"Brothers"

When Edward and Young Master Francois dueled, the White Hawk Duke and his sister-in-law, Kaydelin, had gone up to the second-floor balcony to look down at the garden. They had a clear view of the whole thing.

After Edward easily dealt with his opponent, the White Hawk Duke took a sip of his Black Tea and turned to Kaydelin, who was fanning herself.

"What do you think of the young man?"

"In what way?" the Duke's sister-in-law asked.

"I mean his strength. I'd like to hear your assessment of his fighting as a Caster."

"I can't tell much. His ideas are certainly unconventional, and he's good at finding his opponent's weaknesses. Judging by a formal Mage's Magic Power capacity, that Shaping Technique he used just now might have cost him only one percent of his Magic Power. I really can't tell where his limits are.

"And Alice said that all it took to deal with those two Vampire Counts was one item and the Zero-Level Trick Mage Hand.

"That young man is quite a mystery."

"Then I can rest easy. Anyone Andrea takes an interest in had better have some ability. I don't want Andrea ending up with a burden," the Duke said.

"Then you have nothing to worry about." Great Mage Kaydelin rolled her eyes at her brother-in-law.

"Why?" The Duke seemed confused by what his sister-in-law meant.

"Because of that sword."

"You mean Andrea won't need his protection now that she has that sword?" The man with the tea raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, you're so dense. I mean, Andrea said the young man can use that sword too. So why would he sell it to her?" Kaydelin pressed, trying to give her brother-in-law a hint.

"Because he wants to court my daughter? So he sold her something that valuable at a discount?" The Duke was too caught up in the situation to think straight.

"Fine, I'll spell it out for you."

Kaydelin gave him a look as if he were an idiot.

"As a professional, the only reason he'd dare give someone else his most valuable item is that he doesn't need it anymore! He must be confident he can handle anything without that sword!"

"Good grief... Is this young man really that terrifying? Can he fight opponents two ranks above him?" The Duke drew in a sharp breath.

Kaydelin rolled her eyes and said nothing. She just thought her brother-in-law's remark was rather cliché...

Meanwhile, Edward had already said his goodbyes to Princess Andrea and left the Duke's Mansion. At the entrance, Princess Andrea had seen him off with a beaming smile, and they had wished each other well. They'd looked as if they were loath to part.

Edward found it amusing. His house was only two or three streets away from here, wasn't it? He could be home in a few steps. What was there to be wistful about?

Then, to the astonished looks of the dignitaries preparing to climb into their carriages, he set off toward home on foot. They wondered if the Princess had taken a liking to some penniless man. Even Mage apprentices rode in carriages these days. How could the head of an Alchemist Branch not afford one?

Edward sensed their astonished stares. He turned, tipped his tall top hat, and flashed them a smug smile.

Walking had its advantages. Though the Duke's Mansion ball was over, the streets were still lively. The market stretching from Fountain Square to Flower Street was still open, and merchants had lit oil lamps and set up their night stalls.

Although soldiers had "borrowed" Fountain Square for a while to set off fireworks, the magnificent sight had drawn even more citizens out of their homes and into the square. The "common folk's festivities" were only just reaching their peak.

In a broad area south of the center of the square, people had lit bonfires. Men and women in bright traditional clothes joined hands and danced merrily around the flames. Folk musicians struck up tunes on violins, accordions, and other instruments, accompanying them as joyful songs rang across the square.

On the other side of the square, acrobats who had appeared from who knew where performed tricks like pulling rabbits from hats, balancing plates, breathing fire, swallowing swords, and breaking stones on their chests. Passersby watched in amazement.

The night market had shifted from stalls selling ingredients and household goods to stalls offering all kinds of snacks and trinkets. Some sold bread stuffed with Meat Pie, much like the Turkish kebabs of his Previous Life. Others skewered assorted meats and vegetables on bamboo sticks, brushed them with secret sauces, and grilled them over the fire. The meat sizzled over the coals, giving off a mouthwatering aroma.

Parents strolled among the stalls with their children, laughing as they bought an eager child a piece of candy or a skewer of grilled meat. Young couples leaned close together, stopping now and then at stalls selling cheap accessories to point things out. A boy bought a girl a hair clip and carefully pinned it in her hair. She checked herself in the stall's mirror, then happily kissed him on the cheek. Sailors at a beer stall boasted as they drank beer from Wooden mugs. When they set them down, a ring of "white whiskers" remained around their mouths...

Edward took in the scene and breathed deeply. Suddenly, he felt that this was what life was all about! The banquet and ball earlier had felt so distant from him, except for that beautiful figure. He really should have brought her here to stroll through the night market with him and let her experience the simple pleasures of ordinary people.

The thought made him realize that it might actually work, but after a moment's consideration, he shook his head and gave up on the idea. It would be easy enough to do, but it was the New Year. He shouldn't go and bother her.

The tempting smell of grilled skewers suddenly made him feel hungry, so he headed for a barbecue stall. Just as he turned without thinking, he caught sight of a familiar figure.

At the north end of Fountain Square, where the Holy Light Church stood, points of light shimmered. The pure, sacred sound of singing drifted faintly over. It was the Holy Light Church's New Year Sermon Ceremony.

Edward had heard from Elwin that this would be his last year leading the hymns. Next year, when he turned eighteen, he would no longer be allowed to sing in the boys' choir. At this hour, he should still be singing.

Those points of light were the collective divine magic of all the priests of the Holy Light Church. The spell had no practical effect; it merely illuminated the entire church at night to display a "miracle" and attract believers.

What caught his eye was the back of a young man. He stood motionless at the edge of the square, gazing at the Holy Light Church, or perhaps at the sky above it.

His rigid silhouette seemed frozen in place. In the glow of the bonfires, he looked completely out of place amid the cheerful festivities.

Edward hesitated, because he knew that figure very well. This was the "brother" from the Godfall Brotherhood who had left the deepest impression on him.

At the time, everyone had decided to disband the Godfall Brotherhood because of the Ailande authorities' persecution and the hunters' pursuit.

Edward had prepared a Mithril amulet for each of them. He had told them that as long as they kept the amulet on, the hunters wouldn't notice them.

If they wore the amulet and lived quietly as ordinary people for a few years, their Baptizer Aura would fade away since they wouldn't be carrying out the Oracle's commands.

The young man before him was an idealist. Although he had accepted Edward's amulet, he had still resolutely picked up a protest sign and led the immigrants from the nations victimized by Ailande out into the streets.

The last time Edward had seen him, he had been holding up an antiwar sign and shouting antiwar slogans as he and a crowd of immigrants surrounded the Ailande Council Building. Edward had known then that this "brother" might never make it back.

But why was he in the New Continent? Had he managed to escape? A flood of questions drove Edward toward him. When he was only two or three meters away, he hesitantly called out:

"Kevin? Is that you?"

The man turned his head with a jerky, mechanical motion. It really was Kevin, the "brother" from back then. Edward was just about to approach him happily when he stopped short. Something felt wrong. The young man's gaze was utterly unfamiliar, as cold as a machine's or some cold-blooded animal's. He looked as if he had never seen Edward before.

The man turned his head to an angle no ordinary person could manage. Then, without moving his head, he slowly turned his body too, staring unblinkingly at Edward.

Edward's hairs stood on end. All sound suddenly vanished from his ears, and the people and surroundings around him blurred into shifting patches of color. It was as if he had activated the zoom lens on a phone from his Previous Life: only the young man before him remained in sharp focus.

He hurriedly put on a monocle. The young man in the lens looked the same as before, and the background had returned to its original appearance. But the "Kevin" before him was radiating an eerie purple-red glow.

Then "Kevin" spoke:

"Heh... heh..."

First came a string of indistinct sounds. Then, as if he hadn't spoken in a long time, he said in a strange, halting tone:

"Mis...ter, you know this body, cough... no, do you know me?"

"You're not Kevin. Who are you? Or what are you?" Edward asked, his expression grim. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Heh, heh. Looks... like I've been found... out." The Kevin before him spoke in a voice like that of an old, broken radio from his Previous Life, every word grating like rusted metal.

"You're also a member of that 'Godfall' Brotherhood, right? What was your name again? Let me look through his memories." The man spoke as if he were a robot making small talk.

Edward's whole body was taut, ready for a fight. Hidden behind his back, his left hand had taken an item from his Spatial Ring and was pressing it lightly against his back.

Something seemed to writhe beneath the man's scalp. His eyes began to move out of sync, and his mouth hung open, drool dripping from it. It was as if something were trapped inside his body.

Suddenly, Kevin's right eye focused on Edward again. Half his face twisted and contorted, like some of the stroke patients Edward had seen in his Previous Life. The distorted half of his face began to scream desperately:

"Edwawd... run... it's a huntew... I can't howd on... run..."

Edward had gotten used to the Princess's clumsy Ventriloquism and understood him:

Edward, run! It's a hunter! I can't hold on! Run!