If I hadn’t known what he really was, and if things hadn’t gone the way they had, his words would have angered me. But I had expected an answer like this from him, and so I could settle for merely clenching my fists.
“I see,” I said.
“So in the end, I feel her fate...a pity. Is that enough for you?”
“Yes, and thank you. You’ve helped me settle my own feelings on the matter.”
“Oh? And what feelings might those be? I don’t suppose you’ll share, will you?”
“No. They’re confidential.”
My resolve was set. I would have set my sights on seeing the box destroyed regardless of what Six said, but now I had another goal, and it was just as important as that one. And so I gave that goal a voice, spoken as much for myself as the mage floating in front of me.
“One day I am going to wipe that dumb, smug grin off your face,” I declared. “You just wash your neck and wait for the blade to drop.”
“You and Ern, both so fond of your odd turns of phrase. I don’t even have a neck to wash, but all the same, I eagerly await the day. To that end, please hurry up and get all that ink business sorted.”
We stayed there glaring at one another until we heard a commotion coming from somewhere in the garden. Jill wanted in, and she jumped against the glass door, which didn’t stand much of a chance against the dog’s intensity. It opened, and Jill barged inside.
“Ah!” shrieked Six. “It’s that dog!”
He almost literally leaped out of his own skin as he floated to the very edges of the ceiling. Seemingly drawn in by the odd sight and very intrigued, Jill started barking at him.
“Why me?!” screamed the mage. “Go away! Where’s your master?! Ugh! Somebody do something about the dog!”
“Sis, I’m sorry!” cried Emil. “Jill got away from me!”
“Don’t worry about it. Her timing couldn’t have been more perfect.”
“Help me!” cried Six.
“Oh shut it, you dolt!” I snapped.
As for seeing my goals to fruition, well, that was up to me.
Reinald eventually returned to announce his departure, but before he left he handed me a package, which his page had brought.
“I wanted to give this to you earlier, but it took far longer than expected.”
He casually placed it in my hands and left. Martina and I watched him go, both of us as confused as we were curious.
“A gift from the prince? Do you have any idea what it might be?” asked Martina.
“Oh. I just might, actually...”
There was an accessory buried within the package’s velvet interior. A bracelet, in fact—a thin gold chain with a delicate piece of jade as its centerpiece. It was incredibly well crafted and was the very bracelet Reinald had promised to get for me. It was an exact copy of my old one, and I couldn’t help but sigh with joy. I had so loved its design, and here it was.
“He had it made for me, just like he promised...” I uttered.
I had lost the bracelet in Conrad, and I’d assumed I would never see it again. I couldn’t even begin to express how happy I was.
“Huh?” uttered Martina. “Lady Karen, is...that...?”
“Oh, this? You heard that our former home of Conrad was attacked, I’m sure. During the siege, my bracelet was stolen. I treasured it and desperately wanted it back, so I asked Reinald to introduce me to the craftsman who first made it. But he told me he’d handle it for me, and I accepted his generosity.”
When I first received the bracelet, it was a gift for marrying into the Conrad family...I think. Back then, I had worked a lot outdoors, and so I’d largely kept it safely stored away, but here in the capital, I didn’t have to worry and could wear it far more often. And when I thought about how our house was recently raided by knights, I wondered if I’d feel even safer wearing it all the time.
“I’ve also thought about having another ring made,” I said, “but it was so important to the two of them, and so meaningful in that way that I eventually decided against it.”
“A ring?”
“Perhaps you haven’t seen the ring that Wendel wears around his neck. That’s a keepsake from his father, but it’s part of a set of two. The other belonged to his mother, but like my bracelet, it too was stolen.”
“Stolen in Conrad...”
“Don’t say anything to Wendel. He doesn’t talk about it, but it still weighs on him.”
I put the bracelet on immediately and felt like I was more fashionable already. I looked up from it to ask Martina her opinion, but the girl had gone white as a sheet.
“What’s the matter?” I asked. “You’re so pale. Are you feeling unwell?”
“Oh, I... No, I...”
Her voice was trembling, her breathing suddenly shallow as she looked at my bracelet. I could understand her being surprised, but I couldn’t work out why she was so frightened.
“Lady Karen,” Martina uttered, struggling to line up her words neatly. “I’ve never seen a design like that... Is it...one of a kind?”
Something wasn’t right, that was certain, but it seemed like she was reaching for an answer that might offer her some salvation.
“I don’t frequent jewelry stores, so I can’t say for certain, but I don’t think it’s very common, no. Sir Reinald had it specially made, after all.”
“Oh...”
The word came with a heavy sigh. One of despair. Martina’s hand reached up to squeeze her chest, and the way she was breathing, I honestly thought she might burst into tears at any sudden movements. She wouldn’t listen to me when I tried to calm her, and it was just as I offered to call for help that she shook her head.
“I’m okay,” Martina said. “I’m fine. I... Yes, I’m okay.”
“You say that, but do you have any idea how deathly pale you look?”
“I just need a little rest. I’m so very sorry. I think I’ll retire to my room, alone, for a short while...”
She looked terribly unsteady on her feet as she staggered away and down the hall. I never did find out what bothered her either—Martina finished work early and left for home in quite the rush. She was back as usual the following day, but I sometimes noticed a serious expression knit her brow. Whateley seemed to have taught her well, however, as none of it impacted her ability to do her job. It was a vague worry that itched at me, but time continued to pass, much in the way it always did.
And then, finally, it came. The day that I had long dreaded and could not escape, no matter what I tried.