CHAPTER 2: The Great Witch Descendeth in Shining Wind

CHAPTER 2: The Great Witch Descendeth in Shining Wind

CHAPTER 2

The Great Witch Descendeth in Shining Wind

After the closing ceremony for Serendia Academy’s first term, Eliane Hyatt, daughter of Duke Rehnberg, hastened back to her dorm room and began to get ready.

She would be taking a carriage home that same day.

Truthfully, she’d wanted to take her time setting off, but envoys from the Kingdom of Farfolia would be visiting the duchy in the coming days, and she needed to be there to welcome the visitor.

Normally, she would have been unhappy at this turn of events, but this time she was more excited than ever. Because today, Felix would be returning with her. Not only that—he would be staying with her family while he conducted diplomatic business with the representative from Farfolia.

“I’ll bring the hat I bought the other day. As for my broach, get the pearl one Mother gave me.”

Her elderly lady-in-waiting, used to such demands, nodded and got out the hat and broach her lady had requested.

After fixing her makeup and hair, Eliane stood in front of her full-length mirror and checked herself.

She had on a brand-new coat and broach, plus a hat in one of the latest designs. The girl looking back at her in the mirror was so adorable, everyone would want to praise her for her charms.

I’m about to ride in the same carriage as Lord Felix, so my presentation must be perfect.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a favorable impression on him.

According to her father, Eliane’s great uncle—Duke Clockford—had been the one to choose their estate as the setting for the talks with Farfolia. In other words, he’d set the stage for her.

Once we arrive at the duchy, she thought, I should bring Felix somewhere. The famous Rehnberg orchards would be nice, but I’d also like to show him the gardens at night.

Her family’s gardens contained special flowers called spiritrests, which absorbed mana. When night fell, they would bloom, releasing all the mana they had accumulated. And when they did, faint particles of light would rise from their petals, making for a fantastic sight. How wonderful it would be to watch it happen side by side with Felix.

I must make full use of our time together…!

In half a year, Eliane would graduate from Serendia Academy. It was her sincere wish to progress her relationship with Felix enough in that time that they could announce their engagement at her graduation party. For that reason, she couldn’t afford to pass up this golden opportunity.

And if she really needed to, she could force his hand with a little “mistake.”

If, by some small error…yes, an innocent mistake…Felix were to accidentally wander into my bedchamber… Naturally, I would never do something as lowly as attempt to seduce him! But if seeing me in my nightclothes were to, say, stir something in him, and then we stayed together until morning… All I’m saying is that it could happen. I wouldn’t be the one to tempt him, of course. I must only get him in the proper mood for it… And I can have my lady-in-waiting help me…

As Eliane’s mind wandered through various schemes, her lady-in-waiting called out, “It’s almost time, my lady.”

“Then let’s be off,” she replied with a smile, and the two of them left the dormitory.

Several carriages were lined up in front of Serendia Academy to ferry various students home. Among them, one stood out—it had cutting-edge wheels that dampened vibrations. That one belonged to House Hyatt.

She and Felix would be meeting by it.

Anyone who saw them get into the same carriage together would start talking about it, and rumors would fly. So the second prince has chosen Eliane to be his betrothed after all , they’d say. That must be why he’s spending his winter break at her family’s estate.

Hee-hee… Oh, how good it will feel! she thought. Suppressing the urge to start skipping, she strode forward, just as a carefully raised noble girl ought to.

And there, waiting for her before the carriage, was a beautiful prince born to be the center of attention… For some reason, however, he wasn’t alone.

“Oh! It’s the short girl who played Amelia!” said the interloper. His words were rude and awfully loud.

“That’s Miss Eliane Hyatt, Dudley.”

Yes, the rude boy was none other than Glenn Dudley, who had performed alongside her during the academy festival’s play.

Felix, who stood beside him, gently reminded him of her name, and Glenn’s face lit up in understanding. “Oh, right,” he said. “Eliane, Eliane… So what’s Eliane doing here?”

That should have been her question, not his. Why was Glenn, a commoner , speaking with Felix in front of House Hyatt’s carriage? And what’s more, he was wearing a sharp dark-green uniform. Why, that’s the uniform of the Magic Corps, is it not? All manner of questions formed in her mind.

Felix smiled sweetly and spoke again. “Dudley, she’s the daughter of Duke Rehnberg.”

“Oh, really? I had no idea.”

Eliane was indeed the duke’s daughter, but she was also Felix’s second cousin. Despite the loose family connection, she was of noble lineage, and royal blood ran in her veins. To have that fact so casually brushed aside made her nerves start to fray.

“I have a hard time with aristocratic names,” Glenn went on. “Wouldn’t it make more sense if her name was Eliane Rehnberg Hyatt or something?”

“Most noble titles are derived from the land the bearer presides over.”

“Oh! Is that right?”

“It is.”

“Gotcha. By the way, what does derived mean?”

If Eliane had to listen to any more of this, she’d go crazy. Before her face could stiffen, she hurriedly plastered on a charming smile.

“Good day to you, Lord Felix…and to you, Lord Dudley.”

“I’m not great with all that formal stuff, so you can just call me Glenn! Since we’ll be traveling together for a while, I’d rather we get off to a friendly start.”

“…I’m sorry?”

Traveling together? What does he mean by that?

Felix smiled and explained. “As a pupil of one of the Seven Sages, Dudley here has been assigned to me for my protection during my stay.”

What?

Eliane was speechless.

Glenn continued, his smile as blinding as the sun. “Yep, that’s the gist of it! Here’s to a good journey!”

The students around them were certainly paying attention to their group. But this was not the kind of attention Eliane wanted. Their stares were not envious but curious.

Behind her perfect smile, Eliane was ready to scream in frustration.

In a carriage where the occupants sat across from one another, Eliane’s spot would naturally be next to Felix. It was obvious. So why was Glenn sitting next to him, and Eliane on the other side?

“Lord Felix, are you sure you are quite comfortable in that seat?” asked Eliane casually, as though she were merely being considerate.

Felix responded with a beautiful smile. “Of course. And Dudley is my bodyguard, after all.”

There was nothing she could say to such a sound argument.

Darn it! she thought. I was looking forward to accidentally falling into his chest when the carriage bumped! And pretending to doze off and lean against his shoulder! Internally, she was gnashing her teeth.

At this point, Glenn seemed to come to a sudden realization and jerked his head up to look at her.

Finally figured out what I’m thinking, has he? she thought. Yes, that’s right. Now exercise some tact.

“There’s no need to worry, Eliane! I can protect you and the prez. I’ve got you covered!”

That’s not what I meant!

Barely swallowing her next words—“nobody wants your protection anyway”—she offered him a charming smile instead. “Why, Lord Glenn, you’re so reliable… Why are you wearing that uniform today, if I might ask?”

Glenn was dressed in the colors of the Magic Corps, but as far as Eliane was aware, he wasn’t a member of that group. The Corps was a powerful combat force composed of elite mages. From what she’d heard, most of them were high mages.

“My master used his connections to get me into some Magic Corps training,” said Glenn. “And they lent me a uniform.”

“Oh, I see.”

In other words, he was wearing a borrowed uniform because he didn’t have any other decent clothes. The outfit stood out less than the academy’s uniform, and it did make him seem more like a bodyguard. Elaine nodded to herself.

“Hey, just wondering,” said Glenn, still beaming merrily. “ Eliane is pretty hard to say, so do you mind if I just call you Elly?”

Of course I mind!

She was about to say as much, when something occurred to her.

If she allowed Glenn to call her by a nickname, then turned to Felix and asked him to do the same—well, that would be a very natural way to get him to call her Elly, wouldn’t it?

She directed a vague smile—one that wasn’t quite a yes or a no—to Glenn, then shifted her gaze over to Felix. “If you don’t mind, Lord Felix, you may also—”

But before she could finish her sentence, Felix’s head suddenly drooped. His long blond eyelashes had fallen; he looked somehow drowsy. Apparently, he hadn’t even been listening to her. Instead, he’d been letting the carriage rock him to sleep.

“…Ummm, excuse me, Lord Felix?”

“What? Oh, my apologies. I’m a little short on sleep… I’ve been so excited to go to Rehnberg that I didn’t get much rest last night.”

Eliane’s mood, which had been spiraling, shot back up at the prince’s words.

I had no idea Lord Felix was so looking forward to coming to my home!

That sounded very promising indeed!

Savoring the joy rising within her, she modulated her tone to be thoughtful and considerate. “Oh, Lord Felix… Please don’t force yourself. You may feel free to take a short rest.”

“Thanks. I think I’ll take you up on that.”

Felix put his arm up on the seat’s elbow rest, lowered his head onto it, and closed his eyes.

Ah, even asleep, he’s so handsome , thought Eliane. As she stared at him, entranced, Glenn began poking her knee.

“…Do you need something, Lord Glenn?”

“Just staring at the scenery’s pretty boring. Want to play a game? I brought a bunch from home just for today.”

“Well, Lord Felix is currently sleeping, so perhaps we shouldn’t be too loud…”

“We’ll be quiet, then. It’ll be fine. Now, look at this coin!”

Glenn took a coin out of his pocket, tossed it into the air, and caught it with his right hand. Then he held both hands out to her. “Which hand has the coin?”

“…Your right, of course.”

Glenn grinned and opened both hands. The coin was in his left hand. Eliane’s eyes went wide.

“Wait! What? How? You caught it in your right hand. I saw it just now.”

“Let’s do it again!”

Once more, Glenn tossed the coin and caught it with his right hand. Eliane watched it without blinking. The coin had to be in his right hand.

“It’s in your right hand for sure this time,” she said.

“Sorry, wrong again!”

“What?!”

Without meaning to, Eliane leaned forward and stared at the coin.

Simple parlor tricks like these commonly featured in street performances. But for a sheltered noble girl like Eliane, they were a fresh curiosity.

“That isn’t fair. It isn’t. You must… You must have used magecraft, right?”

“I didn’t chant a word!”

He was right—he hadn’t. Eliane pursed her lips in thought as she stared at his hands.

“One more time,” she said. “Please do it once more.”

“All right, but this time I’m going to make it a little harder!”

“But I haven’t figured out the easy one yet!”

Felix, dozing with his cheek on his hand, opened one eye slightly and watched Glenn and Eliane. He grinned, then closed his eye again.

Listening to the two of them was quite entertaining, but for now, he wanted to get a little shut-eye. He’d sacrificed a lot of sleep the previous night to finish his thesis.

Ah, when I meet Lady Everett, what should we talk about first…?

Like a boy about to meet his first love, his heart soared in anticipation as he happily drifted off to sleep.

“That isn’t fair. It isn’t fair at all. You must have played a trick with the cards…”

“No tricks here! You’re just really bad at strategy, Elly.”

“I… I’m sure that with more experience, I’d be able to strategize with the best of them…”

“And there we go. I won.”

“Ugh! No!”

Glenn and Eliane seemed to be neck-deep in a card game now. He was glad to see them having fun.

It was a stroke of good luck Dudley came along , he thought. This winter break was shaping up to be much more enjoyable than he’d imagined.

The Duchy of Rehnberg was located in the southeast of the Kingdom of Ridill in a warm, fertile land of abundant forests and orchards. The duke’s estate was on a hill between one of each—a gorgeous building with white walls.

In the stable behind the estate, a man swung a hammer as he fixed a door that had fallen into disrepair. He wore a well-tailored worker’s uniform provided by the estate. Because of how warm it was that day, he’d removed the coat and rolled up his sleeves. A tool pouch hung from his belt.

Once he’d finished with his work, he opened and closed the wooden door several times. It had been creaking something awful lately, but now it moved without a sound. As a finishing touch, he hung a winter solstice wreath on it and laughed in satisfaction.

“Wah-hah! That should do it.”

The man’s name was Bartholomeus Baal. He was a former engineer who had forsaken his homeland and spent his time eking out a meager existence doing odd jobs. Once he’d returned his tools to the pouch on his belt, a young maid watching nearby bowed gratefully.

“I apologize,” she said. “Leston the butler told me to have it fixed earlier, but I completely forgot…”

“Hey, no worries. Anything else troubling you, you come to me.” Bartholomeus winked at her.

The maid bowed several more times, then left.

Bartholomeus had recently been hired as a laborer at the duke’s estate. He served as a handyman and was frequently asked to fix things around the property and help with small-scale repairs.

In short, he basically did miscellaneous chores; when he’d been living hand to mouth prior to landing this position, he’d been doing much the same thing. And now he could earn a stable income for it—he couldn’t ask for a better arrangement.

Bartholomeus was just leaving the stable, humming a tune to himself, when he saw a man appear from behind a tree. The rather skinny, bearded fellow ran a hand through his ashen hair—he was a servant named Peter Summs.

Peter narrowed his eyes in a gentle smile and looked at the stable door Bartholomeus had just fixed.

“Handy as ever, Bartholomeus.”

“Heh. Well, it’s about all I’m good for.” Bartholomeus flashed an insincere smile and tried to leave.

He didn’t particularly like this servant. Peter seemed like a kind, laid-back old man, a little over sixty. But he was always dishing out bitter criticism, and all without letting his kind mask slip. This time was no different.

“It’s fine and good to show off in front of the maids,” said Peter, “but that one is in love with a young groom.”

Apparently, Peter had mistakenly assumed Bartholomeus was in love with the young maid from earlier.

He must just love spreading rumors…

Out of the servants currently at the estate, Peter was a relatively new addition. But he loved gossip and knew a lot about all the other employees’ relationships.