story of playing soccer with the soldiers. Her sole audience was Narmi Draco, blinking her ruby-red eyes like rubies.
I snapped my fingers next to Narmi's face.
"Lady Mirna, your hand has stopped. These documents here need to be submitted right after lunch—they're certificates—so please sign them quickly."
"R-Right!"
Scribble, scribble scribble.
Narmi squeezed work even into mealtime. She barely touched her food. Thanks to that, Elga—who had been animatedly spinning her soccer tale—furrowed her brow in frustration.
"What the hell? You're killing my vibe while I'm telling a fun story. Hey, Mirna. What's up with you lately, working even at the dinner table? Where'd all your ladylike dignity go?"
"......"
Mirna would have shot back at Elga's jab. No, Mirna wouldn't have brought work to the table in the first place.
But Narmi had no such leisure.
If she didn't finish today's quota, she might end up working overtime or pulling an all-nighter past evening. That would leave her with no rest at all.
Smack.
At that moment, Aira elegantly wiped her lips with a napkin and chimed in.
"You must be busy with Draco family affairs. I've had days like that too. Kingdom business was always a nonstop barrage of heavy tasks. There were piles of things only the queen could handle—"
Aira let out a weary sigh, like she was truly exhausted. At that sweet sigh, Elga asked in confusion,
"Cousin, you were ever busy?"
"Yes. But as a wise queen, I found the solution. It was simply to delegate to reliable people. Thanks to that, Theo handles most of my bothersome work."
"What? So basically, you're saying you're not busy at all because you dump it all on others?"
"Dumping? It's giving orders. That's an important duty of a queen too."
She had a point.
Finding the right people and assigning tasks was part of a queen's job. But since I'd handled everything myself, I didn't think I'd ever really taken orders from Aira.
Oblivious to my thoughts, Aira smiled languidly. For a moment, it seemed like she was thinking of something happy.
"Then, cousin Elga and Theo, want to go see mandarin ducks with me today too? The pair I had my eye on yesterday had ducklings. They might migrate to bigger waters soon."
Aira chattered on about her latest obsession: watching pond birds. Elga's response was predictably tepid: "Oh, really?"
Perhaps disappointed by Elga's bland reaction, Aira turned her attention to Narmi, who was diligently signing documents.
"Lady Draco. Want to join us for a walk? Didn't you say you wanted to see the ducklings?"
"Ducklings..."
"They're a natural monument designated by the church. Even I, the queen, can't keep them as pets. The babies toddle after their mother like little nymphs—they must be incredibly cute."
"Hoo..."
Narmi sighed.
"As much as I'd love to, I have work to do—"
"Oh, what a shame. Then I'll have to go with just my cousin Elga."
Aira said it like she truly meant it, then stood up first with Elga.
"Theo, will you come along?"
"No, I think I should help Lady Mirna a bit."
"Hmm, alright. Let's go, Erganes."
"What? Why the sudden formal name? Oh, and Theo—the thing you asked for, I had it delivered to your dorm."
With that, Aira and Elga left. Now it was just me, Narmi, and the mountain of tasks that had to be done by end of day.
Rustle. Thud.
At that moment, Narmi slumped face-first onto the table. If anyone saw, they'd snap, "No poise for a noble lady." Narmi knew that too, probably.
"The work won't end.... I wanted to see the ducklings too...."
But she seemed to lack the mental bandwidth to care anymore.
After days of trying to live by day, the accumulating fatigue from the heavy workload must have been wearing her down.
"Theo, if you want to go have fun, go ahead. This is my work—you don't have to stay by my side. I can handle it now to some extent.... I'd feel bad if you couldn't play because of me."
Narmi released me in a small voice.
If Aira or Elga—who usually overworked me—had said that, I'd have replied, "Theo is now a free half-elf," and bolted.
But Narmi meant well in her own way, and I had my own ulterior motives, so I couldn't bring myself to leave her side.
"Let's push just a bit more. A little more effort, and you can rest for about 10 minutes."
"Okay...."
Narmi lifted her head with effort. She bit her lip, her hands trembling slightly as she glared at the pile of documents she had to handle.
She looked on the verge of tears, but she held it back and started scratching away with the pen again. Good girl.
Impressive, but—
At this rate, it'll be soon.
If it gets just a bit harder, maybe Narmi will finally release the trapped Mirna inside. Not that Narmi had failed—no, she'd done her best.
Honestly, even to me, the workload assigned to her wasn't something one person could handle alone.
Mirna was incredible for clearing it all solo and even carving out personal time. Maybe Narmi was starting to recognize that and would reconcile with her sister?
But Narmi had her pride.
Her pride wouldn't allow it.
I decided it was best to end this bizarre sibling feud tonight.
"Lady Narmi. If you truly feel sorry toward me, then—once the work is done tonight, would you grant me some of your time?"
"Time?"
* * *
I stepped out of the Ark site with Narmi.
The place I took her was a bustling tavern inside the city of Gracia.
「Imp Tail Tavern.」
More inn than restaurant. It doubled as lodging, booze, and meals.
And the hallmark of such places: business really picked up at night.
Like any spot where workers and adventurers gathered after a day's labor to clink glasses and gripe, this one was packed too.
"It's super crowded—"
Narmi's impression nailed it. Crowded, noisy, rowdy without refinement, filled with shattering glass and clattering dishes everywhere.
"First time in a place like this."
"I see."
It didn't suit a noble lady. I'd wondered if Narmi—who often roamed at night—had been to such a dive inn before, but she clearly hadn't.
It took guts to enter alone, so it made sense.
"And it's still evening, but there are so many people!"
Narmi buzzed with excitement amid the crowd and clamor.
She was the outgoing type who drew energy from people. Surprisingly, this chaotic, disorderly mess seemed right up her alley.
I said,
"Places like this do real business in the evening and at night."
"Oh?"
"I'll order, so get whatever catches your eye."
"Hmm—. Then the spicy chili sausage and beer."
"Beer?"
"Yeah! My sister drinks only wine every day. I wanted to try this beer thing."
"Got it, then."
I ordered what I wanted and what Narmi had picked for the waiter.
Plates arrived almost immediately, and Narmi—who'd skipped even lunch for work—seemed starved as she picked up fork and knife.
Of course, her elegant noble-lady style eating was a far cry from the barbaric slurping around us.
"It's better than I thought."
It even looked like a solemn prayer ritual. Beer foam clung to her lips, but even that was charming.
Naturally, Narmi drew eyes from those around us.
─Looks like a noble lady.
─That silver hair and ruby eyes. Kinda familiar. Wait, is that Mirna Draco?
─Nah, no way. Why would Mirna Draco come here? What's she got to gain from cheap watered-down beer?
Clink.
Narmi set down her spoon. Her face was flushed—whether from emotions or the beer she'd been chugging, I couldn't tell.
She said,
"Everyone thinks I'm my sister."
"Well, the world only really knows about Lady Mirna."
"No matter how hard I try, no one realizes it's me."
"Well..."
"Everyone's looking for my sister. You too, Theo. That's why you brought me out tonight, right? To tell me it's time to let her go."
"......"
As expected, Narmi was sharp. The reason I'd brought her here tonight was indeed to persuade her, in various ways.
Night has its own world.
Day has the world of those who live by day—
So let Mirna out already. After struggling through the day, don't you understand her feelings now?—that kind of talk.
But with Narmi preempting me like this, my words stuck in my throat. As I fell silent, she continued, overcome with emotion.
"I just wanted to bask in sunlight. To laugh like ordinary people. I wanted to see this place called the sunlit sea too."
"......"
"I wanted to nap in the daytime like normal. But am I not allowed? Do I have to live only under moonlight, only in dark basements?"
Drip drip drip.
Finally, the tears she'd held back these past few days burst out. Seeing Narmi cry tugged at my heart a little. I could understand her feelings.
"I just wanted to live normally. I didn't choose to be born like this. But people don't even know I exist. No one would like me."
"No one would like Lady Narmi?"
"Yeah. A girl who can only come out at night. Who'd like a girl awake when everyone else is asleep?"
"Not necessarily."
"...Not necessarily?"
Rustle.
I drew my spellbook from my waist and activated the magic circle.
What I pulled from the inventory was a flower preserved in a glass vial. The dried flower Elga had prepared for me earlier.
I hadn't expected it'd come in handy here.
I thanked Elga inwardly and asked Narmi,
"Do you know what flower this is?"
"No."
"It's a moonflower. Legend says there was a nymph who loved the moon so much she turned into one of these."
"......"
"That's why it blooms only at night. Its language is 'waiting'—waiting for the moon to rise, apparently."
Believe it or not. In the fairy tale from Stella Velhock, that's how it went.
There was a nymph who loved only the moon among countless stars and was punished. The moon goddess turned the pitiful nymph into a flower.
Recalling that, I said,
"If there's a fairy who loves only the moon that rises at night, then it wouldn't be strange for a half-elf to like a girl who only appears at night, right?"
"What?"
At my question, Narmi's tear-streaked, sorrowful expression turned incredibly flustered.
"W-What? That sounds like you're saying you like me, Theo...."