Youngest 066
by Cristae66
‘But Mister said… he caught the culprit!’
Did some remnants remain?
‘No!’
My body moved on instinct as I saw the black shadow reaching for the two girls.
At the same time, a hand abruptly grabbed me from behind.
“Rubian? It really is you. I kept calling, where are you rushing off to?”
It was Licht.
“Licht! Liv and Titi! Look—there!”
“Huh?”
Frantic, I pointed across the main street. Seeing the blood drain from my face, Licht seemed to understand and furrowed his brow.
I am a mage. Licht is a young boy.
The difference was clear.
And if my suspicions were correct… the one tailing the ladies was a mage!
“I’ll chase them. You go get help!”
“Rubian!”
I ran until my lungs burned. If I hadn’t been building my stamina all this time, I never would have managed it.
I raced to a place—a maze-like alleyway.
There was an odd, total stillness—no sign of life.
Wait, just a moment.
Kneeling to catch my breath, I became aware of the strange sensation pressing in on my surroundings.
‘The flow of mana!’
In the strangely silent alley, a vibrant surge of energy began to rise.
And in that instant, blue magic circles flared up on both sides of the alley.
“A binding artifact.”
My eyes snapped open at the familiar energy. Black shadows unfurled and wound tightly around my body.
At the end of the alley, a figure in a dark robe strode forward. He brought a round artifact close to me.
Was I a mage?
‘OOOOO:-)’
Bing bing! Ding dong dang! Correct!
“Wow, right answer.”
The assailant’s lips curved into a long smile.
“But couldn’t this sound effect be a bit calmer?”
“You…”
Recognizing him, my eyes widened in outrage. At the same moment—whip!—ropes with hooks sprang at me from both sides.
“Grab her!”
Someone blocked my way and my vision went black. The sharp stench stung my nose, and before I could cling to consciousness, it slipped away.
A piercing beep rang in my ears.
Jumbled screams followed—this was the last thing I remembered.
“This can’t be.”
Rosetta Zevert finally came to her senses after quite some time, standing alone at the hot springs.
“No—way!”
She shouted, groping at the empty spot where the child had vanished.
A boy, they said? A pretty little boy, they said!
She thought of Leviathan’s reply to her letter, the one where she’d asked if Rubian was a girl.
Yes, he’d definitely said it was a boy!
She rushed frantically back to the estate. Honestly, she could hardly remember how she got there at all.
“Madam?”
No sooner had her foot touched the lobby than Adolf appeared. The sight of her, soaked and disheveled from the rain, made his brow furrow at once.
“You’ve been out in the rain…”
“Adolf! Describe Rubian’s appearance! Cute, lovely—no, not like that!”
Clutching his shoulders, Rosetta demanded his answer.
Taken aback by his mistress’s sudden intensity, Adolf replied with what came to mind.
“Snow-white silver hair, sapphire-blue eyes. But may I ask, what is this about?”
“Ah…”
Rosetta staggered. Adolf tried to catch her, but she steadied herself against the wall, holding up a hand to stop him.
“In truth, I… lied to a friend.”
Her memories tangled inside her mind.
She’d been complacent. She’d trusted too firmly that Rubian was a boy and never once considered the child at the cemetery might be Rubian.
“I don’t want to be hated…”
“What have you done?”
A pained groan slipped out.
There was such despair in her voice that Adolf instinctively sensed something had gone terribly wrong.
“Madam, what’s going on? Has something happened to Lady Rubian?”
Rosetta jerked up her head, face cold, hair dripping, brown and pink strands tangled and soaking.
“Leviathan. Where’s my husband?”
At that moment, Leviathan Zevert was surveying the city of Ipsen.
Waiting for Rosetta in such a manner was common enough for him. Truth be told, it was rather more his own amusement than hers.
After all, his wife was full of surprises.
Nobles’ work, except for time spent on the battlefield, often meant being cloistered in the estate, wrestling with paperwork.
Only Rosetta seemed to appreciate this, and her antics were perhaps her way of urging him to break the monotony.
‘Come to think of it, she’s never come out like this before.’
Leviathan glanced casually around him.
It had started drizzling at some point. Eyeing the gray sky, Leviathan considered calling this game of hide-and-seek to an end.
It was then—
“My lord!”
Leon ran up from behind, breathless.
“Urgent news from Count Kamelan, sir.”
“Urgent news?”
Leon’s face was twisted in displeasure.
“It seems… a number of criminals handed over to the Kamelan Knights have escaped.”
“What?”
Ha. Leviathan pressed a hand to his forehead with a short, exasperated sigh.
“They really manage to mess up everything.”
Just how do they bungle things like this…
He muttered a curse under his breath and sharply turned his horse’s reins.
“Send the knights again, Void. And you—return home.”
Leviathan spoke with a sigh in his voice.
Void, who had been rummaging around a trash bin nearby, tilted his head.
“Yes? But Mother—”
“Playtime is over.”
“Eh? O-okay…”
Beeeeeeep—
In that instant, through the drizzle in his scowling vision, Leviathan spotted a carrier pigeon cutting through the fog.
“It’s coming from the direction of Zelox, my lord.”
A strange chill flew down his neck. Was this the calm before the storm?
“Yujen.”
“Yes, sir.”
At the knight’s whistle, the hawk dove.
“It’s from Borvel, my lord.”
“Bring it here.”
He rolled open the letter, but beside him, Void let out a startled shout.
“Father!”
At the same moment—shhhhk!—the sound of something slicing through the air. Leviathan snatched the reins and pulled back at once.
Thud! An arrow came crashing into the ground from behind.
“……”
Out of reflex, he checked the sigil on the arrow’s shaft. As he turned toward its origin, he spotted, atop a village tower in the distance, a familiar head of pink hair fluttering in the wind.
“Rose?”
“M-mother—!”
Void waved ecstatically.
“Why on earth is my wife up there?”
Even so, some of the tension in Leviathan’s shoulders eased. The mere sight of that sweet pink hair made his heart flutter.
But Rosetta, standing on the tower ledge, drew a folding arrow hidden at her thigh.
She pressed its sharp tip to the very center of her brow.
Something must have set her off.
“Leviathan, you rotten, no-good, piece of—!”
Her thundering voice rang out across the town. The townsfolk of Ipsen gaped, and the nearby Leon, seemingly used to this, covered Void’s ears.
“Yes. I’ve been dying to see you too, to the point of cursing.”
Leviathan lifted both arms as if beckoning her down.
“What have you done to Rubian!”
“…?”
What was this about?
Leviathan slowly lowered his arms, his expression going stiff. At that moment, the letter in his hand crackled, demanding attention.
He slowly unfolded it and read.
“……”
As expected, it was a reply from Eosia. And yet…
“What the hell is—what is this nonsense?”