Chapter 83
Once upon a time, in a certain place, there lived a candy seller.
The candy seller was terribly poor, so poor that he couldn't even afford to buy firewood, and he was always hungry.
That year in particular, the cold was severe, with blizzards day after day.
The man was in such a state that he could freeze to death at any moment.
One night, as the sound of the blizzard—whoooosh, whoooosh—shook the wooden door, the candy seller heard a tapping sound.
──Whoosh, whoosh... tap, tap.
──Whoosh, whoosh... tap, tap.
It must be the blizzard pounding against the sign. I should bring it inside before the weight of the snow breaks it.
Thinking this, the man opened the door—and to his surprise, a man was standing there.
He was a beautiful young man with pale skin, silver hair, and golden eyes.
Despite the blizzard raging that night, the young man stood there in a daze without even a fur coat or gloves.
The candy seller trembled with fear.
This man isn't human. He must be a god who lives in the mountains. The god has come to tell me I'm going to die.
As the candy seller resigned himself to death, the silver-haired young man spoke in a faint voice.
──Please give me one piece of candy. Give me a beautiful piece of candy.
The candy seller took the most beautiful candy in his shop, knelt down, and held it out.
The young man looked at the candy and let out a soft, cold sigh.
──Beautiful. Such beautiful ice that never melts.
When the young man accepted the candy, he placed something in the candy seller's hand.
It was a white, clear object like a crystal—the scale of White Dragon-sama, the god who lived in these mountains.
The candy seller knew that a single scale was worth as much as ten gemstones.
As the candy seller stared at the scale, he raised his head to thank him.
But the beautiful young man was no longer there.
All that remained was a voice that sounded like singing, mingling with the sound of the blizzard.
──Pique, Pique, don't cry. I'll give you ice that never melts.
The candy seller used the money from selling the scale to survive the winter, and lived happily ever after. The end.
＊ ＊ ＊
The carriage Raul had procured arrived shortly after noon in a town called Yauschka, just outside the Vilraya Autonomous Region.
Yauschka was a fairly large town for the countryside, with numerous candy stalls set up to celebrate Asselpike's holiday.
Quite a few of the people walking through the streets wore the traditional outer garments of the 〈Haila people〉. Since the town was close to the Vilraya Autonomous Region, members of the 〈Haila people〉 came and went here as well.
After getting off the carriage, Monica searched among the passersby for beautiful silver hair.
Many people in this area had light-colored hair, so pale blond and silver-haired people were not uncommon.
Every time Monica spotted hair resembling Cyril's, her heart leaped—only to sink again when she realized it belonged to someone else.
A sudden strong gust blew through, and Monica hunched up against the cold.
Snow still remained on Yauschka's streets, and the wind was cold as well.
"First, coats. We're buying coats."
Melissa made her emphatic declaration while shivering violently.
Fortunately, it wasn't snowing yet, but the sky was covered in thick clouds, and it could start at any moment. They absolutely had to obtain warm clothing.
"Moni-Moni and I will go buy coats. Raul, you go ask around at the hitching yard. There are practically no carriages that go directly to the Vilraya Autonomous Region, so that spirit almost certainly got off in this town."
If Veronica had been a wind spirit, she could have carried Cyril and flown rapidly through the sky. But Veronica was an ice spirit. She couldn't simply fly there in one bound like a wind spirit. She must have used a carriage to travel.
At Melissa's words, Raul pulled a carrot from his pocket and nodded.
"You're right, asking around is important. Besides, I've only got one carrot left that I can use for divination..."
"Why have you been gobbling down the catalysts for your divination in a situation like this? Are you stupid?"
"Because a carrot that I've used once for divination can't be used for it again."
Saying this, Raul casually moved to bite into the last carrot.
Monica turned deathly pale and clung to Raul, while Melissa brought her palm down on his head.
"D-don't eat it!"
"Don't eat it, you idiot!"
With Monica clinging to him and Melissa smacking his head, Raul put the carrot back in his pocket while muttering, "Ow..."
"Oops, force of habit."
"Is there an idiot who eats carrots out of habit?! Cyril-sama's fate is riding on that carrot! Get to the hitching yard and start asking around!"
"Yeah, you're right. My friend's in trouble. All right! I'm off to ask around!"
As Melissa watched Raul run toward the hitching yard, she muttered, "I'm worried."
Monica looked up at Melissa and asked,
"Um, can't we buy the carrot for the divination in this town?"
"That divination only works with carrots Raul grew himself."
"I-I see..."
That carrot must be part of the Roseberg family's mystical heritage. Probably.
As Monica desperately tried to convince herself, Melissa began walking briskly.
"Come on, we're going to get some coats. I'm so cold I could die, so anywhere that sells clothes will do."
Melissa hunched against the cold and rubbed her arms as she hurried into the first shop that caught her eye. Monica hurried after her.
The shop's door was decorated with strings of bells, which made a charming jingle when the door closed.
Monica had seen bell ornaments here and there since arriving in town, so they must have been a local tradition.
"Welcome."
The sound of jingling bells mingled with the shopkeeper's cough-roughened voice. Sitting behind the counter was a kindly old man with slightly sleepy eyes.
When the old man saw how Melissa and Monica were dressed, his eyes widened behind his glasses in surprise.
"My, you two are dressed awfully lightly. Is this your first time in Yauschka?"
"Yes, it is. I need a coat, at any rate."
Saying this, Melissa swiftly scanned the shop.
Monica had secretly worried that shopping-loving Melissa might get absorbed in buying things, but Melissa grabbed a coat from a corner of the shop, quickly chose two, and thrust one at Monica.
"I hate wearing the same thing as someone I'm with, so you get this one, Moni-Moni."
The coat Melissa handed Monica was white with light-blue patterns woven into it. It seemed to be a traditional garment worn by the 〈Haila people〉.
Since the Vilraya Autonomous Region was nearby, shops in this town probably carried clothing worn by the 〈Haila people〉 as well.
"This coat has such cute embroidery. I'll take this one."
"Cough... Miss, that's a man's coat."
The old shopkeeper, who had been resting his cheek on one hand at the counter, interrupted with a cough.
Melissa held up the coat she had chosen and tilted her head.
"I can't tell the difference."
"The women's ones have braided cords with decorative beads on them."
The coats worn by the 〈Haila people〉 had brightly colored braided cords threaded through their hems and across their chests.
The cords ended in tassels, and only the women's garments seemed to have wooden or glass beads attached to them.
Monica spread out the white coat Melissa had given her to inspect it. The dark-blue braided cord attached near the shoulder was decorated with white and light-blue beads.
(It looks a little like Nero's clothes...)
The old-fashioned robe Nero wore when disguised as a human also had decorative cords on it.
The embroidery patterns were different, but the way the braided cords were used was similar.
(I wonder if Nero is causing trouble for Isaac... He probably is. Is he managing to keep his identity hidden...?! )
Nero was the black dragon of Worgan, the dragon who had once thrown the Kingdom of Ridill into an uproar. If his identity were discovered, it would be far worse than a mere commotion.
Isaac was better at handling Nero than Monica was (Monica believed the advantage of winning him over with food surpassed even the bond between master and familiar), but she was still worried.
While Monica fretted, Melissa quickly chose a coat for herself and bought a red one for Raul.
After paying, Melissa spoke to the old shopkeeper.
"Hey, Grandpa, what are those bell ornaments hanging outside the shop? I've seen them everywhere. Do they have something to do with Asselpike's holiday?"
"Ah, those are for White Dragon-sama."
The shopkeeper coughed several times, then drank some water from the pitcher on the counter before continuing.
"Even if you're not from around here, you must know the origin of Asselpike's holiday."
"It's the story about how the White Dragon, a friend of the ice spirit Asselpike, disguised himself as a human and came to buy candy, right?"
"That's right. White Dragon-sama was a shy one. They say he timidly tapped on the shop's door in the middle of a blizzard. So we decided to hang bells on our shops, so we'd know right away the next time White Dragon-sama came to buy candy. 'White Dragon-sama, White Dragon-sama, if you're looking for something, please ring these bells.'"
Listening from behind Melissa, Monica was quietly impressed.
Monica knew the origin of Asselpike's holiday, but her understanding of it had been limited to it being a day when people ate candy.
But in the neighboring country of Randell, it had become a day when people secretly gave glasswork to the person they loved, while in the land where the tradition began, decorations were made to welcome the White Dragon.
Even when based on the same legend, traditions could differ so much from place to place. For Monica, who knew so little about this sort of celebration, it was a fresh surprise.
As Monica reflected on this, Melissa rested her cheek on one hand at the counter and looked at the shopkeeper.
"Grandpa, are you perhaps one of the 〈Haila people〉?"
"Ah, my grandmother was one. She married into a family here before independence. I worship the Spirit God, but perhaps because my grandmother called him White Dragon-sama... I can't help feeling that I ought to show him respect."
A dragon is a disaster.
As the term dragon calamity suggests, to humans they are threats on par with natural disasters.
That is why, in most stories, dragons are villains and exist to be slain.
But there are also a few stories in which dragons live alongside humans and sometimes bring them good fortune. The most famous of these is the story of Asselpike.
Of all the dragon species, white dragons are the gentlest, most beautiful, and most fragile.
All dragon species are said to be weak to the cold, but white dragons alone favor cold regions and breathe blizzards.
(...The exact opposite of Nero, who's weak to the cold.)
In exchange for their resistance to cold, white dragons have extremely fragile scales.
Dragons are naturally sturdy creatures. It is said that even a lower-ranked dragon is almost impervious to attacks anywhere but between the eyes.
But white dragons are different. Even an attack anywhere other than between the eyes can inflict a fatal wound.
Strong, fragile, beautiful dragons—that must be why stories of them living alongside humans came into being.
Melissa, who had been resting her cheek on one hand at the counter, had listened to the shopkeeper's story with surprising seriousness. When the conversation reached a natural stopping point, she took a packet of candy from her pocket and placed it beside the payment.
"That was educational. Thank you, Grandpa."
"You're welcome. I never expected to be the one receiving candy at my age."
"This is good for a sore throat. It's a special kind that the ace of the Royal Capital Choir secretly comes to buy."
Speaking in a joking tone, Melissa winked at the shopkeeper.
"Well then, have a good holiday, Grandpa."
"Yes, you too. Have a good holiday."
＊ ＊ ＊
After leaving the shop, Melissa impatiently tapped her foot as she watched Monica struggle into her coat.
"Hurry up! Get changed already. And make sure you fasten the buttons at your neck properly."
"Y-yes...!"
As Monica firmly fastened the buttons at her collar, she glanced at the coat Melissa was holding for Raul.
The coat Melissa had bought for Raul was a flashy red.
If Raul, with his rose-colored curls, wore it, he would be red from head to toe and incredibly conspicuous.
"Um, does Raul-sama like red?"
At Monica's question, Melissa raised the corners of her lips in a wicked grin.
Then she pointed at Monica's coat with her nails painted bright red.
"Yours is white. Perfect for hiding in the snowy mountains, right?"
"Y-yes."
"Mine is deep green. Perfect for hiding among the thorns, right?"
"...Um... Then what about red...?"
Melissa answered with a broad smile.
"It's obviously for a decoy. Don't worry, he won't die even if you kill him. When I told him there were rare plants, he even made it back alive from a mountain inhabited by a red dragon."
Melissa's eyes were far too serious for it to be dismissed as a joke.
Just as Monica began to tremble in terror, the man they had been discussing—the man who wouldn't die even if killed, Raul—came running toward them, waving his hand.
"Sis, Monica, I've got good news! The coachman said a woman carrying a silver-haired man headed toward the mountain where the White Dragon lives!"
"Well done! We're heading there right now!"
Saying this, Melissa thrust the bright-red coat at Raul.
As he put it on, Raul remarked cheerfully, "This makes me look pretty tough!"
Monica steeled herself and tugged at the hem of Raul's clothes.
"Um, that's a decoy... Mmph!"
"Come on, there's no time to chat, squirt. Cyril-sama is waiting for our help!"
Melissa slipped an arm around Monica's neck, covered her mouth, and strode off with long steps.
Monica could only sputter incoherently as Melissa dragged her along.