She was peering at him now with a worried look on her face. “You don’t want to? Work for the merchant association.”
“No, that’s not it. It’s not that I dislike the work… Actually, I quite enjoy it. I’m always learning something new.”
“Then you should do it with confidence in yourself.”
“Yes, you’re right.” Then, suddenly wondering, Mathias asked, “How about you? What made you want to become a soldier?”
“That…” replied Rita, turning ahead, her voice muted, “That’s a secret.”
Mathias traced back to their earlier conversation.
Working for the Garrison included bodyguard duty.
They might be able to travel to another town together.
Requests were heeded if a soldier performed well…
That couldn’t be why she’d wanted to join the military, could it? Because she wanted to work alongside him? If that was it…didn’t that mean she liked him?
Mathias, himself, had feelings for her. As far back as he could remember, he had no other friends his own age. She had broadened his horizons, and he’d said as much during their dinner.
He stole another look at her profile.
She didn’t have the refined looks of girls from the privileged classes. But there was a definite beauty in her fresh vitality. More than anyone else Mathias knew, she was stridently individual and amazingly strong. She was furnished with an unshakable sense of right and wrong. If he asked her to become more than friends, she might say yes. While it was hard to imagine, he supposed they might start to go out together.
But what would happen then?
They might be happy for a number of years, but Mathias didn’t think that his father, Jörg Kramer, would ever consent to their marriage. Mathias was destined to become the head of his household. He was expected to establish matrimonial ties with a family who had influence in the royal government or who represented one of the other merchant associations. Such marriages of convenience were a part of work, one of the duties his social status demanded of him.
But it was stupid to worry about such things at this stage. He was no doubt just getting ahead of himself. He wasn’t even sure Rita had similar feelings for him. He felt ashamed for having let such wild fancy suck him in so quickly.
That had been just over a year ago.
Mathias sprang up.
For a moment he was thrown by the unfamiliar ceiling. Then he remembered. He was no longer at the family mansion in Quinta District. The warm comfort of the courtyard was gone. Mathias and the others had traveled into the interior the whole of last night, reaching Fuerth District on the western flank of Wall Rose. The room he was in now was a guest room in his father’s townhouse. He’d stayed here a number of times before while accompanying the senior Kramer on business.
Weak afternoon light streamed through the window. The sun was already getting ready to set. He’d apparently been asleep for quite some time. He got down from the bed and slipped on his shoes.
It was cold. He hurried over to the closet, took out a jacket, and slipped it on. His luggage was unpacked and sorted. One of the servants must have seen to it while he was asleep. His memory seemed finally to clear.
Of course. He’d been so exhausted when they’d arrived in the morning, he’d collapsed into the bed and fallen fast asleep.
He stepped through the door. The wood-floored hallway showed no sign of life, but he sensed the presence of people downstairs.
“Father!”
Mathias half-tumbled down the steps. He stopped on a landing when he noticed Suzanne, one of their servants and his home tutor, talking with someone in the entranceway. Perhaps she was detailing to a worker whatever items they needed sent across.
She had been in the employ of the Kramer family for as long as Mathias could remember and had to be in her late thirties. She looked a good ten years younger, though, and they were more like friends than teacher and student.
“Do you know about the others? Everyone from Quinta. Have they made it already?” Mathias asked as he reached the first floor. He had in mind Rita, Henning, and Doris.
“Oh, Mathias…”
A faint look of pain flickered onto her face. Mathias didn’t fail to pick up on the change. He couldn’t have missed it, even if he’d wanted to.
“Did something happen?” He took a step closer. “What about Rita, her family? Are they here?”
“Not yet.” Suzanne’s answer was unambiguous, even as she hesitated, averting her eyes.
“Why?”
“The Titans─they arrived earlier than expected. That’s what I was told. So…half of the population got stranded inside.”
“Does that…” …mean Rita is there too?
Suzanne didn’t answer. She wouldn’t look up.
Why? “What─what happened?”
“The Garrison Regiment was deployed, to protect the evacuees.” Her voice was trembling, her mouth quivering as she spoke. “They told me that, apart from a few, they were all wiped out.”
It dawned on Mathias what she was trying to say.
Rita was dead.
At the very least, nobody knew if she had survived. Mathias felt as though a chasm had opened inside him.
“Why not?!”
Mathias was openly arguing with his father. It was perhaps the first time he’d ever done so. Jörg’s work colleagues had gathered in the townhouse’s study and stood around the large writing desk. Mathias recognized a few of the faces, but there were some he’d never seen before. The latter had to be representatives of the Fuerth merchant associations or delegates from the royal government.
“This matter concerns the survival of a great many people. And it isn’t something I’m able to influence by myself.”
“That’s not true! Of course it’s within your influence. You have the resources to mobilize soldiers whenever you see fit. Isn’t it the merchant associations that keep the military stocked with food and equipment?”
“Yes, but these are not normal circumstances. You must understand at least that much.”
“They might get through the wall if we don’t act now!”
After hearing about Quinta from Suzanne, Mathias had requested Jörg to dispatch a rescue party. Negotiate with the government through the merchant association! But convincing Jörg had proven difficult.
“We know they managed to close the gate siding the interior. The Titans might have breached Wall Maria, but that doesn’t mean Quinta is about to fall too.”