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** EPISODE 5.**
“Hmm-hmm-hmm.”
I was humming without realizing it.
It was the day before the Jombinira Festival.
Inside Snidel’s castle walls, the busy streets were so crowded you could hardly move.
Everywhere, the smell of food—salty and sweet—tickled my nose.
My stomach growled.
Sabrina dropped Kyle and me off in front of the clinic.
“I’ll stop by the trading company. Say hello to Vincent for me. Okay, Kyle?”
Kyle nodded and took the snack bundle Sabrina handed him.
“Couldn’t Kyle just go inside by himself?”
Come to think of it, why did I even get out of the carriage?
I looked confused, so Sabrina explained.
“You’re supposed to be his guardian. You’ll be an adult soon, so you can handle this much, right?”
“Oh, right.” Tomorrow, when the Jombinira Festival ended, I would finally be an adult.
All the kids in town turning of age would line up in front of the temple to receive the High Priest’s blessing in the baptism ceremony.
In years without a festival, only the ceremony took place, but when the festival was held, it was combined with the rituals—making it even better.
“Of course. I’m an adult now!”
I shouted proudly.
“If Vincent says Kyle’s fine, you can look around the town for a while.”
“Yes.”
“And don’t forget to pick a gift—you couldn’t choose last time.”
I clasped my hands together, eyes sparkling.
“Thank you, Sabrina!”
As we walked into the clinic, Kyle asked,
“Is it your birthday?”
Why birthday? Oh, because Sabrina mentioned a gift?
I puffed out my chest proudly.
“No. It’s because I’ll be an adult tomorrow. She’s giving me a congratulatory gift.”
“An adult?”
“Of course. Tomorrow I’ll have my coming-of-age ceremony.”
And I’d finally be allowed to drink alcohol.
I was born to be an ‘adult,’ after all.
“Why? Are you jealous?”
I looked Kyle in the eyes.
“I’ll be an adult, and you’re still a teenager!”
I burst out laughing.
“I don’t need a guardian.”
Kyle brushed past me and went into the exam room.
“What’s with him?”
Was he sulking again?
Being treated like a kid isn’t bad.
Becoming an adult isn’t as great as it sounds.
“Not realizing that is exactly what makes you a kid.”
Smiling at how cute Kyle was, I followed him inside.
—
Kyle’s wounds had healed completely.
Vincent was delighted, saying his recovery was amazing.
At first, I thought the blood had come from stab wounds only.
But once the scabs fell off, I saw the scars weren’t just from that.
He had scrapes, burns, stabs—wounds left untreated that had festered and burst.
I pretended not to notice the deep scars covering his body.
The pain he must have endured was too awful to imagine.
What could I do to make him forget those memories, even a little?
“Kyle. Let’s eat something delicious.”
I shook my pouch of allowance money.
Paul, who was like the definition of fairness, gave me an apprentice’s salary.
It was only a fifth of what Sabrina earned, but to me, it was a fortune.
It was the first money I’d ever earned in this world.
At the orphanage, helping at the temple or farm had always been considered voluntary work, never paid.
It was only natural since we lived there for free.
“I never thought I’d earn money myself.”
I’d only gone out into town as an excuse to gather information.
But when Paul suddenly handed me that coin pouch, I felt so happy—already planning to buy candy bundles for my younger siblings on the way back.
After all, in this world, everyone loved sweets.
“Sweet things always cheer you up.”
“I don’t like sweets.”
Kyle replied bluntly.
“And I’m not in a bad mood now.”
I grabbed his hand and pulled.
“Come on. Eating will make you feel even better.”
That’s the double effect of happiness: bad moods turn good, and good moods get even better.
In my mind, I was already sitting in an outdoor café eating their cream waffles.
“We have to hurry. By lunchtime, the line gets long.”
I had decided Kyle *had* to try Snidel’s famous cream waffles.
And just then, like spotting an empty subway seat, I saw a free table at the café.
“Two plates of cream waffles, please!”
Kyle sat across from me, shoulders a little stiff, looking awkward.
Soon, plates filled with fragrant, sweet-smelling cream waffles were set before us.
Kyle stared at the waffles stacked with syrup and milk cream.
“Let’s eat.”
I handed him a fork.
Seeing how excited I was, Kyle asked,
“Do you like this sort of thing?”
With a huge bite of waffle in my mouth, I nodded.
“Mmm. So good!”
Syrup and cream smeared all over my mouth, and I hurriedly licked it clean with my tongue.
“You try some.”
Since Kyle was younger, I cut a small piece, topped it with cream and syrup, then held it out to his mouth with a fork.
“Go on.”
Kyle hesitated, then opened his mouth.
“Good, right?”
Say it’s good. Hurry.
I urged him with my eyes.
“It’s not bad.”
But his fork quickly stabbed the next piece.
Smiling to myself, I cut the waffles into smaller bites for him.
—
After filling our stomachs, we wandered the market.
“Sigh, what should I buy?”
What gift would Sabrina give me that everyone would say was the best choice?
“Oh, I should buy something for Anne too.”
Even after waffles and candy bundles for my siblings, I had some money left.
I decided to buy Anne a coming-of-age gift.
Last time, Anne had given me an entire bottle of “True Love Milk.”
I planned to spend my first salary down to the last coin.
Kyle’s eyes darted everywhere too—it seemed this was his first time at the market.
Suddenly, crash!
A commotion broke out in one corner.
Snidel’s city guards were gathered there.
“Hey, you can’t sell here like this!”
“But everyone else is selling…”
An old woman with white hair trembled.
“Stalls for the Jombinira Festival are by permit only. No permit, no stall!”
“There’s enough space…”
She begged tearfully, but everyone looked away.
All the stalls here had paid the city for a spot.
Someone trying to sell without paying was like a thorn in their side.
The merchants’ eyes said it all—no one would help her.
“Didn’t you hear? Pack it up, James.”
“Yes, sir.”
One guard shoved her belongings into a broken basket.
The old woman collapsed, too weak to get up.
The basket, covered in dirt, was thrown on top of her.
“Clear it out.”
The guards left as if they had done their job.
I rushed forward and helped her sit up.
“Are you okay, Grandma?”
She shook as she sat up weakly.
Kyle helped by picking up the things scattered on the ground and putting them back in the basket.
“I’m fine,” she said, but her face showed anything but fine.
Seeing her worn sleeves and wrinkled hands made my heart ache.
Why couldn’t this fantasy world be a little kinder, writer?
“I have to sell these…”
But one look told me nothing in her basket was in good condition.
Everything was dusty from the dirt.
Who would buy it now?
“May I take a look?”
I crouched beside her, eyes bright, and searched through the basket.
I found a rolled ribbon.
Because it was rolled, it wasn’t too dirty.
The way it shimmered with rainbow-like light looked pretty and valuable.
Anne loved unusual things—she’d surely be happy.
“I’ll buy this.”
“You will?”
“Yes. It’s a gift for a friend. I came out to buy one anyway. Tomorrow’s my coming-of-age ceremony.”
The old woman nodded, looking relieved.
“Wait a moment.”
She wrapped the ribbon in thin paper, tied it with a string, and handed it to me like a real gift.
“Thank you.”
I gave her my whole coin pouch.
“Oh, child, that’s too much!”
She waved her hands.
“This ribbon costs only one coin.”
But I pressed the pouch into her hands.
“Tomorrow’s the festival. Buy yourself something nice to eat. Over there, the cream waffles are really good.”
I’d already had my sweets and bought Anne’s gift.
Candy for my siblings could wait until my next pay.
Besides, their guardians were sure to send plenty of snacks for the festival anyway.
“Don’t you need a gift for yourself, miss?”
“I’m fine.”
Sabrina would give me something. Gifts tasted best when they came from someone else.
“Then let me give you a gift.”
“Really?”
I nodded eagerly.
If I took one thing, that would mean one less unsellable item for her.
That would make her feel better too.
I watched as she chose something for me.
“How about this?”
She handed me a necklace of round beads.
Inside the amber droplet-shaped stone, I thought I saw faint patterns.
“It’s pretty.”
I noticed the string had a boot print on it—probably trampled by the guards.
Perfect. No one would buy it otherwise.
“Thank you.”
I smiled brightly and stood.
The old woman also stood, smiling warmly.
“Let me put it on you.”
“Yes, please.”
I handed the necklace back.
She tied the long string at the back of my neck like a ribbon.
“As expected… the child chosen by the gods.”
“Huh?”
I thought I heard a young woman’s voice whisper in my ear.
I turned back to see only the old woman smiling kindly.
“It suits you well.”
“Uh… yes.”
What was that? Did I imagine it?
I bowed deeply to her.
“Let’s go, Kyle.”
Kyle silently followed.
“Do you know the old legend of the continent?” he asked.
“Legend?”
My ears perked up.
With so little information, I welcomed any story.
If it held even a clue about curses, all the better.
“Yes. On the continent of Sionia, the gods descend.”
“Oh, that one?”
Of course, I knew that.
Tomorrow at the Sanitas Temple, that divine descent would be reenacted.
“Of course I know. This is where Sanitas descended, after all.”
Who here wouldn’t know?
I puffed myself up, acting like an expert.
“You know the water in the temple’s canal? On the night of the festival, it turns into wine.”
I even explained proudly to Kyle.
“They say the temple’s divine power isn’t what it used to be, but still, the water changes into wine during the ritual. Amazing, isn’t it?”
“When a god descends,” Kyle said softly,
“a medium is always needed.”
“A medium?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of medium?”
“It could be an object… or a person.”
Kyle reached out his hand toward me.
“…Pretty.”
—
