02. Two Years Ago, When Everything was Lost
Two years Syltina had everything.
Parents who were sometimes strict and sometimes kind who gave her unconditional love, an attendant raised with her from childhood whom she could trust from the bottom of her heart, an esteemed older brother who adored her while striving at his studies as the successor of the family, a dear little brother with a charming smile who gave his utmost efforts in sword practice in order to become a Knight, a lot of friends beyond the boundary of academic grades whom she could learn and laugh with, reliable teacher who kindly listened to her consultations and sometimes corrected her mistakes, a beloved fiance whom she wanted to shoulder the country with while supporting each other, King and Queen she held in high esteem who pinned their hopes on her as the Queen of the next King, citizens whom she wanted to protect and listen to without neglecting them because she was a n.o.ble———- a future where she protect of all those, enrich them, support them, be supported by them, love them and be loved by them.
Syltina had everything. Until she came…
It was an early afternoon of a certain day when the last snow piled up, that the girl named “Akari Fuyuhara” came over from a different world.
A Knight came to the academy with hurried footsteps, conveying the orders of the King for Syltina and her fiance, First Prince Fract Rideiran, to come over immediately. They arrived at the castle in the audience room and the both of them could do nothing but be perplexed.
The King sat in the throne and to his right was the Queen Consort. One step behind the King and Queen stood Syltina’s father, Duke Balratona, who was the Prime Minister. Standing next to him was the Knight Leader.
It was alright until there.
Nothing particularly changed, it was the atmosphere “during a royal audience” both of them were accustomed to. However, there was only one thing. There was something different from usual. An idle girl standing between the King and Syltina and Fract.
It was Akari Fuyuhara.
The girl who abruptly appeared in the courtyard of the royal castle said she came from a different world. There were also several doc.u.ments left behind that mention about visitors from a different world coming to this world once in several hundred years. They can use healing magic that was already lost in this world, therefore the country that receives a visitor who came from another world protects that personage. It was established as a tacit understanding to guarantee their livelihood.
Rideiran Kingdom was no exception. The King became the girl’s guardian and admitted her to the same academy Syltina and Fract attended. Syltina and Fract were summoned from the consideration of the King who wanted them to lend a hand to this girl who knew nothing about this world.
Thus, the girl who began to attend the academy, enchanted several men.
It was unknown how she did it but it was a fact that she attracted people with high popularity within the academy, and to top it all, even a teacher. The girl was a personage who charmed the officers of the Student Council where Syltina belongs to—–her fiance Fract, her older brother Zeld, her younger brother Tedora and her attendant Eugene.
They competed and gave her presents, there were also cases they brought her along as a partner to evening parties even though she did not possess court rank. They do not attend cla.s.ses, always staying by the girl’s side. The female students who openly displayed their disgust at first were also gradually won over by Akari’s bottomless cheerfulness and unadorned cuteness.
In this way, Akari became popular in the academy not even half a year later.
Nevertheless, she did not only brought good things. Rather, the bad things were more abundant. However, no one acknowledged it. They pretended not to see.
And it was Syltina, the only person doing the work in the Student Council, who covered up for everything.
After working alone on large quant.i.ties of doc.u.ments until she was worked to death, she chose subst.i.tute for the teacher who abandoned his cla.s.ses, talking with the Minister of Finance to do something about the national taxes that keep on decreasing because of the presents for Akari, introducing employment to the people so they can live by their own power after the haphazardly done distribution of food to the needy citizens due to Akari’s request, going around lowering her head to the n.o.bles who looked disapproving when Akari – a woman with no peerage – attended the ball, inviting n.o.ble ladies whose fiances minded only Akari just like herself into a tea party to meet new fiance candidates, and appealing to Akari not do too much unsightly behaviors.
And oca.s.sionally dropping remarks to the King.
“Monsters are beginning to appear.”
“Neglect neither vigilance nor caution towards her.”
“If her selfish words and actions become even more terrible than this, the country will fall into ruin.”
Although these words were meant to be a candid advice, the King who wanted the country to only profit from Akari’s existence, threw away Syltina’s opinions.
Syltina secluded herself in the Student Council room and in her place, Akari went as far as a.s.sume Syltina’s position. All too soon, Syltina’s place in the academy had disappeared.
At the same time, there were rumors that had begun to spread. There were rumors about how Syltina hara.s.sed Akari for stealing her fiance and embezzled the national taxes, indulging in every possible luxury. Both were groundless and far from the truth but there was not anyone who denied it directly.
It was because no one knew what Syltina was doing while she shut herself in the Student Council room.
And then, evidence that gave reality to those rumors emerged one after another———– Akari’s belongings that were mangled cruelly, a soaking wet Akari who was rushing into the infirmary because Syltina poured water on her, when asked by the men who liked her, a crying Akari with swollen cheeks from being hit answered she received a summon from Syltina, a depressed Akari after Syltina poured wine on her dress in a party hosted by the King. Finally, Akari saying Syltina pushed her off the stairs.
In relation to the national taxes, the Minister of Finance firmly kept his mouth shut. As for all of these, Syltina can a.s.sert she was innocent. Nevertheless, there were neither situations that proved her innocence nor people who pursued whether or not she really did these.
Thus, the fated day approached.
Syltina was made to go up the stage for the final agenda during the closing ceremony. In front of all the students, Fract announced the annulment of their engagement and Syltina received a censure for crimes she never did.
Men nestled close to Akari in order to protect her as she narrated about Syltina tearfully. It was the King who accused Syltina of embezzling the national taxes she had no knowledge of. The Prime Minister, who was Syltina’s father, did not protect his daughter and merely looked over the course of events calmly. The attendant Syltina trusted, the brothers she loved and her fiance said Syltina had nothing to do with them any longer. The people whom she considered her friends cursed her one by one.
Even though she had no remembrance of those crimes, even though she appealed that she did nothing, no one came to believe her.
Because only persons of high status (who adored Akari) besieged Syltina, other students (those who still believed in and respected Syltina in particular) were not given the chance to interfere. Even if they had such chance, there was not anyone among them who had high enough status to object. Setting aside what was inside each of their respective hearts, in reality, Syltina had not even a single ally in that place.
In that way, Syltina was sentenced to disownment from the Balratona Duke House and exile from the country at the same time as her engagement annulment.
Everything she built collapsed, she lost everything. Just before she was dragged away by the Knights, Syltina thought she will never forget how Akari looked— her lips stretched into a smile as she stood there protected at the men’s back.
At that time, Syltina realized that the King had no intention to let her live. Though he said “exile”, Syltina was left as she is inside the country. The King meant to make her head to another country by herself. Charity from other people are absolutely prohibited, the King wanted her to go on a journey even if it’s reckless. In other words, “a person who betrayed the country should just be abandoned by everyone and go die”.
Nevertheless, for her to not be beheaded or imprisoned, did “someone” put in a word there…?
Because the King hoped for her death. She did not remember doing anything that would make the King shun her to that extent, but the fact that a mere daughter of a Duke who was still a student got involved (though not in a bad way) with the national tax would not be amusing for the King who was supposed to be the country’s supreme commander.
Although the King she held in high esteem until then hoped for her death, even so, Syltina could do nothing but keep on walking forward while she sipping muddy water, eating weeds, spending the night on the hard ground, wearing away her shoe sole, reaching the brink of death several times and collapsing over and over again.
She could not die in a place like this.
Thus, Syltina groped along the way to the neighboring country beyond the sea and entered the Guild. She wielded a sword, learned magic, cut her hair, changed her garments and build up her strength little by little.
And after a year pa.s.sed, Syltina became strong enough that her name was well-known even to foreign countries.
She had no choice but to become strong.
It was just the other day that a messenger of Rideiran Kingdom came to the new Syltina, merely two years since she was exiled.