Carr

The group marched onward, now on a hidden side route that was much easier to travel on. We would be in the Razilian city soon—but not soon enough to prevent disaster from befalling us. It was not as dramatic as usual. There were no fights on our way there, and no one gave me so much as half a reason to think of drawing my sword. Yet, it was a disaster nonetheless.

Not for me though.

Honestly, I had the time of my life.

“You changed a lot, eh? Valle? ” Estella asked, smiling and punching his arm lightly. “Can’t believe you grew up into that. I mean, look at you.” She gestured at him from top to bottom and whistled softly. “Damn, you really did well for yourself. Looking good, I mean goddamn. You looked nice before, don’t get me wrong, but—” Estella’s hand reached for the underside of Valle’s shirt, then she stopped herself. “Ah, yeah, probably not okay to do that, right? Just curious if you got a set of abs now. Is it okay to ask? Actually, nevermind that, how’s Valente doing? Love your father, hope you haven’t given him too much trouble.”

Wow. She…sure can talk.

Valle opened his mouth, shut it, opened it again, then shut it again. Poor bastard. “You too, you look—” Valle shook his head and stopped to consider what he was about to say. Then, with a smile, he said, “It has been a long time. It pleases me to see you are doing well.”

“Ah, c’mon, admit it—I look fucking amazing now, don’t I?” Estella quickened her pace to step in front of Valle, then put a hand on her hips, the other behind her head, and angled herself into something between a pose and the parody of a pose. “Come on, lying is not a virtue, Valle.”

The second sharpest thing in the world, as far as I understood, was Johan’s Godslayer. Such was its destructive power that it could cut through even a God’s skin as though it wasn’t even particularly troubled in doing so. Having crossed blades with it twice, sometimes its sharpness gave me nightmares. Sometimes I wonder if it could cut through reality itself. Something about that blade didn’t seem right.

The absolute sharpest object in the world were the daggers Nevada was staring at Estella with. Wow. She’s really, really not impressed right now. I leaned toward Celle and muttered, “It’s not just me, this is super fucking awkward isn’t it?”

She nodded. “Listen, given the choice, I honestly would go for another round against Johan instead of being here right now.”

“Me too. This is just…so awkward,” I said, glancing over at the group.

Behind and to our side were the Razilian soldiers—or merely armed commoners, given their lack of armor. Still, they all had guns, and not all of them were elves. Somehow, despite their difference in build, they all looked like they were of the same ethnicity so to speak. If humans have been here, they have been here for long enough that the two races have been mixed into one for a while now. On closer inspection, even Estella’s ears were a little pointy, though not particularly large.

Ahead of us were Valle and Estella, who talked in a rapid fashion—well, the latter did anyhow—about the past and how good it was to see each other again. Nevada trailed behind them, but ahead of us, watching the two carefully.

“She’s pissed,” I muttered. “Pretty sure she’s not pleased with this.”

“I mean, I get that.” Celle looked around to measure how quiet she would have to be. “Her husband-to-be is happily talking to a woman he used to be romantically involved with. And let’s be fair here, she is very attractive.” She looked at me and waited for my reply.

“Is—is this a trap? Do you want a real answer?” I narrowed my eyes. “I’m not falling for that.”

Celle punched my arm lightly. “C’mon, I just want your opinion.”

“I mean—yes? No? Whatever you think the right answer is? Okay, yes.” It would have been blatant enough a lie to disagree that it would have come across as a joke. “Doesn’t hurt that she seems to be one of the only people in this world who doesn’t wear clothes covering up everything up to their wrist and neck. Not like those clothes are overly revealing or anything, just they seem more like something I would see in the summer back on Earth than—”

Here Celle let out a deep sigh. “You have no much I wish I could be wearing literally anything else right now. I’m melting.” She looked downright miserable at that moment, and it was hard to even understand her last few words through her heavy breath. “Might go shopping here.” She gestured forward with a nod. As we approached the city itself, we started seeing more citizens of the country, most of which regarded us with curious looks. “Seems like the fashion here is different from the main continent. It’s not just her. Closer to your world, you said?”

“Yeah, it’s closer to what people wear at home, I swear.” I shook my head. If this is the area untouched by Francisco’s rules, what the hell is up with this? I have so many questions…and I won’t wait for an answer. I’m asking the king of this country as soon as we see him. I need to know everything about this world, I’m sick and tired of not knowing what’s going on and waiting for answers ‘later.’

Suddenly, Estella came to a complete stop. This caused everyone else from Valle all the way to the soldiers walking behind us, to have to forcibly take a step back and stop as well. She whirled round and started looking in every direction as if searching for something, and then stopped right before us. First she smiled and looked at me, then said, “Right, how rude—I’m Estella. World Champion of this world.” She extended her hand and smiled confidently at me. Too confidently for it not to be a joke.

I should be feeling too tired and sweaty to play along with this.

But I’m not. “I’m Carr.” I grabbed her hand, and smiled back just as confidently as her. “World Champion of my world.”

This didn’t shock her nearly as much as I hoped, but it still shocked her more than I expected. Thought she knew that judging by the way she emphasized ‘this world.’ Her eyes went wide and she gaped at me open-mouthed, sure, but only for a second before her surprised expression turned into a smile and she said, “Ah, yeah, that tracks—heard about it—that reminds me, Carr, you’re also meeting our king, okay?”

I’m what now? “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I have to ask…are you a princess? Valle didn’t seem sure, and that has been bugging me for a while.”

“I mean, sort of. Champion first and foremost though.” She turned to Celle and smiled broadly at her, taking both her hands and shaking them enthusiastically. “And you must be Celle—the detective, right? Heard a lot about you—not from Valle, but we have sort of had spies keeping an eye on the whole Johan situation for a while and really heard a lot about how you were the only one investigating the murder for the longest time, wish we could have sent you support really—but ah bureaucracy and paperwork it’s so annoying—but every time I heard about you trying to investigate it I just thought, ‘you know what yeah, well, show those fucks!’ and here you are still investigating. How’s that going by the way? Any closer to the truth? Know who killed the Emperor? I bet it was Johan—oh, wait, maybe it was Roger. Wait, no, outside guess—the Devil!”

Celle appeared taken aback, as was I. How did she manage all of that in nearly one breath? What the hell? “I—I—the investigation is going well.”

It was only after she had replied that I realized that Estella had mentioned the Devil in the middle of that rant. “Wait,” I started, “did you just say—”

“Wonderful!” Estella exclaimed, now shaking Celle’s hands up and down with excitement and nearly pulling her arms out of their sockets as she did so. If nothing else, Celle had to spend visible effort not to fall over. “That is just fantastic, I have an issue that I would just love to pick your brain apart about if you don’t mind later but first I should—”

Without so much as finishing her own sentence, she turned around and clapped her hands together as if just now seeing Nevada for the first time, despite the fact they had been walking for nearly ten minutes now. She approached her with a very peculiar set of steps. They would come suddenly, but there would be a second or two where she hardly even breathed between them.

“Pleasure to meet you,” Nevada said slowly, holding the signs of her dress and bending her knees for a bow, “I am Nevada, only daughter of the late Emperor of the Lusobritanio Empire, Queen of—”

“Oh my, you look so cute! That is such a nice dress—and your hair! You are really a princess, wow, I can’t believe it!”

Whatever Nevada had been expecting her to say, it certainly wasn’t that. She had been readying herself for a confrontation, I had seen her almost preparing in front of a mirror as if expecting the woman to be something between pure evil and…myself, actually. Now, she blinked numerous times, her mouth still open and a slight frown forming on her forehead, only managing a confused, “I’m sorry?”

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“You look amazing—that dress is seriously fantastic, and your skin is so pretty, plus the way you do your hair—you look fantastic! Damn, Valle, you really did well! Upgraded from me, eh? Gone from a sort of princess to a literal storybook princess. Goddamn, my man.”

Neither Valle nor Nevada seemed to know what to say about that. Fair enough. I—I don’t know what to say either. This is so not what I was expecting. What…what had I expected her to be like? Someone more regal, dignified—sort of like a female Valle. Perhaps a slightly less serious Nevada. That’s what I had been expecting. Not this. I watched in awe as Estella continued to regard Nevada as if she were some sort of doll, running her hands through her hair and asking numerous questions. Whatever sort of dignified battle of wits and politics Nevada had prepared for certainly wasn’t this.

This was far too casual for courtly politics.

In fact, looking round, it wasn’t just her. The soldiers ‘escorting’ us had broken formation and walked nearly by our side now, some with arms behind their head and most appeared unconcerned about the possibility of us escaping or attacking them. It was not, I must stress, as if they had decided we would not impose danger on them after careful consideration or even that they thought their weapons were too much for us to deal with.

No, they had just opted not to care because it took less work. What a country.

Suddenly, Estella grabbed Nevada’s wrist. “I always wanted a princess friend—come on, let me show you the city!” She started running ahead, pulling up the stumbling princess behind her.

“We—we are all walking the same direction,” Nevada pleaded, “why not wait thirty seconds instead of running ahead?”

Estella turned her head around and flashed a wide grin at them all. “Because this way we get there thirty seconds sooner while everyone else catches up!”

“My heels—I can’t—run—” Nevada said, stumbling over her words as well as her feet now. Wow. She actually made the princess speechless. Now that is worthy of applause. “Please, slow down!”

The World Champion did not slow down, but she did pause for a moment. She frowned in powerful concentration, then smiled as if blessed with a wonderful idea and ran up to Nevada. “What are you—” Estella swept up Nevada with one arm under her legs and caught her falling back with another.

“Let’s go, I’ll carry you!” Estella flashed a mischievous grin at the princess. “Hold on tight.”

Somehow, rather than protest, Nevada was blushing. Then again, pretty much any reaction was fair enough to this whirlwind. The two took off ahead, running not too far from the ground, and this further loosened up the soldiers escorting them. I’m pretty sure one of them just left to grab a beer. Valle slowed down his pace and allowed us to catch up with him.

“Don’t,” Valle pleaded, hiding his face between his hands, “don’t—don’t even start.”

I had to shake my head against this.“Dude. I gotta ask.” My hand gestured at the vague blur ahead that was probably Estella. “You dated her? Really? That unending pile of energy? She doesn’t seem your type.”

“I can explain—”

Celle laughed at this. “Oh, there is no need. I get it. Believe me, I get it.” Whether the heat had made her more ruthless or she just didn’t often find a reason to mock Valle, fact was that she looked positively delighted right then. She gestured at the blur ahead of us. “I mean, it is a sight for sore eyes watching her leave, isn’t it?”

“I would agree with you, but I am still afraid that’s a trap,” I told her, smiling. “But yes, Valle, what the hell?”

Valle drew a deep breath. “She…was always very energetic.” He appeared disconcerted, almost haunted at a memory for a moment. “And always got in trouble.” This time he frowned and squinted his eyes, wincing at whatever he recalled. “But I swear there is more to her than that.”

The King in Cresna had evidently hoped that would have been enough of an explanation, but at our intent stares, he blushed awkwardly and tried not to meet our eyes. Wow. It’s not often that Valle is this uncomfortable. Gotta savor this. “Estella is a reckless, loud, borderline insane woman,” Valle muttered angrily. Then his features softened and he added, “But on the fencing piste, you almost wouldn’t recognize her. She becomes…so very quiet. Her focus is second to none. It’s not just there either. Whenever the situation calls for it, I promise you there is no one else who can be as formal and uptight as her.” He laughed. “I kind of enjoyed how she changed between extremes depending on the situation. And even though she’s almost always too much…she’s fun.” Valle turned to us and quirked an eyebrow. “Happy? Is that enough?”

We looked at each other and mused silently for a moment. If it wasn’t so hot, we could have kept the moment going for longer and further annoyed our friend, but frankly it was not to be. “Yes, it will do. At least until I get you drunk and get more dirt out of you.”

Despite Estella’s best attempts, we did not accept a tour—‘It can wait,’ Valle said—and instead went straight to the king’s manor. Her choice of words was peculiar at the time, but upon closer inspection it turned out to be rather important. The King of Razil did not live in a castle, and frankly I’m not entirely sure he lived in that manor either. That was a building reserved for the governance of the country, and officials—better dressed than the rest of the country, albeit just as casual in their own ways—appeared to run in and out of it carrying briefcases. In a lot of ways, it’s almost like I’m back home.

Estella drew a deep breath, and surprised all of us by speaking calmly and with a rather blank expression. “We will meet with our king now,” she said carefully, “and I would like you to remember your manners when speaking to him, even if he does not. He is a wise man and more powerful swordsman even in his old age—yet he does not always watch his tongue. I understand many of you hold important titles and are used to respect, but I ask that you give him some leniency. If you can manage that, I will be sure to try to convince him to negotiate on your terms.”

Valle wasn’t kidding about her personality doing a complete turnaround depending on the situation…guess she’s one hell of a professional. The occasional twitch on her face showed she was not enjoying using her choice of words, and the way she fidgeted with her feet showed she would rather be moving, yet she did not so much as break a smirk. I can respect that. “We will do so,” I promised.

She allowed herself to smile a little at this. “Very well. There is a side-room in case you would like a fresh set of clothes or merely a chance to wipe down some sweat with some privacy.” Estella laid her gaze on each of us for a moment, then widened her smile slightly. “It was wonderful to meet all of you…and to see you again Valle. I will give you a few minutes and we will see each other inside. Does that sound good?”

The World Champion hardly waited until we were finished nodding before going ahead and leaving us to head to the side room for some last-minute preparations. As soon as Celle shut the door behind us, the three of us moved as a single unit and cornered Valle with inquisitive glances. Still, we allowed Nevada to have the first blow. “Well,” she began, arms crossed and a single eyebrow raised, “I have learned that my king had a peculiar taste in women in his youth.”

Valle opened his mouth to reply, then closed his eyes and drew a deep breath instead while Celle and I laughed. “My queen, I ask that this does not change the regard with which—”

“Oh, it does not.” Nevada playfully slapped the side of Valle’s face. “But it does mean I no longer see you as a flawless, perfect knight. Which is frankly very refreshing—it was one of your most charming points, but it forced me to keep up a more flawless image than I could project. Frankly, this is rather refreshing.” Valle’s expression relaxed, as did hers. Yet her smile turned sad at the end. “I will admit to having felt some…feelings of jealousy, however.”

“Forgive me.” Valle took her hands in his. “I did not mean to inspire them, but I will make sure to—”

Nevada shook her head. “It was not anything you did, my king. It was me. I…” She shook her head. “In any case, we should…discuss this later. Let us ready ourselves to see the King of Razil.”

Valle nodded. “Of course. But first—”he interrupted himself to stare at me accusingly. “Carr?”

I sighed and withdrew a bottle from my pocket. “Look, I brought the goddamn cologne.”

After all of us took a quick shower to get rid of the sweat and redressed ourselves, we were ready to move on. Valle did insist he style my hair for me, but this didn’t take particularly long either. Before I knew it, we were walking through a set of double-doors and being announced to this King of Razil. It still feels surreal to me sometimes. Meeting kings, queens, princesses…and feeling like this is all normal. This would be so weird to someone back on Earth. Hell, it would probably be weird for a lot of people from this world. “Step forward and kneel,” Estella whispered. “Just for a while. He will see you as equals afterwards, I promise. Just—just put up with it.”

Nevada and Valle exchanged a hesitant glance, then nodded. Afterward they both turned to me as if expecting me to object. “Why would I—c’mon, have some faith in me!” I turned to Celle expecting support, but she was making a sort of face where one smiles and frowns at the same as if to say, ‘Well, you know…’ and this made me give up. “Fine, I promise.”

The four of us knelt down, one by one, and I didn’t even bother looking up at the king. Who cared what he looked like. All he cared about was Valle, that’s who he was meeting. I might as well be asleep. I’m pretty sure I did fall asleep for a little bit, as uncomfortable as it was to do it on one knee. But then something about the man’s voice caught my attention.

“—We’re doing this my way, you hear me!” The king made his question sound like a demand. “If you can listen, then maybe I can help out.”

That voice…where…

“Your Majesty,” Valle began, “that much can be negotiated. But you must specify your way before I can grant it.”

“Bah!” the king replied dismissively. “That just shows your lack of faith in me! Faith! Show it!”

I know…I know that voice.

Without even considering the consequences, I stood up and opened my eyes, looking straight at the king. It…it can’t be. No. This is not real.

Estella turned her head to say, “Carr—respect the king! You have to show him respect!”

Guards moved about, shuffling for their weapons and stepping toward me as she spoke. That didn’t matter. Nothing else mattered right now. They could have stabbed or shot me at that moment and I’m not sure I would have cared. But either way, they stopped when they saw their king’s raised hand and sarcastic smile. “Why should he treat me with respect?” the king asked. “I don’t treat the shitty kid with respect, why would I expect differently from him? Mighty dictatorial of me if I did that, eh?”

I didn’t care how that was possible.

I didn’t care about the war, alliances, or whether the guards were going to kill me.

I didn’t care about how lame I looked with tears falling from my eyes as if a lock had been undone.

I don’t even think I cared about Johan at that point.

“Mikhail,” I muttered, “Mik—mik—COACH!”

I didn’t care about anything else. I just jumped into his arms and hugged him like I was a kid again. And when he hugged me back, it felt as though everything was fine. “I really did raise one hell of a man,” he said, and his embrace felt stronger than ever.