Chapter One: Mayhem at Fort Astora!
I
Fis, Royal Capital of Fernest
Decked out in a soft dusting of snow, the royal capital of Fis was alive with such festivities as had not been seen there in many a year. Young women danced skillfully to the upbeat rhythm of drums and flutes around the statue of Julius zu Fernest, the first king of Fernest, that stood at the center of the oval Sain Jerim Plaza. Their light, suggestive skirts swayed around them, sometimes shifting to reveal the dancers’ voluptuous thighs. Each time this happened, the men in the audience erupted into raucous cheers. The traditional lion dance of Fernest had long been passed down through the ages.
“Here now, here now!” called a dashing young man in a headband. “Dancing’s all fine and good but be sure you don’t miss a chance to sample Fis’s famous lion orbs! Today only, I’ll throw in two for free for seven a pack!” He brandished a skewer of grilled lion orbs as he spoke.
“I’ve got bracelets with the lions and seven stars! They’re in short supply so get in quick to snap one up!” a woman shouted, holding up her arm to show off the bracelet on her wrist.
Merchants packed every inch of the plaza with their stalls, spiritedly promoting their wares to the shoppers who thronged the streets. The occasion that had Sain Jerim Plaza in such a state of excitement was none other than the news of the Seventh Legion’s success in taking back the south, then the northern lands. Minstrels had already composed odes in honor of the victories to entertain the passersby. The threat of the empire that loomed over Fernest had not dissipated, however, and while the capital celebrated, the Second Legion remained locked in a bitter struggle on the central front. As though in a bid to avert their eyes from this reality, the people gorged themselves on the thrill of this fleeting victory, becoming drunk on the triumph...
Brigadier General Neinhardt, aide to the commander of the First Legion, looked back and called, “Are you coming, Lieutenant Katerina?”
“Y-Yes, ser!” Second Lieutenant Katerina Reinas replied, hurrying after Neinhardt as he set off, steering clear of the crowds. They had happened upon the festivities while en route to the palace.
“It really is a festival, isn’t it? It sort of reminds me of the Lion Orb Festival,” Katerina said. The Lion Orb Festival celebrated Fernest’s founding. Before the war, it was put on in magnificent style every year in Fis, but with the nation embroiled in the struggle against the empire, it hadn’t been held in some time.
Katerina kept glancing back as though something was tugging at her from behind, apparently wanting to get a look at the festivities in the plaza. They seemed to be really getting into the swing of things, with people joining the dancing girls for the lion dance.
“You’re welcome to go dance with them, if you want,” Neinhardt said.
“What?! Why, I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, ser!” Katerina’s face went slack for a second, then her cheeks flushed bright scarlet. Neinhardt wasn’t sure what to make of that.
“What I mean is neither here nor there. It’s obvious you want to go dance with those girls,” he said. “I hear that troupe is famous in Fis. I don’t mind waiting for you for a dance.” Before his eyes, Katerina’s cheeks swelled.
“Oh, yes, I see,” she replied, “My apologies, ser. I was foolish, a silly fool to get my hopes up. I promise I have no interest in dancing. Let’s get on to the palace.”
“Are you sure? If it’s your job you’re worried about—”
“Quite sure, ser!” Katerina shouted. She strode past Neinhardt and off toward the palace. Two women standing nearby who had overheard their conversation whispered to each other. For some reason they shot him dirty looks afterward.
“Was it the stalls she wanted to visit?” Neinhardt muttered to himself. He continued on after Katerina, who had already vanished out of sight.
Neinhardt’s Workroom at Leticia Castle
Lord Neinhardt is so dense, Katerina thought to herself as she went around Neinhardt’s workroom, pushing aside curtains and throwing open the windows. Her eyes fell on a mirror that rested on a shelf, and she smiled at her reflection. I don’t see any problems there. Perhaps my hair’s a little plain... As she thought this, gathering her hair up into a single bunch, a bone-chilling wind passed across the back of her neck. Tucking her chin into her collar, she quickly shut the windows she’d just opened.
“Brrr...” She shivered. “That’s probably enough ventilation.” Telling herself she wasn’t slacking off, she went and crouched down by the fire, hugging herself tightly. She reached for the jar to one side of the hearth, took out a flint, and hurried to get the fire going. She stayed there for a while, huddled up like a turtle, until she heard the sound of the door opening.
“You took your time, ser,” she said after a moment.
“You were too fast,” Neinhardt retorted at once, throwing his coat unceremoniously over the sofa. He sat down at his desk and immediately began poring over a towering pile of reports. It was as though the episode at Sain Jerim Plaza was already long forgotten.
I bet he doesn’t even understand why I was angry... Katerina thought despondently as she returned his coat to its proper place before sitting down at her own desk. She followed Neinhardt’s example, taking a pile of papers in hand and beginning to read.
The room was silent for a while, until Katerina, without thinking, exclaimed, “Oh!” Neinhardt looked at her over the top of a report document.
“Is there a problem?” he asked. She didn’t reply, only held out the page to him. Neinhardt took it dubiously, running his eyes over the contents.
“A request for an audience?” he read. “Lieutenant Claudia and Major Olivia are coming to the capital?”
“Apparently, ser. I wonder what they want?” Katerina knew who Claudia Jung was. Second in the 175th graduating class at the Royal Military Academy, Neinhardt’s cousin, and heir to the House of Jung, a line famed for the many great knights it had produced. Claudia herself was a knight, and was said to be very handsome. And joining her would be the bright young talent feared throughout the imperial army as a death god: Olivia Valedstorm. The pair of them were famous, in a sense, and it therefore surprised Katerina that they would come seeking an audience.
“Who knows?” Neinhardt replied. “Now, about today’s—”
“Your schedule for today, my lord, is so tightly packed there’s not even room to cook a goose.”
Neinhardt stared at her. “A goose?”
“I beg your pardon, ser. I meant, not even room to swing a cat,” she corrected herself, forcing a laugh before Neinhardt could say anything else.
He was quiet for a moment, then asked, “Is there nothing we can shift?”
“Nothing at all, ser.”
“As aide, making these things work is your—”
“I can’t do the impossible, ser,” Katerina said, not giving Neinhardt any ground. This wasn’t some petty revenge for Sain Jerim Plaza. Even before his promotion to Brigadier General after the Battle of Ilys, Neinhardt had always been busy, and it had only gotten worse. These days, it wasn’t unusual for his days to be packed with appointments right down to the minute.
“It’s no small thing to have them specifically request an audience with me,” Neinhardt said eventually. “Lieutenant Katerina, I know you won’t disappoint me.” Katerina knew that tone of voice meant Neinhardt wasn’t backing down. It was one of the things she had learned over their long acquaintance serving as his aide.
She sighed. “Very well. I will put off your inspection of the southern quarter of the city we had scheduled for two this afternoon until another day. If I schedule the audience for that time, will that suit you, ser?”
“Yes, good,” Neinhardt replied, then added, “I’m sorry for always doing this to you, Lieutenant.”
“Not at all, ser. I’ll go and notify them of the change.” Neinhardt made an affirming noise, then turned his gaze back to his reports. Katerina noted down the new appointment in the notebook she had taken out of her pocket, all the while stealing glances at Neinhardt.
He always gets that oh-so-sweet smile on his face at times like these. It’s seriously not fair, she thought. Even so, part of her felt pleased as she reached for the doorknob.
Three hours later, Katerina began, “My lord, they should be arriving—” but before she could finish, there came a brisk knock at the door. Neinhardt called out permission to enter, and the door opened to reveal Olivia, cradling a large wooden box under her arm. From beside Neinhardt, Katerina let out an exclamation of surprise, her face incredulous. She had probably imagined Olivia, the death god who struck fear into the empire, a little differently. Neinhardt, who had reacted the exact same way when he first encountered Olivia, felt a particular sense of closeness to his aide. After Olivia came Claudia, looking as prim as ever. Olivia didn’t bother with any greetings, but came up to the desk and set down the wooden box with a thud.
Neinhardt looked at it, then back at Olivia. “What...is this?” He asked.
“A present for you, Mr. Fi—um, Brigadier General Neinhardt!” Olivia said, smiling brightly.
Neinhardt frowned without meaning to. There was no end to the stream of conniving individuals who came seeking to bribe him with what they called “gifts,” concerned only with their own advancement even as the nation stood knee-deep in troubles. They came from all walks of life, from mere merchants all the way up to nobles. Ever since his advancement to the lowest rank of general officer, their number had only increased, and Neinhardt was sick of it. But he knew full well that Olivia didn’t harbor those sorts of ambitions. His overwhelming impression was she showed little interest in anything unrelated to food. As such, Neinhardt found himself curious as to what she might have brought him.
“May I open it?” he asked.
“Of course, ser!” Olivia seemed unable to stand still, she was so eager for him to open the box. Neinhardt lifted the lid.
“Fish...?” The box was stuffed full of beautiful, shining, dark-gray fish. Closer inspection told him they were sallow, a river fish. Their eyes were clear, so it couldn’t have been long since they were caught.
As Neinhardt sat there unable to conceal his bemusement at the unexpected present, Olivia piped up. “It wasn’t easy, but I caught them myself, ser!” she announced proudly. An atmosphere of bafflement settled over the workroom. It took Katerina clearing her throat for Neinhardt to recall himself.
“Are you good at fishing, Major Olivia?” he inquired hastily, then immediately regretted asking something so irrelevant.
That wasn’t what he really wanted to know at all. He took a sip of his steaming hot tea to calm his nerves.
“Just average. I’m self-taught, after all,” Olivia replied.
“You...you don’t say?”
“You love fish, right, ser?”
“Well...” Neinhardt said hesitantly, “I suppose I do like fish, yes.” He did prefer fish over other meat, if he had to choose. The sallow Olivia had brought him were in season at the moment, and looked nice and plump. They’d probably be delicious fried up. That wasn’t the point, though. I don’t remember ever telling Major Olivia that I’m partial to fish... he thought. Obviously, it hadn’t come up at their first meeting in the command room at Galia Fortress, and they hadn’t touched on the topic when he met with her to express his gratitude on behalf of General Florenz. They had crossed paths regularly at Fort Caspar, but he didn’t remember ever exchanging more than a passing word with her.
Could she have heard it from Claudia? he wondered. These days there was a clearly defined sense of distance between Claudia and himself, but they were close in age and had been close as children. He remembered Claudia rampaging after him, wooden sword in hand, as though it were yesterday. After spending time with Claudia, it wasn’t so unexpected that Olivia might know his likes and dislikes. He looked to Olivia’s left to where Claudia stood. She was looking down, her shoulders shaking.
“Lieutenant Claudia,” he said.
“You called?” she replied, looking up with the same prim expression as before.
“Was it you who told Major Olivia?”
Claudia was silent for a moment. “It sounds like you may be laboring under a slight misunderstanding, cousin,” she said at length. “Your likes and dislikes are outside my area of expertise. This thoughtful gift is entirely Major Olivia’s doing. I hope it is to your liking.” She looked down, her shoulders quivering again. Neinhardt recognized that this conversation was going nowhere, so decided to set it aside for the moment.
“Now, what brought you here all of a sudden?” he asked. “It’s unusual for you to ask to see me.”
“It’s Major Olivia who wanted to see you,” Claudia replied. “I’m merely accompanying her. She has something she very much wants to request of you.”
“A request? For me?” He looked back at Olivia, just as the girl abruptly leaned in to bring her face up to his. Her eyes glimmered. She gave off an intensity that made Katerina recoil unconsciously.
“I want to go to the library!” Olivia announced. “Can I? Can I?”
“I—what? The library?” Neinhardt repeated, lost. Olivia’s words, as usual, were nothing like what he’d expected.
Katerina whispered in his ear, “I think she might want your recommendation.” Neinhardt already understood that much, however. What he didn’t know was why she might want to get into the Royal Library right now. He asked for an explanation but got only a half-hearted reply from Olivia that skirted the point. Claudia cut in in her stead and started to go through the whole story.
“So that’s it...” he said when she was done. “Understood. I won’t ask what’s got you so hung up on the house name you inherited, but I will contact the library on your behalf.” He looked at Katerina, who, understanding his meaning immediately, got up and left the room.
“So, like, can I go to the library now?” Olivia began, then corrected herself. “Um, I mean, may I now go to the library, ser?” There was something uncharacteristically fearful in her expression.
“Yes, you may,” he replied.
“Really?”
“Yes, really. As I told you before, you avenged my friend Florenz. Ever since then, I’ve wanted to do something for you to express my gratitude, so this is perfect. Also,” he added, “given your military record, Major, it’s really not even a question.” There was in fact an arduous application process one had to go through to gain entry to the library, but it was only thanks to the Seventh Legion’s victories that they were even able to consider such banalities—and Olivia had been at the very core of that success. Neinhardt had no reservations about exercising his authority here.
“Thank you!” Olivia gushed. “I mean, thank you, ser. And Claudia, thank you too!” She hugged Claudia’s arm, an enormous smile on her face.
Claudia, looking put-upon but still smiling, muttered, “I guess I don’t get to wring any necks.”
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