Chapter Eighty-Two: The Thunder That Saved Me Once Upon a Time
IT was as if a thunderstorm had manifested in an instant. Rain poured down like a waterfall.
Lord Hiaki’s eyes grew wide, and he backed away from me with a sardonic smile. “I swear, the emperor must be watching us or something.”
The emperor, whose name literally evoked “the fruits of spring,” was often associated with thunderstorms, which signaled the start of the season. Even as Lord Hiaki grumbled to himself, rain hailed down noisily on the makeshift hut. My magic deflated under the assault of the booming thunder and relentless rain, and the roof started to leak. Frantically, I attended to it right away.
Lord Hiaki stood up to shield me from the water. I thanked him for his kindness before manipulating my mana to make repairs as quickly as I could.
Observing the force of the torrential rain, Lord Hiaki muttered out aloud, “Looks like our rescue team is going to have trouble finding us…”
I nodded, and we both glanced up at the sky through the entrance. It was pitch-dark outside, the rain so dense that it looked more like a sandstorm. The thunder, crashing trees, and raging waves clashed in a chaotic symphony—it was as though the world were trying to hide us away from the people searching for us.
I chewed on my lip. “This is worrying… Will they manage to find us?”
The murky, wet forest night gobbled up sound, light, and even heat. If I used magic to create a flare or a loud noise, it would instantly dissipate amid the rain, meaningless.
With my current mana levels, I could try to generate a blinding light at full power and maintain it until the others found us. But I had to be in perfect health and a suitable environment for that to work on a good day, and with every passing second, the rain sapped the energy from my body. Such a plan was too reckless.
On top of that…this incident won’t be resolved that easily. “Lord Hiaki.”
“Mm?”
“If this becomes a major incident, the island’s residents might face punishment.”
“It’s probably already causing a big stir.” He paused. “After all, the very fact that we survived that fall and are still alive at the bottom of the cliff is unthinkable.”
“Then…” I felt a pang in my chest.
I recalled all those who had prayed to me, to the Wagtail Priestess, with all their heart. A single mistake by a small group would lead to misfortune for everyone. My own heart ached. They had first been banished to the island because of others’ misdeeds, and once again…
An earsplitting rumble shook the heavens and earth as lightning tore the sky in two. The flow of my mana was interrupted, and the shack buckled for a second before I was able to resurrect it. That single second was enough for muddy rain to drench me from head to toe.
But for some reason, I found myself smiling. In the instant I was showered with rain and surrounded by thunder, a vivid memory flashed across my mind like the lightning across the sky outside. I had experienced such a storm before.
“…Ha ha.”
Lord Hiaki’s puzzled voice sounded distant. “Oi, you okay there, Sai?”
When I turned to him, his eyes widened. I seemed to have shocked all the words out of his mouth—I had to be an eerie sight as I smiled in the veil of rain. But his opinion of me was the last thing on my mind.
My chest was hot, my heart thrumming with an exhilaration I had never felt in my entire life. I…have experienced this weather before. I know it.
It was the day the emperor had saved me. Still in my homeland, we had waited for rescue in a cave, isolated from the rest of the world. It was the thunderstorm the emperor had called forth in place of a smoke signal.
Yes. The emperor summoned a thunderstorm back then, I remember. With a tremendous mana pool comparable to a god’s, a person could bend even the heavens to their will for a short time.
“Lord Hiaki,” I called out.
“Yeah?”
“It is likely I will collapse soon.”
“Wha…”
“When the rescue team arrives, please let my attendant court lady take care of me.”
“Wait. Sai, what in the world are you planning?”
“I will change the weather.”
“Huh?!”
I gripped the earrings pinned to my collar as I walked out of the hut. The moment I was exposed to elements, rain pelted down at me with enough force to cause pain. As water deluged every inch of me, I looked up at the sky.
“Your Majesty…” I whispered, the words almost like a prayer. Shutting my eyes, I recalled how the emperor had manipulated his mana on the day he first saved me. I focused on the area deep within my navel, drawing out mana to fill every part of my body, willing it to churn under my skin like hot magma.
I sucked in a breath.
Craning my neck, I gazed up at the dazzling exhibition of light. Lightning was a sacred occurrence that blessed spring with life and bountiful fruit. It was the perfect representation of the emperor’s noble name. Your Majesty… Emperor Haruka. Please allow me to call you by your name. Oh, Emperor Haruka, please lend me your power.
The chant flowed from my lips. “I am the Wagtail Priestess, and in accordance with my name, Sai, I am she who serves the Amawashi that reigns supreme over the seas of the east. Your Majesty, everything in this land, you possess—the winds, the rain, the lightning… In his place, I entreat you, o heavens, grant me clear skies for but a while.” I hesitated, then pleaded sincerely, “Please help me!”
My mana dried up in an instant. The sky sucked it out of me vigorously, siphoning it up into the boundless ceiling of nature. No matter how much mana I pumped out, even the utmost bottom of my reserves was reduced to a parched desert.
I gritted my teeth, suppressing any noises of pain I might make. My hand squeezed the gift from the emperor. I inhaled, then whipped up my head, determination burning in my chest as I screamed, “I beseech you, please bestow upon this island your compassion and bless it with cloudless skies!”
The stream of mana transformed into a shining, golden pillar of light that pierced the firmament like a bolt. The air shimmered with tiny sparkles like a shower of gold leaves, and soon, the sky brightened.
“Sai!”
Lord Hiaki was shouting something. But before I could reply, my world faded into black as I fell unconscious…
“Sai! You with me, Sai?!”
…Or at least, that was what I had thought.
“Huh…?” I mumbled in a daze. I had fainted for only a split second.
“Hey, are you okay?!”
Though my head was spinning, I managed to cling to awareness in Lord Hiaki’s arms—he had caught me before I toppled over. “I…am surprisingly in good condition, yes.”
The rain stopped abruptly and the clouds ebbed away. I hope the search team saw the pillar of light.
“That aside…” I looked down at my palms. “My mana levels are… How strong am I right now…?” Considering how my magic had surged earlier in the summer and what I had just accomplished, I appeared to have become much stronger than I had ever expected.
I heard someone’s voice echoing in the distance. “Lady Sai! Lord Hiaki! Are you there?!”
More people shouted our names, accompanied by the rustling of leaves as brush was pushed away. Ah. Our rescue is here. I breathed a sigh of relief.
A deeper, much longer sigh issued from above my head. “Wooow… You mages are a scary lot. You look like a petite, delicate girl, but look at what you managed.” He let out a dry laugh. “I gotta think thrice before I try to make a move on you.”
I felt warmth on my back. Oh. Oh! I had the delayed realization that I was still leaning my full weight on him. With a gasp, I hurriedly stood up and distanced myself. “I am so sorry!”
He flashed me a toothy grin. “Don’t sweat it. It’s my duty to protect you, our noble Wagtail Priestess.” He reached out to pat my head but then stopped midway. Casting his eyes down, he instead took my right hand. When he looked up again, resolve glinted in his earnest, red eyes.
“Hey, Sai,” he said in a low voice, staring right into my soul.
“…Yes?”
“In Centoria, people kiss the hand of the ladies they swear fealty to, right?”
“That is a custom the Holy Knights often practice, yes…”
“Which side? The back? The palm?”
“The back.”
“Huh. Does it mean anything?”
“A kiss on the back of one’s hand shows loyalty, and…if I remember correctly, the palm means desire, I think.”
“Huhhh… That’s kind of racy.” He grinned. Then he pressed his lips lightly against the back of my hand.
My breath hitched.
When he opened his mouth to speak, it was in a solemn tone I had never heard from him before. “I, the General of the Right Wing, Hiaki Gou, am in your debt. You have saved me twice this day, and I pledge my undying loyalty to you until the day I breathe my last. No matter what happens, whether you end up as my wife or otherwise, I shall be wings that you can fall back on whenever you need me, Wagtail Priestess—my lady Sai.”