Free Port City (3)

After we finished our meal, Helena and I wandered the market again.

We snacked as we went, climbed high places to take in the view, and simply let the day carry us. I played so hard I found myself wondering if any day since my rebirth as an elf had ever been this much fun.

We had left city hall around lunchtime, yet by the time we thought about heading back the sun was already setting.

"We should probably head back soon. The mayor will be waiting."

"Then let's call it a day."

"Yeah. We can play again tomorrow."

That wasn't empty talk. If it was Free Port City's market, I was confident I could come every single day and never get tired of it.

The largest market in Free Port City was clean without being overly noisy. You could tell at a glance how much effort had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠gone into shaping the atmosphere. It felt like one of those "modern markets" you only saw in Korea or Japan.

After browsing the stalls we bought ice cream and climbed a high hill. Dusk was settling in, and the streetlamps scattered throughout the city began to light up one by one.

Maybe it was time to enjoy the night view.

Even in the royal capital I had never seen a nightscape like this. And with the sea right there… it felt like I was looking at a painting too beautiful to be real.

"That was fun. But where do you think the rumors started?"

"Probably one of the customers who ate with us at the restaurant. A rumor about who was walking around with the young lady would spread pretty easily."

The rumor Helena meant was the one that had blanketed Free Port City: that I was Esilly, former vice commander of the kingdom's knight order. Even just "a short silver-haired elf" was distinctive enough to spot, and walking around with the mayor's daughter only made me stand out more.

Helena was so kind that she treated everyone gently; the whole city seemed to adore her like an idol. Maybe that was why people whose hometowns were in the kingdom, or who had family there, kept coming up to thank me. It had been exhausting.

"Because Lady Esilly is a hero! Free Port City and the kingdom are close, both in distance and in ties, so of course there are lots of people connected to it. Something like today was only natural!"

Helena puffed out her cheeks and nodded vigorously as she said it. She was heaping so much praise on me that I didn't know how to answer, so I just smiled and ruffled her hair.

To be stared at by strangers simply for walking through a market… that kind of life only made sense for someone like Helena—the mayor's daughter and future mayor herself.

"Thanks. Hearing you say that makes me happy."

"I'm the one who should be thanking you."

We exchanged thanks and then, at the exact same moment, both of us snorted with laughter. Somehow the mood carried us away and we clinked our ice cream cones together in a toast. Soft-serve went flying everywhere, and we wiped each other off. That part stays a secret for life.

The study was always quiet, but today the silence felt deeper and more distant than usual. Seated there, waiting for his beloved daughter, was the mayor who ruled Free Port City.

Ordinarily he used the room for reading or odd bits of work, but today he had sought it out simply because he wanted to be alone in a quiet place. Only moments earlier he had been shouting at the top of his lungs in a room full of relatives; the solitude felt more precious than usual.

Even that brief silence did not last long. Someone knocked four times on the door.

His wives knocked three times. His beloved daughter knocked four. His sons had been instructed to knock five. So he knew at once who stood outside.

"Come in."

A short, solid phrase, yet one that carried affection. The woman waiting outside opened the door and stepped inside. She trotted over like a puppy and sat in the chair beside her father—Helena, who until a short while ago had been admiring the city's night view from a high place with her benefactor, Esilly.

"Father. I've just returned."

"So you had fun with our benefactor?"

"Yes. It was really fun."

Barely twenty minutes earlier his face had been more terrifying than any demon of hell; now he smiled with pure fondness and stroked his daughter's hair. She had been bright and kind-hearted since childhood, beloved by the city's people. He had worked tirelessly to leave her a clean, safe city, so hearing that she had enjoyed herself there truly delighted him.

"Father, how did today's meeting go?"

"You're curious about that?"

"It's family business. Of course I'm curious."

"True… you are the one most involved."

His daughter had nearly suffered a great calamity because of recent events; she was the principal party. So he told her everything that had happened that day, slowly and carefully.

"First, I struck everyone except Heor from the family register. They'll be entered into their maternal families' registers instead."

The mayor's choice was to leave no sprouts at all. With that, the other children—whether they could truly be called Helena's political rivals or merely people who one-sidedly regarded her as one—were no longer heirs. Even as legitimate children they could inherit neither property nor his position.

For the record, Heor, the one he had kept along with Helena, was the biological son of his first wife Hella, just as Helena was.

"So don't worry. I will pour every ounce of my strength into ensuring you inherit the mayor's seat cleanly."

"You worry too much, Father…"

"If I had my way… I would want Benefactor Esilly to remain at your side…"

The words were so sincere they almost carried a sigh. The woman called the kingdom's hero—the one who had erased an entire legion—had achievements that could rightly be called mythic. Yet both of them sitting there knew the truth: someone that exceptional would never be bound by the likes of them.

"She's leaving for the Western Continent soon, isn't she? She already saved my life. Wanting more than that wouldn't be right."

"I know. That's why it's only regret."

Helena felt the same regret. In her heart she wanted to spend her life with that woman, but the title of heir to the mayor's seat made it impossible. She had even considered dumping the whole burden on her younger brother Heor… yet she kept wavering, wondering whether it was right to force such a difficult position onto him simply for her own desire.

"Well… if she ever grows tired of traveling, you can just bring her back, can't you?"

"That's right!! Lady Esilly will get tired of traveling someday too!"

Someday she would grow tired of it. That was what they said, yet when the mayor looked at his daughter he could see how desperately she hoped that "someday" would come soon.

Before I knew it, seven days had passed in Free Port City. At last it was the day I would board the ship bound for the Western Continent.

I was already at the harbor, just about to board. The mayor, Lady Hella, Helena… and Helena's younger brother Heor had all come to see me off.

Heor turned out to be a surprisingly cute and entertaining kid. I'll tell the stories of what happened with him later when I have time.

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Just as I was about to say my goodbyes, a massive horn blast rolled out from the ship. For the next week I would be living on that vessel, sailing the seas.

"You should board soon. It has been an honor to spend these past days with our benefactor."

"I will pray from afar that nothing untoward befalls Lady Esilly during her journey."

I answered the mayor and his wife's farewell with a small smile. Educated people really were ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠different.

And then there was Heor. In less than a week of playing with him he had grown quite attached to me. Now we had to part. Where there is meeting there is also parting, after all.

Don't cry, kid.

I was ready to comfort him that way, but instead of crying he held out his hand.

"Big sis Esilly. I had fun."

"Uh… yeah. I had fun too."

I was a little thrown. Weren't little boys supposed to bawl with snot running down their faces at times like this?

"If we meet again next time…"

"Then big sis will play with you even more fun…"

Yeah, I'll play with you. I'll stay at least a month next time and have a blast with Helena and Heor. Thinking that, I reached out my hand.

But the words that came out of the boy's mouth were beyond anything I had imagined.

"If we meet again, I'll propose to you properly."

"Yeah, I'll play even more fun…………………huh?"

You'll do what?

Propose?

Why was the name of some success-story protagonist suddenly coming out of his mouth? Did I mishear?

"A little brat sure talks big. Who said anyone was giving Lady Esilly to you?"

"Ow, that hurts, big sister."

Helena immediately planted a fist on her little brother's head. Seeing the fierce determination that she wouldn't hand me over to just anyone, it seemed I had thoroughly enchanted the mayor of Free Port City's children.

Personally I preferred Helena. She and I had already shared all sorts of skinship alone in the bathhouse and raised each other's affection levels quite a bit. She no longer even blushed if I put a hand on her lower half.

Mmm-hmm.

While the three of us were laughing and talking like that, the mayor behind us scratched his head and checked the watch on his wrist. Curious, I glanced at it myself—

Oh crap.

It was already departure time.

"I-I'll be going now! Helena! I'll write you a letter later!"

There wasn't even time to shake hands with Helena; I just waved as I ran. At this rate I really might miss the ship.

"Please write me a letter before you return to the Central Continent!!"

"Got it!"

Somewhere in the back of my mind I must have thought that if I missed this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one I could just take next week's ship. Even in that frantic moment I still had the leisure to keep talking and saying goodbye. But my running speed was pretty fast.

I reached the pier entrance just as the staff member checking tickets was about to step inside, and managed to thrust my ticket out in time.

"Lady Esilly von Yggdrasil, correct? Your reserved cabin has been confirmed as Class ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠A."

"Class A?"

"The finest grade on our vessel. Please, go right inside."

What?

Helena had made the reservation, but the best grade? Wasn't that ridiculously expensive?