A Soft Lap and a Broken Wheel
“It’s been a while.”
It was time to leave for Celian’s estate. As the carriage that had brought us to Anne’s mansion pulled up, Celian stepped down and greeted us. I had known she would send a carriage, but I never expected her to come meet us in person.
“Seli!”
Anne clearly hadn’t expected it either; her face lit up as she exchanged greetings with Celian. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, we stood before the carriage ready to depart for Celian’s estate, and I turned to bid Anne farewell.
“Anne. See you when break’s over. This week was fun.”
“Y-yeah…”
Ever since the labyrinth incident, Anne had changed a great deal. Quieter, somehow? Of course, her usual loud voice and bold manner still broke through now and then.
“Well then, I’ll be going. Enjoy the rest of your break, Anne.”
Celian climbed into the carriage first, and I was just about to follow when—
Slap. Slap.
At the sudden sound I looked back. Anne had both hands pressed hard against her own cheeks. The slapping noise had come from her smacking her own face. While I was still wondering what on earth she was doing, she lifted her head sharply and met my eyes.
“Showing a face like this when we’re saying goodbye isn’t like me, is it? Sorry—I was overthinking. I had fun too. Let’s hang out again once break’s over!”
Still, getting to see Anne’s usual energetic self before we parted made me glad. I gave a small smile and answered in kind.
“Yeah. Second semester, we’ll make up for all the fun we missed over break. Take care.”
“Yeah!”
Leaving Anne’s booming voice behind, I climbed into the carriage and found Celian already looking at me. I thought she might have something to say, but she simply stared in silence.
“What is it? Something on your mind?”
“Just when are you going to… No, it’s nothing. It’s my turn now, after all.”
Celian’s cryptic words left me wanting to ask what she meant, but she spoke first before I could open my mouth.
“Well then, we’ve got plenty of time on the ride. Would you care for a cup of tea?”
“It’s a bit early, but there’s nothing else to do… Sure, why not?”
It wasn’t anything important, so I decided to simply enjoy the tea Celian poured.
Only a single coachman accompanied us, leaving just the two of us inside the carriage, so Celian prepared the tea herself.
Just like the carriages I had ridden with Yuri and Anne, Celian’s was an expensive one laced with all sorts of magic. Thanks to that, even while traveling we could sit as comfortably as if we were in a room, sipping tea without a single jolt.
Of course, it was no ordinary tea time. It was endless chatter, tea whenever our throats grew dry, and snacks whenever we craved something sweet—for hours on end.
That was only natural. Even though we had left Anne’s estate first thing in the morning, the distance meant we would probably reach Celian’s late in the evening.
At least ten hours stuck inside a carriage. There was only so much one could do in that confined space. The best ways to pass the time were either catching a little sleep or chatting with Celian.
“Haaah…”
After stuffing snacks into my mouth nonstop and finally having a late lunch, I was in the middle of unlimited chatter with Celian when a yawn slipped out before I could stop it.
It was a completely unexpected yawn, far from ladylike, but at least I managed to cover my mouth in time.
“You must be quite tired.”
“Mmm… Maybe because I just ate? I am a little sleepy.”
Afraid she might think I had yawned because her stories were boring, I quickly offered an excuse.
Fortunately, Celian didn’t seem the least bit offended.
“Then why don’t you rest your eyes for a while? I’ll wake you if anything happens.”
“But it feels wrong to sleep right in front of you, Seli…”
“I’m fine. Please, rest comfortably.”
Come to think of it, if it had been Yuri she would have scolded me for sleeping right after a meal. Celian, on the other hand, was actively encouraging me to sleep as much as I liked.
I was chuckling to myself over the pointless comparison when Celian, who had been sitting across from me, rose and moved to the seat beside me.
Wondering what she was up to, I turned to look, only to see her pat her thighs lightly with both hands.
“Here. Lie down.”
“Huh?”
When I asked again, Celian tilted her head with a gentle smile, as if wondering what the problem could be.
“You’ll be uncomfortable too, Seli. How am I supposed to lie there? You don’t have to worry about me.”
“It doesn’t bother me at all.”
“My head’s heavy. Your legs will definitely go numb.”
“If El’s head is heavy, then no one in the world has a light head. And my body is sturdy, you know?”
Well, she had a point. Even I knew that excuse was ridiculous.
How heavy could this small head of mine possibly be? And Celian’s body, tempered as a swordswoman, would barely notice the weight of my head.
But there was only one real reason I kept refusing with such absurd excuses.
“…I’m too embarrassed. I’d wake right back up.”
In the end I confessed the biggest reason honestly. It was mortifying, but if I didn’t say it Celian would keep pushing until the end.
Even that assumption proved too optimistic.
“We slept right next to each other last time, didn’t we? There’s no need to be embarrassed. Come on, hurry.”
She was bringing that up now? True, sharing a bed was more embarrassing than using someone’s lap as a pillow. But just because it was less embarrassing didn’t mean the embarrassment vanished completely.
Yet Celian simply reached out, gently cupped my still-hesitating head, and drew it softly down onto her lap.
“There. Sleep well.”
Through my cheek pressed sideways I could feel the soft give of Celian’s thigh. Of all days she had chosen to wear a short skirt, so the bare skin beneath the slightly hiked hem brushed against me.
While I was still flustered, Celian lightly rested her hand atop my head.
She stroked my hair slowly, the way one might soothe a baby to sleep.
Feeling the gentle touch of her hand, the sleepiness that had fled because of my racing heart came flooding back.
In the end drowsiness won out over embarrassment, and I felt my eyelids slowly close.
Clunk.
“Nnh…?”
The jolt of my body shook me awake. To be precise, it wasn’t so much my body as the entire carriage that had shuddered.
Still half-asleep, I stared blankly for a moment before my mind cleared and I remembered exactly where I was lying.
Worried I might have drooled in my sleep, I carefully wiped the corner of my mouth with a hand. Thankfully no such disaster had occurred.
Now that I was fully awake I couldn’t keep using Celian’s thigh as a pillow, so I slowly sat up.
“Ah!”
The moment I rose, a soft cry of dismay escaped Celian. Looking back, I found her reaching out like a child whose toy had been snatched away.
“Seli?”
“Y-yes!”
Celian answered with an uncharacteristic stammer. Her face was flushed, and her breathing seemed oddly rough.
The carriage was supposed to have warming and moisturizing magic, yet the air inside felt strangely warm and heavy.
I glanced out the window. Outside, the sky was already painted in the deep red of sunset.
…Just how many hours had I slept?
“Are you all right?”
What was supposed to be a short nap had turned into a full deep sleep.
No matter how well-trained Celian’s body was, having her thigh pinned down for hours without being able to move would naturally leave her in that state.
“Ah… Yes. I’m fine. Perfectly fine. In fact…”
“Hm?”
“N-nothing! It’s nothing at all.”
I hadn’t seen Celian this flustered since the time I accidentally touched that important letter of hers while we were studying together.
But before I could marvel at it, the carriage door opened first.
“My apologies, my lady. Are either of you hurt?”
“No, we’re fine. What happened?”
“I’m afraid you’ll need to step outside for a moment.”
The one who had opened the door was the coachman who had been driving. Following him out with Celian, I immediately understood the situation.
“The wheel has come off completely. I checked everything thoroughly before we left, yet this… I truly don’t understand…”
The coachman’s bewildered voice didn’t sound like a lie.
Apparently the jolt that woke me had been the carriage losing its balance when the wheel came free.
“Phew, at least it went according to plan…”
“Hm?”
“Ah—no! I mean… thankfully the magic on the carriage is still intact. That’s what I meant.”
Celian had murmured something under her breath, and I had reacted without thinking; she jumped and answered in a louder voice than necessary.
Well, it was fortunate that a wheel coming off a moving carriage had resulted in only a single jolt. The wheel itself might have been defective, but the magic protecting the carriage had done its job.
“Ah! The wheel itself is undamaged. If we just put it back on we should be able to continue. Please wait a moment—I’ll have it fixed right away.”
After inspecting the problem, the coachman said as much and immediately set to work.
“That’s a relief, at least. We should still make it before it gets any darker… Seli?”
I was about to speak to Celian after catching my breath, but she had already started walking.
She went over beside the coachman who was busy repairing the carriage and began examining the wheel herself.
She raised a hand and tapped it here and there, as if checking that it was truly intact as the coachman claimed.
Just as he had said, the wheel seemed fine; even when Celian knocked on it with some force it didn’t so much as—
“Uh… Celian? Checking is fine, but you’re putting a little too much strength into—”
Crack.
“Ah.”
She must have misjudged her strength; one of the spokes snapped under her hand. The coachman dropped the hammer he was holding and stared in utter despair.
“Hehe… I’m sorry.”
Repairing the wheel itself took time, and before we knew it the moon had risen and night had fallen. Even once the repairs were finished, racing along dark roads where visibility was poor would be dangerous, so we decided to camp for the night.
We couldn’t simply sit in the dark, so we built a small campfire a short distance from the carriage.
After finishing dinner and helping with the carriage repairs, it was already time to sleep.
“Uncle Van, please sleep inside the carriage.”
“Oh no, my lady. You and your friend should take the inside. I’ll be perfectly fine sleeping outside.”
“No. Even if this is the middle of nowhere, it isn’t completely free of danger. It’s better if we sleep outside and keep watch.”
The carriage, with its warming magic and other enchantments, was far more comfortable than the open air, so sleeping inside would have been no problem.
Naturally the coachman refused Celian’s suggestion to the end, but she had the better argument, and he finally had no choice but to accept.
Looking thoroughly apologetic to the last, he disappeared into the carriage, leaving only Celian and me outside. Of course, earlier we had been alone inside the carriage as well.
“Well then, shall we rest too?”
Celian wrapped herself in a luxurious blanket and settled in front of the campfire. I glanced around hoping there might be a spare, but none was in sight. If there had been an extra, Celian would already have brought it out.
I followed her lead and sat across the fire from her.
The moment I did, Celian—who had only just sat down—sprang up again, plopped herself right beside me, and pressed close far more than necessary.
“Seli…?”
“There’s only one blanket. And I get cold easily… Would it be all right if we sleep close together?”
“…Sure, why not.”
After the first and second times, I thought I had grown somewhat used to it, so I accepted lightly. Yet Celian pressed even closer than I expected, almost burrowing into my arms.
With the two of us sharing a single blanket, Celian spoke.
“This brings back old memories. It’s nice.”
“You, camping out? Somehow I can’t picture it.”
“…A long time ago. I often had to camp like this. Just the two of us, like today…”
As a hero candidate, Celian seemed well accustomed to nights spent outdoors. I wasn’t a stranger to such experiences either, so her words stirred a faint nostalgia in me as well.
And so Celian and I chattered through the night until, heads resting against each other, we finally drifted off to sleep.