Kays Translations

Chapter 3: Meanwhile / Tenth Day of Imprisonment

A week after Ashrina was confined, Lamia, the maid who served her, was at the fourth prince’s residence, Prince Rodymas.

As the daughter of a viscount, Lamia did not start out as a servant doing menial chores, but was instead placed in a position assisting the head chamberlain. Prince Rodymas had a line of beautiful maids to attend to his personal needs, and Lamia could be counted among them—yet, she didn’t see herself as just another maid.

(Even after being treated so cruelly, Lady Ashrina was still smiling… I’ll never forget that fleeting smile.)

Ashrina thought it would be better if Lamia forgot her, and she didn’t hold any grudge—yet, Lamia was a person full of kindness more than Ashrina had imagined.

(Princess Ashrina was sent to a frontier castle… but is that really the end of it?)

Of course, having a member of the royal family confined was a heavy punishment in itself, and the pain it entailed was beyond imagining. But it didn’t mean the person was directly executed.

Lamia considered that Ashrina’s confinement might not be the end—that perhaps there was more to come. Her body trembled at the thought, yet she was trying to gather information at Rodymas’s residence—and that opportunity finally arrived.

Rodymas was scheduled to visit the residence of First Prince Serias, and Reamia was to accompany him.

In the meeting room of Serias’s estate, two siblings, separated by seven years, sat facing each other and began to talk.

“Brother, going so far to watch that… ritual must have been quite unpleasant for you. I can imagine how you must have felt.”

Reamia was overwhelmed by the aura of the two people facing each other. Even her superior, the head maid, couldn’t hide her nervousness, but it was clear she was csptivated by Serias’s handsome appearance.

“What are you here for? Did you skip your lessons at the academy just to see how I’m doing?”

“Well, it seems the noble circles don’t think much of me. It makes me uncomfortable, so I’m considering stopping my visits to the academy for a while.”

“Did you get involved with some young lady again?”

“No, no. it’s to my advantage that I resemble my brother even a little. Though, now that we’re face to face, the difference is obvious.”

Seeing Rodymas’s aloof attitude, Serias leaned on his elbow, resting his cheek, and turned his gaze to his disappointing younger brother.

“You, I’m sure you came here because you think you can use the failure of the sacred relic’s summoning for some purpose, didn’t you?”

“As expected of my brother. Well, the failure itself is understandable, but Lord Vandell seems to think that keeping ‘that thing’ alive is a sin in itself.”

“…Then what? Are you going to kill that powerless girl who’s done nothing but be the victim?”

Rodymas didn’t answer Serias’ question – although Lamia felt her consciousness drifting away, but she kept her face neutral, suppressing her emotions out of a sense of duty.

“The sacred relics are a symbol of our country’s military might. If it’s perceived to be weakening, it could affect our relations with neighboring states.”

“That relic will never appear again. That’s the end of it.”

“So, there’s no reason to stop Lord Vandell’s actions, then? Is that correct?”

Rodymas always maintained a smile on his face, but Reamia found it hard to believe he was human. This prince, while smiling, was scheming to let his sister be sacrificed.

“No matter what the frontier noble does, it doesn’t justify betraying the royal family. But I will have the investigation into Vandell’s movements continue.”

“I don’t want her to be exploited in some way, either.”

“…Should I also keep you away from the royal capital? If you’re meddling in scheming games, I suppose I have no choice but to do so.”

“Y-Yeah, I don’t want that, brother. I’m just worried about the honor of the nation. If you had just said the word, I was even considering protecting Ashrina myself.”

Reamia blinked in surprise—just a moment ago, Rodymas had spoken coldly about abandoning his sister, yet now he was saying the complete opposite.

But there was a hidden meaning behind it. Anyone who spends even a short time talking to Rodymas would realize he’s not someone who would protect his sister without ulterior motives.

“So it seems that precisely because the summoning was a failure, it might actually be useful. But what if that’s not the case?”

“I don’t know if she’s still alive, I just thought it was a possibility. What do you think, brother?”

Just how cruel an environment must each day be for a ten-year-old girl living in an old castle on the frontier? Reamia could only imagine and felt powerless as she can only pray for her safety.

“I don’t think she can escape Vandell’s grasp. If she does, we’ll deal with it when that time comes.”

“I think it’s beyond your imagination… Opps, I suppose I’d better leave before I cause any trouble,”

Rodymas said, standing up, having his maids drape him with his cloak, and then leaving.

“Well, if you’re going to cut me off, I guess I’ll just have to go through with it. I thought we could have a little fun.”

As he stepped outside the room and walked down the corridor, Rodymas’s face no longer held its previous smile. It was a cold, expressionless mask.

◆◇◆

It’s been ten days since I was confined. There was one time when I pushed myself too hard and couldn’t move for almost the entire day, but other than that I continued practicing my swings diligently.

　

Today, as I was swinging my swing again, I gradually stopped hearing the sounds around me, and only realized later that someone was calling me from outside – but I  managed to make it just in time.

“…Princess, is something wrong? Or were you just sleeping?”

“No, I’m fine. Just feeling a little dazed…”

“Please wait a moment, I will prepare some medicine. It’s difficult for us to take you to the village clinic right now,” 

I appreciate their concern, but I can’t say that I was too focused on practicing my swings to hear them.

I’m trying to make as little noise as possible while swinging the baton, and it seems to be working. At first, when Reiss asked me what I was doing, I’d just lie and say it was nothing, but now, even if I swing the baton all the time, he doesn’t ask me anything – perhaps he was letting it go, or maybe he hadn’t noticed, it’s hard to say for sure.

　

“This is an antipyretic. It’s bitter, so swallow it immediately after putting it in your mouth,” 

“thank you”

Herbs crushed and shaped into pills, similar to ones I had seen in my previous life, but I don’t think I need to take them right now.

(…Hm?)

A little while ago, I had heard what sounded like a small animal’s cry—suddenly, I realized a tiny mouse had slipped Inside.

I wondered what it would do, and it tried to bite my leg. Perhaps even such a small animal saw me as food.

(Ha ha, you little thing…)

It didn’t bite easily; instead, I dodged the mouse’s leap and scooped it up with the tip of my wooden sword. After some practice, I had become good at handling such small things.

I didn’t really have any intention of killing the mouse to see if it would give me experience points, but I felt a little sorry for it, so I tore off some of the remaining bread and gave it to it. When I also offered it some hard cheese, the mouse eagerly chewed on it.

“Well, let’s just get along. Don’t bite me, okay?”

“Chuu…”

I was surprised to hear the mouse making that kind of sound. I didn’t think it understood what I was saying, but then it disappeared into a gap somewhere in the wall.

Looking more closely, I saw a tiny hole in the wall—I don’t want anything else sneaking in, so I’ll cover it just in case.

While pondering various ways to escape, I discovered a method that someone who had been here before had tried. There were digging marks in the ground, and it looked like a hole had been dug and then filled in and compacted.

(That’s right, I remember hearing about someone slowly digging an escape hole with a spork. Unfortunately, I can’t hide a spork in this situation…)

A wooden sword could be used to dig a hole, but for some reason I felt guilty about using it for anything other than practicing swings.

As expected, the point of this wooden sword was just to swing it around repeatedly; using it for anything else would be improper.

(Well then, I’ll try swinging it a hundred times before it gets dark.)

As I began to concentrate and swing, I stopped hearing the sounds around me again.

　

A world in which only I and the wooden sword I am holding exist.

The movements of  muscles, the creaking of my bones, the feeling of the ground beneath my feet with each swing—then suddenly:

“—I never thought that for the first time, I would be visited by a child like this.

(…Huh?)

　I thought I heard someone’s voice echo, and then I blinked.

　I was standing by a stream in a forest somewhere

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