Chapter 160 - Recognition (4)

"W-wait. I'll change into outdoor clothes."

"I'll step outside."

"No. You can stay."

She jumped up and moved to the wardrobe. She drew a white velvet curtain inside the changing booth. Her shadow could be seen through the curtain as she casually threw off her undergarments.

Then she hummed while trying on different clothes against her body.

"Hmm hmm hmm~"

Seeing her joy, Damian didn't feel too bad either. Better than giving up and being depressed since she was going to die anyway. Suddenly, he felt that what he had done wasn't meaningless.

"You seem quite happy."

"Indeed I am. I always hated the saying that you can only know true life's pleasures after hitting rock bottom. Looking back now, I suppose there's some truth to it. I'm experiencing one of the few pleasures of my life."

"...It's good to see."

"Yes, and you'll have to indulge my entertainment a bit more."

"...I'm honored."

Without a maid's help, Bibi changed into a black linen dress with a long skirt that looked comfortable for movement. She matched it with black flat shoes and a hairpin set with black jewels.

Seeing she was ready, Damian rose from his chair.

"Shall we go?"

"Yes."

But Bibi just stood still, looking at his face.

"...What's wrong?"

"Is this your first outing with nobility? You need to escort me. If we just walk out like this, the servants will click their tongues at you."

"..."

Damian pondered what he might have missed, then slightly bowed according to etiquette, placed his left arm behind his back, and raised his arm to Bibi.

A slight smile touched the corners of her eyes as she delicately placed her fingers on his hand, light as a feather.

"I thought you only learned how to grab roughly, but you've mastered noble gestures too."

"...I learned it when I was young."

Damian felt an indescribable strange feeling. He had learned this etiquette from Lisa. They only used it in their private games. When covered in metal shavings in the workshop, he had thought he'd never use it in his life. Yet here he was, preparing for an outing with the second highest-ranking person in the Principality.

"You said you had no family, yet it seems you inherited blood from a noble house."

"No. From beginning to end, my blood was common. I just learned this by observation."

Bibi smiled benevolently and said, "A man's worth isn't determined by what he's born with. It's completed through enduring hardship and being reborn. Your blood is no longer common. I'll guarantee that."

"...Thank you."

Then Bibi added meaningfully, "And... after the trial, you'll understand this yourself."

"...?"

"And... your rough gestures weren't actually bad either."

Damian smiled slightly and said, "...Shall we go?"

Damian lightly held Bibi's hand and stepped outside. A servant waiting in the corridor approached Bibi and said, "As you always command, with the parasol—"

But Bibi cut off his words.

"That's fine."

And she made a hand signal behind her back where Damian couldn't see.

It was an order that not a single person should follow them.

***

An old tree cast shade on a slightly sloping lawn. Damian and Bibi's steps naturally headed there. In the shade, Damian took out a handkerchief he had brought and spread it on the ground.

Bibi plopped down on it and stretched.

"I've always missed this weather."

It was a clearly different blue sky from what they saw in Barbisia. Just watching the fluffy clouds floating by brought peace to their hearts.

Damian sat leaning against the tree, one step away from Bibi.

Then Bibi looked at Damian and said, "Come a bit closer. Someone might think we've fought."

"There are quite a few watching eyes. We drew many glances on our way here. Shouldn't you be concerned about rumors, my lady?"

The castle was operated like a noble resort, so other vacationers could be seen frequently.

"I thought you were headstrong, but you're as cautious as a cat at times like this. Isn't it too late to worry about rumors?"

"What do you mean?"

"A young, vigorous man and woman were stranded and returned alive. Just the two of them in a place cut off from the world. What do you think people would assume happened between them?"

Bibi turned her head away from Damian, seeming slightly embarrassed by her own words.

Damian was momentarily speechless. He was at a loss for how to explain everything to Silveryn.

"...It was hell."

"They won't care about that. They might not say anything to our faces, but behind closed doors, they'll let their imaginations run wild."

"Wouldn't rumors hurt Your Grace more than me?"

"I have too little time left to worry about others' gazes."

Looking at her current vibrant appearance, she didn't look like someone who would die around thirty. That was why he sometimes forgot Bibi was terminally ill.

"...How will you spend your remaining time?"

"I plan to spend it on my life. Eating delicious food, visiting nice places, finding someone to love, and enjoying the rest of my life with them. What will you do?"

"Graduate from Eternia."

"...Must you stay there? Your abilities already far exceed what the academy can contain."

"I'm still lacking. If not for what I learned there, I wouldn't have survived Barbisia."

"...I understand. If you ever have nowhere to go, come to the Principality."

"...I'll visit when I have the chance."

The conversation paused there. Bibi glanced at Damian repeatedly before speaking, "Don't just say it, set a specific date. And when will you keep the picnic promise? About two days from here, there's a lake with emerald water where fairy-like fireflies live."

"Once I leave here, I can't be certain when I can return."

"...Is even that few days too precious to invest? You'll have plenty of vacation time."

Bibi's eyebrows drooped slightly as if disappointed.

"..."

"Fine. Why make promises you can't keep?"

Bibi crossed her arms and turned away, showing clear signs of disappointment.

After thinking for a moment, Damian spoke, "I'll come. However... someone else might come with me."

"That's fine."

"Maybe even two more people might come."

"Two is too many."

"I'll try my best."

"Good. You keep your promises like your life depends on it. I'll trust you."

"But I do prioritize based on importance."

Bibi brushed off her skirt, stood up, and looked at the city spread below the hill.

"Stand up. Can you see that?"

She pointed to one spot.

An army was marching through the city center's main road. Though hard to see clearly from the distance, it was as splendid as a parade.

"What is that?"

"Father has returned."

"...!"

"We always hold a grand celebration on one of the Principality's holidays, 'Saint Luminus Memorial Day.' Father seems to have moved for this."

"Shouldn't you go greet him?"

"It's fine. Father has already permitted this."

"...How significant must this memorial day be for the Grand Duke to personally attend?"

Bibi smiled and answered, "It's one of the Principality's few festivals. It commemorates Saint Luminus, my ancient ancestor and one of the past Holy Maidens, who on this day subdued all evil spirits and blessed humanity. That's why we hold important ceremonies wishing for long-term peace on this day. House contracts, baby baptisms, knight appointments, and academy entrance ceremonies all happen on this day."

"I've always wondered about the goddess' blood—so you had a Holy Maiden as an ancestor."

"Yes, and as you know, I'm a failed product."

"...How long until this memorial day?"

"It's tomorrow. Coincidentally, it overlaps with your trial day."

Just then, a Stitch cut through the wind and stopped before Damian. It carried a scroll sealed with Eternia's mark.

Damian carefully took the scroll and opened it. After reading silently for about a minute, he said, "How long would it take to reach that city procession?"

"If we move quickly, thirty minutes should be enough. What's the matter?"

"...My guest is in that procession too."

***

The Duchess' carriage with its knight escort stopped on the square's main road. Though they waited in a corner to avoid drawing the crowd's attention, the numerous guards made it impossible to be inconspicuous.

I quietly watched the large-scale procession with its banners and trumpeters from outside the carriage.

Bibi couldn't come out due to the dense crowd.

She didn't seem particularly pleased with this situation.

As time passed, the tail end of the long military parade began entering the square. At the very end was a carriage surrounded by layers of knights as if protecting a family heirloom.

Everything from the carriage's exterior to the horses was black, with Eternia's emblem elegantly painted on the door.

Seeing this made my heart pound without realizing. I couldn't distinguish whether it was anticipation or tension.

I stepped forward. As I stood still at the crowd's boundary, the passing knights pulled their reins and suddenly the carriage procession stopped.

Because only they stopped, they were gradually falling behind the parade. And everyone watching grew quiet.

People stretched their necks and rolled their eyes as if wondering if an accident had occurred.

Though I couldn't hear clearly through the murmuring crowd, some order must have been given as the knights all turned their heads to look down at me.

Soon the knights moved aside, making way toward the carriage. A direct path opened between me and the carriage.

The carriage windows were tightly closed with black curtains drawn. 

Is there really someone inside? How had she noticed me?

Everyone, crowd and knights alike, stared at me. Their gazes were intensely uncomfortable.

I walked forward. I didn't know why I was so nervous. 

What should I say? 

When we lived together in Wiesel, I never had such worries. 

Have we been apart too long?

Just as I took a deep breath and was about to knock at the carriage door.

The door suddenly opened.

And familiar dark red hair swayed before my eyes. My heart seemed to stop.

Next, I saw a snow-white arm.

A hand shot out from behind the black curtain grabbed my collar and pulled me into the carriage.

"...!"

Unable to resist the strong force, I was sucked right into the carriage.

It all happened in an instant.