Ch. 7: The Stagnant Swamp
Within the forest, the air was gloomy and stagnant…-.
In order to find out the cause of the spreading forbidden grounds, Lucien and I headed into the depths of the forest.
There…-.
Lucien: “…what is this swamp…?”
OO: “…”
The air had a horrid smell, choking me and preventing me from opening my eyes all the way.
Noticing me, Lucien gently wrapped his wings around me.
OO: “Lucien…”
Lucien: “It’s pretty harsh…you okay?”
He tightly gripped my shoulder and pulled me in extremely close.
I could feel Lucien’s rapid heartbeat beside me, and it made my chest hurt even more.
(I can tell how anxious he is…)
OO: “Yes, I’m alright.”
I replied as brightly as I could, wanting him to take heart and have courage.
(It smells terrible…and I can feel how stagnant the air is.)
There was an ominous sense of fear hanging over the swamp, and I started to feel a tingling sensation on my scalp.
Lucien: “It’s dangerous to stay too long. Anyway, there’s no doubt this swamp is the source of the miasma, and the reason the forbidden grounds are spreading. …let’s get out of here right away.”
OO: “Okay…”
Lucien’s wings protected me the entire way, and we were finally able to escape the forbidden grounds.
Ch. 8: Sacred Dust
After returning to the castle, Lucien spent a great deal of time looking for a solution to the spreading of the forbidden grounds that was choked with miasma…-.
Lucien: “…”
Even though the birds gathered for him on the balcony, his heart wasn’t into feeding them…
OO: “Lucien…are you alright?”
Lucien: “…!”
I called out to him in concern, but I saw how I’d surprised him as his shoulders shivered.
At the same time, the birds all took to the sky.
OO: “I’m sorry, I scared them off.”
Lucien: “It’s fine…”
OO: “Is it alright if I’m here with you?”
Lucien: “Yeah…”
I slowly walked up and looked to his face as I stood beside him.
Seeing his profile, I thought that Lucien looked even more gaunt than he had before.
Lucien: “How unlucky. Micaela is away in another country…”
OO: “Micaela?”
I asked for clarification, tilting my head at the first time hearing the name.
Lucien suddenly looked at me in surprise.
Lucien: “…Micaela is my younger twin brother.”
OO: “Oh I see.”
(I never knew he had a brother, and I’ve never seen him act like this…)
Lucien: “I need to report on the issue of the forbidden grounds. If Micaela knew about it, I’m sure he’d be able to come up with a solution right away.”
Lucien said it so assuredly, and I could see how much he relied on his younger brother.
OO: “Your brother sounds very reliable.”
Lucien: “…yeah, he’s very important to me.”
(Lucien?)
He was showing one of his rare smiles, but for some reason that smile seemed tinged with a sadness that made my heart ache.
(Did something happen with his brother…?)
Lucien: “But we don’t have the time to wait…I have to do something alone.”
OO: “Eh…?”
Pledging his decision, Lucien calmly closed his eyes.
Lucien: “The sacred dust should work to stop the encroaching miasma-filled swamp. I’ll scatter it from the sky.”
OO: “Sacred dust…?”
Lucien: “It’s one of the magic tools of this country, passed down from generation to generation. It has the ability to control the strong miasma.”
OO: “You’re doing it alone…? It would be better if someone could help you.”
Lucien: “No, I can’t do that.”
At that time…-.
Servant: “That’s right Lord Lucien! Please reconsider!”
The servant suddenly appeared from wherever they had been hiding and listening to our conversation.
Lucien: “You…”
Servant: “I’ve heard that even after your wings turn black…people who have been hit by the miasma again become sick. Please…”
Lucien: “…still, I have to do it. I don’t want anyone else to become like me.”
Servant: “…Lord Lucien.”
I wondered if the servant could sense Lucien’s firm resolve, because they hung their head in defeat.
OO: “Lucien, let me help too.”
Lucien: “No. I told you. Even though you don’t have wings, I can’t say for certain that being struck by the strong miasma won’t have a negative effect on you.”
OO: “Then I’m the same as you. Please…two is better than one, so I’m sure we’ll be able to finish quickly.”
Having made the same decision as him, I firmly took my stance.
Lucien: “Fine, but please, don’t push yourself.”
Lucien let out a short sigh of defeat…-.
…
……
And so…
Lucien: “You ready?”
OO: “Yes…!”
We stood before the forbidden grounds, bags stuffed with sacred dust in hand.
Lucien: “…let’s go.”
Lucien lifted me up, and then I was soaring into the sky…-.
That sky was overcast and gloomy.
We quickly reached the proper elevation, and my body shivered in the cold air.
Lucien: “…scared?”
Lucien looked down at me anxiously.
(I can’t let him worry about me…I was the one with the unreasonable request to come after all.)
OO: “I-I’m fine!”
Lucien: “…I see. You’re strong huh.”
The faint smile on his face sent a bolt of electricity through my heart…-.
Then we arrived just above the blackened forest.
(Is that the miasma…?)
Black, stagnant air hung in the sky above the depths of the forest.
Lucien: “It’s become pretty thick… OO, the dust.”
At Lucien’s prompting, I pulled a handful of dust from the bag and lightly threw it into the sky.
There…-.
The dust shone and sparkled as it reached the cloud, and the black miasma it touched disappeared immediately.
Lucien: “Alright, good…let’s keep going.”
Lucien and I continuing to scatter the sacred dust… dispelling the miasma until evening…-.
…
……
Somehow, the two of us were able to survive the miasma, and the sacred dust had been a success.
OO: “With that…everything should be fine now, right?”
Lucien: “Yeah…thanks.”
(Good…!)
The two of us stood at the edge of the forbidden grounds, smiling at each other.
At that time…-.
Little Girl: “Ah…”
A lone little girl was looking at us, and I wondered if she’d come to the forest.
Lucien: “You’re…”
Seeing Lucien, the little girl’s face drained of color…
Little Girl: “Black wings…s-scary!”
Lucien: “…!”
She ran away in fear.
OO: “Ah…wait!”
Lucien grabbed my arm as I went to run after her.
Lucien: “It’s fine. She should get away from this place quickly.”
OO: “It’s not fine! I’m sure she just misunderstood…-“
Lucien: “…it’s alright.”
The grip Lucien had on my arm was strong.
And I couldn’t say anything in the wake of that strength.
Ch. 9: Lucien's Resolution
Lucien had successfully restrained the miasma of the forbidden grounds, but after being seen leaving the area, he went even further to avoid having any contact with the people of the country…-.
(Lucien worked so hard to save the people, but…)
Lucien: “OO…don’t look at me like that.”
OO: “But I’m sure there was just some misunderstanding with that girl who saw you leaving the forbidden grounds… If you’re discriminated against even more after this…”
Lucien: “…at this point there’s nothing to be done. We can’t change what happened.”
OO: “But Lucien…”
Lucien kept talking, cutting off anything else I would have said to argue.
Lucien: “I’m fine…just having gotten rid of the miasma in the swamp is enough. …so no one else like me will appear.”
(But that’s…so sad.)
I hung my head at my own powerlessness, full of regret and sadness, and Lucien quietly moved closer.
Lucien: “…”
(Lucien?)
I looked up as he stood right next to me…
Lucien: “I’ve decided to leave this country.”
OO: “Eh…”
I was speechless at his unexpected decision.
Lucien: “This country doesn’t need people with black wings. So…it’d be better if I was gone.”
(What’s with this all of a sudden…? That’s…-)
Lucien was calm as he closed his eyes, but I was in chaos.
Lucien: “Actually…I’ve always thought about doing this. Now, I’m resolved.”
He spoke as if reflecting on his own pain, and I could nothing but stand there frozen.
Ch. 10: A Single Ally
The darkness of the deep night dyed Lucien’s room…-.
———————
Lucien: “I’ve decided to leave this country. This country doesn’t need people with black wings. So… it’d be better if I was gone.”
———————
After that, Lucien’s decision had been such a shock that I didn’t know what to say.
(But Lucien’s a kinder, better person than anyone else.)
I bit my lip in frustration, and had headed towards Lucien’s room as he prepared for his journey…-.
OO: “Where will you go?”
Lucien: “I don’t know yet. But …I want to go to the place I love most in this country one last time.”
OO: “The place you love… Could I go with you?”
Lucien: “No. You shouldn’t be near me anyway.”
He hurled those words without looking at me, and my heart twisted in pain.
OO: “…”
Lucien: “It hadn’t been my intent…but you got completely wrapped up in this issue.”
OO: “That’s just because I was persistent…”
Lucien: “You really are weird.”
Lucien’s eyes were softer than I’d ever seen them…and they were filled with sadness.
I didn’t want to be parted from him, no matter what, so I ventured to ask again.
OO: “…Lucien, will you take me with you?”
Lucien: “…you’ll come even if I say no.”
Then Lucien smiled in earnest.
…
……
Lucien and I went to a flower field not far from the forbidden grounds we’d been in not long ago.
(…ah!)
There was a forest in the deeper part of the flower field, and as we walked deeper in, we came to an area filled with a small spring.
The moonlight shone down on it, and I was spellbound as I watched the magical effect of the light reflecting off the water’s surface.
OO: “This place is so beautiful.”
Lucien: “Yeah, I love it here. I used to play here a lot when I was a kid…”
OO: “…with Micaela?”
Lucien: “Yeah…exactly. Micaela and I…and the others would play here.”
There was a yearning in his eyes for something long gone, and he slowly walked out into the spring without a care for his clothes getting wet.
His pure black wings flicked away the water, and the droplets were beautiful as they hung in the moonlight.
(Somehow, it’s so beautiful…)
OO: “… beautiful.”
I spoke without thinking, and Lucien turned to look at me.
The beauty I saw then took my breath away, and for a moment I was at a loss for words…
Lucien: “Micaela would rest easier if I wasn’t around.”
OO: “Eh…?”
Lucien: “I entered the forbidden grounds, and my wings turned black… because Micaela almost fell in. He almost got hit with the miasma, and I protected him. Right over there…on the other side of this spring is the forbidden grounds…”
Lucien was quiet as he told the tale.
There was too much sadness and regret in his voice, and I was helpless to stop the pain in my heart.
OO: “But…I think he’d be lonely if he lost his brother.”
Lucien: “Even if I’m suffering?”
OO: “Eh…?”
(Suffering?)
He dipped his hand in the spring water and stared at it, cupped in the palm of his hand.
Lucien: “…I’m at my limit of being in that country. It feels like I’m suffocating. Still…I’m bound to it.”
My heart cried out in grief, and I looked at the motionless Lucien…
Lucien: “…will you come here?”
Bathed in the light of the moon, Lucien held his hand out to me.
OO: “…”
As he stood there inviting me, I went into the spring with him…
OO: “…!”
I was caught up in Lucien’s arms, and he held me tightly.
The splash of water that went up into the air became tiny sparkles in the moonlight.
Lucien: “You’re the only one on my side.”
He placed his hand on my cheek, then drew his face in closer…-.
OO: “Luci…-. Nn…”
Without even enough time to call his name, my lips were stopped with a deep kiss.
Lucien: “…”
He kissed me again with barely a chance to catch my breath, and I felt my body heating up, but…
(He’s so sad…)
I felt my heart couldn’t hurt any worse, and this time tears gathered in my eyes.
At last our lips parted…and what I saw as I slowly opened my eyes was Lucien’s incredibly sorrowful smile.
Lucien: “You just naturally accepted the color of my wings and truly looked at me.”
I could feel the coolness of the water and the heat of Lucien’s body as I continued to stare into his eyes.
Finally…
Lucien: “So please, don’t hate me…OO…”
Even now he looked at me as if he was about to cry, and my heart felt like it would break completely.
OO: “I could never hate you. Lucien…I’ll go with you anywhere. Remember, I’m persistent…”
I smiled, holding back my tears, and Lucien moved in even closer.
Lucien: “OO… OO…yeah, if we’re together… we can go however far we want… we can go anywhere. Even with these black wings …”
OO: “Your wings are beautiful. Within those wings, your wings, is the most beautiful, wonderful thing that I have ever known.”
Lucien: “Thanks…”
I placed my hand on his cheek, and this time I kissed him.
Even if the world rejected him, I would always be close by his side…
That was the single, solemn vow I made.
END