FSW Chapter 33

"You truly memorized everything."

"Yes!"

Nishina nodded earnestly, her face brimming with pride. Meeting those sparkling eyes made him feel as though he ought to shower her with praise. However, unlike Oscar—whose fingertips twitched with visible impulse—Aiden looked up at Nishina with sharp distaste.

"This work is beyond your capacity to—"

At the negative opening, Nishina's expression crumbled as though she'd lost the world. Under that despairing gaze, Aiden found himself stopping mid-sentence against his will. Into the gap, she stared at him with a gaze dripping desperation. Eventually, a sigh leaked between Aiden's lips.

"...Report to the office starting tomorrow."

Though the tone was thoroughly displeased, it was permission.

"Since you wanted this, you'd better prepare yourself."

Aiden's warning fell on deaf ears—she didn't hear a word past the permission.

Nishina felt like screaming with joy at the finally granted approval. If Aiden weren't someone who despised noise, she would have bounced around the office shouting with delight. Unable to contain her happiness, Nishina grinned despite the dark circles under her eyes.

As Nishina's joy bloomed, Aiden's face hardened further. His irritation with the situation was painfully obvious.

"You may leave now."

Though it was clearly a dismissal, Nishina smiled brightly as she bid Aiden farewell.

"See you tomorrow!"

"..."

"You too, sir!"

After cheerfully greeting Oscar—who'd been nervously watching Aiden's mood—Nishina made her exit with a spring in her step. Truly, her footsteps couldn't have been lighter.

Carrying her good news, Nishina headed straight to the lake. Yesterday she'd only managed to stop by briefly, with fire at her heels. She'd promised Wier she'd visit first thing after successfully completing her task.

Arriving at the lakeshore, Nishina glanced around and picked up a leaf at her feet. Then she tossed it into the lake while calling out awkwardly:

"Oh no, my leaf!"

The moment Nishina's poor acting ended, Wier appeared from the center of the lake with a splash, as if he'd been waiting. It was their secret code to prevent accidentally meeting other people. Saelik had given them a rather pitying look when they'd seriously discussed the password, but they'd decided to ignore that.

—Child!

Wier flew to shore in delight, but stopped mid-flutter. He dropped to the ground with a thump, then walked unsteadily toward Nishina with a shocked expression.

—Child, are you hurt?!

Wier asked with transparent tears welling in his eyes. Soon he was stamping his feet and frantically searching for a doctor.

—Doctor! Doctor, here!

"I'm not hurt, though..."

Nishina trailed off. Was her condition really that bad? She'd been so absorbed in memorizing that she hadn't even thought to look in a mirror. She considered checking her reflection on the lake's surface, but Saelik's appearance came faster.

—What stupid thing now!

Saelik appeared floating on a leaf and glared at the commotion-making Wier. Then, belatedly noticing Nishina's condition, he flinched backward.

—You—what happened?

If even Saelik reacted this way, her condition must truly be severe. Nishina rubbed her eyes sheepishly.

"I just stayed up all night, nothing happened... Oh! I got to work with my brother!"

—Really?

Wier, who'd been spinning in circles searching for a doctor, stopped dead in his tracks. Delighted by the good news, he clapped his hands.

—Child! Amazing! Wonderful!

—Hmph, I told you it would work out.

Wier's wings trembled as he flew up to Nishina's shoulder in one bound and rubbed his cheek against hers vigorously.

—Congratulations!

A pleasant coolness touched her cheek directly. Following Wier's clear laughter, she laughed aloud too, and Wier acted even more affectionate. Even Saelik tapped her knee with a dignified expression.

If you shaped the word "adorable" into physical form, wouldn't these two appear? Their lethal cuteness healed Nishina from the depths of her heart.

But the moment she realized she also had to share bad news in this warm, peaceful atmosphere, her smile vanished as if by magic. Even while coming to meet them, she'd agonized over how to bring it up. She hadn't thought of any proper method—hence her current state.

Nishina's eyelids drooped weakly as she spoke after much hesitation.

"So... I won't be able to come visit every day for a while..."

—Very busy?

"Mm-hmm. I don't know exactly yet, but probably. ...I'm sorry."

Wier rolled off her shoulder and plopped onto Nishina's lap. His expression matched Nishina's earlier devastation. Nishina bit her lip as she looked at him with sympathy.

'If only I could take you with me.'

If she could just be certain she wouldn't encounter Hugh or other water spirit users, she would have carried him off long ago.

—Well, can't be helped.

As Saelik answered cynically while swallowing his disappointment, Wier's drooping head shot up. Then he clenched both small fists tightly.

—I'll cheer for you!

Though he must be disappointed himself, Wier spun around sending encouragement for Nishina's sake. With these two friends so beautiful in heart as well, the regret belonged to Nishina.

'I'll definitely succeed and come get you!'

Like an eldest child leaving younger siblings for the academy, Nishina swallowed tears and made a firm resolution.

She'd once thought she wanted to become an adult quickly. It wasn't the childish longing that vaguely idealized adulthood. She'd wanted to help him even a little—him, who was already an adult in a child's body. But her immature self found even following in his footsteps overwhelming.

She knew well that Aiden was both a perfectionist and a workaholic. When she'd boldly offered to help with the work, she'd prepared herself for exactly that. However, the work he handled exceeded imagination.

Not wanting to be a burden, she moved her short legs desperately, but the more she tried, the more she hit the wall of her limits. His stride was one she couldn't possibly match through determination alone. Wasn't there a saying for exactly this—a sparrow trying to follow a stork will split its legs?

Nishina mocked herself with clouded eyes. She scanned the table gloomily, dark circles thick as if they'd become part of her body. Piled atop it were documents Nishina needed to review. She could have sworn she'd cleared half of them yesterday, yet somehow they'd multiplied.

Her brother must have stayed up processing new documents again. Did he never sleep? Nishina had never once seen Aiden leave the office.

Shaking her head, Nishina picked up a document. Her assigned work was simple: double-checking documents Aiden had already reviewed. For matters requiring direct inspection or discussion, Nishina went personally in Aiden's stead since he was busy.

For instance, the 'food' issue.

Doubt settled over Nishina's face as she gripped the document.

Of course 'food' mattered. No—it might be the most important point. But did she really need to know the recipes? Wouldn't just confirming the ingredients suffice?

She'd visited the chef to inspect the planned menu multiple times, even tasting dishes personally. On top of that, she was separately studying Rain Kingdom's culture—to discover if there were any dietary or lifestyle considerations to note.

For Nishina, balancing work and study, it was pure agony.

She was experiencing 'breathlessly busy' in its most literal sense.

Nishina steeled herself again and carefully scanned the black text. Expected expenditures, repairs and maintenance of Rhenidge Hall, maids assigned to Scarlet Palace and Magenta Palace, daily luncheon menus and times, places in the imperial capital to introduce, list of return gifts, et cetera.

After concentrating for some time, her eyes grew gritty and her back stiffened. Her physical limits arrived faster than usual. Having endured as long as she could, Nishina set down the documents. She planned to close her eyes for exactly five minutes for work efficiency.

However, as in life, nothing guaranteed plans would proceed as intended. Nishina ended up falling asleep on the black leather sofa.

Though there'd been no particular shock, Nishina woke naturally. An ominous refreshment washed over her. For having only rested her eyes five minutes, her head was seriously clear.

Bolting upright, the blanket covering her body slid down. Before it could fall to the floor, she grabbed the gray blanket.

'Did Oscar cover me?'

The blanket seemed to carry her brother's scent somehow, but since he'd never show her such kindness, Oscar must have covered her. Since both men practically lived in the office, their scents would be similar.

Though it was rude to Oscar, the slightly disappointed Nishina looked around like a meerkat. Oscar had gone somewhere—his seat was empty. But what Nishina stared at in a daze wasn't his absence, but the absence of time.

Through the glass window, the darkening sky was clearly visible. It was a color only seen when the sun had nearly set. Finally grasping the situation, Nishina covered her mouth.

'How many hours did I sleep?!'

Cautiously checking, Aiden was reviewing documents exactly as before she'd fallen asleep. Nishina bit her lip hard and carefully observed him. He seemed to have noticed nothing. Or rather, she hoped he'd noticed nothing.

Nishina furtively picked up a document, pretending nothing had happened. She tried to review it as though she'd never slept, but unfortunately Aiden's voice flew toward her.

"That's enough for today. Go."

"P-pardon? But the remaining documents..."

Thanks to sleeping so much, she had stacks of unreviewed documents. As Nishina trailed off, Aiden roughly scanned the document pile on the table and cast an indifferent gaze.

"I managed fine without your help before."

Cynically answering, Aiden withdrew his gaze. Then, with an expressionless face, he moved his pen mechanically as he continued.

"No need to come tomorrow either. Sleep all you want in your own palace."

So he'd caught her sleeping after all. Well, of course—not being caught after sleeping this long would have been absurd. Was she being dismissed like this? Nishina's complexion darkened rapidly. After bothering him so persistently about helping, only to fall asleep. Consumed by self-reproach, Nishina hastily spoke.

"I'm sorry. I know it's shameless, but please give me one more chance...!"

"Tomorrow I'll be working on different matters, so I don't need your help. Handle the rest the day after."

The tears that had nearly welled up vanished. Her head, which had hung like a criminal's, jerked up as she stared at him blankly. She'd thought she was being permanently expelled, but apparently not. Though he'd cited other work, for her it was essentially a day off.

Flustered, Nishina reflexively murmured:

"Then you..."

'When exactly do you rest?'

The rest never came. With obvious annoyance, Aiden dismissed Nishina with a single gesture. With the door shut behind her with a thud, Nishina kept glancing back. Though she couldn't see him, she could picture him still working. Recalling Aiden buried under mountains of documents that seemed far more than his share, worry immediately flooded her.

'The one who needs rest isn't me—it's my brother.'

But having failed to properly help even today, she had no right to point that out. Wrapped in such reproach, Nishina walked listlessly down the darkening path.