Raga of the Dry Branch

7: And so in the end, it goes away (1)

The smell of the blue beach dazzling in the sunlight and the fresh green trees around was sweet.

Even the smallest piece of stone rolling on the beach was brimming with life as if it was a sculpture made for the place.

Still, I am depressed. I put my luggage on my shoulder and tried to heal my aching hand, but my heart was so depressed and sober that even the bright sunlight which touched my eyes felt like a weapon threatening me.

I’m not this kind of person, but suddenly all the nerves in my body seemed insensitive to the scenes around me, just what happened to me?

“Young master, please give me the luggage.”

An old man I barely knew greeted me with a bow and then took my luggage away.

The man’s attire was unusual. The dress which was fastened with the belt, and the dress came to his knees with no sleeves.

Contrary to that, the pants were rather airy looking and thin. It was an outfit which couldn’t be seen in Cheiva, the wide pants were tied at the ankles. The man in this exotic attire was one of Mahoren’s men.

It turned out that Mohoren’s main office was in a different continent, so they had to go through a lot of hardship to follow Mahoren who walked away through a Gate to find me.

I felt bad that I ended up bringing these people.

It wasn’t just Mahoren. On such a hot day, there were people who wrapped themselves in black robes all day long, like Juli, and were carrying the luggage for Juli. Shang-di’s escorts were actually just escorts, underlings who worked for her.

“Al, come on!”

Heli waved her hands excitedly with the read door wide open. Next to her was a large silver beast inside the carriage, a beast I haven’t seen before, yawning with its mouth open wide.

As I was turning stiff because of the unexpected beast, Juli, wearing the black robe with gold embroidery, scratched the nape of the beast and said.

“Come on, Poppy. That person there is my colleague, so you can’t eat it. Can’t eat it. Understand?”

Oh god, please tell me that the beast which was three times the size of an adult human wasn’t Juli’s pet!

Poppy is a name one gives to something cute, not a giant beast whose race is unknown, but nevertheless, being betrayed often, I decided to try and believe in things again…

“It is my pet. Say hello.”

… but again, I feel like I’m being forsaken this time.

As I hesitated ouisde, Shang-di tapped by butt and urged me to get into the carriage. It felt different, she looked as innocent as a goddess, but the things she did were like a pervert uncle.

“How is this, Al? I prepared it in a hurry, so I don’t know if you will like this.”

Still, Mahoren at least greets me with a gentle smile like a saint. But I couldn’t rid off the stiff face. As much as the clothes and accessories he had on, the inside of the carriage was as burdensome.

In the small space where you step ahead and into it, the splendid interior awaits inside. It was as if I was looking into the living room of a noble.

The first thing I saw was a simple bedroom like-seat.

Chairs with backrests were placed around a round table for a number of people. A small tea table