Goodwill and Kinship, Part 2
"Get lost."
To be absolutely clear, those last words did not come from Jing. At most, he had been about to say something along the lines of, "That's enough, everyone." Though, of course, he couldn't guarantee what kind of language would have followed if they hadn't listened.
Standing there awkwardly, Jing turned his head to find the culprit of the sudden interruption. Before anyone had realized his approach, Ratel was already looking down at the seated men, his hands piled high with bread.
"Didn't you hear me? Get lost." Ratel spoke again, addressing Young Jing and his companions, who were sitting dazed, their eyes glued to the bread in Ratel's hands. He hadn't even made an explicit threat, yet they all scrambled to their feet. After all, there wasn't a single person among the guards who didn't refer to Ratel as a lunatic behind his back.
"Ah, s-sorry." Even though Young Jing had been the one sitting there first, he was the one apologizing. "Well, I'll be on my way then." Giving Jing an awkward nod, he quickly scurried away from Ratel.
Ratel plopped down in the spot they had just vacated. While Jing wanted to praise him just this once, he still believed that picking fights everywhere wasn't the right way to go about things, so he offered a quiet warning.
"You shouldn't go around picking fights like that. You never know what might happen among companions traveling together. In an unexpected moment of crisis, those very people might be the only ones left to help you."
"I wasn't picking a fight. Some idiots were taking up space, so I just told them to move." Answering with clear annoyance, Ratel grabbed one of the loaves of bread he had brought and took a massive bite.
"They aren't bad people. Just ordinary citizens of Abaran."
"They're all just pathetic fools." Jing smiled bitterly at the harsh choice of words. After all, one of those very "fools" was sitting right in front of Ratel.
"You might not understand, but that is simply the way of the people of Abaran. They cannot help it."
"Do you feel some sort of kinship with them?" Ratel shut him up once again with a question that was difficult to answer on the spot. After staring at him for a moment, Ratel turned his head back and focused on his bread.
Ratel and Jing had an unspoken agreement not to pry too deeply into each other's affairs. Yet, strangely enough, Jing often felt that Ratel knew far more about him than he knew about Ratel. Just like now.
The Young Duke of Fides hurried along, his mind in a state of chaos that rivaled—or perhaps even surpassed—that of his father. "Tollin, what on earth is going on?"
It was late at night. A night when the three moons and stars embedded in the dark sky shone exceptionally bright. Normally, it was a time when he should have been fast asleep. However, Tollin, unable to hide his urgency, had burst into his room, ordered the servants to pack bags, and practically dragged him out.
Furthermore, unlike his usual self, Tollin remained tight-lipped, speaking only the bare minimum as he hurried forward. Following behind him as if they were being hunted, the Young Duke suppressed the rising anxiety born of the heavy silence.
Where Tollin finally stopped was a place familiar to the Young Duke. Or rather, since it had been at least a month since he last set foot here, perhaps "familiar" was no longer the right word. It was the bedroom Agoni Fidus had used before his death. Catching his breath and scanning the surroundings, Tollin stepped inside with the Young Duke.
"My Lord, I apologize for the suddenness of this. A letter has arrived from the Temple. They say they must bring you to the Temple to prepare for the ritual." The moment the door closed, Tollin poured out the words he had been holding back.
"What do you mean? Without a priest visiting the duchy in person?" For nobles, especially those of high standing, it was customary to summon a priest to the estate to perform rituals. And why were they having this conversation in his late father's room? Seeing the confusion in the Young Duke's clear eyes, Tollin forced himself to calm down.
"Yes. They claim that because the schedule is too tight, they must prepare for your Tinas Ritual immediately after the First Princess announces the start of the ceremony." Even as he spoke, Tollin's eyes scanned every corner of the room.
Tollin was a realist. Living within Abaran, he had never harbored the pipe dream that they could completely evade the eyes of the Imperial Family. There was no one in the Empire who wasn't the eyes and ears of the Abarans, and no one dared to oppose their will. Even taking all of that into account, the Temple's movements were too fast. Too fast, and too precise. It meant that information was leaking from the inside at an alarming rate.
"Do not worry too much. I will be with you. No, in fact, I will likely be the only one allowed to accompany you," Tollin muttered self-deprecatingly. Sensing the gravity of the situation, the Young Duke looked at Tollin with concern.
The letter from the Temple had arrived even before Pale could return to the estate and report to Tollin. The transmission of information was too swift. There was no longer anyone left to trust within the duchy.
"My Lord, there is something you must do the moment you arrive at the Temple today."
"What is it? If it is something I can do, I will do anything."
Tollin looked into the gray eyes filled with firm resolve.
"The priests will tell you that you must purify yourself before the ritual and instruct you to change your clothes. They will confiscate all the personal belongings you brought with you." As the Young Duke nodded in understanding, Tollin continued.
"Pay close attention to where the priests take your clothes and belongings. If my memory serves me correctly, the ritual site should be the second room to the left of the prayer hall on the second floor of the wooden building. Unless there is something unusual, your belongings will be stored in the room right next to it."
The Young Duke's eyes widened at Tollin's overly detailed explanation. He was familiar with the Temple in the capital, as he had to go there periodically to pray. However, he did not know the exact location where the rituals took place. In fact, there was no reason for him to know. While the Temple was open to all citizens of the Empire, it was simultaneously conservative and highly exclusive. Unless one was a priest of the Temple, it was impossible to know what transpired within its walls. Or unless one had experienced it firsthand.
Tollin noticed the Young Duke's questioning gaze but offered no further explanation. "However, this is also from quite a long time ago. The Temple was expanded six years ago, so the layout might have changed. Therefore, even if they strip you of everything else, please keep this on your person if at all possible. If you tell them it is a family heirloom, they might let you keep it."
With those words, Tollin held out a pair of rings. Carefully accepting them, the Young Duke turned them over in his hands with equal caution. However, he soon concluded that they were merely gold rings with no distinguishing features whatsoever. They were smooth, plain bands, slightly thick, lacking even a common signet or engraving.
Even so, believing there must be something he had missed since Tollin was the one giving them to him, the Young Duke continued to study the rings intently. Watching his face, Tollin finally let out a soft chuckle. "You can stare at them all you want, but nothing will appear. They are just plain gold rings with no patterns."
"Then why do you want me to keep them?"
"Just in case. If you find yourself in a difficult situation, throw those to them. There are far more greedy people among the Temple priests than you might think, My Lord."
"...Is it really alright to say such things?" Shocked by this harsh assessment of the priests, the Young Duke looked around the empty room, worrying for Tollin despite knowing they were alone.
"It doesn't matter anymore," Tollin replied with a faint smile. It wasn't just a lie to reassure the Young Duke; it was his absolute truth. He knew all too well that there was no longer any corner to flee to, no loophole to escape through in Abaran. They couldn't refuse the ritual and become traitors, nor could they smuggle the Young Duke away at this point. It was a fight they could never win from the start. If so, he had to protect at least the last remaining member of his family.
Though Tollin knew it wasn't entirely proper, he gently placed his hand on Flynn's head. "Everything will be fine, My Lord. It will all work out. So, you must remember everything I teach you today."
Everything will be fine, because I'll make it so.
Is he going to drop dead from stress at this rate? I clicked my tongue as I watched Tollin's eyes gleam. I had slipped inside because the Young Duke's window was unusually shut, only to find the two of them discussing something far more serious than I had anticipated. The light in Tollin's eyes, visible from my vantage point beneath the ceiling, was terrifyingly intense. He looked exactly like a man who had resolved to face death itself for the sake of the Young Duke.
Tomorrow, is it... I crawled back the way I came through the narrow gap in the ceiling.
"What is it? Are we really doing nothing?" El, whose size was now almost identical to mine in my rat form, asked, bringing his face uncomfortably close. Ignoring him, I kept moving my four paws.
"Look at this insolent creature. When I speak to you, you should at least answer!" Hissing with quiet anger, he followed behind me. He had always been incredibly arrogant, but ever since he found out I wasn't the protagonist, his attitude had soared past the heavens and straight into outer space. I wasn't sure if I should call him transparent or what. Contrary to my expectation that he would immediately beg me to show him where Ratel was so he could find the Child of Prophecy, El had been remarkably quiet on that front.
"Child, I am asking if it is truly wise to just turn back like this. Is the Fidus child not in danger? You seemed to care for him quite a bit, so is it really alright to leave him be?"
Actually, "quiet" was the wrong word. He was loud. Far too loud. Ever since he was caught being able to speak, he had been chattering non-stop, making me wonder how on earth he had held it in all this time. He didn't shut his mouth for a single second. His endless barrage of questions continued from the moment we left Agoni Fidus's bedroom until we returned to my room. My ears were practically bleeding. The moment I dropped down from the ceiling, I shifted back into my human form.
"No matter how I look at it, you seem to care about that kid way more than I do."
"Me? The Fidus child? As if!" Finally receiving an answer from me, he snorted as if he had just heard the most absurd thing in the world. Despite being of the Imperial bloodline himself, he despised his own kind, so it seemed he wasn't particularly fond of the Fidus family—the Sword of Abaran—either.
"You are the one who has been looking out for that brat, are you not? Because it weighs on your conscience that you sent his father far away. Do not pretend otherwise. I already know everything." He smirked, acting as if he had me completely figured out. If only he had stopped there, but his nagging showed no signs of ending.
"Strangely, you always try to hide yourself when you help humans. Are you perhaps embarrassed? I have noticed that when humans are caught being sincere, they tend to jump up and deny it. Yes, when their weaknesses are touched upon, humans naturally lash out even more. I suppose it is understandable for a human child of your age. I understand completely. Children are simply like that. But there is no need to put on such a front before me. Despite my appearance, I am incredibly old. I have often seen humans obsess over utterly worthless things and lose sight of what they truly need. So, you too—"
"Sure."
His long-winded lecture was starting up again. I cut off El's words before they could spiral out of control. Annoyed that I had interrupted him, he thumped his tail against the floor a few times.
"You're right. I am concerned about the Young Duke."
With the events of the original story being pulled forward and overlapping, I was highly concerned about how the Young Duke's survival would affect the original plot going forward.
"So, I need you to stay here."
"What?"
"Are you saying you're on board?"
He must have absolutely loved the solution I proposed, considering he started jumping up and down on the spot.
"What on earth are you talking about?! Why do I have to stay in a place like this?!"
"I can't stay behind. I have to make sure the Child of Prophecy arrives safely. And guide him if necessary."
Yes, this was strictly out of necessity. It was absolutely not because he was too noisy and I wanted to get rid of him.
"So, because you are too busy, you want me to keep an eye on the Fidus brat?"
"Exactly. No need to be shy. The Young Duke loves small animals. He'll absolutely adore a squirrel friend."
"I refuse! What if I miss the Child of Prophecy because of this? Besides..." Raising his voice in anger, he suddenly cut himself off.
"Besides what?"
"...Besides, I detest children. Especially ones that young..." he muttered, furrowing his brow.
"It's not a bad deal for you either. If you stay close to the Young Duke, you'll eventually get to meet the real Child of Prophecy."
At the mention of the "Child of Prophecy," his head snapped up. That alone was proof enough that he was already halfway convinced. In moments like this, he really was incredibly easy to read.