Chapter 8
Sophia allowed her legs to dangle off the edge of Katarina's bed, fingers unwittingly stroking the laced up bed sheets. Nearly two months had gone pass since Katarina's mysterious disappearance. Not a single cell out of the thirty trillion that she possesses could've accounted for the possibility that the one she reveres so dear can slip away so easily, right from beside her. The room which bears the scent of fresh earth, occasional dust particles dancing like faeries in the sun's glow, now seems to her like sand falling from a broken hourglass, seeping through the very laces she is clinging to.
Such an ordered division had taken place at the Claes estate of one week ago. Katarina's parents and the student council had convened to discuss what to do concerning the eccentric girl's choice of journey. She couldn't have passed through all the sea ports that Mary could remember from their past conversations. Considering none of the passenger names match, and none of the maids were out in the manor garden during that night. There was no sign of abduction, and if the rumors of noble ladies could not confirm the existence of threats on the crown from overseas, then nothing else is trustworthy. Even the Royal guard has their limit when given such vague information.
"My wife has taken an illness of the spirit. Pardon our hosting, but she will not be here to greet all of you today." Duke Luigi spoke, a solemnity in his voice, addressing all of his daughter's friends. "As you all know, it has been nearly two months since we have relied on your abilities to find my wayward daughter."
"I apologize in advance, but I will ask you all as her friends to reconsider if you would like to continue searching for her with me. You are a group of talented young individuals of great potential, and it is no doubt to me that many important persons value your presence as much as I required it. As a Duke and as a parent, I must voice their view to you."
Duke Luigi paced the table with his gaze, gauging the attention of the seated student council. Anne's elbows shifted slightly as she stand appropriately behind him.
" I myself will continue to look for Katarina. In her various conversations with my son Keith, she seems to be greatly interested in the immigration to our neighboring countries, particularly the topic of immigration flow to Xiarmah and Etran. It will require a long journey and great costs to go to these places. Only an adult like myself can shoulder the costs of such far reaching trips, and the result is uncertain." Duke Luigi said dutifully.
It was true that after two weeks of Katarina's vacancy, Prince Gerald was soon flooded with lovely proposals on his desk, from hopeful mothers asking for the charming security of their daughter's future. Maria was forced to rest from her trailing of dark magic traces by her mother. Having tried out many methods, the members of the student council have turned their attention to the meeting of that day, unsure what the next step to take is.
"As the third prince of Sorcier, I kindly ask you to let us continue the search. Money is of no object to me, and it would pain me to spend the rest of my life with anyone other than the person I truly adore. I will confirm to you that the time we spend in looking for your daughter, my fiancee, will be of no object as well."
At the mention of "My fiancee", the others jealously shot Gerald a look.
"Yeah, no way we're gonna stop looking for her, with all due respect, sir Luigi. She's our idiot." Alan spoke admirably.
Mary let out a breath behind her fan, glancing at her fiance before snapping it closed to look at the Duke. "I must agree with what Alan said. We have known Katarina for too long to ignore her life. I have sworn to run away with her to the ends of the Earth, and certainly such a puddle like the sea wouldn't trouble me much."
At the others' piqued eyebrows, "Mary sama, may I ask when the timing of such an event was?" Sirius voiced their concern, turning to Mary.
"Oh, I assure it won't be of importance to you, class president san." Mary answer with a rosy glow.
" Dreary harem, you don't wanna know." Alan offered from the back.
"I lo-, li--! I respect Katarina sama as much as you do, Mary sama! I'm definitely not going to hand Katarina sama over to you all. She will live a happy life with me and my brother, surrounded by her favorite books, and we'll go on adventures, defeat bandits, eat the exotic fruits of the forbidden emerald tree, be saved from orcs by a knight in shining silvery armor, fight a dragon and become neighbor to elves living in the nearby forest ahh~------"
Sophia was trying hard to not give too much away in front of Katarina's father. Somehow it wasn't making things better because she started reciting things from a book she recently read. She kept going as the others looked on with dread, unable to calculate anything to beat that.
Nicol nodded.
"In any case, if we cannot find any names or matching documents, isn't it a good idea to start searching for her in person? We of everyone ought to know her by familiarity." Maria, reading the air, decidedly brought their focus back to the topic at hand.
"Speaking of which, if Duke Luigi is gone, isn't there someone suited to running the family affairs? I would like to help since I am efficient with paperwork, but aside from academia logic, I have not been trained in the delicacy of intermediation."
Sirius asked, directing the question at the Duke.
Duke Luigi crossed his arms, letting a finger graze his chin.
"Perhaps you are correct. While my wife Milli Diana is an excellent counterpart to me in terms of both knowledge and inclination, she is at this time in need of assistance. While I am gone, can I expect you to uphold the family business, Keith?"
Keith's agreement came slowly, bangs falling to cover the frustrated look in his eyes. Considering his work in shadowing the Duke and his mother, he is a perfect substitution for the two. This, along with the fact that violent troubles may occur if they picked someone unfaithful to the family's interest, leaves him no choice in the matter. With Katarina gone, he'll need to prove himself capable as the only heir. "Yes, father." he sighed heavily "I will do my best."
"That won't be necessary, Sir Luigi." Nicol interrupted. "Keith had been with Katarina every step of the way ever since we were kids. Without him, we'll lose a valuable member of the search party." He omitted saying that he, too, was just as close to Katarina as Keith were. Though imperceptible at a glance, the others seem to reach the same conclusion. They, however, did not push the issue.
" Instead of Keith, I volunteer to help run the necessary conducts required in your absence. Please be rest assured, I have done much work in shadowing for my father, the prime minister of Sorcier. The art of intermediation will be no stranger to me. With Sirius' abilities and my competence, I doubt we'll need to find another alternative."
It was true liberties would have to be taken even if the princes found a suitable substitution for Keith-it would take time and interviewing at the very least. To have one just as devoted to Katarina handle extraneous affairs and Keith free to join the search party was the best route for the group to take.
"It is decided then. I will prepare a trip to depart within this week to Xiarmah and Etran. Nicol and Sirius will stay here to take care of my wife as well as documents that need to be processed. The rest of you will split up into groups to traverse within this country. Even if Diana is sick, she undoubtedly will still give excellent counsel. I trust her in this." Duke Luigi allowed himself a small laugh.
"Excuse my interruption in advance, but may I propose a theory?" Anne's voice resounded from behind the Duke.
" You may. We're all ears right now." Gerald spoke, with the Duke nodding.
" Ojou sama had been a big part of my life, and I have consistently stayed beside her, day and night, up to the day she enrolled in the Academy of Magic. Over time, this enabled me to predict her thoughts somewhat. I am saying with absolute certainty that she did not leave the country, and is instead hiding somewhere in the countryside, perhaps with undocumented disguise.
' As long as I stick to a smaller, more obscure village, surely they'd never find me. The countryside. That's where I'll go to. Somewhere rural but not too out of contact range, a place with at least one wealthy merchant who could provide security and assistance if theft occur.'
must be what ojou sama is thinking."
Anne's replication of Katarina's voice was so good that it caused those seated to give her strange looks. Coughing, Maria approvingly added: " Yes, indeed it's a likely possibility! Thank you, Anne san.
We should be looking for Katarina sama by searching every farm in the country. I'll go with Anne to the West and then South, starting with my hometown, Mary sama with Alan Northward, and Keith with Gerald to the East. That's what I think is the most compatible arrangement."
Keith looked at Gerald with a beaming smile, only to have Gerald return it with a twitching eyebrow. There seemed to be the sound of breaking glass behind the two.
"I don't want to." Keith politely declared. " It'll spoil my journey having to live with an arrogant prince for more than three hours. He can bring his own servants."
"Would you rather I spend all day with my fiancee then, when I do finally find her?" Gerald's smile only grows wider.
"On second thought, I'm going to keep a very close eye on you from now on." Keith's tone was seething with polished elegance.
"You don't have to worry about me. There's nothing wrong with an honest man spending time with his betrothed, isn't there, brother-in-law?" Gerald's manners were nothing but refined.
"PuHahaha!" Alan hugged his stomach, unable to hold back tears of laughter prickling at the corners his eyes. Rising from his seat, he comes over and clapped his brother and Keith on the shoulder.
" Look at you! You're acting like roommates already!"
And that's how the meeting concluded.
Sophia volunteered to help Nii sama after that, inspired by his example. After all, she had only weak wind magic and no aptitude for predicting Katarina's actions. For now, they mostly spend daytime at the Claes manor. Particularly, break times simply proved to be sentimental to Sophia, and soon she found herself drawn to places Katarina often visited. She felt it more and more these days, a subconscious pulling at her to wander the manor, insistent on finding some kind of clue. She wonders why that unrest exist, when it was obvious everyone had been spoken to and almost every corner lifted.
Almost, that is.
The bed laces led Sophia's hand down, a line of oddly shaped connecting strings hand sewn into the decorated bed sheet. Under normal circumstances, its white color would've seamlessly blended in, or would've been taken by the maids as a silly novice sewing attempt. But to Sophia it brought a different feeling. Exactly what it is, to her they resembled more like knife marks on trees in a forest, the purpose of which sparked some kind of recognition. It wasn't just shabby sewing. A trail. It was a trail made by sewn in Jacob's Ladder. Sophia's head spins as she traced it, leading down to the underside of the mattress. The string wounds around a tiny button, opening up a fabric pocket, and in there she found a brown notebook. Inscribed on the front in a strange language, was Katarina's name.
She becomes dizzy as images fill her head. Rushing cacophony of wind and water, crashing through an endless corridor of mirrors at a deadly speed, freezing coldness. Then, numbness.
The shock became too much and she passed out.