Youngest 171
by CristaeEpisode 171
Then, with a heave, I sat up, and our view flipped in an instant.
“Really?”
“Uh, uh, uh, no!”
“I can’t tell if that’s a yes or no…”
Khalid muttered, scratching the back of his head. For some reason I was suddenly overcome by embarrassment and bolted away as if fleeing across the training grounds.
“Wait up! Didn’t you come here to see me?”
Fifteen-year-old Kal…
Had become more shameless than I could have imagined!
Thump, thump, thump, thump. My heart pounded madly, demanding attention.
Crossing the training grounds, I gulped for air in dizzying breaths. The hand that had been held tingled with sensation.
‘I definitely need to buy a diary with a lock!’
It seemed that from now on, the secrets I shouldn’t let my family find out were just about to begin!
Phew, finally caught you.
Khalid sat with Rubian on a bench in the garden. Rubian had become much nimbler from running around the training grounds lately.
Still, there was no chance he’d let her get away.
He sat on the outer edge of the bench by the tree. Naturally, Rubian sat in the cool shade, kicking off her shoes with a soft thud.
She grumbled quietly about how these weren’t running shoes and how stifling they felt.
“What was it you wanted to ask me?”
Gathering up the shoes she’d tossed aside, Khalid asked.
“No, take a look at this.”
She suddenly thrust a notebook at him—it was familiar.
Random notes were jotted down in ancient script, along with place names and their modern equivalents… In other words, it was Rubian’s research notebook.
“There’s just one place name left that I can’t figure out.”
She puffed her cheeks out sullenly.
Kal stared blankly at Rubian’s profile as she sat beside him.
“What do you think?”
Her blue eyes rushed at him, ambushing.
These days, Khalid was utterly exhausted.
At night he was tormented by growth pains severe enough to wring his very bones, and by day, the cause of his suffering was Rubian.
Somehow, whenever he talked with Rubian, his heart raced and he felt as if he might vomit.
Was this another kind of growing pain too?
He couldn’t be sure.
“Uh… I don’t know ancient script, though.”
“Yeah, right.”
“Sorry.”
“No, don’t apologize for that.”
A gentle breeze brushed over her smiling, fair face.
Khalid’s attention was caught by her silvery hair, swaying at her collar. She’d oscillated between cutting and growing it, but lately, she seemed set on having it long again.
‘She used to hate long hair because there was no one to tie it for her…’
Here, there were plenty willing to trim or style Rubian’s hair any way she liked.
Beloved Rubian.
Khalid thought he rather liked the sound of that. Enough to make him feel lightheaded for no reason.
“Licht says he can’t tell much just by letter, either. He told me it’d be better to come see the imperial library myself…”
“You want to go to the Imperial Palace?”
“Yeah. And by chance, Licht’s having a huge birthday party in a few months. He said if I want, he’ll get me access to the archives, too!”
“…”
It was as if a splash of muddy water had spoiled his good mood.
But he kept it off his face. Calmly, obediently.
“Of course, I’ll have to get Mom and Dad’s permission to go outside…”
“They’ll worry, but I think they’ll let you.”
“Really?”
The Mage Kingdom remained missing to this day.
But a few mages had recently been caught trying to sneak into the Delcan Ruins. They’d self-destructed as soon as they were captured, but it was proof that, in some shape or form, the Mage Kingdom was on the move.
Of course, in response, the Emperor and Duke Zevert were relentlessly tracking them down.
Chasing an enemy whose form couldn’t be seen wasn’t easy, but now that the tables had turned and they were the hunters, Kal wasn’t too worried.
Before long, their tails would be caught.
“Then I should let Oberon know in advance.”
As he added this lightly, Rubian blinked a few times.
“You’re going to the Palace too?”
“Can’t I?”
“No, that’s not it, but… you haven’t been feeling well lately. There’s no need to force yourself to go…”
“Ruby.”
Kal replied calmly.
“Wherever you go, that’s where I need to be.”
He had made that vow long ago, from the moment they met in that cave.
Perhaps Rubian read into the words he didn’t say, for her slightly parted lips pressed shut and she turned her head away sharply.
“You… really, you, need to fix that weird way of talking of yours first…”
What weird way?
Kal was about to ask when he stopped. He spotted a familiar figure in the distance.
“Gasp, isn’t that Mister Allen?”
Rubian seemed to have noticed as well.
“He must’ve found the place with the gravestone that I mentioned before! Mister!”
As she started scanning her surroundings, Kal quickly brought over her shoes. She crammed them on haphazardly, leapt to her feet, and dashed off.
The man striding along, one eye covered by a patch, turned at their call.
“Ay! Princess—no, miss!”
The Alpheon Mercenary Corps had at some point ended up serving under Duke Zevert.
Their connection to Allen had never been revealed, so no one knew Allen was also carrying out missions with Kal.
As Allen traded joyful greetings with Rubian, his gaze flickered sideways. Their eyes met.
‘He must have some information for me.’
Kal thought with indifference.
“Hey, Kal. If it’s about the Ancient Kingdom, you ought to dig into the Western Continent.”
“The Western Continent?”
“You know, the Land of the Heretics. All those people worshipping different gods, not our own goddess.”
“…”
“Rumor has it the place is overflowing with ruins. Compared to Delcan, it’s supposed to be a goldmine. Ah, damn, just thinking about it… Imagine all those treasures no one’s ever seen or heard of, just waiting to be found!”
He recalled that unruly face, grinning as it cackled.
‘Maybe I’ll visit someday.’
The Land of the Heretics.
‘Once things are settled for Ruby, one day.’
His priorities had always been perfectly clear.
Ignoring Allen, who waved his arms madly as he ran over, Kal turned and headed again for the training grounds.
Some time later, at summer’s end.
“You want to go to the Imperial Palace?”
Leviathan, out on a stroll with Rubian, raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah… Is that not allowed? There’s a limit to what I can do exchanging letters with Licht. I want to go see the imperial archives for myself. Licht thinks it’s a good idea too.”
Rubian fiddled nervously with her fingertips.
“And in a few months, he’s going to have this huge birthday party at the Palace… He said he’ll send an invitation.”
Leviathan watched her quietly, then gently took Rubian’s hand.
It was still small and frail. She kept boasting about how much she’d grown, but she was still smaller than most her age…
‘I swear I feed her well, but she just doesn’t seem to grow.’
Swallowing his frustration, Leviathan replied softly.
“If you want to go, of course you can. There’s no reason you can’t.”
“Really? I thought you’d say it’s too dangerous outside Zelox and say no!”
Because of the instability caused by the Mage Kingdom and the surrounding chaos, Rubian had stayed put in Zelox all this time. It was the first time in years she’d asked to go anywhere else.
So how could he possibly say no? Besides—
“Do you think your father is an idiot?”
“Uh…”
“I’ve been making preparations for this for a long time already.”
He had always done his best to build a safe haven for his child.
A hillside lush with fresh herbs, cicadas crying at the top of their lungs signaling summer’s end.
“So there’s nowhere in this empire you can’t go. As long as you’re healthy, of course.”
“Don’t worry about my magic! I’ll be upgrading my magic device with Asha!”
“Go get a checkup.”
“…Dad, you’re not a mage.”
“Still, go. I’m smart enough to tell if it’s safe for you or not.”
“Heh, all right!”
Just a checkup.
Delighted, Rubian swung Leviathan’s hand back and forth.
“Phew, I was nervous. Honestly, I thought you’d say no…”
To be perfectly honest—
‘I do want to say no…’
But Leviathan knew.
He couldn’t keep her in his arms forever.
Rest time was over. The child was readying herself to run wherever she wished, and he shouldn’t stand in the way.
“So where are we going now?”
Rubian looked up, glancing around.
“Only just now decided to ask?”
“Heh, heh…”
Leviathan smiled softly, gazing at the white fence in the distance.
“The memorial garden.”
Her silver head darted about busily.
“Huff, huff.”
“Why are you working so hard again?”
“Don’t stop me. I’m just doing what I can right now.”
Sweat running down her brow, Rubian was diligently pulling weeds near the grave.
Truthfully, the small section of the memorial tended by Rosetta and the other adults was already so well kept there were hardly any weeds, but—
Leviathan gently brushed the top of the tall, nameless black headstone.
“Dad… are you sad?”
Before he realized, his child had sidled up beside him and asked carefully, taking his hand.
“Of course I’m sad.”
Rubian’s eyebrows drooped.
“She was the one I most wanted to protect, and I couldn’t.”
“…Yeah…”
Watching her lips twitch as if trying to hold something back, Leviathan gave a brief laugh.
“Ugly mouth again.”
“Wah.”
“I’m actually really happy right now, you know?”
“But you just said you were sad…”
“Who says you can’t be happy when you’re sad?”
With that, Leviathan swung Rubian up into his arms.
“Dad, I’m heavy now…”
“I know. You’re so heavy, I think my arms are going to break.”
“Then I’ll fix them right up for you.”
And still, not a word about not wanting to be held.
Leviathan chuckled inwardly and shifted his hold on her with a laugh.
“Then… why are you happy?”
Rubian asked.
“Don’t you know?”
“If I knew, I wouldn’t ask…”
Bump—she grumbled softly as their foreheads touched.
“Because the one I want to protect most is right here, by my side.”
“…”
Watching her round forehead shyly turn away, Leviathan lifted his languid gaze to the black stone.
Alone atop the vast earth, the headstone always stabbed at him with pain.
‘I’m sorry. For leaving you all alone.’
But right now, there’s something in my arms I must protect.
So let me, when I’ve finished everything and see you again—let me have another chance to protect you then.
“Shall we spend this winter in the capital?”
“Sounds good!”
Leviathan slowly turned and left the memorial. The soft breeze caught the crest of the hill and gently nudged the two of them forward.