Editing Tales of Leo Attiel:Volume4 Chapter4 (section)

===Part 2===


The large living room on the ground floor of Guinbar Castle was one that Leo and the others were very familiar with. They were in the middle of dinner. Leo and Florrie were arranged at the head of the table, while Camus, Sarah and Percy sat facing each other along it.

It was over a month since the fall of Olt Rose.

Sarah was the only one providing a topic at that dinner table, which came from the fact that Percy was curious about how they had brought the warriors from the mountains.

Leo and Camus had both more or less heard about it from Kuon, but he since he was a poor speaker, about all they had gotten out of him was: “I went back to my native village, and got help after beating the strongest guy there in a duel.”

After the battle, Lord Leo had no time to rest. He had taken part in the induction ceremony for the new lord of Olt Rose, then he had gone to Tiwana for the triennial ceremony commemorating the founding of the country, after which, since Bernard had finally caved in to his wife and was going to build a church of the Cross Faith in his territory, he had sat in on the discussions for that with Bishop Bosc. When it looked like he could finally take it easy for a few days, he summoned his group of familiar faces to Guinbar.

Incidentally, Kuon was running late, which was why Sarah was holding the floor unchallenged at the dinner party.

Kuon's way of telling it was far too simple, but Sarah tended to exaggerate too much so as to make the story more dramatic. As the light from the chandelier made the tableware and wine cups glow golden, she spun her tale to the accompaniment of sweeping gestures, sometimes leaning so far back that it looked like she was about to stand up on her chair. She told of how she had laid a trap for the savage nomads, using nothing but her own wits, or of how she had fought against the ferocious, man-eating armoured spider which had come scuttling out of a corner of the wilderness.

In response, her older brother interposed comments each and every time along the lines of: “How reckless,” or “You could have died ten, no, a hundred times over while crossing the Kesmai Plains. I hope you haven't neglected to offer prayers of thanks.”

Percy could understand his feelings. “Reckless” didn't even begin to express how stupid it had been for two people alone – and a boy and girl of marriageable age, at that – to attempt to cross the Kesmai Plains. Even though his little sister was safe and right in front of him, hearing about the two's adventure was probably enough to make Camus' blood run cold.

Finally, the story reached the point where Kuon was about to fight a duel with Raga, the strongest warrior of the tribe. At some point, Lord Leo, Florrie, Percy, and even Camus, who had been constantly grumbling complaints up until then, had all stopped eating, and the hands holding their cutlery had gone still.

Naturally, Sarah noticed the change in her audience. To draw out the moment, she held out her empty drinking cup to the serving girl, and asked for water, which she then deliberately took her time sipping it.

“A-And then?” asked Florrie, unable to endure the 'pause' that Sarah had set up. “What happened then? Sir Kuon is surely very strong, but his opponent was the strongest in the entire tribe, wasn't he?”

“Very much so,” Sarah drew her brows together as she nodded, “he was a man as big as a bear, with biceps so huge that several men could swing from them and his arms wouldn't even budge. They say that when he laughs, children are blown away from the wind pressure.”

“Oh my,” Florrie put a hand in front of her open mouth.

“And that's not all, my lady. In that tribe, the custom is that those who fight Raga have to have their dominant hand immobilised. Just before the duel, an elderly priestess, whose back was so bent it looked like her chin might touch the ground, stepped forward. That old woman touched Kuon's right arm with one bony finger, and chanted some strange spell then, from her fingertip, something like a black snake appeared, and coiled itself twice, then three times around his arm. Before I knew it, his right arm was fixed against his body without being able to move even the tiniest bit, and Kuon had to pick up his sword with his left hand, which he isn't used to using.”

“Oh my,” Florrie exclaimed again. Her knife and fork were lying discarded on the dining table.

The audience was starting to become restless. Sarah drained the rest of her water, then set the cup down upon the table with a firm clink. Just as she drawing her breath to begin describing the entire fight scene in single go...

“Sorry for being late, Prince.”

Kuon turned up from the other side of the door.

“Oh,” Leo personally stood up in welcome. Kuon wasn't alone, and had four other people following behind him.

Kuon pointed them out to Leo.

“I've brought three representatives from the tribe, and one representative from those who serve Hāles Halia,” he introduced them.

Leo shook hands with each of them in turn.

“Oh, so these are...” Camus and Percy also got up and stepped forward to meet them.

''What the...'' Sarah, meanwhile, was annoyed. She had taken great pains to 'prepare' and then, just when that was about to show its effect, the person being talked about had come and thrown cold water all over it. Now she would have to set the mood all over again... while she was thinking that, her eyes came to rest on one of the people who had appeared from behind Kuon.

Feeling like she recognised them, she peered hard at the person, and saw that it was one of the warriors from the mountain tribe: Aqua.

The reason why Sarah had been slow to realise this was because Aqua's appearance was completely different from what it had been in the mountains. Instead of a simple tunic that was no more than a piece of cloth with a hole for the head, 'she' now wore a sleeveless leather vest and trousers fastened with a belt, and looked like an Atallese lady with a taste for riding horses in the park around her mansion. Aqua's build had always been slim and, combined with 'her' slender, dignified face, 'she' projected an atmosphere like that of a 'cross-dressing beauty' from a story. 'She' looked unexpectedly sophisticated, and also unexpectedly seductive.

Sarah had heard that the mountain tribesmen had already left, but it looked like Aqua had yet to return to the 'great mountains'. They had received a promise that “If you help us, then we will send you whatever rewards your hearts desire.” Sarah had not had any authority to speak on Leo's behalf, but he, of course, did not go back on that promise, and he had given them cartloads of gifts. Rather than jewellery made of gold and silver, the tribesmen had shown far more interest in Atallese-made weapons and horse-riding equipment. Sarah had also learned that on top of that, Leo had provided a horse to each and every one of them.

Had they come to see the prince today to give him their farewells? Not that it mattered. Sarah was frantically trying to rebuild the story in her head. Where should she start from when she began telling it again? Since Kuon was actually here now, he might interrupt her and take the tale in weird directions, so...

While puzzling over that conundrum, Sarah didn't hear what Leo and the others were talking about, so she was startled when she realised that the conversation had taken an unexpected turn.

First of all, it seemed that twenty of the reinforcements sent by the tribal leader Hāles Halia as a proof of his gratitude and friendship towards Kuon would not be returning to their nomadic life. Instead, they, Zan Chiredeau included, would be joining the Personal Guards. Naturally, this was Hāles' wish, and not something they had just decided on their own. He probably judged that it would be no bad thing to establish a friendly relationship with Atall's Lord Leo. It would make it easier to trade with the urban areas.

Meanwhile, and although from Atall's point of view they only did a negligible amount of trade with the nomads, there was nothing to lose in being able to pursue it without having to worry about the threat of mountain bandits or of other savage tribes. Moreover, it could be useful in a variety of situations to have an allied power beyond the national border.

And then, there was Aqua. That tribal warrior would also be joining the Personal Guards instead of returning to the great mountains.

“I received some words from Mistress Mist, the head priestess ,when we sent a messenger to Chief Suo.”

So the tribe had given its permission.

“Really, it's reassuring to know that we'll have another warrior from the same tribe as Kuon,” Leo said, accepting the news in a friendly, easygoing manner.

The one who objected was Sarah. Without a second thought, she threw away the continuance of her tale which she had taken such pains to mentally construct.

“H-Hold on a second. No, I mean, please wait a moment, Your Highness.” She raced over to where everyone was, pulling up the hem of her novice robes to do so. “Aqua is going to join the Personal Guards? Is that really alright, Prince?”

“Is there a problem?” Leo looked surprised. “Aqua showed tremendous skill in archery during Darren's invasion. Savan's soldiers were all full of praise. There's no better horseback archer in Guinbar, or even in the whole country.”

“But... but... Aqua is a 'woman'!” Sarah exclaimed loudly, facing someone who was slow to understand. “She's good with a bow? Then my marksmanship with a gun is just as good. And I fought on the battlefield just like Aqua.”

“What? I haven't heard about that! Honestly, do you think that you can just do anything when your brother can't see you? What is this? One who serves God should be ready to called to Him at any moment, but...”

“Shut up, Big Brother!”

Camus unintentionally fell silent at Sarah's sharp response. His little sister's show of force was unusually impressive. Sarah turned to towards the prince, her eyes and voice still filled with that same forcefulness.

“Then please add me to the Personal Guards, Prince. Up until now, being a woman, I would have refused to join, but if Aqua is joining, then it's a different story. I'm sure you know of my skill with a gun. I have full confidence that I can accomplish just as much in battle as Aqua can... no, that I can do better than any man!”

“Wait,” this time, it was Aqua who had intervened in a calm voice. 'He' drew the fire of Sarah's anger in place of the prince, who had been recoiling from it.

“What is it?”

“You've been repeating 'woman', 'woman' for a while now, but I'm not a woman. Certainly, I was one when I was born, but it's different now. By Tei Tahra's guidance, I've been reborn as a 'man'. But up until now, I didn't have any opportunity to fight, so I didn't know if my soul was worthy of being that of a warrior who will be called to Divine Tei Tahra's side after death. But here, I can fight. That's why I intend to polish my skill until I've become a fully-fledged warrior, before returning to the mountains where the spirits await. If the prince refuses on the grounds that he doesn't need a man like me, then that's one thing; but we don't need a woman like you interfering.”

“What are you talking about? It doesn't matter what you think, or what kind of oath you've taken. What matters is how the people around you see you.”

“”The people around me are...”

“Yes, yes – the men from the same tribe as you will accept the words of your god or of the priestesses, but we aren't in the 'great mountains' here. Tei Tahra's voice has absolutely nothing to do with the men of Atall. They'll just see you according to how you look.”

“What do you mean, 'see me according to how I look',” Aqua started to look angry, and took a step in Sarah's direction. “Are you saying that I'm not worthy of being a 'man' who serves Lord Leo? In that case, bring me a 'man' who is. I'll pierce every last inch of him with arrows and...”

“And what I'm saying is that proving your strength doesn't mean a thing. It's the same as for me. By 'see you accroding to how you look', I mean that as far as men are concerned, neither you nor I are either comrades or soldiers. If you're even a bit pretty and sexy, they get all confused and horny just from looking at you, they feel like they're on to something really good if you just call out to them, and they think that they just need to give a little bit more of a push for you to fall into bed with them, because they'll think that you're 'just a woman'. That's what I mean. And at that point, you're skill won't have anything to do with anything. Because simply because you've got breasts and no 'arrow' between your legs, men will always look at you with ravenous eyes.”

“S-Sarah, that's enough. Even if it's still only probationary, you're a servant of God and you can't...” Camus, whose face had been getting redder and redder, finally cut in to stop her. However –

“In that case, I'll just cut off these breasts. I don't need milk to give to a child, anyway. You should do the same.”

Aqua was becoming overwrought and looked like 'he' was about to take out the hatchet hanging at 'his' waist.

“Right, I'll do just that!” Sarah cried, and lunged at the sword that Kuon was wearing.

Camus, Percy and Kuon hurriedly stopped them.

“Do not touch a nun's body, you scoundrels!” Sarah could be heard shouting shrilly.

“You only act like a 'woman' when it's convenient!” Camus' angry voice joined in.

The men found themselves being hit and beaten back by the 'women', and Florrie was too flustered to know what to do. What was supposed to be a peaceful evening meal had all of a sudden turned as noisy as a brawl.

But, well, that kind of scene occurring was, in a way, proof that things had grown peaceful around Lord Leo.

Although Sarah and Aqua were eventually pacified and soothed one way or another and taken out of the room, there was one person whose mood did not lift.

Percy Leegan.

He had listened to Sarah's story with great interest, but no matter how much he looked like he was enjoying the dinner party, his heart had not been at ease.

Percy had not been able to take any part in bringing an end to Darren. To be more accurate, he 'hadn't been allowed to do anything'.

Originally, it had been the same for Kuon, who had brought five hundred soldiers in reinforcements, and for Camus, who had taken the unit of warrior monks and gone rushing to Leo's side. Neither had received those orders from the prince, and both had acted entirely on their own. Camus had even gone against Leo's orders “not to move the soldiers”. Although the pair's actions had proven effective in the war against Darren, that was only something that was clear with hindsight. Leaving their actions unsanctioned would disrupt the chain of command, and there was a risk that in the future, Leo's orders – or even his very existence – might be taken lightly.

Therefore, Leo Attiel should have publicly reprimanded both of them and handed down suitable punishments. Yet neither of them had received the slightest criticism. On the contrary, the prince openly praised them. And so the one who had remained in sole charge of the Personal Guards at the temple – in other words, Percy, the only one who had faithfully abided by Leo's orders – seemed to have drawn the short end of the stick.

''This trend can't be allowed to continue. It will affect our movements in the future. Should I advise the prince of that?'' He wondered. However: ''No, if it comes from me, he might take it as me being jealous of Camus and Kuon''. His face flushed red with shame.

He felt he was being childish.

Should he say something now?

No, for the first time in a long time, Leo was enjoying a dinner with his fiancée and the friends he could open up to in a relaxed atmosphere.

“Things are going to get tough for Kuon from now on, aren't they?”

Leo was implying that Kuon would be bearing the brunt of any fighting between Sarah and Aqua, and turned to Percy with a smile, looking for his agreement.

“It's just as you say,” Percy laughed without thinking, and, Kuon, who didn't understand what they were hinting at, was left feeling bewildered.

''Maybe it's fine for now. Later, after a bit more time has passed...''

In the end, he didn't have the courage to say anything, and kept it to himself.

There was one other reason for his despondency. And that was Lord Gimlé Gloucester.

When he had been at the temple, Percy had written a letter to Gimlé, the father of his fiancée, asking him to help the prince. And when his appeal had been ignored, Percy had been furious. It was probably because he himself was the only one who had been no use to Leo, but his anger was lasting for longer than even Percy had expected.

After the events with Darren, Percy had dropped by his parents' house in Tiwana on one occasion. At the time, Lord Gimlé had also just arrived in the capital.

“I travelled with my daughter. It's been such a long time, why not come and see us at our house?” Percy received a pointed invitation.

Percy Leegan was the oldest within Leo's group, so he often had to run around mediating between the other youngsters, but in actual fact, he too was also very young.

''He abandoned the prince and me, but the final outcome is that Darren was defeated and the prince survived, so now he feels the need to make it up to me'' – Percy felt repulsed and ended up turning down the offer, claiming to be in poor health.

Although it had felt good at the time to metaphorically flip Gimlé the bird, Percy regretted it later. He should have swallowed back his anger and his repulsion, and met Gimlé with a cool, calm expression.

And then, there was also Liana.

Perhaps Gimlé had revised his opinion of Leo, and was hoping to draw closer to him with the help of his daughter's fiancé. Basically, that might have been a chance to win over a steadfast ally from among the vassal-lords.

But Percy had shaken off Gimlé's outstretched hand. If, from here on, Gimlé took a harder stance against the Personal Guards, there wouldn't just be he question of what would happen to Percy's engagement with Liana, there was also the fact that the prince would have gained yet another difficult enemy.

''Even though I went and gave the prince advice about Miss Florrie, this is how I ended up handling things...''

In place of the somewhat bitter-tasting wine, Percy placed his forefinger in his mouth. He licked its the tip and traced his right, then his left eyebrow with it.

“Oh my, do you also know that charm, Sir Percy?”

Percy nearly jumped out of his skin when a voice suddenly spoke to him. When he turned toward it, it belonged to none other than that very same Miss Florrie Anglatt. From over her shoulder, he could see Leo, Camus and Kuon grouped together, talking.

''Is it about that war that I don't know about?'' he wondered with a trace of self-mockery.

Florrie was probably bored of the talk about battles.

“You transfer the gloom in your heart from your mouth to the eyebrows, where the wind blows it dry... I learned that from my mother. Were you educated in the ways of Badyne, Sir Percy?”

“No, I...”

Percy had learned the 'good-luck charms' that he occasionally performed out of habit from a prostitute that he had once been intimate with, back when he was even younger than he was now. But obviously, that wasn't something he could say.

“I was just imitating a good friend of mine who does those things a lot. But I hadn't realised that you were a follower of Badyne, Miss Florrie. If I've offended you with my thoughtless imitation...”

“Oh no. My mother only taught me the good-luck charms for fun when I was a child. The Badyne faith has terribly strict teachings, doesn't it? Someone as weak-hearted as me isn't fit to be a believer,” she laughed bashfully.

After which, she pointed to the space next to Percy. “And over there, are things alright?” she asked. “Leo... or no, that lord prince, is constantly talking about war with his friends. It's a little tiring.”

“Is that so?” Florrie's eyes widened with apparent surprise, then: “Have you noticed?”

“N-Noticed what?”

Florrie brought her face close to his as though they were really having a secret conversation, and Percy unconsciously sat up straight. The smile on her face was brimming with playfulness.

“The two serving maids who help with the meals here in Guinbar – the girl with the braid is Lana, and the tall one is Anne, but anyway – every time they look at you, they go red and look embarrassed, but they also seem quite happy. I'm sure they both like you, Sir Percy.”

“Oh, really?”

“How cold of you! But of course, I suppose that you're used to it.”

“N-Not at all. It's just that I find it hard to believe. Miss Florrie, are you sure you aren't mistaken about those two?”

“Absolutely not,” Florrie looked a little sulky. “I've always been sharp when it comes to things like that. Even when I was a child, I could tell what the relationship was between people on the estate just from a single glance. Oh, for example, how my older brother Walter likes that woman he's always taking flowers to, or how Brett, the gardener in charge of pruning, always looks sullen, but he seems to spend time with Cathy, the lady's maid. When I told Leo about Brett and Cathy, he didn't believe me. But later on, they got married,” Florrie looked proud of herself.
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As they continued to chat about nothing in particular, Percy noticed that the sharp pain in his heart had softened a little.

''Did she perhaps realize?'' The thought dawned on him.

It was probably in Florrie Anglatt's personality that if someone was feeling isolated, she could not leave them to themselves. Although neither Leo nor Camus had noticed that Percy was feeling gloomy, she had approached him.

''If it's this young lady, then surely...'' She must have likewise drawn closer to Lord Leo, when he had been experiencing the loneliness and anxiety of being left all by himself in Allion. Percy could well-imagine what the two young children had been like back then , and he smiled faintly.