Lighthouse, chapter I
Warning: AU after the end of the series
Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram eventually
Summary: Sometimes Yuuri was too blind to see what in front of his eyes
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Tomo Takabayashi and various publishers and studios. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Warning: AU after the end of the series
Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram eventually
Note: I found different translations of the characters’ name on different
websites and anime translations. The one I followed is from wikipedia.
Chapter I
Conrad was the first one to notice Wolfram’s departure. He had seen the despair on his little brother’s eyes at dinner the night before, and spent the entire night turning around in bed himself, unable to sleep.
They were all undeniably angry with Wolfram. It seemed like an unnecessary
cruelty, even for his brother’s temper. If it was not for Jozak and heika, he
was afraid to imagine the casualties. Even with their intervention, the numbers has been far too many.
Yet, he understood Wolfram’s temper better than the others. He knew that their mother had tried her best. Yet it looked like motherly instinct and attitudes were some kind of talents, and there were simply people who were born without them. It was not like she did not care, she was just too absorb in her own life and the country to realize the difference between what her children really needed, and what she thought they needed.
Gwendal had tried to be both father and substitute mother figure for Wolfram and him. Unfortunately, when Wolfram was born, there were too many years between them. People put a lot of expectations on Gwendal, Maou’s eldest son. There were the rigorous military training and the time consuming political lessons. Tried as he might, it was unavoidable for Gwendal to be consumed by their mother’s world. And Wolfram, merely a toddler, left behind.
So, by default, he became Wolfram’s main caretaker. At least, until Wolfram
found out that he was a half blood.
He resolved that came morning, he would search his brother out and have a real conversation with him. He was still angry, but he wanted to listen to Wolfram’s side of story. After all, Wolfram was still his little brother.
That was why, after Wolfram failed to appear at breakfast, he came to Wolfram’s bedroom. He did not find him there. He also did not find Wolfram’s clothes.
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“Pardon?” asked Gwendal without lifted his head.
He was in the middle of penning yet another letter to Shin Makoku’s allies when Conrad came. And despite popular believe, Gwendal disliked paperwork as much as the next person did. He put high value on responsibility and he understood the necessary of said paperwork. It did not mean he like it, especially in days like these, and Conrad’s news did not alleviate his mood at all.
“Wolfram disappeared. I have checked his bedroom and there are no clothes left. I also asked the stable boy, and he has taken his favorite horse with him,”
If it was not necessary for Gwendal to know, Conrad would rather keep this from him. Apart from heika, Gwendal was the least possible candidate for Wolfram’s fan club at that moment.
“That brat! Did he think he hasn’t created enough problems for us?”
This time, Conrad got his full attention. He has not raised his voice for a long time, but he felt this occasion clearly justified the need. Gwendal tighten his grip on the pen. He knew they should not spoil him so much.
Conrad took a deep breath, and then another, before voiced the question which
had driven him to Gwendal “So, what should we do now?”
“Nothing!” spat Gwendal. Surely even peacemaker Conrad could not be seriously
hope for him to send someone tracking and dragging home Wolfram.
“But, brother…” He was sure Gwendal did not mean it. Gwendal was already
worried, and Wolfram’s recent action only added fuel to fire. A worried Gwendal, Conrad knew, tended to hide his fear behind anger.
“I have sent Jozak to the border, and thanks to him, we can’t spare people from the capital right now. Just let him. I am sure he will come back by himself soon,”
Apparently, Conrad did. Sometimes, he really could not understand Conrad. Did
not Conrad understand the trouble they were in?
Conrad did not think so. Wolfram maybe a spoiled kid, but he was also a
determined one.
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If telling Gwendal has been difficult, it was nothing compared with telling his heika. Yuuri was absolutely furious with his brother and spent the entire time they were playing baseball ranting about it.
“Of all the irresponsible thing he could do! Can’t he even once, in his selfish life, take time to think how his actions will affect other people?”
His anger made Yuuri hit the ball harder than necessary.
Conrad disliked being in disagreement with his heika. Yet, although it merited some point, he thought Yuuri’s opinion was a bit unfair. After all, it was not Wolfram’s selfishness that has begun their newest mess.
“He only wants to protect you, Heika. It was terrible, seeing you too still
while that man put his sword on your neck,” Conrad said, throwing another ball. That memory has given him a fair number of nightmares since. He could only imagine how it was for Wolfram.
“I know, Conrad. But it doesn’t mean he had to react like that. He could
negotiate with them or fight them with sword. In fact, it was Jozak’s stealth
ability that saved me,” Yuuri argued, hitting the ball.
Really, sometimes Yuuri could not understand how Conrad could keep defending
Wolfram, when the younger man did not even bother to keep his dislike about
Conrad and his heritage in private. But, it just how Wolfram saw the world,
didn’t it? As if the world owed his something, and everybody should given in to his demands and desires.
Time like that really reminded Conrad that Yuuri and Julia shared a soul. Dear Julia, an extraordinary healer that she was, would not agree on taking people’s lives, no matter what the reason.
Conrad sighed. He could not condone Wolfram action as well. Still, Wolfram was young. That, and in love, tended to make people acted recklessly.
“He is young and temperamental, Heika. Besides, he cares about you,”
Yuuri gave up trying to play, and sank himself into the grass. He was too angry. He could not believe how gullible Conrad could be. In other hand, he absolutely could believe how Wolfram, self serving as he was, used this trait of his brother to his advantage.
“It is not an excuse, Conrad, he is older than eighty years old. Besides, you
all care about me, and none of you proves it by killing,”
Yuuri wished fervently he could make Conrad to see reason. Wolfram was old
enough to be responsible for his own actions and he had made it very clear that Conrad’s attention was unwanted.
“You know it is different for him, Heika. You are his fiancé,”
The statement only worsen Yuuri’s bleak mood.
“We know it was only an accident, Conrad. Besides, I am sure he is not holding on that title because of some great love to me. I agree he cares about me. After all, he is my friend and Shin Makoku’s soldier. Yet, it is clear his reason for forcing to maintain this engagement issue lies on his pride,” spat Yuuri.
“It is not true, Heika,” Conrad started to argue.
“Leave it, Conrad. I don’t want to argue with you,” cut Yuuri. It was useless, anyway. When it was about Wolfram, Conrad has a big blind spot.
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It took Yuuri a full hour to console Greta. Nobody told her about what now they dubbed as “Sloanne’s Disaster”. They all thought that she was far too young to hear that kind of thing. So, she could not comprehend why everyone seemed distant lately. Then, this afternoon, she could not find her Wolfram, who had promised to read her Anissina’s newest story. Naturally, she searched the one person Wolfram spent most of his time with, her daddy Yuuri.
When his daughter came and asked him, all big eyes and innocent face, where
Wolfram have gone to, Yuuri did not have the heart to tell her that the
irresponsible brat has disappeared, and even if he were here, she better stayed far away from that dangerous demon. Instead, he told her that Wolfram has gone in a secret mission.
He surely did not prepare for the tears that soon leaking from her eyes, nor for her tantrums. Apparently, when Yuuri came back to earth, she had been in tears for days, since she was sure he had abandoned her and would not come back to Shin Makoku. Yuuri cringed when he heard this, because it was true that at that time, he had chosen to leave Greta forever. Her inconsolable depression has prompted Wolfram to promise her, that even if Yuuri was not around, she still had another daddy, and he would not go anywhere without told her about it beforehand.
So, naturally she could not understand why Wolfram would break his promise then and went without saying goodbye to her. Especially with her birthday merely three shy weeks ahead. Did Wolfram get bored with her?
And Yuuri found himself trapped to defend the blond mazoku to his own daughter, since explaining the truth was out of question and the other option was to let his daughter believe that Wolfram was angry with her. Therefore, it was a thoroughly annoyed maou who came to the meeting room.
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It does not help his mood any, when Gizela came blazing into the meeting room in the middle of discussion.
“What have you done to Lord Bielefeld?” she asked as soon as she reached them.
“Gizela, we are on the middle of important discussion. So please, can you wait until we finished?” said Gwendal. He could already feel his headache becoming worse.
“No, I won’t wait. What had you done to him? Did you banish him?”
Yuuri did not know how he recognized it, but there was a panic edge on Gizela’s voice. He wondered why. After all, Wolfram has come out of Sloanne’s disaster without even an injury.
“We did nothing to him. It is him who deserted,” he answered.
“And who have you sent to look for him?” it was clear they will get no peace
until she decided so.
“We sent nobody, Gizela. Thanks to Wolfram’s act, now we have a riot on the
borders, and Jozak was sent to investigate there. Also, since it is quite
possible for the ruler of Tarleton to attack us, we can’t spare anybody from the army right now. Besides, I am sure Wolfram can take care of himself,”
Deep down, Conrad doubted Gwendal’s words. Wolfram was a skilled sword man, and his fire element sure offered a lot of help, but he was also a sheltered prince. Before Heika’ arrival, he never ventured out of the capital. He has no real world experience. Yet, he understood just too well that pointing out this fact would only worsen the situation.
“Are we talking about the same person here? Moreover, you admitted that the
situation is tense. What is the chance that some human recognized him as a
mazoku and attack him?”
“He is the one who put us on this situation!” said Gunter angrily. Granted,
Gizela and the troublesome prince were childhood friends. It still did not give her a right to interrupt an important meeting, especially if she insisted to behave in this manner.
“And heika is the one who started this debacle!”
“Gizela! Mind your manner!” thundered Gunter. Gizela clearly has crossed the
limit. How could she blame heika when it was Wolfram who was in fault?
“I am only speaking the truth. Lord Bielefeld’s method maybe not the best one, but he only wants to protect Heika. Did any of you, except Jozak, could make a difference on that time? And we didn’t know at that time whether or not Jozak would reach Heika before the fire. You are only able to judge,” ranted Gizela. She did not understand how they all, including her own father, could be so blind.
“Even if it was true, it doesn’t excuse his method. He is the last maou’s son, and the current maou’s fiancée. He should know better than invited war into our territories, especially after Heika’s hard work to prevent it. I believe you haven’t forgotten the effect the last war with human brought into Shin Makoku,”
Gizela stared at Gwendal as if she couldn’t believe her ears. Taking a deep
breath, she straightened her posture.
“On the second thought, if the only people he has here are the like of you,
maybe he is better off went away,” spat her coldly.
She closed the door with full forced when she went out.
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Lady Flurin. It has been sometime since he saw her. Tomorrow, Conrad and he
would go to Caloria to meet her. Gwendal opined that since quite possibly they were in the brink of a war, it was better for the country if he would go to their allies and explain the situation. He had written and sent letters, of course. Yet maou’s presence would give additional image of sincerity and
urgency. It could be guessed that Gunter vetoed the idea, claimed it was too
dangerous a journey for their maou. But even Gunter couldn’t offer better
alternative.
Yuuri sighed. Like any other teenager, he has thought of getting a girlfriend. He imagined her to be pretty and, maybe because he himself admittedly rather clumsy, graceful. Two categories Lady Flurin could easily fulfilled.
If he were honest, he has spent quite a lot of time entertaining the thought of courting her. She was an amazing woman and he really liked her. He has no doubt that she would become a perfect queen for Shin Makoku. Besides, their alliances surely would benefit both of their countries.
He glanced to his daughter’s form that was asleep on his bed. Greta has been
terribly upset when she learned that not only Wolfram would not be here for her birthday, but also Yuuri would go to Caloria. Yuuri really could not blame her. They had promised her a small birthday party a few months ago with the entire family attending. Even Cheri had promised to come back in time.
Inwardly, he cursed Wolfram. Wolfram always called him a coward. It seemed he
should look at the mirror first.
Still, there was nothing he could do. He needed to reach their allies as soon as possible, before they heard it from unreliable gossips, or worse, before the war really broken out. So, he pacified her with promise that if she agreed to delay her party for a few weeks, Yuuri would make sure he would have came back at that time.
Not for the first time he thought that she needed a mother. Cheri, with all her traveling around, was a poor substitute. Anissina tried, but Yuuri did not think she was having any motherly bones on her. And selfish, emotional Wolfram clearly could not fill that shoe.
Sometimes, Yuuri even wondered whether Wolfram really liked Greta, or he liked her because Yuuri liked her. Yes, he had taken care of Greta when Yuuri came back to earth. But, Yuuri could not help suspected that maybe Wolfram did that because deep down he still believed Yuuri would somehow came back, or because he has no other choice. Especially given Wolfram’s usual attitudes where humans were concerned.
No, what Greta need was a real mother.
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Gizela could not sleep. She kept remembering that day’s events, and her mind was plagued by what-could-have-been.
She had heard about Lord Bielefeld’s disappearance from Doria, who had heard
about it from the stable boy himself, when she went to the kitchen for some
herbs. For once, she was grateful for Doria’s love to gossip. In half an hour, she had found out about Lord Weller’s enquiry to the stable boy, completed with a plethora of rumors.
The maids were sure that heika had secretly thrown out Lord Bielefeld, while
according to some night guards, he has ran away to avoid the martial court which Lord Voltaire would start. In the other hand, Lord Bielefeld’s own guards have steadfastly believe in his honor and insisted that he had went away to redeem his failures.
She knew why he ran away.
She still could remember his face, when she told him she could not find anything wrong about him and therefore she did not understand why he could not used his fire. She could still hear his demand that she kept that news to herself. And she could still picture his expression when heika avoided him like a plague, or when his brothers did not want to meet his eyes.
And he was not wrong to go. They did not even worry about him. None of them have tried to retrieve him.
Silently, she began to sob. All of these were her fault.
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When she let herself thought about it, Flurin admitted she has more than a crush to Shin Makoku’s Maou. She was a strong, determined woman. She did not wait and hope for a knight to come and slay the monsters for her. And she did love her husband.
Yet, there was something about the young king that grown on her. He came
unexpected, when she had desperately held on a frayed rope of hope. He offered her help, and did more than what she expected, all while asking for nothing in return. And unlike most of those knights in stories, he did not only treat her like a fragile princess to be protected, but also as an able ruler, an equal and partner.
Still, most of the days, she banished this thought as a daydream that wasted
time. He was a mazoku, with different life time than her, a human. He maybe
blushed and sometimes even unconsciously flirted with her, but he had a fiancé, even if he denied it.
It did not mean she was prepared to see said fiancé appeared out of the blue in her resident and demanded an audience with her, though.
“Lady Flurin, thank you for seeing me. Please, forgive me for not giving you a notice first. I believe all is well with you and Caloria?” Wolfram employed all his social skill. He rarely bothered with courtesies and the like, but this woman held his future on her hand.
“Lord Bielefeld, it is a pleasure to see you again. Yes, thank you for your enquiries. And Shin Makoku, are the others well?”
Honestly, she did not remember a lot about him other as a shadow of Heika who
threw a good deal of tantrums now and then. But in reflection, she should not be so surprised. After all, he was a son of the former maou. Surely social courtesy was included in his education.
“All are well, thank you for your attention. My visit here is not on a formal
capacity as Shin Makoku’s ambassador,” The words were difficult to be said. He wished things were different. Already, he missed his home. He missed his family. He missed Yuuri.
“Oh?” she noticed a subtle movement of his feet. “He is nervous. I wonder why?’
“Lady Flurin, I know you have no reason to give it to me, but I hope to appeal to your heart to let me stay here,”
He hoped the rumors have not reached her. He wished she would agree. In spite of what people tend to think about him, he was not blind. He knew that even without hearing the news, she has no obligation to accept his request and little desire to do so.
“Of course I will gladly accept you as my guest anytime, Lord Bielefeld,”
The request was a little strange to her. Now that Shin Makoku and Caloria was
ally, it was entirely normal for delegation from either country to visit the
other. Lord Bielefeld’s visit maybe came out of the blue, but even though it was not a formal one, he surely knew that she would accept him.
“I am not saying it clearly. I mean, not as your guest. I wish to ask you for a citizenship,” he held his breath, waiting for her answer.
‘Please, please, say yes,’ he thought. He has run away in haste. He has no
backup plan if Flurin was to reject him.
Not many things could surprise Flurin, considering the life she has led, but
this one was success to render her speechless for a few moments.
“Pardon?” surely, she was misheard.
“I wish to impose on your kindness and ask for a citizenship, Lady Flurin,”
“But…why? Surely heika won’t agree with this?” asked Flurin, befuddled.
“I….Well, if you must know the story…but I beg your indulgence to let me tell
you till the end before you decide, Lady,”
Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram eventually
Summary: Sometimes Yuuri was too blind to see what in front of his eyes
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Tomo Takabayashi and various publishers and studios. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Warning: AU after the end of the series
Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram eventually
Note: I found different translations of the characters’ name on different
websites and anime translations. The one I followed is from wikipedia.
Chapter I
Conrad was the first one to notice Wolfram’s departure. He had seen the despair on his little brother’s eyes at dinner the night before, and spent the entire night turning around in bed himself, unable to sleep.
They were all undeniably angry with Wolfram. It seemed like an unnecessary
cruelty, even for his brother’s temper. If it was not for Jozak and heika, he
was afraid to imagine the casualties. Even with their intervention, the numbers has been far too many.
Yet, he understood Wolfram’s temper better than the others. He knew that their mother had tried her best. Yet it looked like motherly instinct and attitudes were some kind of talents, and there were simply people who were born without them. It was not like she did not care, she was just too absorb in her own life and the country to realize the difference between what her children really needed, and what she thought they needed.
Gwendal had tried to be both father and substitute mother figure for Wolfram and him. Unfortunately, when Wolfram was born, there were too many years between them. People put a lot of expectations on Gwendal, Maou’s eldest son. There were the rigorous military training and the time consuming political lessons. Tried as he might, it was unavoidable for Gwendal to be consumed by their mother’s world. And Wolfram, merely a toddler, left behind.
So, by default, he became Wolfram’s main caretaker. At least, until Wolfram
found out that he was a half blood.
He resolved that came morning, he would search his brother out and have a real conversation with him. He was still angry, but he wanted to listen to Wolfram’s side of story. After all, Wolfram was still his little brother.
That was why, after Wolfram failed to appear at breakfast, he came to Wolfram’s bedroom. He did not find him there. He also did not find Wolfram’s clothes.
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“Pardon?” asked Gwendal without lifted his head.
He was in the middle of penning yet another letter to Shin Makoku’s allies when Conrad came. And despite popular believe, Gwendal disliked paperwork as much as the next person did. He put high value on responsibility and he understood the necessary of said paperwork. It did not mean he like it, especially in days like these, and Conrad’s news did not alleviate his mood at all.
“Wolfram disappeared. I have checked his bedroom and there are no clothes left. I also asked the stable boy, and he has taken his favorite horse with him,”
If it was not necessary for Gwendal to know, Conrad would rather keep this from him. Apart from heika, Gwendal was the least possible candidate for Wolfram’s fan club at that moment.
“That brat! Did he think he hasn’t created enough problems for us?”
This time, Conrad got his full attention. He has not raised his voice for a long time, but he felt this occasion clearly justified the need. Gwendal tighten his grip on the pen. He knew they should not spoil him so much.
Conrad took a deep breath, and then another, before voiced the question which
had driven him to Gwendal “So, what should we do now?”
“Nothing!” spat Gwendal. Surely even peacemaker Conrad could not be seriously
hope for him to send someone tracking and dragging home Wolfram.
“But, brother…” He was sure Gwendal did not mean it. Gwendal was already
worried, and Wolfram’s recent action only added fuel to fire. A worried Gwendal, Conrad knew, tended to hide his fear behind anger.
“I have sent Jozak to the border, and thanks to him, we can’t spare people from the capital right now. Just let him. I am sure he will come back by himself soon,”
Apparently, Conrad did. Sometimes, he really could not understand Conrad. Did
not Conrad understand the trouble they were in?
Conrad did not think so. Wolfram maybe a spoiled kid, but he was also a
determined one.
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If telling Gwendal has been difficult, it was nothing compared with telling his heika. Yuuri was absolutely furious with his brother and spent the entire time they were playing baseball ranting about it.
“Of all the irresponsible thing he could do! Can’t he even once, in his selfish life, take time to think how his actions will affect other people?”
His anger made Yuuri hit the ball harder than necessary.
Conrad disliked being in disagreement with his heika. Yet, although it merited some point, he thought Yuuri’s opinion was a bit unfair. After all, it was not Wolfram’s selfishness that has begun their newest mess.
“He only wants to protect you, Heika. It was terrible, seeing you too still
while that man put his sword on your neck,” Conrad said, throwing another ball. That memory has given him a fair number of nightmares since. He could only imagine how it was for Wolfram.
“I know, Conrad. But it doesn’t mean he had to react like that. He could
negotiate with them or fight them with sword. In fact, it was Jozak’s stealth
ability that saved me,” Yuuri argued, hitting the ball.
Really, sometimes Yuuri could not understand how Conrad could keep defending
Wolfram, when the younger man did not even bother to keep his dislike about
Conrad and his heritage in private. But, it just how Wolfram saw the world,
didn’t it? As if the world owed his something, and everybody should given in to his demands and desires.
Time like that really reminded Conrad that Yuuri and Julia shared a soul. Dear Julia, an extraordinary healer that she was, would not agree on taking people’s lives, no matter what the reason.
Conrad sighed. He could not condone Wolfram action as well. Still, Wolfram was young. That, and in love, tended to make people acted recklessly.
“He is young and temperamental, Heika. Besides, he cares about you,”
Yuuri gave up trying to play, and sank himself into the grass. He was too angry. He could not believe how gullible Conrad could be. In other hand, he absolutely could believe how Wolfram, self serving as he was, used this trait of his brother to his advantage.
“It is not an excuse, Conrad, he is older than eighty years old. Besides, you
all care about me, and none of you proves it by killing,”
Yuuri wished fervently he could make Conrad to see reason. Wolfram was old
enough to be responsible for his own actions and he had made it very clear that Conrad’s attention was unwanted.
“You know it is different for him, Heika. You are his fiancé,”
The statement only worsen Yuuri’s bleak mood.
“We know it was only an accident, Conrad. Besides, I am sure he is not holding on that title because of some great love to me. I agree he cares about me. After all, he is my friend and Shin Makoku’s soldier. Yet, it is clear his reason for forcing to maintain this engagement issue lies on his pride,” spat Yuuri.
“It is not true, Heika,” Conrad started to argue.
“Leave it, Conrad. I don’t want to argue with you,” cut Yuuri. It was useless, anyway. When it was about Wolfram, Conrad has a big blind spot.
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It took Yuuri a full hour to console Greta. Nobody told her about what now they dubbed as “Sloanne’s Disaster”. They all thought that she was far too young to hear that kind of thing. So, she could not comprehend why everyone seemed distant lately. Then, this afternoon, she could not find her Wolfram, who had promised to read her Anissina’s newest story. Naturally, she searched the one person Wolfram spent most of his time with, her daddy Yuuri.
When his daughter came and asked him, all big eyes and innocent face, where
Wolfram have gone to, Yuuri did not have the heart to tell her that the
irresponsible brat has disappeared, and even if he were here, she better stayed far away from that dangerous demon. Instead, he told her that Wolfram has gone in a secret mission.
He surely did not prepare for the tears that soon leaking from her eyes, nor for her tantrums. Apparently, when Yuuri came back to earth, she had been in tears for days, since she was sure he had abandoned her and would not come back to Shin Makoku. Yuuri cringed when he heard this, because it was true that at that time, he had chosen to leave Greta forever. Her inconsolable depression has prompted Wolfram to promise her, that even if Yuuri was not around, she still had another daddy, and he would not go anywhere without told her about it beforehand.
So, naturally she could not understand why Wolfram would break his promise then and went without saying goodbye to her. Especially with her birthday merely three shy weeks ahead. Did Wolfram get bored with her?
And Yuuri found himself trapped to defend the blond mazoku to his own daughter, since explaining the truth was out of question and the other option was to let his daughter believe that Wolfram was angry with her. Therefore, it was a thoroughly annoyed maou who came to the meeting room.
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It does not help his mood any, when Gizela came blazing into the meeting room in the middle of discussion.
“What have you done to Lord Bielefeld?” she asked as soon as she reached them.
“Gizela, we are on the middle of important discussion. So please, can you wait until we finished?” said Gwendal. He could already feel his headache becoming worse.
“No, I won’t wait. What had you done to him? Did you banish him?”
Yuuri did not know how he recognized it, but there was a panic edge on Gizela’s voice. He wondered why. After all, Wolfram has come out of Sloanne’s disaster without even an injury.
“We did nothing to him. It is him who deserted,” he answered.
“And who have you sent to look for him?” it was clear they will get no peace
until she decided so.
“We sent nobody, Gizela. Thanks to Wolfram’s act, now we have a riot on the
borders, and Jozak was sent to investigate there. Also, since it is quite
possible for the ruler of Tarleton to attack us, we can’t spare anybody from the army right now. Besides, I am sure Wolfram can take care of himself,”
Deep down, Conrad doubted Gwendal’s words. Wolfram was a skilled sword man, and his fire element sure offered a lot of help, but he was also a sheltered prince. Before Heika’ arrival, he never ventured out of the capital. He has no real world experience. Yet, he understood just too well that pointing out this fact would only worsen the situation.
“Are we talking about the same person here? Moreover, you admitted that the
situation is tense. What is the chance that some human recognized him as a
mazoku and attack him?”
“He is the one who put us on this situation!” said Gunter angrily. Granted,
Gizela and the troublesome prince were childhood friends. It still did not give her a right to interrupt an important meeting, especially if she insisted to behave in this manner.
“And heika is the one who started this debacle!”
“Gizela! Mind your manner!” thundered Gunter. Gizela clearly has crossed the
limit. How could she blame heika when it was Wolfram who was in fault?
“I am only speaking the truth. Lord Bielefeld’s method maybe not the best one, but he only wants to protect Heika. Did any of you, except Jozak, could make a difference on that time? And we didn’t know at that time whether or not Jozak would reach Heika before the fire. You are only able to judge,” ranted Gizela. She did not understand how they all, including her own father, could be so blind.
“Even if it was true, it doesn’t excuse his method. He is the last maou’s son, and the current maou’s fiancée. He should know better than invited war into our territories, especially after Heika’s hard work to prevent it. I believe you haven’t forgotten the effect the last war with human brought into Shin Makoku,”
Gizela stared at Gwendal as if she couldn’t believe her ears. Taking a deep
breath, she straightened her posture.
“On the second thought, if the only people he has here are the like of you,
maybe he is better off went away,” spat her coldly.
She closed the door with full forced when she went out.
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Lady Flurin. It has been sometime since he saw her. Tomorrow, Conrad and he
would go to Caloria to meet her. Gwendal opined that since quite possibly they were in the brink of a war, it was better for the country if he would go to their allies and explain the situation. He had written and sent letters, of course. Yet maou’s presence would give additional image of sincerity and
urgency. It could be guessed that Gunter vetoed the idea, claimed it was too
dangerous a journey for their maou. But even Gunter couldn’t offer better
alternative.
Yuuri sighed. Like any other teenager, he has thought of getting a girlfriend. He imagined her to be pretty and, maybe because he himself admittedly rather clumsy, graceful. Two categories Lady Flurin could easily fulfilled.
If he were honest, he has spent quite a lot of time entertaining the thought of courting her. She was an amazing woman and he really liked her. He has no doubt that she would become a perfect queen for Shin Makoku. Besides, their alliances surely would benefit both of their countries.
He glanced to his daughter’s form that was asleep on his bed. Greta has been
terribly upset when she learned that not only Wolfram would not be here for her birthday, but also Yuuri would go to Caloria. Yuuri really could not blame her. They had promised her a small birthday party a few months ago with the entire family attending. Even Cheri had promised to come back in time.
Inwardly, he cursed Wolfram. Wolfram always called him a coward. It seemed he
should look at the mirror first.
Still, there was nothing he could do. He needed to reach their allies as soon as possible, before they heard it from unreliable gossips, or worse, before the war really broken out. So, he pacified her with promise that if she agreed to delay her party for a few weeks, Yuuri would make sure he would have came back at that time.
Not for the first time he thought that she needed a mother. Cheri, with all her traveling around, was a poor substitute. Anissina tried, but Yuuri did not think she was having any motherly bones on her. And selfish, emotional Wolfram clearly could not fill that shoe.
Sometimes, Yuuri even wondered whether Wolfram really liked Greta, or he liked her because Yuuri liked her. Yes, he had taken care of Greta when Yuuri came back to earth. But, Yuuri could not help suspected that maybe Wolfram did that because deep down he still believed Yuuri would somehow came back, or because he has no other choice. Especially given Wolfram’s usual attitudes where humans were concerned.
No, what Greta need was a real mother.
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Gizela could not sleep. She kept remembering that day’s events, and her mind was plagued by what-could-have-been.
She had heard about Lord Bielefeld’s disappearance from Doria, who had heard
about it from the stable boy himself, when she went to the kitchen for some
herbs. For once, she was grateful for Doria’s love to gossip. In half an hour, she had found out about Lord Weller’s enquiry to the stable boy, completed with a plethora of rumors.
The maids were sure that heika had secretly thrown out Lord Bielefeld, while
according to some night guards, he has ran away to avoid the martial court which Lord Voltaire would start. In the other hand, Lord Bielefeld’s own guards have steadfastly believe in his honor and insisted that he had went away to redeem his failures.
She knew why he ran away.
She still could remember his face, when she told him she could not find anything wrong about him and therefore she did not understand why he could not used his fire. She could still hear his demand that she kept that news to herself. And she could still picture his expression when heika avoided him like a plague, or when his brothers did not want to meet his eyes.
And he was not wrong to go. They did not even worry about him. None of them have tried to retrieve him.
Silently, she began to sob. All of these were her fault.
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When she let herself thought about it, Flurin admitted she has more than a crush to Shin Makoku’s Maou. She was a strong, determined woman. She did not wait and hope for a knight to come and slay the monsters for her. And she did love her husband.
Yet, there was something about the young king that grown on her. He came
unexpected, when she had desperately held on a frayed rope of hope. He offered her help, and did more than what she expected, all while asking for nothing in return. And unlike most of those knights in stories, he did not only treat her like a fragile princess to be protected, but also as an able ruler, an equal and partner.
Still, most of the days, she banished this thought as a daydream that wasted
time. He was a mazoku, with different life time than her, a human. He maybe
blushed and sometimes even unconsciously flirted with her, but he had a fiancé, even if he denied it.
It did not mean she was prepared to see said fiancé appeared out of the blue in her resident and demanded an audience with her, though.
“Lady Flurin, thank you for seeing me. Please, forgive me for not giving you a notice first. I believe all is well with you and Caloria?” Wolfram employed all his social skill. He rarely bothered with courtesies and the like, but this woman held his future on her hand.
“Lord Bielefeld, it is a pleasure to see you again. Yes, thank you for your enquiries. And Shin Makoku, are the others well?”
Honestly, she did not remember a lot about him other as a shadow of Heika who
threw a good deal of tantrums now and then. But in reflection, she should not be so surprised. After all, he was a son of the former maou. Surely social courtesy was included in his education.
“All are well, thank you for your attention. My visit here is not on a formal
capacity as Shin Makoku’s ambassador,” The words were difficult to be said. He wished things were different. Already, he missed his home. He missed his family. He missed Yuuri.
“Oh?” she noticed a subtle movement of his feet. “He is nervous. I wonder why?’
“Lady Flurin, I know you have no reason to give it to me, but I hope to appeal to your heart to let me stay here,”
He hoped the rumors have not reached her. He wished she would agree. In spite of what people tend to think about him, he was not blind. He knew that even without hearing the news, she has no obligation to accept his request and little desire to do so.
“Of course I will gladly accept you as my guest anytime, Lord Bielefeld,”
The request was a little strange to her. Now that Shin Makoku and Caloria was
ally, it was entirely normal for delegation from either country to visit the
other. Lord Bielefeld’s visit maybe came out of the blue, but even though it was not a formal one, he surely knew that she would accept him.
“I am not saying it clearly. I mean, not as your guest. I wish to ask you for a citizenship,” he held his breath, waiting for her answer.
‘Please, please, say yes,’ he thought. He has run away in haste. He has no
backup plan if Flurin was to reject him.
Not many things could surprise Flurin, considering the life she has led, but
this one was success to render her speechless for a few moments.
“Pardon?” surely, she was misheard.
“I wish to impose on your kindness and ask for a citizenship, Lady Flurin,”
“But…why? Surely heika won’t agree with this?” asked Flurin, befuddled.
“I….Well, if you must know the story…but I beg your indulgence to let me tell
you till the end before you decide, Lady,”