Chapter Eighty-Seven: Departure
On the day of our departure, the entire city was blanketed in white snow.
The snowfall must have started in the dead of night, and after just one night, the snow on the ground had crept up to my ankles. Fluffy silver snowflakes danced in the chilly wind, which whipped across my face.
In front of Shanter Castle, the Lady was wielding a thick, powder-pink fur shawl, determined to drape it over me like some sort of freakish fashion statement.
“It’s freezing! That flimsy cloak of yours won’t protect you from the wind and snow… Hurry up! Quit dawdling!”
“That’s hideous,” I protested, shaking my head stubbornly and propping my hands against her arms. “I’m really not cold…”
The Pope Knight’s cloak could practically envelop my entire body. Not to mention, I had a fleece-lined leather tunic underneath… Normally, I could just prance around buck n*ked, and the cold wouldn’t bother me one bit; in fact, I felt quite cozy. But here I was, about to be wrapped up like a giant burrito.
But the Lady wasn’t having any of it. Every time she insisted on something, her surprisingly strong arms would start moving, and since I didn’t want to accidentally hurt her, I tried to resist but inevitably found the shawl snugly wrapped around my neck.
With a satisfied pat on my shoulder, she completely ignored my gloomy expression, embodying everything that meant “your mother thinks you’re cold.”
“Pasifal! Get over here and help carry some luggage! Why is it I still don’t see a trace of you?”
“…Mom, I’m right here…”
A bulky yet stooped figure emerged slowly from the path on the right side of the garden.
Pasifal was struggling to lift an enormous suitcase, already panting as he huffed visible steam in the cold air, drops of sweat somehow dripping from his forehead. His voice trembled as he spoke.
“Mom, what on earth did you pack for Pepé?! It’s, huff, so heavy… She’s so strong, why am I the one having to carry this? Am I even your real son?!”
“You’re her brother! Can’t you act like one? This is the result of months in the workshop! Now hurry up!”
The Lady’s sharp voice cut through the air, and I could see the look of grievance on Pasifal’s face. He wobbled over, laboriously hoisting the suitcase onto his shoulder, but after two unsuccessful attempts to shove it into the War Chariot’s compartment, he was clearly at a loss.
Then, an arm stretched out from the carriage and yanked the suitcase in, followed by Carlos’s half-face popping out.
“What’s in there, Little Shay?”
“Clothes.”
“Are clothes that heavy?”
In the face of Carlos’s skepticism, I turned my gaze towards the snowflakes fluttering in the sky.
“…And donuts.”
Carlos was speechless.
“Alright, you’re something special.” He rubbed his forehead. “But that stuff will go bad soon, so what’s the point of bringing so much?”
I replied earnestly, “I’ll eat it all before it goes bad.”
I was quite confident in that regard! Given Valen Empire’s weather, the shelf life could be extended a bit.
“Baa—”
A piece of goat cheese cried out as it landed on the carriage, and upon seeing this, the Lady’s face lit up with a smile.
“Pepé, remember to write home once you get there.”
I nodded.
“Okay, I will.”
Then, I directed my gaze back to the castle behind us.
The dark walls stood like an unyielding fortress, the towering spires reaching into the mountain’s belly, defiantly resisting the onslaught of wind and snow. At this moment, the Duke and Lafael were likely in one of the assembly rooms on the third floor, negotiating the procurement of iron ore and leather with many traveling merchants. I had already bid them farewell before leaving the inner fortress.
I didn’t know if they were watching us, but I waved in their direction anyway.
“I’m off!”
“Take care!”
“Pepé, make sure to come back during break!”
“Uh-huh!”
I bent down to pick up the black suitcase resting by my feet and slung it over my shoulder. After casting one last glance at the Lady, I stepped onto the carriage.
“Lady, we’re leaving!”
“Let’s go… Mr. Carlos, thank you for your help on this journey.”
“It’s no trouble.” Carlos let out a “pfft” as he spit out the half-straw he was chewing on. “Tell the Duke I’ll be back soon.”
“Alright.”
The heavy snow fell on her inky hair, while the wind tousled her locks against her cheeks.
Even so, nothing could obscure her eyes, shining as bright as the moon.
“Mr. Carlos, may the moonlight be with you.”
Carlos lightly tapped his fist against his chest.
Creak… creak…
The carriage started moving, and after we had gone a few meters, I heard the Lady shout again.
“Pepé! Take care of yourself out there—!”
I quickly lifted the carriage curtain and poked my head out, shouting back at her figure behind us.
“I will!”
“If something happens, talk to someone first! Don’t rush in and show off on your own!”
“Got it—!”
“…Come back safe…”
“Okay!”
Her voice faded away.
Inside the carriage, the atmosphere turned silent.
Carlos leaned back, watching me with a curious expression, his gaze felt like that of someone observing a monkey at the zoo.
I shot him a fierce look with my slightly reddened eyes.
“Stop staring.”
“Girls shouldn’t curse, you know.”
“I can’t stand you. Just look at me already.”
“Haha, what should I do then? It’s just the two of us left, and I’m so bored, and you’re quite interesting! What else should I do if not look at you?”
“Go pick your toes.”
“…Well, at least you’re a noble girl—no, a royal lady! How can you be so vulgar?”
“None of your business…”
“Not my business?” Carlos jumped in before I finished, “Can we not make a big deal out of everything? You’re impacting my peace of mind… Ah, my heavens!”
At that moment, he quickly raised his feet, skillfully dodging my sweeping kick. I was too annoyed, yet didn’t feel like arguing, so I merely huffed a few times.
“I warn you, don’t provoke me.”
Perhaps sensing my mood was truly off, Carlos raised both hands in surrender.
“Alright, alright! I won’t provoke you… So, what, are you sad to leave this place?”
I chose not to respond.
Sad to leave this place… Maybe a bit, but not entirely.
To be honest, I couldn’t even articulate how I felt at that moment.
I had gained a sense of belonging here.
As I cast a final look at the castle, a sudden thought flashed through my mind: “I have lived here for many years and will continue to live here in the future.”
I wasn’t sure if those were my emotions or someone else’s. As far as I could recall, I had only lived in Shanter Castle for three months, while my hometown was in a far-off world.
But the feelings were strikingly real, piercing me.
What am I even…?
“Carlos, the whirlwind.”
“…Are you calling me?”
“Who else could it be?”
Carlos shrugged.
“Oh, I didn’t think that my name wouldn’t count this time. I wasn’t quick on the uptake, my bad. What’s up?”
“Do you think the Abyss could alter memories?”
Hearing this, he frowned and rested his hand on his chin in contemplation.
“…Alter memories? Isn’t memory just an elusive thing? Don’t even talk about the Abyss; I doubt even deities could do that… What are you getting at?”
“…Oh, nothing really.”
It seemed it was something he couldn’t comprehend.
It was something that no one, including myself, could understand.
I couldn’t even be sure if it was related to the Abyss; it was just too complicated. To put it simply, it felt like something had split my brain in two—one half said I was Peilo, and the other insisted my name was Chen Yuxuan. The Peilo side granted me personality, while the Chen Yuxuan side gave me memories.
But now, the half giving me memories was trying to reassign me personality, while the half granting me personality was busy providing me with new memories.
Simple, right?
In my previous world, this kind of stuff was called split personality, commonly referred to as a mental illness.
And clearly, the doctors in this world couldn’t treat such a thing… Just look at that bird-faced knight! A seemingly average guy, and Carlos claims he’s a world-renowned doctor with extraordinary skills.
I wouldn’t dare turn myself over to him, and such matters… I also couldn’t tell others for the time being.
It was tough.
“Little Shay, what are you thinking about?”
Suddenly feeling a bit gloomy, I lifted the curtain slightly and noticed that the street outside looked somewhat familiar…
“…Stop the carriage!”
“What’s wrong?!”
Carlos, who had been starting to doze off, jumped in surprise at my sudden shout. He glanced outside the carriage and quickly realized what I was getting at.
“Wait, I want to buy something.”
Before he could protest, I sprang out and hurried across the street to the shop selling Osmelure Cake.
I pushed the door open.
“Welcome~”
That sweet, familiar voice belonged to the same shop assistant! She looked stunned for a moment upon seeing me.
I strolled up to the counter and asked her, “Not many customers today?”
“…Ah, yes. Probably because of the Day of the Divine Birth,” she said with a smile, shaking off her momentary surprise. “Everyone is with their families. It was super hectic a while back, though… So, what can I get for you?”
“Just you here today?”
“No, my grandpa is here too, but he went to the town to buy ingredients…”
“Was it like that last time too?”
I recalled the first time I came here when the girl was alone and nearly on the verge of tears from being so overwhelmed; it left quite an impression.
“Yes.” She revealed a bitter smile, seeming to guess my thoughts. “I… I may be a bit clumsy. When Grandpa isn’t here, I’m always running around like a headless chicken, not knowing what to do…”
“Why not hire another worker?”
“My grandpa won’t allow it… He always thinks that the young people nowadays can’t be trusted, that they’ll steal things from the shop… But someone did come to help before…”
At this point, the shop assistant glanced at me with a bit of apprehension, then seemed to gather her courage.
“It was a girl named Peilo… She’s the Duke’s child, from a noble background, but still insisted on coming to help when my grandpa wasn’t around. At first, I was hesitant to let her do things, but she was persistent… When it got busy, she’d wiggle around in the shop, encountering every imaginable smell. She could handle the pressure. Inevitably, her beautiful black hair would get tousled… She never asked for payment, just took some cake home when she left.”
“You could tell she really liked eating sweets… and was willing to chat with us common folk… She’s such a kind girl.”
