I’m going to do something. It isn’t like me…to hesitate like this. I’ve always acted before thinking; why change now? Grandma Flaire may not have much time left, but I want to do what I can with the time she still has. Or else I’ll spend what’s left of my own life in regret.
“C’mon, boys! We’re gonna take action!”
Making straight for the front door, I shouted this, and my two trusty familiars—Carbuncle and White-Owl—joined me as I reached for the doorknob.
“Meg.”
I heard my teacher call out to me with a firm voice. Her expression was one of understanding, as if she’d come to a new realization… She stared with sadness in her gaze.
“Whatever happens, you must accept the outcome. The greater the effort you put forward, the greater the pain will be…for you.”
“We can’t know that until I try…!”
I opened the door and ran off into the dark night.
“Oh, if it isn’t Meg. I never expected a visit at this hour.”
Grandma Flaire opened the door. She was visibly shocked by the sight of me smiling at her with a suitcase in my hands.
“Heh, I got into a fight with my teacher and, you know, kind of ran away from home.”
Though there was a smile on my face, the cold was nothing to be smiling about. It wasn’t quite winter yet, but autumn was coming close to its end, and the nights were very cold. Grandma Flaire could see my teeth chattering, and she said, “Oh my,” before ushering me in. “It’s freezing outside. Please come in.”
“Yeah, thank you.”
Running away probably wasn’t my best display of good judgment, but there’s no point in lamenting over it now that I’m here. And life is supposed to be a journey, right?!
“Whew, it’s cold out there.”
The fireplace crackled as I warmed my hands over it. Most modern homes used hydrothermal heating systems, but older ones still used fireplaces. Grandma Flaire had lived in this home for who knew how many years, so it made sense that she still heated her home the old-fashioned way. I preferred this method, seeing as the manor also relied on a fireplace for warmth.
My two familiars were huddled up next to me, and the flickering of the flame could be seen in the reflections of their big eyes. The way they stayed close to me always served to remind me that they were my familiars.
“This is the first time in years you’ve fought with Lady Faust like this, isn’t it? What happened?”
“It’s so dumb, it isn’t even worth talking about. My teacher got angry at me for trying to cook one of the yummier-looking familiars, so I defended myself using Buddhist karmic principles, only for my teacher to go off on how religious differences can often spark war, but I retorted that all beings are fundamentally the same—predestined to become stardust in the vast void. It’s all so…pointless, you know? Everything’s just a chaotic, indifferent jumble. But hey, this might be old news to you.”
Grandma Flaire murmured her reply. “That sounds very difficult.” It was clear she had no idea what I was talking about. At the same time, I could also tell she seemed happy.
“Are you smiling?”
“Oh, excuse me. I just remembered how my husband and I used to get into arguments all of the time.”
“You? Getting into fights? Now, that’s hard to believe.”
“When you live together with someone long enough, you’ll get into a fight or two eventually. It’s the best way to learn about someone else, though, little by little.”
With a thin smile, Grandma Flaire turned her gaze to a picture on the wall. It was her late husband and their son, who had moved far away from Lapis. Grandma Flaire had been living alone in this home for a long time.
What must it feel like to live in such a big house all alone?
“Hey, Grandma Flaire. Do you mind if I stay here with you for a little while? I don’t think I can face my teacher yet.”
“That’s fine by me, but won’t Lady Faust be worried?”
“That’s fine. She has an All-Seeing Eye if she wants to check in on me. She already knows where I am and probably even when I’ll go back. And I’ve been meaning to catch up with you anyway.”
“In that case…feel free to make yourself at home.”
She said this with a warm smile, her eyes squinting as she did. Seeing her smile like this made it worth the trip.
“Have you already eaten? You must be hungry.”
“Oh, no. Don’t worry about—”
I tried to politely decline the offer but was cut off by a loud growling sound. I immediately sprang up in shock—thinking a bear was trying to get into the house—but was even more shocked when I realized it was my own stomach rumbling!
Thinking back on it, I’d stormed out after throwing away my largely untouched dinner.
Hey, a girl’s gotta eat.
“Heh-heh. Wait here, I have some delicious stew on the stove.”
Grandma Flaire turned on her stove and heated up a premade stew. It didn’t take long for its alluring smell to fill the room, and shortly after, she placed a bowl of stew on the table. Judging by its color, it seemed to use red wine as its base—and that just amplified my appetite. Enthralled by the presentation, I took my seat before taking a bite of the stew. It was piping hot—I let out little puffs of breath to cool it as I ate—and had a rich taste.