Sugar Apple Fairytale - Volume 7 - Chapter 1.2

“As you deduced, it is a special and significant job. But if you know that already, what are you trying to say?”

“I want to ask why I wasn’t selected for that job.”

“That’s some confidence, Keith. I never figured you for such a narcissist.”

“If I could understand the selection criteria, I would have never considered asking like this.” He wanted to convey his feelings accurately, and he wanted to avoid becoming emotional as best he could. “I could understand if a single talented representative was chosen from each faction. Mr. Killean and Mr. Collins are both Silver Sugar Masters and are indisputably the most skilled in their factions. Stella is not a Silver Sugar Master, but he could be considered the greatest crafter at the Radcliffe Workshop right now. He was chosen not for his title or standing, but for the abilities he possesses. You are the only one capable of accurately assessing all that to select the best candidates.”

Hugh rested his chin in one hand, with his elbow against the armrest of the couch, and grinned. “I expected as much from a graduate of the State Church Independent School,” he said. “Very clever.”

“There are few people who can give the Silver Sugar Viscount orders. I’m sure you wouldn’t reveal who it was, so I’ll refrain from asking. Regardless, you received a request from that person and chose one skilled crafter from each faction. That much I understand. And if that was all there was to it, I wouldn’t mind, I’d be satisfied with that. What’s bothering me is…why Anne was chosen.”

“We selected Anne to represent the candy crafters who are not affiliated with any faction.”

“As far as I can tell, the most remarkable unaffiliated crafter is Mr. Hingley.”

“I agree. But Kat would never agree to come to the castle. I already knew that, so I excluded him. That left two candidates in my mind, you and Anne.”

“So then why her?! Was I not good enough?!”

Hugh stood up slowly. His face was blank. Perhaps he was angry over Keith’s rude line of questioning. The tall man looked down at him pointedly, and Keith was briefly intimidated. But now that he had come this far, he couldn’t back down until he had heard why he wasn’t selected.

“Anne holds a royal medal. You do not.”

“That’s true. But Stella Knox doesn’t have a royal medal, either, and he was still chosen.”

“Compared to the Silver Sugar Masters at the Radcliffe Workshop, Knox is more skilled.”

“So you’re saying that my skills are inferior to Anne’s?!”

“What do you think? Are you able to prove that you’re better than her?”

“Well…!”

Hugh smiled down at him disparagingly and slowly walked in a circle around Keith. “What’s the matter?” he asked from above Keith’s head, his voice no more than a whisper. “You came here because you wanted to lodge a complaint with me, didn’t you? So go ahead. Tell me that you’re better than Anne.”

Keith clenched his hands into fists and bit his lip. He’d thought that he and Anne were the same. For that reason, he couldn’t think of a way in which he surpassed Anne or in which Anne surpassed him. He couldn’t lie. His arms trembled with frustration as he struggled to answer.

“I…”

“Say it.”

“I…I am not better than Anne in any way. But she also isn’t any better than I am. Our skills are equal. So I can’t tell you that I surpass her. But what do you think, Viscount? That’s what I’d like to ask. I’m the one who came here to ask questions!”

Squeezing his fists so tightly that his fingers turned white, Keith raised his head and glared at Hugh, waiting for an answer.

Hugh came to a stop directly in front of Keith. For a moment, he was silent. He then slowly opened his mouth. “As a matter of fact, I wasn’t sure myself whether it should be you or Anne.”

Keith leaned forward. “Then why Anne?!”

But Hugh replied with yet another question. “Do you wish you were selected despite not even knowing what the job is?”

“Of course!”

“Why?”

“Why? Because Anne was chosen…!”

He said it without thinking, then covered his mouth in surprise.

So that’s it. I just didn’t want to lose.

His feelings didn’t come from hostility, only pure competitive spirit. He didn’t have to win, he just didn’t want to lose. He wanted to stand on the same playing field as Anne. Of course, he was curious about what was going on, and he did have a desire to participate. But more importantly, he couldn’t stand feeling like Anne was leaving him behind. That was the source of his anxiety. He had simply been nervous and impatient, feeling like she might be moving beyond his reach.

“I…I think I am Anne’s equal. And that’s what I want. So if she has been chosen, I also want to be chosen,” Keith said, then hung his head. “I’m acting like a little kid, aren’t I?”

Keith had always been calm and had always taken great care not to embarrass himself in front of others. But the emotions bubbling up inside ran counter to this, so they were hard to contain. He was ashamed of his own impatience.

Hugh suddenly broke into a smile. “This version of you is much more authentic than the guarded, clever son of Powell you try to be,” Hugh said. “I like it. You don’t need to worry about your father’s standing anymore, and you don’t need to act so refined, even if you are the son of a viscount. So tell it to me straight, like a true crafter: What do you want to do, and what do you desire? That will be enough. Raise your head, Keith.”

Once Keith did as he was told and lifted his head, Hugh continued. “Should I pick you or Anne? I puzzled over which one of you to choose, but I wasn’t the one who made the final call. When I hesitated, another person ordered me to summon Anne.”

“Huh? Does that mean…?”

“I hadn’t made up my mind yet. But I was told to summon Anne, and I obeyed. Still, I find it difficult to discount you. I was the one who chose all the other candy crafters aside from Anne. Also, the number of crafters invited to the royal castle can be four or five. So I could theoretically summon one more: you.”

“That means… Are you saying I could still be chosen?”

Hugh adjusted his tone of voice. “Keith Powell. Prepare your candy making tools and present yourself at the royal castle in three days’ time. This is an order.”

With that, Hugh quickly the room.

The order had come down. Rather than happy, Keith felt relieved, exhausted, and a little foolish.

Anne and I are equals.

Hollyleaf Castle. In Anne’s room on the second floor of the west wing, the fire in the hearth had died down, and the air had chilled completely.

Challe Fenn Challe sat near the window, deep in thought. There was no moon in the sky outside the window, and the snow-sprinkled forest stretched out through the inky darkness. Frost clung to the edges of the windowpanes.

He could hear Mithril snoring in Anne’s bed and Anne breathing in her sleep.

Even now, when he was no longer worried about them being attacked by Lafalle, they were still sleeping like this for some reason, the three of them all in the same room. They all felt like it was the natural thing to do, so no one had said anything about it.

But whenever Challe tried to collect himself like this, he realized that it was absolutely ridiculous. Why, when they had so many extra rooms and there was no danger, was their first impulse to huddle together?

It didn’t seem strange to me, either, though.

Even Challe had felt like it was natural for the three of them to be together. Even though he knew that it was strange.

Hollyleaf Castle was quiet. That was because the day before, everyone from the Paige Workshop, with the exception of Elliott, had returned to Millsfield.

As he’d departed, Glen Paige had thanked Challe. He had offered Anne words of encouragement, telling her, “Do your very best, for the sake of your future.”

In contrast, Bridget hadn’t seemed to know what kind of attitude to affect upon her departure, so she had defaulted to her usual crabby attitude. She had even grumbled and complained at Anne. “Why aren’t you coming with us, when there are so many things I want to ask you?”

But Anne had calmly answered her, “I’ll come see you before too long, so we can talk then. You can treat me to some tea.” Bridget had angrily called her cheeky after that, only to give her permission to visit at any time.

Danna had seemed heartbroken to be parting with Anne and had cried the whole time. Hal had desperately tried to comfort his sister, but it was only when Anne told Danna, “I’ll come see you soon, so please make some of that delicious herbal tea,” that she finally put on a little smile.

Noah had reminded Anne over and over again to come and visit them. He was leaving Hollyleaf Castle after fifteen long years, so he must have been anxious about taking the first step on his new path. He had followed Anne around until it was time to leave, grasping the fabric of her skirt the whole time. Anne had promised to make sugar candy for Noah whenever he liked.

The four candy crafters, King, Orlando, Valentine, and Nadir, had told Challe and Mithril they were always welcome at the workshop. Then they’d turned to Anne and said, “Good luck out there, head crafter!”

They had called Anne their head candy crafter to the very end.

The members of the Paige Workshop were not bad people. Even Challe didn’t mind being with them, so if Anne had wanted to live and work with them, he was sure they could have spent many carefree, enjoyable days together.

But that wasn’t what she wanted.

She was young, just sixteen, and was well aware that she still lacked experience as a Silver Sugar Master. That was why she wanted to develop herself further. She was hoping to change herself.

Wanting change was a very human characteristic. There was hope in the way they set their eyes on the future. It was one of their strengths.

Anne had decided to launch a new workshop with Keith. That was an unsurprising development, and even Challe thought that it was worth trying.

But he found himself unable to welcome the change wholeheartedly.

If Anne was able to bring her dreams to life and find happiness, Challe would have served his purpose. He would lose his reason for staying by her side. As long as he had a pretense, he could stay with her openly. But if he lost his reason, he would have to leave her. After that, he wouldn’t be able to touch her or talk to her, only watch her from afar.

So he wouldn’t mind if Anne got flustered and failed to find her happiness. He wouldn’t mind if she walked her path slowly, getting lost along the way.

He thought that far, then smiled bitterly.

Why, he wondered, did he want Anne to wander lost through life, when he should be wishing for her happiness?

Somewhere deep down, he had been relieved when Hugh Mercury had shown up with his orders. Now there would be a delay before Anne started establishing a workshop with Keith.

What worried him now was what the orders Hugh had delivered entailed.

No one knew what awaited the assembled crafters. But since the Silver Sugar Viscount, the guardian of all candy crafters, was involved, it probably wouldn’t be anything bad for them.

But the one thing Challe was struggling to understand was why he had been summoned along with them.

Someone had asked for him specifically. Who could it have been?

He had been born from a piece of obsidian stone, and the fifteen years he had spent with Liz had been filled with peaceful days, like a dream. Neither Challe nor Liz had desired change, and they’d never expected it to come.

Then there had been the hundred-plus years after Liz’s passing. He had taken his revenge, then been passed around, bought and sold, and had experienced all sorts of things. But he’d been so submerged in hatred and rage that nothing had changed inside him.

However, something had started to change after he met Anne. And as a result of that meeting, Challe felt like he was now truly headed toward some great crossroads. He couldn’t help feeling that way.

Challe left the window and approached the bed. Mithril was lying atop the quilt, limbs spread wide. Anne was holding the quilt to her chest, sleeping peacefully.

This girl was the one who had changed his destiny. Anne had to be the key to Challe’s fate.

He softly put his hand out toward Anne to touch the curve of her cheek. But then he hesitated and withdrew his fingers.

He turned his gaze to the window again. Outside it was dark. It was the night of the new moon.

Who was it? Who called me to the castle?

Perhaps Challe had been summoned to the castle by fate itself.