This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Translator note: Late-night chats with Chloe and Julius. They're so sweet😊
🎉 Goal complete 🎉 We're releasing a bonus chapter tomorrow! Thank you all for participating!
Closing Distance and an Unsettling Morning - 3
Amidst the darkness of the night, we were surrounded by figures clad in all-black attire from head to toe. They appeared as black shadows under the moonlight, but their attire had openings only for their eyes, each of them holding what looked like short daggers.
The faint light illuminated the daggers, gleaming dully.
There seemed to be at least five of them. The impression they gave off was clearly that of assassins targeting us.
"...Don't move, Chloe."
Julius said, gripping the hilt of his sword. Wide-eyed, I hastily called out to Julius.
"Julius-san, please... don't kill them."
"Why? Are you asking me to show mercy?"
"It's not that... it's not that, but it's not right."
Though they appeared to be assassins, it might not be the case. Robert had mentioned that there were many who harbored hatred towards Julius in the kingdom.
Even the cheerful and outgoing Roge had openly admitted, "Even if we hate him, we need his power." He would casually mention how soldiers' heads would roll on the battlefield every time Julius and Helios arrived, but among them might have been Roge's friends, acquaintances, or perhaps even someone important.
If that's the case, it would be reasonable to assume that the assassins were targeting Julius. However, they might not be assassins at all; merely townsfolk who harbored resentment towards Julius, concealed within their clothing.
Killing them would be wrong.
The war was over, and Julius no longer needed to kill anyone. At least, as long as I was Julius's master, there was no need for such actions anymore.
"It can't be helped."
For Julius, who even defeated the gatekeeper of the Underworld, mere humans were not enemies.
"...I've been ordered to kill. Sorry about this."
One of the shadows said.
With their voice, the black figures lunged forward, but Julius effortlessly dispatched them one by one with his sword still sheathed, sinking them into the ground.
It happened in the blink of an eye. The difference in strength was clear, and Julius was out of reach even for the assassins' dagger tips.
Julius kicked one of the fallen assailants, causing them to roll onto their back.
Then, he pointed the sheathed tip of his sword towards the only exposed eyes beneath the cloth.
"You're too feeble for assassins. I don't intend to kill you. You must have another purpose. Who gave the order?"
"I can't say... Sorry... Infiltrate, dissolve."
As the assassin chanted a short incantation, their body began to dissolve into the ground.
It was an unfamiliar magic. As the man vanished, the others who had fallen scrambled away with a clatter.
It was such an anticlimactic and noisy end that it made one wonder what it was all about. Julius looked down at the disappearing ground with a troubled expression.
"...Julius-san, thank you. Are you injured?"
I timidly asked from behind Julius, who had been watching.
"Nah. They weren't serious about killing. ...I thought they might be the ones who hate me, but I didn't sense any murderous intent."
"It's getting cold, and there's no point in worrying about it when we're sleep-deprived, so let's go home?"
I felt a sticky, unpleasant premonition creeping over me, but I tried to sound as nonchalant as possible. Julius nodded without saying anything further.
If I could sense a bad feeling, then Julius must have been feeling something even more intense, I thought.
Even after changing into his night clothes and returning to the room, he sat by the bedside for a while, deep in thought with a troubled expression. It was quite unusual for Julius, who usually didn't seem to fret much and would fall asleep quickly on the bed he had taken from me.
I usually would have laid down on the sofa as usual, but since Julius seemed to still be awake, I decided to sit next to him by the bedside.
He didn't seem particularly bothered by my presence. It would be strange to worry about being disliked since he was sitting on my bed, but still.
The clock showed eleven o'clock in the evening. It was about time for Roxy-san's shop to close. I had thought it was much later, but perhaps it wasn't that late since we had left early.
For me, who usually fell asleep as soon as it got dark, staying up late like this was unusual. Outside the window with the curtains open, I could see the square with the fountain. There didn't seem to be anyone watching us.
Since I was already planning to go to bed, I turned off the lamp.
In the darkness, Julius's golden hair faintly gleamed in the moonlight streaming through the window.
"...Chloe... Were you acquainted with that man named Roge for a long time?"
Julius spoke, his gaze fixed outside the window. I hadn't expected him to bring up Roge, so I hesitated for a moment.
"Um, well... No, not really. Roge said he attended the same academy as me, but I was the eldest daughter of the Duke of Seigrit, and Roge was a student in the knight's department. I don't know much about that noble family Gregorio. The knight's department accepts children from knightly families, as well as commoners who pass the exam, so... I didn't know Roge."
"I see... Chloe, I want to hear your story. Listening to your voice somewhat clears my mind. I feel restless. There's something bothering me... Can I hear about your past?"
"Even though you always complain about how noisy I am."
"I do think you talk enough."
"But... you really want to hear my voice?"
"Yes."
I muttered to myself in my mind, finding it odd.
Feeling tired and a bit sleepy, I lay down on the bed with a thud.
With only Julius's back in my line of sight, I felt somewhat relieved. Today had been too eventful, and my emotions were still in array.
If I thought about each thing individually, I might realize things I shouldn't, so, as Julius suggested, I focused on recalling my past self.
It had been a while since I felt the sensation of the bed. It felt soft against my back. It was definitely different from the sofa.
"...Would you prefer a long story or a short one?"
"A long one."
"You might end up not being able to sleep."
"I don't mind."
Julius replied with short words. He was surprisingly straightforward today. Usually, he'd sprinkle a couple of sarcastic remarks in between his answers.
"I... was born as the eldest daughter of the Seigrit Duke's family. It was quite ordinary, I think. I had a beautiful and kind mother with the same hair and eye color as me. Her name was Celestia. Celestia Seigrit. She was beautiful, kind, and fragile... She taught me not to eat after nine o'clock at night, and she also told me not to watch scary things. She said to run away from scary things."
"What were you scared of?"
"I'm not sure, but... it was probably something from when I was a child. I was timid, so I used to get scared of things like dark hallways, footsteps, or creaking noises in the house... I'd end up crawling into my mother's bed. She would stroke me and tell me not to look at scary things. My father scolded me several times for going to her side because she was weak... even though he was such a quiet person, I felt like he loved my mother. It's strange... I wonder why..."
Sharing my past like this, speaking to someone about it for the first time, felt strange.
I tried not to think about it as much as possible. It only brought pain to dwell on it, so I avoided it. But speaking it out loud, maybe because Julius was listening quietly, made me feel uneasy.
"Why... did he... cheat? My father was always at home, and he seemed to work from there too. He rarely went out, especially because my mother wasn't well... I feel like he was often in her room. They used to talk a lot. He didn't talk much to me, though... Julius, doesn't that imply they loved each other?"
"I wonder... From what you've told me, they didn't seem to have a bad relationship at least. As for me... I don't remember much about my parents either. At least, I wasn't deprived, and everything seemed normal. But in the end, they were accused of betrayal and executed, so childhood memories are vague."
Julius seemed to be recalling his past too.
He spoke slowly, in fragments.
Though he went to war at the age of fifteen, Julius seemed to have lived happily as the heir to the ducal family, taking care of Helios before that.
Julius's parents, like mine, seemed similar. It was comforting to think that Julius had also experienced happy times. Even though he had spent time in a different country, we somehow felt alike. Though Julius must have gone through much harder times than me.
"Yeah... That's right... So, when I was thirteen, my mother passed away due to an illness. I'm not sure what illness it was... My father seemed to forget about me, and he appeared to be shutting himself away alone... And then, my stepmother, Lizaria-san, and Aliza-chan came to our house."
"Cyril married, your sister, right?"
"Yes. I don't know much about them. I was surprised to learn that Aliza-chan, who is only a year younger than me, is my sister... At first, I didn't really understand... My father started favoring Aliza-chan and began scolding me more often... Aliza-chan was energetic, cheerful, and cute, so maybe he got frustrated seeing me being timid and unable to express my opinions properly."
"You went to that 'academy' afterward?"
"Yes, Astoria Royal Academy. It's still there, east of the capital. It's like a big city. It's a place for noble children, and I stayed in the dormitory. I remember feeling relieved to be away from the Seigritte family... Aliza-chan, being just a year younger, started attending the academy soon after. While you were touring battlefields, we were peacefully studying at the academy, even though it was during the war."
"The central empire is similar... My position was considered heretical. So... Cyril, he was your fiancé, wasn't he?"
It's unusual for Julius to inquire so much about Cyril. Even though he seemed uninterested.
I recalled Cyril. Cyril Astoria. He was only a year older than me, so he must still be twenty-one. Younger than Roge. Even younger than Julius. He married Aliza and ascended the throne. I haven't seen him in a while, and I didn't even want to see him... I wondered if he was doing well...
Well, I'm not interested, and I don't care either way.