Winding Down

Ohmygosh, what was I even THINKING?

Though she was obscured by the adjacent curtain, Viviane still felt the need to cover her blushing face with her hands. Although she had been caught up in the moment mere minutes ago, the very fresh memories of her actions were now hammering away at her mind.

Seriously!? Licking her blood!? Why would I do that!? Why, why why!? Viviane couldn’t help but hop up and down in embarrassment as she realized how unnatural her actions must’ve been, especially in front of such a large crowd. She was already a subject of bullying, so she couldn’t help but imagine how much of a hell her life would become now.

As she internally berated herself for the strangeness of her actions, a very suitably sterile silence settled over the infirmary. Aside from the occasional clinking of tools and shuffling of shoes or sheets, it remained quiet.

Yet, it was Viviane herself who would break this silence, much to her own surprise.

“Um... Medrauta?”

“Yes?” Medrauta’s voice came in reply from behind the curtain. It was a gentle sort of sound compared to her usually rougher tone, and Viviane found the contrast to be somewhat soothing.

“If I may ask... Um... W-What was it that you meant earlier when you said that your heart was mine?”

“Hm? My loyalty, of course,” Medrauta answered, sounding confused. “As you well know, I have had a habit of switching between lords frequently. I wished to express the integrity of my oath this time.”

Almost immediately, the embarrassment that pervaded Viviane’s mind rapidly abated. Instead, she found only a sense of foolishness in its place and... disappointment? She wasn’t sure.

“R-Right! That’s what you meant! Of course!” Viviane laughed nervously in an effort to hide her turmoil of emotions.

Medrauta frowned. Though her mind was still slightly hazy from the injuries she had endured during the match, she could sense that there was something amiss.

With a grunt, she forced herself up from the bed, careful not to disturb the freshly bandaged wounds on her body. Before she could thrust aside the curtain, a familiar voice behind it reached her ears.

“Well, well, I’m surprised, little mousey~!”

“Dame Amelia!” Viviane exclaimed in surprise.

“What the hell are you doing here again?” Medrauta asked as she pushed the curtain open, looking rather irritated. Amelia was the last person she wanted seeing her in this state.

“Oh my!” Amelia’s lips formed a perfect ‘o’ of mock surprise as she regarded Medrauta’s sorry state. “Must you always greet me in such an uncouth fashion, Medrauta?”

“Hah! Maybe I’d be a little nicer if you found some time in that oh-so-busy schedule of yours to finish our duel instead of making stupid excuses all the time.”

“As it just so happens, I seem to be free today. But...” Amelia’s gaze lingered over Medrauta’s bandaged body for several seconds. “...It doesn’t look like you’re in any condition to fight. And here I had been counting the days until we could cross swords again. What a shame.”

Medrauta gripped the edge of the infirmary bed tightly, gritting her teeth. She wished she could get up right now and wipe that annoying smirk off Amelia’s face, but it was clear that the older girl was simply attempting to provoke her.

“But I didn’t come here to bicker with you,” Amelia said, her tone growing slightly less playful as she saw Medrauta bristle. “I came to congratulate you and Viviane. Honestly, I expected you to put up a fight, but I hadn’t actually expected the two of you to win. So, congratulations, mousey. You’ve pulled out the sword in the stone.”

“S-Sword in the stone?” Viviane asked, confused. “What do you mean by that?”

“Oh? You haven’t heard the tale of Caliburn, the legendary sword in the stone? It was said that a thousand years ago, the emperor of that era pulled it forth from an enchanted stone and became the first knight after slaying the legendary queen of witches.”

“Ah! The story of Emperor Soleil!” Viviane’s eyes lit up with recognition as Amelia recounted the story. “I remember now! But... Medrauta means more to me than just a sword, you know!”

“Oh, I know, I know,” Amelia laughed. “I’ve just heard the comparison thrown around within the noble circles. Rather, I’m surprised that I’m more familiar with this sort of gossip than you.”

“Ahaha...” Viviane twirled a lock of her glossy golden hair as she looked away, not wanting to admit the fact that she’d rarely had any chances to socialize amongst her peers thanks to her status as a social pariah despite her family’s standing.

“In any case, I extend my congratulations to the two of you. Perhaps we’ll get to face each other in a match soon, Medrauta. Then you can stop nagging me about that duel.”

“You fuckin’ wish,” Medrauta snorted. “Match or not, I’ll hold you to the promise you made on that day ‘til the end of your life or mine.”

Amelia merely smiled, an expression of amusement mixed with something else. Something intangible. “Of course. It would be unlike you otherwise. Now then, I do have a few things to do, so I’ll be going. Please do keep the surprises coming, mousey~”

Medrauta released a sigh as Amelia turned on her heel and departed. Amelia’s beautiful figure swayed in the pale silver of moonlit rays streaming through the tall and narrow infirmary windows, giving her long black hair an almost luminous sheen.

Moonlight...? It might be late, but it’s not too much past noon... Medrauta squinted as she watched Amelia disappear through the infirmary door. She rubbed her eyes to clear them of fatigue before inspecting the light that flowed through the windows.

Sure enough, it was sunlight. Soothing and golden, just like Viviane’s beautiful eyes.

Yeah... I must’ve just been seeing things, Medrauta thought. Instead of mulling over what could’ve been nothing more than a trick of the light combined with her weary eyes, she focused her attention on Viviane.

“...She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”

“Hm?”

“Dame Amelia. Every step she takes... It’s almost like she’s blessing the ground,” Viviane laughed, finding her own analogy silly. “Even so, I can’t help but want to be like her... Just a little bit.”

Medrauta regarded Viviane with a raised eyebrow for a couple seconds before pushing herself off the bed and shuffling over to Viviane. Gently, she ran a hand through Viviane’s voluminous golden hair until just a lock remained in her palm.

“E-Eh!? Wha—”