CH 343

The Fruit of the Girls’ Feelings

That’s…a moonhare. Must be one of the horses that Equestria gave to Saint-Noel Academy. A good horse. But…

The wolfmaster looked at the princess and her horse as they ran away. She was glowing for some reason, maybe the smoke. This made it easy for him to see how she rode.

Princess Mia is an impressive rider. She is letting her horse do what it wants.

Even more doubly impressive was the fact that she didn’t lose her balance while helping a younger girl who wasn’t used to riding. Triply, perhaps, given her gender and regal status…

Unfortunately for her, she can’t just run faster than me.

He uttered a calm command to his horse.

“…Go, Eilai.”

His horse, whose black-and-silver hair was shining, let out a “yes” whinny. It quickly picked up speed, leaving their pack of wolves behind.

In a few seconds, the gap was almost gone. He got his sword ready. Its blade caught the light of the moon and looked dangerous.

“…I shall have your head.”

“Eeeeeeek!”

He was only three horse lengths away from his screaming prey. In response, the horse that was running away picked up its speed, and the gap grew again. It also kicked some dirt in his direction.

So, it’s a smart horse. Very good.

The wolfmaster moved to the left to avoid the projectile, taking a short break from Mia. Then, to stop her, he made a half-circle back towards her while keeping his speed up. But as he got closer again, he saw something in the distance.

Hm? What is that?

In the darkness that was everywhere, there was a small red flash.

It made a curve in the air and went straight for his head.

“Hngh!”

He quickly used his sword to hit it. After the impact, there was a quick burst of flames nearby.

“A fire arrow?”

Soon after, the night was filled with the sound of a girl’s voice.

“Your Majesty!”

He looked into the darkness to see where the fireball had come from. The light coming from him was dim, but it was still making it hard for him to see. He could still see the shape of a horse with two riders on it. One held the reins, and the other held a bow.

Attendants, then. Here to rescue their princess. Very well.

Anne and Tiona were working hard to find out where Mia was on Saint-Noel Island. Many people in the town knew Mia, so it didn’t take long for them to figure out that she had left the island by boat.

The sight of a Saint-Noel student with a horse was strange enough to stand out, and because Anne worked hard to keep good relationships with everyone in town, many people were willing to help the flustered maid.

With this new information, they decided to leave the island to follow Mia. With the help of a merchant that Anne knew well, they were able to get a boat.

“The problem is what we’ll do when we get to the other side,” Tiona said as she looked worriedly across the lake at the darkness.

“Mia left the island” was the last line of their leads. The trail might go cold after that. Was it even possible to find out more by asking around?

The merchant came up to the two girls and asked, “Hey, Anne, do you have a second? Usually, I’d take you to the dock on the other side, but people will get mad if they find out I took students off the island, so I’ll have to drop you off somewhere no one is looking.”

The words of the merchant only made them feel worse. Whoever took Mia across the lake would have done the same thing, for sure. It would be pointless to look for witnesses.

Just then, they ran into another boat that was going the other way.

“Huh. Funny. Didn’t think any other people would come this way.”

When the merchant spoke in a confused way, the two girls looked at each other.

“Do you think…?”

“…That’s the boat where Her Highness was?”

They ran to the back of the boat and looked at the ship that was heading towards Saint-Noel. No one could stop it and find out who was on board. But…

Anne asked, “Excuse me, but could you take us back to where the boat came from and let us off there?”

Mia had gotten herself into a lot of trouble, which was clear to both of them. She wouldn’t have just sat there fiddling with her thumbs after she got off the boat. Even though they knew this, all they could do was hope against hope that she would be there.

“Milady… please.”

Anne’s desperate prayer didn’t work out in the end. When they got off the boat, they couldn’t find Mia anywhere.

Even though their last bit of hope was being swallowed up by the darkness, they were still determined to search the area.

Sadly, by the time the torch they got from the merchant gave off its last flicker, Anne’s tears of sadness were pouring down her face.

“Milady, where did you go?” she gasped out between short sobs.

“Anne!” Tiona let out a gasp and pointed. “Look!”

Anne wiped her teary eyes with her hand and looked towards Tiona’s outstretched arm.

“Huh? Is that true?”

A horse’s shape was clear from the way it was tied to a tree.

“Why is there a horse here?”

Tiona looked at it with confusion. Anne did the same thing, but only for a second before her face hardened with determination.

“Miss Tiona, please follow me.”

“Huh? What?”

Anne held on to the saddle’s sides.

Her fingers tightened as she thought about that day—again, because how could she forget?—when they left her and went to the Kingdom of Remno.

When she was abandoned.

She would have done anything to be with Mia at all times. It was her biggest wish, but someone broke it. She didn’t know how to use the thing she was holding at that moment. Because she wasn’t able to ride.

So, she started to practise, but the words never gave her the energy she needed to learn. She already felt as much regret as she could for the rest of her life. She wouldn’t let the saddle take her away from Mia again.

And now, there was a horse in front of her. Mia was definitely in a lot of trouble, and fate gave her a horse to help her out. It was very clear what she should do next.

“Milady always lets the horse have its way when she rides. I should do what she does…”

Anne’s equestrian role model was Mia. She had watched her mistress ride very carefully, and now she thought that the Flotsam was the best way to ride.

Which wasn’t quite right, but whatever…

She had made up her mind. She was going to do things the same way and feel the same way as her dear mistress.

“Miss Tiona, hurry up!”

“Uh-huh, yes. Okay.” Tiona said, “I’m coming,” and she quickly got her own act together. She followed Anne up onto the horse and sat behind the maid.

Anne looked back one last time to make sure Tiona was sitting still behind her, and then she pushed the horse forward.

She had no idea where she was going. She just let the horse do as it pleased. Of course, she had no idea that it was a horse that the Chaos Serpents had set up just to take Mia to where they were meeting.

“Anne! That way!”

Tiona saw a light in the distance after a while of bumpy riding while holding Anne for support. It was a dim light, but the way it moved towards them made it look like a moon fairy flying through the night.

When she looked at it, she saw that the light was coming from a person who was sitting on a horse.

Someone who just so happened to…

“Eeeeeeeek!”

She screamed as loud as she could in a voice that Tiona knew right away.

“That’s…Her Highness!” exclaimed Anne. They had finally found her. And it seemed like just in the nick of time.

“Is she in danger?”

There was a sense of desperation to Mia’s shrill cry.

Tiona thought…

I’ve never heard Her Highness let out a scream like that. She must be in a serious trouble!

Just that was enough to show her that Mia’s life was in serious danger right away. Even though Mia often screamed and whimpered, Tiona thought she was the picture of poise and calmness.

“Hold us steady, Anne. I’m going to provide her some cover fire.”

She pulled an arrow out of a quiver that was on her back. It was a regular practise arrow, but the tip had been changed so that it would catch fire. She held the arrowhead up to the torch she had just bought, and it immediately burst into strong flames.

Amazing as always, Liora. It works like a charm.

She took a moment to silent thanks. Then she put the arrow in the nock.

More than one person felt terrible about what they did during the revolution in Remno. Tiona, too, was angry when she thought back to that time.

“There was nothing I could do…”

She was there before. Just next to Mia. She hadn’t done anything, though. Useless from beginning to end. She decided to learn archery because she couldn’t stop thinking about what she should have done.

Yes, she wanted to fight, but what she really wanted was to do something, anything, to help Mia. To be useful.

She looked straight ahead.

In the distance, there were two shimmering objects that both had the same pale light. Who tried to hurt Mia, and who was Mia? There was no way to know. Her arms got tight.

One drop of sweat fell from her forehead.

Her aim had to be right; even a small chance of hitting Mia was too much.

How, though, could she know? With her hand, the bowstring shook.

Which one is Her Highness? Is my aim enough? Can I… Really? Can I do this?

At that moment, one of the glowing figures turned to the side.

Then, as it turned back towards the other, it went in a crescent shape. The flash came at that time. For one crucial moment, a stray moonbeam fell on the form that was following. There was a cold, harsh light inside its faint glow.

“Oh, that’s a sword!”

The moon shone on the blade of the enemy.

She would never use a sword in a fight. And right now there is some space between them! From this angle…

Tiona let the flaming arrow fly with decisive skill.

The burning missile was the result of all the girls’ hard work. When pathos crystallized, it shot through the air like a shooting star. Anne would not have been enough on her own. She could have ridden to the scene, but she wouldn’t have been much help afterward. Tiona could ride a horse or use a bow, but she couldn’t do both at the same time.

So, the fact that they were here showed that they had worked together. Their combined determination got them to the stage just in time for the most important part of the play, which was Mia’s daring escape.

The fire arrow shot straight towards the enemy.