Chapter 135

EPILOGUE Col wrote a great many letters. He had to add constant apologies and excuses right in the greeting portion of the letters, and he knew that once he saw all these people in person, he would have to say more than what was written. This was the only way to resolve everything neatly. They would be using the myth of the Moon-Hunting Bear to revive the great north-south corridor. “Like brother, like puppy, huh?” Once they returned to Ahberg and told Sharon about taking Amaretto back, Sharon was flabbergasted. “But I guess if you take out the…the star the Moon-Hunting Bear hunted? I think it’d go pretty well. What do you think?” It was as though the problem that landed in Sharon’s lap was a bit too much for her to handle, so she handed it over to Le Roi. “Master Col must write a book. He needs to write a tale of adventure instead of a book of sermons.” Le Roi then gave a belly-shaking laugh. “The companies that claim membership in the Ruvik Alliance would fall over themselves for new trade opportunities. There is no good or bad when it comes to coin—gold is gold. It’s not a terrible idea. And we simply need not tell the Church.” Le Roi’s shoulders shook as he laughed with genuine delight, and while Col was not sure if he should join in, they at least had a guarantee for the plan for now. “Then we can report the plan to Hyland,” Sharon said. “All we need to do is bring in someone to negotiate on the kingdom’s behalf, yeah?” The reason they needed Hyland’s help was because they needed to prepare wool that would match the value of the goods that would be coming from the south. Goods were traded all over the world and reached their destinations after long journeys. It was not good for one side of the deal to send their cargo over without any compensation or collateral. “Yes,” Col replied. “But I do realize this is an unreasonable idea. Please let her know I am more than ready to be scolded.” The letter he had written for Hyland, at least, was a very, very long one. “That so? I assume she’s gonna say yes without a second thought,” Sharon said, then waved the bundle of letters in the air. Afterward Sharon joined Le Roi, who wanted to visit the printing workshop to check on the vernacular translation of the scripture and left for the Kingdom of Winfiel. Neither Col nor Myuri could afford to watch them off—Col sent a letter to Eve in Estatt. He wanted advice on trade negotiations, which would serve as the keystone to the plan. But it was mostly a front—he knew that if he did not involve her in such a massive deal, she would yell at him for days. While he was worried her entrance onto the scene would only make things more chaotic, Ilenia apparently wanted to see her in person, so at the end of the letter explaining the situation, he asked her to come to Ahberg. The final obstacle was Prince-Elector Duran. Col could not contain the entire report in a simple letter, so he had no choice but to go directly to him. The prince-elector’s cooperation was required for this plan to have any hope of succeeding, so Col had to persuade him to agree, no matter what. He would have to take Amaretto, the eye of this storm, back to Wobern and explain everything, starting with the myth of the Moon-Hunting Bear. He knew it was going to be difficult, but he also knew it was something he had to do, so he paradoxically found calm once he realized he had no choice but to steel himself and do it. What weighed on him the most was the last big job he had waiting for him. And that was everything involved in dealing with the Ruvik Alliance. He had proposed the plan to the alliance through Donnel and suggested there had to be a way everyone could claim credit for their hard work in the end, but from the alliance’s point of view, they had their own reasons for not immediately agreeing to his idea. In truth, there was no way to check if Amaretto was indeed looking into predicting the eclipse or not. So the alliance could not completely abandon the possibility the horrid Twilight Cardinal was lying to them and was planning to make a leisurely but triumphant return with the astronomer, holding on to the secret to the eclipse forecast all the while. After the battle at sea, Col returned to Ahberg with Captain Donnel and went straight to one of the alliance companies in a show of good faith. As the alliance realized their plot with Amaretto had failed, they found themselves in chaos at the sudden arrival of their old enemy, the Twilight Cardinal, but when he and Donnel told them about this unbelievable plan, they quickly fell silent. Col had a feeling they were more bewildered and confused by what was going on than anything else, but they also seemed to be busily weighing the scales to see what their profits might be if this harebrained scheme turned out to have legs. That said, they were still merchants—they would draw up a contract even when negotiating with God. They could not ignore the possibility the Twilight Cardinal might be tricking them—they wanted suitable assurance for when the Twilight Cardinal and Amaretto made their way to Wobern to persuade the prince-elector. Myuri was irritated by their open doubt, but it was an understandable worry when Col placed himself in their shoes. In fact, it was practically a miracle they agreed to his plan. They were likely doing so only because they were left feeling like they had no other choice, and just like Le Roi said, the Ruvik Alliance was only a collection of merchants with varying opinions. The alliance members of Ahberg ended up reordering their interests and placing their profits on the scales. But they would be crossing a very dangerous bridge, so they wanted some insurance before moving forward. And that was then Col came up with a plan. “It pains me to ask you of this, but could you stay in Ahberg?” “……” Myuri sat on the bed in their room at the inn, and Col knelt before her. “So you’re going to leave me here, take a little stroll through the mountains alone with the fortune-teller, hand in hand?” The fur on her tail stood more on end than it usually did, and it thumped the bed with obvious displeasure. The cherry on top was Myuri had been in a sour mood ever since the boat chase. The reason for that was apparently the conversation Col had with Amaretto on the ship. Myuri understood it had been necessary to earn Amaretto’s trust. As she continued playing the part of the Saint of the Sun, she began to somewhat understand the role of the clergy. But it seemed she had been simmering in discontent that Col embraced the overwhelmed Amaretto. On top of that, she had apparently failed to reach the level of excitement she had been expecting from her big job, which was leaping onto the enemy ship to cut a path through enemy lines, which was yet another source of disappointment. She had apparently pictured truly wild combat, a naval battle that would have left its mark in the annals. And so ever since they returned to Ahberg, the cranky wolf was glued to her desk, day and night, rewriting the entire battle. Despite all that was upsetting her, Col had to ask her to remain in Ahberg while he went with Amaretto to Wobern. One could even say it would be his most difficult trial yet. “We must persuade the prince-elector to give up on the eclipse and agree to our plan. A letter alone cannot accomplish that, and considering the alliance’s apprehensions, a person of considerable importance must remain here in Ahberg. Once we manage to persuade the prince-elector on either of those issues, I will come right back.” At most, it would take about two weeks there and back. That was a brief amount of time for an adult like Col, but thinking back on when he was a child, two weeks felt like forever. “And?” All Myuri offered was one chilly word. Col managed to maintain his advantage with Donnel, and that attitude was something Myuri herself had cultivated in him. And now his master was cross with him. However— “Myuri.” He said her name with a particular nuance: That’s enough. Myuri’s tail flicked upward, and her eyes darted away in surprise. “I understand, to a degree, there is plenty you are unhappy with right now. And of course, you have my thanks for a job well done on the ship. None of this would have been possible without you, and it was your words that led me to this idea. And that is why I have been answering every one of your demands and whims ever since we came back. Do you understand?” Myuri’s hair was beautifully braided, as though she was about to dance on stage. And before Col had braided it for her, she ordered him to comb it very carefully. During their meals she had him debone her fish, asked for portions of his meat, and opened her mouth wide and demanded he feed her. He had obliged more than enough of her whims, but Myuri was greedy. She was planning on picking every piece of pulp from the fruit peel, if she could help it. This request to stay behind was perfect for the last big bite. But the wolf pup had measured incorrectly. Col stood up with a sigh, which signaled to Myuri this was the end of that act. As she looked up at him, he could see the sadness on her face as well as the frustration that she had made the wrong choice. “I do apologize, but you will have to serve as a hostage for now.” “……” This was the bargaining point that would satisfy the alliance while Col and Amaretto were off to speak with the prince-elector. Myuri was more than valuable enough to be a hostage. And Col could rest assured, knowing if it came down to it, she could easily manage on her own. Vadan and his crew were already very carefully investigating whether or not there were any nonhumans who could pose a threat to her in the Ruvik Alliance. She would also have some of the mice around her at all times while she was staying at the company, so she would not be completely alone. “We’ll be on separate adventures for a short while,” he said with light jest, but her face made it plenty clear she did not find it funny at all. Col sighed. The way she pouted and turned away from him in a huff showed just how childish she was. “When it comes to the point where we search for the star the Moon-Hunting Bear hunted, you’ll be able to do quite a lot more.” By comparing the star charts of the present day to ancient star charts, Amaretto could generally narrow down where the ancient imperial army came across the fallen star. But that was nothing more than theoretical, so it was possible the star had gotten buried beneath shifting land over the long months and years. It would be quite the challenge to search for it with human hands alone, so they would be borrowing the strength of Myuri and the others. They had even written a letter to Diana the alchemist asking for further advice on the Moon-Hunting Bear. “You can be patient, can’t you?” In her huff, Myuri did not move a muscle on her face. Col’s lengthy experience with her told him this was a test of patience. And if he were to look back on everything up until this point, he would start to wonder if he had spoiled her a little too much. And that meant he should stare back at her, on his dignity as her older brother…except in the end, he was the first to drop his shoulders. Myuri’s wolf ears immediately piqued out of pride in her victory, but that did not mean Col had lost. He knew exactly how to take down this formidable wolf. “My dream is to become a priest. I want to lead people in faith and fight using the power of those words.” Myuri glanced at him, not sure why he was suddenly bringing this up. But she must have thought it was a strategy to get her to peek out from her burrow, so she quickly looked away again. Col gave a faint smile as she did so, and this time, he did not kneel before her, but crouched instead, as though calming a toddler. He took Myuri’s hands, balled into tight fists on her lap, and looked up at her. “Picture this.” “…What?” asked the rambunctious girl, annoyed. Col could not divine the stars, nor could he predict an eclipse. But he could predict a different sort of thing. “You are going to be held captive in the enemy base soon. While you are, I am going to work hard to complete my own mission. It is not going to be an easy path, and there is no telling if my attempts to persuade the prince-elector will go well. Despite that, I am going to give it my all, overcome all the obstacles, and return to this city.” Col pictured a traveler whose clothes were tattered and cheeks were gaunt, yet whose eyes shone with a powerful light. Heroes were typically depicted in that way in the fantasy adventure stories Myuri wrote. “And in the end, I will pry open the door to where you are held captive with my own two hands.” Myuri said she had wished to be the one thrown into jail when Canaan did so in Wobern. Because— “It’s the role of the knight to save the princess, after all.” Myuri was a wild child, one who loved swinging her sword around, yet she had one cheekily feminine interest. Even though she wore a sword at her hip and clad herself in the heraldry of a knight to protect her brother, she, of course, wished to be saved, too. “Will you believe in me and wait?” As he said that, he looked up to her with the greatest sincerity he could muster. The fur on her tail shuddered and her wolf ears stood perfectly straight, yet the tips of her human ears were bright red. “O-okay…” Myuri nodded slightly, as though swallowing something down, and then looked at him with wide, pleading eyes. “…Then…will you hug me when you do?” He suppressed the urge to ask her if that was something he had not always done, but instead he answered, “Of course.” Immediately afterward, Myuri leaped at him. “Hey, sto—Myuri!” She knocked him over and clung to him. He attempted to peel her off, but her tail whipped back and forth happily, and she refused to budge. He struggled for a little while, and when she still refused to move, he spoke coolly to her. “You hugging me now means you don’t need the princess-knight act, is that correct?” Myuri snapped her head up from his chest and glared daggers at him. “Yes, I do! This is different!” She then clung to him again in delight. “Good grief…” He let his head drop to the floor with a thunk. Soon he would have to take Amaretto into very difficult negotiations. Then they would have to ask high ranking people—not just Prince-Elector Duran, but also people like Hyland—to gather either here in Ahberg or in Wobern and explain to them this grand plan, which would create big changes on the world map. And then the world of trade would change again once they found the star the Moon-Hunting Bear hunted, but that was not all. They may learn something new about the calamity that befell the mysterious age of spirits. More importantly, if Prince-Elector Duran were to join him as an ally and he were to work together with a part of the Ruvik Alliance, it would be a lot easier to plot out a brighter path toward the ecumenical council with the Church. In short, whether justice could manifest in the world rested on how well the Twilight Cardinal did his job. “But I doubt anyone could imagine how that all looks right now…” Col had given up on trying to peel Myuri off him and instead wrapped his arms around her, patting her back like he was trying to put a baby to sleep. He suddenly felt a presence, and his eyes darted to the right—there he saw a baby mouse peeking out from a gap in the wall. Not long afterward, something in the wall pulled the mouse back into the darkness, and it vanished—Col knew he had a lot to explain to them afterward. “Brother?” “What is it?” “I think you should make me your wi—” “No.” He said it again to make sure the mice heard as well, but Myuri clamped her hand over his mouth. “Geez! I had the fortune-teller tell our fortune and she said our stars are super compatible!” “You what?” What on earth had she asked Amaretto to do? Col would not say if their stars were a good match or anything like that, but he certainly felt like she kept him spinning in her orbit, twisted around her little finger. As that thought roamed his head, he pictured two shooting stars chasing each other in the sky. But they were up against the Saint of the Sun. A wry smile crossed his lips. That was going to be a tough match for a little star.