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Because thinking about that was starting to drive me insane, I decided, for now, to calm down a little and have some tea in our family lounge.

When I entered the room, Mama Sonia was already sitting on the sofa. She had an embroidery hoop in her hands and appeared to be working on some stitching.

When she noticed me, she stopped, gently patted the seat beside her, and, with a soft smile and narrowed eyes, invited me to sit next to her.

I quickly crossed the spacious room, circling the table, and hurried over to her side. Then, as if clinging to her, I sat down right beside her.

“Were you alright, Susie? He didn’t make you uncomfortable, did he?”
“I’m fine, Mama Sonia. There’s no problem at all.”

She placed her hand gently over mine, her expression full of concern as she asked. When I reassured her, she shifted her gaze to Anne-Marie.

“Leave it to me, Madam. If necessary, I will deal with him promptly at any time.”

Anne-Marie replied in a flat tone, as if she were talking about processing hunted prey. N-no, seriously, please don’t! Nothing that extreme!

Mama Sonia gave a troubled smile at Anne-Marie’s words, then looked back down at me. “Shall we take a breather?” she said, and asked Miss Elrose to prepare some tea.

The lounge we were in sat between my room and Mama Sonia and Papa Howard’s bedroom. Of course, since this was the Amukham House lounge, it was several times larger than the one back home. It was practically the size of a classroom.

The mantelpiece alone was massive and lavish, probably twice the size of the one at home. The sofa and table we were sitting on were elegant yet grand. The frame was shaped with gentle curves, and intricate carvings of intertwining plants were etched into it, as if to proudly display the craftsmanship. The red velvet sofa was incredibly soft, far too luxurious for someone as common as me.

(Ahh… I just want to relax back in our own living room already…)

“You know… Howard hardly ever stayed in the village in the past…”

Mama Sonia began speaking softly as she set her teacup back onto its saucer.

The topic turned to Papa Howard. Neither of us really cared about Fourier. Our minds drifted away from him almost instantly. What mattered was Papa Howard. It had already been a week. There was no way we could not worry about him.

Leaning against Mama Sonia, I looked up at her face and waited for her to continue.

“He often left the village for requests elsewhere, but most of the time, he was venturing into the deep forest… He used to say, even as a child, that it was his mission to develop Iroshio, even just a little.”

She gave a faint, nostalgic smile as she looked into her teacup, as if seeing fragments of the past reflected on its surface.

“This time it’s only been a week, but… it wasn’t unusual for us to lose contact for one or even two months… At the worst, there were times he didn’t return from Iroshio for half a year. And every time, he never once considered how worried I was. He would always come back saying, ‘Sonia, I’m home,’ and pull me into an embrace with a happy smile. And I would always reply, ‘Welcome home, Howard. You must be tired, no?’ After all… why should I let him know just how worried I’d been? So I made sure to sound as indifferent as possible.”

The way Mama Sonia spoke, just slightly pouty, felt strangely fresh… and adorable.
I could almost picture those moments between them.

“But after Lavi was born, he started staying home more. And when Lavi turned five… he announced his retirement and stepped away from the front lines.”

As she said that, Mama Sonia turned her gaze toward a photo frame on the mantelpiece.

Yes, this world had photographs too. They were monochrome, though. The focus was softer than in my old world, like those early historical photos of samurai.

The technology still felt a bit crude. Right now, several photos we had brought from home are displayed there. Mama Sonia had brought them here, believing we wouldn’t be able to go home for a while.

There were photos of each of us individually. A family photo of the three of us together. Younger versions of Papa Howard and Mama Sonia. And… a photo of Lavi.
Mama Sonia told me she had kept Lavi’s photo put away for years, unable to properly look at it. After we took our family photo, she said she wanted to place it together with the others. She took it out from deep inside a drawer and placed it next to my photo.

“This way, the whole family can be together.” I still clearly remember how happy those words of hers made me.

Now, as she gazed at Lavi’s photo, Mama Sonia continued,

“After that, he seemed to find purpose in training the next generation… but feelings he’s carried since childhood don’t just disappear so easily… When he said he would go to Iroshio… his eyes had the same light as back then. Truthfully… I didn’t want him to go. I really wanted to stop him… But when I saw those eyes… I couldn’t. Because he is a man of Amukham… and I, too, am a woman of Amukham. No matter what, that will never change…”

She placed her teacup down and gently stroked my head, as if to comfort me.
I clasped her other hand with both of mine and leaned closer.

“But it will be alright… it will be alright. Howard has always come back safely. This time will be the same… He’ll come back smiling, just like always, saying, ‘I’m home.’ So… it will be alright.”

She kept repeating “It will be alright” again and again.

As if she were trying to convince herself just as much as me. I stayed silent, looking up at her, holding her hand tightly.

◆◆◆◆◆

2nd Red Moon, Day 5, 4:05 AM

Before dawn, in the dim pre-morning darkness, the rear support unit of the Mobile Heavy Cavalry knight order stationed at the Hill of Lamentation was thrown into sudden chaos.

Of the reserve units from Squad 7 to Squad 10, Squads 9 and 10 were still on standby in Amukham Village. At present, a total of twenty personnel, ten from Squads 6 and 7, along with ten from the logistics unit, were stationed at the Hill of Lamentation, awaiting contact from the front lines and preparing supplies.

At that moment, a single knight on a black horse came charging out of the forest at terrifying speed. He smashed through the hastily built barricade, knocked over the campfires, and the horse collapsed on the spot, frothing at the mouth. The rider, drenched in blood, was thrown to the ground.

“He’s losing too much blood! Medical team, hurry!”
“He returned? Alone?! Where are the others?!”
“Team Leader Trevor! This is Casey from Squad 2! Casey Guinness!”
“One of the vanguard?! Not a messenger?!”

“Team Leader! Guinness just opened his eyes!”
“Is he alright? Can he speak?”
“He’s calling for you, Team Leader. I ask that you don’t move him.”

“Guinness, do you hear me? What happened? Where are the others? What happened to the Knight-Commander?”
“…Y-yesterday… 17:00 hours… approximately… 30 kilometers from here… we… encountered… enemy forces… …We engaged… but the difference in strength… was overwhelming… …Requesting… immediate… defensive preparations…”
“Defensive?! Not reinforcements?! Everyone here can move out immediately!”
“…Construct… defensive lines… The enemy… numbers… confirmed up to 2,000… but… total… unknown… …Hurry… build defenses…! They’re… coming… they’ll… flood this place…!!!”