“And here I coulda sworn I told the two of you to leave all that to us!” Watt barked as the girls shrunk back, only for him to smirk at them immediately after.
“But that ain’t a half-bad idea,” he continued. “And I’m not talkin’ about handing Anna over. This time, we’re going to them... In other words, we’re goin’ to the capital.”
“Whaaa? But isn’t that dangerous?!” Meddié objected. “That’s the bad guys’ base, right?”
“Sure is,” Watt answered. “But if we’re gonna get in the way of their main goal—winning Legalisbelm—then going right smack-dab in the middle of it all is our only choice.”
It was the heart of the Kingdom of Ogdenn and its very capital. Watt had left it behind seventeen years ago—the very place that he’d thought he would never step foot in again. The existence of his daughter had restored his connection once more.
“Hmmm,” Otto said. “You make it sound like there’s enough logic in it, but you’re still planning on going in and attacking them all on your own, aren’t you? You’re hardly in any place to lecture the girls.”
“I can’t help it,” Watt said, puffing out his chest. “This is just how I am.”
Otto sighed, while Anna clasped her hands together. “Legalisbelm... To be honest, I always thought it was far removed from me.”
“Huh?” Meddié said. “But you’re a royal, aren’t you?”
“I am, but my claim to the throne is much further down. Rather, I always thought it’d be my stepfather participating...”
That’s right... Stickin’ our necks in is one thing, but that bastard Lezamer’s in this.
Lezamer Ogdenn, the first prince of the kingdom—the man who’d once stolen everything from Watt and driven him to leave the capital behind. While Watt had thought that being involved in Legalisbelm meant inevitably coming into contact with him somewhere along the way, the occasion might come sooner than he’d imagined.
For now, I think I’ll reach out to one of my old connections. Though we haven’t exchanged so much as a letter for the past decade, so I don’t know how much help they’ll be.
Watt had always been good at dealing with things as they came and acting on the spot. His way forward was beginning to take shape within him.
Just then, Meddié, who’d been thinking about something, spoke up. “I get it, master. I’ll just go with you to the capital, then!”
“Yup, I figured you’d say that!” Watt replied. “You sure you know what you’re signing up for? This isn’t some field trip we’re going on, y’know.”
“I know that!” Meddié rebutted. “But I can’t just do nothing when my friend might be in danger!”
“Meddié...” Anna said.
Meddié took on the task, confidently patting her own chest, only for Otto to interrupt immediately after.
“There’s no way I could allow that.”
“Why not, pops?!” Meddié demanded. “Anna and I fought together!”
“Fighting in this city is one thing, but fighting in the capital is on a different level entirely. What’s more, it’s royals we’re up against...and their might far exceeds our own. Everything that’s happened here pales in comparison to the danger you would face there.”
“But!” Meddié objected. “Anna’s going with master, right?”
“Watt will take care of Anna,” Otto replied. “But that’s the most he can do—he can’t be worrying about you as well. And arranging for guards to watch over you in the capital of all places is no easy task.”
That was hardly enough to deter Meddié, however—the fire in her eyes was still just as strong. “I can keep myself safe, thank you very much!”
“Be sensible about this,” Otto ordered. “And more importantly, there’s no way I could ever wish to subject my only daughter to any more danger than I already have!”
“You don’t get it, pops!” Meddié said. “I don’t want somebody protecting me! I promised Anna I’d help her!”
Had things been as they were until now, Meddié likely would’ve backed down. But this time she refused. Unable to look on any longer, Watt stepped in.
“Don’t give Otto such a hard time,” he said. “You’ve already helped Anna more than enough, Meddié. You just wait here and leave the rest to us.”
“There you go trying to do it all on your own, just like you always do! You don’t get it any more than pops does! There’s a Socom Co. branch office in the capital, and I’ve got connections there. It’ll be way easier to move around if I’m with you—you’ll be able to do things you couldn’t do on your own.”
“Urk!” Watt groaned. “Well...you’ve got a point.”
She’d hit him right where it hurt. Watt was indeed a top-class Steelrider. But at the end of the day, trying to keep Anna safe all on his own when he didn’t know what could happen was a steep task—the more support he could get from the company, the better.
Watt glanced over at Otto to gauge his demeanor. They were family—a father and his daughter—the final decision should be left to them. It wasn’t Watt’s choice to make.
Otto looked down, thinking back on everything that had transpired until this point. After losing his wife too soon, he’d raised Meddié entirely on his own. But even then, he didn’t think he’d been overly protective. He’d permitted her to be a tomboy, let her ride around in a Mechsteel, and even had her working at the Hunters’ Guild at an early age. And yet, at its core, there was no mistaking the fact that he’d felt safe knowing she was close.
I thought she’d stay just a child forever, Otto thought. But...that’s nothing more than a parent’s selfish wish, I suppose.
In time, children grew up to be adults and left the nest behind. Otto couldn’t go on clinging to her forever. In that sense, recognizing her resolve and watching over her was but another duty as her father.
Otto locked eyes with Meddié. “I am the lord of this land,” he proclaimed. “I cannot leave the city unattended. And that is exactly why, Meddié, you are to aid Watt and Anna as representative of both the Socom barony and Socom Co. I trust you are up to the task?”
“You know it!” Meddié replied. “You just leave it to me, pops! I’ll make sure I live up to the Socom name!”
“No, you really don’t have to go and do anything reckless,” Otto corrected.
“It’s fine! It’ll all be just fine! All right, Anna! We’re going together!”
“Of course!” Anna said energetically. “We’ll team up again and give it our very best!”
Watching their daughters lock hands and frolic before them, the two fathers could only sink their shoulders in resignation, the sharpness drained from their expressions.
“I thought it was a parent’s job to keep their child safe,” Otto said, “but it seems the time has come to let them stand on their own.”
Watt sighed. “It’s been all of a week since I’ve known my daughter, though. All this parenting business sure is hard work!”
Both men sighed, before snickering beneath their breath. There was no doubt about it; letting a child follow the whims of their heart was a parent’s greatest—and most challenging—responsibility.
Anna clenched her fists together, bursting with energy. “So now it’s just a matter of figuring out how we get to the capital.”
“We could just fly there on Lord Gryphon, couldn’t we?” Meddié said. “Just jump in the air, and we’re there, right?”
“Nah, flyin’ burns through magicyte like crazy,” Watt replied. “If we tried to fly that far, we’d run out about halfway through and plummet back down.”
“Huh. Guess it’s not so simple after all, huh?” Meddié said.
“Nothin’ to worry about, though!” Watt replied, looking up at the enormous magical instrument—the Trailmarcher—anxiously awaiting its scheduled departure from its platform within Front-Edge City Central Station. “We’ve got this to get us there, after all! It’s our kingdom’s pride, the greatest and grandest form of travel in all the land! So why don’t we treat ourselves to a glamorous trip along the Kingdom’s Trail?!”