Dorothea’s last novel began with the couple’s kiss. Judging from that, Allen was sure this one couldn’t be any better than the last. I bet it’s another good-for-nothing book... he thought, heaving a great sigh.
Magus was carrying a pile of rubble, but he stopped in his tracks and let out a yelp. “Whoa! Aren’t you Professor Dorothea?! I read your book! I’ve been wondering, is that story based on the Dark Overlord?!”
“Aha, that’s right! I’m a bit surprised I have a reader among the Rock People.”
“Well, my sis—my family’s a fan. Would you mind signing my copy?”
“Gladly! I’m a popular writer with a big heart, after all!”
“Oh, I want an autograph too!” The other men who had read her novel crowded around her excitedly.
The dramatic tension of the scene completely deflated into a merry meet and greet. Allen tried to shoo away the bubbly group. “Ugh, you’re ruining the serious mood...! Go away, Dorothea! We’re dealing with important matters here!”
“Aww, but I gave you a hand too! Aren’t you forgettin’ something? A word of thanks, perhaps?!”
“I’ll return all the enchanted cloaks we borrowed later! For now—”
“Oh no, I don’t mean those. You can keep them for all I care.” Dorothea waved her hand casually and whipped out another copy of the new novel from thin air. “I’m talkin’ about my brand new book. I’ve spread the word on Charlotte’s innocence, y’see.”
“Huh...? What’s your pulp fiction got to do with that?” Allen cocked his head, confused.
“O-Oh? Umm...” Charlotte blinked. She slowly turned another leaf and gulped. “Dorothea... You...really wrote about us.”
“’Course I did. Master Allen gave me permission, remember? He said I can write anything I want!”
“I did say that, but...did you really—?!” Struck by understanding, Allen caught his breath and grabbed the book from the elf. He rifled through the pages, ignoring the illustrations depicting a couple and running his eyes over the text. Familiar words jumped out at him: “the Kingdom of Neils,” “Cecil, the second prince,” “the Evans Family,” “Stepmother Cordelia,” so on and so forth... “Wait... You wrote all about the stupid prince’s plot without changing anyone’s names?!”
“Well, you did give me the go-ahead,” Dorothea said nonchalantly.
“What...?” Cecil, who had been wriggling on the ground, trying to loosen the rope around him, froze in place. Cordelia, still gagged, had the same reaction. Eluka and Natalia peered at the book.
“Whoa! You even clarified that it’s nonfiction,” Eluka remarked. “This is basically a love story slash tell-all.”
“It’s very bold—no sign of walking on eggshells at all. You did an amazing job, Dorothea,” Natalia said.
“Heh heh heh, thought it’d be interestin’ to write a book in this genre too. By the way, it’s got worldwide distribution startin’ today!”
“What the—?!” Cecil somehow grew even paler, but he tried to pull himself together, twisting his face into an awkward sneer. “H-Hmph... The print run for a stupid book like that won’t be much to speak of. I bet it won’t change a thing—”
“Actually, the first run is a million copies. I’m sure all book shops all over Neils Kingdom are gonna stock it. From what I’ve heard, both ordinary folk and aristocrats have been lookin’ forward to my new book—can’t wait to hear what they think!”
“How—?! Hey, you elf! Do you want my kingdom to turn on you?!”
“Sure, why not? Human nations can’t scare me. I mean, they’re all gonna collapse before my lifetime is up anyway. Feel free to sue me, if you’d like? Though I don’t know if that’s gonna help sway public opinion once they’ve read it! Ah ha ha!” Dorothea chortled.
“Arrrrgh...!” Cecil’s face rapidly changed color from stark white to red to purple. Cordelia was sweating bullets too, eyes swimming in a panic.
Allen flapped the book shut and asked Dorothea the most important question. “So this means...the whole world will know within a day that Charlotte is innocent?”
“Yup, that’s about it,” Dorothea said airily.
“Oh...just like that...really?” Charlotte looked like she didn’t know what to think.
Since Allen had just been strengthening his resolve to fight it out to the end, he felt like someone had pulled the rug from under him. In any case, he bowed to Charlotte. “Sorry. I wanted to deal with everything with my own hands, but...looks like we already have a happy ending without much effort.”
“D-Don’t be sorry,” Charlotte said hastily, shaking her head. “It’s thanks to you that we’re friends with Dorothea in the first place.” She squeezed his hands and gave him a warm smile. “Thank you so much, Allen. I’m glad I met you.”
The same words she had told him on her birthday brought a gentle warmth to his heart. “Me too...” he murmured. As they gazed into each other’s eyes, holding each other’s hands, Cecil started to shriek.
“Arrgh! A little scandal can’t touch me! I’m the prince! Hey, wizard! I’ll make you pay for this—gah?!”
“Allen?!”
That was the final straw, and Allen punched Cecil straight in the face. Though he held back just enough so he wouldn’t kill Cecil, the blow was enough to let him take out all his pent-up anger. Cecil blacked out, so his annoying screeches stopped, and Allen managed to blow off steam—two birds with one stone.
Allen breathed a sigh of relief, and then he realized something. There was one person missing from the crowd of people passing around the book and chatting excitedly.
“Hm...? Where’s Lydie, anyway?”
♢
While the hullabaloo was happening in the Maerd District, Lydie was walking down a narrow back alley a little ways away. She had slipped away without anyone noticing as Allen and Co had run after Charlotte. The setting moon hung above her, and the sky was a vivid shade of lapis lazuli. But there was still some time till dawn; the dilapidated alley was sunken in gloom. It certainly wasn’t the sort of place for a little child to walk by herself. She shouldn’t have had any business in such an alley to begin with.
Still, there Lydie was. She stopped in her tracks and let out a small sigh. “I thought I felt a strange presence... I’ve sensed it for a while now...” Apparently, she was talking to herself. But as soon as she spoke, a shadow swayed ever so slightly behind her. She felt it, yet she didn’t turn around. She went on slowly in a low voice, “At first I thought you were someone else. But Allen and the others didn’t seem to detect your presence...so I realized you were someone only I was attuned to.” Lydie paused. She shook her head as if to dispel her hesitation. With another sigh, she murmured, “It’s been a long time...my little brother Robert.”