North x Northwest

Sighing deeply, Lil snatched the robe from Ed without much strength. When she left to change, Ed dragged a chair from the desk and sat on the side of the bed. After a while, Lil sat on the bed and repeated what she said a while ago like a broken orgel.

“It hurts.”

Knitting his brows, Ed took her hand.

“Of course, it hurts. Did you think it wouldn’t start to hurt when you’ve endured it for hours? Not to mention that your body is exhausted.”

“It didn’t hurt in the sea.”

“That’s because you were on painkillers and no ordinary ones either.”

“…”

Ed clicked his tongue like an old man as he took her temperature. He then gathered all items that could be of use to keep Lil warm such as blankets and coats, from the chest and poured them onto her.

“Your stamina also took a hit… you seem to have overworked yourself. Although… It was me who dragged you into the sea by force… I really think you’d better take a rest today.”

“…”

“Where’s the bandage I gave you?”

“…”

Lil moved her head towards the window. Ed leaned over and pulled the bandage lying on the windowsill.

“I can’t believe you tried to dry this precious thing like this.”

“…”

Grumbling, Ed stretched the bandage tightly and shook his head in disappointment.

“Your robe…”

“…”

Lil had already pulled her robe down her shoulders before Ed could finish talking. Ed raised his eyebrows when the great man, who had been raging at him just yesterday, acted in such an obedient manner. Lil, on the other hand, remained calm, it seemed that her embarrassment had faded into indifference. Ed talked to her while wrapping a bandage over her torso.

“When I saw you yesterday, you were just as excited as I was.”

“…”

“You’ve seen a mermaid, a mermaid!”

“Oh, that’s…”

For a short moment, Lil smiled faintly as if recalling a good memory before it died out again. Her lips twitched lifelessly. Ed thought it would be better if he didn’t try to be funny. Nevertheless, he couldn’t give up on a story that would cheer her up. In his experience as a doctor, the patient’s mental health played a very important role in their recovery.

“She has even hung pearls on your hair and given us a ride on her ‘horse’. Just reminiscing makes you feel overwhelmed and solemn about the wonders of the world, doesn’t it?” 

“…Yeah.”

As if she knew his words were sincere, a smile appeared on her lips and this time, it didn’t fade away. Ed was encouraged when she finally showed a positive reaction.

“Isn’t it amazing? Like humans riding horses, they move by animals just the same… Well, without horseshoes and rains of course.”

“Yeah…”

After wrapping her in bandages, Ed carefully adjusted her robe.

“You are truly an extraordinary person. Although rare races are no different from ordinary humans, it’s really hard to think they’re exactly the same as us. One could easily and unconsciously assume that they are inferior to human civilization. The typical prejudice is that their intelligence will be low and they follow barbaric customs… Some people look down on buildings made out of clay rather than stone, even though there isn’t any evidence that confirms that stone houses are superior to clay ones.”

‘Rare races…’

Lil remembered the days when the Ruwa tribe from Western Continent was the most discussed topic in Sesbron. Even when they all perished due to a mysterious disease, some of the nobility were unable to let go of their obsession to own the beautiful race and sought out a substitute for a long time. Of course, the Duke of Mireille was among them. In addition to the unique race, the duke held a large number of slaves purchased from many different continents. In that period Mortu’s voice always hunted her there. Lil lost herself in her past…

———- Flashback ———-

Liloa couldn’t stand it and started shouting.

[ “They’re still humans! What else is this child’s blood that he’s spilling if not human?!” ]

The duke was sitting under an ornate awning, watching the ceremonial whipping. Liloa also sat beside the duke and watched it. No, she was forced to watch it. As usual, Mireille insulted her by comparing her voice with the barking of a dog whenever she said something he didn’t want to hear.

[ “Barking again? Are you telling me that you and I are the same? Or even worse, that that child and I are the same?” ]

[ “…” ]

Mireille waved his hand with a sigh. An attendant gave him a cigarette and lit it.

[ “When will you use your human voice? Why can you not understand that you and I are different? Women are not only physically weak, but they’re also unable to think rationally. Always struggling with those annoying emotions.” ]

[ “…” ]

[ “Tsk, what kind of freak are you if you can not even complete the most basic of tasks? How hard is it to stay quietly by my side and execute the virtue of obedience when we’re among people?” ] 

[ “…” ]

———- End of flashback ———-

‘Whipping is a common practice. On that day, Mireille decided to attend it on a whim, but it was normally seen as just another trivial routine. All kinds of cruel things happen on a daily basis, not only in the duchy, but everywhere in Sesbron. Sexual torture, in particular, persisted as if it were natural for female slaves. This is all because the majority of slaves are immigrants, and at the time, mixed blood was the obsession…’

Lil suddenly raised her head. When a terrible premonition captured her, a hoarse voice came out.

“…Ed. Jacques Poussin… was originally ordered to capture a male and female pair. But the Duke said it’d also be okay if it was just a female…”

“…”

Any form of expression faded from her paling face.

“… It’d be fine as they could at least mate… what does that mean…”

“…I’ll tell you later, focus on your treatment for now.”

“No. I want to hear it right now.”

“…”

Ed hesitated noticeably. Lil intended to wait until he told her and put the ointment he offered down.

“It may have sounded romantic when I read it in fairytales, but it’s weird to suddenly call it mating.”

“As you’ve guessed, mermaids and humans can produce children. According to the records, the children who inherited the blood of the two races were generally in the form of a mermaid, but they’d be more human-like in appearance and skin.”

“Then, could Bell Rock…”

“Yes, Bell Rock was of mixed blood. That’s why he’s best known to humans and portrayed with a human-like face. Throughout ancient times, exchanges between mermaids and humans occurred in certain periods.”

“Does the Duke know about that?”

“Most likely, that’s why he said it’d be okay if only a female was captured. Ancient times aren’t just a distant era anymore. If you’d like, you can dig up as much as you want about it.”

“…”

Lil’s face looked disgruntled, causing Ed to immediately regret his decision. 

‘As expected, it would’ve been better to tell Liloa later.’

He began to busily move his hands, applying ointment to her bruised wounds and then wrapped them in a flax cloth. He quickly finished the treatment and assisted her to lie down.

“But you’ve shattered his ambition, haven’t you? What are you still worrying about? Bellus is smart, so she’ll definitely take measures to prevent another capture. In addition, unlike other races, they live underwater, so hunting them down would be impossible.”

Lil slowly turned her head and stared into space. An empty voice murmured.

“…There’s no end…”

Ed eventually broke the silence and replied while examining Lil’s forehead.

“It will stop someday. Just like you said.”

“When will… when will it be…”

“You can speed it up.”

Lil let out a hollow laugh. She once had such a dream. Shortly after entering Lebrun, Lil had nothing to fear. It felt like she could grasp the future with both hands and pull it into reality. But in the end, there was nothing she could do.

‘No, there was nothing I was allowed to do…’

Lil thought that Ed suspected that she was an Imperial citizen and that that was the reason he could say that much. Suddenly, she wondered if Ed would still make such a suggestion if he knew her real gender.

Lil looked at the top of his head as he was busy examining the bruise on her knee.

“Regardless of who I am?”

“What?”

“I…”

“..?”

‘Even if I’m actually a woman…’

“Anything…”

“…”

‘Would you still treat me in the same way?’

“Would you still say it’s an honour to meet me?”

Ed knew what she was trying to say without the need to actually hear it. It was a question he could answer most confidently.

“Of course.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Ed’s heart raced, for he’d been waiting for this moment. There were definitely women in the past with strong determination like Lil. However, on the spot where their seeds failed to sow and withered, Lil’s sprouted. Ed had already taken a sneak at Lil’s delicate bud. It was in Panichi, where she spoke her thoughts for the first time, visibly embarrassed when hearing her own voice. Even though Ed wasn’t a farmer himself, he did get to see her buds every now and then. It felt like an honour, especially when the life of such young sprouts was precarious.

“Everyone knows that seeds sown in barren soil have stronger roots.”

“…”

“Captain, do you think the fragile sprouts that grew through adversity are insignificant or do you think they are full of greatness?”

“Lies… just stop it.”

“..!”

Somehow, Ed got the impression that Lil was crying. From the start, she found it ridiculous to shed tears in front of him, but now she only found it uncomfortable. Ed slowly checked up on her more closely.

‘No, she had been holding back.’

The moment he started to look up at her, Ed saw black hair down to her waist. Lil Schweiz’s hair, as far as he knew, was only a little above the shoulders. Lil’s wet, wavy hair, on the other hand, was flowing over her robe. Some locks fell on the back of her hands which were resting on her lap. Ed noticed that her hands were similar to the ones he saw at Count Darlan’s house. Hands and arms forged from her naturally thin skeleton. Doubt began to creep into his mind. His heart was racing impatiently, not knowing what was happening. He raised his gaze a little higher, only to see that the robe she was wearing was much looser than it had been before.

‘How can this be?’ 

 Ignoring Lil’s swelling chest inside the robe, Ed first checked her necklace.

Through the hem, a necklace with an unchanging presence could be seen. Its red light flashed dimly. Ed initially thought Lil might have taken off her necklace, but upon this confirmation, his mind was thrown into uncontrollable confusion. 

‘Her necklace is still there…’

Terrified, he lifted his head.

“You’re not really in the position to be boasting with such pretences…”

Ed held his breath as he tried to look away. Meanwhile, Lil whos eyelashes were wet either due the rain or tears, laughed. The woman… laughed.

“…How…”

A beautiful voice that he had heard before rang.

“But let’s be fooled and believe you.”

“..!”

Ed dropped the medicine bottle he was holding. It was hard to breathe as if his airway had been cut off. His lips kept moving in order to say something, but in the end, no voice came out. 

The woman then spoke with a confused face whether she was laughing or crying.

“Because I’ve already believed too much to not believe again…”