Chapter 123

EPILOGUE Once those who escaped the mud of Ohlburg set foot on solid flagstone, they apparently all sank to the ground in a heap. The people from the cathedral had been waiting for them ahead of time; while the refugees had been worried about being arrested, the cathedral instead warmly accepted them and guided them to different churches in different parishes across the city. Those who happened to be visiting Ohlburg from far away got help from the mercenaries to find lodging at inns Eve had prepared ahead of time. The priests who had shared in the Twilight Cardinal’s fervor hesitated somewhat when they were face-to-face with people from the cathedral, the very thing they had so aggressively accused of being evil, but both parties were ultimately people who followed in God’s teachings, so they accepted the hand offered to them. But the moment Hobeln passed through the city gates, there was a bit of a disturbance. Not in a bad sense, however. Once the people of the city learned the group of people who suddenly came pouring into the city were those who had been chased from Ohlburg due to a flood, they recalled it was Hobeln who once saved this land from water and began treating him like a savior of sorts. When Col saw how bewildered Hobeln was when the people began to suddenly fuss over him, he nodded firmly because he knew exactly how that felt, and Luward gave him a flat look. When they arrived at Eve’s warehouse, several birds just happened to be landing nearby right at that moment, bringing a damp letter that told them the reconstruction of the river embankment was now finished. To briefly describe what Col had done thus far, he had left the city on horseback, taken a quick nap, watched the plan unfold, and then pointed to the people’s destination like a fool, even though he had no way of telling if anyone was watching. Despite it all, he was exhausted. While Luward was busy preparing to welcome back his men as they returned, and as he rushed busily all over the warehouse to praise his troops for safely getting the flock of people out of Ohlburg like shepherd dogs, Col sat down in a corner of the warehouse and almost immediately gave in to unconsciousness. His consciousness only returned to him when there was a giggle that tickled his ear. “Oh, he’s up.” Myuri’s familiar face was covered in mud. “…Agh, my back…” As he tried to stand, his whole body ached. It was likely because he had spent a lot of time on horseback, which he did not do often, and perhaps because he had been more tense than he had realized while the plan was being carried out. “Why? You didn’t do anything.” He had no excuse for her. Once he managed to sit up straight and look around, he saw those who had taken on the most difficult jobs had returned safely—there were piles of muddied clothes and tools scattered here and there. “Were you all right?” He had a feeling he did not need to ask, but he did so because it seemed like she wanted him to. She was not wearing her typical clothes, but her errand boy outfit, since it did not matter how dirty those got. And they were so caked in mud it almost made Myuri seem like she was wearing armor. She grinned. When she did, flakes of mud cracked and fell from her face. Her hands were also encrusted, and her hair was dyed an earthen brown. “What about bathing?” “The rest of the guys went swimming in the sea, but it’s too cold.” How precocious it was of her to call the other mercenaries “the guys.” She squared her shoulders as if she could tell what he was thinking. He smiled at the sight and finally stood. It was then that he finally noticed the state of his bangs. There was a clump of mud in his hair. Myuri must have played a little prank while he was sleeping. “I didn’t touch your clothes,” she said. “It’d be bad if they got dirty.” When she said that, he looked down at his clothes, and realized it would have been smart if he had taken them off before sitting down. “C’mon, get changed. The water’s already boiled.” “Hmm?” He turned to look at her, as though asking what he could possibly use hot water for, and Myuri’s expression quickly soured. “I’m only joking,” he said with a smile. A deep frown crossed Myuri’s face. “You’re like…an adult now, Brother…” “I have always been an adult.” In response, Myuri snorted like a veteran mercenary might. And since she was still known as the Saint of the Sun, he knew the world’s estimations of another could never be reliable. “Oh, you’re up.” Then came Eve, underling in tow. She held a bundle of parchment in her hands, a quill sat tucked behind her ear; the wrinkles between her brows were likely so deep because her head was hurting over how much this commotion was costing her. “You’ve got a discussion with the cathedral waiting for you tomorrow, so get cleaned up.” “Oh… Okay…” Though it did not seem the cathedral was antagonistic toward the Twilight Cardinal, it was clear this was not going to be a fun, heart-to-heart discussion. Col and company were not totally uninvolved when it came to Hobeln, who was suddenly incredibly popular with the people. And there was the whole unexpected deal with the rights to the copper mine to discuss as well. On top of everything else, whether the archbishop of Estatt would agree to be his ally would be a bellwether of their odds for achieving their ultimate goals. There was no room for failure, and he did not want people holding the Twilight Cardinal in contempt for being so young. And standing before the young Twilight Cardinal was a rambunctious girl all covered in mud. The only reason he would be able to stand undaunted before the archbishop would be because he would have this guardian by his side. As he turned to make his way toward the courtyard—where the water was apparently waiting for him—in an attempt to cheer her up, Myuri suddenly shouted. “Oh, that’s right! Brother!” As Col pushed the muddied girl away from him when she stepped in close, he asked, “What is it?” “You threatened the boy I asked to be my secretary, didn’t you?” “Secretary…” He did not quite understand what she meant at first, due to the overstated word she used, but he knew she was talking about the mercenary boy with whom she left the bundle of papers containing her stories. “There’s no way you could’ve been that impressive. You ended up falling asleep because you were so nervous, and then you panicked when Uncle Luward woke you up, didn’t you?” Her passionate red eyes held more might than when her gaze was cool. “…Did a bird tell you that?” Or perhaps the horse at his side told her. When Col asked, Myuri shrugged with such vigor that even more mud flaked off her. “I see everything you do, Brother!” Just in the way that he saw through everything she did. “I could ask the same of you. I hope you were not so engrossed in digging holes that you caused problems for the mercenaries.” “I didn’t! Everyone complimented me!” “But if you do something so horrific in Nyohhira again, I will shave your tail bald in earnest this time.” Unlike Col, Myuri most certainly did a little dance when she saw the way the water poured out. “I—I won’t.” Her response did not carry the same energy she had moments earlier. Of course, the wisewolf was in Nyohhira, so it would likely turn out okay. “But…,” she said meekly beside Col as he began to walk. “I did kind of learn that fangs and claws can’t accomplish everything.” “………” Myuri looked up at Col and offered him a small, grown-up smile. “I could only break a small part of the embankment. Even though I thought if I gave it my all, I could do so many amazing things.” She could now laugh at how narrow that childlike view was. But Myuri looked at her hands, flexing them. As though seeing where in this world her spot was. “It seems you are growing up as well,” Col said. “That makes me happy.” “………” Myuri lifted her gaze from her palm to Col, then grinned. “Just let me know when you want to get married, okay?” “I’d be happy to help prepare you for your wedding.” Myuri pouted, moved to reflexively smack his shoulder, but stopped herself. “Come on, Brother! Go and change!” “I think I will wear this outfit whenever I need to reprimand you.” “You’re so stupid, Brother! Meanie!” she said in a flurry before running off. Col smiled at her, and at last, he finally divested himself of his Twilight Cardinal shell. As he looked around, wondering where to place it, he heard a loud voice calling for him: “Broootheeer!” It was a little too early to deem her an adult. In the end, he left his clothes with one of Eve’s employees when they passed by; he rolled up his sleeves and made his way to Myuri. If there were to be a hagiography of the Twilight Cardinal, then a tale of him washing the saint’s feet would be an admirable one. “Ugh! I wish I could be in the hot springs!” Col looked to Myuri as she complained and complained and told himself anew he should perhaps ask Pierre how to make a child whose ears were closed to the teachings of God listen to others.