To the North – 2

"...Something about this feels off."

It was the same cloak she always wore — so why did it look so ill-fitting today of all days?

Adele frowned in displeasure. She shook the cloak out several times over, and when that changed nothing, she sighed at last and fiddled with the fur at her shoulders.

The letter that had arrived earlier was from Robert Taylor, announcing his imminent arrival in the North. She had told him to come in summer, and it rankled that he was only showing up now, with winter already upon them — but she didn't think too poorly of him for it. After all, there wasn't much to occupy her this winter anyway. She would use that as her excuse to keep him here, and that would be that.

Her reason for keeping him? Adele smiled faintly to herself. Part of it was simple fondness, but she also knew how much he kept hidden, one way or another. She had no intention of letting him go until she had heard every last bit of it — which meant, in effect, that he was walking straight into the wolf's maw of his own free will.

Arf—

When the wolf beside her barked, Adele patted its head as if to say understood, and set off. It wasn't often that she came out to greet anyone in person. Lotos had vanished, claiming he had business of his own to see to, which left her heading out alone — but that hardly mattered. If anything, Robert ought to be grateful beyond measure. For the Grand Duchess herself to bestir herself like this was hardly ever done for anyone.

Yet just as she was about to step outside, a stray question surfaced, and Adele's expression turned peculiar.

...Now that I think of it, there's no real need for me to go out and greet him at all, is there? So why ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠am I getting ready to leave?

Whenever she found herself entangled with Robert Taylor, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was the one being led about by the nose. Those secrets of his were much the same — didn't she know far too little about him? The indignation nearly made her turn back and stay, but in the end she exhaled a sigh and set her feet in motion. Will this winter be a busy one? She found herself thinking that busy might actually be better. At least then she would have no time for useless thoughts like these.

In the North, one was better off not riding in a carriage. I had learned that lesson early and hadn't packed much besides, yet even so my luggage was a tight fit on the wolf-drawn sled.

At this crawl, would I make it before sundown? Recalling what I had written in the letter sent ahead, a quiet worry began to seep in. I had said I would arrive soon, but it seemed it would take somewhat longer than promised. Knowing Adele's temperament, the odds were high that she would simply send someone ahead ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to wait for me.

She wouldn't be late, surely. I rode on with that thought for a long while, until I could see the sun beginning its lazy descent. In the distance a procession had gathered, waiting for us, so I brought the sled to a halt and started toward them on foot. I meant to offer a measured bow and an apology for my lateness — and that was when I saw her. My steps stopped short. The woman waiting astride a wolf in the far distance wore a face I knew all too well.

I stared blankly for a moment; then the woman came trudging toward me atop her wolf and spoke, a sharp, faintly irritated gaze settling on me.

"You've got a great deal of nerve. I always knew you were no ordinary man, but I didn't realize you'd make me wait."

"...I had no idea you intended to come out yourself, Your Grace."

"I came by once. I was bored."

Adele replied as though it were nothing, shaking her head in disbelief. How long had she been out here waiting? As I smiled awkwardly at her, Adele patted the wolf's back twice and went on.

"You made me wait, so you'll take responsibility for it. So then — how long do you intend to stay? I'm curious."

"A month, most likely. It's an unofficial visit, but there are matters I must discuss in my capacity as a member of House Taylor."

"A member of House Taylor. That's none of my concern."

And where would that leave me, if the Grand Duchess herself claimed no interest in such things? Clicking her tongue as though my answer bored her, Adele then caught sight of the sword at my hip, and her eyes gleamed. Just as I thought — this is what interests her. Given what I had shown her last time, I had expected to cross blades with her at least once, but her reaction had come faster than I anticipated.

"You brought a sword this time. Expecting to use it?"

"For self-defense. It may come in handy, one way or another."

"You won't run off again claiming you can't handle it? Good. Then climb on. We can talk on the way."

With that, Adele tapped her own saddle, then turned her back to me and beckoned. She wants me to ride behind her? When I stared at her in bewilderment, Adele answered curtly, as if I were trying her patience.

"What are you doing? Get on behind me. If I have to keep pace with that sled any longer, I'll die of frustration before we get anywhere."

"...You want me to ride with you?"

"Then who else am I supposed to carry? Don't make me say it twice — just get on."

And there she was again, patting the saddle twice more. I smiled wryly. I had never imagined she would offer anyone the seat behind her, but I climbed up and settled into place all the same, and Adele took up the reins and gave the signal to move out. I had ridden wolves plenty of times before, but riding behind Adele as she ran proved a rather curious experience. Not a single snowflake reached me; watching her billowing cloak, I let the wind wash over me in a daze.

We would soon be entering Adele's domain, and sure enough, the colossal Winter Citadel revealed itself before our eyes. A citadel raised by the mana of ice regenerated itself no matter how thoroughly it was broken. The North's walls had held back invaders for over a thousand years — one of the reasons, if I recalled rightly, that the North so rarely suffered incursions from the foreign tribes. Its majesty was indeed considerable; even the other attendants and I found our eyes going wide.

"No one dares violate our borders these days, so those walls hardly ever see proper use. I doubt they'll see any while you're here, either."

"Then I'm glad to hear it."

There was a particular reason I had gone to the trouble of bringing a sword. The subjugation of the barbarian tribes that would unfold this winter — Adele would not postpone it simply because I had come; she would most likely press ahead regardless. And I intended to follow. Embedding myself within this collective called the North over the course of that campaign had always been the plan, and building trust with Adele was something to be accomplished from within that group.

Adele might be the head that led the North, but it was wiser still to cultivate proper standing with her command — with the likes of Lotos. And if not Lotos, then Toby. If the men who had stood beside Adele since her mercenary days acknowledged me, securing my position in the North afterward would be no trouble at all. Truthfully, displaying my strength was the simplest path. I still could not sustain my mana for long stretches, but against the average opponent, I could end a fight within a few exchanges. If the need arose, showing a reasonable measure of my skill would pose no problem.

And besides...

I glanced sideways at Adele, but she remained focused on the reins and offered nothing more. No doubt she had formed her own thoughts about my abilities. That she didn't press me about them was a mercy, but someday I would have to explain. No secret lasts forever.

Having resolved to save the woman called Adele Egret, I believed it only right to tell her something of the secrets I carried — whether she believed in the regression or not. Given Adele's nature, she would most likely dismiss it as utter nonsense, and yet telling her might let us stand together with a little more ease of mind. Of course, there was no need to speak of it now. A little later — when she finally came to feel the danger of the treason herself. Only when that time arrived could I tell her.

Snowflakes spilling from the overcast sky touched my forehead. I frowned at the sudden chill — and then, at the laugh that slipped out of me unbidden, I gazed quietly up at the sky. Only now did it truly sink in that I had come to the North. Only now did I notice my fur-wrapped body trembling against the cold, and I smiled faintly at the light scent of blood reaching my nose.

The place where, once upon a time, I had felt most at ease — the place I had barely reached after fleeing my family, where I had met the woman called Adele.

I couldn't even remember which regression it had been, but I had certainly been here. I watched the snowflakes drifting toward my open palm for a moment, then snatched at them, closing my hand into a tight fist.

I'm here again.

This time not as a man fleeing for his life, but turning back toward this place of my own will — to change everything. And for my eternal rest.

The North is cold and stark. Corpses drift about, unable to find where they ought to die, while wolves burrow through snow drifted up to their necks, setting out in search of prey. Blood flows between people here without end — and that, too, was something I knew rather well.

Bwoooo—

At the sound of the horn, those who came out to receive me proved to be familiar faces, every last one of them. The subordinates who had served Adele since her mercenary days, and the men who had once fought the barbarians at my side. But to them, as they stood now, I was nothing more than a stranger.

I clicked my tongue bitterly for a moment, then dismounted from the wolf and offered my hand. Lotos, standing at the very front, started slightly when the hand was extended to him — then clasped it all the same. A greeting of clasped hands rather than bowed heads. This much, he clearly remembered.

"Oh! You know the Northern greeting, my lord?"

When Lotos asked, I answered with an easy smile.

"I know it well. Very well indeed."

This was likely the third time — and Lotos's hand was still as soft as ever. A hand that suited the North not at all, yet a thoroughly human hand one would miss sorely if it were gone.

"This is where you'll be staying. You won't go about complaining it's insufficient, will you?"

"...May I speak frankly?"

"However much you like."

"I hadn't realized I was quite such an important guest."

The room Adele showed me was more opulent than anything I had imagined. I had been inside Adele's own chambers a few times in the past and knew them well — and even hers had not been this lavish. Leather laid across the floors, and the bedding arranged upon the bed — its fine quality was something one would expect to see only in the capital. Even Adele seemed mildly taken aback; she pressed down hard on the bed I was to sleep in and spoke.

"To tell the truth, I didn't prepare any of this. Lotos insisted on seeing to it himself. He was putting in such rare effort that I let him be — but what in the world is he thinking?"

Lotos had always had a gift for misunderstanding in the strangest of directions. I suspected this was one of those times, but I could not easily fathom what was going through the man's head. I had expected him to have formed some impression of me last time, but I hadn't imagined he would go to such painstaking lengths.

"No harm in it, I suppose."

Adele considered it briefly, then shrugged as if it hardly mattered. And truth be told, it didn't. It was only a touch overwhelming — and if Adele said it was fine, then that was the end of the matter.

Adele was already striding toward the door as if to leave; she turned her head back toward me and spoke.

"Come to think of it, there's something I haven't said."

"And what would that be?"

"...You've had a long, hard road here, young lord of Taylor. It's been so long since a guest came that I forgot myself for a moment."

Had she remembered that I had come from the capital? Well, most people did find the journey to the North grueling indeed, so I could understand her saying so. What sat awkwardly was the title she used for me. In the capital, perhaps — but I had no wish to be called young lord here as well.

I watched Adele's retreating back for a long moment, then added quietly.

"You may call me Robert. Here, you are the highest authority, are you not?"

Adele would not remember — but she had always called me Robert. I had liked that name: the consideration it showed for a man who had never cared for the name Taylor.

Adele looked at me steadily for a moment, then let out a soft ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠laugh and nodded.

"Very well, Robert. See you shortly."

Leaning at an angle against the door, Adele shut it with those words and was gone. I watched quietly as the door eased closed with a soft thud. Hearing that name again after so long, my chest felt inexplicably warm.

I blinked a few times, then rose and looked around the room in silence. Unlike the shabby room preserved in my memory, this one was opulence at its very height. A sight rarely seen in the impoverished North — picturing what Lotos must have been thinking was a rather pleasant diversion. Though much had changed from the room I had once occupied, being here filled me with a strange sense of ease.

I hung the sword upon the wall, and as I surveyed my surroundings, a faint smile ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠settled on my lips.

...If I were honest with myself, this place was better than home.

Far better. Beyond all comparison.