Friends Who Became Villainesses

By Henry Cobb

Chapter Four: The Silent Hunter

Yeuxpera spent the next two weeks training me in her Judo, and how to use a dagger. The most grueling exercises she put me through were the push-ups and chin-ups which she said I would need for the next step. She also had me practice the spells mentioned in Diary of the Saint, as she said that I would be unable to use her water-based magics.

Then one morning she had me pack all my things back into the box, along with that book and a dagger that had been made overseas. Then we rode in her carriage not back to the capital, but instead deep in the woods.

Lady Depecia rode her horse, Jumentbru, out to meet us, then led us into her estate at sunset.

Yeuxpera made her ice cream for us and at dinner Lady Depecia had me sit next to her eldest brother, Wapitian.

"Miss Pureheart, my sister says that you know the Light Magic?"

"Yes, your, um, Lordship?"

"Yes, that is the correct address. My parents the duke and duchess are not in residence. As our guest, you should feel free to ask me for anything you need."

"Thank you, Your Lordship."

"Light Magic is very rare. I would like to see it someday."

"At once, Your Lordship," I spoke the abbreviated chant I had learned and a ball of light appeared in the palm of my hand. I willed this to float above the candelabra to better light the ducal dining room.

"And how long can you sustain this, Miss Pureheart?"

"At least an hour without great effort, Your Lordship."

"Impressive, for a commoner."

He then had me move my light above his shoulder so that he could review letters with his left hand as he ate his stew with his right.

That night we three girls retired to Lady Depecia's room, where she gave up her bed to me so she could sleep on the mattress which had been laid on the floor next to Yeuxpera's. The two of them chatted in their strange tongue late into the night. Well, it was mostly Yeuxpera talking, with Depecia responding with a nod, shrug, or brief comment. I used my ball of light to continue reading the Diary of the Saint, which the two of them didn't seem to mind.

We awoke after dawn the next day. After breakfast, Yeuxpera hugged Depecia goodbye and then turned to me. "Angelica, your real training starts now. Promise me that you won't be cross with Daiya whatever she has you do. Remember that all four of us have done this before and that we seek the best possible outcome. So sweat a little more now and bleed a little less in the future."

"I will keep that in mind, Lady Yeuxpera."

"That's the spirit." She hugged me. "I'll see you at Her Highness' birthday, next month."

Lady Depecia watched Yeuxpera's carriage depart then turned to me. "Angelica, please tell me of everything that Yuki has taught you."

She nodded along as I finished then said. "So I only need to cover the important stuff with you. That's good." She then looked towards the back pasture and spoke into the air. "Gnouian, what can I help you with before I attend to Miss Pureheart?"

Her brother's voice responded from all around us. Not overly loud, but as if he was speaking right next to us. "Depecia, why do you mock me so? You used to say the G properly."

"I suppose I'm just not myself anymore."

"Go see to the chickens."

"They haven't been attended to yet? It's already dawn."

"We had a foaling last night while you were having fun with your friends."

"Doueta gave birth? We'll meet you at the stables when we're done."

I followed as she resumed walking. "How did you do that?"

"We're a Wind Magic family. Gnouian has half my magic potential, while the rest have a fraction of his."

Later I held the basket as she collected the eggs and I asked. "Why are the children of a duke doing farm work?"

"It's ranch work. The Quillna family has provided horses for the royal cavalry for generations. Our duchy isn't very big and doesn't have much population or other industries. I don't mind it. I grew up in an apartment with a tiny well-manicured park three blocks away. Here I have a lot more space and can handle animals every day. I also have siblings here. Gnouian has sensed the difference and hence isn't as close to me as he was with Depecia. It was his death that made her a villainess, despite her having a less pampered childhood than the other three."

"But Gnouian isn't dead?"

"His future untimely death which I will of course prevent."

When we reached the stable I was allowed a moment to awe at how adorable the new foal was, then Gnouian turned to his sister. "What's this about my death?"

"You heard that?"

"You let me hear. When, where, and why do I die?"

"Two years from now on the night before you leave for the Royal Academy you ride out in a storm. A nearby lightning strike startles your horse. You fall down a cliff and break your neck. I can show you the spot where Depecia cradles your corpse as she cries for the last time in her life. It's a mystery to me how anybody can watch that and not name her best girl."

"Who are you, and what have you done with Depecia?"

"Gnouian, I am the only Depecia Quillna you have or will ever know. While my intrusion here is accidental, there is no one I'd rather be than your sister."

"What are you plotting?"

"We are preparing Miss Angelica Pureheart here to fight the demon lord."

"Absurd. The demon lord hasn't been seen for a thousand years."

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Yes, he's due, and the prophecy is true. Will you join our Conspiracy of The Light, or will you step aside and hold your tongue for the fate of the world?"

"Whatever you are, you must be mad, right, or plotting something vile. Whatever the truth is, I must keep a close watch on this new little sister of mine."

"Welcome to the club, big brother!" She hugged him.

He stood stiffly then raised a hand to stroke her hair as he asked, "Why are you crying?"

"Tears of joy. I was so worried that you would reject me, but I couldn't risk your life on what I could do myself without your cooperation to prevent your death. Now let's pick out a horse for Angelica to learn to ride on."

"But who are you, really?"

"I am a ghost from another world. There I was born Daiya Kiso, and died there in an accident during a team building exercise, along with my three best friends. We have been reborn here to prepare Miss Pureheart for her mission."

"If you were reborn here, then why did you suddenly change last year?"

"I did not remember myself at first."

That morning the two of them taught me how to ride a horse while Depecia told Gnouian about the vast magics of the mythical kingdom of Tokyo. Whenever he'd point out some inconsistency in her tale she'd make up something new like "Electricity" to explain how a particular miracle worked. Wouldn't it have been easier to just say that everybody was a wizard there?

She stopped to help me to my feet after I fell off the horse. "Are you hurt?"

"Maybe a little."

"Look Gnouian, her butt is glowing!"

I covered the rear of my pants with my hands. "Can we try something else now? I don't think that horse likes me."

"It's time to make lunch anyway."

I scrubbed and cut vegetables for Gnouian's stew while Depecia used her power to roll air into the dough for fluffy crescent biscuits she called croissants. We were assisted in this by the lone cook for the ranch. When the cook went to get more butter for Depecia I asked her, "Why do you have an ice room if neither of you has water magic?"

"I've taught Gnouian how to chill air. We don't freeze water instantly like Yuki does, but it gets the job done."

The field hands walked into the estate in groups for lunch and they all complemented Depecia's "croissants" which some called "fit for a king". I agreed that these wouldn't be too out of place on Princess Amesombra's table.

I helped the siblings gather the dishes for the cook to wash then followed Depecia to the rear of the estate as Gnouian returned to supervising the field hands.

She handed me a blunt stick that matched the size, shape, and weight (making up in thickness what it lacked in density) of the dagger that Lady Yeuxpera had gifted me while selecting a stick that matched her shortsword for herself.

"Why do you get a longer stick than myself?"

"There will always be a bigger stick. Instead of wasting your breath begging your foes to play nicely, you need to focus on making their fight your fight and hence unfair in your favor. If you need more dagger to dagger practice then go back to Yuki. Once you can beat her there will be nothing left about melee for me to teach you."

"I think she's getting better with daggers faster than I am."

"She does complain that nobody seems to want to face her. I'm just glad that we've got you for her target practice now, instead of just me. I'll show you how to defend against a sword today and then tomorrow we'll cover a weapon that she has no defense against, if you have the space and time to use it."

"Why is Lady Yeuxpera so much more powerful than you in both magic and combat?"

"Yuki is the least of us five in magical potential, while I'm third. What we lack is her genius talent for sorcery. How often have you seen her chant or even concentrate on her spells?"

"She went over a chant for her sister, but other than that, water just does what she wants and she doesn't even have to look at it. What can you do that's more impressive than what she does?"

Depecia chanted one word as she swept her hand and the air around us became still with all sounds from the outside cut off. Then she turned back to me. "Miss Angelica Pureheart, pledge to me that you will never tell another person, and I will reveal to you why I do not use my power for showy effects."

"I so pledge, Your Ladyship."

"On the night he would have died, Gnouian rode out to find his sister Depecia, who had just discovered her power and then innocently summoned a thunderstorm the likes of which the world had not seen in a thousand years."

"But you already have your power."

"I knew what to look for the moment I remembered myself."

The promised weapon Depecia handed me the next day was a small wooden bow. "This is a two-thirds scale in the shape of the Silver Bow, without all the fancy decorations of course. It's only 200 Newtons draw to start with. I'll step you up every year so that by your 18th birthday you have a full-scale replica just before you retrieve the real one."

"Retrieve? Why not get it now?"

"We four know where it is and it should stay there until you are ready to use it."

While this "200 Newtons" was much less than the size and power of the bow Depecia used, shooting arrow after arrow left me exhausted.

That evening Depecia baked apple pies for dinner, and while these weren't as refined as the pastries made for the princess, they had a rich hearty goodness to them.

The next day she had me cast my light on the arrowhead just before I shot it.

"Excellent job, Angelica. You only need to change one thing."

"Yes?" I looked at where the arrow had landed near the target.

"Bind the light to the arrow, not the bow."

"Oh." I looked at my light, which was still floating a few inches in front of my bow. "What's the use of a glowing arrow, anyway?"

"Very little. But when you combine higher level White Magic spells with the power of the Silver Bow the result is devastating against creatures of Black Magic."

"What happens if I accidentally hit Princess Amesombra?"

"The good news is that you still have eight years to think of some explanation that will satisfy King Orageu before that becomes a possibility. I don't think Queen Bruyerine would ever forgive you, so you don't need to worry about what to tell her. One of your many cheats is that you alone are not especially vulnerable to complementary magic. We'll mostly be facing Black Magic monsters, but don't put Yuki up front against the dragon, or myself against the stonekin."

That evening in front of the fireplace Depecia sang as she played a modified lute. I think the lyrics were from that second strange language the four friends rarely spoke, but I couldn't be sure.

During the later half of my first week at her estate Depecia would ride off hunting each day and leave my horse riding and spellcraft training to Gnouian and my education to their tutor, a woman named Vachya. When she returned Depecia would test my archery.

That weekend I was judged secure enough in the saddle to ride with Depecia and Gnouian to a local church for the services. On the way back I asked. "Lady Depecia, did you encounter any gods between your last life and this one?"

"My earliest memory is of playing hide and seek with Gnouian. I must have been three at the time and he was five. Then I had an ordinary life after that point until Yuki asked me last year about the status of a project. I told her that last I heard it had been delayed, but that I would check for the details when I returned to the office. Then she asked me how I knew Japanese and the memories of my past life came flooding back to me. These were from my early childhood in that world until the moment that must have been my death. If I had encountered any gods between dying and being reborn then I don't recall these."

"Do you believe in our gods?"

"No, but I still pray to them for Gnouian's safety."

"Sis, you've been so attached since that day I found where you'd locked yourself in a closet that you'll never let another woman have me."

"It's not like that, Gnouian. If say Angelica wanted you then I'd be happy to have her as a sister-in-law, but you're not a conquerable character because of ... Wait, we're going to fix that. Angelica, why not pick my brother, now that I've recruited him to your cause?"

"He seems dependable. What would I be picking him to do?"

"Yeah, you don't announce your choice until your eighteenth birthday. But get to know my brother and anything you crazy kids want to do together is fine with me."

"Lady Depecia, who are you really? Are you the ghost of this Daiya from another world who has possessed this body, or someone born here with memories of a completely different person?"

"I think I'm just the same soul reborn as Depecia. Everything I remember from this life and my previous seems consistent with the person I am, given what I knew at each point. I've been a child twice, but I seem to have been the same little girl in both cases. As far as I know, only Gnouian spotted the change."

During the second week, Depecia took me out riding with her to practice my mounted archery. I spent a lot of time dismounting to pick up arrows I had dropped while trying to nock these on the bow. But what disappointed her was when I didn't even try.

"Angelica, why didn't you take the shot?"

"But it was just a rabbit."

"Yes, just a rabbit that digs holes that cause horses to trip. We already know that the game is out to get Gnouian with a riding accident. Please don't make life any harder for him."

I did manage to kill three rabbits that week, by shooting dismounted, but their dying screams were some of the worst noises I've ever heard.