Chapter 4: A Thorny Future

It was soon after Felix’s burns had healed. As I was cutting across the courtyard of the fort—though technically, there was nothing to be found there but bare soil—I noticed a commotion near the gates.

“Is it an enemy attack, you think?” I asked Cain. Of course, considering he’d been accompanying me the whole day, there was no way for him to know any better than I did.

“Let’s go take a look,” Cain suggested, holding out a hand for me.

I grabbed hold of his sleeve, which had been the intent behind the gesture. Wandering around outside still made me uneasy. If it were Gina or Emmeline with me, I would have clung to them like a barnacle. I couldn’t do that with Cain, though, and the two girls were currently busy with other things.

After much internal debate, I had started out by grabbing hold of Cain’s cape, much to his consternation. He had then suggested we hold hands, but I had to turn him down on that one. It was one thing to do that when I was being carted around like luggage or dragged somewhere, but now that I’d realized I was in love with someone else, holding hands with a guy who liked me just because I was afraid of everyone else seemed pretty tacky. Thus, we’d found a compromise in letting me grab his sleeve instead.

Although this wasn’t a particularly big fort, it still took a decent chunk of time to get around. As I padded along toward the source of the bustle, Cain suddenly muttered, “This brings back memories.”

“Hm?”

“My brother used to walk around holding on to my sleeve, too.” Cain bore a more serene countenance than he usually did when he spoke of his family. “Perhaps I ought to make His Highness do the same at some point.”

The part he’d tacked on at the end was vaguely concerning. Uh, where did this urge to baby Reggie come from? Don’t tell me this is a new form of bullying. Did something happen between those two?

As I kept walking, my head tilted in puzzlement, I eventually saw Alan and his knight Chester talking with a group of soldiers near the gates. They spotted us before Cain could call out to them.

“Are you playing the father to her baby duckling, Wentworth?” Chester teased.

There’s a very good reason for this! I wanted to protest, but even that was too embarrassing to say. I kept my mouth shut instead.

“Never mind that. Did our scouting operation turn something up?” Cain asked, ignoring his comment entirely.

“Oh, you’re no fun. We didn’t find any enemies, no. His Highness said he was stepping out for a bit, that’s all.”

“What for? There’s no need for him to go out on patrol.”

Chester beckoned us closer, leading us away from everyone else. Once we’d followed him over, he leaned in and whispered something into Cain’s ear. I overheard something about “thorn” and something about “here.”

That was all I needed to get the gist of what was going on.

The Thorn Princess? The Thorn Princess is here?

Just as I was wondering what a little-boy-loving misanthrope would be doing all the way out here, Master Horace started chortling from where he hung at my waist. “Guess he got her reply.”

“Do you know what’s going on, Master Horace?”

“The prince hasn’t been feeling up to snuff lately, y’see. I didn’t know what to do about it, so I recommended he reach out to someone else for advice. Since you’re already here and all, you ought to tag along and ask some questions yourself.”

“Okay, I will! Sir Cain, let’s go catch up to him!” I urged without missing a beat.

Cain’s face twisted into a scowl. “Really, Sir Horace?”

“Hohoho!” he cackled once more. “I’m not about to keep any secrets from her. Talk her down yourself, if you have to.”

Now that the cat was out of the bag, Cain probably figured there was no longer any point in trying to keep me in the dark. With a sigh, he asked Chester to lend us a couple soldiers. We’d be in trouble if we got ambushed on our way to go find Reggie, after all.

Reggie hadn’t gone that far. In a grove a few minutes’ walk from the fort, I spotted his knights and a few soldiers he must have brought along for the trip. The moment they laid eyes on me, his royal guard made faces that screamed, Shoot! She found us!

“Excuse me! Where did His Highness go?”

“He’s over there, Lady Spellcaster.” The knight relented immediately and pointed to a spot further into the woods.

There, I could see Reggie and the Thorn Princess standing before... a pond? A spring? I was surprised to see the princess hadn’t aged a day, only to find myself swiftly distracted by a wave of magic that caused Reggie to fall to his knees.

“What?!”

What was that just now? What did the Thorn Princess do to Reggie?

Despite what had just happened, Reggie’s knights didn’t rush over to his side. He must have ordered them not to approach him under any circumstances. Groul, the only one he’d kept by his side, flapped his arms helplessly, but didn’t move any closer.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t just sit back and watch.

“Reggie!”

I let go of Cain’s sleeve, running over to where Reggie was. When I caught up to him, he glanced back at me with a conflicted smile. “I didn’t think you would find me so quickly.”

I knew it. He kept this a secret from me and Cain on purpose.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

The Thorn Princess was the one to answer. “This concerns the contract stone fragment inside of him. He asked if I could do anything about it. While I don’t know of any way to remove it entirely, I tried something that ought to ease his burden.”

That must have been the explanation for that burst of magic.

“This should reduce the strain on his body, right?”

“As long as he remains on his best behavior, yes.” In other words, he would be in trouble if he didn’t.

Once he’d finally gotten to his feet, Reggie addressed the Thorn Princess, “One more thing, if I may. Why did you agree to help me? This wasn’t a mere whim of yours, I assume. You’re infamous for avoiding human contact, yet you’ve cooperated with Kiara from day one. And you gave her that contract stone because you knew she had the aptitude to become a fellow spellcaster, didn’t you?”

The Thorn Princess’ gaze softened, the edges of her mouth quirking up. “It’s impossible to tell who has the aptitude and who doesn’t. However... I am the one who changed her fate, for better or for worse.”

That threw me for a loop. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that I knew of your destiny, and I chose to tamper with it.”

She tampered with my destiny? But I chose to run away and escape my fate of dying Alan’s enemy before I met her. She had nothing to do with it.

“The time isn’t right to go into all that. I don’t mind giving you a hint, however.” From there, the Thorn Princess launched into what sounded like an old legend. “Once upon a time, a girl with silver hair was born unto a branch of the royal family. Fearful that her pure blood would become diluted, the king decreed that she one day be married into the monarchy.”

I looked over to Reggie, who seemed to be listening to her fluid narration quite intently.

“Yet in the end,” she continued, “the king turned around and bestowed her upon a certain spellcaster as a reward for coming to his aid. Once she had been made into a spellcaster herself, she came across another lady of the royal family who had met a similar fate. The woman in question had been exiled by the king. Handing her over to the spellcaster had been his way of getting her out of the picture.”

This story must have gone back to the days when Farzian kings did dealings with spellcasters. By the time I had asked Reggie to track down a mage for me, the connection had already been lost to the ages, so perhaps this tale really had happened “once upon a time.”

“There’s evidence that spellcasters were employed up through my grandfather’s generation,” Reggie volunteered. “I assume my uncle didn’t know what the kings of the past had promised their spellcasters as compensation, nor did he know the identity of any mages, and thus he was unable to call on them in wartime.”

Now that he’d explained that, a lot of things suddenly made more sense. Still, offering up a child of the royal family as a sacrifice? This was a pretty chilling tale.

“How come only women of the royal family were used as tributes?” I asked.

“This particular sorcerer believed that royalty was more likely to make it as a spellcaster—though in reality, I doubt their odds were any better than that of the common folk. If the king tried to sacrifice someone outside his own family, his deal with the spellcaster would come to light, so he never bothered to correct that assumption,” the Thorn Princess responded, then let out a sigh.

“The girl managed to escape with the help of the lady-turned-spellcaster, though her savior died for her efforts. Of course, the girl at large would have no means to resist her mentor if he got too close. She wandered about, looking for a way to escape his control. At the end of her search, she found an impossibly large contract stone inside a forest. So long as she stayed beside it, she could stave off the spellcaster when he came to the woods looking for her.”

When I heard the word “forest,” my mind went straight to the Thorn Princess.

Is that why she never leaves her woods? Because there’s a giant contract stone somewhere deep inside? But I thought she was supposed to be living in that forest since time immemorial.

While I was thinking it over, the Thorn Princess finally brought her tale to an end. “That’s all I can tell you for now. My time is up.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, but it wasn’t long before I saw exactly what she meant with my own two eyes.

The Thorn Princess began to fade away, the contours of her silver hair melting away bit by bit. The lake behind her gradually came into view past her porcelain skin and the garments she wore.

“You’re going to vanish?!”

Is she going to disappear forever? I turned white as a sheet, which drew a laugh from the Thorn Princess.

“Not quite. I transported myself here for but a short time, that’s all. Oh, right... Allow me to make an excuse for myself before I go. Your prince requested that I grant him the ability to wield the mana of the contract stone trapped inside him, so I did.”

“Thorn Princess!”

Judging by the way Reggie snapped at her, she was telling the truth.

“What? Why would you ask her for that, Reggie?!” I cried out, staring up at him, but he only averted his gaze. In the time I spent looking away, the Thorn Princess’ outline had grown fainter and fainter, until it was as thin as a portrait drawn over sheer silk.

“Talk that out among yourselves, will you? Farewell.”

“Please, Thorn Princess, turn him back to normal!”

“Wha—no, Kiara, don’t!”

I made a desperate grab for whatever part of her I could reach, hoping to hold her back. My fingers slipped through what felt like a thick blanket of fog.

As soon as the Thorn Princess shouted at me to stop, my eyes snapped wide open as memories flooded into me.

◇◇◇

The sight of a dimly lit town unfolded before my eyes. It had been wrapped up in a battle, from the looks of it. I could hear people screaming, and the sound of metal clashing against metal echoed from afar. The stench of blood assailed my nostrils, carried by the wind.

“There should be nothing left to bind you now.”

“It’s too late for that to matter. Even if I gave myself up to Évrard, I’m too heinous a criminal to be pardoned. Just kill me—now, while there’s still time.”

And yet, he refused my plea. “That wouldn’t make His Highness happy. Just think of the lengths he went to for your sake.”

“But even Reggie couldn’t manage to set me free! Besides, now that he’s gone, what am I supposed to live for?!” I shouted back. The black-haired, blue-caped man’s frown deepened just a fraction. Perhaps he felt the same way I did.

I wasn’t able to ponder that for long, however. A moment later, a canine monster—a windwolf—lunged at him from behind.

I couldn’t let this man die. He had been close enough to Reggie to hear about me from him. At the very least, I wanted anyone who remembered me or the prince to live out their lives for the both of us.

Thus, I put my golem into motion. Almost immediately, I was struck with a bout of weakness that made it impossible to keep the magic going.

When I glanced upward, I saw the very man who had collapsed a bloody mess in the street was struggling back to his feet.

I figured I could rain soil down upon him, if nothing else. I’d hoped I could bury the windwolf along with him, but it managed to skirt around the avalanche of earth.

I’d just have to take the hit for him, then. My mind made up, I endeavored to bury myself alongside the monster, but then...

◇◇◇

“Kiara?!” a voice called out, and I snapped back to my senses.

For a moment, I had no idea where I was. Around me was a wood of dense green. I was staring out at a pond, with Reggie propping me up from behind.

What was that just now?

It seemed like a continuation of the dream I’d had so many times before—the one where I was Kiara Credias, living out the scenes and sights of the life I could have led. Only this time, I hadn’t fallen asleep. As crazy as it seemed to consider... could it be that those daydreams had been the Thorn Princess’ memories all along? This was my first time ever touching her, though. Then why had I seen that just now?

It was too late to ask her for an explanation. There was nothing to do but set that aside for now.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine... Sorry about that. I think I got hit with some of the Thorn Princess’ magic.” I didn’t understand what had happened enough to explain it myself, so I swept it under the rug.

“She really did disappear, it seems.”

There was no trace of the silver-haired girl standing before the pond. She must have faded away completely.

“I suppose that was another spell of hers.”

“Probably. By the way, do you think that story was about her?”

More and more mysteries kept piling up before my very eyes. The Thorn Princess’ anecdote alone had left me full of questions. I’d gotten the feeling that she’d kept the tale deliberately vague, too. Was she going to share the full story with us one day?

“Maybe. Though to me, it looked like she didn’t want to answer our questions, so she was just buying time with a different topic.” That was Reggie’s take on the matter, apparently.

“That’s a pretty uncharitable interpretation, don’t you think?”

Reggie’s lips twitched with amusement. “I’d never make such a cynical assumption of you, at least. For example, you came because you were worried about me, didn’t you?”

“Well... Yeah.” It was a little embarrassing to admit when he was asking me straight out. He looked quite pleased by that answer, however, so I was glad I’d said yes.

“Are you sure you aren’t trying to distract me from the issue at hand, Reggie? Don’t think I’ve forgotten what the Thorn Princess just said about you wielding the contract stone!”

Reggie responded with a reassuring smile. “Regardless, this isn’t the place for an involved conversation. Let’s go back to the fort.”

He had a point there, so I headed back to the fort with him. Cain, who had been waiting for me nearby, asked me what had happened, but I couldn’t go into much detail with so many soldiers around. I told him I’d explain everything later.

When we returned, the first thing we saw was a creature the size of a horse sitting there on its haunches—Lila. I’d heard the rumors, but it looked like she really had blown up into a giant frostfox.

“Whoa,” came my awed whisper as I gazed at Lila. She walked right up to me and sniffed at my head, then proceeded to rest her chin atop my shoulder.

Uh, now that she’s gotten so big, she’s a lot heavier. Still, it tickled my heart that she’d taken such a liking to me. Talk about cute. Before I realized what I was doing, I was petting her on the snout and under the chin. Yeah, this is the good stuff.

“Oh, Kiara! Perfect timing!” Gina, who had been standing alongside her faithful fox, likewise came running up to me. “This isn’t going to cause any complications for Lila, is it? Can you tell?”

As the fox’s owner, she must have had her concerns over the growth spurt—and it was my blood that had caused it, according to Master Horace. Lila had shot up right after licking my blood off of Cain’s uniform, so that was his best guess. “Your power was too great for her to digest, my little disciple. Eeeheehee!” he’d cackled. Evidently, monsters would turn into giants whenever they absorbed an excess of mana.

“Let me check. Keep still, Lila,” I commanded, before feeling out the mana in her body.

Hmm... It doesn’t feel like the flow is backed up anywhere, and she doesn’t seem to be in any pain, so I think it’s fine. She just feels strangely warm, for some reason. When I feel out the circulation of her mana, those waves send ripples all the way back to my own heart. It’s enough to put me to sleep.

As tempting as it was to drift off right then and there, I stopped my investigation there before I got myself into trouble.

“I think she’ll be fine.”

“Really? What a relief.” Gina seemed reassured by my report. I was happy to be of whatever help I could. “I wonder if she’s ever going to turn back. If she stays like this forever, I won’t be able to let her inside when we finally go home. Guess she’ll have to be an outdoor pet from now on.”

That seemed to be one of Gina’s biggest concerns, which was fair. From the sound of it, she and her foxes had always shared a home before now. For the moment, Lila had to set up camp in the fort courtyard.

“If she uses enough magic, she might shrink back down to size,” Master Horace said.

Gina gave that some thought. “Maybe we can fix it during the next battle, then.”

That passing comment struck me deep. The next battle, she’d said. This time around, I would have to bring down the viscount once or for all. What were we going to do about Isaac, though? If only he would hurry up and surrender.

“Say, Kiara?” Gina suddenly prompted. “About Salekhard...”

“I wanted to talk to you about all that, too.” After debating what to say, I shuffled close enough to whisper, “It wouldn’t be easy to meet with Isaac behind closed doors, would it? Still, if we could get him to surrender sooner rather than later, I think it would save both sides a lot of unnecessary strife.”

“Yeah... Good point. I’ll think about it.” Despite being the one to broach the subject, that was all she had to say before nodding and walking off.

What was that about? It seemed like she had something else to tell me. Did I cut her off? Determined to follow up on that later, I headed into the fort with Reggie. From there, he took me to his room.

“This next part is confidential, so could I ask you to wait outside?” Reggie said to our attendants. Groul gave a bow and Cain shot him a resigned look just before he shut the door in their faces.

Right as the door was closing, I could have sworn I heard multiple people sighing. What was that about? I wondered.

Reggie strode to the center of the room to ask his lord-in-waiting, “Could you fetch us something to drink? Water is fine. This conversation might go on for a while, so take your time. Do three laps around the fort, if you must.”

“Err... Yes, sire,” Colin responded, bewildered, before taking his leave.

Now that we were alone together, Reggie sat down in a chair. The prince’s chambers though these were, it wasn’t much more extravagant than the room I was borrowing. There was a long, unembellished table made of wood, four chairs that looked like they might belong to a commoner, and nothing more.

Seeing as he’d taken a seat, Reggie probably planned to start talking.

I’d asked him “why” earlier, but now that I’d calmed down, it was easy to see why Reggie had gone to such lengths. Circumstances meant that I couldn’t cast my magic at will. On top of that, the enemy’s forces had been inflated by defective spellcasters, and to such a degree that our frostfoxes couldn’t hope to offset it alone. It was no surprise that Reggie had sought out an alternate approach in a desperate bid to keep our casualties to a minimum.

“Can I check what she did?” I asked.

“Go ahead.” Reggie removed his cape and jacket, set them down atop the rustic table, and rolled up his sleeve for me. Crawling up the entire length of his arm was a mark that looked like a dark red vine of thorns. It wasn’t a very pretty sight.

“Ah, so this is what became of me.” Evidently, he’d asked for her help without actually knowing what she’d do to him. Perhaps he’d been too firm in his decision to even consider backing down.

“Does it hurt?”

“It still stings a little.” Reggie was smiling, but he looked pale.

This had all happened because I couldn’t do anything useful. Terramice had died and Reggie’s knights had thrown themselves into danger to save me, yet in the end, I hadn’t even managed to shoulder some of Reggie’s burden. Tears began to blur my vision. There was nothing left for me to say, and I felt so pathetic.

Before the teardrops could spill from my eyes, Reggie reached out to wipe them away. “Don’t cry, Kiara. It’s not your fault that I chose this. Doing this was a way to reduce the strain on my body.”

“Was it that bad?”

“If sparks flying from my fingers were the worst of my troubles, perhaps I could have let it be. But you see, ever since the powder of the contract stone entered my system, I’ve suffered recurring bouts of fever. This doubled as a means of alleviating those symptoms. According to the Thorn Princess, forging a path through which to expel the mana ought to make it easier on my body.”

“Your mana will flow along this mark, you mean?”

“That’s what she said.”

“Then what did she mean when she said you could wield the magic of the contract stone?”

“Well, if I can concentrate all my mana in one place and discharge it from there, it allows me to pull off a few parlor tricks, as it were.”

I cast Reggie a suspicious glance. If that was all there was to it, he wouldn’t have tried to keep it a secret from me.

“That can’t be all she told you. Otherwise, you would have just told me this right then and there,” I grilled him.

Reggie sighed. “If I let enough time pass, I hoped that you might forget about it... but I suppose things are never quite so easy.” Of course that was his plan. “She also taught me how to give my tricks a little extra punch.”

“I’m guessing you didn’t tell me because it’s also dangerous?”

“She said that it all depends on how much I can handle.”

With instructions like that, Reggie was bound to push himself to his utmost limits. That was clearly his plan. Considering this was the same man who had lied about his ailing health for ages, what else could I expect?

“That means it could end up being too much for you, doesn’t it? I’d rather you didn’t take that risk, Reggie.”

I timidly pleaded with him to reconsider, but Reggie responded authoritatively, “I believe the Thorn Princess gave me this option out of necessity.”

“What do you mean?”

“Her claim that she had changed your fate struck me as very curious.”

I’d been wondering about that, too. The way I understood it, I’d remembered about my past life and the RPG all on my own, then used that knowledge to escape the future that awaited me. My first meeting with the Thorn Princess had taken place after all that.

But then it occurred to me: if it weren’t for the contract stone the Thorn Princess had given me, I never would have become a spellcaster. Reggie and Lord Évrard both could have ended up dead. Was that what she meant by “changing my fate”?

When I voiced my conjecture, Reggie nodded. “Perhaps the Thorn Princess has the ability to see the future.”

“Wait just a second. Supposing she does have a spell of clairvoyance... Master Horace told me that most people can only use one type of magic. Two at best. Controlling thorns already counts as one brand of magic. If we assume she has the power to see the future on top of that, how do we explain her disappearing act just now?”

“It may be improbable, but it’s not impossible. Your past-life memories aren’t exactly conventional, now are they?”

“I guess you’re right.”

Maybe there could be someone out there with three different kinds of magic. I couldn’t deny that logic.

Reggie went on, “The Thorn Princess told me that if you let your mana flow through me, I can wield a power comparable to that of real magic. Of course, it will manifest as my own element, so I won’t be making any golems.”

In other words, he could take my mana and use it to cast lightning magic. Master Horace had conjured up wind magic the same way, so I didn’t doubt that was true. But still...

“I want to do whatever I can. Reclaiming Farzia—and defeating the viscount—will all serve to protect you.”

“You don’t have to sacrifice yourself to do that, though!”

“And what about you?” Reggie asked, reaching out to clasp my hand in both of his. “You’d chip away at your own body to save me. Even if you can revert the effects, it always leaves me thinking: I’ve never offered you anything worthy of your sacrifice.”

“That’s not true! You do so much for me!”

I’d never even dreamed of demanding something “worthy” of my sacrifice. All I wanted was for him to let me help him.

“You know what Wentworth said? He told me that if I want to keep you from acting recklessly, I ought to let you protect me.”

“What...?”

What is he talking about? I’d lost the plot, but Reggie only offered me a strained smile in return. “If we’re both so insistent on protecting one another, denying the other their opportunity will only create a vicious cycle. But if you do want to keep me safe, I ask that you work with me.”

That took me by surprise. This was the first time Reggie had ever asked for my full cooperation, and that delighted me. At the same time, working together would increase the odds of Reggie ending up in danger. Filled with apprehension, I found myself struggling to take the plunge.

“You can determine what my limits are. No doubt I’m not the one who can make that call. Besides, don’t you think staying by my side and taking things into your own hands would make this a little easier on your nerves?”

Reggie smiled at me. Unable to come up with an answer right away, I simply hung my head.

◇◇◇

About three days later, we received a report from a scouting party that had infiltrated Trisphede. Llewyne had gone ahead and called for full-scale reinforcements, and negotiations with the occupied zone of the royal domain were growing heated. The new troops were set to depart from the royal domain in about a week.

Salekhard hadn’t lost quite as many men, so they had opted not to call for reinforcements. Given their secret plans to throw the fight, there was no need to go out of their way to bolster their forces.

Perhaps the plan was to attack Delphion as soon as the reinforcements arrived by boat. Llewyne and Salekhard were already moving their forces toward the western Lake Luxia.

Reggie had decided to send his troops to intercept them in hopes of striking down their forces before they had a chance to grow. If we just waited for the enemy to make their move, we would be handing them the opportunity to reinvade Delphion from beside the lake.

Alan and the other generals all agreed with that proposal, and the following day, the Farzian army vacated Fort Liadna. All the wounded soldiers who could be safely shipped off to Delphion already had been, and everyone always packed light on the march, so it didn’t take much time at all to get ready.

Thanks to the secret treatments I’d been administering to Felix, he was up and walking around two days before we were set to depart. In fact, he was already raring to head straight into battle.

“I can move without difficulty now, and it’s all thanks to you, Lady Spellcaster.”

“Really?” I had my concerns, but it was Felix’s choice to make. I swallowed down what I wanted to say.

He then said, “I heard that Lady Ada came to your rescue.”

“That’s right. It earned her a beating from the viscount, though.”

Recalling the incident was still enough to make me tremble. Ada had done what she could to protect my psyche. Though she’d already called on Isaac by that point, she’d probably assumed he wouldn’t make it in time.

Mikhail had claimed that he’d seen Ada afterward. Given that she’d been walking around on her own two feet, it was safe to assume that she’d gotten off with just a few bruises. I’d been deeply relieved to hear it. I had figured that the viscount wouldn’t want to lose such a valuable asset, but I’d been worried about what he might do to take his anger out on her.

Perhaps my dread had shown up on my face. Cain, who was accompanying me around, put a hand on my shoulder.

“I see...” Felix fell deep into thought, closing his eyes for a moment.

Hurting Felix in Liadna had upset Ada badly enough for her to shed tears of regret. Considering she’d had no issue murdering Lord Azure, whom she’d been scheming to double-cross from the get-go, I had to wonder why she couldn’t bring herself to kill Felix.

Similarly, I was curious to know what Felix thought about Ada rescuing me. I wasn’t rude enough to ask him such a personal question, but I did say, “Um, don’t worry about it if you don’t get the chance—but could you try asking Miss Ada to come back to Farzia? I think she may have given up on running away. It’d be nice if you could give her that push.”

What had been running through my head as I ran my mouth was the waking dream I’d had after touching the Thorn Princess.

The “me” in that dream was no different from Ada. In which case, perhaps she too thought there was no point in running away. However, if one of the men she was so taken with—Reggie or Felix—reached out to her, maybe she would start to believe she could escape.

“Only if you see her again, I mean! But could you please consider it?” I dipped my head in a deep bow, which sent Felix into a panic.

“I beg you not to humble yourself for me, Lady Spellcaster!”

“I realize I’m asking a lot, though! Even if you are okay with it, if the whole thing goes south, you could end up hurt.”

“That’s nothing for you to concern yourself with. If I do decide to go through with it, the responsibility for what happens will rest on my own shoulders. Besides, I haven’t agreed to it one way or the other yet.”

“Come now, Miss Kiara, let’s leave it at that,” Cain urged. “You’re putting him on the spot.”

“Okay.” Suddenly aware of the attention I was drawing to us, I shuffled away from Felix.

Still, I felt like I had to do something more. Perhaps it was because the vision I’d seen after touching the Thorn Princess had been more vivid than any before it. I simply couldn’t seem to get it out of my head.

What was that?

At first, I’d figured that making it to Delphion had put me in the mood to dream of Game-Kiara, considering that was where she first showed up to battle in RPG. Something about that explanation didn’t sound quite right, though. The story just seemed too consistent for a mere dream.

I’d had a dream of meeting Reggie in the royal palace—as well as a dream of spending time with him there, and a dream where I was informed of his death and handed his severed finger, ring and all. Forced to keep fighting as a spellcaster afterward, I’d stood before Alan, who had stared me down with blazing hatred in his eyes, secretly hoping he would kill me. The Thorn Princess had been part of that dream, too.

Weren’t dreams supposed to be a little more disjointed? Was it even possible to see so many seamless continuations of the same scenario?

As much as I wanted to hold Cain’s hand at that moment—and I could’ve just told myself it was a sibling thing, really—it felt too much like a betrayal of Reggie, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

I must have spent too much time lost in thought. Cain came to a sudden halt, and seeing as I was holding his sleeve as usual, that snapped me back to my senses. I glanced up, wondering what was the matter, only for him to say, “Something is bothering you, isn’t it?”

“Erm... It’s not a big deal, really.” My first instinct was to deflect. After all, it was a difficult topic to broach to Cain himself.

After that, he fell silent for a bit. But the moment we arrived at my room and I let go of his sleeve, he grabbed me by the hand. When he saw the way I jolted, he let out a sigh.

“Miss Kiara. I’m going to say this now, because I believe this is better dealt with sooner rather than later.” After leading in with that, he asked, “Would you prefer to keep your distance from me?”

I pursed my lip at the question. He’d seen right through my attempts to avoid him. Since I couldn’t bring myself to say it outright, however, he’d given me an out with the softball phrasing of “preferring to keep my distance.”

Maybe I should have just acted the same way I always had. Still, ever since I’d woken up to my own feelings, I’d started to feel like I was a little too intimate with Cain.

My memories of my time as a captive were still fresh, so I wanted Cain by my side to reassure me and protect me. Given that the two of us weren’t real siblings, however, it didn’t feel right holding hands with him anymore.

I deliberated over whether to come out and say that. After losing his family had left such deep scars on his heart, Cain found some comfort in thinking of me as a sister. Would he take this as me deserting him? I knew it might hurt him—that it might make him feel like he’d lost the one thing he could depend on.

And so, it was time to weasel my way out of this conversation. “No, it’s nothing like that. I just saw something strange earlier.”

“What do you mean?”

“I had this weird vision when I touched the Thorn Princess.”

Cain showed interest in the topic, so I went on to tell him about my recurring dreams of serving the queen.

“I think you were the one who tried to convince me to run free.” The man in that dream who had heard about me from Reggie had been Cain. “But when my golem came crumbling down, you got caught up in it and... well.”

I’d tried to take the hit for him, but he’d pushed me away, only to be buried underneath the rubble himself. Why had he gone to such lengths to keep me alive? None of that had happened to the me here and now, of course, but I felt the crushing guilt all the same.

“I see.”

After hearing my story, Cain wore a thoughtful look on his face. “My biggest question is why touching the Thorn Princess would give you that vision. Any ideas?”

I shook my head.

“Well, the mysteries of a spellcaster are too profound for me to fathom. Rather than getting worked up over it, let’s dismiss it as a hallucination for now. We can ask Sir Horace for his opinion later.” With a sigh of relief, Cain placed a hand atop my head and offered a faint smile. “Regardless, I was afraid that you didn’t want to be around me anymore, now that you’ve made up your mind.”

Made up my mind? Does he mean... deciding who I love?

“It was after His Highness brought you home and out of enemy hands that you began to act somewhat distant toward me.” Placing his free hand up against the wall, Cain peered into my face. “Did he confess his love for you, by chance?”

How does he know that?!

I was so startled that I didn’t even realize I’d tightened my grip on Cain’s hand. Put on the spot, I just sat there with my mouth hanging open until he finally went on, “I talked to His Highness shortly after you were captured. We spoke about how he feels for you... and about how I feel for you.”

Um, WHAT?! What kind of conversation was that?!

This was Reggie we were talking about, so I figured he really had come out with all of it. Cain didn’t seem like the type to back down in that situation, either. This was starting to make me dizzy; I could hardly process that this was happening to me.

Cain, meanwhile, didn’t seem the least bit ruffled.

That’s strange, I thought. Thinking back on the things he’d said in Delphion, or right before he’d clashed with Isaac, I’d imagined he’d look a little more upset.

“I knew how His Highness felt about you from the start. He never did care to hide it. Why, I’m fairly sure the only one who thought it could be anything else was you.”

“Hrk...”

Master Horace had pointed that out, too. In retrospect, it was super embarrassing.

“Of course, it’s all thanks to you that we had the opportunity to talk it out.”

“Who, me?”

Did I do something to trigger a gossip session?

“It was because you put yourself on the line to save my life.”

I gave a puzzled tilt of my head. I still wasn’t quite following.

“You were just doing what came naturally, weren’t you? It made me think about the way it feels to have your family protect you. For the longest time, I’d been left wishing my family had just stayed alive for me. But you made me realize that family will always do whatever they can to make sure their kin can carry on.” A self-deprecating smile tugged at his lips. “What you said reminded me that Lord Alan and His Highness are both as good as family to me. Once I remembered that I still have two little brothers to protect, my fixation on the family I’d lost began to fade.”

I was relieved to hear it. If Cain had found even a smidgen of peace, that was the best outcome I could have asked for.

Unfortunately, I was so caught up in those thoughts that when he leaned forward, I failed to react in time. I didn’t even have a chance to gasp. His lips brushed over my cheek, and by the time I’d registered what was happening enough to feel surprise, he had already drawn back.

“Back in Delphion, I was afraid I’d have nothing left if I lost you. But now, no matter what you choose, I can calmly await your answer. Good day.” Cain let go of my hand before briskly taking his leave.

I was stunned. What with the shock of Cain kissing me on the cheek, along with my confusion over why it hadn’t bothered me (because we thought of each other as family?), my head was a mess.

“‘No matter what I choose’?”

I started to wonder: had Cain caught on to my feelings? I doubted he would say something like that if he hadn’t. I couldn’t be sure, though. Maybe it had just been another part of his whole epiphany. Either way, it’d look strange to go on standing in the middle of the hallway, so I headed into my room. For some reason, my legs felt like jelly, and it took everything I had to get inside and close the door behind me.

“Eeekeekee!”

I was greeted by Master Horace, who had been eavesdropping by the door and was now having a good laugh at my expense.

“You sure do love prying into people’s love affairs, huh?” I griped, plopping down in a chair with a sigh. Master Horace came tottering over, making clacking noises as he walked. I picked him up and set him down on the table.

“What I love is seeing people running around like headless chickens! Mmheehee!” He sure seemed to be enjoying himself.

For a fleeting moment, I thought about asking Master Horace for advice. Maybe he could tell me what Cain was thinking. In the end, however, I decided against it. Given how much fun he was already having at our expense, I would’ve felt bad asking him to speculate on Cain’s feelings.

While I sat there hanging my head, Master Horace finally got his laughter under control. “About those memories, though...”

Apparently, that part of our conversation had caught his interest.

“Do you think they were the Thorn Princess’ own memories?” I posited.

“I don’t know about that. Hard to believe you could see someone else’s memories just by touching them. And assuming they are her memories, how do you explain that?”

“Hmm... I think there are a few different possibilities.”

Hypothesis number one: The Thorn Princess was a reincarnated version of Kiara Credias.

“That’s got to be the craziest theory of ’em all. You think someone could die and get reincarnated into the past? And how would she even find a mentor?”

“Maybe she went to the original Thorn Princess... or something?”

“Why would she need to go by the same name, though? Besides, that doesn’t line up with that backstory of hers she gave us the other day.”

“Oh, true.”

Based on the account of her past, it seemed unlikely that she would be a Kiara.

“Plus, she mentioned that she had changed your fate, didn’t she? It makes more sense to figure she’s just someone who can see the future.”

Also true. So that brought us to hypothesis two: the Thorn Princess could see the future.

“But if that’s all it was, how would she know about those private conversations between Reggie and the original Kiara? I guess it really had to be a dream, or maybe some kind of hallucination.”

“I dunno, though,” Master Horace said, scratching at his hip, “I’d never heard of anyone keeping memories from before they were born. Not until I met you.”

“Yeah, that’s fair.”

Trying to puzzle out the truth behind Thorn Princess always felt like wandering lost in a maze. There was one thing I knew for sure, though.

“The Thorn Princess really was a member of the royal family.”

Her tale had almost certainly been autobiographical. Not many people were born with silver hair, and the idea of her being a descendant of the royal family had come up in the RPG lore. If she weren’t talking about herself, there would’ve been no reason for her to bring that story up in the first place.

“Oh well, I can worry about that later. Time to get packed.”

◇◇◇

The following day, the Farzian army marched south along the high road. Once we’d crossed the Delphion border, we proceeded west to Lake Luxia. Given how many times I’d marched alongside the troops, I was totally used to this by now—though as usual, I’d been stuffed into a carriage out of concern for my physical stamina.

Today, Gina, Reynard, and Sara were all riding with me, while Girsch and the mega-sized Lila trekked beside the vehicle. The longing glances Lila would cast toward the carriage every now and then were breaking my heart, but there was just no way she’d fit inside. Will she really go back to normal if she uses enough magic?

The majority of the army was traveling on foot. Most of them were way stronger than your average Japanese man—not to mention how many of them had jumped to enlist out of a burning desire to trounce Llewyne—but we still had to stop to rest several times a day.

During one such break, I noticed Reggie and his knights wandering off elsewhere. This had happened a couple of times since we’d entered Delphion, so I assumed they had something to take care of away from the prying eyes of the enemy or their fellow soldiers.

I had an idea of what that “something” might be. There was no doubt in my mind that Reggie was teaching himself how to use his magic.

I debated whether to go after him or not. Deep down, I wanted to go see him. Still, as much as I wanted to make sure he wasn’t doing anything dangerous, I knew that if he was, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from stepping in. The thought of Reggie resenting me over that was a hard one to bear.

As I stood there hemming and hawing, someone gave me a pat on the back. When I looked over my shoulder, I saw Cain standing there. He’d been positioned near my carriage, so he’d probably come over to see me during our break.

“If you’re that worried, why don’t you just go after him?” I’d explained the whole deal to Cain already, so he likewise figured Reggie was up to something. “Say, Miss Kiara. Would you deny me the right to defend you with my life?”

“Not when you put it like that, no.”

I didn’t want him to go that far for me. Still, I had no choice but let someone protect me.

“I know you don’t like the idea of it. But you’ve risked your life to protect me. Wouldn’t it hurt if I told you not to bother?”

“Well... yes.”

All that really mattered in the end was whether I kept him safe, but I’d still feel sad if he told me off for it.

“Then aren’t we better off with a mutual partnership? I believe that’s all His Highness wants from you.”

“A partnership, you say?”

Just yelling “Let me protect you!” back and forth had always felt like a dead end, but when he put it like that, it suddenly sounded like a wonderful prospect.

“Good, so you finally understand. Off we go, then.” With that, we hurried off in the direction Reggie and his guard had gone.

The party was gathered in a small clearing, past a grove of trees beyond the army lines. Reggie had clearly attempted to cast a few spells already. He was gazing down at a ball of electricity hovering near his fingertips, which he’d formed in a practiced manner. His knights had gathered around him at a safe distance, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings.

I dipped my head to Groul in greeting, and Cain struck up a conversation with him.

“Reggie!” I called out.

Reggie lifted his face, extinguishing the magic as he did, and turned to look at me as I came walking over.

“Oh, so you came. Here I thought you might stay away so you wouldn’t have to see it,” he said with a smile. Apparently, he’d seen right through my dithering over whether or not to go watch.

“I was a little nervous about it, but Sir Cain gave me the push I needed.”

“Quite taken with Wentworth, aren’t you? I’m glad he helped you out, but I admit I’m a bit jealous.”

“Huh?! Don’t be!” I was pretty attached, sure, but the mention of jealousy had me freaking out.

“It was just a joke.”

Reggie laughed and patted me on the head, and the comforting gesture made my heart feel lighter in no time. With the way I was just standing there letting him pet me, I might as well have been his pet cat. I was finding it harder and harder to keep my eyes open.

“My, Kiara, you look like you’re about to start purring,” Reggie commented, having another laugh at my expense.

That got my eyes to snap open fast, and I scrambled to steer us back to the matter at hand. “H-Hey, I’m not a cat! And never mind that! How has your magic been treating you?”

“It doesn’t cause me any pain, but it does wear me out rather quickly. Though not to the same degree as you, I’m sure.”

“Heeheehee,” came Master Horace’s laugh. “Not too bad, if that’s the worst of it. Besides, it’s rare for anyone to hurt themselves by willfully casting a spell. The only reason your magic was causing you pain before was because you were using it by accident; all you were really doing was unleashing raw energy into the wild.”

Oh, I see. So long as Reggie wields the magic consciously and keeps both the spell and its backlash under his control, it’s not an issue.

“Whatever magic you cast might as well be a third hand of yours. It won’t come back to attack its wielder.”

“Oh, right. I think you told me something like that once before,” I responded, nodding matter-of-factly.

Master Horace went on to goad me. “In other words, if you share some of your mana with this prince here, bringing his will into the picture means it won’t come back to bite either you or him.”

“We appreciate the reassurance, Sir Horace. That just leaves me the question of how best to wield it. It is magic, after all; if possible, I’d like a way to use it against the enemies out of my sword’s reach.”

That seemed to be Reggie’s biggest concern at the moment. He was right that the potential for ranged attacks was one of the biggest advantages of magic. Given what he currently had to work with, he’d have to get right up close to cast any spells, making it significantly less functional.

“You having any trouble feeling out the flow of the mana?”

“I think I’ve more or less gotten the hang of it. It’s hard to envision shooting it past my fingertips, however.”

“I guess that’s about as good as it’s gonna get if you’re not a true spellcaster. You can at least sense the magic inside your own body, right?” Reggie nodded. “Then everything else is just a question of your imagination. We mages cast our spells by summoning up mana in one place and envisioning what happens next. Mana dwells in all things, which means it’s part of the very air we breathe, too. Just visualize yourself forging a path through there.”

“I see.” Reggie fell deep into thought, extending a hand as he mulled over Master Horace’s advice. A few seconds later, a tiny spark of electricity flew from his fingertips.

“Still just a twinkle, eh?”

“Yes, that’s obviously not going to make it very far. Is it simply power that I lack?”

“Hey, little disciple! Try pouring some mana into his arm,” Master Horace instructed, calling on my help with the utmost nonchalance. The moment I thought back to what the Thorn Princess had told us, however, I lost my nerve.

“How do we know that won’t take a toll on his body?”

“The Thorn Princess said it could be done, didn’t she? Then it’s obviously not gonna kill him. If you’re that worried, just go easy on him.”

“Why are you being so pushy about this, Master Horace?” I asked.

He snorted. “You’re about to go up against one hell of an opponent. It only makes sense to keep as many tricks up your sleeve as you can. Judging by the battle the other day, if that viscount can’t make you his, he’d rather see you dead. And if you don’t make it through this, that’s it for me, too.”

His reply was a little more brusque than it needed to be, but I understood what he was getting at. He just wanted to come up with more ways to keep me safe. It was the same with Reggie; it was in order to protect me and the people of Évrard that he had unlocked his potential for magic.

“Kiara.” Reggie held out a hand for me.

If working with Reggie would serve to protect both him and the rest of my friends, perhaps this was for the best. Having found my resolve at long last, I reached out to touch the arm he’d offered.

“Ah, perhaps you’d be better off touching my shoulder instead. It should be easier to channel it through the path the Thorn Princess built, don’t you think?”

“Oh, you’re probably right.”

Taking his advice, I placed a hand on Reggie’s shoulder, then worked to pour my mana into him from there. How much would be too much, though? While I was busy debating that, Reggie giggled.

“I have to admit, it’s rather intoxicating to think about a part of you becoming one with me.”

“Reggie!” I huffed, scandalized.

He merely smiled back, delighted. To be fair, his wisecracking had worked to ease my nerves.

“Okay, here I go. I’m only giving you a little, though! I’m afraid to try any more than that. I can’t even imagine what this could do to you.”

“I believe in you.”

With a nod, I finally began the process of transferring my mana to Reggie. Magical energy gradually seeped out of the hand I had on his shoulder, and before long, a bolt of lightning—bigger than any he’d produced so far—flew from Reggie’s fingers.

“Whoa!”

Even knowing it couldn’t hurt me, I couldn’t help flinching.

“Don’t worry. I’m fine.” Perhaps because he had braced himself for it, Reggie just glanced back at me with a perfectly composed smile. His hands weren’t looking particularly crispy, either, so it was safe to say it hadn’t hurt him.

“Still, I suppose I can’t hope for much more range than this.”

That was when I had a eureka moment. “What if you used a sword?”

“How do you mean?”

“I’m thinking of this, uh, sacred painting I saw once, where a goddess’ messenger shot lightning from his sword. That would be a lot easier for you to visualize, wouldn’t it? Conceptually, it would be sort of like letting a bird fly away.”

What had popped into my head wasn’t actually a sacred painting. It was one of those things I used to see in games and anime all the time: the hero shooting lightning from his sword to strike down a distant enemy.

“I see.”

Just as Reggie was about to draw his sword from its sheath, it occurred to me that he should probably use something else for this experiment. “Careful, this might end up charring your weapon. That sword’s pretty valuable, isn’t it? It’s got your family crest on it and everything.”

Given his locks of silver hair, Reggie didn’t need the sword to prove that he was royalty, but there was no reason to ruin such a valuable relic if we could avoid it. Reggie went ahead and borrowed a sword from Groul instead, then held it aloft.

“You did it!”

From the tip of the blade held high, a bolt of lightning had shot toward the heavens, leaving the trees a dozen mers away scorched in its wake.