A small village came into view below the mountain. In the night sky, faint white smoke poured endlessly from chimneys. Expectations of being able to bathe by a warm fireplace rose like steam. Anya headed down vigorously.
But upon reaching the village entrance, the boy couldn’t hide his dismay.
“Welcome to the ‘worst’ village in the Empire.”
Riario said it as a joke, but Anya was in no mood to laugh at his humor. He had thought Tildyen was a dark and gloomy city beyond compare, but Northmoust was on a completely different level.
“Sir Knight, Sir Knight. Please give us some money.”
Every time they took a step, children popped out from alleys and clung to them, begging. They were covered in layers of old grime from not having washed for who knows how long. Above all, despite it being the dead of winter, they wore torn, thin clothes. Their twig-like skinny arms reaching toward them were all chapped, making one wince just looking at them.
“H-here.”
Anya hurriedly tried to pull out silver coins from his tied pouch and place them in the children’s hands.
“Anya.”
At Evernight’s call, his hand stopped in midair. Taking advantage of that gap, one of the children swiftly snatched the silver coin and ran off.
“Woohoo!”
Several others chased after him in a swarm, and soon they disappeared into the dark alley.
Evernight let out a low sigh.
“That money won’t end up with those kids anyway—it’ll go to whoever manages them. It’s better to give them bread instead.”
“Ah…”
Anya immediately became dejected and hung his head. The man’s piercing gaze kept making him feel anxious, and his heart beat irregularly.
“Besides, silver coins are quite a lot of money. Here, you could buy three days’ worth of food and still have some left. Violence might break out as they fight over that money.”
V-violence? Anya asked back with his eyes wide open. The boy immediately became restless and watched Evernight’s reaction.
“From now on, don’t give them anything. That’s not your duty.”
“…Y-yes.”
Anya gave an obedient answer. As Evernight said, because of what he’d done, who knows what might happen in that back alley tonight.
The party went deeper into Northmoust, wrapped in silence. The streets were filled with filth people had discarded, creating a terrible stench, and some people could be seen sitting on the ground eating without a care. Their blackened, withered appearances were closer to beggars from some remote backwater than village residents. As the knights passed by, empty pupils followed them hollowly.
Then they spotted something and hurriedly bowed in greeting like startled people. Unlike the children, they seemed to recognize who these people were.
They were already so wretched that it wouldn’t matter if their clothes got dirty from the filth. Like those children earlier, it was remarkable they could survive in such cold weather wearing those clothes. Anya’s mind grew hazy from the shocking sights on the streets. Tildyen and this place were both part of the Duchy.
*The people I must look after from now on…*
*’What exactly is the duty Sir Evernight spoke of…?’*
The thick air of Northmoust pressed heavily upon Anya.
Turning right, a residential area with houses clustered together appeared. Just like Tildyen, they were all low wooden buildings with windows hanging precariously, and several were even broken.
[Rabbit & Goat]
The party stopped beneath a sign that had one of its fixing pins completely fallen off. On the wooden sign, a rabbit and goat were drawn in a bizarre manner.
“This is the Northmoust inn. We’ll be staying here for the time being.”
Karen added the explanation. The exterior looked like monsters might pop out at any moment.
“Wouldn’t it be better to sleep indoors than outside?”
“I-I’m fine. I was just a bit surprised…”
Everyone seemed to think of him as a fussy prince throwing tantrums. But Anya didn’t care at all about the inn’s exterior. In truth, when the boy was at the detached palace, he had lived just as impoverished as the people of Northmoust. He only felt uncomfortable because sympathy and a sense of responsibility rushed over him at their living conditions—he didn’t dare have any complaints about the inn’s state.
“Welcome!”
As soon as they entered the inn, the owner greeted them with a deep bow. The party shook the snow off their robes and entered the inn, which at least had some warmth to it. Having already received news through carrier pigeon, the innkeeper’s expression was full of curiosity about Tildyen’s new lord.
“…”
Perhaps intimidated by the sturdy armor the knights wore, several residents who had already taken seats on the first floor slowly scooted their behinds further into the corner.
“One, two, three… There are about 10 people in total, Your Grace.”
At the word “Duke,” the heads of men who were greedily devouring their meals in the corner shot up.
“As you know, even though this is an inn, it’s very cramped, so we don’t have enough rooms to accommodate this many people.”
The innkeeper rubbed his hands together and smiled servilely. He looked somewhat better off than those men gathered in the corner. At least his clothes were clean, and though he wasn’t exactly handsome, his face wasn’t covered in grimy filth.
“Give the infantry nearby houses and give each of us a room.”
The innkeeper’s mind raced. But no matter how much he calculated, the Rabbit & Goat inn had only a few rooms to offer to such distinguished guests.
“Excluding the infantry, that’s four people…”
The innkeeper smiled awkwardly and rubbed his hands together.
“Um… Your Grace, we only have 3 usable rooms…”
“Then there’s no helping it. Since you two are married, you should share a room.”
Riario spoke as if declaring war toward Evernight and Anya.
“In exchange, we’ll gladly yield the largest room.”
Karen shrugged beside him.
“…M-married…?”
The innkeeper and the wretched residents of Northmoust glanced at Anya with peculiar expressions. They soon began whispering rapidly among themselves.
*Hmm, so young…? Was the Duke into that sort of thing?*
The boy looked much smaller, thinner, and younger than Evernight. He was pretty, but not enough to attract interest in that way. A few years ago, during the territorial battle beyond the Wall, Evernight didn’t seem interested in women despite being the commander. They say even during war people still do what they do, everyone thought, but Evernight wasn’t that kind of personable man.
“The key.”
The innkeeper snapped out of his thoughts and hurriedly took out a key from the cupboard to hand to Evernight.
“H-here it is.”
The once ragged Commander Evernight had now become the lord governing Tildyen. Whatever the case, there was no reason to look bad in front of him. The same went for this boy left standing awkwardly beside him.
He looked somewhat uncomfortable—the innkeeper fervently prayed he wouldn’t be a difficult master.
“How would you like your meals?”
“I don’t care as long as it’s not your slop.”
Riario answered with a shudder.
“And the rest of you…”
“Doesn’t matter.”
Evernight jerked his chin toward Anya. Anya had no idea what this “slop” was, but he had no intention of being picky about food after coming all this way. The boy nodded slightly.
“When you go up to your room, I’ll have bathwater and meals sent up.”
—
*’Is he really going to share a room with me?’*
Anya followed behind Evernight with a confused expression. The old wooden stairs creaked loudly with every step. Karen remarked that he should borrow tools tomorrow and fix the stairs. *Goodness, we rode all day because of that damn snowstorm…* Riario groaned while rotating his shoulders back and forth rather dramatically.
“Commander, see you tomorrow morning.”
“Everyone sleep well.”
Karen and Riario went straight into their rooms after just those words. Now only Evernight and Anya remained in the bleak hallway. Anya stood close to the wall with his hands neatly clasped together. He could feel the cold brick behind his back.
When Evernight inserted the thick metal key, a fairly cozy room appeared. At least it was supposed to be a bedroom—beyond his peeking gaze, a fireplace welcomed Anya.
“Come in.”
As soon as Evernight entered the room, he threw off his heavy cloak. Then he sat in a chair and began unfastening his pauldrons one by one. Anya sat carefully at the edge of the bed and stared at his own toes.
“…”
The sound of armor falling to the floor occasionally broke the dark silence, but no one spoke first.
*’Should I speak first? Say what? Good night?’*
Anya’s chapped lips parted but quickly closed again.
*’No. Just to hear something again.’*
He was always getting scolded by Evernight anyway. Anya carefully removed his robe and hung it on the coat rack. Evernight, who had quickly removed his armor, climbed onto the bed and stretched out his body. Having suddenly lost his spot, Anya paced the wooden floor.
“What are you doing?”
Evernight, who had been lying with his eyes closed and hands interlaced behind his head, was now looking at Anya.
*Please, just say something.*
Anya approached him hesitantly.
“Um… sh-shall I assist you with your bath when the water arrives?”
When he was in Maneregia, the princesses often chattered about how one must attend well to their husband’s bath. That it created opportunities to improve the relationship.
“…Are you serious?”
For some reason, Evernight’s expression didn’t look very pleased. One of his eyebrows rose crookedly.
