“We should be fine in terms of secrecy. Francette and her people already believe I’m a goddess from another world, so no matter what scientific gadgets or magic we show, they’d just dismiss it as goddess stuff. They’d never betray me or leak information either. Falsetto will make the perfect ally: loyal, discreet, and reliable as a bodyguard. We can count on her to protect Little Silver, and since she brought her own horse, she can take care of Hang and Scary too. Come to think of it...this is a really great deal for us,” I realized.
“You’re right...” Kyoko agreed.
“Sounds useful...” Reiko chimed in.
And so, Falsetto joined our group. Unlike the children we hadn’t shared our secrets with, she was a full-fledged member of our inner circle.
“So, Fal— Whoa!” I yelled as something flew by.
“Eek!” Reiko squealed.
“Wh-What’s wrong?!” Kyoko asked.
Was that...a bird?
“Oh, it’s just...a bird flew in through the window. Not a raptor or anything, just a regular bird. It wasn’t exactly a small bird, maybe pigeon- or crow-sized, but pretty...”
We’d kept the window open because we didn’t have to worry about mosquitoes and flies thanks to my insect-repellent potion. With the soundproofing field, we didn’t have to worry about being overheard either, and the breeze felt nice... But instead of bugs, a bird had flown in.
Why? How?
“Goddess, Goddess. Gramma’s messenger wants to meet,” the bird said falteringly.
“Huh? Who’s ‘Gramma’?” I asked.
My powers allowed me to understand bird speech, so that wasn’t a surprise, but I had no idea who this “Gramma” was. The problem was that this person wanted to meet me and that they seemed to know me as a goddess. I didn’t personally know any birds that would call me “Goddess” in this distant Kingdom of Balmore. All of the birds I’d interacted with as a goddess had probably died out around seventy years ago. With their short lifespans, they must’ve gone through dozens of generations...
Wait a minute.
Long ago, I’d heard that some birds lived fifty to sixty years, and there was a record of a parrot living for ninety years. If so, some birds might not have gone through many generations, and stories could have been passed down to their children or grandchildren. Could the descendants of those birds still be around? Had my legend been passed down orally, like with Hang and Scary?
“We found you before the dogs! Victory for birds. Joyful! Proud!” it said.
“Huh? Dogs? Are the birds and dogs competing over me?” I wondered aloud. “Dogs and birds that can’t communicate with each other, competing over me... No way, that’s not...wait, yes it is... Mariel!”
The only one capable of such a thing, besides the three of us, was Mariel, thanks to the potion I’d given her!
“Were you sent by Mariel...or one of her subordinates?” I asked.
“Bring her? Take you?” it asked.
“Hmm, not the brightest, I see... Or maybe it’s been a few days since Mariel gave you the message, and you’re fuzzy on the details. Either way, I guess I have to go see her...”
“Are you sure it’s safe?”
“Kaoru...”
Reiko and Kyoko sounded worried.
“It’s fine, don’t worry,” I said reassuringly. “Remember that story I told you about the horse I helped? She’s the noble girl from back then. She’d never betray me...I think. But how old is she now, anyway...? She was about fifteen back then. With seventy-three years in the Item Box and about a year passing since, she’d be eighty-eight or eighty-nine? Super old in this world. Seems she’s been promoted to a higher title too. Mariel’s really made a life for herself.”
It was getting late, though, so we decided to schedule the meeting for later.
“Tomorrow, we’ll meet somewhere discreet. Tell them,” I said.
“Got it. Tomorrow, somewhere private, meet. I’ll tell.”
“Huh, your memory’s better than I thought... Wait, I doubt an old lady like Mariel came out in person, so a message in bird tongue won’t work! Hold on, I’ll write it on paper, so take it with you.”
“Okay. I’ll wait...”
And so, I tied a piece of paper to the bird’s leg, but...
“Why isn’t it leaving?” I wondered.
“Goddess, pet me...”
“Okay, okay.”
I gave the bird some scratches on its head and neck, and the bird closed its eyes blissfully. After savoring it for some time, the bird—which was too big to call a small bird—flew off.
“So that’s the second faction following the Einherjar,” Reiko said. “This inn stands out too much, so we should meet somewhere else. And it’d be best not to meet at their base, just to be safe. Falsetto and I are going too, of course.”
“Right,” I said, nodding without protest.
I figured they would. I’d said it was fine, but it’d been seventy-four years since I’d last seen Mariel. That was plenty of time for anyone to change. At her age, Mariel was at a point where it was a miracle that she was alive at all. And here was the Goddess, famous across the continent for reviving and rejuvenating the great hero Fearsome Fran. It wouldn’t be surprising if she wasn’t able to resist the temptation. Besides, even if Mariel herself had no such intentions, her subordinates might act on their own desires or for her sake.
It never hurts to be cautious.
“I wanna go too—”
“You don’t—”
“You don’t need to come, Kyoko!”
Reiko cut me off before I could say it...
“They’re here...”
The previous day, the bird—a bit too big to call a small bird—had returned with a note specifying the time and place. But it said they’d send an escort in the morning and that the meeting would be at their base, so we’d sent it back with a note saying, “Meet at the Goddess Statue in Central Square. No escort needed.”
Yup, in practically every country on this continent, there was a big park with a statue of Celes in the capital, usually near the royal castle and Temple. It was probably used as a gathering place for citizens during events, emergencies, or disasters, among other things. I’d chosen it because no one would dare do anything improper in front of the castle and Temple. There was a guard post separate from the castle gatekeepers there, and the area had decent foot traffic. It was one of the least suitable places in the capital for attacking or abducting a young woman. Besides, it wasn’t strange for a goddess or the Angel to choose the Celes statue as a meeting spot. I wasn’t dumb enough to stroll right into their home turf. There was no telling what could be waiting there, from ambushers to sleeping drugs slipped into food or drinks to who knows what else. I could neutralize any drugs by drinking a detox potion beforehand, but there was no need to give up that bit of info, since they could always plan countermeasures or try other methods. It was better to give out as little information as possible.
For the same reason, I hadn’t chosen a restaurant as the meeting place. If the location was known in advance, they could have stationed undercover agents posing as unrelated customers, tampered with the food, or pulled any number of tricks. If the discussion dragged on, we could move to a suitable restaurant of my choosing afterward.