On the other side of the window, the sun was setting.
“Ah,” the First Officer remarked as he sorted out some documents on his desk. A sense of foreboding crept up Feodor’s spine. “I screwed up. Postie’s already gone off.”
Postie was their pet name for the mail collection golem. In Lyell, many essential services had already been automated, with the postal service being one of them. It was staffed by golems which ran around town every day to collect, sort and deliver mail. They were highly reliable, with an accident rate lower than even that of normal postal services in other cities. Even with Lyell’s other services grinding to a halt, the mail golems were still running smoothly.
Although the mail golem service was convenient, it was, however, not without drawbacks. For one, it was too rigid and uncompromising. They went to fixed locations at fixed times to collect and deliver mail. Outside of those times, they neither collected nor delivered anything.
“Ah… Ahem. Fourth Officer Feodor Jessman, do you have a moment?”
“Apologies, First Officer. After this I’ve got some business that I absolutely must attend to.”
“Come now, what kind of cliché excuse is that?”
“It’s not, I’m telling the truth. Um, you see…I’ve got plans to go shopping with Apple and the others.”
There were indeed a lot of essential items Feodor needed to buy, such as changes of clothing, new books, and toys. Needles, threads and cotton for patching up the stuffed animal Apple tore while playing, cleaning supplies for the walls and floors Marshmallow randomly covered with scribbles. He couldn’t only rely on the army’s stores to provide everything he needed.
“You’re almost like their father, eh?”
A natural-sounding reply spilled out of Feodor’s mouth. “I don’t remember taking on that responsibility. If doting on young children was all it took to earn that title, I couldn’t face all the other fathers of the world.”
“Well, since that’s what you’ll be doing, mind if I ask something of you as well?”
Feodor replied with silence.
“That’s a really unwilling face you’ve got there.”
“What? No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just, all the shopping I’ve got to do is part of my mission, you see.”
“Don’t worry, you can do this on the way. Just help me out and deliver this document to City Hall.” The First Officer waved an envelope at Feodor. “It’s about those malfunctioning machines. Three facilities have to be urgently closed down, and there’s a list of engineers and material we need for emergency repairs.”
“How’d you forget to mail such an important document?”
The First Officer averted his eyes. “Had a lot of paperwork to get through today,” he grumbled vaguely.
To be honest, it’s quite a chore, but if I don’t do it all sorts of problems will start springing up.
“By the way, First Officer, since we’re entrusting our futures to those would-be faerie soldiers, I’d like to provide them with some extra nourishment every once in a while. Not that the Winged Guard’s provisions are lacking in nutritional value, of course.”
“Y’know, you push that goody-two-shoes act of yours a bit too far sometimes…” the First Officer let out a heavy, resigned sigh. “Just remember to keep the receipt.”
“Of course.”
Since it was part of the Winged Guard’s official duties to look after Apple and the others, any expenses incurred in the process could be placed on their tab. Feodor couldn’t do that if he went overboard with his spending, so he was prepared to lean on his superiors in order to get away with it.
“Didn’t know you were the type to dote on your daughters so much.”
“I have no intention of doing that, nor am I trying to become their father. It’s merely as I said.”
“Sure, whatever. Bit of spare change ain’t too much to spend if you get the errand done. But in return—” A round fingertip beckoned. Frowning, Feodor leaned in closer to listen. “—I’ve got another thing for you. Use those eyes of yours to take a look-see around town.”
I don’t understand. “If you’re worried about anything, I’m sure you can rely on the military police to take care of it.”
“No, that’s not what I mean. My boy, I need you to watch the streets using your eyes.”
Feodor Jessman’s…imp eyes.
He’s not asking me to use my special ability. The power of an imp’s eyes isn’t particularly well-understood, and it’s useless in that situation anyway. No, it’s my perspective he wants me to use—the perspective of a race of master tricksters, knowledgeable in all manner of deceptions, intrigues, conspiracies, and lies—to figure out if there’s anything suspicious happening in town.
“Do you believe something’s going on?”
“Dunno. Might be worried ’bout nothing, but I’d like you to look around all the same.”
He can’t be sure, so he needs a pair of reliable eyes to gather information… It’s probably that kind of reason. That’s understandable. It’s a sound request, and I can’t imagine any reason to refuse anyway. So…
Feodor smiled. “Oh, that reminds me. The other day, I was at a street corner when I saw some clothes that would’ve been perfect for Apple…”
“Whatever suits your fancy.”
Once again, Feodor bullied his superior and got away with it.
“Ugoo, ga, goo.”
The roads in this district were some distance away from the main street. In Lyell, outlying roads like this were never level. They were dotted with uneven patches, exposed pipes and all sorts of debris, making them extremely bumpy.
“Don’t take off your gloves. The oil spills here are really bad and it’ll be troublesome if you touch them barehanded.”
“Ugoo!” Apple cheerily answered while bouncing around, as though she was unable to properly pronounce “yes”.
“’Akesh, pweaseee?”
“All right, all right.”
On the other hand, Marshmallow couldn’t run around very well and had already given up on various ideas of hers, instead pestering Lakhesh to piggyback her.
It’s not a good idea to spoil the girls so much, you know. Ah well, guess it can’t be helped. I’m already used to pampering them myself.
“Before we go shopping, is it alright to drop by City Hall?”
“Yep, that’s fine.”
After that short exchange, the two of them fell silent.
Following their talk on the day of the festival, the atmosphere between Feodor and Lakhesh had changed subtly. It wasn’t anything like affection or disgust, nor was it something which would dissipate if they were further apart from each other. The best word to describe it would be…
Awkward.
“Are you feeling better?” Feodor attempted to carry on the conversation.
“Ah, yes. Um…I’m sorry if I caused you to worry,” Lakhesh replied as she shifted her arms to make sure Marshmallow wouldn’t fall off. “That kind of thing happens every once in a while to us faerie soldiers. When we ignite venenum too strong for our bodies to handle, our already short-lived personalities become even more unstable…or so I’m told. It’s not so much a sickness of the body as an affliction of the mind, you see.”
By reassuring him that she wasn’t suffering from some unknown illness, she probably wanted Feodor not to worry about her. Still, her words had the opposite effect. He felt more anxious than ever.
“Um, you know… In my case, uh…it seems like I have a talent for using venenum. Even in my normal everyday life, sometimes I accidentally ignite my venenum and it roars to life like a huge inferno. The days when I need to wield Seniorious are especially scary, since it’s a sword with an unlimited capacity to use and amplify venenum. I can barely handle the strain from activating it even just a tiny bit.” Lakhesh’s words came out faster than normal and her smile was slightly more forced than her usual one.
That’s no laughing matter. Though there’s no need to point that out, seeing as the person in question would know better than anyone else.
“It’s not like I’m trying to sound like Tiat, but… It’s no surprise that I still haven’t been able to wield Seniorious like Chtholly did.”
That name again?
The faerie soldiers’ legendary senior. Previous wielder of the strongest dug weapon, Seniorious. She once slaughtered countless Timere, and even fell in love—forbidden love—with a second enchantments officer named Willem. Quite the storied faerie.
“There’s no need to imitate her, is there? After all, you’re you.”
Frankly speaking, Feodor was amazed at how cliché he sounded. Hackneyed, empty words that served no purpose other than to provide affirmation to someone else.
Now that I think about it, I said something like that to Tiat when we fought back then. But I wasn’t trying to trick or manipulate her. My most sincere words just happened to come out sounding like lies. Is my nature this shallow? Good grief.
“That’s… You’re right. I am me.”
“You’ll be fine if you refrain from using weapons like Seniorious. If you’re afraid your venenum could flare up in your daily life, you’ll just have to tread carefully from now on.”
“But—”
“At the least, I’d hate to lose you from something like that.”
“…Eh?” Lakhesh’s face was dyed scarlet.
“Huh? Oh, um…”
Seeing her reaction, Feodor realized he’d chosen the wrong words. No, it’s not like that. I’m not trying to spit out some misunderstood declaration of love! I’m trying to say something more sensible, more timely… That’s right, I’m trying to impart some common sense here, come on.
“’Akesh? Fwedo?” Marshmallow gazed at their faces in turn, and the two of them hung their heads, becoming quiet all of a sudden.
“Hey—”
“So—”
Both of them raised their heads at the same time, unexpectedly meeting each other’s eyes.
Then—
“Ahaha…”
“…Heh.”
They laughed. It wasn’t a particularly fun or happy situation, but rather one of those times where one couldn’t do anything besides laugh.
“So…” Feodor continued their conversation, moving his feet forward after having stopped unconsciously. “I’m going to say something weird, but please listen.”
“Something…weird?”
“Yes. I’m going to tell you something so ridiculous we might end up getting chased by the military police, which is why I’m giving you fair warning first.” Taking a breath, Feodor gathered his thoughts.
This isn’t something I should say in public. But then, I can’t keep it under wraps forever either. I’ll need to explain it honestly to the girls, sooner or later. And I’ve decided—I’ll tell them sooner. That’s all there is to it.
He steeled his resolve. “I am—”
The moment Feodor started speaking, he felt a peculiar tremor underfoot.