Chapter 17

||T/N:

•Italics for thoughts (+apostrophes for the first one) and sound effects.

•Multiple "-" represents flashbacks and memories (unless dependant on time signatures like "* * *").

Enjoy reading!||6

. . .

It was only when the carriage that Kalia was residing in had just left the mansion gates, that Hemming then looked out the window and hurriedly called Kalia.

"Mistress Kalia."

Kalia, who was taking out a book to read for the long and tedious journey, looked up at the sound of Hemming's urgent voice.

Hemming began to speak, opening the curtain that had been covering the windows of the carriage, her cheeks slightly red with surprise.

"Mistress, look outside."

'What's going on?'

Kalia felt that there were dozens of presences outside the carriage, but none of them were harmful ones.

No magical energy could be felt nor any presence of an assassin.

She lowered her head slightly and looked out through the window that Hemming had just opened.

Soon her eyes grew wide, startled at the scene before her eyes.

Standing on the streets that wove in and around the mansion were the familiar faces of Ellie the Maid, Thiel the Deputy Manager of the stable, and Chef Ruff . . .1

'What is this . . . Oh, did you suddenly come to protest because you lost your job?'

Though dumbfounded at that thought, Kalia soon agreed with it.

Of course. If she had lost her job all of a sudden, it was only natural that she would feel extremely upset and frustrated.

Before leaving, Kalia had asked the butler to write a letter of recommendation for employees that were dismissed, however, that wasn't all.

Feeling that it wasn't enough, she had paid those employees 10 months' worth of salary as compensation.

Given that the industry's average compensation was two months' worth of wage, this amount was pretty unusual.

'But that alone may not be enough.'

Kalia pulled up the carriage to meet the protestors.

As the carriage pulled up in front of them, Chef Ruff, who had a dwarf amongst his ancestors, jumped in front of the crowd, acting as a representative for them. In his hands was a big rattan basket.

As Heming opened the carriage door, the chef quickly put the basket in the carriage and shouted, "We heard that you were going on a vacation without a return date. Mistress, you made a good decision. Get some rest! We hope that you come back safely and hire us again! By then I'll have some more cakes waiting for your return! Well then, have a safe trip!"1

Ruff, who shouted the words with a smile, quickly closed the carriage door and waved his hand.

'What is this . . .'

Hemming, who took a peek at the basket placed in front of the embarrassed Kalia, admired the items within subtly.

"There are so many types of jerky in this basket. There must be lamb chi, beef, and pork with chilling spells on them. It's so cool in the basket."

A basket with refrigeration magic would be quite expensive.

Kalia felt sorry to have dismissed them from their well-paying jobs. She was at a loss after receiving such a lovely gift from the former employees.

Hemming, who was watching Kalia's reaction from the side, said stealthily, "I heard before that the Chef's wife was sick last year so he had to take five months off work. From what I could make out, when the Chef came back he was talking with his eyes watering, saying that his wife was all better because of the five-month vacation and consolation money you gave him. He even stated that he only wanted to cook delicious food for Mistress until he died."

"Huh . . . I just accepted his application for a leave of absence because he had to take care of his family . . . What's so great about that . . . ?"

With this, Kalia's sheepish face turned red.

Rolling her eyes, she raised one of her hands and scratched her red ears. For some reason, she felt her ears grow itchy when she was thanked for doing what she felt was only natural.2

"Don't do that and wave your hands, Mistress. Everyone wants to greet you."

There were some employees who were residents of the mansion. None of them could've known what time Kalia was departing at, so one could only guess how long these people had been waiting there just to greet her goodbye.

After hesitating, Kalia opened the window of the carriage and looked around at the people who were seeing her off.

When Kalia's head popped out, they all bowed and bid her farewell.

"Goodbye, Mistress."

They roared the words in unison, and Kalia's gaze, which had been looking at their bowed heads, became more and more perplexed.

* * *

"They've already departed."

At the messenger's words, Louismond's hand froze, stopping him from signing the document in front of him.

He then rose from his seat with a short exhale and stood in front of the window.

The towering Imperial Palace was built to give a good view of the Capital.

In particular, you could see the border of the East End, from Louisimond's office, very well.

His eyes narrowed at the birch forest that surrounded the eastern border.

Passing through that forest, you would cross the station of the Capital's Magic Circle.

Kalia probably moved from there using the magic of scrolls.

That was the only way they could avoid Simon from chasing them, knowing that he would follow them later.2

This intelligent woman had abandoned all of her possessions, leaving with only her new ones.

Most of the valuables that had Simon's magic, or were his hidden devices were expected to be inside the carriage.1

". . . I don't know if this is the right decision, but, have a safe trip, Kalia, and don't stay away for too long . . ."

Louismond, although not visible to Kalia, murmured this whilst trying to find her carriage that was heading towards the East Gate.

Still, in his head, his thoughts were complicated, but she had already departed from the capital.

His heart, knowing that she was leaving, felt stuffy. It was dizzying to think of Simon, who would come tomorrow to know of this.1

'. . . You're going to get me killed.' Louismond thought bitterly.2

He was the one who sent Kalia away because he cared for her, but acquiescence was the beauty of permission anyway.

There was one thing that was fortunate.

He had managed to conclude a dramatic deal with Kalia's 'retirement', changing it to a 'resting period' instead.

With his various persuasions, pleas, and requests, she promised to return.

Of course, this promise was only conditional, however, it wasn't a bad condition. At best, it might get her back in a year, or even six months, after she left.1

So this 'condition' should go well, but he didn't know if it was possible to control it.

With what he could do, that 'condition' was something crucial that he sold himself to.

Once again, Louismond gave a bitter, deep sigh.

'Kalia.'

Why was she leaving? Because he still didn't know the reason, his heart felt heavy.1

—————————————————————————

'I think I'm going to start a family.'

—————————————————————————

Confused, Louisimond had no idea what that meant.

There was no way that person had a new lover.

Then the remaining options were her lost parents . . .

———————————————————————

'If I found my parents, I wouldn't have kept it a secret though.'

———————————————————————

Soon, a homeless family came to mind, but the thought was immediately shaken off.

It was a ridiculous assumption with a less than a one-percent chance.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh . . ."

I didn't know.

How does one know what was going on inside her head?

Any attempt he made would only result in becoming blackmailed by her.

Louismond, with his forehead against the cool glass window, recalled the last conversation with Kalia.

The last conversation that had left him no choice but to accept her request.

—————————————————————————

'Your Majesty, do you remember when I rescued the abducted Majesty from the fugitive's canyon and fell into a cave? Back then, I thought it would be an honor if I, laying in a dark cave and watching the blackbirds rushing towards me, saved the honorable Majesty, and died. But, the Goddess of Luck took care of me, and I survived without dying.'

'. . .'

'Well then. And was it two years later? During the Battle of the Seas in Aria Bay, exactly 12 arrows were blocked with my shoulder to save His Majesty. Ah! I sometimes went out to collect the treasures of the Imperial Family that were stolen by a monster, ending up with my arms being broken.'

'Kalia.'1

'Well, what else is there? I have sacrificed my life to save yours, Your Majesty.'

'. . . Kalia.'

'Yes, Your Majesty.'

"Who taught you how to threaten others like that?'

'That was . . .'

Kalia replied with a look of confidence more than ever before.

'It was from Simon.'2

* * *

Boooooooooooooooooom!

The magnificent sound of the boat horn filled the harbor.

There were hundreds of ferries carrying hundreds of people, rendering the port was crowded with people leaving and returning.

Over the clear blue sky, flower petals made of colored paper flew like shooting stars.

Crowds of people walked as if they were dancing.

The free and artistic atmosphere unique to the port city decorated the alleys.

However, it was not the pleasant atmosphere of the beautiful port city that held onto the lines of these countless people.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

The clacking of low-heeled shoes could be heard walking unsteadily along the twisting stone road.

There were more than one or two footsteps.

"What's the recovery rate of the harbor-based Magic Circle?"

"It's 80-percent so far. I think the basic maintenance will be done by midnight today. We've replaced the Mana Stone because we've run out of Mana."

"What are the remaining events on the schedule?"

"This afternoon's visit to the academy is likely to bring an end to our business trip. Tiana at their Magic Department said they wanted to have a quick luncheon tonight."

"Let's pretend I didn't hear that."

It was a group of four people in white cloaks embroidered with golden threads in the shape of a looming tower.

Without fancy accessories, they simply wore neat, clean white uniforms and black leather gloves, but the group stood out more than anyone else in the harbor.

It was a group of mages belonging to the Imperial Family that had long ago been called 'Magic Department' but was only then officially named 'Magic Department' by order of the current Crown Prince.1

People looked at them with envy.

A prosecutor or reporter was quite common, but the opportunity to see formal mages were rare.

In particular, to become a wizard for the Imperial Family, one had to pass the exam held only once a year, because of how difficult the test was, there were fewer than 10 successful applicants each year.

There were over 10,000 applicants annually, but only 10 passed!

Indeed, it was a tormenting selection.

Passing the selection didn't mean that you had completely passed. No, the Tower required a one-year training period, during which only the slickest, cream of the crop alone could make it into the Official Imperial Magic Department. That was the final challenge.

Of the 10 people who passed the selection exam, there were two to three people each year who could not endure the training period, meaning only about seven passed the whole examination a year.

The number of applicants had increased, although the selection process had still remained as frivolous and rigorous as it once was.

This was due to the fact that support from the Imperial Family was enormous.

They gave titles to the commoners, and the salary that came out of that field surpassed those from quite a few marquises.

They were also regularly invited to a luncheon by the Imperial Family as an encouragement.

It was natural that the people were full of envy, as honor and wealth followed the career at the same time.

However, it wasn't only because of all these benefits that the Magic Department enjoyed the same current-day popularity.

. . .

||T/N:

Hey guys, Snowy here.

Yes, the team and I are still alive and well. Let's just say the mass update is taking longer than expected due to some issues. Mostly that I've been busy and procrastinating. I won't be able to upload as often because of school, especially because of art class. I hope you'll tolerate my misgivings.

[Feeling that it wasn't enough, she had paid those employees 10 months' worth of salary as compensation.]

Editor 2: Any employee would wish to have a boss like Kalia, just slap that money into my face xD

[As the carriage pulled up in front of them, Chef Ruff, who had a dwarf amongst his ancestors, jumped in front of the crowd, acting as a representative for them. In his hands was a big rattan basket.]

Editor 1: Losing your job must be RUFF . . . xd

[As Heming opened the carriage door, the chef quickly put the basket in the carriage and shouted, "We heard that you were going on a vacation without a return date. Mistress, you made a good decision. Get some rest! We hope that you come back safely and hire us again! By then I'll have some more cakes waiting for your return! Well then, have a safe trip!"]

Editor 1: OMG!! This is so sweet . . . TT~TT

Translator 2: Yeah, they're so sweet and loyal. Awww~~

['. . . You're going to get me killed.' Louismond thought bitterly.]

Editor 2: RIP Louismond. Hopes the Empire have a spare Crown Prince in the worst case scenario :V2

[Then the remaining options were her lost parents . . .]

Editor 1: No. . . There are other reasons . . . ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Editor 2: Other reasons. Hmmmm... well, one of them is inside her belly and one another is gonna be chasing after them like a wild animal losing control knowing she had left :V And of course, probably with Louismond's head tied by a rope, hanging on Simon's back :33

['It was from Simon.']

Editor 1: There's a saying that 'couples tend to look similar' . . . I guess they also tend to act the same xD

Editor 2: Well, a warrior for a warrior, take an Archmage for a General. If she had the courage to face Simon's anger knowing later he will find out she has gone, a Crown Prince is no different than a small innocent chicken crossing the road :V5

Chapter 17 – Finished||