A Phantom in a Dream

The four of them tore into the simple but plentiful meal with gusto.

There's a saying that hunger is the best seasoning, and this was exactly one of those times.

The contents of the basket piled high with stuffed bread vanished in the blink of an eye.

Whenever a bite got stuck going down, a gulp of soup washed it along.

He'd made the soup piping hot, but the cold air had cooled it to lukewarm in no time. Right now, though, that was a blessing.

Ramiza-san brought out cheese and wine, which they nibbled on as well.

The rich flavors were irresistible.

Under any other circumstances, he'd have wanted to savor them properly. This was genuinely high-quality stuff. Right now, though, it was all just fuel for empty stomachs.

They finished with the cookies.

The overly sweetened little biscuits were, as a dessert, absolutely perfect.

Normally he might have stopped after one bite, but the timing couldn't have been better.

Once they'd polished off everything, all four of them slumped over in their chairs right where they sat.

It had been very hard work.

It wasn't over yet, but at least they'd reached a point where they could catch their breath.

"Ahh, I haven't had a bath…"

"We didn't exactly have the time."

"That's true."

"One day without a bath won't kill anyone."

"You should never say that to a lady, you know."

Elza, face-down on the table just like Yohane, turned only her head toward him in reproach.

But there was no force behind her words.

She was utterly spent.

Even if sleep had come in scattered bits, none of it had been restful.

Everyone fell silent, motionless in their slumped positions.

Then someone started snoring softly.

Before long, the number of sleepers grew.

The warm air from the hearth combined with the drowsiness from eating to bursting.

In a state where even a headache crept in from fragmented sleep, there was no fighting it.

Outside, the sound of a blizzard could be heard.

Aah… just let me sleep right now.

"Yohane. Wake up, Yohane."

Someone shook his shoulder hard.

He knew of only one person who woke people this unceremoniously.

He opened his eyes. The person he expected was there.

"Good morning, Ithus."

"Mm, good morning. Yohane."

The one who'd shaken him awake was Ithus, his childhood friend, long since dead.

A girl with blue hair and a lively smile.

He must be dreaming.

The Ithus before him looked younger than Azu.

"You're about the same height yourself, you know."

At her words, he looked down and found the ground closer than usual.

It seemed he'd regressed to match her age.

Anything goes in a dream, apparently.

"You've been working really hard."

"Have I?"

"Of course you have. You used to love napping and reading adventure novels, but now you never do either."

There hadn't been time for that.

He'd needed to accumulate knowledge and earn money.

"Why? Why do you need to earn money?"

"Because I didn't have money, I couldn't save you. That's why I need it."

Yes. That was it.

The busy days had pushed dreams of Ithus away entirely, but he'd never forgotten the vow he'd made.

Ithus doubled over laughing.

"That's so silly. I'm already dead."

"I know that. It's not that I can't accept your death."

"Are you sure? Then why won't you reach out to them more?"

Them. Did she mean Azu and the others?

He knew they wanted more. A deeper connection.

Elza especially, it was obvious. And Azu and Alexia wouldn't refuse, either.

Yet for some reason, he couldn't take that step.

"Are you afraid of loving someone again?"

"I don't know."

"You're afraid of not being able to save them again."

"… …"

He couldn't deny it.

This was a dream, after all. The girl before him was Ithus and yet not Ithus.

A phantom conjured by Yohane's own memories.

The real Ithus couldn't possibly know any of this.

When he'd sent Azu out for the first time, he'd outfitted her with excessive equipment because he'd wanted her to come back alive.

Had he wanted a slave in the first place because he'd been looking for a replacement for Ithus?

"I can't believe it. After all this time, you're still hung up on me."

"… Of course I am. I held on to you until the very end as your body went cold."

That sensation still refused to fade from his memory.

She'd wasted away from drug addiction.

The crude refining process had produced something far too toxic, and the symptoms had progressed rapidly.

Young as he'd been, Yohane had been helpless. Even his parents, still alive at the time, had been powerless.

If the present-day Yohane were to stand before Ithus in that state, what could he do?

Maybe, in the end, he just wanted an excuse.

Something to tell himself: if I'd had this much money, I could have saved her.

"It's time to forget about me. I'm already dead. Listen, they're calling you."

"I…"

He wanted to say something.

Should he apologize? Tell her he was glad to see her again?

"Bye-bye."

Before he could say a word, Ithus's figure began to dissolve.

The dream, it seemed, was ending.

"Wake up. Wake up. Wake up already!"

A firm hand shook him awake. He'd been dreaming something nostalgic, he thought.

It was Finn who'd woken him.

Seeing that his eyes were open, she gave her usual little huff.

"You were having a nightmare, so I woke you up. Be grateful… Why are you crying?"

"Crying? Me?"

He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. Sure enough, it came away wet.

He'd been crying in his sleep, apparently.

When was the last time he'd shed tears? He couldn't remember.

"Oh my, your eyes are swollen. Hold still."

Elza dabbed away the tears with her handkerchief and gently performed a healing miracle.

"Were you having a sad dream?"

"I'm not sure. I can't remember. But I feel like it was something I shouldn't forget."

"If you forget it, it wasn't important. The things that truly matter, you never forget."

"That's not always true. You're still a lot younger than me."

"Are you calling me a child?!"

Finn erupted.

He'd apparently hit a nerve.

Elza soothed her by stuffing a leftover cookie into her mouth.

Finn munched through it and seemed to calm down.

"Whatever. You're going to show that medicine to that burly lord, right? Sooner's better than later."

"I know."

"But first, a bath and some grooming. You can't appear before the lord looking like this."

As Yohane started to stand, Elza pressed a towel and a change of clothes into his hands.

Come to think of it, both Finn and Elza had changed outfits, and their skin looked smooth and clean.

They'd apparently bathed while he slept.

"Ramiza-san let us use her bath. She's drawn a fresh one, so it's clean and piping hot."

Elza said this while pushing him firmly from behind.

"H-hey. I can go on my own."

"You're presenting yourself to the lord, so you need to be clean. I'll help wash your back. It's part of a slave's duties, after all. Master."

There was no resisting Elza's strength.

He was forcibly assisted with his bath.