Chapter 2 - The Barracks
Lilly walked down to the bakery with Eolande in tow, ready to start the day. The smell of freshly baked goods was always an excellent way to start the day, and today was no different. Gramps was busy baking and kneading as usual, having returned to work after a short break after the attack.
Spotting Gramps, Lilly called out with a bright smile, “Gramps, look who’s back!”
He turned around with a surprised expression, but it lit up when he saw Eolande behind Lilly. “That’s wonderful! I’m so glad to see you safe Elly!” he exclaimed, approaching her with open arms.
Eolande seemed a bit surprised by the sudden affection Gramps was showing her, but she accepted the hug gingerly.
Gramps’s voice was filled with genuine gratitude. “Thank you so much for keeping Lilly safe during the attack! You really are a boon to the city, and this family.”
Eolande struggled to find the words at first. “Well, uh, it was only natural for me to protect her around such targeted people. I failed in catching the culprit, so I don’t deserve too much praise.” She defaulted to very polite speech for some reason.
Gramps let her out of the hug then, and waved off her reservations. “As far as I’m concerned you did what’s most important, keeping Lilly safe. And everything went well in the end, so don’t be too hard on yourself.”
Eolande briefly touched her hair after they parted, as if to compose herself, standing a little more formally than usual.
Gramps walked over to the bench to offer her a freshly baked croissant, but then changed his mind and got a bag of them instead. “You get free pastries and bread for life! My life, probably, but I hope that’s still a decent stretch of time,” he said half-jokingly.
Eolande accepted the bag and managed a gracious smile. “Thank you, Edward. I’ll continue keeping her safe from now on, you have my word.”
“That’s all I could ask for,” Gramps said, his tone softening. Turning to Lilly, he added, “Good luck today with the royalty. It might be intimidating, but I have no doubt you’ll handle it well.” He affectionately patted her head, mindful not to disrupt her hair.
Lilly nodded. “I am a bit nervous, but as long as they’re relatively ordinary people I’m sure it will be fine. But we have to go now Gramps, see you later!”
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The trip to the barracks was much like usual, except for the extra protection this time. Eolande was walking right next to Lilly, and practically scowling at the guards trying to get closer to her. She seemed a bit too serious in her new job as a bodyguard, but maybe it was a good thing, Lilly thought.
Before long, they arrived at the barracks. The briny air close to the port was somewhat refreshing in the morning, filtered through the streets and the townspeople working there.
The barracks were really more of a military headquarters for the city, containing administrative offices, barracks, training grounds, stables, living quarters for the elite, and the armory, all encircled by a fortified wall. It had been called the barracks simply because that was the earliest and most prominent part of it.
Lilly entered the main gate as usual, waving to the guards as their duty to escort her was over. She and Eolande continued towards the offices, where Lilly currently spent most of her days.
The main office was a testament to the grandeur of the Lady Protector’s role – lavish wooden furniture, plush velvet curtains, and a pervasive scent of ink and paper speaking to the many administrative tasks that took place within its walls. Lilly felt it was excessive, but thought the image of Lady Selene sitting in it to be quite fitting.
“So this is where you do your stuff?” Eolane asked, looking around the room. “It’s pretty impressive.”
Lilly sat down in the chair by the desk in the middle of the room, looking a bit listless. “Well, my ‘stuff’ really just consists of sitting here and looking important. Selene comes here every day to help me with decisions related to the garrison and our defenses. And other duties have been given to secretaries or captains, like training or recruiting.”
“Then what do you do?” Eolande asked, not seeing the point of Lilly being there.
“I’m the protector of the city—the head of the army stationed here, and the most important defense we have. I’m here to ensure everyone knows we have someone capable of protecting the city, and the people here know I’m the one who sank the fleet.” Lilly looked down at her desk in thought before continuing. “I’m not able to protect the city again now, but as long as people think I am that’s enough.”
Eolande seemed confused. “What do you mean? Did something happen to the flame?”
Lilly sighed, still looking down. “Yes, it no longer follows commands. Before it was controlled by the progenitor of the vermilion flame, now it’s just my own power.”
“What, you mean the first holder of the flame was helping you all along? That’s incredible!”
Lilly nodded. “It is pretty incredible, yeah. She taught me how to get control of the flame on my own, and stopped helping except during dire emergencies.”
Eolande seemed to sense Lilly’s insecurities related to controlling the flame. “I’m sure you’ll become a capable protector in time, Lilly. Have you been practicing?”
“Yeah, I’m meditating every day, even when I’m sitting here doing nothing. The flame is so… wild, compared to normal mana. I thought it would be fine after some practice, but so far there’s very little progress.” Lilly’s face had a clear hint of frustration, but she didn’t care to hide it.
“What have you tried so far?” Eolande asked, taking a seat in a chair in front of the desk.
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“All forms of meditation I know of, and some spells. The spells are mostly fine if I’m careful, but they tend to be volatile and dangerous.”
Eolande considered this for a moment. “Have you tried moving it through your body?”
Lilly’s eyebrows raised as she considered the question. “No? Should I have?”
Eolande shrugged, showing her lack of expertise on the matter. “I don’t know, it’s just a suggestion. That’s how physical fighters use mana, so I thought it might help.”
Lilly mulled over the idea. Anything that might help her control the flame seemed worth trying at this point. “I guess I’ll give it a go. It might purify my body even further though, making the flame even harder to control.”
Lilly tried moving the flame from her core to the rest of her body, gently pushing it to every corner. “It feels warm, but that’s all. Should I try strengthening some muscles?”
Eolande quickly cautioned her. “No, if you don’t reinforce your body at the same time it can be very dangerous. Your tendons might snap, or your bones might break due to the extra force. You need to be very careful with that, and with the power of your flame I’m afraid it will only be harder than with others.”
Lilly was slightly disappointed, but it was just a passing thought. “Yeah, figures. Let me try just circulating it a bit then.”
Lilly tried to move the flame in a circle around inside her body, almost like blood. She felt a slight burning sensation, which was odd since she should be immune to fire and heat. She stopped to check if anything had changed, and felt a nice soothing sensation coursing through her.
“Lilly, you’re radiating heat right now,” Eolande warned, clearly nervous about the potential consequences of continuing.
“Really? I need to be careful not to burn my clothes. One set of ruined clothes was enough I think.” Lilly stopped circulating, but she could sense that something had changed. It might have been her imagination, but the flame now seemed a bit less rowdy.
‘Maybe that’s the reason I’ve been given flame immunity, to be able to train properly?’ she thought, relieved to finally be making some progress.
“I think it did something, but I’m not sure what. I’ll have to find a private and fire-proof place to try again,” she mused aloud.
“That’s great!" Eolande's enthusiasm was palpable. "I thought the flame might affect your body since it can purify stuff.”
Lilly was reminded of another aspect of the flame she had forgotten to tell Eolande about, which she might find very interesting. “Oh, and I’m pretty much immortal now.”
“What!? What do you mean?” Eolande’s eyes widened. “You better not be messing with me Lilly!”
Lilly waved her hands, worried that Eolande was overreacting a bit. “Hang on, it’s nothing that will extend my lifespan much. I’m just able to be reborn from the flame when I die. It works as long as I have the flame, but I have to grow up again every time so it’s not ideal.”
Eolande looked momentarily disappointed to hear it wouldn’t extend her lifespan much, but still curiously asked on. “Won’t that keep you alive forever though?”
“No, when I have kids it will pass on eventually. Then I’ll just be normal again. And I’m not waiting to have kids for my own sake, when Mia and I are both ready I won’t hesitate. But you don’t have to be super worried for me before then, is all I’m saying.”
“... Then the search for the immortality potion continues.”
Lilly chuckled, remembering their earlier conversation about Lilly’s potential immortality.“You’re still on that? I have so much life left in me though, no need to hurry.”
Eolande raised an eyebrow, her tone playful yet pointed. “Would you rather look like someone in their twenties or eighties as an immortal?”
“... Point taken. But still, I would feel bad watching people around me grow old and die, especially Mia.”
Eolande had a weird expression on her face, somewhere between feeling offended and amused.
“Oh, right, sorry Elly. I wasn’t thinking…” Lilly’s voice trailed off, realizing her oversight.
Eolande waved it off with a smile. “I was about to ask if you were joking. But I understand, I’ll be less zealous in my search than my original plan.”
They were interrupted by a trio of knocks on the door, polite yet firm. Lilly could recognize some of the knocks well enough by now, and while getting out of the chair she responded, “Come on in, Selene.”
The door opened to reveal the former protector of the city, Lady Selene. Her arm was still bandaged and in a sling, taking its sweet time getting healed. She noticed Eolande as soon as she walked through the door, and seemed pleasantly surprised. “Eolande, it’s great to see you back! I owe you one for trying to stop the attack, you probably saved my life.”
Eolande shifted uncomfortably, a touch of guilt in her voice. “Don’t mention it, if I hadn’t been so focused on Lilly I could have stopped it entirely. I misjudged the situation in my haste.”
Selene waved off the apology with a graceful understanding. “Oh, I completely understand. I wouldn’t expect anyone to be around to save me normally so I can only thank my blessings that Lilly was with me. Still, I owe you my thanks. If there’s anything I can do for you, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
“I will keep it in mind, Lady Selene.” Eolande replied, nodding in gratitude.
Selene chuckled lightly. “Oh, no need for titles, Eolande. I probably won’t have it much longer either way.” Her expression was dark, but well hidden behind a practiced smile.
Lilly reached out, placing a reassuring hand on Lady Selene’s arm. “Come on Selene, we’ve been over this. There’s no one more fitting for the position, so even though you might have made a mistake they won’t remove you from the position. I wouldn’t want them to.” Lilly told her.
Selene sighed, her gaze reflecting a complex mix of duty and guilt. “Lilly, I know much more about this country's military than you do. I failed at a crucial moment. Stepping down might be seen as the right course of action, and personally, I would feel guilty staying on.”
Seeking to bring perspective to the conversation, Lilly turned to Eolande. “Elly, would normal bodyguards have helped against the attack?”
Eolande shook her head. “No, the assailant was too skilled. Regular guards would’ve been bypassed easily, and a false sense of security might have even made things worse.”
Lilly nodded, turning back to Selene. “See? Nothing would have changed if you had brought your bodyguards.”
Selene started to protest, “Still, there was no real reason for me to come see you personally for the contract. If I had sent one of my officers–”
Lilly interrupted her gently but firmly. “Selene, stop. That road of ‘what-ifs’ only leads to self-blame. After my parents passed, I was the same way. ‘If only I had asked them to stay,’ ‘If only I had been sick.’ It’s a torturous cycle.”
Selene's eyes softened, acknowledging Lilly's wisdom. The burden of leadership weighed heavily on her, but Lilly's words offered a semblance of solace. “How are you so reflected and wise at such a young age Lilly? Is it the flame’s doing?”
Lilly smiled, accepting the praise. “I like to think it’s due to my upbringing, but maybe some natural talent is involved too?”
Eolande smiled and added, “And so incredibly humble as well.”
Once again, the conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door. But this time the person outside didn’t wait for a signal before entering. It was one of the guards, looking distressed. “Reporting ma'am. The Princess and her group just arrived through a portal. They’ll be here in a few minutes.”