Episode 7
“Are you okay?!”
Ranje let out a small scream in surprise.
She wasn’t particularly close with Erna, and everyone she’d dealt with up until now had at least average stamina—so this completely caught her off guard.
Erna couldn’t even move her head. Having stayed in the freezing attic, her condition had already been bad, and this was the first time she’d gone this far from the mansion. She wasn’t in any shape to pretend to be strong.
Cold sweat began to form on Ranje’s skin.
‘She’s not faking it…’
They hadn’t even been on the move for twenty minutes.
Ranje started to wonder if Erna’s body was made of twigs and cotton instead of flesh and bone.
She tried to support her but quickly gave up.
“Okay, put your arms around my neck… Hold still. I need to concentrate.”
“Huh?”
It was barely a response, but Ranje hooked her arm under Erna’s knees and lifted her up in one swift motion.
“W-What are you doing?!”
Ranje ignored the protest and deactivated the foothold spell beneath them.
Startled, Erna felt her body being pulled downward.
“Aaah!”
“<Lend us the back of Alshine.>”
Her scream was drowned out by Ranje’s chant. What would have been a fall instantly turned into a slow, gliding flight.
“How is it? Fun, right?”
Now that they were a good distance from the mansion and Ranje had used high-level magic for the first time in a while, she was visibly excited.
“Are you scared?”
Though they were flying at only a brisk walking pace, Erna trembled silently.
“W-Why wouldn’t I be?!”
“Don’t worry. I…”
Ranje had performed this spell so many times she could calculate it half-asleep. Of course, she couldn’t say that out loud, so she trailed off.
‘Oh right, I did fall once before.’
Her first mistake had been her last.
As she drifted into memories of that near-death experience, Ranje went quiet.
Surprisingly, it was Erna who broke the silence.
“If you’re about to say it’s fine because you’re a genius, then just don’t say anything at all!”
Terrified, Erna didn’t have the capacity to gauge Ranje’s expression.
But her outburst snapped Ranje back to the present. Amused that Erna remembered and referenced an old joke, Ranje chuckled mischievously.
“I thought you didn’t hear me because you didn’t answer.”
“I heard you…”
It was nearly dawn when they arrived at the city.
Ranje chose a back alley on the outskirts as their landing point. The streets were still relatively quiet. Erna looked around curiously despite her unease.
“Is this your first time here too?”
“I’ve never been outside at all.”
Unlike her cousin, who frequented this area for entertainment, Erna had spent her whole life between the garden and the classroom. Though it wasn’t impossible for her to visit the city, she wasn’t the type to initiate anything her elders hadn’t already approved.
“What about you?”
Watching Ranje walk confidently, Erna couldn’t help but ask.
“Are you familiar with this place?”
Ranje’s answer was blunt.
“Nope.”
“…Then why are you walking like you are?”
“Just following my instincts?”
Ranje had only been to the city once—when she moved for school. Naturally, she didn’t remember the detailed layout.
But while each city had its quirks, there were some common urban patterns—like the location of business districts or the train station. Finding the way based on those wasn’t too difficult.
Still suspicious, Erna narrowed her eyes.
“We’re making good progress.”
“How can you be sure when you don’t even know the way?”
“Your voice sounds hoarse. Well, you were out in the cold too long. Let’s grab an early breakfast.”
It wasn’t as off-topic as it sounded. When Erna turned in the direction Ranje pointed, she saw the curved roof and massive clock of the station.
With an awkward expression, Erna followed Ranje to a nearby diner. Only one was open at this hour, so they didn’t have to debate.
The place was smaller than the room Erna had used at the mansion.
“Are you open?”
Even before the owner could reply, Ranje ushered Erna to the warmest spot inside.
“Two bowls of something hot and one coffee, please.”
She sat down with her back to the door and finished the order.
“If you have anything sweet, bring that too.”
She hadn’t asked Erna’s opinion because she knew the answer would be the same. What had Erna ever done outside the house?
Erna looked on in awe once again.
“Can you really order like that?”
“Places that open this early near the station all have similar menus. No need to look.”
Erna frowned slightly but was quickly distracted by the steaming food set before her.
The meals at the attic had been so cold that even a bowl of broth made from dried vegetables was a welcome treat.
While Erna melted into the warmth of a dish she wouldn’t have glanced at before, Ranje quickly downed her coffee and cheap snacks.
“Hey, so…”
“Yeah?”
With some color finally returning to her face, Erna began to worry again.
“We ran off so far on our own—won’t Grandpa get mad?”
Ranje looked diagonally upward.
After the way they’d been treated, did the Count’s opinion even matter? He’d never once considered Erna’s point of view.
Still, Ranje decided to tweak her answer a little, lest she make Erna shriek.
“Don’t worry. He probably won’t even notice until lunch. No one really wants to mess with me anyway, so they’ll assume I’m just sleeping in.”
Even when they did realize she was missing, they’d search the mansion before thinking to look outside.
It’d take even longer for them to realize Erna was gone too.
Erna nodded at the logic.
She herself found this situation hard to believe—no way the unimaginative Count Swanhild would think of it first.
She calmed down and changed the subject.
“If we came this far, are we going to take a train?”
“Of course.”
“Have you decided where to go?”
She didn’t expect an answer.
‘She’ll probably say something like “I’m following my instincts” again…’
Relying on luck might help them stay hidden for a while, but it had clear limits. They needed a real plan.
‘I’m supposed to be her older sister. I should be thinking about how to help.’
But to her dismay, Ranje answered cleanly.
“Yeah, I’ve decided.”
“What?”
“We need to go somewhere that the mansion folks wouldn’t immediately suspect, and preferably somewhere we can gain something. From what I remember… there’s one place that fits.”
“Where?”
Ranje drained the rest of her coffee and replied flatly:
“Parel.”
“Isn’t that… in the west?”
It was a port city under the domain of Count Simone, one of the prince-electors. Simone’s succession dispute had left the west in chaos for years.
‘It might be a good place to hide, but… what’s this about gaining something?’
Ranje anticipated her confusion and explained right away.
“I was going to head to the capital, but since I brought you along… this is where we need to go first.”
“Why?”
The answer made Erna momentarily forget to breathe.
“There’s a chance we can cure your illness.”
If it weren’t for the railway that connected east and west, their journey would have taken months. Thanks to the cross-country train, it was cut down to about ten days.
Still, for Erna, it was grueling. She needed help just getting off the train.
“You okay?”
“Uh-huh…”
“Maybe we should’ve spent more for comfort.”
“No. You said we don’t have much, right?”
Though she’d never handled money herself, that made her all the more worried.
“And you explained it before. In third class, we’d blend in better. People would stare if two plainly dressed girls were riding in a half-empty car.”
Ranje’s judgment was correct. Erna glanced around uneasily.
“…This place is awful.”
Even though they were still near the station, the atmosphere between Simone and Swanhild was night and day.
Inside the station was just a bit chaotic, but outside, Erna shrank behind Ranje.
It felt dark even in daylight, and the air carried a strange smell.
Everyone on the street looked exhausted or angry.
Only Ranje remained inexplicably cheerful, making her seem frightening to Erna.
“Thirsty? Let’s get something to drink.”
Ranje headed straight for the plaza.
Even in a city with poor law enforcement, the station plaza wasn’t completely unusable—street vendors were open for business.
“What’s that in the bottle?”
Setting down their heavy bag on the bench beside them, Ranje leaned over the stall.
While the two were looking over drinks and candy, neither paid attention to the crouching child beside them.
“…Ah!”
The child snatched the bag.
By the time Ranje noticed, the kid was already mid-sprint.
“Stop right there!”
Most of the money was on her person, but losing clothes and other gear would still hurt.
“Wait here! I’ll go get—huh?”
Just as she was about to run, Ranje stopped abruptly.
The kid tripped over nothing at the edge of the plaza.
He flailed but couldn’t get up. He wasn’t injured—it looked more like his back was being pinned by something heavy.
‘…That’s magic.’
The spell had been cast with such precision, the output was completely restrained and left no wounds. A simple spell, but it required serious skill to pull off. And there had been no incantation.
‘Someone capable of that…’
Ranje stiffly turned around.
Beneath the midday sun, a man stood silently.
“…Senpai?”
Whoa, really? Does he remember her?