You're Not Alone

Permanent banishment.

The condition wasn’t ‘immediate execution’, so that was sort of a relief. But in a world far from everything I ever knew, being sent away might as well have been.

It was shortly after the council adjourned that I began to realize just how pampered I was up until now under the protection of the royal family. It hadn’t been easy one hundred percent of the time, but I was never alone in anything I did either. I had finally begun to make friends and allies. So why…

Why is this happening now?

Thinking the hardest part was over with the Engagement Ball coming to a close, I underestimated my rotten luck. Now there was a little less than a month until the summer solstice and the Northwind Triathlon with it. I was up the creek without a boat.

I know what I said. The boat, the paddle, all of it.

I ran my hand over the surface of the book Jewel gave me from the library and wondered what my predecessor might do amid a dilemma like this. Probably something more graceful than I could ever hope to come up with, hearing people describe the man.

“It’s not like I can fire a cannon at this problem… probably.” I chuckled dryly.

“Hey, Sakuta!” Amber plopped down next to me at the gazebo in the courtyard where I sat, pondering my next plan of action. “Brought you something…”

Brought me—?

“EEEEEK!” I felt something freezing cold press against my cheek, and I recoiled in response.

Amber had provided me with a refreshment of some kind, iced tea by the look of it. On a hot, late-spring day such as this without a cloud in sight, it was a nice gesture. However…

“That’s freezing!” I complained.

“Sorry, your face just looked so tense and I thought it would give you a jolt.” She giggled at my expense. “So what’s got you so lost in thought? Nervous for the triathlon?“

“Well there is that, but…” I took the glass with a nod of appreciation. “I guess I was just wondering what the great ‘Mage of the Crossing’ would do at a time like this. Seems like some impossibly big shoes to fill, and I don’t even know much about the guy.”

“Hmm…” Amber pondered for a moment. “I guess I can understand that. I sometimes think of what my father would do when I start feeling inadequate as the heir to the throne.”

“Oh yeah?” I perked up. “And what conclusion do you usually come to?”

“I have to remind myself that he’s him, and I’m me.” Amber leaned in until she was in my view. “We could chase ourselves in circles thinking about what other people would do in our position, or…”

Amber shot up, pulling me to my feet with her.

“We could just be ourselves, and do our best. That way we can make those people proud someday.” She smiled. “I know it might not sound convincing after everything I said up in the balloon, but I honestly do feel that way.”

“I see… Thanks, Amber.” I nodded, understanding her point. “You always seem to know what to say.”

“Not always.” Amber locked eyes with me. “But it’s not as hard to tell you how I feel about this kind of stuff anymore. You think it’s because we’re getting closer, little by little?”

It wasn’t all that often, but I sometimes noticed a far-off look in her gaze when she spoke of her father. This time, however, it was a lot different as we crossed our gazes. It was much closer, more familiar, and yet…

I couldn’t quite place the meaning behind those pools of deep crimson. Perhaps it reflected my own longing, of wanting to understand the person in front of me on a deeper level. Maybe it was all in my head, but…

“I think you may be right.”

I knew Amber had become a person I could truly rely on.

I went to place the journal—still locked from the outside—in the inner pocket of my uniform jacket, but I felt something else tucked in there. The surface was cold and metallic to the touch. Wasn’t this–?

Amber’s birthday necklace, that’s right!

I had completely forgotten to give it to her during the council-related chaos of the last couple days.

“Hey, Amber?” I coughed into my hand, clearing my throat.

“What’s up?” Amber tilted her head.

“I, uhh... I just...” For some reason, I was nervous to bring it up now that the Princess was staring directly at me.

“You’re acting a little funny, are you sure there’s not something else going on?”

But I pressed on.

“I totally spaced it with the council summons happening right after your birthday, but there’s something… something I really wanted to give you.“

Reaching into my jacket, I produced the item I had put off giving to Amber before. A necklace with a pendant strangely reminiscent of a cherry blossom. She looked shocked when she saw it, her freckled cheeks matching the color of the flower for a moment.

“This pendant… Did you happen to know what it signified when you bought it?”

“Uhhh, no, to be honest.” I admitted. “I thought it would suit you, even if you’re not into flashy stuff—But don’t feel obligated to wear it if you don’t like it!”

I lost my nerve.

“I could always take it back, and…”

“Nope! Definitely not.” Amber declared before putting on a sly grin. “Far be it from me to refuse a gift, even if it’s a little on the strong side for two non-lovers.”

“Well now I’m curious what the meaning of this pendant is...”

“Not telling.” Amber put the chain around her neck, the pendant falling just below her collarbone. It did, in fact, suit her well. “But now that you’ve made your feelings clear, I’ll have to return the favor.”

That sounds a little ominous…

“Sissy, Sakuta!” Princess Mavis came running out into the courtyard, interrupting our gift exchange. She held up her long purple gown over her shoes to keep from tripping over herself.

“Mavis! You’re awfully dressed up.” Amber greeted her sister as she walked up. “Any news on where that crystalis might have come from?”

“Not yet, but I was in a meeting with Mother, and Guard Captain Moreau. He still insists that none of his men had such a thing in their possession.” Mavis was out of breath as she explained. “Mother suggested we ask Cedrick to let us borrow his crystalis to make contact with Henrí. It should be quicker than sending a familiar with a letter, and safer than sending an official envoy with all the pirate attacks lately.”

“Crystalis?” I repeated. “And what’s this about the Senator?”

Henrí. That was a name I hadn’t heard in a bit. Not since the Senator left via wagon with his entourage to return to his home country of Gularahi after the ball.

“A crystalis is a magic communication and recording device like the one Duke Cleishay used against you in the council meeting.” Amber said.

“I never thought to mention it, but I did see Cedrick using one just before the Engagement Ball before I knew what it was.” I put my hand up to my chin. “Are they rare?”

“Somewhat, yeah.” Amber said.” It’s an old dwarven technology that we can’t fully replicate, so you don’t see many of them floating around the streets anymore...”

“Dwarven? Now that you mention it…”

I had seen all manner of folk in Aurelia so far. Elves, orcs, lizard men, beast folk, humans, and I knew that demons were out there too somewhere. But I had yet to see even a single dwarf…

Then again, I left the castle about as much as a hikikomori leaves their own bedroom. It’s possible I just hadn’t had the chance to run into one yet, but I thought it was pretty odd.

“A bulk of the crystalises that still work are in the possession of the Kawar Trading Company in Kawar’s Shield, the capital of Gularahi.” Amber explained, taking note of the surprised look on my face. “Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?”

“Kawar… That’s Henrí’s family name.” I said.

Impressive… A whole trading company and a city named after Henrí’s family? I know his father is the vice president and all, but their influence must go way beyond that.

“With the quick communication crystalises allow for, Henrí’s great-grandfather was able to build a trading empire and unite the beast forests in a way that hadn’t been possible since before the days of the Gods.” Amber said. “Or at least that’s what all the merchant lords on his payroll boast about when their caravans come rolling through here.”

“Days of the Gods, huh?”

I saw a brief passage about that in one of the history books Jewel forced me to read for practice, but I passed it over, thinking the idea of gods and goddesses walking around was simply too ridiculous to take seriously. I almost gave the history buff Jewel a fit with my lackadaisical attitude on the subject.

Though it might not be as far-fetched as I had previously thought.

I learned not to apply Earth logic to certain things over time, and I’ve been a more adaptable person for it. That piece of potential history aside, I had a much more pressing question to attend to in regards to our wolfish merchant friend.

“I understand now how we’re gonna reach Henrí, but for what purpose?” I asked. “I feel like we just said our goodbyes to him, and I’m sure he’s busy with running his company.”

The pair of sisters smiled at me without answering my question.

“Eh? What’s going on?” My head swiveled between the two of them. “Is there something on my face?”

“As you know, you’ll need proper teachers to prepare you for the triathlon,” Amber said. “We’ve already found you one of the best fencing instructors in the kingdom from Morningstar Magic Academy. She’s practically world famous for her technique, and she’ll have you in top form in no time.”

“Oh?” I raised my eyebrows.

I’m suddenly very interested in meeting this fencing instructor after hearing Amber gush about her skills, but that still leaves one big hole in my triathlon-related education program…

“What about the instructor for my f-f-f–” I sputtered, not wanting to say the word.

“Flight training?” Mavis–who had been quiet for a bit–answered for me. “We haven’t had much luck finding one in the kingdom who isn’t competing in the event themselves, or doesn’t have some affiliation with the Golden Dragon and their smuggling network.”

“Those damned pirates…” I remembered the group of lizardmen who ruined my first adventure outside the castle with Amber, Commodore Flynn, and his crew.

At times I wondered if I would have been on a faster track to the demon capital, Darkspire, and The Crossing had I not experienced that training setback at the hands of Captain Dag and his goons.

But it was also the life-or-death nature of that situation that awoke my alchemical abilities, as little as I knew about their origin. Assuming I wanted to go the glass-half-full route, I could even say it was a good thing.

“Sissy and I came up with the idea to search outside Aurelia for a teacher, and we both agreed on the perfect person for the job.” Mavis said.

“We were just talking about him, in fact…” Amber added.

“Henrí? I didn’t know he was a dragon rider.” I said. “But then again, I also didn’t know he ran a whole trading company either. Would he come straight back here just to train me? Doesn't he have a lot going on?”

“Only one way to find out for sure,” Mavis said. “He might even be able to help us find out who sold Duke Cleishay’s men the crystalis. There might be several more out there, recording events around the castle.”

A good point, you can’t be too careful when espionage is a real risk now. And, stranger still, that it goes totally unpunished by the royal family…

Was the power balance really swinging that far towards the Duke’s camp that he could get away with such activities in plain sight? Either way, it didn’t bode well for the immediate future.

“Hey, you three!” Poppy called out as she approached, her ears wiggling at our trio. “I’ve got some important news that concerns Sakuta, and the triathlon.”

“Really?” I perked up. “What do we know?”

Amber and Mavis stopped to listen in.

“We already knew that the triathlon would be beginning in a few weeks in the city of Northwind on the night of the summer solstice.” Poppy explained. “The event will be sponsored by the Adventurer’s Guild of Aurelia once again, and all the point systems and rules have been detailed here on this notice.”

“Great! We shouldn’t waste any time setting up a meeting to discuss, Nadia should be arriving later this evening to introduce herself to Sakuta as well.” Amber said. “Anything else?”

Nadia? That must be this fencing instructor I've heard a bit about.

“The big one is that Sakuta’s main opponent has been decided by the Duke, and it should come as no surprise as to who that is.” Poppy crossed her arms.

“Count Charles Cleishay.” I muttered.

“You’ve got it.”

“Don’t lose face now, Yamada Sakuta. From this point forward we will be opponents in the truest sense.”

I had a feeling those words, courtesy of the Count, weren’t just to make me feel better about the whole situation. He had a funny way of sneaking me warnings in conversation, which led me to believe that he might not be as inflexible about allying as before.

“I know you would rather be home with your family instead of fighting banishment like this, but I swear on my honor as second Princess that we’ll do everything in our power to help you.” Mavis said. “Don’t forget, mother certainly considers you a member of the family now too.”

“Yup! You’re not alone in this, kid.” Poppy echoed.

I’m not… alone.

“You’re not alone in this. So stop feeling sorry for yourself, and do something."

This time it was Jewel’s words that came to the forefront. I grinned to myself.

“The real work begins now.” Amber punched the palm of her hand. “Are you ready to train like your life here depends on it?”

“It sort of does, you know?” I sighed. “But… I’m not ready to say goodbye to anybody here just yet. I’ll fight until the bitter end. Whether it’s Charles, the Phantom, or anyone else standing in our way.”

I’ll fight to protect my friends here, and preserve my dearest wish to return home to Earth. By any means necessary.

“Then…” Amber smiled, turning to face me. The morning sun shone behind her. “Shall we get this strategy meeting started?”