“Wait! Just listen to .......”
“Restrain her.”
Rosemary was arrested.
**Klais Hasfeldt. And Klara Hasfeldt.
The two missing daughters of Hasfeldt had returned, and this news quickly reached Duke Hasfeldt.
“Is that true?”
“Yes, your daughters are under my protection.”
The cigarette dropped from Renawill’s mouth. He licked his lips that were going dry, expression hardening.
“Let us go imdiately.”
He couldn’t think about anything else. Renawill abandoned what he was doing and headed to the hospital where his two daughters had been admitted.
They said it was the general hospital, so both of them would’ve been seriously injured. The way Renawill strode up to the reception desk was unusual. He signed in as a visitor as per the personnel’s directions and quickly headed up.
“305, 305.......”
He was feeling a turmoil of emotions.
Renawill opened the door to the hospital room.
The sun was coming through. On either side, he could see two won having a conversation.
“...Father?”
“Father....”
Renawill couldn’t say a thing.
Klais and Klara Hasfeldt. Both his daughters were in patient clothes and attached to IVs.
They were both thin. Long scars ran down Klara’s arm, and there were shadows beneath Klais’ eyes, from exhaustion perhaps. In any case, they looked haggard and pitiful.
Renawill, who had been standing there dumbstruck, snapped out of it.
“They’ve both been through a lot. They were held prisoner by the Demon Army and survived.......”
Heerlein, who had followed in after him, explained while holding back tears.
Heerlein, too, was reuniting with Klais after a long ti. As much as she tried, it was difficult to keep her emotions at bay; she’d already gone through multiple handkerchiefs.
“Please stop crying, ri, and co over here.”
In the end, Heerlein stopped crying after she shared a deep hug with Klais.
“.......”
“My Lord? Will you not say sothing.......”
Contrary to her expectations, Duke Hasfeldt’s reaction was only lukewarm. He neither showed tears, nor did his voice shake. Rather, he was calm. Looking between his two daughters, he spoke in a heavy tone.
“So you returned after being taken as prisoners instead of dying valiantly in battle against the Beasts?”
Heerlein was quite taken aback.
“Well, no, sir.... they had been captured in the midst of fighting courageously.”
“What about other survivors?”
“There were none.”
“Is that so.”
Renawill pondered on sothing, looking like he was thinking about political matters.
His reaction was more subdued than she thought. Heerlein, who had been hesitant, mustered up courage and asked with boldness.
“Sir, your children have returned. Aren’t you happy?”
“Of course I am.”
“Then why such a mild reaction? Are you embarrassed by any chance.......”
Renawill cleared his throat with an ahem and cut her off.
“Think about it, Marquis Heerlein. What do you think will happen if the world found out that my daughters were enslaved at the Demon Castle? This would bring disgrace upon our family na.”
“Sir.......”
Heerlein was at a loss for words.
“It’s fine, ri. Father has always been this way.”
“Klais.......”
Waving her hand, Klais gave a bitter smile. It was a gesture to stop defending her.
She couldn’t understand. Shouldn’t he as family be giving them a hug without words?
“Sir, coming back after being captive at the Demon Castle is an unbelievable feat. It has never happened before in history. Yet what do you an that the family’s honor has been tarnished?”
In the first place, Heerlein didn’t really know what was the honor of a noble, having been a commoner.
“Klais, Klara. Help as soon as you are out of the hospital. There are lots of urgent matters that need to be seen to.”
“Understood.”
“Yes, sir.”
An overly impersonal and cold familial relationship. It wasn’t the scene Heerlein had anticipated.
Still, it probably wasn’t right to intervene any more than this. Feeling quite bitter, Heerlein bit down on her lip. Instead, she was determined to co visit everyday until the two recovered their strength.
And a week later–
The two recovered sisters were discharged at the sa ti. Heerlein bought a bouquet of flowers in advance and brought it to them. She gave them hugs while saying congratulations.
Although she was busy, this had to be done. They were good friends, after all.
“You got out quicker than I thought.”
“Yes, I t a master who was better than I.......”
Klais stopped there and shut her mouth.
“Master?”
“Ah.......”
“Is it the child I know?”
As expected of Heerlein. It seed she guessed who it was without being given any hints like a psychic.
She hadn’t been intending to hide it, anyway. Reluctantly, Klais nodded in confirmation.
“Actually.......”
Then the two finished exchanging information.
Heerlein told her about the ‘Steam Rain’ incident that had occurred at Tilette, and Klais gave the details about her ti with Aether in return.
And after piecing the two sides together–
“The world might end because of .”
–a frightening conclusion was drawn.
“Because of that large-scale magic called a nuclear bomb or sothing?”
“Yes.”
“Why would that be your fault?”
“If only I had been kind to her from the start.......”
“No, let’s stop talking about what’s already been done.”
Heerlein was guilty of things herself for Klais to be taking all the bla.
“I should have been kinder to you as well....”
“I wouldn’t have listened even if you did.”
“Then you can do so from now on.”
They were sorry to each other, but were hesitating because neither knew how to apologize.
That was how complicated the feelings were, and so the two ca to an agreent: to just let things go instead of wasting ti like this. To prepare for the things to co.
“Anyway, you’re off until today and will be resuming teaching tomorrow, right?”
“Yes, probably.”
“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”
The two parted ways in the middle. She wanted to throw a welco back party if she could, but dealing with the mountain of work ca first.
“This way.”
Now, Heerlein set foot into the prisons as an official authority.
**After a hard day’s work, Renawill returned to his temporary lodge like any other day. A bottle of wine that he purchased at a liquor store was in his left hand. It was a Chardonnay with quite a high percentage of alcohol.
He was staying in the suburbs of the capital, a reasonable distance for commuting.
It was quite a large house for one person, and so it had been quiet and lonely for a while.
That quiet ca to an end today, as his two daughters took up their own rooms.
“You’re back.”
“Welco back, Father.”
As soon as he entered the front door, his two children took his luggage in place of the servants. Renawill swallowed before he spoke.
“Things will be hard starting from tomorrow. You must work hard for the sake of our dishonoured family na.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Understood, sir.”
If Heerlein had seen this, she would’ve been shouting in outrage.
This was the Hasfeldt family; Renawill had always brought up his children strictly. He usually didn’t say anything unnecessary, and could count on his fingers the number of tis he’d exchanged small talk with them.
The three people chanically prepared the table, as there were no maids in this place. It was because the Hasfeldt family had to pay an unprecedented amount of taxes to the state in the form of a donation. It was the ti to be as frugal as possible.
Even their al was quite simple; they finished eating in about five to ten minutes. Even then, Renawill was looking over official docunts instead of at his daughter’s faces.
“.......”
They had cherry tomatoes for dessert. With her fork, Klais rolled around the tomatoes resembling her eyes and fell into thought, on top of being conscious of her father.
Unable to stand it any longer, Klara sighed and spoke up.
“...Can you at least talk with us, Father?”
“Talk? What kind of talk?”
“We’ve co back after a long ti.”
Earlier, she had been quiet because she hadn’t wanted to fight in front of another person, but she had been thinking that it was ti to talk about it.
“We’re in a private space. Can you not even tell us ‘welco back’?”
“Welco back. There.”
“......Father.”
Klara was about to say sothing, then gave up.
“Our current finances as well as the country itself is on the verge of collapsing, Klara. If you realize the embarrassnt of having been taken prisoner, then devote yourself to the country as soon as possible.”
What was family honor, and what did it an to devote oneself to the country? Klara had no idea.
“Father.”
Klais asked.
“What are we doing tomorrow?”
“Let’s first go see His Majesty the Emperor.”
“And then?”
“The plan is to go interrogate the Beast that ca with you. You will have to co with as witnesses.”
On top of that, she had to return to teaching. Things were going to be eventful. Renawill let out a deliberate sigh.
“That’ll be all. It’s late, get yourselves to bed.”
“Father.”
“Hurry on up; do not make say it a third ti.”
“.......”
Klais got a subtle sense of déjà vu at her father’s words. There was definitely another person who talked like this.
Klais took Klara up to the second floor. They changed into pajamas and brushed their teeth.
Then the two lay together on the queen-sized bed sharing one cover.
“We haven’t slept like this in a while.”
“You’re right.”
“Has it been about ten years?”
“It might be more.”
The two Hasfeldts smiled softly at each other; like this, it felt as if they were children again.
It was like this back then, too... they reminisced, in gentle conversation.
“I can’t sleep.”
“Neither can I.”
Had it been about two hours? Yet they weren’t tired at all due to sleeping all week at the hospital.
The Hasfeldt sisters looked up at the clock on the wall. 12 a.m. The day was over.
“We’re supposed to start working today, aren’t we?”
“That’s right.”
“Should we go down right now and help?”
“That’s what I was thinking.”
If it was organizing docunts, they could help right now. The sisters kicked off the covers and ran out the door. There was a kind of playfulness in the way they tread lightly down the stairs.
“Where is Father.......”
“Shh!”
Klais, who had been walking ahead, stopped Klara.
“.......”
The supplentary light in the kitchen was on at this hour.
The Hasfeldt sisters held their breath and poked their head out the door fra.
Click. They heard the refrigerator open and close.
Renawill took out the wine he bought today and placed it on the table. Sitting on the creaking chair, he expertly popped the cork.
He poured himself a strong drink in an on-the-rocks, and as he drank, his shoulders shook in silence.
“.......”
“......Let’s go back.”
Klais and Klara silently went upstairs and slept.
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