[When talks of marriage between you and the Ether Duchy began, we felt a lot of things. We couldn’t believe you were already at that age, and we started wondering if the child we always thought you were had actually grown up while we weren’t paying attention… We even thought maybe it was our fault for always doubting and worrying about you.]
It seemed Father and Mother had a lot of regrets in their own way.
[Your mother and I… we didn’t really watch you grow up properly. The day the marriage talks with the Ether Duchy came in, that thought hit us all of a sudden.]
Why are you being so sentimental all of a sudden…
Still, I could understand now why they sent the letter. How could you say something like this face-to-face?
[It was a night full of thoughts. Your mother was delighted by the gifts sent from the duchy, and I was confused, unsure what kind of political message they carried. Then my eyes landed on one of the gifts.]
“Gifts… come to think of it, I don’t even know what we received at home.”
Back then, I’d been so preoccupied with the engagement itself that I hadn’t even thought about it.
At most, I’d just thought we’d have to return whatever they sent.
[It was a fine wine. With everything going on, we thought we’d just have a glass each… but then, well… that happened.]
“No way.”
Don’t write something like “your sibling was conceived because we got drunk” in a letter. How am I supposed to show my face in public after this?!
[Anyway, that brings me to the main point.]
Wait, that wasn’t the main point already?
There’s something more shocking than that?
[When Chris heard he had a new sibling, it seemed to spark some sense of responsibility and independence in him. He said he wanted to go to the Cradle.]
The Cradle is not the kind of place you can just go because you want to… Unless you’re a noble, I guess. Most people don’t want to go.
[But as you know, Chris is still too young. Even so, when a young man wants to prove himself, it’s hard for us as parents to just shut him down.]
Now the story was starting to come together.
[Your mother’s been especially worried because his body changed drastically again in a short time. Same goes for me. So, Johan, we’re sending Chris to the capital. Please look after him for a while.]
I understood the situation.
It was a bit of a hassle, sure, but nothing I couldn’t accept.
From the perspective of parents who don’t know the full story, they must’ve been really shocked.
They probably even feared his illness had relapsed.
Even with all the excuses attached, the bottom line was that they were worried about Chris and wanted me to check on him.
Well, I was the one who cured Chris’s illness, so it made sense to send him to me.
“Do I need to find him a place to stay first?”
This wasn’t the time to be standing around. I had to start looking for a place suitable for Chris.
My dorm room was too small for two people, and I couldn’t just count on the Cradle to generously provide Chris with his own room.
Olga Helmod was a kind person by nature, but she wasn’t someone who handed out favors or showed favoritism.
“The Misfits are…”
Out of the question.
There was no way I was going to leave our precious Chris with those weirdos.
They’re literally called “The Misfits”. I couldn’t possibly entrust my noble little brother to a bunch of outcasts.
Besides, if he picked up even the slightest bad influence, Mother would probably try to kill me.
“Should I ask Ariel for help?”
With the Ether Duchy’s resources, they could probably arrange a decent place for him to stay.
And if it came to it, sending him to the Ether Duchy wouldn’t be a bad idea.
We’re practically in-laws now. No way the Duke would pretend not to know us.
At the very least, he’d be treated like an honored guest.
“…By the way, when exactly did this letter arrive?”
A sudden thought occurred to me.
Did the letter say when Chris would be arriving?
I went back and combed through the letter again to find the date of Chris’s arrival.
“Uh…”
Chris was supposed to arrive three days ago.
***
What was I supposed to do in a situation like this?
Should I ask the city guard? Or maybe I should just contact Father through the Silver Mirror, even if it’s late?
Chris’s whereabouts were completely unknown.
No, even saying “unknown” felt off….I just had no idea.
He should’ve come straight to me when he arrived in the capital, but since I wasn’t there, he was left hanging.
“…Calm down, calm down.”
There was no point in rushing out to look for him without a clue. Besides, maybe I was overreacting. Nothing might’ve happened at all.
The Empire had stabilized recently, and Chris would have come with guards and servants, so nothing serious should have happened.
We probably just missed each other.
Let’s think calmly. What is it that I should be doing right now?
“……”
No.
I can’t calm down.
Immun is dead. Because of my carelessness, his death was sealed.
If I had been able to join up with him sooner, the outcome might have been different.
So what guarantee is there that Chris would be any different?
What if something happened to Chris because I was late?
What if he died?
“Ugh!”
I shook the stray thoughts away.
That was going too far, no matter what.
I must just be exhausted lately.
This isn’t that serious of a situation yet. I haven’t confirmed anything, after all.
First things first… right, I’ll go to the faculty office.
***
When I arrived at the faculty office—
“Ah, Student Johan. Perfect timing. Your younger brother came by, and—”
“……”
“Student Johan?”
“No, it’s nothing. I’m just… feeling a bit empty. I searched everywhere for him.”
“You didn’t think to come ask here first?”
“I guess not.”
I found out Chris’s whereabouts very easily.
It was that simple. There was no need to panic and run around like a madman.
I’d overreacted.
“So, um… where did my brother say he was going?”
“Well, you see, at this time of year, finding lodging is harder than picking stars out of the sky.”
“That’s usually the case.”
Running an inn in the imperial capital is never easy.
Letting an unidentified outsider stay in a city crawling with all kinds of suspicious elements takes real nerve.
“Let’s see… one of the faculty members said they knew you and took him along?”
“Who…?”
“No need to rush. I’m checking right now, so just wait a moment.”
Still, hearing it was one of the Cradle’s faculty members did put my mind at ease.
I let out a sigh of relief—
But then—
“It was Professor Georg.”
The words hit me like a bolt from the blue.
***
The alchemy workshop, Ars Magna.
The workshop, which I hadn’t visited in a long time, was exactly as I remembered.
Stuffy, stifling air.
The scent of alchemical substances lingering in the atmosphere naturally made me frown.
“Oh, Johan. You’re here?”
Professor Georg was lounging on the sofa as usual.
Seeing the coffee in his hand, I couldn’t help but suspect…maybe he was high on something weird again.
“…You didn’t do anything strange to my little brother, did you?”
“What kind of person do you think I am?”
“You’re the one who drugs returning students and forcibly turns them into graduate students. A truly heinous man.”
“Sharp as ever.”
I rested my hand on my sword.
If it came down to it, I’d have to fight.
Georg was no easy opponent. If I fought him, I’d need to be ready to kill.
“But, Johan, there’s something you still don’t know.”
“And what would that be?”
“I only do that to talented kids. Your brother? He doesn’t know the first thing about alchemy.”
“Well… he was a bit frail.”
“Ah, right. That was Varg’s curse, wasn’t it?”
Twitch.
A chill ran down my spine.
Come to think of it, I’d spilled everything to Georg during the beginning of my first year.
At the time, Georg had seemed like the most trustworthy person around.
Now, of course, I know what a shady guy he really is, but back then I thought of him as just a capable and admirable teacher.
“You… what are you thinking so hard about? Do you really think I’d perform human experiments on your little brother or something?”
“Where is my brother right now?”
“Hey! If I were that reckless, I would’ve joined Ex Machina!”
That group was disbanded not long ago.
“Your brother went downtown with Jabir. He’ll be back soon.”
“……”
“You little punk, seriously?”
“Come on, you should’ve earned my trust in the first place.”
Still, judging by how furious I was, at least nothing disastrous had happened.
“Thanks for looking after Chris, Professor Georg.”
“Finally, you say something that should’ve come out of your mouth from the start. Don’t worry about it. I just treated him like one of my assistants.”
“You’re overworking him a bit, though.”
How dare you push around someone as precious as my little brother?
“Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t force him….he volunteered!”
“Why would Chris do that?”
“You’re practically radiating distrust. He must’ve had his reasons for wanting to learn alchemy. I’ve got a rough idea, though…”
“Are you saying Chris asked to learn alchemy?”
“That’s what I’m telling you.”
Alchemy, huh…
The reason I started learning alchemy was to save Chris.
It wasn’t because I liked it…more like I had no other choice.
Maybe that’s why…
“Why would he want to learn this garbage field?”
It doesn’t make sense. There are way better subjects to take an interest in.
“Did you just insult alchemy in front of me, Johan?”
“You always call it a garbage field yourself, Professor.”
“It’s fine if I say it, but if anyone else does, I won’t stand for it!”
Professor Georg lunged at me with a syringe. This is exactly why he’s not trustworthy. One wrong word and he just snaps.
Mentally unstable, for sure.
“Time really flies, doesn’t it? Your back looks a lot smaller these days, Professor.”
“Arrrrgh! Johan Damus!!”
Back in the day, I had to brace myself around him, but now? Professor Georg doesn’t even feel like a threat anymore.
I guess I really have grown.
Now I can feel it for sure.
“But hey, Johan. You doing okay?”
“Me? Oh, I mean… nothing really…”
I gave it a quick thought.
Actually, no. There was nothing to think about.
“It’s nothing but trouble.”
It had never not been like this. I’d been caught up in every kind of incident imaginable…
“I only just started to feel like I could breathe. And even then, I rushed over the moment I heard my brother had been kidnapped by you.”
“Kidnapped?! Come on, people are gonna get the wrong idea if they hear that!”
Right, it was protection, wasn’t it. Sure.
“Ahem… anyway, if you’ve got some breathing room, that’s good to hear.”
“I’m busy.”
“Who said I was about to make you do something? This damn kid, I try to say something nice and he ruins the mood all by himself.”
“So what were you going to say? I trust it’ll be something deeply meaningful…like a true teacher would offer.”
“You’re putting real pressure on me here.”
To be honest, I was genuinely expecting something.
For all his flaws, he’d said some pretty decent things over the years.
“Hmm… no, never mind. Doesn’t feel right for me to be the one to say it.”
“Sounds like it really got to you.”
“No, it’s just… it’s something I already gave up on once. That’s why I’m hesitant.”
Georg spoke with an indifferent look on his face.
“Your class feels a lot like last year’s. So it’s not my place to say anything.”
“……”
“You know as well as I do. I couldn’t say a word to them back then.”
“……I see.”
The same atmosphere as last year’s class.
Of course I knew what he meant.
Even if it wasn’t the same as Immun’s death, it had still shaken me deeply.
It wasn’t the first time someone around me had died.
Even if I didn’t mourn every single one, there had always been some bitterness left behind.
But the reason Immun’s death hit me so hard was something else entirely.
“Because of what was right, what should’ve been done, and what I regret.”
“See? Told you…it’s complicated.”
That day, with Immun’s body lying right in front of me, I didn’t mourn his death. I prioritized the mission at hand.
Yeah, I wanted to win. I dug through Immun’s corpse to retrieve his revolver, because I needed it to win.
The situation was dire, and that decision led to the best possible outcome.
It was the right choice.
It was what had to be done.
“Exactly. It’s complicated.”
But still… it’s something I regret.
Even now, I don’t think that choice was wrong.
It’s just that… the fact that my first instinct in that moment was to think that way. It’s hard not to despise myself for it.
Only now did I really understand what Melana meant when she gave me that advice.
The students at the Cradle last year weren’t tormented because someone close to them died.
It was when people around them started dying, one after another…
“They all probably felt the same way.”
Because they had to stay cold. Because they themselves had to be the ones who remained calm.
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