Side Story 41. [After Story] Journey to the Capital
Silver Winter Merchant Guild, Crossroad Branch. Reception Room.
I am sitting face-to-face with Sid, just the two of us.
“You’ve really grown into a fine young man since I last saw you, Sid.”
Although I say this, in my eyes, he still looks like a baby.
That tiny, cute baby who used to be cradled in Lilly’s arms.
That child is already twenty-one. He’s grown tall and handsome.
Lilly struggled raising him as a single mother, but Sid was also a good son who cared deeply for his mother.
Mother and son helped each other, and the two of them… have grown like this.
“…Thank you.”Sid answered hesitantly.
Offering him a teacup, I asked.
“So, you want to go to the Imperial Capital?”
“Yes.”
“May I ask why? Is it because of the magic debris collection work?”
Sid has been collecting scattered magical debris from all over the world, based out of Crossroad.
He mostly worked with Dearmudin, but Dearmudin said, ‘You no longer need my supervision,’ three years ago.
Since then, Sid has been handling the magic debris independently.
The Empire’s only officially recognized state mage, and a special diplomatic envoy guaranteed by the global council I oversee—’US’.
If necessary for the magic debris collection, he could request military and material support from any country in the world. That was the Sid of today, known as the ‘Mage of Memories’.
In other words.
Where his base was didn’t matter much. He had the right to requisition support wherever he was dispatched.
“You’ve refused requests to come to New Terra until now. What made you suddenly change your mind?”
“…”
The Imperial Capital, New Terra, occupies the heartland of the continent and is the center of global logistics and transportation. Establishing a base in such a capital would naturally make trips to various parts of the world much easier.
But Sid had refused until now, citing his desire to live in his hometown, Crossroad. I understood that well enough and didn’t push him.
But today, he suddenly made the request first.
That he wanted to go to the Imperial Capital.
Fidgeting with his hands hesitantly, Sid slowly answered.
“…Because of Mother.”
“…Because of Lilly?”
“Yes.”
Sid slowly raised his eyes to look at me.
His eyes were clear, a mix of green and brown, just like his father’s.
“If I stay here, Mother will continue to try and live just for me.”
“…”
“She tries to give me good clothes, good food, only the best things, but for herself… she does nothing. Worn-out clothes, leftover food, snatched sleep, overwork…”
Sid pressed his lips together firmly and lowered his head.
“She neglects her own life, suffering only for me, her child… She’s struggling like that. I thought things might change when I became an adult, but she still only thinks of me.”
“…”
“I’m grateful, but I feel sorry. I wish Mother would live her own life a bit more.”
“So you want to be apart.”
“If I’m not around, perhaps Mother could live a little more… for herself?”
That remains to be seen.
But I also know.
That a young bird leaving the nest is the way of nature. That no one can stop it.
“In the first place, if you decide to leave, neither Lilly nor I have the authority to stop you.”
Sid is already an adult.
This young man has the right to live freely. Neither I, his godfather, nor Lilly, his biological mother, have the means or the right to force him.
“If you decide to live in New Terra, naturally, I will help you.”
“…”
“However, there’s one condition, Sid.”
“What is it?”
“Come after you’ve had a proper talk with your mother.”
I nodded.
“Talk properly about how you want to live in the future. Why you want to try living in New Terra. And, how you, as her son, think your mother should live.”
“…”
“After that, let’s go up to the Imperial Capital together.”
Sid also slowly nodded.
I chuckled softly.
“And here I thought you were running away because you felt burdened by Sapphire clinging to you, or something like that.”
A faint smile touched Sid’s lips at my joke.
“Sapphire does keep showing interest in me, forgetting she’s the Lord’s daughter… but well, she too will probably quickly forget about a childhood crush once she gets a bit older and we’re further apart.”
Well, you never know about that.
I smiled meaningfully and patted Sid’s shoulder.
There are no right answers in life.
Anyway, I can only hope that the path ahead for this mother and son is filled with happiness.
After finishing his meeting with Ash, Sid left the Silver Winter Merchant Guild and headed for the Ivory Tower’s Crossroad branch.
A white-painted tower, about three stories high, stood there. In the courtyard, there was a parasol and a sunbed, and an old man wearing sunglasses was lying there.
“Master.”
Sid called out as he approached, but the old man, Dearmudin, didn’t move an inch.
Sid sat down beside him and gently shook Dearmudin, calling out.
“Master!”
“Huh?!”
Swallowing hard, Dearmudin hurriedly sat up and clutched his chest.
“You scared me…! Hey, Sid, you know your master has a weak heart. Wake me up gently, will you!”
“You talk about being weak, but I know very well you’re still perfectly healthy. Don’t exaggerate.”
“When you were young, you were so mature and well-mannered, so lovely. As you get older, you just get more shameless. Good grief.”
Lowering his sunglasses slightly to look at Sid with his bare eyes, Dearmudin gestured with his chin.
“So, did you tell His Majesty the Emperor? That you want to go to the capital?”
“Yes.”
“And your mind is set?”
“Yes.”
As Sid nodded, Dearmudin gave a hollow laugh.
“Well then, what more can I say? Prepare well.”
“Master, you should come up too. Isn’t the main Ivory Tower in the Imperial Capital?”
“No, I’m fine.”
Putting his sunglasses back on, Dearmudin lay back comfortably on the sunbed.
“I intend to finish my life here.”
“…”
“I lived in that bustling capital for too long. Now, I’ll spend the rest of my days in this quiet borderland, just basking in the sun like this. Maybe teach the local kids…”
A brief silence fell.
Dearmudin suddenly began to speak.
“Have I told you? I’m from the borderlands too. Born and raised in a remote, rocky mountain village.”
Hearing this for the first time, Sid blinked.
“I thought you were a noble from birth.”
“I was from a titled family. They quarried stone and presented it to the Imperial Family. But I was the youngest, with nothing to inherit.”
Dearmudin chuckled.
“When I was young, I hated that countryside. The dark stone quarry, the village covered in stone dust and dirt, I was sick of it. So I abandoned that village and went to the capital.”
“…”
“After living busily as a mage for decades like that, I suddenly thought of my hometown. It had been a long time since I’d had any contact, so I went to visit.”
Dearmudin muttered bitterly.
“The village was gone.”
“…”
“The profitability of the stone gradually declined, and there was even a mine collapse accident, I heard. Like that… after declining, at some point, everyone disappeared. The village became deserted, and none of my family, who were the ruling lords, could be found.”
Sid listened quietly, and Dearmudin looked back at him.
“I still regret it sometimes. If only I had looked back a little sooner, maybe I could have visited before the village ended like that, while people were still living there.”
“…”
“I could have smelled that sickening stone dust just one more time…”
Sitting up, Dearmudin reached out and took Sid’s hand.
“It’s somewhat natural for a young man to long for the sea. But, my apprentice.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Do not forget that the place you were born is the river.”
“…”
“Even if you go to the sea, do not forget the main stream where you were born. Do not forget the roots that connect you. That’s all.”
Sid let out a hearty laugh.
“Of course, I will. I love this city. I love you, Master, Mother, the people, everyone. It’s just for a little while…”
Thinking of his mother’s face, which had become difficult precisely because he loved her.
Sid muttered softly.
“I’m just going away for a very short time.”
Towards Sid who said this, Dearmudin showed an inscrutable, faint smile.
The old mage’s skinny hand tightly gripped his last apprentice’s hand.
After finishing his conversation with Dearmudin, as Sid slowly walked out of the Ivory Tower’s Crossroad branch.
“…Ah.”
Sid came face to face.
With Lilly, who was waiting for him at the entrance of the Ivory Tower, sitting in a wheelchair.
“…”
“…”
An awkward silence hung between mother and son.
Choosing her words carefully, Lilly asked cautiously.
“Shall we take a walk together, son?”
Meanwhile.
Lord’s Manor. Dining Room.
“Mom, Dad!”
Facing Evangeline and Lucas, Emerald suddenly declared.
“I… want to enroll in the Imperial Academy!”
“…”
“…”
At the sudden announcement, the Lord and Lady’s eyes widened.
The problem didn’t end there.
“Me too!”
Sapphire, sitting next to Emerald, declared right after.
“I want to enroll in the Imperial Academy too!”
“…”
“…”
Before the siblings’ sudden enrollment declaration, Evangeline and Lucas slightly opened their mouths.
“…Geez, when we told you to go, you refused even if it killed you.”
“Now you want to go to the Academy? If you enroll now, most of the kids in your grade will be younger than you, won’t they?”
Then the siblings shouted simultaneously.
“What does age difference matter in love!”
“…Weren’t we just talking about enrolling in the Academy?”
Evangeline asked.
“…Why the sudden talk about love?”
Lucas wondered.
Both Lucas and Evangeline were graduates of the Imperial Academy.
Naturally, they had fully intended to send their two children there as well, but both disliked leaving far away… and above all, these two were such troublemakers.
They worried about what kind of trouble they would cause in the Imperial Capital and tarnish the honor of the Cross family. That’s why they had simply given up on enrolling them in the Academy.
The Imperial Academy, which students usually enter at thirteen, now that two years have passed and they are fifteen?
“We wish to dedicate ourselves to academics at the Academy where our parents studied, and grow into fine adults like our parents.”
Emerald stated formally.
“We will broaden our horizons by seeing the wider world, train in both literary and martial arts at the center of the world, and then contribute to the future of the Cross family.”
Sapphire added with equal formality.
As the siblings spouted such eloquence, both Lucas and Evangeline broke into a cold sweat.
“Hey… could you stop talking like normal people all of a sudden?”
Evangeline pleaded.
“Could you wail and throw a tantrum like your usual selves? I can’t adjust.”
Lucas added.
Then, as if waiting for the cue, Emerald and Sapphire immediately started rolling on the dining room floor, letting out bloodcurdling shrieks.
“Aaargh, send us to the Imperial Capital!”
Emerald yelled.
“If you don’t, we’ll roll on this floor forever!”
Sapphire shrieked.
“Waaaaaaaaah!”
“Kyaaaaaaaaak!”
In an instant, the dining room became chaotic, but only then did Lucas and Evangeline’s expressions relax. The sentiment ‘Ah, these are our kids’ was written all over their faces.
“If I go to the Imperial Capital, I’ll be able to see Her Highness the Princess more often!”
Emerald revealed.
“So it was an ulterior motive after all, this brat…”
Lucas muttered.
“Sid is going to the Imperial Capital too! I’m going to follow him!”
Sapphire exclaimed.
“This one had an ulterior motive too, so easy to read…”
Evangeline sighed.
Lucas crossed his arms and looked towards Evangeline.
Since he was a son-in-law who had married into the family, the head of the Cross family was strictly Evangeline. Like a knight who thoroughly follows such a command structure, Lucas entrusted all important family decisions to Evangeline.
“What should we do?”
He asked.
“Hmm…”
Evangeline stroked her chin and looked towards Lucas.
Although she was the family head, she always respected Lucas’s opinion. She knew well, ever since their days on the Monster Frontline, that Lucas provided sharp judgments based on reason and helpful advice.
“What do you think, Lucas?”
“I’m in favor. Studying in the Imperial Capital itself will be a great help in the children’s lives. There are two problems, though.”
“Two problems?”
“One is the trouble they’ll cause. Aren’t they just bundles of trouble? The Imperial Academy will undoubtedly be wrecked, and it’s obvious they’ll bother Her Highness the Princess and Sid too.”
“Well, since you’ll be in the Imperial Capital too, Lucas, you can figure out how to handle it.”
Evangeline said dismissively.
“Right, that’s my hardship. The second problem is you.”
“Huh? Me? Why me?”
“If I go to the Imperial Capital and the kids go too, you’ll be left here alone? Won’t you be lonely?”
“Gasp?!”
Only then did Evangeline realize that she would be left behind, a lone mother while her husband and children were far away for schooling, her mouth falling open.
–TL Notes–
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