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ELFENBEIN and Lilia had returned home by the time I came back from the fields.
Elfenbein had turned twenty-four earlier that year. Because he was vice-commander of the royal knights, we didn’t get to see each other very often.
Lilia was nineteen and supposed to be enjoying the social season back in the royal capital.
After a rare family dinner, we decided to play some chess. I’d never won a single game against Lilia; she was just too good.
“How’s the female squadron?” Elfenbein asked, glancing up from the chessboard.
“Fine. I actually attended one of their training sessions today. Want to come with tomorrow?”
“I suppose it couldn’t hurt.” He smiled lightly. “Heard you took down a salamander. They say your abilities are already officer level.”
“Correction, it was Prince Stern who downed it.”
“But how? Isn’t he metal aligned? I read the report but couldn’t make much sense of it.”
“I coated his mercury-imbued arrow with ice, which melted upon impact with the salamander’s forehead. The heat from the salamander’s body enhanced the mercury’s toxic properties, leading to its swift demise.”
“You coated his magical arrows in ice?” he repeated, his gaze locked on mine. Puzzled, I stared back. “Can you freeze anything?”
“Anything but fire. Can’t you?”
Elfen was ice aligned like me, while Lilia’s affinity was for wind.
Elfen stroked his chin, concern evident on his face. “Only if the object in question contains moisture. I can freeze dirt but not dry trees or other people’s magic.”
“Huh. What about you, Lilia?”
We looked over to Lilia only to see her gently shaking her head. “I’ve never so much as heard of the ability to overlay magic over another’s, let alone possessing that ability myself.”
Her response shocked me. If she didn’t know something, then it definitely wasn’t common knowledge.
After a bit of thinking, Elfen moved one of his pieces, then shifted his gaze back to me. “Okay. All right. So, do you plan on joining the army?”
“I’d certainly like to, but it depends on the marshal. He knows I’m a woman, after all. He permitted me entry into the academy, but whether he’ll let me into the army is another matter.”
“Right, right. Completely slipped my mind.” Elfen snorted. “I can’t imagine our little Lunar Ice Knight as anything other than an officer.”
“Not you too!” A family member referring to me by my alias was just embarrassing.
“A shame, really. The role’s perfect you.”
“If only Neue Milchstrasse had something like the female cavalry unit,” I said.
Elfen looked at Lilia, and she smiled, turning to me. “You’re right, they should. According to ancient literature, man-hating monsters known as Lilitu used to live across the northern mountain range.”
“Interesting. Tell us more,” Elfen urged, his voice brimming with curiosity.
“Taking the appearance of big, beautiful birds, they’d sing to men, promising to fulfill their every desire, only to put them under a curse. The men’d be stripped of their most cherished memories, reduced to thralls whose only purpose was to serve their Lilitu masters.”
“That’s…horrifying,” Elfen said, his face souring.
“Is there a cure?” I asked.
Lilia smiled softly. “To lift the curse, the man must kiss his beloved before losing his memories, whereby they’ll remain in the form of a gem.”
“Sounds like something straight out of a fairytale,” laughed Elfen.
Lilia glanced at me. “It does, but point is, you’d need female knights to fight back such a threat, would you not? Therefore, I believe it would be in the kingdom’s best interest to establish a female knights order,” she asserted, placing a piece down the board.
I half-heartedly smiled. It was nothing more than a pipe dream. Even if we had the power to do as she suggested, nobody would agree to it. To protect fair ladies from harm was a knight’s way, the core principle of chivalry, after all.
“Setting that aside, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you, Bern.”
“Yes?”
“It concerns a certain Prince Sternchen.” My heart skipped a beat at the mention of his name, my face boiling over. Lilia giggled at my reaction. “How are his wounds?”
“They’re almost completely healed.”
“That’s a relief. I’ve been worried sick ever since I lent Marlena some medicated cream after she came to me for advice.”
“You lent her that moisturizer?”
“Don’t you remember? It’s the same lotion I made for you when you were young and would get injured constantly. Can’t leave wounds on a lady’s body, now can we?”
“That explains the nostalgic aroma,” I muttered.
Elfen’s eyebrows shot up. “Why do you know what moisturizer Prince Sternchen uses?”
“Because they’re back wounds and I’m the one applying it?”
“Aren’t there medics at the academy?”
“Would you want to expose your injuries to others? Besides, I’m the reason he got them in the first place, so it’s only natural for me to take responsibility for them.”
How many times must I have this conversation?!
Lilia shot Elfen an icy smile, shutting him up. Elfen crossed his arms and quietly stared at the chess board.
“Sounds like he means a lot to you.” Lilia appraised me with her clear, light blue eyes.
“He does,” I professed.
Stern did mean a lot to me. I wanted to remain at his side for as long as I could, and when I couldn’t anymore, I still wanted to help him in any way possible.
“Then we better use our time wisely to make it so you can stay in the capital.”
“What?!” yelped Elfen suddenly.
Lilia laughed at his outburst. “Checkmate.” She smiled as she took his king.
He heaved a heavy sigh. “You win.”