Interlude: Ellis’s Capriccio
The Southern Quarter of Fis
Grimoire Avenue was famous in the southern quarter for its many flourishing businesses. All eyes on the street were particularly drawn to two beautiful women walking along it. One of this pair, with the look of one who had obtained all earthly happiness, was Ellis Crawford. The other, her nose constantly twitching as she caught whiffs of grilled meat from the shop stalls, was Olivia Valedstorm.
“We have such nice weather today, Olivia. It’s a beautiful day,” Ellis said. “Perfect for going out, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” Olivia agreed. “By the way, Ellis, where are you taking me?” Beside her, Ellis hummed a tune, in high spirits. Unlike her, Olivia wasn’t in military uniform, but an ebony set of armor. She wasn’t going into battle—it had been Ellis’s express request.
“That’s still a secret,” Ellis replied. She looked Olivia over from head to toe, drinking her in, then chuckled to herself. Seeing that Ellis had no intention of enlightening her, Olivia pointed at one of the shops that lined the street.
“Okay,” she said, “how about we go in here then?”
Ellis came to a halt, her brow creasing ever so slightly. “That run-down old shop?”
The building’s faded orange, triangular roof set it apart. Its sign, upon which was written Refrain Chelles, listed precariously to the right, giving the strong impression that it might come crashing down at any moment. The first time Olivia had laid eyes upon it, she’d had the same reaction as Ellis.
“Yep. Ashton told me about this place. This is a delicious cake shop, a local secret. The cake they served at the celebration banquet was really good, but the cake at this place is a notch above even that. Unbelievable, right?”
“Is this the shop you talked about the other day?” Ellis asked.
“Right, yeah. That’s the one.”
“Wow...” Ellis said, gazing up at the shop sign. “So this is the place...”
It had been half a month since, at Olivia’s frequent insistence, Ashton had at last gotten his act together and brought her to this store. The shoddy, run-down look of the interior had made Olivia nervous, and Ashton had looked more nervous still as he surveyed the inside of this shop. But the moment she took a bite of the cake, Olivia’s fears evaporated. Forget teeth-rotting, she’d thought her whole mouth might rot away.
She’d also noted that, when she thanked Ashton again for bringing her, he’d said, Right? What did I tell you? with a look of deep relief on his face.
Olivia had made up her mind to go back every day that she was in the capital, but Claudia flatly refused to allow this. Apparently, even delicious cake would become ordinary and lose its magic if she ate it every day. Olivia had taken this opinion to heart, thinking, I see, so that’s how it works.
And thus, it was in fact two whole days since Olivia had last come to the shop.
“I know you’ll love it too, Ellis, so let’s go,” she insisted, but Ellis was muttering under her breath and made no reply. Olivia strained her ears to make out what Ellis was saying.
“Olivia and cake. Olivia and cake. Olivia and cake. Olivia—” Ellis repeated the same words over and over again.
Feeling a strong sense of danger, Olivia had just begun to slowly put distance between herself and Ellis when suddenly, the other girl ran at her like a yaksha. Olivia was so terrified that a strange squawk escaped her.
“Why are you walking away from me, Olivia?” Ellis asked, cocking her head sweetly to one side and beaming.
“Y-You just looked like you were thinking about something,” Olivia babbled, “so I thought I shouldn’t bother you...”
“Olivia, I don’t know how you could ever think you’d be a bother to me,” Ellis said. “Hell will freeze over before that happens.”
“I-Is that right?” Olivia stammered. “So how about that cake?”
“Terrifically tempting as it is, let’s leave it for now,” Ellis replied.
“O-Okay.” For some reason, Olivia felt relief at Ellis’s refusal—but this only lasted a moment.
“And that is why!” Ellis pronounced. “After we’re done with what I have planned, let’s come back to the cake shop! This is a two-stage knockout play!”
Olivia had no idea what that was supposed to mean. The only thing she did know was Ellis was smirking at her, which meant she definitely shouldn’t defy her. She nodded repeatedly. Just now, a yaksha of a different species to Claudia had been born.
“Ahhh, this is going to be a perfect day,” Ellis said.
“I-If you say so, I guess...” Olivia wasn’t sure how to describe how she felt as she watched Ellis fold her arms, a dreamy look on her face. Humans are even more complicated and mysterious than Z taught me, she thought. Looks like I still have a lot to learn. She pictured Z, book in one hand, matter-of-factly carrying out a lesson.
“Here we are, Olivia,” Ellis said. They’d arrived at their destination. Ellis hurried to open the door, then beckoned Olivia inside.
“You wanted to bring me here?” Olivia asked, puzzled as she looked over the inside of the shop. It was stylishly designed; the sort of place young women liked, with shelves of white wood upon which fashionable clothes were tidily displayed. The shopkeeper claimed that Fourth Princess Sara came in secret herself to shop here. But Ellis didn’t care about that.
“That’s right,” she replied. “But we’re not here to look for just any old clothes for you, Olivia.”
Olivia had a few outfits she wore on rotation on her days off, and all of their original colors had faded beyond recognition. She’d admitted to only having the clothes on her back, but Ellis harbored no desire for Olivia to dress up in pretty clothes. Olivia was already the ultimate work of art. She could dress in rags and still be radiant. Even Aphrodia, goddess of beauty, couldn’t hold a candle to Olivia.
When Olivia puts it on... she thought with glee. As Ellis stood there smirking to herself, a familiar figure came trotting over to her. It was the shopworker she’d spoken to on her last visit.
“Miss Crawford, we’ve been expecting you. Are you here for your order?”
“That’s right. Is it ready?”
“It is. Our excellent artisans poured all their energies into its creation. I believe it will be to your satisfaction, Miss Crawford. I’ll bring it out directly, if you would wait here.” They wandered away again into the back of the shop.
Ellis had been granted a reward after her superb work as Olivia’s body double during the battle on the central front. When she’d declared that she would spare no expense, the shopworker had become remarkably friendly. In next to no time, the worker came back with two boxes under their arms.
“Thank you for waiting. I have your order here.” They opened the boxes with a ceremonial air and took out the contents, laying them out carefully on the counter.
One was a white cloak that hung off the left shoulder. That was mainly for ceremonial occasions. The other was a scarlet half cape for use on the battlefield. They were both embroidered with two scythes crossed in the center, a single rose, and a skull—the Valedstorm coat of arms, the veritable embodiment of fear for imperial soldiers.
Olivia looked from one to the other. “Cloaks embroidered with the Valedstorm crest...” she murmured. “Are you giving these to me?”
“Yes, it’s a present to celebrate your promotion to major general. Please, take them.”
Ellis had heard that the ebony armor Olivia now wore had been a present from Ashton. It showed good taste that was unlike him. She’d had the cloaks made so as not to be outdone.
“Thank you, Ellis!” Olivia said. She was already fixing on the ceremonial cloak with a smile on her face that made Ellis feel like her heart was about to burst out of her chest. Thinking she might swoon with anguish, she frantically gestured to the shopworker to bring a mirror, unable to find her words.
Olivia gave the cloak a swish before the mirror, then did a full turn.
“Well? Do you think it suits me?” she asked.
“It’s perfect...” Ellis breathed. “I think I’m going to get a nosebleed.”
“What? A nosebleed?”
“Olivia, my dearest sister, when people lay eyes upon something so incredibly wonderful, they get nosebleeds.”
“Wow,” Olivia said wonderingly as she nodded. “Humans do that, huh? I never knew.” She pulled a black notebook out of her pocket and started scribbling something in it. Ellis’s eyes met those of the shopkeeper, who quickly looked away.
“I have to show Ashton and Claudia as soon as I get back.”
“They’ll be very impressed, I’m sure of it,” Ellis said. “Now then, let’s head to our next destination.”
“We hope to see you again soon,” the shopworker said, seeing them off with a beaming smile after confirming the contents of the coin purse as the girls set off for Olivia’s favorite cake shop.
An hour passed.
“Ellis?”
“Aah.”
“U-Um...”
“Aah.”
“R-Right.”
Though Olivia looked thoroughly distressed, Ellis was triumphant in her efforts to browbeat the other girl into feeding her cake. A few days later, when Claudia found out about the cloak, Ellis found herself looking into the superior officer’s smiling face as the other girl throttled her, but that was a story for another time.
No Comments Yet
Post a new comment
Register or Login