After lingering in Balse for a couple of days, we set out by carriage for the Holy Amelia Kingdom as originally planned.
"That's Alamgard, the capital of the Holy Amelia Kingdom!"
Past the tip of Anna's finger loomed a vast, towering rampart. Everything within those stone battlements marked the domain of the royal capital. Constructing a wall of such staggering scale was undeniably impressive—though in truth, my reaction was less genuine admiration and more simply being left dumbfounded.
"Waaah, it is!"
"Waaah..."
Faf and Mew leaned out of the carriage, chiming in with excited cheers.
Perhaps owing to their similar mental ages, the two had swiftly bonded like sisters. Anna, naturally, took on the role of the eldest. Between her duties guarding Rose, Anna now looked after both of them. Lately, her demeanor and voice had softened so dramatically she seemed like a different person entirely, smiling with ease. I suspected this gentle side was who she had been all along.
Children are sharp observers. At first, Faf had been deeply wary of Anna, but once she realized the knight harbored no malice, she quickly warmed up to her. Now, she clung to Anna almost as much as she did to Rose or me.
"Kai, what will you do once we arrive in the capital?"
"First, I ought to pay my respects to my mother."
Even though it would be our first reunion in roughly one hundred thousand years, her face and my memories of her remained crystal clear. It was a rather strange sensation.
Still, the person I am today has changed beyond recognition. I harbored little confidence in my ability to face her naturally.
"That sounds wise. We plan to stay in the capital for some time anyway, so you should enjoy some quiet, uninterrupted time as mother and son."
"Hardly. I merely intend to show my face."
My habits, manner of speech, personality—everything about me was entirely different from the boy she once knew. Even my mother would surely want to avoid sharing a roof with such a stranger, brief as it might be.
"Always so stubborn, aren't you?"
"Nay, I simply remain true to my own will."
I had lived that way for the past one hundred thousand years, and I had no intention of changing now.
"Right, right. Let's leave it at that for now."
With an exasperated shrug, Rose turned her gaze back toward the city ahead.
The expression that washed over her face as she looked upon her homeland was not the relief of someone returning to familiar ground, but the tense vigilance of a warrior stepping into enemy territory.
Judging by that grim demeanor, the capital was little better than a viper's nest. I could only hope it would not become an annoyance.
Yet the ominous premonition that flickered in the back of my mind would soon prove entirely justified, dragging my life ever further from the quiet days of peace I so deeply craved.