Cold Feet

"Yohane-san, please come right in."

"Thanks for your hard work. I had some food and drink sent over to the barracks again, so look forward to it."

"Oh, booze? Much appreciated, but I wonder if there'll be any left by the time my shift's over."

"It's more than the off-duty guys can drink by themselves."

He chatted with the gate guard. Before coming here, he'd stopped by a liquor shop and arranged for drinks and snacks to be delivered.

They were fellow commoners, after all.

Unlike nobles, if he lost his position he'd have a hard time even getting into the castle, so it didn't hurt to stay on good terms with them for when the need might arise.

The cost of some booze and food was nothing.

Passing through the gate and entering the castle, he headed for the far right of the ground floor.

This area had suffered damage from the meteorite, but there was no trace of it anymore.

If anything, the only tell was the clear boundary between the repaired and original sections.

It was unavoidable that the newly repaired areas stood out.

Time would take care of that.

The hallway was empty. It was midday, a time that would normally be bustling, yet it was quiet.

Right now, the only sounds were Azu and Yohane's footsteps.

A pleasant click-clack rhythm.

"It's a little strange, isn't it? The two of us walking through the castle like this…"

"I know what you mean. Not long ago, we couldn't even pass through the gate unless we'd been summoned for something."

The days of nervously passing through the gate felt like a distant memory.

Continuing down the hallway, a large hall came into view at the far end.

This space was opened up as a salon for nobles and foreign ambassadors to mingle.

Voices chatting and laughing could be heard from the other side of the door.

It seemed reasonably lively.

… And yet, even though the salon was right there on the other side, his hand froze on the door.

"Master, what's wrong?"

"No, it's nothing."

"That's not a 'nothing' face! You've gone completely pale. Don't tell me you're nervous?"

"Hmm…"

He'd marched here with such determination, but at the last moment, the memory of being thrown into a cell came flooding back.

That had been his first head-on confrontation with a noble, and he'd paid dearly for it.

He thought he'd gotten over it, but apparently the damage had lingered far deeper than he'd realized.

He'd met so many nobles by now and thought he'd grown used to it…

Queen Tianis was royalty, and Chancellor Anatia was a duke's daughter. He'd never felt uneasy around Princess Yupe, either.

Maybe it was because, beyond that door, there was nothing but complete strangers of noble birth, and that was making him overthink things.

"If you're not feeling well, let's come back another day. I think that would be best."

He must have looked terrible for Azu to worry this much.

A little push was all it would take to open the door, and yet it refused to budge, as though it were made of stone.

Maybe he should call it a day. He couldn't imagine holding a proper conversation with the nobles inside while he was like this.

This had never happened to him before. Was he more on edge than usual?

He sighed and released the door.

Let's go home.

Just as that thought crossed his mind…

A sharp slap hit him square on the back.

He thought it was Azu, but the angle was wrong. And she was shaking her head no.

"Ow!"

"Oh, Yohane! What are you doing standing around here?"

He turned to see who it was, and there stood Princess Yupe.

She'd come up right beside him without him noticing. He hadn't sensed her at all…

"You didn't have to hit me."

"You had such a gloomy-looking back, I thought I'd give you a boost of courage."

"A gloomy-looking back…?"

What kind of back is that? he thought, but he let it go.

Thanks to the jolt, the weight he'd been feeling had been knocked clean out of him.

He could act normally again.

He supposed he could be grateful for that much. Even if his back was still stinging…

"It's unusual for you to come to the salon, isn't it? I didn't think you had much contact with nobles besides us."

"Something's been on my mind. Rumors about nobles… you can only hear them in a place like this."

"That's true. It's not that anyone's being secretive, but commoners and nobles move in different worlds, so information just doesn't cross over. That's why having you around is a huge help to us."

The information that reached Queen Tianis and the others wasn't raw intel from the kingdom's commoners; it was data that bureaucrats had collected and organized to some degree.

It would be naive to assume there was no bias in it.

No matter how brilliant a person was, if they made decisions based on flawed information, they'd reach flawed conclusions.

Being able to help bridge that gap was what made Yohane's position so valuable.

"Oh, wait, did you come here to gather info but then get cold feet? Am I right? I'm right, aren't I?"

She leaned in close, pressing for an answer.

She'd entered that annoying teasing mode.

The low-cut dress she was wearing made for a sight too tempting for his own good.

"You're too close, Yupe-sama."

"Oh, what's the harm. Hey, you're strong!"

Azu pulled Princess Yupe away from him.

Good grief. She looked way too pleased with herself for having hit the nail on the head.

"Don't be so cold. The salon is like my backyard. I could help you out, you know. Lately the Finance Minister's faction hasn't been showing up much, so it's mostly royalists. If I put in a word for you, you can ask about anything."

"That… I'd love to take you up on that, actually."

He'd seen her popularity firsthand many times.

No noble would turn down an invitation from her.

When it came to things like this, she was more reliable than anyone.

Especially among the royalist faction.

"Then let's go. Come on, stop dawdling."

"I'm not mentally prepared yet…"

She grabbed his arm and pulled, and the salon door swung open.

Inside was… He'd expected opulent grandeur, but it was more modest than he'd imagined.

Several tables had light refreshments laid out, with maids attending.

Nobles were scattered about, chatting as they pleased.

The door opening drew every eye, and he swallowed hard.

The instant they recognized Princess Yupe, the frozen atmosphere thawed all at once.

He could feel the shift on his skin.

"Beloved by all" was no exaggeration.