Chapter 30: She Who Believes in Citrina’s Mushroom Heart

Mia stepped off the boat and promptly shuddered at the gloom surrounding her. A backward glance revealed the distant glow of a torch-lit Saint-Noel, its glimmering form a stark reminder of the world she’d inhabited just a few short hours ago, and the one in which she now stood. The moon alone saved her from absolute darkness. Slowly, her eyes began to adapt to its faint light.

“Well, it looks like I’ll manage... Hey, you, tell me something. Where exactly is this Bandoor Village supposed to be?”

“Bandoor Village? That’d be past the grassland to the north. There’s an old road that leads there, but the place has been abandoned for years. Nothing but broken buildings and... Oh, but I guess that makes it the perfect place for a secret date, doesn’t it?”

The merchant gave her a conspiratorial grin. Clearly, his mind was enjoying a swim through the gutter. Mia, however, found this an enlightening thought. No wonder he hadn’t asked any questions about the absence of her attendant. A self-absorbed princess intent on slumming...would certainly shun the company of attendants. It was indeed the perfect cover story for her sneaking off the island alone. In this merchant’s eyes, she was undoubtedly the spitting image of young, enamored royalty with more passion than sense. Which was perfectly fine; she couldn’t care less what the man thought of her.

“If I just have to follow a road, then that seems doable,” she said, looking to the north.

“If you’re worried about getting lost, you can use that horse.” The man pointed. “I’m told it knows the way there.”

Mia followed his finger to find a...somewhat unimpressive steed. It paled considerably next to Kuolan. Which was not exactly a fair assessment. Having seen nothing but a string of moonhares since the fall—credit to Kuolan, Kayou, and Skyred Hare—she’d developed what was probably an overly critical eye with regard to equine quality.

Out with the mushroom-meister, in with the mount-meister.

“The thought is appreciated,” she said, shaking her head, “but I’ll ride my own horse, thank you very much.”

Hmph, I mean, it’s probably not a bad horse, but Kuolan’s definitely faster. I bet they gave me this horse because they knew that even on the off chance I try and escape, it’s slow enough for them to catch me without any trouble. Nice try, but I’ve got you figured out.

“All right, then...”

She gave Kuolan’s neck a pat, gripped his saddle, then began pumping her legs rhythmically as she chanted in decidedly grandmotherly fashion, “And a one, and a two, and upsy-daisy,” before climbing onto its back with an emphatically laborious grunt on the “up.” To her credit, warming up one’s muscles before exertion was a good idea. The chanting and grunting were perhaps extraneous, but if it prevented her from throwing out her back, then, well...more power to her.

Note that it was definitely not because age was taking its toll after her long years spent out of shape. She was fresh as a daisy and no one may say otherwise!

The merchant watched her antics with disinterest.

“If you say so. Watch yourself out there.”

He promptly returned to the boat. Mia wondered if he had more passengers to ferry. Would he pick up some other merchants waiting to depart? Or, emboldened by this experience, would he assist in ferrying other students off the island as well? There was certainly no shortage of couples who’d jump at the opportunity to sneak off the island on a secret date.

He’d be a fool to do so. If Miss Rafina catches him, he’ll never hear the end of it. But that’s his business. Everyone must reap what they sow, after all...

She had neither the time nor the desire to warn him. He’d made his choices, and whatever befell him afterward would simply be his just deserts.

“Let’s go, Kuolan.”

Her steed’s gruff whinny echoed through the moonlit grassland.

The merchant had spoken true, and Mia soon came upon a road leading north. Guided by the faint lunar light, she followed the road toward the abandoned town.

“This road looks as abandoned as the village.”

She’d expected as much. These people were about to commit some seriously evil deeds. They’d obviously choose a secluded place to do so. Unfortunately, foreknowledge of this fact did not make it any less daunting to traverse the grasslands alone.

“Ooooh... I heard it’s pretty safe around here, but who knows if that’s really true? What if I run into some wild animals? Getting assassinated sounds terrible, but getting eaten sounds even worse! Ugh, I hate this...”

The ominous darkness ahead seemed like perfect cover for ferocious beasts to lie in wait, ready to pounce. As soon as this thought crossed her mind, everything suddenly seemed a lot scarier. Her timid heart sought comfort and found it in the unflappably steady steps of Kuolan, who marched down the path without the slightest sense of concern. Matching the rhythm of his gait—something she’d grown accustomed to after all the practice she’d had—gave her a familiar task to focus on that dampened her rising dread.

“I’m counting on you, Kuolan. The second a scary beast shows up, we’re making a run for it, okay?”

“Neeeigh.”

Kuolan replied in Horse and turned his head toward her as if to say, “Leave it to me, boss!” Slightly reassured by the gesture, Mia smiled.

“By the way, is it just me or do you seem a lot happier lately? Are things going well with Kayou?”

“Neee-ei-eigh.”

“Is that so? Well, good for you. But remember to be nice to your kid, okay? And make sure you never force them to call you ‘papa,’ or they’ll hate you for it.”

Alas, the encroaching terror proved too much, and she cracked. In a desperate attempt to distract herself, she’d begun to have a conversation with her horse! Not even Malong of the proud Kingdom of Equestria could manage such a sublime feat of interspecies communication. It was the kind of thing that made one worry if one day, she’d find herself disgusted by the barbarism of humans and gallop away to join her brethren in the land of the horses.

Her potential renunciation of membership in human society aside...

The pleasant chat she was having with Kuolan came to an abrupt end when a shadow leapt into view.

“Eeek!”

Mia all but jumped in place. Kuolan, already breaking into a run, was stopped by the shadow placing itself squarely in their path. The horse let out a low, rumbling grunt. While usually bold to the point of belligerence, he held his ground cautiously and refrained from any sudden movement, for he recognized the creature that stood before them...

“I-Is that a wolf?”

And a huge one at that. It stood tall as Kuolan and had thick muscles enveloping its frame. It was the very image of power. Compared to the horse, it was a different beast—literally. Whereas the former’s body was meant for running, the latter’s was clearly built to pounce and kill. The wolf fixed Mia with its predator’s gaze, sending a chill up...nowhere, actually.

My, how odd. I don’t seem to be all that scared. A glare from Dion is far more terrifying.

As it turns out, her frequent encounters with the Empire’s Finest Mia-Beheader had caused her to inadvertently develop a tolerance to menacing glares and murderous gazes. On top of that...

Hm, as a matter of fact, this wolf doesn’t even look like it means to attack us.

She’d even developed the ability to distinguish between different flavors of menacing glares. A budding connoisseur of murderous intent, she was well on her way to becoming a murder-meister!

...Perhaps murder-meister isn’t the best term to use. Anyway.

The wolf shot a glance at her face, then spun around and began walking down the path. It seemed to be acting as a guide.

“Maybe this wolf...is one of our enemy’s minions?”

She recalled the passage in the Princess Chronicles describing how she’d been gobbled up by wolves. At a glance, the account suggested that her enemies had simply killed her and disposed of her corpse in the wild. Given the behavior of this wolf, however, it seemed plausible that her furry foes actually had an active paw in both her death and the subsequent concealment of the evidence.

“Regardless, it looks like it’s not going to attack us right away. Let’s follow the wolf for now, Kuolan.”

“Nee-eigh.”

As usual, Kuolan responded in Horse.

After trailing the wolf for a time, Mia came upon a creepy, clearly-abandoned village.

“This must be Bandoor Village, then? Which means...”

Beyond the dilapidated ruins of houses, the red flicker of flames emanated from the center of the village.

“That bonfire must be where Bel is being held.”

With a heavy sigh, she dismounted and gave Kuolan’s neck a pat.

“Stay on your toes, Kuolan. Or whatever the horse version of toes is. I want you to be ready to run at a moment’s notice.”

She left the final part unsaid.

Not that we’re likely to be given the chance.

No matter how she imagined things playing out, successfully rescuing Bel and riding off to safety with the two of them on Kuolan’s back just didn’t seem like a realistic outcome.

Which is fine, I guess... After all, my main objective here is to figure out who’s actually behind all this.

“Ah, Your Highness. You’ve arrived.”

Suddenly a voice that matched the darkness of the night entered her ears. Startled, she spun toward it to find...

“Welcome to our temporary abode. We are most honored to have you. Oh? And what horse might that be?”

...A woman with her head lowered in a curtsy so jarringly formal it left no doubt as to its insincerity.

“You...” said Mia, realizing she recognized the woman. “You’re Miss Barbara. Which means...”

Barbara chuckled.

“Indeed. This way please. Oh, the horse can stay. You alone will be more than sufficient.”

“...You’re not planning to have that wolf eat my horse, are you?”

“There’s no need to worry. The wolf is well-trained, and it has been strictly instructed to never eat horses.”

Mia let go of Kuolan’s reins with extreme reluctance.

“Well, I’m off then. Listen, Kuolan. If things go south, you go south too, okay? Don’t wait.”

With that, she walked to the bonfire.

“Ah—”

Standing there were Bel, hands bound behind her back, and a masked man with a wolf at his side. Mia’s eyes, however, were pulled to the figure of the third person.

“Ah... So it was you, Rina...”

Beside Bel was Citrina.

“Greetings, Your Highness,” Citrina said with a sweet smile. “I’m honored that you decided to make the long and arduous journey here.”

She held her skirt daintily and curtsied.

“You’re too modest,” Mia replied. “You went to all the trouble of inviting me. The least I could do was show up.”

As she engaged in this surreal back-and-forth, the conversation she’d had with Ludwig at the end of last summer echoed in her mind.

She really pulled the wool over my eyes. I was warned that the Yellowmoons were suspicious, and yet... What a terrible failure on my part...

Though mortified by how thoroughly she’d been deceived, she still couldn’t bring herself to think badly of Citrina. What if, she wondered, there were extenuating circumstances? Wasn’t it possible that for some reason, she’d had no choice but to obey the instructions of bad people?

Thinking back, it was thanks to her that Kayou managed to give birth to her foal. Citrina really saved the day. Things would probably have turned out much worse if she hadn’t stepped in. Would someone like that...willingly take part in evil?

Despite the damning context, Mia continued to grasp at straws in a stubborn refusal to believe that Citrina was evil. She grasped, however, not out of desperation but conviction, for you see...

Besides, Citrina likes mushrooms, and nobody who likes mushrooms can be a bad person. Therefore, there must be something forcing her to do this!

...She firmly believed that one of those straws would support the weight of her confirmation bias. As the Mushroom Princess, she deemed it a simple fact of nature that mushroom lovers were all good people. And Citrina, with her vast troves of fungal knowledge, had to be extra good!

Just for the record, Barbara wasn’t there for the mushroom hunting trip, so she didn’t count. There was no doubt in Mia’s mind that the old woman was evil through and through.

But that leaves me with a tough decision... Can I trust Citrina here and now?

Needless to say, extenuation was not absolution. Unwilling or not, the fact remained that Citrina was complicit in Bel’s kidnapping. However, her extenuating circumstances would be significant when the time came for her to atone. After all, if she was inherently good, then she might be persuaded to become an ally.

After a brief but intense moment of consideration, Mia made up her mind.

All right. I’m going all in. Whatever happens, I’m going to believe in Rina until the very end.

Her reasoning was, again, very simple.

Because nobody who loves mushrooms can be a bad person! It’s a physical impossibility!

She instinctively knew this to be true. It was like a sixth sense. A Mushroom Prinsense, if you will. Emboldened by this infallible logic, she spoke.

“Rina...I know that you have your reasons for doing this. That you’ve been given no choice.”

Her voice was calm and confident, as though it were rooted in an abundance of certainty. Having decided that she’d believe in Citrina until the very end, Mia fixed her with an unwavering gaze.

And if I’m wrong, and she’s actually rotten to the core, well... That’s fine too, because I’m going to die here either way. It doesn’t even matter!

And thus, it was revealed that her belief was predicated on decisional irrelevance. The Mushroom Princess’s resolve was as tough as her title! That is, soft, squishy, and a great dish for individuals without teeth!

“...Huh?”

Citrina froze. The dubious derivation of Mia’s words did not diminish their impact.

“...Why?” Citrina said after a long pause, the confidence in her mien giving way to distress. “Why you too? How come you’re saying the same things to Rina too?”

“Why, you ask? Because I don’t think you’d do this willingly, of course. I believe in you, Rina.”

No one who likes mushrooms can be a bad person! Driven by her unshakable faith in the character-elucidating power of mushrooms, Mia continued to speak with confidence.

“Talk to me, Rina. Tell me why. You’re being forced to do this, right? I know you are. You’re Bel’s friend. There’s no way you’d do this willingly.”

“Miss Mia...” Bel brightened slightly at Mia’s words. “That’s right. I thought it was weird too. Rina wouldn’t do this by herself. She’s obviously being bullied into it by bad people!”

The young girl then glared at Barbara, who shrugged calmly as the look bounced off her.

“Oh, how blessed are the ignorant. Mmm... I wonder what you’d think if you knew what milady has done...”

“No! Barbara, don’t!” begged a visibly distraught Citrina.

Barbara rolled her eyes before turning to Mia.

“Why even ask such questions in the first place, hm, Your Highness? What can you possibly do with the answer? You won’t be leaving here alive, after all.”

As she finished the last word, the wolf rose slowly to its feet from beside its master, like an executioner waiting for their cue. Mia’s heart skipped a beat at the sight. She quickly chanted the magic phrase three times.

It’s better than Dion... It’s better than Dion... It’s better than Dion!

Somehow, she felt a little less scared afterward. Mia’s little fear-repelling spell actually seemed to work. It came at the cost of a vision of Dion, eyebrow raised in displeasure at having his image appropriated for her wizardry. She quickly swatted the unnerving picture out of her mind.

Have no fear, me! Sure, this is a dangerous situation, but it’s nothing compared to having Dion Alaia come after my head!

She smiled boldly back at Barbara.

“My, that’s rather presumptuous of you. Sure, I might die here, but that won’t be the end of me. There are plenty of things I can do with the answer afterward.”

The look she gave the old woman was a silent declaration of Like going back to the past and ruining all your evil plans!

“...Now, now. Nobody likes a sore loser, Your Highness.”

“Am I being a sore loser, Barbara?”

She technically was. Mostly, at least. There was no guarantee she could make the trip through time again. But Mia was no featherless fledgling. She might be a chicken, but she was a chicken that had seen some shit. So, she posed the question with her chest held high and arms akimbo.

“...Perhaps a play for time then. But—”

Just as Barbara frowned in contemplation, she disappeared from view! Rather, everything disappeared from view. A sudden eruption of thick white smoke enveloped everything.

“What the—” exclaimed a bewildered Mia.

With her sight hampered, her nose took up the slack, picking out a scent in the white smog. It was faint, but she recognized it—lucioluna grass. Specifically, the bath herbs she’d used. The next instant, something slammed into her.

“Yeeow!”

She fell down with a shriek. Looking up, she discovered that the one who’d crashed into her was...

“Bel?!”

“Miss Mia?!”

...Bel, and her arms were no longer tied behind her.