Chapter 31: Waking Up from a Nap
I woke up to a bright and cheery day.
“Hmm… Huh?”
I was back home.
Furrowing my brow as I stared at the warm sunlight streaming through the window, I scratched my messy hair and blinked in a daze, pondering how long I had been lying in bed. The familiar decor around the room and Captain Gray’s black suitcase propped in the corner finally pinged my brain into recognizing the situation.
…How did I get back here?
Memories of last night were stuck somewhere around that bonfire party. I drank… I definitely shouldn’t have, but under that atmosphere, I simply couldn’t resist… about half a cup of beer, and then I started to feel woozy. My memory was a bit hazy—Sarah helped me leave, we got into the War Chariot… the ride was bumpy… I felt sleepy… Sarah was talking, Daisy was giggling… and then it seems I just passed out?
So… where are those two?
Throwing off the blanket, I climbed out of bed, feeling a bit sticky. I looked down and realized I hadn’t even changed out of last night’s dress. My stomach churned at the thought, and I quickly dashed to the bathroom for a cold shower, washing my hair while I was at it. After changing into a fresh dress and removing the bedsheets and pillowcases to add to the pile of dirty laundry… wait, where did my pile of dirty clothes go?
Gone…
Huh?
I was a bit confused.
Rubbing my face, I tossed the sheets onto the floor near the wardrobe, opened the bedroom door, and leaned over the railing of the hallway. Peering down, I saw the living room was empty. Not a soul around.
“…Sarah! Daisy—”
I called out, waiting a moment, but got no response. Tilting my head in confusion, I thought about it for a bit and then shook my head. I fiddled with my damp hair as I walked through the hallway to the terrace. Looking up… oh, there’s my pile of dirty clothes, all washed and hung out to dry.
Who did that?
“The soil is too compact. She probably hasn’t loosened it in ages; the sage isn’t going to thrive like that…”
I heard someone talking in the yard below. Sounds like Daisy, followed by Sarah: “Wow! Daisy, look, that’s a bird of paradise… the royal favorite! I heard it’s super expensive…”
“It is expensive… there are even pricier ones over here…”
“Look at this! It’s so pretty…”
I walked to the edge of the terrace and looked down, seeing Sarah and Daisy fawning over the flower garden, admiring the elegant blooms. It was peak bloom season in Eithenberahl; the garden was a riot of colors, flowers blooming everywhere, butterflies flitting about. It was truly a sight for sore eyes.
I thought they might be gone… but they’re right there.
“Sarah, Daisy—”
I called out again, and as both girls looked up, I waved at them from the terrace.
“Peilo, you’re up!” Sarah waved back.
“Yup!”
“Wow, you really sleep well!”
Feeling a bit flustered at her comment, I quickly switched topics: “So, you guys didn’t go back last night?”
“We got wasted! Where could we go? We just crashed at your big mansion… Honestly, I was shocked coming here! Never expected you lived in a place like this!”
“You guys, helped me to bed?”
“It was more like we carried you,” Sarah corrected, eyes rolling. “Seriously, I’ve never seen someone with such a low alcohol tolerance. Half a cup and you’re out! Truly legendary.”
“…Told you I can’t drink,” I pouted and thought for a moment, then asked, “Where did you guys sleep?”
Sarah shrugged: “Guest room, of course.”
…A guest room?
In this chaotic mansion? That’s worse than sleeping on the couch!
“Peilo, you really need to loosen the dirt in the garden,” Daisy called from below.
“Oh…”
Nodding but not giving it much thought, I rubbed my tummy: “I’ll go down now.”
Chatting like this was awkward… better check if there’s food. Last I remembered, the kitchen was mostly empty. If there’s nothing to eat, I’d better hurry to the marketplace for supplies.
So I turned around and trotted down the stairs, put on my shoes at the door, grabbed a sun hat, and just as I opened the door, a ferocious-looking face appeared before me.
“Whoa!”
The figure let out a loud yell, stomped its feet, and lunged at me with exaggerated terrifying gestures, catching me completely off guard, my body tensed up instantly, “Ah!” I cried out, clenching my right fist by reflex, and swung.
Bam!
A solid punch.
The moment I felt the impact, my brain caught up: it was Sarah trying to scare me.
But it was too late.
The girl staggered back, her head leaning back from the punch, her weird noise abruptly cut off. I stood there, stunned, retracting my fist as I locked eyes with Daisy, who stood at the porch, equally stunned. Then Sarah crouched down, covering her face, whimpering like a little puppy through her fingers.
“Wuu, wuu…”
“Sorry! Sorry!”
I panic-apologized and rushed over to pat her back: “Are you okay?”
She waved her hand, still too dazed to respond, after a while she finally managed to lift her tear-streaked face.
“My nose… my nose is broken…”
As she said this, two streams of bl**d flowed down her face.
“Yikes!”
“bl**d’s coming out…”
“Quick, find something to stuff it with… cotton…”
I was flustered, and with Daisy’s help, we shuffled Sarah into the living room and got her to sit back on the couch. I rushed back to my bedroom and started rifling through drawers, finding nothing useful to plug her nose. Then, an idea struck me, and I eagerly opened the bottom drawer of the wardrobe, pulling out a sanitary pad my mom had given me. I bit one open, pulled out the cotton, and dashed back downstairs.
“Despite all the precautions, I still… got hit. Couldn’t escape the Nosebreaker’s wrath…”
In the living room, Sarah sat on the couch, leaning forward at an awkward angle, her nose all red, showing a mix of crying and laughter. She was pressing her fingers on her nostrils, but the bl**d just wouldn’t stop. Daisy stood beside her, both amused and concerned, mumbling about “who told you to scare her,” while wiping away the bl**d with a handkerchief.
I rushed over, tearing the cotton into two pieces, rolling them up to stuff into Sarah’s nostrils.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Cotton.”
“Where’s that from?”
“…Medical. Uh, supplies.”
I wiggled my hand, keeping my face expressionless.
“Oh.”
Eventually, I stuffed both nostrils with the cotton balls and pressed down on her nose lightly. She promptly hollered, “That hurts!”—but it hurt for real, thankfully, I held back the force just enough to keep her nose intact.
I tossed the remaining cotton on the coffee table, and the three of us sat on the couch to catch our breaths for a moment. Shortly after, once Sarah’s bleeding stopped, and the unbearable pain faded away, she perked up again: “Peilo, you have a piano in your living room!”
With her nostrils stuffed, her voice sounded a bit muffled as she stretched her arms and relaxed comfortably on the couch like a large, waddling duck.
“Do you know how to play the piano?”
“A little.”
“Sounds awesome…”
“By the way, I think it’s from the Viherele Piano Company… I recognize that logo. When I was little, some rich kid in town used to show it off… it must be worth a lot?” Daisy asked.
I shook my head: “No idea…”
It was already here when I moved in; Victoria probably arranged for someone to buy it. I’ve never asked her how much it costs. Since arriving in the Royal City, I’ve had few opportunities to play it. It’s mostly just occasional practice when I have free time.
“Speaking of which…” Sarah began, “I’ve been meaning to ask since last night. Peilo, you never told us you had this mansion here! It’s so beautiful… I even worried about where you were staying before, concerned you might get scammed… I was totally jaw-dropped when we arrived yesterday!”
“Is it really that… exaggerated?”
“Exaggerated? Do you know where this is? Longdorr Street! My goodness… the most elite and powerful people live here! I heard even Her Majesty the Queen resides here! Do you even know that?”
I nodded: “Yeah, she’s next door.”
Both girls paused, then Sarah jumped upright from the couch, her eyes wide: “What?”
“Uh-huh…”
Victoria lives next door; is it really that big of a deal? She’s not even here right now; the mansion might be empty!
“You mean… next door is Her Majesty’s mansion? Like… 2 Longdorr Street?”
“Yup…”
I noticed their over-the-top shocked expressions and felt a bit puzzled, so I asked, “What’s wrong?”
Sarah stared blankly for a while, then rubbed her forehead: “Did you even know what happened last night?”
“Eh?”
What happened last night?
“Last night…”
Sarah took a moment to collect her thoughts, trying to touch her nose and realizing no bl**d was still flowing, and then spoke: “So we brought you back, and the War Chariot got stopped by patrolling soldiers at the street. You were dead to the world, and no matter what we did, we couldn’t wake you. I ended up having to carry you, and following your directions, we got to the mansion at 3 Longdorr Street. But then… I hesitated to go inside—what if we got the place wrong? Plus, the big metal gate was locked. I debated taking you back to my place instead, but it was impossible to find another War Chariot… I was stuck in a jam, and then the maid from 2 Longdorr Street came out.”
“Maid?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, a maid. In her thirties, with a stern face… but she had the key to your place. When she saw you, she didn’t hesitate to open the door for us and helped carry you into the bedroom…”
As Sarah spoke, I furrowed my brow, trying to recall, but my mind was a complete blank. Nothing.
“Later, she figured out who we were, and seeing we were a bit tipsy—Daisy was also all over the place—she had someone prepare two guest rooms for us. She seemed pretty familiar with the place… brought you to bed and before long started washing your clothes in the middle of the night… If she hadn’t returned to her place, I would’ve thought she was your housemaid! Not to mention…”
“And what about that?”
“I kept feeling… I don’t know if it was just the booze, but she kept giving us this strange look… kind of like—”
“Like she was scrutinizing us,” Daisy couldn’t help but chime in.
“Exactly! Daisy, you felt that too? Maybe scrutinizing is a bit strong, but it had a similar vibe, like she was keeping an eye on us or something… Honestly, it was a bit annoying, but I was so sleepy I didn’t think much of it and just went to bed… Oh, earlier when you weren’t awake, that maid even came to check on you once then went back, saying she’d prepare some breakfast. Peilo, think about it… If the next door is Her Majesty’s mansion, what does that mean for her…”
…Alright, I think I get it now.
“What’s the maid’s name?”
I asked, and Sarah thought for a moment.
“I think it was… Sharman?”
Oh, it’s her.
Honestly, as soon as I heard Sarah describe her stern face, I pretty much guessed…
“That’s the Head Maid responsible for taking care of Viki… Her Majesty.”
“…Really?!”
Sarah’s eyes went wide, and Daisy covered her mouth, both looking incredulous, until a moment later, Sarah asked again: “But why was she so anxious about you? Seemed super concerned… oh, she wouldn’t even let us into your bedroom!”
“Ha-ha…”
My lips twitched slightly, and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.
“Uh, many reasons, I suppose…”
