“Keep going, Hisame!” Angelina cried, supporting his waist. “Keep going, Ryuho!”
After crossing the bridge, they arrived at the tip of the tower. It was a hexagonal prism isolated from the rest of the castle. A cross similar to Angelina’s dagger rose from the top of the roof. All six sides of the tower’s highest point formed archways, and a bell hung from the inside.
“This is the legendary golden bell…” Angelina murmured in astonishment.
The bell shone so beautifully that no one would ever suspect its ancient origins. A stone staircase wrapped around the outside of the tower, and arched windows opened up here and there. Something akin to a rainbow-colored oil film enveloped the entirety of Yule Castle. That was, perhaps, why the castle hadn’t been frozen. Not even a single drop of water had seeped through its walls.
Angelina climbed off Ryuho’s back. “So this is Yule Castle…” she mumbled, timidly extending a hand towards its walls.
“I wouldn’t touch it directly if I were you,” Hisame warned.
Nodding, Angelina unsheathed her dagger—her mother’s memento. She pressed the tip of the blade against the thin film, puncturing it ever so slightly. With the blade still penetrating the film, she drew a large oval, forming an elliptical entrance in the magic barrier. As she took a step forward, Ryuho grabbed her collar with his teeth.
“Hop on my back again, Lina,” he said. “What if we can’t enter without you?”
Angelina nodded again and climbed on Ryuho’s back. Then, he strode through the elliptical entrance with both passengers, setting foot on the staircase circling the tower. Just then, the entrance closed, producing a sound like a gust of wind. Not a single monstrous fish or drop of water could pass through the thin film. It must have been powerful magic. Despite their successful entry, could they exit just as safely?
After the children climbed off Ryuho’s back, the trio raced down the stairs, arms pumping and legs burning. Upon reaching solid ground, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Without delay, they began to explore the castle while consulting the Bai Ze’s old map. The scent of sweet flowers permeated the entire castle.
Before long, Hisame took a piece of chalk from his pocket and drew the Tianshi’s Protective Seal on the stone floor.
“What are you doing?” Ryuho asked while sniffing the seal.
“Well…” Hisame replied while fidgeting. “I’m leaving marks so we’ll know the way back, regardless of whether we lose the map or get separated.”
Hisame was taking precautions due to his timidity. In Anda, he would have been mocked as a coward for using this method. However, Angelina and Ryuho both looked at him with sparkling eyes.
“Whoa, you’re smart!” Ryuho shouted.
“You’re amazing, Hisame!” Angelina cried.
“…But it’s not very fiendish, is it?” Hisame asked timidly.
“No, but it is something you would do!” Ryuho answered.
Hisame started in surprise. “I see. It’s something I would do.”
“No one else would’ve thought of this!” Angelina chimed in. “What a wonderful idea.”
Hisame’s heart trembled with delight. He hardly ever received compliments for acting like himself, causing him to swell with happiness.
“Well then, let’s leave marks as we continue exploring,” Hisame said.
The other two nodded. As they continued onwards, Hisame left more marks, and Angelina cast protective magic on top of the chalk to prevent it from disappearing. The castle was so warm that no one would suspect it of being submerged in water. Even so, it was covered in dust and devoid of people.
“We were told that the sheet music is in the queen’s room,” Hisame said while examining the map. “But I don’t see it here.”
Ryuho cocked his head. “Is her room labeled under a different name?”
Angelina looked at the map through the wicker cabinet’s bookmark. Unfortunately, the map appeared no different from before she’d entered the castle. As she let out a soft sigh, the protective seal on her right hand began shining faintly. An idea occurred to her, and she raised her hand over the map.
“Please tell me the location of the queen’s room!” she ordered.
Slowly, red ink blotted one room in the shape of a Tianshi’s Protective Seal.
“That’s it!” Ryuho and Hisame exclaimed in unison, nodding to each other.
“Then let’s go!” Angelina cheered.
The trio continued marching towards the queen’s room while drawing protective seals on the walls. Dust floated in the air, and light shone through the water’s surface, creating glimpses of rippling shadows. When the children spoke, their voices echoed as if in a cave. Outside the window, fish with glinting scales swam in schools. Flowers bloomed from aquatic plants invisible on the surface, and fish eggs swayed in the water. A phantasmal, dreamlike quality tinged everything around them.
Finally, they arrived before the queen’s room. The door had a triangular keyhole, its groove the same size as the Dagger of Mercy’s blade.
“Is this the keyhole?” Hisame asked.
Nodding, Angelina unsheathed the dagger and stuck it in the groove. The dagger spun around of its own accord, and the door opened. After placing Angelina on his back, Ryuho stepped into the room, floral-scented dust whirling up around them. A large desk sat in front of a grand window on the opposite wall. To their right was an old-fashioned furnace filled with unburnt firewood. Perhaps the room had been left untouched since the lake’s flooding.
Portraits of successive queens hung on the wall, their names written beneath the frames. At first, their last names were simply Yule, but partway through, that changed to Ci Té Yule. The final portrait depicted Angelina’s grandmother. Yule had been destroyed before Phaenna could become queen, after all. Regardless, Angelina stared at the empty space beside the final painting. By rights, her mother’s portrait should have been hung there.
“Phaenna Ci Té Yule,” Angelina said her mother’s name out loud.
“Achoo!”
Ryuho let out an enormous sneeze, kicking up a cloud of dust. Everyone closed their eyes at once. Strangely, however, Hisame and Ryuho fell into a deep sleep before they could reopen their eyes. A bewildered Angelina was still on Ryuho’s back as he slumped onto his belly. In any event, she didn’t suspect any foul play, as his soft snores were quite happy.
After clambering off Ryuho, Angelina started shaking him. “Ryuho!” she called out to him. “Ryuho!”
In response, Ryuho kneaded the air like a happy kitten. He seemed to be having a pleasant dream.
“Wake up, Hisame!” Angelina cried, shaking him as well. He didn’t respond either.
“…Angelina,” a voice whispered. “You’re Angelina, aren’t you?”
Lifting her head, Angelina found a translucent woman standing in the dust-shrouded room. Her buoyant hair fell to her waist—the same light pink as Angelina’s. Likewise, she had azure eyes. She was none other than Angelina’s mother. Angelina recognized from a portrait in her father’s room.