Chapter 51
We arrived in Rigbed and got off at a main street lined with shops.
Since it wasn't yet noon, we looked around at our leisure.
Liria kept looking around nervously.
"Liria?"
"Ah, yes?"
I handed Liria a paper listing ingredients for the fast-acting Griffin Potion.
"We need to get these today. If we can't find them, we'll both go hungry tonight."
She scanned the list and nodded.
"Yes!"
On the narrow streets, nobles, knights, drunkards, clergy, herb gatherers, and people of various other classes brushed past us within shoulder's reach.
Occasionally, I spotted girls my age. Most of them wore elaborate decorations and were accompanied by several guard knights.
She became slightly intimidated after comparing her attire with the passing girls.
Liria was indeed dressed much more plainly than them.
She would jump noticeably whenever someone's shoulder slightly touched her.
Moreover, being thin, she was easily pushed aside by the crowd.
"Are you okay?"
"Y-yes... I'm fine."
The original plan was to split up and gather ingredients separately, but seeing her condition, that didn't seem wise.
With no guarantee there weren't strange people among this crowd, I felt uneasy letting her work alone.
"Liria. Hold onto my clothes."
"What?"
"If we separate here, you'll become lost immediately, so hold on tight and don't let go."
"Ah, yes!"
She gulped and grabbed the hem of my top.
I pushed forward through the crowd. I looked back several times at Liria following behind, worried. She looked like she might be swept away by the waves of people at the slightest touch.
"...Hold on tight."
Seemingly worried about damaging my clothes, she was barely holding on with just her index finger.
Frustrated, I firmly grasped her wrist.
Liria flinched at this. Though it might be uncomfortable, there was no choice. This was far better than letting her get lost.
I led her out into the street.
***
Silveryn stood at the window, quietly looking down.
Three carriages from the north slowly entered the mansion's courtyard. They weren't here to check on Silveryn's well-being or to celebrate Gale's entrance to Eternia.
They had come to deliver news of death.
Following northern tradition, Silveryn didn't welcome them warmly.
Her heart felt heavy. How many times had this happened? She could barely remember anymore.
She had gone all the way to distant Wiesel to avoid facing this, yet the north kept appearing unexpectedly to hold her back.
The butler went out to greet the northern delegates and to guide them inside.
Silveryn closed the curtains and changed her clothes.
Shortly after, wearing a colorless dress without any decorations, she descended the stairs toward the reception room.
When she opened the door, all seven delegates who had been waiting knelt on one knee in greeting.
"We are honored to meet Archmage Silveryn."
She spoke in an emotionless, dry tone, "Please sit."
After Silveryn took the head seat, Volcan, the delegation's leader and aide to the Margrave of Varianne, came forward and sat opposite her.
Silveryn's focus was somewhat hazy.
Northern matters were meant to end in the North. There were few figures important enough to warrant delivering such news to her personally.
Kedwen.
She had already heard news of his disappearance.
He was a man nicknamed "immortal" for surviving dozens of near-death experiences. All
Northerners, including Silveryn, had believed that Kedwen would surely appear again alive.
But this time was different. The North had taken Kedwen's life, just as it had swallowed many of Silveryn's comrades.
That was what the North was like. Even once-in-a-generation geniuses, heroes, and legendary figures met meaningless deaths there.
A heavy silence filled the reception room. Silveryn spoke first, "So it wasn't just a disappearance."
Volcan nodded with a grim face.
"We found parts of Lord Kedwen's remains near the Palanka Basin."
According to Volcan, they found the left wrist and right arm. A grotesquely twisted right leg. The remaining remains were still being searched for, but with magic creatures infesting the area, the chances of finding them were low.
Even the slightest hope had vanished. The fate of a swordsman who lost his limbs in battle was painfully obvious.
After a long silence, Silveryn suddenly left her chair and walked to the window. With her back to the delegation, she spoke with difficulty, "I attended both his graduation and his wedding."
Kedwen's death was a great pain to both the Northerners and Silveryn.
He was Silveryn's junior at Eternia and a comrade who had defended the northern front together.
He was a self-made man who had grown up as an orphan after losing his parents to magic creatures in his childhood, entered Eternia thanks to his natural talent for swordsmanship, and even completed the Masters Class.
He was such a supreme master that if a position opened among the ten Sword Masters permitted across the continent, Kedwen would have taken that place.
Silveryn squeezed her eyes shut.
There seemed to be no end. How much more would it take before this tragedy ended?
It was a cruel fate. The young man who had burned himself to prevent the tragedy that took his parents from repeating had departed the world just like them.
"Lord Kedwen's will contained a request for Lady Silveryn."
The Northerners always did this. Not knowing when they might die, they wrote their wills in advance when they reached fighting age.
"He asked that these be passed on to find new owners."
A delegate behind Volcan placed a long wooden box on the table.
Silveryn slowly turned around.
Volcan opened the box. Inside were Kedwen's sword and artifacts.
"...Why give them to me instead of his wife or children?"
"He wanted you to find someone who would carry on his will to the next generation. He said he would trust your judgment in finding a successor."
"..."
She stared at the belongings with lifeless eyes.
Kedwen's death was painful in and of itself.
Her denial of the reality before her caused her to fall into confusion.
Kedwen reminded her of a certain boy she had with her.
Every time she was reminded of Kedwen and that boy, her heart grew colder.
Will he meet the same fate? Had she pulled the boy into the turbulent waters?
After maintaining silence for a while, she spoke quietly, "Take them back. There's no one suitable to give them to."
***
I sat on the fountain in Rigbed Square with an armful of herbs. Soon after, Liria sat down next to me, shoulder to shoulder.
I took out the paper from my pocket and checked the herb list. We'd found most of what we needed, but there was one herb we couldn't find anywhere.
"'Tears of Fuglisi' just won't turn up."
It sounded like a nickname from folklore or legend. Or perhaps it really was tears from some unknown magic creature. Every herb shop we searched claimed they'd never heard of it.
Liria spoke carefully, "Um... I don't think it's an herb."
I had similar thoughts.
"Well, we'll ask the magic scholar about the rest."
We approached the carriage waiting in a corner of the square and loaded all the herbs we'd gathered.
It hadn't taken that long, and the sun hadn't even set yet.
We had plenty of money, having received the leftover money from “buying” the wooden sword last time, plus sponsorship funds from the Wiesel Knight Order and time to spare, but I didn't want to waste either.
"Now, let's head to our next destination."
Liria's eyes wavered at the suggestion to move.
"Um..."
She hesitated before speaking, "...If we leave now, will we not come back to the square?"
"Probably not."
"Um... there's one place around here I'd like to visit, could you spare just a moment?"
"...?"
Seeing my questioning look, she fidgeted and said, "Really, really, just a moment... If it's too troublesome, I can go by myself."
Her anxious appearance looked somewhat pitiful. She could have just asked casually.
"No problem. Let's go together."
Finally, her face brightened.
"Yes! Let's go right now. This way!"
The place Liria led me to was a large clothing shop.
Her face was even more livier than usual.
Seeing her expression, I couldn't help but smile.
Of course. Liria was also a teenage girl who liked pretty clothes and accessories just like everyone else.
She opened the shop door and quickly moved to where clothes were displayed.
It seemed she had already noticed some clothes she liked when she was here before.
Though there were men's clothes too, it seemed to mainly deal in women's clothing. I waited briefly near the entrance.
Inside, noble and young ladies were browsing the displayed clothes.
A middle-aged person who looked like a manager approached Liria with hands behind their back and in an upright posture. They quietly glared at Liria.
Liria spoke to the middle-aged person first.
"Um... could I try this on?"
The dress she chose was a purple linen dress without fancy decorations. It had an everyday feel while still being quite classical.
The middle-aged person looked Liria up and down and said in a stiff tone, "I'm sorry, miss, but our shop only provides clothing to members of the Lark Club or those with similarly noble qualifications."
They check qualifications for buying clothes? This seems excessive.
Liria became very intimidated and said, "Ah... I see..."
The noble ladies glanced at Liria with sneers on their faces.
Not a pleasant sight at all.
I walked over with my hands behind my back and placed my hand on Liria's shoulder as she was about to turn away, stopping her.
Then, I asked the middle-aged person, "I have some questions, if I may ask?"